Temple Of Apshai Download
Wisam Ammouri
Temple of Apshai was the first computer role-playing game with room descriptions.[1] Detailed descriptions of all the rooms in the game's manual complement the sparse graphics and provide vital information. Pen-and-paper games like Dungeons & Dragons frequently make use of verbal depictions given by dungeon masters to suggest to players what is of interest in a setting. Similarly, in Temple of Apshai the player matches an on-screen room number to its entry in the manual that accompanies the game. One sample entry reads: "The aroma of vanilla makes the senses reel and the floor of the room is covered with the shiny stuff previously observed. Bones lie scattered across the floor and the clicking sound grows fainter from within. Gems stud the south wall."[12] A vanilla scent is used in the game to suggests the presence of Antmen, the dominant monster type in the temple.[13]
In 1994 I wrote an article called "Temple of Apshai: A Classic Graphical Adventure." I had mapped the first four levels of the temple while playing the Atari 8-Bit version of the game. I included the first three levels of the map in the article. Recently I brushed the dust off this article and it can now be read online, here:
Temple of Apshai: A Classic Graphical Adventure
After re-reading my Temple of Apshai article I wanted to play the game again. What I REALLY wanted to do was to map the levels using an emulator. I decided to play the Commodore 64 version using the Vice emulator, since my first experience with the series was on this system in the mid-eighties. Having played the C64 version and the Atari 8-bit versions of the trilogy in detail, I can say with confidence that they are nearly identical as far as gameplay goes.
Here is the map that I made of The Temple of Apshai, Level 1:
As you can see, I also went through the trouble of numbering each room so that it can be matched with the description of the room that is found in the Temple of Apshai manual. For instance, here is the manual's description of the first room that you enter:
I hope that you find these links useful. Keep in mind that I don't link to every post in this thread, and the links are not necessarily in the order which they were posted. If you want to follow along with how these maps developed, then I encourage you to give this thread a full read. It will take you quite some time (perhaps a couple of fun-filled evenings). I promise that if you read this entire thread, whether or not you're a fan of the Apshai games on the Atari or any other platform, that you'll find the experience to be highly rewarding,
Temple of Apshai Trilogy Maps (Atari 8-Bit Maps)
When I was part-way through making the maps for the Commodore 64, I decided to add the locations on each map of all of the traps and treasures. On the Atari maps (which I made later), each treasure and trap location is always listed. Also, on some of the later maps I begin to list the treasures, how much they're worth and what they do if they have magic powers. I wish that I had done this on all of the maps.
The Temple of Apshai, Level 1 (Atari 8-Bit Version)
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/?do=findComment&comment=2313372
The Temple of Apshai, Level 2 (Atari 8-Bit Version)
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/?do=findComment&comment=2314305
The Temple of Apshai, Level 3 (Atari 8-Bit Version)
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/?do=findComment&comment=2315191
The Temple of Apshai, Level 4 (Atari 8-Bit Version)
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/?do=findComment&comment=2318987
Upper Reaches of Apshai Maps (Atari 8-Bit Maps)
Upper Reaches of Apshai, Level 1: The Innkeeper's Backyard
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/?do=findComment&comment=2322106
Upper Reaches of Apshai, Level 2: Merlis' Cottage
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/page-2?do=findComment&comment=3033108
Upper Reaches of Apshai, Level 3: Olias' Cellar
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/page-2?do=findComment&comment=3044099
Upper Reaches of Apshai, Level 4: Benedic's Monastery
-temple-of-apshai-trilogy-maps/page-2?do=findComment&comment=3056734
The Gebite people, however, grew sorely fretful. While none knew the details of the dread Apshai rites, dark rumors abounded, and every year young people disappeared. The priests of Geb, well satisfied with their new wealth, ignored their pleas, for nothing could be proven. By themselves, the people prayed for three years while the temple of Apshai was constructed within the cavern by the sea. They prayed for two years more while a plague of insects from the swamp beset them. They prayed for five years more, while the priests of Geb continued to burn Apshaian incense moss during the Gebite rites, even though crops failed and animals were barren.
One morning, as the priests began their regular devotions, the earth trembled beneath them, and a deafening roar was heard throughout the land. Stumbling out of their tottering temple, the shaken priests were greeted by the tumbled ruins of what had once been their town. Following the cries of the villagers, they hurried to the shore and ran up the beach toward the coastal bluff. When they reached the entrance in the cliff face, a thin streamer of dust was filtering from within. They peered in and, where the mighty temple of Apshai had stood against the far wall, they now saw only a vast slide of fresh earth.
Then, during the reign of high priest Nemdal Geb, a movement was begun to excavate the old temple in search of the legendary gems and gold of the Apshaians. A noted engineer was hired, and first the ancient temple and then the ancient passages, one by one, were cleared. The underground gardens, with their strange, sunless growths, were rediscovered, as were the shops and, finally, the mines of the Apshaians. Nemdal Geb decided to continue the excavation in hopes of recovering the lost knowledge of the Apshaians. This proved to be an ill-fated decision indeed.
Shortly after the fourth passage was cleared, work parties began to disappear. Soon no one would enter the fourth passage, and eventually the other passages and the temple cavern itself became unsafe. Commerce dwindled, and the population waned. The town was again facing disaster. In response to the people's outcries, Nemdal Geb led the other priests of Geb and the strongest warriors of the town in a quest to end forever the curse of Apshai. They entered the fourth passage, and none returned.
For generations, no one has laid eyes upon the old temple of the forgotten ant god Apshai. Envied for their wealth but feared for rumors of dark rituals, its followers were driven into an underground realm centuries ago by the followers of Geb, god of the earth. Deep inside the caverns, they built their city and temple, but in the end they were destroyed by divine intervention and the ruins buried under the earth.
Only recently, high priest Nemdal Geb ordered the excavation of the now but legendary ruins. The temple and its riches were indeed found, but after a short time work parties in the fourth passage of the temple started to disappear, and soon the whole complex became once again inaccessible. Desperate about the decline in population and profits from the temple, the high priest himself led a party of the greatest warriors in town into the depths, only for none of them to ever return.
Fights shock the country and the only rescue can be found in the magic of the temple of Apshai. Unfortunately, in the course of time the location of this temple has fallen into oblivion. Many heroes have tried to find it, but all of them were killed. A legend says that only the blood of the greatest hero of Apshai will be able to relocate the lost temple. Stupidly this "greatest hero" has no blood any more as he was killed during the fights. But hope is not lost yet, as a wise man, Merlis, has found the son of this fighter, who also fulfills the prophecy. And so you are led to the entrance of the dungeons to find a save way to the temple...
31c5a71286