Cyningstan

@cyningstan

Hobbyist retro-game developer. Writing for the ancient IBM PC of 1981: fun in all four colours. I appreciate the Sinclair ZX Spectrum and Psion pocket computers too. Also an ancient board game nerd. Website:

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Bluesky

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Cyningstan@cyningstan· 13d

My latest #TravellerRPG acquisition has arrived. Marc Miller's Traveller, also known as Traveller4, is known among other things for its wonderful art work by Chris Foss.

Marc Miller's Traveller, the front cover.

Marc Miller's Traveller. An example of interior artwork.

Marc Miller's Traveller. Artwork on the back cover.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· 24d

My latest bit of #TravellerRPG material has arrived: the updated Central Supply Catalogue for Mongoose 2nd edition. I wish I'd had this for inspiration back when I was developing #StarCadre Combat Class for #msdos back in 2024. #ibmpc #hp100lx

Traveller Central Supply Catalogue Update 2023 next to a Hewlett Packard 100LX MS-DOS compatible pocket computer, both closed.

Traveller Central Supply Catalogue Update 2023 next to a Hewlett Packard 100LX MS-DOS compatible pocket computer, both open.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· 27d

My latest arrival of #TravellerRPG material. A brand new copy of Traveller⁵ direct from FFE in the US. I know how my spare time will be spent over the next few days.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Jul 12

Challenge accepted... there are more green and magenta palettes than I was expecting. And I have plans for at least one of these. Get your sunglasses at the ready.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Jul 11

My latest Classic #travellerrpg purchase, Book 6: Scouts. Apart from someone's kid deciding the white title would look better in red, it's in good condition. Now for the major quest of getting books 7 and 8 at an affordable price.

Traveller TTRPG Book 6: Scouts. A US Digest sized booklet cover in black, with "Book 6: Scouts" in red, "Traveller" in Yellow, and "Science Fiction Adventure in the Far Future" beneath. At the bottom, the publisher's name "Game Designers' Workshop" in Yellow.

Traveller TTRPG Book 6: Scouts. The Table of Contents.

Traveller TTRPG Book 6: Scouts. A page containing the organisational chart of the Scout Service.

Traveller TTRPG Book 6: Scouts. Rear cover in black, with white text in the upper half describing the contents of the book. A yellow line divides the upper from the lower half, the lower half being left blank.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Jul 10

It's almost as hot today. Too hot even for dungeon crawling...

Entering a dungeon in The Chambers Beneath, with some subtle differences from normal gameplay. The palette is now a hot light green, red, and yellow on a red background. The status message that normally says "You feel bold/confident/afraid/terrified" now says "You feel hot!"

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Jun 30

One way to while away a hot evening is to set yourself down somewhere comfortable, and play Athena Station by @dbisdorf.bsky.social on an #msdos handheld. Preferably one like the #hp100lx that doesn't get hot during use.

Don Bisdorf's Athena Station, an MS-DOS game running on a Hewlett Packard 100LX that is STILL in need of a good dusting.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 30

The table is a major obstacle to movement. Units can see and fire across it, but it blocks movement; units must move around it. Tables are always placed such that there is a path around them. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c...

Krauri looks across the room at the table, before deciding that it is of no tactical use. The table is enlarged in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 27

Conveyors level 4 brings a helpful guard, who picks up one card and places it on a conveyor belt each turn. You have just a single overworked robot to take all four cards to their card readers. You can get #TeamDroid and its level packs from cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #ibmpc #msdos #cga

The player is just starting the fourth level of the Conveyors level pack, and is considering which robot to choose. The card readers are at the top right, with obstructive crates which will have to be moved out of the way, or shot. The cards are on the lower left, in a walled off section that takes up a large part of the map. There are four parallel conveyor belts leading out of that section. A single guard robot starts beside one of the data cards, ready to start moving the cards onto the conveyor belts to be carried towards the player's robot. A forcefield at the bottom left will destroy the guard robot when its work is done.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 23

Chairs are minor obstacles randomly distributed around the location. It takes an extra action point to step over them. Chairs are never placed in corridors. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c...

Anthaen ponders the chair but has no time to sit and rest. An enlarged version of the chair is shown in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 22

In The Anarchic Kingdom, the buildings and characters on a barony screen are a visual representation of that barony's stats. The better a barony is doing, the more impressive they look. cyningstan.itch.io/the-anarchic... #anarchickingdom #ibmpc #msdos #cga

An array of buildings and characters illustrate how well a barony is doing.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 20

Level 3 of Conveyors goes back to the dual chamber theme, with a one-way conveyor belt journey between them. But this time there's a robot in each chamber, so one robot can send data cards to the other. You can get #TeamDroid and Conveyors at cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This level has two chambers, and a single conveyor belt between them. The cards are in the left chamber, the readers in the right, and one robot starts in each chamber. The robots in this screen shot haven't yet moved, but you can see a list of commands ready for Strider, chosen for general manoeuvrability to work in the first chamber. Carrier waits in the second chamber. Carrier can pick up one card while pushing another around Sokoban-style.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 18

Your empire might be bounded by the sea. The sea is completely impassable to your armies, but any port city will bring in gold from sea trade. Save the empire from the #Barbarians by downloading the game from cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians-dos #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This ship is heading for the nearby city of Velauri to trade. Velauri will make 9 gold per turn trading with ships coming in from all seaward directions.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 16

Walls surround the mission level and separate rooms and corridors from one another. They are impassable and block line of sight. Occasionally a large room will have a single pillar which is tactically useful. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c...

Anthaen examines his favourite part of the wall. This section is enlarged and shown in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 15

Land in The Anarchic Kingdom is the measure of your success. It also influences how many peasants your barony can support: when you gain land, people move in. Play at cyningstan.itch.io/the-anarchic... #anarchickingdom #ibmpc #msdos #cga

The barony display, with the amount of land highlighted.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 14

The Warhammer is a large blunt weapon for smashing enemies, requiring Bludgeoning:5 skill. Damage caused to enemies is based on the player character's Strength. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga

Agab the Warrior has progressed very quickly to the use of the Warhammer, the heaviest bludgeoning weapon in the game. This was perhaps at the expense of the proper armoured protection to go with it. But only the future will tell whether Agab has chosen the right path. The warhammer is enlarged in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 13

On the second level of Conveyors, even the guards are helpful pushing the cards onto conveyor belts for you to pick up. But be quick: the cards are being carried towards the forcefields that will destroy them! Download #TeamDroid from cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This level has four conveyor belts, running left to right. At the left end of each is a guard robot, which will push the card on to the conveyor belt before destroying itself in the adjacent forcefield. On the right, the conveyor belts end in forcefields, which will destroy any card that isn't picked up in time. Robot spawners are at the top of the screen, while card readers are at the bottom. We see the level before the robots are placed.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 12

#Waterworld, the game #BarrenPlanet itself, and other expansions are available from the Barren Planet Itch page: cyningstan.itch.io/barren-planet. Keep an eye on this page for future expansions and other news.

Avuscorp's forces around an archipelago.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 11

Mountains in #Barbarians are sources of iron for your weaponry. Traversal is extremely difficult for your troops, though, and it can take several turns for an army to make the climb. The game is available from cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians-dos #ibmpc #msdos #cga

Nestled in the mountains, the city of Velsna brings in 9 iron each turn from mines in the surrounding area.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 9

Most of the location is open floor. Units can move and see across this without obstruction, at a cost of 2 action points (or 3 action points on the diagonal). cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c...

The cursor indicates an area of open floor in the corridor between Aulsere and Stan's body, with an enlarged version shown in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 8

The terrain on the horizon in The Anarchic Kingdom is purely decorative, but differs for every barony. So it's easy to visually spot your own barony when paging through the landscapes. cyningstan.itch.io/the-anarchic... #anarchickingdom #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This barony has a backdrop of scenic mountains.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 7

The Tunic is body armour made of leather to provide light protection against blows to the body. It is more effective protection than a cloak, but lacks the cloak's stealth advantages. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga

Yaneve the Warrior is using the new Tunic that she bought from Shami at the weapon shop. It provides a little protection from the hits of the monsters. The tunic is enlarged in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 6

The third level pack for #TeamDroid is Conveyors. Conveyor belts in every level help and/or hinder you. In the first level there's no returning from the data card chamber, so you must use conveyor belts to carry the data cards. Download from cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This level is split into two chambers, one with the data cards and one with the readers. A pair of conveyor belts head from the card chamber to the reader chamber, but no conveyor belts or other openings allow a robot to come back. Strider is pushing the first of three data cards onto one of the conveyor belts to be carried through to the other chamber. Strider can do likewise with the other cards, before using the second conveyor belt to move themselves. The cards can then be picked up off the conveyor belt and carried or pushed to the card readers.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 5

The Ice Shelf is the source of the planet's Ice Flows, and is solid enough that Ports and other land units can be established there. cyningstan.itch.io/waterworld. #ibmpc #msdos #cga #BarrenPlanet #Waterworld

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 4

If your empire is blessed with forests in #Barbarians, then you may have a free source of wood. The trees can hamper the movement of your troops, though, taking a couple of turns for them to make it through. Get the game from cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians-dos #ibmpc #msdos #cga

This small forest supplies the empire with 3 wood per turn, through the adjacent city of Veia.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 2

Star Cadre's mission locations are modelled on typical minimalist sci-fi bases. There's a single entrance/exit, and various rooms and corridors are linked by automatic doors. The layout is different each time you play. Explore more at cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c...

A complete mission location, when the player's units have all entered. None of the enemy units have yet been spotted. In normal play, the player views a 9x9-tile window onto this map.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· May 1

The size of your settlement in The Anarchic Kingdom reflects your strength compared to the other baronies. A bustling walled city shows that you're ahead. Download the game at cyningstan.itch.io/the-anarchic... #anarchickingdom #ibmpc #msdos #cga

A barony in first place, with a huge city on the horizon.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Apr 30

The Sword is a medium blade weapon for stabbing and slashing, requiring Blades:3 skill. Damage caused to the enemy is based on the player character's Agility. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga

Yaneve the Warrior buys a sword from Shami with weaponsmith. Yaneve knows it would be wisest to have the sword checked out at the magic shop before getting rid of her dagger, just in case the sword has any unpleasant curses on it. The sword is enlarged in the inset.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Apr 29

The final level of Double Trouble is one of the most difficult. The two alcoves at bottom left and top right have guard droids that strafe mercilessly. You need to have impeccable timing to avoid their fire. Get the game from cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #TeamDroid #ibmpc #msdos #cga

The twelfth level of Double Trouble is about half way done. Soldier has destroyed the strafing guard that inhabited the alcove at the top right, and is pushing the data card safely towards the reader. Multibot, though, has waited a long time for the shoot and step left instructions it needs to safely deal with the guard at the bottom left.

Cyningstan@cyningstan· Apr 28

In the colder regions of Dalen there are Ice Flows. Like Sandbanks, these are accessible only to Hoverbugs, Air Fighters, and to Mining Boats which can carefully navigate among them. cyningstan.itch.io/waterworld. #ibmpc #msdos #cga #BarrenPlanet #Waterworld