This month’s column is devoted to the people that make D&D
possible (or at least more interesting)—the DMs. More specifically,
here are three computer programs that may make the DM’s job a
little simpler and step up the pace of play by taking care of some
“housekeeping” jobs.

All these programs were written on a Level II TRS-80, but should
work on other computers with minor modification. Your biggest
concern will be converting RND statements to your own computer’s
BASIC.

Time Keeper
This program is one I whipped up in a couple of hours. “Time
Keeper” performs two functions: It keeps track of “dungeon time”
and it automatically checks for wandering monsters for levels one
through three. If a wandering monster is indicated, the program will
“roll up” the monster (vs. the level of the party), plus determine how
many monsters there are, their hit points, their armor class, how
much damage they can inflict on the players, and the reaction to the
party if the monster(s) is(are) intelligent. A typical run starts like this:

WANDERING MONSTER (LEV. 1-13) / TIME KEEPING PROGRAM
?

When the party has traveled for three turns (30 minutes “dungeon
time”), the DM merely has to press the RETURN button (ENTER on
TRS-80’s). The computer will display the time and roll for a wandering
monster:

TIME IN ADVENTURE: .5 HOURS
?
In this case, no wandering monster wanders by, so the program
returns to the timekeeping chore. Let’s say the program rolls a
monster a little later:

TIME IN ADVENTURE. 5.5 HOURS
LEVEL BELOW SURFACE? 3 (the party is on the third level)
DWARF
NUMBER APPEARING: 6
HIT POINTS: 1 8 5 7 2 4
ARMOR CLASS: 4
MAX. HIT DAMAGE: 8
INTELLIGENT MONSTER REACTION: FRIENDLY

So in this case, the DM knows that there are six friendly dwarves
around the comer.

Lines 30 to 50 update the time and check for the presence of a
wandering monster. If M = 6 there is a monster, so the program asks
what level the party is on and randomly selects the level of the
monster (Lines 60 and 70. You’ll understand this better if you look
on page 10 and 11 in the Basic D&D manual). After the program
branches back from the appropriate subroutine (line 1000, 2000, or
3000), it randomly selects a monster from that level (line 80), displays
the monster (lines 100 to 210), then returns to the timekeeping
job.

<PROGRAM LISTING>

Town
Ever have to “build” a town? Here’s a program that will do it for
you. You even have control over the town’s population and its
technological level. This is one of several programs sent to me by
Marc Elwinger of Shreveport, La. You’ll be seeing more of Marc’s
programs in later columns.

According to Marc, the purpose of “Town” is to list the number
and type of every “major” establishment in a town, given the town’s
population and technological level. The “tech level” (relative to an
earth time scale) represents not what the town can produce, but
rather the town’s agricultural base and how much of the town’s
resources can be spent on non-essential businesses. A town of a
certain size must have certain businesses, but the types of businesses
vary considerably with the tech level. After the mandatory businesses
are determined, the program randomly selects other possible
businesses. Towns with populations of over 10,000 tend to look
alike, no matter what tech level they are (Marc says the large towns
trade with each other). A typical run:

WHAT IS THE POPULATION OF THE TOWN? 650

WHAT IS THE TECH LEVEL OF THE TOWN (0=NEANDERTHAL,
1 = BRONZE AGE, 2 = 9000 BC, 3 = 3000 BC, 4 = 1000 BC,
5=0 AD, 6=500 AD, 7=1000 AD, 8=1200 AD, 9=1400 AD,
10=1600 AD)? 7

There may be a delay here, in proportion to the population.

Then:
INN = 4 FARRIER = 1 BARRACKS = 1
SLAVE BAZAAR = 1 ALCHEMIST = 1 OTHER (SHIPYARD/THIEF/
ETC) = 1

Neat, huh?

The program doesn’t list merchant bazaars and street vendors;
they’re assumed present in every town.

<PROGRAM LISTING>

Royal
If you would like to use royalty in your D&D campaign, you can
use another one of Marc’s programs, “Royal.” This program will roll
up an entire feudal system about the size of old France—BIG! The
program will generate the royal families, lords, houses, and even to
whom each are allied. The output from this program is too long to
reproduce here. If you have a printer, this program will give it a
workout. If you don’t have a printer, be prepared to do some
copying from your video monitor.

If “Town” gives you a castle, “Royal” can let you determine who
inhabits it!

<PROGRAM LISTING>

Your Turn
A big thank you to Marc Elwinger for sending me these programs--
you'll see more of his work later.  Meanwhile, do you have a 
relatively short computer program that you would like to share with 
the rest of us?  It doesn't have to be D&D aid. . . anything associated 
with gaming will do!  I would prefer a printed listing and a sample 
run if possible, but I can get printouts from TRS-80 (Level 1, 12K and 
Level II, 16K) and Apple-II (32K) tapes.  I can read PET tapes (8K, 
"old" ROM) but can't get printouts.  I also have access to a DEC PDP 
11/50.  

Send 'em to "The Electric Eye," c/o The Dragon, P. O.  Box 110,  
Lake Geneva WI 53147.