Fatigue

All Argo characters have a Fatigue level, a measure of how much endurance they have and how much energy they can exert. Fighters expend Fatigue in combat (magic users and psionic characters also expend Fatigue when using their abilities).

When you are fully rested, your Fatigue level is equal to your CON plus your STR (however, see also Combat Advantages). Offensive combat actions, and active defenses, like dodging an attack, expend 1 point of Fatigue each. You automatically recover 1 point per round. As long as your Fatigue level is a positive number, your actions occur normally. If your Fatigue level becomes a negative number, however, you suffer minuses to all your combat rolls: if your Fatigue level were -5, all your combat rolls would be at -5. If you expend twice your rested Fatigue — that is, if your Fatigue reaches zero minus your rested Fatigue level — you are exhausted. Not only are you at a terrible minus for all your actions, but you will `slow down'... turns will be spent recovering until you reach a non-exhausted level.

You can recover Fatigue by executing a +wait command, in which case you won't expend any Fatigue for offensive actions: if you are not being attacked, the net effect is that you will regain 1 point per round. Or, you can execute a +rest command, in which case you will regain 2 points per turn. While resting, however, you cannot use active defenses such as Parry or Dodge, though your armor will still be effective.

So, to give an example, if you had a CON of 10 and a STR of 12, your rested Fatigue level would be 22. If you were attacking, but not being attacked (your opponent is using +nodef, or is targeting someone besides you... or is some peaceful soul pleading with you to stop attacking), you could keep fighting indefinitely: you would be expending 1 point of Fatigue per round, but then automatically recover it, in effect `staying in place'. If your target were attacking you, though, and you were using Parry as your defense mode, then you would spend two points per turn (one to attack and one to defend), and recover one... Your Fatigue level would drop by 1 point each turn. (If your opponent were faster than you, you would lose Fatigue somewhat faster; if he were slower, you would lose Fatigue somewhat more slowly). If you continued to fight for 22 turns, your Fatigue level would go below zero; your Fatigue level would be applied to all your combat rolls (offensive and defensive) as a negative modifier. If you kept fighting, this situation would continue and deteriorate: the negative modifier would increase by 1 each turn, until it reached -22. At this point, you would get one last action, and your Fatigue level would go to -23. On your next turn, the combat system would force you to spend a turn recovering; you would take no offensive action. You could still use your active Parry defense (at a whopping minus), but the point expended for this would cancel out the gain you made while recovering... You would be effectively `pinned' until something happened in your favor (such as your oppenent becoming exhausted). At this point, you might choose to +rest for a few turns, taking your chances on getting hit, or call for help, or bravely run away.

Damage

Fatigue is recovered automatically, relatively quickly, and the only thing it does to you is reduce your effectiveness. Damage is more serious. The amount of damage you can take is determined by your CON. When you are uninjured, your damage level is equal to your CON (however, see also Combat Advantages). When you are injured, it will drop below your CON. If your damage level drops below zero, you are gravely wounded: your effectiveness with all rolls against Abilities is reduced, and you may die.

The calculations are as follows. As long as your damage level is at or above zero, you do not suffer any penalties. When your damage level goes below zero, your damage level is applied as a modifier to all your rolls... That is, if your damage level were at -4, all your rolls would be at -4. If your damage level reaches -CON (zero minus your CON), you die.

Damage can be removed by healing skills, spells, or objects. You can also recover damage by natural healing: You have a chance, based on CON, to recover 1 damage level per day.

When you die in Argo, you are effectively removed from the game. Your status goes from `approved' to `dead'. You can only use informational Argo commands (+man, +sheet, +staff, etc.). You are sent to the Player Start room, and an object named `<YourName>'s Body', is put in the room where you died. All Argo possesions and money that you are carrying are left in the room where you died, and set so that anyone can take ownership of them. At this point, you can hang around as a non-Argo player, bemoaning your fate, or go to the chargen area, do a +reset, and get started on a new character.

It is possible that you can get back in the game after death, as your current character. The staff command +approve will reset your status property to `approved', effectively bringing you back to life (though it doesn't do anything to recover your belongings). The purpose of this is to allow the staff to correct for unwarrented deaths resulting from either problems in the Argo code or improper roleplay. If it is determined that your character will not be resurrected, your only option is to +reset and start a new character. (Designer's Philosophy: unless the death was caused by a program bug, `If you get killed you're dead. Make friends while you're alive so they can avenge you. Make sure people know you have friends.' But the policy on character resurrection — indeed, on all aspects of Argo — is completely up to the MUCK staff.) And the possibility is left open for the MUCK's wizards to create devices or spells that will resurrect a dead character. (Note to Programmers: set characters' @a/status property to `approved' to resurrect them. Note to Evil Programmers: set characters' @a/status property to `dead' to kill people.)

A last note on taking damage and dying: The +wimpout command provides a certain measure of insurance against dying. To set your wimpout level, type +wimpout <number>. If go below the damage level you specify with +wimpout, you will immediately retreat in a random direction, or be sent home if there is no exit available. (Note, though, that some weapons deal out damage in large doses... and players with a high Strength do extra damage with melee weapons... and critical successes can increase the amount of damage done even further... So, it is possible to die even with a truly wimpy +wimpout setting.)