FORTRESS OF NARZOD
© 1982, GCE Vectrex

A long time ago, before our history began, wizards -- both good and evil -- battled for supremacy of the earth. It was a time of magic and adventure when all men possessed special powers.
The most evil wizard, Narzod, gained the power to enslave all mankind. You are the only remaining honorable wizard with the knowledge to harness all the forces of good to defeat Narzod and destroy his sinister fortress. But Narzod has prepared for your approach and guards his realm with deadly creatures of darkness, including the Mystic Hurler. Beware, and approach the Fortress of Narzod with great caution!
CONTROLS

Joystick | Moves your hovercraft.
Button 1 | Select number of players.
Button 2 | Select skill level (1 is easiest).
Button 3 | Unused.
Button 4 | Fire.

GAME PLAY

Your goal in the Fortress of Narzod is to successfully travel a series of three roadways leading to the Fortress then destroy the powerful Mystic Hurler who acts as guardian to Narzod himself. Once the Mystic Hurler is destroyed, the Fortress of Narzod and all the evil it contains will disintegrate before your eyes.

LOWER ROADWAY

As the game begins, you find your hovercraft at the base of the Lower Roadway. You have been sighted by Narzod and he immediately releases his lead guardians -- the DoomGrabbers. Like all other guardians of the fortress, they will randomly release deadly Spikers which will destroy your hovercraft on contact. (Contact with any of the guardians will also destroy you.) Use your joystick to move your hovercraft and push button 4 to activate the blaster in an attempt to destroy DoomGrabbers and their Spikers. After destroying all DoomGrabbers, you must face the Tarantulas, then the Ghouls.
You may fire continuously by holding down button 4, but be careful, your bullets can ricochet off the roadway walls directly back into your hovercraft.

MIDDLE ROADWAY

On the Middle Roadway, you will face the same types of guardians, however Narzod will send them in greater numbers. You will also face two more challenges -- the Spikers thrown by the guardians will split in half when hit by your blaster to double the danger, and Warbirds will accompany each wave of DoomGrabbers, Tarantulas and Ghouls.
The Warbirds on the Middle Roadway can only harm you if they are allowed to make contact with your hovercraft. You can also use them to your advantage, blasting them while they are directly over the roadway. When blasted, they will act as shields from the guardians' Spikers. However, they will only shield you for a short amount of time and will eventually disappear.

UPPER ROADWAY

You will again face the same types of guardians as you have on the previous roadways, only in even greater numbers. As on the Middle Roadway, the guardians' Spikers will split in half when blasted and you will also face the Warbirds. However, the Warbirds on the Upper Roadway will fire upon you with bullets if they come within range of your hovercraft.

THE FORTRESS

If you are able to destroy all three waves of guardians on the Upper Roadway, you will be allowed to pass through the final guard tower into the Fortress of Narzod itself. Upon entering, you will find yourself face-to-face with the Mystic Hurler -- a creature so evil, even Narzod himself trembles in fear. The Mystic Hurler will aim an unlimited number of Spikers directly at your hovercraft and on either side of you to ensure that you will not progress any further. The Spikers will split in half when hit by your blaster.
In order to destroy the Mystic Hurler, you must hit it with your blaster SIX times.

HOVERCRAFT

You are provided with six hovercrafts per game and unlimited ammunition. One extra hovercraft is earned for destroying the Mystic Hurler. Up to nine extra hovercrafts will be displayed by a numeral. Any earned hovercrafts over nine will be represented by [an infinity sign].

DIRECT HITS

Your hovercraft will be destroyed whenever any of the following occurs:

- Contact with one of the guardians or their Spikers.
- Contact with one of the Warbirds or their bullets.
- Contact with bullets from your own blaster that have ricocheted off the Roadway's walls.

When you are hit, you will return to the same roadway level to face those guardians you have not yet destroyed.

THE GUARDIANS

All of the guardians to the Fortress of Narzod are under the spell of the evil wizard. Their only goal is to destroy an unwanted visitor to the fortress. They will move back-and-forth randomly across the roadway as they approach your hovercraft.
Each guardian can hurl one Spiker. Their Spikers may be thrown at any time and at any downward angle. When you reach the Middle and Upper Roadways, the guardians' Spikers will split in two -- doubling the danger.
The guardians become easier to destroy as they come closer to your hovercraft. The farther they are up the roadway, the greater number of shots from your blaster it will take to eliminate them.

WARBIRDS

The Warbirds are used as a secret and unpredictable weapon by the evil Narzod. On the Middle Roadway, they can only cause you harm if they come into direct contact with your hovercraft. On the Upper Roadway and beyond, Narzod arms the Warbirds with powerful bullets that will fire directly at your hovercraft if they are not destroyed or avoided. Remember, you can us all Warbirds to your advantage as shields from the guardians' Spikers.

MYSTIC HURLER

After you have passed through the third guard tower, you will be face-to-face with the Mystic Hurler. It is supplied with an unlimited number of Spikers which will be thrown directly at your hovercraft and to either side and will split in two when hit by your blaster.

SCORING

Points are awarded for blasting guardians on the roadways as follows:

Guardian Type | Points
DoomGrabbers | 10
Tarantulas | 10
Ghouls | 10
Warbirds | 100
Mystic Hurler | 10 + bonus hovercraft
Standard Spiker | 50
Split Spiker | 100

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