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Updated November 20, 2004

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Riders of Rohan, Introductory Guide

I am going to start off by stating the fact that this is a wholly opinionated guide. The many struggles and hair pulling hardships I went through only to make my character level three are enough to make a grown man cry out of anger. The difficulty level in this game is just inhumane. So if you feel that I am somehow wronging you by bashing this game in this review, than perhaps this is not the review that you want to read. 

For Starters: 

First off, it is a good idea to get a grip on the most basic keys. 

Arrow keys: Move your character up, down, left, and right. They also let you select what you To say in text. 
Enter key: Makes a selection in text of what you want to do or say. 
Space bar: This is the main action key. You use this to talk to people and whatnot. 
Esc key: Brings up all the main menus Just about all other actions are options given to you in the process of talking or fighting. 

Starting Off in the Game: 

So, the little boy had a bad dream did he? Momma's gonna be mad when she finds out her little boy wet the bed. In any case, the boy dreams about the kingdom (town?) in flames and of evil monsters and the like. Then the mom, (with for some odd reason, little argument) lets you go and speak with the king.

First step - Go to the herb shop and stock up. The Red Potion cures all of your HP. The Green Herb cures only 10 HP but is much cheaper. The Red Herb cures poison, and you will be poisoned alot. (*Cough* Cheap difficulty *Cough*) And, finally, an herb you will use almost as much as the green herb is the Blue Herb. The Blue Herb lets you escape from any difficult situation just like the weak pansy your character is. Is it the only way to run from a fight? GASP! It IS!?! What a surprise.... Moving on, once you feel you have stocked up the best you can, it is time to move on. 

Second step - Before going to see the king, I advise talking to everyone in town. Why would I suggest what seems to be a waste of time? Quite simply, it's always just a good idea. Even if you dont learn anything that will help you, it does give you a history of the land and that may be what keeps you playing, just that curiosity and intrigue in the land of Rohan. Thankfully though, villagers will usually brush you off if they don't have any important information or items to give you anyway.

Third step - Now, go see the king. He tells you of a scout party that some never returned from. He then takes it upon himself to set your sights on Isengard, where you are to see what is going on there. Does the king offer you any supplies? Can I hear a big fat "No"? Yes I can. He doesn't give you anything. That just shows how appreciative your majesty is. 

Fourth step - From here on, its really anybody's game. If you go North and then travel west, you will be on your way Isengard, however, after a while of just straight travelling, you will be bombarded, and far from town might I add. Town is only important because its the only place that you can save (in the Inn) and it is the only place to buy supplies. Now, if you go North for quite a ways after you leave the king, you will end up in the troll forest. Your first job here is to find a golden ring some shmuck lost to the trolls when they killed his family. This too is a long, tedious process.

In my opinion, the best route to go is to go north and just hang around near the entrance to the forest once you have entered it. Kill monsters, gain gold and experience, leave, heal up, save, then stock up and repeat. Because the difficulty setting is so gruesome in this game, you have to be pretty beefed up before you can dare to go anywhere. So I suggest you build up your character before you make the mistake of wandering off too far from town, running out of supplies, and finding death, as I have done so many times.

Another good tip while building up your character is good money management. Because saving the game costs 10 gold to do (and it's very hard to earn money in the beginning of this game), take your 50 gold pieces and buy two red potions right off the bat. Fight near the Troll forest entrance and try to build your character to Level 6. If you run out of supplies, stock up on red herbs first, since poison will deal you the most damage in this game. Then, stock up on red potions. As soon as you reach an experience level and you're finally stronger than the enemies, save up for a Leather Mail (this armor is found to the east of the Inn) then comfortably save your game knowing that your character finally has muscle.

That's all for now. I will be sure to get some more of the guide up when I have gotten further. Until then, you can email me at Bainstooth1@aol.com with questions, or, E-Mail the site, where i might then get the questions. 

Till Next time, I remain,

Bainstooth

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