I wrote some code which feels right in 6G60 (I suspect this can be done better in later versions,) and it looks right for basic cases I tested, but there seems to be a nonzero possibility I’ll run into a messy ambush. I thought I’d check to see if what I was doing was sound.
I have 10 or so actions with, say, “rule for supplying a missing noun when scaning:” I wanted to
- supply a less harsh reject than “You must supply a noun.”
- give some sort of cluing as to what to expect
So it seems like the “rule for supplying a missing noun” rule without conditions should fire last and be a catch-all if we haven’t been able to fit a suitable noun in yet. But for whatever reason, I’m not confident I’ve avoided x-factors!
Rule for supplying a missing noun:
if noun is nothing:
if (certain puzzle conditions are true):
say "Either that verb needs a subject, or you may need to be in the right place to use it. Note all point-scoring verbs you need to guess be used on their own.";
else:
say "While most verbs in this game should take implicit nouns, that verb requires a noun.";
reject the player's command;
If it works, maybe it will help someone else down the line.
(BTW, the reason the game text mentions the usual no-no of verb guessing is that it’s a part of A Roiling Original where the anagrams to guess are, in fact, verbs based on objects.)
Thanks!