''Xyphus'' is a role-playing video game first released in 1984. The game was designed by Skip Waller and Dave Albert, with a

Macintosh The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and software en ...

version by Bob Hardy, for

Penguin Software Penguin Software was a computer software and video game publisher from Geneva, Illinois that produced graphics and application software and games for the Apple II, Macintosh, IBM, Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari 8-bit, and Atari ST computers. The ...

. It was the first RPG on Macintosh. It had upgraded graphics and a mouse friendly user-interface. ''Xyphus'' is pronounced, ''Eks-see-foose'', and is the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

word for sword.

Plot

The game takes place in the world of Arroya 10,000 years after the demon lord Xyphus was defeated, but not killed. His heart had been ripped out and magic amulets sprang from drops of his blood becoming the source of all magic in Arroya. The land became forbidden to human kind for monsters and dangerous creatures of all kinds inhabit Arroya. But a great leader, Das, has arisen and vows to bring civilization back to Arroya. This can only be accomplished by a small band of mercenary troops recruited from the races of humans, elves, and dwarves. As told in song only this band can destroy Xyphus, for as long as Xyphus lives, his minions shall roam and no peace will ever reign over the lands of Arroya.Apple Doc Online Manual
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Gameplay

The game begins with the creation of a party of four characters a mix of

Human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...

s, Dwarves,

Elves An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes " ...

fighters Fighter(s) or The Fighter(s) may refer to: Combat and warfare * Combatant, an individual legally entitled to engage in hostilities during an international armed conflict * Fighter aircraft, a warplane designed to destroy or damage enemy warplan ...

, and

magic-users A magician, also known as an enchanter/enchantress, mage, magic-user, archmage, sorcerer/sorceress, spell-caster, warlock, witch, or wizard, is someone who uses or practices magic derived from supernatural, occult, or arcane sources. Magicians ...

. These four adventurers must then explore the lands of Arroya battling a plethora of monsters; which include various races of

goblin A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on ...

s, various

lycanthrope In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...

s, giant slugs, anthrodons, various demons, and villainous leaders such as the tribal

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spir ...

Erse, the

orc An Orc (or Ork) is a fictional humanoid monster like a goblin. Orcs were brought into modern usage by the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien, especially '' The Lord of the Rings''. In Tolkien's works, Orcs are a brutish, aggressive, ugl ...

ish

hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

, the Demon Prince Erranugh, and a

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...

. Through these battles the adventurers gain

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

and experience points which they can use to upgrade and purchase new

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

, weapons, and armour as they go. The characters need to gather Xiphoid amulets to cast magic spells and visit forts or trading posts in order to heal, level-up, and/or purchase new items. The game consists of six scenarios including the final one where your adventurers head underground to face the Demon Lord Xyphus, himself.

References

External links

*
Review
in ''

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'' {{Penguin Software Role-playing video games Apple II games Commodore 64 games Classic Mac OS games 1984 video games Video games developed in the United States Penguin Software games Single-player video games