DESCRIPTION

The first Dungeons & Dragons title on NES is based on the 1988 computer role-playing game from Strategic Simulations. Set in the Dragonlance world of Krynn, the game has you guiding a party of eight adventurers in a quest to find the Disks of Mishakal deep within the underground ruins of Xak Tsaroth. Instead of controlling the entire party's actions at once, you guide one character at a time across a side-scrolling dungeon. The order of heroes, identified by portraits on the bottom half of the screen, determines which party member you control at any given time. Pausing the game allows you to rearrange characters and perform certain actions, such as casting spells or using items.

If a character dies, then play resumes with the next character until all are defeated. Dangers include bottomless pits, magical traps, crumbling ceilings, and creatures such as giant spiders, wraiths, draconians, and evil dwarves. Magic, melee, and ranged combat occurs in real time, with the types of attacks based on the selected character's abilities and equipped items. Earn experience points by defeating enemies and finding treasure. Locate and slay the black dragon Khisanth with the blue crystal staff to retrieve the Disks of Mishakal and win the game. Heroes of the Lance lets you save progress at any point during the adventure to one of three files. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide