9.11. Future events

| Chapter 9: Time |

| 9.11. Future events

We often want to arrange for something to happen at some point in the future. Here is yet another timepiece:

> An egg-timer is in the Chamber. "A plastic egg timer in the shape of a chicken can be pressed to set it going."

> Instead of pushing the egg-timer:
> say "It begins to mark time.";
> the egg-timer clucks in four turns from now.

> At the time when the egg-timer clucks:
> say "Cluck! Cluck! Cluck! says the egg-timer."

The event here is called "the egg-timer clucks". It only happens if we instruct so, using one of the following phrases:

(rule) in (time) from now

This phrase causes the given rule to be run at a given time offset from the current time of day. Example: the egg-timer clucks in 18 minutes from now;

(rule) in (number) turn/turns from now

This phrase causes the given rule to be run at a given number of turns after the current one. Example: the egg-timer clucks in four turns from now;

(rule) at (time)

This phrase causes the given rule to be run at a given time of day. Example: the egg-timer clucks at 11:35 AM;

If we know in advance what time we want something to happen, we can more simply write:

> At 4 PM: say "The great bells of the clock tower chime four."

(Note that in either case such rules begin with the word "at": they are the only rules allowed to begin with the word "at".)

143
| Example MRE Hunger that eventually kills the player, and foodstuffs that can delay the inevitable by different amounts of time. |
RB

144
| Example Totality To schedule an eclipse of the sun, which involves a number of related events. |
RB

First we define the events, and then we create a phrase to schedule them: "Totality" At the time when the penumbra appears: say "The sunlight dies away to an eerie, brownish penumbra." At the time when the eclipse begins: say "The moon passes across the disc of the sun, plunging the world into darkness."; now the Chamber is dark. At the time when the eclipse ends: say "The moon passes away from the sun, and a gloomy penumbral light returns."; now the Chamber is lighted. At the time when normal sunlight returns: say "The sun shines once more bright in the sky, not to be eclipsed again on this spot for another thirty-seven years." To schedule an eclipse for (totality - a time): the penumbra appears at two minutes before totality; the eclipse begins at totality; the eclipse ends at three minutes after totality; normal sunlight returns at five minutes after totality. Now we make use of the new phrase: When play begins, schedule an eclipse for 3:27 PM. The Chamber is a room. The time of day is 3:25 PM. Test me with "z / z / z / z / z / z / z / z / z". We shall see much more about creating phrases later. Their advantage is that they enable a complicated sequence of operations to be given a meaningful name, and that they can be re-used many times as needed.

145
| Example Empire A train which follows a schedule, stopping at a number of different locations. |
RB

146
| Example Hour of the Wren Allowing the player to make an appointment, which is then kept. |
RB

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