Ragnarok (video game)

Ragnarok is a freeware roguelike video game for DOS, created by Norsehelm Productions (Thomas F. Boyd and Rob Vawter) from 1992 to 1995, also going by the name Valhalla in its European release. It is distinct from many other roguelikes in having a graphical interface, a historical/mythological setting, set quests, the ability to change classes, and the ability to permanently change one's race by polymorphing.
Mythology.
"Ragnarok" is firmly set within the bounds of Norse mythology, with many of the gods, realms, items, and quests drawing directly from it. A few of these present in the game are:
However, other items and monsters are of a more "generic fantasy," Japanese-inspired or Tolkienesque nature, such as orcs and katana.
Character development.
Character development is one of the chief draws of "Ragnarok". Throughout the game, the player may change forms, to obtain the powers and abilities of almost any monster in the game, with the exception of god and demi-god level creatures. The player can also modify their own body, changing the number of fingers and eyes, and the gender of the character. The player also has the option of changing their class every ten levels, and can gain powers, skills, abilities and permanent status effects. Therefore, it is quite possible to begin the game as a male sage, and end the game as a lycanthropic female Fire Giant conjurer with 14 fingers and 3 eyes that shoot laser beams.
Some ways to develop your character are:
Class system.
In the beginning of the game, the player must choose a character class. These classes all have intrinsic statistics. At level ten, the player "masters" a class, and gains all the skills that the class can use. The player can then choose a new class, or continue as the old class for another ten levels. There are six classes:
After the player has mastered every class, their class matters much less. Initially, it is more important, since being a stronger fighter makes the beginning of the game easier, and some classes become powerful once mastered.
Ghosts.
One element of "Ragnarok" gameplay is that slain player characters leave behind 'ghost data' for the next adventurer to encounter. This data includes the slain adventurer's inventory (minus a few rare items) and the map state as it was at the time of death, including all opponents. From time to time such ghosts present a play challenge, such as might be the case in 'choke point' maps where a player cannot advance due to the large number of ghosts in the area.
Quests.
The game consists of six quests based on Norse mythology. They are: