Chapter 2: Reacting to commands

The command event fires when a player types a game command in the same room as the mob. This is the most common event — it is how you make NPCs respond to what players say and do.

A mob that responds to "say"

Open your mob's script and enter:

after command (say) {
  do "say Did you say something, [name $actor]?"
}

Load the mob and type:

say hello

The mob responds. Try say goodbye — same response. The handler fires on every say command.

Filters

The (say) after command is a filter. It restricts the handler to fire only for say commands. Without a filter, the handler would fire on every command — look, north, get, everything.

You can list multiple commands in the filter:

after command (say sayto) {
  do "say I heard that!"
}

Now the handler fires for both say and sayto.

The $arg and $args variables

When a command event fires, two extra variables are available:

• $arg — the full text after the command verb, as a single string.
• $args — the same text, split into individual words.

after command (say) {
  do "say You said: $arg"
}

If the player types say hello world, the mob responds with "You said: hello world".

Checking specific words

Use keyword to check if specific words appear in $args:

after command (say) {
  require [keyword $args help]
  do "say You need help? Talk to the shopkeeper."
}

The require guard checks a condition. If [keyword $args help] is false (the player did not say "help"), the handler stops and nothing happens. If true, the mob responds.

keyword does case-insensitive matching, so "Help", "HELP", and "help" all match.

You can check for multiple keywords at once:

after command (say) {
  require [keyword $args hi hello hey greetings]
  do "say Well met, [name $actor]!"
}

Checking abbreviations

Use abbrev for prefix matching — so a player typing "hel" matches "help":

after command (say) {
  require [abbrev $args help quest]
  do "say I can help you with a quest!"
}

Now "hel", "help", "que", "quest" all match.

The $arg string vs $args words

Use $arg when you want the full text as a string (for display or exact matching). Use $args when you want to check individual words.

after command (say) {
  # Check exact string match (case-insensitive)
  require [streqi $arg "open sesame"]
  do "emote opens the secret door."
}

after command (say) {
  # Check if any word matches
  require [keyword $args password]
  do "nod"
}

Responding to non-say commands

Any game command can be filtered:

after command (give) {
  do "say Thank you for the gift, [name $actor]."
}

after command (bow) {
  do "bow [name $actor]"
}

Example: a helpful guard

Here is a complete script combining several concepts:

after enter {
  do "say Halt! State your business."
}

after command (say sayto) {
  require [keyword $args quest job work]
  do "say Speak with the elder in the temple to the north."
}

after command (say sayto) {
  require [keyword $args shop store buy sell]
  do "say The market is to the east."
}

after command (bow) {
  do "bow [name $actor]"
}

Load the mob, enter the room, and try:

• say where can I find work?
• say where is the shop?
• bow

Key points

• command handlers react to player commands with after command (verb) { ... }.
• Filters (say sayto) restrict which commands fire the handler.
• $arg is the raw text after the verb; $args is a word the same text split into individual words.
• keyword checks for exact word matches (case-insensitive).
• abbrev checks for prefix abbreviations.
• require is a guard — if the condition is false, the handler stops.

Next: Chapter 3: Variables and control flow