FINAL ASSAULT
ANNOTATED INSTRUCTION MANUAL

Final Assault (c) 1988 Epyx and Infogrames
[annotated by Chris Klimas / robin@textfire.com]

THE ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME

You're in the Alps, ready to start off on an expedition to the highest peaks of Europe. And you're going to do it the hard way, avoiding the easy, well-marked tourist trails with their ladders and handholds. The more risky and difficult the route, the greater the challenge. That's why you're here

Before you go, you think back over the history of the Alps, where mountaineering began. This great mountain chain runs through the heart of Europe, beginning on the French Riviera and passing through France, Italy, Switzerland, and Germany before coming to an end in northeastern Austria. The best climbing is between Chamonix, in France, and Innsbruck, near the German border in Austria.

Right outside of Chamonix is Mont Blanc, at 4807 meters the highest mountain in western Europe. To the east is the great pyramid of the Matterhorn, one of the most famous mountains in the world. To the northeast stand the M&Mac185;nch and the Jungfrau -- the Monk and the Virgin. Near them is the Eiger, easily the most dangerous mountain in Europe. This Ogre has claimed dozens of victims both before and after its "conquest" in 1938.

The Alps have towered over Europe since long before mankind arrived, but no one tried to climb them until near the end of the eighteenth century. Villages, farms, and monasteries sprung up at their eet, and sheep and cattle grazed in the lowland meadows. Armies struggled through the great passes to invade the countries beyond. The Carthaginian general Hannibal even managed to drive elephants across the Alps during his daring midwinter invasion of Italy in 218 BC. (It took 17 years, but the Romans won.)

On a more peaceful note, Leonardo da Vinci travelled widely through the Alps on meteorological expeditions. But everyone stopped short of the summits, and as late as 1725 guides to Switzerland featured detailed descriptions of the dragons believed to live on the mountaintops.

True mountaineering had to wait for the modern age, with its drive to understand and explore. In 1787 a wealthy scholar from Geneva, Horace B&Mac182;n&Mac182;dict de Saussure, reached the summit of Mont Blanc at the head of a huge expedition that even included his valet.

The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars effectively closed off the Alps for the next 30 years, but after peace returned in 1815 an ever increasing flood of adventurers began. The year 1854 marked the beginning of the Golden Age of Mountaineering. One after another, the great peaks were scaled, and at last, after seven failed tries and the death of four of his companions, Edward Whymper conquered the Matterhorn in 1865.

By now even the great unclimbables, such as the deadly Eiger and the treacherous North Face of the Matterhorn, have been scaled at least once. But the Alps are still a climber's paradise. You're up against hazardous rock and unpredictable weather, but if you plan well and climb skillfully, you'll earn yourself a place in the select company of Alpine conquerors.

LOADING THE GAME

[I have excerpted just the IIgs-specific parts here.]

1. Set up your system, following the instructions in your owner's manual.

2. Plug in a mouse or joystick. [A mouse is pretty much required, actually.]

3. Insert the Final Assault disk into the disk drive, label side up, and turn on the system.

4. After the program loads, press Spacebar to display the first game screen.

[There's a joystick calibration screen before the game screen loads, and it's essential that, even if you aren't going to use a joystick, you follow the directions. Final Assault doesn't have control modes -- both keyboard and joystick work at the same time, and if you miscalibrate at the beginning, control of the game gets messed up.]

GETTING STARTED

Choosing a Route

It's almost time to get started on your trek to the summit. You'll soon see the routes you can choose from. Some are harder than others, but none of them are easy. To begin, make your selections from the dialog box in the first game screen:

[Graphic of a dialog box entitled "NUMBER OF COURSES" with buttons for selecting 1-3, a "RESUME" button, and a "TRAINING" button.]

Disregard the Resume selection for now. You'll use it later when you play a saved game. (See the Stopping and Saving section for details.)

If you want to practice first, press T (or move the pointer to Training and press the fire button or Return). The training trail is a real climb, with a glacier to cross and a combination of ice and rock cliffs to scale before you reach the summit. You don't have to pack your own rucksack though, and you can follow the on-screen prompts to improve your technique. Best of all, there are no fatal falls in training! Try a training course first, and you'll make it to the top -- or at least live longer -- when you get out on your own.

[The training course is actually a pain in the butt. The "on-screen prompts" quickly become annoying-- in many ways, it's easier to just try the shortest circle trail, Footloose.]

If you're ready to go out on your own, decide how many routes to include in your trek. You can combine up to three at a time. To select a number, press the 1, 2, or 3 key (or position your pointer on the number you want and press the fire button or Return).

Now you can see the routes winding into the mountains. Routes marked with a circle are relatively easy to traverse; those marked with a square are intermediate; and those marked with a diamond are the hardest. Depending on the number you chose in the dialog box, you can pick from one to three routes in any combination.

[Graphic of the Alps, with six trails labeled from left to right: 1. Hat Trick (square), 2. Side-Burner (diamond), 3. Edge of Fright (square), 4. Footlose (circle), 5. Knucklehead (circle), 6. Consider Me Gone (diamond).]

To select a route, move the pointer to its symbol and press the fire button or Spacebar. Now you can read its description. You'll see the route's name, its total elevation gain in meters, the level of difficulty, and the estimated time it should take you to complete the climb.

Note: You can also press keys 1 through 6 to select routes.

If you want to accept the route, press Y (or move the pointer to Yes, then press the fire button or Return). If you don't want to accept the route, press N (or move the pointer to No and press the fire button or Return).

If you're selecting multiple routes, repeat this process for the second (and third) route. After selecting the last route, you'll automatically proceed to the supply screen where you'll pack your gear.

Packing for the Trail

Your rucksack is automatically supplied with a basic selection of provisions and climbing gear, but it's smart to check it out before you accept it. It may not contain everything you need, or it may have things you can do without.

You're the best judge of what you need. If your trip is going to be long, for example, you should pack more food. On a short trip you might decide to bring more luxuries. Just as in real life, you may find that your packing ability gets better with experience. To make sure that you don't leave out anything essential, go through the Packing List in this section while you make your selections.

[Graphic of the packing screen with total weight in upper left corner, rucksack on left side, individual description in lower left corner, and "ACCEPT" and "REFUSE" button on the right.]

The total weight of your rucksack and rack (the climbing gear you carry outside your rucksack) can be seen in the upper left corner of your screen. You can find out what you're carrying by moving the pointer over each article in your rucksack. You'll see its name, weight, and how many of that article you have. The first layer you see includes the the items that are packed on the top. To see the next layer, select Next and press the fire button or Spacebar.

Note: the rucksack icons include bother rack and rucksack items.

If you decide to accept the basic selection, press A (or select Accept and press the fire button or Spacebar). If you want to modify the basic selection, press R (or select Refuse and press the fire button or Spacebar).

[You almost always want to refuse the standard choices, if only because the 20m rope is annoying to use.]

You'll now see all your potential choices laid out for you. Move the pointer over each article in turn. Once again, you'll see its name, weight, and how many you already have. Press the fire button once to add one of that item. Press the fire button more than once to add more than one.

To see additional items, press N (or select Next under the items and press the fire button or Spacebar).

To take items out of your rucksack, move the pointer over the item in the rucksack. On screen you'll see the item's name, weight, and number. Press the fire button to remove the item. Press more than once to remove more than one of the same item. When all the items of one type are gone, you'll see whatever's on the next level.

As you add and discard, you'll see the weight of the rucksack change to keep track of your total. Try to keep the weight to 25 kilograms or less. (A kilogram is 2.2 pounds.) If you exceed this limit, you'll tire out more quickly on the trek and you're more likely to slip on a cliff or fall through the ice.

Once you've packed the rucksack to your satisfaction, press D (or select Done and press the fire button or Spacebar).

Packing List

Gear Carried on the Rack

Ropes: Breaks your alls when you're climbing. Be sure to pack at least one rope.

[The 20m rope is pretty annoying -- you have to keep retrieving it. The 40m is only a kg more, and well worth it.]

Carabiners: Metal loops used to hook the rope to your climbing gear. You can't use the rope without them.
[A necessity.]

Ice bins: Attach the carabiners to an ice cliff. You must have ice pins in order to use the carabiners and rope on ice.
[Another necessity.]

Pitons: Attach the carabiners to a rock face. You must have pitons or chocks in order to use the carabiners on rock.
[Since you need the hammer anyway for the ice pins, you might as well take these.]

Hammer: Pounds in the ice pins and pitons. You can't use the pitons or ice pins without it.

Chock: A carabiner anchor you force into a crack in the rock. You don't need a hammer to use chocks.

Strap: Fastens you onto a rock face. You'll need this in order to get into your pack while climbing.
[You definitely need this.]

Jummar: A support that protects you while you haul up the rope. Without it you may have to abandon the rope when you come to its end.[Actually, it's not the rope you lose, it's the climbing gear you've been using to secure it. Unless you want to bring several sets of climbing gear, you ought to bring along a jummar. It only weighs about half a kilogram, anyway.]

Stirrups: Slings you attach to the carabiners. Useful on very steep rock faces where you have no footholds.
[I've never used them-- but then again, I haven't completed the difficult trails, either.]

Gear Carried in the Rucksack

Crampons: Boot spikes, essential for traction on ice cliffs.
[Without these, ice climbing takes about twice as long as it does normally.]

Soft shoes: Smooth-soled climbing shoes, very helpful on rock.

Helmet: Protection from falling rocks.
[Usually not really necessary, as rocks are normally easy to dodge, but it's a peace-of-mind measure.]

Chalk: Improves your grip on rock.

Anorak: A warm jacket. Essential.
[The first thing you ought to do once you're on the trail is to put it on.]

Gloves, wool hat, mittens, wool socks: Warmth.

Gaiters: Protect legs and keep snow out of boots.

Goggles, mask: Block sun and snow glare.

Shoelaces: Spare pair.
[I've never had shoelaces break before, but wouldn't it suck if you got stranded without shoelaces?]

Hammock, tent, sleeping bag, foil cover: To sleep in. Use the hammock for cliffs, the foil cover for emergencies.
[It always seemed kind of gutsy to take a nap while you're halfway up a rock face.]

Snow shovel: To build an igloo when you don't have a tent.
[If you plan on using a shovel for your sleep needs, you better bring a sleeping bag, too.]

Knife: For opening cans (you can't eat the canned goods if you don't have the knife).

First Aid box: Emergency medical aid.
[I've never used it, but perhaps bad things happen if you don't bring it.]

Sun cream: Protects your skin from sun glare.

Lamp, candle: Light in the darkness.

Stove, gas: Cooking.
[There are a lot of associated items with the stove, so it may be a good idea to forego the fancy stuff to lighten your pack.]

Canteen: Plates and eating utensils, needed for eating soup and drinking coffee and tea.

Flask: To carry water. Essential.

Matches, lighter: Light the stove.

Rum, wine: To warm you up.

Champagne: For celebrating at the top.

Food and drink: Take what you like and need, but watch the weight.

Save Game Disk: Lets you save your game.
[You gotta be crazy not to bring it.]

[One item not mentioned is the stereo, which plays a nice song, but mutes the normal sounds for the rest of your game. It's fun to try, but the silence once it's over gets annoying.]

Setting Your Departure Time

Set your departure time in the dialog box that appears. Trips are automatically set for a 9 am start. If that's OK, move the pointer over the time and press the fire button or Spacebar. If you want to change the time, move the pointer to + or - and press the fire button or Spacebar until you see the 24-hour time you want. Then move the pointer over the time and press the fire button or Spacebar again.

[I haven't observed that much difference in terms of starting time. 9 am sounds like a good time to start.]

You'll now see a dialog box asking if you want to leave in summer or winter. Choose your season by pressing S or W or by moving the pointer to your selection and pressing the fire button or Spacebar. The screen changes to bring you to the trailhead, ready to begin your climb.

[Summer climbs tend to involve a lot of fog, though the cold is obviously less of a problem. Warmth is an important issue in winter climbs, though it's very neat when it starts to snow -- a cue to sock it in for the night and watch the snowflakes.]

ON THE TRAIL

Hiking and Jumping

Now you're ready to head for the summit. Begin walking at a steady pace (see the table below). If the ground ahead looks unstable, test it by poking it with your ice ax. (By the way, you always have your ice axes. That's why they're not on the list.)

Jump over crevasses. If you make a mistake and fall, try to catch yourself with the same joystick or keyboard motion. If you catch yourself, or if you fall all the way but survive, you'll have to climb out. Climbing out of a crevasse is the same as climbing an ice cliff, so turn to that section (Climbing on Ice) for advice on technique. Once you get back on the glacier, continue walking but be more careful this time.

Controls:

Walk: Move the joystick handle steadily left and right, or press the left and right arrow keys one after the other on the keyboard in a walking rhythm.

Test the ground: Press the fire button, or press the down arrow key.

Jump: Push the joystick handle up, or press the up arrow key.

[One thing not explained is the sunglasses view. The reflection on your sunglasses shows what's coming up on the next screen, so you can prepare yourself accordingly.]

Using Your Supplies

To open your pack, press Return to bring the pointer onto the screen. Move the pointer onto the pack and press the fire button or Return again. You'll see a list of the pack's contents. Push the joystick handle up and down or press the up and down arrow keys to scroll through the list. When the article you want is highlighted, press the fire button or Return. You hear a chime, and the article disappears from the list (or you have one less of that type) because it's now outside the pack.

[There's no chime in the IIgs version, though.]

To put something back in the pack or to use any rack item (such as the rope, strap, or stirrups), press Return. Move the pointer onto the climber's head and press the fire button or Spacebar. You'll see a list of what you're carrying. Again, use the joystick handle or arrow keys to scroll through the list. When the article you want is highlighted, press the fire button or Spacebar. You hear a chime, and the article disappears from the list because you're now using it or it's back in the pack.

When you select some items, either in your pack or on your body, you won't hear the chime (but a tone will sound) and the items won't disappear from the list. These items are used automatically. For example, you have to have pitons, carabiners, and a hammer to secure yourself with the rope while you're climbing on rock. But all you have to take out is the rope itself.


Beginner's Luck

The first time you take what should have been a fatal fall, you'll see this message: "You were lucky this time. Keep trying." On an easy course, you'll get three such chances before it's for keeps. On an intermediate course, you get two, and on a hard course, just one. You don't have to climb out when you're saved by luck. Just press Esc.


Climbing on Ice

Sooner or later, you'll come to your first ice cliff. The best thing to do is to stop just before you get there, open your pack, and put on your crampons. Then select a rope and proceed.

If you find yourself on the cliff and you haven't had a chance to put on your crampons, play it safe and attach yourself to the wall with the strap. This allows you to get into the pack even while climbing. Put your crampons on, choose a rope, and proceed. The strap automatically unfastens when you start moving.

To climb, first dig your axes into the ice (see the table below). Then set your first foot. With your foot secure, pull yourself up. Now set your second foot and pull yourself up. Then repeat the process, starting with digging in your axes.


Controls:

Dig in axes: Push joystick handle up or press the up arrow key.

Set first foot: Pull joystick handle down or press the down arrow key.

Pull yourself up: Press the fire button or Spacebar.

Set second foot: Pull joystick handle down or press the down arrow key.

Keep an eye on the little man to the right of the cliff. He'll tell you how far you've come and how far you have to go. You'll make steady progress as long as you're wearing crampons. Without them you'll find it takes several tries to set each foot.

Climb this way until you're back on level ground. For best results move quickly enough to climb steadily, but not so quickly that you interrupt ax or foot work.

[The only real problem with ice climbing, once you've figured out the rhythm, is getting fatigued halfway through a long climb. There's no way to rest on an ice cliff, so it's often wise to take a short nap before attacking the ice.]

Note: See the section Using the Rope for more information on ice climbing.


Climbing on Rock

As soon as you've conquered the ice, a new challenge confronts you: a steep rock face. If possible, stop just before you get there. If you go straight from ice to rock, with no flat ground to stop in, secure yourself with the strap when you first get on the rock.

Take off your crampons if you're still wearing them. (You can't climb rock with crampons on.) Open your pack, put on your soft shoes and helmet, and take out your chalk. Finally, select a rope and start climbing. The strap automatically removes itself when you set off.

Climbing on rock is the ultimate test of skill and coordination. You have to find secure handholds for your hands and feet, pull yourself smoothly and quickly, and sometimes even dodge falling boulders.

It's best to have three strong holds at all times, so that you can move the fourth limb safely. The hand and foot icons to the right of the rock face are your guides. If an icon is steady, you have a secure hold with that hand or foot. A flashing icon shows a weak or tenuous hold that you should move as soon as possible. If you don't see an icon, you don't have a hold.

You can move one hand or foot at a time (see the table below). The limb that's selected will flash on your climber. To choose a different limb, press the fire button or Spacebar enough times to move the selector clockwise to the limb you want.

Controls:

Select hand or foot: Press fire button or Spacebar.

Move hand or foot up or down: Move joystick handle up or down, or press the up or down arrow keys.

Move up, down, or sideways: Press fire button while moving joystick handle in direction you want to go, or hold an arrow key and press Spacebar.

Dodge boulders: Move joystick handle away from boulder's path, or press the left and right arrow keys.

Your first concern should be placing a hand or foot that doesn't have a hold. Then secure any hold that's weak (flashing icon). If all your holds are secure, move the limb that will best help you advance.

When you're positioned well enough so that your arms can pull and your legs can push, hoist yourself up. Move sideways to dodge boulders and get to some holds. Sometimes you'll have to move downward to reach a secure hold.

You may be able to change position and even hoist yourself up with one or more weak holds, but you have to move quickly. Look carefully at the rock as you climb. Try to place your hands and feet in the cracks. They're the most secure places.

It takes practice to climb well. If you can maintain a smooth, steady pace, moving quickly from one good hold to another, you'll make it to the top.


Using the Rope:

The rope can save your life on either ice or rock. But you can only use it if you've packed a supply of carabiners, ice pins, and either pitons or chocks, plus a hammer to fasten the pitons and ice pins.

Selecting a rope automatically selects the needed accessories. It also displays a message box which reads "Security/Recover/Abandon." After you've climbed either 20 or 40 meters, depending on the rope you're using, Security begins to flash. You've come to the end of a pitch and you must recover your rope and equipment.

If you've packed your jummar, you can use it to recover the rope and all the climbing aids you used. Press Return to bring the pointer onto the screen, move it to Recover, and press the fire button or Spacebar.

If you've forgotten the jummar, Recover won't work. You must select Abandon. You get the rope back, but you leave your climbing aids behind. If you've exhausted your supply of climbing aids, you won't be able to use the rope again.

To continue climbing with the rope, select it again from the rack and keep going. If you come to a difficult pitch and can't make progress, try using your stirrups. These are slings that fit into the carabiners to make artificial steps. To use the stirrups, first select a foot and place it in the desired position. Then press Return to move the pointer onto the screen. Point to the climber's head and press the fire button or Spacebar to access the rack. Select the stirrups and press the fire button or Spacebar again. Your foot will now be in a stirrup. When you move that foot, the stirrups are returned to your rack.


When You're Cold, Hungry, or Tired

Climbing is strenuous and the weather in the mountains changes fast, so you're going to get cold, hot, hungry, thirsty, and tired. When you do, a little climber appears in the lower right of the screen to tell you in words or gestures what he needs.

[As I recall, the hunger animation is kind of bizarre -- the climber points to his mouth in what looks like a gagging gesture. If it looks like the climber is scrubbing his face with soap, he's asking you to take some clothes off, not to take a bath. That's sweat, not soap.]

You can ignore your alter ego's demands and keep going, but you'll get steadily weaker and less able to concentrate. Pretty soon you'll find yourself hurtling down a rock face or falling into a crevasse. Before that happens, it's best to stop and take care of your needs as soon as you can.

You follow basically the same procedures to eat, drink, and warm up. Press Return to bring the pointer onto the screen. Move the pointer to the rucksack and press the fire button or Spacebar. Find something that fills the bill, and press the fire button or Spacebar again.

If you've satisfied his/your needs, the little climber and his message disappears. Sometimes, though, whatever you've chosen isn't enough. For example, the little climber is shivering. You get him a wool hat, but he's still cold. Go back into the pack and take out the anorak. That should do the trick.

Follow the reverse procedure if the little climber gets too hot. Press Return, move the pointer over the climber's body, select the extra clothes in the list and return them to the pack.

When the climber gets tired, he needs a nap. If you're on level ground, take out the tent. This automatically puts him to sleep. If you've forgotten the tent, take out the shovel to dig an igloo. If you've forgotten both the tent and the shovel, you're in trouble. You can keep going, but you'll get more and more tired. If you get the cold message while in the tent, take out the sleeping bag. If that doesn't work, try the foil cover or some warmer clothes.

[An amusing side effect is that you can walk around with a sleeping bag on.]

The clock speeds up when the climber sleeps. The tired graphic or message will go away when the climber's ready to get up.When it's time to wake up, reverse the procedure to put the tent or shovel and the sleeping bag back in the pack. You'll probably want something to eat, and then it's time to get back on the trail.

If you get hungry, thirsty, or tired while climbing, check your progress by looking at the little man on the right. If you're close to the top, keep going and then open your pack on level ground.

If you don't want to wait, secure yourself with the strap, open your pack, and take out what you need. If you're on a rock face, you can even sleep during your climb, using the hammock instead of the tent. Of course, if you've forgotten the hammock, you'll have to keep climbing.


If Disaster Strikes

Mountaineering is dangerous, and no matter how skilled you become, you may still make a fatal miscalculation while climbing or overlook a crevasse while trudging across the glacier. If you've used up your beginner's luck, that's the end of the game. Fortunately, it's easy to bring yourself back to life and start over. Just press Esc and you'll find yourself at the trailhead, ready to start for the summit again. Better luck this time!


ENDING A GAME

Stopping and Saving

To stop the clock while you take a break, press the P key.

To save game in order to resume it later, be sure to pack the Save Game Disk when you're selecting items for your rucksack. When you're ready to stop and save, open your pack and take out the disk. Your game will be saved at that point.

When you're ready to resume play, load the program. When you're asked to choose a route, select Resume. You'll start climbing again from where you saved the game.


Triumph-- and a New Game

After a day or even longer of hard work and danger, you reach the last summit of your trek. You may be tired, but this is your moment of triumph. Enter your name in the scoring screen and then press Return.

When you're ready to start again, press the fire button or Spacebar. You'll find yourself back at the trailhead, ready to choose a new route and strive for new heights.

To quit the program at any time, press Q.


CLIMBING TERMS

aid climbing: Climbing by actually pulling yourself up on the rope, or by using attachments such as a jummar and stirrups, instead of using the rope for protection only. Compare to free climbing.

belay: Any means of breaking the fall of a climber on a rope. Also, to take in or let out the rope in order to protect a climber.

bomber: An extremely secure hold. Also called "bombproof."

bouldering: Climbing on boulders, usually to practice difficult moves before rock climbing.

bucket hold: A secure hold around which the climber can curl all the fingers of one hand.

buildering: To climb on buildings or other man-made structures. Notable assaults have included the World Trade Center in New York and the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco. The prospective skyscraper builderer should be prepared for a fine and a short stay in the city jail, in addition to the chance to be on TV.

cairn: A small pyramid of rocks used as a trail marker.

carabiner: A metal link with a gate for opening to insert a rope and locking to secure it. Used to connect the rope to climbing gear. Usually called "beener" by climbers.

chalk: Special chalk used to keep the hands from slipping during rock climbing. Often called "gymnastic chalk" because it was first developed for gymnasts. It is available in colors that blend with the rock.

chock: An artificial anchor to wedge into natural gaps in the rock. It consists of a piece of metal with a rope or metal sling to which a carabiner is attached. Chocks come in a wide range of sizes.

class: The difficulty of a climb. Climbs are rated from class 1, which is essentially flat ground climbs, to class 6, which are climbings requiring artificial aid. Most expert rock climbers are inerested in high class 5 climbs, which are extremely difficult but can be accomplished without aid. Classes are called "grades" in Europe.

cornice: A permanent lip-shaped snowdrift formed on the lee (windless) side of a ridge or summit.

crampons: A steel framework with spikes and straps that is attached to the boots for ice climbing.

crevasse: A fissure (crack) in a glacier. Crevasses can be very deep and dangerous and are often hidden by surface snow or thin ice.

crux: The hardest part of a climb.

decimal system: A subdivision system for rating the difficulty of a climb. Class 5 climbs, all of which require rope but must be done without aid, are rated from 5.1, which is fairly easy, to 5.13, which is almost impossible. All climbs are rated according to their most difficult, or crux, move.

epic: A dangerous climb that's more fun to talk about than endure.

exposure: Any situation where a fall could be lethal. How frightening this is tends to increase with the distance to the ground, regardless of the actual increase in danger.

free climbing: To climb on the natural holds on the rock or ice. A rope can and should be used, but for protection only.

friend: A special chock that automatically adjusts to a wide range of crack sizes and shapes.

frostbite: Freezing of flesh, usually resulting in its destruction. Frostbite is most common in the fingers, toes, and face, and can be prevented by protective clothing.

glacier: A large expanse of ice, often many thousands of years old, which moves slowly downhill.

glissade: A controlled slide down a snowy slope.

grade: In the United States, a rating system based on the length of time it takes an experienced climber to do a route. Grade I routes take about an hour; grade VI routes take two days or more.

gripped: Taken by sudden fear, usually caused by exposure.

hypothermia: Cooling of the body core. Hypothermia can be fatal if it is not treated quickly.

ice pin: A pin which is hammered into ice for protection. It has an eye to which a carabiners can be attached.

jummar: A mechanical device used in aid climbing. It will slide up but not down. Also called "ascender."

minimum impact: Ecologically sound camping, in which no signs of the camper's presence are left behind.

pitch: The distance between two belay points, usually one rope length.

piton: A pin which is hammered into rock for protection. It has an eye to which a carabiner can be attached.

protection: Anything to which the rope is attached. Usually called "pro."

rappel: To descend from a cliff by sliding down the rope.

rack: All the protection the climber carries, usually slung over the shoulder outside the pack.

soft shoes: Specialized shoes for climbing rock. They are very tight, with treadless soles of sticky rubber, similar to the rubber used for drag-racing tires.

snow pack: The accumulation of snow on the ground.

white out: A combination of heavy snowall and high wind that reduces visibility to near zero.