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Taking something (past tense taken)

The taking action is the only way an action in the Standard Rules can cause something to be carried by an actor. It is very simple in operation (the entire carry out stage consists only of 'now the actor carries the noun') but many checks must be performed before it can be allowed to happen.

When the player types a command, such as EAT FISH, what normally happens is that the action understood is started - in this case, 'eating the fish'. In some cases, though, Inform notices that the action requires the player to be holding something in order for it to work: for instance, the fish can only be eaten if it is held at the time. In such cases, Inform generates a taking action first, and then (if that succeeds) moves on to the actual request: so Inform tries 'taking the fish' and then 'eating the fish'. A taking started in those circumstances is called 'implicit', because it was only implicit in the original command, not called for directly. Implicit taking is just like ordinary taking, except that the action variable 'the thing implicitly taken' is set to the thing in question, and that the usual report of a successful taking ('Taken.') is suppressed as unnecessary.

Typed commands leading to this action

    "take [things]"
    "get [things]"
    "pick up [things]"
    "pick [things] up"

Named values belonging to this action

thing implicitly taken ... the name of an object

Rules controlling this action

    set action variables    taking  standard set taking variables rule
    before    doing something in The Captain's Office   
    instead    taking the stale water   
    instead    taking the good white wine   
    instead    taking the blade   
    instead    taking the leaves   
    instead    taking the rotting plants   
    instead    taking the small insects   
    instead    taking the swamp vegetation   
    instead    taking the mud   
    instead    taking the stones_temple   
    instead    taking the painting   
    instead    taking the excrement   
    instead    taking the wrecked furniture   
    instead    taking the primitive tools   
    instead    taking or attacking the moss   
    instead    taking or drinking the drops of water   
    instead    taking, pushing or pulling the bomb   
    instead    taking or pushing or pulling the chest   
    instead    climbing, taking, searching, entering, looking under, opening, closing, attacking, kissing, smelling, tasting, eating or drinking the ruined building between the trees   
    check        taking an alive monster   
    check        taking a killed monster   
    check        an actor taking  avoid unnecessary implicit taking rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take yourself rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take other people rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take component parts rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take people's possessions rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take items out of play rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take what you're inside rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take what's already taken rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take scenery rule
    check        an actor taking  can only take things rule
    check        an actor taking  can't take what's fixed in place rule
    check        an actor taking  use player's holdall to avoid exceeding carrying capacity rule
    check        an actor taking  can't exceed carrying capacity rule
    carry out    an actor taking  standard taking rule
    report        don't report successful implicit takes rule [E1]
    report        (display LibMsg <report player taking>; ...) [E1]
    report        someone trying taking   [E1]
    report        an actor taking  don't report successful implicit takes rule
    report        an actor taking  standard report taking rule
    after    taking an idol for the first time