Just a quick question: Is there any reason to (s)earch in M&M1 other than after just winning a battle? I'd hate to be walking past treasure and not finding it due to not searching.

Thanks!

The search command is only used after battle. But there are other secrets to find, most notably secret doors, which you find by attempting to walk into walls. There are also treasures you can find without fighting a battle first, but for those if you just walk onto the square, facing the right direction, it will automatically notify you.

Thanks for the response! I'm really enjoying the game and have struggled my way to level 4 for half my characters. It doesn't exactly give you much in the way of instructions though!

True, but remember that it's from 1986! It's actually quite impressive how much content the game has when you think about it.

As for instruction, reading the manual is highly recommended. There should be a PDF copy in your game folder. Also, GOG provides the cluebook as part of the additional content (go to your GOG account page, click on the MM pack, then look under "additional content") which can provide hints and item stats. The item stats are quite useful because otherwise it's not necessarily clear which weapons and armor are best.