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Readme.txt for Admiral - Sea Battles (tm)* ***************************************** Contents. System requirements Installing Admiral - Sea Battles (tm) Rules of the game Starting the game Game control Controlling objects Information windows Transitions from mission to mission Saving and loading game How to record your own demo Story of Admiral Strategical hints Troubleshooting System requirements* ******************* The mimimum system requirements required to run this game are: 486 DX2/66 or higher PC compatible MS Windows 95 8 MB RAM 18 MB of free hard disk space 2x CD-ROM drive (4x is highly recommended for viewing the cut-scenes) An SVGA video card and monitor Installing Admiral - Sea Battles (tm)* ************************************* Installation of Admiral - Sea Battles (tm) is accomplished with the program SETUP.EXE program that is placed in the root directory of the game CD. In case Admiral - Sea Battles (tm) has not been installed on your PC, SETUP.EXE will run automatically after you insert CD into the CD-drive of your computer. The SETUP.EXE program consists of some dialog pages on which controls of installation settings (parametres) are placed (situated). To move between the pages use the buttons Next and Back, to run the installation program press Finish. You can choose a destination directory with the help of the directory browser which you can call by pressing the Browse button. You can also edit the destination path. SETUP.EXE program may prohibit the continuation of installation in the following cases: - entered destination directory is not correct; - destination drive is not present (is absent); - destination drive is not a hard drive; - there is not enough of free hard disk space for the chosen type of installation. You can choose between the following types of SETUP: - Small; - Medium; - Large; - Full. If you choose the Small type of installation only the most essential files would be copied on your drive. Hence the game requires the CD to do the following: - start a new game; - load a game; - view Introductions; - view Cut Scenes; - view logos and credits. Be aware that when starting or loading the game from the CD the game will unpack the necessary files on the hard drive and you will need an additional 4 MB of free hard disk space. We recommend you choose the Medium type of installation. In this case the game does not need the CD when loading or starting a new game. But to view Cut Scenes, Introductions, logos and credits you will still need the CD inserted in the drive. If you have enough of free hard disk space you can choose the Large type of installation. In this case the CD will be needed only for viewing Introductions, logos and credits. If you choose Full type of installation all files of the game will be installed on your hard drive. You can choose a Folder for Short Cuts to Admiral - Sea Battles (tm) from the suggested list of Folders which are placed in Programs. We recommend you to choose Admiral. Rules of the game* ***************** CONTROL. The mouse is the main interface and access all of the functions and screens within the game. PLAYING FIELD. The playing field in this game is a map with seas, islands, reefs and shallows. OBJECTS IN THE GAME. The objects that you can control in the game are: ships, forts and ports. WEATHER. While playing the game, ships are influenced by weather conditions which are determined by wind strength and direction. Weather changes every cycle of the game (when both players have ended their turns). There may be a calm, wind and storm. In calm only steamers and ships with oars can move. In a storm all ships are moved in the wind direction except those which are standing in the cells that are neighbouring ports. You cannot build objects, move or board ships in storm. Rules of the game - Movement* **************************** Ships movement is dependent on the weather conditions and the movement ability of that ship. The maximum distance is covered when you move a ship in the direction of the wind. In all other directions this distance is reduced in proportion to the angle between the wind direction and the direction of ship movement. While in a storm ships cannot be moved normally - they are moved a distance determined by the class of the ship. While in a calm 3-decked and 2-decked battle-ships, galleons and frigates can not move. Rules of the game - Firing* ************************** Only ships and forts can fire. Fire strength and range depend upon the class of the firing object and its current life level. Hitting targets is determined by the experience of the firing object, distance to the target, and the size of the target. Objects cannot fire over two cells of land. Rules of the game - Boarding* **************************** If an enemy ship is in the cell as one of your ships you may attempt to board it. The succes of the boarding is determined by the number of boarding crew (it depends upon the class of the boarding ship) and the experience level of the boarding ship. When boarding is successful the boarded ship joins the navy effectives of the boarding side. Boarding crew reduces on and experience increases depending on the success of the boarding. When the boarding is not successful the quantity of boarding crew reduces to zero or decreases for 25% of the maximum quality of boarding crew for ships of that class in the game. After attempting to board, a ship cannot make any other actions (moving, firing) until the next turn. Rules of the game - Repairing* ***************************** All objects can be repaired. When repairing all other actions are unavailable to that object. If the object has made any actions it cannot be repaired during that turn. For one turn an object can be repaired for a total of 33% of its total life level. Repairing requires money. The sum of money required for repair depends upon the class of the object and on how much it is repaired. Ships can be repaired only in the cells that are neighbouring your port. A Fort can be repaired when your ships are in its neighboring cells. A Port repairs itself. Rules of the game - Building* **************************** Ships can build forts and ports. Ports can build ships. Building requires money. The sum of it depends upon the class of the object being built. Ships can build a fort or a port only when there are 3 or more ships in the cells neighboring the building site and which have not made any other actions during the turn. Those ships would not be able to do any other actions during the turn. A Port can build ships if there is a free place in the neighboring cells. If there are shallows in the free neighboring cells then only ships that can pass over shallows can be built there. Starting the game* ***************** Once you have started the game, the game will show a logo screen. You can stop the animation by pressing the ESC key. In the Main Menu you can choose from the following variants of the game: start a new game against the computer, start a new game against a human opponent, start a saved game. You can also view the introduction of the game. Starting the game - Introduction* ******************************** If you want to see the introduction, press the INTRODUCTION button. Starting the game - Start a New Game Against the Computer* ********************************************************* If you want to start playing a new game against the computer press the MISSIONS button. After pressing that button a new screen will pop up where you can choose one of 3 episodes. After clicking on one of the episode's button you can see an introduction for that episode by pressing the INTRO button. After you have choosen an episode confirm your choice by pressing either OK to accept, or CANCEL to reject and return to the previous Menu. Starting the game - Start a New Game Against a Human* **************************************************** If you want to play the game against your friend (or foe), in the Main Menu press the HEAD-TO-HEAD button. A new screen will pop up which will offer you a choice of the type of game you wish to play. THE SAME COMPUTER - two human on the same computer. ON-LINE GAME - two human on two different computers connected through any of the following: local network, modem, or null-modem. The flag under which you will fight is can be chosen at the botton left corner of the window. After you have choosen an ON-LINE game you are given a choice of connection types. After you have chosen the appropriate type of connection and if you are playing under the Yellow flag then you will need to wait until your partner's computer connects to yours. If you have chosen the Green flag, then after you have chosen the type of connection you will need to choose the name of the game out of the suggested list. To avoid problems, it is best to arrange the name of the game before you start. OFF-LINE GAME - in this mode you save the game in a special file at the end of your turn and then send it to your rival usually via e-mail. These files are saved in the directory \OFFLINE\SEND. The file that you receive should be placed into the \OFFLINE\RECEIVE directory. After you have chosen any of these modes, you can choose a map on which to fight, the amount of money each player has at the beginning of the game, and the name of the game. If you are playing the ON-LINE mode then these settings can only be chosen by the player playing under the Yellow flag. The player playing under the Green flag will receive these settings after the computers are connected. Starting the game - Loading a Game* ********************************** If you want to play a saved game, in the Main Menu press the LOAD button. Having pressed it you will see the list of saved games. In the lower left corner there are buttons showing each type of game. These types are arranged as follows: MISSIONS, THE SAME COMPUTER, ON-LINE, OFF-LINE. Choose the type of game you wish to load by pressing the corresponding button then choose the name of the saved game and press OK. Game control - Playing field* **************************** The playing field is a two dimensional sea map on which different geographical objects are situated (such as islands, reefs, and shallows). Game control - Conventional signs on the playing field* ****************************************************** Near the active object on the playing field, depending on the control button your press, there will be conventional signs showing that objects ability to act. Such as: cell in which a ship can be placed enemy object that can be fired upon cell in which you may build a port or a fort cell in which you must build a port or a fort (in certain missions) Game control - Informational string* *********************************** In the bottom of the screen there is the informational string in which information about objects of the game and user's interface is represented when you point the cursor at them. Information about a game object is represented in the same order as in the Control Bar, e.g. Galeon (100-80-50-80-50) means that: class of object - galeon life level - 100% ability to move - 80% fire strength - 50% boarding crew strength - 80% experience of ship crew - 50% Game control - Controlling Objects* ********************************** Control of objects is accomplished with the help of the Control Bar. The Control Bar is divised into two parts. In the upper part information about the currently active object is given in the form of horizontal bar graphs which show: its class and image; 1 - life level 2 - ability to move 3 - fire strength 4 - boarding crew strength 5 - experience In the lower part are the object control buttons which are: 1 - move ship 2 - fire a salvo 3 - board enemy vessel 4 - choose next object 5 - repair object 6 - build an object 7 - end your turn Near every button there are indicators that show the availability of the corresponding actions: red light indicates that the action is not available, green - available, and light green - action is currently selected. Game control - Moving ships* *************************** MOVING SHIPS. To move a ship, point the cursor at it, click the the left mouse button, then in the Control Bar press the button MOVE SHIP or press "m" on the keyboard. After that, cells that you can move that ship to will be marked with a special sign and the word "MOVE" in them. Choose a cell and click the left mouse button on it. Game control - Firing* ********************* FIRING. To fire an enemy object using your current (active) object, click on the FIRE A SALVO button or press "f" on the keyboard. After that all the enemy objects within the range of your object will be marked with a special sign and the word "FIRE" below it. Choose an object and click the left mouse button on it to fire. Game control - Boarding* *********************** BOARDING. You can board an enemy vessel if your ship is in the same cell with it. To board a foe's ship click on the BOARD button or press "b" on the keyboard. Game control - Repairing* ************************ REPAIRING. To repair a ship (if the operation is available) click on the REPAIR button or press "r" on the keyboard. Game control - Building* *********************** BUILDING. To build an object (if the operation is available) click on the BUILD button or press "u" on the keyboard. After doing that you will get the Build Window in which you can choose the object you want to build. Cells in which you can build a new object will be marked with a special sign. Choose the cell in which you want to build the object and click the left mouse button. Game control - Choosing the next object* *************************************** CHOOSING THE NEXT OBJECT. To go to the next object that has the possibility to take an action click on the NEXT button or press "n" on the keyboard. You can also choose the next object by clicking the left mouse button on the object you wish to make active. This second way does not work while you are trying to move the current object. In this case you should cancel moving the first step by pressing any button in the Control Bar and only then choose the object you need. Game control - Ending your turn* ******************************* ENDING YOUR TURN. When you have finished your turn click on END button of the Control Bar. Game control - Mass move* ************************ MASS MOVE. You can unite your ships in groups and then move, fire and repair them if these actions are allowed. To unite your objects in a group, press the left mouse button and without releasing it draw a rectangular area. All your objects that are situated within the restricted area will be included in the group. To exclude or to add an object to the group, press the Shift key and without releasing it click the left mouse button the necessary object. Be aware that while moving a group ships they choose the optimum way to the destination point which sometimes does not coincide with the shortest one. Information windows* ******************* While playing the game you can receive various bits of information with the help of information windows. You control of these windows with the help of the Information Control Bar (the smaller of the two permanent windows). In the window you can get the following information: 1 - weather forecast 2 - mission task (when playing against the computer) 3 - tactical map 4 - information about objects in a certain cell 5 - information about enemy targets within range 6 - information about navy effectives 7 - comparative descriptions of objects in the game 8 - information about the costs of building and repairing of objects and the number of credits you posses. 9 - information about current settings 10 - save game 11 - quick help 12 - quit current game To receive any piece of information just press the corresponding button in the Information Control Bar. You can have only one information window open at a time. To close an information window press the corresponding button in the Information Control Bar once again. Information windows - Weather* ***************************** WEATHER FORECAST - (Alt+W): With the help of this window you can learn information about the direction and strength of the wind for the current turn and the next turn. Information windows - Mission Task* ********************************** MISSION TASK - (Alt+T): In this window you can see your mission task. To close this window, press the corresponding key on the Informational Control Bar or Esc on the keyboard. Information windows - Tactical Map* ********************************** TACTICAL MAP - (Tab): In this window you can see the whole map with all the objects in it. The red rectangle on the map indicates the zone that you can see in the normal map. You can move this zone by clicking the left mouse button on the necessary zone in the Tactical Map. To return to the normal map double-click the left mouse button on the necessary zone. Information windows - Cell Information Window* ********************************************* CELL INFORMATION WINDOW - (Alt+V): In this window you can get all the information about the objects in a certain cell. To choose a cell click the on it. After that you will see the class of the object and all of its vital information. In case there are two objects in the same cell you can choose either of them by clicking on the up- and down-arrows in the window. Information windows - Target Window* *********************************** TARGET WINDOW - (Alt+F): If the current object has any targets within range you can open the Target Window. In this window all targets within range are displayed. Here you can learn all the information about the targets. You can also fire at the one you prefer by clicking the FIRE A SALVO button in this window. Information windows - Navy Effectives Window* ******************************************** NAVY EFFECTIVES WINDOW - (Alt+E): In this window you can find information about the effectives of your and your enemy's fleets. The flag in the upper part of the window indicates which navy is represented in it at the moment. To get information about the other navy click the NAVY INFO button in this window. The number of "alive" (not destroyed) objects is placed under the header AVAILABLE, the number of destroyed objects is placed under DESTROYED. You can also get information about all objects of a certain class. To do this just click on the button above the image of the class you want to view and then in a special window you can view information about each object of that chosen class by clicking on the up- and down-arrow buttons. To return to the Navy Effectives Window click on the NAVY EFFECTIVES button. Information windows - Comparative Description Window* **************************************************** COMPARATIVE DESCRIPTION WINDOW - (Alt+C): In this window you can get relative information about objects based on the following: Strength - ability to stand bombarding. Maximum distance of one move: with a Tail Wind, in a Calm, and in a Storm. Fire Power and Firing Range. Boarding ability. Ability of vessels to pass over shallows. Information windows - Object Pricing Window* ******************************************* OBJECT PRICING WINDOW - (Alt+R): In this window you can obtain information about the prices of building an object (button BUILDING INFO) and the cost of 1% of repair job (button REPAIR INFO). In this window there is also shown the amount of money you currently possess. Information windows - Settings Control Window* ********************************************* SETTINGS CONTROL WINDOW - (Alt+A): Inthis window you can change some settings in the game to make it more comfortable for you. You can switch on/off the grid, sound, cut scenes and music. Information windows - Quick Help* ******************************** QUICK HELP WINDOW - (F1): In this window you can get information about game control. You can change "pages" of it by pressing buttons above arrows up- and down-arrow. Transitions from mission to mission* *********************************** When playing against the computer first you need to form your navy. A navy is formed with the help of a special window. In this window information about available ships and each ship chosen for the mission is given. Available classes of ships are indicated by green text. To choose ships for the mission, first click the mouse on the image of an available class of ship, then you choose certain ships of this class by clicking the up- and down-arrow buttons and confirm your choice by clicking on the ADD bytton. You can exclude a chosen ship by clicking the REMOVE button. If you want to exclude all chosen ships of current class click the REMOVE ALL button. The Total on Mission counter indicates the total quantity of ships chosen for the mission at the moment. When the number of chosen ships exceed the limit the background color of this counter turn red. Before choosing ships we recommend that you look at the task for the mission by clicking on the TASK button. Saving and loading game* *********************** While playing the game you can save it. For that you should click on the button with a disk on it in the Information Control Bar or press Ctrl+S on the keyboard. When the SAVE WINDOW appears choose one of the 10 given positions. If you want, you can edit the name of the saved game. How to record your own demo* *************************** If you want you can record your own demonstration. To start recording your demo you must press Ctrl+Shift+D on the keyboard. After that all your actions and all actions of your enemy will be saved in a special demo- file. To stop recording of the demonstration you must press Alt+Shift+D on the keyboard. Be aware that the old version of the demo-file will be lost when you start recording a new one. Story of Admiral* **************** --------- --------- ...The war on the seas began long before its official declaration. It began with separate local conflicts in the area of a vast archipelago in the south latitudes. The first battle happened when our navy was convoying ally transports that carried materials for building a fortified port in the eastern part of the archipelago. Afterwards this operation was called 'Outpost'... excerpts from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: I have received orders from the Court of Admiralty to convoy allied transports carrying building materials for a port and a fort in a well protected part of the archipelago. Quite unexpectedly our convoy ran into enemy forts and a small squadron of battleships. Evidently, not only we were interested in this area. Skillfully using the wind and the pecularities of the coastline we managed not only to destroy all forts, ships and a port of the enemy, but also to board one of its big ships. Later on allies helped us to reapir and resupply our ships which had been seriously damaged in that operation. --------- ...Evidently the enemy realized that they were doomed and tried to run away with all their treasure. We cannot afford him to escape because it would let the Green Cross order to buy new ships with it... from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: Some days were spent on repairing and resupplying our ships. Then we received a new order to capture or to destroy escaping enemy transports. The Court of Admiralty sent some high-speed ships to help us and that was the deciding factor of our success: the overwhelming majority of enemy transports were destroyed, some of them were captured. --------- ...Our navy acting as a concentrated force, managed to clear the archipelago area from enemy forts, ports and ships. Ships of the Green Cross order made an attempt to seize our port but our galleys and forts smashed its squadron without serious damages from our side. from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: The success of the last operation allowed our Admiralty to reinforce our navy with new powerful battleships. In my opinion, the tactics of a concentrated force determined our victory in "Citadels" operation. --------- In early autumn our allies sustained a resounding defeat on the sea. They had lost almost all their navy effectives in the eastern part of the archipelago. Some ally ships that escaped destruction took shelter in a well protected bay. We had to save our allies. from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: ...This operation allowed us not only to help our brothers in arms but also to torment the navy of the Green Croos order. --------- History of human civilization proves that it is made by outstanding personalities. One of them was Herman Tor, the Admiral of the Green Cross navy. from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: In the beginning, our task - to capture or to destroy the enemy flagship - seemed to me impossible. But I found that the experience acquired by our crews in the previous battles made it possible. --------- Our navy continued clearing the archipelago of the enemy. In the southern part of it the Green Cross Order created a powerful base for its navy. We had to dislodge the enemy and to destroy 2 forts and a port that occupied very important strategical position. from, "History of the Sea Battles" From Admiral's memoirs: As it turned out in consequence, intelligence service of the enemy constantly informed General Headquarters of the Green Cross order about current effectives of our navy. When we built a new ship they built two. But their mistake was that they recruited unexperienced dregs of society for their crews. The experience and courage of our crews on one side and inexperience and cowardice on the other allowed our navy to accomplish our mission. It should be noted that the tactics of concentrated force that I used in previous battles was unfit for that operation. ---------- ---------- Pirates felt themselves as masters of trade shipping routes while we were fighting for the archipelago with the Green Cross order. They had robbed a large amount of treasure and that was the main reason for a new military campaign. Pirates having learned that we were preparing for the military campaign against them asked our sworn enemy, the Green Cross order, to help them in the approaching battles against us and promised them two thirds of their treasure. The greedy order could not pass money by and send Admiral Eric Gordon's squadron to help pirates... ...We achieved a signal victory in that campaign and completely eradicated piracy on the seas. from, "History of the Sea Battles" --------- From Admiral's memoirs: I received orders to forestall the enemy navy that was heading for the pirates' treasure. The first task was to pass my squadron through a narrow dangerous strait called the Storming Gates. A large enemy squadron was moving with parallel course on the north. Admiral Gordon sent two groups of fast ships to build forts in our way. One of those groups we managed to destroy. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: Right after our squadron arrived at the port and started repairing we were twice attacked by pirates' ships. Eric Gordon's squadron was rushing with the same aim as we did - the corsars' gold. Sometimes our courses crossed and we skirmished with each other. But pirate raids were the main danger for us. The basic forces of the buccaneers were concentrated in a secluded bay and attacked us when we were fighting with pirates' powerful forts and ships. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...Sometimes we did not attack enemy forts because they were not very important for us. ...There was a powerfully fortified island whose outline resembled a turtle that prevented our squadron from moving further. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...And again we were attacked by pirates in a port. Having beaten the attack off we headed to the west... ...Our squadron was approaching the aim of our campaign - fort Roger, where pirates were keeping the robbed treasures. Before we approached the fort we crushed a big squadron of pirates' ships to the south from it... After we had captured fort Roger with its treasures we were raided by pirates and ships of the Green Cross order. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: Allied navy gave transports at our disposal for carrying the corsars' gold. Pirates had not abandoned the idea to return the treasures back and made some attempts to attack us while we were moving to the bay in the south-east, our intermediate destination. There awaited pirates. We left the transports in a safe place and gave battle to the buccaneers, coastal fortifications and ships to let our transports enter the bay safely afterwards... --------- From Admiral's memoirs: Our port in the north-east was the final destination of our squadron with the transports of gold. On that last part of our campaign we crushed the last remnants of pirates' navy and forts. --------- --------- From Admiral's memoirs: It was supposed that the buccaneers' treasures which we had won would satisfy the hunger for money of our bureaucracy... There were found new lands that promised new profits to the high ranked officials. Our navy was ordered to take the islands under our control. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: Our brave seamen and officers had not managed to take their deserved rest because we received orders to take over a newly discovered group of islands. ...Two of our squadrons were sparated by a large enemy squadron and complete defeat threatened us then. Luckily we managed to unite and to win in that battle... --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...We had to build temporary port buildings to repair our ships that were damaged in the previous battle. Later on our task was kind of monotonous. We crushed enemy squadrons and forts and then built our own ports and forts. --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...Two of our squadrons were separated by shoals and islands and were obliged to perform a common task independently. Only when we destroyed all of the enemy ships in the north did we manage to reunite. We then attacked the southern group of enemy ships... --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...We continued our expansion and this time we faced an immense armada of the enemy. We had to build coastal buildings to win in that fierce battle of naval titans... --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...The more we struggled the more resistance from the enemy we met. The new lands were a real titbit for the enemy if he fought for them so fiercely with us... --------- From Admiral's memoirs: ...And here came the last-ditch fight for the dominance over the discovered islands. It was like a Judgement Day on which fortune would smile on the chosen one. Strategical hints* ***************** Each of the 10 classes of ships has its own merits and flaws. That is why you must know their strong and weak points to achieve victory. 1. Heavy ships (2-Decked Battle Ships, 3-Decked Battle Ships and Galeons) are the most expensive to build, but they are most effective when attacking forts. The Galleon is the slowest ship, but its firing range is the longest. It is of vital necessity when you are attacking forts or heavy ships. 2. Ships of the middle classes (Frigate, Clipper) cannot stand against heavy ships, but because of their speed they can be used for breaking through battle lines and building forts and ports. The Frigate has the optimal combination of fire power, sailing ability and building price. That is why is useful for boarding attacks and defense. The Clipper is the best for pursuing enemy of middle and smaller classes. It can move in a calm and excellently resists storms. 3. Smaller ships (Brig, Steam-Corvette, Paddle Steamer, Tender, and Galley) have the lowest life level and fire power. Their merits are: ability to pass over shallows and low building cost. Brigs, Steam- Corvettes and Paddle Steamers are very effective for pursuing enemy ships and building forts and ports in strategically important places. The high boarding ability of Galleys, Tenders, and Brigs makes them very dangerous to heavy ships. They can also move in a calm. 4. Forts of the 1-st and 2-nd line are characterized by big fire power, long fire range and effectiveness of fire. Any port may be attacked by the enemy and should be protected by at least on fort. Ports have the ability to repair themselves. The very high cost of their building requires them to be protected by ships. No fort can resist an attack of more then 3 heavy ships. A fort, especially two forts, when supported by ships are able to prevent enemy ships from passing straits and entering bays. 5. Do not hesitate spending money on building ports, but do not build them too closely to each other - it is not useful. If you have ports at strategically important areas it will be very difficult for enemies to "squeeze" you out of those areas. Ports build and repair ships and give shelter for ships in a storm. Ships in cells neighboring a port are not moved by storms. 6. Keep an eye on the weather -it is changeable! A storm is dangerous not only because it can throw your ships onto reefs or into shallows, but it can also take them into the range of enemy forts and heavy ships. 7. A calm is dangerous when your ships are within range of enemy forts. That is why you need look at the weather forecast before attacking enemy forts. 8. Shallows may be dangerous for heavy ships: a storm can strand you ships on the shallows and if a second storm occurs and your ships are still there they will be destroyed. 9. Do not be afraid if the number of navy effectives of your enemy is larger than yours. When you are attacking forts which are supported by ships, use the following tactics: damage the supporting ships so that they can be easily boarded and board them. After that the enemy forts will attack those damaged ships first leaving your regular navy free to attack the forts. 10. Do not abuse the boarding attack - remember that in case of failure your ship will always be captured by the enemy. If boarding was successful move the captured ship away from the enemy because it can be easily taken back. Move to your port and repair it to raise its boarding ability. 11. Fire at enemy ships before boarding it. 12. If your enemy has a lot of money do not try to destroy his navy all at once. Ships are built faster than they are destroyed. You are better off building ports defended by forts near the expected battle positions. Build forts at strategically important places (at capes) and build ships of different classes (because sometimes a Galley is more effective than a heavy ship). 13. Economize money, because you can earn it only when a mission is completed. 14. Mind that the less distance to the target the more effective firing at it is. To prevent enemies from boarding you ships, place two of your ships in one cell. 15. Do not forget to repair your objects. Remember that to repair objects is easier than replacing them (especially forts and ports). 16. It is not effective to build slow ships far from the battle area. It is better to build a port near the battle. 17. Build a port in the place where there is a maximum quantity of neighboring sea-cells - that will allow you to repair more ships at the same time. Avoid building ports near shallows. Troubleshooting* *************** 1. To disable AutoPlay a) Double-click the My Computer icon. b) On the View menu, click Options, and then click the File Types tab. c) Click the AudioCD type, and then click Edit. d) In the Actions list, click Play, and then click Set Default. 2. While sound effects animations 'mortify' on the playing field Try to set a lower priority to the sound driver and in case that does not work set another sound driver in the program. To change the sound driver and priority of the driver run config.exe and set Sound Driver and Priority to needed values. DirectX Primary - plays through DirectX and uses the DirectX driver. DirectX Secondary - plays through DirectX but uses the Windows driver. MCI - plays through the standart MCI interface. 3. Very bad connection or cannot connect through COM-ports Check the settings for COM-ports in the Control Panel on both computers. 4. When you try repeat connection through modem you receive message that line is busy. Restart the program. 5. In case you get a message that DLL libraries are not found, install WinG and DirectX notwithstanding recommendations of the SETUP program. CONTACT INFO: Megamedia Corporation Email: admiral@megamed.com Web: www.megamed.com