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Steel Panthers v1.19xx TEST/BETA Update 05/2/96 Version 1.1,1.13x ,1.18x and 1.19xx are official SSI beta patches. Versions 1.14x-1.17x were NovaStar maintenance (campaign improvement/addition) test upgrades, and were only available through NovaStar games. These versions were not official SSI releases, and thus are not supported by SSI Technical Support. Novastar games handles all inquiries regarding these versions of Steel Panthers. This is a test update for use between now, and the release of v1.2. Serious bugs in this version will be considered for correction in v1.2 If you do not wish to be a part of the test process for this revision, please do not use this update. Please reinstall Steel Panthers from the game CD and use v1.0-1.1 until the release of v1.2. We do not recommend using savegames from previous versions after installing BETA version 1.19xx. SSI Technical Support will not diagnose problems which occur in savegames which were started in a previous version. Please send examples, saves, and information regarding any problems you have with this update to SSI Technical Support at Steel19x@aol.com SSI Technical Support can also be reached in the ways described in the Blue Data card included with the game. Steel Panthers Readme notes for version 1.19xx BETA update. Released 5/2/96 1) FIXED: When attempting to change a unit during a campaign (after a battle) the list of units from which to choose is completely corrupted. (This is the game as the change unit list in the editor). 2) FIXED: Normandy Campaign, units (Tank Destroyers, Self-Propelled Arty were tested) disappear if they have not landed by the end of turn one. Easy to duplicate. 3) FIXED: Long Campaign vs. Russians. When you are allowed to change the weapons which have been damaged on a unit, the change list is corrupted 4) FIXED: You cannot start against the Japanese in a long campaign. The US Marines are never supposed to be in North Africa. To demonstrate, start a long campaign with US Marines in December 1941. 5) FIXED: Planes will no longer fail to drop bombs when they should. Steel Panthers Tank Chart. Ratings Key: A= Excellent tank with very good armor and weapons. Keep this tank. B= Good tank with above average armor and weapons. Ok for now. C= Average tank with average to below average armor and weapons. May want to consider upgrading the tank. D= Poor tank with poor armor and under gunned. Should replace tank with newer model otherwise crew will have short and violent lives. - = Tank not available at this time. Max Pen = Max unmodified AP round penetration for this weapon. Rang = Max range in hexes for this weapon. Roles: Inf Support= This means that the tank is design to kill soft targets only. Not very useful against tanks. Anti-tank= This means that the tank is designed to kill tanks or hard targets. It has limited use against infantry or soft targets. SPA= This tank is a self propelled artillery tank. Mobile artilley, useful against soft targets only. AA= This tank is designed to shoot at aircraft. Recon= This tank or vehicle is design to scout and look around the battlefield. Not intended to shoot it out with the enemy. German Tanks Year Ratings Name: 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 Gun Max Pen Rng Role Cost Pz-Ib C D MG's 0 10 Inf Support 3 Pz-IIc B C D 20L55 6 20 Anti-tank 5 Pz-IIL - C C D 20L55 6 20 Recon 6 Pz-IIIE A B C D 37L46 7 30 Anti-tank 9 Pz-IIIG - A B D 50L42 8 30 Anti-tank 10 Pz-IIIH - A B C D 50L42 8 30 Anti-tank 11 Pz-IIIJ - - A B D 50L60 9 30 Anti-tank 12 Pz-IIIM - - - B C 50L60 9 30 Anti-tank 13 Pz-IIIN - - - B C 75L24 6 30 Inf Support 10 Pz-38t B B C D 37L46 7 30 Anti-tank 7 Pz-35(t) B C D 37L40 5 30 Anti-tank 7 Pz-IVc B B C C 75L24 6 30 Inf Support 8 Pz-IVe - B B C 75L24 6 30 Inf Support 9 Pz-IVf2 - - - B C 75L43 13 50 Anti-tank 14 Pz-IVg - - - - B B C 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 13 Pz-IVh - - - - - B B 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 15 Panther - - - - A A B 75L70 19 60 Anti-tank 25 Tiger - - - A A A B 88L56 17 60 Anti-tank 30 King Tiger - - - - - A A 88L71 22 60 Anti-tank 50 Brumbar - - - - A A A 150L10 0 50 Inf Support 15 Stug-IIIb B B C D 75L24 6 30 Inf Support 8 Stug-H42 - - - A B B B 105L30 0 40 Inf Support 13 Stug-IIIg - - - - B B C 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 11 Stug-IV - - - - B B C 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 12 Jpz-I - C D 47L43 8 30 Anti-tank 7 PzJagd-38 - - - C C 76L51 13 50 Anti-tank 11 Marder - - - B C D 76L51 13 50 Anti-tank 10 Marder II - - - B B D 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 11 Maeder III - - - - C D 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 9 Nashorn - - - - B B B 88L71 22 60 Anti-tank 16 Hetzer - - - - A B B 75L48 14 50 Anti-tank 10 JPZ-IV/70 - - - - - A B 75L70 19 60 Anti-tank 15 Jagdpanther - - - - A A 88L71 22 60 Anti-tank 35 Elefant - - - - B B 88L71 22 60 Anti-tank 40 Jagdtiger - - - - - - A 128L58 22 80 Anti-tank 60 Sig33 - - - C C C 150L10 3 50 Inf Support 9 Wespe - - B B C C C 105mm 0 40 SPA 12 Hummel - - - B B B B 150mm 2 50 SPA 15 Lorraine - B B C C C C 150mm 3 130 SPA 15 Wirblewind - - - - - A A 20mm 3 30 AA 11 Ostwind - - - - - B B 37mm 6 40 AA 12 Gw-38t - B B C 150L10 3 50 Inf Support 10 Sdk-221 C C D MG's 0 10 Recon 3 Sdk-222 B C D 20L55 6 20 Recon 5 Sdk-231 B B C C - - - 20L55 6 20 Recon 5 Sdk-234 - - B B C C 20L55 6 20 Recon 6 Puma - - - - B C D 50L60 9 30 Recon 9 Sdk-234/3 - - B C C C 75L24 6 30 Recon 10 Sdk-234/4 - - - - - C C 75L48 14 50 Recon 12 Russian Tanks Year Ratings Name: 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 Gun Max Pen Rng Role Cost BT-5 C C D 45L46 7 25 Anti-tank 5 BT-7 B C C D 45L46 7 25 Anti-tank 6 BT-7A B B C D 76L26 5 30 Anti-tank 7 T-26S B C D D 45L46 7 25 Anti-tank 5 T-60 - - C D D 20L55 6 20 Recon 6 T-70 - - - C C D D 45L46 7 25 Recon 8 T-28C B B C D 76L26 5 30 Anti-tank 12 T-35 B B B C 76L16 6 30 Anti-tank 25 KV-1 A A B C 76L35 8 30 Anti-tank 15 KV-1C - A A B 76L41 9 40 Anti-tank 18 KV-85 - - - - B B 85L53 13 50 Anti-tank 20 KV-IIA A A B 152L20 0 50 Inf Support 20 JS-II - - - - - A B 122L43 20 60 Anti-tank 25 JS-III - - - - - - A 122L43 20 60 Anti-tank 30 T-34/76A - A A B C 76L35 8 30 Anti-tank 12 T-34/76B - - A B C 76L41 9 40 Anti-tank 12 T-34/76C - - A B C D 76L41 9 40 Anti-tank 11 T-34/85 - - - - B B C 85L53 13 50 Anti-tank 14 SU-45 C C D 45L46 7 25 Anti-tank 6 SU-76 - B C D 76L41 9 40 Anti-tank 8 SU-85 - - - - B B 85L53 13 50 Anti-tank 12 SU-100 - - - - - A B 100L60 21 60 Anti-tank 20 JSU-122 - - - - - A B 122L43 20 60 Anti-tank 20 SU-122 - - - - A A B 122L22 6 40 Inf Support 13 SU-152 - - - - A A B 152L32 3 50 Inf Support 15 JSU-152 - - - - - A A 152L32 3 50 Inf Support 16 BA-10 C C D 45L46 7 25 Recon 8 BA-64 - C C C D D D 20L55 6 20 Recon 6 American Tanks Year Ratings Name: 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 Gun Max Pen Rng Role Cost M2A4 - C C D 37L53 9 30 Recon 8 M3 Stuart - - B C D 37L53 9 30 Recon 9 M5 Stuart - - - B B C D 37L53 9 30 Recon 9 M24 - - - - - B C 75L38 10 40 Recon 10 M3A1 Lee - - - B C 37L53 9 30 Anti-tank 11 M4A1 Sher - - - B C D 75L38 10 40 Anti-tank 11 M4A3 Sher - - - B C D D 75L38 10 40 Anti-tank 11 M4A3E8 - - - - - B C 76L54 12 50 Anti-tank 12 Jumbo - - - - - B B 75L38 10 40 Anti-tank 18 T26 Persh - - - - - - A 90L50 16 60 Anti-tank 24 M10 Wolv - - - B C C D 76L54 12 50 Anti-tank 12 M18 Hell - - - - B C D 76L54 12 50 Anti-tank 11 M36 Jack - - - - - B B 90L50 16 60 Anti-tank 14 Sherman FLame - - B B C C Flame 0 2 Inf Support 20 Sherman 105 - - B B C C 105L30 0 50 Inf Support 13 M7 Preist - - - B B C C 105mm 0 130 SPA 9 M12 GMC - - - - B B B 155mm 3 130 SPA 15 M8 Grayhnd - - - B B C D 37L53 9 30 Recon 7 M20 - - C C D D .50 MG 3 20 Recon 5 Steel Panthers Weapons List Note: This is not a full comphrehensive list of all weapons in Steel Panthers. This list covers most of the weapons used in the game. Key: HE= High Explosive value, used to determine HE attacks against soft targets like infantry. AP Pen.= Max unmodified penetration for the AP round. HVAP Pen.= Max unmodified penetration for the HVAP round. HEAT= Max unmodified High Explosive Anti-tank penetration. Range= Max range for the weapon, in hexes. Accuracy= Number of hexes the weapon will have an unmodified 50% chance to hit its target. Example= Accuracy is 8, this means the weapon will have from 1 to 8 hexes, a unmodified base hit chance of 50%. Note this number can go up or down due to various modifiers in the game. SMG= Sub machine gun LMG= Light machine gun MMG= Medium machine gun HMG= Heavy machine gun FH= Field howitzer AA= Anti-aircraft AT= Anti-tank BAR= Browning Automatic Rifle Rkt= Rocket Mtr= Mortar Infantry Weapons: Name HE AP Pen. HVAP Pen. HEAT Range Accuracy Rifle 1 0 0 0 10 4 Semi Rifle 2 0 0 0 10 5 BAR 4 0 0 0 10 8 Carbine 3 0 0 0 6 3 Pistol 2 0 0 0 2 1 SMG 4 0 0 0 2 4 MG-34 LMG 8 0 0 0 10 8 MG-34 MMG 14 0 0 0 18 12 MG-42 MMG 16 0 0 0 18 12 Breda LMG 4 0 0 0 10 6 Breda HMG 9 0 0 0 16 10 FM LMG 6 0 0 0 10 8 Lahti LMG 6 0 0 0 10 8 Bren LMG 6 0 0 0 10 9 DP LMG 6 0 0 0 10 8 HotchkissMG 10 0 0 0 16 10 .30 CAL MMG 12 0 0 0 16 10 .30 CAL HMG 16 0 0 0 18 12 .50 CAL HMG 14 3 0 0 20 15 Maxim HMG 14 0 0 0 18 12 Maxim AAMG 14 0 0 0 14 8 Dshk HMG 14 3 0 0 20 15 Vickers HMG 14 0 0 0 18 12 Tashio LMG 5 0 0 0 10 6 Type 96 LMG 6 0 0 0 10 7 Type 92 HMG 10 0 0 0 16 10 Flamethrwr 10 0 0 14 1 0 Satchel Ch 12 2 0 15 1 0 Molotov 0 0 0 9 1 0 Anti-tank 0 0 0 20 1 0 Hnd Grend 4 0 0 0 1 0 AT Rifle 0 3 0 13 10 4 PzFaust 0 0 0 20 2 1 PIAT 0 0 0 11 2 1 Bazooka 4 0 0 14 6 2 PzSchreck 0 0 0 15 4 2 Rifle Grnd 0 0 0 7 3 2 Artillery & Mortars: Name HE AP Pen. HVAP Pen. HEAT Range Accuracy 60mm Mtr 5 0 0 0 40 5 75mm FH 6 1 0 0 130 5 76mm FH 6 1 0 0 130 5 2IN Mtr 4 0 0 0 10 4 3IN How 6 0 0 0 30 4 3IN Mtr 6 0 0 0 50 5 4.2IN Mtr 9 0 0 0 70 5 4.5IN FH 10 2 0 0 130 5 8IN How 18 10 0 0 130 5 49mm Mtr 4 0 0 0 10 5 50mm Mtr 4 0 0 0 10 4 81mm Mtr 7 0 0 0 55 5 82mm Mtr 7 0 0 0 50 5 100mm FH 9 0 0 0 130 5 105mm FH 9 0 0 12 130 5 120mm Mtr 10 0 0 0 130 5 122mm FH 10 7 0 0 130 5 149mm FH 11 2 0 0 130 5 150mm FH 12 3 0 0 130 5 152mm FH 12 2 0 0 130 5 155mm Gun 13 4 0 0 130 5 155mm FH 12 3 0 0 130 5 132mm Rkt 13 0 0 0 130 5 150mm Rkt 15 0 0 0 130 5 4.6IN Rkt 10 1 0 0 130 5 290mm Spig 25 0 0 0 2 0 Main guns & anti-tank guns: Name HE AP Pen. HVAP Pen. HEAT Range Accuracy 20mm Quad 18 3 0 0 30 10 20L55 2 6 0 0 20 5 25L72 0 5 0 0 25 6 28L61 0 9 0 0 15 5 37mm Flak 10 6 0 0 40 9 37L21 2 5 0 0 20 3 37L33 2 5 0 0 25 5 37L40 2 5 0 0 30 6 37L46 2 7 0 0 30 7 37L53 4 9 0 0 30 9 40mm Flak 11 7 0 0 50 10 45L46 3 7 0 0 25 6 45L66 3 8 0 0 30 9 2Lb 0 8 0 0 30 8 47L32 3 5 0 0 30 5 47L34 3 6 0 0 30 7 47L40 3 7 0 0 30 8 47L43 3 8 0 0 30 9 50L42 3 8 0 0 30 8 50L60 3 9 13 0 30 10 57L52 0 11 0 0 40 11 57L73 4 12 0 0 40 12 6Lb 0 11 0 0 40 11 75L12 6 0 0 0 30 3 17Lb 6 17 22 0 50 14 75L24 6 6 0 9 30 4 75L31 6 9 0 0 40 8 75L34 6 10 0 0 40 8 75L38 6 10 0 0 40 9 75L43 6 13 19 0 50 11 75L48 6 14 0 0 50 14 75L52 6 10 0 0 40 10 75L70 6 19 0 0 60 19 76L26 6 5 0 0 30 4 76L35 6 8 0 0 30 8 76L41 6 9 12 0 40 10 76L51 6 13 19 0 50 11 76L54 6 12 18 0 50 12 77L49 6 14 17 0 50 13 75L36 6 8 0 0 30 8 85L53 7 13 17 0 50 12 88MM FLAK 7 15 0 0 80 20 88L56 7 17 0 0 60 15 88L71 7 22 0 0 60 20 25LB 8 6 0 0 130 5 90L50 8 16 25 0 60 15 90L53 8 15 0 0 60 12 152L20 12 4 0 0 30 4 95L22 8 3 0 11 40 5 105L30 9 3 0 12 40 5 100L60 9 21 0 0 60 13 122L43 10 20 0 0 60 8 122L22 10 6 0 0 40 4 128L58 10 22 0 0 80 15 150L10 12 2 0 0 80 15 152L32 12 3 0 0 50 5 Last minute STEEL PANTHERS INFORMATION - Version 1.0 MANUAL ERRATA It is highly recommended that to get the most out of the game that you read the following information in this readme file. Several options and changes were made to the rule book after it was printed. Any information noted here in supersedes the information printed in the rule book. SUGGESTIONS FOR FIRST TIME PLAYERS: While it is relatively easy in Steel Panthers to start moving units and blowing things up right away, we STRONGLY URGE you to work through the Tutorial in the manual step by step in order to understand the full game. The tutorial walks you through the process of buying units, deploying them, and playing a first scenario in a campaign. Once you work through the tutorial we advise that you play several stand-alone scenarios to get usedto the game before you jump in to playing a campaign. Here are some suggestions for easy scenarios: * Charge to Glory: Play the Germans. * Stinging the Bear: Play the Finns. * Gela counter-attack: Play the Americans. * When Tigers Pounce: This one is a scenario with few units. Hint: If at any time the game seems too difficult, change the difficultysetting in the Options Menu to Easy. Also, please note that the game is usually much more challenging when you are the attacking force. Since there is a limited number of turns for every scenario, games are easier to win when you are the defending player, especially when there are more than about three main victory objective areas the computer must take. SHIFT KEY uses: You may purposely stack up to two units in the same hex by holding down the Shift Key and left-clicking on the hex containing another unit while you are playing the game. Also, while deploying troops in the Deployment Menu only, if you do not wish for the computer to automatically advance to the next unit after placing a unit, hold down the Shift Key while placing a unit. Afterwards, to go to the next unit select Next or Previous. SPACEBAR: When viewing video footage, simply hit the spacebar or ESC key on the keyboard to stop the video. Also, you need to use the spacebar to stop a game if the computer is playing itself. CAMPAIGN Notes: 1) Please note that a good first campaign to play is Poland 1939, as it is relatively easy. 2) Playing as the Japanese in a long campaign is a real challenge, as the Japanese have a difficult time defeating tanks. Hint: Use Japanese engineer infantry to attack Allied tanks with satchel charges. 3) Playing as the Russians in a long campaign before 1942 is also quite challenging as the morale of the Russian units is generally low and they have a difficult time with the generally superior German unit types prior to 1942. Hint: Buy T-34's as soon as they become available. 4) When playing a long random campaign, there are certain instances where you will complete a battle and be presented with an option to fight a special battle, either a pursuit (which you can decline to accept) or a counter-attack. (which you may NOT decline). In these battles you will gain more experience points than from a normal battle; however, you will NOT have the option to repair/rebuild your core units before this fight! You will sometimes be given the option to purchase some support troops before these special battles. We do NOT recommend you try options 2 or 3 above until you are experienced with the game and ready for a real challenge. 5) During campaign games, you may have an option to do a beach assault. You do NOT have to purchase landing craft for your units. They are automatically assigned for the battle. MENU ADDITIONS/CHANGES: 1) Playing by E-Mail: After you have ended your turn in a human vs human game and saved it to one of the two E-Mail save slots, you then send that E-Mail save file from the E-Mail sub-directory to your opponent electronically. Your opponent must copy the E-Mail save file to his/her E-Mail sub-directory and then load it like any other save game. There are no passwords associated with this option. You must play using the honor system. 2) Tutorial (page 5): Please note that when playing campaigns that a menu not discussed in the manual will come up before you purchase your core units. This menu is where you decide the quality level of the units you wish to purchase (green, average, or veteran) and where you decide if you want foot, mechanized, or motorized infantry. If you choose "veteran" instead of the default average, then your troops will come with more experience but you will have 20% less battle points to spend than average. Selecting "green" gives you inexperienced troops but 20% more battle points to spend than average. Troops aren't actually more or less expensive, as discussed in the manual,you just receive a different number of battle points depending on the quality of troops you buy. See page 23 in the manual for more information. Also note that there are actually four experience levels for your units and each is represented by a graphic icon badge in the upper right section of the unit information display as follows: Green = The icon has a large "G" in it. Green units have little combat experience and their experience levels are generally under 50 points. Average = The icon has two Corporal stripes. Average units have some combat experience and their experience levels are between 50 and 79. Veteran = The icon has two Corporal stripes over a bar. Veteran units have good combat experience and their experience levels are between 80 and 100. Elite = The icon is a star. Elite units may not be purchased, but get to be Elite only through combat. Any unit with over 100 experience points is considered Elite. Troops are more likely to increase in experience if they are Green than if they are Veteran. See page 32 in the manual for more information on experience. 3) Placing Units (page 9): Please note that you may NOT stack units with a shift key during deployment as described in the manual. 4) Deploy Entire Formation (page 9): Please note that you must first activate a unit in the formation, place that unit where you want it, and then select the Deploy Entire Formation button or the "A" key and the rest of the units in that formation will group themselves around the unit you just placed. 5) Loading Units (page 10): Please note that when loading units onto landing craft or river barges, that you MUST click on the landing craft/barge first and then select the Load Unit button or the "L" key in order to load something onto them. Also, only single units may be loaded onto barges. For example, a truck carrying infantry must first unload the infantry in order to load onto the barge. Barges are normally purchased by purchasing trucks called Barge Carriers from the MISC section in the purchase menu. The barges then must be unloaded from these Barge Carriers when you are adjacent to a river hex. 6) Shooting Units in the Rear (page 13): Please note that if you move a tank within two hexes of an enemy tank that the enemy will have time to turn itself to face you (it sees you coming). To get a rear shot on a tank it is advised that you shoot at it from about 3 hexes away. If the target vehicle is out of ammo, then you can move adjacent to it and shoot at it from behind, without it turning to face. 7) Direct Fire (page 14): You cannot use direct fire against hexes that you cannot see. The manual leads you to believe that you can. 8) Surrender (page 19): You must be adjacent to an enemy unit when you fire on it in order to have a chance to make it surrender. The manual says within two hexes. 9) Score (page 21): Please note that a decisive victory is when you score 10 times as many points as your opponent, a marginal victory is when you score twice as many points as your opponent. Anything between 2 to 1 and 1 to 2 is considered a draw. 10) The Purchase Menu has a few new options: a) "Delete", this button deletes the last formation you purchased. b) "Mission", this button informs you of your basic mission in the next battle. c) Please note that you should never purchase more than 20 individual planes or off-map support artillery units. As only 20 will be displayed in the bombardment menu at a time. So, if you buy more than 20, then the others will not be available until some of the first 20 run out of ammo. It really wouldn't make much sense to purchase that much artillery and it is rare that you will have enough battle points available to do so. 11) Artillery Bombardment Menu: a) There is an additional "Eye" button for showing the data of the unit. Note: this is in place of the right-click option discussed in the manual. 12) The HQ Menu is no longer in the Orders menu. It is available from the Options menu and the graphic looks like a large tent, not a clipboard as displayed in the manual (see page 28). Also, there are several abbreviations used in this menu which are displayed near the unit list on the right side of the screen. They are: H = Current formation leader/HQ attached to that unit, KO = Unit destroyed or knocked out, IM = Immobilized, AB = Unit has been abandoned, Numbers (1,2,3etc.) indicate the number of men killed if infantry or how badly the unit is damaged, in points, if a non-infantry type unit. 13) Show Units: There is a new option in the Orders menu called "Show Units", it has a clipboard icon on the button. This option displays a sub-menu showing all your active units in the game. This is a great way to determine quickly who hasn't moved or who can still shoot. a) "ID" shows the unit ID on a button; when you click on this button, you will be moved to the location of that unit. b) "Name" displays the current name of the unit. c) "Status" displays current status of unit, such as dug in, positioned, or if the unit is a passenger. d) "Move" shows how many move points unit has left. e) "Shots" displays the current number of shots the unit has available. f) "Sup" displays current suppression for the unit. g) "HE" displays total rounds of HE ammo for the unit. h) "AP" displays total rounds of AP ammo for the unit. i) "Dam" indicates the number of men killed if infantry or how badly the unit is damaged, in points, if a non-infantry type unit. j) "Exp" displays the current experience rating for the unit. k) "Mor" displays the current morale rating for the unit. 14) Options Menu: There are several new options available (see page 29 for comparison): a) There is no Sound Effects/Music Menu option. Instead, there are separate buttons to turn the music on/off, to turn the sound effects on/off, and to adjust the sound effects volume. Please note that the music volume must be adjusted on your speakers themselves or through the sound card, as the music is CD quality redbook audio music and cannot be adjusted from within the game program. You may play tracks 2, 3, & 4 from the Steel Panthers CD on any audio CD player to listen to the music from the game. b) There is no CHQ Link On/Off option. Command Control is always active. c) "Change message level" allows you to set the amount of detail (Low, Medium, High) you wish to see displayed in game messages. If you set this level High, then you will see many messages detailing what is happening during combat. For faster play, set the level to Low. d) "Name current Formation Leader" in addition to naming the current unit and current unit leader, you may also change the current Formation Leader's name. e) Please note that adjusting the difficulty level from the options menu affects only your (and not your opponent's) difficulty level. 15) Unit information screen: a) The number of enemy units killed by an individual unit are displayed as graphical icons rather than a number. The big tank represents either 10 or 100 kills (a number will appear over them) and a small one represents a single kill. It is important to note that kills refers to the kills of the leader, not the unit. So, if a leader is killed and replaced by a new leader, the kills will go back to zero for that unit. Also, "Kills" are complete units wiped out. If that unit/leader is the last unit to kill the last man in a squad then the unit which killed the last man gets credit for the kill. Killing individual men does not register as a "Kill". b) Next to "AP" is the heading "Range" which is the maximum number of hexes that weapon may fire. BATTLE GENERATOR: There is a new option which lets you decide who deploys the troops after they are purchased: Auto: Lets the computer deploy both sides. Select: Lets each player deploy their own units. Manual: Lets the human player deploy his units and the computer's. BUILDING CUSTOM SCENARIOS: 1) Note that this option is for die-hard players who want to create very detailed scenarios. To quickly generate random battles we suggest you use the Battle Generator. The build a complete scenario option was originally intended to be used by our scenario designers only, but we decided to put it in the game at the last minute for your enjoyment. Proceed at your own risk. Note that changes only affect the scenario you are editing. If, for example, you change unit data, it only affects units in that scenario not the entire unit data base. 2) Change Objective Hexes option: You are automatically given 21 victory objective flags which default to 3 groups of 7 flags. You may NOT add more than this number. To have fewer objective hexes (minimum 1), simply click and move a flag into a hex already occupied by another flag. Flags have their own victory points, not hexes. So, if you move 3 flags worth 50 points each into the same hex, then when playing the game the player who occupies that hex will receive 150 points. 3) Edit Unit Data option: a) When asked to edit your leader's rank you must input a number which represents the rank. Here are the number equivalents: 1= Private 2= Corporal 3= Sergeant 4= 2nd Lieutenant (Lt.) 5= 1st Lt. 6= Captain 7= Major 8= Lt. Colonel 9= Colonel. b) Most unit data values you can change, such as unit armor and speed, max out at 255. Although leader statistics, and unit experience/morale max out at 140. 4) Map Editor: a) To place a Government building or multi-hex building you will need a lot of clear space. You should clear the map first and then place any big buildings first before setting up smaller ones. b) Right-clicking while setting up a building will only place a cluster of buildings in that hex, it will not allow you to view different buildings as stated in rule book. 5) Saving Scenarios: a) Caution! When saving scenarios you create, they will be added to the list of available scenarios already supplied with the game. Currently you may create and save 140 scenarios. There are 60 scenarios that come with the game for a total of 200 scenarios you can have access to at any one time.You can save over another scenario already there if you need space for more than 140 scenarios. If you do save over a scenario supplied with the game and you want to play it again, you will need to reinstall the scenarios from the Steel Panthers CD to your hard drive. b) When you load a saved game you will be asked to choose player control. This allows you to let another human take over the computer, for example, to play against you. COMBAT: 1) Entrenchments: All units gain defensive benefits from sandbag and foxhole entrenchments. 2) Shots: a) When unloading any unit, the unloaded unit will lose 1 available shot for that turn. This does not affect your ammo for the game. You don't lose ammo, just the time to shoot. b) Remember that shots is the number of times that unit can fire during its turn. This varies according to the unit type (example: large tanks shooting big shells take longer to load), the number of men in the unit (example: if an anti-tank gun loses one or two of its crew members, then they will not be able to load the gun as quickly, hence they will receive less shots per turn and tanks with bigger crews get more shots), status of the unit (example: pinned units get less shots) and experience level of the crew & the leadership value of the unit leader. Elite units can actually receive more shots than Green units. You usually receive at least 1 or 2 shots per turn unless the unit is in bad shape. c) If your unit is shot at there is a chance the unit will lose shots. If your shots listed go to 0 (zero) or if at the start of your turn the unit has no shots, then check the unit information screen as individual weapons can get destroyed or knocked out of action. If the weapon is no longer in the list on the info screen, then it has been destroyed. d) If you successfully rally one of your units who has suppression, you may recieve an extra shot for that turn. So, its a good ideal to rally your suppressed units before you shoot. Remember units also shoot better with less suppression. 3) Mines: When clearing mines, you will see a message on screen which says "X" number of mines cleared followed by a number in parenthesis (#). The number in parentheses is the number of mines left in the hex. 4) Pulling Back: Sometimes when infantry come under fire they will attempt to pull back; if so, the message "Pulling Back" is displayed. Infantry can only pull back up to 3 hexes away. Also, if infantry have "smoke" they will normally fire it automatically in an attempt to cover their retreat. 5) Dragonteeth: Engineers have the ability to clear dragonteeth; you must move them into the hex containing the obstacle and wait for a turn or more in order to remove them. Dragonteeth in a hex prevent tanks from moving through the hex until engineer infantry have removed them. 6) Pinned units: There is a chance that a pinned unit may stay pinned for the duration of the scenario depending on the environment around the unit (tanks in flames, casualties, no leader in sight, etc.). Also, once an infantry unit is less than half strength it will be very difficult for it to rally below 10 points of suppression. 7) Facing: While facing direction is important for vehicles in the game as they have different armor for the various sides of the vehicle, facing is only important for infantry in that they see better in the direction they are facing. 8) Close assault: If infantry are riding on a vehicle when it is close assaulted by enemy infantry the infantry will absorb the assault. This is a good tactic to keep your tanks alive when fighting in close with enemy infantry. 9) Planes: BE CAREFUL when using your planes to attack enemy positions when there is lots of smoke in the air or too close to your own units, as planes can kill their own troops accidently in these instances. 10) Japanese infantry never surrender, & never rout. They are very difficult to dislodge from dug-in positions. Use HEAVY firepower (tanks, artillery, planes, flamethrowers, and anything else handy) to kill them. 11) US Marines never surrender. MOVEMENT: 1) When using "All Formation" move mode, be careful if transport vehicles such as barges belong to the same formation. This movement mode will move everything, including the barges after you have unloaded your unit. Also, since this movement mode is a little tricky to use, it is turned off at the beginning of each turn. You will need to select it each turn if you wish to use it. "All Formation" move is great for moving formations down a road, but is dangerous to use in combat as the "undo" button doesn't work when in this mode. 2) Slow Movement: Units will gain a defensive bonus if they only move 1 hex during the game turn. However, this is most often not practical as there are time limits for each scenario. 3) Unable to load units? Routed or retreating units will not be able to load onto vehicles, you must rally them first. 4) Can't move units? Either you have already moved the unit that turn, it is a routing unit (computer is moving it), or it is a vehicle which has been immobilized (look at the unit status display, and/or look at the Speed rating in the unit information display which will show a 0 (zero) if the unit is so damaged that it can no longer move). Also, if your units are retreating or routing, you will NOT be able to move them until you rally them and their status changes to "positioned". They will attempt to retreat from the enemy under computer control. 5) My truck/transport vehicle disappeared? If you choose the Motorized or Mechanized transportation option (see page 23) and you cross a river by having your infantry use their inflatable rafts, then the transport associated with that infantry unit will no longer be available for that battle. You will have the transport available at the beginning of the next turn. 6) "M" key: If you hit the "m" key while playing, it will toggle on a undocumented smooth move mode. We do not recommend you play in this mode. SPOTTING: 1) Sometimes it is difficult to see your units on the map during combat because of all the smoke and destroyed units. If you are having trouble seeing units on the map display, use the CLR button to clear away the smoke, and/or turn the unit ID tags option on in order to see the units more clearly. 2) Units can spot or "see" enemy units into light smoke hexes. 3) On "Easy and "Average" play level settings, your units spot adjacent units automatically if those units have fired at your unit. Don't forget, that if a vehicle drives right next to one of your infantry units in a building or woods and you don't fire at them, there is a chance that unit may go undetected by the enemy. It depends on the "Visibility" of the scenario, whether the enemy vehicle is carrying infantry, and the experience level of the enemy vehicle. Infantry are normally able to see adjacent units. On "Hard" play difficulty setting, there is a chance your unit may not spot enemy units adjacent to them, even if that unit fired at them. This makes for more realistic game play as this allows infantry to sneak up on vehicles in rough terrain, but it is more difficult to play at this level. 4) Direct Fire Smoke options and Direct Fire Attack (HE) options can only be used against hexes that are in your unit's line of sight. ENCYCLOPEDIA: The on-screen encyclopedia for tanks and planes will only display the units available during that time period. For example, if you are playing a game which is set in 1940 and you wish to view French vehicles, then you will see what they had available at that time. If you are playing a game in 1945 and you wish to view French vehicles you will only see American/British vehicles listed as that is what the Free French had access to at that time. COMPUTER VS COMPUTER: If you choose computer vs computer, choose Quit Orders and the scenario will begin with the computer playing the computer. Hit the spacebar to stop the game at the beginning of the next turn.