Microsoft Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion Trial
Readme File
July 2000
© Microsoft Corporation, 2000. All rights reserved.

Welcome to Microsoft® Age of Empires® II: The Conquerors Expansion Trial!

This file contains information to help you install The Conquerors Expansion Trial. It also includes late-breaking information not included in the in-game Help.

CONTENTS
A.	System Requirements
B. Installing The Conquerors Expansion Trial
C.	Starting The Conquerors Expansion Trial
D. Trial Version Features
E.	Getting Help
F.	DirectX Troubleshooting
G.	Gameplay Troubleshooting
H.	Video Troubleshooting
I.	Audio Troubleshooting
J.	Performance Troubleshooting
K.	Multiplayer Troubleshooting
L.	The Conquerors Expansion Information

A. System Requirements

To play Age of Empires® II: The Conquerors Expansion Trial version you need:
•	Multimedia PC with Pentium 166MHz or higher processor
•	Microsoft® Windows® 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows® NT® Workstation version 4.0 with Service Pack 5, or Windows 2000 Professional operating system
•	32 MB of RAM for Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME; 64 MB for Windows NT or Windows 2000
•	100 MB of available hard disk space; additional 100 MB of hard disk space for swap file
•	Super VGA monitor that supports 1024 x 768 resolution
•	Local bus video card that supports 1024 x 768, 256-color resolution and 2 MB of video memory
•	Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device
•	28.8Kbps modem (or higher recommended) for Internet or head-to-head play
* Internet access required for Internet play. May require payment of a separate fee to an Internet Service Provider. Local and long distance telephone toll charges may apply
•	To play on the MSN™ Gaming Zone, you need to have one of the following Web browsers: Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or later software or Netscape Communicator 4.0 or later
•	Audio board with speakers or headphones recommended

B. Installing The Conquerors Expansion Trial

To install The Conquerors Expansion Trial, you must be using Microsoft Windows® 95 or later (this includes Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition) or Microsoft Windows NT® 4.0 with Service Pack 5 or later (this includes Microsoft Windows 2000). (For information about how to get Service Pack 5, go to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/).

To install The Conquerors Expansion Trial

1.	Turn on your computer and start Microsoft Windows 95 or later or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 5 or later.
2.	Double-click the Age2XTrial.exe in the folder where you downloaded the file, and then follow the instructions that appear on the screen.

C. Starting The Conquerors Expansion Trial

You can connect only to multiplayer games created with the same Age of Empires version you are using. For example, if you are playing The Conquerors Expansion Trial, only Conquerors Trial games appear in the multiplayer list. Games created with Age of Empires, Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome Expansion, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, or Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion do not appear in the list.

To start The Conquerors Expansion Trial

•	Click the Start button, point to Programs, point to Microsoft Games, point to Age of Empires II - The Conquerors Expansion Trial, and then click The Conquerors Trial.

You can skip the opening cinematics by clicking the mouse or pressing ENTER, SPACEBAR, or ESC.

D. Trial Version Features

The Conquerors Expansion Trial gives you a taste of what you'll experience in The Conquerors Expansion.

•	Two civilizations - Play as either the Mayans or the Aztecs. 

•	Multiplayer (maximum of 4 players) King of the Hill game on a Yucatan map - Control the monument in the center of the map for the specified time period.

•	One single player scenario from the Montezuma campaign. 

E. Getting Help

You can find information about The Conquerors Expansion Trial in the in-game Help.

To display in-game Help

•	Pause your pointer over any button or interface item in the game and Help text automatically appears on the screen. (To turn off in-game Help, click the Help button near the mini-map in the lower-right corner of the screen.)

F. DirectX Troubleshooting

DirectX® 6.1 or later must be installed on your computer before you can play The Conquerors Expansion Trial. If you do not have DirectX installed on your computer, you will receive the message "A required .dll file, Dplayx.dll, was not found."

If you installed DirectX but DirectX could not update your video drivers to be compatible with DirectX 6.1, when you start The Conquerors Expansion Trial you will receive a message that it could not initialize DirectX. To fix this problem, either get updated video drivers from your video adapter manufacturer or install DirectX in safe mode, which will replace the video drivers.

To install DirectX in safe mode

1.	Click the Start button, and then click Shut Down.
2.	Select Restart, and then click OK.
3.	When your computer restarts, press and hold down the F8 key until you see a Windows Startup Menu.
4.	When you are prompted to enter a choice, select Safe Mode, and then press ENTER.
5.	After Windows starts in Safe Mode, install DirectX.

The current version of DirectX is DirectX 7.0. If you do not have DirectX 6.1 or later, download DirectX 7.0 from http://www.microsoft.com/directx/.

If you experience sound or video problems using DirectX, go to http://support.microsoft.com/support/directx/ for the latest troubleshooting information.

You should also check with your video or sound card manufacturer for the latest DirectX-compatible drivers.

G. Gameplay Troubleshooting

Saving games - You cannot name a saved game using certain operating system terms, such as COM1, LPT1, etc.

H. Video Troubleshooting

•	9FX Motion 531 - If you are running Windows 95, you may experience screen corruption of the main menu and New Player dialog box, screen corruption during gameplay when scrolling from left to right and from right to left, and screen corruption as you select different objects on the game screen. If this occurs, contact the video card manufacturer for the latest drivers (http://www.nine.com/), or download the S3 Vision 868 reference drivers for the card at http://www.s3.com/.

•	ATI 3D Rage Pro - You may experience brief pauses or decreased game performance. If this occurs, contact ATI for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.ati.com/.

•	ATI Rage Pro Turbo 2X - Rage Pro Turbo 2X video cards may only allow you to use a 640 x 480 screen resolution. The minimum Conquerors Expansion Trial in-game resolution is 1024 x 768. If this occurs, contact ATI for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.ati.com/.

•	Creative Labs Graphics Blaster Exxtreme - Creative Labs Graphics Blaster Exxtreme video adapters may cause screen corruption when you change the in-game screen resolution or press ALT+TAB to enter or leave the game. If this occurs, contact Creative Labs for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.creative.com/.

•	Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 - You may experience a black screen when starting the game (you may still hear game sounds and be able to click buttons). If this occurs, contact Diamond for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.diamondmm.com/.

•	Diamond Monster Fusion - You may experience stability problems when starting the game. If this occurs, contact Diamond for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.diamondmm.com/. For the latest drivers to function properly, you may need to update your video bios. You can find information about how to do this on the Diamond Web site.

•	Hercules Stingray 128/3D - If your in-game screen resolution is set to 1024 x 768, you may experience screen corruption and your computer may lock up if you restore a game using ALT+TAB. If this occurs, contact Hercules for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.hercules.com/.

•	Hercules Terminator Beast - You may not be able to view the opening video using the retail drivers for this card (although you may be able to hear the sound). If this occurs, press the ESC key to bypass the opening videos and display the main menu. Contact Hercules for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.hercules.com/.

•	Intergraph Intense 3D 100 - Intergraph Intense 3D 100 video adapters cause the game to crash during the opening video. If this occurs, add the command line parameter Nostartup in your Conquerors Expansion shortcut. For information about adding parameters to the command line, see Command Line Parameters under Performance Troubleshooting later in this Readme file.

•	Intergraph Intense 3D 100 - During gameplay, the bottom game screen border may be corrupt and pink in color. Also, the in-game custom mouse pointer may not be visible. If this occurs, contact Intergraph for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.intergraph.com/. You may not be able to view the game in 1024 x 768 resolution.

•	Matrox Millennium II PowerDesk - Your computer may lock up when you change the in-game screen resolution to 1024 x 768. If this occurs, contact Matrox for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.matrox.com/.

•	Matrox MGA Millennium - You may experience screen corruption when playing with an in-game resolution of 1024 x 768 or when using ALT+TAB in this resolution. If this occurs, contact Matrox for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.matrox.com/.

•	Permedia 2 Chipset-based video card with latest 3D Labs reference drivers - You may experience screen corruption when playing The Conquerors Expansion using this configuration. If this occurs, uninstall the reference drivers and contact your video card manufacturer for the latest driver written specifically for your card. Many reference drivers are not supported, and may cause problems with certain applications.

•	Sierra Screaming 3D - Your computer may lock up when you exit the game. If this occurs, contact Sierra for the latest video drivers, or download them at http://www.sierra.com/.

•	Sierra Screaming 3D (Rendition Verite 1000) - You may experience screen corruption when your in-game screen resolution is set to 1280 x 1024. If this occurs, exit the game using ALT+F4. Restart the game, and in the Options screen set your in-game resolution to a lower resolution.

•	STB Velocity 4400 - You may experience blue screens or instability when launching The Age of Kings or The Conquerors Expansion. If this occurs, contact the video card manufacturer for the latest drivers, or download them at http://www.stb.com/, or download the reference drivers from http://www.nvidia.com/. If your video card is AGP, you may also want to lower the AGP aperture size in the bios. A good rule of thumb is to set your AGP aperture size to half of your total system RAM.

•	Voodoo 3 - If you are running Windows 2000, your mouse pointer may blink during gameplay. If this occurs, try a lower screen resolution. If this doesn't work, contact the video card manufacturer for the latest drivers, or download them at http://www.3dfx.com/.

•	Black screen after video - A black screen may appear at the conclusion of the opening video. If this occurs, press ESC or click the mouse button. You may also want to add the command line parameter Nostartup to The Conquerors shortcut. For information about adding parameters to the command line, see Command Line Parameters under Performance Troubleshooting later in this Readme file.

•	Black screen areas - Some video adapters may cause black areas on the game screen. If this occurs, you can add the Mfill parameter to the command line in The Conquerors shortcut. For information about adding parameters to the command line, see Command Line Parameters under Performance Troubleshooting later in this Readme file.

•	Screen corruption - If you experience problems such as a black screen after starting the game, black areas on the game screen, screen corruption when you press ALT+TAB to enter/leave the game, or other screen problems while playing the game, contact your video card manufacturer for the latest drivers.

•	Screen flickering - Certain second-party applications may cause a brief flickering of the Conquerors Expansion video palette. Disabling all non-vital applications before running The Conquerors Expansion will increase stability, performance, and visual quality. This problem may occur on some systems with the Creative SBLive! sound card with the Creative LiveWire 2.0 and 2.1 driver sets for this sound card.

•	Mouse pointer - Some video adapters may cause the mouse pointer to disappear if you change the in-game screen resolution or reenter the game by pressing ALT+TAB. If this occurs, contact your video card manufacturer for the latest drivers.

•	Monitors and lower-end video cards - You may see brief screen corruption or flashing when switching screens in the game. This is a limitation of some older video cards and will not affect game performance or stability. If you notice screen corruption when switching to a high in-game resolution, this may be due to the limitation of certain monitors or some older, lower-end video cards that do not support higher resolutions. Use ALT+F4 to exit the game, restart The Conquerors Expansion, and then use the Options screen to switch to a lower in-game resolution.

•	DirectX - If you experience video problems using DirectX, connect to the DirectX Web site for the latest troubleshooting information, as explained in DirectX Troubleshooting earlier in this Readme file.

I. Audio Troubleshooting

•	DirectX - If you experience audio problems using DirectX, connect to the DirectX Web site for the latest troubleshooting information, as explained in DirectX Troubleshooting earlier in this Readme file.

J. Performance Troubleshooting

There are several ways to improve the game's performance. For example, the game will run faster if you use the least demanding game settings, such as setting the detail of graphics to Low, setting the game speed to Slow, and setting the difficulty level to Easy. Most of these improvements can be made from within the game (on the main menu, click Options, or if you are playing a game, click the Menu button, and then click Options). You can also set some of these variables by adding parameters to the command line.

Command Line Parameters

You can add parameters to The Conquerors Expansion Trial command line to improve performance, customize startup, or resolve problems with certain hardware configurations.

To add parameters to the command line in The Conquerors shortcut

1.	Right-click The Conquerors Trial shortcut, click Properties, and then click Shortcut.
2.	In the Target box, type the name of the parameter after the existing command line text. For example, if you add the parameters NoStartup and NoTerrainSound, the command line will read "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Age of Empires II The Conquerors Expansion Trial\Age2_x1t.exe" Nostartup Noterrainsound. Parameters must be separated by a space; capitalization is not important. 

To add parameters to the Age of Empires II registry for multiplayer games using the MSN Gaming Zone

1.	Click the Start button, and then click Run.
2.	Type Regedit, and then click OK.
3.	Double-click Hkey_local_machine/Software/Microsoft/DirectPlay/Applications/Age of Empires II - The Conquerors Expansion Trial/CommandLine.
4.	In the Value data box, type the name of the parameter after the existing command line text. For example, if you add the parameters NoStartup and NoTerrainSound, the command line will read "Lobby NoStartup NoTerrainSound." Parameters must be separated by a space; capitalization is not important. Do not remove the word "lobby" from the command line.

The command line parameters include:

•	NoStartup - Skips all cinematic sequences before the game starts.

•	Autompsave - Automatically saves a multiplayer game every few minutes. Saved games are located in the Savegame/Multi folder.

•	Mfill - Fixes horizontal line problems and black screen areas that may occur with some video adapter configurations.

•	NormalMouse - Replaces the custom mouse pointer with a standard mouse pointer.

•	NOSC - Turns off detection of the Microsoft Strategic Commander game controller.

•	NoSound - Turns off all sounds, except those played in cinematics.

•	NoTerrainSound - Turns off all terrain sounds.

•	NoMusic - Turns off all music.

•	Msync - Fixes lock-up problems that may occur with some SoundBlaster AWE configurations.

Performance problems with VIA chipset-based motherboards

If you experience blue screens or instability with Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion on a system with a VIA chipset-based motherboard, contact your OEM dealer, hardware manufacturer, or motherboard manufacturer to acquire and install the appropriate AGP miniport driver. This will fix all known issues. If problems persist, contact your OEM dealer, hardware manufacturer, or motherboard manufacturer for further assistance.

K. Multiplayer Troubleshooting

•	Age of Empires versions - In a multiplayer game, all players must be using the same version of Age of Empires. For example, if you are using The Conquerors Expansion Trial, only Conquerors Expansion Trial games appear in the multiplayer list. Games created with Age of Empires, Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome Expansion, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, or Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion are not listed.

•	Best performance - For best performance, connect to the Internet before starting an Internet multiplayer game.

•	Connection type - Always select Internet TCP/IP Connection for DirectPlay when starting a multiplayer game over the Internet. (Select the Local (LAN) TCP/IP Connection if you are playing on a private or home network.) If you choose LAN and you are playing on the Internet, the game may hang. If this occurs, restart The Conquerors Expansion Trial and select Internet TCP/IP Connection for DirectPlay.

•	Different modem speeds - If two players have different modem speeds, they will be unable to play with each other. If this occurs, use the same modem speed as your opponent.

•	Home networks and dial-up connections - If you have a network card and you dial in to the Internet via modem, you may have trouble launching multiplayer games. If this occurs, unplug the network cable from your network card before connecting to the Internet.

•	Multiplayer performance - If you experience performance problems during a multiplayer game, try having the host set the game speed to Slow in the Multiplayer Game screen.

•	Multiple IP addresses - If other players are not able to connect to a game you have created by typing the IP address that appears when you click the IP button on the Multiplayer Game screen, you may have multiple IP addresses. You can display all of your IP addresses by running Winipcfg.

To run Winipcfg

1.	Click the Start button, and then click Run.
2. 	Type Winipcfg, and then click OK.
3. 	Select PPP Adapter. The correct IP address is displayed in the IP Address box.

•	Disconnection from ISP - If you are disconnected from your ISP and quickly reconnect, you and the host may be dropped from the game if your ISP assigns a new IP address because the game will not recognize you. If this occurs, restart the game.

•	Hard disk space - If you join a multiplayer game but do not have enough hard disk space to download the scenario, you will receive a message that you must quit the game, clear space on your hard disk, and then rejoin the game. You must also delete the partially downloaded scenario from the Scenario folder where you installed The Conquerors Expansion or the game will crash after you reconnect.

L. The Conquerors Expansion Information

•	For more information about Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion, visit our Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/games/conquerors/.
•	If you'd like to play against opponents over the Internet, check out the MSN Gaming Zone at http://www.zone.com/.