Now That's What I Call Games 3/Now That's What I Call Games 3 - Games & Goodies (1993)(Multi Media Machine)[!][CD32-CDTV].iso/pd/mechforce/ins.doc

Text File | 1993-12-09 | 41KB | 1,038 lines

Copyright and Disclamier notice

MECHFORCE  ©1989

By Ralph H. Reed

This  software  is  very   similar   to   the
BattleTech   system   which   is    copyright
1985-1989 © FASA Corporation. However it  not
exactly the same. Some ideas have  been  used
without permission of FASA Corporation.  Some
areas and ideas have been changed to  protect
the rights of FASA  Corporation  and  others.
The  Mechforce  program,  its  code,   ideas,
pictures   and   documentation   within   are
Copyright © 1989 by Ralph H. Reed.

MechForce is a utility  system  which  allows
people to test "mechs" in a "game arena"  for
the purpose  of  seeing  how  they  would  do
against  other  mechs.  Previous  version  of
BattleFort  and  BattleForce  are  no  longer
supported.




MechForce - Heavy Metal Combat

What  is  MechForce?  It  is  a   game   that
simulates combat between two or  more  giant,
robot-like machines. Simple words can't begin
to give you the feel of piloting a  30  -  40
foot  tall,  fire  breathing,  earth  shaking
colossus that obeys your every whim. To enjoy
the game you must put yourself in the cockpit
of a Combat Mech. Live the experience!

You are the elite  of  the  elite  -  a  Mech
Warrior. Your Combat Mech thunders under  you
as you pace across the land, searching for  a
reported enemy mech. You view the land around
you, searching for the enemy.  To  your  left
the plain climbs gradually from low hills  up
to high mountains. To your right is  a  lake,
the calm waters shading from light to  cobalt
blue as the water deepens in the center, with
patches of treacherous swamp  at  the  edges.
Ahead of you the  hills  meet  a  mixture  of
light  and  heavy  woods.  You  are  debating
whether to climb the hills or fight your  way
through the trees when the enemy  mech  steps
over the crest of the hill.

Your heart leaps as  you  recognize  a  heavy
Archer, just as he fires one of  his  massive
20  racks  of  Long  Range   Missiles.   Your
Marauder is staggered by the multiple impacts
as you frantically pit  your  piloting  skill
against 75 tons  of  overbalanced  mech.  You
swivel your torso and call  up  your  weapons
display. The reassuring green lights indicate
that all  weapons  are  ready  to  fire.  You
select your Auto Cannon 5  and  one  of  your
Particle Projection Cannons. A  moment  later
your combat display shows you your  field  of
fire and weapon range. The  targeting  pipper
is blinking on the Archer as  you  fire  your
weapons up the mountain.

The crash of  your  cannon  tears  chunks  of
armor from the Archer, but the  scintillating
beam of the Plasma Cannon slashes to the left
of the Archer. "Too quick"  you  curse  under
your breath. The temperature in your  cockpit
jumps as the  heat  from  firing  the  Plasma
Cannon soaks into your mech.  No  problem  so
far, the heat sinks can handle it. You  drive
your mech into a pounding run. You've got  to
get close, his LRMs have a minimum  effective
range, if you can just get inside it...

The Archer is shrouded in  smoke  as  another
salvo of missiles blast their way toward you.
Missiles clang off your armor, tearing chunks
away. Your cockpit rings as one hits the head
of your mech. You fight for consciousness and
keep going, his racks are empty now,  he  has
to reload.

Motion,  behind  you.  Another  Combat   Mech
breaks from the forest and races  across  the
plains toward you. You quickly identify it as
a light weight Stinger, ordinarily no  threat
to a Marauder, but it AND an Archer? What  to
do? Run? Fight? Fight which one?

There's no real choice, if you turn your back
on the Archer  he'll  nail  you.  Ignore  the
Stinger. You quickly check your status.  Your
heat is dropping as the heat sinks suck  away
the excess heat. Your  armor  indicators  are
still all green although those missiles  have
chewed away about half of you left leg armor.
Your Auto Cannon is still recycling, but your
Plasma Cannons are ready. Time  to  Rock  an'
Roll.

Weapons select. You arm both of  your  Plasma
Cannons. The targeting computer comes up  and
you select the Archer  again.  Your  mech  is
rocked by a laser  blast  in  its  vulnerable
back, but  you  ignore  it,  triggering  your
Plasma Cannons. The warbling shreik  of  your
Plasma  Cannons  echos  across  the   plains.
Blazing energy lances from each arm  of  your
mech to impale your enemy. The first  strikes
the Archer dead center where his armor is the
strongest, but the second beam scores a lucky
hit on his vulnerable  head.  The  Archer  is
staggered as armor vaporizes from  his  chest
and  head.  You  watch  the  Mech  fight  for
balance and fail, tumbling backward  off  the
mountain.

One down. Another laser digs into your  back,
as red lights flash on your  status  display.
Your back armor is breached,  the  laser  got
through to your Auto Cannon and  its  out  of
the action. You begin to turn your  ponderous
steed. As  you  turn  to  face  the  charging
Stinger it suddenly jumps  into  the  air  on
jets of flame.

"Damn!!!" you yell as you  frantically  bring
up your weapons. The Auto Cannon in your Left
Torso is disabled, your  Plasma  Cannons  are
still  recycling.  You're  still   hot,   but
there's no choice as you arm the  two  medium
lasers in your chest. You try to  target  the
fast moving Stinger, but before you can  fire
20 tons of armor and fire power land  on  top
of you.

Your mech  shutters  under  the  impact.  You
scramble to control it, but  you're  falling.
"The next time I'm in the Factory I'm putting
jump jets in this thing" you vow. The  ground
shakes as 75 tons of Mech falls flat  on  its
back. Lights are flashing all over. You bring
up your status display. The Stinger landed on
your right shoulder, its out along  with  all
the weapons in your right arm. The  fall  did
more damage to your  weak  left  leg.  You'll
survive, now where is  that  little  Stinger.
You look around. The Stinger  is  racing  for
the forest.

"Oh no you don't" you mutter as you wait  for
your remaining Plasma Cannon to recycle.  You
target  the  Plasma  Cannon  at  the   racing
Stinger's back.  The  warbling  blast  echoes
across the plain as your  man-made  lightning
bolt hits the Stinger dead center.

The Stinger stumbles,  starts  to  fall...  a
blinding flash lights the sky as  its  fusion
reactor explodes. Metal peppers your mech  as
the  concussion  threatens   to   knock   you
unconscious. Your temperature gauges  peg  as
the mech shuts down from too much heat.  With
time your mech will recover. Lets  just  hope
the Archer has had enough.

This is MechForce. It can be played with  one
person against  the  computer  or  up  to  32
people fighting in teams. You  can  train  in
the simulator, fight in the arena, or try  to
complete combat missions.

MechForce Documentation

WARNING: All of the MechForce programs use  a
config file located in  the  'S:'  directory.
The config file  named  "MechForce.cfg"  will
preset several variables for the game and all
of the paths for  the  many  files  that  the
programs use. If the config file can  not  be
found the program will default to directories
on the boot disk. IT  WILL  ALSO  DEFAULT  TO
SAVE TURNED OFF.

The first thing you will see  when  the  game
starts is a requestor asking  you  to  select
the Type of Game. The first option allows you
to Continue a Saved Game. The  second  option
is  a  Simulation  mode  and  is   used   for
training. This mode allows  all  combinations
of teams  and  mech  types,  but  damage  and
experience are not saved at the  end  of  the
game. At the start of the game  you  will  be
shown a list of available orders and you  can
pick the set of orders to follow. If you  hit
CANCEL you will be training  for  the  Roving
Patrol mode. Arena Challenge is a One on  One
combat playing against another person or  the
computer. If the computer is the opponent  it
will pick its own mech. Arena mode will  also
let you Bet on the outcome of the combat. One
of Major Houses may offer to Sponsor  you  in
the Arena. This may offer a little protection
from other friendly houses, but it will  make
you a target of enemy houses.  Not  having  a
sponsor won't keep some houses  from  picking
on you. This takes the form  of  Sabatage  to
your mech. The computer will check and see if
your pilot can detect  any  sabatage.  If  he
does he will be given the option  to  try  to
repair the  sabatage.  Sabatage  may  make  a
critical part fail during combat.  Trying  to
repair   the   sabatage   may   destroy    it
completely.  The  chance  of  sabatage   gets
higher as you win more Arena Combats.  Roving
Patrol is a general  purpose  combat  option.
There is no goal other than to kill the enemy
and survive. It is real  combat  and  you  do
earn a few Combat Points.  Combat  Orders  is
like the Simulation mode, all combinations of
teams  and  mech  types  are   allowed,   the
difference is that damage and experience  are
saved at  the  end  of  the  game.  The  main
difference is that the computer will pick the
orders randomly for your team to follow.

A word about Orders.  There  are  nine  basic
types of goals. These can be used in  various
combinations to create orders. At the end  of
the game your  experience  money  and  Combat
Points will be determined  on  how  well  you
completed  the  goal  for  your   side.   The
criteria for each goal are: Kill  Everything:
You  get  100%  if  all  mechs  are  dead  or
disabled. You get 0% if any mechs survive  or
escaped. Scout/Patrol: At least one mech must
survive/escape to answer  ALL  questions  for
the report at the end. If your  side  escapes
leaving enemy mechs in control of  the  field
your success is the ratio of  the  number  of
surviving mech divided into the  number  that
went at LEAST half across the screen (to  the
dividing  line).  Recover,  Find/Recover   or
Convoy Object: You  fail  if  the  object  is
destroyed or captured by the other  side.  If
you get the object you a percentage based  on
how badly the object is damaged.  Destroy  or
Find/Destroy Object:  You  get  100%  if  the
object  is  destroyed.  Convoy  Across:  Your
success is measured by the  number  of  mechs
that successfully reach  the  opposite  side.
Hold Position:  If  at  least  half  you  all
operational mechs  have  stayed  in  position
(inside the circle) for the required time you
are 100% successful (even  if  everyone  dies
after that).

MechForce is played in Teams. Once  you  have
selected the type of game you  want  to  play
you  will  get  a  Team  Selector.  The  Team
Selector  window  contains   four   rows   of
selector boxes. The center box  contains  the
Team number. If  you  are  playing  Arena  or
Patrol mode, only the first two rows will  be
active. The Left and Right boxes in each  row
represent the two sides of a combat. To put a
Team on a side just click  in  the  box.  The
word "Team" and the team number  will  appear
in the box. To change  sides,  click  on  the
other side. To remove a team,  click  on  the
same side a  second  time.  Once  a  team  is
placed on a side the central box becomes  the
selector for the teams control device. An "M"
will  appear  indicating  that  the   default
control device is the Mouse. By  clicking  on
the center box you can also  select  "J"  for
Joystick,  "K"  for  Keyboard  and  "C"   for
Computer controlled. If computer  control  is
selected, ALL teams  on  that  side  will  be
computer controlled.

The next thing you need for combat is a place
to fight. If you are in  any  of  the  combat
modes the computer will randomly  select  one
of seven special maps. In Training or  Orders
mode the map will be generated based  on  the
type of map called  for  in  the  orders.  If
"Create" is called for in the orders you will
get the Random Map Control Panel.

The Random Map  Control  Panel  is  a  little
complicated. It contains six slider  gadgets.
The  top  three  control  the  percentage  of
Forest, Mountains and Water in your map.  The
bottom gadget controls the density of the top
three. A cluster is one  group  of  woods  or
mountains or water. It can be one hex or many
hexes. The more clusters you  have  the  more
details you will have in your map.  The  Sand
and Snow requestors  control  the  amount  of
sand and snow in you map. Sand and  snow  are
added by replacing whatever plain  hexes  are
left after the forest,  mountains  and  water
hexes are  added.  The  gadget  controls  the
percentage  of  plain  hexes  that  will   be
replaced. Sand replaces hexes in  the  bottom
half of the map and snow  replaces  hexes  in
the top half. Once you  have  everything  set
the way  you  want  it,  click  the  "Create"
gadget and your world will be drawn. A  small
window will then appear asking you to comfirm
your world, "OK", or try again, "ReDo".

The next thing you need are mechs  to  fight.
Two windows will open. The  first  one  shows
the Team you will  be  working  with  in  the
central box on the bottom. The second  window
is a file requestor for loading mechs.  There
are three flavors of mechs.  Generic  "Mechs"
are  the  type  you  create  in  the  Factory
program. The pilot for these  mechs  will  be
randomly created by the  computer.  "Warrior"
files are created in the Warrior program  and
contain a mech and a pilot. "Unit" files  are
collections   of    warriors,    mechs    and
technicians all  in  one  common  file.  Only
Simulation mode will allow a player to  fight
with a plain mech, all  other  modes  require
you to use a Warrior file or a warrior from a
Unit file. All members of a team MUST  be  of
the same mech type. Warriors are marked  when
they are loaded and can not be loaded  twice.
If you save a game in progress those warriors
can not be used in  another  game  until  the
first game is  completed.  To  load  a  file,
click on the file you want and then click  on
"Load". If the file is a plain mech you  will
get a requestor asking you to name the pilot.
To load warriors from a Unit, Load  the  Unit
and then select the warrior from the list  of
warriors in the unit. The  mechs  and  pilots
you selected will appear in the Team  window.
When your team  is  complete,  click  on  the
"Done" gadget in the  file  requestor  window
and it will disappear. At this point you  can
use the small selector boxes to the right  of
each name to customize the control device for
each player. At any time your can click on  a
mech name with the RIGHT mouse button and get
a quick preview/status display of that  mech.
This can help you  avoid  loading  a  damaged
mech. You can not change  the  device  for  a
computer mech. To  change  teams,  click  the
"Team" gadget. The "Load Mechs"  gadget  will
bring the file requestor back. When  you  are
done with all teams, click the "Done"  gadget
in the team window. You will  also  notice  a
small gadget in the upper right  corner  with
an "R" in it. If you make a  mistake  loading
mechs you can click on the Reset  gadget  and
it will clear ALL mechs. Then you  can  start
over in your selection.

All  of  the  windows  leading  up   to   and
including the  Team  window  have  an  ESCAPE
option. If you hit the ESCAPE key you will be
asked if you want to quit the  game.  If  you
say YES it will exit back to WorkBench.

A word or two about memory.  MechForce  is  a
huge program. If your system has only 512K of
memory you will be limited in the  number  of
mechs you can load. Computer mechs take a lot
more  memory  than  player  mechs.  You  will
probably be able to  load  24  to  32  player
mechs, but if you  are  playing  against  the
computer  8  player  and  8   computer   will
probably be the limit. If your load too  many
mechs there will not be enough memory left to
load the sound files.

From this point on everything  is  controlled
from a control menu  at  the  bottom  of  the
screen. These menus consist of a  prompt  and
two or more options. The selected option will
be highlighted. Control depends on the device
you are using. The Keyboard uses the Left and
Right arrows to change and the Space  Bar  to
select. The  Joystick  uses  Left  and  Right
stick command to change and the  Fire  Button
to select. The Mouse changes  by  moving  the
mouse over the  desired  option  and  selects
with the Left Button.  The  mouse  will  only
work when it is positioned in the menu line.

The menus are pretty much  self  explanitory.
There are two main menus associated with  two
timers. One for Movement and one for Weapons.
Everything is based on TIME. Since there  are
TWO timers you can move and fire  weapons  at
the  same  time.   The   Wait   options   are
especially powerful if used properly  because
you can wait in weapons and still move.

MOVEMENT Menu:

Walk: Walk forward or backward one hex. Takes
base time + heat penalty  +  damage  penalty.
The base movement time and penalty times  can
be  found  in  the  status  display.  Walking
generates 1 pt of heat/second. You can  Crawl
(Walk) while  you  are  down  at  double  the
normal time.

Run: Run forward. Takes 2/3 the time of  Walk
and generates 2 pts of heat/second.

Jump: Use jump jets to jump in any direction.
When you select Jump you will  be  asked  for
the direction. "E" is to the  right  and  "W"
is to the left. Once you have started jumping
you can only continue  jumping  in  the  same
direction or one hex face to either side.  If
you  are  already  jumping  you  will  get  a
different menu that allows you  to  pick  the
next direction, turn, stop or check  options.
You can jump approximately the same number of
hexes you can walk in 100 seconds. This is  a
jump time of about 67 seconds.  This  may  be
less if you have fewer jump  ports  than  the
maximum allowed. Every time you damage a jump
port you loose one  hex  of  range.  Remember
that you jump slower if you are  hot  so  you
may not get your max range. If you are  still
jumping when you run out  of  jump  time  you
will CRASH!!! Once you land you can not  jump
again for  100  seconds  from  the  time  you
STARTED jumping. The main menu will say "Jump
(OK)" if you are ready to jump. It  will  say
"Jump (No)" if your mech  can  not  jump.  It
will say  "Jump  (xx)"  with  the  number  of
seconds until your jump jets are ready again,
if you are recycling. Turn: Change  direction
60 degrees (one  hex  side).  Time  is  based
on  whether  you  are  standing,  walking  or
running. Turning while jumping is handled  in
the jump menu and takes no time. You can turn
while you are down at double the normal time.

Stand: Stand up after your  mech  has  fallen
down. Standing takes the same time as  moving
one normal hex. Wait: Wait is used to control
the timing  of  events  in  the  Move  timer.
You can wait On Time,  wait  until  you  Call
Move, wait until all  of  your  weapons   are
recycled or the next weapon  is  recycled  or
your arms&legs are recycled, wait until  your
heat drops to a certain point  (color),  wait
on your weapon selection,  or  wait  on  your
enemies move. If no enemies are  visible  you
will be given the option to wait on the  next
mech to become visible. You can chose to wait
on the next Visible mech with  the  'Visible'
option. Beware, if all mechs are visible this
acts the same as a Wait On Call. Call Attack:
This option will call the attack menu  if  it
is waiting. You can also 'Call  Attack'  from
the Options menu  and  interrupt  any  attack
WAIT command. 'Call Attack' sets a flag,  but
leaves you in the move  menu.  Options:  This
option brings  up  another  menu  of  special
options. "Status" will bring up  your  status
display window. The  "Identify"  option  will
allow you to click individual mech images  to
identify their type and weight. You  have  to
option for a full Status Display. The  "Break
Attack" will interrupt an attack in progress.
The "Break Move" option will interrupt a move
in  progress.  The  "Special"   option   call
another menu  with  five  more  options.  The
"Drop Ammo" option will ask you if  you  want
to drop each ammo rack in your mech.  "Eject"
is used to leave a badly damaged mech.  There
is a skill roll for Ejecting from a mech.  If
you fail your pilot takes damage.  You  eject
into the hex in front  of  your  mech.  DON'T
eject into a forest fire. You will also  have
to make a Survival roll to  keep  from  being
captured. "Surrender"  means  that  you  stay
with your mech, but you have  quit  fighting.
If your side loses captured mechs and  pilots
belong   to    the    winning    side.    The
"Self-Destruct"     option     makes      the
thermonuclear engine of  your  mech  explode.
This  option  can  only  be  used  by  Player
characters  (not  NPC)  that  have   advanced
beyond  the  "Green"  rank.   You   can   not
Surrender or Eject of you are Unconscious  or
your  mech  is  Shutdown  due  to  heat.  The
"Orders" option will give  you  you  a  brief
review of your Orders. Options  do  not  take
any time.

WEAPON Menu:
Weapon: Brings up the weapon select  display.
This display  shows  all  weapons,  including
arms and  legs,  where  they  are  located  (
LT=Left Torso, etc), and their condition.  If
the status indicator is green they are  ready
to use. Red indicates damaged or out of ammo.
Yellow means they are recycling and is a  bar
graph of how long until ready to use again.

Wait: Use  this  to  control  the  timing  of
events in the Weapons timer. You can wait  On
Time, wait On  Call,  wait  on  your  current
move,  wait  until  all  your   weapons   are
recycled or your first weapon to  recycle  or
your arms&legs are recycled, wait until  your
heat drops to a certain, or color, or wait On
Enemy move.

Call Move: This option will call the movement
menu if it is waiting.  You  can  also  'Call
Move' from the Options menu and interrupt any
movement WAIT command.

Options: This is the same as the Move Options
except the time comes off the weapons timer.

The movement and weapons timers are  separate
so   you   can   move   and   fire    weapons
simultaneously.  The  wait  conditions  allow
rapid  movement  without  bothersome  weapons
messages,  or  standing  still  and   firing,
without bothersome move  messages.  For  even
more accurate timing you can  use  the  Break
feature and then Break Move or  Break  Attack
from Options menu item. The Options items are
also available as pulldown menus at  the  top
of the screen. There is  a  small  experience
penalty for using the Break Attack and  Break
Move options from the pulldown menus. You can
still shoot at Surrendered, Ejected and  Dead
mech.  You  can  not  shoot  at  Escaped   or
Destroyed mechs.

Pulldown Menus

Game Menu: This menu has  six  items  on  it.
"About" tells you a little about the  Author,
me. "Save" gives you two submenus, "Game" and
"Map". Save Game will save the  game  at  the
end of the current second. Save Map will save
the game map only to a file that can be  used
in another game. "Sound" toggles the sound on
and off. If you didn't have enought memory to
load the  sound  files  this  will  start  as
"Silent". "Setup" brings  up  a  window  that
lets you change the speed of missiles and the
delay for messages. It will also display  the
name  of  the  first  player  and  his  Input
Device. By Clicking on the Name you can  flip
through  each  player.  By  Clicking  on  the
Device you can flip through the devices. This
allows you to  change  player  Input  Devices
during the game. "Color" changes the color of
Mechs from Red to White.  This  if  for  some
people  that   have   trouble   telling   the
difference  between  red  and  green.  "Quit"
allows you to quit a game  in  progress.  For
most real combats this option is disabled.

Team Menus: Each player team has  a  pulldown
menu with all of the members of that team  as
items. If the team is computer controlled you
must use the "Identify" option  to  find  out
about enemy mechs. If the  computer  mech  is
not visible on the screen  you  will  not  be
able to identify its status display. There is
a small  experience  penalty  for  using  the
"Break Attack" and "Break  Move"  items  from
the pulldown menus.

Skill Rolls:
While  moving   or   in   combat   you   will
occassionally be asked to make a skill  roll.
This means that something has made your  mech
off balance (slipping in water, heavy weapons
hit) and you as a pilot must roll to  see  if
your skill is sufficient to keep from falling
down. Falling in heavy mech is  not  trivial.
The mech will take damage equal to its weight
divided by 10. If you roll  down  a  mountain
this is multiplied by the  number  of  levels
you fall. Landing in water cuts  your  damage
in half. All damage is applied in groups of 5
points all over your body.  Landing  on  your
head can ruin your day. Crashing is the  same
as falling only from three levels up  (triple
damage). When you are asked to make  a  skill
roll there will be an option to "Modify" your
skill roll. If you select this option you can
trade experience points for an improved skill
roll. This  is  expensive,  but  in  critical
situations it could save your  life.  If  you
use  it  too  much  you  will  not  have  any
experience to  improve  your  character.  The
computer can also modify its  rolls  and  you
may see a "modified+2" occasionally.

Firing weapons requires a skill roll vs  your
Gunnery skill to hit  your  target.  You  can
modify this roll also. If  you  miss  a  shot
there is a chance that you might hit  someone
else in an adjacent hex. There are also skill
rolls for being knocked unconscious, shutting
down due to heat and ammo explosions  due  to
heat.

TERRAIN Types and Features
Plain:  This  is  basic  ground  level,  open
plain, and is what  all  movement  times  are
based on. The base movement time for a  Plain
hex is given in the status display.

Sand: It takes three times as  long  to  move
thru sand and it  adds  2  pts  of  heat  per
second.

Snow: It takes twice as  long  to  move  thru
snow, and there is a  chance  that  you  will
slip on the ice. Snow will remove  2  pts  of
heat per second.

Light Forest: It takes twice as long to  move
through light forest as  across  plains,  and
makes you one point harder to hit.

Heavy Forest: It takes three times as long to
move through heavy forest  and  you  are  two
points harder to hit.

Jungle: You can not move thru this hex. It is
possible to jump over it, but if you land  in
a Jungle hex the only way  out  is  to  jump.
Jungle hexes can be burned.

Swamp: It takes twice as long  to  move,  you
are one point easier to hit, and there  is  a
good chance of slipping and falling.

Shallow Water: This type hex takes  twice  as
long to move through and makes it easier  for
you to be hit  and  harder  for  you  to  hit
others, but helps you to cool down. The water
will remove 3 points of heat  per  second  in
addition to  your  heat  sinks.  There  is  a
chance you will slip and fall.

Medium Water: This type water is  up  to  the
mechs waist. Weapons below the waist can  not
be fired. You get 6  points  of  cooling  per
second, but you are easier to hit and  it  is
harder for you to  aim.  You  can't  kick  in
medium water. Move at 1/3 normal rate.

Deep Water: This type water provides 9 points
of cooling/second. Weapons below the neck can
not be fired and you are very  hard  to  hit.
You can't kick or punch in deep  water.  Move
at 1/4 normal rate.

Bottomless Water: This type water  is  beyond
your mechs capability.  It  will  crush  your
mech, destroying it and killing you. The only
way past this type of hex is to jump over.

Low Hills: Hills  provide  cover.  You  can't
shoot over them. Low hills make it one  point
easier to hit mechs below you.  Move  at  1/3
normal rate uphill or half normal rate on the
same level.

Medium Hills: You get two extra points to hit
mechs below you due to height. Move  at  2  +
1/level going uphill.

High Hills: You get three extra points to hit
mechs below you due to height. Hills  have  a
tactical  advantage,  but  beware  of   skill
rolls. If you fall you can roll all the down,
doing multiple damage.

Barrier Peak: This hex  type  is  impassible.
You can not jump over  it.  It  is  used  for
obstacles. All Arena maps have  a  border  of
Barrier Peaks.

Fire: Energy and Missile  weapons  can  start
forest fires. Moving or stopping in a  forest
fire adds a 6 points of heat  per  second  to
your mech, and the smoke adds three points on
all hit rolls. Move at half normal rate.

Cleared: Cannons and Missiles can clear trees
from forest hexes.  This  is  rough  terrain,
move  at  half  normal  rate.   Cannons   and
Missiles can  also  be  used  to  'blow  out'
forest fires.

Burned: Once a forest fire has burned out the
hex  becomes  rough  terrain.  Move  at  half
normal rate.

Terrain plays an  important  part  in  combat
strategy.  A  good  position  can  mean   the
difference between winning and  loosing.  Use
the terrain to your advantage. If you try  to
leave the map area you will be asked if  your
wish to ESCAPE from the combat.  If  you  say
Yes, your mech will be removed at the end  of
the move and you are out of the game. Forests
are much harder  to  see  through  at  ground
level. If you are at  ground  level  and  the
mech you are trying to see is also at  ground
level you can only see  through  three  light
woods or one light and one heavy woods.

Combat HEAT Affects
Almost everything you do  in  a  Combat  Mech
creates heat. It is your  worse  enemy.  Heat
can slow  down  your  mech,  throw  off  your
targeting  computers,  cause  your  mech   to
shutdown unexpectedly (that right,  you're  a
sitting  duck),  and  even  cause   ammo   to
explode. Watch your heat. The Status  display
gives the amount of heat  generated  by  each
weapon  in  hundreds.  Ten  heat   means   it
generates 1000 points  of  heat.  The  actual
temperature is  in  the  Status  display.  In
addition, there is a small  status  light  in
the  upper  right  corner  of   the   weapons
selection  window.   Green=OK,   Blue=reduced
movement/aim,  Yellow=danger   of   shutdown,
Red=danger of  ammo  exploding.  Your  Combat
Mech will automatically shutdown if your heat
goes over 3000. In addition, a damaged engine
generates 5 points of  heat  per  second  for
each hit. The  only  thing  that  protects  a
pilot from  the  heat  is  the  life  support
system. If that is destroyed you are  in  big
trouble.

COMBAT:
There are two forms of combat, weapons combat
and melee combat. Melee  combat  is  hand  to
hand, punching, kicking and  charging.  Melee
combat doesn't generate any heat, but you may
do damage to yourself and you have to  be  in
the same hex or in  the  adjacent  hex.  When
used  to  fight,  your  arms  and  legs  have
recycle times just like your  other  weapons.
Legs  take  25  seconds  and  arms  take   10
seconds. Both legs must be ready in order  to
kick so you  can  only  kick  with  one  leg,
however a kick does twice as much damage as a
punch. If you miss a kick you have to make  a
Piloting Skill roll to keep from falling.  On
the other hand if you connect with a kick the
kickee has to make a Piloting Skill roll.  If
you are jumping when you kick you  will  have
to make a skill roll. If you fail your  skill
roll you will crash.

Damage  is  based  on  the  weight   of   the
attacking mech. A  50  ton  mech  can  do  10
points  of  damage  kicking  and   5   points
punching. To punch or kick simply select  the
arm  or  leg  you  want  from   the   weapons
selection window. The  arm  or  leg  must  be
ready and in working condition. If the status
light to the right is RED it means that  that
limb is too damaged to be used in melee.  The
numbers after arm/leg status  in  the  status
display give  an  indication  of  that  limbs
condition. The first number is  the  modifier
on 'to hit' for  weapons  in  the  limb.  The
second number is a damage indicator. If it is
over 6 the limb can't be used. You can select
multiple weapons so you could punch with both
arms and  kick  with  one  leg  in  the  same
attack. You can not kick and fire any weapons
in the same attack. You  can  not  punch  and
fire any weapon located in that  arm  in  the
same attack.

When one mech attempts to move into  the  hex
occupied by another mech, that is  a  charge.
You  must  have  both  arms  and  both   legs
recycled and in good condition to walk or run
charge. You  must  have  both  legs  in  good
condition  to  jump  charge.  If  your  limbs
aren't ready or damaged you won't be  allowed
to move into the other hex for the charge.

Charging can do massive damage. The damage is
based  on  speed  for  walking  and   running
charges. Your speed is the TIME it  takes  to
walk or run one normal hex, divided into 100.
This is modified by  terrain  and  can  be  a
fraction. The time is modified  by  heat  and
the damage to your legs. The damage is spread
out in groups of 5 points. The charging  mech
takes damage equal to the weight of the  mech
charged divided by 10.  A  charge  that  hits
requires both mechs to make a Skill  roll  at
+2 or fall. You can NOT walk or run charge  a
mech that is down.

A  jumping  charge  is  called  "Death   from
Above". Damage is the attacking mechs  weight
divided by 10, times three. An  80  ton  mech
jumping on you can do 24  points  of  damage.
Damage is  divided  in  half  and  each  half
applied to a random point in the upper torso,
as though he kicked twice. The charging  mech
takes damage equal to his weight  divided  by
10, equally applied to his two legs.

To  do  a  jumping  charge,  jump  into   the
opponents hex and stop. All charges that  hit
require both mechs to make a  Piloting  Skill
roll, the attacker at +2 and the defender  at
+2. Only the attacker makes a skill  roll  if
the charge misses, but it is at +6.  You  CAN
jump on a mech that is down.

If both mechs are jumping  in  the  same  hex
there is a chance of a collision. This is not
an attack and the computer rolls for  whether
a collision took place based on  both  pilots
skill. If the mechs collide, both mechs  must
make a skill roll or fall and crash.

Melee is also dependant on  the  terrain.  If
you are too high above or  too  low  below  a
mech you can't melee. If you  are  one  level
above you can only kick him. If you  are  one
level below you can only punch him.

Weapon combat is fairly selfexplanitory. Pick
the  weapons  you  want  from   the   weapons
selection window. That arms the weapons.  You
can select multiple weapons. When you  select
a weapon a pink number will appear beside the
status indicator. This number is the order in
which the weapons will be fired. Two  seconds
later the targeting computer will  display  a
firing fan for that weapon.  The  firing  fan
will  show  your  field  of  fire  for  chest
mounted  weapons  and  the  weapons   maximum
range,  and  for  some  weapons  the  minimum
range. Weapons mounted in the  left  arm  can
fire one hex side further  to  the  left  and
weapons mounted in the right arm can fire one
hex side further to  the  right.  This  means
that arm mounted weapons  can  fire  directly
behind you if you swivel. THIS  CAN  BE  VERY
HANDY. You can fire inside the minimum range,
but at a penalty to hit. The  menu  bar  will
list the last mech you fired at  and  several
options. The left  and  right  arrow  scrolls
through ALL  enemy  mechs.  The  "OK"  option
picks the current mechs as  the  target.  The
"Side" option allows you to select a mech  on
your side as the target. "Cancel" cancels the
attack. "Hex" allows you to shoot  at  hexes.
The mech name might be  colored.  This  is  a
status  indicator   for   the   mech.   "Red"
indicates that the mech is  dead.  "Blue"  is
destroyed. "Pink" is shutdown or the pilot is
unconscious.  "Yellow"  is  surrendered   and
"Green" means the mech has  escaped  off  the
screen. Select your target  to  activate  the
firing  sequence.  Two  seconds   later   the
weapons will fire. As each  weapon  comes  up
you  will  have  the  option  to  "Fire"  the
weapon,  "Pass"  on  that  one   weapon,   or
"Modify"  your  gunnery   skill   roll.   Hit
locations will be flashed in the menu bar. If
you miss a shot there is a  chance  that  you
could hit a  mech  next  to  your  target  by
mistake.

Various objects are part of  some  scenarios.
If your goal is to  destroy  the  object  you
must be in the same hex with the object.  You
can then fire at it with weapons or kick  and
punch it. If  your  goal  is  to  recover  an
object you will notice that  all  mechs  with
hands have an "H" in the status display  next
to the arm status.  When  you  bring  up  the
weapons menu those arms with  hands  will  be
listed as "Punch/Grab". If you select an  arm
with a hand the targeting menu will list  the
name of the  object  as  an  option.  If  you
select the object your attack will give you a
roll to  pick  up  the  object.  If  you  are
carrying an object your weapons menu will say
"Punch/Drop". You can use the same  procedure
to drop an object with  one  or  both  hands.
While carrying an  object  any  stagger  roll
will also require a  roll  for  dropping  the
object. Dropping an object will cause  damage
to the object.

Terrain is important in  weapon  combat.  You
can't shoot through mountains so being on top
of  a  mountain  is  a  strategic  advantage.
Forests provide cover, but they can be set on
fire or  cleared  of  trees  by  concentrated
fire. Water provide a  good  barrier  from  a
charging mech. You can sometimes start  fires
by aiming at a forest hex. You can also  blow
out  fires  by  shooting  a  fire  hex   with
missiles or cannons. To shoot at a hex select
HEX as the target of any weapon  attack.  You
will then be asked to select the hex with the
mouse. Click in the menu line to  cancel  the
attack.

The main objective of combat is to  eliminate
the opponents armor so that your weapons  can
damage delicate internal components, like the
pilot.  Once  the  armor  in   a   particular
location is destroyed any further  damage  in
that area hits something inside. The computer
rolls a 2d6. If it is less than 8 the  damage
is applied to the Internal Structure  of  the
mech. If  it  is  8  or  higher  one  of  the
internal  locations  is  hit.  The   internal
locations contain  such  things  as  weapons,
ammo,  arm  and  leg  joints,   heat   sinks,
engines, gyros, PILOTS, etc. One or more hits
will destroy an internal component.

The internal structure has  points  like  the
armor. These points are shown in  the  Status
Display right after the area name and  before
the  list  of  internal  components.  If  the
internal structure is reduced  to  zero  that
area is Destroyed and ALL  components  in  it
cease to function.  If  it  is  the  head  or
limbs, the area is ripped off. If it  is  the
center torso there  is  a  50/50  chance  the
engine  will  explode.  Whether  the   engine
explodes or not it stops working and the game
is over for that  mech.  If  a  mechs  engine
explodes or its head is shot  off  the  pilot
will get a chance  for  an  emergency  eject.
Don't expect to survive, but you will have  a
chance.

Internal Components

Weapons (W): Destroyed with any hit.

Ammo (A): Destroyed with any  hit.  The  ammo
will blow up doing  internal  damage  to  the
mech.

Arm and Leg Actuators (x): Destroyed with any
hit. Leg hits will require a Pilot Skill roll
to keep from falling. The status of your arms
and legs is given in the status display.  The
first number  is  the  modifier  to  hit  for
weapons in the limb. The second number  is  a
weighted actuator damage. If it is over 6 the
limb is unusable.

Engine (E): Each hit  causes  the  engine  to
generate 5 points per second of  extra  heat.
There is a chance on ANY hit that the  fusion
engine will blow up. The odds are  very  good
by three hits and 100% by four hits.

Gyro (G): A gyro hit adds  3  points  to  all
Pilot  Skill  rolls.  Jump  Jets

Ports (P):Destroyed with any  hit.  Each  hit
destroys that  port  and  reduces  your  jump
range one hex.

Life Support (L): Any hit destroys  the  life
support system for  the  mechs  cockpit.  The
mech pilot will  take  one  point  of  damage
every 50 seconds that the heat is over  1500.
If the heat is over 2500  he  will  take  two
points of damage.

Sensors (S): The first hit on sensors  add  2
points to all  Gunnery  Skill  rolls  to  hit
targets. A second hit destroys  your  sensors
and  you  can  not  hit  anything  with  your
weapons. It is still possible to melee.

Cockpit (C): Any hit in the cockpit kills the
pilot. End of Game.

Hidden Commands

There are  several  hidden  commands  in  the
"Setup"  window.  With  the  "Setup"   window
active the following keys act as toggles:

"a" - Toggles Aimed Shots On/Off for ALL mechs.

"r" - Toggles ALL Recycle Times to ZERO.

"q" -  Will  Quit  the  game  without  saving
mechs. This will leave  you  pilots  "Out  on
Patrol". They can be brought  back  with  the
Warrior program, but it will  cost  you  some
money and will be counted as a loss  on  your
combat record.