PC Gamer 5/1995-04_Disc_5.iso/panzer/readme.txt

Text File | 1994-08-11 | 14KB | 215 lines

TUTORIAL / QUICK START
This tutorial provides step-by-step suggestions to familiarize you quickly
and easily with the basic menus, options, and units in an actual
Panzer General battle scenario. press any key to start. From the Start Game
Menu on the right side of the screen, you are given choices to
##Start Campaign##, ##Play Scenario#, ##Load Saved Game##, or ##Quit##.
Left-click on ##Play Scenario##. .

Setting Preferences
The scenario selection screen offers choices of difficulty, player or
computer control, and scenario selections. For the tutorial, locate the
##Set Difficulty ## section in the upper-left corner of the screen and
left-click on ##Easy##. Next, left-click on ##Poland## as the battle
scenario you want to play, then select ##Start Scenario## located in the
lower left corner of the screen. The title screen of the scenario appears
and states the turn number, the date, the condition of the weather, and
the number of turns remaining.  Left-click on the title screen of the
scenario to start your game. The tactical map, or battlefield, appears in
the main view. Your Panzer units are colored gray. Along the top of the
screen appear your current prestige points hex descriptions, and weather
reports. All menus and buttons appear along the right side of the screen.
Menu button descriptions appear in the window along the top of the screen.
For now use only the Main Menu and the Options Menu. From the Main Menu,
left-click on ##Go to Options Menu##. Set ##Hidden Units On## to see enemy
units and their strengths, and select ##Turn Weather Off## so your first
game is unaffected by rain and snowstorms. Left-click on ##Go To Main Menu##
(or right-click anywhere to toggle menus at any time).  You are now ready
to enter the first battle of the campaign game.  You control a core group of
pieces, regardless of what region you enter. These pieces gain experience
and can upgrade over time. They start in a friendly city, and the setup
is automatic.

Battle Plan
The following tactics are for the battle of Poland, the first battle of the
general campaign. The date is September 1, 1939 and the German army is to
cross the border with their famous blitzkrieg. In  days they must capture
the cities of Lodz and Rutno. . . the gates to Warsaw. As the
soon-to-be-great (or greatest!) Panzer General, it is always a good idea to
start every battle by viewing the strategic map of the battleground and
formulating a battle plan. Select ##View Strategic Map## from the Main Menu.
A map appears, displaying your Axis units with black German crosses, Allied
forces with gold stars, and your battle objectives in bright green. White
marked hexes are player-controlled objectives which have been won and must
be held throughout the battle.  To view a portion of the map, move your
pointer over the section you wish to see and left- or right-click. The map
is now in the main screen, showing you the section you wanted. To see the
rest of the map in this view, move the pointer to the surrounding screen
border according to the direction you wish to move. The screen scrolls in
that direction until you move the pointer back onto the main screen.
In this battle, the most effective plan is to divide your units into two
attack forces with specific goals: a northern attack force to take the cites
of Kalisz and Rutno, and a southern attack force to attack Lodz. Cities
other than Lodz and Rutno are secondary to your battle objectives and
should only be attacked if in the direct path of your units (like Kalisz).
On the other hand, you can risk units against other cities to gain more
prestige points.The entire battle plans for the northern and southern forces
are below. Each turn of the game focuses on one goal of these plans.  The
northern force should be made of at least one tank unit, several infantry
units, and an artillery unit in transport mode. After attacking and
defeating the 10th Polish Cavalry, the force is to lay siege to and capture
the city of Kalisz. With newly-gained prestige, another tank unit is to be
added to the force as it moves on to crush enemy tank units, cross the
Warta river and then lay successful siege to the city of Rutno.The southern
force should be made of one or more tank units, a purchased artillery unit,
and several infantry units with transport capability. The force is to cross
the Warta river, bypass the city of Radomsko to the south, and lay siege to
the heavily defended city of Lodz.

Turn 1
Northern Force. Your orders are to attack the 10th Polish Cavalry unit with
a tank unit, then with infantry units. In general, it is best to lead
attacks with tanks firstand infantry following after. To move a unit,
left-click on it. A black hex marks the unit you wish to move. Movement
range is indicated by lighted hexes. A unit can move once and attack once,
in either order. Once it has moved, it cannot move again unless you select
##Abort Move##.To attack, move your selected unit to a lighted hex adjacent
to the enemy unit. The attack option (a red cross hairs) appears when there
is at least one enemy that may be attacked, and your Expected Losses appear
at the bottom of the screen. The ##Attack## number is the losses projected
for the attacking force (your unit), and the ##Defend## number is the
projected losses for the unit you are attacking.  Keep in mind that these
are **projected** losses, and will probably not be the same in actual
battle! Once you have decided that the Expected Losses are in your favor
and you wish to attack, left-click when the red cross hairs target is over
the enemy unit. Unit losses are indicated on the unit strength flags, and
battle details are listed at the top of the screen. Once the 10 Polish
Cavalry unit is eliminated, or retreats, move the artillery unit
(hex 3, 12) into a transport and up to the northern tip of the forest
(hex 4,9). To load the artillery unit into its transport, left-click to
select the unit and choose the ##Mount## button from the Unit Menu. Once the
unit is mounted, the highlighted movement area is widened. Move any other
Northern force units within two hexes of Kalisz to prepare for the siege
next turn. If a unit has moved and you wish to take it back, select the
button ##Abort Move## from the Unit Menu. Keep in mind that once a unit has
moved and another has been selected, you cannot go back to the first, except
to look at its statistics.

Southern Force. Your orders are to move tank units east toward the Warta
River (at hex 10,13), followed by the artillery unit and infantry units in
transports. Leave one infantry unit to protect the city of Breslau. If no
transport is available for an infantry unit, use it to flank the other
transports and provide quick defense. Once again, it is best to lead attacks
with tanks first and infantry following after. To load units into their
transports, left-click to select the unit and choose the ##Mount## button
from the Unit Menu. Once a unit is mounted, the highlighted movement
area is widened. Left-click on a highlighted hex to move there. Transport
moves can be taken back by pressing the ##Abort Move## button.Units in
transports do not have high defensive capabilities. If at all possible,
first ##Dismount## units before attacking. To ensure success, the southern
attack force should acquire an artillery unit with transport capability.
To get another artillery unit you use your prestige with the High Command,
or ##Prestige Points##, to buy a unit. Select the ##$## button from the
Main Menu and the Purchase Unit Menu appears. The left side of the screen
displays unit classes available (with a green light) and not-available
(with a black light). Left-click on ##Artillery## to see the available
artillery class units. When you left-click on the 7.5 leFk 16nA artillery
unit, the unit's statistics appear along the right side of the screen,
underneath your ##Prestige Points## ##Units Available##, and ##Total Cost##
sections. The single unit (more become available in the future) costs 84
prestige points.Next, select a transport for the unit from the bottom
section of the screen. Select either the Opel land transport or the SPW.
The new total cost for both the unit and the transport is displayed.
Select ##Purchase## from the lower-left corner to confirm the purchase.
Be aware that units you purchase appear in cities where there is no
immediate hex occupied by an enemy, so your artillery unit should appear
around the city of Breslau. Place the new unit in the highlighted hex
(3,12). Next turn you will load it onto a transport and move it along with
the Southern attack force. Be sure to leave a unit in conquered or friendly
citiesotherwise the enemy can make a flanking move, take the city, and
possibly end the war in one move! From the Main Menu, select the
##End Turn## button.

Turn 2.
Northern Force. You are ordered to attack and capture the city of Kalisz and
purchase a new tank with your newly-gained prestige.Left-click on the
artillery transport in hex (4, 9) and select ##Dismount## from the unit menu.
You may now attack Kalisz, and afterwards can choose to move the unit closer
to the city or ##Mount## to move it to another location.After the successful
bombardment from the artillery unit, use your strongest infantry units to
lay siege to Kalisz, then capture the city with any remaining ground attack
unit (artillery and air-defense classes won't be as effective in holding
newly-won cities). Watch out for artillery-defended cities, as artillery
units have a range of 1 to 4 hexes. It is not advisable to attack cities
with tank units! Use tank units to attack enemy artillery, tank, and cavalry
units. When you have captured the city of Kalisz, you may purchase a new tank to strengthen
the northern force. Select a tank from the Purchase Unit screen (a Pz III or
Pz38(t)A is recommended) and place it in a hex near Kalisz.If you have not
captured Kalisz, repeat this section next turn.
Southern Force. Your goal is to cross the Warta river, attack enemy units
which have approached, and keep formation on the way to lay siege to Lodz. Be
sure to ##Mount## the artillery unit you purchased at Breslau and move it
west as far as possible.

Turn 3.
If you find that you are forgetting which units have moved and which have
not, choose the ##Next Unit## button from the Main Menu. A display shows
which units have moved (with a red light) and which are available to move
(with a green light).

Northern Force. Continue to move tank units northwest to Rutno. Attack enemy
artillery and armored vehicles. Beware of the urge to attack the city
outright with your infantry units. Cities like Rutno which have artillery
units close by can easily turn an attack into a retreat or even worse - a
surrender.It's a good idea to ##Replace## units who remain in newly-won
cities - they may get attacked while the rest of the force is away.
Southern Force. Attack enemy cavalry units and artillery with tank units.
Unload artillery and, if within 2 hex range, fire on Lodz to soften it up,
then attack with infantry units.

Turn 4.
Northern Force. Continue to attack enemy armored units and cavalry as you
lay siege to Lodz.
Southern Force Do not attempt to attack the cities of Ozorkow or Brzeziny.
Keep your units on guard so that your hard-won objectives stay under your
control. Send transport units to help with the siege of Rutno. If attacked,
unload the transport next turn and return the attack.

Turn 5.
Be aware of enemy units attacking from the city of Posen. Turns 6-10. You
should continue attacking enemy units and replacing those units which have
losses. Note: Don't worry if your first experience ended without gaining the
mission objectives, or with an Allied victory. The game is designed to
include variable battle results, so there is never a single method of
success. Now that you are familiar with the game, you can either choose to
start the campaign or to play the Poland or Warsaw scenarios as separate,
stand alone games. Listed below are a few helpful tactics to remember
during play.

Tactics Checklist.
Remember the following in any scenario you play: When a unit attacks
it uses one unit of ammo. When it's out of ammo, it can't attack
another unit. Cities secondary to your battle objectives should only be
attacked if in the direct path of your units. On the other hand, in later
scenarios, risking units to capture other cities gains you more prestige
points. All units have movement points which are expended as the unit moves.
Each hex costs a number of movement points, based on the type of terrain
entered. When you move a unit the legal hexes that unit may move to are
highlighted. As the cursor moves over a new hex, the amount of movement
appears at the bottom of the screen. When moving units across rivers without
using available roads or crossings, all movement points for those units are
used. Check your units' ammo frequently, and if low, replenish. Replace
units when low, even if close to enemy positions. It's better to suffer loss
than annihilation. Mount units which have transports whenever possible, but
be sure there is armored protection close by. Surface units can only embark
on air transports at an airfield. Embarking a unit can only be done at the
beginning of the unit's turn. Air transport can only disembark at airports,
while paratroopers can disembark anywhere. Disembarking ends the unit's
turn. Be sure to leave a unit in conquered or friendly cities; otherwise the
enemy can make a flanking move, take the city, and possibly end the war
in one move. Replacements, disband, upgrade, and elite replacements can
only be done at the beginning of the units turn. If any of these options are
chosen, then the unit's turn ends. Keep in mind that in the second battle of
the campaign, the battle of Warsaw, aircraft units are available and are
neccessary for an Axis success.