Cream of the Crop 20/Cream of the Crop 20 (Terry Blount) (1996).iso/games/ww3demo.zip/WWIII.DOC

Text File | 1996-07-01 | 8KB | 173 lines

:FIFTEEN MINUTES:
:::::::::::::::::

The experts predicted it would take no more than 15 minutes to expend the
entire offensive nuclear arsenal at your disposal.

Time to find out.  WWIII.


:YOUR MISSION:
::::::::::::::

You've just been alerted that an opposing superpower has done the
unthinkable... they've launched a preemptive strike against your homeland,
and now you must retaliate.  You sit at the portable console you never
wished to use, saddled with a responsibility you never wished to take -
cruising safely in a nuclear submarine somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean,
you'll have to wage World War III.

You're the President, and the Commander in Chief as well, so you have
complete control over your armed forces.  The supersecret laptop console
you're holding can launch missles, send bombers to their targets and even
display information from orbiting satellites, all at the touch of a button.
It also activates your defensive fighters and antimissle bases, which can
help turn back the approaching enemy weapons.

And somewhere around the world sits your counterpart, probably with a unit
something like yours.  Your defense minister warns that you both control
identical stockpiles of weapons - an unexpected result of years of
espionage, treaties and negotiations - so only your strategic skill can win
the battle.

The world as you know it will end... but the higher your population, the
better your chances at survival.  That's your goal:  defend your country
while you do your best to annihilate your unseen opponent.  The power with
the most survivors wins.

Thank God it's only a game.


:THE GAME:
::::::::::

The highest population... that's the only goal in WWIII!  Each country is
divided into a simplified map of 42 squares, ten of which are major
population centers randomly picked at the beginning of the game.  These
cities are represented by the letter C, and they are the key to winning
World War III... the more cities left standing, the higher your population.
Your opponent's population begins the same as yours, but it can rise or
fall due to random events - and the population will be distributed in
different places, of course.

The unmarked squares also have a population amount - not anywhere as high
as the cities, but high enough that they're worth protecting.  These
unmarked squares can hold your offensive and defensive forces, which
naturally CANNOT be placed on a City square... one force per square,
please!

As the game begins, you're presented with 6 forces in your stockpile, as
represented by the following:

Msl - A missle silo holding a single nuclear ICBM.  These weapons are
      deadly accurate, and carry a warhead big enough to decimate a
      single square.  Impact occurs immediately, making them
      especially useful at the beginning of hostilities - you'll use
      them to knock out specific targets quickly.  Missles can be knocked
      out by enemy antimissle defenses.

Bmb - A flight of hi-tech nuclear bombers.  Their effective destructive
      area is two squares, which they select at random upon reaching the
      enemy country.  Bombers must travel for a full turn before
      reaching the enemy, and they can be knocked out by enemy fighters.

Sub - The single most powerful offensive weapon in your arsenal.  These
      fearsome missle platforms carry the most destructive warheads, so
      they obliterate a full three squares of territory.  They are
      targeted before launch, and - like missles - impact occurs
      immediately.  Unlike missles, however, the short-range weapons
      from a sub CANNOT be disabled by enemy antimissle defenses.

Orb - Your "eyes in the sky", an orbiter can reveal the contents of up
      to 9 squares of enemy territory - of course, you'll find them
      most effective at the beginning of the conflict.  Due to surface
      clutter and electromagnetic jamming, each of the possible
      squares has a 70% chance of being revealed.  Once an orbiter
      has been used, the enemy knows its position and can knock it out
      with a laser jamming system, so use them wisely!

Def - Antimissle defenses can provide a certain amount of protection
      against enemy missle attacks - they have approximately a 70%
      chance of intercepting incoming ICBMs.  Defense bases remain at
      ready state throughout the entire game once you've activated them.

Ftr - Finally, your state-of-the-art jet fighters are your only protection
      against incoming bombers, again with about a 70% success rate.
      Once you've scrambled a fighter squadron, it remains airborne until
      it's needed.

There are 10 of each of the six forces.

There's also a set of 10 random occurances, each represented by an "Event!"
wildcard.  These events have a 30% chance of helping you, a 30% chance of
penalizing you, and a 60% chance of having no effect on your position
whatsoever.  You can either take a chance with an Event! card or ignore it,
but remember that an Event! card does take up a slot in your stockpile
until it's used, so it's usually to your advantage to try them.  Event!
cards are played by selecting them with the [P]lace command.


:Placing and Drawing Forces:
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As the game begins, you and your enemy are in a state of cold war.  As the
rest of the world watches nervously, you and your opponent select which
forces to move from your stockpile to rural areas within your country, and
where they should be placed.  Your enemy's territory is hidden, as your
country is hidden from your computer opponent.  When using the [P]lace
command, keep these three important rules in mind:

o  First, decide on what strategy you'll use beforehand.  Will you try
   Event! cards?  Will you concentrate on building a huge offensive
   arsenal, or will you protect your country with a strong defense?

o  Second, NEVER PLACE MULTIPLE FORCES IN CONSECUTIVE SQUARES!  Remember,
   subs and bombers strike consecutive squares, and your computer opponent
   has been programmed to take advantage of such a grouping if one is
   revealed by an Orbiter.

o  Third, declare war if you're ready!  You can attempt to launch an attack
   at any time after your second turn, but your Parliament may prevent you
   from pushing the button until later in the game - and each unsuccessful
   attempt costs you a turn, since your enemy will be able to place another
   weapon. If you don't start the war, your opponent eventually will, and
   you'll lose the possibility of a preemptive first strike.  There is no
   "right" threshhold for initiating the first attack, but as you play
   you'll gain valuable (?) experience in precipitating holocausts.

You can use the [D]raw command whenever there's at least one open slot in
your stockpile, but try to draw as little as possible... your computer
opponent will use that turn to place another weapon!


:Ending the Game:
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No irritating negotiations in WWIII - to suspend the launch of further
weapons, simply use the [C]all command to call the enemy leader!  Note,
however, that this does NOT guarantee that all offensive hostilities will
cease; if you or your enemy has launched bombers and they've not reached
their destination, the computer will resolve their attack before
calculating the final survivor counts.


:A Final Word:
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Let's hope it never actually comes to this in reality... enjoy!


:Legal Matters:
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WWIII and this documentation are copyright (c) 1994 by Mark L. Chambers.
All rights are reserved.

Copying, duplication and reverse-engineering of WWIII and this
documentation file are specifically prohibited.  The author is not
responsible for any damage or loss related to this product.  Your use of
this program constitutes your agreement to this disclaimer and your release
of the author from any form of liability or litigation.