BBS : 1990 Multiline BBS (3:691.254) Phone +61 9 3703333 (V32 on 3703379) Firstly... This game has a minimum requirement of 25 lines x 80 columns If you are using a terminal such as Telix [(C) Exis inc] then you will need to turn off the status line to give you the full 25 lines!
Main Menu
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<B>attle statistics
This displays relevent information on your battles; such as score.
<D>eclare war on enemy
Before you start in a battle, you must declare war on someone. If you
choose this option, the program will search for an open battle. An open
battle is one where another player has already declared war, and there
were no open battles. If you join the open battle, you will do battle with
who-ever opened the battle. If no open battle is available, then a battle
is opened and you will be at war with the next person who declares war.
Once you have declared war, you can then fight the war by using <F>ight
from the Main Menu. Your first task will be to position your fleet.
<F>ight in battle
Your SYSOP can set the maximum number of battles from 2 to 7.
When you the <F>ight option, you are given a list of battles that you
have declared war in. Any battles that you haven't declared war in, are
marked "...closed". Any battles waiting for an opponent are marked as
such. A battle that is running shows your opponent's name, whose turn it
is, and when your opponent last played. Enter the Battle number to fight
in that battle. If the battle is ready, you will be able to play.
If you haven't positioned your fleet, then you will be able to now.
Positioning your fleet is important, and you can quit any time and come
back to try again. Each ship can be placed anywhere on the board, so long
as it doesn't coincide or overlap another ship, or run off the board.
To position the ship, enter the co-ordinates where you would like to
place the ship. Take note of the length of the ship. You will then be
asked which direction the ship is to run. This is where you must ensure
the ship doesn't overlap another, or run off the board.
There are 9 ships/planes to position. Because of the length of some ships
this means that there are actually 20 possible targets to hit during the
game. Take note of the lengths of each, so that you know how long your
opponent's ships are.
Once you have positioned your ships, you can play the game (assuming your
opponent has done the same. If not, keep trying till you can access the
game). See below for game play.
<H>elp with BATTLESHIPS
Hopefully you are reading that now!
<T>op ten scores
A player's score is calculated as a percentage of games won over games
played. For example, a player who has won every game will have a score of
100%, and a player who has won 5 out of ten games will have a score of 50%
The ten highest scores are shown. If more that one player has equal top
score, then all players with that score are shown as top player. The last
opponent defeated by each player is also shown.
If no-one has played more than one game yet, then the Top-Ten score table
is not shown. Players who have played only one game will not be shown in
the table, irrespective of their score.
<V>iew your battles
If you want to quickly view a battle board, use this option.
<Q>uit
Takes you back to the BBS we hope :-)
Game Play
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While you play the game, you are informed if your player is playing at
present and whether it is your turn or not. While it is your opponent's turn
you are viewing your DEFENSIVE board. This board shows you your ship placement
including which ships (or part thereof) have been hit, as well as where your
opponent has missed. ANSI users will see a HIT in RED, and a miss as a PLUS
sign. NON-ANSI users will see a HIT as a HASH sign '#'.
Once your opponent has fired a missile, you are informed where the missile
fell and what it hit, if anything. ANSI users will see the ship being struck
or the missile landing in the ocean.
Once your opponent has made his move, you have your chance. You are now shown
your OFFENSIVE board. This shows what hits and misses you have made. ANSI
users will see a hit as the ship type in RED. Misses are shown as a PLUS sign
Choose the co-ordinate that you wish to fire your missile at. The co-ordinate
can be entered in either order, for example c 7 or 7 c. You can change your
co-ordinates at any time until you are happy with them. Once you are happy,
press <U> to use the co-ordinates. You will be informed if you hit or miss.
ANSI users will be shown the hit or miss on the board.
Once a player has destroyed all ships, they are the winner. There can be no
draw. The winner's score is then updated, and the game is cleared. Both
players can then use the vacant game to declare war again.
Play options
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<M>essage
You can send a single line of text to your opponent. If your opponent
is not playing at the time, he will receive it next time he plays.
Messages here are usually in the form of a shout of triumph or a curse :-)
<R>edraw
This allows you to redraw your screen in case of line noise or a page
from a user in a conference area.
<U>se
Once you enter your co-ordinates press <U> to use them. Co-ordinates can
be changed any time before this. ANSI users can clear the co-ordinates
by pressing "ENTER" or "RETURN". You cannot enter co-ordinates or use
this option when it is not your turn. If the co-ordinates you used has
already been fired upon earlier, you are notified, and you can try again.
<!>Forfeit
Sorry, 'F' is already used for co-ordinates :-)
If you decide to end the battle prematurely, you can forfeit it.
There are certain conditions for forfeiting a battle. If you wish to
forfeit a battle due to the fact that your opponent hasn't played for some
time, then check the last date he or she played. If they haven't played
for a week or more, then forfeiting the battle will actually win you the
battle. If your opponent has been in the battle in the last week, then
forfeiting the battle will lose the battle for you. The best idea is to
wait until the week is up then forfeit. If your opponent insists on logging
into the battle but not playing, notify your SYSOP and they can do
something for you. Which ever way you choose, you will be warned whether
forfeiting will lose the battle for you or not.
<V>iew
You can view your other board with this command. Meaning: If it is your
turn, you would normally see your OFFENSIVE board. Using this option will
allow you to view your DEFENSIVE board, and after that reshow the original
board. The opposite goes when it is not your turn; you will be able to view
your OFFENSIVE board with this option in that case.
<Q>uit
This will take you back to BATTLESHIPS Main Menu
Other stuff
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ANSI users will have a much more improved game than NON-ANSI users.
The playing board is only drawn once, and any updates are done over the board.
Also ANSI users get a visual display of where missiles land.
(Coloured screens do take slightly longer to display though :-)
Every effort has been made to make the game reliable, even if a player drops
carrier. However... The programmer and your SYSOP cannot be held responsible
if a game move is lost due to loss of carrier. If your alloted BBS time is
drawing near when it is your move, log off cleanly!
This game also has a maximum of 99,999 players and 99,999 battles, which I
