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█▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ ▀▀█▀▀ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ █ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ █▄▄ █▄▄▄▄ █ █▄▄ █▄▄▄█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █▀▀▀█ █ █ █▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄█ █ █▄▄▄█ █ █▄ █ █ █ █ █ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ █ █ █▀▀▀█ █▀▀▀█ ▀▀█▀▀ TM █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █▄▄ █▄▄▄▄ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄█ █ █ █▄█▄█ █▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄█ █ █▄ █▀█ █ █▀█ █ █ █▀▀ █▀█ █▀▀ █▀▀ █ █ █ █▀▄ █▀▀ █▀▀ █ █▀█ ▀█▀ █▀ ██▀ ▀▀█ █ ▄ █ █ █ █ █ █▀ ▀ ▀▀▀ ▀ ▀ ▀ ▀▀▀ ▀ ▀ ▀▀▀ ▀▀▀ ▀▀▀ ▀ ▀▀▀ ▀▀▀ ▀█▀ Copyright (c) 1990 by Bentley C. Griffith. █▀▀█▀▀▀ All rights reserved worldwide. █ █ ▀█ Esterian Conquest is a Trademark of Griffith █▄▄█▄▄█ International. ▄█▄ Player's Guide written by Joel B. Cohen, Ph.D. First Edition, December, 1990. Published by: Griffith International, P.O. Box 530203, Birmingham, AL 35253 THE ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) WEALTH OF FEATURES. Welcome to Galactic Battle in the fast lane. Command the forces of a planetary empire, plan your campaign, colonize new worlds and defeat your enemies. Your goal is simple: Conquer and rule the galaxy. We think you'll agree that the combination of sophistication and ease of use makes ESTERIAN CONQUEST unique among on-line games: MULTI-PLAYER CAPABILITIES: Up to 25 players can enter their moves simultaneously with few or no delays. Call as often as you like and alter your moves if you change your mind. REALISTIC ACTION: Sophisticated simulations of battle, planetary growth, and espionage make you feel like you are really there. Command 7 types of ships. Order your fleets on 13 possible missions. Have total control of your planets: direct their production, set tax levels, and build defenses. ADVANCED, YET EASY TO USE: Enter commands through well- structured menus. Optional ANSI graphics are available for all menus and charts. Issue multiple commands on one line -- the program will remember and process them. Use expert mode for speed. Get on-line help for any menu. EXTRAS THAT GO THE FULL NINE YARDS: Send messages to other players with the built-in text editor. Use autopilot mode to care for your empire if you are away for a while. See the results of your missions in word-wrapped, realistic messages. ii ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS PROGRAM FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 BACKGROUND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 THE GAME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Number of players Object of the game How to achieve your goal The playing field (Galaxy) THE PLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Starting the game Game Time - The Round What you can do in a round Winning Losing Marginal existence BASIC FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 The forces at your command Combat The possible fleet missions Some strategy hints for the beginning of the game Some Middle to Endgame strategy hints REFERENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 The program menus Planning your moves off-line How to colonize a raw (unoccupied) planet How to defend your planet from attack Building and commissioning fleets. Spying on your opponents Conquering an enemy's planet CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 APPENDICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 A. Quick reference sheet B. ROE (rules of engagement) settings C. Feedback/suggestions sheet D. Registration of Esterian Conquest(tm) E. Esterian Conquest(tm) order form ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE ============================================================= INTRODUCTION ============================================================= Esterian Conquest has become the most popular game on almost every BBS on which it is available. To our knowledge, it is the most sophisticated on-line game for multiple players and yet remains easy to play. This manual covers the basics you need to play Esterian Conquest and has reference sections for those who wish to read more in-depth material. Although the rules for play are learned quickly, it is up to you to create and discover the best strategies for winning. NOTE: For those wishing only "Quick Start" information, read the "ECQSTART.DOC" file that came with this manual. ============================================================= BACKGROUND ============================================================= The year is 3000. The powerful Esterians ruled the galaxy for over five centuries and then suddenly and mysteriously disappeared. Their unexpected absence quickly led to the collapse of the interplanetary government. Over the last hundred years, the vast Esterian empire has decayed into a collection of one-planet "mudpie" kingdoms. Recently, the mood in the galaxy has shifted: The people desire the greatness they once had and they seek a leader who can bring them from civil disorder to power. Unfortunately, no one can agree on who this leader should be. The planetary kingdoms held a galactic conference where each brought their own candidate for emperor. The conference was a complete failure and ended with outright threats and declarations of war. It become clear that one has to tame the galaxy to become emperor. In this game, you are the leader of a planetary kingdom. Your people are ready to follow you to victory (either because of your great charisma or your iron fist). The odds are against you (there are up to 25 competitors for galactic rule), but if you are not annihilated, and plan your strategies well, you may indeed attain the emperor's crown and achieve the Esterian Conquest. 1 ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 2 ============================================================= THE GAME ============================================================= NUMBER OF PLAYERS: ------------------------------------------------------------- The game can be played with 4, 9, 16, or 25 players. OBJECT OF THE GAME: ------------------------------------------------------------- Become the ruler of the new Empire by one of the two following methods: 1. Have all the other players surrender & acknowledge you as Emperor. 2. Fight to the "bitter end" by wiping out all other serious contenders and forcing the remaining empires to surrender. HOW TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOAL: ------------------------------------------------------------- Hold enough planets through conquest or colonization to be recognized as emperor. Defeat the space fleets and conquer the planets of any players who oppose you. THE PLAYING FIELD (GALAXY): ------------------------------------------------------------- The galaxy is a square grid whose size depends on the number of players (a 4-player game will have an 18 x 18 grid, while a 25-player game takes place on a 45 x 45 grid of boxes). Each box (or SECTOR) is approximately 1 square light year and will either be empty or will contain one solar system. At the start of each game, the computer generates the positions of the solar systems in the galaxy. Every solar system has one planet which can be colonized. Generally, the total number of solar systems is 5 times the number of players. The planets provide the raw materials you use to build your fleets and armies. Each planet has a different amount of available resources for production (measured in PRODUCTION POINTS that can be generated in a year). The planets range in potential production from 10 to 150 points. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 3 ============================================================= THE PLAY ============================================================= STARTING THE GAME: ------------------------------------------------------------- You begin owning 1 planet (your homeworld) with a current production level of 100 points per year. You also start with four fleets: two consisting of a colonizing ship (ETAC) and a cruiser and two containing one destroyer. Set a tax rate (65% is recommended) for the planet to generate production points. By spending these points to build ships, armies, ground forces, and starbases, you can launch your campaign of galactic domination. As you colonize new planets, you will want to lower your tax rate (sometimes almost to zero) to facilitate faster growth of resources on your new planets. GAME TIME - THE ROUND: ------------------------------------------------------------- Each round is equivalent to one year of game time. The players enter their orders for the year. The game stores these orders and processes them simultaneously during its maintenance period at the end of the round. The Sysop determines the time of day to run maintenance. Up until the end of the round, players can enter and change their moves at will. There is no advantage to entering moves earlier or later so long as they get entered before the round maintenance occurs. During maintenance, the game carefully plots all players' movements and battles. In the case of a battle, it actually plays the movement of each army or ship in a fleet individually. It tallies the results and displays them as messages for the players on the following round. The real-life time between rounds is decided by your Sysop, but can be as frequent as one round per day. WHAT YOU CAN DO IN A ROUND: ------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Administrate your planets: order what the planet should build for the year, commission fleets, set production levels for the year. 2. Order your fleets: colonize raw (uninhabited) planets, merge or detach ships from your fleets, fight enemy fleets, spy on opponents, or conquer inhabited planets. 3. Communicate with other players: You can often spare yourself from attacks or get aid from others by setting up alliances, non-aggression pacts, or diplomatic negotiations with other players. Do not underestimate the power of diplomacy and misinformation (some call it ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 4 lying). Stalling an opponent can sometimes win you enough time to recall a fleet to protect your world or to put him off-guard while you attack. 4. Turn on AUTOPILOT from the GENERAL MENU and the computer makes moves for you. All fleets or planets with orders will continue until they are fulfilled. Those without standing orders take defensive positions. WINNING: ------------------------------------------------------------- You win by getting the other players to recognize you as Emperor through your winning diplomacy (or your foot on their throats). LOSING: ------------------------------------------------------------- You lose if all your armies, fleets, and planets are conquered. If you lose all your planets and have no fleets that can capture new planets you are considered DOOMED. You can still cause damage with your fleets but it is only a matter of time before you are wiped out since you have no planets to replace any ships you lose. MARGINAL EXISTENCE: ------------------------------------------------------------- If you lose all your planets but you own fleets capable of capturing new planets, you can conquer a weak planet and, hopefully, develop it into a new empire. Similarly, if all your armies and fleets are destroyed, but you still own one or more planets, you can build more armies and fleets. However, you are very vulnerable to attack. This is why building planetary defenses is important. The Sysop can set the computer to take control of your empire and play it for you if you fail to log into the game 21 turns in a row. You then have to ask your Sysop to get your empire back. ============================================================= BASIC FEATURES ============================================================= THE FORCES AT YOUR COMMAND: ------------------------------------------------------------- You control five major types of objects: Planets, Ships, Starbases, Armies, and Ground Batteries. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 5 PLANETS provide the resources for building ships, starbases ground batteries and armies. They are rated by how much can be produced on them in one round (game-year). POTENTIAL PRODUCTION is the maximum number of production points that could be generated in a round with factories working at 100% efficiency. CURRENT PRODUCTION is the number of production points that can be generated in a game round by factories at their present efficiency level. You impose taxes on your planets to generate production points for military building (ships, bases, troops, etc.). For example, setting your tax rate to 60% on a planet with a current production level of 50 will generate 30 points for building in the next round. SHIPS are organized into fleets and serve a variety of functions. A fleet can be as small as one ship and as large as 3,000 ships of mixed types. A fleet moves as fast as its SLOWEST member. For example, A Fleet of 10 destroyers (speed of 6) and 1 ETAC (speed of 3) has a maximum speed of 3. There are 6 types of starships -- 3 combat types and 3 specialized types. The smaller ships tend to be faster as a rule. Below is a list of the different ship types, their size (S,M,L), maximum speed (sectors/round), cost to build (in production points), and suggested uses. DESTROYER: Small, fast (speed=6), inexpensive (5 points) combat ship. Best for attacks on unarmed starships where they can overtake them. Their speed also gives them a chance to outrun more heavily armed fleets. CRUISER: Medium size combat ship. About 3 times more powerful than a destroyer, costs more (15 points) and is a bit slower (speed=5). The cruiser is a good compromise between speed and power. It is powerful enough to hit what it can't outrun (destroyers) and is fast enough to outrun what it cannot outgun (battleships). BATTLESHIP: The anchor of any serious star fleet. Large combat ship. Three times more powerful than a cruiser, expensive (45 points) and slow (speed=4). SCOUT: Small, fast (speed=6) with excellent sensors and stealth capabilities. Expensive (15 points), but useful for reconnaissance and difficult to detect by enemy fleets. TROOP TRANSPORT: Medium size intermediate speed ship (speed=5). Inexpensive (5 points). Used exclusively to move armies from one planet to another. It holds one army and is not armed. This ship is necessary for INVADING or BLITZING a planet. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 6 ETAC (Environmental Transformation And Colonization): Large, slow (speed=3), expensive (15 points) ship used to terraform and colonize raw (uninhabited) planets. STARBASES are large fortresses which play special roles. Within a solar system, starbases protect and enhance the planet. A planet with a starbase orbiting can withstand tax burdens better. The starbase also allows a planet to overproduce. Normally, a planet cannot spend more points than its current production level (factories can usually only function at their levels). However, a starbase allows a planet to build up to 5 times its current production level (if you have stored up that many production points on the planet). Finally a starbase enables a planet to increase its current production level faster if the planet is not yet producing at its maximum. Outside the solar system, a starbase gives surveillance reports on any alien fleets it finds. It cannot attack since it moves very slowly (1 sector per round), but it can defend itself. A starbase has slightly more fire power and can withstand more hits than a battleship. Starbases cost 50 production points to build. ARMIES have two duties: (1) guard your planets from enemy invasions and blitzes and (2) invade or blitz enemy planets. When your armies fight enemy armies on any planet, whomever survives owns the planet. They cost 2 production points to build. GROUND BATTERIES are land-based cannons that defend planets against hostile starships. Even though they cost 20 production points, they offer more "firepower per dollar" than any starship in the game. Their firepower is slightly less than that of a battleship. Their major disadvantage is that they cannot move and therefore are easier to hit. COMBAT: ------------------------------------------------------------ Any fleet with a combat ship (a destroyer, cruiser, or battleship) can engage in battle. You can specify how aggressive you want your fleet to be when you assign its ROE (Rules of Engagement). An ROE of zero means the fleet will avoid everything at all cost. An ROE of ten means the fleet will attack anything, even if it is greatly outnumbered. Appendix B lists all of the ROE levels. Win or lose, a fleet will send you a report whenever it sees an enemy. Usually, the stronger fleet wins, but sometimes a weaker fleet may surprise a stronger one and prevail. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 7 Your fleets may initiate attack on another fleet if you declare the owner of the other fleet to be an enemy. However, your fleets will always fight back if attacked. Your fleets will initiate attacks if another player's fleets enter one of your solar systems, or if they try to enter or leave a planet that your fleet is blockading. THE POSSIBLE FLEET MISSIONS: ------------------------------------------------------------- You can order a fleet on one of 13 missions. Some missions require certain types of vessels. After each mission name, the required vessels follow in parentheses. NONE: (All ship types). Hold position and do nothing. MOVE FLEET: (All ship types). A fleet will move towards the specified sector. SEEK HOME: (All ship types). A fleet will move to the nearest planet you own. Should that planet be taken over by an enemy, the fleet will move to the next closest planet you own. PATROL A SECTOR (All ship types). Move around a sector (but not within a solar system even if the sector has a one) and attempt to intercept any ENEMIES traveling through. If your fleet sees anything, it sends a report to you. GUARD A STARBASE (combat ships). Move to and escort a specified starbase. Help the starbase in a fight. This is useful if the starbase is guarding a planet so that the combat ships work in coordination with the base. A fleet guarding a starbase may leave it if they have a high ROE and an enemy fleet comes close to their solar system. GUARD/BLOCKADE A WORLD (combat ships). Prevent alien contact with the planet you guard, including its owners if the planet does not belong to you. This mission is primarily used to guard your planets from attack by other fleets. However, blockading a planet that belongs to another player is a way to intercept that player's ships which are launching from or landing on his/her planet. BOMBARD A WORLD (combat ships). Pound the world, destroy its production and anything orbiting the world, including recently built ships stored in stardock. INVADE A WORLD (combat ships and troop transports with armies). This is a three stage battle: (1) Pound and destroy all the world's ground batteries (cannons), (2) pound the population centers a little to soften resistance and take out enemy armies, then (3) send in troop transports to drop off your armies, but ONLY AFTER all ground batteries have been destroyed. This damages the ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 8 planet and gives them time to sabotage their industry before you take over. You succeed if you destroy all ground batteries and then your armies defeat their armies. BLITZ A WORLD (troop transports with armies -- combat ships recommended). Try to infiltrate your armies onto the planet by dodging their ground batteries or distracting them. You succeed if your armies defeat their armies. Since this form of attack is so quick, there is less damage to the planet since the enemy does not have time to sabotage their factories and since your combat ships do not pound the surface very much. VIEW A WORLD (all ship types). Go to the edge of a solar system and do a long-range scan of the planet to find out its potential production and who owns it. Then back off into the deep space area of the sector. SCOUT A SECTOR (requires at least one scout ship). Go into deep space of a sector (and not inside any solar systems) and look for alien fleets. It will not engage enemy fleets. This is less effective than the PATROL SECTOR order, but the scout ship is less likely to be noticed due to its stealth, especially if you use a fleet made of only one scout ship. SCOUT A SOLAR SYSTEM (requires at least one scout ship). Use the scout's stealth equipment to get close to a world and: (1) count ground batteries and armies, (2) Estimate planet's current production and stardocks for currently built ships, and (3) Scan the solar system for fleets. A fleet made of only one scout ship is least likely to be detected because of the scout's stealth capability. COLONIZE A WORLD (requires at least one ETAC). Terraform and colonize a raw (unowned) planet. If the world is already owned when you get there, it will report who owns it and its potential production and then leave the solar system and await new orders. JOIN ANOTHER FLEET (all ship types). The ordered fleet will seek out a specified host fleet and merge with it when they meet. The fleet missions are summarized and arranged by mission number in Appendix A of this Player's Guide. SOME STRATEGY HINTS FOR THE BEGINNING OF THE GAME: ------------------------------------------------------------- PRINT OUT A STARMAP. You can choose to have the game display the entire galaxy map on the screen. You can use your telecommunications program to capture the display and then print the map. This greatly aids your ability to plan your actions and plot the actions of the other players. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 9 BUILD ETACS. Everyone starts with only one planet. Since there are 5 times as many planets in the galaxy as there are players, there are many uncolonized planets. Early moves should focus on building the Colonizing ships (ETACs) which terraform uninhabited planets and build factories on the new planets for later production. Your ETACs will also tell you if they discover that a planet has already been colonized by another empire. You can record that information on your map for later attacks. SET THE TAX RATE FOR YOUR EMPIRE. You build equipment by spending the production points you get through taxes on your planets. All your planets are assigned the same tax rate (to avoid jealousies in your unstable empire). You can set a tax rate from 0 to 100%, but it is not recommended that you set it higher than 65% or some of your planets' production may suffer. If your planet has a starbase, it may endure a tax rate of 67% to 70%, but there is no guarantee. There is a trade-off in setting your tax rate. High taxes give you more points to spend on equipment. However, newly colonized planets start with CURRENT PRODUCTION much lower than the planet's POTENTIAL PRODUCTION. These current production levels grow much faster when taxes are low. Thus, you have to choose between getting immediate production gain by setting taxes high, or greater long term production by keeping tax rates low. BUILD PLANETARY DEFENSES (Ground Batteries, combat ships, and armies). A good number of production points should be spent on defending your planets. After the first few rounds (game years), your neighbors may accidentally discover your planets. Later, they may send their fleets to attack you. BUILD COMBAT FLEETS. Use some resources to build fleets containing combat ships. These fleets can be used initially to guard your planets and later as conquering fleets for taking your opponents' planets. BUILD STARBASES. As discussed earlier, starbases offer big advantages for your planets: the ability to spend production points beyond the current production level, defending your planet and increasing growth rates. SOME MIDDLE TO ENDGAME STRATEGY HINTS: ------------------------------------------------------------- GET TOUGH. Now the game takes an unfriendly turn. There are no raw planets available for colonization. The only way to get more planets is to take them away from other players. Naturally, they have the same idea so you will have to develop both your offensive and defensive forces. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 10 Some diplomacy (lying) can be very helpful in neutralizing threats, but you can trust people only so far. DEVELOP PLANETARY DEFENSES. Defending your planets becomes much more important now. You must keep a number of armies on your planet or your opponents will simply use the BLITZ attack to overrun your armies and take the planet away from you. GROUND BATTERIES (cannons) will fire on invading ships and hopefully eliminate an invading fleet. The ground batteries also shoot at enemy TROOP TRANSPORTs when they try to land enemy armies on your planet. BUILD CONQUERING FLEETS. Use these fleets to take planets away from your opponents. They will need offensive firepower to contend with enemy ground batteries and enemy fleets guarding the planets. Also, you need many troop transport ships loaded with armies to take over a planet. If you are using the BLITZ attack, your armies should outnumber the enemy's armies on the planet (a 2 to 1 ratio is recommended). See the section on capturing a planet for full instructions. BUILD SCOUT SHIPS TO SPY ON PLANETS. The scout ship observes enemy forces while hidden. It sends a detailed report on the planet's strength so you can see in advance whether your invading fleet is powerful enough to win against the enemy (which is better than finding out the hard way!). ============================================================= REFERENCE ============================================================= THE PROGRAM MENUS: ------------------------------------------------------------- OPTIONS COMMON TO ALL MENUS: Commands are issued to Esterian Conquest through its menus. You choose an option by typing its first letter and then pressing the [ENTER] key. Three options are available to all menus are: QUIT, HELP, and XPERT MODE ON/OFF. QUIT ("Q" and [ENTER]): usually returns you to a previous menu. From the main menu, the quit option leaves the game and returns you back to the BBS. HELP ("H" and [ENTER]): gives a brief description of what each of the options do for the current menu. XPERT ON/OFF ("X" and [ENTER]): Toggles expert mode on and off. Normally, you are presented with a menu in which each of the options show on the screen and then a prompt asks you to pick the letter of an option. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 11 Expert mode saves you time by no longer having the options show on the screen. You are simply given the prompt for a letter. If you are in expert mode and forget what the options are for a particular letter, typing "X" and [ENTER] will turn expert mode off and show you the full menus again. MENU STRUCTURE: Esterian Conquest has four main menus which correspond to its four main areas. These are: MAIN MENU, GENERAL COMMAND, PLANET COMMAND, and FLEET COMMAND. MAIN MENU: The main menu transfers you to one of the other main areas (PLANET COMMAND, FLEET COMMAND, or GENERAL COMMAND). Three additional options are available if your SysOp has a registered version of Esterian Conquest(tm): Detailed Summary of your empire, Brief summary of your empire, and ANSI graphic mode ON/OFF. The summaries of your empire give you all the important information about your planets, fleets, and starbases to help you plan your next move. The ANSI graphic mode presents information in color-coding and updates your screen dynamically to make the information easier to read. GENERAL COMMAND: This menu serves four main functions: 1. It offers summary information such as your status compared to other empires, a profile of your empire, and a review of previous undeleted messages on results of missions or communications from other players. 2. It allows you to declare the other players to be friendly, neutral, or enemies. If you declare a player to be an enemy, your fleets will automatically attack the player's fleets when they are encountered. 3. It moves you to the MESSAGE COMMAND CENTER. 4. It turns on autopilot mode. If you will be away or unable to submit orders, turning on autopilot mode will cause the computer to play your empire for you (essentially building your defenses). You can turn off autopilot when you return. MESSAGE COMMAND: Esterian Conquest has its own message editor similar to the message editor in your BBS. You enter your text line-by-line and finish the message by entering a blank line (pressing [ENTER] at the very beginning). The editor allows you to change, insert, delete, or move lines. It also allows you to send copies of your message to multiple players. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 12 PLANET COMMAND: enables you to get summary information about planets, set your planetary tax rate for your empire, scorch and destroy the surface of your planet to prevent an opponent from taking over your factories, and load armies to transports and unload armies from transports. Planet Command also has two important sub-menus: BUILD ON PLANET and COMMISSION SHIPS. BUILD ON PLANET: lets you specify what you want to build with your production points for the current round. You work with one planet at a time. When you select the ISSUE BUILD ORDERS option, you are given a list of things you can build (see appendix A) and how much they cost. When you are done, if you have other planets for which you want to give build orders, you can choose the NEXT PLANET option and another planet with production points available to spend will be presented. COMMISSION A FLEET: assigns any newly built ships to a fleet number and lifts it out of stardock. Starbases can also be commissioned (but are not given fleet numbers). You work with one planet at a time and can select the NEXT PLANET option to work with the another planet that has vessels in stardock. FLEET COMMAND: allows you to review your fleets, issue or change their orders, assign their aggressiveness (see ROE table in Appendix B), or physically manipulate them (merge fleets, detach or transfer ships from fleets). Fleet command has a submenu called STARBASE COMMAND, which allows you to review or move a starbase. ENTERING MULTIPLE COMMANDS: As you become more familiar with the menus of the program, you will know in advance what information needs to be entered. Esterian Conquest allows you to enter multiple commands in one line by separating them with a space, semi-colon, or comma. For example, from the main menu, entering: "P;B" will move through the PLANET COMMAND menu and then down to the BUILD ON PLANET menu. PLANNING YOUR MOVES OFF-LINE. ------------------------------------------------------------- Planning your moves while not connected to your BBS can save you time when you are actually connected. This is especially important if you have limited time on your BBS. Probably the best tool available for your strategy is a printout of the galaxy map (available from the GENERAL COMMAND MENU). It enables you to locate nearby stars and mark the planets which belong to your opponents. To get the galaxy map, you can use the capture mode in your ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 13 telecommunications program, choose the option from your GENERAL COMMAND MENU and print the captured map. You can obtain an empire summary from the GENERAL COMMAND MENU. Activate the capture mode option of your telecommunication program and save the empire summary that appears on the screen. It provides a thorough report of the status of your planets and fleets. That way, you can get the complete summary in a few minutes and then log off to plan your moves. HOW TO COLONIZE A RAW (UNOCCUPIED) PLANET. ------------------------------------------------------------ REQUIREMENTS: You need a fleet that contains at least one ETAC (Environmental Transformation And Colonization ship). PROCEDURE: From the Fleet Menu, order the fleet on mission number 12 (colonize a planet). Specify the X and Y coordinates of the planet you want to colonize and the fleet will proceed. ETACs can be used unlimited times to colonize a planet since they get their raw materials from the planet itself. When the ETAC fleet reaches the planet, it will send you a report. If the planet is unowned, it will be terraformed. However, if the planet is owned, it will report on who owns the planet and the potential production of the planet. HOW TO DEFEND YOUR PLANET FROM ATTACK. ------------------------------------------------------------ There are many ways you can defend your planet: (1) building armies to prevent it from being invaded by enemies, (2) constructing ground batteries (land cannons) to shoot at any invading ships or troop transports, (3) building fleets to guard and blockade other ships from space, (4) constructing space stations to reinforce and defend the planet, and (5) eliminating your enemies before they get to you (the best defense is a good offense). Each method has its own advantages and vulnerability. Using fleets and starbases to guard your planet from space keeps enemy ships away and, if successful, prevents enemy ships from firing on the planet and damaging production. However, some enemy fleets (especially those with fast ships) might slip past your defenses and gain access to the planet. Ground defenses (armies and ground batteries) protect the planet directly from attack. However, if they fail, there are no other lines of defense. Enemy combat ships reduce your ground defenses when they fire on the planet. If enemy armies land on your planet, they will fight with your armies. Whoever wins will own the planet. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 14 Obviously, the best strategy is a combination of land- based and space defenses. Be certain to build armies on your planet. If an enemy uses the BLITZ attack, the enemy armies will dodge your combat defenses and land directly to oppose your armies. You have a final desperation option when you know an enemy is approaching your planet with an overwhelming fleet. Using the SCORCH EARTH option from the Planet Command Menu will cause your planet to destroy its factories and make them useless to your enemy. BUILDING AND COMMISSIONING FLEETS. ------------------------------------------------------------ You use production points taxed from your planets' production to build ships. From the PLANET COMMAND menu, you select the BUILD COMMAND menu, issue build orders, and spend the production points necessary for the type of ship. See Appendix A for costs of different ships. When ships are built, they are stored in stardock on the planet, and ready for use on the following round. You activate them by COMMISSIONING them, which means you assign them to fleets. From the PLANET COMMAND menu, you select the COMMISSION COMMAND menu and select the ships from stardock that you wish to activate. Commissioned fleets are asssigned a number. Occasionally, you will want to merge newly constructed ships into existing fleets. You can merge fleets in two ways: (1) If the merging fleets are in the same sector, issue the MERGE command from the FLEET COMMAND menu, otherwise (2) Order the newly formed fleet to join the other fleet. When you commission fleets containing combat ships, you determine how aggressive they are by assigning them an ROE, or Rules Of Engagement, value (see Appendix B for the list of possible ROE scores). As the ROE gets higher, your fleet will be more aggressive and take on enemy fleets of greater strength relative to your fleet. With low ROE scores, your fleets will attempt to flee if they face stronger enemies. Setting low ROE scores does not necessarily ensure safety of your fleet, since the enemy has an opportunity to fire on them during their flight. Choosing the types of ships to build depend on the mission you want your fleets to accomplish. Simple missions require only one type of ship such as colonizing a planet (requires at least one ETAC), scouting a planet or a sector (requires at least one scout ship), or blockading a planet (requires combat ships with firepower). Some missions require combinations of ships. For example, invading a planet requires combat ships and troop transports loaded with armies. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 15 Sometimes, you may want to build general purpose fleets which can accomplish many types of missions. Mixed fleets offer the advantage that your combat ships can protect non-combat ships. In addition, having a mixture of combat ship types (destroyers, cruisers, and battleships) gives you a bonus in battle since mixed types of fleets (as in real life) can employ strategies and tactics not available to fleets of one ship type. Disadvantages of larger mixed fleets are that the speed of the fleet is limited to that of its slowest member. Also, there are risks to putting "all your eggs in one basket" in case you encounter a bigger fleet and are defeated. For that reason, some players prefer to have numerous small "strike force" fleets to keep their opponents off guard and to have a presence in many places at once. As a compromise, still others find it wise for ships to travel in large fleets and then have individual ships detach for special missions as necessary. A REMINDER: Troop transports must be loaded with armies in order to capture planets. Be certain to include build orders for armies in your plans involving transports. SPYING ON YOUR OPPONENTS. ------------------------------------------------------------ Once all the uninhabited planets have been colonized, it becomes necessary to capture owned planets by force. Gathering intelligence is a necessity at this stage. Any ship can be used to view a planet, however, the colonizing ships (ETACs) are a good choice for this duty since their initial colonizing purpose is finished. Through this intelligence, you can map the empires of other players and find out which planets are worth capturing. More detailed reports of a planet's defenses and strengths can help you prepare your conquering forces and avoid costly mistakes. Scout ships on a mission to scout a planet will tell you planetary defenses (ground batteries and armies), contents of the planet's stardock, and information on any fleets or starbases which might be orbiting the planet. CONQUERING AND ATTACKING AN ENEMY'S PLANET. ------------------------------------------------------------ There are three methods of assaulting a planet: the BLITZ mission, the INVADE mission, and the BOMBARD mission. The blitz and invade missions attempt to capture the planet, while the bombard mission pummels planets in order to make them useless to the owners. NOTE: it is not enough just to conquer a planet. You must also guard it from recapture. Planets take two turns before factories are fully converted and start producing for you. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 16 THE BLITZ: (REQUIRES: Loaded troop transports in greater number than the armies on the planet, some combat ships are recommended for escort and cover fire). Your fleets will attempt to distract/dodge ground batteries and deposit your armies. Then your armies will battle the armies of the planet. The winner earns ownership of the planet. The planet will often not be very damaged because the speed of your attack prevents attempts at sabotage and because your combat ships do not fire very much on the planet. For the blitz, you must have an overwhelming number of armies compared to those of the planet (they have an advantage of familiarity with their terrain). THE INVADE: (REQUIRES: Sufficient combat ships to take out the ground batteries and then enough loaded troop transports to defeat the remaining armies on the planet surface). Your combat ships will fight the planet's ground batteries. After all the ground batteries are destroyed, you land the armies with your transport to fight the remaining surface armies. The winner takes control. Invaded planets tend to take some damage because of your bombardment of the planet and time in which the planet's forces can sabotage factories. The advantage of invading is that your bombardments also reduce the number of armies on the surface and give your armies better odds of winning the planet. THE BOMBARD attack: (REQUIRES: Sufficient combat ships to damage a planet's resources). The ultimate mission of the bombard mission is to reduce a planet to rubble and thus make it unusable to its owner. Use this mission if you do not have enough armies to capture a planet, or simply wish to cut down your enemy's production. ============================================================= CONCLUSIONS ============================================================= This guide contains the "bare bones" information needed to get started and alerts you to some basic strategies to consider at the beginning of the game. As in chess, you can learn how to move the pieces in a short time, but learning to master the game may take a lifetime. After reading this guide, you are now familiar with the capabilities and possible actions of your forces. How you coordinate your forces, particularly in conjuction with allies or enemies remains up to you. We have observed some very elaborate campaigns, bluffs, and betrayals. A FINAL NOTE: We want your feedback and suggestions. This game is the result of consultations with many experienced gamers and sysops. We are always looking for new ways to enrich the play or add a wrinkle to Esterian Conquest. Appendix C is a feedback sheet set up for this purpose. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 17 ============================================================= APPENDIX A. QUICK REFERENCE SHEET ============================================================= MACHINERY YOU CAN BUILD: ------------------------------------------------------------- BUILD MAX. ITEM COST SIZE SPEED PURPOSE ------------------------------------------------------------- DESTROYER 5 S 6 Combat / Defense CRUISER 15 M 5 Combat / Defense BATTLESHIP 45 L 4 Combat / Defense SCOUT 15 S 6 Spy on Planet/Sector TROOP TRANSPORT 5 M 5 Land armies on Planet ETAC 15 L 3 Colonize a Raw Planet GROUND BATTERY 20 L n/a Defend Planet ARMY 2 S n/a Defend Planet Surface STARBASE 50 L 1 Enhance / Defend ------------------------------------------------------------- POSSIBLE MISSIONS FOR FLEETS LISTED BY THEIR MISSION NUMBERS: ------------------------------------------------------------- No. MISSION REQUIREMENTS (if any) ------------------------------------------------------------- 0 None (hold position) None. All ships can do this. 1 Move Fleet (only) None. All ships can do this. 2 Seek Home None. All ships can do this. 3 Patrol a Sector None. All ships can do this. 4 Guard a Starbase Combat ship(s). 5 Guard/Blockade a World Combat ship(s). 6 Bombard a World Combat ship(s). 7 Invade a World Combat ship(s) & Loaded Troop Transports. 8 Blitz a World Loaded Troop Transports. 9 View a World None. All ships can do this. 10 Scout a Sector At least one scout ship. 11 Scout a Solar System At least one scout ship. 12 Colonize a World At least one ETAC. 13 Join another fleet None. All ships can do this. ------------------------------------------------------------- ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 18 ============================================================= APPENDIX B. ROE (RULES OF ENGAGEMENT) SETTINGS ============================================================= You only assign ROE for Fleets that contain Combat ships. Any fleet with only non-combat ships automatically gets an ROE of zero to avoid being destroyed by armed enemy fleets. POSSIBLE ROE (RULES OF ENGAGEMENT): ------------------------------------------------------------- ROE CONDITIONS TO ENGAGE HOSTILE FLEETS IN BATTLE ------------------------------------------------------------- 0 Avoid all hostile fleets. 1 Engage fleets only if they are defenseless. 2 Engage fleets only if your advantage is 4:1 or better. 3 Engage fleets only if your advantage is 3:1 or better. 4 Engage fleets only if your advantage is 2:1 or better. 5 Engage fleets only if your advantage is 3:2 or better. 6 Engage hostile fleets of equal or inferior strength. 7 Engage hostile fleets even if outgunned 3:2. 8 Engage hostile fleets even if outgunned 2:1. 9 Engage hostile fleets even if outgunned 3:1. 10 Engage hostile fleets regardless of their size. ------------------------------------------------------------ ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 19 ============================================================= APPENDIX C. FEEDBACK/SUGGESTION SHEET ============================================================= Please Mail Suggestions or Comments to: ATTN: ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) Griffith International P.O. Box 530203 Birmingham, AL 35253 YOUR NAME: _________________________________________________ STREET...: _________________________________________________ CITY, STATE ZIP: __________________________________________ FEEDBACK/SUGGESTIONS ON ESTERIAN CONQUEST VERSION NUMBER (Appears when you log in): __________________ BBS YOU PLAY ON: ___________________________________________ BBS PHONE NUMBER: (______) ______ - ____________ COMMENTS: ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 20 ============================================================= APPENDIX D. REGISTRATION OF ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) ============================================================= You can register your version of ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) for your BBS. Currently ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) runs on any IBM PC,XT,AT,PS/2 or compatible having the following: MS-DOS version 2.11 or later. 512K of internal memory (640K recommended). A hard disk with at least 1 MB free disk space. PCBoard BBS Software versions 14.0 or later (or any other BBS software with a utility that can generate a PCBOARD.SYS doorgame file that is compatible with PCBoard BBS software). ADVANTAGES OF REGISTERING YOUR ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PROGRAM: ------------------------------------------------------------- A campaign will run for unlimited time (the Shareware version stops each game after 30 rounds). Discounts for minor revisions and upgrades: All minor revisions are free (subject to fee for postage and handling). Upgrades (major revisions) are available for a substantial discount ($15 plus postage and handling). Your name and BBS name will be encrypted into the program and will appear to all who use the game. Registration messages appearing at the beginning of the game are removed. A professionally printed manual containing both the SYSOP's guide and the PLAYER's guide. BBS support for questions. VOICE support for bug information. We correct program bugs and send you the corrected version absolutely free. ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) PLAYERS GUIDE 21 ======================================================================= ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) ORDER FORM ======================================================================= * * * ALL PAYMENTS MUST BE MADE IN U.S. CURRENCY * * * Make checks or money orders payable to: GRIFFITH INTERNATIONAL Send your order to: ATTN: ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) Griffith International P.O. Box 530203 Birmingham, AL 35253 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Check One Description Each Total ----- ------------------------------------- ------ ----------- [ ] ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) on 5.25" disk $35.00 ___________ includes printed manual, full game features, full upgrade privileges and full support policies. [ ] ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) on 3.5" disk $36.00 ___________ includes printed manual, full game features, full upgrade privileges and full support policies. [ ] MAJOR REVISON OF ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) $15.00 ___________ [ ] MINOR REVISION REQUEST FREE -------------------------------------------------------------------- SHIPPING AND HANDLING: Inside U.S. $2.50 ___________ (Required on all orders) Outside U.S. $5.00 ___________ TOTAL ___________ ======================================================================= ENTER SYSOP AND BBS NAME AS YOU WANT THEM TO APPEAR IN THE GAME SCREEN: YOUR NAME: ___________________________________________________________ BBS NAME: ___________________________________________________________ ======================================================================= SHIP TO: NAME: ________________________________________________________ ADDRESS: ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ __________________________________ +-------+ | Place | __________________________________ | Stamp | | Here | __________________________________ +-------+ ATTN: ESTERIAN CONQUEST(tm) Griffith International P.O. Box 530203 Birmingham, AL 35253 Place Feedback Form or Order Form inside this page. Fold into thirds Insert any checks or money orders. Staple on bottom and sides.