Game Details Abilities Combat Construction Queues Formations Happiness Hotkeys Intelligence Maintenance Ministers Orders Planets Political Message Types Politics Research Resource Types Ships Sight Simultaneous Games Status Icons Treaties Units (Fighters, Mines, Satellites, Troops, Weapon Platforms) Weapons And Damage

Windows Borders Cargo Transfer Colonies Combat Simulator Communicate Component Report Comparisons Construction Queues Create Design Culture Modifiers Designs Empires

Empire Setup - General Empire Setup - Environment Empire Setup - Culture Empire Setup Characteristics Empire Setup - Advanced Traits

Empire Setup - Description Empire Status Facility Report File Menu Fleet Report Fleet Transfer Formation Report Galaxy Map Game Setup - Quadrant Game Setup - Events Game Setup - Technology Game Setup - Player Settings Game Setup - Players Game Setup - Victory Conditions Game Setup - Game Settings

Game Setup - Mechanics Ground Combat History Help Intelligence Intro Window Launch \ Recover Units Load Game Log Main Window Main Window - Command Main Window - Galaxy Main Window - Ship List Main Window - Status Main Window - System Ministers Options Planet Report - Detail Planet Report - Facil Planet Report - Cargo Planet Report - Ability

Planet Report - Empty Planets Player Computer Control Quick Start Race Report - Detail Race Report - Descr Race Report - Race Race Report - Tech Reorder Repair Priorities Research Scores Scrap Select Component Select Facilities Select Package Select Queue Type Select Waypoint Set Construction Queue Ship Report - Detail Ship Report - Comps Ship Report - Cargo Ship Report - Ability Ship Size Report Ships Stellar Manipulation Storm Report Strategic Combat Strategies Systems To Avoid Tactical Combat - Main Tactical Combat - Options Tactical Combat - Orders Tactical Combat - Piece Report Technology Tree Treaty Grid Victory Conditions Waypoints Weapon Mounts Weapons Report

AbilitiesDescriptionDifferent objects in the game contain different abilities. Abilities are the special capabilities that a component, ship, planet, facility, or ship size can use. A ship which contains components (or a planet which holds facilities) gains its abilities from the abilities that its components have. As long as a component or facility is functional, these abilities are available. Some abilities are automatic, meaning that they are "on" all of the time. Other abilities must be activated using a specific order.

Ability Types (some samples)Rock Colony Can colonize a rock based planet. This component can be used to colonize a rock type planet. You use the Colonize order to execute this ability.

Provides 20kT worth of This component provides extra cargo space to your cargo space. ship. Your cargo space will automatically be larger by 20kT.

Ion Engine I Generates 1 standard movement. Can store 500 units of supply. This component will generate one movement point per engine that is on the ship. This component will add 500 units of supply storage to the maximum storage capability of your ship.

Shield Generator I Generates 20 shield points. This component will generate 20 shield points for this ship when it enters combat. As long as the component is operational, you will get 20 points of shields per each of these components when you start combat.

Emergency Propulsion I Generates 1 emergency movement point. Component is destroyed after use. This component will generate one additional movement point when the component is used. For this type of ability, this component must be used by the "Use Component" order. This component will be destroyed when you use it. So to get the emergency propulsion, you will need to sacrifice the component to get it.

Mineral Miner Facility I Mines 800 minerals each turn. This facility will generate 800 minerals per turn when placed on a planet. This amount is also modified by value of the planet, and any planet modifiers such as population.

Ultra-Recycler I Items scrapped in this sector will reclaim 40% of their original resource value. This facility will increase the returned resources when an item is scrapped. No order is needed. Any scrap order which takes place in this sector will automatically have the improved resource value return.

Space Port Acts as a spaceport for This facility will act as a spaceport for this system. this system. This ability is automatic. With a spaceport in the system, the points generated by the planets will be added to your empire's resource pool.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasNone

CombatDescriptionCombat takes place when enemy forces enter the same location within a solar system. Ships will battle each other using their weapons until one side has been destroyed, or the time has expired.

Combat ElementsStrategic Combat A combat can be displayed in either a Tactical or Strategic form. Strategic Combat is where you view combat at a high level and just watch the ships fight each other. The control of the ships is done by computer following the strategies that you have layed out. Strategic Combat is viewed through the Strategic Combat Window. Strategic Combat is exactly the same as Tactical Combat, except that you don't get to directly control your ships. Tactical Combat is where you can directly control your ships during the combat situation. Tactical Combat is carried out in the Tactical Combat Window. Combat takes place in a fixed amount of time. Each combat is restricted to just 30 combat turns. Once this time expires, combat is over. Each discrete object in combat is considered a "piece". Each ship, base, and planet that you own is considered a single piece. In addition, some pieces can contain multiple smaller objects. For example, when fighters move about in combat, they are considered a fighter group. The one combat piece actually contains several fighters because they are so small.

Tactical Combat

Combat Turns

Combat Pieces

Movement

Each combat turn, the combat pieces can be moved. If a piece has movement points remaining, it can be moved up to that many squares during this combat turn. Next turn, they will have their movement points restored so that they can move again. Movement points are computed by totaling up the number of engines a ship has and taking into account any factors such as no supplies. Only one combat piece can occupy one square in combat at a time. The only exception to this rule is for seeking weapons ("seekers") which can overlap other pieces as they move towards their target. During a combat turn, a combat piece can both move and fire its weapons. These can be done in any order you wish.

Firing

A ship can fire one or more weapons during its combat turn. Each weapon is rated with a reload rate so that once it has been fired, it will take that many turns until it can fire again. Only weapons which are undamaged can be fired at an enemy. The number of targets a piece can fire is 1. It can increase this number by adding Multiplex Tracking components. A planet can automatically fire on up to 10 targets at a time.

Weapon Types

There are 4 basic types of weapons in the game. The first is "direct-fire", which means that the weapon will immediately fire and either miss or hit its target. The next is "seeking" which means that the weapon will launch when fired, and then will move towards it target and attempt to hit it. The third is "point-defense" which means that the weapon will automatically fire on enemy fighters and seekers which come into range. The last is "warhead" which cannot be fired, but will detonate if the ship rams an enemy ship. "Direct-Fire" and "Point-Defense" weapons have a chance that they will either hit or miss their target.

The chance to hit is based on the distance between the targets, the attacker's Combat Sensors bonus, the defender's ECM bonus, any experience the two pieces might have, and any environmental factors that may interfere. See Weapons and Damage for more details. Damage When a ship is hit by weapon's fire, it will take damage. Damage is applied first to any shields the ship may have. Once the shields are depleted, the armor takes damage. And finally, once the armor is gone, all internal components will be damaged. Some damage types done by weapons skip certain types of components or even shields. Planet's are damaged in much the same way with the population being the target. As the population is destroyed, facilities may be destroyed as well. See Weapons and Damage for more details. Ramming Ramming is performed when one ship tries to physically run into another. Both ships usually take damage with the smaller one being destroyed. The damage done is strongly influenced by the size of the ship, any armor present, and any undamaged warheads. Your vehicle must have movement points to be able to ram another vehicle.

Ship Capture Capturing a ship occurs when you send armed soldiers from your ship to an enemy ship. They attempt to take over the ship's control and pacify the existing crew. If they succeed, then the ship will now be under your control. If they fail, then they are all killed. No matter what the outcome, your boarding party components will be destroyed with the attempt. Also keep in mind that if the enemy ship has a selfdestruct device, and they are going to be captured, they will activate the device destroying their ship and your ship.

Combat Groups

Ships flying through space typically fly in some kind of formation. To indicate this, their are combat groups in Tactical Combat. A combat group consists of a leader and a group of members. When the leader moves, all of the members of the group will follow along attempting to stay in formation. This is very useful if you are trying to move large groups of ships. When a fleet enters combat, the ships in the fleet are automatically assigned to the same combat group. If the leader of a combat group dies or is removed, then the combat group is dissolved. See Tactical Combat for more details on how to set these groups up.

Allies in Combat

It is possible to get into combat with more than two players present. During combat, all of your treaties are strictly enforced. Meaning that you can't fire on your allies during combat. It may even happen that you are present when two of your allies fight each other. In this case, you must just sit back and watch the battle. If you are using Strategic Combat, or Tactical Combat in Auto Mode, then the computer is controlling your forces. Now for the computer to know what you want to do with each of your ships, it looks at the strategies that you set for each of your designs in the Designs Window. This strategy will tell the computer how to move, and who to fire on. You can test these strategies using the Combat Simulator.

Combat Strategies

Launching Units

If you have a carrier or planet in battle which is carrying fighters or satellites, then you will want to launch them to take place in the battle. Launching units is done automatically in Strategic Combat, and through orders in the Tactical Combat Window. Each ship is rated with how many units per combat turn it can launch. This amount is based on the components which store and launch your units. You can launch only up to that amount in one combat turn. The next combat turn, you can launch that many again. Units that are launched into combat are composed of groups of units. So each combat piece actually consists of many units at one square on the map. For all interactions with that group of units, they are considered one combat piece with a lot of weapons. When you fire their weapons, the firing is summarized as one shot for each different type of weapon. So for example, if you had a fighter group with 10 fighters, then when they fire, you would see just one shot for their 10 Anti-Proton Beams. The single shot is computed to do as much damage as the 10 individual beams would do if they had hit. When combat is over, you do not need to recover your units back on to your ships. This is done automatically. If there is not enough space to recover the unit, then it remains in space at that location.

Ground Combat

Ground combat occurs when troops are dropped onto an enemy planet. Ground combat takes place in the Ground Combat Window. At the moment the troops land on the planet, ground combat begins. Ground combat consists of a battle between the attacker's troops which are dropped, and the defending units on the planet plus any population present. Don't underestimate the general populous, they will defend their planet vigorously. Several turns of the ground combat will take place until it is completed, or its time has expired (ground combat has a limited number of turns like space

combat). Ground combat may extend pass the end of this space combat, and may occur over several game turns (at the end of each game turn, ground combat may be displayed again to continue the battle). At any time, you can drop additional troops onto the planet to help take it over. The only limitation in dropping troops is that you cannot drop troops onto a planet where a ground combat is currently in progress by two other empires. The victor in ground combat gains control of the planet. This includes any surviving facilities or units in storage. The population that's left is also subjugated by the enemy troops. This population is now yours to do with as you please. You will probably need to keep troops present to prevent them from rioting. You can also transport the population to other planets. Combat in Combat is a little different in simultaneous games. Simultaneous First off, you do not get to go through Tactical Games Combat. All combat in a simultaneous game is completely computer controlled. On your next turn, you will receive a log message reporting the results of the combat. Combat in a simultaneous game takes place when enemy forces are in the same location in a solar system. Different than in a Turn-Based game, combat does not begin automatically when enemy ships first enter the same location. Combat only takes place every 5 days in the 30 days of the turn month. If the enemy forces are at the same location on a 5th day, then combat will take place.

Special NotesWhen your ships just finish a combat, be sure to check them out for damage. Damaged ships will have significantly reduced abilities such as slower movement. You'll want to move your ships to a Space Yard or other repair location to fix them up.

Related AreasStrategic Combat Window, Tactical Combat Window

Strategies Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to configure the strategies that your ships will follow. You can modify the existing strategies or add new ones to suit your needs. In the Designs Window, you can select one of these strategies for each of your designs to use while in combat.

ControlsStrategies This lists all of the strategies your empire currently has. The selected strategy is the one whose details are shown in the Strategy Details section. This section displays all of the properties of the strategy selected in the Strategies List. You can modify any of these properties to change the selected strategy. This is the foremost movement strategy your ship will use in combat. The selection governs what position your ship should take relative to its enemies.Your ship will attempt to move to a location where it cannot be fired on by enemy ships. Your ship will attempt to move towards a planet, if there is one, and then drop any troops that it is carrying.

Strategy Details

Movement Primary Movement StrategyDon't Get Hurt Drop Troops

Maximum Your ship will attempt to move to its maximum weapons range from its chosen target. Weapons Range

Optimal Your ship will attempt to move to a location where it gives the most damage to its Weapons Range enemies and yet takes the least damage. Short Weapons Range Point Blank Board Enemy Ships Ram Your ship will attempt to move to a very short distance (1 - 3 squares) from its chosen target. In the short range area, it will try to move to a location where it takes the least damage. Your ship will move as close as possible to its target. Your ship will attempt to move next to enemy ships and capture them through some kind of boarding. If they succeed, the target ship will then belong to your empire. Your ship will move to point blank range from its target and ram them.

Secondary Movement Strategy

This selection has similar items as the Primary Movement Strategy, however this is used, if the Primary selection cannot be accomplished. For example, if you choose Drop Troops for your Primary, but there is no planet to drop troops on, then your ship will follow the Secondary Movement Strategy. This selection will allow you to choose the sorting priority for targets. When your ship wants to choose a target to fire on (and possibly move towards), it will sort the possible targets using this order. For example, if you choose Has Weapons and then Strongest, it will first select all of the targets that actually have weapons, and then will pick the strongest of those. With this option selected, your type priority will not be taken into account when looking for a target. Type priority is used to determine which target types you will attack before others. For example, if you select Ships then Bases, then your ship will attempt to kill all of the ship before it starts in on the bases. This selection allows you to choose certain target types that your ships will not fire on. This is useful when you want certain classes of ships not to fire on particular targets. For example, you might not want your Troop Transport escorts to fire on planets. This allows you to select the size of the group that your fighters should be launched in. For example, a selection of 5 means that when your carriers will attempt to launch your fighters in groups of 5 each. These selections determine whether these types of vehicles will break formation when they are in combat. By default, all vehicles that are in a fleet will be part of that fleet's formation when combat begins. However, some vehicles you do not want to stay in formation while the rest of the group engages the enemy.

Firing Targeting Priority

Do Not Use Type Priorities Type Priority

Don't Fire on Types

Launching Fighter Group Size

Formation Types the break formation

ButtonsMovement Firing Launching Formation Add Displays selection items for this strategy that have to do with your ship's movement. Displays selection items for this strategy that have to do with your ship's targeting of enemy ships. Displays selection items for this strategy that have to do with your ship's launching of fighters in combat. Displays selection items for this strategy that have to do with your ship's presence in a fleet formation. Pressing this button will allow you to choose a name for a new strategy. This new strategy will then be added to the list for you to configure. You cannot delete strategies. You just don't use the strategy and it is effectively the same thing.

Close

Closes this window and returns you to the Empire Status Window.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasEmpire Status Window

Designs Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to view all of the vehicle designs of your empire and those that you have seen of other empires. It also allows you to manage your designs and test them in the Combat Simulator.

ControlsDesigns List This is a list of all of the designs in your empire. The designs are broken into groups depending on the type of design they are. Then, for each design, the design's name size and whether its a prototype is listed. If you are viewing enemy designs, then the list is displayed slightly different. The designs are grouped by what empire they belong to. You will not be able to see what type they are, or whether it is a prototype design. When an item in the list is selected, the detail about the design is shown in the Design Detail section. Design Detail Size Design Type The design detail displays the specific information about the design selected in the Designs List. The name of the size of this vehicle, followed by its actual tonnage amount in parenthesis. The design type selected for this design. This is a general descriptive grouping for the design.

Date Created Cost Movement Shields Cargo Space

The date that this design was first created. If this design has been made "Obsolete", then the word obsolete will be displayed after the date. The cost in resources to construct this design. This cost is also used to compute the maintenance cost for ships of this design. The maximum movement a vehicle of this design will have. The total number of shields this vehicle will have when not damaged.

The total amount of cargo space this vehicle will have to store and transport cargo. Supply Capacity The total amount of supplies this vehicle will be able to carry. When Stats\Strategy is not selected: Components on This is a list of the components on this design. If there are more components Design than can be listed, arrow buttons will be displayed to allow you to scroll the list. You can right-click on any of the components to display the Component Report window. When Stats\Strategy is selected: Number Constructed Number in Service Number Lost This is the total number of this design that have actually been constructed by your empire throughout the game. This is the total number of this design that have been constructed and still exist as ships. This is the total number of this design that were constructed and then subsequently destroyed. Enemy Tonnage This is the total tonnage in enemy ships that has been destroyed by ships of Destroyed this design. Default Strategy This selection allows you to pick the strategy that ships of this design will use in combat. If the ship is part of a fleet, its combat strategy will take priority. For more information about ship strategies, see the Strategies Window.

ButtonsShip Designs Unit Designs Enemy Ship Dsgn This button will change the Designs List to display all of your ship designs. This button will change the Designs List to display all of your unit designs. This button will change the Designs List to display all of the ship designs for other races you have seen in the game. You "see" another race's design by either getting into combat with a ship of that type, by scanning the ship will Long Range Scanners, or by using some kind of intelligence operation. This button will change the Designs List to display all of the unit designs for other races you have seen in the game. This selection is used to create a new design for your empire. When you press this button, you will be asked what type of vehicle you wish to create. After selecting that, the Create Design Window will then be displayed. This selection will copy the currently selected design in the Designs List and open the Create Design Window so that you can edit it. It will be identical to the design that you selected, except that the name will not be filled in. You will have to give the design a new name before you can create it. No two designs in the game can have the same name. This selection allows you to edit the currently selected design in the Designs List. You may only edit Prototype designs. Prototype designs have not actually been ever built. So you can change their design any way you want. Once you construct a ship of a certain design, that design is no longer considered a prototype. At that point, you can no longer edit the design.

Enemy Unit Dsgn Create

Copy

Edit

Upgrade

This selection will take the currently selected design in the Designs List and upgrade all of its components to the latest of that type. When you select this, the Create Design Window will be displayed so that you can view the design and actually create it with a new name. If you don't want the design, just press cancel on the Create Design Window. This selection will mark the currently selected design as obsolete. As designs get older, they are no longer useful because of outdated technology. When a design is no longer useful to you, you should mark it as obsolete. In different windows through the game, you can then hide obsolete designs from being displayed. Obsolete designs will be automatically deleted by the game after a certain amount of time has passed. You cannot delete designs directly, just mark them as obsolete. This option will hide all designs marked as obsolete from the Designs List. This option will change the Designs Detail report to show slightly different information. The components list will be hidden, and in its place, statistics about this design will be displayed. These statistics are listed above. In addition, a box will display the current default strategy for this design. All ships of this design will use the strategy when engaged in combat (unless they're part of a fleet, and then the fleet's strategy comes first). For more information about ship strategies, see the Strategies Window.

Make Obsolete

Hide Obsolete Stats\Strategy

Simulator

This selection will display the Combat Simulator Window. The combat simulator will allow you to put your designs through simulated combat scenarios. This selection will close this window and return you to the Main Window.

Close

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window , Create Design Window, Combat Simulator Window

Component Report Window

DescriptionThis window displays details about the selected component. You can get this report by right-clicking on any component you see on any window, or by going into the Help Window and selecting a component.

ControlsCost The cost in the three resource types for this component. When you add this component to your ship design, this cost will be added to the total cost of the design.

Size

The size of this component. When this component is placed on your ship design, it will take up this much space out of the total space your ship size can hold. See Vehicle Designs for more information. This is the amount of damage that this component can take before being destroyed. Most components have a damage resistance equal to their size. Components which are easily breakable will have a lower damage resistance. If the component is made of strong alloys, such as Armor, it will have a higher damage resistance. Each damage point is equivalent to 1kT of damage resistance. See Weapons and Damage from more information. When this component is used, it will take up this many supplies. For example, every time you move your ship, you expend the total "Supplies Used" for all of your engines. Every time you fire a weapon, you expend that weapons' "Supplies Used" from your total supplies. See Supplies for more information.

Damage Resistance

Supplies Used

Vehicle Types This displays the types of vehicles that this component can be placed on. Values are: Ship, Base, Weapon Platform, Troop, Fighter, Satellite, Mine. When this component is a weapon: Weapon Type This is the type of weapon this component is. Values are Direct Fire, Seeking, Point Defense, and Warhead. See Weapons and Damage from more information. Can Target This displays the types of vehicles that this weapon can target and fire on. Values are: Ship, Base, Weapon Platform, Troop, Fighter, Satellite, Mine. This is the reload rate for this weapon. The number is how many combat turns before this weapon will be able to fire again. For example, if the number is 1, then this weapon will be able to fire every combat turn.

Fire Rate

Damage Type This is the type of damage that this weapon will do. Examples are Normal, Shields Only, Skips Shields, Engines Only, Planets Only, etc.

Damage at Range

This is a detailed listing of exactly how much damage this weapon will do at each range. The top number in blue is the range in combat squares, the bottom number is the amount of damage that will be done. This is assuming that the weapon hits its target. All components : This lists any special abilities that the component has. See Abilities for more information.

Abilities

Buttons(Click) You can close this report window by clicking anywhere on it.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window , Help Window

Help Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to view reports about the different items in the game.

ControlsItems For the selected button tab, this will display a list of those items that you currently know of. Researching new technologies will add new items to the list. When an item is selected in this list, a detailed report about it will be displayed in the "Item Details" section. This section presents a report about the selected item in the "Items" list. See the tab buttons below for more details.

Item Details

ButtonsComponents Causes the "Items" list to show all the components your empire has discovered. The "Item Detail" report will display the Component Report Window. Causes the "Items" list to show all the facilities your empire has discovered. The "Item Detail" report will display the Facility Report Window. Causes the "Items" list to show all the ship sizes your empire has discovered. The "Item Detail" report will display the Ship Size Report Window.

Facilities Ship Sizes

Unit Sizes

Causes the "Items" list to show all the unit sizes your empire has discovered. The "Item Detail" report will display the Unit Size Report Window. Displays all of the technology areas that your empire has discovered. These are the same technology areas that are listed in the Research Window. Displays all of the treaties that your empire can enter into with another empire. These are the possible treaties that you can propose in the Communicate Window. Displays all of the intelligence projects that your empire has discovered. These are the same intelligence projects that are listed in the Intelligence Window. Displays all of the formations that your fleets can engage in. The "Item Detail" report will display the Formation Report Window. Displays all of the hotkeys that you can use in the game. See Hotkeys for more details. Displays the Weapons Report Window. Closes this window and returns you to the Main Window .

Tech Areas

Treaties

Intel Projects

Formations Hotkeys Weapons Report Close

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window , Weapons Report Window, Component Report Window , Facility Report Window, Ship Size Report Window

Facility Report Window

DescriptionThis window displays details about the selected facility. You can get this report by right-clicking on any facility you see on any window, or by going into the Help Window and selecting a facility.

ControlsCost The cost in the three resource types for this facility. The time it takes to construct this facility on a planet will be based on the rate of the space yard versus this cost. This lists any special abilities that the facility has. See Abilities for more information.

Abilities

Buttons(Click) You can close this report window by clicking anywhere on it.

Special Notes

None

Related AreasMain Window , Help Window

Resource TypesDescriptionThere are three resources types used in the game to construct new items: minerals, organics, and radioactives. In addition, there are also research and intelligence points which can be spent towards research and intelligence projects. These points are a representation of your empires industrial, research, and intelligence capacity. The more resources your empire generates the greater it's capacity to build new ships, research new technologies, and conduct covert operations.

Message TypesMinerals Organics Minerals are the raw metal ore that your planets mine and then refine into usable building materials. Organics are items such as food and bio-matter which can be used in components.

Radioactives Radioactives are rare elements and compounds that are manufactured on planets for use in advanced devices. Research Points Intelligence Points Facilities Research points are a representation of your empire's ability to research new technologies and apply them. Intelligence points are a representation of your empire's covert intelligence abilities. Each of the resources are generated in turn by Mineral Miner facilities, Organics Farm facilities, Radioactives Extraction facilities, Research Center Facilities, and Intelligence Center facilities. When you build one of these facilities on a planet, you will begin to receive those types of points. The number of points you receive is primarily determined by the facility itself. Each facility is rated with an amount of resources it will produce. As the technology of a facility increases, so does the number of resources it produces.

On a planet, the number of resources produced is also influenced by the amount of population and the happiness of that population. Mineral, Organic, and Radioactive facilities are also strongly influenced by the value of the planet. You can see how many resources an individual planet generates in that planet's report window. You can see the total amount that your empire is receiving in the Empire Status Window. Gathering Resource Types Gathering the resources from all of your planets is automatic. Small freighters and merchant vessels (too small to be tracked by the game) transport the goods from where they are to where they need to be. However, you do need a port in which all of these merchant vessels can dock. This is where Spaceports come in. A spaceport in a system allows the merchant ships to transport your points effectively. You must have a Spaceport in each system if you wish to spend the points generated by that system. Without a spaceport in the system, the planets generate the points, but they go nowhere. The goods just rot in the warehouses. The points do not accumulate waiting for you, they are lost. Once the spaceport is functional, the points will be available to be spent by your empire. You an easily tell which system do not have spaceports by using the Galaxy Map Window. In addition, planets can be blockaded by enemy ships in orbit around the planet. If there are enemy ships in orbit around a planet, then that planet is blockaded and cannot give its resources to the empire.

Spending Resources

As each turn goes by, your empire receives these resources from its planets, and can spend them as it sees fit. Research Points are spent in the Research Window. Intelligence Points are spent in the Intelligence Window. Minerals, Organics, and Radioactives are spent in the Set Construction Queue Window.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasEmpire Status Window, Set Construction Queue Window, Research Window, Intelligence Window

Planet Report Window - Detail

DescriptionThis window displays a report about the currently selected planet. This window is normally displayed in the Main Window when you left-click on a planet. It can also be displayed if you right-click on a planet in any other window during the game. If this planet does not currently have one of your colonies on it, then the Planet Report Window - Empty will be displayed. For more information on Planets, see Planets.

ControlsOwner Flag The flag of the owning empire will be displayed in the upper-left corner of the window. This will be the empire that owns the colony on this planet. You can right-click the flag to display the Race Report Window - Detail about this race.

Planet Picture The picture of the planet is displayed in the upper-left corner of the report window. Status Icons To give you a quick look at the capabilities and status of this colony, status icons are displayed at the bottom of the planet picture. These will tell you the general capabilities of the planet. See Status Icons for more details. The name of this planet. The physical type and size of this planet. Possible planet types are Rock, Gas, and Ice. Possible sizes for a planet range from Tiny to Huge. Different planet types require different colonization technology to create a colony there. Planet size dictates how much population, facilities, and cargo that planet can hold. The atmosphere type of this planet. Possible atmosphere types are Oxygen, Hydrogen, Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and None. Each race can only breathe one atmosphere type. If the race on the planet cannot breathe the atmosphere, then the colony will be "Domed". A Domed colony cannot hold as many people or facilities. These are the environmental conditions on the planet. Possible values for conditions range from Pleasant to Deadly. Conditions represent how difficult the environment on the planet would be to live in. The worse the conditions the more unhappy your people will become and the slower their reproduction will be.

Name Type

Atmosphere

Conditions

Value

This is the relative value of the planet in Minerals, Organics, and Radioactives (see Resources Types for more details). In a normal game, this will be shown as a percentage value. This percentage is a modifier placed on the amount of that resources type that you produce on the planet. There is an unlimited supply of resources that the planet can generate. In a Finite Resources game, the value of the planet will be displayed as the actual number of resources that remain on the planet. As you produce that type of resource on the planet, the total remaining will decrease.

Description Colony Type

This is a general description for the planet. The colony type is a description of the purpose of the colony. You can set it when you colonize a planet to help you categorize your colonies. It is also useful for your Ministers (see the Ministers Window) so that they know what your intention for the colony is as well. This is the total amount of population that is present on the planet out of how much total population can be present. The maximum amount of population a planet can hold is based on the planet size and whether it is a "Domed" planet or not. If the colony is Domed, then a small dome status icon will appear after the maximum population. After the population number, there will also be a small icon for the race that is present on the planet. If there is more than one race present, there will be an icon for each different race. If you right-click on a race icon, you will display a window which shows how much population of each race is present on the planet. If there is one race on the planet which cannot breathe the atmosphere, then the colony is considered "Domed".

Population

Reproduction This is the current reproduction rate for your population on the planet. It changes depending on the conditions of the planet and the population's happiness. Mood This is a description of the happiness of the population on the planet. The happiness of a population modifies how many resources are produced by the planet. If a population grows angry, it may riot or even rebel. See Happiness for more details. This displays the current amount of resources produced by this planet. This display the current number of research points produced by this planet. See the Research Window for more details. This display the current number of intelligence points produced by this planet. See the Intelligence Window for more details. If there is an item currently being constructed by the planet, it is displayed here. The items in this planet's construction queue can be changed in the Set Construction Queue Window. For the item currently under construction, this is how much time remains until the item is complete.

Resource Production Research

Intelligence

Under Construction

Time Remaining

ButtonsDetail Facil Cargo Ability Close Selecting this tab button will display the Planet Report Window - Detail. Selecting this tab button will display the Planet Report Window - Facil. Selecting this tab button will display the Planet Report Window - Cargo. Selecting this tab button will display the Planet Report Window - Ability. Pressing this button will close this window. If this window is being displayed on the Main Window, then no close button will be present.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window

Main Window

DescriptionThis is the Main Window for the game. You will use this window to control your entire empire, move your ships, and view all of the different systems in this section of the galaxy. The Main Window is divided up into 5 sections. Each of these sections is described on its own page for clarity.

ControlsStatus Section Command Section System Section Ship List Section See Main Window - Status for complete details. This is the narrow bar at the very top of the window. See Main Window - Command for complete details. This is the panel containing many buttons just below the status section. See Main Window - System for complete details. This is the large area at the bottom left of this window which displays planets and ships. See Main Window - Ship List for complete details. This is the narrow bar at the very top of the window.

Galaxy Section

See Main Window - Galaxy for complete details. This is the list at the top right of the window which lists ships and also gives individual reports for items.

Special NotesThere are many "Hotkeys" which can be used in this window. Hotkeys are buttons on your keyboard which can be used to jump to commands without using the mouse. See HotKeys for a list of the keys for this window.

Related AreasNone

Main Window - Status Panel

DescriptionThis panel on the Main Window displays general information about your empire.

ControlsEmpire Flag Empire Name Emperor Name Game Date Resources This is your empire's flag. This is the name of your empire. This is the name of your emperor ("you"). This is the current date in the game. All games start at date 2400.0 and proceed upwards. Each turn is equivalent to one month or 0.1 year. This displays the current amount of Minerals, Organics, and Radioactives that your empire has in storage. These resources can be spent on various items such as new ships or facilities.

ButtonsTutorial If you are playing the tutorial game, a small button with a "T" on it will appear in the upper-right hand corner of this window (just to the left of the Minimize button). Pressing it will cause the Tutorial window to be redisplayed. This small button in the very top right of the Status Panel, looks like a Windows minimize icon. Its function is just that. When you press it, the entire Main Window will be minimized on your Windows desktop. To bring the game back up again after minimizing it, just click on its button in your task bar for windows.

Minimize

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window

Main Window - Command Panel

DescriptionThis panel allows you to control your entire empire and bring up windows with different reports. This window is divided into 3 sections called the Command Buttons, Order Buttons, and Selection Buttons. Most of the buttons in this section have corresponding hotkeys which can be pressed to active them. See the Orders section for more general details about orders.

ControlsNone

ButtonsCommand These buttons allow you to bring up windows to view and manipulate Buttons your empire. You can press these at any time during the game. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Game Menu Window. This window allows you to save and load games, set game options, and set computer control of players. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Designs Window. This window allows you to create new designs, view enemy designs, and engage in simulated combat. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Planets Window. This window displays all of the planets throughout the galaxy that you have seen. ________________________________________________________________

This button brings up the Colonies Window. This window displays all of the colonies in your empire. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Ships\Units Window. This window displays all of the ships, units, and fleets that you control. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Construction Queues Window. This window allows you to view and change all of the construction queues for your planets and ships. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Research Window. This window allows you to research new technologies. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Empires Window. This window allows you to send messages to other empires, perform intelligence actions, and view comparisons of the different empires. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Log Window. This window displays all of the news events that have happened since your last turn. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Empire Status Window. This window allows you to view your economy and change overall settings for your empire. ________________________________________________________________ This button brings up the Help Window. This window displays all of the different components, facilities, and ship sizes that you have discovered. ________________________________________________________________ This button will end the current turn. Once you select this, the various panels of the Main Window will become disabled until all of the computer players have completed their turn. ________________________________________________________________ Orders Buttons These buttons allow you to give orders to your ships and planets. When you select a specific object in the System panel of the Main Window, the orders that can be executed for that object will become lit-up. See Orders for more information. ________________________________________________________________

This is the "Move To" order. This order will cause your ship to move from its current location to a location that you specify. When you select this order, the game will request that you select a destination point. This point can be in either this system, or some other system. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Move To Waypoint" order. This is order allows you to select a waypoint to have your ship move to. It displays the Select Waypoint window when pressed. This order is the equivalent of giving the Move To order. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Attack" order. This orders tells your ships to attack a location. Since a ship will automatically attack a location just by moving into it, the attack order only serves a purpose if you are trying to attack the same location that your ship is currently at (if there are enemies at that same location). The Attack order serves another purpose in a Simultaneous game, where it gives your ships the order to seek and attack a target. This is useful since your ships will actually seek no matter where the target moves during the turn. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Resupply At Nearest" order. This order will give your ship the Move To order to the nearest location where you have a Resupply Depot facility. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Clear Orders" order. Your ship may have several unexecuted orders that it has in its orders list. This selection will clear all of the unexecuted orders that your ship has. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Warp" order. This order will cause your ship to warp through a warp point. When you select this, you will be requested for a location to warp through. Since a Move To order will cause your ship to warp through a warp point as necessary, this order is only really needed if the warp point is linked to an unexplored system. ________________________________________________________________

This is the "Colonize" order. This order will request that you select a planet to colonize. Your ship will be give several orders. First, it will try and load population from any planet at that location. It is important that your ship has some population in its cargo bay so that they can be placed on the planet when it is colonized. Next, the ship will be given orders to Move To the planet. And finally, the ship will be given the Colonize order. When your ship colonizes a planet, the ship will be deconstructed for raw materials. Any population or cargo being carried by the ship will be placed on the planet. It is very important that your colony ship carry population when it is colonizing a planet. Without population, a colony will still be created, but it will have no people. A colony without population will not be able to construct any facilities. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Fleet Transfer" order. This order will display the Fleet Transfer Window so that you can create new fleets, and add this ship and others into the fleet. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Repair At Nearest" order. This order will give your current ship orders to Move To the nearest location where you have component repair capabilities. The order in which the components is actually repaired is specified in the Repair Priorities Window. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Build Queue" order. This selection will display the Set Construction Queue Window. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Cargo Transfer" order. This selection will display the Cargo Transfer Window so that you can transfer cargo between ships and planets at this location. This order is not available in Simultaneous Games. ________________________________________________________________

This is the "Load Cargo" order. This selection will display a window asking to you select a cargo type. Then you will be asked for a location. This button will give your ship orders to Move To the location specified, then attempt to load all of the cargo it can of the type chosen. Your ship will attempt to load the cargo from a planet or base that you own at that location. If you have nothing that can hold the cargo at that location, then the order will not be executed. Usually, you will use the Cargo Transfer order to move cargo. You would use this order if you want to perform the load sometime in the future. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Launch Units Remotely" order. This selection will display a window asking to you select a unit type. Then you will be asked for a location. This button will give your ship orders to Move To the location specified, then attempt to launch all of the units it can of the type chosen. Usually, you will use the Launch/Recover Units order to launch units. You would use this order if you want to perform the launch sometime in the future. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Sentry" order. A Sentry order causes the current ship to stay at its current position and wait until an enemy comes near. A ship on sentry will just skip its turn until an enemy ship comes into the same system, at which point it will clear its orders. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Set Partrol" order. When you select this button, you will be asked to entry the patrol points. Each of these points is a location on the map that you want your ship to patrol through. The final point should be the location where your ship is now. This selection will also turn on the "Repeat Orders" option so that your ship will continue to patrol indefinitely. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Launch/Recover Units" order. This selection will display the Launch \ Recover Units Window so that you can launch and recover units from this location in space. This order is not available in Simultaneous Games.

________________________________________________________________ This is the "Drop Cargo" order. This selection will display a window asking to you select a cargo type. Then you will be asked for a location. This button will give your ship orders to Move To the location specified, then attempt to drop all of the cargo it can of the type chosen. The destination for the cargo will be a colony you have or a base. If you do not have something that can hold the cargo at the location, then the order will not be executed. Usually, you will use the Cargo Transfer order to move cargo. You would use this order if you want to perform the drop sometime in the future. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Recover Units Remotely" order. This selection will display a window asking to you select a unit type. Then you will be asked for a location. This button will give your ship orders to Move To the location specified, then attempt to recover from space all of the units it can of the type chosen. Usually, you will use the Launch/Recover Units order to recover units. You would use this order if you want to perform the recovery sometime in the future. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Explore" order. This order will cause your ship to Move To the nearest system which is unexplored. It also takes into account whether any other ships are already on their way to a system as well. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Repeat Orders" order. This toggle will cause your current list of orders to repeat indefinitely. Normally, when an order is completed, it is deleted from the orders list for that ship. With repeat orders toggled on, the orders are not removed and will cycle through when they reach the bottom. This is a useful order to set up patrols, or cycling orders for a transport to load and drop cargo. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Stellar Manipulation" order. This selection will display the Stellar Manipulation Window. Through this window you can execute any stellar manipulation components you may have on your ship (Create Planet, Destroy Star, etc.).

________________________________________________________________ This is the "Scrap / Analyze / Mothball" order. This selection will display the Scrap Window. You can use this window to scrap your ship, deconstruct and analyze it, mothball it, and more. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "View Orders" order. This selection will display a window which will allow you to view all of the UN-executed orders for this ship. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Scrap Facilities" order. When selected, the Select Facilities Window will be displayed so that you can choose which facilities on this planet that you would like to scrap. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Cloak" order. If your ship contains an operational cloaking device, then this order will cause your ship to cloak itself. A ship that is cloaked cannot be seen by any other players unless they have sensors equipped to detect them. If other players cannot see you, you can pass through locations where their ships sit without engaging in combat. While cloaked, many normal orders are not available. See Sight for more details. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Change Name" order. When selected, a window will be displayed to allow you to enter a new name for this ship or planet. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Change Formation \ Strategy" order. If you currently have a fleet selected, then you can select this to change the fleet's formation and strategy. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Sweep Mines" order. If your ship has an undamaged mine sweeping component on it, you can select this order to have your ship sweep the mines at a location. Now your ships will automatically sweep mines any time they move, but you may want to use this order to give an area a special "going over". ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Jettison Cargo" order. This order will jettison the cargo that your ship or planet is carrying. When you jettison cargo, it is removed from your ship and destroyed when shot into space. ________________________________________________________________

This is the "Decloak" order. This is the reverse of the "Cloak" order. If your ship is currently cloaked, then you can select this order to cause the ship to decloak. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Use Component" order. This selection will display the Select Component Window so that you can choose a component to use. Some components have a single use and then they are destroyed. Some examples are the Emergency Resupply Component and the Emergency Energy Component. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Abandon Planet" order. This order will cause your people to abandon your colony and leave the planet. When you abandon the planet, you have the choice of whether you want to scrap the facilities on the planet or leave them as they are. You may want to leave them if you think that you will eventually be back to recolonize the planet. Be sure that you use your transports to remove all of the population on the planet before you abandon it. ________________________________________________________________ Not being used. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Play Movement Log" order. This order is only available in Simultaneous games. This will play the movement log from the movement that the host executed. It will show all of the ships moving over the course of the month. The movement of all players is simultaneous. This is merely a replay of what happened. You can change the current system you are looking at and then replay the log again to see what happened in that system. This replay will progress from beginning to end automatically. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Play Movement Log Stepped" order. This is similar to the Play Movement Log except that it will only step one day of the log with each press of the button. You can use this to view the movement log in a slower and more detailed manner. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Use Facility" order. This selection will display the Select Facility Window so that you can choose a facility to use. Some facilities have a single use that can be executed in a turn. ________________________________________________________________

This is the "Convert Resources" order. This selection will display a window which will allow you to convert resources from one type to another. Any conversion from one resource to another is not perfect, there is some loss of material when converting. For example, if there is a 50% loss of material, you will use 3000 minerals to get 1500 organics. This order is only available if the currently selected planet has a facility with the resource conversion ability. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Toggle Minister Control" order. This selection will set the currently selected ship or planet under minister control (or turn it off if it is currently on). Individual minister control means that the computer will control this ship or planet and will use it as it sees fit. This is very useful for you to reduce micromangement since you can put your less important ships on a kind of "auto-pilot". This minister selection must be used in conjunction with the minister selections in the Ministers window (under Empire Status). The selections you make in the Ministers window will tell the computer what kind of operations this ship can be used for. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Play Movement Log For Ship" order. This is similar to the Play Movement Log except that it will play the entire movement log for each of your ships. So instead of just viewing all of the movements within just one system, this will allow you to follow and watch the movements of all of your ships. ________________________________________________________________ This is the "Rewind Movement Log" order. As you use the Play Movement Log Stepped order, you may want to rewind the log back to the beginning. This order will move the movement log back to Day 1. ________________________________________________________________ Selection These buttons allow you to cycle through the various ships, planets, and Buttons fleets of your empire. ________________________________________________________________ These buttons cycle through the ships at your command. In a TurnBased game, the cycle will only include ships which have movement remaining. In a Simultaneous game, the cycle will include only those ships which do not have orders. ________________________________________________________________ These buttons cycle through the fleets at your command.

________________________________________________________________ These buttons cycle through the planets at your command.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window

HotkeysDescriptionHotkeys are keyboard buttons that you can press as a shortcut for a specific command in the game. All of the hotkeys listed below can also be found in the Help Window. You can also find the hotkey for a specific order in the Main Window by holding your pointer over an active order button.

Hotkey ListingMain Window M W Alt 0 - 9 Ctrl 0 - 9 C A F S R Move To Warp Set Waypoint # Move To Waypoint # Colonize Attack Fleet Transfer Resupply Repair

Backspace Clear Orders / Del Q T U L D I O Y E Set Construction Queue Cargo Transfer Launch\Recover Units Load Cargo Drop Cargo Launch Units Remotely Recover Units Remotely Sentry Explore

P K B V G H N J Z X Ctrl M Ctrl T Ctrl R Ctrl A Ctrl V F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 F6 F7 F8 F9 F10 F11 F12

Set Patrol Repeat Orders Stellar Manipulations View Orders Scrap / Analyze / Mothball Change Formation \ Strategy Change Name Jettison Cargo Cloak Decloak Sweep Mines Add Tagged Minefield Remove Tagged Minefield Abandon Planet Convert Resources Help Game Menu Designs Planets Colonies Ship\Units Construction Queues Research Empires Log Empire Status End Turn

Spacebar / Next Ship Ctrl N Ctrl B Ctrl F Ctrl D Ctrl C Previous Ship Next Fleet Previous Fleet Next Colony

Ctrl X Ctrl P Ctrl O Ctrl I Ctrl U Ctrl L Ctrl S Ctrl H Tactical Combat Window Alt 0 - 9 Ctrl 0 - 9 L T R C E

Previous Colony Movement Log Replay Full Movement Log Replay Reload Movement Log Replay Single Step Movement Log Replay Follow Ship Toggle: Show Ship Movement Lines Toggle: Sound Show the Tutorial \ Scenario Window

Set Group # Leader Set Group # Member Launch Units Drop Troops Ram Ship Capture Ship End Combat Turn

Spacebar / Next Ship with movement Ctrl N Ctrl B Ctrl F Ctrl D Previous Ship with movement Next Ship which can fire Previous Ship which can fire

Special NotesNone

Related AreasHelp Window, Main Window, Tactical Combat Window

Tactical Combat Window - Main

DescriptionThis window is displayed to allow you to control the details of a combat. A normal combat takes place over 30 combat turns or until one player is completely destroyed. Players take turns moving their ships and firing their ship's weapons. As a ship takes damage, its components will be destroyed. Once all of its components are destroyed, the entire ship is destroyed. See Combat for complete details.

ControlsStatus Bar This bar at the top of the window provides status information for this combat. It tells you the system and location where the combat is taking place, what current combat turn you are on, and the players involved in the combat. At the end of the window there are selection buttons which will allow you to go to the next / previous ship that still has movement this turn, and the next / previous ship that still has weapons to fire this turn. The last button on the window is a "Minimize" button which will shrink this entire window on your desktop.

Tactical Map

At the bottom left of the Tactical Combat window is a large map of the combat area. Each ship is displayed separately as are any planets, moons, asteroids, or warp points. Left-Click: If you left-click on one of your own ships, you will select it (it will be displayed in the Current Piece Display). If you left-click on an empty space on the map, then your Currently Selected Piece will move to that location. If you left-click on an enemy ship, then your Currently Selected Piece will attempt to fire its weapons on the enemy ship. Right-Click: If you right-click on a ship or planet, you will display the Combat Piece Report Window about that item. Pointer Move: This will change your pointer icon to be different types indicating what you can do. If you have a standard pointer arrow, then you can select a ship. If your pointer looks like a large directional arrow, then you currently have a ship selected and the pointer is showing you that you will move the ship in that direction. If your pointer is over an enemy ship, then it will look like crosshairs so that you can click on this enemy and fire your currently selected ship's weapons.

Current Piece Display

If you left-click on one of your own ships in the Tactical Map, then it will become selected. Its details will be displayed on the right-hand side of the Tactical Combat Window. You will see a picture of your ship, its name, size, your empire flag, an indicator of what combat group it belongs to, two bars displaying shields and damage, and the current weapons on your ship. Underneath your empire flag is a section where an indicator of what combat group your ship belongs to is displayed. If nothing is displayed, then your ship does not belong to a combat group. If a number on a blue background is displayed, then your ship is the leader of that group number. If a red background is displayed, then your ship is a follower in that combat group. When a fleet enters combat, all of its members are made into a combat group. You can change the combat groups by using the Orders button, or by using the Hotkeys. Two bars are displayed showing your current remaining shields, and your current remaining damage that can be taken. If your ship takes normal damage, then the shield bar (the blue dotted bar) will decrease first. Once it is gone, your ship will take internal damage. The red bar shows how much damage you can take before your ship is destroyed. Once its gone, your ship blows up. The amount of damage your ship can take is measured by the total of all of the Damage Resistance that the components on your ship can withstand. You may take damage and none of your components are destroyed. Once the damage is higher than a component's damage resistance, then it will actually be marked as destroyed. At the bottom of the current piece display, is a grid showing all of the undamaged weapons on your ship. Each weapon is displayed with its picture and an indicator of how long until it can fire. If there are red bars in the upper right hand corner of the picture, then this is the number of turns until your weapon can fire again. If there are no bars, then it can fire this turn. When you left-click on an enemy piece, all of the weapons selected here will be fired at the enemy ship. If you don't want certain weapons to fire, just leftclick on them to turn off the teal color background. Only weapons which are selected will fire. You can also right-click on any of the weapons to get a report about it.

Target Piece Display

If you screen resolution is 1024x768 or better, then another section under the Current Piece Display is shown. This section displays information about the enemy ship that your pointer is currently over, or that your ship is firing on. This display is very similar to the Current Piece Display in that it shows a picture of the ship, the ship's name and size, the flag of the empire that controls it, and bars showing how many shields and hit points it has left. When your ship is actually firing on the enemy ship, then below the bars are an indicator of how much damage the ship takes when hit by an enemy weapons. When your weapon fires and hits an enemy ship, you will see two number displayed, one in blue, the other in red. This is how much damage to shields and how much internal damage the ship takes when it is hit.

Overview Map

The overview map shows the entire combat area at one time. Ships in the combat area are displayed as small squares in the color of the empire that owns them. Larger gray squares indicate a planet of spacial body that is not owned. A dotted white box appears on the overview map to show you where the Tactical Map is currently displaying. You can left-click on the Overview Map to change the area that the Tactical Map displays.

ButtonsOptions Orders Auto This button displays the Combat Options Window. This button displays the Combat Orders Window. This option determines whether the computer will control all of the ships in combat. This can be turned on or off at any time during combat. When this is turned on, the computer will move the ships for all players. Once all movement is complete, then the game will wait for you to press the End Turn button. This allows each player to end their turn after they have moved and fired the weapons of all of their ships. Each human player will take their turn moving their ships and firing their weapons. Once all of the movement is expended and all of the weapons have fired (if you choose to do so), then press the End Turn button to allow the next player to take their turn. Computer controlled players will automatically move and fire their ships, and press End Turn. When all ships or one side are dead, or the maximum number of combat turns have passed, then combat will end automatically.

End Turn

Special NotesNone

Related AreasMain Window , Combat Options Window, Combat Orders Window, Combat Piece Report Window

Create Design Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to create a new design for your empire. Once a design has been created, you can build ships of that design to use in space. When creating a design, the following steps are usually done in order:q q q q q q q

Select the vehicle size. Select the design type. Select the vehicle name. Add components to the design. If you are adding weapons to the vehicle, select a weapon mount as needed. Check that there are no warnings being displayed. Press the Create Design button.

Controls

Size

This selection allows you to choose the size of the vehicle you would like to create. Pressing the arrow button displays the Select Vehicle Size Window. Each vehicle size has two important attributes. One is its base cost, the other is how large in tonnage it is. When you select a size, its cost will be added to your total cost. The tonnage size of the vehicle size will determine how much space you have available to fill with components. Certain vehicle sizes also have special abilities that may prove useful. Other vehicle sizes have restrictions on them which are displayed in the Warnings box. This is a group identifier that you can select for your new design. The Design Type is a kind of classification for the design. For example, some of the selections are Attack Ship, Defense Ship, etc. These allow you to classify your design as being used for a particular purpose. On the Designs Window, each of your designs is listed under the heading of its design type. This is the name that you would like for your design. You have two options here. You can either click in the box and type your own custom name, or you can press the arrow button to see a list of possible names to choose from. This list of design names is loaded from the file that you selected in the Empire Setup - General Window. This item displays how much space you have used on the design out of how much is available. When you select a Vehicle Size, that will give you the total space available. As you add components on to your design, that will take up available space. You can not use more space than is available in your vehicle size. This is the total cost in resources for this design. This amount is calculated as the vehicle size cost, plus the cost of each of the components that have been added to this design. The total cost is the amount that you will have to pay to construct a ship of this design. This is the total movement that a ship of your design would have in space. Each movement points represents one square that a ship will be able to move. Adding engine components to your design will increase its movement. This is the total amount of shields that a ship of your design will generate. Shields are used to protect your ship during combat. Adding shield generator components to your design will increase its shield capacity. This is the total amount of cargo space that a ship of your design will have available. Cargo space is used to store items on your ship so that it can be transported through space. For example, carriers require cargo space so that they can transport fighters. Adding cargo container components to your design will increase its cargo capacity. This is the total amount of supplies that a ship of your design will be able to carry. Supplies are the food, ammo, and fuel that your ship uses to run its day to day operations. As your ship moves, it will expend supplies. When it fires its weapon, it will expend supplies. When your ship runs out of supplies, it will lose many of its capabilities. Engines and supply container components will increase your ship's supply capacity. This section lists the components on your design. To remove a component from the list, just left-click on it. If you would like more information about one of the components, just right-click on it. If you want to add more components to the list, you need to left-click components in the Components Available list. There are arrows at either end of the list which will allow you to scroll the list in either direction.

Design Type

Design Name

Space Used

Total Cost

Movement

Shields

Cargo Space

Supply Capacity

Components on Design

Components Available

This section lists all of the components that are known to your empire. As your empire researches new technologies, more components will become available in this list. To add a component to your design, just left-click on it. If you would like more information about one of the components, just rightclick on it. There are arrows at either end of the list which will allow you to scroll the list in either direction. Each component is displayed with its picture, its name, and its size. You may have noticed that some of the components have a small "I", "II", "III", "IV", etc. in the bottom right hand corner of the picture. As some components become more advanced, they improve their abilities. The component is essentially the same as a previous version, just with better abilities or a reduced cost. Each of these components is labeled with a roman numeral indicating its advancement level. So a component labeled with "I" would be the first component that is available. A component with "IV" would be the fourth in the lineage of this component type. This indicator makes it easier for you to identify different components of the same family. You will almost always want to put the most advanced version of a component on your design.

Warnings

This box displays any warnings that are present for your design. It indicates that there is a certain requirement that must be met for this vehicle size, or that you have added a component that is not allowed. An example of what might be displayed here is the message "Must have at least 2 Life Supports." This warnings means that this vehicle size requires that you place 2 life support components on it. Another message might be "The total space limit for this size has been exceeded." This warning means that you have used up too much space with components on your design and that you will have to remove some. If there are warnings displayed in the Warnings Box, you will not be able to create your design. Once the box is empty, you will be allowed to create the design.

Component Details As you move your pointer over the components that are listed in the Components on Design and Components Available boxes, this area will display information about that component. It displays the picture of the component, its name, its cost in resources, its size, and the first few lines of its description.

ButtonsComp Type This selection displays a window which will allow you to choose a component type. Once you have selected an item, the Components Available list will display just components of this type. Because there are so many components available in the game, the list becomes very long and tedious to scroll through. Using this option, you can have the list display only components of a certain type. To return the list to displaying all of the available components, select the "All" item. The currently selected Component Type is listed in parenthesis after the Components Available List title.

Weap Mount

Selecting this option will display the Weapon Mounts Window. It will allow you to choose the current type of weapon mount for your weapons. Weapon Mounts are enhancements to existing weapons. For a price of double the space and cost, you can get three times the normal damage of the weapon (each weapon mount gives different modifiers). Weapon Mounts are like taking a normal weapon and building it on a much larger scale. Because the weapon is being built so much larger, some Weapon Mounts have a minimum size requirement for the vehicle. When you select this option, the Weapon Mount Type will be displayed just above the Components Available List. The weapons that can use this weapon mount will be displayed with a small letter in the top left of the picture indicating the type of weapon mount. All of the costs and sizes will change to reflect this weapon mount enhancement. You can then left-click the weapon and have it added to your design. The letter identifier on the picture will remain in the Components on Design list. It is perfectly acceptable to mix weapon mounts on your design, not all of the weapons have to be using the same weapon mount. In fact you don't have to use them at all if you don't want to. But Weapon Mounts are very valuable for your larger ships. It is much better to have 1 weapon in a weapon mount then 3 normal weapons without weapon mounts.

Condensed View

This option changes the way that the components are listed in the Components on Design list. Normally, each component is displayed separately. With this option selected, the components will be displayed only once, with a number displayed in the bottom right to indicate how many of these you have on your design. Using condensed view does nothing to your design, it just shows your components in a more concise manner. This option will restrict the items listed in the Components Available list to only those that are the very latest. For example, as you research the Shields technology area, you will attain Shield Generator I, then Shield Generator II, and so on. Now when you are creating your design, you may not care to see all of the different Shield Generator components which you have discovered. By selecting this option, you will only see the very latest Shield Generator available to you. This button will display the Weapons Report Window. This window will display all of the weapons that you have discovered, and display their damages at different ranges. This window is very useful in helping you pick a weapon that best suits your design. This selection will create your design, close this window, and return you to the Designs Window. If there are any outstanding Warnings being displayed, you will not be allowed to use this button. This will cancel your current design and return you to the Designs Window.

Only Latest

Weapons Report

Create Design

Cancel

Special NotesOnce you have created a design, you should mark any old designs as obsolete in the Designs Window. You may also want to change the default strategy for this design as well. If this is a combat ship, you should test your new design in the Combat Simulator.

Related AreasDesigns Window, Weapons Report Window,, Weapon Mounts Window

Empire Setup - General Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to set the general details of your empire such as name and picture.

ControlsEmpire Name Empire Type This selects the name of your empire. You may either type in something, or select the down arrow button to be presented with a list of possible names. This selects the type of your empire. You may either type in something, or select the down arrow button to be presented with a list of possible names. When your full empire name is shown, it is usually shown as [Empire Name] [Empire Type]. So if you select "Kratow" for the Empire Name, and "Alliance" for the Empire Type, your full empire name will be shown as "Kratow Alliance".

Emperor Title

This is the title of your ruler. You may either type in something, or select the down arrow button to be presented with a list of possible names. This selection allows you to pick whether your ruler is an "Emperor", "King", or whatever.

Emperor Name

This is the actual name of you ruler. You may either type in something, or select the down arrow button to be presented with a list of possible names. When your full emperor name is shown, it is usually shown as [Emperor Title] [Emperor Name]. This entry specifies the password for your empire. You may leave this blank or fill it in. If you fill it in, you will be required to enter your password before you begin your turn. This password is especially useful during multiplayer games so that you can be sure only you play your empire's turn. This entry specifies your email address. You may leave this blank if you wish. This item is useful in multiplayer games so that the host can identify each of the players and keep in touch with them.

Password

Email

Race Portrait / Ship Each empire is represented by a race style. This style gives your empire is Style race portrait and the look for all of its ships. You can use the arrow button to move through the different pictures. When you see the one you want to use, just leave it in the display. Design Name File When you create new designs for your ships, you will need to name each one of them. To make this easier, files which contain lists of possible design names are provided for you. In this selection, you can pick the name of the file you wish to use to provide your design names. This selection allows you to pick the personality of your ministers. You may use ministers during the game to control sections of your empire so that you don't have to. This selection governs how those ministers will play the game. This option determines whether your empire is controlled by the computer or not. For most players, you will leave this setting off. For some games, though, you may want to set up your own custom computer players for a game. With this on, the computer will control this empire when the game starts. This option gets a little more complex. It works in conjunction with the "Minister Style" selection above. In the game, each of the different races have a very specific style to their play. By selecting this option, you are saying that you want your ministers to operate as if they are a part of the race style that you selected in the "Race Portrait / Ship Style" box. When you enable this option, the "Minister Style" selection will become disabled. The current number of experience points your empire has accumulated is displayed here. If you are creating a new empire, this value will be zero. The age of your race is displayed here. If you are created a new empire, this will display "Newborn".

Minister Style

Computer Controlled

Use Race Minister Style

Experience Points Race Age

ButtonsGeneral Details Environment Culture Characteristics Advanced Traits Description Create Empire Cancel Displays the Empire Setup - General Details Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Environment Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Culture Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Characteristics Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Description Window. Creates this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window. Cancels this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasGame Setup - Players Window, Empire Setup - General Details Window, Empire Setup Environment Window, Empire Setup - Culture Window, Empire Setup - Characteristics Window, Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window, Empire Setup - Description Window.

Empire Setup - Environment Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to the environment in which your race lives.

ControlsAtmosphere Breathed Home Planet Type This control allows you to pick which atmosphere your race breathes. When you start the game, your home planet will have this type of atmosphere. This control allows you to choose the type of planet your race begins on.

ButtonsGeneral Details Environment Culture Characteristics Displays the Empire Setup - General Details Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Environment Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Culture Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Characteristics Window.

Advanced Traits Description Create Empire Cancel

Displays the Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Description Window. Creates this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window. Cancels this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasGame Setup - Players Window, Empire Setup - General Details Window, Empire Setup Environment Window, Empire Setup - Culture Window, Empire Setup - Characteristics Window, Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window, Empire Setup - Description Window.

Empire Setup - Culture Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to choose the culture which best describes your race. Each culture has different modifiers which it will place on your society.

ControlsCulture This selection determines the cultural description for your race. You should choose which ever culture best describes your race and its goals. Each culture also carries with it certain modifiers to different values in the game. Select the "Compare Culture Modifiers" button to see what these values are.

ButtonsGeneral Details Environment Culture Displays the Empire Setup - General Details Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Environment Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Culture Window.

Characteristics Advanced Traits Description Compare Culture Modifiers Create Empire Cancel

Displays the Empire Setup - Characteristics Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window. Displays the Empire Setup - Description Window. Displays the Creates this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window. Cancels this empire and returns you to the Game Setup - Players Window.

Special NotesNone

Related AreasGame Setup - Players Window, Empire Setup - General Details Window, Empire Setup Environment Window, Empire Setup - Culture Window, Empire Setup - Characteristics Window, Empire Setup - Advanced Traits Window, Empire Setup - Description Window.

Empire Setup - Characteristics Window

DescriptionThis window allows you to modify the characteristics of your race.

ControlsRacial Points Available Modifying your characteristics costs Racial Points. This display shows how many racial points you currently have remaining out of the total available. When you increase a characteristic to higher than 100%, it will cost you racial points (the cost is dependent on the characteristic you are changing). If you reduce a characteristic below 100%, then you will actually gain racial points to spend. You cannot create your empire if the number of racial points is in the negative. Determines the physica