@DATABASE "Conquest Guide"
@SMARTWRAP  

@$VERS "1.0"
@C "Pete Halloran - Facade Software 1997"

@NODE MAIN "Conquest"


                               @{B}CONQUEST@{UB} 

                              User Guide                                
                                  By
                           Pete Halloran ©1997


     @{B}Conquest@{UB}
          @{"Introduction" link INTRODUCTION}
          @{"Requirements" link REQUIREMENTS}
          @{"Installation" link INSTALLATION}

     @{B}Playing The Game@{UB}
          @{"Initial Screen" link INITIALMENU}
          @{"Main Game" link MAINGAME}
          @{"Quickstart" link QUICKSTART}
          @{"Troubleshooting" link TROUBLESHOOTING}
          @{"Future" link FUTURE}

     @{B}Legal Stuff@{UB}
          @{"Disclaimer" link DISCLAIMER}
          @{"Shareware/Freeware" link SHAREWARE}
          @{"Credits" link CREDITS}

@ENDNODE
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@NODE INTRODUCTION "Introduction"

Conquest is a strategy/world domination game similar to the
classic board game Risk.

It involves building up armies on territories owned and fighting
opposing players for control of other territories.

It is a game for 2-6 players with 3 different styles of computer
opponent, HiRes graphics and an easy to use interface.


@ENDNODE
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@NODE REQUIREMENTS "Requirements"

Conquest requires an Amiga with at least 2 Meg of memory and
is best played off of a hard drive (even though it is possible
to run off of a floppy - just).

It has been tested on an A1200 running OS3.0, with a Blizzard 030/50
board and 18 Meg of memory.

Also tested on a base A1200 with the standard 2 Meg of memory.

Being an AMOS game some users may experience difficulty running
the program - through no fault of the author. 

@ENDNODE
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@NODE INSTALLATION "Installation"

If you're reading this then you've already unarchived the Conquest.lha
file - good.

@{B}Hard Drive Users@{UB}

     Simply copy the Conquest directory to the required place on your
     hard drive.

     Ensure that the two directories Sound and Data are in the same
     directory as the main program and then double click on the 
     Conquest icon and away you go.

@{B}Floppy Users@{UB}
 
     Copy the Conquest program to a freshly formatted floppy.
     Copy the Data directory to the same floppy - ensuring that 
     the directory is in the same location.

     Click on the Conquest icon to start the game.

     Note : Running from the floppy results in a game with no
     sound - unless you have a High Density drive in which case
     follow the directions for hard drive users.

     P.S. Buy a hard drive as they're nice and cheap now....

If you are running on a low memory Amiga then there are several steps
to try to free up some memory. These involve leaving out the sound
effects and/or music for the game. 

Both these files can be found in the Sound directory and one or both
may be moved to another directory to prevent their loading. This could
free up around 300k. 

If this fails then more memory in your Amiga is required.

@{B}Icons@{UB}

There is a directory of various icons in a variety of styles, for
both the game itself and the various directories used by it.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE INITIALMENU "Initial Screen"

The initial screen is divided into three main areas. The biggest is the
player selection area, then the land allocation area and finally
there are several icons running down the right side and bottom of
the screen.

     @{"Player Selection" link PLAYERSELECTION}
     @{"Land Allocation" link LANDALLOCATION}
     @{"Main Icons" link MAINICONS}

@ENDNODE
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@NODE PLAYERSELECTION "Player Selection"

@{B}Player Selection@{UB}

The central area of the screen contains a list of the players who
will be playing the game. Each player has their own colour and the 
type of player can be selected by clicking on the corresponding
shield.

The icons running across the top indicate which type of player.

These are :

@{B}Human@{UB} - Icon resembling a human - surprise.

@{"Aggressive Computer" link AGGRESSIVE} - Computer with lightening 
in front of it.

@{"Chaotic Computer" link CHAOTIC} - Computer with question mark
in front of it.

@{"Passive Computer" link PASSIVE} - Computer with white flag 
in front of it.

@{B}Player Not Selected@{UB} - Computer With X in front of it.

Once two or more players have been selected the start icon will become 
active and if clicked on the game will begin.
@ENDNODE
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@NODE LANDALLOCATION "Land Allocation"

@{B}Land Allocation@{UB}

There are three possible ways in which the initial territories can be
allocated to the players.

@{B}Player Choice@{UB} - Each player chooses the territory in turn.

@{B}Rotation@{UB} - The territories are allocated in turn moving through the 
players one by one. This is the default setting.

@{B}Random@{UB} - The territories are allocated in a completely random fashion.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE MAINICONS "Main Icons"

@{B}Main Icons@{UB}

@{B}Network@{UB} - Starts up the networking for playing against other players
using other Amigas (Not implemented in this version - see @{"Future." link FUTURE}

@{B}Load@{UB} - Allows the loading of a previously saved game.

@{B}Sound@{UB} - Turns the sound on and off. The musical notes are highlighted
when the sound is turned on.

@{B}Info@{UB} - Displays a bit of information about the game.

@{B}Quit@{UB} - Quits the game (after you confirm that's what you want).

@{B}Start@{UB} - Begins the allocation of territories and starts the game - this
can only be selected if more than two players are active.
@ENDNODE
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@NODE AGGRESSIVE "Aggressive Opponent"

@{B}Mr. Aggressive@{UB}

An aggressive opponent who attacks relentlessly, picking on his weakest
neighbours.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE CHAOTIC "Chaotic Opponent"

@{B}Mr. Chaotic@{UB}

A chaotic opponent who attacks random neighbours without any noticable
pattern.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE PASSIVE "Passive Opponent"

@{B}Mr. Passive@{UB}

A passive opponent who sits and bides his time. But if you attack him
be prepared for the whole weight of his forces against you.

@ENDNODE

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@NODE MAINGAME "The Main Game"

@{B}Main Game Screen@{UB}

The main game screen consists of a world map divided into territories
with a series of buttons running down the right hand side of the screen.

The players territories are represented by their own personal colour and
the players whose turn it currently is appears at the top of the column
of colours on the right hand side. This changes each turn.

@{B}Order of Play@{UB}

A players first action is @{"Deployment." link DEPLOYMENT}
This is followed by       @{"Combat." link COMBAT}
And finally               @{"Fortification." link FORTIFICATION}

At any time the current game state can be saved by clicking the
@{B}SAVE@{UB} button. This will save the game in it's current state
and may be reloaded from the initial screen.

Also a game may be stopped at any time by clicking the @{B}QUIT@{UB}
button. This will end the game and return you to the initial screen.

Once all opponents have been defeated then the remaining player 
has won.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE DEPLOYMENT Deployment

@{B}Deployment@{UB}

There are two forms of deployment - Initial and at the start of each turn.
The initial deployment happens at the start of each game. Each player is
given a certain number of troops indicated by the various sized knights 
on the right hand side. 

The small knights are worth one unit each, the medium sized ten and the
large twenty. As troops are allocated to territories this number will 
decrease.

To deploy troops move the mouse pointer over a territory currently owned by
the player (i.e. the same colour). Clicking on this territory will deploy
a single troop. Holding down the @{B}SHIFT@{UB} key (either one) will allocate all
of the available troops to the currently selected territory. The number of 
troops currently on the territory will be displayed and the maximum number 
of troops each territory can hold is 99.

Once you have finished deploying your troops you can either click the
@{B}DONE@{UB} button to finish your turn - compulsory if doing initial deploy -
or you will go straight into the @{"combat" link COMBAT} phase.

You are allocated a certain number of troops at the start of each turn
and this is dependent on several factors :

You will be given 3 troops initially.
Also you will get an additional troop for each set of three territories
you also own.
Also you will receive an extra set of troops if you hold a continent. 
i.e. Own all of the territories that make up one of the continents.

These are allocated as follows :
@{B}
     North America                  5 extra
     South America                  2 extra
     Europe (Including Iceland)     5 extra
     Africa                         3 extra
     Asia                           7 extra
     Australia                      2 extra
@{UB}
Finally you may also get the chance to trade in cards for troops. Cards
are awarded for defeating your opponents - one card is awarded each
turn if a player obtains an opponents territory. If you have a correct
sequence of cards then you are able to trade them in for bonus troops.
This is done automatically and the possible combinations of cards are
as follows :

     3 cards of the same type (Knight, Catapult, Horse)
     1 of each of the cards

A joker may be used (has all three types displayed on it) as the third
card in any combination. Only one Joker may be used at each trade. Should
any combination be available then the player is awarded the troops and the
cards put back into the deck ready for allocation again. If a player 
completely defeats another then if the defeated player has any cards then
the victorious player gains them.

The current cards held by a player can be viewed by clicking on the
@{B}CARDS@{UB} button.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE COMBAT Combat

@{B}Combat@{UB}

Combat occurs when the current player selects one of their territories
that has some available troops on it. This territory will then turn
grey and the player may then click on one of his opponents territories
to initiate combat. This can only be done to territories that border
each other or ones that are linked e.g. Brazil and West Africa.

A round of combat will then be fought and can result in either the
defender losing a number of armies, the attacker losing a number of 
armies, or the defender being conquered by the attacker.

The number of armies lost by both the attacker and the defender can be
set by clicking on the @{B}OPTIONS@{UB} button. Here the player can 
set how many armies they'll attack with (1-3) and how many they'll defend
with (1-2). Obviously the more used the greater the chance of winning
a round of combat, but should the player lose then they'll lose that
many armies.

The other option allows automatic attacking when active. If turned on
any attacks made by the player will continue until the opponent is
defeated or the condition set is met. e.g. if < 5 is set, the troops will 
continue attacking until the armies on the attacking side are less than 5. 
Without this turned on each round of combat will have to be manually executed 
by clicking on the defending territory.

When a territory has been conquered, one troop is required to occupy it. 
The others can be left in the original attacking territory or moved
completely into the conquered one. This is done by holding the
@{B}SHIFT@{UB} key down when attacking.

To finish the @{B}Combat@{UB} phase click the @{B}FORTIFY@{UB} button, and 
you begin the @{"Fortification" link FORTIFICATION} phase.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE FORTIFICATION Fortification

@{B}Fortification@{UB}

The fortification phase is similar to the deployment phase, except that
you move troops already deployed. 

Up to 7 troops may be moved each turn and these can come from a single 
territory or from many.

First the current player must click on the territory that they wish to move the
troops from and then click on a bordering one (or linked). For each click
a single troop will move or by holding down the @{B}SHIFT@{UB} key upto
7 will be moved.

Once the player is happy with their movement or if they have moved 7
troops they should press the @{B}DONE@{UB} button so that the next player
may take their turn.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE TROUBLESHOOTING "Troubleshooting"

@{B}Troubleshooting@{UB}

Hopefully you shouldn't have any problems playing Conquest, but there are
certain things that should be taken into consideration.

Firstly if you get the error message after clicking on the Conquest icon,
please ensure that all the files are in their correct directories. These
are - Data containing the files gdat1.dat, gdat2.dat, ness1.dat, ness2.dat
and ness3.dat.

Secondly in the Sound directory the files sound1.dat and sound2.dat.

Should you be experiencing any memory problems then the two files in the
Sound directory can be copied elsewhere or deleted. Obviously the game 
will then not have any sound, but it should free up to 400k. If you're
running off of a floppy then these should be missing already.

Finally if a computer opponent seems to be taking a longer period of
time than usual when deciding on a move. Don't worry it's just down
to dodgy A.I. ;).

@ENDNODE
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@NODE QUICKSTART Quickstart

@{B}Quickstart @{UB}

This is a brief summary of the icons/buttons used in the game and 
a brief look at the phases of play and other important bits and pieces
that could prove useful.

@{B}Main Screen@{UB}

@{B}Players@{UB} can be (from left to right) human, aggressive computer, 
chaotic computer, passive computer and not selected. Activated by
clicking on the shields.

@{B}Land allocation@{UB} can be done by :
Player selection - each player in turn picks a territory.
Rotation - rotate through the players allocating territories as you go.
Random - players get randomly selected territories.

@{B}Icons@{UB} running down the side are :
@{B}Network@{UB} - Sets up the network for on-line playing.
@{B}Sound@{UB} - Turns the sound on and off (if available).
@{B}Load@{UB} - Loads a previously saved game.
@{B}Info@{UB} - Displays info about the game.
@{B}Quit@{UB} - Exits the game.
@{B}Start@{UB} - Starts the game (only becomes active if 2 or more players
have been selected).

@{B}Game Screen@{UB}

@{B}Buttons@{UB}
@{B}Fortify@{UB} - Select after you have finished the combat phase - takes you to 
the
@{"fortify" link FORTIFICATION} phase.

@{B}Done@{UB} - Ends the current players turn.
@{B}Cards@{UB} - Displays the current players cards if some have been awarded.
@{B}Options@{UB} - Displays the current players options. 
Number of troops to attack with (1 to 3).
Number of troops to defend with (1 or 2).
When attacking continue until troops are less than 1, 3 or 5. When this is 
active the left hand box with display a tick.
@{B}Save@{UB} - Save the current game.
@{B}Quit@{UB} - Quits the current game.

The multicoloured bar on the side shows the order of turns and the current
player is the top colour.

The display showing various sized knights show the troops remaining to
be deployed. Small knights are worth 1 unit, medium sized are worth 10
and large are worth 20.

Holding the @{B}SHIFT@{UB} key down in deploy, combat or fortify phases
causes all available troops to be moved. i.e. in @{"Deployment" link DEPLOYMENT}
all troops available will be placed on the selected territory.

@{B}Order of Play@{UB}
A players first action is @{"Deployment." link DEPLOYMENT}
This is followed by       @{"Combat." link COMBAT}
And finally               @{"Fortification." link FORTIFICATION}


@ENDNODE
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@NODE FUTURE "In The Future"

There are several things that have been considered for a future version of
Conquest. Whether these will ever be implemented is down to the response
that this version gets.

Things that have been considered are :

Full implementation of the networking - both local and over the Net.

Ability for the players to select their own colours and names.

Addition of missions or quests for the players.

Any other ideas are welcomed. 

@ENDNODE
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@NODE DISCLAIMER "Disclaimer"
 
By using @{B}Conquest@{UB}, the user agrees to take no legal actions 
against the author, both now and in the future, in the event that data 
loss or damage is suffered as a direct/indirect result of using said program.

You don't have to agree with the above statement, but once you start 
the software, then your agreement is confirmed.

@ENDNODE
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@NODE SHAREWARE "Shareware/freeware"

Conquest is combination of both @{B}Shareware and Freeware@{UB} meaning 
it can be distributed free of charge provided the files remain intact and no 
changes are made.

But (there's always one), should you enjoy and continue using this software 
then you are legally obliged to pay the author. This payment can come in
any form to the value in your estimation of the games worth, but due to the 
generosity of the author this is up to you. 
The author would most definitely prefer some form of software 
that you've written as a kind of trade. A list of the people who have sent 
anything will be kept as registered users and as new versions are released 
they will be notified.

No commercial (profit making venture) distribution is permitted, except
on Aminet CD's.

Should this software be placed on a magazine cover CD/Disk would the 
magazine makers please supply the author with a free copy (unless previously
arranged).

@ENDNODE
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@NODE CREDITS "Credits"

     @{B}Authors :@{UB}
          Game code and graphics : Pete Halloran
          Title music -  Author unknown 
                         music found within the Public Domain 
                         (please contact me to be properly credited)
          Title Scroll routine : Matt Smith

     Any comments/bug reports/free gifts etc... Please contact me at :
     SnailMail : 11, Broadmeadow Rd., Wyke Regis, Weymouth, Dorset, DT4 9BT.
     Email : @{I}Pete.Halloran@Microspot.co.uk@{UI}

    @{B}Developed Using :@{UB}
          Amiga 1200, Blizzard 50/030 with 18MB, Workbench 3.0
          AMOS Pro - Ver. 1.12
          DeluxePaint 4
          Amiga Guide written using Blacks Editor

     Although this is my last AMOS game there are several other games
     and utilities available under the Facade Label :
          O's and X's
          Musical Bugs
          Squarez
          Ronin
          Mah Jong (by Matt Smith)
          Fable (On the Apple Mac)

     As I said before this is my last AMOS game and the next two - 
     working titles of Trainmainia and Thermal Detonator - will be
     written in C and released on both the Amiga and the Apple Mac.

@ENDNODE