4935 lines
257 KiB
Plaintext
4935 lines
257 KiB
Plaintext
|
||
ÄÄÒÄÄ Ò Ò Â ÖÄÄÒÄÄ¿
|
||
º ÖÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ · ÖÄ¿ º º ³ ÖÄÄ¿ ÒÄÄ¿ º º ³ ÖÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ Ò Â ÖÄÄ¿ Ò
|
||
º ÇÄÄ´ º Ä¿ º ³ ÓÄ¿ º º ³ ÇÄÄ´ ÇÄÂÙ º º ³ ÇÄÄ´ º ³ º ³ ÇÄÄ´ º
|
||
ÄÄÐÄÄ Ð Á ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÐÄÄÙ Ð Á Ð Á Ð Ð Á Ð Á Ð Á ÓÄÄÙ Ð Á ÐÄÄÙ
|
||
v1.1
|
||
|
||
ÒÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ ÒÄÄ¿
|
||
ÇÄ º ³ ÇÄÂÙ
|
||
Ð ÓÄÄÙ Ð Á
|
||
|
||
ÖÄÄÒÄÄ¿ Ò Ò Â
|
||
º ÒÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ ÒÄÄ¿ ÒÄÄ¿ º º ³ ÖÄÄ¿ ÒÄÄ¿ ÖÄ¿ ÄÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ ÖÄÄ¿ ÄÄÄ¿
|
||
º ÇÄÂÙ ÇÄÄ´ º ³ ÇÄ º º ³ ÇÄÄ´ ÇÄÂÙ ÓÄ¿ ÖÄÄÙ º ³ º ³ ÖÄÄÙ
|
||
Ð Ð Á Ð Á ÐÄÄÙ ÐÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÐÄÄÙ Ð Á Ð Á ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÄ ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÙ ÓÄÄÄ
|
||
v1.03 and v1.03d only..
|
||
|
||
|
||
"The winds of Hell, have a sulphur smell,"
|
||
Reads a card from the late Iago.
|
||
"And the brownish haze, on the warmer days,
|
||
"Reminds me of Chicago.."
|
||
|
||
-Jim Bianchi (Iago)
|
||
sysop, Eclectic Garbanzo BBS
|
||
(707) 539-1279
|
||
|
||
o o o
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
I'd like to acknowledge (among others) Joel Downer, Albin Gersich,
|
||
Fred Polli, Dan Roseen, Leonard Adolph, Steve Genardini, Stephen Whitis,
|
||
John Warfin, Dave Myers, Woody Weaver, Jim Pittman, Matt Bush, Eugene Hung,
|
||
Kris Lewis, David White, Nancy Durbin, Jason Boyd, Carol Barela, Carolyn
|
||
Stoffel, Mark Cothram, Ed Kammerer, Mike Magero, Pierre Tourigny and, of
|
||
course, Gary and Mary Ann Martin, the author(s) of TradeWars 2002. I'd like
|
||
to thank you one and all for providing much of the mat'l for this file and
|
||
for helping to make TradeWars a most entertaining diversion.
|
||
|
||
This file is an updated version of the original Iago's War Manual and
|
||
should replace it. Much of what follows was obtained from the files TWTIPS12,
|
||
TWINFO, and from monitoring the FIDO and RIME TradeWars conferences. And from
|
||
playing the game itself.
|
||
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
CONTENTS:
|
||
|
||
History of the game Bugs in the game Ferrengi
|
||
Frequently asked questions Planet cloning bug Tips 'n tricks
|
||
Align and xp changes On the use of bugs Reference section
|
||
Keeping an evil ISS Mapping the universe Macro pgms ("scripts")
|
||
Suggested tactics Attacks/invasions The 5xp sell/steal cycle
|
||
Ship selection Colonists Afterword
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ History of the game ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
The current final release of TradeWars 2002 is v1.03d. Many sites are
|
||
still running v1.03; this older version has many ..ah, bugs, in it that are
|
||
considered to be extremely destructive to game play, most notably the inf-
|
||
amous planet cloning and multiple colonist jettisoning bugs. v1.03d fixed
|
||
both of these in the course of improving the DESQview timeslicing. The new
|
||
v1.03d mods are supplied as an archive containing only the four executable
|
||
files: TEDIT.EXE and TEDIT.OVL and TW2002.EXE and TW2002.OVL. Since there
|
||
is no player data stored in these files, they can be installed (dropped in)
|
||
over a running game with no loss of player assets or points.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Carol Barela:
|
||
|
||
First I would like to give you a brief history of the Trade Wars games.
|
||
This will help you and others understand where the game has been and where
|
||
it is going.
|
||
|
||
Trade Wars first came into being as a programming assignment for the Unix
|
||
system. (Authors unknown.) Much like the great old DND game Moria first
|
||
came about.
|
||
|
||
Then it was ported over to the IBM world and Chris Sherrick and Alan
|
||
Davenport had a go at the game and we had TW 500 and TW 1000 (there may be
|
||
a few other numbers in here...memory fails me at times). These games were
|
||
the jewels of BBS door games. Everybody played them.
|
||
|
||
BTW, the style of play in all of these games remains pretty much the same,
|
||
the look, feel and playability. This very echo used to be filled with
|
||
information on these early games.
|
||
|
||
Then for some reason Chris and Alan parted ways. Chris teamed up with
|
||
John Morris and they have gone on to TW 1114 (I think is the last version
|
||
number). They have many features new to the game, multi-node play, etc.
|
||
But the game still retains the TW look. Alan Davenport came up with
|
||
Yankee Trader.
|
||
|
||
That game was also in the TW tradition and also had the same playability.
|
||
Only this time instead of battling the evil Cabal, you had the Xannor after
|
||
you. Alan's game was a big hit, and still is in many parts of the country.
|
||
He is still upgrading and improving the game and his latest version is
|
||
YT35.
|
||
|
||
Alan's game Yankee Trader soon took over this [FIDO] echo. It reigned
|
||
surpreme for a long time. Until Gary Martin's version, TW2002, hit the
|
||
BBS's. This game too, had some improvements and captured the fancy of all
|
||
the TW and YT players that it soon took over this echo. But like all the
|
||
others before it, it had the same look, feel and playability of the orig-
|
||
inal Trade Wars game. His evil alien race were the Ferrengi. He added
|
||
planet defenses and a different way of moving planets, and some nice ship
|
||
types. All in all a nice improvement upon the game. Now this game holds the
|
||
attention of the echo.
|
||
|
||
So to answer your question, all of the above are the REAL Trade Wars. None
|
||
of them are clones, just natural progressions of one of the finest space/
|
||
war trading strategy games. The credit for concieving this great game goes
|
||
to some anonymous programmers who are more than likely stockbrokers some-
|
||
where with no time or thought to what they started. Everyone else has made
|
||
improvements. Even Gary Martin, who DID NOT CREATE THIS GAME, only improved
|
||
upon the original concept. The game you are asking about is TW2002, and the
|
||
latest version of it is v1.03d.
|
||
|
||
Gary Martin may or may not finish this beta version (v2.0) he is slowly and
|
||
reluctantly working on. And from what I hear in this echo is considering
|
||
reneging on his one time registration fee, and perhaps going to charge for
|
||
this new version. Tis not enough that he let us all sit here for 2 years
|
||
waiting for an updated game (read the docs). Or that he felt an obligation
|
||
after getting so many $$$'s in registration fees for the game that he would
|
||
not or perhaps could not fix the over 100 bugs in the game.
|
||
|
||
Must stop now, or I shall say something that perhaps I should not...why
|
||
burst your bubble. Anyway I hope that answers your questions about Trade
|
||
Wars, who created the game, where it has been, and where it is going.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Albin Gersich
|
||
(on v1.03d)
|
||
|
||
When Dan Roseen was switching to a multinode system using DESQview he
|
||
contacted Gary about DV support in TW2002. He did not want to run any
|
||
doors on his system that did not support DV timeslice sharing. Gary
|
||
sent him version 1.03d. This was many months before the PC bug was
|
||
known. In the summer of 1992 the TW council was formed. Dan and I
|
||
were in it. In August of that year the PC bug became known to the
|
||
council. Experimenting revealed it was fixed in 1.03d. Dan contacted
|
||
Gary (and possibly Kris Lewis). Gary no longer had that version. He
|
||
did not even save the source code for that version. Since Dan had
|
||
been running it for a while without problems Gary gave his approval
|
||
for it to be released. Dan felt it would not be appropriate to
|
||
distribute the file without any information so he prepared the
|
||
103DNOTE.TXT file. He reset the time stamps of the files to an August
|
||
date, prepared the archive for distribution, made it available on his
|
||
board, and uploaded it to Gary on Castle Ravenloft. It was quickly
|
||
distributed among the council members and annoucements were placed in
|
||
the Fido TW echo.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Dan Roseen
|
||
(more on v1.03d)
|
||
|
||
Albin's account of how v1.03d came to be was completely accurate. Gary
|
||
uploaded v1.03d to me on January 16, 1992, and it wasn't until the planet
|
||
cloning bug surfaced that it was released to everyone on August 16, 1992.
|
||
Gary didn't have the executable or source code of v1.03d just as Albin
|
||
stated, so he asked me to release mine. It appears that when Gary fixed the
|
||
disappearing treasuries bug that the fix also fixed the planet cloning bug.
|
||
|
||
Gary's only purpose for uploading this version to me was so that I could
|
||
test out the efficiency of DV CPU time slice sharing for input-only
|
||
routines. I gave Gary quite an extensive report on my DV testing. I also
|
||
asked him at the time if he wanted me to report on other bugs and he said
|
||
no, that it was just for the DV testing, and also said I could run it on my
|
||
BBS since it was essentially the same as v1.03. He held me responsible for
|
||
not letting that version out to anyone, so I suspect there was only that
|
||
one copy on my BBS (other than getting permission to give a copy to Joel
|
||
Downer for a BBS-BBS tournament).
|
||
|
||
To date, there have been no reported differences in how the game plays in
|
||
v1.03d versus v1.03 except for what I put in the text file that accompanies
|
||
v1.03d.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
As this is being written, the latest (beta) version of TradeWars is
|
||
v2.0 wide beta 5, and v2.0wb6 is expected RSN. The new version is signif-
|
||
icantly different from v1.03d and this file SHOULD NOT be considered a
|
||
guide -- except in the most general way -- to playing the new game.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Frequently asked questions ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
To answer some of the most often asked questions:
|
||
|
||
Question: If I am a CEO and I buy a Corp Flagship, then I quit the corp, do
|
||
I get to keep the flagship? Wondering if corp members could all be CEO for
|
||
a day and buy flagships and then rejoin the corp, each retaining the prize
|
||
ship?
|
||
|
||
(1) Yes, you can keep the FlagShip when you quit, but (2) no, no one
|
||
with a FlagShip is allowed to join a corp.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
1. To rob, you need to have -100 alignment or lower. Then, in a sector
|
||
with a port; (P)ort (R)ob (R)ob credits or (S)teal products.
|
||
|
||
2. To figure how much you can likely get away with when you steal
|
||
product, it's your experience divided by 20, for easy figuring. The real
|
||
numbers are less, but use this one. For robbing credits, it's your exp-
|
||
erience times 8.
|
||
|
||
3. In version 1.03(d) THERE IS NO WAY TO KILL A FED! PERIOD. No matter
|
||
what the odds are, whether or not you p-missile, etc... Maybe in an earl-
|
||
ier version you can, but not 1.03!!! Stardock, Class 0, or Sol are POSSIB-
|
||
LE, but VERY difficult.
|
||
|
||
4. ISS means Imperial Starship. You need +1000 or greater alignment to
|
||
get an ISS. If you have +500, you can get a Federal Commission, which auto-
|
||
magically raises your align to +1000. But then you can turn evil and keep
|
||
it if you're skillful enough.
|
||
|
||
5. Colonists do regenerate as they're removed from Terra.
|
||
|
||
6. The average amount of colonists for peak production is 1000 in each
|
||
group (+/- 1 in Ore, +/- 6 in Org, +/- 12 in Eqp). This will make 55 fight-
|
||
ers a day.
|
||
|
||
7. "Computer Upgrade" is a HOAX. It DOES NOT EXIST! PERIOD. The Combat
|
||
Scanners showing an opponents shield level is NOT the fictitious upgrade.
|
||
|
||
8. To track someone talk to the Grimy Trader in the Tavern. Ask him
|
||
about TRADER. He'll say I can tell you <blablabla>: answer no. Then he'll
|
||
say "Well, is it a particular trader your interested in?" Say yes and enter
|
||
the name.
|
||
|
||
9. To get the password to the underground ask the Grimy Trader about
|
||
MAFIA or UNDERGROUND. Once you have the password, the StarDock command is
|
||
"U".
|
||
|
||
10. To lower alignment, go to sector 1. Land and take colonists. Go
|
||
out of Fed Space and (J)ettison the colonists. In v1.03 games, you can
|
||
(Q)uit the game then go back in and repeat as necessary. In v1.03d games,
|
||
you can do this only once per game day.
|
||
|
||
11. To have an invincible planet, get 16390 ship shields and put them on
|
||
a level 5 planet.
|
||
|
||
12. To get the extra 32 holds, get busted stealing 365 holds of Equip or
|
||
660 holds of Organics.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
If you take damage points (from any source) while carrying a ptorp,
|
||
it MIGHT go off sympathetically. If it does, the only effect on you will be
|
||
that all the remainder of your turns for that game day will be lost. ALWAYS
|
||
carry a cloak when you're carrying a ptorp. (A scanner is handy too. <g>)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by David White:
|
||
|
||
- How can I find Stardock?
|
||
Type "V" at the main Command line, ask another player, post a universal
|
||
announcement, use Joel Downer's FINDSGA, included in TWUTIL10.ZIP, or use
|
||
Dave Myers' CLASSZER (in LDTxxx.ZIP).
|
||
|
||
- What is FedSpace for?
|
||
Any players with a non-negative alignment, less than 1000 experience points,
|
||
and less than 50 fighters can log off overnight in sectors 1-10 and the
|
||
Stardock sector completely safe from being killed by other players.
|
||
|
||
- What are the tricks to stealing?
|
||
A player with -100 or lower alignment can steal credits and goods from
|
||
ports. There is ALWAYS a chance of being busted while trying to rob a
|
||
port, but some good guideline ratios are,
|
||
|
||
your experience / 20 = holds you can steal
|
||
your experience * 10 = credits you can steal.
|
||
|
||
- What's the "steal/sell" cycle?
|
||
With a full load of equipment (or any other commodity), dock at a port that
|
||
buys that commodity and sell it to them. Then steal it back, and sell it
|
||
to them again. Repeat.
|
||
|
||
- What's the "holds bug"
|
||
A player with -100 or lower alignment who gets caught stealing 365 units of
|
||
Equ. or 660 units of Org. will be fined -32 holds (meaning the player will
|
||
GAIN 32 holds) and will lose 10% of his or her experience points. This
|
||
trick can be repeated up to a maximum of 32 holds more than the maximum
|
||
amount of holds allowed for that particular ship (e.g. 182 holds for an
|
||
Imperial StarShip (ISS), 102 for a Starmaster, etc.) These holds will be
|
||
lost as soon as the player ports, unfortunately, unless the technique below
|
||
is used.
|
||
|
||
- How can I keep an extra 32 holds on my ship?
|
||
Using the above technique, get the maximum + 32 holds on your ship. Go to
|
||
earth and get a load of colonists. Port, and steal ONE unit of organics
|
||
(or another commodity you don't plan on using any time soon). Continue to
|
||
your planet and drop off the colonists. You will now be able to trade and
|
||
steal/sell with 32 extra holds PROVIDED you do NOT try to buy, steal, or
|
||
pick up organics (or whatever commodity you chose) and you do not get
|
||
busted or destroyed, and you do not S)urrender your cargo to the Ferrengi.
|
||
|
||
- What's the "shield bug?"
|
||
A planet with a level 5 citadel and 1639 or more planetary shields cannot
|
||
be successfully invaded by other players.
|
||
|
||
- What's the fighter overloading trick?
|
||
Join a corporation, then go to the same sector with a corp member with at
|
||
least as many shields/fighters as you want. Transfer a negative amount of
|
||
fighters/shields to the corp. member. Repeat as often as you like up to a
|
||
maximum of 32,767 fighters/shields. This trick is especially useful with a
|
||
Scout Marauder, which fights at 2:1 odds. Docking at a port, however, will
|
||
cause the excess shields/fighters to vanish.
|
||
|
||
- What's the shield overloading trick?
|
||
Use the above technique, or transfer a negative amount of shields to a
|
||
citadel that already has as many ship shields (planetary shields * 10) as
|
||
you need. Docking at a port still causes you to lose any extra shields,
|
||
however.
|
||
|
||
- What are the rules to successfully Transwarping (T-warping)?
|
||
Transwarping your ship to a sector that contains at least one of your
|
||
fighters is always safe. Blind ship transwarps are possible only if the
|
||
destination sector is completely empty of ANYTHING. Blind planetary
|
||
transwarps are not possible. Ship transwarping costs 3 units of Ore per
|
||
sector jumped, and planetary transwarping costs 400 units of Ore per sector
|
||
jumped. Transwarping takes 1 turn regardless of distance traveled.
|
||
|
||
- If I'm busted, can I ever return to that port again?
|
||
Yes, your name is removed from the port's busted records in 14 day cycles
|
||
or as soon as another player is caught there, whichever comes first. Until
|
||
one or the other of these two events occurs, do not try robbing OR trading
|
||
at that port. If you divide <gamedays> by 14, and multiply any decimal rem-
|
||
ainder by 14 (round up), you'll get the number of ELAPSED days in the cur-
|
||
rent cycle.
|
||
|
||
- When can I be commissioned?
|
||
You can be commissioned if you have an alignment of at least +500.
|
||
|
||
- Can an evil player have an ISS?
|
||
You must be commissioned to purchase an ISS, but after you have it, you can
|
||
become evil and still keep the ISS. Running into any of the three Federals
|
||
(Zyrain, Clausewitz, Nelson) however, means certain death.
|
||
|
||
- Can I kill the Federals?
|
||
No. Zyrain, Clausewitz and Nelson are indestructible. However, you can
|
||
trap them in a dead-end sector by placing a fighter right outside the
|
||
dead-end, since Federals will not travel into a sector that has deployed
|
||
fighters in it. As long as the fighter stays there, all three Federals can
|
||
be trapped, though Captain Zyrain will automatically warp out of the sector
|
||
to rescue players who qualify for protection in FedSpace.
|
||
|
||
- Can a non-CEO have a Corporate Flagship?
|
||
You must be a CEO to purchase a Flagship, but you can quit as the CEO of
|
||
your corp. and keep the Flagship. You will not, however, be able to join
|
||
another corp.
|
||
|
||
- Can I be killed while my ship is cloaked?
|
||
No, while you are cloaked, you are absolutely invulnerable until your next
|
||
login (contrary to the documentation, cloaks do not lose their effect-
|
||
iveness over time.) However, if some player were to figure out which
|
||
sector you were cloaked in, he or she could mine your sector. The mines
|
||
would explode as soon as you logged back on.
|
||
|
||
- What are all the settings for my planetary defenses?
|
||
|
||
Examples:
|
||
|
||
Military Reaction level: 20% -- 20% of all the fighters on the planet will
|
||
attack (at 2:1 odds) any player who moves into your planet's sector. The
|
||
remaining 80% of the fighters will attack (at 3:1 odds) only if the player
|
||
attempts to land on your planet.
|
||
|
||
Quasar cannon sector level: 30% -- 30% of all the Ore on the planet will be
|
||
used to fire on a player entering the sector with your planet, causing 1
|
||
point of damage to the player per 3 units of Ore used.
|
||
|
||
Quasar cannon atmosphere level: 60% -- 30% of all the Ore on the planet
|
||
will be used to fire on a player who attempts to land on your planet,
|
||
causing 1 point of damage to the player per 1 unit of Ore used.
|
||
|
||
- What are the hidden options in the Stardock?
|
||
"U" -- Underground, where players with 200 or less alignment can change
|
||
their name, and post and collect bounties on other players.
|
||
"+" -- Library, useful only for determining which ships are currently
|
||
being used by the Ferrengi. Data on alien derelicts is useless.
|
||
"B" -- Single's Bar, where you can get robbed. Nothing more.
|
||
|
||
- What is the computer upgrade the Grimy Trader talks about?
|
||
It doesn't really exist. It's just a hoax.
|
||
|
||
- What is the secret message in "Vulcan Thunder?"
|
||
The secret message (if it exists) seems to have something to do with the
|
||
characters "9C." Gary Martin has hinted to its existence, but as of yet,
|
||
no one has found any significance to it.
|
||
|
||
- What's the secret to winning Tri-Cron?
|
||
Contrary to what the Grimy Trader says, the winning numbers seem to be
|
||
completely random.
|
||
|
||
- What is Computer Interrogation Mode (CIM) ?
|
||
From your "Computer Command?" prompt within TW, using the numeric keypad,
|
||
type <ALT>-200, <ALT-201>, <ALT-202>, <ALT-203>, <ALT-204>, <ALT-205>, to
|
||
get a : prompt. From there, typing "I" (without the quotes) will give you
|
||
information on all explored sectors, and "R" will give information on all
|
||
explored ports. ("Q" will quit CIM and "F" will give a path-calculator
|
||
similar to the one on your ship's computer). To use the information, open
|
||
a capture file for both sets of info, then use a utility like TWVIEW or
|
||
TWASSIST that reads the data and arranges it into something useful.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What is the tax?
|
||
|
||
As long as you have a positive alignment you will be assessed a 10% "tax"
|
||
if you have 50,000 creds or more on your ship each time you log in to the game
|
||
-- NOT just once each game day -- and in return, you are given some neato posit-
|
||
ive align points; +1 for every 1500 creds you pay in taxes.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Where do you get ftrs and how do you use them?
|
||
|
||
Ftrs are avail from five sources: SD, the three class 0 ports (Terra, Rylos
|
||
and Alpha Centauri), and any personal or corp planets. On the latter, they are
|
||
produced automatically and it is a valid end game strategy to have many "farm"
|
||
worlds that produce max ftrs from which they can "harvested."
|
||
|
||
If you buy ftrs from one of the first four places, you'll find that the
|
||
prices fluctuate on a 'prox 30 day schedule and range from a low of about 110
|
||
creds each to a high of 234. This fluctuation is based on calendar date; the
|
||
price of ftrs (and shields) is identical in all v1.03d games regardless of when
|
||
the game was started. In the "Reference" section is a chart giving the prices
|
||
of ftrs/shields vs day. (When ftrs are cheap, shields are dear and vice versa.)
|
||
|
||
Ftrs are deployable in three modes: offensive, defensive and toll. Offens-
|
||
ive ftrs will attack any hostile trader (player) who enters the sector; defens-
|
||
ive ftrs will prevent any hostile trader from entering (or remaining in) a sect-
|
||
or unless the ftrs are first attacked and destroyed (you are offered the option
|
||
to attack the defensive ftrs or retreat); toll ftrs require a toll of five creds
|
||
per ftr be paid in order to remain in or pass thru that sector (you are offered
|
||
the option to pay the toll, retreat or attack the ftrs). To collect the tolls,
|
||
you (or a corp member in the case of corp ftrs) must physically go to the sector
|
||
the ftr is in and pick up the ftr(s). If you successfully attack and destroy the
|
||
toll ftrs, you get any creds they've collected.
|
||
|
||
Hostile ftrs in a sector will destroy eprobes passing through regardless of
|
||
which mode (offensive, defensive, toll) they are set to (the ftrs will be unaf-
|
||
fected). Hostile ftrs (again regardless of mode) will also block (occlude) the
|
||
CIM report on the status of any port in that sector. The offline database util-
|
||
ities can "sense" this and will tell you that info on the known port in xxx is
|
||
unavail. This indicates that there is at least one hostile ftr in that sector;
|
||
how many ftrs and to whom they belong cannot be determined without investigat-
|
||
ion.
|
||
|
||
A valid tactic seems to be to litter the universe with single ftrs for use
|
||
as twarp beacons as well as to prevent eprobe mapping by other players or corps.
|
||
The popular wisdom seems to be that toll ftrs are fairly useless. The choice to
|
||
litter with offensive or defensive ftrs depends on the tactics and personality
|
||
of the deploying trader. It can be extremely irritating for a trader to const-
|
||
antly be attacked by hostile ftrs as he warps through the universe -- as well
|
||
as costing him damage points. However, the ftr is then lost. It's a choice one
|
||
must make with no overwhelming evidence for either side.
|
||
|
||
The max ftrs deployable in a sector without a planet is 5000. If there is a
|
||
planet in the sector, it is possible to have 30000 ftrs deployed. (It is possib-
|
||
le to use a gtorp to build a planet, deploy 30000 ftrs, then destroy the planet,
|
||
leaving 30000 ftrs in the sector.) Max ftrs on a planet surface is 32000.
|
||
|
||
Ftrs (any mode) will not affect Ferrengi ships moving into the sector. Game
|
||
generated characters (aliens) can not move into any sector that has ftrs deploy-
|
||
ed, and neither can any of the three "Feds." Ferrengi ships can not move into a
|
||
sector with a planet if there are any ftrs deployed there.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- How about mines?
|
||
|
||
A max of 99 mines can be deployed in any given sector (regardless of the
|
||
presence of a planet). Ferrengi and aliens are affected by mines, as are hostile
|
||
traders. Space mines are can only be purchased at the Hardware section on SD.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What are eprobes and how are they used?
|
||
|
||
Eprobes are obtained at SD and can be fired from anywhere to anywhere. Data
|
||
obtained from eprobes is put into your CIM just as if you'd physically traveled
|
||
that route; any unexplored warps or ports encountered will become part of your
|
||
"known universe." The data on every sector passed through and its contents is
|
||
reported to your screen (the better macro pgms will capture this data and make
|
||
use of it). They (the eprobes) are extremely fragile and when one encounters a
|
||
hostile ftr, it will be destroyed no matter what stage in its journey it is and
|
||
the fact of its destruction is reported to you. When an eprobe completes its
|
||
journey, it self destructs.
|
||
|
||
Enterprising players have written utils to generate extremely long eprobe
|
||
paths, thus easing the time and expense required to map a universe. (See the
|
||
section on Mapping for suggested algorithms.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What is "triple trading?"
|
||
|
||
Triple trading is the process of buying two products at one port and sel-
|
||
ling them at an adjacent port, buying the one product from there and selling it
|
||
at the first port (repeat as necesary). Theoretically, each transaction can be
|
||
optimised for 5xp, though practically 2xp per transaction seems to be the limit.
|
||
While the return in terms of creds isn't all that much, xp can be fairly rapid-
|
||
ly gained. Most of the trading macro packages have a triple trading mode. An
|
||
interesting variation that uses less turns is to move to a class 7 (sss) port
|
||
and buy selected amts of each product, optimising each trade for max xp, then
|
||
jettison all of the product bought, port again and buy for max xp again. When
|
||
done properly in a ScoMar (25 holds max), this reportedly results in the great-
|
||
est amount of xp gained per cred expended possible.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Align and xp changes ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- by Stephen Whitis:
|
||
|
||
-100 alignment, or lower, alignment required to rob or steal.
|
||
+500 alignment, or higher, alignment required for a federal commission.
|
||
+1000 alignment, or higher, alignment required to buy an ISS.
|
||
-1 alignment, or lower, the feds will take an ISS away if they
|
||
catch you in it.
|
||
+200 alignment, or lower, alignment required to get into the underground.
|
||
0 alignment, or greater, alignment required to collect bounties at the
|
||
fed police station.
|
||
|
||
Other than these, alignment doesn't matter much.
|
||
|
||
Some utilities can make modifications, but those are stock.
|
||
|
||
Experience matters only in that evils can steal more with reasonable safety
|
||
if they have a certain amount of experience. If they have xp/20 = nr of holds
|
||
when stealing product, or 7 * xp when robbing creds, they are fine. Normaly,
|
||
once an evil has that much, he doesn't have to worry about it any more.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Note that there is some dispute over the amt of xp to use when steal-
|
||
ing product or robbing creds; esp the latter. Figures from xp * 6 all the
|
||
way to xp * 10 are seen. More than xp * 10 seems to be unwise; I use the
|
||
figure of xp * 7. For the number of holds to steal, xp/20 seems to be the
|
||
accepted limit and is the most used level. This figures out to 1400 xp for
|
||
a StaMas (70 holds) and 3000 xp for an ISS (150 holds).
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Jim Bianchi:
|
||
|
||
To get the initial +500 align required for a fed commission (and an
|
||
ISS) you can kill evil players; you can kill evil game generated chars; you
|
||
can post bounties on other evil players; you can build ports; you can build
|
||
planets; you can upgrade ports; or you can pay taxes.
|
||
|
||
The surest method is prob to post a bounty on another evil player.
|
||
You get +1 align for each 1000 creds posted. This is esp effective if you
|
||
have found an evil player who is vulnerable -- you can go to SD, place the
|
||
bounty, blow up the evil player, and return to collect the bounty you post-
|
||
ed (plus any other bounties on that player). Your align goes up for posting
|
||
the bounty in the first place and again for killing the evil player. (You can
|
||
even post a bounty on yourself -- if you do something to make yourself evil
|
||
first.)
|
||
|
||
To gain neg align, you can kill good players; you can kill good game
|
||
generated chars; you can post a hit contract on a good player in the under-
|
||
ground; you can destroy starports; you can jettison colonists; or you can
|
||
destroy planets.
|
||
|
||
The formula for the amt of align shift when killing other players or
|
||
game generated chars is:
|
||
|
||
Same align -- you get 1/4 their align subtracted from yours
|
||
Different align -- you get 1/2 their align added to yours
|
||
|
||
You can land on Terra (or any populated planet) with empty holds, take
|
||
on a load of colonists, warp to the closest non FedSpace sector and jettis-
|
||
on them for a shift of -1 align per hold of colonists jettisoned. In v1.03
|
||
games, you can repeatedly quit the game, come back and do this again and
|
||
gain neg align each time. In v1.03d games, you can only get neg align once
|
||
per game day.
|
||
|
||
Also, the first time you pass by a trader with an opposite align
|
||
without attacking him, your own align will go in the opposite direction.
|
||
It has happened that a newbie has not attacked an evil (uncloaked) trader
|
||
and has had his own align drop -- and can't figure out why. Ditto for the
|
||
opposite align on both. If you attack with one ftr, you'll be safe. It
|
||
isn't needful to blow him all the way up, just to attack him. (This only
|
||
works once per session for obvious reasons.)
|
||
|
||
The fastest method is prob to post a hit contract on another player. You
|
||
get -4 align for every 1000 creds posted. This is esp effective if you've found
|
||
a player who is vulnerable -- you can go to SD, place a contract, blow up the
|
||
good player, and return to collect the contract you posted (plus any other con-
|
||
tracts on that player). Your align goes down for posting the contract in the
|
||
first place and again for killing the player. (You can even post a hit contract
|
||
on yourself -- it's a bit difficult to collect, though. <grin>)
|
||
|
||
If you go to the underground and repeatedly attempt to enter and give
|
||
the wrong password each time, eventually you'll be knocked unconcious and
|
||
all creds you have stolen (deposit all creds in the galbank or leave them
|
||
in a citadel first). Keep attempting to enter and you'll be killed and ret-
|
||
urned to the BBS. The next day, when you log into the game, you'll be in a
|
||
ScoMar, with 0 align and 0 xp. All personal and corp assets will be undist-
|
||
urbed. If you are a CEO and have a CorFla, sell it first, get a ship with
|
||
minimum holds or use your existing ship to "moth" an enemies planet and get
|
||
killed in an <esc> pod.
|
||
|
||
To gain xp, you can kill anyone; triple trade; create or blow up
|
||
starports; create or "bust planets." For evil traders, the latter course
|
||
is prob the fastest and surest method. You buy a gtorp (25,000 creds) and
|
||
an adet (15,000 creds), "take them outside and set them off." Which is to
|
||
say that you use the gtorp right at SD and then land on the newly created
|
||
planet and destroy it with the adet. You'll get 75xp for creating the plan-
|
||
et and 50xp for destroying it, for a total of 125xp. The align change will
|
||
be +10 for creating it and -50 for destroying it for a net change of -40.
|
||
Total cost per iteration: 40,000 creds.
|
||
|
||
It should be noted that once you're evil, planet creation shifts align
|
||
by -10 instead of +10.
|
||
|
||
Blowing up ports is an effective way to gain both xp and neg align.
|
||
You'll get 50xp and -50 align for each port destroyed. I typically use 1000
|
||
ftrs from an ISS, CorFla or a StaMas on ports with no shielding. I've enco-
|
||
untered a few with "class one" shielding -- on these I use 2000 ftrs. I've
|
||
not been zapped yet. Typically, I loose 'prox 55-80% of the ftrs when at-
|
||
tacking "no shielded" ports, and from 40-75% when doing the "class one"
|
||
shielded ports.
|
||
|
||
One way to gain xp, pos align and creds is to attack Ferrengi ftrs,
|
||
assault traders or Ferrengal itself. I once found myself dab in the mid-
|
||
dle of a cloud of Ferrengi ftrs. When the smoke cleared, I'd knocked down
|
||
close on 5000 ftrs and was in my trusty <esc> pod, headed for SD, with more
|
||
than enough pos align to get a federal commission and sufficient creds for
|
||
an ISS. Wheee! Unfortunately, this was my first ISS and not only didn't I
|
||
know how to drive one, I couldn't fight one effectively, and got bounced by
|
||
several angry Ferrengi on a blood hunt on the way home. I finally got there
|
||
in an <esc> pod. Had I had this file then, things would've gone quite dif-
|
||
ferently. At any rate, as a means of gaining xp, align and creds, deliber-
|
||
ately attacking Ferrengi isn't acceptable for many reasons, most having to
|
||
do with the cost/benifit ratio. The bounties paid you for killing Ferrengi
|
||
ftrs simply aren't enough to cover the replacement cost of the ftrs you
|
||
expend. And there is always the chance that your attack won't succeed and
|
||
YOU'LL be the one in an <esc> pod -- in which case, you'll have to add the
|
||
repl cost of the ship you were in to the equation. However...
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Mike Magero
|
||
|
||
Ok, in your 25 hold ScoMar, you take some credits and warp on over to a class 7
|
||
port. You then buy 14 ore for 2 pts, 8 org for 2 points, and 3 equip for 2 more
|
||
points. On the average you can expect 5 xp total. You then jettison the whole
|
||
pile out the hatch and do it again. I use a script to run this and it works out
|
||
to 75-80 credits per exp point. Much more cost effective than any other method I
|
||
know about. In 100 turns I can build 500-600 exp at a cost of around 45,000
|
||
credits. We use this to get enough exp to run the steal/sell loops by day 2-3.
|
||
Of course you can then rob the credits back from the port further reducing the
|
||
cost of xp.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph
|
||
|
||
If you self destruct your experience goes to 0. If your alignment is
|
||
positive your alignment goes to -10. If your alignment is negative it is
|
||
cut in half. You are out of the game for 2 days.
|
||
|
||
If your ship is destroyed attacking a port you first lose 25 experience
|
||
for being destroyed then you lose 10% of what is left. If you lose a pod
|
||
by attacking a port you lose 25 experience then lose 50% of what is
|
||
left. You lose 5 alignment for attacking the port and you are out of the
|
||
game for 1 day.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* by STEPHEN WHITIS
|
||
|
||
> Does anyone know of a real quick way to get pos align (say 7000+)
|
||
> down to neg align?
|
||
|
||
How much money do you have? How much experience? Are you planning on
|
||
running an evil ISS once you turn evil?
|
||
|
||
I know a way an evil player (doesn't matter *how* evil) can turn good, get
|
||
an ISS, and turn evil again for a few million credits. I suspect a variant
|
||
on that would work. I'll post the evil version, but as I think about it, I
|
||
don't see any reason it wouldn't work pretty much straight out for a good
|
||
trader. If you don't want the evil ISS, you can skip that part. But unless
|
||
Aedit or something is keeping you from using the evil ISS, I think you
|
||
should get one. If you don't know the tricks for keeping an evil ISS, then
|
||
ask, and I'll post about it.
|
||
|
||
I haven't used this, but I trust my source (Joel Downer). The biggest
|
||
problem is that I might not remember it exactly right...
|
||
|
||
The evil version: Get killed trying to enter the underground without using
|
||
the correct password. Do this near the end of your turns for the day. The
|
||
next day, you'll start with 0 exp, 0 alignment and a default ship. Post a
|
||
reward at stardock on an evil trader... 1000 credits = 1 alignment point,
|
||
so you'll need 500,000 credits for this. If you know of a easy to kill evil
|
||
trader, and where he is at, you can go kill him after you get the ISS, and
|
||
collect the reward you posted (plus anything the Feds have posted on him)
|
||
before you turn evil again.
|
||
|
||
Once you have +500 alignment, enter the FedStation on stardock, and
|
||
ask for a commission. That will put you at +1000 alignment. Go buy the ISS.
|
||
If you need to kill off the evil trader you posted on, this is the time to
|
||
do it. (If you want, you could have a corp member with 0 ftrs and 0 shi-
|
||
elds, nothing on board to speak of, waiting, knowing you would kill him.)
|
||
Now, you've got an ISS, no exp to speak of, and positive 1000 alignment.
|
||
Stock your ISS with everything it can carry. You can get fighters/shields
|
||
elsewhere, but get your eprobes, cloaks, scanner, etc now. In an evil ISS
|
||
you don't want to come to stardock any more often than you have to. Before
|
||
you start turning evil, post a single fighter at every entrance to Star-
|
||
dock, to keep the Feds from walking in and finding you there. Once you are
|
||
evil, if you run into a fed, you lose your ISS, no questions asked.
|
||
|
||
To turn evil again, start busting planets. Buy max planets & max atomic
|
||
detonators. Build a planet, blow it up. Repeat. This will give you xp and
|
||
neg align each time you do it. Do that until your alignment is under +200.
|
||
Then go into the underground, post a bounty on a good trader (preferably
|
||
one you know where to go kill). In the underground, 250 credits = 1 neg
|
||
alignment point. You need to reach -100, where you can start stealing. By
|
||
the time you've busted enough planets to drop your alignment, you'll have
|
||
enough experience (I think) to rob 150 holds safely.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Having recently been in a situation similar to the above (a friend was
|
||
at plus 4000 align and wanted to join my (evil) corp), I'd like to point
|
||
out that there is a threshold of positive align beyond which it is impos-
|
||
sible to get into the UG (+200). Not only can't you get IN, you can't even
|
||
get KILLED there. A nasty looking Corelian will bar your way but that is
|
||
all he'll do.
|
||
|
||
Busting planets strictly for a large negative align shift is tedious
|
||
in the extreme. In spite of being almost prohibitively expensive (you'll
|
||
pay 25,000 for a gtorp and 15,000 for an adet, making a total of 40,000
|
||
creds, This will get you -40 align points -- or -1 per 1000 creds), it is
|
||
about the safest, fastest way; at least until it becomes possible to enter
|
||
the UG. Planet busting IS a good way to gain xp in order to be able to
|
||
steal. Of course, the neg align is nice, too, but that isn't what it PRIM-
|
||
ARILY is for. In order to get to 0 align from +7000, 175 planets will need
|
||
to be busted. At 40,000 creds each, that works out to seven million creds
|
||
-- for planets and adets alone. (Not even counting the cost of buying and
|
||
outfit- ing an ISS or posting hit contracts on good players to bring your
|
||
align back to evil.) Busting planets to reach 3000xp is much easier.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
One way to lower (or raise) align is to blow up game generated chars.
|
||
Aliens "enter" the game via SD. Kill one and another will appear at SD to
|
||
replace him. On one game, one of the routes out of SD is a one way warp to
|
||
a sector with only one exit. I've put a ftr trap in the second sector and
|
||
about once a week, I'll load up on ftrs and go have a look. Typically three
|
||
or five aliens will be trapped there, unable to go on because of the ftrs
|
||
and unable to go back because of the one way warp in. Determining which al-
|
||
iens to blow up so that your align moves in the desired direction is fairly
|
||
easy by just reading their titles. If you're still unsure, the Crai has a
|
||
listing of all the current good and evil game generated chars. If you put
|
||
ftrs in each of the sectors leading out of SD, go blow up a game generated
|
||
char and return to SD to remove one ftr, eventually a new one will move
|
||
out. Of course, you have no control over what you get -- it might be some
|
||
poor slob in a MerCru with 20 ftrs or it might be the three-legged Grand
|
||
High Poo Bah from the planet Xyzzy in a Battleship with 15,000 ftrs, max
|
||
shields, and loaded to the gunnels with corbomite.
|
||
|
||
Truly, altering one's align direction by anything over 1000 points is
|
||
a procedure which is time consumingly tedious, expensive and potentially
|
||
hazardous. It CAN be done (but not very easily) and it can be done in many
|
||
different ways (some of them mutually incompatible). It is not a project
|
||
which should be undertaken lightly.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Keeping an evil ISS ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
-- by Jim Bianchi:
|
||
|
||
The ISS (Imperial StarShip) is considered to be the most potent ship
|
||
in the TradeWars universe because of its combo of 150 holds, twarp drive,
|
||
and the ability to carry and use a photon torpedo. It can also carry a lot
|
||
of shields (2000), ftrs (30,000) and mines (150).
|
||
|
||
A player who is "good" can just ignore most of what follows. Much of
|
||
it is concerned with avoiding the three Feds, who will repossess an evil
|
||
ISS on sight.
|
||
|
||
To get an ISS requires the player to have a minimum +500 align and to
|
||
go to the FedPolice sta at SD and apply for a commission, after which their
|
||
align will automagically increase to +1000 and they'll be permitted to buy
|
||
an ISS.
|
||
|
||
To get the initial +500 align, you can kill other evil players or game
|
||
generated traders ("Annoyances" or Ferrengi), create planets or starports
|
||
or you can "buy yourself good" by posting a bounty on an evil player in the
|
||
Fed Police sta at SD. The first method is expensive in terms of ftrs and
|
||
shields used and can be somewhat uncertain. The second and third methods
|
||
are simply not cost-effective for these purposes and can potentially result
|
||
in assets that can be exploited by hostile forces. The last method, posting
|
||
a bounty on evil players, is the way most seem to do it.
|
||
|
||
When posting a bounty on an evil player, of course, it's nice if you
|
||
know definitely where one is, for then you can go and kill him, then run
|
||
back to SD to collect it. BTW, if you blow away a player who has a "good"
|
||
align, you might want to check in the UG to see if there has been any hit
|
||
contracts placed on him; or if he is evil, at the Fed Police sta to see if
|
||
there are any bounties.
|
||
|
||
It's expensive and not really cost effective, but I once found myself dab
|
||
in the middle of Ferrengal, taking out Ferrengi ftrs by the bushel, as well as
|
||
Ferrengi ships. When finally I managed to disengage, my <esc> pod was function-
|
||
ing normally and I was headed back to SD. I noticed when I did "I" that I now
|
||
had something like +600 align and enough creds to get an ISS straight off, which
|
||
I did. On the way back to my home sector, I was bounced by four angry Ferrengi
|
||
who "have been looking for you, HooMan!" Fortunately, my <esc> pod was still
|
||
functioning normally.. <sigh> (They're STILL looking for me; diamonds and
|
||
Ferrengi blood feuds are forever..)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
Keeping an Imperial StarShip when evil:
|
||
|
||
Avoid FedSpace as completely as possible. *Never* travel through sector
|
||
1-10, and only travel to the StarDock using the strategy described below.
|
||
Be *very careful* in all areas adjacent to FedSpace, and spend as little
|
||
time on the Major Space Lanes as possible.
|
||
|
||
Deploy single toll fighters wherever possible when you travel. The Feds
|
||
cannot travel through sectors with fighters in them, so (a) when you're in
|
||
a sector with a fighter in it, you are *completely* safe from the Feds, and
|
||
(b) the more fighters you have scattered outside the Major Space Lanes, the
|
||
less the Feds will be able to *travel* outside the Major Space Lanes.
|
||
Imprisoning Admirals Nelson and Clausewitz would be wonderful, but an evil
|
||
StarShip captain should *never* try it him/herself. It's altogether too
|
||
dangerous.
|
||
|
||
Travel by TransWarp whenever possible. When you *must* travel by convent-
|
||
ional warp, use the following pattern: move-deploy-scan, deploying a toll
|
||
fighter immediately in each sector you enter. Whenever you visit the Star-
|
||
Dock, buy a full complement of ether probes and cloaks: ether probes are
|
||
necessary for blind TransWarp, and cloaks can bail you out if you get stuck
|
||
somewhere (even Zyrain can't attack a cloaked ship!). Carry at least 750
|
||
shields and keep mine disruptors, in case someone tries to mine you to
|
||
death; don't carry more than a few thousand fighters -- they won't help
|
||
you if you run into the Feds. <grin>
|
||
|
||
Find out how many entrances the StarDock has -- usually, it'll have one
|
||
or two. If it has one, the approach to the StarDock is pretty simple: fire
|
||
an ether probe into the StarDock, blind TransWarp into the *completely
|
||
empty* sector nearest SGA. Deploy a fighter immediately, warp in, and do
|
||
your business. If you see one of the Federals at or near the StarDock, put
|
||
off your business until he leaves the vicinity -- you may want to restock
|
||
your shields or holds at Rylos or Alpha Centauri. Don't try to deploy a
|
||
fighter AT the StarDock; DO deploy a fighter at Rylos or Alpha Centauri
|
||
when you go there.
|
||
|
||
*NEVER*, unless you have some special reason (e.g., hiding the path to
|
||
your planet), remove your fighters when you're done in a sector. Forget
|
||
about the 200 credits. You won't miss them.
|
||
|
||
*BEWARE OF MARKER BEACONS*!!! Marker beacons and wandering aliens are
|
||
the two greatest dangers to blind TransWarp. Never place them, and destroy
|
||
them when you can.
|
||
|
||
Don't take unnecessary risks with corbomite. If someone leaves you bait
|
||
-- e.g., if a hated enemy parks in a major transit sector with 0 fighters
|
||
in a Scout Marauder -- politely decline the invitation. Well, not *TOO*
|
||
politely. Leave 99 mines in the sector to let him/her know you still
|
||
care... ;>
|
||
|
||
When you choose stealing sites, look for places where a port that sells
|
||
equipment, a port that sells fuel ore, and a port that buys equipment are
|
||
in close proximity. TWView and my "EVILPAIR" utility are both useful for
|
||
finding these ports.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Quoting Dan Roseen:
|
||
|
||
Here's some evil ISS tips we have in our trainer:
|
||
|
||
EVIL IMPERIAL STARSHIP (EVIL ISS):
|
||
|
||
A trader that received a Federal Commission and bought an ISS will have
|
||
an evil ISS by keeping their ship and changing their alignment to negative.
|
||
Keeping an evil ISS requires taking precautions to ensure that you don't
|
||
move your ship into a sector with a Fed in it, because any one of the
|
||
three Feds will destroy your ship immediately if this happens.
|
||
|
||
The following precautions will help you keep your evil ISS by helping
|
||
you avoid the Fed ships (keep in mind that the precautions listed are
|
||
'above and beyond' normal precautions like carrying cloaks and protecting
|
||
yourself against fully mined sectors).
|
||
|
||
- Deploy a defensive fighter everywhere you go (do not attempt to deploy
|
||
a fighter in Federation sectors 1-10 or the Stardock, in fact avoid
|
||
these sectors as much as possible). In most cases, deploying the
|
||
fighter will be the first thing you do after you have scanned the
|
||
sector and moved into it. Toll fighters should rarely be used
|
||
because many traders will either pay them and leave you mines for
|
||
when you transwarp, or destroy them anyway. The Feds will not move
|
||
into sectors that have a deployed fighter or a mine.
|
||
|
||
- Be sure you have a transwarp drive. Use your transwarp drive as
|
||
much as possible for your transportation. Always carry fuel when
|
||
going into suspicious territory.
|
||
|
||
- Know how to blind transwarp. Blind transwarping is usually safer
|
||
than single-stepping your evil ISS through sectors without deployed
|
||
fighters, and more efficient.
|
||
|
||
- Always have MORE than 37,000 credits on your ship. If you have no fuel
|
||
to transwarp out of a hazardous situation, you will be able to build a
|
||
class 4 port, steal enough fuel to transwarp, and continue with your
|
||
turns, hopefully ending up in a safer location, and won't have to use
|
||
another 25,000 credits to replace the cloak you would need to use if
|
||
you cloaked hoping you might be in a safer situation later in the day.
|
||
Since all ports under construction have products when they are first
|
||
created, you can immediately steal the fuel you need (you are evil,
|
||
you don't have to wait until the port is open for normal trading).
|
||
|
||
After stealing the fuel, you can easily destroy the port to deny its
|
||
use to hostile forces and increase your own xp and negative align.
|
||
Initial Port construction DOES NOT REQUIRE a planet in the same sect-
|
||
or. Upgrading (and "opening for business") DOES.
|
||
|
||
- v1.03(d) BUG: A trader must have more credits than the cost of the
|
||
port in order for TW to let the trader create the port. For example,
|
||
a 30,000 credit port would require 30,001 credits or more onboard,
|
||
even though only the 30,000 credits would be used for port construct-
|
||
ion.
|
||
|
||
- Use a good TW database utility. In addition to the regular
|
||
advantages a TW database will give you, a TW database program will
|
||
help you tremendously in avoiding sectors that Feds can move in.
|
||
|
||
- Always use your scanner unless you are absolutely sure that the next
|
||
sector is safe (e.g. if you have just been there and you know there
|
||
is a fighter or mine in the sector). Be aware of the different
|
||
densities of the Fed ships.
|
||
|
||
The Fed ship densities are:
|
||
Captain Zyrain . . . . 489
|
||
Admiral Nelson . . . . 462
|
||
Admiral Clausewitz . . 512
|
||
|
||
- When going to the Stardock, first attempt to send an etherprobe there
|
||
to take a preliminary look for Feds. If you see any in the vicinity
|
||
of the Stardock, try to hold off your business there until a later
|
||
time or date. When at the Stardock, fill up on etherprobes, cloaks
|
||
mine disruptors, and mines so you can make as few visits as possible.
|
||
|
||
- Use the two class 0 ports that are not in Fedspace sectors (Rylos
|
||
and Alpha Centauri) as much as possible when you want to get class 0
|
||
items. (Holds, ftrs, shields.)
|
||
|
||
- If you must go to the Stardock, and other traders seem to continually
|
||
have Zyrain trapped at the Stardock (or other Feds) with deployed
|
||
toll fighters, you can either try desperately to get into TW
|
||
immediately after maintenance or you can release the Feds yourself.
|
||
To release them yourself, create a route of mines from the
|
||
Stardock where there are fighters. You may be creating a tunnel for
|
||
the Feds to move in so you will need to make sure there are not any
|
||
ways for the Feds to get out of this tunnel and end up in your face.
|
||
And then go next to Zyrain's sector (remember you MUST be in a sector
|
||
that has a fighter and a mine) and destroy the fighter. Then go to
|
||
the next sector away from the Stardock and disrupt the mine. Continue
|
||
this, until you lead the Fed away from the Stardock enough to where
|
||
you cannot run into him when going around him to the Stardock. You
|
||
may have to cycle throught the command prompt many times until he
|
||
warps into the sector you want. You can safely watch him move into
|
||
the desired sector with your scanner since you will still be in a
|
||
sector that is protected by a mine and/or fighter. You may want
|
||
to block his path to the Stardock while you are at it, however, if
|
||
you have made it safely to the Stardock and get off the Stardock and
|
||
notice a Fed has moved into the sector, realize that he won't attack
|
||
you at that moment, but you are strongly advised that your next move
|
||
is to transwarp immediately out of the Fed's vicinity.
|
||
|
||
- Have at least one other trader without an evil ISS that can help you.
|
||
If you have an ally you can trust, your ally can help move Zyrain to
|
||
different parts of the universe by starting to attack a trader that
|
||
is safe in Fedspace, and then changing their mind when Zyrain
|
||
warps in to protect the trader. A corp partner without an evil ISS
|
||
can help with this also, and can additionally help with things like
|
||
getting colonists from Terra, buying mines from the Stardock, etc.
|
||
|
||
- Realize that without a trusted helper, and without a safe home, that
|
||
a lone evil ISS will most likely have very difficult times against
|
||
good competition, because the the trader needs to cloak or have a
|
||
safe place to rest the ship.
|
||
|
||
- Your helper can also help you out considerably by trapping Admiral
|
||
Nelson and/or (preferably 'and') Admiral Clausewitz so they cannot
|
||
move about the universe. They can be trapped with deployed mines
|
||
and/or fighters. Captain Zyrain will transwarp over a trap when
|
||
a Fed-protected trader needs his protection.
|
||
|
||
- If you are going into an enemy sector that appears to be of some
|
||
special value to your enemy, and you suspect it to have one or more
|
||
other warps into it, and if you cannot check out the contents of the
|
||
other warp(s), use a photon when going in so the fighters remain in
|
||
the sector. Your enemy may have one or more of the Feds trapped in
|
||
an adjacent sector and if you destroy the fighters you will be in a
|
||
very precarious position.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
Some additional comments. First of all, as I probably said in
|
||
EVILSTAR.TXT, if you're not comfortable with ether-probing and blind
|
||
TransWarp, don't use an evil I.S.S. I have had people disagree with me,
|
||
but in my personal opinion (a) intelligent use of blind TransWarp is
|
||
necessary to keep the ship against any competition worth beating, and
|
||
(b) blind TransWarp is the biggest reason to buy the ship in the first
|
||
place. It can save you 15-18 moves a day -- even more if you're
|
||
following up destroyed probes in search of a planet. Without blind
|
||
TransWarp, the I.S.S. is a less efficient stealing ship than the
|
||
StarMaster; with it, the I.S.S. is much *more* efficient. (And yes,
|
||
I'd be willing to argue that with anyone who disagrees. <g>)
|
||
|
||
Second, the main difference between playing in an evil I.S.S. and
|
||
playing in another ship is that you've got to pay more attention to
|
||
every move and choice in the evil StarShip. I assume you already
|
||
density-scan wherever you go, and I know you're comfortable with
|
||
database utilities. You also have to make a lot of cost-benefit
|
||
decisions. For example, if you don't have good competition, it's always
|
||
wise to deploy a fighter in the sector where you cloak, because
|
||
(assuming you're not in an MSL) doing so virtually guarantees that you
|
||
will not have a Fed waiting for you when you log in. Against a smart
|
||
enemy, though, the fighter may do more harm than good. Is it safe to
|
||
cloak at your stealing site? Maybe not, even if your ship is named "The
|
||
Merchant Marines" (it's possible to track "The Merchant Marines" using
|
||
date docked; it's just harder and more expensive). Is it better to
|
||
cloak a couple sectors away, with no fighters in the sector?
|
||
|
||
Against the very shrewdest opponent, you may even want to take the precaut-
|
||
ion of TransWarping on your last turn and cloaking in the sector to which
|
||
you TransWarped. Why? If your enemy creates a multisector trap for you, and
|
||
you're forced to retreat as soon as you uncloak, you will retreat into the
|
||
*last sector visited*, even if that sector is halfway across the universe.
|
||
Sound arcane? By an interesting series of coincidences, that feature of the
|
||
game saved my ship once when I was playing against an extremely devious
|
||
enemy named Tony Cichan.
|
||
|
||
An intelligent enemy will probably make the elimination of your StarShip
|
||
one of his/her top priorities. If you don't have teammates, you will
|
||
have to show extreme care around the StarDock, and *extreme* care if you
|
||
need to invade a planet -- what better defense for a planet than herding
|
||
Clausewitz and Nelson into the sector and trapping them with a fighter?
|
||
An enemy may also create planets directly off FedSpace, banking on your
|
||
reluctance to travel through sectors 1-10 -- someone did that to me in
|
||
the last game I played, and I barely caught on in time to keep him from
|
||
putting together something defensible. What you're doing is assuming an
|
||
enormous vulnerability in exchange for a ton of freedom. Against a weak
|
||
enemy, you'll have no trouble covering up the vulnerability. Against a
|
||
good enemy, you've got to do everything you can to exploit the freedom,
|
||
because the vulnerability will nag at you.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Suggested tactics ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
Question: In a new game, what should be your goal in the first few days?
|
||
|
||
Let's assume a corporate strategy, for a corp of 3-5 players, to keep
|
||
this simple. (That's what I've usually been playing these days anyway.)
|
||
Let's also assume that we're playing a game with *no* treaties or rules
|
||
about the shield bug.
|
||
|
||
I plan on playing evil wherever I play. I expect to find the StarDock
|
||
the first day of the game -- if it isn't displayed in the Game Status
|
||
screen, I or one of my corp-mates will run FINDSGA to locate it. As
|
||
soon as we find StarDock, we trade in our Merchant Cruisers for Scout
|
||
Marauders (with the trade-in value of the average Merchant, you can buy
|
||
a Scout with 25 holds and a density scanner, and have a little left over
|
||
with which to go out to dinner <grin>). The Scout is the single best
|
||
ship in the early stages because of its move rate.
|
||
|
||
My choice from that point depends on the game configuration. If
|
||
FedSpace is open to squatters, my teammates and I will spend the first
|
||
3 - 4 days parking in FedSpace and working trade pairs to build up
|
||
experience. I like to use the evil Imperial StarShip, so I will try to
|
||
upgrade to a StarMaster the second day, a Mule the third or fourth, get
|
||
my commission by the fifth or sixth day, and keep the StarShip from then
|
||
on. My teammates will typically turn evil by the fourth day (after you
|
||
have about 375 experience, stealing will be *substantially* more
|
||
profitable than trading); one way I'm likely to get a quick commission
|
||
is to coordinate logins with one of my future teammates so that I can
|
||
blow my *future teammate* up.
|
||
|
||
Objectives for the first 4 - 7 days (depending on the turn rate): to get
|
||
myself into an Imperial StarShip with slightly less than 1,000 experience,
|
||
and to get the team members who *won't* be in StarShips stealing in Star-
|
||
Masters with at least 1,100 experience. We do *not* usually set aside turns
|
||
for exploration; when we need to find new trade pairs or dead ends, we use
|
||
ether probes.
|
||
|
||
Objectives for the next 2 - 4 days: to build a well-concealed planet
|
||
and stock it with 3,000,000 colonists. I will deploy a fighter in a
|
||
dead-end sector and create a planet there. I will frequently ask my
|
||
future evil teammates to deploy fighters and mines *in the sector
|
||
immediately adjacent* to the dead-end. The fighters and mines protect
|
||
the planet; I enter and exit the sector using TransWarp.
|
||
|
||
Objective for the succeeding 1 - 3 days: to assemble the corporation in
|
||
final form. I dump colonists to turn evil, start stealing conservatively,
|
||
and "bust planets" (create and destroy empty planets) to try to build my
|
||
experience up to 2,250, where I can steal 150 holds. My teammates steal
|
||
aggressively.
|
||
|
||
Objective for the succeeding three weeks: to build a planet to level
|
||
five, preventing our enemies from building or defending a planet to a
|
||
level II citadel. We use ether probes and search aggressively whenever
|
||
new citadels appear in the game status screen (find as many uses as you
|
||
can for TWView's OFFLINE program, using version 0.91 if you can; you
|
||
also may want to look at my FINDHOLE utility). Because of my p-missile
|
||
capabilities, I can destroy *any* planet that doesn't have a level II
|
||
citadel at a trivial cost. We upgrade our single planet aggressively,
|
||
placing the maximum defenses on it at any given time (32,000 fighters;
|
||
1639 shields the day it turns level V). If the relative strengths of
|
||
the teams in the game justify the move, we may invade Ferrengal and
|
||
either (a) destroy it, or (b) defend it, to prevent our enemies from
|
||
seizing a ready-made level III citadel.
|
||
|
||
End-game objectives: If we have a level V citadel, and we can prevent
|
||
our enemies from building or defending a planet, we expect to control
|
||
the game. We continue to steal full-speed, and stockpile money in our
|
||
shield-bugged citadel until the combination of our stealing and treasury
|
||
interest is overwhelming.
|
||
|
||
Through this process, we probably spend 95% of our turns stealing from
|
||
ports. We use the five-point stealing cycle, but we don't otherwise
|
||
worry about experience unless our score is low enough to interfere with
|
||
our stealing. We kill only when absolutely necessary: we expect
|
||
competant opponents to stay cloaked unless they have a reason to *want*
|
||
to be attacked.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Stephen Whitis:
|
||
|
||
> Can someone tell me a successful way of earning money and ruling the
|
||
> universe in the shortest time possible?
|
||
|
||
The info below doesn't discuss using holds-bug, but if no unbug utilities
|
||
are running, you should consider it. Later, after you have a citadel, you
|
||
should run CMH bug (again, assuming no unbug utilities are running.)
|
||
|
||
Read the FIDO-TradeWars echo daily. You'll learn a lot there. When you
|
||
ask questions, try to be specific, and try to read the FAQ first. Save a
|
||
copy of the FAQ for later reference.
|
||
|
||
Get a copy of TWAssist, TWView or a similar utility and use them. You
|
||
can't be competitive in a quality game without them. These are utilities
|
||
which parse out the ton of information and make it useful. See the end of
|
||
this section. Also look for TWTIPS12, a collection of tip files for TW's
|
||
which covers most of the bugs and basic strategy.
|
||
|
||
If possible, try to join a game that hasn't been going long. A game
|
||
that's been around for awhile is hard (or impossible) to succeed in if the
|
||
players who were in it at the beginning are any good at all. You might
|
||
learn some things in that situation (that's how I started) but to win, you
|
||
really need to get in near the begining and PLAY EVERY DAY.
|
||
|
||
DON'T SELF-DESTRUCT! There is always a better solution. You don't get to
|
||
start from scratch if you self destruct, and you'll have to sit out of the
|
||
game for two days, so it's not worth it. If you don't know where stardock
|
||
is, and get stuck in an escape pod, attack a port at the end of your turns
|
||
for the day. The next day, you'll start in a scout.
|
||
|
||
DON'T ATTACK ALIENS OR FERRENGI! They are a distraction. Attacking, or
|
||
running from Ferrengi ships will put a grudge against you, and you will
|
||
probably regret it later.
|
||
|
||
Don't give up. Everyone gets blown up from time to time, and when you are
|
||
learning the game, it can happen quite often. Learn from each mistake,
|
||
ask questions, read the FIDO-TW echo, and come back for revenge!
|
||
|
||
The docs are available throughout the game at the main menu, and some
|
||
sysops have them available for DL. Capture them, read them. But beware
|
||
that the docs are sometimes wrong.
|
||
|
||
Fedspace includes sectors 1-10 and the sector with Stardock. No other
|
||
sectors are fedspace, regardless of the fact that someone may have created
|
||
a beacon which claims a sector is fedspace.
|
||
|
||
The first day you play, your #1 goal is to find the stardock. Use the V
|
||
command at the main menu to see if it's listed. If not, run FINDSGA
|
||
(distributed as part of TWUTIL10.*), a utility written by Joel Downer
|
||
which often helps locate it. If that doesn't work, try posting a public
|
||
msg asking for the location (or private messages to traders in any ship
|
||
other than an escape pod or the default merchant ship. Players in scouts
|
||
may have gotten them due to getting an escape pod blown up.) Warping over
|
||
long distances, with ANSI on so you can tell which sectors you haven't
|
||
visited yet, will usually help you find it, as it usually has one or two
|
||
warps in and five or six warps out, and that makes for a fairly high-traf-
|
||
fic sector. If you have to look for it this way, the sectors you explore
|
||
will be useful later, and perhaps you'll find some good trade pairs. Don't
|
||
explore randomly. Turn on ANSI, and travel down long paths with lots of
|
||
red (unexplored) sectors using the autowarp.
|
||
|
||
As soon as you locate the Stardock, trade in your ship for a scout. It
|
||
won't have a lot of holds, fighters, or shields, but it has a high turn
|
||
ratio. If you drop your fighters in the sector just outside the sector
|
||
containing stardock, you can pick them up after trading ships. Fighters
|
||
don't have much trade in value, so that saves you some money.
|
||
|
||
Buy a scout (for the high turn rate), maximum holds (25), and you can
|
||
probably afford a density scanner, which is worth the money. Don't buy
|
||
anything else the first time you are there unless you've already been
|
||
trading while you hunted for stardock. Try to put a little money in the
|
||
bank on stardock, for emergency use. Eventually, have 100,000 there.
|
||
|
||
If you are planning on playing Evil (recommended) then find a port which
|
||
will buy Equipment and sell Fuel and Organics. You want it to be adjacent
|
||
to a port which does the opposite (sells Equipment, buys Fuel and
|
||
Organics.) Trade at these ports, and at the port which sells Fuel/
|
||
Organics, use half of your holds for one, half for the other. Always
|
||
bargain prices, and you should be able to get 2 experience points each
|
||
time you make a deal. That will raise your experience pretty fast (it's
|
||
called triple-trading, since you trade three types of equipment during
|
||
each set.) You need experience to be able to Steal effectively, so triple
|
||
trading can help you get that experience. You can triple trade whether
|
||
you are evil or not. It takes some practice to get 2 pts per trade
|
||
regularly, especially in a scout with max 25 holds, but it's worth it.
|
||
|
||
Use the V command at the main command prompt. If ships are allowed to
|
||
stay in FedSpace overnight, then plan on using FedSpace until either you
|
||
turn evil or (if planning on staying good) you can afford to cloak
|
||
nightly. You will be protected there if you have 0 or higher alignment,
|
||
under 1000 experience, and less than 50 fighters. Until you go evil,
|
||
FedSpace is your safe haven when you aren't playing. Just save your money,
|
||
don't buy a lot of fighters and shields. If the Ferrengi want to rob you,
|
||
let them. You do want to buy holds, though.
|
||
|
||
In the early part of a game, when you are using Fedspace for protection,
|
||
you can drop extra fighters (over the 50 ftr limit) in a sector outside of
|
||
fedspace, to pick up later. Someone *may* kill them, and if you leave
|
||
them in a major space lane (such as the route to Stardock from Terra and
|
||
back) the feds will remove them. But it's an option I find useful.
|
||
|
||
Don't go evil until your experience is at least 375-400. Then you can
|
||
jettison colonists or post bounty's in the underground to turn evil. You
|
||
need to have a -100 or less alignment to Rob/Steal. Some players prefer
|
||
to keep trading (or triple-trading) until their experience is much
|
||
higher, say over 1050, so they can steal-sell 70 holds in a starmaster.
|
||
|
||
Once you've turned evil, FedSpace isn't going to protect you, so start
|
||
cloaking every night. (In some games it may not be needed, but in
|
||
general, plan on it. Once you start running a Steal/Trade system, you can
|
||
easily afford it.) If you divide your experience by 20, you have a good
|
||
idea of how many holds of equipment you can steal without getting caught.
|
||
Exp / 15 is a little more risky, but still pretty safe. Regardless, there
|
||
is *always* a chance of getting busted. If necessary you can steal
|
||
equipment several times to fill your holds, and sell it all at once.
|
||
|
||
To run the Steal-Sell loop, start with equipment in all of your holds. Go
|
||
to a port which buys equipment. Sell your equipment. Steal equipment
|
||
(5%-6.6% of your experience or so) until your holds are full. Sell it
|
||
again. Just keep doing that, and always bargain prices. Your experience
|
||
will go up as you do this, so eventually you will be able to steal more at
|
||
a time. Five point trading means selling your equipment for 100% best
|
||
price every time. It's maximum profit, and raises your experience five
|
||
points each time you sell, so it's worthwhile. It will be explained
|
||
elsewhere in the FAQ.
|
||
|
||
I keep using the scout until I have enought experience to steal 70-85
|
||
holds at a time safely, and then move to another ship. Usually your
|
||
choice is between a starmaster and a corp. flagship, if you are head of a
|
||
corporation. If not, the starmaster is almost always the best ship. For
|
||
advanced players, the evil ISS is the way to go.
|
||
|
||
Whenever you buy a new ship, you should have enough money to buy the ship,
|
||
maximum holds, a new density scanner (or holo scanner), and a cloak.
|
||
Otherwise, you should probably stay in the ship you are already in a
|
||
little longer (unless it's an escape pod. Never stay in an escape pod.
|
||
You can trade it in for a scout right away, and you should.)
|
||
|
||
When you buy a ship you plan to keep for awhile, buy a holo-scanner.
|
||
|
||
Cloaks don't fail unless an external utility is causing them to, and you
|
||
should cloak nightly unless you qualify for fedspace. Even in games where
|
||
cloaks do fail based on a low %, use the cloaks. But if they can fail,
|
||
you may want to move to a dead end to cloak.
|
||
|
||
Use the density scanner any time you are moving to a sector you haven't
|
||
visited, and use it when the surrounding sectors are unexplored. It will
|
||
tell you when a port is adjacent, and help locate dead ends, planets, and
|
||
other ships.
|
||
|
||
If you (or a corp. member) plan on using a ship with transwarp you should
|
||
drop single fighters regularly. Especially in dead ends, where they will
|
||
tend to survive longer. These fighters will also slow your opponents who
|
||
try to Eprobe to explore. I drop them even when I don't plan on using a
|
||
ship with Twarp capability.
|
||
|
||
Once you've located stardock, don't use a lot of turns exploring. 95% of
|
||
the time (or more) you want to be making money with your turns. This is
|
||
very basic, but many players use turns warping around, chasing aliens, or
|
||
being sidetracked by Ferrengi. Use your turns to make money. To explore,
|
||
spend money on Etherprobes and use them.
|
||
|
||
The database utilities will allow you to get a list of sectors which not
|
||
only have you not explored, but which no sector you *have* explored has a
|
||
warp to. By eprobing these sectors, you will gain info on at least two
|
||
sectors. If you use the computer F command with ANSI on, you can look for
|
||
paths with lots of unexplored sectors, which is useful mainly in the early
|
||
stages of the game when you haven't explored very much.
|
||
|
||
In a corporation, usually only one person needs to do much exploring...
|
||
The other players just make money. Eventually, you'll need that money!
|
||
|
||
Your long term goal is to develop a well defended planet, while keeping
|
||
your opponents from doing the same. Ideally, your planet will be shield
|
||
bugged. In games where shield bug isn't allowed, you want max shields and
|
||
32,000 fighters on the planet. With a well defended planet, you can stock
|
||
money in the citadel, which will gain 4% interest a day. When that amount
|
||
is high enough, no one without a similar source of income will be able to
|
||
harm you. If you can shield bug a planet, you probably only need 1. If
|
||
you can't, you may need a few, but most players build more planets than
|
||
they need, and when a planet is partially developed, it's high-risk. An
|
||
opponent might steal the level-4 planet, Twarp it away, and then all the
|
||
work is in their hands...
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Jim Bianchi:
|
||
|
||
Teamwork is the key to winning games. A four or five man corp can
|
||
easily clear 2.5 -- 3.5 million creds/day once established. To start, one
|
||
of the corp members should, after SD has been located, spend most of his
|
||
time there, where he has easy access to a source of eprobes. (Note: Dave
|
||
Myers' TWFT and the mapping routines in TWASSIST may modify this somewhat.)
|
||
Using the eprobe mapping routines in PWRMACS or TWFT, this person maps the
|
||
universe, providing data to the other members on paired ports.
|
||
|
||
Meanwhile, the other members should pound ports, triple trading them
|
||
right down to the ground if possible. The objective is obtaining xp and
|
||
creds, NOT exploring. The creds should be funneled to the member who is at
|
||
SD, either directly, or through the galbank. As the universe approaches
|
||
100% mapped, the members start building up their own galbank accts.
|
||
|
||
Ships: The usual policy seems to be to, once SD has been found, go
|
||
there and trade in your merchie for a ScoMar, a dscanner, max holds and
|
||
enough to get started trading again. This should prob be the course the
|
||
mapper should take, as he'll need to physically investigate places where
|
||
eprobes have been destroyed. The rest of the crew should prob stay with a
|
||
stock merchie until they can get into a StaMas with max holds (as soon as
|
||
they have the necessary creds). With close teamwork, transferring ftrs and
|
||
shields is easy between corp members. (It is possible to tfr a neg amt of
|
||
shields or ftrs to temporarily overload a fellow corp members ship while
|
||
you trade in the one you have and buy another.) Esp in the early stages of
|
||
the game, every cred saved when buying ftrs/shields can make a difference.
|
||
However, don't let not having a close-by teammate stop you from buying a
|
||
new ship. And ALWAYS buy at least one ftr with your new ship. I once got a
|
||
new StaMas, a few shields and max holds, and zero ftrs. On my way out of SD
|
||
to the sector where I'd "parked" my ftrs fm the old ship, I entered the
|
||
wrong sector number and ended up running into 'prox 50 offensive ftrs left
|
||
by someone else. Fortunately, my <esc> pod was functioning normally..
|
||
|
||
Good vs evil: For the first few days, game parms permitting, you
|
||
should plan to park overnight in FedSpace. You can stay uncloaked in Fed-
|
||
Space overnight as long as your xp is less than 1000, the number of ftrs on
|
||
your ship is 50 or less, your align is +1 or greater and the number of squ-
|
||
atters in the FedSpace sector you are in is less than the nr posted on the V
|
||
screen. If your align is negative or your xp is greater than 1000, you can be
|
||
attacked and destroyed in FedSpace. When the extern pgm runs, if you have more
|
||
than 50 ftrs or there are more than the allowed number of squatters in that
|
||
FedSpace sector, you'll be towed out into space (nothing else will be done
|
||
to you by the Feds).
|
||
|
||
Under some circumstances, this can be exploited to aid in exploring
|
||
the universe in the very early days of a game. If the Feds tow you out to
|
||
space for one reason or another, you will usually end up somewhere on one
|
||
of the MSLs. In a low turns game, this can be used to give you a "running
|
||
start" on exploration. Log on very soon after midnight, however, to get
|
||
yourself into a more protected area where you won't be attacked by other
|
||
traders.
|
||
|
||
In a game with no squatters allowed overnight in FedSpace, there seems
|
||
little need for remaining good (unless, of course, you WANT to be). Recom-
|
||
mended ways of turning evil are: jettisoning colonists, killing good play-
|
||
ers or game generated good aliens, placing a hit contract on another good
|
||
player in the underground, cursing the grimy trader in the tavern, blowing
|
||
up starports and blowing up planets. Once you have -100 align you can start
|
||
robbing creds fm ports (use xp x 7 = creds to rob in any single attempt);
|
||
or stealing product (use a max of xp/20 = nr of holds to steal). Each suc-
|
||
cessful robbery will gain you xp and neg align points.
|
||
|
||
A tactic that has been used VERY successfully in one local game in-
|
||
volved four corp partners who started the game as above. The "mapper" early
|
||
on discovered Ferrengal. Further mapping, combined with some course plotter
|
||
investigation revealed that Ferrengal was in a dead-end tunnel and that
|
||
there was an empty sector behind it. By the time this was discovered, the
|
||
leader was almost done with mapping the universe, so he bought an ISS
|
||
(buying his pos align with creds supplied by the rest of us). Then he
|
||
bought a ptorp and a gtorp (several gtorps, actually), used the ptorp to
|
||
temporarily neutralise the Ferrengi ftrs while he moved THROUGH that sector
|
||
without otherwise disturbing them to get to the one BEHIND, where he fired
|
||
off his gtorps and placed ftrs so that each of the rest of us, as we in
|
||
turn bought our commissions and got into an ISS, could twarp there. (Altern-
|
||
atively, albiet somewhat risky, a cheapo HavGun could be obtained and a blind
|
||
twarp made to the sector behind since a ptorp advertises its use in the daily
|
||
log.)
|
||
|
||
In this way, our planets were (more or less) safe from detection dur-
|
||
ing the critical phase while they were upgrading, as they were in a dead
|
||
end tunnel with Ferrengal as the "front door." We each then turned evil by
|
||
dumping colonists and busting planets (and killing good aliens/players when
|
||
avail). One of us juggled his align so that it was only -1 (so as not to
|
||
drag down the xp of the others in the corp). Upon logging in each day, the
|
||
normal increase of one align point was sufficient to bring the align up to
|
||
neutral (0) and allow safe access to Terra for colonising the planets. Us-
|
||
ing twarp, it was possible to bring out nearly 1 million new happy campers
|
||
each session. To get down to neg align again, this person would jettison
|
||
one hold of colonists each day at the end of his play.
|
||
|
||
As the corp grew stronger, Ferrengal itself was eventually invaded and
|
||
added to our list of corp planets. By this time, we had each of the five
|
||
sectors in the tunnel heavily mined (99) and those sectors with planets had
|
||
30,000 defensive ftrs (the rest only had 5000). We've successfully blockad-
|
||
ed SD several times with ftrs/mines and have caught just about everyone at
|
||
least once. The game is rather boring for in spite of us leaving taunts and
|
||
hints in the Tavern conversation, there is NO organised resistance. There
|
||
are NO other planets and the only other corp folded a week ago. The vast
|
||
majority of the ftrs and mines in the universe are ours. We have six L5
|
||
planets, each w/1638 shields (by agreement they are not invulnerable).
|
||
|
||
One tactic we use is to build a class 4 (ssb) port in the same sector
|
||
with our planets and as the port is completed, move a planet one sector up
|
||
the tunnel to support construction of another class 4. In this way, we can
|
||
each run sell/steal in a totally secure area and cancel each others busts
|
||
if necessary. Hey, four or five players, each in an evil ISS (150 holds),
|
||
can make a LOT of creds when all they need worry about is hold replacement
|
||
when getting busted. I log in to the game, fill my holds w/equip, lift off
|
||
and run sell/steal at the port that is right there for 66 turns (on a bust
|
||
free day), land on the planet and deposit my 'prox 700,000 creds inna tre-
|
||
asury. It's almost boring! It is perhaps a commentary on the quality of the
|
||
local competition that when one of us is busted, we LOOSE more xp than the
|
||
highest ranking non-corp player has TOTAL!
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Ship selection ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
|
||
- by Jim Bianchi
|
||
|
||
Wanna provoke an arg on one of the Tradewars conferences? Write a msg
|
||
of type: "the very best ship is an xxxxxx." Second only to calls for inf-
|
||
ormation on the "bugs," that topic seems to take up most of the bandwidth
|
||
there and it's a pity, really, because after the first few exchanges, there
|
||
is never anything new in the way of using xxxxxx ship, or real detriments
|
||
in one type or another ship shown (with the exception of the Tholian Sent-
|
||
inel).
|
||
|
||
What is the "ideal" ship? For each stage of the game, this author is
|
||
convinced that there is an ideal choice or range of choices, but in this as
|
||
in most things, there is ample room for alternatives and outright disagre-
|
||
ement. For instance, I prefer the CorFla to the ISS, esp when playing alone.
|
||
Perhaps it's because I've had four Imperial StarShips shot out from under me
|
||
by Ferrengi on a blood hunt (and those things are EXPENSIVE!) and maybe it's
|
||
because I like to be able to be evil, warp around and not worry about running
|
||
into a Fed and loosing my ship.
|
||
|
||
Another very serious thing to consider is, is this a game in which
|
||
bugs are allowed to be used? If so, the obvious choice is a ship most of us
|
||
would never consider otherwise: the Havoc Gunstar. It is inexpensive. It
|
||
can carry enough firepower to adaquately defend itself. It has twarp capab-
|
||
ility. It can be swopped in a citadel. And when "hold bugged," it can carry
|
||
an impressive payload. Since you needn't be evil to run the Corporate Mega
|
||
Holds bug, a CMH bugged HavGun is the ship of choice for use in games that
|
||
allow exploitation of bugs; at least until an ISS can be purchased.
|
||
|
||
Since I play almost exclusively in non-bug games (where bug use isn't
|
||
engaged in by agreement or bug use is monitored), my usual choice is the
|
||
CorFla. I like it. It's like a StaMas with twarp and 15 extra holds.
|
||
|
||
When starting in a new game, I tend to think that the basic default
|
||
"merchie" is much underrated. It can have fifteen more holds than a StaMas,
|
||
and while it doesn't have near the ftr or shield capacity of a StaMas,
|
||
these things aren't (or shouldn't be) very important in a just starting
|
||
game anyway, when the objective is to make creds and xp. (Leave the "shoot
|
||
'em up, bang-bang" to the kiddies.) I first try to improve my merchie to
|
||
max holds, then max shields. I figger that, by the time I loose it to enemy
|
||
action the universe has become too dangerous to warp about in without some
|
||
serious protection and I get into a maxed out StaMas, or if I'm CEO and have
|
||
the creds, a CorFla.
|
||
|
||
The ScoMar has the benefits of having a much larger base turn rate,
|
||
and the highest combat odds of any ship in a non edited game. It is these
|
||
odds that make the ScoMar the ship of choice in bugs-allowed games, for if
|
||
it is overloaded with ftrs and shields (up to 32767 of each), it is nearly
|
||
unstoppable and is capable of (two times out of three) destroying SD and
|
||
most of the other class 0 ports. In a non bug game, it still possesses a
|
||
large base turn rate and this makes it attractive to many who prefer to go
|
||
see for themselves, as opposed to sending an eprobe.
|
||
|
||
The StaMas has what is generally accorded the best ratio of firepower
|
||
and cargo carrying ability to moves of any of the other ship types.
|
||
|
||
If a secure area is provided (preferably containing a class 0 port),
|
||
the ColTra, with its 250 holds, can prove a real money maker for one who is
|
||
sufficiently evil to be able to sell/steal 250 holds at a whack.
|
||
|
||
The only advantages that I can see to a Missile Frigate are that it is
|
||
cheap, can be had by anyone, and can carry a ptorp. It is only nominally a
|
||
trading ship.
|
||
|
||
When reading the shipspecs, pay attn to holds vs %move vs firepower.
|
||
Since the amt of moves per day per player is sysop settable, this figure is
|
||
expressed as a percentage of however many moves the sysop has plugged into
|
||
the game. Obviously, the ship with the most of both would prob be the ship
|
||
of choice, not considering twarp. Firepower (defensive and offensive) is
|
||
very important.
|
||
|
||
I like to stay with the default merchie for as long as possible, then
|
||
to get into a CorFla or an ISS. In an active (already running) game, I'd prob
|
||
stay with the merchie until I could get into a StaMas (due to the greater
|
||
defensive potential of a StaMas) and then start accumulating creds for a
|
||
CorFla or an ISS.
|
||
|
||
Most of my games have been with a corp, each of whom is evil in an ISS.
|
||
So I have little experience with any other types of large hold ship, such as
|
||
the ColTra or TauMul. I've heard it said that an evil TauMul is nearly the
|
||
money-maker that an ISS is. I have no personal opinion either way and only
|
||
say that to point out the possibility. (I don't want to start a shipwar.)
|
||
|
||
One thing to consider is the effort and align adjusting needed to get
|
||
into an ISS and then go evil. Esp if you are playing alone, if you loose
|
||
the ISS, it REALLY takes quite a lot of creds to get your align adjusted
|
||
back up to +500 and get another. (Which is one reason a strong corp is nice
|
||
to be able to fall back on.) It might be more cost effective in the long
|
||
run to just stay evil and get a CorFla or a StaMas.
|
||
|
||
One thing to be considered when contemplating being evil is the pen-
|
||
alty for being busted; each time you are, you are fined some amt of holds,
|
||
which must then be replaced. The time and moves spent going to a class 0
|
||
port or to SD for hold replacement is time and moves not spent making
|
||
(stealing or robbing) creds. (One reason the twarp ships are favored by
|
||
evil players.)
|
||
|
||
As pointed out elsewhere, an <esc> pod can be traded straight across
|
||
for a ScoMar and 1000 creds.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Here are the shipspecs:
|
||
|
||
-- Originally by Jason Boyd:
|
||
|
||
Min Max Max Max Max Max Max Max Max
|
||
Cost %Mv Hold Hold Odds Ftrs perAt Shld P-M Mine G-T Bcn L P T
|
||
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
escpod 0 free 50 1 5 .8:1 50 10 50 0 0 0 0 Y
|
||
MerCru 1 26300 100 20 75 1.0:1 2500 1000 400 0 50 5 50 Y Y
|
||
ScoMar 2 13200 200 10 25 2.0:1 250 250 100 0 0 0 10 Y Y
|
||
MisFri 3 28800 100 12 60 1.3:1 5000 2000 400 10 5 0 5
|
||
CorBat 4 40500 83 16 80 1.6:1 10000 3000 750 0 25 1 50 Y Y
|
||
CorFla 5 71000 100 20 85 1.2:1 20000 6000 1500 0 100 10 100 Y Y Y
|
||
ColTra 6 54400 58 40 250 .6:1 200 100 500 0 0 5 10 Y Y
|
||
CarTra 7 59400 67 40 125 .8:1 400 125 800 0 1 2 20 Y Y
|
||
MerFre 8 36200 150 30 60 .8:1 300 100 500 0 2 2 20 Y Y
|
||
ImpSta 9 128600 83 40 150 1.5:1 30000 10000 2000 5 125 10 150 Y Y Y
|
||
HavGun 10 29500 125 10 40 1.2:1 3000 1500 500 0 5 1 5 Y Y
|
||
StaMas 11 48000 133 30 70 1.4:1 5000 2000 1000 0 50 5 50 Y Y
|
||
ConSte 12 40500 100 20 70 1.4:1 5000 2000 750 0 25 2 50 Y Y
|
||
TkhOri 13 36000 133 30 60 1.1:1 750 250 750 0 5 1 20 Y Y
|
||
ThoSen 14 27000 90 10 50 1.0:1 3000 1000 1000 0 50 1 10 Y
|
||
TauMul 15 53600 83 40 150 .5:1 300 150 500 0 0 2 20 Y Y
|
||
|
||
L P T: Long Range Scanner, Planet Scanner, TransWarp Drive.
|
||
Only the Missile Frigate and ISS can carry a ptorp.
|
||
The Feds will destroy on sight an ISS used by a player with neg align, no
|
||
questions asked. (Just make sure they don't SEE you..)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
These are the various ship descriptions in an unedited game:
|
||
|
||
<1> Merchant Cruiser
|
||
<2> Scout Marauder
|
||
<3> Missile Frigate
|
||
<4> BattleShip
|
||
<5> Corporate FlagShip
|
||
<6> Colonial Transport
|
||
<7> CargoTran
|
||
<8> Merchant Freighter
|
||
<9> Imperial StarShip
|
||
<10> Havoc GunStar
|
||
<11> StarMaster
|
||
<12> Constellation
|
||
<13> T'Khasi Orion
|
||
<14> Tholian Sentinel
|
||
<15> Taurean Mule
|
||
|
||
(When reading these specs, be aware that the number listed under moves
|
||
per day is the actual number of moves and not the percentage of moves. These
|
||
stats were obtained from a game using the default 60 base moves per player per
|
||
day. Thus 60 moves equals a 100% turn rate.)
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #1 Ship Class : Merchant Cruiser
|
||
|
||
The Merchant Cruiser is the standard fare for earning a living in the
|
||
universe. These craft are moderately fast, well armored and have hard
|
||
points for many different accessories. Many cartels use the Merchant
|
||
Cruiser as their only ship type. The Merchant is the craft by which
|
||
combat specs are rated for a standard.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 10,000 Min Holds: 20 Maximum Holds: 75
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 2,500 Maximum Shields: 400
|
||
Computer Cost : 5,300 Move rate/day: 60 Offensive Odds: 1.0:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 10,000 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 50
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 26,300 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 1,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #2 Ship Class : Scout Marauder
|
||
|
||
The Scout Marauder is currently the fastest, conventional drive ship
|
||
known to mankind. This small speedster can easily outdistance even the
|
||
powerful Corellian Battleships. It is not equipped for controlling many
|
||
fighters or shields, but it fights at 2 to 1 odds due to its quickness
|
||
and small size. This craft cannot carry mines or Genesis Torpedoes.
|
||
It may be small, but this ship's speed and range make up for much.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 5,000 Min Holds: 10 Maximum Holds: 25
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 3,000 Max Fighters: 250 Maximum Shields: 100
|
||
Computer Cost : 2,450 Move rate/day: 120 Offensive Odds: 2.0:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 2,750 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 10
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 13,200 Genesis Max: 0 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 250 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #3 Ship Class : Missile Frigate
|
||
|
||
Missile Frigates are really nothing more than a retro-fitted Merchant
|
||
Cruiser. They maintain the same speed and range of the Merchant but can
|
||
carry twice the firepower. Commanding a Frigate means that you cannot
|
||
take advantage of much of the additional starship equipment available,
|
||
but their combat advantages make up for that. The Missile Frigate is
|
||
the only ship outfitted to carry the awesome Photon Missile. These
|
||
weapons of destructions can turn StarPorts into space junk in short
|
||
order. The Photon Missile was also used effectively in the Trantorian
|
||
conflict to totally destroy the enemy's home planet.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 6,000 Min Holds: 12 Maximum Holds: 60
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 5,000 Maximum Shields: 400
|
||
Computer Cost : 10,800 Move rate/day: 60 Offensive Odds: 1.3:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 11,000 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 5
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 28,800 Genesis Max: 0 Long Range Scan? No
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? No
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 2,000 Photon Missiles? Yes
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #4 Ship Class : BattleShip
|
||
|
||
The Corellian Battleship is a dangerous craft indeed! This ship packs
|
||
the most punch of any ship in the Federation. Battleship's can carry
|
||
four times the fighters of a Merchant and deliver them with a much
|
||
higher degree of effectiveness due to their superior combat computers.
|
||
The shield generators on Battleships are capable of shielding the ship's
|
||
fighters as well. This craft is one of the more prestigious and powerful
|
||
ships available today.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 8,000 Min Holds: 16 Maximum Holds: 80
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters:10,000 Maximum Shields: 750
|
||
Computer Cost : 13,500 Move rate/day: 50 Offensive Odds: 1.6:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 18,000 Mine Max: 25 Beacon Max: 50
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 40,500 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 3,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #5 Ship Class : Corporate FlagShip
|
||
|
||
Few words can actually describe the sheer awe associated with a
|
||
Corporate Flagship. Only available to Corp CEOs, this huge craft is
|
||
the ultimate in power and capability. Not only can it carry up to
|
||
20,000 fighters at one time, this ship carries a powerful combination
|
||
of options that will make any foe turn tail and run.
|
||
|
||
The most impressive capability of the Flagship is the TransWarp Drive.
|
||
This device enables the ship to TransWarp to any other sector in the
|
||
Universe provided one of your fighters is already there emitting a
|
||
locator beam. Without this, a ship can disapear into TransWarp and
|
||
never be seen again.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 10,000 Min Holds: 20 Maximum Holds: 85
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 5,000 Max Fighters:20,000 Maximum Shields: 1,500
|
||
Computer Cost : 27,500 Move rate/day: 60 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 28,500 Mine Max: 100 Beacon Max: 100
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 71,000 Genesis Max: 10 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 6,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #6 Ship Class : Colonial Transport
|
||
|
||
The Colonial Transport is a massive structure that can only barely be
|
||
called a ship. This huge craft is ideal for moving large amounts of
|
||
products or colonists from place to place. Though it has a standard
|
||
drive, this ship is rather slow due to the mass involved. Also, the
|
||
combat computers are rather limited on this craft due to the excessive
|
||
needs of the navigation computers. The Transport is not outfitted for
|
||
carrying or deploying mines. Conflict brings the Transport's major
|
||
weakness to light. Due to the size of the craft, it is very hard to
|
||
defend against fighters.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 25,000 Min Holds: 40 Maximum Holds: 250
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 200 Maximum Shields: 500
|
||
Computer Cost : 3,200 Move rate/day: 35 Offensive Odds: 0.6:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 25,200 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 10
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 54,400 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 100 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #7 Ship Class : CargoTran
|
||
|
||
The CargoTran is a large ship indeed. Though not as fast as some of its
|
||
related trading cousins, this ship can move vast amounts of goods. It is
|
||
typically a pacifist's ship as it does not carry much in the way of
|
||
offensive capabilities but it's very large array of holds makes up for all
|
||
of that. The large shield capacity of this craft makes it safe to wander
|
||
hostile territory as well. This ship is considered by many to be one of
|
||
the top money-makers in the Universe.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 25,000 Min Holds: 40 Maximum Holds: 125
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 400 Maximum Shields: 800
|
||
Computer Cost : 4,000 Move rate/day: 40 Offensive Odds: 0.8:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 29,400 Mine Max: 1 Beacon Max: 20
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 59,400 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 125 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #8 Ship Class : Merchant Freighter
|
||
|
||
The Merchant Freighter is the ideal ship for those traders that do not want
|
||
to concern themselves with political matters. It is not a very powerful
|
||
ship in combat, but its strengths are many. This ship can carry a large
|
||
number of shields and manages to outdistance most ships. After all, "Those
|
||
who fight and run away, live to fight another day" still holds very true in
|
||
the universe as we know it today.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 18,000 Min Holds: 30 Maximum Holds: 60
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 2,000 Max Fighters: 300 Maximum Shields: 500
|
||
Computer Cost : 3,200 Move rate/day: 90 Offensive Odds: 0.8:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 13,000 Mine Max: 2 Beacon Max: 20
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 36,200 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 100 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #9 Ship Class : Imperial StarShip
|
||
|
||
The commercial version of a Federation StarShip is not available to just
|
||
anyone. This craft is only available to those who are commissioned by the
|
||
Federation to aid in their cause. StarShips are the most closely guarded
|
||
technology in existence. They can carry massive assault power and through
|
||
the use of the TransWarp drive, they can deliver this power almost anywhere.
|
||
|
||
The Imperial StarShip is truly the most powerful ship that a private
|
||
individual can command. More information about qualifying for a Federal
|
||
commission is available at a Police station near you.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 32,000 Min Holds: 40 Maximum Holds: 150
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 32,100 Max Fighters:30,000 Maximum Shields: 2,000
|
||
Computer Cost : 32,500 Move rate/day: 50 Offensive Odds: 1.5:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 32,000 Mine Max: 125 Beacon Max: 150
|
||
Ship Base Cost :128,600 Genesis Max: 10 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack:10,000 Photon Missiles? Yes
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #10 Ship Class : Havoc GunStar
|
||
|
||
The Havoc Gunstar is a recently developed ship that owes its existance to
|
||
new developments in micro-miniaturization. This mid-sized ship is the only
|
||
one of its size to be able to house a TransWarp drive. Though it doesn't
|
||
carry a large amount of holds to fuel the TransWarp, it still has a decent
|
||
T-Warp range and can arrive at its destination packing a moderate fighting
|
||
force in the bargain. Watch for this ship to become the favorite of the
|
||
Mercenary legions in the Universe.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 5,000 Min Holds: 10 Maximum Holds: 40
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 3,000 Maximum Shields: 500
|
||
Computer Cost : 7,500 Move rate/day: 75 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 7,000 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 5
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 29,500 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? No
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 1,500 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #11 Ship Class : StarMaster
|
||
|
||
The StarMaster represents the latest in technological advances for star
|
||
travel, meeting the needs of those who desire a ship with great speed and
|
||
medium cargo capacity. Developed to counter the growing threat of space
|
||
piracy, the StarMaster posesses a formidable fire control and weapons
|
||
system, and a high shield capacity. The price for this state-of-art craft
|
||
is not cheap, but discerning traders will find that the investment will
|
||
pay for itself in the long run.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 15,000 Min Holds: 30 Maximum Holds: 70
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 5,000 Maximum Shields: 1,000
|
||
Computer Cost : 9,000 Move rate/day: 80 Offensive Odds: 1.4:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 14,000 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 50
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 48,000 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 2,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #12 Ship Class : Constellation
|
||
|
||
The Constellation is the direct offspring of the Correlian Battleship.
|
||
While not quite as powerful as its distinguished parent, the Constellation
|
||
makes its own mark with greater speed and range. Traders have dubbed it
|
||
the "baby battleship", but this "infant" is one of the most powerful and
|
||
maneuverable ships available in the universe today.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 10,000 Min Holds: 20 Maximum Holds: 70
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 5,000 Maximum Shields: 750
|
||
Computer Cost : 8,500 Move rate/day: 60 Offensive Odds: 1.4:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 12,000 Mine Max: 25 Beacon Max: 50
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 40,500 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 2,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #13 Ship Class : T'Khasi Orion
|
||
|
||
The T'Khasi Orion is the perfect ship for traders who want the speed and
|
||
cargo capacity of the Merchant Freighter but need a bit more firepower.
|
||
Offering substantially higher combat odds and fighter capacity, the T'Khasi
|
||
Orion is an excellent intermediate ship.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 15,000 Min Holds: 30 Maximum Holds: 60
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 750 Maximum Shields: 750
|
||
Computer Cost : 4,250 Move rate/day: 80 Offensive Odds: 1.1:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 6,750 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 20
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 36,000 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 250 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #14 Ship Class : Tholian Sentinel
|
||
|
||
Young corporations in need of planetary defense should consider the
|
||
Sentinel. With its new planetary combat guidance system, this ship's
|
||
normal combat odds of 1:1 shoot up to 4:1 when defending a corporate
|
||
planet. When an enemy ship enters a sector containing a Sentinel set in
|
||
defense of a corporate planet, the hostile vessel must first destroy the
|
||
Sentinel and all of its fighters before it may land and attempt any action
|
||
toward the planet. Remember: The Sentinel was designed primarily for
|
||
Planetary defense, if used for offensive purposes its combat odds are 1:1.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 5,000 Min Holds: 10 Maximum Holds: 50
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 3,000 Maximum Shields: 1,000
|
||
Computer Cost : 6,000 Move rate/day: 54 Offensive Odds: 1.0:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 6,000 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 10
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 27,000 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? No
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 1,000 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
|
||
|
||
Ship Category #15 Ship Class : Taurean Mule
|
||
|
||
"Big, slow and ugly...", seem to be the words most often overheard when
|
||
someone is describing the Taurean Mule. Designed in direct competition
|
||
with the CargoTran, the Mule is somewhat faster and possesses a higher
|
||
cargo capacity, but it is even more vulnerable to piracy and attack than
|
||
it's competitor. However, this is still a good ship for traders who have
|
||
staked out "safe" trade lanes and do not have to worry about enemy attacks.
|
||
|
||
Basic Hold Cost: 25,000 Min Holds: 40 Maximum Holds: 150
|
||
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 300 Maximum Shields: 500
|
||
Computer Cost : 3,300 Move rate/day: 50 Offensive Odds: 0.5:1
|
||
Ship Hull Cost : 15,300 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 20
|
||
Ship Base Cost : 53,600 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
|
||
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
|
||
Max Fighters Per Attack: 150 Photon Missiles? No
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
What isn't immediately obvious is that, as you buy each hold, the
|
||
price for the next hold goes up. What this means is that, when you're told
|
||
the next hold you can buy will cost xxx, you can't just multiply xxx times
|
||
the number of holds you want and arrive at the total price. Other things
|
||
being equal, you prob DON'T want to buy holds piecemeal.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph:
|
||
|
||
I figured out hold cost some time ago. Just for fun, here it is again.
|
||
|
||
SUM(216+20*(x-1),a..b)
|
||
|
||
Where a is the number of holds on your ship and b is the number of holds
|
||
desired. Add up all values for the formula (SUM) replacing x with all
|
||
values from a to b.
|
||
|
||
The above formula works in a program called Ultimate Calculator.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* by Leonard Adolph
|
||
|
||
Argh! You people are driving me crazy! ;-)
|
||
|
||
I have in the past figured out and posted the formula for cost for holds
|
||
you buy. I won't bother resubmiting that information at this time.
|
||
But...
|
||
|
||
When you sell a ship the price paid by the shipyards for holds is:
|
||
|
||
INT (holds * (180 + (holds - 1) * 8.1))
|
||
|
||
for a ship with 0 kills and 0 portings. The 8.1 figure will decrease
|
||
with enough ports and kills by a ship.
|
||
If you don't know what the INT is, don't worry about it. Just drop
|
||
anything to the right of the decimal point in the answer.
|
||
|
||
BTW, 1821 holds is the turn around point and that amount of holds brings
|
||
27,172,962 credits for the holds. The above formula matches the price
|
||
paid for holds up to 1821 and fails after that. I have no idea why that
|
||
figure is the turn around point but I suspect it has to do with Turbo
|
||
Pascal's Longint being divided by 100 (percentage?) and the floating
|
||
value for the 8.1 in the formula, depending on ports and kills. A ship
|
||
with 1822 holds, 66 ports and 5 kills brings 25,303,922 for the holds.
|
||
The same ship with 0 kills and 0 ports brings 27,143,659 credits for the
|
||
holds, less than what is paid for 1821 holds.
|
||
|
||
If the price of holds in The Mall is set at 17,207 each, the dreaded
|
||
1821 (renamed by me) holds bug will be eliminated. That will make the
|
||
cost of 1539 holds (1821 - 282) more than what will be paid for them in
|
||
the Shipyards. If maximum holds are modified higher than 250 the price
|
||
of holds in The Mall should be recalculated higher:
|
||
|
||
27,172,962 / (1821 - (maxholds + 32))
|
||
|
||
I have great hopes that the next version of The Mall will price holds
|
||
the same as in the game. (Neil?) That should help the "good guys" as a
|
||
ship with 300-400 holds could hit the trading pairs as heavy as
|
||
steal/sell but as an "evil" I would not want to risk a few million
|
||
credits worth of holds getting busted stealing 30,000 credits worth of
|
||
equipment. I *would* follow the "good guys" around though and rob those
|
||
pairs blind.
|
||
|
||
I have not done much testing on the effects of ports and kills on
|
||
pricing but I do know that 101 ports drops prices by less than 10% and 9
|
||
ports does not affect prices. 9 ports is of course what is used to bug a
|
||
CT to 282 holds and port at Stardock, assuming that stealing at a port
|
||
(and getting busted) adds to the ports your ship has. I am not sure if
|
||
it does or not at this time.
|
||
|
||
Also BTW. Just kidding about the driving me crazy part. I enjoy this
|
||
stuff. :-)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
More on holds cost:
|
||
|
||
* by Woody Weaver
|
||
|
||
-=> Quoting Leonard Adolph to Brendan Connell <=-
|
||
BC> I don't know the algorithim, [for the cost of holds] although I've
|
||
BC> found that when you get to about 135 holds, each new one starts at just
|
||
BC> over 2000 credits and goes up.
|
||
|
||
LA> I figured out hold cost some time ago. Just for fun, here it is again.
|
||
|
||
LA> SUM(216+20*(x-1),a..b)
|
||
|
||
LA> Where a is the number of holds on your ship and b is the number of
|
||
LA> holds desired. Add up all values for the formula (SUM) replacing x
|
||
LA> with all values from a to b.
|
||
|
||
Good work Leonard, but there is a little more you can say. The constant,
|
||
216, varies a little bit; I've seen as low as 200 and as high as 240. Also,
|
||
you can rewrite the formula without the sum, by using the trick that if
|
||
s = a + (a+1) + (a+2) + ... + (b-1) + b [ write sum forwards ]
|
||
s = b + (b-1) + (b-2) + ... + (a+1) + a [ write sum backwards ]
|
||
so:
|
||
2s = (b-a+1)(a+b).
|
||
|
||
Your formula works out to
|
||
cost = (194+20a)+(194 + 20(a+1))+...+(194+20b)
|
||
= 194(b-a+1) + 20(b-a+1)(b+a)/2
|
||
= (194 + 10(b+a) )(b-a+1)
|
||
|
||
So, for example, to go from 20 holds to 75 holds (b=75, a=20) it would take
|
||
cost = (194 + 10 (95) ) (56) = 64,064 credits.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Bugs in the game ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
This is Joel Downer's Top 14 Bugs list, covering the major bugs with the
|
||
exception of the planet cloning bug. Planet cloning will not work in
|
||
version 1.03d, and makes playing 1.03 a pretty useless endeavor. Sysops
|
||
can upgrade to 1.03d without reseting the game, and that is highly
|
||
recommended.
|
||
|
||
Well, giving a list of *ALL* the bugs in 1.03(d) would be impractical:
|
||
there are over a hundred of them. What I can do, though, is list the
|
||
thirteen or fourteen that make the biggest difference to the game.
|
||
|
||
1. THE STEAL-SELL CYCLE: Stealing equipment from ports is a very good
|
||
way to make money in this version. You can sell equipment to a port,
|
||
steal it back, and repeat the cycle without leaving the sector for
|
||
very substantial profits.
|
||
|
||
2. THE HOLDS BUG: If you tell the game that you want to steal 365 units
|
||
of equipment or 660 units of organics (never mind how many holds you
|
||
have), and you don't have high enough experience to get away with
|
||
stealing that much, you will get busted and *gain 32 holds* rather
|
||
than losing any. To learn the value of this bug, try buying a
|
||
Colonial Transport with base holds, "holds-bug" until you're up to
|
||
282 holds, and sell it back at the StarDock.
|
||
|
||
3. THE (CLASSIC) MEGAHOLDS BUG: Using the holds bug, it's possible to
|
||
load your ship up to its normal maximum plus 32. Unfortunately, if you
|
||
try to use those 32 extra holds, you will lose them the first time you
|
||
dock at a port. The megaholds bug is a solution. Load your ship with
|
||
colonists, and steal *one unit* of fuel ore or organics from a port.
|
||
Drop off the colonists on Terra. As long as you don't get busted,
|
||
surrender to the Ferrengi, jettison cargo, or try to trade or pick up
|
||
the commodity you used to "lock in" the extra holds, you can keep
|
||
them and use them for trading or stealing.
|
||
|
||
4. THE (SUPER) MEGAHOLDS BUG: So, max + 32 isn't good enough for you,
|
||
eh? <grin> Another bug allows you to load your ship with any number
|
||
of holds, if you have the patience. First, use the "classic"
|
||
megaholds bug to get up to max + 32. Now, fill your holds with
|
||
colonists. Your next job is to lose most of your holds. One way to
|
||
do this is to surrender repeatedly to the Ferrengi, but the most
|
||
turn-efficient way is to get busted repeatedly: trying to steal 364
|
||
holds of equipment can take away 32 holds a pop. You must not throw
|
||
away *all* your holds, but the more you lose, the faster the process
|
||
goes. Once you're very close to zero, go to a port where you haven't
|
||
been busted and steal one unit of a commodity you don't want to trade
|
||
(probably organics or fuel ore). You've just created some "imaginary
|
||
holds"; you can now go back to Sol, buy some *real* holds, load those
|
||
holds up with colonists, and start getting busted again...
|
||
|
||
5. THE CORPORATE MEGAHOLDS BUG: This bug allows you to lock in
|
||
"artificial holds" like the ones created by the megaholds bug, but it
|
||
can create *any number* of holds (up to 32,767), it takes only a
|
||
*few* turns, it doesn't cost nearly as much experience as the
|
||
super megaholds bug, *and* it can create tons of free equipment on
|
||
your planet. To use it, you need a teammate and a citadel
|
||
that's safe to park in. Your planet must have some equipment on
|
||
it, though not nearly as much as it will have when you're done. <g>
|
||
|
||
First of all, make sure that your teammate is in the citadel and that
|
||
her ship is *unlocked*; her holds should also be empty. Unlock your
|
||
own ship (they are locked by default) by (R)emaining in the Citadel,
|
||
and saying (Y)es when it asks about trading ships. Once you've unlocked
|
||
your ship, you can immediately go back into the game.
|
||
|
||
Now you need to use the (A)ll command out on the planet's surface to
|
||
take all the equipment you can carry. Go into the (C)itadel,
|
||
(E)xchange Ships, say (Y)es to confirm, (L)eave the Citadel, and
|
||
(D)isplay the planet. Go back into the (C)itadel, (E)xchange, say
|
||
(Y)es, (L)eave, take (A)ll, and (D)isplay the planet once more.
|
||
Strangely enough, you'll now have twice as many goods loaded onto
|
||
your ship as you have cargo holds.
|
||
|
||
If you wanted, you could now leave the planet and "lock in" the extra
|
||
holds the same way you did with the Megaholds and Super Megaholds
|
||
bugs -- but let's get greedy. Start repeating the last key sequence
|
||
-- "CEYLAD" -- to load your ship with more and more equipment.
|
||
Something strange will happen every time you change into your
|
||
teammate's ship and take (A)ll: his ship will be loaded with a
|
||
*negative* quanity of equipment, and equipment will magically be
|
||
*created* on the planet.
|
||
|
||
I usually continue this process until my ship has about 25,000
|
||
equipment on it, and my teammate's has 25,000 empty holds. I can now
|
||
"lock in" my holds with organics, pick up some fuel ore, and
|
||
TransWarp around the galaxy selling excess equipment. I could use my
|
||
teammate's ship for moving colonists or trading anything *except*
|
||
equipment.
|
||
|
||
6. THE SHIELD BUG: A Level V citadel with 1639 or more planetary
|
||
shields is impossible to invade. Attempts to destroy those shields
|
||
are futile. That's all, folks. <g>
|
||
|
||
7. FIGHTER/SHIELD OVERLOAD BUG: Ships have built-in limits for fighters
|
||
and shields -- the Scout Marauder is only supposed to carry 250
|
||
fighters and 100 shields. If you use negative numbers when
|
||
transferring fighters and shields through the corporate transfer
|
||
menus, however, those limits don't apply. If you have a teammate
|
||
*take* a negative number *from* you instead of giving you a positive
|
||
number, he/she can load your ship with up to 32,767 shields and 32,767
|
||
fighters. (For a faster way to overload with shields, try using
|
||
negative numbers in your citadel. <g>) However you do it, be warned:
|
||
if you dock at a port with extra fighters and shields, you will lose them!
|
||
|
||
8. SO MUCH FOR STARDOCK!: A Scout Marauder, overloaded with 32,767
|
||
fighters and at least 20,000 shields using the methods outlined
|
||
above, has very good odds of destroying StarDock or any of the Class
|
||
0 ports. Just load the ship up and attack: *DON'T* break off your
|
||
attack until you're out of fighters, and you have about 2-in-3 odds
|
||
of success.
|
||
|
||
9. THE MORONIC FERRENGI: The game makes neutralizing the Ferrengi very,
|
||
very easy. All you need to do to insulate yourself against their
|
||
attacks, for example, is carry one fighter and many shields. When a
|
||
Ferrengi attacks you, he will only do 0-2 damage points at a time.
|
||
Even worse: to knock the Ferrengi completely out of the game, all
|
||
you have to do is destroy the fighters in their home sector and
|
||
deploy 3,000 of your own fighters in the sector. From that point on,
|
||
they won't regenerate, even if they still own Ferrengal: all that'll
|
||
be left are the Ferrengi already wandering around the galaxy. In the
|
||
first few weeks of the game, this tactic costs less than a million
|
||
credits.
|
||
|
||
10. THE INFALLIBLE CLOAK: Buy cloaks. They're a great bargain. In
|
||
1.03d, it's impossible to attack a cloaked ship, and regardless of
|
||
what the docs say, cloaks *do not* fail. Compared to the cost of
|
||
being blown up, 25,000 credits a day is trivial.
|
||
|
||
11. SHIELDS AND P-MISSILES: The docs are also wrong about the effect of
|
||
shields on the p-wave. P-missiles *do* work against shielded planets.
|
||
They also work against shielded ships and ships parked in FedSpace.
|
||
|
||
12. THE USELESS SENTINEL: Don't buy the Tholian Sentinel. Period. The
|
||
Sentinel is supposed to have 4:1 odds when defending a planet against
|
||
an invader. This feature doesn't work. If an invader attacks the
|
||
*ship* first -- rather than trying to land and *then* attacking the
|
||
ship -- the Sentinel only gets 1:1 combat odds.
|
||
|
||
13. MANY FERRENGI AND ALIENS: When a sysop rerolls the game with
|
||
BIGBANG, several files (including CONVO.DAT, WALLDAT.DAT, and, most
|
||
important, FERRENGI.DAT and ALIENS.DAT) are not properly initialized.
|
||
Some new games will be swarming with powerful aliens and Ferrengi.
|
||
Sysops should remember to delete these four files when restarting
|
||
games.
|
||
|
||
14. THE "6666" BUG: Always set your military reaction level to 0% if
|
||
you have more than 12,000-13,000 fighters on your planet. If an
|
||
invader attacks without a p-missile, the invader has more than 26,000
|
||
fighters on his ship, and your MRL is greater than zero, *all* of your
|
||
fighters will attack him and will be destroyed -- even if you have
|
||
many more fighters than you should need to kill the invader.
|
||
|
||
Again, this list is *anything* but complete: it's just an attempt to
|
||
outline the strategically most important bugs. Hope it's useful.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
Many people have asked me about a complete list of TW bugs. I've never
|
||
prepared something like this, and I doubt I ever will. What I usually
|
||
post in response to that question is a list of the fourteen most
|
||
tactically important bugs in the game -- bugs like the shield bug, the
|
||
megaholds bugs, the holds bug, steal-sell, the fighter overload bug,
|
||
etc.
|
||
|
||
Gerard Droege and I also prepared a list of more minor bugs last year,
|
||
in response to a request from Gary Martin. We tried to skip the most
|
||
obvious problems (already listed for Gary by Kris Lewis), and come up
|
||
with some of the more obscure errors. At that time, in a few hours of
|
||
brainstorming, we came up with 52 bugs (again, not including the most
|
||
obvious ones). If we had more hours and lots of energy to repeat the
|
||
process now, I would estimate that we could double the length of the
|
||
list.
|
||
|
||
I recently found this list on an old archive disk. After I sent it to
|
||
Gary, I backed it up and forgot about it. I received word from Kris
|
||
that Gary had fixed all of the problems on the list in "just a few
|
||
hours" of coding. Given that assertion, I'm surprised to see some of
|
||
the same problems cropping up in the 2.0 beta. I think that reposting
|
||
the list now might be helpful to the beta team, and might satisfy some
|
||
curiosity on the echo.
|
||
|
||
Additional bugs in Version 1.03
|
||
|
||
compiled by Joel Downer and Gerard Droege
|
||
|
||
1. shield overload using negative numbers in citadel.
|
||
2. Alien % alignment bug in V-Screen in early game.
|
||
3. All evil aliens appear as annoyances instead of by true rank.
|
||
4. Good aliens' rank is unrelated to true experience.
|
||
5. Cloak is 100% reliable (vs. what the docs say).
|
||
6. Permanent p-missile -- if you quit the game while a p-missile is
|
||
in effect, the q-cannon will sometimes fail until another
|
||
p-missile fired. (?unverified).
|
||
7. holds bug (stealing 365, losing -32 holds)
|
||
8. p-missiles are not affected by planetary shielding system (vs. the
|
||
information in the docs and the menu screens).
|
||
9. player kicked out of the game when blown up destroying a
|
||
planet (as if ship was destroyed; actually in *** Escape Pod ***).
|
||
10. player kicked out interrupting sector display invading Ferrengal
|
||
11. TEDIT frequently hangs when accessed directly after TW in local
|
||
mode (locking up computer).
|
||
12. game flakes out after players have more than 10-12 billion credits
|
||
13. kill-kill cycle for experience and credits
|
||
14. repetitive colonist dump
|
||
15. cost for changing name follows no reasonable pattern -- always
|
||
resets to 100 credits when player exits game
|
||
16. Repeated insults after unreasonable price -- you keep getting
|
||
"Make a real offer" stuff even when you get back to negotiating
|
||
17. Port quantities change when thrown out of port (violation of law
|
||
of conservation of matter . . . ). Evil player can use this bug
|
||
magically to "create" commodities that otherwise aren't available
|
||
(excellent for moving planets out of contested areas).
|
||
18. Allowed to steal from port under construction (bug?).
|
||
19. 5 point stealing cycle
|
||
20. Ability to protect yourself from Ferrengi by carrying 0 fighters a
|
||
many shields.
|
||
21. integer overloads on alignment (when placing large bounties and
|
||
killing many fighters), with prices at Class 0 ports and in
|
||
hardware emporium. (When carrying millions of credits, Class 0
|
||
reports that you can buy a virtually random number of fighters and
|
||
shields between 32,000 and -32,000, depending on amount and ship
|
||
type.)
|
||
22. Corporate planet scan must be done twice to get correct
|
||
information.
|
||
23. Corporate planet scan confuses current planet record about level
|
||
of credits: makes the game think that current planet has same
|
||
credit level as the last planet on the list.
|
||
24. Quasar cannon only consumes half as much ore on atmosphere fire as
|
||
it should.
|
||
25. No way to interrupt ship catalog -- end up getting 19 ship lists.
|
||
26. Ether probe "forgets" current sector and self-destructs without
|
||
reaching objective. (Plot course, move, then fire. It'll get
|
||
mixed up virtually every time.)
|
||
27. Ether probe that cannot find target clears avoids without
|
||
prompting the user.
|
||
28. Downloading CIM information before plotting a course and doing a
|
||
port report causes game to crash.
|
||
29. "planet-busting" for experience
|
||
30. can't interrupt failed course plot (e.g., with {Esc} key); takes
|
||
up to 1.5 minutes on some systems.
|
||
31. BIGBANG forces sysop to reinsert code (bug?)
|
||
32. BIGBANG doesn't always reset aliens list, Ferrengi, or tavern
|
||
conversation
|
||
33. Getting murdered in the underground resets experience, alignment;
|
||
doesn't disturb assets. (bug?)
|
||
34. Federation-posted bounty in the log is extremely inaccurate (small
|
||
percentage of final bounty).
|
||
35. Sysop cannot cloak ships using TEDIT. (May not be a bug, but it's
|
||
*VERY* annoying.
|
||
36. Space bar aborts *display* of planet scanner, but doesn't abort
|
||
the scan. Scanners turn out to be an enormous nuisance.
|
||
37. Player penalized for not attacking an enemy when he/she is
|
||
carrying zero fighters (and cannot attack).
|
||
38. Possible to steal from port that hasn't been finished yet. This
|
||
may not be a bug, but combined with the fact that upgrading a
|
||
port under construction directly increases *quantities available
|
||
to steal* from the port, it makes the game silly sometimes.
|
||
39. Docs bug. For some strange reason, the help files suggest that it
|
||
is possible to create more than one port in a single sector.
|
||
Unless we're all missing something important, that's not so.
|
||
40. Last six characters of personal messages and corporate memos are
|
||
truncated. Quite confusing for new players.
|
||
41. Every time a player who has the rank Fleet Admiral (but who does
|
||
not have 32,000 experience) does something to earn experience
|
||
he/she gets "promoted" to Fleet Admiral again.
|
||
42. "Scan sector" from citadel rarely works, even when enemy forces
|
||
are deployed in the sector.
|
||
43. When a player is destroyed by a corbomite reaction when destroying
|
||
another ship, the name of the player/alien/Ferrengi piloting the
|
||
other ship is lost and replaced by the name of a Nebula or other
|
||
random item.
|
||
44. When a player carrying colonists is accosted by Ferrengi, his/her
|
||
amount of holds is decremented, but his/her number of holds of
|
||
colonists stays the same. (Ends up with more holdsful of items
|
||
than holds.)
|
||
45. (May be bug and may not be.) When a player tries to warp to a
|
||
distant site that is avoided (accessing the course-plotting
|
||
system), a warning system repeatedly interferes with the warp. On
|
||
the other hand, the avoids system will *NOT* warn a player about a
|
||
warp into an adjacent avoided sector. (This feature is hardest on
|
||
novice players.)
|
||
46. Mail and log items frequently scroll off a 24-line display,
|
||
despite built-in pause feature. Best guess: the counter function
|
||
miscounts three-line items as two-line items.
|
||
47. When a CEO is deleted for non-play, the corporation continues to
|
||
exist. All players can desert the corporation, and at least for a
|
||
time, the corporation continues to exist *with no members*.
|
||
48. Player can frustrate traces by the Grimy Trader by naming his/her
|
||
ship "The Merchant Marines." (bug? certainly *useful*...)
|
||
49. Player can acquire list of unexplored ports by changing ship name
|
||
to "The Merchant Marines," and doing a Trader Trace on him/herself
|
||
(again, lends itself to some *very* handy applications...).
|
||
50. Overflow in Tavern prices. When a (silly) sysop sets a very high
|
||
date, players are *paid* for asking for the Underground password
|
||
and eating and drinking in the Pub.
|
||
51. When a player is deleted from a game by the sysop, and is parked
|
||
in a citadel at the time of deletion, his/her ship is still
|
||
considered available for trade. Furthermore, if the planet is
|
||
destroyed, the message "[PLAYER NAME] GOT BLOWN UP TOO!" appears
|
||
in the log.
|
||
52. Players can neutralize the StarDock as a trading point (one solid
|
||
attack with 4,000 fighters in a BattleShip will do it), and it can
|
||
be upgraded. This element is primarily important because of the
|
||
steal-sell cycle, which evidently won't be an issue in the next
|
||
version anyway...
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Mike Magero:
|
||
|
||
The Magic Moth Bug: ** Requires Hostile Fighters in the Sector **
|
||
|
||
1. Get a corp flag with 1500 shields and 20,000 fighters. The ship type
|
||
is unimportant but a ship with a large fighter/shield capacity will
|
||
work better.
|
||
2. Take your ship and move to the sector where the enemy planets are.
|
||
3. Enter the sector. The Q-cannons will fire. Each planet will shoot
|
||
XXXX damage points. You may have lost all of your shields. You can't
|
||
get shields back. You still have all or most of your fighters.
|
||
4. You will be given the attack, "(A,I,R)", prompt.
|
||
5. Choose the attack option, and attack with 0 fighters. You will have
|
||
killed 0 enemy fighters, but the Q-cannons will fire again.
|
||
6. You will be given the attack, "(A,I,R)", prompt.
|
||
7. Choose the Info option. Make a note of how many fighters the info
|
||
list says you have. (*NOTE* It will be different than the number the
|
||
attack prompt says you have.)
|
||
8. Do NOT let the number of fighters on the info list fall down too far,
|
||
If you do you will get blown up! The number of fighters on the info
|
||
screen should be high enough to let you get blasted again, if the info
|
||
screen does NOT show you have enough fighters to take another blast go
|
||
to step 10.
|
||
9. Ok it is time to get the Q-cannons to shoot again. Go up to step
|
||
Nnumber 5 and repeat untill you are almost out of fighters or the
|
||
Q-cannons stop shooting whichever comes first. When that happens
|
||
go to step 10.
|
||
10. You will be given the attack, "(A,I,R)", prompt.
|
||
11. Choose the attack option and attack with 1 fighter. (You can't get
|
||
this one back, so only use 1 fighter.)
|
||
12. Choose the Info option. Make a note of how many fighters the info
|
||
list says you have. (It may or may not be different than the number
|
||
the attack prompt says you have.)
|
||
13. You will have regained some (usually all) of your fighters now, except
|
||
those used up when you first entered the sector and took fire. If the
|
||
number in the info list does not match the attack prompt then go to
|
||
step 10 and repeat until the fighter counts match.
|
||
|
||
* Notes*
|
||
1. You should make sure that your ship can withstand at least two blasts
|
||
right in a row. (The first one when you come in the sector and the one
|
||
that hits when you attack the first time.)
|
||
2. Go in as strong as possible so you can milk the cannons dry before
|
||
getting your fighters back. This is not imperative but it helps ALOT.
|
||
3. Do not kill the fighters in the sector when you first come into the
|
||
sector! They are what enable you to use this bug! Hostile fighters
|
||
can be generated by leaving corp fighters and then quiting the corp.
|
||
(Assumeing you're not the CEO this method of making hostile fighters
|
||
is acceptable, if you're the CEO think twice before you quit the corp)
|
||
|
||
Final Note: You will lose and not be able to get back whatever is lost
|
||
on the first entrance into the sector. So if you have 1000 shields and
|
||
5000 fighters and it hits you for 1200 damage you will only be able
|
||
to get back up to 4800 fighters. There is no way to avoid this. Also
|
||
you will lose all shields regardless of when they were lost.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Janos Szamosfalvi
|
||
|
||
MAKE.MONEY.FAST (TW) = Port rejuvenation and conditioning v1.0
|
||
|
||
(I know that 2.0 beta is already out so this is a bit late)
|
||
|
||
Prolog:
|
||
Some of you may have noticed that trading becomes exceedingly
|
||
difficult and earnings will drop in games where the CMH bug is
|
||
widely used. Port rejuvenation is a revolutionary new method
|
||
(as far as I know) that provides a steady income for CMH users
|
||
in v1.03d while completely evading detection by TWUNBUG if used
|
||
properly.
|
||
|
||
Imagine having a port that buys 25,000 Eqp over and over again,
|
||
say, 20 times in a 100 turns game. <GRIN> No need to worry
|
||
about raped ports, ferrengi, mines, hostile fighters or Quasar
|
||
Canons, and the only time you have to leave your home sector is
|
||
when you go to buy fighters or invade your opponents' planets.
|
||
|
||
Prerequisites:
|
||
a) v1.03d or earlier TW
|
||
b) corporation with at least 2 members
|
||
c) one evil member with enough experience to steal 1 unit of Eqp.
|
||
d) ship exchange allowed
|
||
e) planet with a citadel
|
||
f) port that buys equipment, preferably far away from busy areas
|
||
g) unlocked ships
|
||
h) no AEDIT anti-CMH fix in force
|
||
|
||
Making money actually consists of three + one phases:
|
||
a) creating Eqp using by using (CEYLAD)+
|
||
b) upgrading the port (optional)
|
||
c) selling the Eqp
|
||
d) rejuvenating the port
|
||
|
||
If the prerequisites are satisfied, the very first step is to
|
||
upgrade the port as much as possible, but not over 32,760 units
|
||
of Eqp.
|
||
Notes:
|
||
when you upgrade 1 unit, the port will get upgraded by 10
|
||
unit of Egp, ie: if at 100% the port buys 3000 Eqp, after
|
||
upgrading with 300 units, at 100% it will buy 6000 Eqp.
|
||
Rejuvenation becomes trickier with highly upgraded ports,
|
||
so I recommend 25,000 as the upper limit of upgrade.
|
||
|
||
Assume, you upgraded a 3000 port with 300 units and now the port
|
||
buys 3000 at 50%. (And 6000 at 100%; 6000 = MAX_Eqp) Now, create
|
||
3000 Egp using (CEYLAD)+ and sell it. Note, you *DON'T* have to
|
||
lock your holds, just get in the Eqp and sell it.
|
||
|
||
Now comes the real trick, the "rejuvenation."
|
||
|
||
REJUVENATION:
|
||
Continue to create Eqp and load it, (you can also load Ore and
|
||
Org), and when you have an appropriate number of holds loaded in,
|
||
steal 1 unit of Eqp. If you're successful, you'll see that the
|
||
port now buys some negative (!!) amount of Eqp. If you had Ore
|
||
and Org on your ship, you'll see that they didn't changw, but now
|
||
you have negative amount of Eqp onboard. Land on the planet,
|
||
unload the Ore and Org there, leave the planet and jettison the
|
||
rest. (rest = negative Eqp). If you only had Eqp on board, it
|
||
will be set to the # of your real cargo holds, so no jettisoning
|
||
is necessary then.
|
||
|
||
Type C R,
|
||
If you see negative amount of Eqp on dock, REPEAT REJUVENATION:
|
||
|
||
If you see that the port buys (MAX_Eqp - 1) unit of Eqp
|
||
(5999 in our example) you're done, the port has been
|
||
successfully rejuvenated.
|
||
|
||
Now you can upgrade the port even further, if needed.
|
||
Then create the appropriate amount of Eqp using (CEYLAD)+, sell
|
||
it, then start to "rejuvenate" the port anew.
|
||
|
||
This procedure, especially the repeated CEYLAD sequence is _very_
|
||
time consuming even at 14.4kbps; however, it's superior to all
|
||
money making methods I know of in 1.03D.
|
||
|
||
Pitfalls:
|
||
1) upgrading the port too far -- if you upgrade the port over
|
||
32760 (real) units, funny things will happen and further usage
|
||
of the port may be very difficult, or impossible.
|
||
|
||
2) no equipment to steal -- if the amount on dock is in the
|
||
range of [-32768..-32768 + MAX_Eqp] you won't be able to
|
||
steal 1 unit of Eqp. Depending on the amount currently on
|
||
dock, it may take weeks until the port becomes useable again.
|
||
To avoid this, rejuvenation should be done in two steps:
|
||
First, you load your ship with less than (32768 - MAX_Eqp)
|
||
holds of combined Ore + Org + Eqp, and steal 1 unit of Eqp.
|
||
(this step can be freely subdivided into smaller ones)
|
||
Last, you load your ship with more than 32767 + ACTUAL_Eqp
|
||
on dock and steal 1 unit of Eqp. This step is very crucial
|
||
and can *NOT* be subdivided, so if you upgraded your planet
|
||
to 30,000 Eqp, you must have more than 30,000 holds of
|
||
combined Ore + Org + Eqp on your ship when you steal 1 Eqp
|
||
in the last step, otherwise you'll get stuck.
|
||
|
||
There are 3 possible port states I know of for importing ports:
|
||
|
||
a) real: buys positive amount in the range of 0..MAX_Eqp
|
||
and have some positive amount, MAX_Eqp..0 on dock
|
||
|
||
b) virtual: buys negative amount, -1..-32768 + MAX_Eqp
|
||
and have some positive amount on dock
|
||
|
||
c) reverse: buys negative amount, -32768..-32767 + Max_Eqp
|
||
and have some negative amount on dock
|
||
|
||
Probably there exists a 4th state when the port is buying
|
||
a positive amount and have some negative amount on dock, but
|
||
I have yet to encounter that state.
|
||
|
||
It's possible to steal from the port only when the port is in either
|
||
the real or in the virtual state. Reverse state is bad, very bad.
|
||
|
||
3) getting caught when stealing the 1 Eqp -- this can really
|
||
suck if you had, say, 10000 Ore + some Org + some Eqp
|
||
on board. (no fuel Ore for the QC) For this reason,
|
||
it's preferable to load only Eqp which can be regenerated
|
||
idefinitely.
|
||
|
||
4) TWUNBUG, Overseer, Sysop, other players, etc. -- you can
|
||
avoid TWUNBUG if you jettison everyting from both ships
|
||
before quitting the game; Sysop -- if the local display is ON,
|
||
well, you figger it out. :-) If you deploy 30k of fighters
|
||
in your sector, probably others won't be very eager to destroy
|
||
them to get the port report. Also, it's preferable to stop
|
||
moneymeaking after you sold your load of Eqp, so even if they
|
||
get a port report, things will look more or less normal.
|
||
|
||
Subtleties:
|
||
-- controlled integer overflow
|
||
CMH users should know that during (CEYLAD)+ one ship will
|
||
accumulate negative amount of Eqp which is good for everything
|
||
except loading Eqp. But if you continue (CEYLAD)+ing, at one
|
||
point these holds TURN POSITIVE!! (Don't we all *LOVE* the 16
|
||
bit integer overflow? :-) You can manipulate this switch
|
||
with the amount of holds on the other ship, and if you do this
|
||
in an appropriate way, you can easily create over 32760 holds
|
||
of Eqp on your ship before you sell them. So, you can sell
|
||
some part of, and then you can steal 1 Eqp with the remaining
|
||
Eqp on board without landing and (CEYLAD)+ing first. This can
|
||
save lots of time.
|
||
-- faster rejuvenation/equipment creation
|
||
this procedure can be speed up a little by using more ships,
|
||
(3rd teammate) but IMHO it's not worth the trouble unless
|
||
someone is a math genius, or using a non-existent term program
|
||
that does the necessary calculations on the fly.
|
||
-- I want to mention that you need to start out really Evil because when
|
||
you upgrade a port to buy 25000 EQ, your align goes up about +320.
|
||
|
||
Epilog:
|
||
Port rejuvenation is a difficult to use method (unlike planet
|
||
cloning) and even I botched a few ports (all but one in my
|
||
local game, though) before I perfected this method.
|
||
Capability of adding/subtracting 5 digit numbers in head, or
|
||
having a local game for practice helps a *LOT* to use this
|
||
novel way of money making properly in a real game.
|
||
Beware of pitfall #2. (reverse state port)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by John Warfin and Mike Magero
|
||
(Retreat bug)
|
||
|
||
The retreat bug enables one to "skip over," with minimal damage, any
|
||
sectors with defenses on the way to attack a target sector (one with a
|
||
planet). Normally, one retreats to the last sector visited (even if that
|
||
sector is all the way across the universe -- as in the case of a twarp).
|
||
However, if you are surrounded on all sides by hostile ftrs and have one
|
||
such in the sector you are in, the game becomes confused and retreats you
|
||
toward the end of the nearest dead end tunnel.
|
||
|
||
If you are CEO, you prob shouldn't use this without first converting
|
||
all corp assets to personal (yours or a teammates), as when the CEO quits a
|
||
corp, that corp is dissolved and all assets are lost.
|
||
|
||
To use this technique, form a corp (if you aren't already a member of
|
||
one). Assuming you are in the (open) sector at the end of a defended dead
|
||
end tunnel, drop corp Toll ftrs in each sector immediately adjacent to you,
|
||
returning to the empty sector at the head of the tunnel. Now drop another
|
||
corp Toll ftr, quit the corp and quit the game. Return immediately and you
|
||
will be presented with the option to attack, pay or retreat. Select retreat
|
||
and you will be in the first sector of the tunnel. Any mines there will not
|
||
go off since you will be "in" the sector. Quit the game and return and you
|
||
will be again offered the attack or retreat option. Retreat and you'll be
|
||
in the NEXT sector of the tunnel. Continue this way until you've reached
|
||
the the sector with the planet.
|
||
|
||
Remember, you must leave the game and return in order to be presented
|
||
with the option to retreat. (If you keep leaving, entering and retreating,
|
||
once you've reached the end of the tunnel, you'll ping-pong between the two
|
||
sectors at the end.)
|
||
|
||
This assumes that all the hostile ftrs have been set to defensive (as
|
||
most will be). A sector in the middle with max ftrs set to offensive could
|
||
ruin your day! The (original) corp ftrs were set to Toll simply because in
|
||
testing, Toll ftrs were used and since it worked, Toll ftrs were used alw-
|
||
ays. Defensive ftrs would prob work as well, but offensive ftrs -- since
|
||
they will attack straight off and do not give the option to retreat -- will
|
||
not work for the initial setup.
|
||
|
||
Natch, use of this technique is improved any amount when a twarp cap-
|
||
able ship is used: when the next to last sector is reached, stop and attack
|
||
those ftrs, deploy a twarp ftr of your own, resupply and use the magic moth
|
||
bug on the last sector.
|
||
|
||
Since retreating deducts no moves, it is prob possible (if extremely
|
||
tedious) to use this technique to move vast distances in the game without
|
||
taking any moves.
|
||
|
||
There are no known unbugging pgms that affect either the magic moth or
|
||
the retreat bugs.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ The planet cloning bug (v1.03 only) ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- by Joel Downer:
|
||
SUMMARY
|
||
|
||
2002 version 1.03 (and before) has a problem with corporate or personal
|
||
planet scans run from citadels. Running a scan from a citadel makes the
|
||
game think you're on the *last planet listed on the scan*, rather than
|
||
the planet you're actually on. Usually, this confusion is temporary.
|
||
However, if you upgrade the citadel of the planet you're on immediately
|
||
after you do the scan, you can make the confusion permanent, "cloning"
|
||
the last planet on the list and everything on it (including, most
|
||
important, the fighters and treasury). By "reconfusing" the planet and
|
||
repeating the cycle, YOU CAN CREATE AS MUCH MONEY AS YOU LIKE WITHOUT
|
||
SPENDING TURNS OR CASH.
|
||
|
||
HOW TO DO IT
|
||
|
||
To use this bug, you need two planets with citadels, at least one
|
||
*below* level 5 (as a level 5 citadel may not be upgraded). The bug
|
||
works best when the two planets are in the same sector so that you can
|
||
move money back and forth without spending any turns. Both planets
|
||
*must* have a citadel or upgrading *from* a citadel won't be possible.
|
||
|
||
Tip: Say you have five corporate planets. Two, in sector 50, have
|
||
level 2 citadels. One, in sector 283, has a level 4 citadel. Two, in
|
||
sector 847, have level 5 citadels. If you do a corporate planet scan
|
||
from a citadel, the game will think you're on a level 5 planet and won't
|
||
let you upgrade. The solution is to go to sector 50, claim the two
|
||
planets *personal*, and do the cloning bug there with the *personal*
|
||
planet scan. The other planets won't appear on the personal scan, so
|
||
you can do the whole thing from the same sector.
|
||
|
||
The planet that appears last on the list (either your personal or
|
||
corporate planet scan) needs to be ready for upgrade -- it must have all
|
||
the colonists and materials necessary. Let's say for future discussion
|
||
that you have *personal* planets with two level 2 citadels in the same
|
||
sector. (This strategy will work just as well with corporate
|
||
planets, we're just trying to keep things simple.) The second one on
|
||
the list has all the goods needed to go to level 3. The first planet
|
||
that appears on the list is stripped bare.
|
||
|
||
Put all your fighters on the second planet's surface, put all your money
|
||
in the second planet's treasury, and put all your shields in the shield
|
||
bank (you can do this even if the planet isn't level 5 yet). Blast off
|
||
the planet and land on the first planet. Go into the citadel, access
|
||
the computer menu, and do a personal planet scan. When you quit the
|
||
computer menu, the game will tell you that you have money on the planet
|
||
-- the exact amount you put on the second planet!
|
||
|
||
Don't get greedy and try to remove money from the treasury right away,
|
||
or it will disappear. Instead, start the *upgrade* on the planet.
|
||
Doing so starts it on its way to level 3, but it also permanently
|
||
changes the planet so that it's identical to the other planet. (The
|
||
only things that aren't "cloned" are planet number and location, if the
|
||
planets happen to be in different sectors.)
|
||
|
||
Now comes the fun part. Take all the money out of the treasury, take
|
||
the shields from the shield bank, and pick up your fighters from the
|
||
planet. Leave the planet, drop everything off on the *second* planet,
|
||
and DO THE WHOLE PROCESS AGAIN! Because you're making the first planet
|
||
on the list *think* that it's the same as the second planet (which
|
||
hasn't been upgraded), you can "start an upgrade" on the first planet as
|
||
many times as you like in a single day. If you move everything you've
|
||
got to the second planet before each upgrade, your money, fighters, and
|
||
shields grow at a geometric rate (100,000, 200,000, 400,000, 800,000,
|
||
1,600,000, 3,200,000, 6,400,000, 12,800,000, and so on...).
|
||
|
||
LIMITATIONS
|
||
|
||
Be forewarned that having more than a couple billion credits on your
|
||
ship, or more than about ten billion credits on a planet, will make the
|
||
game extremely unstable. The game may even crash and prevent you from
|
||
landing on your planets. If you're going to use this bug, use it to
|
||
make a couple billion credits at a time; spend them, and *then* create
|
||
more as needed.
|
||
|
||
Other than that, this bug has precious few limitations. Using a macro,
|
||
you can go from 100 credits to about 10 billion (the most you can safely
|
||
make without risking a complete game crash) in about five minutes. You
|
||
can also use this bug to "instant-upgrade" planets from level I to level
|
||
IV, so it could be a way to create a large armadda of TransWarpable
|
||
planets; but the money is by far the most important issue. If you have
|
||
a billion credits when no one else does, you should be able to dominate
|
||
the game completely in a matter of a day or two.
|
||
|
||
HOW TO PREVENT THIS BUG
|
||
|
||
If you're a sysop who wants a successful game, or a player who wants
|
||
serious competition, you will definitely want to fix this bug. Luckily,
|
||
a fix is very easy to come by. 2002103D.ZIP is an authorized update to
|
||
2002 that completely (as far as I have been able to determine) fixes the
|
||
planet cloning bug. (I have heard rumors that there is a way to clone
|
||
in 1.03d, but I have heard no confirmation or evidence, so I currently
|
||
regard those rumors as false.)
|
||
|
||
1.03d is a "drop-in" replacement that doesn't require a game reset and
|
||
adds DESQview timeslicing support to the game. It is incompatible with
|
||
older utilities that modify the .EXE's and .OVR's of the game, but
|
||
newer, 1.03d-compatible versions of these utilities are now available.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ On the use of bugs ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
There is a "religious war" which has sprung up regarding the use of
|
||
the various bugs in TradeWars 2002. Some people call bug use "cheating,"
|
||
but think nothing of zinging about in the universe with one ftr and max
|
||
shields or running sell/steal or using any of a dozen or more other ack-
|
||
nowledged bugs. Others quote Ender Wiggins, saying, "Use what they give
|
||
you."
|
||
|
||
Be this as it may, it is surely not improper to make reference to
|
||
these things in order that forewarned may be forearmed, at the very least.
|
||
Many otherwise inexplicable happenings can be shown to not be cases involv-
|
||
ing sysop intervention with TEDIT or AEDIT (which is true cheating), but
|
||
instead merely someone taking advantage of yet another relatively unknown
|
||
bug. Also, since about the only (semi) valid charge regarding these things
|
||
is that, by and large, they are undocumented, documenting them will, at
|
||
least in my eyes, remove this last impediment to their use.
|
||
|
||
Another justification for inclusion of this section is that TradeWars
|
||
v1.03d is such a bug laden game to start with. Some are benign and scarce-
|
||
ly noticed, others are fairly hard to deal with and others can be exploit-
|
||
ed to give the user a distinct advantage. It is hard to even discuss the
|
||
game without talking about bugs.
|
||
|
||
It should be noted that, according to popular wisdom, the ultimate
|
||
pur sang v1.03d game uses the four code patches in AEDIT (to stop the
|
||
various shield, ftr, holds overloading and CMH bugs) and three of the
|
||
checks in TWUNBUG (to stop the player #2, heir to the throne and cloaked
|
||
trader exchange bugs). AEDIT/AEXTERN also has a patch that prevents use of
|
||
the shielded planet bug by allowing the sysop to arbitrarily set the limit
|
||
of shields allowed in a planetary shield generator. Quite often the only
|
||
knowledge that there is a limit comes when the planet you thought was inv-
|
||
ulnerable is invaded, or the amt of shields you put in yesterday is not
|
||
what is there today. This "fix" is NOT recommended.
|
||
|
||
NONE of the shield, ftr, or hold overloading and CMH (CEYLAD) bugs
|
||
described here are possible in a game which uses the AEDIT code patches,
|
||
and are fairly difficult to do in game with TWUNBUG running. AEDIT prev-
|
||
ents the machinations that allow these bugs to be used -- TWUNBUG actively
|
||
penalises you if you use them. (TWUNBUG is recommended for its passive bug
|
||
preventing facility only.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What is the "heir to the throne" bug?
|
||
|
||
This one is not "doable" by a player, it happens to you (if the prop-
|
||
er fixes are not in place). What happens is, when a player is deleted from
|
||
the game, the next person to enter will "inherit" the old player's user
|
||
number. The bug is that the game does not properly clear the asset owner-
|
||
ship when it deletes a trader. Thus a new player to an established game may
|
||
well find that he has become heir to the previous player's assets (if any):
|
||
planets, mines, deployed ftrs.
|
||
|
||
The same thing can happen if a corp is disbanded with assets still
|
||
declared as corp -- the next corp to be formed will inherit the assets of
|
||
the corp that was just disbanded.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What is the "player #2" bug?
|
||
|
||
This one can be annoying. Like the "heir to the throne," it cannot be
|
||
done -- it's something that is done to the first player in the game. The
|
||
first player in the game occupies spot #2. For some reason, the player
|
||
occupying this spot is subject to random drop outs of the data stored for
|
||
him: for instance, he may see the number of sectors he has explored drop
|
||
suddenly (they always seem to drop OUT, never IN). This phenomenon is refl-
|
||
ected in the affected players CIM report -- he may really "know about" a
|
||
pair of adjacent ports, say, but the game "forgets."
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What is the "cloaked trader exchange" bug?
|
||
|
||
It allows any trader to exchange with another trader when the first
|
||
trader is in the seconds' citadel and that trader is cloaked somewhere. The
|
||
prerequisites are that the target trader must have remained overnight in
|
||
the citadel at least once before. It apparantly makes no difference who the
|
||
first trader is; he can be an invader or a fellow corp member. What happens
|
||
is, when you're in a citadel, you exchange ships even though no other ships
|
||
are present. If everything is right, you'll find you are in "his" ship and
|
||
he will find himself cloaked in "your" ship when he comes back. The ships
|
||
themselves are exchanged, exactly as they would be if a legitimate exchange
|
||
had taken place.
|
||
|
||
If you are an invader, you could CEYLAD for a while, then strip his
|
||
ship down to bare metal and give it back to him. Better still, attack a
|
||
port with it and give him back an <esc> pod! <grin>
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What do the AEDIT patches do?
|
||
|
||
"Fighter/shield overload bug fix." This bug lets users get more fight-
|
||
ers and shields than their ships are supposed to carry by giving away
|
||
negative numbers of fighters and shields, to a corp member or to the shield
|
||
generator on a planet. This option will eliminate the bug by making the
|
||
negative sign meaningless to Trade Wars. Since no negative numbers are
|
||
needed except for this bug, this will have no other effects on the game
|
||
flow.
|
||
|
||
"Free extra holds bug fix." This bug allows evil players to get free
|
||
holds (even past the legal ship limits) by attempting to steal certain
|
||
3-digit numbers of products, getting busted, and getting fined a negative
|
||
number of holds. This fix limits the number of holds of product that can be
|
||
stolen to two digits, or 99. This may upset some evil players, but they can
|
||
still steal as many holds of product as they have empty holds by pressing
|
||
Enter at the prompt. As long as you don't design any ships with over, say,
|
||
300 holds (which is ludicrous) this should not trigger the bug.
|
||
|
||
"Colonist megaholds." This bug allows evil players to get imaginary
|
||
"mega" holds by loading up with colonists and getting busted, since the
|
||
colonists are not confiscated like other goods. This option changes the
|
||
code so that colonists are confiscated, and so the bug will not work.
|
||
|
||
"Corporate megaholds." This bug allows players to get large numbers of
|
||
imaginary "mega" holds using a fancy trick that involves swapping ships in
|
||
a planetary citadel and loading your holds with the <A> command for "take
|
||
all." This works because the <A> command does not go through the proper
|
||
ship-checking procedures. This bug fix simply eliminates the <A> command,
|
||
though unless you remove it from the MENUFILE.TXT file it will still appear
|
||
on the menu.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by David White:
|
||
|
||
To get and KEEP the hold bug of 32 additional holds;
|
||
|
||
1) Get busted robbing 365 holds of equ. to lose -32 holds, leaving the
|
||
ISS with 182 holds.
|
||
2) Go to Earth and get a load of 182 colonists. Your inventory should
|
||
show 150 total holds - 182 colonists. (The bug we'll be taking
|
||
advantage of is, if you were to port NOW, you wouldn't technically
|
||
lose any holds; instead, you'd be ask if you want to buy -32 of
|
||
whatever product was being sold.)
|
||
3) Before taking your colonists to your planet, stop at a sector with a
|
||
port that sells a product you DON'T PLAN ON USING ANYTIME SOON (I
|
||
usually choose Org., since I'll want Equ. for steal/selling, and Ore
|
||
for T-warping).
|
||
4) Port, choose S)teal product, and choose the product you don't plan on
|
||
using. (I'll use Org. in my examples). It'll ask "How many holds to
|
||
want to swipe [-32]?" Just steal 1 unit of Org. You'll get the usual
|
||
"Success!" message, though the Org. won't show up on your inventory.
|
||
5) Continue to your planet and drop the colonists off.
|
||
|
||
At this point, you can safely port and deal with Ore and Equ. using 182
|
||
holds. The one unit of Org. you stole earlier will keep your extra 32
|
||
holds from being lost. Especially useful, you can now steal/sell 182
|
||
holds of Equ. or Ore. (You can also continue to steal credits from
|
||
ports, transport colonists, etc. without losing the 32 holds.)
|
||
|
||
However, do NOT try to buy or steal Org. (or pick it up off your
|
||
planet) or you'll drop back to 150 holds. (Always answer 0 when it
|
||
asks "How many holds of Organics do you want to buy? [-32]?") I don't
|
||
know why, except TW thinks you have -32 holds of Org after you
|
||
stole 1 unit, and that will be ruined if you try to get more Org.
|
||
If you really want to be dealing in Org, choose another product for
|
||
step #4.
|
||
|
||
Also, do NOT try jettisoning anything. This seems to also clear out the
|
||
-32 holds of Org., leaving you with 150 empty holds.
|
||
|
||
Unfortunately, you can't rob 365 equ. and get an ADDITIONAL 32 holds. :)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
The bug that makes this trick possible is *not* the infamous holds bug,
|
||
which allows you to gain rather than lose cargo holds when you try to
|
||
steal 365 units of equipment. You can use the holds bug to load your
|
||
ship with max + 32 holds, but if you want any more, you'll actually have
|
||
to *buy* them.
|
||
|
||
HOW TO OVERLOAD YOUR SHIP WITH HOLDS:
|
||
|
||
To load a ship with extra holds, you must be evil. You may choose any
|
||
ship, but the best choices are the Imperial StarShip (because of
|
||
TransWarp drive and combat capabilities), the Corporate FlagShip
|
||
(because of TransWarp drive), and the Scout Marauder (because of turn
|
||
rate and combat odds). If you're using a FlagShip or Scout Marauder,
|
||
you can get a lot done with relatively little money. If you're using a
|
||
StarShip, or if you want to load *any* ship with more than 250 holds,
|
||
you'll need a great deal of money.
|
||
|
||
The best way to start is to get your ship to max + 32 using the holds
|
||
bug: let's say you're now in a FlagShip, and you now have 117 holds.
|
||
Go to Terra, and pick up a full load of 117 colonists. Now, find the
|
||
nearest port that *sells* equipment. Try to steal 364 (*yes, THREE
|
||
HUNDRED SIXTY-*FOUR*) holds of equipment. You will lose 32 cargo holds,
|
||
but, due to a bug in the game, you will still be carrying 117 colonists.
|
||
Next, find a port that sells organics (you don't want to use fuel ore,
|
||
because using fuel ore will make your ship incapable of TransWarp; you
|
||
might choose differently if you're overloading a Scout). Steal one hold
|
||
of organics (what you're actually getting is -64 holds of organics, but
|
||
don't worry about this). When you're done, you will have 53 cargo holds,
|
||
and 117 holds full of colonists, with zero empty holds. Now you can go to
|
||
Sol and buy 32 more cargo holds: doing so will leave you with 85 cargo
|
||
holds, 117 holds full of organics, and 32 *empty* holds, for a total of
|
||
149 cargo holds.
|
||
|
||
You can pick up more colonists and repeat as often as necessary. I'm
|
||
not aware of any limit on the number of cargo holds, but two warnings:
|
||
(a) the price of holds increases geometrically as you buy more and more
|
||
-- buying a thousand holds would cost millions upon millions of credits,
|
||
and (b) you need to think carefully about how many holds you can effect-
|
||
ively *use*.
|
||
|
||
The caveats about this trick are the same as for loading your ship
|
||
with max + 32: if you surrender to a Ferrengi, get busted, get blown
|
||
up, or try to buy or sell the commodity you used to "cement" your extra
|
||
holds (usually organics, sometimes fuel ore), you'll lose them. Obviously,
|
||
if you're using a heavily overloaded ship for the steal-sell cycle, you're
|
||
going to lose a great deal of money each time you get busted, because
|
||
you're going to have to repeat all the busts and repurchase all of those
|
||
holds. However, (a) with the right combinations, the risk can be *very*
|
||
worthwhile, and (b) I can think offhand of many other interesting uses for
|
||
this bug.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Jim Pittman:
|
||
|
||
DG> What is the CT megahold loop?
|
||
|
||
To do a proper megahold loop, a la Nightstalker, you run the <R>obbing
|
||
spree option on the TWVIEW OFFLINE to set up a closed loop of 8 ports
|
||
starting at Stardock. Then purchase a CT plus 18 holds. Hit each of the
|
||
8 ports stealing 365 eq or 660 org, getting busted for -32 holds each
|
||
time. You will then have 282 holds on your CT and can get around 750k
|
||
for it when you trade it in at Stardock. Have a teammate run a loop
|
||
before you log on again and you can do it each day.
|
||
|
||
I like to start my day in a Starmaster (or a Scout) for the turns, do
|
||
some trading, waste some aliens to rebuild exp and -align (you lose it
|
||
when you are busted so much), then when I'm down to CT turns, run my
|
||
loop. You can usually run two different loops per day with CT turns,
|
||
see how many after you have set up your loops with OFFLINE. That gives
|
||
a two man corp almost 4 million a day, depending on what they do with
|
||
the Starmaster. Then, when you sell your CT the second time (or third
|
||
if you have the turns) be sure to buy a high turns ship to start the day
|
||
tomorrow. And don't forget the cloak.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
-- by Leonard Adolph:
|
||
|
||
JV> Hey, I'm new to this echo, and missed the post on the -32 holds bug...
|
||
JV> Could you explain this one to me? Thanks.
|
||
|
||
If you are able to steal (-100 alignment or lower) you can attempt to
|
||
steal 365 holds of equipment or 660 holds of organics (the amounts are a
|
||
little variable but those are the numbers I first learned and still use)
|
||
at a port that has at least that much available (usually selling the
|
||
stuff). If your experience is not so high that you could actually get
|
||
away with those amounts you will be busted, fined -32 holds and
|
||
penalized +32 alignment.
|
||
|
||
Now the good stuff. Find 7-8 ports where you can do this quickly and do
|
||
it in a brand new Colonial Transport. With 8 ports hit this way you will
|
||
end up with 32 holds more than the ship can normally hold. If you port
|
||
your holds will fall back to the maximum the ship can carry. However, if
|
||
you trade in such a ship in the Shipyards you will be paid over 700,000
|
||
credits for it. To run a complete route you will need to have your
|
||
alignment down to at least -324 before you start. You will be penalized
|
||
+32 alignment at each of the first 7 ports leaving you with the -100
|
||
needed to hit port number 8.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
-- by Jim Bianchi:
|
||
|
||
One thing not mentioned above (or anywhere, for that matter) is that
|
||
it IS possible to steal product from class 0 ports. Typically there will
|
||
be only 1 or 3 holds of each product on the docks but hey, you only need
|
||
one hold to "lock in" your new holds. Next time you're evil and pull up to
|
||
a class 0 port (ANY class 0 port), hit "P." You won't be offered <R>ob as
|
||
an option, but if you hit "R" anyway, you'll be offered the familiar "rob/
|
||
steal" menu. Knowing this can make holds bugging really convenient at, say,
|
||
Terra, where you have a source of colonists (and a place to put them when
|
||
you're done with them) and a port from which you can get both the single
|
||
hold of product needed to cement in the new holds and the new holds them-
|
||
selves.
|
||
|
||
Now if I can figger a way to steal ftrs or shields..
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by John Fleming:
|
||
|
||
Here are some docs on the Corporate Mega Holds bug that I keep on file.
|
||
|
||
The Corporate Megaholds Bug
|
||
|
||
The commands from the planet meny are: CRYY...then...ACEYLD...CEYLAD
|
||
...CEYLAD...CEYLAD...etc. Some sort of citadel is required, and you'll need
|
||
another corporate member in the citadel with a ship with trade capability
|
||
that's unlocked. The initial CRYY is to leave the game with your ship un-
|
||
locked, else once you've exchanged, YOUR ship likely will be locked. After
|
||
you've done this, leave the planet and steal one hold of fuel or organics
|
||
and the holds are locked in. Don't trade any of the commodity that you use
|
||
to lock the holds in with. If you jettison cargo or surrender to a Ferrengi
|
||
the holds will disappear. I'd suggest carrying zero fighters if possible
|
||
but have carried up to 5 fighters on my Scout. Flee from the Ferrengi until
|
||
you're ready to lose the holds. You will sustain minimal damage from them.
|
||
They will block your path, however you can get around them. I have had up
|
||
to 3500 holds, but probably 32267 is possible. The amount of holds you get
|
||
is dependent on the amount of equipment you have on the planet. The bug
|
||
generates some equipment and organics can be used as well, if you're wil-
|
||
ling to lock in with fuel. You cannot sell the holds but can use them for
|
||
colonizing planets and trading.
|
||
|
||
I'd suggest starting with trading pairs that trade equipment and fuel
|
||
only trading as much as you can. Then switching hold configuration and
|
||
trading equipment and organic pairs more lightly, trading 280 to 500 holds
|
||
per trade. This will give trading pairs a chance to regenerate product
|
||
within a few days. Then Steal credits at the ports where you've traded. If
|
||
you get busted you'll lose your holds but you can CM again. Of course with
|
||
experience points you could drastically increase profits during steal sell
|
||
loops. With 5000 experience a popular formula (TWHELP Brandon Bannerman)
|
||
would allow for theft of 250 holds per turn. Also, you could sell several
|
||
thousand in one turn. The legitimate max of 85 holds per 2 turns(about 1000
|
||
per 9 turns) is increased to 2000 holds in 9 turns by stealing 250x8 holds
|
||
and selling 2000. This doubles your profits without extra turns however,
|
||
more turns are available than those allowed a Corp. Flag.
|
||
|
||
The bug is very useful for colonizing and upgrading planets. With 2450
|
||
holds you could populate two planets with 2 million colonists each and have
|
||
room for enough organics and equipment for upgrade in two trips. Of course,
|
||
Fuel is required too, which would require changing configuration or waiting
|
||
awhile.
|
||
|
||
Havoc Gunstars are the ship of choice for many of the CMH users. They
|
||
have Transwarp capability with a fair turn rate. Many ships can be used,
|
||
all except the Corporate Flag or ISS. I use TWVIEW94 to identify my intend-
|
||
ed trades for a session. I'll identify about ten pairs for a trading run in
|
||
a Scout with 200 turns (100 base turn rate). So far I have not explored all
|
||
possibilitys of the CMH. This should be enough to get you started or at
|
||
least explain why those guys in the Havoc Gunstars are so rich.
|
||
|
||
I
|
||
<Info>
|
||
|
||
Trader Name : Enemy of the People Deadeye Dick
|
||
Rank and Exp : 7350 points, Alignment=-5306 Demonic
|
||
Times Blown Up : 1
|
||
Corp # 3, Ghost Shirt Society
|
||
Ship Name : no really,
|
||
Ship Info : Sverdlov BattleShip Ported=17 Kills=19
|
||
Date Built : 04:04:02 AM Sat Feb 09, 2005
|
||
Current Sector : 635
|
||
Turns left : 67
|
||
Total Holds : 55 - Empty=5001
|
||
Fighters : 7007
|
||
Shield points : 542
|
||
Corbomite Level: 22
|
||
Cloaking Device: 2 Ether Probes : 19
|
||
Mine Disruptors: 10
|
||
LongRange Scan : Holographic Scanner
|
||
Credits : 81,353
|
||
|
||
Command [TL=00:52:06] (?=Help)?
|
||
...
|
||
|
||
This how your ship will look. Also, saw another combo of commands that I
|
||
haven't tried: ACEYLACEYLD...CEYLAD...CEYLAD...that may generate more
|
||
Equipment. You can make 1-2 million easy.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Ed Kammerer
|
||
(the recipe for Good Traders to 'lock in' their CMH holds)
|
||
|
||
Assuming a Trader already knows how to set up to do CMH, and is doing
|
||
CEYLAD, CEYLAD, ..., then one ship gains negative holds of EQ and one
|
||
ship gains positive holds of EQ. Usually the Trader takes all the
|
||
plus EQ and sells it from port to port.
|
||
|
||
The *minus* holds of EQ can't be sold. But THAT ship has a *positive*
|
||
number of EMPTY holds. (The ship gaining plus holds of EQ is gaining
|
||
the equal *negative* number of EMPTY holds. Call it ship 1.)
|
||
|
||
So ship 2 has minus EQ and plus EMPTY holds. If you CEYLAD enough
|
||
the minus EQ rolls over to a positive number, at the same time the
|
||
positive EMPTY holds rolls over to a minus number. The trick (bug)
|
||
is to break the mirror image of -EQ holds equalling +EMPTY holds.
|
||
|
||
Do this by using CEYLD, CEYLA, CEYLD, CEYLA, ..., (instead of CEYLAD)
|
||
such that each CEYLA you 'take <A>ll' with ship 2. The minus EQ holds
|
||
add up, by the same amount each time because ship 1 doesn't change --
|
||
ship 1 only gets used for the CEYL<D>isplay part. I usually CEYLAD
|
||
until ship 2 takes about -5000 EQ, then I change to CEYLD / CEYLA
|
||
so that ship 1 doesn't change and ship 2 takes -5000 EQ and gets
|
||
5000 EMPTY holds each time.
|
||
|
||
When EQ gets within 5000 away from 32767 (which is the rollover pt.)
|
||
STOP. Fill some EMPTY holds *first*, before doing the CEYLD CEYLA
|
||
one last time that rolls over the minus EQ to plus EQ. The plus EMPTY
|
||
holds DO NOT rollover, if you filled enough of them. For example,
|
||
I might run up to -29000 EQ and 29000 EMPTY holds, go to Terra and
|
||
pick up 4000 colonists (leaving 25000 EMPTY holds), then go back to
|
||
my citadel and add one more increment of -5000 EQ (and 5000 EMPTY's.)
|
||
Viola: 31534 EQ and 30000 EMPTY holds.
|
||
|
||
This way, when going port to port to sell the EQ, use the EMPTY holds
|
||
to buy ORG or FUEL, or shuttle colonists. A port might sell 2500 ORG
|
||
for 15,000 credits and another may buy them for 215,000. Maybe this
|
||
isn't as much profit as selling EQ that you get for free, but as long
|
||
as you're going to spend a turn to dock to sell EQ then any other
|
||
transactions you can piggy-back on the deal would surely help.
|
||
|
||
CAUTION: Don't get more than 32767 of any one item. You may want
|
||
to buy lots of FUEL for your Q-can -- don't buy more than the 32767
|
||
you can carry. Also, you have to buy or pick up SOMEthing, because
|
||
if you only sell, sell, sell you'll go over 32767 EMPTY holds.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Nathan Clark:
|
||
|
||
A variant of the PC bug, one which works in v1.03d, will allow you to
|
||
restock fuel on a planet as if by magic.
|
||
|
||
This bug is like the PC bug, but can be used with 1.03d. Claim a planet
|
||
with whatever product you want personal, then land on a planet and enter
|
||
<C>itadel <C>omputer <Y>list planets <Q>uit <L>eave <A>ll. If the planet
|
||
you listed has 10,000 ore the planet you're on will have 10,000 ore. You
|
||
get as much as you want by repeating the process. It works best with the
|
||
65xxx CMH's (for obvious reasons) and only works if you say <A>ll right
|
||
away.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Albin Gersich:
|
||
|
||
I have recently seen a number of messages asking about the 6666 bug.
|
||
Here is the info.
|
||
|
||
The bug is related to the number of fighters on the attackers ship
|
||
when the planetary defense fighter attack routine is entered. If the
|
||
ship has 26215 or more fighters on it AND the planetary military
|
||
reaction level is anything but 0 then ALL fighters will attack, not
|
||
just the percentage the reaction is set for. If the ship has 26214
|
||
or less fighters the planetary fighters react as you would expect
|
||
with only the set percentage attacking.
|
||
|
||
The number of shields on the ship has no effect on triggering the bug,
|
||
only the number of fighters counts. You can enter the sector and start
|
||
the attack with more fighters and loose some when attacking shields or
|
||
to quasar cannon blasts, but the number that counts is how many are left
|
||
when it gets to the planetary fighter attack routine. This will happen
|
||
for all ships and for all citadels of level 2 or higher. Any non-zero
|
||
reaction level will have the bug, even 1%. Using a photon will stop the
|
||
bug because it forces the military reaction level to 0% during the wave.
|
||
|
||
Now for the real kicker... The planet will lose ALL its fighters, not
|
||
just the number required to destroy the ship. Normally when you set the
|
||
reaction level to 100% you will lose enough fighters to destroy the
|
||
attacking ship (or all of them if there are not enough) and any left
|
||
over will remain on the planet. When this bug takes effect every fighter
|
||
on the planet is gone. Even if there are 30,000 fighters on the planet,
|
||
which is more than enough at 2:1 offensive odds to take out any of the
|
||
standard TW ships with 26215 fighters, they will ALL disappear. Except
|
||
for the quasar the planet will be wide open.
|
||
|
||
I originally ran across this bug after someone told me to set the
|
||
planetary military reaction level to 1% because some funny things
|
||
happen when it is set to 0%. While doing some testing to understand
|
||
citadels I came across this bug when I was testing a level 5 and
|
||
thought it was associated with it. I have since determined the fine
|
||
details of the bug. Although a limit of 26214 is a strange number for
|
||
a bug to appear I think it is interesting that when converted to hex
|
||
it is 6666. I wonder if Gary had a devilish influence when he was
|
||
writing this part of the code.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
But what if there are "unbugging" utilities in use? One of these is
|
||
TWUNBUG by Albin Gersich (the author of TWCAPD and TWASSIST). TWUNBUG is
|
||
a superb util for trapping such as the "cloaked ship exchange," the "player
|
||
#2" and the "heir to the throne" bugs, but the general consensus seems to
|
||
be that AEDIT does a much better job of dealing with the various holds and
|
||
shield/ftr overloading bugs. Whatever, here's a msg that shows how one ent-
|
||
erprising player got around TWUNBUG's holds bug checks.
|
||
|
||
- by TOM ROLLINS:
|
||
|
||
> TWUNBUG will assess a holds bug usage penalty. This
|
||
> could be a warning, getting put into an escape pod,
|
||
> or getting an escape pod and locked out of the game
|
||
> for up to 5 days. It will let small usage of the holds
|
||
> bug go through but not serious usage.
|
||
|
||
I was playing in a TWUNBUG game where I used the Holds Bug as much as I
|
||
could. I would kill myself by the end of the day (stardock underground,
|
||
attack Zyrain, attack a port).
|
||
|
||
The penalty was not applied to someone with a "Ship Destroyed" status. In
|
||
this way I could avoid the penalty (kind of like what people try with the
|
||
IRS) by pushing it into the future.
|
||
|
||
I would start each day in a scout and do what I could. I had to keep every-
|
||
thing as corp material so fighters would not turn rogue.
|
||
|
||
My opponents were shocked at how many fighters a "Ship Destroyed" player
|
||
could aquire in a bug-proof TWUNBUG game.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Mapping the universe ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
The latest innovation in TradeWars seems to be Level Diagram generat-
|
||
ion. The excitement over this was initiated by Dan Roseen's report that
|
||
Albin Gersich had developed a utility with which he was able to 1) map 99%
|
||
of the universe, 2) correctly locate SD, and 3) correctly locate Rylos and
|
||
Alpha Centauri, all within 15 mins of logging on to a new game and without
|
||
moving from sector 1! Albin is currently refining this utility and it is
|
||
s'posedly to be released to (rather impatiently) waiting TradeWars gamers
|
||
as an "early christmas present."
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by David Myers:
|
||
|
||
SH> Ok. I was hoping it would come across on the echo
|
||
SH> eventually, but since it hasn't I'll ask. What is a
|
||
SH> level diagram? Just something people made up in my
|
||
SH> three and a half month absence to confuse me? :)
|
||
|
||
A level diagram is generated when you plot courses from
|
||
a selected sector (called a root) to all other sectors
|
||
in the universe and back again. What you end up with are
|
||
course plots (that I convert into a .SCT file), a series
|
||
of distances from your root, and a list of sectors that are
|
||
extreme to your root (i.e., not found on any path to any other
|
||
sector).
|
||
|
||
What are the advantages of a level diagram?
|
||
|
||
1) You don't have to move, and yet you can still map most
|
||
of the warps in the game.
|
||
|
||
2) multiple level diagrams increase warp coverage in the game
|
||
approximately as follows:
|
||
|
||
# LDs % total warps
|
||
-----------------------------------
|
||
1 78-80
|
||
2 90-91
|
||
3 95-96
|
||
|
||
3) Since the vast majority of sectors on the extreme lists are
|
||
dead-ends, you get a handy list of dead-end candidates, useful
|
||
for locating planets. Alternatively, you can use this list to
|
||
hunt down your opponent's planets.
|
||
|
||
4) A level diagram generated at stardock creates a list of extreme
|
||
sectors that is the optimal list of eprobe targets to insure
|
||
100.0% coverage of the TW universe.
|
||
|
||
5) A couple LDs give enough information to locate stardock and
|
||
class 0 planets.
|
||
|
||
I've worked out a technique similar to a level diagram that I've
|
||
been calling a variable root algorithm. A variable root algorithm
|
||
increases the coverage from 80% of all warps to 93% of all warps
|
||
and does so in the same amount of time (15 min at 14.4k). So, if
|
||
I wanted to find stardock in a modern game, I wouldn't use FINDSGA;
|
||
I'd use the variable root algorithm and my program CLASSZER from
|
||
the LDTOOLS package.
|
||
|
||
A little about the history of the level diagram:
|
||
|
||
Albin Gersich announced a method to map the galaxy
|
||
to 99+% completion in 15 minutes at 14.4k, except he
|
||
followed the announcement with the comment that he
|
||
would be unable to implement such until later
|
||
(he used the phrase 'early Christmas present' at one
|
||
point). This got a number of us pretty excited,
|
||
and Woody introduced an alternative method that he
|
||
hoped would obtain about 90% of all warps called a
|
||
level diagram (this message is in the text file
|
||
MAPPING.TXT, which should be in both LDT105A and
|
||
TWFT102A). After talking about the idea *a lot*
|
||
I came up with an implementation, followed by
|
||
Woody. Pretty soon, Rick Cooney adapted his macro
|
||
package TWPLAY to Woody's routines. So the three
|
||
ways I know of to generate LDs are:
|
||
|
||
(1) via TWFT102A, which leaves you with the course
|
||
plotter information in a .SCT type format.
|
||
|
||
(2) INSTMAP.ZIP, by Woody Weaver, consisting of Telix
|
||
macros, a conversion program, and some other tools
|
||
for those who have no access to Telix and wish to
|
||
take a LD.
|
||
|
||
(3) Rick Cooney's TWPLAY13, which interfaces with
|
||
INSTMAP.ZIP
|
||
|
||
If my conversations with Rick Cooney are correct, the
|
||
latter two utilities leave you with a text capture of
|
||
CIM reports on courses.
|
||
|
||
Fred Polli says that the forthcoming Powermacs will
|
||
support a kind of LD generation.
|
||
|
||
I have a series of LD support utilities called LDTOOLS
|
||
that deal with course plotter info in .SCT format, but
|
||
not as raw captures (Someone does need to provide some
|
||
conversion programs for the raw capture people.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Woody Weaver (MAPPING.TXT):
|
||
|
||
The new TWASSIST feature has piqued my mathematical curiousity. For those
|
||
who just want TW tips, space bar now. For developers or those who might be
|
||
interested in the algorithms of mapping the universe, keep going.
|
||
|
||
The problem, of course, is to generate the directed graph that is a trade
|
||
wars universe. Currently, the number of nodes in the graph is 1000, the
|
||
graph is sparse, with at most six outgoing edges and average between two and
|
||
three outgoing edges, and is mostly strongly connected (i.e. a path between
|
||
any two nodes in either direction). What we have going for us is an oracle
|
||
that will display the shortest path between two nodes. The time it takes to
|
||
get a response from the oracle is a function of the actual distance, but
|
||
appears to be more than a tenth but less than a second if the path actually
|
||
exists.
|
||
|
||
Let's talk undirected graphs, then modify things later. (In particular, for
|
||
practical results, assuming all edges are two-way is probably useful; it
|
||
doesn't solve the problem of finding the star dock, as Joel's findsga does,
|
||
but for general trading/combat issues its a good first approximation.)
|
||
|
||
The level diagram of a graph rooted at r is an ordering of the nodes of the
|
||
graph by distance from r; i.e. r, then all its neighbors, then all nodes at
|
||
distance 2 from r, then all nodes at distance three, etc. An edge (u,v) is
|
||
an external i-edge if u is at distance i from r, and v is at distance i+1;
|
||
the edge is an internal i-edge if u and v are both at distance i. (Note
|
||
that EVERY edge is either an external i-edge or internal i-edge for some i.)
|
||
|
||
Okay, here is an algorithm. The first pass is to pick up all the external
|
||
edges rooted at 1. Set a bit for each node as an extreme vertex. Set a bit
|
||
for each node as unattached, set the bit for sector 1 as attached, then run
|
||
s from 2 to 1000 with
|
||
|
||
if s is not attached,
|
||
plot the course from 1 to s
|
||
parse the course to get v0=1, - v1 - v2 - ... - vn = s
|
||
store the edge (vi, vi+1), i=0..n-1
|
||
set vi as attached, i=1..n
|
||
turn off the bit for vi as extreme, i=1..n-1.
|
||
|
||
How many course plots do we have to make? A priori, I don't have an answer;
|
||
if the graph were pathological and we were unlucky, it could be as much as
|
||
the size of the graph. Note that we have to at least attach each dead end,
|
||
this is a lower bound. Let's estimate that we have to make 500 course plots
|
||
at a 0.75 sec each, or around 7 minutes.
|
||
|
||
At this point, we have ALL the external edges. Moreover, we also know that
|
||
any edge we are missing MUST be between a pair of nodes at the same distance
|
||
from 1.
|
||
|
||
Here is some data: the format is "number at distance(internal/external edges)"
|
||
|
||
St.Marys bbs, stellar dispersion from sector 1:
|
||
1( 0/ 6) 6( 12/ 21) 14( 2/ 43) 27( 2/ 77) 51( 2/146)
|
||
97( 19/290) 177( 47/450) 233( 91/487) 198( 51/345) 112( 15/179)
|
||
50( 2/ 75) 20( 0/ 30) 9( 0/ 12) 3( 0/ 4) 1( 0/ 2)
|
||
1( 0/ 1) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0)
|
||
There are 0 unreachable sectors, 1000 reachable sectors.
|
||
Average number of warps in reachable sectors: 2.411
|
||
Average distance to (known) sectors: 6.99
|
||
|
||
diogenes.club bbs, stellar dispersion from sector 1:
|
||
1( 0/ 6) 6( 12/ 22) 16( 2/ 49) 33( 2/102) 75( 6/221)
|
||
140( 36/393) 225( 91/512) 224( 65/436) 152( 19/245) 73( 13/110)
|
||
36( 2/ 46) 9( 0/ 17) 7( 0/ 9) 3( 0/ 3) 0( 0/ 0)
|
||
There are 0 unreachable sectors, 1000 reachable sectors.
|
||
Average number of warps in reachable sectors: 2.419
|
||
Average distance to (known) sectors: 6.51
|
||
|
||
grateful.med bbs, stellar dispersion from sector 1:
|
||
1( 0/ 6) 6( 12/ 20) 13( 2/ 35) 22( 0/ 71) 51( 10/142)
|
||
92( 10/250) 150( 43/375) 191( 66/424) 183( 63/362) 142( 22/247)
|
||
83( 10/127) 35( 2/ 57) 16( 0/ 25) 7( 0/ 9) 2( 0/ 4)
|
||
2( 0/ 2) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0) 0( 0/ 0)
|
||
There are 0 unreachable sectors, 996 reachable sectors.
|
||
Average number of warps in reachable sectors: 2.406
|
||
Average distance to (known) sectors: 7.33
|
||
|
||
The numbers are pretty consistent. The point is that this is fairly effective.
|
||
For SMC, there are 243 internal edges that would be missed, 2168 external
|
||
edges, so 90% of the internal edges.
|
||
|
||
Now consider the one-way character. Just reverse the procedure! I.e. here,
|
||
we first clear all the attached bits, then plot courses back from s to 1.
|
||
We won't have to do as many course plots this time: start with all the
|
||
"extreme" sectors (since you have to do that anyway) and that will cover
|
||
everything except sectors with back doors. Just pick up the remaining, and
|
||
you will have developed the entire level diagram.
|
||
|
||
Now what is missing? The internal edges, since they won't have been seen in
|
||
any shortest course plot. Its likely that this is a sufficient place to
|
||
stop: we've used up ten or twelve minutes of bbs time, and we've got 90% of
|
||
the edges, and we certainly have a good picture of the stellar dispersion
|
||
from sector 1. (Actually, because you want to buy etherprobes at the star-
|
||
dock and fire them off from there, it might be nice to do all this from
|
||
the stardock rather than 1.) This seems to meet all the tactical issues,
|
||
and then if you fire etherprobes at all the extreme nodes and parse the
|
||
reports back, you will have a valid map (because you've passed through
|
||
every sector).
|
||
|
||
What if you don't want to spend the money on the four hundred etherprobes?
|
||
Because of one-way warps, the level diagram of the opposite directed edges
|
||
rooted at 1 will have a slightly different structure in terms of nodes at a
|
||
fixed distance, you can actually gain more negative information about where
|
||
the internal edges are *not* located. At this point, one could do two
|
||
things: as you are developing the original sector scans, build the sets of
|
||
nodes at the same distance, and then do course plots between pairs to see if
|
||
the edges exist. (These course plots would run very fast, as most of the
|
||
time the paths would be of length 1 or 2.) Alternatively, one could just
|
||
repeat the above process of generating the level diagram rooted at another
|
||
node. Now, the edge would have to be internal to both level diagrams to be
|
||
hidden; if r and s are your two nodes, and (u,v) is the hidden edge, then u,
|
||
v have to be the same distance from r *and* the same distance from s, in
|
||
*both* directions, which should be rather unlikely in these random graphs.
|
||
Probably best is a hybrid: for each level diagram rooted at r, you get a
|
||
partition of the nodes (by distance). Combining level diagrams, you simply
|
||
refine the partitions. Repeat until the size of each partition is one or
|
||
two, then directly course plot between the nodes to determine if the
|
||
internal edge exists.
|
||
|
||
Interesting. I first thought about using the silly oracle several years ago
|
||
-- it is absurd that you don't have direct information about warps, but you
|
||
can plot all of the warps leaving a node -- but didn't think very hard about
|
||
it. It easy to see that you can get a complete set of information by
|
||
plotting 1000*999 course pairs, but a million course plots is clearly a
|
||
waste of time. Albin, it was very insightful to recognize that this can be
|
||
quickly done. The other reason that I didn't write the routine is that it
|
||
would (I thought) take all the fun out of exploration.
|
||
|
||
Now, I find that exploration is rather boring, and that knowledge of the
|
||
warps is not as important as knowing the location of the ports and whether
|
||
or not the port has been visited/blocked -- i.e., the etherprobe informat-
|
||
ion. It seems to me this feature of TWASSIST is very useful and very sens-
|
||
ible.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Stephen Whitis
|
||
|
||
>Ok, I was hoping it would come across on the echo eventually, but since
|
||
>it hasn't I'll ask. What is a level diagram? Just something people made
|
||
>up in my three and a half month absence to confuse me? :)
|
||
|
||
New technology, the best thing to happen to utilities in a while...
|
||
|
||
TWASSIST should add support for it (I think) in the next release. INSTMAP
|
||
contains telix scripts and other support for LD's now, as does TWFT. I'm
|
||
working on something myself.
|
||
|
||
Basiclly, you pick a base sector, then run the utility to create a LD. It
|
||
plots routes from your base to every other sector and back again. For
|
||
instance, if you use 175 as the base sector, it plots courses from 175-1
|
||
175-2 175-3, etc, and the reverse paths as well. That info can be parsed
|
||
out into a CIM sector report for use in utilities like TWVIEW and TWASSIST.
|
||
|
||
One LD will give you over 80% of the warp info in a universe. Another with
|
||
a different base sector can up that to almost 90%, I think. The third would
|
||
be about 93-94 %. (I'm not sure of exact percentages, which will vary a bit
|
||
anyway. But you get the idea.) So without ever using a turn, you can locate
|
||
the deep tunnels, get good estimates on where to find stardock & the class
|
||
0's, etc.
|
||
|
||
By doing an LD from stardock, you can figure the "extreme" sectors from
|
||
stardock. Those are the sectors which, if you were to eprobe each from
|
||
stardock, you would have explored 100% of the universe, with no probes
|
||
wasted (assuming none are destroyed on the way). Saves you money and time.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Pierre Tourigny
|
||
(Long eprobe paths)
|
||
|
||
The plotter will not send a probe through an avoided sector. If you
|
||
avoid a sector in the path proposed by the plotter, either the target
|
||
becomes unreachable or the new path is at least as long and usually
|
||
longer. That's because the plotter finds the shortest path between two
|
||
sectors.
|
||
|
||
Here's a procedure you can follow manually, if you're patient, to send
|
||
probes on long paths. Think of it as building a tunnel between the
|
||
origin and the destination. The probe is forced to take the only path
|
||
you leave for it.
|
||
|
||
a) Select a non-adjacent target sector;
|
||
b) accept the base sector in the path; the first base is the sector
|
||
where your ship is;
|
||
c) look at the path proposed between the base and the target; avoid the
|
||
sector adjacent from the base;
|
||
d) repeat step (c) until the adjacent sector is the last one left
|
||
unavoided or until the target is unreachable;
|
||
e) if the target is unreachable, clear the avoids and reenter all of
|
||
then except the last;
|
||
f) the new base is the last unavoided sector in step (d) or the newly
|
||
unavoided sector in (e);
|
||
g) repeat steps (b) to (f) until the base is adjacent to the target;
|
||
h) send the probe towards the target.
|
||
|
||
My probe launcher works nothing like this by the way. It does not have a
|
||
target when it starts plotting, only the goal of gathering as many
|
||
unexplored sectors as possible if it's in exploration mode or as many
|
||
sectors as possible if it's in monitoring mode. Also it does not
|
||
interrogate the Crai to plot courses; it uses its own plotter. It
|
||
depends on a good map of the universe. That's why such a utility
|
||
was not worth writing before ld generators became available.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Attacks/invasions ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
* Originally by Kris Lewis
|
||
|
||
How to calculate the minimum number of fighters to attack with:
|
||
|
||
(his ftrs) * (his odds)
|
||
(your ftrs) = -----------------------
|
||
(your odds)
|
||
|
||
Ex: If he has a Scout Marauder (2.0:1) and 200 Ftrs, and you have a
|
||
BattleShip (1.6:1), you need to attack with (250*2.0)/1.6, or 312.5 (313)
|
||
fighters. This assumes no shields on his craft and does not account for
|
||
the slight random factor in the calculations the game uses. Shields are at
|
||
2:1 odds, regardless of shiptype (I THINK. I'm sure Joel or Gary will cor-
|
||
rect me if I'm mistaken.)
|
||
|
||
Ferrengi ship's odds:
|
||
Assault Trader - 1.0:1
|
||
BattleCruiser - 1.2:1
|
||
DreadNaught - 1.4:1
|
||
|
||
Alien ship's odds are the same as player ships of the same type.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Albin Gersich:
|
||
|
||
I have seen a lot of discussion lately about the Military Reaction
|
||
Level settings for planets and a message about the sequence of events
|
||
when invading. In many cases the messages posted had incorrect
|
||
information, probably from people who believe the doc. Below is the
|
||
sequence of events that occur when a ship enters a sector and lands on
|
||
a planet. I have posted this info before but I have revised a few of
|
||
the steps to provide a little more detail. This should answer most of
|
||
those questions about what the MRL is and what happens.
|
||
|
||
The question left is what good is a non-zero MRL? I used to size up
|
||
my competition. If they were not expert players, or at least not
|
||
experts in invading, and they travelled around in smaller ships (i.e.
|
||
StarMasters or lower fighter and shield capacity) I would consider a
|
||
non-zero MRL. The reason is I wanted to destroy their ship in the
|
||
process so they can not reload. Even though it would cost me more
|
||
fighters (2:1 odds instead of 3:1) it would also cost them a lot to
|
||
replace their ship and all it's gadgets. In addition they would
|
||
likely lose a lot of turns when they end up in an escape pod and need
|
||
to use their remaining turns to get a new ship and back to safety.
|
||
These days I am not sure I would do this. All it takes is one expert
|
||
invader in the game to mess up the plan, and the quality of my
|
||
competition has significantly increased. In addition with the bugs
|
||
known these days, in particular the ship overloading bug, it is much
|
||
harder to size up an opponent predict what is likely to happen. I
|
||
take the conservative approach. I assume the invader knows what they
|
||
are doing and when they come in to invade they will have all their
|
||
assets ready and take steps to keep from being destroyed. When they
|
||
come in it is very likely they will conquer the planet (the 1639
|
||
shields bug not withstanding). I want to make it as costly for them
|
||
as I can so I set the MRL to zero because I want all my fighters to
|
||
get the higher odds.
|
||
|
||
The sequence of events is:
|
||
|
||
When a ship enters the sector:
|
||
|
||
1: Mines detonate.
|
||
|
||
2: Quasar cannons fire at sector level. The amount of fuel
|
||
used by the cannon is determined by multiplying the fuel
|
||
ore on the planet by the sector quasar cannon percentage.
|
||
The amount of damage points the invading ship receives is
|
||
1/3 the amount of fuel used.
|
||
|
||
3: If there are fighters in the sector:
|
||
If offensive, they attack. If toll, the player may pay
|
||
the toll or attack. If defensive the player may attack.
|
||
After the toll is paid the quasar cannons fire at sector
|
||
level again. If the player attacks the fighters, after
|
||
each attack round, even if 0 fighters were used in the
|
||
attack, the quasar cannon fighters sector level. If the
|
||
player does get all the fighters in one shot and attacks
|
||
five times the quasar will fire all five times. Continue
|
||
until the toll is paid or there are no fighters in the
|
||
sector. Damage and fuel calculations for these firings
|
||
are the same as in step 2.
|
||
|
||
When the ship attempts to land:
|
||
|
||
4: If the citadel is level 5 and has at least 1 shield, the
|
||
quasar cannon fires at atmospheric level. The amount of
|
||
damage the invading ship receives is determined by multiplying
|
||
the amount of fuel ore on the planet by the atmospheric quasar
|
||
cannon percentage. The amount of fuel deducted from the
|
||
planet is equal to half the damage.
|
||
|
||
5: If the citadel is level 5 and has at least 1 shield, the
|
||
player must destroy the shields to continue. If the planet
|
||
has 1639 or more shields the invader can not get past this
|
||
step.
|
||
|
||
6: If the citadel is level 3 or higher, the quasar cannon fires
|
||
at atmospheric level. Same damage and fuel calculations as
|
||
in step 4.
|
||
|
||
7: If the citadel is level 2 or highter, the planetary offensive
|
||
fighters attack. The number of attacking fighters is
|
||
determined by multiplying the number of fighters on the
|
||
planet by the Military Reaction Level percentage. These
|
||
fighters get 2:1 odds. If the invading ship at this point
|
||
has 26215 or more fighters AND the Military Reaction Level is
|
||
not zero, then ALL planetary fighters attack and are lost.
|
||
|
||
8: If the citadel is level 2 or highter, any fighters left on
|
||
the planet defend. The attacker must destroy them to land.
|
||
These fighters get 3:1 odds.
|
||
|
||
9: The player lands on the planet and has full access.
|
||
|
||
During a photon wave, only steps 5, 8 and 9 are in effect. All others
|
||
are nullified. If the photon wave runs out part way through the
|
||
sequence the remaining steps will be in effect.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Albin Gersich:
|
||
|
||
If you are landing on a planet that has a military reaction of anything
|
||
other than 0%, and you don't use a photon, and you have more than 6666 Hex
|
||
(more than 26214) fighters, then the military reaction of the planet will
|
||
react at 100%. The funny thing about this is that all the fighters on the
|
||
planet will be lost while trying to destroy you, whether they were all
|
||
needed or not.
|
||
|
||
Normally only an ISS can have more than 26214 fighters, and usually they go
|
||
in during a photon wave so this bug would not come into play. With the
|
||
overloading of fighters bug any ship could have this many fighters. What
|
||
matters is how many fighters the invading ship has left after the shields
|
||
and quasar cannon. This is when the fighter attack routines go into effect.
|
||
If the ship has at least 26215 fighters and the military reaction level
|
||
is non-zero, even 1%, then ALL fighters on the planet will attack at 2:1
|
||
odds. When this happens ALL fighters will be lost. Normally only the number
|
||
of fighters that are required to destroy the ship are lost, or all of them
|
||
if there are not enough. When this bug takes effect ALL of the planetary
|
||
fighters are gone, even if there should have been some left.
|
||
|
||
Since the photon wave temporarily sets the military reaction level to 0%,
|
||
this bug will not take effect if the wave is still in effect when the plan-
|
||
etary fighter attack routine is reached.
|
||
|
||
From the planets owners point of view, you most likely would destroy his
|
||
ship so he can not reload, but your planet is now wide open and it cost you
|
||
more than it should have. From an invaders point of view this bug can foil
|
||
your plans. Even if the planet has a level 2 citadel this bug will take
|
||
effect. If you go in with a fully loaded ISS to invade a level 2 citadel
|
||
and wanted to soak off some of the fighters by landing and retreating rep-
|
||
eatedly, you will instead be destroyed.
|
||
--
|
||
|
||
In v1.03d any single planet can be successfully invaded -- no matter
|
||
what defenses are present -- by a fully equipped ISS.
|
||
|
||
Here's one mans method:
|
||
|
||
- by Mark Cothran:
|
||
|
||
Oh my garshies! A REAL Tactical Challenge/Thread !!!
|
||
|
||
I know a few people that are gonna love this one from me, heck...they
|
||
think I NEVER played this game!
|
||
|
||
The Map:
|
||
|
||
JL> \ |
|
||
JL> - 874 - 149 - 280 - 691
|
||
JL> / |
|
||
|
||
MT>Sector 691 has a planet. You must make it VERY costly for an opponent to
|
||
get to it.
|
||
|
||
Always the best defense: make 'em spend money!
|
||
|
||
MT>This is how I would have STARTED this tunnel:
|
||
MT>149 - 99 mines and 5K of fighters
|
||
MT>280 - 99 mines and 5K of fighters
|
||
MT>691 - 99 mines and 30K of fighters
|
||
|
||
Sorry Michael, even with the defenses you describe, for the cost of 3
|
||
(maybe 4) Photon missles, I can basically walk right through your
|
||
defenses, and either take your planet or make you miserable...ESPECIALLY
|
||
in an ISS that has Transwarp and those 40K fighters.
|
||
|
||
SeaGul> Oh Man...Mark's on a roll again! I don't like this dude at all
|
||
SeaGul> but I gotta see what this guy's gonna say since we think he
|
||
SeaGul> don't even play no mo' .........HOW?!?
|
||
|
||
With 3 Photon missles ready to go, I T-Warp to whatever's outside 874, post a
|
||
fighter, and density scan. If it's clear, then move into 874. If it's anything
|
||
BUT 5/45, I holo-scan it to check for mines and/or planet/fighter ratios (no
|
||
idea if that planet has a cannon yet). On tunnels defended with an L3 planet
|
||
at the door, don't gamble: buy an extra ptorp and pop it in there for safety's
|
||
sake.
|
||
|
||
PRO: Realize that everytime you fire a Photon that it goes into the daily an-
|
||
nouncments as who fired-what-from-where so it's also a good way to attract all
|
||
the F-Troops to your arch-rivals doorstep if you want to fill up the logs with
|
||
"boom-splat" attacks (this will also wear down his Q-Cannons <G>). And remember:
|
||
photon missles DO blind any defensive strategy that's been set up thinking some-
|
||
ones not learning.
|
||
|
||
CON: Every F-Troop knows where your stuff is.
|
||
|
||
Now start a Photon Missle drive...you should know the duration of each missle
|
||
BEFORE you start this as even after the wave wears off, you can still sit ABOVE
|
||
an active Q-Cannon safely, as long as you don't move.
|
||
|
||
The reason I say this is that some Sysops set their durations Really Low, and
|
||
while you're fiddling with the Q-M-xxx keys, the wave's history. If you are
|
||
stuck with that trap, write a macro to shoot-and-scoot...the Soviets do.
|
||
|
||
Also know that the game docs don't work: you can sit above a sector you've
|
||
secured with a P-Missle and as long as you don't leave that sector, you can
|
||
actually read a few chapters till the BBS logs you off for inactivity. Pretty
|
||
stupid, but sometimes handy.
|
||
|
||
Okay so far? Photon Missle Drive? I'd fire Photon missles in each sector I'm
|
||
heading into with one exception: the Last. Why? I need to stop and think. You
|
||
got this far and your rival STILL doesn't know you're there, but you need a
|
||
breather...without a macro, this can be a royal "Oops!" DON'T blow it now!
|
||
|
||
SCAN the sector (density). Chances are they are cocky and in a tunnel. If you
|
||
see anything lower than 500 you've been suckered. You've been attacking a Port/
|
||
Ship/Fighter dead end. Careful! You've gotten THIS far! It could also be Mines/
|
||
fighters...play it safe:
|
||
|
||
Waste a turn: Holo-Scan it. Look closely at the planet your heading for: is it
|
||
L2/L3/L4/L5?
|
||
L2 Can't shoot....but fights back.
|
||
L3 Shoots Back...can be devastating.
|
||
L4 Take it or Forget It. I'm Moving It!
|
||
L5 Well, if I got 1639 Shields: go build your own! It's mine!
|
||
|
||
Okay, see a planet? Either they're defending it to the max or you're chas-
|
||
ing an untamed ornithopod (Wild Goose Chase). Two tactics:
|
||
|
||
Cool...it's a Level 4 with a LOT of fighters and a relatively high q-cannon
|
||
Sector reaction level (IOW: anything above zero). Leave a sector q-cannon
|
||
on and it can be mothed...I'll play "tag" with my fighters/shields and wear
|
||
it down as I move in and out of your sector watching the reaction power
|
||
drop radically. Or wait a few days while all those people you ticked off moth
|
||
you down to a managable level, then invade. Or play the game against them:
|
||
invade with anything above 24,000 fighters and watch the reaction.
|
||
|
||
Or: your L4 with NO sector and 100% Atmospheric. My solution? Buster Baby... I
|
||
pop a P-Missle on you shooting that extra Missle BACK into the tunnel I came
|
||
from then moving there. DO WHAT?? Yeah..I'm yanking your chain..fire off those
|
||
mine sweepers NOW! Back into your Home sector: clear as many mines out as you
|
||
can cause I'm gonna move back in and post my own toll fighter in your space as
|
||
soon as I can. Why? Heck...I've got T-Warp! Who cares about your defenses when I
|
||
can T-Warp back and forth? See the team benefit yet? One's offense, ones def-
|
||
ense: replace your rivals' mines/fighters with friendlier stuff, to me. I've
|
||
played 2 man teams against 8 man teams and we win. You tell me what we did so
|
||
radically different.
|
||
|
||
A good teammate is a necessity! Find someone you get along with and start learn-
|
||
ing together how this game works. I've been up many an hour at 1 AM talking def-
|
||
ensive/offensive tactics with people.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Kris Lewis:
|
||
|
||
A planetary Quasar Cannon has two firing levels, both expressed in the
|
||
percentage of stored Fuel Ore to use to power the Quasar Blast. The first,
|
||
the Sector reaction level, determines how hard a hostile will be hit for
|
||
just entering the sector. Usually this is kept fairly low, and inflicts one
|
||
battle point per three units of Ore expended. The second, the Atmosphere
|
||
reaction level, specifies how much of the remaining ore is to go into fir-
|
||
ing on one who tries to actually LAND on the planet. This shot is much more
|
||
effective, doing one battle point per unit of ore expended.
|
||
|
||
There is an oddity in that the sector firing uses all the fuel ore you exp-
|
||
ect it to, but the atmosphere shot only takes HALF the expected amount.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
When invading Ferrengal with a ptorp, if you abort the sector display,
|
||
a bug will crash the game, most likely returning you to the BBS. If you used
|
||
a macro to invade, by the time you return, the ptorp wave will have run out
|
||
and you'll find yourself setting off the mines, attacked by the ftrs and be-
|
||
ing fired on by the Ferrengal qcannon.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Colonists ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
It's prob easiest to think in terms of holds of colonists. One hold is
|
||
one thousand people. When max prod is one million colonists, that actually
|
||
means one thousand holds. Colonists are avail on Terra, where there are
|
||
10,000 holds of them (each of 1000 people). Just remember that when the
|
||
game tells you "3,000,000 colonists are required" for the next upgrade,
|
||
you need to have 3000 HOLDS, not three million holds.
|
||
|
||
Colonists are initially avail only at Terra. As stated elsewhere, the
|
||
optimum amount is 1000 holds of colonists on each product (3000 total). If
|
||
this figure varies significantly one way or the other from this amt, prod-
|
||
uction of the associated product will decrease.
|
||
|
||
1000 holds of colonists will produce 333 holds of fuel ore and 34 ftrs
|
||
each day. It is a part of many players end game strategy to have a lot of
|
||
"farming planets" which can absorb the excess colonists as they increase,
|
||
in order to ..ah, harvest, the ftrs and fuel. After a certain point in the
|
||
game, it should no longer necessary to buy ftrs except in cases of emerg-
|
||
ency, and the fuel is handy for qcannon and twarping.
|
||
|
||
An interesting feature of planetary expansion (upgrade) is that once
|
||
an upgrade step has been initiated, all colonists and any remaining prod-
|
||
uct can be removed from the planet and the upgrade will still proceed ac-
|
||
rding to schedule.
|
||
|
||
One tactic I've heard of is for one corp member to deliberately pick
|
||
up colonists from Terra and jettison them, with the idea of so diminishing
|
||
the supply to the point where there are none left to be used for colonising
|
||
other competitive planets that may be constructed. The number of colonists
|
||
on Terra maxes out at 10000 holds; even though they DO regenerate, you'd be
|
||
surprised how easy it is to drain that number down to 0 with a CMH bugged
|
||
ship. Of course, as soon as you jettison anything, you loose your extra
|
||
holds, but hey, CMH is free, it requires no turns to do, can be done by
|
||
good as well as evil players and is fun to do besides.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
At any rate, the topic of colonist increase/decrease cycles came up on
|
||
the FIDO TradeWar conference and Leonard Adolph provided this report:
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph:
|
||
|
||
I have been asked to look into the rates involved in the colonist
|
||
increase/decrease cycle.
|
||
|
||
I have found that the colonist i/d cycle is based on 30 days with the
|
||
base being the beginning of an individual game. Due to rounding and
|
||
other factors a day may be added now and then, throwing the absolute 30
|
||
day cycle off over time. The game begins with the colonist cycle on the
|
||
decrease with colonists dying off for 10 days. At the end of 10 days
|
||
colonists begin increasing and do so for 20 days.
|
||
|
||
Now the tricky part:
|
||
|
||
During the 10 day decrease cycle colonists die off at 1% the first day
|
||
and continue dying off at a sliding percentage that averages out to
|
||
about .1% change per day. That is on day two they die off at about .9%,
|
||
day three at .8%, etc. It is this sliding scale that creates periods of
|
||
seeming stability when colonists neither increase nor decrease. With
|
||
fewer colonists on a planet the stable period will be longer.
|
||
|
||
During the colonist increase cycle colonists increase from about .1% on
|
||
the first day up to a maximum of 2% twenty days later, at which time the
|
||
decrease cycle begins with a 1% loss as outlined in the previous
|
||
paragraph. The stable period of no colonist change marks the end of the
|
||
decrease cycle and the beginning of the increase cycle.
|
||
|
||
I am not absolutely positive on the 30 day base being the beginning of
|
||
an individual game. This is easily checked by others here though as my
|
||
tests were done local in a game 32 days old and in the second decrease
|
||
cycle. The colonists in my local setup will appear stable (2895 total on
|
||
a planet) on days 39 through 42 at 10:30 pm. On day 43 they will
|
||
increase by 3 and continue increasing by increasing amounts until on day
|
||
62 they will drop from 3525 to 3492. The increases and decreases are
|
||
continuous throughout the day and amounts will vary depending on the
|
||
time of day.
|
||
|
||
To run these tests I copied out all the .DAT files from my \TRADEWAR
|
||
directory and did planet scans after which I exited the game, changed
|
||
the date in DOS and re-entered to redo planet scans. I did this for
|
||
about an hour and went from day 32 through day 76 with a short break at
|
||
day 74 to run EXTERN to see if there was any effect (there wasn't).
|
||
I copied the .DAT files back in so my son can continue with his play.
|
||
|
||
Am I obsessed or what? (Is that Gary chuckling in the background?) :-)
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Ferrengi ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Kris Lewis:
|
||
|
||
Ferrengal itself is usually a Level 4 planet (Level 3 Citadel - Quasar
|
||
Cannon). It is usually located in a dead end, and the Nebula name will
|
||
always be "The Ferrengi Empire". The planet itself usually STARTS with the
|
||
following: Colonists: 600 per area, 10000 Ore, some (low) amount of Organ-
|
||
ics and Equipment, 5000 Fighters, 100,000 credits in the Treasury, a Milit-
|
||
ary reaction level of 40%, and Quasar cannon levels of 30% (atmosphere) and
|
||
0% (sector).
|
||
|
||
Destroying or invading Ferrengal by itself will not prevent the Ferrengi
|
||
from regenerating. The sector defense force must also be neutralized AND
|
||
REPLACED. Once destroyed, Ferrengal will NOT regenerate. If the planet is
|
||
taken over AND the sector defense force is replaced by that of a player,
|
||
then the Ferrengi are out of the game, aside from the ships that are still
|
||
at large. Once destroyed, they will no longer regenerate. Taking the planet
|
||
and NOT deploying your own fighters in the sector is an easy way to get
|
||
every Ferrengi ship to attack you on sight, and they WILL still regenerate.
|
||
|
||
As an aside, the Ferrengi ships base the number of fighters with which to
|
||
attack you upon the number of fighters you carry. If you're being hounded,
|
||
carry a small number of or no fighters and maximum shields. You can then
|
||
pretty much ignore them.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph:
|
||
|
||
The Ferrengi ship types are dependant on their position in the
|
||
FERRENGI.DAT file. Positions 1-20 will all be Assault Traders, 21-30
|
||
will be Battle Cruisers and 31-40 will be Dreadnaughts.
|
||
|
||
The Ferrengi ships in the Library appear when the ships in the .DAT file
|
||
appear. Thus, the Battle Cruiser appearing in the Library indicates that
|
||
at least 21 positions in the .DAT file are being used and there are that
|
||
many Ferrengi roaming around. When the Dreadnaught appears in the
|
||
library there are at least 31 Ferrengi ships in the game.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph:
|
||
|
||
In the FERRENGI.DAT file there is room for up to 40 Ferrengi ships. Each
|
||
of those data positions has room for up to 3 grudges. If you destroy a
|
||
Ferrengi one of those grudge positions will have a number in it which
|
||
corresponds to your position in the trader data files. The actual trader
|
||
name will show up in TEDIT but that name changes as the trader name
|
||
changes. If in future another Ferrengi ship is generated in the data
|
||
position of the one you destroyed, that Ferrengi will have the grudge
|
||
against you or your replacement.
|
||
|
||
There are three ways to clear a grudge:
|
||
|
||
Delete the FERRENGI.DAT file. this is *not* done automatically when Big
|
||
Bang is run. Thus the pregrudged Ferrengi bug. Any former Ferrengi
|
||
grudges will carry over to the new game to the misfortune of whoever
|
||
happens to get the grudged trader positions.
|
||
|
||
Grudges can be cleared by a sysop using an editor (TEDIT). Unfortunately
|
||
grudges can also be placed *on* traders the same way.
|
||
|
||
The only other way a grudge can clear for a trader is if enough other
|
||
traders attack or flee from Ferrengi ships occupying the same data file
|
||
position such that they replace the original trader.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- David Pittman:
|
||
|
||
Basic setup: I used all of the defalt values for the 1.03d game
|
||
and aged the game to 100 days running extern daily. After
|
||
I entered the game for the first time to establish a user
|
||
record I used Tedit to beef up my ship for survivability.
|
||
I also used Tedit to find the locations of the Ferrengi
|
||
ships and to restock their ships as they became depleated.
|
||
|
||
Part I
|
||
Once I had located one of the Ferrengi ships I would
|
||
follow it around until it ordered me to surrender. At that
|
||
time I would flee from it. It would attack me but would
|
||
not follow me. I then re-entered the sector that the
|
||
Ferrengi was in and it ordered me to surrender again. I
|
||
repeated the flee and find again cycle over several game
|
||
days using Tedit to restock my ship and the Ferrengi's
|
||
ships with fighters and shields. I also used Tedit to see
|
||
if the Ferrengi had any grudges but it did not. I took
|
||
this through about 200 cycles.
|
||
|
||
Part II
|
||
I then lowered the number of fighters and shields on my
|
||
ship and repeated the cycle. During this type of
|
||
encounter my ship was destroyed each time I fled but no
|
||
grudge resulted from these encounters. (approx. 50 cycles)
|
||
|
||
Part III
|
||
Attacking the sector fighters in the Ferrengi home sector
|
||
resulted in no grudges against me.
|
||
|
||
Part IV
|
||
Attacking and occuping the Ferrengi home world "Ferrengal"
|
||
resulted in no grudges against me.
|
||
|
||
Part V
|
||
Attacking a ferrengi ship resulted in that ship having a
|
||
grudge against me but only that one.
|
||
|
||
Part VI
|
||
After establishing several Ferrengi grudges I put 15000
|
||
Ferrengi fighters in the Ferrengi home sector and then went
|
||
through several game days, logging on as a different player
|
||
and moved around some to cause the Ferrengi ships to move.
|
||
The process resulted in the production of several new
|
||
Ferrengi ships that had no grudges listed.
|
||
|
||
Conclusion:
|
||
The only way that I could find to aquire a Ferrengi grudge
|
||
was to attack a Ferrengi ship. Fleeing from them,
|
||
attacking sector fighters, or invading the Ferrengi home
|
||
world did not produce any grudges.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
It is generally cheaper in the long run, esp in a beginning game when
|
||
resources are tight, to surrender to a Ferrengi demanding tribute and who
|
||
takes holds and/or product. Attacking him can lead to a grudge. If you are
|
||
braced by the duty Ferrengi and holds/product are taken from you, you will
|
||
not be bothered again that day.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Jim Pittman
|
||
|
||
One further caution on invading Ferrengal. If you are using Powermacs to
|
||
launch your photon, do NOT abort the sector display. There is a bug <gasp>
|
||
that will kick you out of the game if you do. When you reenter the game
|
||
you will be blasted by the cannon, set off the mines, and be attacked by
|
||
any sector fighters.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Tips 'n tricks ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
This section is for all the interesting little bits that are important
|
||
enough to be included in such a file as this, but aren't worth a category
|
||
of their own.
|
||
|
||
- by Albin Gersich
|
||
|
||
RB> I'm curious as to how long it takes for a port which has been drained
|
||
RB> to replenish itself.
|
||
|
||
Ports will regenerate 5% in 24 hours. There is a bug where the ports
|
||
will only regenerate for a maximum of 10 days since the last time they
|
||
were visited. If a port is drained to 0 in 10 days it will be at 50%.
|
||
It will stay there if it is not visited again. If it regenerated to
|
||
30% when someone visited it then it will regenerate up to 80% 10 days
|
||
later and then stay there.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* by Leonard Adolph
|
||
|
||
Here's another little trick with large numbers of holds:
|
||
|
||
If you locked your holds with fuel ore then find you want to move large
|
||
amounts of fuel ore, you can. Unload one of the other products to get
|
||
empty holds and fill them with colonists. Now lock the holds using the
|
||
product you just emptied, put the colonists back and move your fuel
|
||
ore. A corp partner figured this one out when I asked him to restock
|
||
the quasar cannons in a game we have decided to end.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* Originally by Kris Lewis
|
||
|
||
Density scanner readings:
|
||
|
||
0 - Nothing 40 - per Trader, Alien, or Ferrengi
|
||
1 - Beacon 50 - Destroyed Starport
|
||
5 - per Fighter 100 - Starport/Stardock
|
||
20 - per Mine 500 - per Planet
|
||
|
||
Any density reading not ending in a 0, 1, 5, or 6 is a Federal.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What are the MSLs?
|
||
|
||
The Major Space Lanes run from Terra to SD and back, from SD to Rylos
|
||
and Alpha Centauri (both class 0 ports) and back from each to SD, and from
|
||
Rylos to Alpha Centauri and back. Note that due to one way warps, the route
|
||
TO anywhere isn't necessarily the same as the route BACK. Thus, there is a
|
||
possiblity of there being eight MSLs. When the daily maintenance program
|
||
runs (usually at midnite), the Feds will destroy any ftrs or mines they
|
||
find in any of the MSLs. In v1.03d, citadels (and any sector qcannon) are
|
||
not affected in an unedited game.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
The latest controversy to hit the FIDO TradeWars conference involves
|
||
the question, "is it possible to positively find a cloaked player (and
|
||
destroy him)?" The obvious answer is no. (After all, what are cloaks FOR
|
||
if not to render the user totally invisible and thus invulnerable?)
|
||
|
||
What it IS possible to do is to, using a variety of methods, such as
|
||
asking the Grimy Trader in the Tavern about a particular trader, analysing
|
||
high traffic areas, learning the habits of the target as regards favorite
|
||
places to stay for the night, plotting destroyed ftr patterns, examining
|
||
sheep entrails, and so on, to make a guess as to a cloaked players locat-
|
||
ion. Unfortunately, as in anything depending on random chance, occasionally
|
||
someone will guess that so-and-so is in such-and-such sector AND HE IS. And
|
||
yet another "urban myth" will be born about how to find a cloaked trader.
|
||
|
||
There have been put forward several schemes that sound good at first,
|
||
but do not stand up to rational analysis or empirical testing. Among these
|
||
are:
|
||
|
||
If you suspect a player is cloaked in the sector, hit "A" to attack
|
||
him. If he's there, the game will respond as it normally does when you go
|
||
over to combat mode.
|
||
|
||
If you suspect a player is cloaked in the sector, hit "W" to tow him.
|
||
If he is really there, you'll be notified that towing a ship with ftrs on
|
||
board is not possible.
|
||
|
||
Hmm, just after I'd finally mastered move-post-scan in an evil ISS, I
|
||
gotta add two more steps to the dance: move-post-scan-attack-tow. (Parsely-
|
||
sage-rosemary-thyme.) Needless to say, neither of these work. They've been
|
||
tested on private games by people I trust and they simply DO NOT WORK.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
There are three ways to determmine corp or personal ownership of a
|
||
planet:
|
||
|
||
1) When first you create it, you're asked (if you're on a corp) if this is
|
||
to be a corp or a personal planet.
|
||
|
||
2) If you invade and claim ownership, again you're asked if it is to be a
|
||
corp or a personal planet.
|
||
|
||
3) When you deposit ftrs on the surface of a planet, you're asked if they
|
||
are to be corp or personal ftrs. If you select "personal," the ownership
|
||
of the planet will also be set to personal (and any fellow corp members
|
||
won't be allowed to land without first taking out the ftrs, or shields
|
||
in the case of an L5 citadel).
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- What are the port numbers and what do they mean?
|
||
|
||
These refer to the type of transaction carried on at any particular
|
||
port. There are ten port classes. Stardock itself is the only class 9 port.
|
||
The port itself in the SD sector is a bbb port. There are three class 0
|
||
ports: Sol, Rylos and Alpha Centauri, selling only holds, ftrs and shields.
|
||
("Class 0 items" are also avail at the shipyards.) The following table
|
||
shows the relationships:
|
||
|
||
port
|
||
class fuel org equip
|
||
|
||
1 buys buys sells (bbs)
|
||
2 buys sells buys (bsb)
|
||
3 sells buys buys (sbb)
|
||
4 sells sells buys (ssb)
|
||
5 sells buys sells (sbs)
|
||
6 buys sells sells (bss)
|
||
7 sells sells sells (sss)
|
||
8 buys buys buys (bbb)
|
||
|
||
9 StarDock -- shipyards, hardware, tavern, UG, Policia, galbank, etc.
|
||
0 Sol, Rylos, Alpha Centauri -- selling holds, ftrs, shields
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Matt Bush
|
||
(Cloaked planet)
|
||
|
||
Ok, it's not really a cloaked planet, but it's almost as good, will
|
||
cost you only 31,000 credits, it's not a bug, and is very easy to do!
|
||
|
||
You just took over a Level 4 or Level 5 planet, but you don't have
|
||
anything to defend it with. Go to StarDock and buy a Genesis Torpedo
|
||
and an Atomic Detonator. Go into the sector and make a planet with the
|
||
exact same name. Display the sector to make sure you got the name right.
|
||
Then land on the one you just made and DESTROY it. Then move to the good
|
||
planet and TransWarp it to the sector where you want it. It might work ok
|
||
without a TransWarp. (The player may not return to check it out if he th-
|
||
inks it's gone.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* Originally by Craig Randle
|
||
|
||
Getting something for nothing:
|
||
|
||
1 - Ported at a port, and steal ALL the equipment from it (max holds)
|
||
2 - Sell it back after haggling for awhile
|
||
3 - Buy the max holds of whatever it is selling, but instead of
|
||
haggling the price, put 0.
|
||
4 - You'll get the good ol' "Nothing is free in this universe" line..
|
||
5 - Then when you go back to steal the equipment again there will
|
||
be as more than it started with.
|
||
|
||
This could be a fast way to get a port in your home sector LOTS of
|
||
equipment, and then steal it. Why? Use it to stock planets, for
|
||
starters...
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
For the fun loving among you, if you find an (uncloaked) player and
|
||
fire a ptorp at him, he'll loose all his turns for that day, no matter
|
||
where he is -- FedSpace or not. Better still, if you fire a ptorp into,
|
||
say, SD, and drop carrier while the p-wave is still in effect, you'll have
|
||
created a "perpetual p-wave" that will remain in effect until extern runs.
|
||
Anyone who warps into SD will suddenly loose any remaining turns. (This
|
||
apparantly works for any sector, but it seems like an espescially droll
|
||
thing to do to SD or one of the class 0's.) Do this right after midnight
|
||
and you'll have denied use of that sector to all players for the rest of
|
||
the day. <grin>
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
TriCron seems to have a fascination for many. When played with ANSI
|
||
off, with a macro, at 14.4kbps, it seems an acceptable way to get creds to
|
||
purchase eprobes for the initial mapping of the universe, but otherwise it
|
||
seems a waste. I b'lieve that one of the earmarks of the relatively unskil-
|
||
led player is the amount of time he spends playing TriCron, investigating
|
||
the library, the theatre, the singles bar, the UG or FedPolice HQ at SD. Or
|
||
trying to track other players by asking ol' Grimy. Now I've investigated
|
||
all of these things, and so should you -- once. There has been a good deal
|
||
of effort expended on those animated ANSI screens (that TriCron screen is a
|
||
work of art!) and it should be appreciated. After you've seen them for the
|
||
first time, however, turn ANSI off; the display will go a LOT faster, esp
|
||
at 2400bps or below.
|
||
|
||
A recently discovered bug involves dropping carrier immediately you've
|
||
lost all the rent at TriCron. When you sign back on, you'll have all your
|
||
creds back. (You'll also have the sysop pissed at you, but what's that next
|
||
to the 156,000 creds you needed for planetary defense? <grin>)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
If you run across a hated enemy, do you blow him all the way up? No,
|
||
you tow him to a one deep dead end tunnel and install him there with, say,
|
||
100 defensive ftrs in the NEXT sector. When he logs back on, he'll be
|
||
blockaded and won't be able to move out of the sector he's in. This can be
|
||
VERY frustrating and may even lead to the target self destructing as it
|
||
appears that there is no way out of this trap. Esp if he has no one to call
|
||
on for help. If he self destructs, he looses his ship and any creds on it
|
||
and he won't be able to get back in for two days. <chortle> (Which was the
|
||
purpose of the exercise.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
If someone has found you and blockaded you with, say, 100 defensive
|
||
ftrs, take a deep breath and have a glass of ice water. No, have TWO glasses
|
||
of ice water. There is a way out, but it's gonna involve some work. First,
|
||
try to holler for help. Call someone who might be able to remove the blockad-
|
||
ing ftrs. If this is impossible, there is an alternative to self-destructing.
|
||
Notice carefully what happens when you try to move into a sector with defens-
|
||
ive ftrs and you refuse combat (you retreat). Occasionally, one of those ftrs
|
||
will follow you back. Occasionally, one of those ftrs that follows you back
|
||
will attack you. What you must do is move into the blockaded sector, then
|
||
retreat. Move, retreat. If the gods smile on you, one of those ftrs will get
|
||
lucky and blow you up and you'll start the next day in a nice ScoMar instead
|
||
of loosing two days of play and all your xp and most of your align. It'll
|
||
take a looong time, but hey. No one SAID it would be easy. Just keep moving
|
||
and retreating, moving and retreating.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
For the evil twarpers out there, ALWAYS carry at least 30,001 creds
|
||
(let's make it easy and say 40,000). If you get stuck in a place you don't
|
||
want to be without twarp fuel, stop. Build a class 7 port (sss). All ports
|
||
under construction have product on the docks (the planet is only needed to
|
||
upgrade the port and allow it to open for business) and if you "P" and "R,"
|
||
you'll be able to steal more than enough fuel to get you out of there. And
|
||
since new ports are rather vulnerable, you can kill it rather easily, gain-
|
||
ing xp and neg align shift at the same time. (You prob don't want to leave
|
||
a class 7 just laying around for hostile exploitation.)
|
||
|
||
The reason for carrying 30,001 creds is due to an ..ahem, bug, in
|
||
v1.03d, which requires a player constructing a port to have MORE THAN the
|
||
amt it takes to build. I just grab 40,000 creds whenever I leave home.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
For obvious reasons, this technique is only for a player in extremis:
|
||
if you are in a twarp capable ship and simply MUST get to SD, but it has
|
||
been blockaded, if you twarp directly to SD, upon arrival your ship will
|
||
become so much orbiting radioactive rubbish, but you, your <esc> pod, and
|
||
most importantly, any creds you have on hand, will be there at SD.
|
||
|
||
At this point, several scenarios suggest themselves; being at SD and
|
||
able to buy minedets, ftrs, and shields, you can easily clear a path out,
|
||
or to a port that sells fuel (if you've bought another twarp capable ship).
|
||
It should be remembered that SD typically has five or six warps, of which
|
||
only perhaps two are two way warps. Likely these will be the only ones that
|
||
have been blockaded. A scanner should help indicate the cleanest route, and
|
||
getting back out will be easy.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- by Stephen Whitis
|
||
(port destruction)
|
||
|
||
When you attack and destroy a port, the port is still there. When
|
||
you enter the sector, you'll get a message saying something about
|
||
a high radiation level. (The port is clearly marked as destroyed.)
|
||
If you try to port there, you die.
|
||
|
||
But notice that the port is *still there*. It isn't gone, it's
|
||
still in the sector. When the 14 day bust cycle rolls around, the
|
||
destroyed ports get cleared out. They won't be there any more. So
|
||
that is when you could start building new ports (assuming the game
|
||
had max ports when that one was destroyed.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
If you attempt to take a CIM report without first trading at a port or
|
||
doing a port report, the game will crash and return you to the BBS.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
The practice of loading a sector to the max with planets (using gtorps)
|
||
then twarping in L4 or L5 planet(s) to make the total one (or more) than
|
||
the limit (default = five) -- and hoping the shield bugged planet in the
|
||
sector will be one of the first two destroyed -- is about the only way to
|
||
deal with a shield bugged planet. Much has been written on this subject,
|
||
most of it the sheerest balderdash. Local tests have shown that the select-
|
||
ion of which two planets are to collide is purely random and has nothing to
|
||
do with time of creation, name, number or alphabetic order. This msg shows
|
||
that even the fact of collision itself is random.
|
||
|
||
- by Leonard Adolph
|
||
(planets in collision)
|
||
|
||
In local tests I had to wait 5 days for a collision to occur in a sector
|
||
containing 10 planets. Each and every time EXTERN ran a message was
|
||
generated in the daily log concerning an overloaded sector along with
|
||
the sector number. When a collision finally occured the names of the
|
||
planets destroyed were listed in the daily log but the sector number was
|
||
not. It is obvious from this that the program is not intended to cause a
|
||
sure and immediate destruction of planets in an overloaded sector.
|
||
BTW, it took 4 days more for 2 more planets to be lost due to collision.
|
||
EXTERN was run daily.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
* Originally by Kris Lewis
|
||
(twarping)
|
||
|
||
TransWarp drives are great turn-savers. They will take you from
|
||
wherever you are to any other sector provided that, (a) it is NOT
|
||
orphan [it must be accessible to normal drives], (b) you have at
|
||
least one fighter in it, corporate or personal, and (c) you have the
|
||
fuel to make the jump (mentioned later). It is possible to transwarp
|
||
"blind" (without a fighter in the destination sector). However, if
|
||
there is ANYTHING at all in the target sector, even a measly beacon,
|
||
your ship will be destroyed. If you really MUST go somewhere that is
|
||
without a fighter, at least use an Ether Probe and move IMMEDIATELY
|
||
after reading the probe report. Do NOT pass the command line more
|
||
than once! Aliens, Federals and Ferrengi have the opportunity to
|
||
move every time you pass the command prompt, and if one moves into
|
||
your destination sector between the last time you looked at it (in
|
||
person or by Ether Probe) and engaging the TransWarp Drive, you will
|
||
lose your ship. Note that a TransWarp move into a sector with a
|
||
fighter (yours or your corporation's, of course!) is absolutely 100%
|
||
SAFE, no matter what is in the sector. Someone may have left you some
|
||
mines or moved a Quasar Cannon'ed planet to make your stay unhealthy,
|
||
but the TransWarp itself is SAFE. Also note that the contents of
|
||
sectors to be CROSSED will affect neither "blind" nor "locked"
|
||
TransWarping. ONLY the destination sector matters. The cost is three
|
||
holds of Fuel Ore per warp you would otherwise have had to pass
|
||
through, and ONE turn, no matter the distance.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Ask the Grimy Trader about "Gary Martin."
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
In the game of TradeWars are many diversions -- ways to waste time and
|
||
creds. On SD, if you continually enter an invalid char, you may well get
|
||
mugged and loose most of your creds on hand. If you go into the Singles
|
||
Bar, you'll loose 'prox half of your creds. You can waste any amt of time
|
||
in the library or the theatre. As I said before, all these things should be
|
||
seen -- once. TriCron is another temptation. In Tricron you can spend just
|
||
1500 creds and win. But you could also spend, say, 25000 creds ..to win a
|
||
lousy 5500 cred jackpot? Which is why it is called a game of chance. It is
|
||
generally agreed that searching for, chasing down, and attacking Ferrengi
|
||
and aliens is a waste of time and creds that may only sometimes be justif-
|
||
ied by the align or xp shift it gives. Esp after a game has been running
|
||
for a few weeks, aliens often have large amts of corbomite on board (can
|
||
you say "OUCH?"). The bounty paid by the Federation for destruction of
|
||
Ferrengi ftrs seldom -- if ever -- will cover their replacement cost. Too,
|
||
it is possible to get on a Ferrengis' "grudge list" and have him come back
|
||
to continually attack you.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
If you holoscan a previously unexplored sector, that sector will bec-
|
||
ome part of your "known universe"; data on warps and ports there will be
|
||
found in your CIM report, just as if you'd physically visited that sector
|
||
or sent an eprobe through it.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Max allowable creds in Galbank = 100000 creds. No interest (unless an
|
||
external utility pgm is used to give it). Max creds in citadel treasury =
|
||
(virtually) unlimited. Interest is 4%. Withdrawals can be made by anyone
|
||
who gets into the citadel.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
When buying another ship, other things being equal, it's nearly always
|
||
best to deploy your ftrs in a sector outside SD and pick them up on the way
|
||
out with your new ship. If creds are REALLY tight, you can keep the shields
|
||
by tfring them to a corp member or to the shield generator on your citadel,
|
||
then taking them back onto your new ship. (These items don't return anyth-
|
||
ing close to full value when traded in.) Don't forget to sell any cargo you
|
||
may have before trading in your ship.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
The shield generator in a citadel can be used to store shields even
|
||
though the citadel has not yet reached L5 status. (Note: if you've invaded
|
||
a hostile citadel, check the shield generator -- until the citadel reaches
|
||
L5, no indication of how many shields are contained in it is displayed; it
|
||
may well have a few shields present. Remember, 10 ship shields = one planet
|
||
shield.)
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
An <esc> pod has one ftr and one hold (no shields) and can be traded
|
||
in at the shipyards at SD for enough to get a ScoMar and have 1000 creds
|
||
left over (to begin trading again).
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
For those with a spare level 5 planet and 'prox 53 billion creds just
|
||
laying about and who still feel threatened by another player/corp, here is
|
||
what to do. This is MY favorite tactic for taking out opposing L5s too. I
|
||
do it ALL the time.. <snicker>
|
||
|
||
If you get over 55 billion on a planet, then you will be locked out of that
|
||
planet and every planet in that sector regardless of what amounts of cred-
|
||
its there are on the other planets. When you try to land you will be thrown
|
||
out of the game. It's a favorite tactic for taking out level 5 planets. Put
|
||
about 53 billion on a level 5 and twarp it in there. In a day or two the
|
||
interest will make the whole sector corrupt and no one can ever land on any
|
||
planet in there. You can't even fix it with TEDIT cause it throws ya out of
|
||
that as well.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
And with that inspired bit of lore firmly committed to memory, I close
|
||
this segment.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Reference section ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- Citadel construction requirements:
|
||
|
||
To build a Level One citadel (basic citadel), you need:
|
||
500,000 Colonists to support the construction,
|
||
300 units of Fuel Ore,
|
||
200 units of Organics and
|
||
250 units of Equipment.
|
||
4 days to build.
|
||
|
||
To build a Level Two citadel (computer control of ftrs), you need:
|
||
1,000,000 Colonists to support the construction,
|
||
200 units of Fuel Ore,
|
||
50 units of Organics and
|
||
250 units of Equipment.
|
||
4 days to build.
|
||
|
||
To build a Level Three citadel (quasar cannon), you need:
|
||
2,000,000 Colonists to support the construction,
|
||
500 units of Fuel Ore,
|
||
250 units of Organics and
|
||
500 units of Equipment.
|
||
5 days to build.
|
||
|
||
To build a Level Four citadel (planetary twarp generator), you need:
|
||
3,000,000 Colonists to support the construction,
|
||
1,000 units of Fuel Ore,
|
||
1,200 units of Organics and
|
||
1,000 units of Equipment.
|
||
10 days to build.
|
||
|
||
To build a Level Five citadel (planetary shielding), you need:
|
||
3,000,000 Colonists to support the construction,
|
||
300 units of Fuel Ore,
|
||
400 units of Organics and
|
||
1,000 units of Equipment.
|
||
5 days to build.
|
||
|
||
Once the upgrade to the next highest level has begun, all population
|
||
and product can be removed for use elsewhere and the upgrade process will
|
||
proceed unhindered.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Below is given the report as seen from the planet menu. The planet is
|
||
shielded (and shield bugged), the populations have been adjusted for max
|
||
production and there is product and max ftrs on this planet. Note that the
|
||
military reaction is 0%. This is to prevent the "6666" bug having any ef-
|
||
fect in the event of an invasion and wasting all the ftrs. Since this plan-
|
||
et is shield bugged, there is no real need for the ftrs -- in fact, I edit-
|
||
ed them into this screen just to indicate the max nr possible on planet.
|
||
The max amt of any product on planet is 10000. The max nr of ftrs is 32000.
|
||
The max population is 6000 (2000 per prod group).
|
||
|
||
Planet #9 in sector 707: Garbanzo
|
||
Class M, Earth Type
|
||
Created by: Iago
|
||
Claimed by: Corp #1, Los Sanfrangeles Trading Co.
|
||
|
||
Item Colonists Daily Planet Ship
|
||
(1000s) Product Amount Amount
|
||
------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
|
||
Fuel Ore 1000 333 10000 0
|
||
Organics 1000 142 7280 0
|
||
Equipment 1000 75 5632 0
|
||
Fighters n/a 55 32000 13027
|
||
|
||
Planet has a level 5 Citadel, treasury contains 25000000 credits.
|
||
Military reaction=0%, QCannon power=100%, AtmosLvl=50%, SectLvl=2%
|
||
-=-=-=-=-=- TransWarp power = 25 hops -=-=-=-=-=-
|
||
Planetary Defense Shielding Power Level = 1639
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- The items avail in the hardware store at SD and their prices are:
|
||
|
||
+-------------------------------------+
|
||
| <A> Atomic Detonators ..... 15,000 |
|
||
| <B> Marker Beacons ........ 100 |
|
||
| <C> Corbomite Devices ..... 1,000 |
|
||
| <D> Cloaking Devices ...... 25,000 |
|
||
| <E> SubSpace Ether Probes . 3,000 |
|
||
| <F> Planet Scanners ....... 30,000 |
|
||
| <M> Space Mines ........... 1,000 |
|
||
| <P> Photon Missiles ....... 40,000 |
|
||
| <R> Long Range Scanners: |
|
||
| Density scanner ... 2,000 |
|
||
| Holographic scanner ... 25,000 |
|
||
| <S> Mine Disruptors ....... 3,000 |
|
||
| <T> Genesis Torpedoes ..... 25,000 |
|
||
| <W> TransWarp Drives ...... 50,000 |
|
||
| <Y> Psychic Probes ........ 10,000 |
|
||
+-------------------------------------+
|
||
|
||
Alpha Centauri, Rylos and Terra are the three class 0 ports. At each
|
||
of these, holds, ftrs and shields can be purchased. The shipyards at SD
|
||
also sell class 0 items. Hold prices vary according to the number of times
|
||
you buy them for any particular ship. Ftr and shield prices move up and
|
||
down daily, with a low of 'prox 134 creds and a high of 'prox 234. When
|
||
shields are cheap, ftrs are dear and vice versa.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
Building and upgrading starports is a valid way to gain pos align
|
||
points, as well as having the ports avail for trading/stealing.
|
||
|
||
+========================================================================+
|
||
| StarPort Construction | Initial Construction Costs | Import |
|
||
|----------------------------+----------------------------------| or |
|
||
| Port Class ³ Ore Org Equ | Credits | Ore | Org | Equ | Days | Export |
|
||
|------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|
||
| 1 | B B S | 39,250 | 120 | 120 | 60 | 6 | Import |
|
||
| 2 | B S B | 41,500 | 140 | 70 | 140 | 7 | Import |
|
||
| 3 | S B B | 48,000 | 80 | 160 | 160 | 8 | Import |
|
||
| 4 | S S B | 37,500 | 50 | 50 | 100 | 5 | Export |
|
||
| 5 | S B S | 34,000 | 40 | 80 | 40 | 4 | Export |
|
||
| 6 | B S S | 32,500 | 60 | 30 | 30 | 3 | Export |
|
||
| 7 | S S S | 30,000 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 2 | Export |
|
||
| 8 | B B B | 50,000 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 10 | Import |
|
||
| 9 | Not Available | ------- | --- | --- | --- | ---- | ------ |
|
||
| 0 | Not Available | ------- | --- | --- | --- | ---- | ------ |
|
||
|------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|
||
| Ports will initially produce 100 units/day in each category |
|
||
+========================================================================+
|
||
|
||
Though ports generally require producing planets in the same sector
|
||
in order to upgrade, it should be noted that newly created ports always
|
||
have product on the docks (that can be stolen).
|
||
|
||
+================================+
|
||
| Upgrade Starport Production |
|
||
+--------------------------------+
|
||
| 1 Fuel Ore, costs $250/unit |
|
||
| 2 Organics, costs $500/unit |
|
||
| 3 Equipment, costs $900/unit |
|
||
+================================+
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
These are the game specs for the planetary defenses. The first one,
|
||
military reaction, is a fairly useless one due to the "6666" bug, which can
|
||
potentially result in the loss of all ftrs on the planet with zero affect
|
||
on an invader. For this reason, the military reaction is typically set to
|
||
0%.
|
||
|
||
Military reaction level:
|
||
0 would be totally defensive, 50 would use half of the fighters on the
|
||
planet in an attack against an intruder landing on this planet and the
|
||
remaining half would drop back to defend the Citadel, 100 would use all of
|
||
the fighters in an assault on the intruder. Remember that your defensive
|
||
fighters on planet have much better odds than defensive fighters deployed
|
||
in space. If a Trader tries to blast your planet with Photon Missiles
|
||
(after blowing up the fighters you had in the sector) then the Combat
|
||
Control Computer will send this percent of your fighters into the sector
|
||
to attack.
|
||
|
||
Quasar Cannon reaction level, in the Atmosphere:
|
||
0 would be totally defensive, 50 would use half of the Fuel Ore reserve on
|
||
the planet (for each firing), and 100 would use all of the Fuel Ore remain-
|
||
ing against an enemy. Remember that the Quasar Cannon is MUCH more effect-
|
||
ive against an enemy that has entered the atmosphere of the planet.
|
||
|
||
Quasar Cannon reaction level, in the Sector:
|
||
0 would be totally defensive, 50 would use half of the Fuel Ore reserve on
|
||
the planet (for each firing), and 100 would use all of the Fuel Ore remain-
|
||
ing against an enemy. Remember that the Quasar Cannon is MUCH more effect-
|
||
ive against an enemy that has entered the atmosphere of the planet. So sho-
|
||
oting at an enemy in the sector will not do as much damage at that range.
|
||
|
||
The Quasar cannon reaction levels are much more significant. When
|
||
calculating the Atmosphere setting vs. the amt of fuel avail, remember that
|
||
due to a bug in the program, only half the expected fuel will be used to
|
||
inflict the same amt of damage. In other words, assume 1000 fuel and an
|
||
Atmospheric qcannon setting of 50%. You would expect the first atmospheric
|
||
shot to consume 500 fuel, but instead only 250 fuel will be expended, and
|
||
this will do the same amt of damage as would 500.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
In the Fido TradeWar echo, several people have inquired about how to
|
||
change the colors in the menus, daily log, etc. From the archive AEDIT320
|
||
comes this list of the tilde (~) codes used by the game to generate the
|
||
colors it uses in the menus, daily logs, msgs, etc. These codes cannot be
|
||
used (for obvious reasons) in any of the game's input routines; this list
|
||
is mostly of interest to sysops who have direct control over the game it-
|
||
self. Note: If you're confused by this, or do not know how these codes are
|
||
used (or can be used), you've not the knowledge to be able to use them.
|
||
|
||
APPENDIX ONE - Color codes.
|
||
|
||
Color codes in TradeWars are imbedded in the output strings and take the
|
||
format of a tilde (~) plus a letter or number indicating the new color.
|
||
|
||
~0 -fg=bright white, bg=black
|
||
~1 -fg=cyan, bg=black
|
||
~2 -fg=yellow, bg=black
|
||
~3 -fg=magenta, bg=black
|
||
~4 -fg=bright white, bg=blue
|
||
~5 -fg=light green, bg=black
|
||
~6 -fg=blinking light red, bg=black
|
||
~7 -fg=yellow, bg=black
|
||
~8 -fg=the old fg blinking, bg=black
|
||
~9 -fg=black, bg=old fg (but dark, even if old fg was bright)
|
||
~A -fg=grey, bg=black
|
||
~B -fg=light red, bg=black
|
||
~C -fg=light green, bg=black
|
||
~D -fg=yellow, bg=black
|
||
~E -fg=light blue, bg=black
|
||
~F -fg=light magenta, bg=black
|
||
~G -fg=light cyan, bg=black
|
||
~H -fg=bright white, bg=black
|
||
~I -fg=blue, bg=white (dull white)
|
||
~J -fg=red, bg=white (dull white)
|
||
~K -fg=yellow, bg=blue
|
||
~Z -print 2 blinking red/white spaces, then bg=black
|
||
~a -fg=black, bg=black
|
||
~b -fg=red, bg=black
|
||
~c -fg=green, bg=black
|
||
~d -fg=brown, bg=black
|
||
~e -fg=blue, bg=black
|
||
~f -fg=magenta, bg=black
|
||
~g -fg=cyan, bg=black
|
||
~h -fg=white (dull white), bg=black
|
||
~i -bg=black
|
||
~j -bg=red
|
||
~k -bg=green
|
||
~l -bg=brown
|
||
~m -bg=blue
|
||
~n -bg=magenta
|
||
~o -bg=cyan
|
||
~p -bg=white (dull white)
|
||
~q -fg=blinking light blue, bg=black
|
||
~r -fg=blue, bg=black
|
||
~anything else -bg=black
|
||
You may use multiple codes in a string.
|
||
|
||
As a matter of interest, many immature people suggest entering something
|
||
of form "+++ATH0" for a beacon, planet name, or whatever. The theory is that
|
||
when an unsuspecting callers modem see's these names, it will abruptly hang up.
|
||
There are two reasons this cannot happen: 1) the input routines in the game
|
||
automatically filter out anything other than an upper or lower case alpha or
|
||
numeric char, plus a certain number of punctuation marks (and space), of which
|
||
the plus sign is not one (neither is the tilde which prevents the color codes
|
||
above from being used in names or beacons). The input routines also filter out
|
||
all ctrl chars, including the "esc" char, so ANSI keyboard reassignment routines
|
||
cannot be used; 2) virtually all Hayes compat modems have a user accessible S2
|
||
register which controls which char will be seen as the "escape code." Standard
|
||
practice seems to be to assign this to ASCII 255 which totally disables this
|
||
feature. ("S2=255")
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ Macro programs ("scripts") ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
- Jim Bianchi:
|
||
|
||
The use of macros to automate play in TradeWars is a legitimate out-
|
||
growth of the undeniable fact that computers can do repetitive tasks faster
|
||
and in most cases, more accurately and with better results, than can humans.
|
||
|
||
That's what computers are FOR, people. Taking the drudgery out of jobs
|
||
that involve large numbers of basically repeating chores. Such as triple tr-
|
||
ading for xp. Or just trading (optimising for creds). Or running the 5xp
|
||
sell/steal cycle. Or calculating the shortest route from HERE to THERE.
|
||
|
||
Some foolish people put util use in TradeWars in the same category as
|
||
TEDIT enhancement of a players' assets. I guess some people just like to be
|
||
able to say, "I lose regularly at Tradewars." I find it interesting that
|
||
most of the gripes about macro use comes from people who are at the bottom
|
||
of the c-l-v listing and likely they would be there even if no one used
|
||
utils. I have no argument with these types. Results count and, after all,
|
||
SOMEONE must loose!
|
||
|
||
What I have very strong feelings about, however, is the mindset that
|
||
looks on macro use as being "bad for the game," or that, somehow, macro
|
||
users enjoy an "unfair advantage." Olive witch is, of course, the purest
|
||
bullpucky! If you expect to be competitive in ANYTHING, be it Tradewars or
|
||
Indianapolis racing, you had best have not only the proper tools, but the
|
||
savvy to use them.
|
||
|
||
These types point out that the average newbie has no idea that these
|
||
utils exist or how to use them properly. In fact, this appears to be the
|
||
whole of their anti-macro arg. I counter with the fact that, if a newbie
|
||
has no idea of the existance of these util pgms, by definition he is not
|
||
adaquately prepared for playing. To use THIS as an excuse for limiting MY
|
||
use of these tools is lame in the extreme. Try showing up at Indianapolis
|
||
in a front engined car ..see how far you get. When you finish dead last,
|
||
holler that them other guys had an "unfair advantage."
|
||
|
||
It appears that a caller will log onto a BBS, push G for Games, see
|
||
TradeWars and think "hey, that sounds fun, I'll just try it." This is the
|
||
prototypical 'newbie.' He logs into the game and finds that everything can
|
||
be done by hand, so he presses on. Does he investigate any of the tip files
|
||
or utils? Does he even LOOK for any tip files or utils? Judging by what I
|
||
see on my own BBS, the answer in approaching 90% of the cases is NO. In
|
||
spite of the undeniable fact that the games are VERY competitive and he
|
||
keeps getting blown up. Why? I dunno. I guess that some people just think
|
||
that since they're playing a game on their computer, they already have all
|
||
that is needed.
|
||
|
||
If a person cares so little about winning that he doesn't take the
|
||
trouble to avail himself of the tip files and utils that are avail in order
|
||
to be able to win (or at least not loose so badly), quite often in spite of
|
||
prominently posted announcements regarding their availability, well, it's
|
||
no skin off my nose.
|
||
|
||
Other people have an irrationally bizzarre idea of just what can be
|
||
done using a macro, a script, or an offline util. To these macrophobes, the
|
||
use of a trading script raises the specter of an AI program that would log
|
||
in and play all one's moves, make strategic and tactical decisions, etc. If
|
||
such were possible, it would indeed tend to invalidate the game. However,
|
||
it is NOT currently possible; by the time computers grow fast enough and
|
||
powerful enough and the programming techniques evolve to the point that the
|
||
average game player could do such, TradeWars will've faded into the same
|
||
obscurity shared by Canasta and Majong.
|
||
|
||
"Unfair advantage?" It is to laugh. "Advantage," I can have. "Unfair,"
|
||
I cannot have. It is NOT the tools used. It is how tools are used. When
|
||
first I started playing, I called all around the country looking for tip
|
||
files and utils. I read all the files and set up what I thought was an
|
||
ideal mix of utils, then logged into a game, all set to show them suckers.
|
||
After all, _I_ had UTILITY PGMS! Yuh. Well, after finding myself thorough-
|
||
ly thrashed (by non-macro users, for the most part), I realised again what
|
||
I'd already known to be true: superior tools do not, of themselves, guar-
|
||
antee a superior result.
|
||
|
||
Now, it is true that utils give an advantage to one who knows how to
|
||
use them and who can appreciate their limitations. You can make more creds
|
||
in a given time period with macro's than without. But creds don't, of them-
|
||
selves guarantee you'll dominate the game. You gotta SPEND (or use) them
|
||
correctly. And no macro pgm will tell you how to do that. That's where your
|
||
strategic thinking and planning come in. Some people are just natural str-
|
||
ategic thinkers. Gonna holler that they're using an "unfair advantage" just
|
||
because they think about what they're doing?
|
||
|
||
That said, I'd like to cop out on the question "what's the best util?"
|
||
The question is simply too broad. What is the best car? I think it important
|
||
not which util or macro pgm you use, but that you learn to use what you have
|
||
effectively. There are many macro and database pgms. There are macro packages
|
||
(or scripts) for most of the currently popular DOS based communication pgms.
|
||
There is even one such script for the Amiga based Terminus communication pgm.
|
||
|
||
The FIDO TradeWars filebone sites have most of the utils and tip files
|
||
avail, as do many BBS systems throughout the country.
|
||
|
||
To get "into" proper use of these macro and util pgms would easily quint-
|
||
uple the size of this file. What I will advise is to simply get one and try it
|
||
out. Neither will I get into how each one operates. One thing I will say, how-
|
||
ever: the development of macro and util packages has totally changed TradeWars
|
||
playing, and the person who, for whatever reason, does not use one is severely
|
||
handicapping himself. Just like introduction of mid-engine cars has totally ch-
|
||
anged Indianapolis racing. And for similar reasons ..both are demonstrably bet-
|
||
ter.
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
|
||
[ The 5XP sell/steal cycle ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
The sell/steal cycle is a procedure whereby you sell a load of equip
|
||
to a port, steal it back, then sell it to them again. Repeat as necessary.
|
||
<grin> For those players with sufficient xp to steal 150 or 70 holds at a
|
||
time (3000xp and 1400xp respectively) the sell/steal cycle should prob be
|
||
the major source of income since it offers the greatest return for the
|
||
least effort. You use one turn to sell the equip, you use another to steal
|
||
it back. The theoretical max selling price of 150 holds of equip is 25,000
|
||
creds, but in reality, this is seldom seen. In my experience, about 22,500
|
||
creds is more commonly obtained, making each move in an (evil) ISS worth
|
||
'prox 11,250 creds.
|
||
|
||
5xp (and 2xp) is the amount of xp gain given for getting the current
|
||
price for the amt of equip you're selling spot on (100%) or nearly spot on
|
||
(99.xx%). The next segment discusses ways to calculate this "best price,"
|
||
and obtain 5xp per sale.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Eugene Hung:
|
||
|
||
All ports have a BEST price, which will get one 5 experience points if
|
||
one bids that exact number. The best price is determined by the number of
|
||
holds, if uneven, then the best price is usually a fraction, though I am
|
||
not sure, since I always get holds in groups of 5 and 10, up to my maximum.
|
||
Some ports have just ONE best price, those are the easy ones.
|
||
|
||
Let us say one is in a StarMaster with 70 holds (the most useful ship
|
||
for robbing and attacking). Get a psychic probe to help determine the best
|
||
price. The first time, either accept the port's initial offer for no exp-
|
||
erience, or bid a little higher than what they offer. The psy-probe will
|
||
tell you how far you were off from the best price, then you steal the 70
|
||
equipment back, and use your calculator to figure out the best price and
|
||
nail it on the head for 5 exp. each time. However, most ports have more
|
||
than one best price (which I will explain). You must use a different strat-
|
||
egy for this, which is an extension of the strategy I just previously out-
|
||
lined.
|
||
|
||
Ok, so you have a psychic probe, and have just found out ONE best
|
||
price. Port again, and look carefully at the initial offer. If the offer is
|
||
within 20 credits or so of the previous time (when you sold 70 equ to them
|
||
at an absurdly low price), the best price is the same as last time, and so
|
||
you should bid your calculated best price from last time. You may be off a
|
||
credit or two, but eventually you'll figure out the best price through the
|
||
probe. Now, let us hypothesize that inital offer is substantially different
|
||
than last time (around 50-90 credits). That means the best price has MOVED.
|
||
But, after lots of testing, I discovered that the best price can only MOVE
|
||
up or down in multiples of a certain number, n. THAT NUMBER IS THE NUMBER
|
||
OF YOUR HOLDS. Thus, going back to the example, the port's best price can
|
||
fluctuate up or down multiples of 70. Knowing this, you look at the initial
|
||
offer, see whether it went up or down from last time, estimate how many
|
||
multiples of n it went up or down, and bid the best price plus 70 * roughly
|
||
how much it went up or down. This is a little confusing, so I'll illust-
|
||
rate:
|
||
|
||
Let us say the port offers 9600 credits for 70 equ. You accept the
|
||
offer, and figure out with your psy probe and calculator that the best
|
||
offer was 10199. You steal the 70 equ back. Now you port again. If the
|
||
offer still is around 9600(9580-9620), bid 10199. Voila, 5 exp. If you
|
||
continue to steal-sell, and the offer varies very little, this is a one-
|
||
price port. However, if the offer ever deviates by 50 or more, it is NOT a
|
||
one-price port. So let us say the 2nd time, the port offer 9665(65 more
|
||
than last time). Since you have 70 equ to sell, the port's best price must
|
||
have gone UP by 70 credits(since the offer went up around 70 creds). So one
|
||
bids 10269, or 10199 + 70. You steal, and port. The port offers 9510
|
||
credits, or 90 below 9600. That's around 70 below the original best price,
|
||
so you bid 10129, or 10199 -70. You steal, and port. The port now offers
|
||
9650, around 50 above 9600, so the best price is probably 70 above this
|
||
time, so it's 10269. You steal, and port. The offer is now 9385. That's
|
||
roughly 210 credits(70 * 3) below, so you bid 10199 - 210, or 9989 credits.
|
||
|
||
As you can see, ALL THE BEST PRICES ARE RELATED by the NUMBER OF
|
||
HOLDS. This strategy also works in other ships, such as a Corp FlagShip
|
||
with 85 (bid up or down multiples of 85 from the first figure).
|
||
|
||
There is a flaw, though. One may not estimate the number correctly. In
|
||
the previous example, what if the port offered 9635? One could not tell
|
||
whether the best price was the same, 10199, or 70 up, 10269. IN CASES OF
|
||
DOUBT, OVERBID. What I mean by that is, bid the higher figure, in this
|
||
case, 10269. If it WAS 10269, I get 5 exp. If it was 10199, the port will
|
||
raise its bid by 20-21 creds(30% of # of holds), also raising the best
|
||
price by 21 credits(30%). THE BEST PRICE CHANGES through overbids, by 30%
|
||
of the difference between the bids, towards your offer. So, let us say we
|
||
misestimated, and bid 10269. The port now offers 9655, which means we were
|
||
over by 70, so we bid 10199 + 21(30% of 70), or 10220. Bingo! Realize, if
|
||
one UNDERbids, the port will immediately accept the offer, and you will get
|
||
only TWO exp, for being 99.31% off or so. So always choose the higher
|
||
figure, when in doubt. And if you overshoot by 140, the port offer goes up
|
||
by 40 or so, so the best offer goes up by 42 credits(30% of 140), and you
|
||
should bid 98(140 -42) credits less to get the best price.
|
||
---
|
||
|
||
- Originally by Joel Downer:
|
||
|
||
The basic steal-sell cycle works as follows: find a port that's selling
|
||
equipment, and steal or buy 150 holds. (When you're using ports identified
|
||
with EVILPAIR.COM, it's actually smarter to buy, rather than steal, your
|
||
first load. Don't risk making a port angry with you when you may need to
|
||
buy fuel ore there the same day!)
|
||
|
||
Move to a port buying equipment -- preferably a port at 100%. Sell the
|
||
equipment for the best price you can negotiate (see the section on the
|
||
five-experience point trick, below). Now, port and *STEAL BACK THE EQUIP-
|
||
MENT YOU JUST SOLD*. Sell the equipment again, steal it, and repeat the
|
||
process until you're caught or out of turns. When you get caught, you'll
|
||
lose 13 holds (out of 150) and 10% of your experience. Sometimes you'll be
|
||
caught more often than you like, but if you steal a sensible amount (no
|
||
more than one hold per 15 experience points), you'll typically make more
|
||
than enough to compensate for the trouble.
|
||
|
||
Important: When you get caught, write down the location and the date. You
|
||
won't be able to port there for at least 14 days without getting busted
|
||
again (even if you just port to *trade*, you may get nailed). After a
|
||
couple of weeks, you can go back and work the ports again.
|
||
|
||
The five experience-point cycle works as follows. The first time you dock
|
||
at a port, accept the port's first offer for your equipment. Write down the
|
||
offer, and using a calculator and the results from your psychic probe to
|
||
calculate and round off the best price. (E.g.: first offer was 19,200;
|
||
psychic probe reports 96.69% of best. Best price = 19,200 / .9669 =
|
||
(int)19857.2 = 19857.
|
||
|
||
Steal back the equipment and dock again. If the first offer is within half
|
||
your number of holds (75 in a StarShip) of the first offer from last time
|
||
(19125 - 19275) bid the number that you calculated last time (19857). If
|
||
the offer is substantially higher or lower, adjust the best price by a
|
||
multiple of your number of holds. If the offer is 19,325 (125 higher), bid
|
||
150 higher; if the offer is 265 higher, bid 300 higher; if it's 700 higher,
|
||
bid 750 higher.
|
||
|
||
When in doubt, overbid. If the port refuses your initial offer, you can
|
||
still often get the five experience points; just understand that the best
|
||
price will *change*, by 30% of the difference between your offer and the
|
||
original best price.
|
||
|
||
Example: The port offers 19,278, and you bid 20,007. Oops! The port tries
|
||
to barter, telling you that you guessed wrong -- evidently, the best price
|
||
was still 19,857. Your error has changed the best price by 150 * .30, or 45
|
||
credits, so the *new* best price should be 19,902.
|
||
|
||
This approach will not work at every port. Some ports don't seem to have a
|
||
best price; at others, the initial estimate with the psychic probe will
|
||
actually be a few credits low or high. If you master this technique,
|
||
though, you'll be able to get five experience points on *every sale* at
|
||
many ports, and on *most sales* at many others.
|
||
|
||
Price guidelines: *very good* equipment-buying ports will pay 22,000 -
|
||
23,500 credits for 150 holds of equipment. Spending tons of turns looking
|
||
for the perfect port can end up *wasting* money, though, because every turn
|
||
in a StarShip is worth at least 9,000 credits. (What's more, tooling around
|
||
in a StarShip when evil is *dangerous*!) I'm usually content to work a port
|
||
that offers 20,000 for 150 holds, and I'll sometimes put up with ports pay-
|
||
ing as little as 19,000. Ports that only offer 16,000 - 17,000, however,
|
||
are taking things a little far... <grin>
|
||
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
|
||
|
||
[ Afterword ] ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
|
||
|
||
Iago's War Manual resulted from a need for a more-or-less centralised
|
||
file from which info could be gleaned about Tradewars 2002 v1.03d. The work
|
||
of many other individuals went into it; all I did was collate and edit in
|
||
an attempt to bring together in one place as much of the avail data as pos-
|
||
sible.
|
||
|
||
It was started at a time when I was "only an egg" playing in v1.03
|
||
games. Natch, like most newbies, I was mostly concerned with The Bugs. As
|
||
time went on and I realised that you can only CEYLAD so many times before
|
||
it starts totally loosing any meaning, I modified this file by adding to it
|
||
many tips found in the tip files and that had been passed onto me by others
|
||
or read about in the Fido and RIME TW conferences.
|
||
|
||
As I showed it to fellow corp members and other interested local play-
|
||
ers, it dawned on me that not only did many of them not know how to do a
|
||
few of the things herein mentioned, some of them weren't even aware of the
|
||
existance of these techniques. Eventually, I was prevailed upon to clean it
|
||
up and release it.
|
||
|
||
Iago's War Manual is very much NOT a "compleat guide to the game."
|
||
It's not even close. I suspect such a file would be nearly impossible to
|
||
write. Although no specific recommendations are made here, most of the
|
||
techniques presented assume an evil alignment, for the simple reason that,
|
||
all things considered, an evil player can make more creds in an otherwise
|
||
unedited game than can a good aligned player. I play to win. Ergo..
|
||
|
||
This file was written for ME. If others read it and gain something
|
||
from it, so much the better. Though it started out as a compilation of
|
||
bugs, it stopped being that long before the first public release. Even so,
|
||
v1.03d is SO bug ridden that it is exceedingly difficult to discuss most
|
||
techniques at any length at all without having to at least mention one or
|
||
another bug. Since that is the nature of the game, I make no apology for my
|
||
mention of them here. That the game of TradeWars 2002 remains so popular in
|
||
spite of these acknowledged bugs and programing anomalies says much about
|
||
the quality of play it provides.
|
||
|
||
This is likely the last revision for v1.03d, due to the *hoped for*
|
||
release of v2.0. Several other people have indicated they've started work
|
||
on a playing guide for v2.0 (even though it is still in beta as this is
|
||
being written). At this time, no "Iago" for v2.0 is planned.
|
||
|
||
May all your ports be "best price" ports..
|
||
|
||
-Jim Bianchi (Iago)
|
||
|
||
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=[ end ]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|
||
|