Gypsy's Big Dummy's Guide to TradeWars
Trade Wars 2002 combines adventure and exploration with strategy
and cooperative play in an entertaining and exciting on-line
game. You compete against other BBSers to be the most powerful
trader (or corporation of traders) in the universe. Independent
traders can compete quite effectively against large corporations.
Corporate members can perform specific duties (as directed by
their C.E.O.)in specialized ships. Traders can be "good guys" or
"bad guys" with different avenues for advancement. The universe
can be different with each new game. There is no right or wrong
way to play and the possible strategies are limited only by one's
imagination.
Tradewars for the MBBS combines all the great play of the classic
DOOR game for DOS BBS's and ports it to the multi-user environment
of the MBBS. This Manual will serve as a guide to new to moderate
experience type players. Feel free to visit Gypsy's War Room for more
features dedicated to Tradewars. The address is: Gypsy' War
Room
TRADE WARS 2002 FOR THE MAJOR BBS
(C) Copyright 1993, 1994 by High Velocity Software, Inc.
"Trade Wars 2002" is a trademark of Martech Software, Inc.
This guide is intended for the expansion of knowledge. Tradewars
2002 is a trademark of Martech Software, INC. Tradewars 2002 is
copyright 1993, 1994 by High Velocity Software, INC. All information
in this manual is distrubuted for educational purposes only. Neither
Rick Mead (aka Gypsy) Crystal Ball Publications in no way own the
rights to nor does it imply to any copyright or trademark material.
Rick Mead (aka Gypsy) Crystal Ball Publications has no financial
gain from this electronic guide. All trademark and copyright material
contained in this guide are owned by the respective licensees.
Game Overview
STANDARD OVERVIEW
Trade Wars 2002 combines adventure and exploration with strategy
and cooperative play in an entertaining and exciting on-line
game. You compete against other BBSers to be the most powerful
trader (or corporation of traders) in the universe. Independent
traders can compete quite effectively against large corporations.
Corporate members can perform specific duties (as directed by
their C.E.O.)in specialized ships. Traders can be "good guys" or
"bad guys" with different avenues for advancement. The universe
can be different with each new game. There is no right or wrong
way to play and the possible strategies are limited only by one's
imagination.
Playing the Game
When you enter the game, you will be piloting a Merchant Cruiser.
This is considered the most versatile ship in the Trade Wars
armada. In it, new players have a chance to try out all aspects
of the game.
Upon entering, you will be asked what alias you would like to use
in the game and what name you would like to christen your ship.
The alias you choose will display in the player and corporate
rankings and in several corporate listings. Your ship name will
be used in the docking logs at the ports. You can use these
names to be as conspicuous or as inconspicuous as you want.
The equipment in your initial ship will include some holds to
store the cargo that you can trade at the ports found throughout
the universe. Trading is the basic way to advance in the game.
By good trading, you can gain experience as well as gain credits.
The credits you earn can fund your military and can provide the
capital you will need to expand your trading expeditions. You will
have some credits with which you can purchase some
commodities for trading. You will additionally have some
fighters to offer some protection as you begin your voyage.
The game will differ with each different group of players.
Individual traders are ranked by their experience. You gain
experience simply by playing the game. The more things you do,
the more experience you will get. Good and Evil are represented
by the titles each player receives. Your experience combined
with your alignment will determine whether you are a Lieutenant
or a Dread Pirate. When you do something that affects your
alignment, you will get a message saying your alignment went up
or down and by how much.
There are benefits and drawbacks whether you choose to play the
game as a good trader or an evil trader. Traders who follow the
FedLaws are offered protection in FedSpace until they are
experienced enough to protect themselves. Traders who aspire to
be very good can be awarded a Federal Commission. This allows
them to purchase an Imperial Starship. This is one of the most
powerful ships in the universe. On the other hand, the evil
traders are offered some options in the Underground. Traders who
have proved that they are truly evil can steal product or money
from the ports.
GAME COMANDS
Main Menu Comands
Navigation
<D> Re-display Sector. This will re-display the information
about the sector where you are currently located.
Information includes sector number and nebulae name,
marker beacons, port name and class, mines, fighters,
planets and any other ships. Next to the class you will see
three letters signifying how the port trades in the
commodities. For example a SSB would indicate that the port
sells Fuel Ore, sells Organics and buys Equipment. The
adjacent sectors will also be shown. With a color display,
the sectors you have not yet visited will show up in red.
<P> Port and Trade. This will allow you to dock at the port
in your current sector. This is the only way to trade
your commodities. You will have some choices for what
action you would like to take at the port. Most of the
choices are self-explanatory. If you are playing the game
as an evil trader, the choices you see will be different than
they would be if you were playing the game as a lawful Player.
When you dock at the port, you will be able to see the docking
log. This will show you the name of the last ship to do business
there. If there is a planet in the sector with this port, you
will be able to negotiate a Planetary Trade Agreement. This is a
trade contract that will allow you to trade off all your excess
commodities to the port without wasting your turns hauling one
shipload at a time. If you want to build a new Starport and the
universe is full or if you decide that your adversaries have too
big an advantage and you need to get rid of that port they have
been using, you can attack and destroy a starport. This is never
an easy task. The starports are very heavily armed and will
retaliate, so you will need to have plenty of military forces
with you if you decide to proceed with this selection.
<M> Move to a Sector. The sectors adjacent to your current
location will be listed as warp lanes in the sector
display. You can move to one of them, or you can choose
any other sector in the universe. If you designate a
sector that doesn't have a direct warp lane, your ship's
computer will plot your course, show the path and the number
of hops (and turns) the trip will use, and ask you if you
want to engage your AutoPilot. You will be able to use the
Autopilot in three different modes. The default is Alert
mode. This will suspend your travel in any sector where
there is a planet, port, navagational hazard or other
trader. Once alerted to one of these items, you wil be
given several options. It is up to you to make the decision
that will best serve you or your corporation. The second
mode is Express. This speeds you to your destination
provided there are no enemy forces in your path. The third
mode is Single Step. This was developed by an enterprising
group of pioneers. Their group was getting smaller due to
bold exploration of sectors filled with mines, so the
survivors manufactured an Autopilot that would stop in each
sector. This allowed them to scan the next sector for
hazards before proceeding into it. Select this option if
you feel the need for caution.
<L> Land on a Planet. This option will enable you to colonize
your planets, build a Citadel and do business there, pick up
the fighters built by your colonists or pick up the
production of Fuel Ore, Organics and/or Equipment. You will
see a list of all the planets. Simply enter the number for
the one you want to visit. If you have purchased a Planet
Scanner at the Hardware Emporium, it will automatically
provide you with additional information about the planet.
The Planet Scanner will also allow you to abort the landing
procedure if, after looking at the defenses, you feel you
may not be able to land successfully. The display, once you
have landed, shows the planet number, location, name, class
and a chart detailing the commodities, production
requirements and current inventories. You will also see the
citadel information and any planetary defenses.
<S> Long Range Scan. If you have purchased a scanner from the
Hardware Emporium, you can use it to view adjacent sectors.
All things in the Trade Wars universe have a density value
and you can use your Density Scanner to display the relative
density of the neighboring sectors and determine if there
are any Navagational Hazards. You will also be warned of
any non-standard, undefinable mass. You can then use that
information to determine what's next door. If you have a
Holographic Scanner, you will be able to see ports, planets,
hazards and other players all for just the cost of one turn.
<R> Release Beacon. Choose this when you want to launch one
of the Marker Beacons you purchased at the Hardware
Emporium. You will need to decide what message your
beacon will send when you launch it. (Limit 41 characters)
<W> Tow SpaceCraft. This option lets you toggle your tractor
beam on and off. The computer will ask you which trader in
your current sector you wish to tow. You can tow an
unmanned ship only if you own the ship and know the ship's
password. The computer will then calculate (using the size
difference between the two ships) the number of turns you
will use for each sector you tow this trader and his/her
ship. You can then use the Move option to go to an adjacent
sector or you can engage your AutoPilot to move you and your
"passenger". TransWarp drives were not made to be used in
conjunction with tractor beams, so if you use your
TransWarp, the tractor beam will automatically shut down.
The person you are towing will not enter a sector until you
have safely entered. The tractor beam will act as a
protective shield and will safeguard the towee from any
damage from mines, offensive fighters or Quasar cannons. If
your ship is destroyed, the tractor beam will also be
destroyed and the person you are towing will be left
stranded. To disengage the beam at any point, use this
option again.
Also, you can use the tractor beam to tow an unmanned ship.
You can only tow a ship that you would be able to transport
onto, and you must enter the ship's password (if any) to
engage the tractor. Note that you can tow unmanned ships
that are carrying fighters.
Computer and Information
<C> Onboard Computer. This command will activate your on-board
computer.
<X> Transporter Pad. The display will show the transport range
of your ship and a list of ships and their locations to
which you can beam yourself. Make sure you know the
password!
<I> Ship Information. This will display your statistics.
Trader Name...... Your alias in the game
Rank and Exp..... The experience points you have
accumulated, the number of alignment
points you have accumulated and the
title you have received
Times Blown Up... The number of times your ship has been
destroyed
Ship Name........ The name of the ship you are now using
Ship Info........ Manufacturer and model
Ported = The number of times this ship
has docked at a Trading Port
Kills = Number of other player's ships
destroyed by this ship
Turns to Warp.... How many turns used to move this ship
one sector
Date Built....... The date this ship was purchased
Current Sector... Your current location
Turns to Warp.... The number of turns you will use
moving this ship to an adjacent sector
Turns Left....... Number of turns remaining for this
ship
Total Holds...... Number of holds this ship is carrying
(This display also shows the breakdown
of the cargo in the holds)
Additional information includes all the special equipment
your ship has and the number of credits you have on your
ship.
<T> Corporate Menu. This will give you information about all
the corporations in the game.
<U> Use Genesis Torpedo. If you are carrying a Genesis
Torpedo, you will be able to detonate it and create one of
the several types of planets using this command. These will
create your new world quickly. You will be advised of the
planet type before you have to name it so you can assign an
appropriate name.
<J> Jettison Cargo. If your holds are full of some cargo you
just can't unload on any nearby port or planet, you may
use this selection to unceremoniously dump your holds
into space. Remember that FedLaw prohibits littering in
FedSpace. Dumping holds filled with colonists will leave
a negative impression on your alignment.
<B> Interdict Control. If you are piloting an Interdictor
Cruiser, use this option to set the generator powering the
Interdictor on or off. If it is on, an enemy will not be
able to warp out of the sector during an attack.
Tactical
<A> Attack Enemy SpaceCraft. When you encounter an opponent,
other creature or unmanned ship in a sector you have the
option of going on the offense and attacking. The
controller will ask you how many of your fighters you want
to use in the attack. When you are much stronger than your
opponent, there is a chance that the opponent will warp out
of the sector. If you are very careful with the amount of
firepower you use in your attack, there may be significant
salvage available after you win. Attacking others can (and
probably will) affect your alignment. If you attack a
pirate or known terror you will get good points. On the
other hand, if you decide to pick on some good soul you will
go down the ladder of righteousness.
<E> Use Subspace Ether Probe. Launch the Probe you purchased at
the Hardware Emporium. Send the unmanned spy off to its
destination sending information back to you from every
sector it passes through. Remember that this device has
no defensive capabilities so if it encounters any enemy
fighters, it will be destroyed.
<F> Take or Leave Fighters. This enables you to deploy your
fighters. You will have several options so you can
customize your defenses. You can leave fighters as
either Personal so they recognize only you as an ally or
you can leave them as Corporate so any member of your
corporation will be treated with respect. Fighters can
be Offensive, Defensive or Toll. Defensive fighters
defend your territory. They bar opponents from entering
a sector and will fight when attacked. Offensive
fighters will send out an attack group on any poor soul
who happens into their sector. The size of the attack
group depends on the fighter support escorting the
intruder. After the initial attack, offensive fighters
fall back to defend their territory. Toll fighters
simply stop the casual passers-by and ask them for money
to help with your cause. The number of Toll Fighters
deployed will determine the amount of the toll charged.
Toll fighters, as all other fighters, will fight back if
attacked.
<G> Show Deployed Fighters. This display can be a very
useful tool as you plan your military strategies. The
information shown contains the sector number where the
fighters are located, the quantity of fighters there,
whether the fighters are Personal or Corporate, the
strategic mode they are in (Offensive, Defensive or Toll)
and any tolls they have collected.
<H> Handle Space Mines. Mines can be a very convincing way
of marking your territory. This selection will let place
both Limpet and Armid mines and allows you place or pick up
the mines. You will be able to choose whether to set the
mines as Personal or Corporate. Personal mines will
recognize only you and Corporate mines will recognize any
member of your corporation. Mines don't always work, but it
stands to reason that the more mines there are in a sector,
the more likely one is to detonate (or attach in the case of
Limpet mines).
<K> Show Deployed Mines. This display is similar to the Show
Deployed Fighters. You get information about the sectors
containing your Personal and/or Corporate Limpet and Aramid
mines and how many mines are located in each of those
sectors. In the case of Limpet mines, you will get two
displays. One will show the deployed mines just waiting for
your unsuspecting enemy. The other display is Activated
mines - it shows those mines which have attached to ships
and where they are.
<O> Starport Construction. If there is not a Starport in the
sector, this menu selection will display the Starport
Construction Menu. Starports are available throughout
the universe. You may decide that you want your own
customized commerce center in a place you specify instead
of using the ones built by others. You will see a
detailed graph of the different port classes, the
products they can import/export and the initial
construction costs. The license bureau will check to see
that there is a planet in the sector to provide materials
for the construction. They will also check for
sufficient funding to support the undertaking. Be sure
to leave the specified amount of materials on the planet
every day during the construction phase or the building
will not progress. If there is already a Starport in the
sector, the Upgrade Starport Menu will be displayed.
This allows you to increase the trading levels of any or
all of the commodities. The universe can support only so
many ports. If the Starport Construction request tells
you that the universe is full, then you have to destroy
an existing port before you can begin construction on
your new one.
Miscellaneous
<Q> Quit and Exit. This exits you from the game and returns
you to the BBS.
<!> Main Menu Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Main Menu functions.
<Z> Trade Wars Docs. Display this entire document. Useful
menus are available anytime a ? appears in the prompt.
Specific help files are available wherever an ! appears
in the menus.
<V> View Game Status. Trade Wars 2002 can be configured in
a variety of ways by your SysOp. This display will show
you the static information about the game as well as the
current information. Static information includes the
version number, maximum number of sectors, players, etc.,
whether or not the local display is on, and if this is a
registered version of the game. The StarDock location
may also appear on this screen if the SysOp has configured
the game that way.
<#> View users on. This displays a list of other users on the
BBS, as if you had typed "/#" from a normal menu.
<'> Subspace radio. This enables you to send a short (one-line)
message to all other players in the game on your radio
channel. By default, everyone starts on radio channel zero
until changed in the computer menu.
<-> Globals. To use a global command in Trade Wars, simply type
dash. The game will prompt you with a "G:" prompt. You can
enter globals at this prompt normally. When you are done
using global commands, simply press Enter at the "G:" prompt
and you will be returned to the game.
AUTOPILOT MENU
<Y> Yes, stop here. This will disengage the Autopilot and
will stop you in the current sector.
<N> No, continue on. Continues on the pre-defined route.
<E> Express Non-stop. This will speed you through the
sectors without pausing to ask if you want to stop in the
sectors with planets or ports. Hitting the space bar
while in Express mode will put you into warp speed. If
you encounter enemy forces you will have to react. If
you retreat, the computer will re-plot your course
avoiding that sector from which you retreated.
<I> Ship Information. This displays all your current
statistics. The display is the same as option <I> from
the Main Menu.
<R> Port Report. This will display the port report
information as if you chose <R> from your on-board
computer.
<S> Long Range Scan. If you have purchased a Long Range
Scanner from the Hardware Emporium, you can use it during
your AutoPilot voyage without having to stop in the
sector.
<D> Re-Display Sector. This is the same sector display that
can be accessed by choosing option <D> from the Main
Menu.
<P> Port and Trade. This will allow you to dock at a Trading
Port and conduct your business without having to
recalculate your Autopilot course when you're done. You
will be selecting the same options as you would if you
chose the <P> selection from the Main Menu.
<!> Autopilot Help. Displays this file.
COMPUTER COMANDS
Navigation
<F> Course Plotter. This will show the number of turns and hops
it will take to get from any sector in the universe to
another. You can use this tool to avoid any surprise as
you travel between sectors. You know the universe is
full of unexplained phenomenon and just because you got
from your home sector to this sector with a great port in
five moves doesn't mean you'll get back in five moves.
<I> Inter-Sector Warps. This selection will show you the
warps lanes connected to any sector in the universe that
you have explored. You just enter the sector number and
the computer will show you every sector directly linked
to that sector. The computer will not have data to
display for those sectors you have yet to explore.
<K> Your Known Universe. As you travel through space, you
will be creating your personal travelogue. This will
store information about the sectors you've explored.
Your computer will use this information to give you your
Port Reports and Inter-Sector Warps. You may wish to see
what sectors you have (or don't have) in your travelogue.
This option will tell you. You will see what percentage
of the universe you have visited and the computer will
ask if you want the list of Explored or Unexplored
sectors. When you reply, you will get a list of sector
numbers.
<R> Port Report. This report gives you relatively up-to-date
information about any port located in a sector which you
have explored. All you have to do is enter the sector
number in which the port is located. You will see items
being traded at the port, the status of each of those
items (whether the port is buying them or selling them),
the number of units the port is willing to trade (and
what percentage of maximum that number represents) and
how many of each of the commodities you have in your
holds. If for some reason you get the message that the
computer has no information on that port and you are sure
there is a port in the sector you indicated, there may be
enemy forces in that sector interfering with your
computer's scan.
<U> T-Warp Preference. Once you have a TransWarp drive, this
option will let you chose whether or not you want to have
the prompt to use this feature each time you try to move to
a non-adjacent sector. If you say "Yes", you will get the
prompt. If you say "No", you will simply get the autopilot
prompt. The next time you want to use the TWarp drive, you
will have to go into this option to restart it.
<V> Avoid Sectors. You will sometimes find sectors
containing things that are detrimental to your success in
the game. This function will avoid those sectors when
doing any course plotting. You just have to enter the
sector or sectors to be by-passed before you use the
computer to plot a course or to establish a route for
your AutoPilot. If the computer encounters a situation
where there is not possible route between the sectors you
requested, then all voids will be cleared and will have
to be re-entered before any future course calculations.
<X> List Current Avoids. When you want to see just what
sectors are being avoided when the computer charts your
course, use this selection. You can use this information
to determine if you want to make any changes. Due to the
limited functionality of this module of the computer, if
you want to remove one or more avoided sectors from the
list, you must clear the entire list and re-enter the
sector numbers you still want to bypass.
<!> Computer Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Computer functions.
<Q> Exit Computer. This option will return you to the bridge
of your ship.
Miscellaneous:
<A> Make Announcement. Do you have something you want to
tell everyone in the game? If so, prepare your
proclamation and enter it. You will have 160 characters
for your announcement and it will be displayed in the
Daily Log for everyone to read as they enter the game.
<B> Begin Self-destruct Sequence. If you have managed to
make a real mess of things and the only way to continue
is to start from scratch, then go ahead and use this
command. You will escape from your ship moments before
it self-destructs. Think it over carefully before you
hit the button. This will not only destroy your ship and
all its inventory, but it will also affect your rank and
alignment. Your spirit takes two days to migrate back to
Sector 1, so you won't have any turns the day after you
self-destruct.
<N> Set preferences. Use this option to set your personal ANSI
preference and animation preference. By turning off animation,
many of the longer menus and graphics will be skipped, making
the game display faster. In addition, you can configure whether
you wish the game to page you when important events occur if you
using another part of the BBS. Lastly, you can configure which
channel you wish to use for your subspace radio.
<O> Change Ship Settings. This option offers you an additional
level of protection for all the ships you own. This lets
you establish a password that players will need to know to
be able to use your ship.
<P> Fire Photon Missile. You can fire your Photon Missile
into the adjacent sector and run in to do your damage.
Remember that the timer is running as soon as the missile
is launched so be quick!
<M> Re-Read Your Mail. This gives you a chance to review the
messages that were sent to you since the last time you
were in the game.
<S> Send Mail. When you need to get a message to one of the
other players, this will serve your need. Keep entering the
lines of your message until you are done. To complete your
message, simply press the enter key on a blank line. You do
not need to know the player's entire name. If you have part
of it, your computer will search the player file and
prompt you when it finds a match.
<T> Current Ship Time. This will display the time and date
stored in your ship's computer. (Remember, the game
began in the year 2002.)
<W> Use Mine Disrupter. You are exploring a new region of
the universe and as you single-step your way along, your
scanner shows a number of mines in the next sector. Send
one of the Mine Disrupters you purchased at the Hardware
Emporium into this mined sector so you don't have to take
the damage to your ship. The disrupters will also disarm
any Limpet mines that may be in the sector. If the first
Disrupter doesn't disarm all the mines, you can send in
another.
DISPLAYS
<C> View Ship Catalog. This tool lets you view the
specifications for all the available ships in the game.
You can get a list of the ships and choose which ever one
strikes your fancy. The display will show the following
information -
Basic Hold Cost
Main Drive Cost
Computer Cost
Ship Hull Cost
Base Cost
Minimum and Maximum Holds
Maximum Fighters
Maximum Shields
Number of Moves per Day
Maximum Number of Mines
Maximum Number of Genesis Torpedoes
Offensive Odds for Combat
Maximum Number of Marker Beacons
TransWarp Drive Capability
Long Range Scanner Capability
Planet Scanner Capability
In addition to all this information, there is a brief
narrative about the capabilities and shortcomings of each
model.
<D> Scan Daily Log. This will re-display the Daily Journal
that you see when you enter the game.
<E> Evil Trader Class. This is a display of the titles to
which you can aspire if you are of negative alignment.
It shows the levels, titles and the number of experience
points needed to attain that level.
<G> Good Trader Class. This is a display of the titles to
which you can aspire if you are of positive alignment.
It shows the levels, titles and the number of experience
points needed to attain that level.
<H> Alien Trader Ranks. You will encounter traders from other
galaxies as you make your way through the universe. You
can interact with these creatures the same as you do with
the Traders native to your 1000 sectors. Of course,
aliens are either good or bad. Their alignment (good or
evil) can make a big difference in how you want to
associate (or not associate) with them. When you use
this selection, your computer will tell you everything
you need to know.
<J> Planetary Specs. The use of this display is very similar to
that of the Ship Catalog. A ? will show you a list of all
the planet types. Choose the one you would like to know
more about and the display will produce a picture and a
brief description of the planet. It will also detail some
of the pros and cons of that planet type.
<L> List Trader Rank. This choice will show you all the players
in the game in order of experience. Your prompt will ask
if you would like the list to show the Titles of the
players or their Values in Experience points. Each
trader will be displayed with his or her title or value,
the number of the Corporation to which he/she belongs,
and the type of ship currently being used.
<Y> Personal Planets. If you have planets that you want to
keep as personal, you can view them using this option just
as you can view Corporate Planets using the <L> option in
the Corporation Menu.
<Z> Active Ship Scan. This display will show a list of all your
ships, the ship number, location, ship type, fighters &
shields and the number of hops to get to it.
PLANET MENU
<A> Take All Products. This will load your empty holds with
the products available on the planet. The dock workers
will load your ship to the brim with as much of each of
the products that is available beginning with the cargo
of greatest value (Equipment) to the least value (Fuel
Ore).
<C> Enter Citadel. You enter the Citadel (and display the
Citadel Menu). If there is no citadel on this planet,
you will have the option to build one. The necessary
products and labor force needed in the construction will
display. You will not be issued a building permit if you
don't have the necessary people and commodities.
<D> Display Planet. This will show the planet number, type,
name and the alias of the player who created it. There
is also an informative chart showing how many colonists
are working in each production area, how many units of
each product are being produced daily, the quantity of
each product currently available on the planet, and how
many of each you have on your ship. Citadel information
including level, construction underway and credits in the
vault is also available.
<M> Change Military Levels. You will want to move your
fighters around to protect your territory. This option
will allow you to take fighters currently on the planet
or to leave fighters you have escorting you. The
fighters on the planet are controlled by the Combat
Control Computer (level 2) in the Citadel. If there is
no Combat Control Computer there, the fighters would
better serve you patrolling the sector outside the
planet. Leaving fighters on a planet will designate the
planet as yours.
<O> Claim Ownership. Let the entire universe know who
controls the planet. Use this option to set the planet
as either Personal or Corporate. This is a must when
you've gone to all the trouble to capture one of your
opponent's planets.
<P> Change Population Levels. Throughout the course of the
game you may wish to change the distribution of your
workforce among the commodities. This selection provides
you with an easy, efficient way to order your workers to
the job you need done.
<S> Load/Unload Colonists. Colonizing your planets can
contribute greatly to your trading profits. This will
enable you to leave the colonists you've brought from
Terra or pack everyone up and move them to another
planet. Keep a close watch on your planet's population
because many planets experience a growth/death cycle. If
your planet has too many people to support, the raw
materials needed to produce your commodities will be used
up by the surplus population and your production rates
will be adversely affected.
<T> Take or Leave Product. This will let you specify to the
dock workers which type of products you want to leave and
which ones you want loaded on your ship.
<Z> Try to Destroy Planet. First you purchase Atomic
Detonators from the Hardware Emporium. That is the easy
part. You then have to fight your way into the sector
containing the planet. After battling the fighters,
Quasar Cannons, and any other military defenses that may
be there, you have the ability to lay your Atomic
Detonators. Colonists have been trained in the disarming
of detonators. Most of the training was rushed and
provided by inexperienced teachers, so they aren't very
good at it. Most of their attempts literally go up in
smoke, and if you are still on the planet when their
attempt goes awry, you go awry with it. You have the
option of suing your conventional weapons to kill off the
colonists before you lay the detonators so you don't run
the risk of getting killed by their lack of skill. If
you're willing to risk the bad Karma to be a little
safer, this might be the correct option for you.
<Q> Leave This Planet. Take off from the planet.
<!> Planetary Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Planetary functions.
CITADEL MENU
<B> Transporter Control. Here is where you go to beam you and
your ship to another sector. The transporter range is
limited, but with enough credits, you can also use this
option to upgrade it's range.
<C> Engage Ship's Computer. Use this function to use all
your Crai's power just as you would by choosing <C> from
the Main Menu.
<D> Display Traders Here. This will show you the guest
register of the other players who are parked in the
Citadel. The register gives you the name of the player,
their ship type and how many fighters, shields and holds
they have. This information could prove very useful if
you have just captured the planet from one of your
opponents.
<E> Exchange Trader Ships. If the other players parked in
the Citadel have specified their vehicle as available for
trade, then you have the option of exchanging your ship
for theirs. Be sure to coordinate this carefully with
the other members of your corporation. Only C.E.O.'s can
use Corporate Flagships so they are not available for
trade. If you have seized this planet from an opponent
still parked in the Citadel, you may want to commandeer
his ship for your own use.
<G> Shield Generator Control. If you have your level 5
Citadel completed, you can use this option to store your
shields. You transfer your Ship's shields to the
Planetary Shielding System using this option (10 ship
shields = 1 planetary shield). Stored shields will be
used in the defense of your planet. The Planetary
Shielding System will protect your planet from your
enemies. You will thwart your rivals' attempts to
incapacitate your defenses with Photon Missiles. Your
opponents will be unable to scan your planet.
<I> Personal Info. This selection will enable you to see all
of your current statistics. The information will display
same as it does when you choose option <I> from the Main
Menu.
<L> Quasar Cannon R-level. Use this option to set both the
Atmospheric and Sector reaction levels. The Quasar
Cannon in your Level Three Citadel uses massive amounts
of Fuel Ore. Use this option to adjust the percentage of
Ore on the planet used in this weapon's capability.
PLEASE NOTE: The Quasar Cannon will use the entered
percentage of Fuel Ore remaining on the planet for EACH
SHOT it fires. If you set the Sector value to 100% and
a Scout Marauder with 5 fighters wanders into your
sector, the Cannon will use all the Fuel Ore on your
planet to blow the intruder into space dust. If another
player later tramps into your sector in a well-armed
BattleShip your Cannon will sit idle due to lack of
ammunition. Another consideration when setting your
percentages is that the accuracy of the Cannon is much
better and the damage caused by the blast is greater when
the target is in the planet's atmosphere.
<M> Military Reaction Level. Another method of customizing
your protection, this will let you set the percentage of
fighters stationed there to be used as offensive or
defensive in case of an attack on the planet. You must
have a Combat Control Computer (Level Two Citadel or
higher) to use this option. The value you enter will be
the percentage of fighters that will attack offensively
as someone attempts to land on your planet. The balance
of your fighters will fall back for defense of the planet
and Citadel.
<N> Interdictor Control. If you have upgraded your citadel to
level 6, this will allow you to control the Interdictor
generator on the planet. You will want to use this in
conjunction with a Quasar Cannon. If the generator is on,
an enemy ship cannot leave the sector. This generator
consumes a lot of fuel ore when used. Make sure your Q-
cannon is set most carefully. Otherwise, the enemy can try
to escape and deplete all the fuel ore on your planet.
<P> Planetary TransWarp. The instructions for this feature
are in your Level Four Citadel. Provided you have enough
Fuel Ore to power the mammoth engine, you can move your
planet to any sector where you currently have fighters
stationed.
<R> Remain Here Overnight. You can sleep feeling safe and
secure if you bed down inside the Citadel, out of the rat
race. You will have the protection of your planetary
forces to guard you. When you leave your ship, the valet
will ask if you want others who enter the Citadel to have
the privilege of exchanging ships with you. It's
perfectly within your rights to keep your ship for
personal use only.
<S> Scan This Sector. This option will let you see
everything in the sector around this planet. The display
will be the same as you get from option <D> in the Main
Menu.
<T> Treasury Fund Transfers. If you don't like to carry a
lot of credits on you when you're out exploring the
universe, you can deposit your excess in the Citadel.
You can withdraw the credits whenever you need them. Be
advised that the Treasury workers are quite lax in their
security measures and anyone who enters the Citadel can
withdraw any and all of the credits.
<U> Upgrade Citadel. Once your Citadel construction is
complete, you may find you wish to upgrade. Very few
people are content with a Level One Citadel. You will
need more colonists and materials for each level of
improvements. Level Two has a Combat Control System
which enables you to set the fighters deployed on the
planet as offensive or defensive. Level Three contains
a Quasar Cannon which is a very powerful weapon, but uses
a considerable amount of Fuel Ore to operate. Level Four
encloses the massive engine used for the TransWarp Drive.
Level Five provides the power for the Planetary Shielding
System. The PSS will provide a sturdy shield for your
planet which your enemies will have a hard time
penetrating with fighters or photon missiles. Level 6
equips the planet with an Interdictor Generator. If turned
on, this generator will make it impossible for your enemy to
escape from your Quasar Cannon.
<V> Evict Other Traders. Now that you've survived all the
defenses your opponent placed to keep you out, you should
be able to come in and take over, right? Occasionally
you go into a newly captured Citadel only to find the
trader (or traders) who previously controlled the planet.
No need to have them in your way. Simply select this
option to activate the Emergency Warning System in the
Citadel. It will alert these unwanted guests to some
impending doom and their ships will blast off into orbit
around the planet. The system will list the traders as
they escape. You then may either stay in the Citadel out
of harm's way or you can go out into the sector to
inflict more damage on your enemy.
<X> Corporation Menu. This option is the same as option <T>
from the Main Menu.
<!> Citadel Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Citadel functions.
<Q> Leave the Citadel. Exit the Citadel and return to the
planet.
CORPORATION MENU
<D> Display Corporations. If you want to see how you and
your corporation compare with others in the game or if
you want to see who the members are of a specific
corporation, use this selection. You will asked if you
want to List Corporations or Rank Corporations. L will
give you a listing of all corporations registered at
Federation Hall showing the corporation's registration
number and the date of incorporation and all corporate
members with the C.E.O. labeled. R will display a list
of all corporations ranked by experience. The list shows
the rank, the corporate registration number and name, the
C.E.O.'s name, the corporate alignment and the corporate
experience.
<J> Join a Corporation. When you want to join forces with a
corporation of the other traders, you will need to make
arrangements to get your corporate security pass. When
a member of that corporation has approved your
membership, use this option to join. You will need to be
of the same alignment as the C.E.O. If at any time
during your tenure with the corporation, your alignment
is opposite that of the Chairman, you will be
automatically ousted from the Corporation.
<M> Make a New Corporation. When you are prepared to make to
move from independent trader to Corporate C.E.O., this
option will file your Corporate Charter in the
Federation's Hall of Records. As C.E.O. you will have
privileges that other players don't have such as owning
an Corporate Flagship and sending Corporate Memos to all
members of your Corporation. You will be the one to
determine whether your Corporation is good or evil. As
you go, so goes the Corporation. A prospective member
will have to be of the same alignment as you to join.
<!> Corporation Help. Display the portion of the
documentation describing the Corporation functions.
<Q> Quit Corporation Menu. Return to the game.
CORPORATIONS ONLY
<C> Credit Transfer. Use this option to transfer credits to
or from your corporate associate. You have to be in the
same sector as the corporation member with whom you want
to exchange credits.
<F> Fighter Transfer. Use this option to transfer fighters
to or from your corporate associate. You have to be in
the same sector as the corporation member with whom you
want to exchange fighters.
<H> Mines Transfer. Use this option to transfer mines to or
from your corporate associate. You have to be in the
same sector as the corporation member with whom you want
to exchange mines.
<S> Shields Transfer. Use this option to transfer shields to
or from your corporate associate. You have to be in the
same sector as the corporation member with whom you want
to exchange shields.
<X> Leave Your Corporation. There may come a time when you
feel you have to make a break with your current
corporation. You may want to form your own new
corporation. You may want to play the game with an
alignment different from that of your corporation's
members. This will allow you to vacate your position in
your corporation. Remember that you will no longer have
access to any of the corporation's assets. If you are
the C.E.O. the corporation will be dissolved and all
corporate fighters will become rogue mercenaries.
<L> List Corporate Planets. This will display a detailed
graph of your corporation's planets. The information
includes
-the sector where the planet is located
-the planet's name
-the current population
-the production rate for Fuel Ore, Organics and Equipment
-the current inventories of the commodities
-the number of fighters stationed there
-the level of the Citadel (if any)
-the amount of credits in the Citadel (if any)
<A> Show corporate Assets and Member Locations. This is a
very handy tool to use in organizing your strategy with
that of the others in your Corporation. The information
shown on this display is
-the Corporation member's name
-the sector where that member is located
-whether or not the member is on a planet in that sector
-the number of fighters, shields, mines and credits on
him/her
C.E.O.'s Only
<T> Send Corporate Memo. When you want to give information
to all those in your organization, use this option.
Whether it is instructions on where you want to establish
a new colony or a congratulatory dispatch for a job well
done, you can send your message quickly and efficiently.
<P> Corporate Security. In a world where instances of
computer crime run rampant, a C.E.O. can never be too
careful. Be sure you trust a player before you let him
or her in your organization. And just as with your BBS
account, you can better maintain security if you change
passwords occasionally.
<R> Drop Corporate Member. Do you have a problem with a
member of your Corporation? Is that member showing signs
of insubordination? You don't have to put up with the
stress. Simply drop this trouble maker. Remember that
the member can take any corporate assets on his/her ship
when kicked out.
STARDOCK MENU
<C> The CinePlex Videon Theatres. You can smell the popcorn
from the Hardware Emporium. Come right in to see the
latest releases from HollyWorld. You can choose from
several first-run offerings or you can opt for one of the
classics. Don't take too long to make up your mind
because there are others waiting in line behind you.
<G> The 2nd National Galactic Bank. Here is the place to
engage in matters of high finance. You will be able to
put credits into your or another trader's account. You
can take credits out of your account. You can examine
the balance in your account. The bank allows only
personal accounts. Corporate funds should be stored in
secured Citadels.
<H> The Stellar Hardware Emporium. This is the General Store
of the Trade Wars Universe. If you want it, they have it
and if you have enough money, they'll sell it to you.
<P> The Federal Space Police HQ. The home of law enforcement
in the galaxy. Here you can register complaints against
other players, collect rewards or see the wanted posters.
<S> The Federation Shipyards. This is the place where you
can trade your ship in for a newer model or sell off some of
those junk ships you've gathered as spoils from your
victories. You can see all the models available and all the
specifications for each style.
<T> The Lost Trader's Tavern. Traders come here for more
than just a drink and a meal. Some of the more
interesting features of this game can be found here if
you ask the right questions.
<!> StarDock Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the StarDock functions.
<Q> Return to Your Ship and Leave. Leave the Stardock and
return to the sector.
HARDWARE MENU
<A> Atomic Detonators. These detonators are used in the
destruction of planets. If you don't have enough
military to take out a planet, you can set Atomic
Detonators and run like [heck]. Warning: colonists have
been trained to disarm these detonators. These units are
as unstable as they are powerful. They can react like
Corbomite Devices when an enemy attacks your ship, and
they can also detonate by hitting mines or offensive
fighters as you journey through the galaxy.
<B> Marker Beacons. Marker Beacons are the billboards of the
Trade Wars universe. They are an inexpensive way to make
a statement. They stay in the sector where they are
launched until they are destroyed. They have absolutely
no defensive capability. They are so fragile that if two
are launched in the same sector, they both explode.
<C> Corbomite Devices. Corbomite devices are weapons to
avenge the destruction of your ship. If one of your
opponents succeeds in obliterating your craft, that
person may suffer substantial damage as well when your
ship is equipped with one or more of these. Corbomite
devices can also be viewed as protection. Your enemies
may think twice about attacking you if you are armed with
these. With each additional device you add to your
vessel, you increase your protection level. You can have
up to a Level 1500 Corbomite Device on some ships and the
nice part is, your foe has no way to detect the device's
presence on your ship.
<D> Cloaking Device. Cloaking devices can hide you from your
rivals when you are away from your home sector. If you
feel you will be vulnerable, use your Cloaking Device to
conceal your ship. Your location will be unknown to even
your Corporate associates who view the Member Location
display. Remember that the Cloaking Device will use a
lot of your energy reserves and its effectiveness
decreases the longer it's used. A well-known consumer
group has tested these devices and found that on the
average, after 24 hours of use, you stand a good chance of
being detected. Cloaking Devices are relatively
inexpensive, but because some of the components decompose
quickly, they are a one-time use item.
<E> SubSpace Ether Probes. Ethereal Probes are quite useful
when you want to know what wonders lie on the other side
of the universe, but you don't want to use up your turns
to explore. You can launch the unmanned probes with a
preset destination. As they maneuver their way across
the cosmos, they report back sector by sector. They are
quite inexpensive for the amount of information that can
be obtained, but they are not sturdy. They contain a
self-destruct mechanism that is triggered when the probe
reaches its destination. The designers of the probe
thought this would provide anonymity for anyone using the
gadget. This mechanism is so sensitive that it detonates
when the probe encounters any enemy fighters. Since it
has no shielding capabilities, any ship it passes will be
able to detect its presence.
<F> Planet Scanners. If you are planning an invasion of
another player's planet, this scanner can show you the
military system on the planet without landing. Once you
are in the sector, scan the planet. You can see who
created the planet, who currently controls the planet,
and the military defenses installed there. You won't
find out the hard way that you don't have enough weapons
to take over the enemy forces.
<M> Space Mines. New technology has been developed to provide
traders with two types of mines. The Aramid mines can be a
very effective way of establishing your territory. Space
mines can cause serious damage to smaller craft and can be a
real nuisance to larger vessels. The Limpet mines are a
clever development of the Donnelly Underground Development
Group. They simply sit almost invisible in a sector until
an enemy ship passes by. Once the enemy is close enough,
they attach themselves to the ship. The activated mines
will report their whereabouts to you when you do scan for
deployed mines. This is a clever way to find out where your
enemy is. The Limpets can be removed by crews at the
Stardock. The latest technology has provided mines with
sensors capable of recognizing the Federal I.D. codes. This
will keep the mines from detonating by your ship or your
Corporation's ships (most of the time).
<P> Photon Missiles. Only owners of Missile Frigates or
Imperial Starships can use these powerful weapons.
Shields, both Ship and Planetary, are excellent
protection from the impact of this weapon. However,
once shields have been destroyed, Photon Missiles can be
used to disable all Combat Control Computers (Level 2
Citadels) and Quasar Cannons (Level 3 Citadels) and
Interdictor Generators (Level 6 Citadels) on planets. It
neutralizes all mines and fighters stationed in a sector.
Be advised that the effect of these missiles is short-lived.
Get in, take care of your business and get out before the
effect wears off. You don't want to still be in the sector
when the Quasar Cannons regain their strength. Great care
should be used in transporting these volatile weapons of
destruction.
<R> Long Range Scanners. These scanners can provide the
explorer with multi-sector vision. Your two options are
a Density Scanner or a Holographic Scanner. The Density
Scanner is the cheaper and it provides the user with the
relative density of the surrounding sectors. It will also
indicate a warning if there is a non-standard undefinalble
mass. You can use that information to determine what may be
in the neighborhood. If you have sufficient funds, you can
purchase a Holographic Scanner which has both Density and
Holographic capabilities. Using the Holographic mode,
you can see what and who is in the sectors adjacent to
the one you are currently occupying. The scanner in
Holographic mode uses a small amount of your ship's fuel
(one turn's worth) but that is a small price to pay when
you consider the information and security it can provide.
<S> Mine Disrupters. If you run across a heavily mined
sector but you really need to go in there, send in a Mine
Sweeper to clear your path. They can absorb the damage
so you don't have to or they can deactivate the limpets.
<T> Genesis Torpedoes. Much improved since the first models,
these torpedoes can provide the foundation for the
production of your trading commodities. Depending on the
planet type created by the torpedo, planet will be able to
support a varying number of colonists. The colonists can
provide the labor needed to mine the Fuel Ore, grow the
Organics and manufacture the Equipment and Fighters you
will use in your trading company. Some planet types
are better than others at producing the commodities. You
might want to check the Planetary Specs in your Onboard
Computer. You have no control over what planet type results
from the Torpedo's explosion. That is determined by
conditions in the sector.
<W> TransWarp Drives. Only Imperial Starships, Corporate
Flagships and Havoc Gunstars have hulls sturdy enough to
withstand TransWarp flight. These drives use a massive
amount of Fuel Ore so make sure you have a source of Ore
for your return trip, too. The TransWarp Drive uses a
homing device, so you should have at least one fighter in
your destination sector.
<Y> Psychic Probes. Bartering at the ports is one of the
main elements of this game. You get experience points
for making a good deal. The better the deal, the more
points you get. Psychic Probes are the next best thing
to insider trading, and they're legal. If you want to
see exactly where your offer is compared to what they
would have accepted, you need one of these probes. It
will not only show you where you went wrong, but it will
also help you improve your trading skills.
<!> Hardware Emporium Help. Display the portion of the
documentation describing the Hardware Emporium functions.
<Q> Leave the Emporium. Return to the main area of the
StarDock.
SHIPYARDS MENU
<B> Buy a New Ship. When you are ready to upgrade, or if you
need a specialized ship, come to the Shipyards and talk
to Cal Worthington XXI about a trade-in. You will be
offered a fair price for your current ship. They will
take anything in your trade such as fighters, accessories,
mines, etc. so if you're trying to get a lot on your trade-in,
load your ship up before you talk to them If you don't want to use
all your extras in the trade, you might want to leave as much as
you can in a secure place and pick it up after you purchase your
new ship. New ships are very basic models. The extras are
available at the Hardware Emporium and the Class 0 ports.
<S> Sell Extra Ships. A display with all your ships in orbit
will appear. Choose which ones to sell off. You will be
able to see the ship number, name, type, location and how
many fighters and shields are on each ship.
<E> Examine Ship Specs. This is the same information
available to you from your ship's on-board computer, but
in includes (for ANSI users only) a picture of each ship,
both top and front view. You may want to review the ship
specifications one last time before you make your
purchase.
<P> Buy Class 0 Items. After you purchase your ship, you may
need to equip it with a few of the items normally
purchased at the Class 0 ports. You wouldn't want to
take that brand new beauty out unprotected, would you?
The merchants in the shipyards have obtained fighters,
shields and holds from "trade-ins" so they are offering
them right here where you buy your ship as a convenience
to you. Be forewarned that you will be paying a premium
price for this convenience.
<R> Change Ship Registration. It's not paranoia when they're
really out to get you. If your foes are tracking you
down by reading the logs at the StarPorts or they've
received information on your ship from a loose-tongued
fool at the tavern, go to this back room in the offices
of the Shipyards. For a hefty fee, you can get revised
registration papers on your ship and christen it with a
new, untraceable name.
<!> Shipyards Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Shipyards functions.
<Q> Leave the Shipyards. Return to the main area of the
StarDock.
TAVERN MENU
<A> Make an Announcement. Do you have something of interest
for all the patrons of the tavern? If so, pay the fee
and post your announcement. It will stay there until the
next announcement is posted.
<B> Buy Something from the Bar. Had a trying day? Want a
little something to soothe your nerves? Order up
whatever your heart desires. You might even get it in a
clean glass. Remember FedLaw says, don't drink and fly.
<C> Eavesdrop on Conversations. See that group of
individuals gathered at the table in the darkest corner
of the tavern? They seem to be engaged in some very
engrossing dialogue. If you would care to listen in and
maybe even add some remarks of your own, use this option.
<E> Order Some Food. You really need to keep your strength
up so you can take on the challenges of the cosmos.
Order up the Blue Plate Special (the food is blue, not
the plate) and nourish yourself with some of the most
memorable edibles this side of Barlaam.
<G> Try Your Hand at Tri-Cron. Do you feel lucky, Punk? Put
your money down and see if you can beat the odds. A
simple game of chance might relax you and you never know,
you might come away a big winner. The game is easy - the
detailed instructions are available in the Tavern. The
cost of playing is based on the size of the Top Winner's
Jackpot. You'll have 10 rounds against the house. If
you win, the payback is 2 to 1. If you're the top
winner, you receive the accumulated jackpot.
<T> Talk to the Grimy Trader in Back. Not much to look at,
but he can be a wealth of information. Depending on how
many drinks he's had, his facts may be a bit suspect.
Just ask him about a specific topic, give him a little
inducement and he'll tell you what he knows. If you
speak to him respectfully, he'll be fair to you.
Otherwise he might try to take advantage of your need for
information. You'll have to pay dearly for it, but he
can sometimes get you information on specific Traders.
<U> Use the Facilities. When Mother Nature calls, this
option will allow you to answer. Feel free to read the
graffiti to keep yourself entertained. You can even add
some of your own prose or poetry but beware of what may
be lurking in the next stall.
<!> Tavern Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Tavern functions.
<Q> Leave the Tavern. Exit back to the main area of the
Stardock.
FEDPOLICE HEADQUARTERS MENU
<A> Apply for a Federal Commission. The Federation awards
commissions to those individuals who have shown
themselves to be highly experienced and law abiding. If
you believe yourself to qualify, apply at the Police
Headquarters. If the Feds grant you a commission, you
will be able to procure an Imperial Starship. This is a
very powerful ship but with it comes a lot of
responsibility. The Federation may call upon you to aid
their cause of maintaining law and order throughout the
universe. There are a limited number of Starships
available, so apply for your commission as soon as you
can.
<C> Claim a Federation Reward. After you have done your duty
as a good FedLaw abiding citizen, you will want to claim
the reward that is rightfully yours. March right into
the Police HQ and tell the sergeant that he no longer has
to worry about the scumbag you terminated. Be sure to
put the reward money to good use.
<E> Examine the Ten Most Wanted List. There is a listing
available in the FedPolice building of the most corrupt
players in the game. This list shows the level of evil
the player has achieved, the corporation to which he/she
belongs, the number of bounties posted on that player and
the total reward for that player's demise.
<P> Post a Reward on Someone. Would you like to make it a
little more rewarding for someone to get one of the
players on the Most Wanted list? You can offer as small
or as large a payment as you would like. Just see the
officer on duty and tell him you want to post a reward.
You will be shown the list of the Most Wanted criminals.
Tell the nice officer which one you would most like to
see brought to justice and how much you want to give to
help in the cause.
<!> FedPolice Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the FedPolice functions.
<Q> Leave the Police Station. Exit the building and return
to the main area of the StarDock.
BANK MENU
<D> Make a Deposit. You can inform the TellBorg that you
wish to deposit some or all of the credits you have with
you. The transaction is recorded instantly so you don't
have to wait three days for your deposit to be reflected
in your account.
<E> Examine Balance. You might want to see if that other
trader who promised you a reward for helping out with the
Ferrengi has come through with the credits. You might
only want to check your funds to see if you can go on a
spending spree at the Hardware Emporium. This selection
can put the answer at your fingertips.
<T> Transfer Funds. If you need to get funds to a Trader who
is not in your corporation, this option will authorize
you to make a deposit in that other Trader's account.
Naturally, you must have the credits to be able to
transfer them.
<W> Withdraw Funds. Saving can really pay off. If your ship
has been destroyed and you don't want to start from
scratch in a Scout, a nest egg in the Galactic Bank can
allow you to come right back with the ship of your
choice. Use this option to take your savings and spend
them any way you choose. You and only you have the
authorization to withdraw credits from your account.
<!> Bank Help. Display the portion of the documentation
describing the Bank functions.
<Q> Leave the Bank. Return to the main area of the StarDock.
Starting The Game
When the game starts, you start in one of 2 places, sector 1 or a
random sector with a planet (Sysop configurable.) Most of the time
this planet is junk and is not worth keeping. Most are in vulnerable
positions, not dead ends. That makes them hard to defend, and easy
for opponents to find. So you should just write down the sector number
(so you can find it again even after someone else claims it) and forget
about it The freebie planet sometimes has some products and/or a couple
of fighters when you get it. If so, take the fighters and product,
then move on.
As soon as you join the game, you want to find SD (Stardock.) In many
screens, its listed on the V-Screen (V at the main command prompt.)
In others, you have to hunt for it. In that case, you can drop fighters
in sectors surrounding fedspace around sector 1 (Just before extern runs)
The feds will remove any in the MSL's (Major Space Lanes.) A MSL will
run from 1 to SD, and another will run back the other direction. (These
could be duplicate routes, but usually aren't.) When the feds pick up
your fighters, they'll send you a msg. saying "Don't deploy fighters in
the MSL's." and give you the sector #. Write it down. Then deploy
fighters around the MSL, to find the next sector in the route to SD.
It will take a week or more, usually, to find SD this way, but its better
than random chance. Once you find it, be sure to note the location you'll
come back here often.
A sample of the <V> screen:
Trade Wars 2002 Game Configuration and Status
Initial Turns per day 750, fighters 30, credits 300, holds 20.
Inactive players will be deleted after 7 days.
Maximum players 200, sectors 5000, ports 3250, planets 1000
The Maximum number of Planets per sector: 5, Traders on a Corp: 5
Ships per FedSpace Sector: 5.
The Stardock is located in sector 3880.
Photon Missile Wave duration is 10 seconds.
Ver# 2.03 running under The Major BBS.
This game has been running for 90 days.
-=-=-=- Current Stats for 09/09/09 as of 05:05:02 AM -=-=-=-
3,097 ports are open for business and have a net worth of 87,722,113.
1319 planets exist in the universe, 22% have Citadels.
142 Traders (76% Good) and 50 Aliens (48% Good) are active in the game.
108,023,333 Fighters and 2,779 Armid Mines are in use throughout the Universe.
39 Corporations are in business.
While the above method works well it takes a long time to complete
(days to week) It is possible to locate SD using zero-turn mapping
(see "Helper Programs"). Run your 0-turn mapping program and when its
done look at the sectors with 6 exit sectors this is usually a list
about 20 to 30 sectors big, split the sectors up among your corpies
and set paths to them trading along the way and running any pairs you
may find. If you run throught the complete list of sectors with 6 exits
then do 5 (about twice as many sectors) and if that still doesn't find
it do the sectors with 7 or more (only a handful of sectors). This may
seem like a lot of sectors its not really and you will find not only
stardock but the class 0 ports as well most times.
As soon as your find SD, you should get into a new ship. The Merchant
Cruiser you started in isn't a very good ship, so you should sell it.
Buy a Merchant Freighter (in most cases) the first day of a new game.
Drop off your fighters first, outside of fedspace, then you can pick them
up in the new ship. After buying a ship, buy a long range scanner for it,
even if its just a density scanner. Then buy as many holds as you can
afford, saving about 1,500 credits to use as starting cash when you go
trading.
Priorities after that:
1. Full Holds
2. Holo-scanner (includes a built in density scanner)
3. 99 fighters (you don't need many yet)
4. Etherprobes.
When moving, always move & scan. Density scanning doesn't cost turns,
but can keep you from running into mines, etc. When you have several
sectors you can move to, and no particular destination (which happens
early in the game), choose sectors with a density of 100. These are
usually ports, so this increases your chance of finding trade pairs.
Holo-scanning is very useful when there are several unexplored sectors
next to you. You can explore them all, and it only costs you one turn.
At the end of the first day you should have a choice to make whether
to play EVIL or Play GOOD and should have gained a good amount of both
credits and experience (unless you are still looking for staredock)
Playing "GOOD"
PLAYING "GOOD"
The Good Guys
Rank Title Experience Rank Title Experience
---- ---------------------- ---------- ---- --------------------- ----------
< 1> Private 2 <12> Ensign 4,096
< 2> Private 1st Class 4 <13> Lieutenant J.G. 8,192
< 3> Lance Corporal 8 <14> Lieutenant 16,384
< 4> Corporal 16 <15> Lieutenant Commander 32,768
< 5> Sergeant 32 <16> Commander 65,536
< 6> Staff Sergeant 64 <17> Captain 131,072
< 7> Gunnery Sergeant 128 <18> Commodore 262,144
< 8> 1st Sergeant 256 <19> Rear Admiral 524,288
< 9> Sergeant Major 512 <20> Vice Admiral 1,048,576
<10> Warrant Officer 1,024 <21> Admiral 2,097,152
<11> Chief Warrant Officer 2,048 <22> Fleet Admiral 4,194,304
Good alignment is much easier to play, and has several advantages, such as
the ISS (Imperial Star Ship) and the ability to Transwarp direct to fedspace.
95% of your turns (maybe more) need to be spent making money. Thats how
you finance the other 5%, when you are invading planets and such. Your
day-to-day ship should be chosen with money-making in mind. Good choices
are the Merchant Freighter, Corp-Flagship, and the ISS. Horde turns. Turns
can be translated into money made, colonists transported, etc. Don't waste
them.
As a good aligned trader, your common money-maker is paired port trading.
Equ/Org (Equipment/Organics) pairs are best. Two ports in adjacent sectors
where you can sell Equ/buy Org at one, and sell Org/buy Equ at the other.
Move back and forth, trading in each sector, till one of the ports runs dry.
Then move to another pair. Later in the game, once you have a planet with
a level four (L4) citadel, you can make a lot more money every day.
With good alignment and 0-999 experience, you can stay overnight in fedspace
with almost no risk as long as "Ships per fedspace sector" allows it.
(Check the V-screen.) Too many ships will get you towed when Extern runs
(but you are protected until then.) Carrying too many fighters, 99 or more,
will also get you towed out during Extern. Next best after that is cloaking,
and cloaking can be done anywhere (by any alignment.) Cloaks are not 100%
safe: they can fail after 24 hours, they will cause an anomaly on a density
scan, and while no one can attack you while you are cloaked, they can fill
the sector with mines, offensive fighters, nav haz or simply fire a photon
into the sector and decloak you.
By being careful where you stay at night (cloaking in low traffic areas, or
using fedspace) and density scanning before you move (to avoid mines and
such) you can stay alive, rarely, if ever, getting blown up.
As a "GOOD", you want to get an ISS as soon as possible. To do that,
you need 500 alignment points. Then ask for a commission at the Stardock.
The federation will then increase your alignment to 1000, which means you
are commissioned. One way to get the 500 alignment is to post rewards on
evils in the Stardock. 1000 credits per 1 point of alignment gain. So you
could move from 0 to 500 for 500k, then ask for a commission to reach 1000.
Another way is to find a evil player that is willing and cross-pod with him
With 1000 or higher alignment, you can buy an ISS. If you happen to get
1,000 or more alignment you are automatically commissioned without going
to police head quarters.
What's the most cost effective way to get good alignment?
(1) CROSS PODDING WITH AN EVIL PARTNER - cost varies
Simply have your evil partner jump in a ship other then a
scout with 0 shields and 0 fighters and hit him/her with 1 fig
(NO MORE!) you can do this 2 times per day per player
(2) POST REWARDS ON EVIL PLAYERS - cr 1,000/al. pt.
Not available to negatively aligned players. If the object of
the bounty is locatable, reward money may be recouped almost
immediately.
(3) PAY TAXES - cr 1,500/al. pt.
Not available to negatively aligned players. Has no return and
no possibility of recouping the money.
(4) BUILD PLANETS - cr 2,000/al. pt.
Not available to negatively aligned players. Returns are you
get to keep the planet. Hopefully, this was something you
were planning on doing anyway, but it's a long way to 500
alignment points doing this.
(5) KILL BAD GUYS - cost varies
An evil trader or alien with -250 alignment and 200 fighters
in a merchant will cost you about cr 400 / al. pt.
(6) UPGRADING PORTS - cr 5,000 /al. pt.
This method can provide future returns if you can control the
area around the port(s). It is also the most expensive.
Be careful not to log out of the game with a lot of credits on you.
As a good, when you reenter the game, that will cause you to get taxed.
It raises your alignment, but costs you the taxes. Alignment that way
costs 1,500 per point, so bounties are cheaper. You can also raise it
by attacking evil aliens, but that too is expensive and not recommended.
Aliens are a distraction. Using your resources to attack them isn't
worthwhile, even if you capture their ships.
Once you have a commission and an ISS, you can Twarp (transwarp) direct to
fedspace (sectors 1-10 and SD), or to any sector you've deployed a fighter.
This can save a lot of turns. Twarp uses 3 fuel (from your holds) per
sector distance. You can also blind Twarp, which is safe as long as the
destination sector is completely empty. If it's not, you get a shinny new
escape pod. To do it safely, send an eprobe, and immediately Twarp to a
completely empty sector. Avoid sectors with aliens, feds, or Ferrengi in
the adjacent sectors shown by the eprobe, because right after you fire the
probe (any time you pass a command prompt) they get an opportunity to move,
you don't want them moving into your destination sector! Also, be warned
that limpets don't show on eprobes, but will destroy you.
When you decide to build a planet (goods tend to do this fairly soon after
getting the ISS) then find a tunnel or a bubble (a bubble is simply a
connection of tunnels with 1 way in) find a dead end off that bubble or
tunnel, a sector with no port, so you don't have to worry about blocking a
port report and someone coming to check it out.
Next thing to do is get yourself a planet. The only 3 planets worth much
in the game are the H, O and L although some players build an earth type
later on in the game for equipment production. I recommend that you start
with an L class mountainous as your first planet, it makes more fighters
per day per colonist then any other planet and it is a good producer of
product in all categories, not the best in any but a good solid planet
(see "Planets). As soon as you build your planet, move several loads of
fuel ore onto it. (Remember your Twarp drive when doing this. And that's
what the fuel is for, too, as we go get colonists.) Calculate fuel needed to
Twarp to sector 1, and back again. Starting with that much fuel on board,
Twarp to 1, grab colonists, Twarp home and unload the colonists. Then grab
fuel from the planet and repeat. Its recommended that you use a macro or
helper program for this procedure (see "Helpers"). You generally want the
colonists producing fuel at first. That provides fuel to go get more
colonists, and on most planets it produces the maximum fighters per day.
Once you start building a planet , haul in as many colonists as you need
to start citadel construction, then haul in any products needed. Don't
wait until your colonists can produce enough organic/equipment, haul it in.
You want your construction to take as little time as possible. The day it
reaches Level 1, start it working on Level 2. repeat this procedure until
the planet reaches Level 6. If you have more turns, cash or corpies that can
help repeat this process. This time try for an H or an O
You have just started your home sector or base once it is completed you will
want to start moving out in the bubble or tunnel and start developing these
sectors. Lets discuss bubble or tunnel development please keep in mind that
as it is generally accepted that bubble development is a job of a good but
you will notice that in this example you are also building for evil players
as well.
Development of your bubble is the most important part of the game if you
plan on winning or even being a force in the game. We have already discussed
your base or home sector and that should be started and well under way before
you start this procedure. Best case scenario is a bubble with around half
of the sectors containing a xBB but for our example we will use a 12 sector
bubble with 3 planets per sector max and 0 ports, not very likely depending
on how your Sysop sets up the game. So all the ports in the bubble will need
to be built. the planets listed are the H-O-L it isn't important if you have
an H and a L in every sector but its very important to have an oceanic in
every sector, as organic farming is a big chunk of a goodie corps cash. Here
is an example bubble:
Home Sector
S-1 <---- Sector #
SBB <---- Port Type
L-H-O <---- Planets
PLAYING "EVIL"
The Bad Guys
Rank Title Experience Rank Title Experience
---- ---------------------- ---------- ---- --------------------- ----------
< 1> Nuisance 3rd Class 2 <12> Terrorist 4,096
< 2> Nuisance 2nd Class 4 <13> Pirate 8,192
< 3> Nuisance 1st Class 8 <14> Infamous Pirate 16,384
< 4> Menace 3rd Class 16 <15> Notorious Pirate 32,768
< 5> Menace 2nd Class 32 <16> Dread Pirate 65,536
< 6> Menace 1st Class 64 <17> Galactic Scourge 131,072
< 7> Smuggler 3rd Class 128 <18> Enemy of the State 262,144
< 8> Smuggler 2nd Class 256 <19> Enemy of the People 524,288
< 9> Smuggler 1st Class 512 <20> Enemy of Humankind 1,048,576
<10> Smuggler Savant 1,024 <21> Heinous Overlord 2,097,152
<11> Robber 2,048 <22> Prime Evil 4,194,304
Evil requires more knowledge, and isn't recommended for new players. Its
better to get a few games under your belt before trying to play a serious
game of evil.
The Basics of evil play:
First thing start the game basically the same as if you were playing "good"
(see Playing "GOOD"). But when you get to 1k exp you will want to start to
steal, probably SSM to begin until you make enough cash to buy some support
defense fighters, then buy another Merchant Freighter and begin to SST
(both explained in detail below) Playing "evil" is much harder to play then
being a positive alignment player but it is far for more lucrative. The
following techniques are the basics and once you have these down you can
begin to find for yourself the more advanced ways of becoming a dominant
player, and implement them into your game
Sell-Steal-Move:
This method is the basic method of earning credits for Evil traders. You
MUST be Evil (-100 or more) to do this. To use this method you need to have
a ship and some Exp. Points (min 1k exp recommended) A safe number of Exp.
points is determined by this formula: Holds x 20 = number of exp. points
needed. You can go as low as 15 but but you are increasing your risk of a
bust.
There is a built in chance for a bust so you are never 100% assured of
getting away with stealing. The basic method is to start with a load of
Equ. in your holds over a port that is buying equ. and is next to another
port that is also buying equ. These are called "Evil Pairs" You then port
and sell your Equ. Do NOT buy other products unless you are using a jettison
method of earning extra exp points. You then port again and steal back your
Equ. You MUST now move to another port that buys Equ. (NEVER steal or rob
from the same port twice in a row) and repeat the selling and stealing
process before moving back to the first port. You can find a large number
of "Evil Pairs" in the game if you look for them. The best ships to use
this method in are the Low turn ships like the Merchant Freighter Your
spending most of your Turns in movement and this prevents you from earn as
many credits as other methods.
The loop looks like this: 8 turn loop in a 2 turn ship
1. Port and sell Equipment (Equ)
2. Port and Steal Equ
3. Move to port that is adjacent
4. Port and sell Equ.
5. Port and Steal Equ
6. Move back to First Port
7. Repeat until busted.
Sell-Steal-Transport:
This method is the major method Evils can use for earning credits early in
the game until they can afford to set up more lucrative techniques. It
requires the same Exp points as the method mentioned above. It also requires
that you have two ships that have decent transporter range. You must have
Equ loaded in both ships and they must be over 2 separate Equ buying ports
that are within transporter range of each other. You then sell the Equ and
steal it back. You then transport over to your 2nd ship and sell the Equ and
Steal it back. You then transport back to the 1st ship and repeat the whole
process. You can make the most profit if you use COLT's, but you will use 2
other "stepping stone" ships, the freighter and the mule. The types of ships
and number of holds you have need not be the same. This method is VERY time
consuming and is best used when a script or macro is available (see Helpers).
The Loop looks like this: 6 turns per loop
1. Port and Sell Equ
2. Port and Steal Equ
3. Transport over to your second ship
4. Port and Sell Equ
5. Port and Steal Equ
6. Transport back to your first ship
7. Repeat until busted.
Using either method it is very important that you haggle for the exp
points you can earn from good trading. Due to busts you will always be
losing exp. So every effort must be made to earn Exp as you are trading.
Rob-Move-Rob:
This method is useful only by Evils and is limited by the fact that not
every port has excess credits to rob. Again you MUST have Exp. points to do
this with minimum risk of getting busted. A safe number of credits to rob is
determined by the following formula:
Exp. points x 7 = Number of credits you can rob.
But the ratio can be used anywhere between 3 and 10 times your Exp.
You may find 7 is best for you or another variable it is recommended you
start at 5 times experience and try many different variables to find which
you like best.
This method is best run at pairs that Good aligned traders are using. It
will never produce enough profits to make it the ONLY method you use to
earn credits, but it can turn a nice profit. You can rob credits from the
port with the most and move to the other 1/2 of the pair and rob only a
small amount and then return to the 1st port and rob again. By robbing only
a small part from the 2nd port you give yourself the chance to return to the
port with the large amounts of credits ripe for robbing. Don't get greedy
and rob everything from the "weak" port or you will have to resort to the
method mentioned below. The basic method is simple. Rob the credits and move
to the 2nd port rob only a few of the credits and return to the first port
and repeat until your busted or the ports are empty. This method is best
done in a low turn ship.
The loop looks like this:
6 Turn Loop (in a 2 turn ship)
1. Rob credits (This port has Lots of Credits it sells Equ)
2. Move to Adjacent port
3. Rob credits
4. Move back to the First port
5. Repeat until busted or ports are drained
Rob-Transport-Rob:
Again this method is open only to Evil traders and requires the same Exp
points that the method above required. You can use this method to only rob
from ports with large amounts of credits in them. This method is more turn
effective then the method above. However it does require two ships with a
good transporter range just as you would if you were doing Sell-Steal-
Transport. The methods are very similar. You rob credits and then transport
to the 2nd ship. Rob credits and transport back to the first ship. 2
Gunstars with 0 holds work great with this method.
The loop looks like this:
4 turn loop
1. Rob Credits
2. Transport to second ship
3. Rob Credits
4. Transport back to first ship
5. Repeat until busted or ports are drained.
This method is for using on those Equ selling ports that contain massive
amounts of Credits left behind. You can make very good money doing this but
sooner or latter it dries up and you have to give it a rest and go back to
running SST. Or another money making technique.
Advanced Techniques
SDT or SSDT
Steal-Dump-Transport or Sell-Steal-Dump-Transport
This method is a very lucrative method for evils to use. Most advanced
players gain a big part of their income from this method later in the game.
First thing you must have is 2 xxB ports which you will need to upgrade a
specified amount. You also need at least 4,500 exp (5,000 is recommended) 1
planet in each of the port sectors (type and level of planet makes no
difference*) and 2 COLTS* with 250 holds. As soon as you upgrade the ports
you will need to start a Steal-Dump-Transport cycle.
The Loop looks like this:
4 turn cycle
1. Port at first xxB port with an empty COLT steal 250 holds of equ
2. Land on planet drop 250 holds of equ on planet (DROP)
3. Blast off and Transport to second COLT
4. Repeat until busted or ports are drained.
When port has no more product on docks you (or a corpie ready to start fresh)
can sell the equ on the planet to the port and *presto* the port has all
that equ sitting on the dock again and you can start all over. This method
is more lucrative then SST and when you have the money to set this up I
suggest you do (you should already have plenty of xxB ports in a safe bubble)
*This method can also be done with 1 COLT and 2 level 1 minimum planets with
upgraded teleporters this cycle would be the same only that when you land
on the planet you would enter the citadel and teleport to the next port.
This works extremely well with multiple ports. It is VERY time consuming and
it is best to have a macro or script to do this method (see Helpers) Also
it isn't a good idea to upgrade the port completely you normally won't be
able to steal all the product before busting, multiple ports of 10,000 units
of equ work well for me, you should experiment with what level works best
for you.
Buy-Dump-Transport (BDT)
This is basic Planet trading only refined. Most evils forget the fact that
its a good idea to buy product under certain circumstances. This method is
extremely lucrative and it increases exp very rapidly. when used in
conjunction with the MEGA-ROB this is a truly awesome way not only to make
cash but also to gain ranking quickly. You will need at least 2 xxS ports
and 2 xxB ports fully upgraded (32,000 units), 2 planets that are level 4
or higher (can be accomplished with a single planet), 2 colts with full
holds (can be accomplished with a single ship) and 2 Havok Gunstars with
0 holds. You will also need start up cash for this method.
The loop looks like this:
260 turns (2 full ports)
1. Port at 1st xxS and buy 250 units equ
2. Land on planet dump product on planet
3. Repeat until port is dry
4. Transport to 2nd ship
5. Repeat steps 1-3 using 2nd xxS port
6. Warp planet 1 to xxB port and sell 32,000 equ
7. Warp planet 2 to xxB port and sell 32,000 equ
Now you can do 1 of 2 things you can position your Havok's at the 2 xxS and
start a RTR cycle, or you can let the cash accumulate and use a combination
of RTR and MEGA ROB (see MEGA ROB). using the RTR method you will need as
much experience as possible I suggest you not start this method until you
have at least 15,000 experience points. Before you dismiss this method as
to turn intensive look at the figures below, these of course are low end
estimates your results will vary
BDT
260 turns = 516 experience points
Cost of equ = 5,200,000 credits
Selling price of equ = 7,680,000
Profit from BDT= 2,480,000 credits and 516 experience
RTR (15,000 experience)
53 turns = 4500 experience (low estimate)
Profit = 6,250,000 credits and 2080 experience points
Total turns Used = 313
Total Profit = 8,730,000 credits and 5116 experience
credits per turn = 27,891
experience per turn = 16
Compared to SST for 313 turns
(assuming of course you can run 313 turns without busting)
SST
313 turns = 2600 experience
Profit = 3,650,000 credits
credits per turn = 11,666
experience per turn = 8
As you can see this method is at least twice as good as SST for making both
cash and experience (the fact that it is rather tough in 2.01a and later
versions with the new bust code to run off 313 turns without a bust increases
this argument) For those of you evils that have been passing off the draining
of ports to your goods I think you should think twice. With the more
experience you have the higher your profit margin will be.
MEGA-ROB
This really isn't any type of method only a tactic. When a port has over
5 million credits in it you can rob the entire amount with about the same
amount of risk of busting as if you were using the exp*7=rob amount formula.
Give it a try experiment with it see how it works for you.
*note* some consider this a BUG, I don't. No where does it say that there is
a certain amount you are allowed to rob at one time the
3 to 10 * exp= amount to rob isn't a game rule only a variable that we have
learned
Strategy
There are so many different ways to play Tradewars that to try and compile
all the different strategies here would be fruitless. If you read the entire
guide you should have a pretty good idea about how to go about the game.
The most important thing is getting a group of players together BEFORE the
game starts and assign tasks. It is NOT recommended that you play solo in
any game that allows more then 1 on a corp. While it isn't necessary to have
a complete corp (all slots used) it is recommended. so for the sake of an
example here is a standard strategy to play Tradewars with the goal of not
only surviving but being competitive:
Split Corp
Team size: 5 (for example)
First thing is pick a CEO, this player should have a good working knowledge
of Tradewars AND how to handle the day to day task of keeping the corp
running smooth.
Next you will need to split up duties this is where the game may well be
won or lost for your team. You need 3 evils and 2 goods. You will need to
find the players that have the best ability to play evil and that's what
they do MAKE CASH (see Playing "EVIL) the other 2 players will colonize a
bubble (see Playing "GOOD") and to ship refurbs. This requires 2 separate
corps working as a single team in the same area (at least in the beginning)
After the first couple of days (see Starting The Game) you will want to
start building your team bubble (see Playing "GOOD") and defending it your
evil players will be making cash while the good players are planet farming,
colonizing and refurbing ships.
The best way to refurb ships is buy having your goods buy Merchant
Freighters at stardock and twarp tow them into the bubbles and have the
evils destroy them while they are in their SST (colts) ship and gain the
holds off the ships (this can be done with mules as well for larger amounts
of holds)
I think when you are first starting off you keep a low profile, your corp
shouldn't draw unwanted attention to itself by talking "smack" over fedcom
or by waxing toll fighters. best to stay quiet, play your game, pay the
tolls and acquire assets then stomp the enemy.
The rest comes as you play, which is the great part about Tradewars, you
will have to adjust on the fly. Just remember that most good players take
great joy in killing off loud mouths, keep your head low and you should be
OK. Let the "powers that be" fight it out between themselves and then walk
in and sweep up the ashes.
If you read this guide you will have a pretty good idea of what to do in the
game, the rest is up to you. Tradewars and being good at Tradewars is 90%
dedication, if you take this knowledge to the game and stay dedicated, even
if you suffer massive set backs, you will become a good player. You will
come up with short cuts that save turns, and turns equal cash that's how you
become great, turn management.
Helpers And Utilities
Zero Turn Mapping
Zero-turn mapping (ZT mapping, or 0-Turn mapping) is a method of finding
sector information without using any turns. It doesn't give you any port
information, so you still have to explore, but it will help you in exploring
and finding Stardock, the class 0 ports and a safe bubble or tunnel to start
your empire.
While it is possible in do 0-turn mapping by hand, in reality it requires a
program to get the most out of it. Its recommended you pick a Helper Program
that has this function.
0-turn mapping works by plotting lots of routes, and gathering the warp info
discovered during each of those routes. A base sector is be chosen, usually
stardock or sector 1. Routes will be plotted to every other sector in the
game, and from each of those sectors back to the root sector.
The time needed to do 0-turn mapping varies quite a bit, as does the
accuracy. The speed of the BBS computer, Internet connection, modem speed
and the speed of the players computer are all factors in the time it takes
to complete the process . Universe size, the number of one-way warps, and
other factors also come into play. On a 5000 sector universe, a 0-turn map
may take anywhere from 45 minutes to hours. It is recommended that you pick
a mapping utility will allow you to map a bit at a time
It is also recommended you choose a mapping utility that can calculate
which avoids to set in order to force etherprobes to travel the longest
possible routes before reaching their target. This will aid you in getting
the universe explored while saving you massive amounts of turns. Dead ends
and bubbles are still the targets of choice, of course. This is useful,
primarily, early in the game. In the early part of a game, most players are
trading paired ports. By forcing the probes to travel farther, exploring
more sectors, you are more likely to find pairs to trade. Later, when
you've already got a number of pairs to trade, or have moved to other
methods of money-making, using long-route eprobes isn't as useful.
Helper Utilities
Most of the serious (and many of the casual) TW players use player helper
programs such as Twhelper, TWAR and TW-ATS. If you want to be a serious
TW player, you need to know about them. Even if you don't use them yourself,
you need to understand how the competition works.
Utilities alone don't make a bad player into a good one. If a player
decides to hunt Ferrengi and aliens, wander around aimlessly wasting turns,
or use their money unwisely, then those choices will still hurt them,
utilities or not. Utilities don't make the difference in Tradewars the
player still needs to make good informed decisions, they help you by giving
you information which aids those decisions, and they help by doing routine
tasks that otherwise would require a great deal of keystrokes.
There are two primary types of utilities. Automation, and Database.
Automation utilities let you move to the first sector, tell it which
adjacent sector you wish to trade with, and it handles the rest. Most of
them will stop under several circumstances: for instance, when another ship
enters the sector, when the port runs dry, or when you are down to X turns
(user definable.) Trading paired ports isn't the only thing you can
automate. Most will haul colonists (from Terra, or from one of your planets
to another), haul products (from planet to planet, or port to planet),
run PT (Planet Trading), and run SST (Sell, Steal, Transport, evils
standard moneymaker.) Automating the redundant tasks means spending less
time trading ports (the computer does it fast than you can manually). It
means less boredom. It means that you can concentrate on which tactics to
use, which traders or planets to attack, etc.
Database utilities are used to process and the massive amount of information
the game sends you. Without them, its hard to locate and remember the
locations of paired ports, dead ends, the class 0 ports, etc.
Most good utilities handle both automation and database functions. Try
several utilities. Different people have different wants and needs, so a
utility that works great for one player may not work well for another. Make
you own choice, based on your own style.
You can download any of the latest releases of these programs at Gypsy's War
Room through the WWW at www.azi.com/war_room/wr_main.htm and find links to
these helpers in The Official Tradewars 2002 Web Ring at:
www.azi.com/war_room/ring.htm
TWHELPER (Database and Automation program)
Trade Wars Helper is a players TERMINAL PROGRAM with an
optional GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE that maintains an ONLINE DATABASE
of sectors with their port, warp to, and other information. Several commands
are available to utilize this information in addition to automating most of
the repetitive processes and a GRAPHICS MAPPING capability. Tradewars Helper
not only makes playing more enjoyable, it makes you much more effective.
Tech Support:
Just FUN Software BBS (801) 278-8839
Twar (Database and Automation program)
*Winner of The First Annual Tradewars Award For Best Helper*
Many of the same features as Twhelper many traders swear by this helper. Is
recommended for the beginner, due to its ease in learning the commands.
TWAR has come a long way in recent years The Author has made quality
upgrades and worked a lot of "buggy" behavior out of it. Its recommended for
not only the beginners but advanced players as well. With the recent lack of
support of Twhelper This is a great helper for anyone that plays Tradewars.
For technical support and the latest version visit the TWAR homepage
TW_ATS (Database and Automation program)
This program is only recommended for advanced TW players, its controls and
options are hard to understand unless you have experience in TW. It has by
far the best mapping feature of any of the "Helpers" and has automated
attack and photon options that make this an incredible offensive program.
The negatives about this helper is that its hard to load, some people claim
it has an unreliable database, and your Sysop will hate you when you run the
mapping feature as it actually makes the BBS hard drive whine.
For technical support or to download the latest version visit Badhouse
Software's homepage
TWTERM(tm) (Database and Automation program)
3D EGA Term for playing Trade Wars 2.0
Reqs: EGA/VGA, 450K to 580K RAM.
Adds graphics and digitized sounds to Trade Wars 2.0. Includes script
language, mapping features, ether probe routines, macros, maintains your
assets, locates others homes and so much more!
*NOTE*
You will need the following to properly run TWTERM:
EGA or better graphic card
DOS 3.3 OR later
400K to 580K of memory (depends on size of universe)
300K to 2 meg of free disk space for files created/used by TWTERM
To Download Visit "Gypsy's War Files"
TWAST22 (Database program)
Trade Wars 2002 Assistant v2.20 - An excellent off-line TW2002 player
utility! Supports door game version and the Major BBS game v2. Easy to use
full featured database for an edge over your competition! Very nice output.
Many text reports (sector, port, route, etc.) and EGA/VGA graphic displays.
Includes a 0-turn universe mapper, dead ends, paired ports, and more. Also
has many reports not found in most other database utilities, like Custom
Reports, Dead End Clusters, and Secluded Areas.
DESQviewaware.
Mail can be sent to:
Sasquatch Software
P.O. Box 4331
Kent, WA
98032-9331
TLXTW (Automation program)
Telix Scripts for Tradewars 2002
Powerful SALT scripts that help players perform repetitive tasks fast,
efficient and effortlessly. Paired Port Trading, Transport/Sell/Steal
Cycle, much more.
*NOTE* Requires that you use the telecommunication program TELIX
TwGuruIV (Database and Automation program) AMIGA
Sorry I don't know anything about this helper since it is for the freaky
people with AMIGA's
Tech Support:
The Last Amiga BBS
(3O5) 456-O126
THE UNIVERSE
You will be traveling in a universe, whose size was determined by your Sysop.
Sectors may have planets, ports, other players, empty ships, aliens,
Ferrengi, Federation Starships, mines, message beacons, fighters (belonging
to you, other players, rogue mercenaries, or the Ferrengi) or the sectors
may contain nothing at all. If in your travels you come across something
undesirable, your initial ship comes equipped with 30 fighters with which
you can defend yourself.
Many players find it useful to have a home sector or group of
sectors. Players, especially those just joining a game, need an out-of-the-
way place to stay so they can build up their assets. You can explore the
universe and look for dead end sectors to use as a hiding place. Corporate
bases built in traffic lanes do not fare too well and those in the major
thoroughfares (in the paths between the class 0 and class 9 ports) just do
not stand much of a chance.
Planets play a key part in your success as a trader. Terra, the first
planet you encounter as you enter the game, is where the people can be found
to colonize all other planets. Remember, the environment on some planet
types may be hazardous to humans. The other planets in the game will, if
inhabited, produce Fuel Ore, Organics, Equipment and Fighters. The amounts
of these commodities produced will be affected by the type of planet.
For example, a Mountainous planet will provide more Fuel Ore than an Oceanic
planet. You and the other traders decide where the planets will be. You
can purchase a Genesis Torpedo and use it in almost any sector in the galaxy.
If the planet has enough of the required commodities and enough people to
supply the labor to build it, you can begin construction of a Citadel. The
Citadel can provide you and the other members of your corporation with a
secure place to dock your ships and deposit the credits you've earned. As
you progress in the game, your Citadel can be upgraded to provide additional
protection to you and your corporation. If you decide to build a planet in
your home sector, be sure you can defend it. A planet is very vulnerable
until it has a Combat Control Computer (level 2 Citadel) to safeguard it.
There are ten different types of ports scattered about the
universe. The ports are classified by the products they buy
and/or sell. Port classes 1 through 8 trade the three basic
commodities: Fuel Ore, Organics and Equipment. The universe also contains
specialty ports for the other items you will need to advance in the game.
There are three Class 0 ports where you can purchase holds (beneficial for
moving colonists to your planets as well as transporting goods for trade),
fighters (to help protect your territory), or shields (to protect your ship
from the traps laid by your enemies). There is one Class 9 port that
contains not only a Trading Port, but also a Stardock. The Stardock houses
the Stellar Hardware Emporium, the Federation Shipyards, the Lost Trader's
Tavern, the 2nd National Galactic Bank, the Videon Cineplex and the
Interstellar Space Police Headquarters. There are other places of interest
located in the Stardock.
These places you will have to discover on your own. Some are not advertised
because they are establishments of questionable repute. Others are
Federation buildings that house top secret government information.
THE PLANETS
<0> Class M, Earth Type
<1> Class K, Desert wasteland
<2> Class O, Oceanic
<3> Class L, Mountainous
<4> Class C, Glacial
<5> Class H, Volcanic
<6> Class U, Vaporous/Gaseous
*PLEASE NOTE*
On all the following planet stats the OPTIMUM colonist population
is HALF the MAXIMUM. Example if a planet stat says:
Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
Max Colonists for each Product: 30,000 30,000 30,000
Then The OPTIMUM (the amount that produces the maximum amount of both
product and fighters and keeps the deaths of colonists at a normal
cycle) would be:
Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
Max Colonists for each Product: 15,000 15,000 15,000
Earth Type
Class M - Thick Oxygen/Nitrogen atmosphere. Specific gravity within
0.7 to 1.3 Earth normal. Random, but mostly manageable weather
patterns, with temperatures ranging from 0 to 40 degrees
Celsius. Fertile soil, excellent for Organic production.
Mineral deposits, very good for Equipment production. Chemical
elements good for Fuel Ore. Class M planets are excellent for
human colonization and promote an excellent population growth
curve as well as a very good population harmony quotient. They
have an above average "habitability band". Drawbacks include
overpopulation problems, political unrest and human-induced
destruction of the BioSphere.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 4 4 1,000 300 200 250
2 4 8 2,000 200 50 250
3 5 13 4,000 500 250 500
4 10 23 6,000 1,000 1,200 1,000
5 5 28 6,000 300 400 1,000
6 15 43 6,000 1,000 1,200 2,000
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 3 7 13
Max Amount allowed on planet: 100,000 100,000 100,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 30,000 30,000 30,000
Max Production of Product: 5,000 2,142 1,153
Max fighter production per day: 829
Desert Wasteland
Class K - planets have a thin Oxygen/Nitrogen atmosphere. Specific
gravity within 0.5 to 1.5 Earth normal. Weather patterns are
mostly dry and hot with temperatures ranging from 40 to 140
degrees Celsius. Little area of fertile soil, very bad for
Organics. Very little precious metal making it bad for Equipment
production. Common Chemical traces making it great for Fuel Ore.
Class K worlds are average for humanoid colonization but an
arid and hot climate requires specialized colonists. Narrow
habitability band but a generally stable political environment
as the population must depend on each other to survive. Higher
fatality rate than Class M worlds.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 6 6 1,000 400 300 600
2 5 11 2,400 300 80 400
3 8 19 4,400 600 400 650
4 5 24 7,000 700 900 800
5 4 28 8,000 300 400 1,000
6 8 36 7,000 700 900 1,600
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 2 100 500
Max Amount allowed on planet: 200,000 50,000 10,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 40,000 40,000 40,000
Max Production of Product: 10,000 200 40
Max fighter production per day: 682
Oceanic
Class O - planets have a dense Oxygen/Nitrogen atmosphere. Specific
gravity within 1.1 to 1.8 Earth normal. Random and occasional
violent weather current patterns, with temps ranging from 20 to
50 degrees Celsius. No land mass to speak of, making mining for
Ore more difficult. Organics production quite good, (one of the
best) but a poor environment for building Equipment. Class O
planets are more challenging to habituate, but are almost as safe
as class M. Good population growth curve and decent population
harmony. Their entire surface is habitable with proper gear with
the only drawbacks being the costs to settle and build citadels.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 6 6 1,400 500 200 400
2 5 11 2,400 200 50 300
3 8 19 4,400 600 400 650
4 5 24 7,000 700 900 800
5 4 28 8,000 300 400 1,000
6 8 36 7,000 700 900 1,600
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 20 2 100
Max Amount allowed on planet: 100,000 1,000,000 50,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 200,000 200,000 200,000
Max Production of Product: 5,000 50,000 1,000
Max fighter production per day: 3,733
Mountainous
Class L - planets have a thin Oxygen/Nitrogen atmosphere. Specific
gravity within 1.0 to 2.2 Earth normal. Weather patterns are wet
with temperatures ranging anywhere from -30 to 50 Celsius
depending on the width of the habitability band. Excellent
Mineral and Ore deposits but harsh conditions only permit avg.
to below avg. Equipment production. Soil is excellent, providing
higher than normal organics production. Colonist specialization
is necessary to maintain population. Good - very good population
harmony quotient. Above average "habitability band" but only
medium population growth. Drawbacks include hazards to equipment
and occasional severe weather conditions.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 2 2 400 150 100 150
2 5 7 1,400 200 50 250
3 5 12 3,600 600 250 700
4 8 20 5,600 1,000 1,200 1,000
5 5 25 7,000 300 400 1,000
6 12 37 5,600 1,000 1,200 2,000
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 2 5 20
Max Amount allowed on planet: 200,000 200,000 100,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 40,000 40,000 40,000
Max Production of Product: 10,000 4,000 1,000
Max fighter production per day: 1,250
Glacial
Class C - planets have extremely thin Oxygen-Nitrogen atmospheres.
Specific gravity from 0.5 to 1.7 Earth normal. Meteorologically
unstable causing violent conditions. Temps range from -10 to
-190 degrees Celsius. Full life support necessary for colonies
and death rates are high. No workable soil base so hydroponics
Organics are limited. Modest mineral and chemicals exist so
production of Ore and Equipment will be below average to none.
Class C planets NOT recommended for colonization, their violent
condition makes it extremely hazardous. Some Class C planets
have been adopted by the Federation and used as prison colonies
with very effective results.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 5 5 1,000 400 300 600
2 5 10 2,400 300 80 400
3 7 17 4,400 600 400 650
4 5 22 6,600 700 900 700
5 4 26 9,000 300 400 1,000
6 8 34 6,600 700 900 1,400
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 50 100 500
Max Amount allowed on planet: 20,000 50,000 10,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 100,000 100,000 100,000
Max Production of Product: 1,000 500 100
Max fighter production per day: 64
Volcanic
Class H - planets have extremely thin Oxygen / Nitrogen atmospheres.
Specific gravitates are within 0.8 to 2.6 Earth normal. Climate
patterns are violent with temperatures from 45 to 400 degrees
Celsius. Full life support required for colonization. Zero
workable soil and harsh conditions make Organics production
impossible. Good trace elements for equip but conditions make
production a gamble at best. Excellent Ore production
possibilities as material is often ejected by volcanic activity
and found on the surface. Very dangerous for colony growth as
unstable planetary crusts often lead to the complete loss of a
colony. The Federation has been known to use Class H planets for
defense of key sectors due to their large Ore base.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 4 4 800 500 300 600
2 5 9 1,600 300 100 400
3 8 17 4,400 1,200 400 1,500
4 12 29 7,000 2,000 2,000 2,500
5 5 34 10,000 3,000 1,200 2,000
6 18 52 7,000 2,000 2,000 5,000
Colonists needed to Produce 1: 1 N/A 500
Max Amount allowed on planet: 1,000,000 10,000 100,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 100,000 0 100,000
Max Production of Product: 50,000 0 100
Max fighter production per day: 1,002
Vaporous/Gaseous
Class U - planets have very heavy ranging to very thin atmospheres
consisting of various elements, mostly comprised of helium or of
hydrogen. Specific gravities can range from 0.2 to 8.0 of Earth
normal. Climate patterns usually extremely violent with temps
ranging from -200 to 400 Celsius. Full life support required at
all times. No production can sustain itself on a Class U planet.
Some miners have hinted at very valuable products that they have
extracted from Class U worlds but the Federation does not have
them in its "Official Guide to Mining". Class U planets are not
recommended for colonization's as the environment is harsher than
being in space itself.
Citadel Construction And Planet Stats:
Level Days:Total Colonists Fuel Ore Organics Equipment
1 8 8 3,000 1,200 400 2,500
2 4 12 3,000 300 100 400
3 5 17 8,000 500 500 2,000
4 5 22 6,000 500 200 600
5 4 26 8,000 200 200 600
6 8 34 6,000 500 200 1,200
Colonists needed to Produce 1: N/A N/A N/A
Max Amount allowed on planet: 10,000 10,000 10,000
Max Colonists for each Product: 3,000 3,000 3,000
Max Production of Product: 0 0 0
Max fighter production per day: 0
CITADEL DESCRIPTIONS.
A planet with no citadel has no defensive capability. You can leave
fighters in the sector, but fighters on the planet will not defend and, in
fact, can be taken by anyone who lands on the planet. Since there is no
citadel, you can't use any of the citadel commands, such as the treasury or
remaining overnight.
Level 1
Citadel - Defenseless. You can use the treasury, remain overnight, planet
transporter (extra cash) and other citadel commands.
Level 2
Combat Computer - Fighters on the planet will now defend. Usually, you will
want to leave your military reaction set to 0%, because the fighters will
get 3:1 odds, but this can be set to send fighters from the planet to attack
any enemy ship entering the sector at 2:1 odds
Level 3
Quasar Cannon - You can set it to fire at anyone entering the sector, or
anyone trying to land, or both. Firing the cannon uses fuel ore, sector
shots for every 3 units of ore used cause 1 battle point of damage,
atmospheric (when a ships tries to land) is 1 to 1 (1 fuel ore = 1 battle
point of damage). Q-cannons can be bypassed by a photon missile unless
protected by a planetary shielding system
Level 4
Planetary Transwarp Drive - You can move your level 4 planet to any sector
where you have dropped a fighter, as long as you have the fuel. It uses fuel
ore to power it (400 units of Ore per sector jumped)
Level 5
Planetary Shielding System - All planetary shields will have to be destroyed
before anyone can invade, each shield will take 20 points of damage to
destroy. Will also shield the planet and any traders on the planet from the
effects of a Photon blast. You move shields from your ship to the planet (10
ship shields will create one planet shield) and the PSS uses those shields
to protect the planet.
Level 6
Planetary Interdictor Generator (PIG)- If turned on, this generator will
make it difficult for your enemy to retreat from the sector its similar to a
tractor beam
THE SHIPS
<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
<16> Interdictor Cruiser
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 : 20,300 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.0:1
Ship Hull Cost : 10,000 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 50
Ship Base Cost : 41,300 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 750 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 5
*Note*
I recommend your first venture through space should be to Stardock to trade
this ship in for a Merchant Freighter.
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 : 5,200 Turns per Warp: 2 Offensive Odds: 2.0:1
Ship Hull Cost : 2,750 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 10
Ship Base Cost : 15,950 Genesis Max: 0 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 250 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 0
*Note*
Worthless ship, its biggest claim to fame is its easy to spot dupes (they
trade the merc in for a scout) also it has 2:1 odds so you could set a macro
to attack sector figs with it (if there is no Q-cannon) if you have a lot of
time to waste. Don't bother with buying this ship if you want one get *Ship
Destroyed* the game will give you one for free. Scouts also have NO pod if
you die in a scout you are out of the game until 12am the following day (BBS
time)
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 destruction 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 : 82,800 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.3:1
Ship Hull Cost : 11,000 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 5
Ship Base Cost : 100,800 Genesis Max: 0 Long Range Scan? No
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? No
Max Fighters Per Attack: 2,000 Photon Missiles? Yes
Max Transporter Range : 2
*Note*
the only use for this ship is if you are defending a sector
and have a photon script its way over priced and not worth buying in most
cases
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 : 61,500 Turns per Warp: 4 Offensive Odds: 1.6:1
Ship Hull Cost : 18,000 Mine Max: 25 Beacon Max: 50
Ship Base Cost : 88,500 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 3,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 8
*Note*
Easily the worst named ship in the game. This ship is far from what one
would imagine a BATTLEship to be. Stay away from this ship its price, turns
per warp and lack of shields make it one of the worst buys in the game
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 disappear 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 : 120,000 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1
Ship Hull Cost : 28,500 Mine Max: 100 Beacon Max: 100
Ship Base Cost : 163,500 Genesis Max: 10 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 6,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 10
*Note*
Every corp CEO and solo player not in an ISS should have 1 of these ships,
Nuff said
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: 27,000 Min Holds: 50 Maximum Holds: 250
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 200 Maximum Shields: 500
Computer Cost : 10,400 Turns per Warp: 6 Offensive Odds: 0.6:1
Ship Hull Cost : 25,200 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 10
Ship Base Cost : 63,600 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? No
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 100 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 7
250 holds most in the game of any ship. Evils will spend the majority of
their time in this ship (at least they should). Goods also will use this
ship for movement of colonists and product in sector and out (with the use
of a planetary transporter
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: 27,000 Min Holds: 50 Maximum Holds: 125
Main Drive Cost: 1,000 Max Fighters: 400 Maximum Shields: 1,000
Computer Cost : 11,050 Turns per Warp: 4 Offensive Odds: 0.8:1
Ship Hull Cost : 12,900 Mine Max: 1 Beacon Max: 20
Ship Base Cost : 51,950 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 125 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 5
*Note*
Worthless ship
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: 15,000 Min Holds: 30 Maximum Holds: 65
Main Drive Cost: 2,000 Max Fighters: 300 Maximum Shields: 500
Computer Cost : 9,600 Turns per Warp: 2 Offensive Odds: 0.8:1
Ship Hull Cost : 6,800 Mine Max: 2 Beacon Max: 20
Ship Base Cost : 33,400 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 100 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 5
*Note*
This is the ship you should be in the first part of the game, if you are
trading or SSTing this is a good ship to start with
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: 23,000 Min Holds: 40 Maximum Holds: 150
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 50,000 Maximum Shields: 2,000
Computer Cost : 231,000 Turns per Warp: 4 Offensive Odds: 1.5:1
Ship Hull Cost : 65,000 Mine Max: 125 Beacon Max: 150
Ship Base Cost : 329,000 Genesis Max: 10 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 10,000 Photon Missiles? Yes
Max Transporter Range : 15
*Note*
By Far the best ship in the game, nothing else comes close. Only drawback is
you have to be a goodie to use it
Ship Class : Havoc GunStar
The Havoc Gunstar is a recently developed ship that owes its existence 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: 6,000 Min Holds: 12 Maximum Holds: 50
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 10,000 Maximum Shields: 3,000
Computer Cost : 48,000 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1
Ship Hull Cost : 15,000 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 5
Ship Base Cost : 79,000 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? Yes Planet Scanner? No
Max Fighters Per Attack: 1,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 6
*Note*
This ship is standard for any evil corp, doesn't make it any better of a ship. If you are lucky enough to
have dreads with twarp in your universe then there will be no other use for this ship then RTR cycles
Ship Class : The 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 possesses 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: 10,000 Min Holds: 20 Maximum Holds: 73
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 5,000 Maximum Shields: 2,000
Computer Cost : 29,000 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.4:1
Ship Hull Cost : 12,300 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 50
Ship Base Cost : 61,300 Genesis Max: 5 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 1,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 3
*Note*
This is a space filler ship, completely worthless
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: 80
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 5,000 Maximum Shields: 750
Computer Cost : 39,500 Turns per Warp: 3 Offensive Odds: 1.4:1
Ship Hull Cost : 13,000 Mine Max: 25 Beacon Max: 50
Ship Base Cost : 72,500 Genesis Max: 2 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 2,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 6
*Note*
Another space filler ship, you would be better off playing tri-con with the
72k credits then buying this ship! Ha! it doesn't even have holoscan
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 : 10,500 Turns per Warp: 2 Offensive Odds: 1.1:1
Ship Hull Cost : 6,750 Mine Max: 5 Beacon Max: 20
Ship Base Cost : 42,250 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 250 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 3
*Note*
The Merchant Freighter out performs this ship in every way except firepower
and even the added firepower this ship offers is not enough to do battle
with anyone other then an alien or new player. It's lack of a holo-scanner
make it far less useful in the role of a scout. The only reason I see for
buying this ship instead of a Merchant Freighter is if you are in a very
hostile universe and need the extra protection on the first couple days of
the game
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: 2,500 Maximum Shields: 4,000
Computer Cost : 25,000 Turns per Warp: 4 Offensive Odds: 1.0:1
Ship Hull Cost : 7,500 Mine Max: 50 Beacon Max: 10
Ship Base Cost : 47,500 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? No
Max Fighters Per Attack: 800 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 3
*Note*
The defensive combat odds when over a corporate planet manned by a corporate
member of 4:1 make this a great buy for early planet protection, assuming
you can talk a corpie into being photon bait.
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: 28,000 Min Holds: 50 Maximum Holds: 150
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 300 Maximum Shields: 600
Computer Cost : 10,300 Turns per Warp: 4 Offensive Odds: 0.5:1
Ship Hull Cost : 15,300 Mine Max: 0 Beacon Max: 20
Ship Base Cost : 63,600 Genesis Max: 1 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 150 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 5
*Note*
This ship is the stepping stone to the colt in SST, its uses effectively
stop there, it serves no other purpose. Unless you are evil don't even
consider buying this ship
Ship Class : Interdictor Cruiser
A recently designed vessel, the Interdictor Cruiser is fast becoming
the great Equalizer of the Universe. It is as powerful as it is large
and packs a tremendous punch in modern combat. Unfortunately it cannot
use a TransWarp drive due to its size and its speed is not a great asset.
The major attraction of this vessel is the Interdictor Generator that
creates such a large gravity well that no other ship in its sector can
warp out! When an Interdictor Cruiser arrives on the scene you had
better give up all thoughts of running away. In addition this ship is not
an atmospheric craft and cannot land on any planets.
Basic Hold Cost: 5,000 Min Holds: 10 Maximum Holds: 40
Main Drive Cost: 50,000 Max Fighters: 100,000 Maximum Shields: 4,000
Computer Cost : 380,000 Turns per Warp: 15 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1
Ship Hull Cost : 104,000 Mine Max: 200 Beacon Max: 100
Ship Base Cost : 539,000 Genesis Max: 20 Long Range Scan? Yes
TransWarp Drive? No Planet Scanner? Yes
Max Fighters Per Attack: 15,000 Photon Missiles? No
Max Transporter Range : 20
*NOTE*
If you have a player that can run a script to stay online this ship can
protect a level 5 or lower planet(s) as if they were level 6. It gives the
sector an IG without having to have a level 6 planet, a good sector strategy
used in conjunction with sentinels. This ship is basically a planet buster
for evils (goods don't really need it would be better to use a planet and
ISS)
THE FERRENGI SHIPS
Ferrengi Assault Trader:
It can be used as a Scout ship EARLY in the game. Other then that they
aren't worth towing to dock to sell, if you are a Ferrengi hunter just
blow these up
Ship Specs:
Basic Hold Cost : 6,000 Max Fighters : 3,000 Mine Max : 10
Main Drive Cost : 1,500 Max Attack : 1,000 Beacon Max : 5
Computer Cost : 16,400 Offensive Odds : 1.0:1 Genesis Max : 0
Ship Hull Cost : 8,000 Maximum Shields : 200 LongRangeScan? Yes
Ship Base Cost : 31,900 Initial Holds : 12 TransWarp Drive? No
Turns per Warp : 2 Maximum Holds : 50 Photon Missiles? No
Transporter Range: 0 Planet ScanneR? No
Ferrengi Battle Cruiser:
This ship again really serves no purpose, its not profitable to trade in
these ships and its a waste of time capturing them
Ship Specs:
Basic Hold Cost: 8,000 Max Fighters: 8,000 Mine Max: 25
Main Drive Cost: 3,000 Max Attack: 2,000 Beacon Max: 15
Computer Cost: 40,600 Offensive Odds: 1.2:1 Genesis Max: 3
Ship Hull Cost: 15,500 Maximum Shields: 800 Long Range Scan? Yes
Ship Base Cost: 67,100 Initial Holds: 16 TransWarp Drive? No
Turns per Warp: 3 Maximum Holds: 75 Planet Scanner? No
Transporter Range: 2 Photon Missiles? No
Ferrengi Dreadnought:
Evil players should capture of one of these ships as soon as they begin to
appear, as it's Turn rate, holds, and P-torp abilities combined with the
firepower it offers make it a good ship. Some BBS's have Twarp on their
dreads, this only increases its worth. Evils will find this ship very useful.
Ship Specs:
Basic Hold Cost: 10,000 Max Fighters: 15,000 Mine Max: 50
Ship Hull Cost : 25,000 Max Attack: 5,000 Beacon Max: 2
Main Drive Cost: 10,000 Offensive Odds: 1.4:1 Genesis Max: 6
Computer Cost : 94,000 Maximum Shields: 1,000 Long Range Scan? Yes
Ship Base Cost : 139,000 Initial Holds: 20 TransWarp Drive? No/Yes
Turns per Warp : 4 Maximum Holds: 100 PlanetScanner? Yes
Photon Missiles? Yes
Ferrengi Scorpion:
There is only 1 of these in any universe it is the Ferrengi Overloard Kriv
Rylach and the ship's name is "Venom". I am not going to tell you that this
ship is "impossible" to capture I will tell you that no one has...ever.
There are a few people who like to discuss the scorp in the forums and some
bad info has been spread, first the scorp DOES NOT attack real players ( or
fake ones for that matter, heh) if you attack him it simply says a gamma
field around his ship prevents you from getting a lock on the target. If you
fire a Photon at him IT WILL bounce back, but it is a direction photon
meaning that if you are in a fedspace sector and you find that the scorp is
1 sector off and you think you will be cute and try and uncloak the traders
in that fedspace the jokes on you cause the photon only hits you. He changes
all fighters, mines and limpits to Ferrengi he does not attack planets. All
and all I suspect that he is basically like the Feds (other then you don't
get waxed for attacking him) in that you can't do anything about him...but
if you see him try what you like you never know you could be the first.
Ship Specs:
Basic Hold Cost : Unknown Max Fighters : 50,000?(convert)
Main Drive Cost : Unknown Max Attack : Unknown
Ship Hull Cost : Unknown Maximum Shields: Unknown (Gamma)
Computer Cost : Unknown Offensive Odds : Unknown
Ship Base Cost : Unknown Initial Holds : Unknown
Turns per Warp : Unknown Maximum Holds : Unknown
Long RangeScan? Unknown Mine Max : 250(convert)
Planet Scanner? Unknown Beacon Max : Unknown
TransporterRange: Unknown GenesisMax : Unknown
Photon Missiles? Yes (Reflective photon shield)
TransWarp Drive? Yes (No T-warp Beacon Necessary)
Trader Information
Planetary Collisions
You can overload any sector (except sector one) by just shooting off gtorps.
It forces players to put up sector defenses instead of relying on planetary
defenses alone. Photons disable sector defenses allowing players to shoot
off gtorps without defeating the sector defenses This is an excellent tactic
to use to destroy an enemy's high level planet without much expense
Photons
A side from the consideration mentioned above, when a photon is launched
into a sector where a player is staying in a citadel they lose their turns
(turns drop to 0, and regen at the top of the hour) Also when you fire a
Photon into a sector that a trader is cloaked in it will de-cloak them
making them vulnerable to attack.
Planetary Transporters
You can install a Planetary transporter on any planet with a citadel. It
costs 50,000 credits to install the transporter and 25,000 credits per
sector to upgrade the transporter. These credits are taken from the funds
on your ship not from the citadel. The planetary transporter transports
both you and your ship. The rules are the same as for TWARP. If you transport
to a sector with 1 or more of your personal/corp fighters, to an empty
sector, or to fedspace if commissioned, you'll be safe. It uses fuel ore to
power itself, using 10 of ore units per sector and takes the fuel ore from
the planet. Transporting requires one turn and you must have a turn or you
can't do it.
TWARP
The TWARP Drive is bought at the Hardware Emporium On Stardock it costs
50,000 creds (although with TWpro there is a TWARP 2 which costs 40,000
after you have bought TWARP 1 or 80,000 if you buy both at one time and
allows for TWARP Towing, 2.01a makes the price of these Sysop configurable)
You can Transwarp your ship to any sector in the universe (within the ships
twarp range). TWARP is completely safe as long as you jump to a sector with
at least 1 of your own corp or personal fighters or the sector is COMPLETELY
empty, if there is ANYTHING in the sector (unless you have a fighter down)
you will lose your ship to Atomic Fusion (referred in the game as "Fusing" a
ship) and end up in a pod (and you will still be in the sector you were
trying to jump from) Blind jumps are jumps made to sector NOT containing at
least 1 of your fighters. Blind Warps are hazardous because of Limpet mines
which don't show up on holoscans or EPROBE, also there is a chance that an
alien, Ferrengi or another player could warp into the sector before you can
complete your warp. So don't Blind warp if you have ANY doubts, you may
yourself in a pod and fusing a ship can be quite embarrassing.
LIMPET MINES
Limpet mines sometimes (if the player doesn't already have a limpit on their
ship *HINT*) attach to the ships which enter the sector where they are
deployed. SD will offer to remove Limpets for a fee of 5000 credits but
can't tell who they belong to. Attached limpets will reduce the trade in
value of a ship. If limpet mines you leave do not get removed then you can
tell where they are, and thus where the ship they attached to are by doing a
mine scan (K). Mine disrupters will not get rid of deployed limpets. You
can get rid of limpets by repeatedly entering and leaving a sector and
having them cleared from your ship. If someone else's limpets are in a
sector you will not be able to leave limpet or armid mines of your own. As
with armid mines, limpet mines cannot be deployed in fedspace and will be
removed from Major Space Lanes.
Cloaking Devices
Cloaking failure is Sysop configurable. If the cloak fail rate is set above
0% then the can fail at 2 times; 1) the fail at extern (BBS cleanup) and 2)
when you engage them (make sure you see the "cloaking device engaged" message
when you exit. The cloaking failure rate is Sysop configurable and can be
set to 0% in which case cloaking failure will not happen. Unfortunately,
this setting is not displayed on the V screen. You cannot attack a player
who is cloaked but they will show up on a density scan as an anomaly and you
can then Photon the sector and they will decloak. Limpet mines also show up
as an anomaly but if you attempt to put a mine in the sector and the game
lets you then there are no limpets there (limpits also have a density,
cloaked ships do not), and there must be a cloaked player.
Major Space Lanes (MSL's)
The space lanes are from sol (sector one) to Stardock and back. From SD to
RYLOS and back. From SD to Alpha Centauri and back. And From Rylos To AC and
back. Also Rylos and Alpha Centauri are themselves MSLs. The following
diagram illustrates:
Sector 1
SOL (Fedspace)
!
!
Stardock (Fedspace)
/ \
/ \
/ \
/ \
Rylos Alpha Centauri
(MSL) (MSL)
*NOTE* remember that because of one way warps the path from one sector to
another and the the return path are not necessarily the same.
ABBREVIATIONS:
AL = Alignment
ORE = Fuel Ore
EQ = Equipment
ORG = Organics
PT = Planetary Trading
SSM = Sell/Steal/Move
SST = Sell/Steal/Transport
MJ = Mega-Jettison
MSL = Major Space Lanes
MBBS = The Major BBS
PIG = Planetary Interdictor Generator
Colt = Colonial Transport
CTran = Cargo Tran
ISS = Imperial Starship
Merc = Merchant Cruiser
MF = Merchant Freighter
IC = Interdictor Cruiser
IG = Interdictor Generator
Sent = Tholian Sentinel
Figs = Fighters
TERMINOLOGY
Alignment from 0 to 99 and you're considered "neutral" (you still have
fedspace protection, and can enter the underground), above 99 and you are
considered "good" and below 0 and you're considered "evil".
Mega-Jettison
Using a macro at an SSS type port to haggle for and purchase small amounts
of each product (14 fo, 8 org, 2 eq) whereby generating an average 4-6
experience points using only 1 turn. Then jettisoning the product (or
depositing on a planet in the same sector) and repeating. With this method
its not un heard of to gain 5,000 exp in a single day
Planet Farming
Loading a planet with colonists to gain Fuel Ore, Organics, Equipment,
and/or Fighters. Done mostly with class O planets for organics.
Planetary Trading
Warping your planet into a sector containing a port. Taking product from
your planet to sell to the port, then porting and selling that product,
buying another type product, then depositing the product on your planet.
Repeat the process until the port is sold out, then move the operation to
the opposite type port and start all over again. Used in conjunction with an
evil trader to rob ports this is a VERY lucrative means of making credits!
Sell/Steal/Move (SSM)
Evil tactic for gaining $$$. (See Playing "Evil")
Sell/Steal/Transport (SST)
Evil tactic for gaining $$$ (See Playing "EVIL")
Steal/Dump/Transport (SDT) or Sell/Steal/Dump/Transport (SSDT)
Evil tactic for gaining $$$ (See Playing "EVIL")
Twarp Tow Towing a ship via the TWpro available in 2.01a and later versions
0 Turn Colonizing
The method of moving colonists from one planet in a sector to another planet
in the same sector without costing the player any turns
Density Readings:
Reading/Meaning
0 = Empty Sector or Ferrengi Dreadanought
1 = Marker Beacon
2 = Limpet Type 2 Tracking Mine
5 = Fighter (per Fighter)
10 = Armid Type 1 Mine
21 = Navigation Hazard (Per 1 Percent)
21 = Destroyed Ship (Due to 1 Percent Nav-Haz)
38 = Unmanned Ship
40 = Manned Ship, Alien or Ferrengi Assault Trader
50 = Destroyed Starport (After 25 Percent Nav-Haz Clears)
100 = Starport or Ferrengi Battle Cruiser
210 = Destroyed Planet (Due to 10 Percent Nav-Haz)
462 = Federation Starship under Admiral Nelson
489 = Federation Starship under Captain Zyrain
500 = Planet
512 = Federation Starship under Admiral Clausewitz
575 = Destroyed Port (Before 25% Nav-Haz Clears)
Anomaly Readings:
Reading/Meaning
Yes/density = Limpet Mine (Shows 2 density per mine)
Yes/ no density = Cloaking Distortion
No = Nothing
Gaining Exp. Rapidly
Go to a Class 7 Port and buy 14 Ore, 8 Org and 2 Equ Trade for 2 points each
time. Jettison the stuff and repeat. In theory you can earn 6 points of
Exp per turn (it works out closer to 5 points) so in a 1000 turn game you
can earn 5000 points of Exp in one day! Exp and Align can be bought with
credits!
Formula For 1 Attack Ship Captures
Enemy Fighters x Enemy Ships Combat Odds = Real Fighter Strength
Real Fighter Strength / Your Ships Combat Odds = # of Fighters to Use.
If you have combat computers on your ship you need to know the following:
Max Shields for Enemy Ship x Percentage Reported = Shields on Enemy Ship
Enemy Shields x Enemy Ships Combat Odds = Real Shield Strength
Real Fighter Strength + Real Shield Strength = Enemy's Real Defenses
Enemy's Real Defenses / Your ships combat odds = # of Fighters to Use
People in the TradeWars Universe
PEOPLE IN THE TRADEWARS UNIVERSE
A large part of playing is interacting with others in the game.
You can mingle with other players in the Lost Traders Tavern,
gambling against them, conversing with them, leaving
announcements at the door or writing a message on the
bathroom wall. You can combine your assets with other players of
the same alignment to form a Corporation. Just be aware that more
than one Corporation has been brought down by a con man who wormed
his way into the Corporate structure. You can have a chance
encounter with other creatures of the universe, both real (other
users) and Non-Player Characters (the Federals, Alien traders and
the Ferrengi). Chance encounters offer many possibilities and
can advance you in your chosen career path. Your alignment and
experience and the alignment and experience of the creature you
encounter will determine just how that advancement if affected.
Other traders are users just like you. They have alignment and
experience points. You can see all the others by Listing Traders
from your ships computer. By using the listing, you can see
which players are good and which are evil. You can estimate
whether the other player would better serve your needs as an ally
or adversary.
The Federation is the main governing body of the cosmos. You
will meet the Feds if you go to the Police Station. You might
run into them as you roam around space. The Feds don't look
kindly on players who break FedLaws, so if you're not careful,
they might visit you when you least want their company.
Alien traders are visitors from another universe who are looking
for better ports. You can get a listing of the Aliens similar to
the one you get for other traders. Aliens also have experience
and alignment, but you cannot form a Corporation with them.
The Ferrengi are a greedy, cowardly group. Their primary purpose
is the speedy acquisition of money. They will steal from anyone
no matter what the person's or corporation's alignment. They
seldom engage in face-to-face combat because they prefer the
advantage of surprise when ambushing their opponent. They often
travel in groups and will spy on promising territory. After
targeting an area, they will raid the sector when it is least
defended. If they are attacked, that group will hold a grudge
against the attacker and they will not rest until they feel the
score has been settled.
Explore the universe and take part in the adventure. You can
just look around or you can become a dominant factor. Most of
the displays are fully explained. When you are asked to make a
selection, anything displayed in brackets [], will be the
default.
Most displays can be aborted by hitting the space bar.
To see what players are in the game simply type - then /#
like this:
Command [TL=00:00:00]:[9] (?=Help)? : -
G: /#
LINE USER-ID ...... OPTION SELECTED
01 Monday ... Trade Wars 2002
02 Ripclaw ... Trade Wars 2002
03 Reza ... Trade Wars 2002
04 Eleqtriz't ... Trade Wars 2002
05 Gypsy ... Trade Wars 2002
06 Black Slayer ... Trade Wars 2002
07 AstroCreep ... Trade Wars 2002
09 Destroyer ... Trade Wars 2002
0A Hunter ... Trade Wars 2002
0B Galactic Overlord ... Trade Wars 2002
0C Maverick ... Trade Wars 2002
Command [TL=00:00:00]:[9] (?=Help)? :
Please note that this is the players BBS user ID, their game ID may be
different.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
My name is Rick Mead better known as Gypsy in the Tradewars community. I
have been playing Tradewars since the DOOR version 1.03d back in 1988 I
have played numerous games both DOOR and MBBS. My first real taste of true
interactive battle came about 5 years ago at Rippers BBS. This game was by
far the largest I had ever been involved in (much different then the single
node DOOR). I was new to the area and found Rippers when I was looking for
a local dial up BBS with Telnet. I played for 2 years at Rippers as it went
from a 10 line local BBS to a full blown 200 line ISP. I moved from Rippers
to Stardock BBS and a number of other Telnet BBS's, Millers Party Board, The
Rock Garden, Keynet to name a few. I started Gypsy's War Room in 1995 a
website dedicated to the game. I became a student of the game at Stardock
playing with people like Black Slayer, his wife Reza, Hosem, Monday and a
few others I learned from them and traded what knowledge I had acquired. I
am constantly adding to The War Room to try and make it the best website to
find information about Tradewars on the web, some say I accomplished this I
guess you will have to make your own opinion. I put this guide together
because I believe the game is in a decline. I think that players are
quitting as the mega-corps take over and more and more BBS's are closing
their doors. I would like to make it easy for new players to start so that
Tradewars doesn't vanish, perhaps this guide will help, I hope so.
For players seeking a game to break into the community of Tradewars I would
suggest either My BBS, The War Room address- azi.com or 199.190.114.6, or
Family Entertainment Network address- bbs.fament.com
Good Trading and Good Luck.