E M P I R E ! EMPIRE is a game of courage, high adventure, space travel - and terrible risks. You start in the ABATLU system equipped with the basic Cub Scoutship. Your objective: to build a great galactic Empire spanning many solar systems. To achieve this you'll have to trade with Starbases, destroy the invading aliens who infest many of the planets, brave dozens of missions and become the greatest space pilot of all time. Then - and only then - can you begin to build a vast Frontier Shield to protect your fragile Empire for the rest of eternity... INSTRUMENT PANEL AND ON-SCREEN FACILITIES SHIP'S ENERGY LEVEL SHIP'S TEMPERATURE SHIP'S RADIATION LEVEL SHIP'S SHIELD STATUS: Should your shields fall to zero any collisions will immediately drain your energy banks. SHIP'S COMPUTER All incoming messages will appear on this screen. DIRECTION POINTERS: Use these to guide your ship around the current solar system - the direction of a pointer is indicated by the code letters above it. SB: Pointing to the Starbase. PO: Pointing to the Marker. Your distance from the selected object is shown by the pointer's colour - the lighter the colour, the closer you are to the object. STARDATE: Shows the total time that's elapsed since you started playing. (One Stardate = 10 seconds. FUEL LEVEL: As time progresses your fuel is gradually used up; when the level becomes critical your Thrust and Rotate speeds will become sluggish. If your fuel level is low you must pick up an Ore Pod from a planet to refuel. MANOEUVRING FROM A PLANET O (Or joystick left) - ANTI-CLOCKWISE ROLL P (Or joystick right) - CLOCKWISE ROLL , (SYMBOL SHIFT on the Spectrum, or joystick forwards) - APPLY THRUST M (Or joystick back) - REDUCE SPEED X (Or fire button) - FIRE PHOTON CANNON Beware! Firing the photon cannon will cause your ship to heat up slightly - if the temperature becomes dangerously high your cannon will only work intermittently. PODS Small, standard-sized circular containers called 'PODs' are used to transport cargo around the system. These come in a variety of designs, depending on their use. To pick up a pod, use your S key to extend your cargo ropes, then manoeuvre your ship so the outer side of the bump at the end of a rope touches the pod. Beware! If you carry pods containing radioactive ore your ship will become contaminated by radiation. If your radiation indicator approaches maximum, drop the pod - or die! Use the W key to retract your cargo ropes (if you're carrying any pods, doing so will cause them to be dropped). Later in the game, you may earn a 'Wolf' attack ship. The Wolf is able to carry ten pods without the need for cargo ropes. When you fly this ship, you'll find that two pod trays will open up on both sides of the display; to pick up a pod, simply fly over it and it will be collected in a vacant tray. STARBASES You will need to visit Starbases for four reasons: to trade and collect ship's equipment pods, to leave your pods for safe keeping; to receive instructions for special missions; and to save your current game position to tape. A Starbase consists of two spheres. To dock, you must fly between them and turn your ship until it lies exactly on the line connecting the centres of the spheres. ===== = ===== = = = === = = = =( o )= = = = === = = = ===== = ===== A / \ / U \ ----- ===== = ===== = = = === = = = =( o )= = = = === = = = ===== = ===== Once you've docked, a system controller will appear in a screen above your computer. Above her are shown three pod symbols, representing that Starbase's ore, minerals and people resources, with a percentage counter indicating how much of each is present on the Starbase. A Starbase needs all three resources to produce equipment pods for your ship - the more it has, the faster it can produce pods. If the Starbase pulls one of these three types of pod in, you won't be able to retrieve it. The Starbase resources indicator will display a rise. Should the Starbase acquire any other type of pod (ship's equipment and performance pods), it'll be displayed in the top half of the screen. To leave the current menu, either press any key on the bottom row (Return on the Commodore) or exit the Starbase from the main menu. While you're in the Starbase, you may use your four options as follows: 1 TRADE: Use this option to select the pods you want - if they are available. The pod indicators show you what the Starbase can produce with the materials it possesses - if it's fairly empty, nothing can be produced. To select a pod, use the 'up' and 'down' keys and press 'select' - you must then collect it from outside the Starbase using your cargo ropes. If a pod is selected, the materials indicator will show a corresponding fall. 2 TAPE/DISK: Use this option to SAVE your current game, or to reload a game you've saved previously. If you get a load error you'll be returned to the title page. 3 MISSION: The Starbase may require you to carry out a special mission - if this is the case, it will broadcast a message which your computer will pick up and display. Most missions have a time limit, and if you take too long to reply to a radio message the mission may be cancelled. Similarly, if you take too long completing the mission your reward may be decreased or lost altogether (though you may get another chance to complete the mission later). 4 PODS: Allows you to select which of the pods (if any) the Starbase contains that you want. Choose by using the 'up' and 'down' keys and select it by pressing the 'select' key. These pods will be placed outside the Starbase. If you want to leave a pod on a Starbase for safe keeping (or to trade), move close to the Starbase and draw in your cargo ropes. A rope will reach out from the Starbase and draw in any pods. Beware! Don't try to move too close to a Starbase with your ropes out - they could damage the Starbase and you will be bounced away! SYSTEM MAP Press the T key to display a map of the current solar system. The marker is displayed as a large flashing circle in the centre of the screen. Pods are displayed as green dots (white on Commodore). To zoom into your position, press A To zoom out, press Q To return to the game, press X. The marker starts in the centre of the system, and can be moved around using the four direction keys. You can point the left-hand direction indicator towards either the Starbase or the marker, by pressing 1. When it's pointing at the system marker the box above it reads 'PO'. This allows you to fly straight to any point in the system. Beware! You'll fly in a straight line - so don't forget any planets or the sun that might be in your path! PLANETS You will need to land on planets to pick up ore, minerals or people for the Starbases. You have to fly round it until you find a 'warp hole'. Once in this hole, your ship's computer will change your controls and plot an orbit for you to follow. The orbit consists of lots of circles (squares on Commodore) that you have to fly through. If you make it through them without collision you'll find yourself above a planetary landscape. Control your ship on the planet using O and P keys to move left and right. Fire by pressing X. (In the Commodore game you'll land in a forest, which must be navigated before you can reach the next screen - how far you land within the forest depends on how well you followed the orbit!). When you fly over the planet's surface, missiles will be fired at you - and if a missile hits you, your shield and energy banks will be drained. You can either avoid or destroy them - the more you shoot down, the less frequently they will appear. If you shoot all the missiles, no more will appear during the game on that planet. Once you're on the planet, you can then look for pods to pick up. To find pods, use the direction pointer to the left of the screen to guide you to the nearest pod, or to the exit point. Any pods collected will be dropped outside the warp hole when you return to outer space - unless you're very low on fuel, in which case the first ore pod collected will be used to re-fuel you. GALAXY MAP Press G to access the galaxy map. This shows you all the systems you can visit, the number of alien-controlled systems and how many systems you've already visited. The pointer (a small square on the map) can be moved around using the cursor keys. When it's positioned over a system, the border will change colour and system information will be displayed. The flashing dot on the map shows the system you are currently in. Press X to return to the game. Information on the selected system is as follows: NAME: System name. PLAN: Number of planets in the system. SICK: Is the planet infected with the plague? (Y, yes or N, no). Beware! If you enter a 'plague' system you will be infected, and you will infect other systems you visit. A system that stays 'sick' for more than about 200 stardates may be destroyed. There is an antidote, but you will have to find it. (If you enter a 'plague' system the screen background will turn blue). RULER: One of three: EMPIRE, ALIEN - or YOU. ORE: The amount of ore available in the system. MIN: The amount of minerals available in the system. POP: The number of people available in the system. INV: The number of invading aliens in the system. VISITED: Tells you that you've already visited that system. INTER-SYSTEM TRAVEL To travel between systems, leave the edge of your present system and travel through the asteroid belt, avoiding collisions. Most can be reached directly; but to get to some you'll need a special Hyperspace Pod. To reach the system shown to the left of your present position in the galaxy map, simply fly to the left hand edge of your present system, and so on. The time it takes to cross the asteroid belt depends on how far away the next system is. Beware! If there's nothing in the direction you're heading you could go on for ever - or else turn back! The left hand direction pointer shows the system you're heading for, while the right hand pointer shows the one you've come from. Some systems are overrun, and controlled, by very fast aliens - so you won't find the Starbases at all helpful! If you manage to wipe out aliens in a solar system the Empire will be able to reclaim it - and you may be richly rewarded. As you get better you'll find the game starting to change, with more aliens, different equipment - even new ships and Starbases. Once you've visited every system, strange things will start happening, and you can begin to purchase Starbases! When you own all the sytems, there's one final task you must complete to ensure the safety of your new-found EMPIRE. You'll need to construct a Frontier Shield, using eight frontier generators. Each generator has a destination system which is displayed when you pick one up. You must deliver each one to its correct destination before the shield can be activated. The shield's current status is displayed as a line around the systems in your galaxy map. Once the generators are in place, the boundary will enclose your Empire - and the game has been won. END OF GAME When you 'die', you're given a percentage of the game you've completed. It reflects both the stage of gameplay - and the manner in which you performed as a player. It's possible, then, that you could finish the game with less than 100%. Empire was written, designed and programmed by Fouad Katan and Andrew Glaister. Loading screens on Commodore versions by Bob Stevenson. Published by FIREBIRD SOFTWARE, Wellington House, Upper St. Martins Lane, London WC2H 9DL. Package Design by The FTF Agency. 01-388 4832. LOADING INSTRUCTIONS SPECTRUM Type LOAD "" Press the ENTER key. Press the PLAY button on your recorder. COMMODORE Cassette Hold down the SHIFT key and press the RUN/STOP key. Press the PLAY button on your recorder. Disc Type LOAD "*",8,1 Press RETURN. AMSTRAD Cassette CPC 6128, 664 and CPC 464 with disc. Hold down SHIFT and press the @ key. Enter TAPE then press RETURN. Now follow the following CPC 464 cassette loading instructions. CPC 464 Cassette Loading Hold down CTRL and press the small ENTER key. Press the PLAY button on your recorder. Disc Enter RUN "DISC" Press RETURN. GUARANTEE If this program is faulty and fails to load, please return it to the address below and it will be replaced free of charge and postage refunded. This offer does not affect your statutory consumer rights. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means without the prior consent of the copyright holder. The only exceptions are as provided for by the Copyright (photocopying) Act or for the purpose of review. COPYRIGHT NOTICE Copyright subsists in all Firebird Software, documentation and artwork. All rights reserved. No part of this software may be copied, transmitted in any form or by any means. This software is sold on the condition that it shall not be hired out without the express permission of the publisher. Firebird is a Registered Trade Mark of British Telecommunications plc. (C) British Telecommunications plc. 1986 SUMMARY OF KEYS FUNCTION SPECTRUM COMMODORE/AMSTRAD Rotate clockwise O O or Joystick Left Rotate anti-clockwise P P or Joystick Right Thrust Symbol shift , or Joystick Up Slow M M or Joystick Down Fire X X or Joystick Fire Extend cargo rope S S Retract cargo rope W W System Map T T Galaxy Map G G Swap left pointer function 1 1 Sound on/off - F3 Music on/off - F1 IN PLANET ORBIT Left O O or Joystick Left Right P P or Joystick Right Abort planet mode X X or Joystick Fire IN PLANET MODE Left O O or Joystick Left Right P P or Joystick Right Fire X X or Joystick Fire MAP MODE Left 5 O or Joystick Left Right 8 P or Joystick Right Up 7 , or Joystick Up Down 6 M or Joystick Down Zoom out (System map only) Q to P Q Zoom in (System map only) A to Enter A Exit map Caps to Space X or Joystick Fire When you get equipment that requires the use of extra keys, you'll be told by your computer which keys to use.