------------------------------------------------------------------------------ MechWar ver.040 Alpha Manual March 20th 2001 contact juton@webave.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sections : 1.1 What is BattleTech? 1.2 Credits 1.3 About 2.0 Phases 2.1 Initiative Phase 2.2 Movement Phase 2.2.1 Movement Options 2.3 Reaction Phase 2.4 Weapon Phase 2.5 Physical Phase 2.6 Heat Phase 2.7 End Phase 3.0 General Rules 3.1 Movement 3.1.1 Stacking 3.2 Trees and LOS 3.3 Falling and going prone 3.4 Damage 3.5 Critical Hits 3.6 Pilot Damage 3.7 Heat 3.7.1 Fire 3.8 Universal Keys 4.0 AI 5.0 Editing 5.0.1 Note 5.1 Mission.dat 5.1.1 Options.dat 5.2 MechFiles (.MEC) 5.3 MapFiles (.MAP) 5.4 *MaskFiles(.MSK) 5.5 Sprites (Sprite1.pcx) 5.6 Pilot Files 5.7 Mech Sprites 5.7.1 Fire Mask What new. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1.1 What is BattleTech? BattleTech is a turn based war game set in the 31st century, where the primary combatants are 40-foot tall BattleMechs. BattleMechs are vaguely humanoid shaped walking tanks armed with a mixture of missiles, autocannons and lasers. The RPG (Role Playing Game) set in the BattleTech universe is called Mechwarrior and is its third Version. Battletech has also spawned several (official) video games : Crescent Hawks Inception Crescent Hawks Revenge Mechwarrior Mechwarrior II, Ghost Bears Legacy, Mercenaries Mechwarrior III, Pirates Moon Mechwarrior IV, Black Knight MechCommander MechCommander II it has also given insperation to a number of fan made games MechWar 1.12 / MechWar 1.2 (Klaus Breuer) BattleTech Mercenaries (Jason Ozubko) Neveron http://www3.neveron.com Titans of Steel http://www.titansofsteel.de and In development MechWar 2 http://www.redshift.com/~harlidobib/Mechwar MechWar 3D http://www.mechwar3d.virtualave.com/ BattleTech Total Control http://bttotalcontrol.sourceforge.net/ MegaMek http://megamek.sourceforge.net/ Warfare (German) http://www.mechforce.de/computer/warfare/warfare.html and of course MechWar 3025 If you want to find out more about BattleTech you can check out classicbattletech.com, sarna.net or rec.games.mecha. 1.2 Credits So far all the programming, webdesign, and graphics where done by : Gregg Henry (juton@webave.com) Battletech, 'mech and mechwarrior where registered trade marks of FASA corporation. These trade marks are now owned by WizKids LLC. The game is developed with : Borland's Turbo C++ v4.5 : Once Commercial, now free software package DJGPP : Dos port of GCC, Available from delorie.com RHIDE : C++ IDE, Available from delorie.com ALLEGRO : Freeware graphics library, available from allegro.net Special thanks goes out to : Klaus Breuer : The programmer of MechWar 1.12 Howling Moon Studios : Creators of the .MEP files Also thanks goes out to some 'testers' : Ben Sisson Marc Jones Brad Misterek Joseph Tyx garfy@gmx.net Brian Schulz 1.3 About This program is an attempt to recreate BattleTech on the PC, and will include full Level 1 and Level 2 rules. Level 3 will be partially implemented, due to some of the overarching complexities that a full Level 3 rule set would demand. This game is currently FREEWARE, you are free to copy, use and distribute to any private individual. This game is not to be sold. Once the basic program has been completed, the code will also be released free to the public under a public liscence to be decided latter. The Alpha phase will continue for a few more months untill the framework for all the desired features has been added. The Beta phase should start around July 2002, it will mainly concern improving playability/appeareance/functionality. The game will resemble the final version near the end of development. Once I add the larger features (Enhanced AI and multiplayer) the code will be open sourced so that the Battle-tech community can take it and run with it. At this point only some bug fixes shoul be needed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Gameplay ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2.0 Each turn in BattleTech is divided into seven phases : 2.1 Initiative Phase All mechs roll an Initiative Roll, the mech with the highest Roll wins Initiative and moves after the other units have commited themselves. 2.2 Movement Phase In which the mechs maneuver. Mechs usually have 3 options : Stand : The mech does not move, making it an easy target, but also allowing it to fire more accurately. Walk : The mech moves slowly, helping it evade some attacks but costing it some accuracy. Run : The mech moves at top speed, making it tougher to hit but less accurate. Also some lighter mechs can take to the air and : Jump : Jumping only costs 1MP per hex, turning also costs nothing. Once movement type has been chosen mechs can : 2.2.1 Movement Options Advance (Up Arrow) : Advance into the next hex Turn Left (Left) : Turn 60 degrees counter clock wise Turn Right (Right) : Turn 60 degrees clock wise Reverse (Down) : Steps backward, only available to walking mechs. Quad Mechs can also sidestep into hexes to either side. Left clicking on the board will make the mech walk as close as possible to that point. Right clicking will turn the mech towards that orientation. 2.3 Reaction Phase In the reaction Phase a mech can : Torso Twist : Allowing it to fire at enemies in a different arc. Eject : Make the pilot bail out, saving the pilot but immobilizing the mech. Get a Club, Pick up Item : If a battle mech is in a light or heavy wood it can uproot a tree to use as a club in the physical phase. It can also pick up a fallen mech limb, or a special flag or item. Needs both hands to do this. 2.4 Weapon Phase Fire : Select a target and fire some or all of its weapons. The ToHit number is shown beside the Weapon Name. BattleMechs can engage multiple targets in a turn but can only fire each weapon once. * Damage to the head may knock a Pilot unconscious Aimed Shot : Depending on the option settings in OPTIONS.DAT you can make a: Called Shot : adds +4 to the ToHit High/Low to use a Puch Kick Tables Left/Right to use Left/Right Hit Table Aimed Shot : Requires target to be Immobile or Attacker to have a Targeting Computer Adds +4 (for unit without TC) or +3 tohit Allows targeting of specific sessions. Weapon Config : Allows you to change the finer setting of a weapon. Rate Of Fire : Some weapons can fire multiple rounds in a turn. Select Ammo : Change the ammo used with a weapon (not working yet) 2.5 Physical Phase If a mech ends its turn next to another mech, it my engage in hand-to-hand combat. Its options are to: Punch : If one arm has not fired any of its weapons it can make an attack to the upper body of a BattleMechs. Its strength is proportional to its weight. Double Punch : If neither of the arms has fired any weapons, a mech may throw two punches in one turn. Club : If a mech is equipped with a hatchet or is holding a tree, it can make an attack to the upper body that is twice as strong as a punch. * Trees can only be used to make one club attack * Both arms must be functional, and must not have fired a weapon Kick : An attack to the legs of an enemy BattleMechs, twice as strong as a punch. May cause target to fall. * A 'Mech requires two legs to kick Push : Attempts to push an enemy back one hex, it may cause them to fall. * Both arms must be functional, and both arms must not have fired weapons Charge : The attacker rams the target as hard as possible, a very damaging attack, damage proportional to the weight and speed of the attacker. The attacker can not have fired any weapons in the current turn. DFA : Like a charge, but executed by a jumping mech, there is also a chance that both mechs will fall down. 2.6 Heat Phase (Hidden) Nearly every action a BattleMech performs builds up heat, the higher the BattleMech's internal heat the less effective it becomes. A BattleMech with high heat will : Slow down. Be less accurate. Risk shutdown. Risk ammunition explosion. 2.7 End Phase (Hidden) All miscellaneous actions take place in the End phase such as: Pilots regaining consciousness. Victory conditions are assessed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Game Rules ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3.0 Game Rules Originally when I wrote this I had die-hard battletech fans in mind, so I was a little short on the documentation. Anyway here are some of the more generic rules to consider: 3.1 Movement : The faster you move, the more difficult a target you become, but if you walk or run your accuracy will decrease, still it is usually better to move as fast as possible. An immobile target is MUCH easier to hit, so be careful not to overheat, or lose consciousness. 3.1.1 Stacking : During the movement phase a 'Mech can pass through the hex of another friendly mech, but may not end its turn in the same hex with any mech. However Jumping 'Mechs may vault over both friendly and enemy mechs in its movement turn. Infantry can stack with other Infantry or Mechs, both Friendly or Enemy. 3.2 Trees and LOS (Line of Sight) : Lasers and guns travel in a straight line, so if the enemy can't see you because your behind a hill, he can't hit you (but you can't hit him either). Aiming between trees makes targeting more dificult, so you can use intervening trees to help protect yourself. Also standing in a Wood Hex gives you a defense bonus, but no attack penalty. 3.3 Falling and going prone : Sometimes a 'Mech may fall down, or go prone, prone targets are more difficult to hit at a distance, but easier at close range. Mechs that are prone also crawl very slowly. A mech can stand back up in the movement phase by either choosing to run or walk and pressing to stand. 3.4 Damage : Damage is caused by weapon or physical attacks, first it is applied against the armour, then once the armour is destroyed the structure takes damage. Once a mechs Centre Torso or Head locations are destroyed a mech is out of commision (* a 'Mech is also knocked out if its engine is destroyed, or pilot is killed). 3.5 Critical Hits : Sometimes a lucky hit will penetrate the armour, or there won't be any armour left, and a weapon will cause damage to a 'Mechs internal systems. Critical Hit Effects: Weapons : Knocks them out. Ammo : Causes explosion. Engine : Causes more heat. Gyro : Makes a mech more likely to fall down. Actuators:Makes physical attacks more difficult, leg hits slow a mech Down. CockPit : Kills the MechWarrior, puts the machine out of commision. LifeSupport : The MechWarrior takes damage if the Heat rises to high. 3.6 Pilot Damage : Most pilots can take 5 hits and on the sixth they are killed. The more hits a pilot takes the greater the chance that the pilot will lose consciousness. 3.7 Heat : Heat is caused by moving and firing weapons, the higher the mech's heat : The slower it goes The less accurate it becomes Is more likely to shut down Is more likely to have an ammo explosion 3.7.1 Fire Fire is caused by missed weapons fire, or set dileberatly by firing into a hex. Moving through a fire will generate heat (+2 pts), Ending Your move phase in fire will add 5pts of heat. 3.8 Universal Keys Universal Keys are functions that work in any phase they include: Calls up information on target Centres Map on Unit CTRL Toggles Grid CTRL Toggles weapon fire CTRL Shows Options CTRL Toggles Map Centring CTRL Screen Shot (There is only one File slot, any new shots overwrite the old) Scroll Map upwards Scroll Map down Scroll Map left Scroll Map right Left Mouse Button Calls up information on Target (Hex or Mech) In movement phase it will move the mech You can target mechs or hexes with the mouse when in the weapon phase. Scrolling Mouse Scrolls Map ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Artificial Intellegence ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4.0 Artificial Intellegence What you can expect : They can only walk, and straight towards their target, they may also be a bit erratic. They should not pose much of a challnege but they are as good in a slug match as can be expected. They AI will be expanded and improved on, but not in the immediate future. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5.0 This game is an ALPHA, it is still volatile, and may often act in ways I could not plan for. The programmer of this game is NOT responsible for any damage done to your computer, use at your own risk. Well that being said you should not run into any major problems, just keep the .zip file some where if you need to reinstall the game. 5.0.1 Please note that this is a work in progress, features may not work and the file formats will change often as the program improves. In short don't spend days writing new mechs / maps, they may not work in the upcoming versions. Also I will release editors for these files eventually. 5.1 Mission.dat What works : MAPS You must specify the correct number of Maps or it will crash You must specify MAP//(Map (.map) FILENAME) or the program will crash You must specify MAP//(Map Mask (.msk) FILENAME) or the program will crash. Units : You must specify the correct number of Mechs or it will crash You must specify the type of unit (Mech, Infantry, etc..) You must specify SPR//(FILENAME without extension) (Sprite) You must specify PLT//(FILENAME without extension) (Mechwarrior) The 5 numbers on the line above indicate : Team, Colour(1-16), x, y, heading (If y is even, x must be even, if y is odd, x should be odd) Valid Ranges for x is (0-136) Valid Ranges for y is (0-64) Valid Values for heading is (30,90,150,210,270,330 degrees) You can specify AI control or player control with either AI=LEVEL0..3 (Dumb to not as dumb) or AI=PLAYER 5.1.1 Options.dat Lines that start with a semi-colon (;) are ignored Options are Listed (Name) ;Options.ModeratedAmmoExplosions = TRUE (State) FALSE (Name) ;Options.SaveBattleReport = TRUE (State) TRUE The TRUE/FALSE listed in Name is the default TRUE, function is ON FALSE, function is OFF 5.2 MechFiles (.MEC) To convert a file from .MEP (Mech Engineer Pro) .MEC (my file format) type meps wsp-1a which takes the file WSP-1A.MEP and creates WSP-1A.MEC 5.3 MapFiles (.Map) Maps can be create with map edit. Note that the file is saved as save.map and should be copied/renamed and moved to the MAP directory. the format is fairly simple : Terrain Type / Altitude Terrain Types : . Clear % Rough t Light Trees T Heavy Trees U UltraHeavy Trees j Light Jungle J Heavy Jungle V UltraHeavy Jungle p Pavement w Water R Rubble L Light Building M Medium Building H Heavy Building A Armoured Building Altitudes : 0 Level 0 1 "" 1 2 "" 2 3 "" 3 4 "" 4 s (Shallow) -1 (Water) m (Medium) -2 d (Deep) -3 The file MUST be written .0.0.0 (Terrain, level) every other line must be Indented ONE space Worst thing that will happen is a garbled mess on the screen. 5.4 Mask Files (.MSK) These can be created in MapEdit the contain terrain conditions and roads, rivers and bridges. The bridge level is used to set the level of the bridge, it is useful if you want to create ramps or if you specify brigde height for certain parts. 5.5 Sprite1.pcx A simple PCX, it can be edited with any PCX editor. Be sure to save it as 16.7 mil colours. Magenta (255 red 0 green 255 blue) is the mask colour. Each hex is 32x36 pixels. 5.6 Pilot Files (.PLT) Pilot Files are simple text files and have the format (String)Pilot Name (Number)Gunnery (Number)Piloting (Number)Hit Points (Number)Reflexes 5.7 Mech Sprites (.PCX) Sprite Files are 160 X 72 X 16.7 mil .PCX files. Each File is divided into ten sprites. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | --------------------- | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |10 | 1 : is the normal mech. 2 : is the mech missing the right arm. 3 : is the mech missing the left arm. 4 : is the mech missing the left and right arm. 5 : is the Fire mask (See below 4.6.1) 6 : is the prone mech 7 : is the destroyed mech 8 : is the destroyed mech (prone) 9 : is the severed leg 10 : is the severed arm * All sprites must fit into the green hex in the example .PCX 32x36.pcx 5.7.1 Fire Masks MechWar 3025 now supports (Optional) weaponfire effects, to add that little bit extra I have added fire masks. Fire Masks tell the game where the weapon effect starts, so a PPC from the right arm will look like it is comming from the right arm. I have set certain colour values to work as the fire masks for various areas : Name (RGB value) Area Pure Red (255,0,0) Centre Torso + Head Pure Green (0,255,0) Left Torso + Left Leg Pure Blue (0,0,255) Right Torso + Right Leg Yellow (255,255,0) Left Arm Cyan (0,255,255) Right Arm White (255,255,255)All rear Torsos You do not have to have a copy of the original mech as the sprite, but it helps position the areas. * Note if the underlying mech has any of these colours then it may not work. It is advised that you darken the mech slightly so none of the values are equal to those above