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Celestial Ceasars
Object:
To explore as much of the grid as possible.
To gain control of as many planets as possible.
Winner:
The player with the largest score.
To Begin:
Enter the number of players (1-4).
Enter the name of each player. Your name will be used to
inform you of your turn.
Enter the number of turns you wish to play.
2 players - 10 turns - approximately 1 hour.
4 players - 10 turns - approximately 2 hours.
2 players - 20 turns - approximately 2 hours.
4 players - 20 turns - approximately 4 hours.
After all information is entered, a grid will be
displayed with a player's name at the top. All other players
must leave the area.
To Play:
1. To begin your turn, place the mouse finger within the
name box and press the left mouse button. The grid will open
to display the area known by you. Planets are color-coded in
the following manner:
Green - Controlled by you.
Yellow - Neutral planet.
Red - Controlled by an opponent.
If you have a fleet exploring a grid area, it is
represented as a small green triangle.
At the top of the screen will be displayed the number of
ships you have, the number of planets you control and your
current score. Your score is determined as follows:
Planets controlled - 500 points each.
Area of grid explored - 50 points each.
Ships you have - 10 points each.
2. To explore or conquer an area, place the mouse
cross-hair on the square you wish to send ships from and
press the left mouse button. A message will be displayed in
the lower bar, informing you of the number of ships available
in that area. If there are no ships available or that area is
not controlled by you a message to that effect will be
displayed.
3. Assign a destination to the ships by pointing the
mouse cross-hair to a grid square and press the left mouse
button. The number of turns (ETA) required to reach that grid
square will be displayed on the right of the bar. If you
choose the same destination square as the source square the
move will be cancelled. This feature can be used to determine
how many ships you have in each area that is under your
control.
4. Once a destination square is chosen you must decide
how many ships to send. To increase the number of ships sent,
point the finger to the up arrow and press the left mouse
button - to decrease the number, point to the down arrow and
press the mouse button. After the number of ships you wish to
send has been decided point the finger to the SEND SHIPS
square and press the left mouse button. Sending zero ships
will cancel the move.
5. Repeat steps 2 thru 4 as often as you wish or until
all possible ships are sent. If you send all of the ships
available in an area, the ship symbol is still displayed
until your next turn.
6. To end your turn press the right mouse button, you
will be asked to confirm that you wish to end your turn. You
can do so by pressing the right mouse button again. At the
end of your turn the next player's name will be displayed,
call for that player's return and then that player can enter
his secret orders.
Movement-Battle Phase:
After all players have entered their orders the movement
- battle phase will begin. Call all players into the area and
place the mouse finger in the top bar and press the left
mouse button.
As each order is executed the player's name and an order
message is displayed. When a planet or enemy fleet is
encountered the attacking player's name is displayed along
with the number of attacking and defending ships. Also the
efficency rating of each fleet is displayed.
If the player wishes to proceed with the battle, he
presses the left mouse button and the battle ensues. The
results of each hitting shot are displayed on the screen. The
attacking player can retreat at any time from the battle by
PRESSING AND HOLDING the right mouse button. If the attacker
retreats he loses 10% of his forces and the ships disappear
from play for one to four turns. When they reappear it will
be at the point from which they were first sent.
After movement and battle orders are completed each
planet builds its allotted number of ships. Every player's
home planet builds 15 ships. Neutral and captured planets
build 3 to 6 ships. After the building phase the players are
again able to enter new secret orders for the ships
available.
At the end of each 5 turns a status report is displayed
for all players to see so they can compare their
performances.
Hints - Tips:
Do not leave your home planet unprotected. Because of its
high ship production it would be a great prize for an
opponent.
If you attack a fleet of an opponent it has 1 1/2 times
the fire power as the number of ships in the fleet. (A fleet
of 20 ships fires 30 times.) If you attack an opponent's
planet the fire power is twice the number of ships currently
on that planet. Therefore, you must have a fleet twice the
size of an opponent's to have a somewhat even chance of
success in conquering his planet.
Use one or two ship fleets to explore areas. Explore as
much of the grid as soon as possible. Find all of the planets
close to your home planet and send fleets to conquer them as
soon as possible. Neutral planets also build ships on each
turn making them very hard to conquer later in the game.
Ships can travel up to 3 squares in any direction in one
turn. This will allow for exploration of a rather large area
on each turn. Try to avoid sending ships on long expeditions
which require 3 or more turns as this ties up your ships for
long periods of time with no assurance of the results.
Watch the grid during movement phases to get an idea of
the location of your opponents.
Even though the game is enjoyed most when two or more
players compete, one player is allowed to play the game. When
the game is played this way try to obtain the highest
possible score. Keep records as there is no save score
feature.
If you enjoy the game a $2 donation would be greatly
appreciated. The complete C source code is available for
$10.
Please send your comments and inquiries to:
Grapevine Software, Inc.
P.O. Box 23361
Phoenix, AZ 85063 |
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