...Infocom's Graphic RPG... -:- B a t t l e T e c h -:- Released by Soft-Sect ____A Brief History____ The First Succession War (2787-2821) ...left cities decimated, vital industries destroyed, and hundreds of millions of civilians dead. All energies were turned to war -- civilian technology, including water purification systems, deteriorated drastically. The Second Succession War (2830-2863) ...was just as deadly, destructive, and indecisive as te first. The blossoming military technology nurtured as it died in war. It became increasingly difficult to build the computers, large fusion reactors, BattleMechs, and dropships desperately needed for combat. Production slowed dramatically, lagging dangerously far behind the battle-field losses. The warlords were reduced to cannibalizing existing equipment for spare parts to supplement the building of new weaponry. Salvage became vitally important to survival. The Third Succession War (2866-present) ...continues the brutal contest. Resources are too scarce to destroy, to valuable not to fight for. War is now a way of life. --/-- There are five houses at war, you start in the third most powerful. These houses are listed: The House of Davion -- The Federated Suns This is the most powerful house. Loosely Allied with the House of Steiner against the other three houses, Hanse Davion, the leader, plans to marry Katrina Steiner's daughter, strengthening the relationship between the two houses. The House of Steiner -- The Lyran Commonwealth This is the third most powerful house, and the house that you start in. Constantly besieged for the valuable resources that it holds, and notoriously bad generals have hurt this house, although it does have one thing going for it: Jeremiah Youngblood The House of Kurita -- The Draconis Combine This is the second most powerful house, and is constantly taking territory away from the House of Steiner. Takashi Kurita has formed an alliance with the houses of Marik and Liao. The House of Marik -- The Free Worlds League Frequent civil war has kept this power from becoming too much of a threat to the other houses, mainly because of rebellions within the leading family. The House of Liao -- The Capellan Confederation The weakest house, constant defeat and heavy territorial losses have kept this house quiet. Maximilian Liao has been seeking assistance from the more powerful houses. There are your five houses. For you out there who didn't bother to read it, you are a part of the second house, the House of Steiner. Your main enemy will be the House of Kurita, as you will find out before your training is complete. --/-- You are Jason Youngblood, you have begun your BattleMech Warrior training at the age of 9. You are now 18, and attending the Citadel MechWarrior college. Your father is named Jeremiah Youngblood, head of security, and leading the war against the Draconis Combine. Your mission will be pointed out to you as the game progresses, but for now all you need to know is that you must find the 'MechWarrior Academy, and get as high ranked as you can for your Piloting and Gunnery skills, in order to do well in the real battlefield. ____Word Protection____ The vital importance. This word protection isn't much at all. You have to identify parts of the robot. You need these when you go to the academy for training. You have to pass the "written quiz". Here are the parts: Right Shoulder -- TORSO MAINFRAME Chest -- INTERCOOLER Right Hip -- GYRO HOUSING Left Upper Thigh -- JUMP JET INTAKE Right Elbow -- ELBOW ACTUATOR Right Inner Arm -- BALANCE STRUT Right Thigh -- LEG MAINSHAFT Left Foot -- FOOT UNIT Right Foot -- FOOT CASTING Right Ankle -- FOOT ACTUATOR That's it. The Right side of the robot will be on the right side of the screen, so when I say "Right Shoulder", from the robots point of view, it is really the left side. You'll get that eventually. For the Robotic Excercises, experiment a little. Who knows, it might help your piloting and gunnery skill more. After the city gets blown up by several 35-ton jenner robots, and when you get to the StarPort, you'll get your own 25-ton spankin` new Commando `Mech. Of course, you can upgrade that to a 30 ton Commando like I got, with 10 lasers on it. ____Hints & Tips____ When training, don't forget the other skills. Especially the combat skills, like `Bows` and `Knives`. You'll wonder how you can rack up 1000 credits, but remember the stock account. Eventually, you'll be spending 25000 credits to upgrade your `Mechs. It may sound expensive, but right now I'm so fixed for cash that my account is in the 6-digit figures right now. Stocks: the source of 90% of all your income. the other 10%? well, when you get onto the battlefield, and demolish 2 `Mechs and 5 humans, and have an Expert mechanic to salvage the armoring, well, that racks up some good C-bills too. (C-bills is the currency) Always look for companions to join you on your quest. You won't get any until Rex joins you at the StarPort. If you're having trouble finding Rex, did the Citadel get destroyed yet? If it did, then go in a North-Northwest direction to get to the starport. When you see a major city with a Arena in it, then you know you found the right place. Rex is in one of the buildings. You need a good Medic and Mechanic. When you find them, increase their skill in the Mechit Lube and Hospital. BUY WEAPONS, ARMOR, AND CLOTHES! Yes, you will be in enemy territory, so you won't want to stand out in a crowd. The `things` get expensive, but what isn't going to be expensive in the 31st century? Those were all hints for after the Citadel gets destroyed. Before, just talk to as many people as you can, and get as much skills as you can. When the citadel gets blown up, you should have one `Excellent` skill for a combat weapon, and at least `Good` for Piloting, and `Amateur` for Gunnery. If you can, get the `Excellent` skill in Rifles and SMG's skill, and buy an Inferno rocket launcher. They kill with one hit. Armor -- a Flak Vest will suit you. That's all you'll need for now. That's about it...I think. You will get stuck, I'm stuck in this game right now, but I figure I'll find a way out of it sooner or later. There's always the hint book, that's only about $12.50. N'joy! Author: Unknown Compiled and Edited (Made readable for all computers) by: The Crusader Cosmetic modifications by: The WiseGuy/MwI ght Thigh -- LEG MAINSHAFT Left Foot -- FOOT UNIT Right Foot -- FOOT CASTING Right Ankle -- FOOT ACTUATOR That's it. The Right side of the robot will be on the right