Overview
Random tips to get started
Starting Tips
It looks like Steam added the manual. Here are some starter tips/suggestions:
I might start with the ???? scenario (which I called WW V in my review) which is my favorite and might be the easiest for starting. Each person starts at a random capital and when a capital is captured, you lose/win. The cities and oil wells are more or less randomized on the map. You don’t know where the other player starts and you need to expand to discover.
*At the beginning, move the cursor to the top for the menu. The main menu is accessible from the up arrow on the left. Selecting show = who will alternate between everything you can see and what both players can see.
*On the first menu, TER will allow you to see the cities/bases/oil wells color-coded by owner (red or blue), AIR will allow you to move or attack with your air units, BUY for selecting units to buy, OWN color codes the territory you can see by player, DEST shows the destination of the units, SATL shows a satelitte map (satellites remove the “fog of war;” they are disabled in the ???? scenario).
*To start the game go to the top of the screen, hit the up arrow on the left, and select “resume”. You can change the speed by selecting the – or shift+ keys.
*The space bar lets you zoom in and out.
*The map has capitals, cities, bases, and oil wells. Capitals and cities earn money, capitals, cities and bases alllow you to build, and oil wells give you oil that keeps land and air units able to move. The number of oil wells and number of units affects if your oil reserves are depleting and the rate of depletion. If your oil reserves run dry, your land units may become stuck/move very slowly until you get more oil.
*Go to the top of the screen and select buy to buy units. Except for the very beginning of the ???? scenario (when you are spending your starting money), a city, base, or capital will need time to be able to build again. The more cities you have, the quicker it will be able to build again. Building in one city/base/capital will affect the other cities/bases around it, so they too will have to wait to build. Click on a red or yellow-outlined city/base when buying a unit to find out when it comes back online.
*Land units do not need ships to travel over water. If they move over water, the background will turn blue. They are transports, very weak, and can be killed by submarines in one shot. Enemy subs sitting still cannot be seen until you’re right on top of them (I think except if you have air units nearby).
*Battleship groups can bombard land units if they’re close enough.
*Units heal in friendly cities/bases/capitals. The bar at the bottom of a unit indicates strength. A green bar at the bottom means a unit is fortified and has a stronger defense. Land units fortify after sitting still for a bit. Units in friendly cities are also tougher.
*Infantry engaged in combat can become pinned and unable to disengage. When attacking an unseen city, it may be better to move the unit just outside the city to see what’s there before engaging. Units attacking amphibously are weaker.
When a game is done I always select save and save the game as a movie. From the main menu, you can then load the movie and watch a replay. You can cycle through the Show = Who options to be able to see how both sides progressed through the game.