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INTRODUCTION
Set in the near future alternate reality, Battle Command is a
arcade/strategy game which allows you to command a single
Mauler assault tank in one of a series of scenarios (Missions)
in the Ultra War, fought between the two dominant races in the
New World. The latest phase of the North/South war has been
going on for over 10 years, with a World War 1 situation
eventually developing -- standoff between armies massed over a
long dug-in battle front.
Such are the defensive capabilities of each side, full scale
attacks are suicidal, so any offensive moves are, by
necessity, small behind the lines actions performed by elite
troops in specially designed vehicles.
The Mauler is the latest such machine -- an Armoured Fighting
Machine capable of being lifted in and out of hostile
territory by a fast Stealth Chopper (the Helicarrier) and
armed with the most advanced weaponry science can devise.
Try reading through the Your First Mission section to get the
hang of how to play Battle Command. Above all, remember that
you're fighting behind enemy lines on your own, with only
quick thinking, and several millions of Credits worth of
military hardware to protect you.
LOADING
Commodore Cartridge
With your computer switched off, insert the cartridge label
side up into the slot labeled EXPANSION PORT. This slot is on
the rear of the computer at the right hand side. When the
cartridge is fully inserted, switch the computer on. The Battle
Command title screen will appear, and the game will load
automatically.
Commodore Disk
Select 64 mode (if using Commodore 128). Turn on the disk
drive, insert the program into the drive with the label facing
upwards. Type LOAD"*",8,1 (RETURN) the introductory screen
will appear and the program will then load automatically.
Save Game Option
To save your current mission(s) select STATUS and then select
SAVE option. You will then be given a code (write this code
down). After the game has been saved the game may then be
continued.
To load a previously saved game select LOAD at the start of
the game and then, by using the joystick, enter your code,
then press fire button to start.
THE WORLD
The world of Battle Command is depicted in solid-3D. The
realistic landscape is populated by hills, trees and buildings,
criss-crossed by rivers, roads, railway tracks and electricity
pylons.
The game is played at 24 times real time, one day of play
time is one hour of real time, and there is a day night cycle
lasting 1 hour. One Mission, however, does not follow
immediately on from another -- you could finish one mission at
dawn and start the next at midnight. Missions can take place
at any time of the day or night.
CONTROLS
The Battle Command user interface has been designed to be as
intuitive and as flexible as possible, allowing you to choose
between a combination of keyboard and mouse (or joystick), or
predominantly mouse (or joystick).
The majority of the functions in Battle Command can be
accessed using mouse only. On pre-Mission screens, the cursor
is moved by the obvious up/down, left/right movements, with the
left hand mouse button being used for Selecting/Deselecting.
Active Mode
During actual missions, the actions outlined above are the
same actions that control the movement of the Mauler itself
and the firing of the weapon systems. So how do you select a
function without using the keyboard? This is solved by
switching between Active and Passive modes.
Active mode is the default during a Mission, where there is
no cursor shown on-screen and the movements of the mouse
correspond with the movement of the Mauler. At this time all
other functions can be accessed via single keyboard strokes, as
shown in the Control Guide section.
In Active mode the left mouse button acts as a fire button for
your weapon systems.
Passive Mode
Pressing the right mouse button while in Active mode, takes
you to Passive mode. The mouse now controls the cursor that
appear on-screen and you can activate devices on the console by
clicking with the left mouse button. During Passive mode you have
no direct control over the movement of the Mauler. You can return
to Active mode by pressing the right mouse button/SPACE again.
If using a joystick with keyboard see the Control Guide at the
back of this manual for details of how the control system works
with these devices.
For a step-by-step guide on how to select a Battle Command
Mission and arm, equip and run your Mauler, read through the Your
First Mission section of this manual.
THE MAULER
You undertake Battle Command's Mission in a Mauler class tank, a
heavily armoured but highly mobile general purpose weapons
platform. Because all of the Missions take place behind enemy
lines -- due to stalemate that has long developed in the Ultra
War -- you are delivered to the vicinity of the Mission Objective
and retrieved from pre-arranged pick-up point by a Helicarrier, a
fast stealth helicopter with a large payload capacity.
The Mauler tank itself is designed primarily for flexibility.
In addition to its standard equipment it has secondary
equipment slots that enable specialist devices to be fitted to
the tank when needed -- these will be fitted by the maintenance
crew automatically before the Mission starts.
The weapons systems themselves are totally undedicated with
four weapon modules that allow the tank to carry any selection
of weapon payloads, limited only by its payload capacity. The
Mauler can therefore be configured to meet almost any mission
requirement.
THE MAULER CONTROL PANEL
WEAPON WEAPON PODS
CONTROL WINDOW o o o o
o / | | \
| / | | \
+----------|-----------/-----|--|-----\--------------+
| | | | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | | | |
|\ /-+ /o\ +--------------------------------\ /|
| \/ \---/ \/ |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| AUXILIARY |
| MONITOR |
| o |
| | |
| +------|------+ |
|--\ /-------------| | |------------\ /--|
| |_/ /-\ |=||=| | || /------\ | \_| |
PICK-UP o---------|O| |=||=| |_____________||| || |
BUTTON | +-+ |=||=| o o o || || |
| /----\ |=||=| +--+ +--+ +--+|| \ || |
| |248 | |=||=| | | | | | ||| \ || |
| | / | |=||=| +|-+ +-|+ +-|+| \------/\| |
| /----/ /- | | | | \ N..E..S /\ |
+---/-------/----|----|-----|----|-------|-------\---+
/ / o | o | o o
o o SPEED |NIGHTSIGHT| COMPASS RADAR
BINOCULARS FUEL GAUGE o | DISPLAY
MAGNIFICATION GAUGE REAR VIEW o
CAMERA BINOCULARS
STANDARD EQUIPMENT
This is basic equipment always available on your Mauler.
Engine -- This Delta Dynamics Gas Turbine developing around
2000 Brake Horse Power at maximum output, gives the Mauler a
to speed of around 90 miles per hour. Note power can be lost
through damage by enemy fire.
Velocity Gauge -- This gauge appears on the Control Panel as a
vertical bargraph indicating the velocity of the Mauler. Green
denotes forward speed, Red reverse.
Fuel Gauge -- As with the Velocity Gauge this appears on the
Control Panel as a vertical bar graph. There is nowhere,
officially, to refuel behind enemy lines - if you run out,
you're stuck...unless you know different, that is.
Compass -- This is a display on the console with the symbols
N, E, S and W marked on it. As the player turns, the display
moves left or right to show the direction the player is
facing. The display wraps around as the player turns full circle.
+---------------+
| . . N . . . E | Compass
+---------------+
Radar -- the radar is an advanced type, with a built-in object
recognition system that assigns a type to every detected object
on the basis on its threat to the Mauler. These object types
displayed as different coloured dots on the radar screen
overlaid on the top of a map of the local area retrieved from
the radar computers memory.
The colours assigned to each object type are:
Roads Light gray
Rivers Dark blue
Electricity pylons Dark gray
Railway tracks White
Vegetation Green
Hills/Rocks Brown
Major buildings White
Minor buildings Medium gray
Mobile enemy Red
Fixed enemy Light blue
Enemy aircraft Yellow
Shells/Missiles Orange
The position of the player is shown by a small cursor in the
center of the radar display.
SECONDARY EQUIPMENT
This is equipment that is not always fitted to the Mauler. If
a particular piece of equipment is required in a mission it is
automatically fitted.
Rear View Camera -- Shows a view from the back of the Mauler.
The only control is an on/off button bellow the auxiliary
monitor. Eyes in the back of the head are sometimes useful!
Nightsight -- Allows you to see at night and at low light levels
using Infra Red sensitive optics. The normal 3D views on the main
console display, if appropriate, are replaced by a lower
resolution display in shades of gray.
Using the nightsight during the day will overload it and you
will be unable to see any detail - as all objects and the
ground will be shown in a single shade of white silhouetted
against the horizon. Overloading the nightsight will also
damage its sensitive optics. The control for this device, if
fitted, is a single on/off switch bellow the auxiliary monitor.
Binoculars -- Magnifies your main view screen onto the main
console display by a factor of 2, 4 or 8 to show greater detail
on objects and objects too small to be visible normally. The
device can be enabled and disabled using an on/off switch under
the auxiliary monitor. There is also a rotary switch to the left
of the auxiliary monitor to adjust the magnification.
Pick-up Button -- Once you have completed your Mission Objective,
you must make your way to the Pick-up point specified in your
Mission Briefing and summon the Helicarrier to take you back to
the safely of the Northern lines. Click on the button on the
Control Panel or use the keyboard controls specified.
WEAPONS
Weaponry is what it's all about! The Mauler has four weapon
Pods, any number of which you can fill up with lethal devices
before you go on a Mission, see the Your First Mission section
for details on equipping your Mauler.
Only one of the Weapon Pods can be active at one time,
selectable from the keyboard or by clicking on the appropriate
Weapon Pod at the top of the Mauler control panel when in
Passive Mode.
This will activate the selected Weapon Pod, as shown by that
Weapon's icon appearing in the Weapon Control Window of the
Control Panel, along with any particular controls for the
weapon (up/down, on/off). The Weapon Pod itself also shows the
number of rounds left in the magazines plus.
A description of each munition follows, but remember that you
limited to how much you can put on-board your Mauler by weight
and weapon design constrains.
All weapons also have a magazine size, which is the number of
rounds that weapon system carries. Run out of rounds and
you'll be firing thin air until you select another Weapon Pod
containing live rounds.
OFFENSIVE WEAPONRY
TURRET -- The most basic armament provided for the tank is the
Pulveriser 120mm Battle Cannon, which fires shells directly
forward. The barrel is a simple launching tube for the shells
which are powered, in effect unguided missiles. They are
unaffected by gravity, but they travel quite slowly, so you
have to aim for where the target is going to be when the shell
arrives.
The barrel of the Pulveriser Battle Cannon is an integral
part of the Mauler's turret and so is not removed even if the
Pulveriser weapon system is not fitted.
The weapon head-up-display simply shows the number of cannon
shells remaining. Only one cannon can be fitted to the tank at
once. The magazine size is 60 shells.
PULVERISER
Muzzle Speed: 210 m/s
Burn Duration: 16 seconds
Range: 3300 m
Shell Weight: 4 kg
Length: 0.7 m
Calibre: 120 mm
Warhead Type: K.E.P.
BANSHEE SURFACE TO SURFACE MISSILES -- When a weapon of this
type is selected a sight appears in the center of your view
allowing you to line up on hostile targets. When the fire
button is pressed the missile launcher locks-on to the closest
target in a cone directly in front of the Mauler, the cursor
will change shape and a flashing a "locked-on" message will
appear in the head-up-display. This locked-on state lasts for
a limited time and the launcher continually tracks the target
during it. If you press the fire button again while the
launcher is locked-on, a missile is launched against the
target. The missile will follow the target until it hits it or
runs out of fuel and explodes. If no target can be found then
no missile will be launched.
There are two versions of this missile, heat seeking and
radar guided. Heat seeking missiles will only lock onto
targets that produce a lot of I.R. radiation such as aircraft
or vehicles, while radar guided missiles will lock onto all
targets. Heat seeking missiles have a much simpler guidance
and targeting system than radar guided ones, as a consequence
they are smaller and lighter and can fit more in a magazine.
The magazine size is 8 for heat seeking missiles and 5 for
radar guided.
BANSHEE (IR version)
Speed: 150 m/s
Flight Duration: 15 seconds
Minimum Range: 125 m
Maximum Range: 2200 m
Weight: 31.5 kg
Length: 1.5 m
Calibre: 160 mm
Warhead Type: H.C.
Control: Aerodynamic Surfaces
Guidance: Radar or IR (Fire and Forget)
PHOENIX SURFACE TO AIR MISSILES -- These are similar to the
surface to surface missiles but they have a more complex
targeting system.
When the player presses the fire button a view from the
launcher appears in the auxiliary monitor. The player now has
control of the elevation and yaw of the launcher, within
limits. If a target comes within the launcher's view it can be
locked-on to and fired in the same way as the Banshee surface
to surface missile.
The player remains in control of the launcher until they
press the right mouse button, which returns them to Active
Mode and control of the Mauler.
Again these missiles come in two types, Heat Seeking and
Radar Guided.
PHOENIX (IR version)
Speed: 190 m/s
Flight Duration: 12 seconds
Minimum Range: 200 m
Maximum Range: 2200 m
Weight: 25 kg
Length: 1.1 m
Calibre: 120 mm
Warhead Type: H.C.
Control: Aerodynamic Surfaces
Guidance: Radar or IR (Fire and Forget)
K-40 MORTAR -- This throws a shell forwards and upwards.
Unlike the cannon, shells from the mortar are unpowered and
affected by gravity, traveling in a ballistic arc, exploding
when they reach the ground or hit an object. The mortar allows
you to fire at targets behind other objects or targets sunk
into the ground.
The buttons in the weapon control window are assigned
functions to raise and lower the elevation of the mortar tube,
and the current elevation, range and mortar shells remaining are
shown in the head-up-display beneath the window. Only one mortar
can be fitted to the tank at once. The magazine size is 20.
K-40 MORTAR
Minimum Range: 200 m
Maximum Range: 750 m
Shell Weight: 10 kg
Calibre: 100 mm
Warhead Type: H.E.
DRAGONFLY WIRE GUIDED MISSILES -- When you launch one of
these missiles a view from just behind the missile appears in
the auxiliary monitor and you now control movement of the
missile rather than the Mauler. You can switch back to
controlling the Mauler by hitting the right mouse button, but
you lose control of the missile which simply continues on the
path it was on.
The missiles have a limited range and can fly for approximately
20 seconds before detonating, although, of course, they will
detonate before this on contact with any object!
DRAGONFLY
Speed: 190 m/s
Flight Duration: 22 seconds
Maximum Range: 4000 m
Weight: 80 kg
Length: 2 m
Calibre: 250 mm
Warhead Type: H.E.
Control: Jet Deflection
Guidance: Wire Guided (MCLOS)
DEFENSIVE WEAPONRY
SPECTRE I.R. DECOY FLARES -- These are flares you can launch
to decoy heat seeking missiles. If a flare comes within the
field of view of an enemy missile is a high probably that it
will change course to follow the flare rather than the Mauler.
If used while you yourself are also using heat seeking missiles
they may interfere with the operation of them, as well!
The flare launcher has two modes of operation, single-shot
and automatic. In single-shot mode you launch a flare on
demand by hitting the Fire, in automatic mode Mauler launches
a flare every minute or if the current flare has destroyed, to
give continual protection.
Flares last for about 1 minute before they fall to the ground
and are extinguished. A flare is destroyed once it has been
hit by a missile. The two weapon control buttons control the
mode the launcher is in, clicking on one puts the launcher into
automatic mode the other puts it back into single-shot mode.
The head-up-display shows the current mode, whether any flares
are in the air and the number of flares remaining. The
magazine size is 12.
SPECTRE FLARE DISPENSER
Flare Detonation Height: 55 m
Effective Decoy Radius: 25 m
Minimum Effective Wavelength: 3 microns
Maximum Effective Wavelength: 14 microns
PHANTASM DECOY CHAFF DISPENSERS -- Similar to the decoy flares
except that it launches a cloud of chaff that confuses radar
guided weapons. The chaff cloud does not rise as high as the
flares and remains stationary where it was launched. It lasts
for two minutes and weapons do not detonate on it but fly
straight through. The controls and display are the same as for
the decoy flares except that the repetition in automatic mode
is every two minutes. The magazine size is 8.
PHANTASM CHAFF DISPENSER
Detonation Height: 20 m
Bloom Radius: 15 m
Bloom Time: 1.5 seconds
Minimum Effective Frequency: 1.2 GHz
Maximum Effective Frequency: 18 GHz
Minimum Strand Length: 8 mm
Maximum Strand Length: 125 mm
SLAM LASER -- This weapon sits on the top of the Mauler and
when activated will lock onto any incoming missile and shoot
it down with laser fire. It can only cope with one missile at
a time and, as it is chemically powered, has a limited number
of shots. The only control is an on/off switch on one of the
weapon control buttons, the fire button has no effect on this
weapon. The display shows whether the gun is active and
bargraph of the amount of chemical reactants left.
The Laser will usually take several shots to down a missile,
the number depending on the size of the missile. The magazine
holds enough reactants for about 80 shots.
SLAM LASER
Fire Rate: 250 pulses/minute
Power: 200 kW
Wavelength: 3000 Angstroms
Pulse Length: 3.5 milliseconds
Joules/Pulse: 460
CONTROL GUIDE
The cursor can be moved with the joystick in port 2 and the
Space Bar as the Select button.
If on a Commodore Games Console holding down the second fire
button will activate the menu bar. This allows the player to
select and enter other screens.
The tank is controlled by using UP for acceleration, DOWN for
deceleration, and LEFT and RIGHT steering the tank in the
appropriate direction.
Pressing the keys 1, 2, 3 or 4 will activate the appropriate
weapon slot. The active slot will then be highlighted in the
upper console display.
The different weapon types are controlled as follows:
Pulverizer Press fire to launch a single shell
Cannon:
Surface to First sight your target, then press fire to obtain
Surface lock on. The cursor will change shape to indicate
Missiles: this. Pressing fire again will now launch the
missile.
Dragonfly: Use fire to launch. When the missile has been
launched, its main display will show a view from
just behind the Dragonfly. This missile is
controlled by using the same method as the tank.
Pressing fire a second time will result in control
switching back to the Mauler.
Surface to When fire is pressed a view of the launcher
Air appears in the auxiliary monitor. The player now
Missiles: has control of the yaw and height of the launcher.
Then press fire to obtain lock on. The cursor will
change shape to indicate this. Pressing fire again
will now launch the missile.
The following weapons are controlled by clicking on the
weapon control buttons. These are referred to as the upper and
lower module buttons.
Mortar: Use upper modules button to increase the elevation
angle and the lower module button to decrease the
angle. Press fire to launch a mortar shell.
Spectre Press fire to launch a single flare or use the
Flares: module buttons to switch automatic mode off or on.
Phantom Press fire to launch a burst of chaff or use the
Chaff: module buttons to switch automatic mode off or on.
SLAM Laser: Use this module buttons to switch this weapon on or
off. It only operates in automatic mode.
The other equipment is operates as follows:
Nightsight: Pressing N toggles this view mode on or off.
Binoculars: Pressing B toggles this view mode on or off.
Rear View: Pressing R toggles this view mode on or off.
Helicarrier: Pressing H toggles the Helicarrier request
transmission on or off.
The various game screens are accessed by the following methods:
Review Press F5 will enter this screen.
Briefing:
On the map display a small tank indicates the
Mauler's current position. The letter X marks the
Helicarrier pickup and a letter O shows the main
target.
Damage Pressing F3 enters this screen. The various levels
Screen: of damage to Mauler and equipment are displayed.
Auxiliary Pressing F7 enters this screen.
Monitor
Screen:
Pressing F1 will return you to the main view.
BATTLE COMMAND
Its program code, graphic representation and artwork are the
copyright of Ocean Software Limited and may not be reproduced,
stored, hired or broadcast in any form whatsoever without the
written permission of Ocean Software Limited. All rights
reserved worldwide.
THIS SOFTWARE PRODUCT HAS BEEN CAREFULLY DEVELOPED AND
MANUFACTURED TO THE HIGHEST QUALITY STANDARDS. PLEASE READ
CAREFULLY THE INSTRUCTIONS FOR LOADING.
If for any reasons you have difficulty in running the program
you may contact The Ocean Helpline direct by telephoning 0626
332533. However if you believe that the product is defective,
please return it direct to: Mr. Yates, Ocean Software Limited,
6 Central Street, Manchester M2 5NS.
Our quality control department will test the product and
supply an immediate replacement if we find a fault. If we
cannot find a fault the product will be returned to you at no
charge. Please note that this does not affect you statutory
rights.
CREDITS
C64/C64 GS programmed by Steve Caslin.
Music by Jonathan Dunn
Produced by D.C. Ward
(c) 1991 OCEAN SOFTWARE LTD.
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