szy@Apple.COM (Steven J. Szymanski) (02/09/91)
Could someone give some details on how much control one has over the design
of spacecraft in Spaceward Ho?
--
AppleLink: szy "Apple has no idea what I am
Internet: szy@apple.COM saying here and should not be
UUCP: {sun,voder,amdahl,decwrl}!apple!szy held responsible for my raving"beecher@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu (Ben Beecher) (02/09/91)
In article <48965@apple.Apple.COM> szy@Apple.COM (Steven J. Szymanski) asks: >Could someone give some details on how much control one has over the design >of spacecraft in Spaceward Ho? >-- >AppleLink: szy "Apple has no idea what I am >Internet: szy@apple.COM saying here and should not be >UUCP: {sun,voder,amdahl,decwrl}!apple!szy held responsible for my raving" There are five technologies used for building spaceships in Spaceward Ho! They are range, speed, weapons, shields, and miniturization. As you play the game your technology improves in these areas and you must decide what emphasis to place on each of these areas. For example you could spend a lot of money on range, weapons, and shield technology, but spend little on speed or miniaturization. Mini tech is important later in the game when resources are scarce. You can design and build colony ships, fighters, and satellites. Scout ships are the same as fighters. Colony ships are more expensive but they are the only ships that can carry colonists. The ship designer (that's you) decides how much range, speed, etc. to give a new ship class, up to a certain maximum. For instance if you have achieved speed technology 5 you can design a new ship type with any speed up to 5. You don't have to use the latest technology for the new ships you build. In the beginning of the game I like to build ships that have maximum range, moderate speed, and minimal weapons and shields. This way I save resources for later in the game when I have better technology and when the enemy is more of a threat. So while I am spending money on weapons and shield technology throughout the game I don't incorporate that technology into my ships until the middle of the game. A satellite is a ship with range=0 and speed=0. They can only be used to defend the planet on which they were built. Sounds simple, doesn't it? The folks at Delta Tao did a great job of making the game interface easy but leaving the user plenty of options. You have to adjust your emphasis as the game develops and be ready to shift gears when you find the enemy. You have to plan ahead since it takes several moves (decades) to build a fleet of ships. The first ship of a new class costs a lot more than the rest of the fleet (development costs) which makes you think carefully before creating a new ship class. By the way, there are several low-tech ship classes defined when the game starts. I usually delete them (check the "retire" box in the list ship types display) and design my own ships from the start. If you like strategy games you will really enjoy this one! Ben Beecher beecher@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu Network Planning 212-854-7439 Columbia University