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III Galactic Revolution "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." A prominent Earth leader of the Atomic Age. In this realistic simulation players may choose to ignite or suppress the impending revolution by implementing social changes on worlds they control in order to sway the allegiances of various power groups throughout the galaxy and thereby acquire the resources and production capabilities to build a military force. Pursue the military advantage if you have it, but remember that good administration will win as many worlds as military success. A game for 1 to 3 players with quick pacing and many complex strategies which guarantee hours of pleasure. Advanced complexity but not difficult to play. Playing time 1 to 3 hours. Comes with 32 page book of rules, strategies, manipulated historical facts, and revolutionary theory. APPLE Disk, 48K with Applesoft. Boots directly on 13 or 16 sector systems. Introduction Early in the dawn of our age, when men were not so widely spread as now, on a small world in one of the smaller galactic systems of the nebula, there lived a people rumored to be among the direct descendants of the lost world of Earth. They were among the fiercest, most adventurous and most backward of all peoples, and for that reason travelers seldom ventured in that region. The galaxy, called RS232 (or the Central Galactic system by its ethnocentric denizens), comprised no more than twenty habitable worlds, some of then marginal. Few had any resources of great demand throughout the intergalactic community and no sore than two or three had the technological capability to be of any interest whatsoever to traders (who, as we have said, avoided the region for reasons of personal health). Yet from this insignificant region of the sky was to come a man who brought the universe of sentient beings a gift they themselves were unable to devise, a soul whose great simplicity and incredible complexity created the very fabric of which our society is now woven. Julian du Buque was, by degrees, a soldier, a merchant, a statesman, a mystic and a philosopher. He was an admixture of small qualities and grand vanities. He was capable of both painstaking planning and boundless vision. He taught us about ourselves even as he made us into something else. This is the story of his early years, first as a soldier in the army of a small local potentate, then as merchant prince and finally as a moving force in the revolution which catapulted hin to power. He was not always the giant we think of now, yet even in these formative years we may spy evidences of those qualities which made him later so formidable a foe, so valuable an ally. Du Buque was born and raised on the world of Sparta, named after a city on ancient Earth renowned for its military prowess (cities were independent political units on Earth, and each was responsible for its own govermental functions). Little is known of his early years. Apparently he was the son of a prominent local figure and was taken as a hostage by the ruler of a nearby realm in order to help ensure the loyalty of the Spartans. When next he appears in our records, he was an officer in the military forces of a self-styled emperor on a small world called Galactica (perhaps a new name - older records use the name Galacia or Galatia). His unusual ability must have been manifest even then, for he rapidly rose through the ranks until, at the tender age of 28, he was entrusted with the command of an expeditionary force under orders to put down a rebellion on one of the southern continents. His success in this venture brought him great acclaim, and when the Emperor was succeeded by his son Tawala Mundo (under not altogether natural circumstances), Du Buque was named to head the Emperor's s Imperial Forces. Tawala Mundo was by all accounts an ambitious man, and he saw du Buque as his instrument for uniting all of RS232 under his rule. The brazenness of this effort only is revealed if one understands that Galactica was one of the smaller worlds in the system, with no more than a barely adequate technological base. Nonetheless, starting from just such a base and with no more than a scant 200 vessels at his disposal, du Buque succeeded in uniting the system and returned home in triumph. What happened next has never been clear. Perhaps the Emperor's heart was turned against his young commander by the poisoned words of other counselors, jealous of du Buque' s success and popularity. For whatever reason, du Buque resigned his commission and immediately left Galactica, returning for a time to Sparta, his home planet. There are stories that there was an attempt on du Buque' s life and that the attempt was attributed to one of Tawala' s closest confidants, but du Buque would never confirm this. Du Buque became a wanderer, a familiar sight in all parts of the galaxy. He used his time to maintain the wide network of contacts he had developed through the galaxy. Perhaps as much to provide himself with a cover as for any other reason, he began carrying trade items with him and his natural aptitude for application to a task led him gradually to become one of the most successful of that special breed, the independent trader. Even as du Buque's commercial empire grew, voices of discord grew within Tawala's realm. The Prince's violent passions made him a difficult man to love or respect, and he had no patience whatever for administrative tasks. When crossed, he frequently ordered violent reprisals, including the utter destruction of all life on several of the planets of his Empire. He saw himself as the patron of the little people, but they too suffered from his violent rages. It was the aristocracy which formented the revolution, led by Jan Swart, head of the Broederbund, a secret guild of the traders, who saw their profits threatened by the increasingly insatiable demands of Tawala's burgeoning bureaucracy. But it was do Buque who finally led it and destroyed not only Tawala but the Broederbund as well. With neither the resources nor the base of support of the others, it was his skill at implementing social change which earned bin the loyalty and support of most of the galaxy. His story is a long one and still not fully told, but this is, in brief, the tale of the first three phases of his life. Of the love triangle with Lorato and Vyl-ourmani, of his quest for the lost planet of Earth and the reason behind it, of his struggles for happiness and universal purpose, we say nothing now. A personal history is a labyrinth of dead ends and digressions, and perhaps we err on the side of brevity. We hope and trust, however, that such an error is more easily remedied and more easily forgiven than verbosity. It was always his way to part with a benediction, and so we close with one he may well have used: May you never meet less than your heart desires. Procedures for Play Much of the information included in this booklet (and which you can keep on the worksheets which come with the game package) is also displayed for you on the computer screen. Take the time to familiarize yourself with the game menu by following along on your computer during the following discussion. If you are playing the TRS-80 version of the game, once you have loaded the game and typed RUN you will be asked by the computer, "Radio Shack Lowercase Mod Installed?" Answer with =Y= for yes or =N= for no and then press =ENTER=. This question is necessary because the lowercase modification involves the addition of a new chip to your computer with a partially different character set, and the program needs to know that. Note: Whenever the computer asks you a question or offers you a series of options, you need only type in the first letter of your answer, e.g. =Y= for yes, =N= for no, =G= for Galactica etc. Usually you will not be required to press the =ENTER= or =RETURN= button unless it is a question of such import that you are being given the opportunity to change your mind. However, when you have to enter large numbers, the program gives you lots of time, and you can speed play by pressing =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) to show you are finished. Next the computer will ask you, "How many players (1 to 3)?" This question refers to human participants. There are up to three roles to be played in the game. (The computer will assume whatever roles are not taken by people but plays a pretty passive game.) There are three characters represented in GALACTIC REVOLUTION, Julian du Buque, Emperor Tawala Mundo, and Jan Swart. The order of play is always as they have just been listed. In the one player version, the computer plays for Tawala and Swart. With two players, the computer plays only Swart. The Main Menu A) Introduction to Computer Central Let's start by looking at the three player game so that we can be introduced to all of the participants. After you tell the computer how many people will be playing, it will display the ship consoles of the three characters, along with their own special "anthems" and emblems. The screen will then return to du Buque's console to indicate that it is his turn (this is known in the trade as a "visual cue"). His CRT will list the four options available to him to begin his turn (this is called the Main Menu): =A= Computer Central =B= Review Resources =C= Direct Action Options =D= End Turn Let's approach this systematically and begin with =A= Computer Central. Press =A=. The screen should now display: =A= Galaxy Directory =B= Status Reports To see how the Galaxy Directory works press =A= again. The computer should now be asking you: Which System? There are 18 habitable systems in the Central Galactic Empire. You have them listed on your worksheet, or you can look to the bottom of your computer screen where the entire list should be scrolling merrily along from right to left. During actual play you will most likely be interested in information pertaining to the planet which you are on at the moment, but since we are investigating our menu in alphabetical order during this practice run you don't yet have that information (it's under Status Reports if you're curious. Except for the first turn of the game, the computer starts each player's turn at Status Reports). Let's continue doing things alphabetically by asking for information on the first system in the alphabet, Alhambra, by typing in the first letter of the system name, =A=. A bar graph appears which looks something like this: ALHAMBRA RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXXXXXXX Military: XX Peasants: XXXXXXXXXXX Traders: XX Bureaucrats: XX 10 20 30 40 50 60 Figure *1-1 This bar graph shows you the relative influence on Alhambra of the five major power groups in the galaxy. These are the manufacturers, the military, the peasants, the traders, and the government bureaucracy. If you want to see what the relative influence of the five groups is on some of the other planets, just type in the first letter of the planet nane and the relative influence graph for that world will appear. The numbers along the bottom of the graph simply give you a relative indication of influence, with 0 the minimum and 60 the maximum. You can see that the manufacturers and the peasants are the most influential groups on Alhambra at this time, though all five groups are represented. You will see shortly that this configuration does represent a fairly even balance of power and for that reason Alhambra is one of 7 worlds which are independent (not controlled by any of our three characters) at the beginning of the game. The relative influence graphs will always begin each game in the sane configuration. Your mission, should you accept it, will be to meddle with the balance of power on Alhambra and other worlds in order to support or suppress the coming revolution. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. In order for you to know how to tamper with the balance of power you need to know how much support you and your opponents receive from these different power groups. It would do you little good, for example, to aid the peasants on a particular planet only to discover that, for historical reasons, the peasants were devout supporters of your opponents. To find out how much support you can expect from the five major power groups we need to look under Status Reports. In order to get there let's first return to the Main Menu by pressing =R=. Whenever you want to return to the Main Menu just press =R=. Whenever you're hopelessly lost just press =R=. Whenever your newspaper is delivered in the birdbath instead of on the front step just press =R-. It won't do you any good but it's a habit we encourage. =R= stands for Return, Retreat, Rescind, Republicanism. Now we should be back at the Main menu. In order to get to Status Reports we will need to consult our Computer Central again, by pressing =A=, then look under Status Reports. (Item =B= on the Computer Menu, as you may recall). Your screen should display something like this: Location: Galactica Status: Tawala Stardate: 1 Alliances: None Your screen will probably tell you that you are somewhere other than Galactica and Status may list someone other than Tawala or simply say "No one." The starting location of each player is random. Thereafter, each player can go wherever he wants. This display (called Status Reports, Page 1) will automatically appear at the beginning of each turn from now on. "Location" tells you where you are. It is critically important to know where you are, as much so in the game of GALACTIC REVOLUTION as in life. "Status" lets you know who controls the world upon which you find yourself. "Stardate" lets you know if you missed your mother-in-law's birthday and how much time has passed. (There are no real time constraints in this game.) "Alliances" informs you what alliances are in existence at the moment. Alliances in GALACTIC REVOLUTION are formed between players, not between worlds. More about that later. Status Reports has more than one page to it. To continue to Page 2 and beyond, just press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=). You should now see this table displayed: Degree of Support MFGR MIL PSNT TRDR GVT duBuque: 10 85 0 65 0 Tawala: 0 50 70 -40 90 Swart: 80 0 -10 99 -20 Figure #1?2 This chart indicates the degree of support the different characters receive from the five major power groups at the beginning of the game on a galaxy-wide basis. The ratings may range from -99 (active hostility) to 99 (strong support). It is essential that you be well acquainted with these figures before taking any action. Your support, and that given your opponents, will change throughout the game depending upon your actions, so you should refer to this table fairly often to keep up with the changes. Mote: This is not a closed system. Your overall support may increase or decrease across the board. You don't necessarily have to lose support f ran one sector to gain it in another, although this is often the case. It is these Degree of Support figures, when combined with the Relative Influence Graphs, which form the equation which determines which characters control which worlds. The reasons the three different characters receive the support they do from each of the major power groups are historical. You can catch up on your history by reading the synopsis of The Galactic Saga included with this booklet, or by participating in the simulations GALACTIC EMPIRE and GALACTIC TRADER (available from your local computer software dealer). The Degree of Support Table is Page 2 of Status Reports. To see Page 3 press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=). You should see this: DU BUQUE'S WORLDS: SPARTA Pressing =ENTER= (or =RE'IURN=) several more times will reveal the worlds controlled by Tawala, then Swart, and then the independent worlds. You will wish to refer to this section often. Each of the three combatants has effective control over any world where he has sufficient support from power groups with a major amount of relative influence there. At the onset of the Revolution the eighteen inhabited worlds of the Central Galactic System are controlled as follows: Du Buque Tawala Jan Swart Independent Sparta Galactica Yang-tzu Kgotla Bok Llythll Alhambra Ootsi Zoe Twyrx Utopia Eventide Farside Javiny Viejo Drassa 2 Moonsweep Novena Now before you spend too much tine thinking that this distribution of worlds is unfair, try to remember that Tawala is, after all, the Emperor, and that thousands of people around the world, perhaps even you, worked long and diligently to unite those worlds under him in GALACTIC EMPIRE. In addition, there are other strategic factors in the game that tend to offset Tawala's initial advantage in worlds. One of the most important is listed under =B= in the Main Menu - Review Resources. Do you remember how to get there? Just think of your newspaper in the birdbath and press =R= for Return, then =B= Review Resources. B) Review Resources: Money & Military Might Each of the three characters has different resources available to him at the outset, as follows: Credits Arms Troops Ships du Buque: 10,000 40 2,000 200 Tawala: 100 500 1,000 60 Jan Swart: 30,000 100 200 1,000 Figure #1-3 You will use the credits to buy arms and ships and to enlist troops in order to build a military force to deploy in the revolution. The strength of your military force is reckoned in Legions, with 1 piece of armament, 10 trcops, and 1 ship required per Legion. Looking at Figure 1-3 you can see that do Buque has 40 fully equipped Legions available to him at the beginning of the game. Although he has sufficient troops and ships for 200 Legions, his strength his limited by a lack of arms. Tawala has 60 Legions, with ships his limiting factor. Swart has only 20 Legions because he suffers from a paucity of troops. You will have an opportunity at the end of each turn to purchase additional arms and ships and to enlist new troops. The computer will show you how. Note: Neither the degree of support from the military as indicated in the Degree of Support Chart, Figure 1-2, nor the amount of relative influence which the military may have on planets you control has any bearing on your military strength. Referring again to the Resource Chart, Figure 1-3, you will notice a great disparity in the quantity of the various items available to each player. It is these differences which make alliances between players so powerful. Though individually do Buque can muster only 40 Legions and Swart 20, look what an alliance between them will produce: Credits Arms Troops Ships Legions du Buque: N/A 40 2,000 200 40 Swart: N/A 100 200 1,000 20 Alliance of the two: 140 2,200 1,200 140!! Rather than merely adding their separate nunters of Legions to figure the total, remertier to look for the limiting factor, in this case, arms. Credits are, of course, never pooled. (I will lend you my life, but stay away from my money!) The actual mechanics of how an alliance is formed and how it works is explained in the next section. C) Direct Action Options: The Intricacies of Wheeling, Dealing and Bludgeoning Let's return to our Main Menu by pressing =R=, then proceed to alternative =C=, Direct Action Options. Your screen should now display the following: =A= Negotiations =8= Administrative Actions =C= Sanctions The Negotiations segment refers to the offering of Alliances. When we push =A= the computer should ask: With whom do you propose an Alliance? =A= Tawala =B= Jan Swart Naturally Tawala would be offered the option of proposing alliance with du Buque or Swart and Swart the option of Tawala or du Buque. Let's propose an alliance with Jan Swart (press =B=) and see what happens. . . . Not much, really. The computer says "Press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) to continue". We press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) and we end up back at the Main Menu. What happened to our proposed alliance? The offer of alliance is conveyed to Swart at the beginning of his turn. The computer will show, "du Buque proposes an Alliance. Do you accept?" If Swart accepts, the alliance is immediately in effect. To check to see what alliances are active you should look under Status Reports. One tactical note here on alliances: Tawala can keep Swart from receiving du Buque's offer of alliance by proposing alliance to Swart hirmelf before Swart receives du Buque' s offer (remember that the order of play is du Buque, Tawala, Swart). If Swart wants the alliance with du Buque and not with Tawala he must reject Tawala's offer and propose an alliance himself with du Buque, who can accept it next turn. Likewise, du Buque can intercept offers of alliance from Swart to Tawala, and Swart intercept Tawala's offers to du Buque. The advantage gained by intercepting offers of alliance is an extra turn before the alliance can be put into effect. The disadvantage is that you may end up wedded to a loser (see "The Austro-Hungarian Dilemna," page 15). There are no alliances allowed in the one player game, although the mechanism for offering than remains intact. Alliances are allowed in the two player game, with the chances of acceptance from Swart (played by the computer) being random. Tawala can, by virtue of the order of play, intercept all offers of alliance from du Buque to Swart (the computer) with offers of his own. The computer will not propose alliances. For du Buque to get an alliance with Swart in the two player game he will have to sneak it by Tawala sometime when Tawala has left the room. Pressing =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) or =R= will return us from Negotiations to the Main Menu. Press =C= and we are back at Direct Action Options. Skipping over alternative =B=, Administrative Actions, for the moment, go on to =C=, Sanctions. The military options which the computer will display for you are: =A= Blockade =B= Military Attack A blockade is used when you are on a planet controlled by one of your opponents, yet you do not wish to attack. The effect of a blockade is to deny your opponent access to the resources of his planet. If a planet under your control is blockaded, you cannot raise taxes from it, nor employ its manufacturing capabilities to build ships and arms or raise troops from its peasant population. This makes the blockade a strong tactical weapon, and you will find yourself going to other people's worlds specifically to blockade them. Note: If you blockade a world belonging to someone with whom you have made an alliance, your alliance is automatically severed. The mechanism for instituting a blockade is as follows. Once you have chosen the Blockade option the computer will tell you how many Legions you have, and ask how many you wish to commit to the blockade. Normally there is little reason to leave more than 1 Legion for a blockade. Your opponent, in order to break the blockade, will have to come to the same world, select the same options to get to the Blockade section, and then commit an equal number of Legions to break the blockade. Legions which are used to make or break blockades are irretrievable and cannot be reunited with your main force. When a world is blockaded an asterisk (*) will appear behind the name of the world whenever it appears. Special Note: Blockades are not allowed in the 1 player game. If you choose =C= Sanctions, the computer will assume you wish to attack, and you will have inadvertantly committed yourself to bloodshed. The other option we have under Sanctions is =B=, Military Attack. There are three reasons for launching a Military Attack. These are: 1. You are tired of life. 2. You are inexperienced and don't realize what you are doing. 3. You have played your cards masterfully up this point and are ready to stick it to the opposition. War is a very risky business. You risk loss of your ships, arms, and troops, and if you lose the battle, a serious loss of support from all power groups. If you win the battle, you are a hero, but you still haven't won the game. The purpose of engaging in military attack is to wrest control of a planet from your opposition. You have little chance of success with a military attack unless you have a superiority in numbers of Legions of at least 3:2. Once you press the Military Attack option the computer will clear your console from the screen and put up that of your opponent. It will then ask how many troops they wish to commit to defend themselves from your attack. This is a very important point. If the defender sees that he is seriously outnumbered by the attacking force, he may commit few or no Legions to the defense of his planet. By doing this he saves not only his Legions but also the loss of support which the loser of a battle suffers with the major power groups. IF THE DEFENDER COMMITS 9 OR FEWER TROOPS T0 DEFENSE OF THE PLANET, IT IS CONSIDERED A TACTICAL RETREAT AND HE LOSES NO SUPPORT FROM THE MAJOR POWER GROUPS IN THE GALAXY. The attacker still enjoys the increase in support which accompanies success in battle. In the event the defender does stand and fight, and as the battle is being fought it becomes clear that the attack is not going to be successful, the attacker may press =R= for retreat and the battle will cease. This counts as losing a battle and will hurt your popularity, but will save you your remaining Legions. Once you have won a battle you have temporary control of the world. The relative influence of the major power groups remains the same as when you arrived, so if you leave without changing the influence structure, control of the planet will revert to whoever had control over it when you got there. To take control of a planet you have conquered, or of an independent planet, you must alter the relative influence of the five major power groups in your favor. We shall examine how this is done after we have become acquainted with the last option on our Main Menu, the End Turn routine. D) End Turn Routine: Tax Collecting, Military Procurement and How Do I Get to Alhambra? Let's return to our Main Menu, for those of you who have not already done so, and press =D= End Turn. Your turn didn't end did it? Instead the computer says, "Press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) to Continue, =R= to Return." If you entered the end routine by accident, this is your chance to avoid disaster. If you really are finished with your turn, just press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) and the computer will then ask you if you want to collect taxes. "Why not?" you may ask yourself. There is only one reason not to collect taxes, and that reason is so very obscure I've hidden it in the Expanded Strategies section of this booklet. I, myself, have always collected taxes. It doesn't make anybody mad and sometimes when the computer business is slow I need the money. So let's press =Y= because we do want to collect taxes. At this point the computer will display the names of each of the planets in the Central Galactic System on the screen in turn. If you are entitled to collect taxes from the particular world on the screen there will be a pause, then the sound of geese passing gas, and then your taxes from that world will appear at the top of the screen. Taxes are set at 300 credits per world for all players at the beginning of the game. You may raise or lower the taxes to be collected from your worlds during any turn by taking Administrative Action (which we will cover in a minute, if you are still with us). Once the computer has collected your taxes for you you will be asked, "Do you want more ships or arms?" You will want to equip your army so that you have an equal number of ships and arms and ten times that number of troops. Your army is only as strong as its weakest link, so there is little point in building up one portion of it at the expense of the others. Ships will cost you 200 credits each, arms 100 credits each, and troops 20 credits each or 200 credits per Legion. If you have no money left the computer will skip over this section. If you respond =Y= (yes) to the question as to whether you want more ships or arms the computer will then ask you, "How many ships do you want?" You can't cheat and buy more ships than you can pay for, so don't bother. To speed up the computer you may press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) once you have indicated the number of ships, arms, or troops you want. DO NOT think about the numbers you want after you have already entered the first digit, or you may end up having typed in only the 1 in 15 or the 2 in 235 or whatever. The computer will give you about 5 seconds to answer once you have started to type in your numbers You can think about it all day as long as you don't start typing in your response. A slight mistake like this could leave you with an unnecessarily inferior military position. Don't try backspacing either. Life is full of silly little rules. You will notice that the computer tells you how many ships, arms, or troops your worlds can supply. These numbers are based on the amount of relative influence the manufacturers (in the case of ships and arms) and peasants (for troops) have on the worlds you control. You will see in the next section that although it may be difficult for you to permit manufacturers or peasants much influence on your planets because of their support for your opponents, you will have to curry a certain amount of favor with both these groups or you will have a hard time building an army. The computer will ask you one last question in the End Turn section: "What is your destination?" Answer whatever you like, and your turn will terminate and Tawala's ship console will appear on the screen. At the beginning of your next turn, you will be on whatever planet you selected as your destination. At this point, I would like you to get to Alhambra as quickly as possible. First, press =B= for Status Reports to see where you are. If you're already on Alhambra just sit tight and wait for the rest of the group. For the rest of us who are somewhere else, we are simply going to put ourselves on Alhambra without worrying about the other functions of the game. The quickest way to do this is to press =D= End Turn. When asked if we want to collect taxes respond =N= so that the lengthy tax collection routine is skipped over. Likewise respond negatively to questions regarding the procurement ships, arms and troops. Now, when the computer asks you, "What is your destination?", respond =A= for Alhambra. Do this for all three players until du Buque's turn comes around again. E) Administrative Action: The Intricacies of Wheeling, Dealing and Bludgeoning, part 2. Your screen should be displaying Status Reports. Status Reports should indicate your location as Alhambra. If it says New Jersey you've done something wrong, but we'd like to hear how you did it. I wanted us all to get together on Alhantra so that we could go through this crucial portion of the program step by step, looking at the same charts and figures and getting the same results. Let's all go check out the Administrative Actions section by going first to =C= Direct Action Options then to =B= Administrative Actions. (Don't forget to press =R= to get to the main menu first.) This is the section we use when we want to take control of an independent world or preserve control on a world which we have just conquered militarily. Your screen should now be displaying these four options: =A= Land Reform =B= Collectivize Farm & Factory =C= Reduce Tariffs =D= Increase Tariffs Down below it will say, "Press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) to see more options." Press away. =E= Universal Conscription =F= Abolish the Draft =G= Workers Health & Safety Laws =H= Cut Government Red Tape Try =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) again: =I= Reduce Taxes =J= Increase Taxes =R= Take No Further Action `Press =ENTER= (or =RETURN=) to Review Listings' Each of these options, when taken, will produce as many as three important consequences. First, every action you take will change the influence of the major power groups on the planet on which you take the action. Second, every action you take will change the degree of support you enjoy throughout the galaxy from the five major power groups. Third, if you take the wrong actions, or take the right actions in the wrong order, the planet on which you take these actions may throw its loyalty to one of the other players. The object, of course, is to get these worlds to become loyal to you. Let's go through the mechanics of taking control of an independent world. For reference, we're going to reprint Figure #1-2, the Degree of Support Chart (Page 2 of Status Reports), right here: DEGREE OF SUPPORT MFR NIL PSNT TRDR GVT duBuque: 10 85 0 65 0 Tawala: 0 50 70 -40 90 Jan Swart: 80 0 -10 99 -20 You'll recall that Figure #1-1, the Relative Influence Graph, looked like this for Alhambra: RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Military: XXXX Peasants: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Traders: XXXX Bureaucrats: XXXX 10 20 30 40 50 60 The problem is, simply stated, that you, Julian du Buque, find yourself on the independent world of Alhambra, which you wish to take control of by administrative action. From the Degree of Support Chart, Figure #1-2, you know that du Buque receives his strongest support from the military (85), and from the traders (65). You must also take into account Tawala's support with the military (50), and Swart's greater degree of support from the traders (99). In looking at the Relative Influence Graph for Alhambra we see that du Buque's strengths, the military and the traders, do not have more than 10 points of influence each. Our aim is to increase the influence of these two groups, both of which also support our opponents to a greater or lesser degree, so that we take control of the planet as a whole. We'll list all of our administrative options again here for reference: =A= Land Reform =B= Collectivize Farm & Factory =C= Reduce Tariffs =D= Increase Tariffs =E= Universal Conscription =F= Abolish the Draft =G= Workers Health & Safety Laws =H= Cut Government Red Tape =I= Reduce Taxes =J= Increase Taxes The first action I recommend that we take is =E=, Universal Conscription. This will increase the influence of the military, which may be risky because they also support Tawala, and the peasants (who support Tawala strongly) are already the most influential group on Alhambra. But instituting the draft has a second effect in addition to increasing the influence of the military - a decrease in the influence of the peasants. They all got drafted! If you press =R= for Main Menu and then =A= three times for Computer Central, then Galaxy Directory, then Alhambra, you'll see that the Relative Influence Graph has changed: ALHAMBRA RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXXXXXXXX Military: XXXXXX Peasants: XXXXXX Traders: Bureaucrats: XXX 10 20 30 40 50 60 You'll notice that the traders also suffered from the draft. With all their experience piloting spaceships around the universe they are naturally highly desired by the air force, and they got drafted. That's fortunate, if you think about it. The manufacturers are now the most influential group on the planet, and if the traders were also strong at this point you can bet your Skylab hardhat Alhambra would throw its support to Jan Swart. Now you'll recall that your behavior is closely monitored throughout the galaxy, not just here on Alhambra. Almost every action you take makes somebody mad and pleases someone else, so let's take a look at how instituting the draft on Alhambra has affected your popularity throughout the galaxy. Press =R= for Main Menu then =A= for Ccmnputer Central, =B= for Status Reports and =ENTER= for Page 2. DEGREE OF SUPPORT MFR MIL PSNT TRDR GVT du Buque (beginning): 10 85 0 65 0 du Buque (current): 10 90 -5 62 0 You can see that du Buque gained 5 points in support from the military, while losing 5 from the peasants and 3 from the traders. But Alhambra remains independent, or we would have heard about it. Let's mess with it some more. I suggest that we press =C= Reduce Tariffs. You can, if you wish, trundle back and forth to the Relative Influence Graph and Degree of Support Chart to see how this affects then, but I will also display the changes for you here: ALHAMBRA RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXXXXX Military: XXXXXX Peasants: XXXXXXXXX Traders: XXXXXX Bureaucrats: 10 20 30 40 50 60 Do you see why this happened? Compare the Degree of Support Chart: DEGREE OF SUPPORT MFR ME PSNT TRDR GVT de Buque (last move): 10 90 -5 62 0 duBuque (thismove): 7 90 -2 67 -3 It is good to point out at this juncture that you can make as many administrative changes as you want during your turn. You usually end your turn when you want to leave the planet and go elsewhere. Do you see what happened on Alhambra after we reduced tariffs? Reducing protective tariffs is something manufacturers do not like, because it allows foreign made products to enter the planet at a cheaper price. The military doesn't care one way or the other. The peasants like reduced tariffs because now they can buy Japanese cars more cheaply, or Utopian fungibles, or whatever. The traders are pleased, since lower tariffs encourage international trade. The government bureaucracy is dismayed, since the tariff is actually a tax which goes to the government, and now they've lost revenues. The balance of power on Alhambra renains too even for the planet to support any of our three protagonists. So why don't we institute Land Reform. Press =A=. Now Alhambra looks like this: ALHAMBRA RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXX Military: XXXXXX Peasants: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Traders: XXXXXX Bureaucrats: 10 20 30 40 50 60 The big winner when land reform is instituted is the peasantry. Why would du Buque want to build up the peasants? Probably because the peasants do not like Jan Swart! Remember that to take control, du Buque has to build up the influence of the military and the traders. The traders are even more supportive of Swart than of du Buque, so he needs to balance that support with an anti-Swart group such as the peasants. But Alhambra is still independent, so let's try one more thing. Let's Cut Government Red Tape =H=. Why should we do this, you may ask, the government doesn't have any influence any more anyway. But who benefits from cutting red tape? Let's see: ALHAMBRA RELATIVE INFLUENCE Manufacturers: XXXXXX Military: XXXXXX Peasants: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Traders: XXXXXXXXX Bureaucrats: 10 20 30 40 50 60 The manufacturers and the traders are always glad to see a reduction in the government bureaucracy. Business is easier to do when nobody's watching over your shoulder. So we built up the manufacturers and the traders, a move which would certainly have thrown the planet to Swart if we hadn't built up the peasants first. Let's look at our Degree of Support Chart again: DEGREE OF SUPPORT MFR ME PSNT TRDR GVT du Buque (beginning): 10 85 0 65 0 du Buque (this turn): 9 90 8 72 -8 Tawala: 0 50 70 -40 90 Jan Swart: 80 0 -10 99 -20 As you probably know by now, since the computer should have told you, Alhambra is now loyal to du Buque. By combining his slight support from the manufacturers and the peasants with strong support from the traders and the military he comes out on top. Swart is handicapped on Alhambra by a lack of support from the peasants, the most influential group. Tawala does not receive the loyalty of the planet because he is very unpopular with the traders who are strong there. The order in which we took these four moves was essential to our success. Had we begun, for example, with our second move, reducing tariffs, the planet would immediately have swung to Jan Swart. Likewise if we had begun with our last move, cutting government red tape. If we had instituted land reform first Tawala would have gained control of the planet because the peasants would have become extremely influential without any counterbalancing force. If you make the wrong move it is too late! Control of the planet will swing to your opposition immediately (There will be a slight, though ominous, pause. Then the computer will announce that somebody else's people control the planet). Once the planet is controlled by the opposition you can't make any more administrative changes. Try it. "YOU CAN'T DO THAT," says the computer, which knows the rules. What can you do? Usually you will just blockade the planet and leave. Quite often you will throw things at the wall. Occasionally you will become irrational and attack. For more sophisticated methods of approach, you may read the next section of this booklet entitled, "EXPANDED STRATEGIES FOR PLAY". Expanded Strategies for Play A) General Considerations Find out your points of weakness and strength. Consult your REVIEW RESOURCES Chart and your DEGREE OF SUPPORT Chart (Page 2 of Status Reports). Pick up what is cheapest first. Go to the independent worlds and try to take control of them by administrative action. At the same time try to improve your overall support throughout the galaxy by making concessions wherever you can afford them. Example: Tawala enjoys 90 points of support from the government bureaucracy while his opponents have 0 and -20 points of support. Though Tawala will want to increase the relative influence of the bureaucrats on independent worlds so that they will throw control of the planet to him, he can afford to offend the bureaucracy occasionally by actions taken to curry favor with the other groups. There is little danger that the other two characters will pick up worlds where the bureaucracry is strong, even if Tawala's popularity with that group slides a little. Whenever you accidently throw control of a planet to another player by virtue of bad administration, remember to blockade it before you leave (except in the 1 player game). You can ill afford to recruit planets for your opposition, but when you do, make sure they can't tap its resources without having to go there and break your blockade. Find out on which planets your opponents have a poor grip. Since you can derive exact figures showing how near to control you are and how much control your opponent has (see The Numbers Game), with a little precise math you can nip some of his planets without even going there if he doesn't shore up his position. Be ruthless, especially in the 3 player game. Someone is always in need of an alliance when there are three players. Resist the temptation to knock one of the other players out of the game early unless you are also in a position to eliminate the other. Offer him an alliance instead - it may be more useful to you in the long run than having him out of the game. Make alliances work for you, accept them, break them, and become acquainted with the Austro-Hungarian Dilemna. B) Individual Considerations > Julian du Buque Du Buque is in extreme danger at the beginning of the game since he controls but a single world (you are not out of the game if you control no worlds, but you have no manufacturing base from which to procure arms) and is short on arms and a manufacturing base. He must increase his influence with the manufacturers or take over independent worlds which have some manufacturing. Du Buque' s points of strength include the fact that he has no enenies among the major power groups, he has an adequate supply of credits, and a good supply of troops and ships. He is vulnerable because of his initial lack of arms and manufacturing base, plus the fact that both groups from whom he receives his major support, the military and the traders, also support his opponents. This makes it very tricky for him to take control of independent worlds through administrative action. > Tawala Tawala has one overriding weakness - he has almost no money at the beginning of the game. The consequence of being short of credits is that his opponents can build up their military faster than Tawala can. It is not a bad idea for Tawala to attempt to squelch the Revolution early, before the others can build up their armies. Tawala' s strengths include the large number of worlds he has from which to collect taxes and build ships. In addition he has enough arms and troops to last him a long time. But most important, he is the only player who can raise taxes and simultaneously increase his support among his principal constituency. As a result, if Tawala's quick knock?out strategy fails, he has only to survive and retain control over at least part of his base until he is collecting dramatically higher taxes than the other two players can afford to do. At that point it is he who will have the capability of outdistancing his competitors in the arms race. > Swart Swart is desperately short of troops. Since troops are raised from the peasantry, Swart needs to increase his standing with this group and then increase their influence on worlds he controls in order to acquire an adequate peasant base from which to draft troops. Swart must be wary of an early military defeat (avoid battles). His strength is his money and the large number of ships he has. Be can afford to buy popularity with the peasants through such actions as lowering taxes. C) Popularity versus Influence There are certain elements in the game which you might think are interdependent but are not. These include: a) Your popularity with the military does not affect your military strength. b) The influence of the military on your planets does not affect your military strength. c) Establishing universal conscription does not increase the pool from which you can enlist troops, nor is the reverse true. d) Your popularity with the manufacturers does not directly affect how many ships or arms they will build for you. But if you are unpopular with then it is not likely they will have much influence on the planets you control (since if they prefer your opponents they would probably throw control to then if they did have much influence). It is the influence of the manufacturers on your worlds which determines your manufacturing base, as the influence of the peasantry affects your troop enlistment pool. D) The Numbers Game Although the author of this booklet finds GALACTIC REVOLUTION to be a contest of will and daring, it is possible, since we are dealing with a computer program, to reduce the whole thing to pure numbers. You can, after all, figure out the exact "score" for each character on each planet. By taking the numbers from the Relative Influence Chart and multiplying then by the Degree of Support from each power group you can derive each player `s score for the planet. For example, on Alhambra at the beginning of the game we have relative influence figures of: Manufacturers 30 Military 10 Peasants 40 Traders 10 Bureaucracy 10 We also know from the Degree of Support Chart the exact amount of support each character receives from these five groups. Look at what we get when we ccmbine this information. Do Buque gets 30 (from above) x 10 (his standing with the Manufacturers galaxy-wide) 10 x 85 points from the Military 40 x 0 points from the Peasants 10 x 65 points from the Traders 10 x 0 points from the Bureaucracy Total 2,450 points Tawala gets 30 x 0 points from the Manufacturers 10 x 50 points from the Military 40 x 70 points from the Peasants 10 x -40 points from the Traders 10 x 90 points from the Bureaucracy Total 3,800 points Swart gets 30 x 80 points from the Manufacturers 10 x 0 points from the Military 40 x -10 points from the Peasants 10 x 99 points from the Traders 10 x -20 points from the Bureaucracy Total 2,799 points You need 4,000 points to take control of a world. If no one has 4,000 points, the world is independent. If two people have 4,000 points or more the world is controlled by the character with the most points on that world. If you refer back to our example on Alhambra in the Administrative Actions Section, you'll see how the numbers had changed by the end of du Buque's turn on Alhambra and how this gave him control: Do Buque gets 20 (influence of manufacturers on Alhambra at end of du Buque's turn) x 9 (Do Buque's standing with manufacturers by end of du Buque's turn) 20 x 90 points from the Military 50 x 8 points from the Peasants 30 x 72 points from the Traders 0 x -8 points from the Bureaucracy Total 4,540 points on Alhambra = CONTROL Now you can sit and figure this out for every planet, and plot the consequences of every single move you intend to make. If you like a game of numbers it's all there for you and the strategy can become exceedingly complex and precise, but your opponents may tire of waiting for you to figure these things out. If all of you are into numbers, you might want to keep collective statistics to speed things up. If you have a lot of impressive statistics, feel free to send then to us. Maybe we can do something with them. I still prefer contests of nerve and daring to an impersonal game of statistical trench warfare. You too may want to pretend you never read this section. E) The ELM Gambit Presuming you and your opponents are evenly matched militarily, you may be in a position of having to take control of your opponents' worlds without military conquest. The secret to doing that is to be very well acquainted with the Numbers Game. In addition, as you may have noticed during our exercise on Alhambra in the Rules Section, administrative action may increase or decrease your support with different groups by as much as ten points. However, the amount of gain is not necessarily equal to the amount of loss. So it is possible to increase your overall support with time by taking the right actions (ELM - Everybody Loves Me). If I reduce taxes and lose 3 points with group A and 5 points with group B, I may at the same time have gained 5 points with group C and 5 points with group D, for an overall increase in popularity of 2 points. I can also acquire across the board popularity with military success, but as we mentioned at the top of this paragraph, military success can sometimes be a little hard to come by (see the Straw Man Ending for hints later in this section). Part of the ELM Gambit is to avoid putting all your eggs in one basket. If I have 99 points of influence from group A and my opponents have 0 and ?10 points, I can afford to trade away 40 or 50 points of support from group A to acquire support from other groups (those worlds predominantly controlled by group A aren't going to have anywhere else to turn). If I have some support from four or five of the groups, I should begin to pick up those worlds with a relatively even balance of power on then without ever going near then. F) The Tax Bracket Racket You can do a lot with taxes. You can't tax people to death, since the maximum tax allowed is 1,000 credits per world per turn, but you can be fairly ruthless about it if you want to be. If your angle is to get as much money as fast as possible to raise an army to fight as soon as possible, you can do it by raising taxes. You will lose some popularity with the peasants, manufacturers, and traders, and you may lose some worlds thereby, but you may raise more money. Similarly, you can court favor by lowering taxes. You will attract more new worlds by lowering taxes than by raising then, but you may run short of money. You can always lower taxes to steal worlds from your opponents and once you've got control of then jiggle some other things around so that you can raise taxes again without losing them. G) The Austro-Hungarian Dilemma Students of history, or in any case viewers of Public Television, may be familiar with the dilema faced by the rulers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire near the end of World War I. The Hapsburgs of the Austro-Hungarian Empire had allied themselves with Kaiser Wilhelm at the beginning of the war. It was felt at the time that the Germans got the short end of the stick in that deal since the Hapsburg military machine was rather antiquated and was generally held in low regard. Sho nuff, after a few rounds of modern military warfare, Austria-Hungary wanted out. The western allies would probably have let then off the hook, but their own allies wouldn't let them throw in the towel even though the A-H Empire was of no use to the Kaiser militarily. Why not? Because the Germans wanted to make sure that Austria-Hungary was destroyed in the war, recognizing that the latter's limited industrial capacity would prevent its re?emergence as a world power when the war was over (thereby leaving a power vacuum in Central Europe, which is conveniently located, even to this day, right next to Bavaria). You too can do this nasty thing. If you perceive that your capability to build an army far exceeds that of your opponents, although your current military forces are roughly equal or perhaps even inferior, you may wish to reduce everyone's armies to rubble, since you can rebuild from the ashes more quickly than the opposition. Let's look at an example where this might be a good tactic. Do Buque is allied with Swart. The three protagonists have control of the following worlds and resources: Do Buque 6 worlds, taxed at 300 credits per turn. Ample manufacturing base and peasant population. 7,950 credits 160 ships 58 arms 1,950 troops 58 Legions Swart 4 worlds, taxed at 200 credits per turn. Ample manufacturing base but worlds can supply only 50 troops per turn for enlistments. 17,500 credits 450 ships 55 arms 400 troops 40 Legions Tawala 8 worlds, three of which are blockaded, taxed at 600 credits per turn. Ample manufacturing and peasant base. 0 credits 75 ships 500 arms 2,000 troops 75 Legions Swart feels he needs the alliance with do Buque because Swart is threatened by Tawala's overwhelming military superiority. It is du Buque's turn. Do Buque sees that his ally, Swart, is having trouble finding enough troops for his army. He also takes into account Tawala's financial straits, which are unlikely to improve so long as so many of Tawala's worlds are blockaded. Knowing that the battle odds favor the defender roughly 3:2 and that according to those odds Tawala could successfully defend himself against the alliance, do Buque attacks anyway (remember too that there will be some loss of popularity for the loser). Tension is high, stressful noises emanate from the computer. . . The result of the battle is (this result is random, within the general confines of the aforementioned and pre-established battle odds): Allied Legions Remaining : 0 Tawala's Legions Remaining : 14 This is exactly the result du Buque hoped for. After the battle du Buque still has enough ships and troops to form about 100 Legions, and needs only arms. He has enough money and manufacturing to supply perhaps 50 or 60 arms to his military per turn for the next two or three turns . In other words, within two or three turns he will have rebuilt an army of 100 Legions. Swart survives the battle with only 15 arms and no troops, and furthermore, with no source of troops. Swart's worlds can supply only 1/2 Legion's worth of troops per turn, so Swart's army, in two or three turns, will still consist of only 1 or 2 Legions (unless he can find a source of troops). Tawala has a temporary military advantage after the above battle, and he may pick up a world or two as a result. But his supply of ships has been reduced to around 15, while his limited income will only allow him to purchase 9 ships per turn. In two to three turns therefore, Tawala's army will consist only of 25 to 35 Legions. The loss of popularity which du Buque suffers as a result of losing the battle can probably be recouped in future military confrontations. Do buque's military superiority within two or three turns will be so great that Tawala and Swart will logically have to consider an alliance to stay in the game. Alliances are almost never comfortable arrangements. Ask the Austro-Hungarian Emperor, next time you see him. Note: The losses incurred during battle by an alliance are apportioned in the following manner: Legions belonging to the initiator of the attack are reduced before those of his ally. Had du Buque and Swart beaten Tawala in the battle sequence we've just gone through, for example, any surviving Legions of the alliance would have been Swart's (unless more than 40 Allied Legions had survived, since Swart started with 40) H) The Straw Man Maneuver It often happens that one of our characters exits the game not with a bang but a whimper (in fact, they don't actually exit the game at all). You should do your best to capitalize on one of your opponent's demise. If, for example, du Buque has no worlds and is wandering about with no army and little hope, you, as Swart or Tawala, should take advantage of his weakness. Just plunk yourself down on one of your own worlds, if there are no independent ones left, and take a series of administrative actions which causes the allegiance of your world to be switched to the helpless du Buque. When the computer won't let you take any more administrative actions because the planet now belongs to du Buque, you'll just have to take it back by force. Du Buque has no army with which to defend it, so you win it back and become a war hero. Then you reverse the administrative actions you took to throw the planet in the first place, and you will end your turn more popular than ever with your new credentials as a war hero. This can be an especially valuable tactic in the end game, where evenly matched military forces cause the focus of the struggle to shift back from the military to the political arena. The Straw Man Maneuver may help you pick up some needed support to woo worlds away from your opponent which you cannot expect to win at this stage through military confrontation. Perhaps you think the general populace will see through such a transparent trick. Well, it won't. I know. I) Universal Tax Shelter Delay Game The only reason not to collect taxes is to delay computation of the equation which determines who controls which worlds. It is during the tax collecting routine that the computer takes the Degree of Support figures and mixes them up with the Relative Influence Chart to determine who controls what. If you've had a particularly disastrous turn and fear that you may lose control of a number of worlds when the figures are assessed, you can skip the tax collecting routine to get straight to the purchase of ships and arms section. You might wish to do this because you have a limited manufacturing or peasant base and you're afraid that when your standing is reassessed you will lose several worlds and have no base at all. When the next player collects taxes your standing will be re-evaluated and you will lose it (your manufacturing base or troop enlistment pool) anyway, but you can purchase arms and ships and enlist troops from your previous supply of worlds for at least one more turn by not triggering the re-evaluation mechanism during your tax collecting option. You will, of course, not collect any taxes if you do this. THE END Do you have any great strategies you want to see in print? Send them to us and we'll put them in our next edition if we think they are good, interesting, peculiar, or of redeeming social value. Oh yes. Some revolutionaries will want to know how to win this game. (In our view it's the process that's important, not the outcome, but it takes all kinds.) Well, you win if you get control of all 18 worlds. You'll even get a score, based on the amount of time it took you to take control and the resources you preserved at the end. No bells and whistles though. Winning isn't everything. Outline of Control Functions =A= Computer Central =A= Galaxy Directory - Relative Influence Graphs =B= Status Reports Page 1: Location & Date Page 2: Degree of Support Chart Page 3: du Buque's worlds Page 4: Prince Tawala's worlds Page 5: Jan Swart's worlds Page 6: Independent worlds =B= Review Resources Page 1: du Buque`s assets - cash, arms, troops & ships Page 2: Prince Tawala's assets Page 3: Jan Swart's assets =C= Direct Action Options =A= Negotiations (Alliances) =B= Administrative Actions Page 1: =A= Land Reform =B= Collectivize Farm & Factory =C= Reduce Tariffs =D= Increase Tariffs Page 2: =E= Universal Conscription =F= Abolish the Draft =G= Workers' Health & Safety Laws =H= Cut Government Red Tape Page 3: =I= Lower Taxes =J= Increases Taxes =R= No Further Action =C= Sanctions =A= Blockade (and Blockade Lifting) =B= Military Attack =D= End Turn Page 1: Last Chance to return to Main Menu Page 2: Tax Collecting Page 3: Purchase of Ships and Arms Page 4: Enlistment of Troops Page 5: Set Destination for next turn