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Game Interface ...
Starting a New Game ...
Click on the Game menu and select New from the menu list (or press Ctrl-N) to start a new game. The following New Game Dialogue window will appear:
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This dialogue will allow the user to select the following game options:
- Type of Game
- Allied Neighbors: White/Blue versus Black/Red
- Crossroad Allies: White/Black versus Blue/Red
- Anarchy: Each Kingdom is on its own.
- Captured King Results
- Kingdom Gained: The Kingdom capturing the enemy King gains all of that King's remaining pieces.
- Kingdom Lost: All of the remaining pieces of the captured King are removed from the board.
- Kingdom Frozen: All of the remaining pieces of the captured King are frozen in place on the board ... they can no longer be moved nor captured.
- Player Setup: The player setting up the game can select whether each of the four Kingdoms will be controlled by a human player, or one of three computer opponent types:
- Aggressive: Focuses mainly on attack and taking enemy pieces. Makes risky moves at times.
- Balanced: Toes the thin line between attacking and limiting risk.
- Defensive: Focuses mainly on limiting its own risk of losing pieces. Tries to outlast the other players.
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Selecting Pieces and Moves
Selecting a Piece: Left-click on a piece to select it, if it has available moves. By default the game will indicate which pieces have available moves on the current board with strobing yellow squares. (The Selection Indicator can be turned off under the Options menu.) Selecting a piece will put a bright yellow square around it, and the Selection Indicator will then indicate what moves that piece has available.
Selecting a Move: Left-click on a square to select a legal move for the currently selected piece. The move will be shown with a dashed line and a circle on the ending square. If the move results in a capture, the ending circle includes a crosshair and the letter "C", as shown in the following screen shot:
Completing the Move: Right-click on the ending square to carry out the selected move. Be careful -- you cannot "undo" a move once it's made.
Select a different piece or move: As long as you haven't right-clicked to confirm a move, you can do any of the following ...
- Left-click on another square that would be a legal move for the current piece
- Left-click on another piece that has legal moves
- Left-click anywhere else on the board to see which pieces have legal moves
Status Bar
The status bar at the top of the game's main window provides information about the current situation in the game.
- Top Line: Name of the current game and selected game options
- Bottom Left: Round number and current player
- Bottom Right:Currently selected piece or move
Showing Move History
There is an option (available under the Option menu) to show Move History. The player can select to see:
- No move history
- Just the most recent move made,
- The last 3 moves made in the game, as shown in the following screen shot
NetPlay
You can play against other people over the internet or any other TCP/IP network by using the game's NetPlay system.
Hosting: One player must assume the role of "host". The Host has the ability assign how each color is controlled and to start new games or load existing game files. To start hosting a game using NetPlay, do the following:
- Setting Up to Host: Choose Host from the NetPlay Menu and enter the name you want the other players to see. (The Port number the game will be hosted on can also be adjusted.)
- Assigning Players to Colors: As other players join, they will be added to the "Who's Here" list. To assign one of those players to a color, highlight them in the list, then click the Assign ("»»") button next to the color you want them to control. Players not assigned to a color are spectators.
- Assigning the Computer to Colors: You can assign a computer opponent to a color by clicking one of the three buttons found to the right of the color.
- "Agr" assigns the Aggressive computer opponent
- "Bal" assigns the Balanced computer opponent
- "Def" assigns the Defensive computer opponent
- Starting/Loading a Game: Starting a new game (or loading a previously saved game) is simply handled through the Game menu in the same way it is for a single-player game. Only the host can start a new game or load a saved game file.
- Booting People: The host can boot people who have connected by clicking the Boot button. The game will ask you for a reason, which will be broadcast to all connected players.
- Special Note: If the host exits the game, or closes their NetPlay connection, all connected players will be disconnected.
Connecting: To connect to an existing host, choose Connect from the NetPlay menu, and enter your player name and the host's IP address.
Other In-Game Options
These options and functionality are also available during games:
- Game Saving & Loading: Games can be saved and loaded through the Game menu.
- Sound Effects: Can be turned on (default) or off through the Options menu.
- Preview of Computer Moves: Available under the Options menu as well, this feature will cause moves chosen by a computer opponent to flash in yellow several times before being carried out.
- User Interface Hints: If this feature is selected under the Options menu, hints on how to select pieces and make moves will be shown in the middle of the board during the game.
- Resign Menu: Allows human players to resign from games.
- Pause Button: A Pause button will be made available during games that include computer opponents. When the button is pressed, the game will be paused at the end of the current computer opponent's turn.
Victory Screen
The flag(s) of the winning Kingdom(s) will be shown on a "Victory Screen" when the game has ended:
Getting More Help
To get additional help with using the game's interfaces, you can check out the Keeps & Moats Chess Webpage and the Matt Worden Games Message Board. These webpage links are also available from the game's "Help" menu.
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