
			  FINAL IMPACT 1 Level DEMO

		       (c) BrainBug Productions 1997


Installation
------------

Disc space required:  11MB
Extended memory required: min 16 MB


System configuration
--------------------

Running under Windows 95:

There are two ways to run FINAL IMPACT under Windows 95:

1. Run IMPACT.EXE from Console or by double click on IMPACT.EXE

-  When using a Plug'n'Play Soundblaster-Card the Creativ Plug and Play
   Configuration Manager (CTCM.EXE) must be installed on your system 
   at "C:\CTCM\". If you have installed it to a different path:
   - Right click on IMPACT.EXE
   - Select 'properties'
   - Select 'extended'
   - in the section 'CONFIG.SYS' change the line 'Device=C:\CTCM\CTCM' to your
     CTCM path.

Second way:

2. Click on the "START"-button
   Select "Start computer in MS-DOS Mode"
   Run IMPACT.EXE
   
   If you are using disk-caches (like smartdrv etc.) make sure
   write-caching is DISABLED !!! (e.g. smartdrv /x)


Running under DOS:

- Remove all expanded memory managers from your config.sys
  (like qemm.exe,emm386.exe etc.)
- If you are using disk-caches (like smartdrv etc.) make sure
  write-caching is DISABLED !!! (e.g. smartdrv /x)
- run IMPACT.EXE


Still problems running FINAL IMPACT ? Create a boot-disk !

- Put an empty disk in drive A:
  Open a MS-DOS console (WIN95) and enter the line:
  'FORMAT A: /s' and press 'enter'.
  
  When using a Plug'n'Play Soundblaster Card enter the line:  
  'EDIT A:\CONFIG.SYS'
  'Device=C:\xxxx\CTCM' 
  where xxxx is the path to your CTCM-driver
  (normally 'C:\CTCM\CTCM')
  Save the file and close the editor.

  Boot your System with this disk, change to the FINAL IMPACT directory
  and start IMPACT.EXE.


The Story:
----------

You are one of the famous Final Impact Mercenary Squadron. This is an independent elite-
group of fighter pilots trained to stand against overwhelming alien threats. 

Your  days  of  routine and boredom were soon over when the Xarras, an empire of several 
aggressive and ruthless races, attacked. Thousands of alien ships 
materialized in the Core Sector and began to invade the 
civilized planets of the United Races. 

When finally the united military forces where able to conduct a defensive line against the 
aggressors it was too late. The Xarras had established defense bases and reinforced their 
positions with captured armament. 

The situation grows worse with the invaders disrupting trade routes and preparing to deliver the 
death blow to the remaining free planets. 

You and your team are hired by the united military defense leaders to drive off  the Xarras and 
put an end to the alien threat. 

Your mothership is escorted to the Core Sector. There you and your allies will struggle 
outgunned and outnumbered against terrible enemies in the deadliest 
battles to come.


Game manual
___________


- When running FINAL IMPACT for the first time, you will immediately enter
the SOUND OPTIONS MENU, where you can configure your sound settings.

You can choose a menu with the <cursor> keys or with the mouse.
A menu will be selected with the <return> key or by a left mouse click.

'SOUND CARD':  Selects between the different soundcard types.
	       Supported soundcards are Soundblaster 2.0, Soundblaster Pro
	       and Soundblaster 16. The setting 'NO SOUND' disables the game
	       sound.
'CD VOLUME':   Volume control for the cd-music. Values between 0 (min)
	       and 100 (max) possible.
'FX VOLUME':   Volume control for the game soundeffects. Values betwen 0 (min)
	       and 100 (max) possible.
'PORT ADRESS': Selects the port adress of the soundcard. Values possible:
	       220h/240h.
'IRQ':         Selects the interrupt of the soundcard. The interrupts 5, 7, 9
	       and 10 are supported.
'DMA':         Selects the dma-channel of the soundcard. DMA 0, 1 and 3 are
	       available.
'EXIT':        Exits the SOUND OPTIONS MENU and saves the settings.


- After the intro you will be in the MAIN MENU:

'NEW GAME':    Starts a new game with new players.
	       The number of players (1 or 2) must be selected
	       and the names of the players must be entered.               
'LOAD GAME':   A previous saved game can be loaded.
	       All available games are displayed with their player names,
	       their credits and the percentage of game completion.
	       A maximum of 6 different games can be saved.
'OPTIONS':     Enters the OPTIONS MENU where various options can be selected.
	       (see below)
'CREDITS':     Guess what?
'EXIT':        Quits to dos.


- The OPTIONS MENU:

'PLAYER 1':           The control method of player 1 is selected here.
		      You can choose between two different keyboard
		      layouts (KEYBOARD 1/KEYBOARD 2) and JOSTICK 1
		      or JOYSTICK 2 (if connected).
'PLAYER 2':           Control method of player 2 (like above).
'CONFIGURE CONTROLS': The keyboard layout can be altered here (see below).
'SOUND OPTIONS':      Enters the SOUND OPTIONS MENU (see above).
'CD MUSIC':           Enables or disables the music during gameplay.
'DETAIL LEVEL':       The details during gameplay can be reduced for slower
		      computers.
'EXIT':               Returns to MAIN MENU.


- The CONFIGURE CONTROLS MENU:

The keyboard configuration can be altered here:

'UP':       Movement directions of the player-ship. 
'DOWN':                     "
'LEFT':                     "
'RIGHT':                    "
	    (can not be changed in JOSTICK 1/2 !)            
'FIRE':     Main fire-button.
'FIRE 1':   Secondary fire-button 1.
'FIRE 2':   Secondary fire-button 2.
'SELECT +': Inventory selection forward.
'SELECT -': Inventory selection backward.
'SELECT 1': Direct inventory selection 1.
'SELECT 2': Direct inventory selection 2.

Select one of the above with the <cursor> keys and press <return>.
Then press the wanted key on the keyboard. If a valid key is pressed
its value will be displayed. (When altering JOYSTICK 1/2 you can also
press a joystick button)

'NEXT':     Selects the layout to be altered.
	    (KEYBOARD 1, KEYBOARD 2, JOYSTICK 1 or JOYSTICK 2)
'DEFAULT':  Returns the selected layout to the default values (see below).
'EXIT':     Returns to the OPTIONS MENU and saves the changes.

DEFAULT keyboard configuration: ( US keyboard layout !)

Keyboard 1:
 movement with cursor keys
 fire          : right alt
 select +      : right control
 select -      : right shift
 fire 1        : m
 fire 2        : ,
 select 1      : .
 select 2      : /

Keyboard 2:
 up            : t
 left          : f
 right         : h
 down          : g
 fire          : left control
 select +      : left alt
 select -      : left shift
 fire 1        : z
 fire 2        : x
 select 1      : c
 select 2      : v

Joystick 1:
 up/left/right/down : joystick directions
 fire          : button 1
 select +      : button 2
 select -      : F5
 fire 1        : F1
 fire 2        : F2
 select 1      : F3
 select 2      : F4

Joystick 2:
 up/left/right/down : joystick directions
 fire          : button 1
 select +      : button 2
 select -      : F8
 fire 1        : F9
 fire 2        : F10
 select 1      : F11
 select 2      : F12


After starting a a new game or loading an old one you will be in
- The cockpit view:

You are in the cockpit of your mothership.
Stationed in the Core Sector,you are alone in the alien-
ridden invasion zone.All around you the enemy prepares
for the final battle against your allies.

The cockpit is starting-point for all your activities.
From here You select missions,acquire ships and equipment,
sell captured material and observe the quadrant.

Move the mouse pointer to the left or right border of the
screen and it will become a green arrow.Click the left mouse
button and your mothership will change direction, so you can
observe another quadrant of the Core Sector.Four turns in one
direction will result in a 360 degree turn.

The mouse pointer can be moved either by mouse, cursor keys or joystick.
When using keyboard, the ENTER key does a left click, the BACKSPACE key
a right click.
When using a joystick, button 1 does the left click, button 2 the right click.
You can also change the mothership direction to the left with the key '4' and
to the right with the key '6'.

- Missions:

Move the mouse over a planet or the starbase.
Your main monitor displays a short info about
the target.If there is a mission available,left click and
you´ll get a detailed mission briefing.

In the mission briefing you can select the next briefing page by selecting
the 'N' button and doing a left click. The previous page with the 'P' button.
A left click on the 'A' starts the mission, a click an the 'X' aborts the 
mission briefing.Some planets like Terrstor have more than one mission 
available.You can browse through the missions with the 'M' button
that is the uppermost on the screen.

 
You can use the following keyboard shortcuts as well:
ESC or 'x': Abort briefing
'a' : accept mission
'n' : next page
'p' : previous page
'm' : other mission 

If you accept the mission you will be immediately transported
to the designated location where the action starts.
On mission completion you automatically return to your mothership,
so you can refit your spacefighters.



- Ships and equipment:

Move the mouse over the green equip icon.Left click and you
connect with the mercenaries´ trade and service center. (shortcut: 'e')
In the upper right corner you see your current ship in real mode.
That means the original view in a mission.
Below that is the name of the active player.
to the left,the shop´s supplies are displayed.
The animated icons show items that you do not possess.
Below them their price is displayed.
Still icons are items that you already have installed on your ship.
below them two lines are displayed:

ammo:[PRICE]     shows the price of one ammo pack. 

amount:[NUMBER]  shows the amount of ammuntion you have for this
		 weapon.If the number is replaced by ULTD then
		 this weapon is reactor powered and needs no ammo.

- Buying items:

Move the mouse over an icon that is animated.
A frame appears around The icon and general info is diplayed in the
lower right corner of the screen.
Simultaneously the ship shows the selected weapon in real mode action.
Right click on the icon and you get detailed info
about the weapon e.g. usage,directional targetting(turretmounted),
rounds per ammopackage,ammolimitations.

Besides needing the suffficient money to buy an item you also
need enough free storage room in your ship.
Left click and the new item is installed.Its weight is subtracted from
your ship´s free storage room and its icon stops dancing.
Now the two lines are displayed under the icon:
		ammo:[PRICE]
		amount:[NUMBER]

You can install several weapons on your ship but you can have only one
of the same type.
If you have not enough free storage room for a particular item,you will
have to sell another first.
Nearly all weapon systems depend on ammo.

When you buy a weapon,you get one ammopackage in addition.
An ammopackage can contain 1 round up to several hundred single rounds.
The amount of rounds per ammopack is weaponspecific and is
displayed in the 'further info'(right click on the weapon icon).
A round can be a missile,a metal slug,a lazer powercell,a bomb
or a fuel cell for your shield generator. 

So if you want a HFS-BOMB ,you will first have to buy the 
HFS-BOMB EMITTER.That is the actual system that uses
HFS-BOMBs as ammo and activates them.
You will get the Emitter and one HFS-BOMB.
If you want more HFS-BOMBS, then you will 
have to buy ammo for your HFS-BOMB EMITTER.

Shields are similar.
You buy the shield generator and you get one fuel cell,referred
as ammo,in addition.
The shield generator consumes the fuel cells just like
a cannon consumes ammo.
As you shurely want to activate your shield more than once in a
mission, you will have to increase your fuel cell stock
by buying ammo.



- Buying ammo:

Move the mouse over an item that you possess.
Left click and you buy one ammo pack of this particular item
Each item uses its own ammo.
The ammo uses no storage room and can not be sold.

- Selling items:

On the right border are 5 buttons.
Move the mouse over the button with the "T" and left click.
(shortcut: 't')
Now the inventory mode is active
and on the left only the items in your ship are displayed.
Left click on any item and you get half the shop price in exchange.
To return to the shop´s storage,change the trading mode by again
clicking the "T" button on the right screen border(shortcut: 't').

- Weapon Pre-selection:

You can pre-select the weapons in the trading center.
Click on the 'T' button to activate your inventory.
By selecting a weapon and pressing the right mouse button, you can activate
and change the weapon pre-selection.
An additional line under your weapon-icon appears:   'SEC.SEL.1'
That means this weapon will be instantly switched to
when you hit the 'select 1' button (the '.' key as DEFAULT).
Each right click steps through the pre-selection from
'SEC.SEL.1' to 'SEC.SEL.2' to 'SEC.FIRE1' and finally to 'SEC.FIRE2'.
Another right click removes the pre-selection from the icon.
Those are your four additional fire buttons,you can apply to four of
your weapons.

'SEC.SEL.1' for button  'select 1':  changes active weapon
'SEC.SEL.2' for button  'select 2':  changes active weapon
'SEC.FIRE1' for button  'fire 1  ':  triggers weapon
'SEC.FIRE2' for button  'fire 2  ':  triggers weapon
For use in combat,see '-Combat'


- Changing the active player:

When in 2 player mode you can change the active player by clicking
the according buttons "1" or "2" on the right border. (shortcut: '1' and '2')
The player´s ship and name are displayed.

To exit the trading center click on the "X" button (shortcut: 'x')

- Buying ships:

Click on the "S" (shortcut: 's') button on the right border and you connect 
with the mercenary ship yard.
You can have several ships(=lives) but they must all be of the same type.
If you possess 3 ships of the Ionstar class and you decide to buy
an Intruder,all your ships will converted into cash.You get one Intruder
and keep the remaining money.

To select a ship,move the mouse over one of the ship icons in the upper
right corner.The icon is outlined and the camera view moves to the
selected ship.
Hold the mouse position and left click:You get detailed info about
this ship.
If you already have one or more ships of the one you selected,you
can buy additional lives by left clicking.
The equipment of your old ships will automatically be installed into any new
ship,you purchase.
Not all ships have the same storage capacity.
An Intruder that is loaded to the maximum with equipment can not be sold.
You will first have to sell some of your equipment,before you can buy
a ship with a lower storage capacity.

Warning:When you change the ship type you will only have one ship and
a lot of money.Don't go into battle with only one life.
You must buy more ships if you want to survive a mission.

To exit the ship yard and return to the cockpit,click on the "X" button.
(shortcut: 'x')
To exit the ship yard and return to the trading center,click on
the "E" button (shortcut: 'e').



- Combat:

To pause hit the ESC key once. Any key to continue.
To abort the mission hit the ESC key twice.

You have a display in the lower left corner.
The lower line,showing a ship and a number to its right,are your lives.
The upper line,showing a weapon, is your currently selected weapon. 
If this weapon relies on ammo,a number will appear next to it,showing
the amount of ammo you have for this weapon.

Move your ship with the joystick or the cursor keys.
Press the 'fire button' to activate the currently selected weapon.
For many weapons it is recommended to HOLD the fire button
and not to hammer every single shot out of the keyboard.
To select the next weapon in your inventory, press the 'select +' button.
To select the previous weapon, press the 'select -' button.
(right control and right shift as DEFAULT).

If an ammo consuming weapon runs out of ammo,you will
get the radio signal 'OUT OF AMMO' and you stop firing.
You then have to select another weapon in your inventory.
(pre-selection is recommendet).
Weapons,that have run out of ammo,are not shown in our inventory.
So you wont't have the problem of selecting a useless weapon by
mistake.


With the 'fire 1' and 'fire 2' button you can directly release a 
pre-selected weapon (but with a reduced fire-rate).
('m' and ',' as DEFAULT)
Your selected main weapon will not change.
So you can quickly trigger a smartbomb without searching the weapon in
your inventory.
The 'select 1' and 'select 2' buttons switch the main weapon
immediately to a pre-selected one but don't trigger it.
('.' and '/' as DEFAULT)
So you can gain quick access to your weapons of choice while in combat.
You can pre-select the weapons in the trading center.

Some weapons,as the standart fitted twinfire pulsor,enable 8-directional
targetting.
To fire in a desired direction,you first have to release the fire button.
Then briefly move your ship in the direction you wish to fire and HOLD
the fire button.Now you can move your ship freely again.
As long as you HOLD the fire button,your ship keeps
firing in this direction.

		 
Example:

You are just shredding frontal-incoming enemy installations with your
one directional RF Spray-Cannon.Suddenly an unpleasant space-cruiser
appears to your left and starts to toast you with its turbo-lazers.
You decide to end this nuisance and press right control to select
your multidirectional long range missiles.After you have released the
fire button,you move your ship left and hold the fire button.Your missiles
fly to the left and annihilate the cruiser.
Still holding the fire button you quickly move your ship from the
bottom to the top of the screen,all the while firing to the left side.
You cover the left side of the screen with a deadly barrage of
missile fire and easily take out some more of left-incoming enemies.


Collecting items:
Most enemy objects carry valuable items which  will be released
when you destroy them.There is a chance the items
are destroyed during the explosion.
To collect an item, move your ship into it.
Any weapon system you collect,will be automatically installed into your
ship by your internal ALR (Automatic Looting Robot).
All weapon systems you capture contain one additional ammo pack,
so you can immediately make use of the new weapon.
When a weapon is captured you get a radio message with the
name of the weapon.
You need enough free storage capacity to install captured material.
If you have no free space and you collect a heavy weapon,
the ALR will dismantle the weapon to save the ammo and discard the 
useless weapon giving the message 'TOO HEAVY'.
If you capture a weapon that is already installed into your ship,
you will only get its ammopack.



GAMEPLAY HINTS:

- You are free to choose the order you play the missions.
  The missions vary in difficulty and in the height of the mission reward.
  Cheap missions are easy.Generous mission-rewards promise death
  and destruction for the unskilled pilot.
  As a newcomer you should start with one of those
  missions: SCOUTING ON LUNANTAR or BOMBING RUN ON DELTRON.
  After that you can take the other missions' reward as measure
  for your next risk.
  (In the DEMO-VERSION only 1 level is available.)
- There is one mission in the LUNANTAR quadrant that may help
  you greatly for your future missions.
  Try to complete it as soon as possible.
- Save your game after each successful mission completion.
- Your mothership can only hold 9 ships of each type.
- Try to destroy many enemies.Most enemies hold weapons or valuable items.
  Some enemies are able to transform or morph.While transforming,they
  also change the items they carry.They will release different items when
  destroyed before their transformation than afterwards.
- Some enemy guns and launchers are hidden under domes or heavy bulkheads
  which open up when they attack and close when the gun reloads.
  As long as the gun is protected by a closed armor,it is considerably
  harder to destroy.
- Some enemies react with counterfire when they are hit.
  You have two choices:Cease fire and wait until you pass those enemies
  or attack with weapons that cause heavy damage with one single hit and
  thus quickly reduce enemy response.
- When firing with an ammo consuming weapon,keep an eye on your ammo
  counter.So you are prepared in time to change your weapon when your
  ammo expires.
- Keep destroying incoming enemies and avoid periods of ceased fire.
  When you stop destroying enemy objects,your combat zone becomes 
  overcrowded with enemies and you won't have enough space to evade,
  let alone the time to take them out with your guns.
  In such a case the use of a HFS-BOMB is strongly recommended.
- Money problems? Most missions disappear when they are completed.
  But rumours say that there are locations where the Xarras
  hide countless supply ships and transporters beyond a planet's
  surface or within stellar particle storms.They simply cannot 
  be driven away by clearing a planet's surface and will quickly
  reestablish their outposts.  
- Get used to the directional targetting with turretmounted
  weapons.You won't survive long when you attack all enemies from the
  front by simply shooting upwards.The Xarras know of this weakness and
  have armed many vessels with powerful front cannons.
  Many allied pilots have fallen prey to Xarras aces because
  they only relied on their flying skills but neglected their 
  gunnery skill, unable to set a barrage or to eliminate a homing missile.


Troubleshooting
_______________


ERROR MESSAGE: 
- UNABLE TO RUN IN V86 MODE:
  Your CPU is currently running in v86 mode. To run FINAL IMPACT it must be
  in real mode. 
FIX:
  Remove all expanded memory managers (EMS) from your config.sys and reboot.
  Expanded memory managers are e.g. emm386.exe or qemm386.sys.
  Lines like DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE or DEVICE=C:\QEMM\QEMM386.SYS
  must be removed from your config.sys. You can do this by adding a 'REM'.
  e.g. REM DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE or REM DEVICE=C:\QEMM\QEMM386.SYS

ERROR MESSAGE:
- OUT OF EXTENDED MEMORY:
  FINAL IMPACT requires at least 16MB of free extended memory (XMS)
FIX:
  Remove programs using extended memory (e.g. smartdrv.exe) 
  or add more memory to your system.

ERROR MESSAGE:
- FILE-ERROR:
  A file required for gameplay could not be found.
FIX:
 Minimum Install:
  Make sure the FINAL IMPACT CD is inserted.
  If you have more than one cd-drive insert the FINAL IMPACT CD in the
  drive with the lowest drive-letter.
 Maximum Install:
  Check if all the files from the data directory have been copied correctly.
  If not, reinstall FINAL IMPACT.
 
MOUSE PROBLEMS:
- For optimal mouse support a 16-bit mouse driver is required.
  If running DOS:
	Make sure a driver (like mouse.com) is loaded
  If running Win95:
	Right click on IMPACT.exe
	Select 'properties'
	Select 'extended'
	In the section AUTOEXEC.BAT you can find a line like:
	"Insert your mouse driver here:"
	Below the line enter a valid 16-bit mouse driver command line
	Select 'OK'
  If using a boot-disk:
	Enter the boot disk in drive A:
	Enter 'EDIT A:\AUTOEXEC.BAT'
	In the editor enter: 'C:\...\MOUSE' where 'C:\...\' is the path to
	your 16-bit mouse driver.
	E.g. 'C:\DOS\MOUSE'
	Save the file and close the editor.
	Boot from this disk and run FINAL IMPACT

- If no driver is installed FINAL IMPACT uses its own integrated mouse-driver.
  This driver only works with Microsoft compatible serial mice on COM1 or COM2
  and PS/2 mice.
  If your mouse does not work with this driver you can disable it by pressing
  the <ESC> key when starting FINAL IMPACT.

- If the mouse is disabled you still can access all menus via keyboard or 
  joystick.

JOYSTICK PROBLEMS:
- When using a joystick with thrust-control like Flightstick Pro (or other),
  the thrust-control may wrongly be detected as joystick 2.
  If this happens to you just press the ESC-key when calibrating joystick 2.

SOUNDCARD PROBLEMS:
- FINAL IMPACT only supports Soundblaster 2.0, Soundblaster Pro and
  Soundblaster 16 or 100% compatible cards. A wrong soundcard selection
  in the options menu can cause your system to fail. If this happens to you,
  reinstall FINAL IMPACT and keep the soundcard setting 'NO SOUND'.

- If the sound-effects are not available during game-play, though the 
  sound-test in the SOUND OPTIONS MENU was succesful, check the IRQ setting.

OTHER ERRORS:
ERROR description: 
 - A system failure appears short after the sound-card selection when 
   running FINAL IMPACT for the first time (during the display of the
   BRAINBUG logo).
 - System fails when saving a game or exiting the OPTIONS-MENU.
FIX:
 Make sure the write-caching of disk-caches (like smartdrv) is DISABLED !


Contact
_______

BrainBug Productions Munich

Internet: www.icom.de/brainbug

e-mail: joachim.jobb@physik.uni-muenchen.de

