Warfare
by Jonathan Westlund

To win ... Lay traps, get better weapons, keep your health up, and be the last player standing!

 These rules subject to change at any time without notice.

Main Menu

A total of 6 players can play the game.  Click on the "Player Slot" buttons to cycle through a Human Player, a Computer Player, or No Player.  As the game starts, the first player to go is the top most player in this list.

Main Menu - Options

Game Options

* Whether or not players start with a shovel in their inventory.
* Defines camera movement, either it moves to the next player, or it fades to a black screen and then fades into the next player.
* Toggles the background music.

Building Options

* Decide whether a custom building is permanently destroyed or it needs to be repaired when it's health reaches zero.
* When a custom building is completed, should it have built-in effects, or should it transform into a map-specific building.
* When a custom building is completed, should the player be able to choose the effect, or should it be chosen randomly.

Computer AI Options

* Should computers be smart when digging on certain maps.
* Should computers make smart choices when selling items.
* Enable Hard difficulty AI, which just lets them go after rare / powerful items.

Values Options

* These options change important variables in the game.  Only cheaters or pros would change this!

After players are decided and options are set, click the Next button and it will take you to the map screen. The next button makes sure you have a valid number of players set.

Maps
There are a total of 12 maps.

War Zone:  A building that can only be found in this map is the missile silo building. Scroll down to read about buildings.

Space Station:  You cannot dig in this map.

Ground Zero:  Players will get randomly poisoned.

Deserted Town:  Neutral players (zombies) will randomly spawn.

Armory:  There are gun turrets present.  If you get too close to one they will hurt you.

Mineshaft:  If you dig you will only find rocks and diamonds, with rocks being most likely.

Desert:  Whirlwinds, which will be in random locations, will send you to a random location if you meet one.  You can dig, but you will always find nothing.

Research Facility:  There is a special building that will allow you to give yourself genetic enhancements.

Ruins: There are no Custom Building Zones. Read about them in the Buildings section.

Junkyard: You can find more items here when digging than any other map.

Camp:  There is a special building that will allow you to hire mercenaries that are loyal to you and will help you defeat your enemies.

Command Center: When you dig you will always find mines.

On Your Turn

When it is your turn, you can choose to move, dig, or use an item.  You can only dig if you have a shovel.

Moving:  If you choose to move, a random number between 1 and 9 will be selected and you will move forward that many spaces.  You can only land on "normal" spaces and pass "special" spaces.  You get 20 cash when your turn is over. If while moving you meet another player you automatically attack them with your current weapon.

Digging:  If you choose to dig, you have a 2 in 3 chance to get one of the following list of items:  a battery, a key, a health pack (which heals 25 health points), an access card, a repair card, a mine (which will deal 20 points of damage), cash (gives you between 10 and 40), a knife, an access code, a trap disarm card, or a gas canister.  If you choose to dig you will not move, and you don't get any cash when your turn is over.

Using items:  The only items you can use at the beginning of your turn are traps.  After setting a trap your player moves and you get 20 cash at the end of your turn.

Normal Spaces

Most Normal Spaces will be directional spaces, which sends you in one direction.  In addition, there are horizontal spaces, which will allow you to go left or right, and vertical spaces, which will allow you to go up or down.  You can only change directions at an Intersection Space.

You will find the Lock Space at Intersections.  You must have a key or access card to go down that path.  Hurt Spaces are used in such situations to hurt the player.

When the game begins, some spaces will already have a trap on them.

Special Spaces

The player follows the path they are on until they reach an Intersection Space, then they can choose a new path.  But most Special Spaces will be Building Spaces.

Buildings

Most buildings will let you sell as many items as you want before buying anything.  Refer to the Items section for information on each item.

Store:  You can buy the following items:  Key - $40;  Battery - $30;  Fusion Cell - $60; Small Health Pack (heals 25 health points) - $40;  Large Health Pack (heals 50 health points) - $80;  A Random Item for $80.

Trap Store:  Barbed Wire - $20;  Steel Trap - $30;  Electric Charge - $40;  Mine - $55;  Gas Canister - $70;  Laser Trip - $80.

Weapons Store:  Knife - $45;  Pistol - $60;  Shotgun - $80;  Sniper Rifle - $90;  Uzi - $110;  Laser Gun - $115;  Rocket Launcher - $125.

Equipment Store:  Shovel - $60;  Armor - $110;  Gas Mask - $80;  Night Vision Goggles - $80;  Hacking Device - $110.

Card Store:  Access Card - $40;  Repair Card - $50;  Trap Disarm Card - $70;  Revive Card - $120.

Custom Building Zone:  When the game begins the status of this building is random.  It might need repair, it might need power, and it might have restricted access.  The moment you pass all of these variables the building becomes yours and you have a choice of what the building does for you.  Your choices are to give you additional cash at the end of each of your turns, have it give you a free rare item every time you pass it, or have it heal your health to max for free every time you pass it.

Missile Silo Building:  This building is specific to the War Zone map.  If you have $100 to spare you can buy a missile and send it to another player.  At the beginning of that players turn the missile will hit them and deal 50 damage.

Bio Lab:  This building is specific to the Research Facility map.  When you get here you can purchase a genetic upgrade such as Bio Armor or Increased Speed.  (This building exists, but right now it does nothing.)

Hire Mercenaries:  You can buy a mercenary (a neutral player that is loyal to you) to help you defeat other players.  You can buy a mercenary by himself, with a knife, or with a pistol.  (This building does not exist in the game yet.)

Items

00 - Fusion Cell (power item):  Used at a Custom Building Zone to reduce 2 power points.

01 - Mine (trap item):  Deals 25 damage.

02 - Battery (power item):  Used at Custom Building Zone to reduce 1 power point.

03 - Pistol (weapon item):  Deals 30 damage.

04 - Revive Card (card item):  If you have one in your inventory you will use it when you die and you will come back to life with 65 health.

05 - Laser Trip (trap item):  Deals 40 damage.

06 - Shovel (equipment):  You must have a shovel in your inventory to dig.

07 - Key (key item):  Used at Intersections to bypass the Lock Space.

08 - Rock (sell item):  Sell to make $.

09 - Diamond (sell item):  Sell to make $$$.

10 - Fist (weapon item):  Deals 10 damage.  You cannot buy this in any store.  It is your default weapon when you have no weapon in the weapon slot of your inventory.

11 - Knife (weapon item):  Deals 20 damage.

12 - Access Code:  Right now you can only get this from digging.  It allows you access to a Custom Building Zone if it requires an access code.

13 - Armor (equipment):  When you have this in your inventory all damage, except poison damage, is reduced by 10 points.

14 - Night Vision Goggles (equipment):  This allows you to see what traps are set on the spaces. (this effect is not in the game yet.)

15 - Barbed Wire (trap item):  Deals 10 damage.

16 - Shotgun (weapon item):  Deals 40 damage.

17 - Repair Card (card item):  Used at custom zones to reduce 1 repair point.

18 - Access Card (card item and key item):  Use it at Intersection Spaces to bypass Locked Spaces.

19 - Steel Trap (trap item):  Deals 15 damage.

20 - Trap Disarm Card (card item):  If you have one in your inventory you will automatically use it the next trap you encounter and it will not deal you any damage.  This should get rid of the card and the trap.

21 - Gas Mask (equipment):  If you have this in your inventory you are protected from poison damage which comes from the Gas Canister and the Ground Zero map.

22 - Gas Canister (trap item):  The player that activates this will get poisoned and receive 2 damage every "normal" space for 16 spaces.

23 - Sniper Rifle (weapon item):  Deals 40 damage and Armor has no effect.

24 - Laser Gun (weapon item):  Deals 50 damage.  When used to attack enemy buildings it also short circuits it which makes the building require power.

25 - Electric Charge (trap item):  Deals 20 damage. When used at a Custom Building Zone it short-circuits it, making it require power again.

26 - Uzi (weapon item):  Deals 50 damage.

27 - Hacking Device (equipment):  This alllows you to take control of enemy buildings or take control of buildings that requires an Access Code.

28 - Rocket Launcher (weapon item):  Deals 65 damage. Also deals 10 damage to user. This is the strongest weapon in the game.

Trap Items:  Most traps you get by buying them from the Trap Store.  You can also get a Gas Canister by digging.  Once you have a trap you must set it in your next turn by selecting Use Item from your player menu.

Weapon Items: You get most weapons from the Weapon Store. You can also get the knife from digging. A more powerful weapon will replace a weaker weapon in your weapon slot.  A less powerful weapon will simply be placed in your inventory.  So it is a good practice to sell your weapon first before buying a more powerful one.

Computer AI

All players are against each other. They first check to see if they have a trap in their inventory and they set it if they do.  If not, they have a 20% change to dig that turn. Otherwise they just move normally.

Computers have their cash divided into two accounts. One is used to buy cheap items, the other account saves up cash and tries to buy expensive items.

Some of their behavior can be modified in their Options in the Main Menu.

Under no circumstances will a computer try to buy a Rocket Launcher, Revive Card, or Hacking Device unless you enable Hard Difficulty computers in the options.

Errors I found but do NOT plan on fixing

1)  If all of your inventory slots are full it still looks like you are getting items, but you never actually get the items.  (Your inventory is full, but there is no message about it.)

2)  If you use a Rocket Launcher to attack another player, you both get hurt. But if you both die and there is no one else in the game, the game will say "Player -1 wins." The game has no official way of saying the game ened in a Draw.

3)  When you buy a weapon and it is better than the one currently in your weapon slot in your inventory it automatically replaces it without selling the lesser weapon. So you need to remember to sell the lesser weapon in your weapon slot before you buy the better one.

4)  When buying a Missile you can target yourself and you will get hit on your next turn.  (Silly, but just the way it is!)

5)  (Still debating if this is an actual error, or not.)  The size of the map and the number of trapped spaces ... for example, a small map with 50 spaces would have 10 trap spaces.  A large map, with 150 spaces, would have 30 trap spaces.  If we played a game with all 6 players, using each of these maps, the players would be affected by more traps in the larger map. The players on the larger map would run across more trap spaces and, therefore, lose health quicker than they should.  But I have faith that the shop buildings are spaced apart in good locations that will allow the players to buy health as needed.

6)  Normal game play is if you meet another player you attack them.  But what if you come across a space with more than one player on it.  The Game Maker engine only picks out one player, starting with player 1 and going through to player 6, so you will only attack player 1, even if there are 2 players on the space.

7) The way intersections work allow you to move onto the space you were on before.