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| Index |
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| Getting Started |
| The first page you will see when entering the site is the Home Page and Login Bar. It is recommended that you first sign up and then apply to a campaign, then sign up to a faction. This will get you into the game as soon as possible. To learn how to do this please read the sections related to that below before moving on, the more advanced operations can be left until you have got a grasp of the campaign. If you become stuck at any point you can ask for further help on the forum. |
| Home Page |
| The Home Page provides a brief introduction to the site, giving a simple explanation of what the site contains and directing the user to various pages of interest. The page has a list of currently running campaigns at the bottom of the page. It also contains the Main Menu. |
| Main Menu |
The Main Menu is at the top of every page on the site, to provide quick access to key areas of the site, such as the Home Page,
Campaign Rules and Site Help pages.
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| Login Bar |
| The Login Bar is located at the very top of every page. It is the main method of navigation around the site once the user has logged in. The user can sign up to the site using the 'Sign up here' link to be taken to the Sign Up page. Once the user has registered they can log into the site by entering their name and password into the text boxes and pressing the submit button. If the user does not wish to have to log in every time they visit the site they can check the 'Remember me' box, and they will be automatically logged in next time they visit the site. |
| Sign Up |
| Users must join the website by signing up using the Sign Up page. Users should enter their LSN Player Names into the site so that when challenges are sent to the game server during the course of the campaign the names are recognised. An E-mail address is not necessary but may be included so that any administrators needing to contact a user will be able to find them easily. Finally a password is required, and then the user should click the 'Submit' button in order to complete their registration. |
| Navigation Menu |
| Once a user has registered to the site and has logged in, the Login Bar is replaced with the Navigation Menu. The Navigation Menu is a customised menu that changes, adding and removing options according to a user's status. On the left the Menu displays the name of the user who is currently logged in. The options on the Navigation Menu will be discussed below. |
| Log Out |
| If the currently displayed user is incorrect the user can click on the 'Log Out' link to log out of the site and return to the Login Bar. Clicking the 'Log Out' link also clears the 'Remember me' option selected from the Login Bar. The user should also refresh the page if they wish to log back in immediately as a different user. |
| Messages |
| Every user has access to the Messages section once they have successfully logged in to the site. The messages section is a very basic private messaging system where registered users of the site may contact each other with private messages. |
| Deleting a Message |
| A message is deleted by selecting the tick box in the leftmost column and then selecting 'Delete'. Deleted messages are represented by having a black line through the text on their bar. |
| Undeleting a Message |
| A message can be undeleted by selecting the tick box in the leftmost column and then selecting 'Undelete'. The text on the messages bar will then return to normal. |
| Purging Deleted Messages |
| Once a message has been deleted it can be 'Purged' or permanently removed. This is done by selecting 'Purge Deleted'. All of the deleted messages in the users Message Inbox will then be removed permanently. |
| Viewing a Message |
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Messages can be viewed by clicking on either the message sender's name in the From column, or the subject of the message, in the
Title column. This will then take you to the View Message page. The message will then be displayed. The user can then select 'Inbox' if they wish to be returned to the Messages Index page, or they can select 'Reply', if they wish to reply to the message they have received. If the user decides to reply to the message they will be taken to the 'New Message' page, with the Send To, Title and Content fields already filled in with the appropriate details, they just need to add to the Content of the message and send it. |
| Creating a New Message |
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A user may create a New Message by selecting 'Create New Message'. The user will then be taken to the New Message page. The user must select a user to send the message to from the 'Send To' selection box. The drop down list is full of all of the site's registered users in alphabetical order. The user must then give the message a title and some content. Once these fields have been filled then the user must select 'Save Message' to send the message. The user will then receive a confirmation that this has been successfully completed. If the user does not wish to send the message at any time they can select 'Inbox' and return to the Message Index page. |
| Control Panel |
| Every user has a Control Panel, which is accessed through the Navigation Menu. There are many options within each user's Control Panel, which depend on the current status of the user. The options available in the Control Panel, and exactly when they will be available, will be explained below. |
| Join a Campaign |
| To join a campaign the user must select a campaign from the drop down list in the 'Select Campaign' field. The list contains all of the available, currently running campaigns. The user must then select 'Join Campaign' to submit the form. The user will then be able to see the option to leave the campaign in their Control Panel, and they will not be able to join another campaign. |
| Apply for a Campaign |
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If a user wishes to apply for their own campaign, where they will be the Campaign Administrator, and unable to play in the campaign,
then they must fill in the form as told below The user must completely fill in the form and then submit it to the Website Administrator. There is no guarantee that the proposal will be accepted. To begin with the user must enter an appropriate campaign name in order for the campaign to be considered, the user must also select a map that the campaign will be played on from a select list of all available maps in the 'Select Map' field. Finally the user must select players for each of the starting 4 factions. Each of the 4 players must be different and they must be asked, and permission obtained from them, before you apply for the campaign. The Website Administrator will check that all of the users asking to join have agreed to be part of the campaign before accepting the campaign. |
| Leave Campaign |
| Once you have joined a campaign you will have the option to leave that campaign. The name of the campaign you have currently joined is displayed in red. By selecting 'Leave Campaign' you will leave the campaign and any factions you may have joined. Any units you may have been assigned will be returned to the Faction General. This option is not available to Generals. |
| Apply to Faction |
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Once you have joined a campaign, this option will become available. This option is not available to players who are a Faction General. The 'Select Faction' select list contains all of the factions that are in the campaign that you have joined. To apply to one of them the user needs to select their name from the list and then select 'Apply to Faction'. The following message will appear at the top of the page: You have applied to Faction: Example Faction Cancel Application The 'Apply to Faction' option will now not be available to you, as you can only apply to one faction at a time. If you wish to cancel your application to this faction you can select 'Cancel Application' and this notice will disappear and the option 'Apply to Faction' will return. While you may have applied to the faction, you will not be a part of the faction until you have been accepted by the Faction General. Once you have been accepted the following notice will appear at the top of the page: You are a member of Faction: Example Faction The option to 'Apply to Faction' will also have returned. If you choose to apply to another faction while you are part of a faction and your application is accepted, you and any units you control will switch sides to the other faction. This application can still be cancelled in the same way as a normal faction application. |
| Create a New Faction |
| Once the user has control of at least one unit, and is the not the Faction General, a new option will appear. If a user creates a new faction he will take a portion of his current faction's bank and become completely independent of them. Any units that the user controls will move with him to the new faction. To create a new faction the user just has to enter a new faction name in the 'New Faction Name' field, and select a default race for his faction. The default race of a faction means that the faction is only able to produce units of this race. The user must then select 'Create New Faction' to submit the form. The new faction will then be automatically created. |
| Retire from General |
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A user must be the Faction General in order to have this option visible. If the faction contains other users then the option will have a 'Select New General' select list. The user must select a replacement General from the available users in the 'Select New General' field. Then the user must select 'Retire'. The user will then be removed from General and the replacement will be promoted. All of the users units will be transferred to the new General. The user will remain a member of the faction, but will initially control no units. However, if the faction contains no other users then the option will contain the text 'Retiring now will destroy your Faction' instead of a select list. All the user needs to do is to select 'Retire'. As there is no one to replace the user once they retire the faction will be defeated. All of the factions units will be disbanded, it's resources will become neutral, any alliances or trades will be deleted and the user will have left the campaign. |
| Accept Player into your Faction |
| This option is always available to Generals, however if no applications have been submitted then there will simply be a notice saying that 'You have no applications to join your faction'. If you have applications the option will contain a 'Select Player' select list. The 'Select Player' select list contains the names of users that have applied to the user's faction. To accept a user into your faction you select the user's name from the list and then select 'Accept into Faction'. The user will then become a member of the user's faction. |
| Unit Panel |
| The Unit Panel becomes available in the Navigation Menu once a user has been accepted into a faction. The Unit Panel contains all of the options relating to the handling of the units. |
| Reassign a unit |
| To reassign a unit the user must first select one of his units from the 'Select Unit' select list. He must then select a user from the 'Select Player' list. The 'Select Player' select list contains the names of other users in the user's faction. Once both of these fields have been filled in, the user must select 'Save Assignment' for the unit to be reassigned. |
| Order a new unit |
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Only Generals are able to order new units. In order for a user to be able to order a new unit they must have a Spaceport to place
the new unit on, the Spaceport cannot have any other unit on top of it. Units are purchased at a rate of 1¢ per FP, and the smallest
unit available to be purchased is 10FPs, so the user must also have at least 10¢ in their faction's bank to purchase a 10FP unit. To purchase a unit the user must select a Spaceport from the 'Select Spaceport' select list, and then they must select a size for the new unit from the 'Select New Unit size' select list. This select list is limited to 30FP, or less depending on the amount of credits in the faction's bank. Finally the user must enter a suitable name for the new unit and select 'Order Unit'. The new unit will then be available to the user and the relevant amount of credits will be deducted from the faction's bank. |
| Reinforce a unit |
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Only Generals can reinforce units. Similarly to ordering a new unit the cost of reinforcing a unit is 1¢ per 1FP, and the user's
faction's bank must have enough money to reinforce the unit to at least 10FP in size. Also a unit must be next to, or on, a Spaceport
or Outpost in order to be reinforced. Reinforcing a unit counts as that unit's action for the turn. To reinforce a unit the user must select a unit from the 'Select a Unit' select list. The unit's current size is shown next to the unit's name in the list. If there are no viable units then this list will be empty. The user must then select a unit size from the 'Select New Unit size' select list. This value represents the new size of the unit once it has been reinforced. The user must then select 'Reinforce Unit', the units size will be altered to the value selected and the relevant amount of credits will be deducted from the faction's bank. |
| Splitting a Unit |
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A user must have a unit of at least 20FPs that has not moved in order for this option to be available. New units must be at least
10FPs in size and a unit can not be reduced to less than 10FP deliberately by a user. Splitting a unit counts as the unit's action
for the turn and the newly created unit will not be able to move until next turn. The new unit must be placed in a square next to the
existing unit. The square can't be next to an enemy unit, as a new unit can not enter combat straight away. Unavailable squares have
a red filter over the top to show that a new unit can not be created there. A new unit can also not be placed on a square that is
already occupied. To split a unit the user must first enter an appropriate name for the new unit being created, and then they must select a size for the new unit. The value in the 'Existing Units New Value' field will automatically change as the new unit size is changed, indicating to the user how large the existing unit will be. The user must then click on an available square in the mini-map representation of the existing unit, in order to select the square that the new unit will be created in. |
| Campaign Overview |
The Campaign Overview page provides a view of the user's faction, and a far less detailed overview of the other factions in the
campaign, for the users participating in the campaign. This view allows users to see who else in the same faction as them, and who
is a member of an enemy faction. It also lists all of the resources under the faction's control. Below is an explanation of the
fields shown in the Campaign Overview:
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| Map |
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The map is where users can see how the campaign is developing, where their opponents and allies are, plan their tactics and most
importantly move their units. The map also has a key at the bottom of the page to explain what all of the squares and images
represent, some of these will be briefly explained below. The lighter areas of the map show the visible area of the map,
incorporating the vision range of all of your units, as well as that of any allies you may have. The greyed out areas of the
map represent areas beyond your unit's vision range. Enemy units are only visible if they are inside the vision range of your
unit. The squares with red filters on indicate a resource that belongs to an enemy faction. The main purpose of the map is to move units and begin battles. To move a unit the user must first select the unit to move. To do this they must click on the image of one of their units, they will only be able to click on units that have not moved already that turn. The map will then change and a number of squares surrounding the unit will have red borders. The squares with red borders are squares that the unit can be moved into. Units movement range is extended by one if they use a road at any point of the journey and their range is restricted by forests, mountains and rivers for heavy units, only light units may cross rivers. To move the unit the user must select one of the squares with a red border, the unit will then be moved. If the unit moves next to an enemy unit which is not already involved in a battle, a battle will begin and the units will not be able to move until a winner has been decided and the battle has been completed. A unit may only be engaged in one battle at a time, so any units moving next to them will not start a new battle, but will be able to move past the unit. If the user moves next to two enemy units, they will engage the unit with the largest FP. If a battle finishes and there is an enemy unit next to the winning unit, a new battle will begin automatically. |
| Alliances |
| The Alliances section is only open to Generals. Alliances can be made between any of the factions within a campaign. An alliance must be proposed and then accepted by the other faction before it becomes official. Factions that are allied to each other are not able to attack each other, and the allies are able to share the vision of their troops, all of the map that is visible to one ally, is visible to the other as well. The alliance index screen is split into 3 sections, which are explained in detail below. |
| Create New Alliance |
| To create a new alliance the user must select 'Create New Alliance' from the alliance index page, they will then be taken to the New Alliances page. To propose a new alliance the user must first select a faction name from the 'Send proposal to' select list. The list will be automatically updated to only include valid factions, for example excluding factions you already have an alliance with. The user must then select 'Submit Alliance' for the proposal to be submitted. The user can also select 'Back' at any point to return to the Alliances Index. |
| Current Alliances |
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This section is a summary of existing alliances. If the user has no current alliances there will be a notice saying 'You currently
have no alliances'. Alliances that have been ended have a 3 turn timer, beginning on the next turn, before the alliance is officially
ended. This prevents an ally from moving troops into an attacking position, then suddenly ending the alliance and launching a
surprise attack. The timer gives both sides time to prepare for the end of the alliance. To end an alliance the user must select 'End Alliance' from the row that represents the alliance they wish to end. The option 'End Alliance' will then disappear and the Countdown for that alliance will begin. |
| Proposed Alliances |
| This section of the page contains a list of the proposed alliances if there are any. If the user has no alliances proposed there will be a notice saying 'You currently have no proposed alliances'. To accept an alliance the user must select 'Accept', the alliance will then begin and will disappear from the 'Proposed Alliances' section and appear in the 'Current Alliances' section. To decline an alliance the user must select 'Decline', the proposed alliance will then be cancelled and the proposal will be removed. |
| Your Proposed Alliances |
| 'Your Proposed Alliances' lists any alliances that you may have proposed to other factions. The purpose of this section is so that you can cancel a proposal before it is accepted by the other faction. To cancel a proposed alliance select 'Cancel' in the row that represents the proposal you wish to cancel. The proposal will then be deleted and will be removed from your 'Your Proposed Alliances' section and the other factions 'Proposed Alliances' section. |
| Trades |
| The Trades section is only available to Generals. The purpose of the Trades section is to provide a way for factions to trade credits between them. This can be used for many reasons, selling resources, helping allies, or even trading units or players. The Trades page is split into three sections which are explained in more detail below. |
| Create New Proposal |
| To create a new alliance the user must select 'Create New Proposal' from the Trades index page, they will then be taken to the New Trades page. To propose a new Trade the user must first select a faction name from the 'Send proposal to' select list. They must then enter the number of credits they wish to trade in the 'Amount' field. Finally the user must enter a description of what he wishes to Trade. This must be clear as any problems later must be sorted out by the Campaign Administrator, who should be able to understand the proposal. The user must then select 'Save Trade' for the proposal to be submitted. The credits in the Amount field will be removed from the faction's bank and saved, they will be returned to the faction if the trade is cancelled at any point, or given to the other faction if the trade is completed. The user can also select 'Back' at any point to return to the Trades Index. |
| Received Trade Proposals |
| This section lists all of the trades that have been proposed to the user. To accept the trade the user must select 'Accept' the trade will then be listed in the 'Accepted Trade Proposals' section. To decline a trade the user must select 'Decline', the proposal will then be deleted and removed from your 'Received Trade Proposals' section. |
| Sent Trade Proposals |
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'Sent Trade Proposals' lists any trade proposals that you have sent to other factions. The purpose of this section is so that you
can cancel a proposal before it is accepted by the other faction. To cancel a proposed alliance select 'Cancel' in the row that
represents the proposal you wish to cancel. The proposal will then be deleted and will be removed from your 'Sent Trade Proposals'
section and the other factions 'Received Trade Proposals' section. The 'Status' of the proposal indicates at what stage the proposal
is at. 'None' means that the proposal has not been accepted or declined, 'Accepted' means that the proposal has been accepted by the
other faction. Once a proposal has been accepted and then completed the row in the 'Sent Trade Proposals' section will change to have a 'Remove' option instead of a 'Cancel' option, and the Status of the trade will become 'Completed'. This will show the user that their proposal has been completed. If the user is satisfied with the conclusion they can remove the proposal by selecting 'Remove', otherwise they should contact the Campaign administrator and complain about the other faction illegally completing the Trade. |
| Accepted Trade Proposals |
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This section displays the proposals that you have accepted. Once the trade has been successfully completed, by fulfilling whatever
was detailed in the Proposal field, the user may complete the trade by selecting 'Complete'. The credits in the Amount field will
then be placed in the faction's bank and the trade will be deleted from the users 'Accepted Trade Proposals' section and listed as
'Completed' in the other faction's 'Sent Trade Proposals' section. The user can also cancel the trade at any time after accepting it, this will return the credits to the other faction's bank and the proposal will be deleted. |
| Administrator Panel |
| The Administrator Panel is only available to Campaign Administrators. |
| Process Turn |
This option does a number of tasks when a turn is processed; all the user needs to do is to select the 'Process Turn' button. The
process turn button causes the following tasks to be performed in this order:
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