PC/CD Gamer UK 6/PCGAMER06.bin/bits/cheet/3ettlers.txt

Text File | 1995-01-06 | 24KB | 487 lines

~The Settlers

A complete selection of hints and tips  -  By Simon Burrows


~`Introduction
~`------------

`Well, it's  a little  time now  since this  smart little strategy
`game from  Blue Byte  software was  released.  It is said to be a
`cross between  Sim City and Populous, but also has links to games
`like Utopia,  Powermonger, Genesia,  and more  vaguely  to  Theme
`Park, Mega  lo Mania  and even  another of Blue Byte's creations,
`Battle Isle.
`
`The game  itself has two titles: "The Settlers" being the English
`release, and  "Serf City:  Life is  Feudal", the  American. It is
`really a  sort of medieval foray in which you must build your own
`little settlement  with the  aim  of  ultimately  attacking,  and
`defeating, your enemies.
`
`After my  successes in  writing about  games like  Sim City 2000,
`Theme Park,  UFO: Enemy  Unknown, and  Desert  Strike,  I've  now
`decided to  create this huge selection of hints and tips to cover
`the widest area of features  deserving of mention in this game.
`
`This documents covers the main aspects of the game  in parts 1 to
`nine,  (for example, buildings, roads, food, mines etc.) then the
`final part, part ten, covers  a very loose step-by-step guide you
`could  follow to  help yourself  through the first few minutes of
`the game.

`Anyway, enough chat.  Onto the tips...



~`                  *             *             *



~`Part One  -  Placing your castle

`Obviously, the  first building  you've got to worry about is your
`castle.   The positioning  of this  at the start of the game is a
`big factor in how successful you can be later on - so choose your
`position wisely.
`
`Firstly, take  a bit of time to survey the whole area to see what
`the possibilities are.  There are a few obvious hints in location
`choice like you must be near mountains, forests and lakes.  Also,
`remember that  deserts are  completely useless,  so it's  no good
`building in one of these.
`
`There are  two options available to you really:  either you place
`your castle  quickly before  his, or you let him go first to give
`yourself longer  to think.   The  first of  those two can lead to
`your opponent  placing his  castle near your border to limit your
`movement once  he knows where you are, but if you take the second
`option you  could find that your opponent takes the prime spot in
`the landscape  leaving  you  in  a  less  desirable  position.  I
`recommend that you take this second option, because, although you
`may lose  out on  the best  spot, this  is far  better than being
`crippled by  your enemy starting up near your border and shutting
`you off from some vital resources.


~`Part Two  -  Starting up

`When you have your castle down you need to start building up your
`little town.   It's quite likely that the area around your castle
`worth building  on   (ie, the  flat land)  is cluttered with rock
`and trees,  so by  placing a  quarryman and  a lumberjack you can
`clear the  area ready  for building,  and  generate  some  useful
`building materials  at the same time.  When the area is clear and
`ready for  building on,  burn down the two huts, and you're ready
`to go.
`
`Probably your  first job  after doing this is to build some guard
`huts at the limits of your territory.  This will expand your area
`quickly, which  is, or  course, one of the main ideas of the game
`in the first place.
`
`Now you  need to think about creating the rest of your town. When
`you initially  start up, don't try to build too many buildings at
`once. If  you do  this, your workers will be slowed down and your
`knights spread thinner over your territory.
`
`At the  beginning of  the game  you will  find that you will need
`quite a lot of everything, but things should get easier as you go
`through.   Just remember  that you  WILL run  out  of  wood,  for
`example, if  you forget to build a sawmill early on, so always be
`on your toes and build everything that you're going to need.
`
`One of  the best  layouts for  a town is to have your castle near
`the centre, and the different 'industries' to each side.  So, for
`example, you could have your castle in the middle, then mines and
`metalworks to one side, food and farming to another, and forestry
`and saw-milling to  a third.  This will reduce travelling time to
`a minimum, and avoid clogging up roads.


~`Part Three  -  Construction

`One thing  to think  about before  constructing a new building is
`enemy presence.   Do  not build anything new if you know that the
`enemy is  within reach,  especially if that enemy is building, or
`is about  to build,  a watch-tower  or guardhouse.   If you do do
`this, and you are unlucky enough for his building to be completed
`before yours,  his border will sometimes approach and invade your
`territory,   cutting off  some of  your buildings.  This leads to
`the building  being destroyed, together with all the stock inside
`it, which is a big loss to any player unless you're cheating!
`
`As well  as putting  buildings near  to the  stocks they will use
`(Eg, fisherman's huts near to the lakes), it is also important to
`think  about   where  to  position  them  in  relation  to  other
`buildings. For  example, buildings  that rely on each other would
`be much  better close  by to save lots of time travelling between
`them,  and   buildings  that  go  together  to  create  a  little
`'production line'  would be  best in  that order,  with the  last
`building near to where the final product will be used. Two useful
`examples of this may be :-

`■  A lumberjack, a forester and a sawmill close by will create an
`   almost constant stream of building planks ready to be sent off
`   to wherever  they're needed,  and it  involves no  interaction
`   with the castle, saving time, and reducing congestion.
`
`■  By having  foundries on the foothills of mined mountains, and
`   then blacksmiths  and toolmakers  in  between  there  and  the
`   castle, you  create a  little production line.  Basically, the
`   iron ore  from the  mine goes  to the  foundry, the  coal from
`   another  mine  and  the  iron  from  the  foundry  go  to  the
`   blacksmith and the toolmakers, then the weapons and tools from
`   the tool-maker  and blacksmith  can be transported directly to
`   the castle for distribution.

`...Creating  these   little  set-ups   will  save   time,  reduce
`congestion, and  probably increase  output as well, so it's worth
`thinking about it when laying down your buildings etc.


~`Part Four  -  Buildings

`Early on  it is  advisable to  set building  occupancy  to  weak,
`because there  is no  need to  guard buildings  which  won't  get
`attacked this  early on  in the  game. It  is far better to leave
`your knights  in the  castle  where  they  will  get  trained  up
`quicker, and  be ready for attack.  Later on in the game when the
`enemy comes  close in  a threatening mood, increase the occupancy
`level again ready for the oncoming attack.
`
`Boatyards are  only important in those levels where there is lots
`of water  about.   Remember that  you will  only need  a  certain
`amount of  boats, so  to conserve wood, turn off it's delivery to
`the boat-yard  as soon as you have enough boats, otherwise you're
`just wasting it.
`
`Obviously castles  are very  important, and  you will undoubtedly
`know quite  a lot  about them  from playing the game and from the
`manual.   One thing  I can add is a little cheaty tip you can use
`when placing your castle.  If your enemy finds an excellent place
`to put  his castle  in a level, immediately restart the level and
`place your castle there before he can!  Ooooh, what fun!
`
`Farms are  the other main food source for your settlement. A farm
`can produce corn for flour then bake the flour for bread, as well
`as growing  corn straight  for pig  food.  (Don't you ever wonder
`where they  get the yeast from??)  You should find that two farms
`will suffice  for a  small settlement, but after a while you will
`find the  need to  build  more  as  demand  for  food  increases.
`Obviously, the  best place for farms is in wide, flat areas where
`farmers can have the best fields.
`
`Fishermen's huts  are also  very important  at the  start of  the
`game, because  fish are  the easiest way of feeding your workers.
`As an  added problem  in the game, it is quite possible to 'over-
`fish' a  lake, so it's best not to build too many huts around one
`lake, and,  instead, to  conserve stocks  by allowing reserves to
`re-build after each fishing spree.
`
`Sawmills are  very important  buildings because  they process the
`trees cut  down by  your woodcutters into planks ready to be used
`in building.  You are really going to need a sawmill right at the
`start of  the game  to get  straight  to  work  at  creating  the
`necessary materials for early building.
`
`A warehouse  is very  similar to a castle, so is a very important
`building and  should be  protected by at least one stronghold. If
`you lose  a warehouse it can be a very big blow to your campaign.
`One of  the best  'uses' of  a warehouse  is for training knights
`because they  will be taught much faster in a warehouse than in a
`stronghold.
`
`These two  are obviously also very important because without them
`you won't  even have  the wood for the sawmill to plank.  Because
`the two  do completely  opposite jobs  (ie, one cutting down, and
`one planting  trees), it's a good idea to have the two working in
`harmony with each other, so that as one chops down an old forest,
`the other  can start planting another.  If you're wondering about
`the best  place to  start a  new forest,  one that  grows on  the
`slopes of  a mountain  is  your  best  bet  since  this  uses  up
`otherwise useless  land and  conserves the flat land for building
`on.


~`Part Five  -  Roads

`If you  are to  become successful  in this  game you will need to
`have a  good road  network at all times. If your network is poor,
`or non-existent,  things can  get completely  clogged up  as  you
`build a bigger and bigger empire.  Important goods can get slowed
`down as  transporters move  less-important goods  out of the way,
`and this  leads to everything slowing down and becoming much less
`efficient!

`The best road-network to construct is a little Milton Keynes type
`grid of  roads that  covers your  whole land.  This is best as it
`gives your  workers and  transporters the best chance of a direct
`route to  their destination,  saving valuable time and helping to
`reduce congestion.
`
`The worst  road-network you can build is one where all roads lead
`to and  from your  major buildings  in sort of star shapes.  This
`doesn't work  at all because, for anyone to go anywhere they have
`to take  long routes  to places  they don't want to go to, before
`they can then go on to their desired destination.
`
`One thing  you musn't  do is  to change  the path  to a  building
`whilst rock  or wood  is being  transported  there.    This  will
`bewilder the  men doing  the transporting,  and more  than  often
`they'll just turn around and head back the way they came!
`
`Another aspect of transporting is the 'flags'.  Transporters will
`always take the shortest route possible to their destination, and
`this is calculated by the number of these 'flags' that are passed
`- the  more 'flags',  the longer  the journey.   Because of this,
`reducing the  number of  flags to  the minimum will also minimise
`transportation times.
`
`When laying roads, try to keep them as flat as possible. If it is
`a necessity to lay a steep road  (appearing red), then put a flag
`either side of the hill, so you have one transporter going up and
`down the  hill slowly,  while other  transporters can go further,
`quicker.

`Whilst building  roads, you must take into consideration the land
`that they  take up.   If  you build too many roads you will start
`taking over  more and  more land  leaving less space for planting
`new trees  to replace  those already cut down.  The more and more
`you do  this the less and less trees you will have in the future,
`and as trees are the most important ingredient in expansion, this
`is no  good thing.   Basically,  although you  do need roads, you
`need to be a little careful in where you put them, so you need to
`plan ahead and not just chuck them down all over the place.


~`Part Six  -  Mining, Tools and Weapons

`When deciding  which mines to build, remember that coal mines are
`far more  important than  the other,  so you should have at least
`twice as many of these that the alternatives.
`
`It is important to get a tool maker up and running BEFORE you run
`out of  tools because  he cannot  make them  quickly.  It doesn't
`really matter  where you  build his hut, so just slot it into any
`available space.
`
`When attack  is impending,  it  is  important  to  build  several
`blacksmiths with  their support  structures, plus  mines and gold
`foundries.   If you  don't take  these precaution  you won't have
`weapon stocks  when battle  arrives, and it will be too late then
`because weapon production is very slow.
`
`It is  best to  space your  blacksmiths, gold mines and foundries
`widely around your land so that your enemy cannot halt your whole
`production   with just  the capture  of one  of your guard posts.
`(Ie,  he  may  stop  the  production  of  one  mine,  foundry  or
`blacksmith, but  you will  have many  others, a long way from the
`captured one, which can continue production for you.)


~`Part Seven  -  Food

`At the very beginning of a new game then the best food to produce
`is fish,  because this  is a quick and easy way to feed your mine
`workers.   All you  need to do is build your fisherman's hut near
`the water and you're away.
`
`One of  the silly  parts of  this game  is the fact that the only
`need for  food is  in feeding  miners. But,  hey, don't complain;
`this means that if, for  some reason, you  don't  have any  mines
`working, you don't need to produce any food at all!

`The above  means that  you don't  need to produce as much food as
`you might  think.  Over-producing just wastes time as your little
`men lug  bread,  bacon  and  fish  around  your  roads,  creating
`congestion too.  It also  means that  if you  are busy making too
`much food  you're wasting  land with  farms that  you don't  even
`need!
`
`If you  do have  mines running  (which 95% of the time you will),
`then  I  recommend  that  you  don't  bother  with  pig  farming.
`Instead, once  you've got up and running a bit, rely less on your
`fisherman by building up until you have three corn farms, a baker
`and two  windmills.   This lot  should do  the job of feeding the
`workers from at least ten mines all year round.


~Part Eight  -  Attacking

`Unlike in  other, similar  games, battle  isn't the  best way  of
`doing things.   It  is far  better to hang on and not fight until
`you absolutely have to, in order to give yourself the best chance
`of winning.  Also, there  is  no  point  in  fighting  for  small
`pickings, so  only fight  when there's  something good  to be won
`like a mountain containing a vital material.
`
`Instead of  directly attacking  your enemy   (ie, sending in your
`knights), it  is better  to  keep  enlarging  your  territory  by
`building guard  posts on  your border.   Doing this gives you the
`opportunity to  rotate your  knights between  the castle  and the
`guardpost, so  some are  defending  the  guardposts,  whilst  the
`others are  training in  the castle.   You can then keep rotating
`this, ensuring  that the  guardposts  are  always  satisfactorily
`defended, and  you will  ultimately get  a good  strong  army  of
`highly ranked knights ready to attack when needed.
`
`Getting your  knights into  good nick  before making  your  first
`attacks is vital.  At the start of the game you'll find that your
`knights have  low armour,  and are in bad training.  The best way
`to get  them trained up is to build plenty of warehouses, because
`they offer  the best  training.  If that's not an option, knights
`can also  be trained  in the  garrisons, although  this  is  less
`proficient.   The best rule to use is that your knights should be
`used as  late as  possible to  give them the best chance of being
`successful.

`The first  thing to  remember is  that only  'military' buildings
`(watch-towers, strongholds,  and guard  towers)   can be attacked
`during play.   The  first  thing  to  do  when  weighing  up  the
`possibility of  attacking a building, or just when trying to find
`out about  it, is  to look at the flag that is flying outside it.
`Of course,  the colour of this immediately shows you who occupies
`the building,  but you'll  also find  that the higher the flag is
`flying on the pole, the more soldiers are defending the building.
`This allows  you to  see whether  it's likely  you'll be  able to
`capture the building or not.
`
`The best  attacking tactic  is to  save your  game  before  every
`battle, and  then again  if you win the battle.  That way, if you
`lose, you  can re-load  and be  none the  worse for  wear.   This
`allows you  to try  some more  risky attacks  like using only one
`captain to  attack an  enemy castle.   This  kind  of  battle  is
`possible to  win -  one in  about five tries usually - so you can
`keep restarting until you make it.
`
`When you  do come to make an attack, don't just attack anything -
`it is  important to make the attack count.  Try to select targets
`that will  cause the  most problems for your enemy if you control
`them.   For example,  if you  can find  a well-used  road in  his
`empire, then  attacking and  controlling this means that whatever
`used to pass down it cannot any more.  An example would be a road
`where raw  materials go  from a  mine to a foundry  -  after all,
`it's no  good your  enemy mining iron ore if he can't get it to a
`foundry to process!

`Another possibility  might be  to attack  and cut  off  a  little
`'pocket' of  your enemy's  territory, so  there's no  way he  can
`expand it or try and get it back.  This allows you to destroy it,
`or keep  it and  gloat to  your enemy for as long or as little as
`you like!
`
`Finally, when  selecting a  post to  attack, look  to see whether
`your opponent  is fickle  enough to  have but  one blacksmith  or
`foundry.   If he  does, and it is possible to attack these, it is
`possible for  you to  halt your  opponent's entire weapon or tool
`production in one fell swoop!
`
`Another good  reason for  attacking might be to take control of a
`guard post  which has  an extremely valuable resource piled up by
`the flag  outside.   It may  get to  the stage  where it is worth
`doing this  at the loss of a few knights, because the resource is
`so valuable  for you  to get control of. (Or, if you're mean like
`that, so your enemy can't have it!)

`If you  are looking  to attack  a big enemy fort, you must have a
`strength and  morale level  of at least 90%.  To increase morale,
`collect gold, as each piece collected will increase your knight's
`morale, and  you'll also find that winning battles has a positive
`effect on morale.  Another thing to think about is your supply of
`weapons. I  suggest that  you build  a weapon  maker as  soon  as
`possible to  give  a  large  collection  of  weapons.    The  raw
`materials needed  for swords  and shields  are coal  and iron, so
`take these into consideration when you position things too.
`
`Another thing  to bear  in mind  with knights is their tiredness.
`If they  have to  walk a long way to the front line they will get
`tired on  the journey  and be  less effective  in battle.   Their
`status is shown with four symbols ranging from active on the left
`to sleeping  on the  right, so refer to this to help you plan out
`battles.


~`Part Nine  -  Defending

`Defensive possibilities  in this  game are  rather limited to say
`the least!   If you find yourself in a situation where your front
`line has  an unsatisfactory number of knights, you can reduce the
`number manning  third line  and inner  guard posts, and some will
`then leave  these areas  and go  back to  the castle.   From  the
`castle the  knights can  then go  onto the front line and man the
`unsatisfactorily defended guard posts. The main problem with this
`method is that the knights will spend a long time walking around,
`so you  must act  quickly so  you don't  get attacked  before the
`knights arrive.
`
`If it comes to the situation where you can see the enemy marching
`upon one  of your  guard posts,  there is little you can do about
`it!   As long as the enemy is still a fair way away,  (if they're
`close you  won't be  able to  do  this)  you  could  destroy  the
`targeted guard  post so  that, although it will be lost, it won't
`get into enemy hands.

`Another possibility  would be  to find the nearest enemy garrison
`and attack  this. If  you are  lucky, your  troops will  begin to
`march on  this, but  they will meet the approaching enemy army on
`the way,  and begin  to attack  them there.  This means that your
`building stays in safety  -  at least for now.  The only thing to
`worry about is the fact that your troops must see the enemy ones,
`or vice-versa,  for the  confrontation to  occur, so if there's a
`mountain in the way, for example, the two armies could march past
`each other and you'll look incredibly silly!


~`Part Ten  -  An Example Step-by-Step Start


~`The following  guide by  no means compensates the tips in parts 1
~`to 9.  It does not cover many aspects of the game, and misses out
~`some vital  tips.   It's just  a quick piece to help you get into
~`the game and start your own little civilisation.

`The first  decision is  placing your  castle.  It might be a good
`idea to survey the different mining locations first, and position
`it at  the best of these; one with water and forests if possible.
`The first  buildings to  construct should  be guard posts on your
`border to expand territory.
`
`After this  you can loosely say that you now need at least one of
`each construction except for the boat yard, butcher and pig farm.
`The first  to get up and running should be some mines, so get the
`geologists out  and find  some good  mines, then get them set-up.
`Next you'll  need to find some food for the miners, so build 1 or
`2 fisherman's huts by a lake.
`
`Next you  need some building materials. Build a woodcutter with a
`forester so  that one  compensates for  the other,  then build  a
`stone cutter.  When the latter of these has exhausted the surface
`stone in  the area,  burn down his hut then build another for him
`somewhere else,  otherwise he'll  be forever perambulating around
`your land trying to find his way home!
`
`You now  need to  convert the  logs from the woodcutter into some
`wood planks  ready for  building.   To do  this, build  a sawmill
`close to  your  castle.    As  well  as  this,  build  the  other
`manufacturing buildings,  going in  the order of production, with
`the final  building closest  to your  castle   (ie, mine furthest
`away, then  foundry, then  tool-maker, blacksmith  and  goldsmith
`closest to the castle).
`
`Soon you will find that your miners start running out of food, so
`get a corn farm up and running.  To process it's corn you'll also
`need a windmill or a baker nearby.
`
`As your  power becomes  greater, it  would help  to build  a  new
`goldsmith to  get more morale-boosting gold, and another armourer
`to increase your fighting power.
`


~`                    That'll do for now folks...

~`     Hope this increases your success in this smart game...

~`                         Simon Burrows