This topic describes
what to do when you
start the game as a new player.Home
World
Your new player character spawns in a city on your home world, usually in the town square of the capital city of your empire. Your DNA is determined by the sentient race of your home world.
Targoss
Targoss approaches and begins to speak.
Targoss is a non-player character of your race. Targoss teaches you the basics of moving around and interacting with the game environment.
Command
a Spacecraft
Assume command of
a spacecraft. Start by locating a
spacecraft that is waiting for a captain and crew.Spacecraft are manufactured at the capital city of most empires. Other cities may also manufacture spacecraft. Spacecraft are manufactured on the ground and in orbit.
Go to the spaceport to find a new spacecraft that has been manufactured on the ground. New spacecraft spawn on a paved slab next to a spacecraft factory when they are manufactured on the ground. Top-down view (Backspace) may help find the spaceport.
If no spacecraft is found on the ground, look for one in orbit. New spacecraft spawn near a space station when they are manufactured in orbit. Go to a space station to find a new spacecraft that has been manufactured in orbit.
Once you are aboard a new
spacecraft, read How
to Command Spacecraft.Here are some suggestions for things to do with your new spacecraft and crew.
Transport
Passengers. There
is no cost to board passengers
and you make money when they debark somewhere besides where they
boarded. The most money is made when passengers debark in a different
solar system from where they boarded.
Trade
Cargo. Trading
cargo has some risk as prices
vary according to supply and demand. The officer in command
spends money from the ship's fund to buy cargo and then tries to sell
that cargo for a profit somewhere else.
Explore
the Galaxy. Your
empire may reward exploration.
Open the Governance (F12) window and select the Rewards tab to see what
rewards your emperor has set for exploration activities. Note that
rewards accumulate as a personal debt to your character. You must go to a bank of your empire
to collect the rewards you have earned.
Colonize
Worlds. Your
empire may permit and even
reward colonization of new worlds. Colonization requires you to build a city. Open the Governance (F12)
window and select the Policy tab to see whether your empire allows
players to build cities. Explore the harsh inferno and frigid worlds
for rare materials.
Military
Conquest. Your
empire may have enemies that
need to be crushed. Open the Governance (F12) window and select
the Policy tab to view the political stance of your empire toward other
known empires. Use troops and spacecraft to destroy enemy units and
conquer enemy cities.- Command a Fleet. As a result of colonization, or other
activities, you may become the administrator of a sector of space. Every
habitable world in your sector can produce an officer that is in your
chain of command, if it has an airport terminal and a spacecraft
factory. Place each officer in command of a ship and crew. Use them for
military conquest or set up trade missions to transport passengers,
trade cargo, and patrol the space in your domain.
Adventure.
Use the Comm
(F3) window to check for
jobs available. Some jobs are only available to spacecraft
captains. Note: Story lines for adventure are
not yet complete, except Targoss' simple start-up tutorial. This notice
will be removed when more adventures become available.
Boarding
a Space Station
To get aboard a space
station, hail it on the comm. Open
the
Comm (F3) window and select the Hail channel. If necessary, open a new
Hail channel using the list of standard channels. Press the Hail button
to broadcast a hail message.
Each station in range will
answer by opening a new channel on your comm that is the name of the
station. Select a station's
channel and request a beam-up. The station
will initiate a transporter beam if it is equipped with a transporter
room and it is orbiting the planet you are on.
If a station has no
transporter room, locate a vehicle that can take you there. At
the
spaceport there may be a space fighter or space rocket that has spawned
on a paved slab next to an aircraft factory. Use one of these vehicles
to fly to a space station.
Space stations orbit a
planet at its equator. Fly around the planet near the equator to
find a space station. A
navigation beacon on the station helps you find it.
Space stations maintain
stocks of useful equipment, such as environment suits. Once
aboard the
space station, go to a cargo hold or living quarters. Use the Cargo
(F5) window to transfer an environment suit and helmet into your
inventory. Use the Personal Equipment (F4) window to wear the
environment suit and helmet; drag the items to the appropriate spots to
wear them. Right-click on the helmet to open and close the visor.Hitch
Hiking
An alternative to
commanding a spacecraft is to join the
crew of a spacecraft. This can also be helpful when there are
no
spacecraft available in your home solar system.
Request a berth aboard a spacecraft. Open
the Comm (F3)
window
and select the Hail channel. If necessary, open a new Hail channel
using the list of standard channels. Adjust the range to Galaxy range.
Press the Request Berth button to broadcast a message.Berth requests may
be transmitted on any comm channel.
The Hail channel is used in this example to contact everyone. It
would
also be appropriate to use the Friend or Empire channels, or any other
channel on which someone is listening.
An officer of a spacecraft may
Accept your berth request.
After your berth request is
accepted, initiate a spawn recall. You will respawn in your
berth
aboard the newly assigned ship.