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*    STELLAR 7 FROM SIERRA/DYNAMIX - USA VERSION - CRACKED BY DEFJAM    * 
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DOC'S STOLEN BY : FALLEN ANGEL/COPS 
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INTRO : 
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Gir Draxon, Supreme Overlord of the evil Arcturan Empire, is preparing to 
launch an attack on Earth.  As Commander of Terran Forces assigned to 
protect the planet, your mission is to reach the Arcturan star system and 
destroy Draxon before he can assemble his forces and capture Earth. 
 
To help combat the powerful Arcturan Armada, Terran High Command has placed 
you at the controls of the Raven, Earth's most sophisticated fighting 
machine.  From the command seat of the Raven, you must face Arcturan forces 
in seven different star systems.  If you sucessfully destroy enough of the 
enemy forces in one star system, a Guardian will appear.  If the Guardian is 
battled and defeated a Warp Link will appear.  Drive into the Warp Link to 
transport yourself into the next star system.  Upon reaching the seventh 
system, Arcturus, you must locate and destroy Gir Draxon's flagship.  Should 
you succeed, Earth will be saved.  Failure will leave your home planet 
defenseless against Draxon's assault and guarantee Earth's destruction! 
 
This manual gives you a complete description of the Raven's awesome power. 
Refer to the CAPABILITIES section to learn all about the best technology 
that Terran science has to offer. 
 
Also, in the STRATEGIES section, Terran designers and engineers have 
prepared a set if valuable hints and tips to help you gain the best use of 
the Raven. 
 
The Arcturan Armada contains twelve known enemy vehicles.  You can learn 
about each of them by studying the EMEMY FILES section of the manual. These 
files contain all of the information Terran High Command has gathered on 
each Arcturan vehicle.  You can also get this information on-screen by 
selecting BRIEFING from the main menu before you begin your mission. 
 
CONTROLS : 
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Power Module Activation Keys: 
        Inviso Cloak            I 
       Jump Thruster            J 
             RC Bomb            B 
           Cat's Eye            C 
          Eel Shield            E 
        Super Cannon            S 
         MP Thruster            T 
 
        Joystick Button One             Fire Cannon 
                  Space Bar             Fire Cannon 
        Joystick Button Two             Select Power Module 
                        Tab             Select Power Module 
      Joystick Both Buttons             Activate Selected Power 
                     Return             Activate Selected Power 
                        F10             Display Preferences Menu 
                         F2             Sound/Music ON/OFF 
                      Alt-S             Sound Effects ON/OFF 
                      Alt-M             Music ON/OFF 
                      Alt-J             Joystick ON/OFF 
                      Alt-C             Joystick Calibration 
                      Alt-D             Mouse ON/OFF 
                          P             Pause ON/OFF 
                          Z             Zoom ON/OFF 
                        ESC             Abort Mission 
                      Alt-Q             Quit to DOS 
 
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MENUS : 
 
        BEGIN: 
                Starts a mission 
 
        BRIEFING: 
                An overview of Draxon's Forces 
 
        PREFERENCES: 
                Allows custom tailoring or your mission to suit nearly any 
                experience level or machine speed.  The GRAPHIC DETAIL 
                slider allows you to turn up & down the level of detail in 
                the game.  Use this on slower machines. Difficulty levels 
                determine the number of Power Modules present at the 
                beginning of game play & scoring. 
 
        SCORES: 
                View the top ten Raven Pilots. 
 
        EXIT: 
                To DOS dumbshit. 
 
        RAVEN'S COCKPIT: 
                Once in the Raven's cockpit there are several menu options 
                available: 
 
                PREFERENCES: Available by pressing F10 key.  The in-game 
                version contains controls for sound, music, joystick and 
                graphic detail.  This menu can be brought up during a 
                mission EXCEPT during story panels and planetary warp. 
 
                EXIT MISSION: Available by pressing ESC key.  Allows abort. 
 
                QUIT GAME: guess... 
 
CAPABILITIES : 
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The common name for project XCV Agl-2 was originally "The Nighthawk." 
However, a bad circuit garbled the Inviso Audio feedback, making the noise 
sound more like a raven than a nighthawk.  Everyone involved in the project 
began to jokingly refer to it as "The Raven."  The bad circuit was never 
replaced, and the new name stuck. 
 
The Raven is equipped with the most advanced technology Terran science has 
ever assembled.  The following is a description of the Raven's finer points 
and their operation.  This machine is extremely powerful, but it is not 
indestructible. The energy reserves must never reach total depletion. 
Without power, the Raven's shields will fall and the ship's extremely 
delicate hull will be totally vunerable.  One direct hit on the Raven's 
unprotected hull and the craft will explode. 
 
The Raven is equipped with the completely redesigned Anti-gravity Generator 
(Agrav Generator). The new Agrav design allows the Raven to sustain a 
clearance of one-half meter from the ground, permitting the craft to glide 
over nearly any surface.  This ability also allows the Raven to carry 
heavier defensive weaponry than conventional assult vehicles without a 
sacrifice of speed. 
 
                             THE COCKPIT 
 
   CENTER TOP: The bird glows while cloaking is active.  Flashes to indicate 
               impending cloaking activation & deactivation. 
   CENTER TOP: Current planetary system shown under the bird. 
CENTER SCREEN: Targeting ring. 
   LOWER LEFT: Display of: 
                 - Current active power (highlighted) 
                 - Number of uses remaining for each power (dots in icon). 
 LOWER CENTER: Radar screen. 
 LOWER CENTER: Energy Level (under radar screen). 
  LOWER RIGHT: Game score. (above cannon indicator). 
  LOWER RIGHT: Cannon indicator. RED is cannon ready, Blue means reloading. 
 
                            STANDARD ISSUE 
 
PROTONIC SHIELDS:  Standard issue defensive shields, the Prontonic units are 
capable of absorbing almost all forms of energy, including heat, kinetic 
energy, and radiation.  They provide protection against shells, lasers, and 
high speed collisions.  However, each time the shields are hit or impacted 
the system energy depletes slightly.  As stated previously, complete energy 
depletion will result in shield failure and complete vulnerability.  The 
next hit will be your last.  A warning bell will sound when the energy 
levels go citical. 
 
BI-PHASAL THUNDER CANNON:  Standard issue defensive weapon fires shells 
armed with limited nuclear warheads.  Each shell is capable of penetrating 
.1 meters of armor.  The Cannon's fire rate is 2 shells per volley.  Between 
volleys, there is a delay to allow the next 2 shells to be loaded and armed. 
 
RADAR: The Raven is indicated by the stationary dot in the center of the 
scope and all scanned objects in front of the Raven will appear relative to 
this central dot.  Objects in front of the Raven will appear at the top of 
the central dot while objects behind the craft will appear below the central 
dot.  The Raven's radar is thermal, motion and electromagnetic sensitive. 
It can therefore distingish between land masses, missles and other vehicles. 
This also gives the Raven's system an advantage over more traditional radar 
detectors in that it cannot be fooled by electromagnetic tricks employed by 
cloaking devices. 
 
ZOOM MAGNIFICATION:  This device permits long-range scanning through the 
viewscreen.  It is most useful for identifying distant objects.  Note that 
Zoom narrows the Raven's field of vision significantly, and should be used 
only for short periods of time. 
 
                                POWER MODULES 
 
Along with a standard weapons and shield system, the Raven is capable of 
adapting to any environment by utilizing a modual defensive system in it's 
design.  The craft is capable of acquiring and incorporating weapons systems 
from a variety of enemy vehicles to strengthen and enhance its own defensive 
capabilities.  NOTE: Each Power Module can be immediately activated with its 
keyboard hot key. 
 
INVISO CLOAK GENERATOR (Hot Key "I"): 
        This device is capable of generating a negative electromagnetic 
        field, redering the Raven invisible to all electromagnetic sensory 
        devices.  When active, enemy units will be unable to track the 
        Raven.  They will, however, have a fix on the Raven's last visible 
        location.  Furthermore, the Raven's location will be temporarily 
        revealed whenever the cannon is fired.  The Inviso Cloak Indicator 
        will begin to blink when invisibility is about to deactivate. 
 
EEL SHIELD (Hot Key "E"): 
        Capable of rechanneling an enemy's shield energy back into itself, 
        the Eel Shield makes ramming an effective defensive maneuver.  When 
        contact is made with an alien craft, their shield is reversed, 
        turning the protective field inward, compressing itself and 
        destroying the generating vehicle.  Even the most deflective shields 
        will buckle after several contacts. 
 
SUPER CANNON (Hot Key "S"): 
        Capable of repeated firings without the reload time associated with 
        the Bi-Phasal Thunder Cannon, the Super Cannon is capable of 
        delivering a rapid fire volley of missles.  Its firepower is also 
        more than double that of the Bi-Phasal. 
 
MP THRUSTER (Hot Key "T"): 
        The MP Thruster gives a short but powerful forward surge for 
        situations when conventional speed will prove insufficient.  NOTE: 
        The MP Thruster cannot be used to maneuver in reverse. 
 
CAT'S EYE (Hot Key "C"): 
        Though Terran technology is quite advanced, it is theorized that 
        cloaking technology is possessed by others.  Therefore, it became 
        important to establish a defensive system for such possible 
        "invisible threats" and the Cat's Eye was born.  The system uses a 
        particle tracking radar to reassemble the scrambled rays left by all 
        known cloaking systems.  With the Cat's Eye operational, the Raven's 
        pilot will see a computer simulated image of any cloaked vehicle 
        within the main viewing screen. 
 
RC BOMB (Hot Key "B"): 
        A throwback to ancient land based warfare, the RC Bomb is an advance 
        on an old and reliable system.  Small but deadly electrical 
        discharge units are released by the Raven's rear deployment panel. 
        These units remain inactive until an electrical field interrupts the 
        RC Bomb's twelve meter scan radius.  When the perimeter is broken, 
        the unit explodes with a concentrated electron polarization beam, 
        causing the invader's atomic structure to dramatically shift which 
        leads to nuclear explosion.  NOTE: The Raven's electrical field 
        pattern has been coded into the memory of all RC Bombs carried 
        during your mission.  Therefore, you can never accidentally activate 
        a released mine with your own craft. 
 
JUMP THRUSTER (Hot Key "J"): 
        The Jump Thruster enables the Raven to complete a sustained vertical 
        lift for several seconds, increasing the Agrav Generator's usual 
        clearance to several hundred feet.  When activated immediately after 
        the MP Thruster, the Jump Thruster can enable the Raven to literally 
        "jump" over enemies or obstacles.  NOTE: Directional control will be 
        lost while elevated by the Jump Thruster. 
 
                                  ENEMY FILES 
 
In his quest to rule Earth, and everything else he can get his metallic 
hands on, Gir Draxon has sent out the most advanced and destructive fighter 
craft Terran forces have ever seen.  You will battle with his Arcturan 
forces on seven different Star Systems, making your way closer and closer to 
Draxon's home world, Arcturus.  Each System holds new dangers, more lethal 
enemies and a Planetary Guardian which will have to be defeated before 
progression to the next Planetary System will be possible.  Terran 
intelligence has been able to gather little information on Draxon's Armada 
but what is available is presented to you in the following enemy files.  Use 
this information well and know that the fate of the earth lies in your 
hands.... 
 
                (what followed was a bunch of graphics i'm not 
            about to try and copy.  fuck it.  shoot 'em all.  to see 
             what they look like, check out the briefing screen.) 
 
                                ALLIED FILES 
 
Unique to the Raven is its ability to add on Power Modules that give the 
craft expanded powers.  Some modules will be in place at the beginning of 
the mission, depending upon difficulty level selection (see below). 
Additional modules can be obtained throughout the game by the destruction of 
enemy vehicles in groups of three.  The enemies must be of the same type and 
must be destroyed sequentially.  When this is accomplished, a Power Module 
will be released.  The Raven can collect released modules by simply driving 
into them. 
 
The destruction of different enemy groups will yield different Power 
Modules.  Following is a listing of available modules, their accompanying 
enemy group and the number the Raven begins with for varying difficulty 
levels: 
 
                                             INITIAL COUNT/DIFFICULTY LEVEL 
POWER MODULE            ENEMY GROUP           EASY    STANDARD    DIFFICULT 
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Inviso Cloak            Fuel Bay Docking        3        3            3 
Jump Thrusters          3 Skimmers              3        1            0 
RC Bomb                 3 Seekers               3        1            0 
Cat's Eye               3 Stalkers              3        1            0 
Super Cannon            3 Assault Tanks         3        1            0 
MP Thruster             3 Sandsleds             3        1            0 
Eel Shields             3 Prowlers              3        1            0 
 
                                  STRATEGIES 
 
Taking on the Arcturan Armada and winning will take sharp reflexes, quick 
thinking, practice, and above all - strategic planning.  The enemies you 
will face are unique not only in design and strengths but in intelligence 
and tactics.  Each enemy will attack and react differently.  You must become 
familiar with their individual attack styles and outsmart your opponent. 
Following are a few tips that will get you started.  Use them as building 
blocks to develop your own unique game plan and techniques. 
 
*  Keep moving!  Never "sit and spin" while trying to get an enemy into your 
   sights.  Always remember that if you are trying to line up an enemy for 
   the kill the enemy is probably doing the same thing to you. 
 
*  Never go "face-to-face" with an enemy.  Such linear thinking will make 
   you an easy target, placing you in the direct line of fire. 
 
*  Use your weapons if you need them.  Conserving limited powers is only 
   effective if you're around to use them (duh). 
 
*  Learn the combinations of ememy destruction associated with the Power 
   Modules.  Knowing which vehicles to take out to get a specific power can 
   make all the difference in desparate situations. 
 
*  Respect and obey all Humble Guys for they are Gods. 
 
*  Remember the locations of Fuel Bays and don't forget that they cannot be 
   docked with when the Raven is cloaked. 
 
*  Look for weaknesses in the Planetary Guardians.  Every Achilles has his 
   heel. 
 
*  Learn to "lead" or shoot ahead of an enemy if they are moving rapidly at 
   a distance.  Anticipate how long it will take your shell to travel the 
   distance of the enemy.  Next, decide where the enemy will be in that 
   amount of time and fire at that location. 
 
*  Remember that some enemies are also equipped with cloaking devices.  If 
   you can see a vehicle on radar but not through the viewscreen, they're 
   cloaked and probably moving in for the kill. 
 
*  Keep in mind that the Raven can hold 3 of any one Power Module at a time. 
   Wait to collect released modules is you already have a full supply... 
   they will remain floating in the area where released until collected, 
   destroyed by cannon fire or left behind after warping to another Star 
   System. 
 
*  Remember that the Story Panels which connect Star Systems can be turned 
   off (Main menu preferences), skipped (ESC key) or fast forwarded (space 
   bar). 
 
*  As a convenience, a Continue feature is available.  When Continue is 
   used, you will begin on the same Star System as when your mission ended. 
   You will have a full energy supply and the same Power Modules that you 
   ended with, but your score will be reset to zero. 
 
   The number of Continues available is dependent upon the difficulty level. 
             On EASY level you can continue TWO times. 
             On STANDARD level you can continue ONE time. 
             On DIFFICULT level Continue is deactivated. 
 
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