2-21-94
                             Scorched Tanks V 1.75
                                        and V 1.80

                                      for the Amiga


Copyright 1993 Michael Welch, All Rights Reserved


Developed and Coded by
               Michael Welch
               
Original Soundtrack by
               Eric Gieseke  "Sidewinder"
               
               -Ari-San<Crossroad>
               -Horizon's Edge
               Watch for the new CD he's producing.  When it comes out,
               it's going to be a HOT!  It's a professionally done
               album of 100% Amiga music and from what he says, you won't
               believe it was done on an Amiga alone.    
               

Special Thanks to:
Sarah Bell 
Mike & Laura Ferall
DJ & Sarah
Mark Posser          - Play Testing

Josh Wingell         - Great Ideas

John Torta           - Graphics

Aaron Wald           - The Big BANG Theory

Very Special Thanks goes out to:

Chip Schaefer  - My very first order.  (You made my week!)

Michael Boeh   - His infinite wisedom in developing Artillery games.
                 Thanks for the Circle idea!

John Harris    - Brilliant ideas, Incredible beta testing, and a good guy
                 too.  Thank-you for all the help.

Keith Zaback & friends - Ace playtesters.

Peter Olafson & Tim Walsh - for putting Scorched Tanks in the...

                                             ...Amiga World "Best of '93"
                                             
                                  
Ryan Scott - Thank-you for the cool Turbo Plus extension.
 editor      This well-done new product for Amos and Amos Pro is
   of        going to be featured in future versions of Scorched Tanks
 PLAYFIELD!  and from what I've seen of it, it's really going to power-up
 (AMOS news  AMOS to a greater level.
  letter)            


This version includes:

    NEW
  ----------
  
  Brand new front-end    <- Lots of work went into making it.
  New control panal      <- Ditto!
  Original Soundtrack by Sidewinder
  20 new weapons / 60 total
  QUIT Button            <- Yes, the gadget you've ALL been waiting for.
  Slider for Weaponlink  <- See!  I told you it was coming.    
  Options screen:
   Wind
   Multi-terrain
   Explosion size
   Gravity
   Player order
   Custom screen sizes
   Adjustable interest rate
  Documentation on all weapons, shields, and options
  New and Improved computer controlled tanks
  13 different Shield Options 
      -Displacer
      -Feedback
 ****************************** 
 *For Registered Version 1.80:*
 * -Load/Save game option     *
 ******************************




COMPATABILITY:

Scorched Tanks was developed on an AMIGA 1200 with 2 Megs of Chip RAM
 and 4 Megs of Fast RAM.  It has been tested on an Amiga 2000 with
 1 Meg of Chip RAM.  It has also been tested on an Amiga 500 with
 512k Chip RAM and 3 Megs of Fast Ram


If your system has only 512k of Chip RAM or only 1 Meg of total RAM,
 it is suggested that the program is loaded into the computer with as
 much free Chip RAM as possible.


** Because of the Chip RAM intensive nature of Scorched Tanks, it is
   suggested that every effort to free Chip RAM before running the game
   is tried.  Often, computers with little Chip Ram available will run
   Scorch' in 512k Chip RAM mode.  But crashes, with an
   "Invalid function call" while using certain shields or weapons, are
   caused by the game trying to access unavailable Chip RAM.
   I've only seen these crashes in A1000 and A500 computers with 512k Chip
   that are running Scorch from Workbench.
   Please let me know if you've seen these crashes under other
   circumstances.
  

This version of Scorched Tanks has a special 512k Chip RAM mode.
 This mode reduces the size of the playfield and
 cuts down on the music to save Chip RAM.


Scorched Tanks was developed using AMOS Pro and AMOS Pro Compiler.
 This package is supposed to compile programs to work on:

 A500
 A500+
 A600
 A1000
 A1200
 A1500
 A2000
 A3000
 A4000

Most incompatability problems are memory related.
 Running Scorched Tanks from Workbench on a 512K Chip RAM machine
 may not run properly.  It could run out of memory or crash.

Also, some Workbench programs like Enforcer and 'screen blankers' have
 been known to cause problems with AMOS Pro.  
 FBL is also known to cause system failures with Scorch'.


Programs used to develop Scorched Tanks:
---------------------------------------

AMOS Pro
AMOS Pro Compiler
Brilliance!
PixMate
Final Copy 2
Directory Opus 4.1
DSS8+
Edge  <- Thank-you INOVAtronics.  It's a very nice text editor which 
         I used to 'edit' this Doc file.  Excellent product.


INTRODUCTION:

Scorched Tanks is a tank warfare game where 1 to 4 human players or
 computer controlled opponents, take turns at buying fancy weapons
 and shooting them at each other.  The more damage a player causes
 another, the more money they get.  The more money a player receives, the
 larger the weapons they can buy.  This is a very simple concept, but
 extreemly addictive!

Scorched Tanks is related to a very popular game called
 Scorched Earth on MS-Dos machines.  I've only played Scorched Earth maybe
 five times ever.  But it impressed me so much that I decided that the
 Amiga needed a version too.  Scorched Tanks is very similar yet VERY
 different to the MS-Dos game.


'Tanks innovates where 'Earth and other look-a-likes leave off.
 
It's simple to understand, yet complex enough to be challenging.

The gameplay and interface are so easy to understand, an 8 year old can pick
 it up in no time.  It was tested on a group of little kids.  They spent
 two hours screaming and jumping around as they blew-up each others
 computer tanks.  Basically it's simple to learn and the interface's 
 layout doesn't take away from the game.

The graphics and music try to add the, all important, Amiga feel
 to the game.

It draws people that hate computers.
 (Only if you can force them to look at the screen!)


--------------------------------------------

(* Anytime during game, hit [CTRL]-C to Quit game or
   [LEFT AMIGA]-A to toggle between Workbench and Scorched Tanks.)


START OF GAME:

 In the beginning.......
 
    There is the new front end.
    If you have enough Chip Ram, some really great music comes on and
    a panal of buttons and gadets slide onto the screen.
    
    Each player has its own 'box' to edit the way it plays the game.
    Human player:
      Icon of person running
      Panal to edit players name
      Slider to change the amout of money there is to start with
    Computer player:
      Icon of computer chip.
      Also a panal to edit players name.
      Sliders to change Computer players IQ:
        -Stupid or Smart 
        -Offensive or Defensive
        
    Load Game - Loads game on the registered version.
    
    Options - Loads option screen for customizing Scorch'.
      Wind: Off, Light, Medium, Strong
         Different wind levels to make the game more challenging.
      Terrain: Random, Hills, Flatlands, Gorge, Cliff
         DIfferent terrain types with new colors to add more variety.
      Exp. Size: Small, Standard, Large
         Small for the die-hard sharp shooters and
         Large for the mass-destruction maniacs.
      Gravity: Low, Medium, High
      Pla. Order: In Order, Losers, Winners, Random
         In Order- Player1, Player2, Player3, Player4
         Losers- Losers of previous round go first
         Winners- Winners of previous round go first
         Random- A random shuffling of the player orders every round
      Interest%: Ten%, Twenty%, Thirty%, Forty%, Fifty%
         Amount of interest gained every round.
      Screen Size: Small, Long, Tall, Full-size
         Adjust the playfield to a desired size
         Note: 512k Chip RAM users can not access Full-size playfields


    Info - Displays information about current version of game.
    
    Rounds - You the arrows to select the number of rounds to play.
        Note: Only the registered version allows for more than 
              5 rounds of game play.
              
    Start Game - Starts the game.
    
    Quit - Exits game to workbench or otherwise.
    
    
              
GAMEPLAY:

 Buying weapons & Shields-
 
  WeaponsLink is how each player buys and sells weapons, shields, and
  other items of use.  Choose the desired item and select buy or
  sell.

  To switch from Shields to Weapons mode, select <Weapons> or <Shields>
  and either click [Buy] or the name itself.

  Make sure to select Initial Defence before entering the battlefield.
  Click on [Initial Defence] to select your starting shield option.

  Select DONE to go to the next player.


 Playfield-

  Each player must fire at the other tanks until there is only one
  tank left.
  
  Before Fireing weapons, remember to set angle, power, and desired 
  weapon before clicking FIRE.

  Other options available during a players turn are:

  Scanner- Click in scanner window to adjust view screen or to checkout
           currently off screen areas of the playfield.

  Stats-   Click on a players name to read individual stats of the player.
           SH-Shields(0 to 99)  DA-Damage(0 to 50)
           when hit, player first loses shields, then receives damage.
           If damage drops to zero, player is removed so to say.

  Help-    On-line help is available buy clicking [Help].
           Clicking [Help] toggles the help option from on to off.

  Use-     Only seen when in shield selection mode.
           Click [Use] to select the sheild options you have bought.
           
  Save-    Saves game in the registered version
           
  Quit-    Exit that game and return to main screen.

  Switching from Shields to Weapons Selection-

           Click the up arrow to the <Shields> or <Weapons> choice.
           If you have no shields to use, No Shields is displayed and
           the program will keep you in Weapons mode.
 

 End of round-

  At the end of round, Bonuses are awarded and ranking for the game is
  given.  At the end of the last round the winner of the game will be
  announced and the game will end.

  (The tie breaker is - who has the most money -)


Good-Luck and have fun beating on your computer buddies!
                                  (Computer controlled or otherwise)
                                   




Program history-

V 0.10
-------------
-Bad joystick controlled interface
-Nice screen scrolling
-automatic PAL/NTSC support

V 0.50
-------------
-Shields added
-Mondo graphics improvement

V 0.70
-------------
-Cool Sound effects
-Music added
-Most of the newer weapons added

V 0.95
-------------
-Parachutes added
-Lava & Liquid Nitrogen weapons added
-Fixed bugs
-Made to work on slow computers with at least a meg of memory

V 1.00
-------------
-Computer controlled tanks
-Louder BANGS
-Scatter Shot, Firecracker, Super Zapper, And Chain Reaction added

V 1.00a
-------------
-Improved Weapon Selector
-Vectors used instead of Physics Equation to calculate bullets
 MEANING Faaaaaaaaaster.   A little anyways.
-Damage bonus display bug-fix

V 1.00b
-------------
-Better(higher resolution) power select bar
-Help option
-Customizes program to available amount of memory

V 1.15
-------------
-512k Chip support
-Joystick control support
-11 different Shield options (Absorbing, Reflecting, Magnetic, etc...)
-Tank movement (Transport, Move Tank)
-"Return to Player" speed-up
-Hold mouse to repeat

V 1.20
-------------
-Options screen
  Wind
  Multi-terrain
  Explosion size
  Player order
  Adjustable interest rate
  Customizable playfield sizes
-Documentation on all weapons an shields
-Weapon-> Crimson Flood
-Improved characteristics of shields

V1.75
-------------
-20 new weapons
-Original soundtrack by Sidewinder
-New Front-End
-Improved control over computer players
-New control panal
-tank sliding
-2 new shield types
   Displacer
   Feedback
-Slider for Weaponlink
-New death sequences
-Quit buttons
-Lots of little improvements

V1.80
-------------
-Load/Save game option




The Future
----------
I have big plans for Scorched Tanks.
One of my biggest changes is going to be adding the Turbo Plus extension
to Scorch'.  By doing this, the game will go much faster on a slower
Amiga.  Other things that may happen are more music, improved graphics,
a story-line explaining the situation, AGA support, a capture-the-flag
game, more weapons (100 is my goal), etc...

AGA update... I want AGA for Scorch' really bad but until AMOS Pro 
supports it, my hands are tied.  As soon as AGA is available, you can
be sure Scorched Tanks will use it soon after.  As for now, I'm pouring
all my graphics ability into what I have now.  And don't worry, non-AGA
Amigas will still be supported.



\\\     The future is up to you       ///
/// Let me know the game is worth it! \\\


Updates
-----------
Anyone who registers this game will recieve the LATEST version of Scorch'.
 I don't release freely distributable versions of the game very often.
 So.... If you want More Weapons, More Options, More Everything..
 Register.
 Registered users will then be able to buy an upgrade to Scorch' for
 $3.00 US.  The $3.00 covers shipping costs.
 
 


Registering the Game:  
 
 If you register V1.75, you will receive V1.80 which supports a
 Load/Save game option and allows for more than 5 rounds to be played.
 I only disabled those few options because I worked really hard on the 
 Scorch' Project.  I want to share what I created.  I cut the Load/Save
 options and the number of options so that people who play the game a lot
 can register and get the most out of Scorch'.  If your a serious player,
 these options are for you.
 If your not, then you get to enjoy the game for free.

 But not registering only hurts you.  The source code to Scorched Tanks was
 corrupted and I almost didn't have the heart to restart a whole month's
 worth of work.  If it hadn't been for the registrations I was getting from
 all the people who truely enjoyed my game, this new version of Scorched
 Tanks would not be playing on your Amiga.  Thank-you to everyone who has 
 registered the game.  YOU made this possible. 
 
 So register and show me that you want development to continue on this game.
 I may need the motivation.  Besides, sending me ten dollars is one sure 
 fire way to get your ideas heard and to make a new friend.
 
   
 I would love to get comments and ideas.  New weapons ideas and other options
 would be great. 
 I want Scorched Tanks to be the best it can be.  Please help me out.


To Register, send $10.00 US to:

Michael Welch
PO Box 672
Vestal, NY  13850
USA


Note: If your from Canada, please send Money Orders for US funds.
      My credit union can't take any form of Canadian check.  Thanks.
      





***************************************************************************
*                                                                         *
*                   Weapon and Shield options manual                      *
*                          for Scorched Tanks                             *
*                                                                         *
*   revised 2-21-94                                                       *
*                                                                         *
***************************************************************************

Total weapons available:  60


**********************

Weapons-

Single Shot:

   Small weapon that does very low damage.
   Unlimited supply.

Big Shot:

   Larger weapon that has large explosion and offers more damage.

Trishot:

   Three warheads with small but destructive capability.

5 Shot:

   Five warheads with large explosions and a very destructive explosion.
   Deadly if used properly.

Skipper:

   Warhead that bounces 3 times, leaving an explosion with every bounce.
   Skips are 1/2 the original vertical velocity.

Super Skipper:

   Like original skipper except it bounces 5 times with larger explosions.
   Handy on the flatlands.

Dirtball:

   Covers area with loose dirt.

Big Dirtball:

   Covers area with LOTS of loose dirt.

Mountain Mover:

   Explosion removes dirt from area without directly causing damage to
   surrounding tanks.

Zapper:

   Warhead shoots a laser at tanks that it comes within 40 pixels from.

Roller:

   Weapon hits ground and rolls down hill until it reaches an incline.

Large Roller:

   Like Roller but with MUCH larger explosion.

Cruiser:

   Weapons hits ground and glides over land until it hits a tank.

Mega Cruiser:

   Same as Cruiser but with a very large and dangerous explosion.

Dirt Slinger:

   Defensive weapon that throws dirt up into the air to cover tanks below.

Laser:

   Guidence system for SDI space satilite.
   Fires 5 shots in the area where the tracer landed.

Big Laser:

   Big guns version of the laser.
   10 shots rain from the heavens causing much more damage.

Pile Driver:

   Causes a very deep hole to be formed in the earth.

Morph Wall:

   Defensive weapon that causes wall to morph from the ground right
   before your eyes.  Isn't technology great!

Nuke:

   Baby version of an extremely fatal nuclear warhead.

Mega Nuke:

   Very large, Very fatal, Very devistating.
   Imediate death.

Sound Blast'er:

   Sonic attack.  Spreads out horizontally or attacks on flat land or
   through small hills.

Parachute:

   Defensive system used to reduce damage by falling.

Homing missle:

   Weapon stops in mid-air over the first tank it flies over.
   Very little damage but a sure hit.

Lava:

   Causes a pool of molten lava to spread out over the land.
   Lava hardens to form rock.

Liquid Nitrogen:

   Same as lava but evaporates when finished.

Scatter Shot:

   On impact, warhead splits into five balistic warheads that spread out
   over the surrounding land to cause local damage.

Firecracker:

   Weapon set off a series of small explosions in the general area of
   impact.

Supper Zapper:

   Weapon that sends out a deadly laser to any tank that it comes within
   80 pixels from.
   Very dangerous!

Chain Reaction:

   Big brother to Firecracker.  Larger explosions and a little more damage.

Dirt Mover:

   Vertical blast that removes dirt from overhead.

Cruiser Mine:

   Anti-Cruiser and roller system.
   Places a mine in area that will detonate any oncoming cruisers or
   rollers.

Teleport:

   "Picks up" a tank and randomly places it somewhere else on the playfield.

GroundHog:

   Warhead burrows into the ground and explodes on hitting the bottom of the
   playfield or in an attempt to resurface.
   Good for attacks through hills.

Weasel:

   Upon impact, warhead burrows into the ground and digs upward in the
   ground.  Weasel will self-destruct if it passes under a tank.
   It also explodes when hitting the bottom of the playfield of when
   it attempts to resurface.

Move Tank:

   Allows for tank movement to the left or right of current position.

Laser Beam:

   Fires a straight Laser beam from the tank.
   Great for upclose battles with other tanks.

Timewarp:

   Weapons fires from tank three different times.
   Large explosion but small damage.

Dome Protect:

   Creates a dome around the tank that issues it.

Crimson Flood:

   Fire and molted brimstone erupt from the ground five times.
   Causes wide-spread destruction.
   
Grab Bag:

   Ramdomly picks a weapon that is worth more than $4000.
   The big question is "Which one?"  That's the chance you take.
   
Field Medic:

   Fixes all damage caused to tank.
   
Tank Displacer:

   Teleports the tank that is hit with this warhead.
   
Slingshot:

   When the warhead lands, it begins rolling in the opposite direction
   it was fired.  It's like a reverse Cruiser.
   
Cruball:

   A Cruiser that explodes like a Dirtball.
   My favorite "Dirty" weapon!
   
Homing Weasel:

   It's a Weasel that stops below a tank and flies up threw the ground
   at it.
   
Dirt Inverter:

   A warhead that picks up the ground around the general area of impact
   and throws it down.  Good for putting tanks 'underground.'
   
Self-Destruct:

   Destroys your tank before another tank does and gets the money.
   
Molten Plastic:

   A Lava style weapon that leaves reflective plastic on the ground.
   The reflective plastic will bounce warheads back into the air.
   
PlastConverter:

   Turns the surrounding area of impact into reflective Plastic.

Defense Wall:

   Builds a wall of plastic.  Used to protect your tank or to goof-up
   someone else's shot.
   
Smart Bomb:

   This weapon is the only bullet that will explode on contact with
   Plastic terrain or with Reflective/Feedback shields.
   
Crater Maker:

   Large explosion that clears away all the dirt with its explosion.
   
Flash Blast:

   A small weapon that releases an electromacnetic blast that causes 
   damage to tanks but doesn't damage the terrain.
   
Big Blast:
 
   A bigger Flash Blast.
   
Mega Blast:

   A huge Flash Blast.
   
Mole:

   A tunneling device that digs a hole in the selected direction.
   Good for getting under your opponents and firing up at them with
   Groundhogs, Weasels, or Homing Weasels.
   
Mega Move Tank:

   Moves the Tank much farther than the standard Move Tank.
   
Cascade:

   Warhead that fires a spray of bullets into the sky and throws them
   down to the ground in a shower of destruction.
   (Can you tell I love this weapon!)

Tracer:

   A device that sets off a light where your warhead would land if you
   fired it there.  After firing a tracer, it's the same tanks turn again.
    


**************

Shields-


Absorb 1 - Standard issue shield system.

Absorb 2 - Absorbs 25% of damage.

Absorb 3 - Absorbs 50% of damage.

Reflect 1 - Reflect 50% of all bullets.

Reflect 2 - Reflects 75% of all bullets and absorbs 25% of damage.

Reflect 3 - Reflects 100% of all bullets hitting the shield and also
            absorbs 50% of damage caused.

Magnetic 1 - Pushes away incoming bullets.

Magnetic 2 - Pushes away (much harder) incoming bullets while absorbing
             25% of damage.

Magnetic 3 - Seriously forces away incoming bullets while also
             absorbing 50% of all damage.

X-tinguisher- In a direct hit, shield neutralizes incoming weapon and
              places it into current tanks weapon inventory.
              Absorbs 50% of damage.

Detonator - Anti-nuke shielding system.
            Explodes Nukes and other dangerous warheads before they
            get close enough to damage tank.
            Absorbs 50% of damage.

Displacer - Teleports warhead to a random location.

Feedback - Sends warhead back in the direction it can from.
           (Often right back to the person who fired it)      :)