ROTOR 
The Manual 

Brought to you by Belgarath
  

Thank you 

No really, thank you. Because if you're reading this, you probably purchased our program, and thats something we truly appreciate. 
Being a small company, every customer is critically important. 
Without customers we can't pay the rent, the phone bills, the insurance, or make the car payments. 
But with customers like you, and by keeping the overhead low, 
we hope to continue developing new and exciting software thats so entertaining, you might just forget about those bills for a while. 
So again, thank you.  

Liner Notes 

We've got to thank some people, because we've struggled quite some time just to get here, 
and this is our first big chance to somewhat publicly thank those who have contributed to our success. 
Thanks to the customers who kept us alive, and even some of our suppliers; everybody at Software Station; 
the "Master of the Universe"; John Hogoboom; Paul & Debbie Bader; John Wiggins; 
Reuben Hsu- because we will only use Champ joysticks and mice; Rex- for the attitude; Brendt at Compsult; 
George and Berta at DigiTek; Magic Matt for the Acme brain; 
and Craig wants to thank a certain mom and dad for moral, financial, warehousing, vehicular, and nutritional support. 
Wardrobe by J & R Cycle World. 
By the way, we are always on the road visiting computer stores, or attending computer shows, 
so if you see us make sure you stop by to say hi. And ask for ELI TOMLINSON because he's the big self-promoter at the company.  


Programmers 

We're an association of electronic artists who share a common goal. 
Just joking...Actually we're just another small software company trying to be as cool as some of the great software 
companies that have inspired us. So if you've been working on something exciting, we are always interested in new products.  

Loading Instructions 

Amiga 

Turn on your Amiga computer with the Rotor disk in drive DF0:  

Atari 

Turn on your Atari computer with the Rotor disk in Drive A.  

IBM PC 

Insert your Rotor disk into either drive A or drive B.
From either the A> or the B> type ROTOR 
If you have installed ROTOR to your hard drive, type CD\ROTOR
    then type ROTOR  

Installing Rotor on a hard drive 

You may install the IBM PC version of Rotor to your hard drive. 
Insert the Rotor disk into either drive A or drive B. 
Go to the drive with the Rotor disk by typing the appropriate A: 
or B: command. 

Type INSTALL and follow any prompts. 

The install procedure will create a sub-directory named ROTOR which will contain all of the program files.  

Playing Rotor for the first time 

Before you are allowed to fly on a mission, you are required to complete the Maneuver Simulator, and then the Combat Simulator. 
Only then will you be awarded a password giving you access to the missions.  

Your Missions 

The object of each mission is to return as many mines as possible, and to destroy the maximum number of antagonists in each sector. 
You will also have to refuel and upgrade your ROTOR by collecting energy pearls from containers you must open. 
To open a container, you must shoot it a sufficient number of times to reveal the contents. 
To collect the contents you must maneuver close to the container and use the tractor beam.  

Your on-screen computer (the left side of the screen) 

On the left side of the play screen your on-screen computer displays information important to your survival. 
A radar scanner shows the surrounding layout. The dots above the scanner indicate the number of lives left. 
The three indicators show the amount of time left until a mine explodes, the time left before a laser beam resumes, 
and the number of crystals required to exit. 
The on-screen computer also displays your X-Y coordinates, and once the necessary sun crystals are collected, 
it will display the X-Y coordinates you must go to in 
order to exit the sector. AMIGA VERSION: You may disable the display by rapidly moving the joystick right and left.  

Using the pearls 

While you are collecting pearls, the available enhancement to your ship will be displayed on the status bar and in the text window. 
To activate the enhancement hold down the FIRE button or the SPACE bar. 
If an icon turns red it means that the feature can't be selected, and is skipped when the icon bar advances. If too many pearls are collected and no 
enhancements selected, the icon bar will restart from the beginning. 
The current icon setting will be lost if you lose a ship, but all previously selected enhancements will remain with the new ship.  

Scoring 

Your score takes the form of a Prestige Unit account which you can credit in one of two ways. First, during each mission you can score directly by destroying antagonists and 
collecting mines. However, this score will only transfer to your PU account upon completion of the mission or by using the DROP CARGO feature. If you lose a ship during a 
mission, your score is also lost. Second, upon completing a mission you will be awarded a PU bonus if over 95% of the sector was destroyed.  


Controls 

                      Joystick     Left-Hand Keys   Right-Hand Keys  
Rotate Left           LEFT         <                X  
Rotate Right          RIGHT        >                C  
Thrust                UP           C                <  
Tractor Beam          DOWN         X                >  
Shield                DOWN + FIRE  Z                ?  
Computer              LEFT/RIGHT   ?                Z  
Fire                  FIRE         SPACE            SPACE  
Activate Enhancement  HOLD FIRE    HOLD SPACE       HOLD SPACE  

Abort Game             ESC  
Pause Game             P  
Select Sound Effects   1  
Select Music (AMIGA)   2  
Select Silence         3  
Select Left Hand Keys  4  
Select Right Hand Keys 5  

Hints and Tips 

. Keep an eye on the fuel and hull armor status.  

. Shooting mindlessly will use a lot of fuel.  

. Open as many containers as possible before collecting their contents.  

. Never pick-up more cargo than you can handle.  

. Remember, a heavy ship uses fuel faster.  

. Increase rotation and thrust early to help maneuverability.  

. Select Drop Cargo often to save your score and position.  

. Don't fly into the exit coordinates accidentally.  

. Remember, there is often more than one way to go.  

. Try not to shoot energy pearls, especially with side lasers.  

. Don't use Storm Bomb if there are a lot of containers on the screen.  

. Power Shield uses a lot of fuel so use it only in emergencies.


Brought to you by Belgarath