ELITE
-----

When the title screen with the rotating ships appear press A. This
will stop the ship from moving. To move or rotate the ship, press the
arrow keys, and to get more rotations hold down the A key while press-
ing an arrow key. To move the ship toward or away from you press O or I. 
Press D when your finished. Press W while flying to tell your
score and the authors credits.

CHEAT MODE:

 When you're asked for to enter a password on the copy protection page,
 type in 'SARA' and hit [Return]. Now enter the correct password and
 wait for the game to load as normal. Now when you're playing the game,
 press the [*] on the keypad and it will bring up a hacker screen.
 By typing in a byte number and entering a new value you can change
 certain parameters within the game. Try the ones below.

 Note, if you have a version that was released some time after the
 original, then type in 'SUZANNE' instead. This may also apply to
 people who have a copy of Elite +.

 Byte Number   New Value   Effect
 ~~~~~~~~~~~   ~~~~~~~~~   ~~~~~~
 12 .......... 00-FF ..... Create new galaxy
 13 .......... 00-FF ..... Create new galaxy
 18 .......... FF ........ Loads of credits
 1F .......... 46 ........ 7 lights years fuel
 23 .......... 02 ........ Large cargo bay
 24 .......... 01 ........ E.C.M. System
 26 .......... 01 ........ Pulse laser
 28 .......... 01 ........ Beam laser
 2C .......... 01 ........ Escape pod
 2F .......... 01 ........ Energy Bomb
 32 .......... 01 ........ Docking computer
 34 .......... 03 ........ Galactic hyperdrive
 36 .......... 01 ........ Mining laser
 38 .......... 01 ........ Military laser
 3C .......... 01 ........ E.C.M. System Jammer - [L] toggles on/off
 3F .......... 01 ........ Cloaking device - [Y] toggles on/off
 40 .......... 01 ........ Loads of food
 47 .......... 01 ........ Loads of textiles
 49 .......... 01 ........ Loads of radioactives
 4C .......... 01 ........ Loads of slaves
 50 .......... 01 ........ Loads of wine
 54 .......... 01 ........ Loads of narcotics
 5C .......... 01 ........ Loads of computers
 63 .......... 01 ........ Loads of machinery
 67 .......... 01 ........ Loads of alloys
 69 .......... 01 ........ Loads of firearms
 6C .......... 01 ........ Loads of furs
 72 .......... 01 ........ Loads of minerals
 75 .......... 01 ........ Loads of gold
 79 .......... 01 ........ Loads of platinum
 83 .......... 01 ........ Loads of gem stones
 84 .......... 01 ........ Loads of alien items
 88 .......... 01 ........ Refugees from Super Nova
 8C .......... 01 ........ Important Thargoid document
 97 .......... 01 ........ Clean legal status
 97 .......... 00-08 ..... Harmless - Elite ranking

 Once you've selected various options in the cheat menu just press
 the [Esc] key to exit and return to the game.

 Note, if you happen to have a copy from the Space Legends compilation
 then unfortunately the above cheat will not work. The obvious reason
 being is that the copy protection was removed from within the game.
                             
                        ELITE HINTS AND TIPS
                        ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

      To start with, think offensive!  If you start going soft, you're out!

  This is the golden rule of Elite, you've got to struggle to survive.

      The biggest profit lies in trading narcotics from a rich industrial
world to a poor agrucial.  The profit is also big when trading in medicals
and computers from the rich industrial worlds to the poor agrucial.  
      Gold, platonium, minerals, liqures and sometimes furs is profitable
to trade from poor agrucial worlds to rich industrial.

	The fastest route to assets is to travel to a planet which has a
Feudal guvorment.  This is the most law-less kind of all guvorments (where
Corporate State is the safest) and here you can, and will meet many pirates.
Shoot 'em and collect the cargo cannisters they leave behind (this requires
fuel scoops, of course).  
	Warning!  You ought to be equipped with a better laser than the 
standard puls-type, 'cos there will in most cases be too many pirates
attacking at the same time thus resulting in a catastrophe if you're 
equipped with a lonley puls-laser.

	NEVER buy retro-rockets.  They cost CR 8000 and is almost useless,
since all they do is to thrust you backwards a couple of times.  Nice to
use to escape from your enemies for a short period of time, but it isn't
worth the dough.  If you want to escape, use the escape-capsule. Your cargo
is gone, but you'r getting a new space ship, identical to the one you 
dropped out from.

	To speed up the game considerately, buy a docking computer, switch
the docking computer to the 'fast' mode under options (+)and the second you
press 'C' (when the 'S' sign has appeared in the lower right corner of 
the radar) you will be in the automatic docking sequence, instead of using
most of the game time just approching space-stations.

	During combat:stop the speed of your craft as soon as the enemies
appear.  This gives you more time to shoot at them before they return the
confetti.  If their number is overwhelming gain top speed and fly away from
them while using the rear laser to shoot 'em down.
The last tactic is preferable if you meet a Thargoid and you've got only
a pulse laser.

                        Leroy's Helpbook for ELITE

                              By David Palmer

                               Introduction
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~

	The majority of video games, whether in the arcade or for home
computers, cannot claim to be something that develops meaningful and
realistic skills in the player, while at the same time giving
entertainment.

	This is not true for the so-called first-person or simulator games,
however.  In these games, the player finds himself inside a spaceship, jet,
tank, or other vehicle, rather than having an objective or "third-person"
view of the action that is usually found in video games.  This first-person
perspective is of course the only natural one that a pilot or driver can
have, and in mastering these games the player actually develops the skills
involved in the real-life activity.

	Those who train real-life pilots certainly realize this, and today we
find that the most sophisticated first-person games are in fact simulators
used in Air Force, Astronaut, and other professional programs.  And
although the average person doesn't have access to this kind of high-priced
equipment, a number of worthy simulators have been created for both the
arcade and home computers.

	This has been my area of interest for several years, and I fell I've
had enough experience to know a winner when I see one.  It was thus with
great pleasure that I had my first playing experience with Elite.  In game
play, realism, and attention to detail, this may be the best first-person
game ever devised.  The graphics and game complexity are things not usually
regarded as possible for today's low-priced microcomputers.

                                    ii

	In this book, I share with the reader those strategies I developed
(through over 200 hours of play) that brought me Elite status and a multi-
million credit fortune.

	This is not intended as a substitute for the instruction manual that
comes with the game; before reading it, you should study the manual and
learn some basics of game play through actual practice.  This book is
intended as a complement to the manual, something that develops strategy
and techniques for specific parts of the game.  Although it will be of most
help to relative beginners, advanced players should also find items of
interest.

	Whatever your present level of experience in the game, may your
long-awaited attainment of Elite status be as exciting to you as it was to
me!

                                   iii


                                 CONTENTS
                                 ~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1.  Basics of Flight.................................................... 1
         Maneuvering.................................................... 1
         Scanner........................................................ 2
         Refueling...................................................... 3
         Other Screens.................................................. 4
         Control Limitations............................................ 4
         Saving Games................................................... 5

2. Combat............................................................... 7
         Aiming......................................................... 7
         Dogfights...................................................... 8
         Multiple Enemies............................................... 9
         Newcomers......................................................10
         Running........................................................10
	    Insurance......................................................10
 	    Fuel Scoops....................................................11
         Defense Against Missiles.......................................11
         Types of Enemies...............................................11
 	    Thargolds......................................................12
	    Combat Rating..................................................13
	    Hunting........................................................14

3. Rendezvous and Docking...............................................17
	    Disappearing Stations..........................................18
	    Approach.......................................................18
 	    Docking........................................................19
	    Margins of Error...............................................20
	    Other Ships....................................................21
	    Docking Computers..............................................21


                                    iv

4. Making a Profit......................................................23
         Trading........................................................23
         Contraband.....................................................24
         Prices.........................................................24
         Cop Out?.......................................................26
         Return Trip....................................................26
         Other Goods....................................................26
         Narcotics Officers.............................................27
         Diverse Economies..............................................27
	 Risk Without Yields............................................27
         Little Stuff...................................................28
         Specific Planets...............................................28

5. Saving Time..........................................................31
         Excessive Data Load............................................32
         Hyperspace Timers..............................................32
         Minor Objects..................................................32
         One Last Jump..................................................34
         Disappearing Stations Again....................................34
         Window Shopping................................................35

6. Incoming Messages....................................................37
         Constrictor....................................................37
         Thargoids Invasion.............................................37
         Further Encounter..............................................38
         Attention......................................................39
         Trumbles.......................................................39
         Constrictor Again..............................................40
         Stealth Ship...................................................40

7. Starting From Scratch................................................41
         First Run......................................................42
         Second Run.....................................................42
         Third Run......................................................43
         Following Runs.................................................44
         A Better Way...................................................45
         Hunting........................................................46
         End Game.......................................................47
         Dangerous Rating?..............................................47

                                     v


                            1. BASICS OF FLIGHT
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	Elite gives you the option of either keyboard or joystick control over
the maneuvering of you ship.  By all means use a joystick, since little is
as awkward as trying to control motion with a bunch of buttons.

	For maximum performance you should also shun the Atari 2600 style
joystick, or any like this that are short, clumsy, and have an indepen-
dently-mounted fire button.  You need something like the Wico Command
Control stick, with the pistol-grip option: a stick that allows for precise
control, is tailored for the human hand, and has a thumb-mounted fire
button.
	
	The joystick should be securely mounted to a table or desk, with
adhesive pads you can buy at hardware stores.  Position the computer
keyboard just behind the stick and to the side, for rapid manipulation of
its function with your other hand.

	Such simple rules make a tremendous difference in one's success, and
it's amazing how often they're overlooked.

                                Maneuvering
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~
	Your ship is fast and precise in its maneuvering, although the
mechanics of control are rather unique and take some getting used to.

	The only way you'll get good at steering and aiming is to practice
extensively, but it may clarify matters a little if I explain what's going
on in terms of simple geometry.

                                    -1-

	In most first-person flying games, pulling the stick causes the nose
to pull up, while pushing it forward causes the nose to drop.  This is also
true for real aircraft, where these pitch changes result in climbing and
diving (through aerodynamic forces).

	A similar pattern is followed by Elite, where a pitch change doesn't
just rotate your ship, but puts it on a new heading.  Apparently your ship
has engines that automatically accelerate it in the direction in which you
point it and scrub off speed from the old heading.

	In most first-person flying games, pushing the stick to the right will
steer the craft in that direction, and likewise to the left.  A change in
yaw is achieved (the nose of the craft moves right or left) as well as a
corresponding shift in heading.

	If the game is an aircraft simulator, this joystick action will also
be accompanied by a roll (banking) to the right or left, since such a
rolling maneuver is needed in aircraft to achieve maximum turning force and
also to make turns more comfortable.

	In Elite, pushing the stick to the right or left will only roll the
spacecracft: in the same pattern as the rolling of an aircraft, but without
any change in yaw or heading.

	Many situations require changes in yaw or horizontal heading, as where
a target lies to the side of your sights.  This change in yaw and
horizontal heading must be achieved indirectly, by rolling so as to place
the target (or desired heading) above or below the sights, and then
executing a pitch change to place it in the sights.

                                  Scanner
                                  ~~~~~~~
	This is one of the most sophisticated features of Elite, and to my
knowledge is the first 3-dimensional scanner in a game.

	The coordinate system of the scanner always shows objects in relation
to your ship.  Its horizontal plane is the plane of the "wings" of your
ship, with your ship at its center.  The green "v" on the far side of the
plane is the angle of view provided by your forward screen.  An object's
distance above or below the plane of your ship is shown by the height of
the column connecting it with the plane.

                                    -2-

	Police craft, pirates, freighters, and other ships are shown in yellow
(with the exception of Thargoids which are orange when alone, greenish when
surrounded by Thargons).  Escape pods and cargo cannisters are also shown
in yellow.  Asteroids are in red, while space stations and missiles show as
green.

	If an object shows on your scanner which you wish to bring onto your
forward screen, you should follow a pattern similar to the one for bringing
a target into your sights.  First, roll in whatever direction will most
quickly place it in an imaginary vertical plane centered on your ship (in
other words, the target designator on the scanner should be directly above
the "I" in "ELITE"), then pitch up if it's above the scanner plane, pitch
down if it's below.

                                 Refueling
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	Although you can refuel at a sun, this is basically a waste of time in
serious play.  You should refuel while trading at a station.

	If you wish to refuel at a sun, you'll need a fuel scoop and to pass
close enough to almost destroy your ship (not the cabin temperature gauge
at left).  As soon as "fuel scoops on" appears on your screen, pull away
and make your escape.

                                    -3-

	Finding the sun in the first place can sometimes be a problem, and you
should use a systematic scanning technique to locate it: using the planet
as a reference point pitch through a full 360 degrees, then roll about 40
degrees, then pitch another 360 degrees, and so on.

                               Other Screens
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	The right, left, and rear screens of your ship can also be outfitted
with lasers, however these are basically useless in combat.

	The reason is that the aiming mechanics are all shifted around when
operating from a different perspective, and it would result in great
confusion to try to go from the system you learned for the forward screen,
to another one.

	In the case of the rear screen, pushing the joystick forward, for
example will result in your ship seeming to climb (since the rear of a
spaceship will rotate upward when it dives).  You could "correct" this by
freezing the game and reversing the "Y-channel" of the joystick (see the
Quick Key Control Guide that comes with the game).  Since it doesn't take
long to make a 180 degree turn and just use the forward screen, the value
of such a move could be questioned.  You will be moving away from most
objects showing on your rear view, so it will be intrinsically harder to
shoot a target from this perspective.

	Things are even worse for the right and left screens, where a pitch
change looks like a roll maneuver, and a roll looks like a pitch change.

                            Control Limitations
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Note that because of limitations in the design of the computer, in
this game you cannot simultaneously operate the joystick and the keyboard
functions (speed control, ECM system, etc.).

	The joystick operations always take precedence, and to use a keyboard
function you must momentarily let off the controls.

                                    -4-

                               Saving Games
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~
	It is good insurance to periodically save your game to disk, not just
when you end a session.  You should also back up your disk on occasion.  In
a beginning game, when you have not yet equipped your ship, you should, in
fact, save it every time you dock.

	You may wish to use a system of saving such as: Commander1, 2, 3...25,
etc.  This will allow you to keep track of your games for retrieval and
study.

	Even if your Elite disk is capable of holding saved games, you should
save to a blank formatted disk instead (no kidding?? -ed).  The reason for
this is that saving even once on the master disk will eventually ruin the
disk and force you to have it replaced and begin your game from scratch.

	Note: when you are ready to save, you simply remove your Elite disk
and insert a blank formatted disk into the drive.

                                    -5-

(Page 6 is blank)

                                 2. COMBAT
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	The pulse laser you start out with is woefully inadequate - it takes
so long to wear down the shields of most opponents, that you'd better try
to avoid conflicts if you want to survive.

	Your missiles aren't much better, since they take a long time to reach
a target and are vulnerable to ECM systems.

	Once you have a beam laser, you can pretty well take care of yourself,
offering as it does several times the firepower of a pulse laser.  Once you
have an ECM system--and an extra energy unit to feed these hungry
weapons--you're in good shape for combat.

	The ultimate is the military laser, which you should certainly
acquire, even though it does not offer much of an improvement over a beam
laser as the latter does over a pulse.

	Fortunately your enemies never have anything beyond pulse lasers and
missiles, so you'll be able to outgun them all.  Also, few of them have
shields as strong as yours.

                                  Aiming
                                  ~~~~~~
	Accurately aiming at a distant target is a challenge, especially if
it's moving across your line of sight.  You should not indiscriminately
fire, as this will quickly overheat your guns.

	You should fire in bursts of "test shots", trying to get a fix on the
target.  If you get it positioned, then fire off a full volley.

                                    -7-

                                 Newcomers
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	Whenever you have enemies around you at close range, you should always
ignore them temporarily and go after newcomers at a far range, since they
are in the best position to shoot you.  This might not work if you have a
pulse laser (since they'd stand a good chance of getting in close before
you could destroy them), but you're probably dead anyway under these
conditions if you don't have at least a beam laser.

                                  Running
                                  ~~~~~~~
	It won't do any good to try to outrun your enemies.  Not only can many
ships outrun yours, but you'll place yourself in an ideal position to be
shot even if your ship is slightly faster:  You'll be a steady target in
their sights while you're fleeing.

	Something that will definately help is to hyperspace out of your
present system if you get into trouble.  If you're unsure of your
survivability, then you should try to avoid making long hyperspace jumps
that won't leave you enough fuel to escape.  When you have enough fuel,
have the hyperspace cursor set ahead of time for another system, so you can
make a fast escape.

                                 Insurance
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	The energy bomb and escape pod are expensive, and should only be used
as devices of last resort.

	Use the escape pod if your energy bank is only a second or two away
from being totally drained by enemy fire.  When you arrive at a station,
check the equipment of your new ship:  you'll only receive what you had at
the moment you jettisoned, and you may have lost something before this
point that you'll need to replace.

	An energy bomb is useful if you're faced with multiple enemies and you
know you won't have enough energy to safely eliminate them.  If you think
you should use it, do so immediately and don't wait till your energy is
even lower.

                                   -10-

                                Fuel Scoops
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~
	These have a value in combat, and you should buy them even if you
don't plan on sun-skimming or cargo-scavenging: they will protect the lower
half of your screen from collisions with errant cargo cannisters and escape
pods.

                         Defense Against Missiles
                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Lacking an E.C.M. system, there are only two ways to deal with an
enemy missile: shoot it, or hyperspace away.  You cannot outrun or
out-maneuver a missile forever; it will never run out of fuel.

	It is easiest to shoot a missile when it is fired in front of you, but
it is also possible (though difficult) to out-maneuver an unseen missile
long enough to get it in your sights.

	If you choose the option of hyperspacing to safety, your chances for
success are much greater if you have the hyperspace cursor pre-set for a
jump.  To avoid the missile while your hyperspace timer is ticking down,
continuously loop for a close missile, and accelerate away for a distant
one.

                             Types of Enemies
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Most of your opponents will fall into two categories:  police ships
(vipers), and pirates/bounty hunters.

	Police will appear one at a time, although several may accumulate if
you're slow to dispose of them.  They have pretty strong defensive shields,
although a beam laser will readily dispatch them.

	Bounty hunters are solitary and so may be pirates, although it is more
common for pirates to be in groups of 2, 3, or 4.  The weaker ships--which
only require a few hits to destroy - tend to seek strength in numbers.

If a group of ships comes onto the field, it may initially be too tightly 
packed to show as multiple designators on the scanner, but you can almost
always identify it as a group by the fact that this single disignator will
be flickering on and off.

                                   -11-

	When faced with a pack, it is imperative that you reduce their numbers
quickly, since 3 or 4 lasers simultaneously firing at you will quickly
drain your shields.  After you destroy one or two, though, the debris
clouds may obscure the others.  Here, you should use the survivors' laser
fire as a guide to their location.  Lacking this, you can probe through the
cloud with your guns, searching for the tell-tale sound of your lasers
strafing the hull of a ship.

	Any ships that appear straight ahead of you are non-aggressive and
will only defend themselves:  freighters, fellow traders, etc.

                                 Thargoids
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	These are your most formidable adversaries, consisting of a mother
ship with strong defensive shields and an ECM system, together with its
host of small thargons which it discharges.

	On the scanner, such a group will initially have a greenish cast to
it, which serves as a reliable method of identification.
	
	In normal space, Thargoids will appear randomly now and then, and it
isn't all that hard to dispose of them.  After their mother ship is
destroyed (and its debris cloud vanishes), the Thargons stop firing and
will drift aimlessly through space.  If you have fuel scoops, you can
collect and sell the Thargons at the going rate for "alien items" (note
that you can pick up these items even if you have a full cargo hold).

	More difficult is the occasional scenario where a Thargoid mother ship
with Thargons AND a pack of up to 4 pirates simultaneously appear in space.
If you have a military laser and are skilled in its use, you can safely
take these out.  Otherwise, I would advise you to detonate an energy bomb
if you have it (this will clean out everything but the mother ship).

	The Thargoids are truly deadly, however, when they succeed in trapping
you in interstellar space.  This is always identified by a double passage
through the hyperspace tunnel, and your star chart will show you as located
between systems.

                                   -12-

	Here there will be four mother ships, together with Thargons, for a
total of at least eight ships (twelve is the maximum number of ships the
computer can place in space but you can only view eight at a time).

	It's possible to eliminate them all if you have a military laser,
although survival is problmeatical even when so equipped.  The only safe
approach is to immediately select the star chart and hyperspace to a
planetary system.  Note: an energy bomb will only destroy the Thargons;
mother ships are immune to it, and will simply discharge new Thargons to
replace those you destroyed.

	If you destroy this squadron of Thargoids, interstellar space will
remain empty:  cruise for as long as you like, and you will encounter
neither ships, nor asteroids, nor planets.

	As a rule, you never change your position on the star chart by
cruising or "jumping", either in this interstellar space or in normal
planetary space (if you start out at a planet and work away from it, you'll
eventually come back to it).

	Sometimes when you're trapped in interstellar space, you won't have
enough hyperspace fuel left to make it to a planet; this spells the end of
the game.

                               Combat Rating
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Your combat rating is proportional to the number of "kills" you have
made (ships of any type, as well as asteroids and boulders).  Moving
through each bracket requires many more kills than did the previous one.

	Some shiops are worth more as kills than others, as regards your
combat rating.  Outlaw ships such as pirates and Thargoids provide the
biggest boost to your rating, while police Vipers are almost worthless.

	It is not true, as the manual states, that you may move from
"harmless" to "mostly harmless" if you survive your first skirmish.
Actually, around 20 kills are required for this.

	The table (page 14) shows the approximate number of kills required to
move through each bracket and on to the next.  The exact number of kills
required will vary from game to game.

                                   -13-

	Harmless                              20 kills
	Mostly Harmless                       25 kills
        Poor                                  35 kills
	Average                               60 kills
        Above Average                        115 kills
	Competent*                           700 kills
	Dangerous                           3500 kills
	Deadly                              7000 kills

*NOTE: Competent requires 200 kills when Constrictor destroyed

	After Deadly you become ELITE ! !

	The computer will compliiment you with a "Right On Commander!" at
intervals of 350-700 kills which provides some sense of progression when
moving through the ranks.  Two of these are required to move through
"competent" (unless you destroy the Constrictor), seven for "dangerous" and
fourteen for "deadly" with the attainment of the status of ELITE at this
point.

	When "hunting" (see below), you can see one "right on cammander!"
about every two hours, so to attain a status of ELITE by itself with no
work to earn extra credits will take at least 50 hours of play.

	Great skill is not required to become ELITE, just a total of around
11,000 kills.  In getting there, you can save to the disk as often as you
wish.  "Dying" will not directly penalize you; you must simply start again
where you last saved the game.

                                  Hunting
                                  ~~~~~~~
	The fastest way to accumulate kills is to go to an anarchy planet and
simply keep jumping through space, destroying all ships that appear.

	The reason to use an anarchic planetary system is that it teams with
ships: you'll meet at least one with every jump, unlike a corporate or
democratic world where you may waste a lot of time jumping between your
encounters with ships.  Also, there is a cash reward for most ships
destroyed in an anarchy.

                                   -14-

	At times you will need to rest between jumps to cool your lasers and
rebuild your shields; I would not advise seeking new opponents unless your
forward shield is at least half energized, since you could meet up with a
pack of four pirates with your next jump.

	You should carry an energy bomb when in an anarchic system, and have
your hyperspace cursor set and ready to take you to safety.

	You should also avoid encounters with police when hunting, since they
will do little for your rating, and will take time away from the pursuit of
more valuable tagets.  You can do this by not carrying any illegal goods
when in the anarchic system, and by improving your legal status ahead of
time to at least "offender" (see Chapter 4).  If you fail to do this, you
will take around 25% longer to reach a given combat rating.

                                   -15-

(Page 16 is a blank)

                         3. RENDEZVOUS AND DOCKING
                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	As you make your approach to the planet, the space station will appear
at some random point to the side or in front of the planet.  You also can't
predict just how far from the planet you'll be when you first spot it.

	Any outlaw craft (pirates or Thargoids) attacking you will veer away
when you enter the domain of a station, and no new adversaries will appear
(and sometimes this will save your life).  However, any police attacking
you will continue their assault.

	Any ship making its first appearance after you enter the station's
domain is either a shuttle, freighter, or trader.  Shoot at this or the
station, and the police will come pouring out like wasps out of a hive.
Moreover, you can't dock under these conditions: try it and you'll be
destroyed as you enter the docking bay.

	You may destroy a hostile police craft that made its appearance before
you entered the station's domain, without the station's forces being
aroused.  The station cares nothing about your legal status.  Apparently,
the station is a purely business organization, and will welcome you so long
as you serve its economic interests.  Its own police force will attack you
only if you interfere with its profit-making operations.

	You won't be attacked if you accidentally run into another ship (or
intentionally for that matter), although such an incident will brand you as
an "offender" or even "fugitive".  Annoyingly, this will happen even if the
accident was obviously the other ship's fault.

	By the way, it's impossible to destroy a space station; even an energy
bomb detonated as you enter the docking bay will have no effect.  If the

                                   -17-

station's forces are aroused, you must flee or warp out of the system.
Once out of range of the station, you can reapproach the planet with
impunity - these guys seem to have pretty short memories!

                           Disappearing Stations
                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	As you approach the planet and come within the station's domain, the
station may initially be out of visual range.  In this case, simply center
it on the compass and you'll soon spot it as a bright, steady "star".

	However, an irritating (and rather illogical) problem may occur under
these conditions: swinging toward the station can cause your instruments to
"lose" it, and you'll have to start over and wait till a different station
makes its appearance.  This can be an actual hazard if you're getting close
to the planet, where station after station tantalizingly appears, only to
disappear and lead you on till you either crash or pull away.

	The way to avoid this problem is the edge toward the station in
increments, taking about 20 seconds to swing toward any station that is
beyond the border of your screen; this will give your instruments a chance
to "lock it in".

                                 Approach
                                 ~~~~~~~~
	The docking bay of a station always faces the planet; thus you should
make an approach that takes you under the station.

	When you visually locate the station, maneuver so that the planet is
at the bottom if your screen and the station is at the top of your
gunsights.  Maintain a steady cruise for the time being, which will take
the station higher and higher on your screen as you approach.

                                   -18-

	Once the station appears on your scanner, it should be moving toward
you at a moderate elevation above the plane of the scanner.  As soon as
it's directly above you, scrub off most of your speed and swing up to face
it.  This will often position you well enough so you can go straight in,
although corrections will usually be required.

	If you find yourself too far to the side of the docking bay to to in
as-is, maneuver to place the entrance in your sights and the rest of the
station directly below the sights.  Pull up until the compass dot is at the
bottom of the compass (meaning that the station is below you and you're
facing a point about 90 degrees away from it).  Then accelerate for a short
distance, stop, and turn back toward the station.  A series of such
operations will always place you in a correct docking position.

	As you gain experience, you'll get better and better at judging the
time of this operation, and be able to make a correction in one maneuver,
even though you can't directly see how your position is changing.

	Sometimes when the station first appears, it will be between you and
the planet.  Here, a different initial approach is called for: go past it
toward the planet, then decelerate and loop back.

                                  Docking
                                  ~~~~~~~
	Once you are positioned directly above the opening, you can accelerate
towards it, but you must be going at dead slow speed as you enter.

                                   -19-

	The manual that comes with the game tells you to keep the port
horizontal on your screen.  Not only is this very difficult, but it's
totally unnecessary: even if you're not correctly aligned when you enter,
the rotation of the station will soon result in a correct alignment, at
which point you will be instantly "locked in".  You may first scrape the
walls a few times and lose some shield energy, but you'll mae it safely.

	In fact, you can "find" the correct alignment even faster if you roll
you ship in the OPPOSITE direction from that of the rotation of the
station, as you enter the docking bay (joystick pushed to left).  The
combined rotations will ensure that you have little time to scrape the
walls.

                             Margins of Error
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	It's not necessary that you be perfectly centered above the docking
bay to successfully enter.  The illustrations show the limits that I
recommend you don't exceed without making corrections:

	If you approach the docking bay when this far off-center, you may find
that you seem to be veering off-course when you get close to the surface of
the station, in that the port will move away from your sights and even off
your screen, DO NOT try to make corrections; just keep going straight and
maintain a rolling maneuver, or you'll end up at an even worse angle.

                                   -20-

                                Other Ships
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~
	When you're approaching the station, shuttle craft will often be
leaving the docking bay, threatening a collision.  Although you can steer
away from them, I usually just plow ahead and run into them if I'm near the
station.  You have enough shield energy to take the hit, and steering away
at this range would require a complete repositioning in order to dock.

	However, the danger does exist of running into two shuttles in a row,
which together with scraping the walls of the docking bay may drain all
your energy and kill you.  The degree of risk is directly proportional to
how long you hang around in front of the station, so by all means get in as
fast as possible.  With experience, you'll develop the timing required to
approach the port at fairly high speed and decelerate to a crawl just
before entering it.

                             Docking Computers
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	An experienced player will be able to dock just as safely and quickly
without docking computers as with them, but you'll probably want them for
their ease and luxury (I'll admit that I use them most of the time).  Be
careful, though: the computers aren't all that smart, and can kill you if
you don't set things up properly ahead of time.

	Even with docking computers, you should come up under the station, and
have the port visible before you activate them.  If you come in on the
wrong side and activate the computers, they can actually run you into the
blank wall opposite the docking bay!!

                                   -21-

(Page 22 is blank)

                           4. Making a Profit
                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	There are a couple of ways of making money other than trading.  For
one, you can be a pirate/bounty hunter.  If you destroy all ships that
appear, you'll receive a cash reward for most (most ships are pirates), and
in many cases there will be a cargo cannisters and alloy slabs that you can
pick up and sell.

	Also, you can pick up any escape pods (including those of the police),
turn their occupants into slaves, and sell them!

	However, this life style is not a lucrative one, and you'll make money
at a far faster rate by trading intelligently.  After all, bounties are
typically worth only around 10 credits each, and it takes a long time to
fill your hold with scavenged cargo dannisters.

	Another alternative is asteroid mining, for which you need a special
mining laser.  When you shoot asteroids, they'll eject masses of minerals
which you can collect and sell.  But again, the profit per unit is small.
Also, combat with pirates will present very serious problems, since the
mining laser isn't suitable for fighting: not only does it lack fire power,
but the sights are so big and ugly that you can hardly see targets through
them!

                                  Trading
                                  ~~~~~~~
	Though trading has great profit potential, you won't make much if you
flit from planet to planet hoping to find a deal on any one of the 16
commodities bought and sold.  If you rely on chance like this, you'll be
lucky to pay for your fuel.

                                   -23-

	On the other hand, if you trade with the right goods at the right
planets, you can make a profit as high a rate as 30,000 credits per hour.
In short, you can pretty well eliminate the element of risk.  In a sense
this will make for a less exciting game, but if you're after the big
credits then it's the only way to go.

                                Contraband
                                ~~~~~~~~~~
	The core of your program should consist of narcotics trading.  This is
because there exists here the greatest potential difference between buying
and selling prices of any commodity--as much as 100 credits/ton.

	This potential profit comes with an apparent risk: the price for
narcotics is more volatile than that of any other commodity, and you risk
going to a planet giving a price even lower than what you paid for it.
However, there are ways to reduce and even eliminate this risk.

	In general, the narcotics price is higher at agricultural planets than
at industrial ones, so you should usually buy at industrial and sell at
agricultural.

	But how do you guarantee that you'll find good buying and selling
prices with each "run" between planets?  To explain this, I'll need to
describe the basis of the pricing structure.

                                  Prices
                                  ~~~~~~
	Each planet has its own fixed set of possible market prices for each
commadity.  Every time you visit a particular planet, the computer will
randomly select a price from this set of possiblities.

	So although agricultural planets, for example, tend to offer higher
prices for narcotics, some will have better sets of possibilities than
others.  The same goes for the buying prices on industrial planets.

	However, every planet will also have a number of very poor prices
which you obviously don't want to get stuck with.  The way out of this
problem is to select an agricultural planet and an industrial planet which
are very close together as well as having attractive prices. Preferably,
they should be less than one light-year apart.

                                   -24-

	With this arrangement, you can keep hopping between planets until you
find a good price to buy at the industrial, or to sell at the
agricultural.

	Every time you hyperspace, the prices are randomly selected with no
relation to previous prices.  For example, you may find a price for
narcotics at a given planet of 5 credits/ton, only to leave it and return
immediately to find a price of 95 credits/ton.

	You can examine market prices in a given system immediately upon
making the hyperspace jump, so this price-scanning operation will only take
a few seconds.

	The closer the planets are together, the more jumps you'll be able to
make in trying to find the right price, before you run out of fuel.  I use
the criterion of anything less than 40 credits/ton as a good selling price.
Hoever, on average you should be able to find buying prices of 20
credits/ton and selling of 85 credits/ton.

	If you've just about used up your fuel with repeated jumps, you'll
either have to settle for a price that's not as good as you'd like, or
trade in other goods, or not trade at all and just buy your fuel.  But in
the case of planets that have good price spreads and are 0.4 light-year
apart, it's possible to find good prices in practically every trading run.

	In addition to price, you also have to worry about quantity for sale
if you're on the buying side of the market.  If I have large cargo bay and
enough capital to fill it, I won't bother with less than 20 tons of
narcotics, even if the price is right (in the early part of a game,
however, a small amount might be all I could afford).

	If you buy narcotics but there aren't enought to fill your hold, or
you have to stop at an industrial planet without finding and acceptable
narcotics buy, you won't go wrong buying computers.  You can almost always
sell them at an agricultural planet for a profit of 30 credits/ton.  The
same goes for firearms, where you can make a reliable profit of almost 30
credits/ton.

	That's about it as regards good buys at industrial planets.  Although
there are other commodities that offer a profit when sold at agricultural
planets, such as machinery, the profit margin is much lower.

                                   -25-

                                 Cop Out?
                                 ~~~~~~~~
	Actually, there is a way to guarantee finding excellent buying and
selling prices every time, even where planets aren't close together.

	If you save the game every time you dock, then you can simply start it
over whenever you hyperspace to the other system and aren't satisfied with
the price; you can do this as many times as you like.

	However, I myself consider this to be a rather artificial way to play
successfully, and prefer to develop efficiency through intelligent game
strategy.

	If you go to the work of finding the right planetary systems, you can
make profits at just as high a rate, as well as avoid the inconvenience of
constantly having to save and restart games.

	However, there is one solution where I'd recommend you play this
way--in the Elite Tournament (see Chapter 7).

                                Return Trip
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~
	You should also strive to make a profit on the return journey to the
industrial planet (in picking up another load of narcotics).  The best
commodities to buy at an agricultural and sell at an industrial planet are
usually furs, which you can typically sell at a profit of 10 to 40 credits
per ton.  Next in line is liquir, with a reliable profit of 10 credits/ton.
And while the market in slaves is a little too volatile, careful purchases
here will net you 15 credits/ton/

                                Other Goods
                                ~~~~~~~~~~~
	If you're starting a game from scratch, then the trading rules are a
little different.  With little capital to work with, such commodities as
food become attractive in trading.  Although only offering a profit margin
of 2 or 3 credits/ton, this will double your investment when making a run
from an agricultural to an industrial planet.

                                   -26-

	When working with limited capital, you should buy almost as much as
you can in the way of more-expensive large-profit-per ton items (like
narcotics. furs, liquor, and computers), then use the leftover money to top
off your cargo bay with such low-priced items as food and slaves.

	In any event, in each run you should try to structure your inventory
so that you invest as much of your capital--and fill your cargo bay as
full--as you can, provided each item is sure to yield a profit.  In
selecting what items to buy and how much of each, you can use the following
formula: multiply the number of tons of an item you're thinking of buying
by the expected profit per ton, do this for all other commodities you'd
also be carrying, and add all these profits together.  Select an inventory
that will maximize this total profit.

                            Narcotics Officers
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Trading in narcotics will, of course, get you in trouble with the
police.  You'll be branded an offender, which will sooner or later cause
the police to attack you, and in defending yourself you'll become a
fugitive.  But you've got to be able to handle combat situations if you're
going to play this game, and in any event the pirates are tougher opponents
than the police (coming as they do in packs).

                             Diverse Economies
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Don't attempt to trade at planets that are listed as "mostly
agricultural" or "mostly industrial".  Most profits come from the fact that
you're trading between an agricultural and an industrial planet, so these
60%-40% planets only offer intermediate prices where good buys and sales
are hard to find.

                            Risk Without Yields
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Although it is a little more profitable (at times) to trade at
unstable worlds, the profits at safer worlds can be just as good.

	The major difference between political systems is the chance of your
being attacked by pirates: you may or may not be attacked in a "safe"

                                   -27-

system when making a trading run, whereas you will probably be attacked
several times at a feudal or anarchic planet.

	You should stay away from the more dangerous planets when you are
inexperienced and/or have not yet fully equipped your ship, though they
shouldn't present problems leter on.

                               Little Stuff
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~
	There are three commodities you can buy that don't take up cargo
space: gold, platinum, and gem-stones.  So if you have the capital, you can
still invest in these after filling your cargo bay.  However the profits
you can realize are quite limited.

	In general, the prices are higher in industrial worlds, so this is
where you should usually sell.  Buy at agricultural planets.

	You should buy gold when 37 credits/kg or lower, platinum when 67
credits/kg or below, gem-stones when 18 credits/g or lower.  Sell gold when
40 or higher, platinum when 73 or higher, gems when 22 or above.

	When trading in these items you should never alter your itinerary on
their account, but it's something you might like to play with when the
opportunity presents itself.

                             Specific Planets
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	In the first galaxy, the pair of planets nearest your starting point
offer decent narcotics opportunities are Relaes and Zasoer.  These planets
are 0.8 light-year apart and lie 10 light-years to the upper left of Lave,
and are where you should earn the funds to equip your ship.

	However, for extended work on building a fortune, you should select an
agricultural and industrial pair lying only 0.4 light-year apart.  Offering
excellent opportunites are Atbevete and Aerater., located in the upper
right quadrant of the first galaxy.  However, your mission to destroy the
Constrictor (see Chapter 6) will soon take you out of the galaxy.

	A similar problem exists in the second galaxy, where your mission
against the Thargoids will soon demand your presence in the third galaxy.
But there isn't much in the way of lucrative trading opportunities anyway

                                   -28-

in the second galaxy.  Better to just concentrate on improving your combat
rating and getting the missions out of the way.

	The third galaxy is also deficient in good trading opportunities; you
should move on to the fourth galaxy after completing your mission against
the Thargoids.

	Perhaps the best place to settle down for long-term profit making
operations are the planets Rilaan and Esrireti in the 4th galaxy.  You've
gotten your missions out of the way, and these two planets are as good as
any you'll find.  They lie 0.4 light-year apart, and 23 light-years below
your starting point in this galaxy.

	Two light-years away from this pair is the anarchic planet Arrege,
where you can go to improve your combat rating.  I found it easiest to get
through these rather tedious upper levels if I worked for a while at
building wealth, then combat rating, then back to wealth, and so on.

	Decent trading opportunities can also be found in the last four
galaxies, if you wish to journey there.  Just select the long-range chart
and access data on pairs of planets so close that their designator are
touching or almost touching.  If you find an agricultural/industrial pair,
they will probably offer good potential.

                                   -29-

(Page 30 is blank)

                              5. Saving time
                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	If you've done much work with Elite, you've no doubt noticed the way
that the action on the screen moves much faster than others.  This is a
result of limitations in the computer's power: the software is a little
much for it!

	When a lot of things are going on at once, the computer must slow
down, the result being that the action can come to a virtual crawl.  This
phenomenon takes some getting used to, as it will cause a variable speed
in the maneuvering of your ship, as well as the rate of fire of your guns.
It also consumes a great deal of time, but if you know some tricks to get
around it, you can cut your space flight time in half (and thus almost
double the rate at which you accumulate credits).

	There are three tasks which the computer must perform: carry out the
simulation, generate the graphics, and monitor the controls for player
input.  It must divide its time between these three functions, and if you
can take away part of its load, it will be able to conduct a faster
simulation.

	The major parameter under your control is the graphics: if you select
a screen on which no graphics are showing (other than stars), then things
move much faster!

	Of course, you can't do this when shooting at targets, manually
docking, etc., but there are many situations in which you can freely do so.
In particular, when approaching the planet you should select another screen
(look at the rear view, and notice how much faster the stars go past when
the planet isn't showing).

                                   -31-

	If asteroids or hostile spacecraft come within range as you're
approaching the planet, then you can switch back to the forward view.  The
scanner is all you need to alert you.

	You can cruise toward the space station with just the scanner, and
thus dispense with the time-consuming graphics of both the station and the
planet.  Once you activate the docking computer, you can also forgo a view
of the station (here you should select a side view, as a rear view will
show the planet.

                            Excessive Data Load
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Another important time saver is to eliminate the graphics of debris
clouds from destroyed ships; these are the most complex and time-consuming
of all the graphics.

	If you're hunting ships--jumping through space to find another one as
soon as you destroy the last--then you should select another screen and
push the "J" key continually after destroying the current adversary.  This
will enable you to make another jump as soon as possible--just as soon as
the debris cloud disperses.  Then switch back to the front scanner when you
jump and a new ship appears on the scanner.

	When it's out of view, the debris cloud from a single ship will take
around 3 seconds to disperse, while it will take about 6 seconds if it's in
view.  Multiple debris clouds will take longer.

                             Hyperspace Timers
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Another way to save some time is to switch to a side view (which
doesn't show the planet). or to a non-graphic screen after you launch from
a station and while the hyperspace is ticking down.  The two rates at which
the timer ticks down is an especially dramatice illustration of how much
faster things go if you eliminate the graphics.

                               Minor Objects
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	You can also simplify the simulation part of the computer's job by
reducing the number of non-aggressive objects in space.  By this I mean
asteroids and cargo cannisters (and escape pods if you're callous).

                                   -32-

Asteroids should be shot anyway, since there is danger of running into them
(they appear straight ahead of you) and they count as "kills" toward your
combat training.

	Cargo cannisters don't count as kills and will rarely hit you, but
shooting them when they're good targets will save some time.  Just don't go
out of your way to shoot them, or you'll end up causing a net waste of
time.  Also not that they're hard targets to hit, as they are much smaller
than ships and are often moving across your line of sight.

	Another reason to shoot cargo cannisters (when convenient) is that
this will unclutter your scanner and prevent possible confusion between
them and enemy ships.  However, with experience you can almost always tell
them apart by their initial location, even if you didn't spot the actual
arrival of the ship: enemy ships can be either above or below the plane of
the scanner, but at a characteristic range and always in the front half of
the scanner's space.

	Note that neither cargo cannisters, escape pods, or asteroids will
inhibit making jumps, unlike a ship or its debris cloud.  They will also
travel along with you when you jump, so aside from destroying them the
only way to get rid of them is to cruise until they get out of range.

	There is one situation in which cargo cannisters cause things to
dramatically slow down: when you shoot a loaded freighter.  So many of them
will be thrown out in space (together with alloy slabs) that this will
consume alot of computer power, even if all the objects are off your
viewing screen.

	It is best to simply let such a ship go out of range: while it will
prevent you from jumping for awhile, it's cargo will really slow things
down and continue to haunt you for some time.  And whatever you do, don't
fire off a sub-lethal number of shots at a freighter--it may dump its
cargo, which means that you're stuck with both a lot of objects in space
slowing things down and a ship that will prevent you from jumping.

	Freighters won't shoot at you if you don't shoot at them; you can
always identify them by the fact that they will appear straight ahead of
you.  They will sometimes come almost straight toward you and pass by very
close, but they will never run into you unless you steer toward them.

                                   -33-

                               One Last Jump
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Another thing that can save time is making sure that you get as close
to the planet as possible through jumping, since covering a substantial
distance by cruising is a very slow process.

	Often your ship won't jump any more when you're still fairly far away
from the planet, since an additional jump at this point would take you
closer than the allowed distance or even run you into the planet.

	You'll save a substantial about of time if you get an additional jump
through the following technique: turn 180 degrees away, then cruise for a
short period of time, then turn back toward the planet and make a jump.
How long you must cruise away depends on how far you are from the planet;
you can check you range by (momentarily) selecting the rear view, and with
experience you'll be able to tell by apparent size of the planet that
you're ready for a jump.

	If, after your initial jumps, the planet almost reaches from the top
to the bottom of your screen, then you should simply cruise toward it.
Although you could in theory get closer by jumping, to get this additional
jump you would need to cruise away from the planet for so long that you'd
suffer a net expense of time.
	
	When cruising away from the planet, don't place the sun on your
screen, as its graphics will slow things down.  Select a side view if
necessary.

                        Disappearing Stations Again
                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	If you recall, I earlier advised the player to go slow when turning
toward a station that has just appeared, to keep it from vanishing.
Actually, you can usually save some time by causing such a distant station
to vanish in this way, and waiting for a second one that is likely to be
closer.  But if you're getting dangerously close to the planet--or have an
ill equipped ship and need the station's protection--then you have no
choice but to carefully "lock in" any available station, no matter how
distant.

                                   -34-

                              Window Shopping
                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	You can also save some time by examining the market prices and
planning your purchase while you're cruising through safe space toward the
station, rather than after you're docked.

	Although this might seem to be taking time-saving measures to the
extreme, any means of playing faster is important if you're taking part in
Firebird's Elite Tournament, to which I will turn my attention in the last
chapter.
                                   -35-

(Page 36 is blank)

                            6. INCOMING MESSAGES
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	As soon as you come into port with 5,000 credits you will be greeted
by a very persuasive gentleman offering to sell you "the rarest thing in
the known universe".  The choice to buy is yours.  Further clues are
revealed in the last part of this book.

                                Constrictor
	                        ~~~~~~~~~~~
	For the time being you should stay in the first galaxy, because a
special mission awaits you!!!

	After you attain the rank of "Competent" and are complimented with
"right on commander!" you will be commissioned by the Space Navy to find
and destoy a TOP SECRET ship that was stolen.  It has shields as tough as
nails and nothing but a military laser will even dent it.  The Space Navy
will give you the name of a planet where he was last seen.  Of course, he
will have left when you get there.  By docking and hitting "6" for
information, you will receive more clues as to his location.  After
completing this mission you will receive 5,000 credits and become
"Dangerous".  Again, if you get really stuck go to the last section of this
manual.

                             Thargoid Invasion
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	After you have seen three more "Right On Commander!" messages, take a
trip to the third galaxy where another special mission awaits you!
(provided you completed the first one).

                                   -37-

	The Space Navy will once again enlist your services, this time, as a
courier to carry information about the Thargoids' home world.  What they do
not tell you is that the Thargoids find out about the plans and will
harass you all the way to your destination; it is hard but not nearly as
hard when you get trapped in hyperspace with them.

	Upon completion of this mission, you will receive a Navy
specifications extra energy unit that will recharge your ship at almost
twice the rate of the normal extra energy unit (which in itself is twice as
powerful as the one your ship originally came with).

                            Further Encounters
                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	The quest against the Thargoids is the last of the special missions
but there is one instance worthy of notice.

	Late in the game you will encounter a "stealth" ship, this ship is as
tough as the Constrictor but with an extra catch.  It will not show in the
scanner.  It has a special cloaking device.  You will not get a message
telling you what to do, but it can indeed be to your benefit if you play
your cards right.  Do not be discouraged if you do not figure it out right
away.  You will encounter this ship periodically.  If you really get stuck,
the last part of this manual will offer more help.

	There are two awesome-sounding things listed in the manual that I waas
unable to find in the game, and Firebird acknowledges that they were simply
written in as a flourish: space dredgers and generation ships.  However,
rumor has it that a sequel to Elite is in the works, and that it may
include dredgers and generation ships.

	While rare, Rock Hermits can be found in Elite.  Sometimes when you
shoot at an asteroid, a fighter will emerge and circle around in space.  If
you continue to fire until you destroy the poor guy's home, alloy slabs and
cargo cannisters will be thrown out into space.

                                   -38-

                                 ATTENTION
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
          Read no further unless you wish to know the solutions!
          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This section will give answers to:

	o  "THE RAREST THING"

	o  "THE CONSTRICTOR"

	o  "THE STEALTH SHIP"

	o  "RAISING YOUR COMBAT RATING FAST"

	o  "TIPS ON PLAYING IN THE ELITE COMPETITION"

                                 TRUMBLES
                                 ~~~~~~~~
	So you got curious, did you?  You fell prey to a con artist.  You
bought TRUMBLES!

	These little things eat all your food and narcotics and multiply at
every hyperspace.  They will eventually cover your screen, and fill your
cargo bay.

	To get rid of them you can try using an escape pod, but there is
always one especially effectionate trumble in the group that cannot bear to
part from you and sneaks into your escape pod.  If you ever watched Star
Trek, you may remember "Trouble With Tribbles"; Trumbles are Tribbles'
distant cousins.  The only way you can destroy them is to fly to the sun
until your ship is at the point of melting.  This will destroy the
Trumbles.

                                   -39-

                           The Contrictor Again
                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	This powerful ship is very elusive.  When you receive the mission to
find him, you will be sent on a wild goose chase.  Do not worry as you will
eventually catch him, but not in the first galaxy.  You will be sent to the
second galaxy, but when you arrive you will not find the Constrictor nor
any clue to his whereabouts.  If you still cannot find him, try a planet
named Orarra.

	Note:  If you can not destroy the Constrictor, it is probably because
you are not using a military laser.

                             The Stealth Ship
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	This unseen ship has a special cloaking device.  When you destroy him
you can, in fact, pick it up and use it, thus becoming invisible to your
enemies radar.

	Note: The stealth ship has shields as strong as the Constrictor so it
is no easy task to destroy him.
	
	The arrival of the stealth ship will typically be signalled by an
inability to make any more "jumps", even though nothing shows on the
scanner.  If you can't locate him visually, or lose him later on, you
should employ a systematic scanning technique similar to the one for
locating a sun.
 
                                    -40-

                         7. STARTING FROM SCRATCH
                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	You may have already gotten a game started and saved on the disk, but
you haven't really gotten the difficult, early part of the game out of the
way if you're thinking about taking part in Firebird's Elite Tournament.

	In this competition, all players must start from scratch and will
(according to current plans) be given exactly 2 1/2 hours to reach the
highest combat rating and number of credits that they can.  The winner will
be the one with the highest combat rating or if more than one attain the
same rating, the one among these with the most credits.

	In this chapter, I will show how to get a game going in the safest and
fastest way, with emphasis on the tournament.  The basic goal will be to
attain "competent" status and around 30,000 credits in a 2 1/2 hour period.

	In such a contest, it is an unfortunate fact that luck plays an
important role: because the appearance of enemies and the selection of
prices is largely a random process, some games are harder to survive than
others.  But there is much that the player can do in the way of strategies
that will tilt the odds in his favor.

	The principles I will outline will in general apply to any beginning
game, but where things are different for a non-competitive game, I will
point this out.

                                   -41-

                                 First Run
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	But 2 tons of narcotics at Lave.  Although this is not a good price by
the usual criteria (at 49.6 credits/ton), it's the way to earn the most
credits in the first run.
	
	Immediately head for Reorte, 4.4 light-years above Lave.  Check the
market prices when you enter this system, and start the game over if the
narcotics price isn't over 80 credits/ton.

	If the price is right, immediately start jumping toward the planet.
But if you encounter ANY ship when jumping, start the game over again.  Not
only is your survival problematical (at least when there's a pack of
ships), but you'll waste too much time if you engage the enemy:  It can
take almost forever to destroy a ship when you only have a pulse laser, and
you should save your missiles for later.  You'll save time in the end by
restarting the game however many times it takes to get near the planet
without encountering any ships.

	Once docked, sell your narcotics and buy all the slaves you can if the
price is 12 credits/ton or lower.  With any remaining cash, buy liquor
and/or food.

	At this or any other planet, buy fuel after selling your cargo and
before buying a new cargo: you don't want to be short of cash and have to
waste time trading back part of your cargo to buy fuel.

                                Second Run
                                ~~~~~~~~~~
	Head for Relaes, 6.8 light-years to the upper left.  This is the most
crucial run, since you have made a substantial time-investment in the game
and don't want to start over.  You don't have enough fuel to hyperspace to
another system if you get in trouble, so the risk is high.

	You should immediately engage all ships that appear, although you may
well be a goner if a squadron of pirates appears.  The police may also
attack you, since you have traded in illegal goods.

	If faced with a pack of pirates, fire missiles as well as your lasers.
Be careful not to shoot your own missiles, or waste shots on ships that
your missiles are tracking.

                                   -42-

	When faced with several enemies, maintain your speed so you can
quickly get past them if you can't destroy them immediately.  Next, carry
out the low-speed looping maneuver to bring them back onto your screen.

	When a single ship appears, it is most likely a police viper with
missiles.  You must do everything you can to destroy him before he gets
past you, since police craft will often fire missiles at this point.  He
may also fire a missile when he's in front of you, but at least you have a
chance to shoot it under these conditions.

	The best strategy with a police craft is to lock a missile on him, but
try to destroy him early on with your lasers.  Only fire your missile if it
looks like he'll get past you.

	In any event, you must eliminate all ships just as fast as you can,
not merely to protect yourself from them, but to avoid the disastrous
occurrance of other ships coming onto the field while you're fooling around
with the first one.  If these conditions last, you won't make any progress
toward the planet, and will have your shields and energy banks worn down
till you die.

	If you make it safely to the station, you'll probably survive from
this point on if you're an experienced player.  You are now in what amounts
to a double system:  Relaes and Zasoer, two planets close enough together
(0.8 light-year) that you can hop back to the other one if you get in
trouble when making a run.

	Sell your cargo at Relaes, and buy narcotics if they are available and
if the price is right.  If not, but computers.

                                 Third Run
                                 ~~~~~~~~~
	Hyperspace into the Zasoer system, with your first task being to set
the hyperspace course back to Relaes so as to make the fastest possible
escape if need be.  Next, examine the prices and if you're carrying
narcotics, skip over to Relaes and back to Zasoer if the price isn't right.
Here you should employ the criterion that any price over 60 credits/ton is
acceptable.

                                   -43-

	Carry out this operation until you find a decent price or until you're
almost out of fuel.  ALWAYS keep enough fuel to hyperspace out of the
system if you get in trouble.

	Normally, when working in the markets of a closely-spaced agricultural
industrial pair, you should only concern yourself with the narcotics price
of the agricultural planet when you want to sell.  But here, you should
also examine the price when skipping back to Relaes, since you have no
guarantee of finding a good price at Zasoer and you want to conserve as
much hyperspace fuel as you can for insurance.

	When making this trading run, immediately hyperspace out of the system
if a pack of four pirates shows up.  Otherwise, engage all aggressors until
you either destroy them, or your energy reserves run low (at which point
you should hyperspace away).

	If you must leave the system because of low energy, rest in the other
one as long as possible--that is, until an aggressor appears.

                              Following Runs
                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	When you sell your cargo at Zasoer, you can generally select a good
return cargo from slaves, liquor, or furs.

	Carry out trading operations between these two planets until you have
at least 1,000 credits, at which point you should probably buy a beam laser
(actual cost 600 credits, since you're refunded 400 credits for your pulse
laser).

	I realize that this will cause a big loss in investment capital, but
without a beam laser your survival is still somewhat in doubt.  With it,
there is not only very little that can harm you, but you'll eliminate
enemies so fast that the time you save will pretty much make up for the
loss in capital.

	Continue to trade, and when you have over 400 credits left after
filling your hold, buy a large cargo bay.  Next, you should work toward
aquiring enough money for an ECM system, the an extra energy unit, and
finally a military laser, but don't sacrifice investment capital to buy any
of this equipment: always keep enough cash to fill your cargo hold.

                                   -44-

                               A Better Way
                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~
	The above picture changes considerably if you wish to save the game to
disk whenever you dock--and if the rules of the tournment permit this (at
the time of this writing it looks like they probably will).  Not only can
you avoid much risk, but you can make profits at a much faster rate.

	The second run--to Relaes--looses its great risk, since it's
comparatively painless to start over at Reorte if you get in trouble.  If
you wish to take this technique even further, you can use it to demand a
good narcotics buying price (and quantity for sale) at Relaes, as well as a
good price to sell whatever you're shipping from Reorte (usually slaves).

	Guaranteeing that you make big profits in these first few runs will
make a huge difference in total efficiency, since you will be able to equip
your ship much faster, as well as quickly build investment capital (after
all, it takes money to make money).

	It can also be very helpfulto save the game at every stopover when
trading between Relaes and Zasoer, not only for insurance but for increased
profit,  If you use up all you fuel looking for a good narcotics buying or
selling price and don't find it, you can simply start over at the station
and continue until you do find it.  Although this operation takes time, the
increased profits per run will result in far greater overall earnings per
unit time.

	With this technique, you can also be more demanding as regards
narcotics prices, since you have in essence an unlimited fuel supply; I
insist on selling my narcotics at over 80 credits/ton.

	You can also do without sacrificing investment capital to purchase a
beam laser as early as possible: you will always have good insurance from
having just saved the game.  Instead, the first piece of equipment you
should acquire is a large cargo bay.

	If a pack of pirates appears before you acquire a beam laser, simply
start the game over and you'll not only avoid great risk, but save time.

                                   -45-

                                  Hunting
                                  ~~~~~~~
	After you have a ship equipped with an ECM system, extra energy unit,
and a military laser, you can stop trading for now and work at improving
your combat rating.

	If the game isn't a competitive one, you will probably wish to fully
equip your ship before moving on, with such items as docking computers, an
energy bomb, fuel scoops, and an escape pod.  In the tournament, you should
never buy these items, since you can't afford the cost, or the time to earn
the required funds.

	Your hunting gound is the anarchic planet Quator (3.2 light-years to
your lower right), which makes a close pair with the planet Ra.  But first
pick up a load of computers at Relaes and ship it to Ra.  You need to buy
fuel at one of the two planets (Ra and Quator), so you might as well make a
profit while you're at it.  After unloading, buy a shipment of furs or
liquor (but not slaves, because you don't want to waste time fighting the
police craft that don't contribute much to your combat rating).

	You should carry out hunting operations in the Quatar system until you
attain "competent" status.  This is (probably) the most you can anticipate
in a 2.5 hour game (see below for a possible exception).

	There is such urgency as regards time, that you should take greater
risks than you normally would in hunting operations: carry out jumps to
find new ships even if your forward shield is only partly energized.
Except when seriously drained, you can't waste any time rebuilding your
shields between adversaries.

However, something that can give you a little more insurance is to have the
hyperspace cursor set on Ra, so you can make an escape if you get in
trouble.

	Something you should do when hunting is to steer away from the planet
and sun, and place them at a great distance.  You want to avoid the
time-consuming calculations involved in not only their graphics, but their
mere proximity.  And of course follow all the principles of time-saving
that I outlined in Chapter 5.

	Unfortunately, you won't be able to save the game to disk at any point
in this hunting operation, unless you are willing to spend several minutes
in docking.  If you dock, do so at Ra, since this will be faster than
working your way back to Quator.

                                   -46-

                                 End Game
                                 ~~~~~~~~
	Check on your combat rating often when it's getting about time for a
shift from "above average" to "competent".  When you reach this goal,
hyperspace back to Relaes and Zasoer.  Continue this for as much time as
you have left.

	Actually, if you have a good sense of timing, or keep track of your
number of kills, you can save some time by resuming trading before reaching
"competent" status.  You can then use the inevitable confrontations that
will arise in trading to take you over the edge into the "competent"
bracket.

	Make sure that you're docked before the 2.5 hours runs out, and trade
your military laser in for a beam laser.  This will give you a 5,600 credit
refund, and with both skill and luck you may have over 30,000 credits at
this point.

                             Dangerous Rating?
                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	Believe it or not, it is possible to attain the rating of "dangerous"
within 2.5 hours (I have done it).  This is accomplished by finding and
destroying the Constrictor through a shortcut: heading him off at his final
destination planet, rather than pfollowing his trail as you normally would.

	This may or may not have importance in relation to the tournament.
THe proble is that this goal is extremely tight: the one time I did
succeed, I did so with only a couple of minutes to spare.

	Even if I were to play with a very high level of skill, they would
probably require the opportunity of playing several games within the
tournament, to consider this a feasible goal.

                      In any event, here is the plan:

	Start the game in the usual manner, and save the game at every
stopover.  Buy a large cargo bay as your first piece of equipment, and when
you have money beyond the needed investment capital, purchase a beam laser
and an ECM system.

                                   -47-

	At this point you should start saving money for a galactic hyperdrive.
For now, we will forgo the extra energy unit and military laser; you can
purchase these witht the profits you make in traveling toward the planet
Orarra in the second galaxy (the Constrictor's destination world).

	When you dock at Relaes and have 5,000 credits left over after buying
a load of narcotics, purchase a galactic hyperdrive, and use it.

	You will find yourself in the Ororra system, not to be confused with
the Constrictor's destination of Orarra.  If the narcotics price is right
for selling, proceed to dock; if not start the game over at Relaes and try
again however many times you must.

	Next head for Resori, and restart the game at Ororra as many timmes as
it takes to find a good buying price for narcotics.  Then sell your
narcotics at Zaaxeve, buy at Ceiner, and sell at Zatebiso.

	You will next arrive at Orarra, and by this time should have enough
cash for a military laser and an extra energy unit (note that you can
purchase both for only 6,500 credits, if you first buy the military laser
and get the 1,000-credit refund on your beam laser).

	You are not yet ready to tackle the Constrictor; you must first see
"right on, commander!" before you will be given the mission.

	Your hunting ground is the feudal planet Tiriusri, 2.4 light-years
above Orarra.  Although not quite as good as an anarchy, it will have to
do, since you'll have to go too far out of your way to find an anarchy.

	Hyperspace into this system, but don't dock.  You should also not
carry any illegal goods, and should only have a legal status of "offender"
(don't bring anything illegal to Orarra, and you will be demoted from
"fugitive" by this point).  You don't want to be battling the police, which
do little for your combat rating.

	As soon as you see "right on, commander!", head back to Orarra and
dock, so as to receive your mission.  Then head out from the station, and
you will soon encounter the Contstrictor once you start jumping through
deep space.

                                   -48-

	If you're pressed for time, a quick way to destroy the Constrictor is
to arm a missile and head straight for him, firing this missile just before
colliding with him.  Although he has an ECM system, he'll usually not have
enough time to use it (this missile trick will work against any ship
equipped with an ECM system).

	Or, you can simply run into him if you choose:  if you have some
shield energy, you'll always come out the victor in a collision with
another ship.  However you do it, you will immediately promoted to
"dangerous" when the Contrictor is destroyed.

	If at all possible, make it back to port before the 2.5 hours runs
out: Orarra if you're still close, or hyperspace to another planet if
you're not.  You will receive 5,000 credits when you dock, and can get the
5,600 credit refund on your military laser.

	In a game like this, where you're concentrating on combat rating, you
can't expect to have a final total of more than around 15,000 credits.

	So there you have it; the distillation of what I've learned in my
journey through Elite's universe.  Good luck in your quest for fame and
fortune as a space warrior!

                                   -49-

NOTE: These hints were out of the Leroy's Helpbook for Elite, published
back in 1986 for the Commodore 64.  I am under the assumption, after
loading up the Amiga Elite and finding the same planet names and whatnot,
that these hints hold true.  The tournament talked about is one that
Firebird held for the 64 version of the game and is long over.  Hopefully
this doc will help out in your quest!  

	Look for other docs brought to you by the folks of MAAD!!!