Jan 1, 2075:

You’ve acquired a battered first-gen transport somehow (Inheritance? Poker game?). Now you’ve traveled with the last of your money to Bù Rén Hòu Chén City in western China, Earth’s singularly shimmering (yet decaying) spaceport. The odds are long against you: MaoCorp holds a monopoly on trade in our solar system. However, FreeTraders on Earth and her colonies are ready to crack its hold. All they need is a trader they can rally around. Move enough cargo, survive, and maybe you can be that man.

The game follows the genre of the down-on-his-heels space captain, one with barely enough money to stay fed and keep his ship moving. The game system is fairly simple but takes a little getting used to. Read thought the manual and play a little bit in space (and the city) before having a go for real. And above all, read this manual!

Starting the game:

The start screen will give you options for playing the game. Each of these options make it easier. There is the ability to have extra Cash Cards, extra NQA cards (a No-Questions-Asked phone number you can call that will clear up all your portside problems by throwing you on a desperate space mission), and some additional inventory items (in the basic game, you start stone broke and empty handed). There is also a checkbox for Safemode, which you should check while flying the tutorials and experimenting in sandbox mode. It isn’t totally safe (this is space after all – you can still fly into the sun and crash into things). However, you will not suffer encounters, orbital debris collisions and equipment malfunctions while playing in this mode. On the plus side, you’ve got a massive amount of fuel, air and power. Hit the “Game Over” when you want to restart, and get comfortable with the Solar Trader Universe!

In-game tutorial:

Flight basics are covered in two turn-by-turn modules, “Space navigation” and “Take off and landings”. You’ll get to these by checkboxing Safemode. Run “Space navigation” first, to learn the basics. Then try “Take off and landings” to learn the true tricks of orbital operations.

Basic Flight Controls:

Below is a full listing of how everything works.

This is your view panel. It is divided into grids (nine grids = 1 AU).

Your ship (and any other object) is located at the white ID markers. The reversed markers show the ship’s vector.

Planets are shown, with gravitation vector arrows (which change your vector) surrounding them. The blue squares represent the base control zones – a base is on the planet directly beneath them.

The dashed lines radiating from the sun are orbital cue lines – if traveling tangentially to the sun if a speed of a grid per turn (or less), that object will turn to orbit the sun.

This is the scanner. Every object in the game is tracked here.

Object: the object name.

X,Y: The absolute location from the sun, with +X being to the right, +Y up

RelX, RelY: The distance in X and Y from your location.

DeltX, DeltY: The speed in both directions of the object.

NxMv: For objects traveling less than a grid a day, this is the number of squares before they move.

NxRot: This is how many days until the base on that planet rotates counterclockwise. If DARK, the base always opposite the Sun. If SOL, the base is always on the side facing the Sun.

This is your ship display. It gives you a current readout of all resources.

Yellow border letters: Your location, the date, and the range of your ship (estimate based on efficient burning and coasting).

Black box on left end of the ship: If red, hardburn is active.

Orange box: Number of burns.

Yellow box: Amount of power (in megawatts).

Grey box: Maintenance level.

Blue box: Amount of oxygen (in days).

Numeric box to lower right: Sewage tank levels (in quarts)

Word box in to lower right: Morale (Normal, Sad, Fatigued, Despair, Suicidal)

Control panel (roughly from right to left, with full explanations) – Note: any button in RED advances time to the next day.

Burn rose (the four red boxes): These are your current vectors in grids. If you don’t burn, this is the course you will fly through the day.

Burn keys (Four arrow keys around the rose): This executes a one-grid vector change in that direction. A burn costs 1 fuel point, as well as some additional morale, power, maintenance, air use and sewage generation.

Hardburn: This activates/deactivates the afterburners, and will cause the burn keys to execute a two-grid burn in one direction. Required to lift and land on planets. Increases all other effects from burns.

Map Shift: Shows a long range view of the solar system. Note that positions are only approximations, and should not be used for pinpoint accuracy. It is only to provide rough positional information on the planets. The scanner display should be used for exact bearings. Hit Map Shift to return to the standard display.

Shutdown: If used while the ship is sitting in a planet’s landing bay, the player will enter the planet’s port city. Note that if the player has exited a city, he will be locked out of it until he flies a successful mission. In other words, don’t go for short hops.

Radio: The radio is used for a number of items, based on where it is used.

· If on planet, the captain calls for departure clearance.

· If in orbit in a blue control zone, the captain calls for landing clearance.

· If in orbit outside the blue zone, the captain wastes the control tower’s time.

· If in deep space but within 5 grids of the planet, the captain might reach the authorities (where he can purchase protection or a tow). Using the antenna doubles this range.

· If in deep space but within 15 grids of the planet, the captain might pick up a news broadcast, detailing all breaking events. Using the antenna doubles this range.

· If at a mission destination (i.e. an asteroid mine, a wreck, etc.), the captain confirms his success and has his payment chits activated. NOTE: THE ANTENNA MUST BE DEPLOYED FOR THIS.

· Otherwise, he hears only static.

Power (Percent): This sets the power levels to the entire ship (usually in conservation attempts). While energy is saved, maintenance and morale suffer accordingly.

Sleep Bunk (days): This is the number of consecutive days the sleep bunk will run if the captain enters it. Consecutive days increase sleep bunk morale gains. If an emergency occurs, the bunk will automatically wake the captain.

Drift: A day advances, with the ship drifting in a bearing determined by the burn rose / vector marker.

Repair: The captain repairs his ship over a day, increasing its maintenance level (the higher the morale, the greater the gain). Note that repairs can perhaps raise or lower morale, yet they cost a little more power and generates a little more sewage. If ship components are broken, repair might allow the captain to repair one failure.

Sleep: The captain spends a day (or longer) in his sleep bunk. In this state, he uses less oxygen and produces less sewage, but the bunk uses more power. Sleep bunking increases morale, and also has a chance of healing a wound.

Damage Grid: On a working ship, components will fail and you’ll need to fix them. There are three classes of failures:

· Operational Failures: This impacts how the ship works (or doesn’t). You might lose engines, panel operations, scan functions. Since these are single-point failures, they can usually be repaired in flight or while on the ground. Bring a wrench. These are flagged in red on the status grid.

· Transfer Failures: These are failures in the systems moving fuel, air and power from storage to your components, and will continue to drain until fixed. Like Operational Failures, they can be fixed in flight or on the ground. Bring a wrench and a mop. These are flagged in red on the status grid.

· Storage Failures: These are ruptures in your fuel, battery or air tanks. A random tank blows – if it was filled, you lose the contents. While you can fly like this, ruptured tanks cannot be refilled until they have been patched by a service rep (“Patch & Go”). These show as yellow on the status grid.

Panels: This deploys the solar panels. Opening and shutting the panels drops maintenance one point. Power gained from sun is based on distance, with good gains out to Mar’s orbit, but more anemic further out. While the panels are deployed, no burns can be executed.

Antenna: The antenna increases the range that Orbital PD and Solar News Network can be reached. It is also needed to pinpoint mission confirmations back to your sponsors. Further, it can help you spot ships a little further out and possibly dodge space debris. However, burning while it is deployed (and running it in and out) each cost a maintenance point. You should not enter atmo with an antenna deployed.

Lnd Gear: You must have your gear out while on the pad. Once aloft, there is a chance of a maintenance point loss while it is out. The gear can jam when used (based on your current maintenance), and will have to be retried the next day.

Pumps: Pumps empty all sewage and costs minor maintenance and power to operate. If pumps are run, the ship should make an immediate burn lest it strike its own ICBM. Pumps should not be run in orbit or while on the ground.

Lights: If within two of any space ship, object or planet, the captain will feel a low but gnawing stress if running lights are not displayed. When running, they cost a small amount of power. They should be turned off while on the ground, lest they use power, wear the ship slightly, and make you feel like an idiot.

Inventory: Displays personal inventory, combat stats and wounds.

Freight: Displays Freetrader cargo shippers and their destinations. Flown freetrader missions are greyed out. The player must run every mission to win.

Other space items of note:

Space Trash: There is a possibility of junk in space. There is a lot of booster junk in Earth’s orbit, some asteroids between Mars and Jupiter, and three square out from Saturn (a lesser chance exists everywhere else). If your alarm goes off, you’ll need to burn in any direction to avoid hitting the debris. An impact damages your ship and drops your morale. Having deployables out (antenna, gear and panels) makes it all the worse.

Death in Space: There are two ways to perish on a journey.

· If your air supply drops to zero, you’ll face a 30% chance of death every turn.

· If your morale drops a level while already at “suicidal”, there is a 10% chance you kill yourself.

Low power/air/fuel levels: As these components decrease, their indicator boxes will gradually turn purple. Keep an eye on them!

Macro and Micro economics (an interlude):

Before preceding to the port half of the game, a word should be given about how Solar Trader handles money and purchasing.

Cash is always difficult to work into a game like this. Starships represent money in the macro level; big bucks. Captains represent money in the micro level; little cents. It is hard to design a system that carries the cliché of a threadbare captain and his battered ship. Solar Trader handles this by making most costs background in nature.

To gain refuels and upgrades, a Solar Trader captain will need to move cargos. Generally, each cargo moved will provide, at minimum, a fuel token (to keep the ship moving). Some will also provide component upgrade chits or even inventory cards.

The micro version of the game, the day to day living part, comes out of the petty cash fund (i.e. we don’t quibble with how much a visit to the knocking shop costs. The player is assumed to have just enough to cover it). Additional items, such as cash, weapons, and so on, are covered by inventory cards. These are listed on the inventory screen. Essentially guns, bullets, repair kits, bandages, pornography, even cash are each considered to be a “card”. Cards will be used and traded, in cities and in space, as appropriate.

Planets and Cities – life at the “Sims” level:

 

In the Solar Trader universe, planets are independent. They maintain their own orbital guards (basically tugs with guns). They contribute to a shared Interplanetary Police force (rather like the UN in space). But otherwise, they do not act as a single body. If you are wanted by the cops on one planet, this doesn’t follow you to the next (and frankly, your case is so cold that when you get back, they’ll have given up looking for you).

 

MaoCorp is the primary trading monopoly, a massive transport firm the moves bulk at regulated prices. Around them work smaller, more specialized firms. FedUp runs high-speed cargos under tight contracts. Oreluggers ferries supplies to asteroid mines. And then there are the FreeTraders, men such as yourself, eager to move a load and turn a dime. The FreeTraders are in ascension, MaoCorp in decline, but it’s going down fighting.   

 

At the city level, justice is enforced by “cops”. While they might physically dress differently from city to city, they are pretty much flatfoots. If you scuffle with one, an alert will go out to apprehend you. If you are taken to jail while a warrant is out for you, you’re done with this game. Cops are to be avoided.

 

Given the turmoil of the early Space Age, the rich desire greater protection. Posh and Corporate districts are patrolled by Militia, which are heavily-armed and armored corporate troops. However, these troops will follow their corporate logos so if companies scuffle, the broad well-architected avenues will erupt in violence. While they can’t arrest you themselves, they can dump you at the jail or call the cops. Like cops, avoid.

 

Organized crime is also present at street level. It is believed to be controlled by MaoCorp (or perhaps it is the other way around). MaoCorp might put the goons on you if you get to be too much of a bother, and the goons might intervene if you rough up some of their pilots.

 

Beyond that, all sorts of things happen in the cities, things that can help you towards being the King of the FreeTraders, or defeat you.

Entering the city:

Once you land on a planet, you can enter the city and look for cargos and missions (and various other things to improve your situation). Port entry is free, but once you enter, you only have 24 hours you must depart. If you stay beyond your welcome, eventually Port Authority will lock your bay – you’ll have to pay a fine at the door to access your ship. If enough time goes by, your ship is impounded and your game is over.

Below is a picture in the Earth Port. This is a very busy screen. The features will be pointed out below this image.

· Planet name appears in the upper left (hint: if in yellow, it’s “day”, if blue, it’s “night”).

· City map appears in the center, with colors denoting districts and shadows indicating places you don’t know. Squares with a single character are landmarks (used in locations). Squares with double letters indicate a business or place (the “XX” in the grey area is your ship, where you are currently at.

· Named roads are listed down the left side (they are designated in the game by their first letter). Streets (always numbered) are lined along the top of the map. Your ship is currently at Mao Drive and 11th Street. Your current street and road will always be highlighted in yellow.

· To the right is the map’s legend, showing you the names of all businesses, their two-letter codes, the district they are in, location information, and the hours of operation.

· Location information constitutes three things: a list of landmarks within two squares (N/A if it’s confirmed there are none), the street and/or the road. Your might see some, all, or none of this information in this area.

· The map legend also shows district types color coded. The only class not noted are the dark gray boxes, which are ruins.

· Morale, the current time, and the liftoff time are provided in the lower left.

So here you are. What can you do?

Well, first, you can walk about. The four directional arrows are used for that. The amount of time used depends on if the square has been previously explored or not – you can move much faster through locations you know. AND KEEP AN EYE ON THE TIME! YOU NEED TO BE BACK BEFORE YOU EARN A FINE OR YOUR SHIP IS IMPOUNDED!

You can also enter businesses by clicking the “Enter” button. Assuming the business is open, you’ll gain admittance. Here would be a good time to note the difference between “Planet time” and “Station time”, as it’s extremely relevant to business hours.

· Planet time is used on atmosphered planets that rotate through something like a standard day. Most businesses are open from 8AM to 5PM (with some exceptions). Entertainment (bars, brothels, and various others) tend to have evening/early morning hours. The city panel will list those hours.

· Station time is used by any port that is built in some artificial construct. Here, the day is set along the usual 24 hour clock, but the AM shift is the “day shift” and the PM shift is the “night shift”. This means that the port will tend to be open during the AM hours, and entertainments during the PM hours.

Businesses: The following businesses are active during the game…

Spaceport businesses:

· XX: Your ship. You can return to your ship and repair it from the outside, which is much easier than doing it in space. There is a locker built into the port wall, into which you can store some of your valuables (your ship remains open for customs officials and repair men to access, so you can’t keep valuables there).You can also enter your ship for takeoff. However, note that if you are late for your liftoff time, you may be accessed a fine from 1-3 cash cards, or even find your ship impounded. Keep an eye on that liftoff time!

· PA: Port Authority. This is where you come to exchange cargo chits (gained from shippers) for physical cargo on your ship. Also, if you arrive in port with a load, you’ll have to come to Port Authority to have it removed. Port authority will pay you whatever amount you were contracted for the load.

· PG: Patch & Go. This is your one-stop ship repair facility. A refueling token will top off your air, fuel and power. You can also present an upgrade chit and pick between three possible upgrades. Also, if you have a cash card, they can patch up all those failed storage components on your ship. Note that it’s a good idea to patch those components first and upgrade BEFORE filling up.

· FedUp: FedUp is the express shipment monopoly in the system. They will offer you a destination and deadline for that cargo, and will pay generously if you make it. However, if you fail, you’ll get nothing and likely be stranded, so consider the distance well.

· Oreluggers: Oreluggers outfit and supply all the asteroid camps in the system. They will give you a location of a slowly orbiting rock that you need to carry something to. You’ll need to get there, come to a dead stop and hit the radio. If you do this, they will give you your reward.

Slum Businesses:

· FH: Flophouse. The flophouse allows the player to gain an hour or so sleep (and up to 5 morale points), with no chance of encounters. It’s a good place to hole up while waiting for something to open.

· MB: Metal Bar. A bar will gain you up to 10 morale points, but that degrades for each visit during a portcall. You’ll also gain further location information on some of the slum businesses.

· SK: Souk. This open-air market is a perfect place for trading. Each time you engage it, a merchant will offer to train something you own for something on his table. Bargains can be found here!

· PH: Pixie’s Pawnshop. Here, the owner will offer you cash for one of your random possessions.

· CH: Crack House. Each hit you take here will restore up to 5 morale points, but the gains degrade slightly the more you use it.

Redlight district Businesses:

· AF: Anything Goes Freetraders. Freetraders provide a token which, when presented to Port Authority, will result in a cargo being loaded onboard. Note that each Freetrader office will ship a single cargo once each game. See the freight panel for details on what is shipping to where.

· DW: Droxia’s Weapon Emporium. Players can examine the racks and look for personal weapons they might be interested in.

· LB: Lower “D” Bar. A bar will gain you up to 10 morale points, but that degrades for each visit during a portcall. You’ll also gain further location information on some of the redlight businesses.

· BB: Boardwalk Bordello. This bordello will gain the player up to 30 morale points, but can only be used once per portcall.

· SB: Sleazebucket Bordello. This bordello will gain the player up to 30 morale points, but can only be used once per portcall.

Posh Businesses:

· BT: BuckBacked freetraders. This good-old-boy network is currently only operating on Earth, and currently only involved in the slave trade. They hope to expand their services across the system. You can pick up a chit for that dubious cargo here.

· Ritz Hotel. Gain an hour’s safe sleep and up to 7 morale points.

· Up'er end Bordello. This fine establishment has ladies trained to do anything. You can gain 40 points of morale here, but like other knocking shops, you can only visit once per portcall.

· Grand Monico. The Grand Monico is a gambling palace, a place to go for games of chance. You’ll basically put one of your cash cards against the house for an even chance at double-or-nothing. At 50% chance of success, I’m being very generous.

Corporate Business:

· Chancy Freetraders. This corporate group is trying to wrest control of the spacelanes from MaoCorp, and will unify with the low-end shippers (Anything Goes) and the slavers (BuckBack) to do so. You can pick up a chit here.

· Savage Salvage. These are the premiere salvage group in the system. Occasionally the signals from distress buoys of lost ships will be picked up. The corporation’s primary need is for someone to carry a Hack-indexer pod to the buoy and attach it. Once speed is matched and the home office radioed, SS can claim rights to the wreck when it’s located. However, somewhere within the debris field is the wreck – if the captain can get within one grid of it, its location will appear and he’ll gain a cash card bonus. As SS does not care for contents (only the hull) the player may also match with the wreck itself and radio the hack-indexer to open the podbay doors. A search inside will net several random inventory cards. And it’s all legal.

· MaoCorp. The home office of the corporation threatened by the FreeTraders you represent is not a friendly place for you – depending how much work you’ve already done for the FTs, you might get turfed out the door. However, MaoCorp often finds itself in a jam and might agree to give you a refueling chit if you’ll carry one of their cargos to another planet.

· Chinese Embassy. The Chinese nation is trying to identify pirates. In this, they’ll commission you to fly to any planet. You’ll get a refueling chip, but they might also give you cash cards for every pirate you identify. Of course, the way merchants identify pirates is to be chased by them.

Burb businesses

· O'phonies Bar. Your happy neighborhood hangout, with servers with thirty-seven pieces of flair. Like other bars, you’ll pick up 10 morale points, diminishing per repeat. You’ll also find out more about Burb business locations.

· Christ on a comet. This church believes that God’s lambs can meet Him if they are dropped off on a passing comet and carried out beyond the Oort cloud. You just need to drop them, not get them back. If you place them on the targeted fast-moving comet, you’ll pick up a refueling chit and two cash cards.

· Mall. For those with money, an excellent way to buy things. No bartering, bring cash.

· Databanks, Inc. With the centralization of data access, information is once again locked away from the masses, through Databanks can get that information for you. You can get more knowledge of Posh, Corporate and Burb districts. As for Slums and Redlight, well, who needs to know that?

· Hydroponic Market. If you go here, you can pick up a sack of veggies. Nothing like greens to bring back the old smile. Note that there is always the chance it might rot.

· Police Station / Hospital. This complex deals with humanity’s foibles. If you trouble the police, you’ll be brought here. If you are wounded in some way, you can get it patched up here for free.

· Trim Gyms. A good workout can counter those long days of zero-gee. Not only will you feel better, but your punches will hurt a little more. However, don’t overdo it!

· Park. The park is a tranquil spot where you can loiter away the hours. While those on various stations are pretty good, the outdoor ones on Venus and Mars are very nice, and Earth’s is superb.

· Metro. The metro allows fast transport to the next metro station on the line (looking east, then south). It is a good way to get around the city

City Encounters:

 

There is a chance you can have an encounter every time you move (this chance increasing if it’s dark or you are in a location experiencing a district event). Encounters are weighted towards the correct locations – you will not find dog packs running through corporate districts or rich executives in ruins. However, you should find many, many variations of encounters.

 

Encounters are resolved via weighted chance. You’ll be given a number of options, and many of them (combat, escape, talking, etc) will have values weighted to them. Generally, you’ll have a value (based on your skills and equipment) and your opponents have a value (based on their strength in this event). Each of these chances can be seen as a possibility to win – these chances are all “tossed into a hat” together and one is pulled. If it’s yours, you win. If it’s not, you lose.

 

Winning will make you a little happier, loosing will make you a little sadder. There might be other gains and losses involved – such as wounds. Every wound slows down your travel time (and degrades your values for escape and other things). To recover from a wound, you’ll either need to use certain inventory items, visit the police department / hospital complex, or recover in your sleep booth during transits. You can check your wound status with the “To Do” button in cities.

 

It should be noted that certain encounters might also lead to follow-up encounters. Beating up a cop might bring a cop team down on you. Further, alarms can be issued (both by the police and the local organized crime group) to find you. But there are also inventory items that can help you. You’ll have to see how it plays.

To Do:

There are a lot you need to do in port, and you only have a limited amount of time. In the most basic sense, you need to unload your cargo (if you brought one in), visit Patch&Go to refuel and refit, get a cargo chit from a shipper, then turn it in to Port Authority to load. If you fail to do any of these things, you can end up high and dry. Add to this the confusion of business hours, planetary disruptions and encounters, and you can end your space adventure while on terra firma.

To aid you in this, you can click the “To Do” button. This will give you a list on things you might need to do, including alerts and suggestions. Since it doesn’t take any time to use, you should check it often.

Ending the game:

If you find yourself stuck with no hope of continuing, you can hit the “end game” button. Otherwise, there are many other events that can end your game. Most of these are depressing or even decompressing. But if you manage to get all the FreeTrader runs made, you’ll be given the location of a secret base where the neo-capitalists are gathering. Fly there (with MaoCorp nipping at your heels) and maybe you can be the King of the FreeTraders and win the game!

Regardless of the outcome, you’ll be rated on how you did and perhaps placed on the hall of fame board. Good luck!

Hints:

Everyone thinks that a space trading game will focus on space, and that the city is just bureaucratic nonsense. If you are going to lose this game, you’ll lose it in the city. Always check launch times and plan out your strategy accordingly. Use the ToDo button to confirm everything has been done (there is so much you’ll need to do to get a starship loaded and ready).

While it’s important to keep flying FreeTrader missions to get closer to your goal, you’ll occasionally be stuck in a city (either with no FT cargos you can use or you haven’t quite figured out where the shippers are yet). This is where OreLuggers comes in. Always easy to find, you can use them to fly a quick shuttle mission out and then return to look more (or to transition to a better planet).

FedUp is another great company to fly for – sometimes you can snag a mission to someplace else you’d like to go and have no FT missions for. Keep them in mind.

Otherwise, the game is a balancing act - keeping your maintenance up, your morale high, and your ship running. You can lose this game in an instant, so stay sharp, keep moving, and watch your back!

Quick Reference Card:

The following is a loose informational chart showing the impacts of actions on a ship’s reserve. The number before the + and – signs denote the level of impact. Note that two marks does not imply twice the impact of a single mark.

Action

Fuel

Power

Maint

Air

Morale

Sewage

Notes

Drift

-

-

-

-

+

Burn

-1

- -

- -

- -

- -

+ +

Hardburn

-3

- - -

- - -

- - -

- - -

+ + +

Radio

Repair

- -

+

- -

- or +

+ +

Sleep

- -

-

-*

+

+*

Might heal wounds. Lower waste generation and air use.

Power level

-

-

-

Variable with setting.

Panels

+*

-*

One maint point per deploy. Power gain based on distance from sun.

Antenna

-*

Minor damage from deploying and if out and burning.

Lnd Gear

-*

If out in space.

Pumps

-

-

- - -

Lights

-

-*

Loss of morale if no lights and range to object <= 2.