"THE MANUAL" Part II (unofficial)
Retrived, by captain Nemo and his crew, from the wreck of the fregate "Victorias Pride" under very perillious circomstances and at great risks to their own life.
The "Victorias Pride" was on its way from Stockholm to Bruxelle, carriying the non-abridge official manual, when it was hit by a torpedo.
The torpedo was a gift from the terrible pirate ship "Deadline".
The "Victorias Pride" sank immediately and everything abord was lost.
Every lover of Great and Magnificent strategy games, will remember the day as the "Evil Management Day", when it was decided to make our beloved and most fantastic game public, without (allas!) all the manuals pages.
The Content
1)THE WORLD
1a)TUTORIAL/START GAME
2)THE FACTORY
3)THE SELLING AND BUYING
4)THE DIPLOMACY
5)THE WAR
6)THE ARMY
7)THE RAILROAD/INFRASTRUCTURE
8)THE CRIME
9)THE BUDGET
10)THE SUPPLIES/IMPORT/EXPORT
11)THE RESEARCH
12)THE POPS
12½)THE COLONIES
13)THE CONCLUSION
14)THE LORD OF THE MANUAL
15)THE MANUAL, part III (unofficiel)
16)APPENDIX A: cheats
17)APPENDIX B: they say
18)APPENDIX C: country
19)APPENDIX D: mod
20)APPENDIX E: you know
The manual, part II (unofficiel)
1)THE WORLD
Very detailled and precise. A fantastic work. The best geography game ever.
The peoples are described in very fine, very intelligent details. The political and social system is complet and logical.
Historical details are plentyful and interisting.
The world described in "Victoria" is the main reason to play the game.
It give depth and has as many strategies as you want.
1a)TUTORIAL/START GAME
*BELGIEN* Little and resourceful and loved, is best for a first game/tutorial.
The game is a replica of "Imperialism 2" (SSI, 1999) on the "Heart of Iron" engine.
Not all countries are in fact playable, in this vast game universe. Some are to poor in industries, others in ressources (Danmark, Sverige, all Italie, etc...), making them too borring or difficult.
England and Russia are much too big, for the kind of micromanagement the game require.
Be aware that central European countries France, Ottoman, Prussia, Austria, Russia will get constantly bog down in meningless wars, making it difficult or impossible to have a "nice" game, or just finish the game.
China, Japan, Brasil have a huge handicap at game start.
Mexico, Holland, USA, Spain, more? are fine.
WARNING!!! The game can crash (back to window) as the game get going. Save!
2)THE FACTORY
Factories gameplay is completely different from "the world" gameplay.
Nothing logical here. You dont have any conextion beetween provinces productions and factories. You can build a ciment factory in a "state" producing opium, or a furniture factory in a place producing coal. No connection, no bonus, no malus.
To have a working factory you need:
- workers : no logic there. They are there or they arent. Nobody knows why. You can educate some but they cost as much as university proffesors. Education require things you cannot have without educating some workers wich you cannot have without... Very frustrating at the start.
- machine parts: nobody produce them before ca.1850+ (after research). Dont ask why.
- some more easy to find incredients (ciment, iron) and some money.
- find out if you can get the products necessary to your production... Dont build luxury clothes factories without first building fabric factories!
That is it, you can build your factory. It was no easy task.
Now you need to find out what kind of factory to produce:
ARMY: sulphur - ammo - fertilizer - explosive - smallarms - artillery - canfood - liquor - wine
CLOTH: cotton - fabric - dye - regularclothes - silk - luxusclothes
FURNITURE: timber - lumber - furniture - exoticwood - luxusfurniture
BOTTLE: coal - glass - grain - liqueur - fruits - wine
RAILROAD: cement - lumber - steel - money
BUILDINGS: cement - timber - iron - coal - machine parts - money
SHIPS: coal - steel - dumper - fabric - lumber - timber - shooner
CANFOOD:cattle - fish - grain - iron
MONEY: coal - glass - iron - steel
New factories types get avalable with some judicious research.
Before you can produce youll have to have stocks of the marchandises needed. For ex. to produce steel, you need 2 coal and 2 iron. Thats meen you have to have them in stock.
That doesnt happen trough the stock menu, because you cannot take any action from there.
You use import/export menu to do that.
What happens then to your production is not clear:
How much do your citizens consume?
Is it transferred to your magazin/stock first and then distributed or is it distributed directly?
Wich part is sold on international market?
What is the priority?
IMPORTANT: this part of the game cannot be played without using the ledger: economic statistics 10,11,12.
Economic 10 give you a view of your country "natural" production in details.
Economic 11 give you a view of your country factories production in details.
Economic 12 give you a view of the world commercial live in details.
Wich bring us to:
3)THE SELLING AND BUYING
Absolutely no logic except of course game logic.
You have to find out all by gessing and succes/failures.
Use: LEDGER: economic 12 for a view of the world commercial live in details.
And use Export/Import menu.
At startup, nobody produce everiday clothes, furniture or glass tough they are the most in demand, and luxury factories wich use those products are (not) running.
At atartup every countries have weapons and ships factories but no fabric (for the sails) or adequate components factories.
It seems you allways sell everything.
The startup production/commercial system is a hodge podge and very confusing.
The part where casual gamers will abandon the game.
If the geografic and politic parts of the game are well crafted, the economic part is a badly constructed and derelict game experience. Lots of good ideas, bad implementering.
4)THE DIPLOMACY
Nice, with lots of options an posibilities.
Very well done. And selv explanatory.
Only problem is not always clear why the computer is declaring war (historical?).
5)THE WAR
Russia declaring war on France for exemple. Both without allies, both without direct access.
If you are France, youll never get a yes to a peace you offered. Even after years of nothing happening but being in a state of war.
Its not easy to be one of the central European power as you always end up in total meningless war with one or the other of your neighbors.
That in fact destroy the game.
Powerful ennemies never want to make peace.
Only by occupiying their capitals, can you, some time, get a result.
That is because your diplomatics actions points are very limited.
And because of the very historical behavior of the non human countries.
They do the same crazy things as their humans historical conterparts:
As for exemple Prussia: killing 30 millions peoples to get the 1 millions peoples of Alsace-Lorraine and for some iron wich can be optain in any "non civilised" (game terms) province with two divisions (Annam, all Africa, Siam, Burma, etc...).
When you declare war you loose a lot of prestige, but get it back and a lot more when you win the war.
6)THE ARMY
More complex than "Heart of Iron" system.
Include some political consideration, as the origine of the army mean something: if their province rebel they will also rebel, if it is occupy they will not deploy.
But its a working system and selv explanatory.
Except for the most important feature: MOBILISATION.
Its very important when war is declare to go in the army menu and click on that discreet
button down on the right.
You mobilize 5 division at a time. They start assembling in a special menu, not in the main armies production menu.
You increase number of mobilizable division, in peace time!, by offering can-food and small-weapon to the gods of war (click on second button).
All those buttons only appears if you have the ressources. No explanatory down-menu!
(It explain why your ennemies have armies of 100000 men!).
Remember to DEmobilize at the end of the war.
Those are citizens after all! (I think).
To create armies you need material:
small armsx10+, can foodx10+, cashx1000+, manx10+, vinex10+
Some brigades are not cost effectiv or will only be after some research.
Cavalry and infantry shall be hold separatedly.
Cavalry is fast and just push the ennemy away by "killing" their moral.
Used to encircle or go for the capital, wich mean peace if occupied.
Cavalry made raids or a blitzkrieg!
Divisions::
INFANTRY: slow, kill units.
CAVALRY: fast, kill moral.
DRAGGOON: slow, kill both. Useless?
Brigades::)
ARTILLERY:very slow, kill units. Get better with inventions. Brigade.
REGULARS: more infantry. Brigade.
GUARDS: little more of everything for infantry. Too expensiv? Brigade.
HUSSARD: fastest. Brigade. Not very quicker. Useless?
CUIRASIER:more moral killed. Brigade. Good.
MORE possibilities appear with inventions.
7)THE RAILROAD/INFRASTRUCTURE
Not clear how it affect factory production.
Not clear how it affect provinces production. In procent? in supply? in ouput?
Not clear how it affect population if any.
Not clear how it affect army movement.
It cost a lot for 10% more of infrastructure.
Increasing with +50% cost for every +10% infrastructure.
8)THE CRIME
Not clear how it affect anything, everything or nothing.
Only sure effect: MAFFIA crime type reduce infrastructure by 5%.
Crime fighting cost a huge part of the budget for "anyone guess" effects.
It is the one thing I always cut out on the budget.
9)THE BUDGET
NO country budget is in balance at start of game!?!?
For exemple: France Navy has so heavy a cost that nothing else is possible before you kill the navy to the last ship!
Its a very bizare instrument with a lot of questions.
But it work most of the time.
10)THE SUPPLIES/IMPORT/EXPORT
A list of everything with buttons and small bares.
Very handy but at time baffling.
Apparently your factories dont go to the international market but to your Central Magazin For All Your Country And Dependencies for supplies.
If its not there, they just stop producing. No message, no warning, no complaint, no E-mail, nothing.
One of your priorities at game start is to made stocks. IMPORTANT!
When put on import, if your consumption is up everything is fine, if not your stock will just go up and up without attention to the limit you put up.
How it affect POPs consumption is not clear at all.
From where does the POPs get their suplies of basic, everiday and luxus ware?
11)THE RESEARCH
"Heart of Iron" system was more fun.
But it work.
You research some main inventions, and when done, others will pop up from time to time as messages. Random.
Its a general problem with the fun in the game: the focus is on historicyty more then fun.
But it is wrong because historicaly you dont know skavt and you certainly dont have this kind of overknowledge, with every part of the world two click away.
So fun is to be priorities.
12)THE POPS
Beautiful modeling of society groups.
Very well done.
Even if they appear and disapear without warning, for obscure reasons and in small bands.
Expensive to educate. On province population menu, click on a POP and youll get a menu to educate them... for a price.
From 1000 to a 100000 (wo)men in a POP.
Size doesnt seems to have an effect. A POP is a POP.
Maybe meaning for reproduction/creation of new POPs?
The population goes up no matter what you do.
But what effect does it have on production?
How are the POP you can work with, created?
Is there a way to made population growth faster?
IMPORTANT: to educate people is necessary. Especially grainfarmers to craftsmen.
Dont educate clercks to anything, use farmers/labourers.
Capitalist, noble, clerks, officers, clergyman POPs give bonus to production, research, army etc...
Bonus POP effects are not clear.
Clergyman reduce consiousness (-0.25 per unit) among farmers and laborers.
And irritate noble and officers: +0.25.
10 populations (POP) types:
ARISTOCRAT RGO bonus, state rich, conservativ (bonus literacy/research?)
no education, cannot be created
CAPITALIST factory bonus, state, rich, liberal (bonus literacy/research?)
goldx5000, preciousmetaxl0, luxclothesx10, paperx10, luxfurniturex10
no education
OFFICER war?, country middle, liberal, leadership bonus, create?
goldx5000, ammox10, smallarmsx10, artilleryx4, paperx4
no education
CLERGYMEN moral/political bonus?, state, middle, liberal (bonus literacy/research?)
goldx1000, preciousmetaxl0, luxuryclothesx10, paperx20,
to officer, to labourer
CLERC factory, middle, liberal, (bonus literacy/research?)
goldx500, luxuryclothesx5, paperx10, luxuryfurniturex5
to capitalist, to all poor and middle
CRAFTSMEN factory, poor, liberal
goldx500, tobaccoxl0, regularclothex10, paperx10, furniturex10
to all poor and middle
SOLDIER war, poor, conservativ
demobilize if enough manpower (10?)
FARMER RGO farming, poor, conservativ
to all poor and middle
LABOURER RGO mining, poor, ???
to all poor and middle
SLAVE RGO, no rights?, no education?, no future?
WHY IS THERE SO FEW?
Historically factory workers where peasants going to the city "en masse".
Making London and other cities look like champignon cities, doubling population
every other night.
12½)THE COLONIES
It all start by building small houses in the midle of no where. Thats the future!
A building in a wilderness, is call a "claim".
When you have 4 different buildings in a wild "state", you can claim the coloni.
The all state color change to yours and you are happy.
Or sometime you have to do everithing yourself and build cottages in every part of the state.
But you cannot construct factories in your new province. Uou have to wait. And wait.
It cost a lot to change a claim to a coloni. Sometime it is not cost effectiv.
The computer opponents get claims much cheaper, seeing as they build so many of those little houses very fast.
In a war you just have to send a cavalry unit around your ennemies claims to permanently change their allegiance.
13)THE CONCLUSION
The game is very scripted, and oblige the player to follow historical developement very closely.
In a word, you cannot do what you want.
A lot of features are putting constrainte on your gameplay.
I am looking for a free actions/history scenario.
14)THE LORD OF THE MANUAL
There is those 3 guys going through a wartorn continent, to deliver the manual on time to the printshop.
It doesent end well. Good story. Bad execuse.
15)THE MANUAL, part III (unofficiel)
To be retrive shortly from the black depth of the ocean...
16)APPENDIX A: cheats
When playing game press F12 then type any of these cheats below and press enter again.
TRANSPORTS - Get Transports
PRESTIGE - Get Prestige
MONEY - Get loads of Money
LEADERSHIP - Get Leaders
MANPOWER - Get Men
DIFRULES - Play like a God
NOWAR - No War
NOREVOLTS - Defeat all
NOLIMIT - No Troops Limits
NOFOG - No Fog
HANDSOFF - Hands off all
SHOWID - Get Province IDs
FULLCONTROL - Total Control
17)APPENDIX B: they say
1)The gamers
Anonymous] gave it a 9:
Steep learning curve, but highly worth it once you get into it. An incredible game.
Darrell P. gave it a 9:
Not for the meek. Very very very very very steep learning curve and beginners will probably never get the hang of it, but for those willing to stick it out, this is perhaps the most rewarding strategy game I have ever played
2)The critics:
There's an excellent game struggling to surface in Victoria, and I look forward to playing it just as soon as the requisite patches appear. Now would some kindly soul please create an accurate, intelligent manual for the game? IGN
Despite some wonderful depth and a great alternate-history ambience, this game is more work than play. GameSpot
Gets marks for depth and scope, but unfortunately so much of the detail goes to waste due to the frustrating interface, horrendous learning curve, and sparse gameplay options. Adrenaline Vault
A game that combines the micromanagement of "Civilization" with the intrigue and politics of "Diplomacy," adds in a "Railroad Tycoon 3"-style dynamic economic and resources model, uses a layered interface ... and then somehow expects you to manage it all in real-time. GameSpy
3)CONCLUSION
WHERE IS THE MANUAL?!?!?!?!?
Very complicated game + no manual = no sale!
Digital on the CD, will do the trick. Some colorfull paper dont and cost.
(all the interviews are from: http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/victoriaanempireunderthesun/)
18)APPENDIX C: countries
*BELGIEN - POPULATION 4.300.000 - LITERACY 28% - STAT 3 - PROVINCE 10 - FACTORIES 7 - POP 88 - COLONY 0 - OUTPOST 0 - Good some TUTORIAL
*FRANCE - NOT VERY FAST - DIFFICULT TO HAVe population op - No money? Kill the navy - POPULATION 37.860.000 - LITERACY 32% - STAT 0 - PROVINCE 0 - FACTORIES 13 - POP 0
*MEXICO - At war with Texas 1836 - No allies - POPULATION 7.152.000 - LITERACY 12% - STAT 12 - PROVINCE 61 - FACTORIES 5 - POP 250 - COLONY 5 - OUTPOST 6 - FLEET 0 - GENERAL 2 - ARMY 10
*AUSTRIA - LOTS OF EVERyTHING but factories - Russia attack soon, but you have a lot of friends - Ottoman attack soon -
POPULATION 47.975.000 - LITERACY 25% - STAT 21 - PROVINCE 100? - FACTORIES 6 - POP ?
*OTTOMAN - Constantly at war with Russia and Østerreich - Take Egypt immediately. Colonial war, -30 prestige, +200 prestige when you win - POPULATION 4.300.000 - LITERACY 7% - STAT 3 - PROVINCE 10 - FACTORIES 7 - POP 88 - COLONY 0 - OUTPOST 0
*SVERIGE - POPULATION 4.300.000 - LITERACY 80% - STAT 7 - PROVINCE 30 - FACTORIES 8 - POP 110 - COLONIES 0 - OUTPOST 0
*PRUSIA - BETTER THAN FRANCE BUT NOTHING HAPEN - OK but boring - First war is with Danmark! - POPULATION 0.000.000 -
LITERACY 0% - STAT 0 - PROVINCE 0 - FACTORIES 0 - POP 0
*RUSSLAND - POPULATION 60.180.000 - LITERACY 15% - STAT 26 - PROVINCE 150? - FACTORIES 14 - POP ? -
COLONIES ? - OUTPOST ?
*HOLLAND - lots of colonies - big money - little army - 40.000.000 (Java) people - 8 factories - lev 4 invention - 20% literacy -
19)APPENDIX D: MOD
FILES:
- db = database. All in .txt files!!!
- GFX = small grafic. Ex: units look
- sfx = sound files
- ai = reaction for computer ennemies
- avi = start logo/film
- config = groundlagende filer in .txt and excel
- map = serious way for the map how it look.
- music = .MP3
- scenario = scenario home made
MY CHANGES:
IN db\...\MISC.txt
#Factor for crimefighting costs (for easy tweaking.)
police = 0.5 (from 1.0) / Its to expensive, better turn down, so price for polis must be low.
#Experience income from combat
experience = 2.0 (from 1.0) / too litle effect anyway. Units die before they rich 10 points of exp.
#How much does each factory need to pay for in crime costs.
factory_crime = 5.0 / What the hell is that?
20)APPENDIX E: you know
You know you dont need a printed manual in a game boxe.
You know Digital Manual will do just fine. Cheaper, better that is what it is.
You know you dont sell more games because there a piece of paper in the box.
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