    ___         __                  _     __
   /   |  _____/ /____  _________  (_)___/ /
  / /| | / ___/ __/ _ \/ ___/ __ \/ / __  / 
 / ___ |(__  ) /_/  __/ /  / /_/ / / /_/ /  
/_/  |_/_________\___/_/   \______/\__,_/   
          /_  __/___ ______/ /_(_)_________ 
           / / / __ `/ ___/ __/ / ___/ ___/ 
          / / / /_/ / /__/ /_/ / /__(__  )  
         /_/  \__,_/\___/\__/_/\___/____/   

by Adam "Sketchy" Hawker



INTRODUCTION
------------
Asteroid Tactics is a two player, simultaneous turn based strategy game, based on the classic '80s arcade games "Asteroids" and "Space Duel".
Each player takes a turn to plan what they want their ships to do, and after both have finished, their orders are executed simultaneously during the "action phase". The objective is to destroy all of the opponent's ship. For obvious reasons, the second player should not be allowed to watch the first player take their turn.
Be warned that the controls do take some time to master and the game will initially seem quite challenging, just until you get the hang of it.


GAME SETUP
----------
Each player may select a color for their ships (don't choose a dark color as they will be very hard to see).
You may also select the number of asteroids - generally speaking, more asteroids make the game more challenging and tactical.


CONTROLS
--------
Up / Down	- Increase / decrease thrust
Left / Right	- Rotate
Shift		- Select next ship
Ctrl		- Fire weapon
Tab		- Hyperspace
¬		- Aiming guide


MANOEUVERING
------------
As there is no drag / friction in space, ships will continue moving with the same direction / speed until a force (thrust) is applied to change that. To slow down or completely stop moving, you must rotate the ship to face the direction it came from, and apply the right amount of thrust to nullify its momentum.

You can rotate the ship up to 180 degrees per turn, in either direction - the direction of the white arrow shows the direction the ship will be pointing at the end of the turn.
You can also apply thrust in the direction the ship is facing - the length of the white arrow shows the amount of thrust to be applied.
When a ship is deselected, the white arrow will turn light grey. There is also a dark grey line which indicates where an object will end the next turn, if no thrust is applied.

Whenever ships or asteroids leave the screen, they will wrap around to the opposite side.


SHOOTING
--------
Ships are capable of firing one burst (3 shots) every other turn, but it takes one full turn to reload.
The shots are fired exactly half way through the action phase. Novice pilots may wish to use the aiming guide, which shows the path of any shots fired (assuming no thrust is applied, which would alter the ship's course).
It only takes one shot to destroy a ship.


HYPERSPACING
------------
Each ship is equipped with a hyperdrive which may be used just once, and which teleports the ship to a random location. This is useful in emergencies, but there is always the risk of the ship teleporting into an asteroid etc.


ASTEROIDS
---------
Ships are destroyed if they collide with an asteroid. They may however destroy asteroids by shooting at them. Large asteroids will break into two medium pieces; medium asteroids will break into three small pieces; small asteroids will be reduced to harmless debris. The larger the asteroid, the more shots it will take to split it apart.


TIPS
----
* You can use asteroids for defensive cover.
* If an enemy is near an asteroid, destroying it may send fragments their way.
* Be careful to avoid friendly fire.
* Take advantage of the fact that ships and asteroids wrap around the screen, but bullets do not.
* Keep your ship slow and under control at all times - go too fast and you'll end up slamming into an asteroid.
* When aiming, remember that the shots will be fired halfway through the turn, so they will be fired from a point halfway between where the ship starts and where it ends up (as shown by the dark grey line), and in a direction half way between the ship's starting direction and the direction it will finish facing (as shown by the white arrow). You also need to "lead your target" - remember that it will have moved by the time your shots are fired, and will continue to move while the bullets are in flight.