In the Game mode you can do the following:
pause and restart the battle;
change the time speed;
group ships into divisions;
change the object side;
send commands to the ships and divisions to change the course and speed;
switch between computer and manual control over the ships.
Below the main areas of the Battlefleet main window are described. After these the Game mode description is provided.
On the first start the main screen in the Game mode should be the similar to shown in the figure Game mode in general.
The window is very similar to the main window in the Edit mode. So, refer to the Environment overview in the Edit mode section for the window description; only differences will be mentioned here.
The main difference is that the Ships DB window is not available in the Game mode. So, it is not possible to add or delete ships from the scenario.
Also it is not possible to move ship from one location to another using mouse. To move ship you should send control commands to it about course and speed.
In the Properties Window the Longitude, Latitude, Speed and Course properties are now read-only for the same reason.
In the Game mode in contrast to the Edit mode the time is not constant. To control the battle state (paused or running) and time speed use the menu commands or the corresponding tool bar buttons. The current time is shown in the bottom right corner of the main window.
It is possible to send commands to the active ship in the map view using the keyboard arrow keys:
left arrow - turn to the left;
right arrow - turn to the right;
forward arrow - speed up;
back arrow - speed down.
The arrow keys can be used in combination to turn and change speed. But the main control tool is the Move Control window.
The completely new Move Control Window is described in details below.
The main object control tool is the Move Control window. It can be used to send different commands to the active object:
command to change speed;
command to change course;
command to change speed and course.
If a division commander wants his ships to move in any direction other than straight he must order them to do so. The available divisions orders are:
turn-in-succession. Only divisions deployed in line-ahead may use the turn-in-succession order. Ships turning in succession will maintain their line ahead formation while turning on a stationary pivot-point. The Turn-in-Succession part of the Turn types figure depicts a 90°+ turn in succession to starboard as executed by ships in a line-ahead formation;
simultaneous turn. Each vessel in a division ordered to turn simultaneously will individually turn in unison in the direction ordered. Vessels not in line ahead formation will always use the simultaneous turn command. If a turn-in-succession order is accidentally given to vessels not in line ahead, the command will be treated as if it were a simultaneous turn order. Note that if a division is in line abreast, only certain simultaneous turn commands will allow a return to line ahead.
The Move Control window examples are shown in the figure Move Control for the ship for the single ship and in the figure Move Control for the division for the division in line-ahead. The division order type selection is available in the last figure.
The Move Control window contains the following areas:
Active object name. It is displayed in the panel caption.
Turn angle. It consists of the slider and input field. Attention: this is the angle to turn, not the final course. Negative values of the turn angle means turn to the left (to port), positive - to the right (to starboard). If you need to turn more then 180 degrees then send two turn commands.
Speed. It consists of the slider and input field. The speed is entered in knots. The bottom limit is 0, the top limit is the Max. speed property value (see the Ship Properties Setup). For the ships group the maximum available speed is the lowest speed value of the ships in group. The negative speed cannot be entered using the Move Control window, but it is possible to move with negative speed using the keyboard arrow keys.
Order. For the single ship this area is disabled - standalone ship always turns simultaneous. For the division in line-ahead the turn order may be selected.
Clear currently scheduled commands option is useful when you want to make minor changes in already recorded scenario. Detailed description see below.
button. Press this button to send commands.
The scenario consists of the command sequence. If you want to change the maneuver of one ship in the middle of the battle, but do not want to replay all the battle, the Clear currently scheduled commands option may be useful. To make changes do the following:
start the Battlefleet application;
in the Select Scenario window select the button and activate the Open page (see Open game page);
select scenario to modify in the list;
select the start time when the first modification is required;
press the button to load the scenario at the specified time;
send commands to the target object. If the Clear currently scheduled commands option is not checked new commands will be added without removing existing commands scheduled in future; otherwise all commands for the active object will be removed and you will need to replay battle to the finish time for the active object only.
When the scenario has been loaded the battle is paused. To start battle select the item from the menu or press the corresponding tool bar button. The battle time (in the bottom right corner of the main window) begins to change and the ships begins to move. To pause the battle select the item from the menu or press the corresponding tool bar button.
The battle time speed can be controlled. The following speed levels are available:
Real time. No time speed acceleration.
Slow (x2). The battle speed is 2 times faster then real time
Normal (x10). The battle speed is 10 times faster then real time. 10 battle seconds in 1 real time second.
Fast (x30). The battle speed is 30 times faster then real time. 30 battle seconds in 1 real time second.
Ultra fast (x60). The battle speed is 60 times faster then real time. 60 battle seconds in 1 real time second.
To change the battle time speed select the target speed from the menu or from the drop-down list in the tool bar. The selection takes effect immediately but to see the result the battle should be running (not paused).
Note, that time speed acceleration depends on the computer power and the battle complexity: the real speed may be slower then promised.
Grouping ships into the divisions is the same as in Edit mode, but when the group is deleted ships from it will be moved to the top level of the Ships Tree. See Group Ships Into Divisions.
To setup and check the object side make sure that the Properties Window is visible. If not call the right mouse button menu in the application menu bar and select the item.
Make active the target object. The object properties will be displayed in the Properties window. Select the appropriate side from the drop-down list in the Side property.
To send the command to the active ship you can go the following ways:
control ship with the arrow keys, see Environment Overview;
control ship or group in the Move Control window, see Move Control Window.
Some notes about speed in turn are required. The model recreates a vessel's loss of speed while turning, the actual speed in turn is always less then the shown one. This is planned, and not a problem. The Turn speed coef. property shows the loss of speed coefficient.
If the ship was under the automatic (computer) control the user command switches it to the manual control state.
If one ship should follow the another ship during the long time then the "pursuer-evader" pair may be created and computer will control the pursuer. How to create the pair is described in the Setup Battle Automation in the Edit mode section.
Connection can be active (displayed with black) or inactive (displayed with gray). Inactive connection does nothing. Active connection stimulates computer to send commands to pursuer to go to the leader. To change the individual connection state use right mouse button menu.
The connections are saved when the battle is saved, and restored when the battle is loaded, but all in the inactive mode. The connections should be activated manually. To activate all connections select the item from the menu. To deactivate all connections select the item from the menu. The correspondent tool bar buttons also may be used.
Do not confuse the connection state (active or inactive) with connection visibility (visible or not). To control the connections visibility use the and the commands from the menu.
To change state for more then one connections do the following:
show chasing connections using the command from the menu;
switch the map view to the Select state using the command from the menu;
select with mouse connections to be changed. Ships also may be selected - they are ignored;
move mouse cursor over the connection and call the right button menu;
change the connection state from the menu.
You can select the connection not only in the Select map view state but in any state by mouse click on it. Press Delete key to remove the selected connections.
To save the scenario select the item from the menu.
To save the scenario with the different name select the item from the menu. The Save as window will be opened. Select the scenario from the list to overwrite or enter new name in the Name input line.
It takes time to save huge scenario, and battle is paused during this time.