- Dam Busters Help Sheet; by Zod Buster
(%> OPTIONS:
THE OPTIONS THAT MAY BE SELECTED ARE: ENGLISH CHANNEL-start
from the english channel SCRAMPTION AIRFIELD- TAKES OFF from
airfield
THE "SCRAMPTON AIRFIELD" option requires more skill in a game
play. This option also includes an Intelligence Report which must
be examined so that a strategy may be planned.
(%> ROLES(SCREEN DESCRIPTIONS,JOYSTICK,FIRE BUTTONS)
All flight crew positions(point of view) are controlled by the
player. The positions and their associated numbers are:
1=PILOT
2=FRONT GUNNER
3=TAIL GUNNER
4=BOMB AIMER
5=NAVIGATOR
6=FIRST ENGINEER SCREEN
7=SECOND ENGINEER SCREEN(in scrampton airfield option)
To select a POSITION, press the appropriate number on the
keyboard.
When a specific position is in trouble or needs attention, the
corresponding number will flash at the bottom of the screen!
(%> 1=PILOT
The pilot screen is used to control the direction of the
aircraft, left, right,up, down. The joystick control behaves like
a real Lancaster. When you pull back the aircraft goes up, push
forward the aircraft goes down,left=left, right=right.
The pilot's screen contains a view of the horizon lights,
enemy barrage balloons, searchlights and ME 109 night fighters.
(This view also appears in the Front and Tail gunners screen.)
There are also several instruments to the left is the altimeter
which shows two indicators.
small indicator=200 ft increments
large indicator=10 ft " "
When "intercom" blinks #1 (pilot's position) you are too high.
Drop your altitude below 1000 ft.
The second instrument from the left is the direction compass
for the aircraft. This tells the pilot what direction the aircraft
is heading relative to magnetic north.The small red marker that
moves on the compass is the direction that the navigator has
selected the aircraft to fly.
The next instrument is the Aircraft Horizon Indicator(second
right) which shows which direction the aircraft is
turning.(usefull at night when the real horizon is not visible)
The far right instrument is the Airspeed indicator
(%> FRONT GUNNER:
The front gunner controls twin 303 calibre F.N. 5 machine guns
by guiding the crosshairs with the joystick, and pressing the left
fire button. The guns fire 20 rounds per second. Every fourth
round fired from the guns is a tracer bullet which 'glows' as it
travels away from the aircraft, so that the direction and target
of fire can be determined.
If the bomb rotation switch in the bomb aimer screen has been
turned on and the bomb has reached the specified 500 rpm, the gun
crosshairs will be replaced by the bomb distancing sights The
sights are used to determine the distance from aircraft to dam.
When the twin dam towers are the same distance apart as the bomb
distancing sights, the dam is the correct distance away and the
bomb should be released (assuming that the speed and altitude are
set correctly. See dam approach) To release the bomb, the front
gunner should press the left fire button when the distancing
sights are aligned with the dam towers.
(%> TAIL GUNNER:
The tail gunner controls four F.N.20 303 calibre machine guns,
two mounted on either side of the turret. The guns are controlled
in the same way as those of the front gunner.
(%> BOMB AIMER:
In the Lancaster, the front gunner is also the bomb aimer. The
bomb aimer need be accessed only on the dam approach. The
instruments at the bottom of the screen are the Bomb rotation
switch(left) and the aircraft altitude spotlight switch(right). To
select a switch, move the joystick left or right. Under the
selected control, a black control dot will appear. Press the left
fire button on the joystick to grab control of the switch. With
the fire button pressed, move the joystick down to turn the switch
on or up to turn it off. Releasing the fire button releases
control of the switch.
When the spotlight switch is on and the altitude is less than
100 feet (at higher altitudes the spotlight cannot be seen), use
the joystick to adjust the altitude, just like the pilot's
joystick control(forward is less altitude, back is more altitude)
Avoid turning on the spotlights over enemy territory because the
Lancaster will become an easy target for enemy flak.
Just before the dam approach, turn on the Bomb Rotation
switch. When the bomb has reached maximum rotation, the Front
Gunner will no longer control the front gun, but will be looking
at the distancing sights in preparation for the bomb release.
Turning off the bomb rotation frees the front gunner to man the
twin 303's
(%> NAVIGATOR:
The navigator has the most important job of the whole mission,
the responsibilty of plotting the course through enemy territory
to the dams. The navigator's screen shows a map on which there are
two moveable objects. One shows the current aircraft position. The
other shows the navigational cursor that is used to set the
compass heading. The joystick controls where the navigational
cursor goes on the current map. There are 6 maps comprising of
Northern Europe,each selected by moving the cursor toward the map
edge. As the map boundary is reached, the next map, if there is
one, will be displayed. By pressing the left fire button your
current location may be viewed. As you move the cursor around the
screen the heading of the compass at the top of the screen will
change. This new heading will be reflected in the pilot's screen
and indicated by the red indicator on the pilot's compass. Thus if
the cursor is directly above the position of the aircraft, the
navigator's compass heading will read (N). The pilot then should
bank (turn) until the aircraft direction compass is aligned to the
red marker which will also be (N).
The maps of europe contain different coloured symbols
representing the location and types of landmarks. THE SYMBOLS ARE
CLASSIFIED AS FOLLOWS:
GREEN CIRCLES----MILITARY INSTALLATIONS
GREEN AIRCRAFT---MILITARY AIRPORTS
BLUE DIAMONDS----POPULATION CENTERS
BLUE SMOKE STACKS---INDUSTRIAL COMPLEXES
The size of the symbols is an indication of the concentration
and magnitude of the installation. The novice should look over
these maps carefully before choosing a course to fly.
(%> ENGINEER:
The engineer controls one or two screens, depending on whether
English Channel option (one screen) or Scrampton Airfield option
(two screens) has been chosen. The first screen is associated
with the control of the engines. It is the same for both options.
The second screen (for Scrampton Airfield) is associated with take
off and controlling trim on the rudder.
The first screen contains four throttles (bottom left), four
booster controls (bottom right) and four engine fire extinquishers
(top right). The booster gauges are the upper four dials. The
lower four dials are the rpm gauges for the throttles. A fire in
an engine is indicated by a blinking rpm gauges for that engine.
To access an instrument move the joystick left, right,up or
down.Under the selected control a black control dot will appear.
press the left fire button on the joystick to grab control of the
instrument. With the left fire button pressed, move the joystick
up or down depending on what you want to do. Releasing the fire
button releases the control of the instrument. The four throttles
may be controlled simultaneously, as may the four boosters. To do
this select the last booster or first throttle. Push both fire
buttons in at the same time to control all four boosters or
throttles. To get to the last booster when entering the engineer's
screen push the joystick left. This technique is handy to use
during takeoff.
The upper right section of the screen controls the fire
extinguisher for each engine. Each fire extinquisher may be used
only once, so be carefull using them. Care must also be taken in
restarting an engine,(if it will restart) after a fire because of
the possibilty of rekindling the fire.
The throttles control the rpm on a specific engine much like an
accelerator pedal on a car. The booster controls the pitch of the
propeller blades in relation to the airstream near the propeller.
Thus a larger pitch takes a larger bit of air. Setting a booster
is similar to selecting a gear in a transmission. Thus the speed
of the aircraft can be set by any combination of boost( high gear)
and max. throttle (pedal to the floor).
Damaged engines can be a result of 'revving' the engines too
high and using the throttle without adjusting the appropriate
booster(putting it in gear). Too much boost with a low throttle
setting will result in inefficient engines and low power, reducing
the airspeed. Thus individual gauges should be watched when
increasing/decreasing the booster and throttle. The damage gauge
indicates the amount of damage to the plane. Heavy damage is
indicated when the indicator is at the top of the gauge.
The Second Engineer's screen which is only displayed for the
Scrampton Airfield option, shows the flap control with indicator
(bottom left),landing gear(bottom center) and rudder trim(bottom
right). These instruments are controlled in a simialr manner to
the First Engineer's screen. The flap switch will turn on/off the
flaps. The flaps are retractable extensions of the wing of the
Lancaster, thus when the flaps are down, the wing area is larger
and as a result the lift of the wing is increased.
The landing gear control activates the hydraulic motor control
that lifts the gear. The rudder trim adjusts the direction of the
aircraft to the left or right. Moving the stick up introduces a
small positive yaw in the aircraft, guiding it slightly to the
right. Moving the stick down introduces a negative yaw that turns
the aircraft to the left.
(%> GETTING STARTED:
CTRL-U - SELECT APPLE JOYSTICK ESC- PAUSE GAME
CTRL-A - SELECT ATARI JOYSTICK CTRL-S- SOUND OFF/ON
SPACEBAR-START GAME CTRL-R- RESTART GAME
(option screen)
(%> PLAYING A GAME
After the title screen has been displayed, move the joystick
to display the level selection screen.
(%> LEVEL SELECTION
The level of play is an indication of how difficult a game you
want. There are 2 levels of difficulty:
1-English Channel 2- Scrampton Airfield
(%> OPTION SELECTION:
Selection a start at Scrampton, the player is first presented
with an intelligence report as of the time of takeoff. To ensure
against security breaches, no other bomber operation has been
notified of your mission, thus flying into another bomber
operation could produce disasterous effects for you and your crew.
This report should be memorized before proceeding because it is
only presented once at the beginning of the game. This report will
include a type of activity and the location of that event. The
type of events that can be reported on are:
(%> RADAR ACTIVITY:
Radar activity is important because it is an indication that
mobile enemy radar installations have been moved and the map in
that area is inaccurate.
(%> NIGHT FIGHTER ACTION:
Feints by bomber command to lure enemy air interceptions to
specific locations were used frequently. This report indicates the
area of high probability of encountering night fighters.
(%> BOMBING RAID:
A large scale night operation is taking place over a specified
city and that area should be avoided at all costs. All ground and
air defenses have been mobilized in these areas.
(%> FLAK CONCENTRATION:
Large concentrations of flak installations protected
strategically important locations. If these installations are
warned by radar stations of your approach, you may not survive the
mission.
NOTE--Some flak batteries were moved by railroad, thus your
best strategy is to change slightly the flight paths each mission.
(%> ENGLISH CHANNEL OPTION:
This option lets you start over the English Channel. This
option does not give the player the advantage of the Intelligence
Report. No takeoff is necessary.
(%> SCAMPTON AIRFIELD OPTION:
In order to takeoff, set the flaps down, and give the engines
full throttles and about half boost. Select the pilot screen and
wait for the airspeed to build up(airspeed indicator will FLASH
when ready). After a few moments you will be able to lift the tail
section by pushing gently on the joystick. Lift the tail section
until the horizon is about 2/3 down from the top of the screen.
Watch you don't lift the aircraft's tail too far up or you will
crash the aircraft.
When the aircraft's altimeter starts to show an increase the
aircraft has started to takeoff. Adjust the pitch of the aircraft
to level off at a constant altitude.(do this quickly to avoid
stalling the aircraft). Retract the landing gear and the flaps to
increase airspeed. It is important that the throttles and boosters
are lowered as soon as possible after takeoff so as not to over-
rev the engines. Pull back slowly on the joystick to start
increasing altitude, and you're off!
(%> FOR EITHER OPTION:
When flying over enemy territory at night there are a number
of considerations:
1-If you fly at an altitude of over 800 ft. you will give the
night fighter radar something to lock onto. If you fly under 100
ft. you risk hitting an object on the ground. The pilot's number
will start to flash in the status screen if you start to fly too
high.
2-Spotlights and possibly flak installations may be knocked
out by firing at the base of the light on the ground.
3-ME-109 attacks may be avoided by either trying to shoot it
down or by performing a 'corkscrew' in an attempt to out-manoeuvre
the fighter.
(%> DAM APPROACH:
Three parameters must be set exactly during the approach for
the bomb to skip properly over the water.
SPEED=must be 232 mph
ALTITUDE=must be exactly 60 ft.
DISTANCE=must be exactly 800 YARDS from the dam(indicated by
distancing sights)
When making the dam approach make sure that the aircraft a
long run down the lake to the dam so that all of the
parameters(airspeed,distance,and altitude) may be set.In order to
set the approach parameters examine the following points.
SPEED-set the speed by adjusting the throttles. When the
airspeed indicator blinks the speed has been set to 232 mph.
ALTITUDE-make sure you are over the lake before reducing your
altitude under 100 ft. Bring the aircraft down and select the bomb
aimer screen. Turn on the bomb rotation and the aircraft altitude
spotlights. Adjust the aircraft's altitude so the spotlights
converge and are just touching. The aircraft is now at exactly 60
ft.
DISTANCE-when you are heading directly at the dam going down
the lake, the dam should appear on the horizon. Use the pilot
screen to gently adjust the direction of the aircraft so the dam
is near the center of the screen. Then using the Front Gunner
distancing sights, wait for the exact moment that the dam towers
align with the sights. When they align, push the bomb release (the
left fire button).
It is useful to keep checking the parameters (altitude,speed,
distance) after they are set because of drift and error in the
setting.
(%> RESULTS OF BOMB RELEASE:
If the bomb is not released under the proper conditions, one
of two things can happen:
-coming in too fast,too low,or releasing the bomb too late
will cause the bomb to hit the crest of the dam and skip into the
valley beyond the dam.
-coming in too slow,too high,or releasing the bomb too soon
will result in the bomb dropping short and harmlessly.
If successful in destroying the dam, you will be promoted in
rank an also to the next level of difficulty.
(%> DAM BUSTERS STRATEGY
After examining the intelligence report, moving the joystick
will place you in the navigator's screen. Before taking off it is
useful to examine the maps and the 'hot' areas in Northern Europe
that you want to avoid and the 'holes' in the enemy defences along
the coast that you might want to use. Set the compass heading
using the navigator's cursor to the first location you want to fly
to.
(%> FOR EITHER OPTION
The key to playing the game is to keep switching between views
that are useful at the time. For example over enemy territory flip
back and forth between the front and rear gunner and now and then
examine the pilot and navigator to make sure you are on course.
Remember to examine the map before things get hot over enemy
territory and plot a path that will keep you as far away from the
enemy installations as possible. Keep track of where you are on
the map at all times.
Always keep checking the Front and Tail Gunner screens for
fighters as sometimes there is little warning of their attack.
Always answer a call from a gunner even though it may be to draw
your attention to another type of action such as flak of even a
false alarm on another screen. Watch the screen carefully after a
call because sometimes the fighters are hard to spot.
There are two ways of trying to deal with night fighters,
firing at them and dodging them. Using the machine guns, fire a
spray of bullets moving left and right as soon as you see a night
fighter. Keep firing until it explodes, then stop to look for
more. You can dodge night fighters by using a 'corkscrew'
manoeuvre. The 'corkscrew' is a standard Lancaster manoeuvre that
traces a horizontal corkscrew through the air. It is performed by
diving left,pulling up, climbing, then diving from the right to
the left.
After extinquishing an engine fire, decrease throttle on the
corresponding engine on the opposite side. EG-fire in engine
#1/cut back on engine #4. Ground installations such as spotlights
and flak guns can be dodged by banking hard left or right. Other
objects such as barrage balloons can be shot out using the front
machine guns. If barrage balloons get too close you may rely on
the cable cutters mounted on the wings of the lancaster to cut
cables before they snag the plane.
Always re-check your heading and position if you try to dodge
night fighters.