 Echoplane
Welcome to Echoplane's Help Files. This page will, hopefully, answer any questions you have about the game and get you on your feet. Remember, if you have any other questions, you can ask them on the Game Help or Echoplane Message Boards. Pdeq (107) is in charge of Echoplane, so if you have a need to contact an admin, quickpost him or make a ticket on the Customer Service board with his name in the subject title.
Beta Testing
Echoplane is currently in the third round of beta testing. The main purpose of this is to test out the game, discover bugs, and improve gameplay. If you find a bug or have a helpful suggestion that you think will improve the game, post on the Echoplane Board. Also, keep in mind that Echoplane is always changing, so it will be to your benifit to keep an eye on the message board. Since this is a beta round, no prizes will be given to any winners.
General Gameplay
Echoplane is a turn-based strategy/war game where your goal is to simply be the best. In addition, you cannot use any items or currency from A3 in Echoplane. The point of this is to make Echoplane a completely free game, and the only factor in gameplay is strategy and how often you log on to use your turns. Echoplane is a round based game, meaning that after a specified amount of time, the round will end and everything will be reset in the game. The player who, at the end of each round, has the highest net worth will win a Mark of Hytheria, an item that will be exchangeable for in-game prizes in the future. The guild with the highest net worth will win two Marks of Hytheria. These items cannot be traded or sold to other players.
Units
There are several units used during gameplay, split into two groups, active and passive.
| Active | Passive |
| Gunner | Mercenary |
| Plunderer | Quartermaster |
| Engineer | Cook |
| Pirates | Correspondent |
Active units are used for attacking other players, and also defend your credits, luxuries, items, and passive units when other players attack you.
Passive units perform tasks to make you money, usually done on the Work page. They can also make you Luxuries.
Also, each unit has a specific uniqueness. For example, Engineers cannot attack and will only be useful to make money, and Pirates are the best fighters but use up the most turns when you produce them. As you play the game, experiment with each unit to understand the pros and cons they bring to the game, and create a strategy around those strengths and weaknesses.
Respect
When your units respect you, they stay by your side. If your respect drops too low, your units will start leaving you as you perform certain tasks and attack other players. To keep your units' respect high, you'll need to provide them with what they need.
Active units need Weapons and Luxuries.
Passive units need Luxuries and enough active units to defend them.
Remember, as you make more units, it will take more to keep their respect high.
Net Worth & How to Make Money
Your net worth is calculated based on the following forumla:
[pirates]*2500+[plunderers]*2000+[cooks]*1500+[correspondents]*1000
+[mercenaries]*500+[quartermasters]*1000+[engineers]*500+[gunners]*300
+[chits]
+[Command Cruisers]*40000+[Troop Transports]*250000
+[cigarettes]+[rations]*5+[alcohol]*2
+[laser rifles]*300+[pulse rifles]*750+[deatomizers]*2250+[plasma launchers]*4500
To make chits, which are used to buy weapons, ships, luxuries, and bounties, you can go to the Work page and put your passive units to work by using your turns.
Travel
You can only attack players that are orbiting the same planet as you, so to attack someone that is not on your planet you will have to travel. Each ship you have can transport a certain amount of passive and/or active units for free, but you'll need to pay 150 credits for every unit that doesn't fit.
Bounties
Bounties are rewards that players offer in exchange for another player's downfall. When you go to the Bounties page, you can view the credits that other players will give you to take down other players. The reward is automatically given when you complete the task, so you never need to worry about getting ripped off.
The bounty is considered fulfilled when you have destroyed every active unit (excluding engineers) of the player who's head the reward is on.[back] |