==============================================================================

                          R E D E R ' S   T R E K

                        Commodore 64 - Cartridge Edition

                     (c) 2025 John A. Reder / Tactical Neuronics
                          www.TacticalNeuronics.com

                              PLAYER'S MANUAL

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CONTENTS
--------

  1.  The Mission
  2.  Loading the Game
  3.  The Galaxy: Quadrants and Sectors
  4.  Reading the Screen
  5.  How a Turn Works
  6.  Command Reference
        6.1   S - Short Range Scan
        6.2   L - Long Range Scan
        6.3   G - Galactic Map
        6.4   W - Warp
        6.5   N - Navigate
        6.6   E - Shields
        6.7   P - Phasers
        6.8   T - Photon Torpedo
        6.9   D - Dock
        6.10  I - Status
        6.11  R - Damage Control Report
        6.12  C - Library Computer
        6.13  X - Self-Destruct
        6.14  H - Help,  Q - Abandon Mission
  7.  Combat in Detail
  8.  Shields
  9.  Subsystem Damage and Repair
  10. Starbases and Docking
  11. Energy, Time, and Life Support
  12. Condition Levels
  13. Winning, Losing, and Your Score
  14. Strategy Notes
  15. Quick Reference Card


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1.  THE MISSION
==============================================================================

You command the starship Enterprise. A Klingon battle fleet has invaded
this region of the galaxy, and Starfleet has handed you a single order:

        Find and destroy every Klingon warship before time runs out.

You begin docked at a friendly starbase with a full tank. Somewhere in the
64 quadrants around you are the enemy, a handful of friendly starbases, and
a scattering of stars. You have roughly 1000 time units to finish the job.

Nobody is coming to help. Good luck, Captain.


==============================================================================
2.  LOADING THE GAME
==============================================================================

Reder's Trek ships as a cartridge image (ReadersTrek.crt).

  - EMULATOR (VICE):   x64sc ReadersTrek.crt
  - REAL HARDWARE:     Write the .crt to any cartridge flasher that accepts
                       CRT files (Kung Fu Flash, EasyFlash, Ultimate II+,
                       Backbit, etc.) and select it as a Magic Desk cart.

The game starts automatically. You will see the title screen and the prompt:

        HIT ANY KEY TO START

Press a key. The computer plots a fresh galaxy (a short "PLOTTING THE
GALAXY, STAND BY..." pause), prints your mission briefing, and drops you
into your starting quadrant with a short range scan already on screen.

Every game is different. To play again after a game ends, type  RUN  and
press RETURN.


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3.  THE GALAXY: QUADRANTS AND SECTORS
==============================================================================

The galaxy is an 8 x 8 grid of QUADRANTS. Quadrant coordinates run from
0 to 7:  the first number is the row, the second is the column.

Each quadrant is itself an 8 x 8 grid of SECTORS, also numbered 0 to 7
(row, then column). Your ship occupies one sector at a time.

  - WARP  (W) moves you between quadrants.
  - NAVIGATE (N) moves you between sectors inside your current quadrant.

When you enter a quadrant its contents are laid out fresh: Klingons,
starbases and stars are dropped into random sectors. If you leave a
quadrant with live Klingons still in it and come back later, expect a
new fight - wounded Klingons will have recovered, and everyone will have
repositioned. You cannot "park" enemies by running away.

The symbols on a scan are:

        E   your ship, the Enterprise   (cyan block)
        K   a Klingon warship           (red block)
        R   a decloaked Romulan warbird (purple block)
        B   a friendly starbase         (green block)
        *   a star                      (yellow)
        .   empty space                 (dim grey)

Cloaked Romulans never appear on any scan - see section 7.

On a scan the ship, Klingons, starbases and stars are drawn as small
graphic icons inside a framed grid, so the tactical picture reads at a
glance. Phasers, torpedoes, explosions, docking and the red-alert
klaxon all have sound.


==============================================================================
4.  READING THE SCREEN
==============================================================================

Text is colour-coded so you can read the situation at a glance:

        YELLOW   headings and section titles
        WHITE    normal report text
        CYAN     prompts, status labels, and your ship (E) on scans
        RED      warnings, damage, Klingon fire, bad news
        GREEN    good news: kills, docking, victory, starbases (B)

Before every command you are shown a CONDITION line, for example:

        CONDITION: RED
        COMMAND (H=HELP)?

The SCREEN BORDER also tracks your situation - green when clear, yellow
when reserves are low, red in combat, cyan while docked. It flashes on
every incoming hit and strobes red the moment you warp into a quadrant
that holds Klingons.

See section 12 for what each condition means.


==============================================================================
5.  HOW A TURN WORKS
==============================================================================

At the  COMMAND (H=HELP)?  prompt, type a single letter and press RETURN.
Some commands then ask for more information (a course, an energy amount,
and so on) - just answer the prompt.

Commands fall into two groups:

  INFORMATION commands - free, no time passes, the Klingons do not act:
        S  L  G  I  R  C  H

  ACTION commands - time passes, and any Klingons sharing your quadrant
  get to move and shoot back:
        W  N  P  T  E  D

After an action, the ship's crew also carries out one turn of repairs
(if damage control is working), and there is a small chance a distant
Klingon force destroys one of your starbases.

Coordinates and numbers are always entered as plain integers. When a
prompt asks for two values it wants them separated by a comma, e.g.:

        WARP TO QUADRANT (ROW,COL)? 3,5


==============================================================================
6.  COMMAND REFERENCE
==============================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1   S  -  SHORT RANGE SCAN
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Displays the 8 x 8 sector map of your current quadrant, with row and
column numbers. This is your main tactical picture: where you are, where
the Klingons are, where any starbase is.

A short range scan is also shown automatically whenever you enter a new
quadrant or move within one.

Requires SHORT RANGE SENSORS. If that system is damaged the scan is
replaced by:  *** SHORT RANGE SENSORS ARE OUT ***

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.2   L  -  LONG RANGE SCAN
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reports the contents of the nine quadrants centred on you (your quadrant
plus its eight neighbours). Each cell shows three numbers:

        KLINGONS   STARBASES   STARS

Quadrants off the edge of the galaxy show as  - - -.  Anything a long
range scan reveals is remembered and will appear on your Galactic Map.

Requires LONG RANGE SENSORS.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.3   G  -  GALACTIC MAP
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shows the whole 8 x 8 galaxy as a cumulative record. For every quadrant
you have scanned (by short or long range scan) it shows three digits:

        K B S   =   Klingons, Bases, Stars

Quadrants you have never scanned show as  ...  (unmapped). Your current
quadrant is shown in green; quadrants known to hold Klingons are shown
in red.

Use this to plan your campaign: find the Klingon concentrations, keep
track of where the starbases are, and decide your route.

Requires the LIBRARY COMPUTER.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.4   W  -  WARP
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        WARP TO QUADRANT (ROW,COL)?

Jumps you to another quadrant. You arrive at a random sector there.

  - Time cost:    about  10 + 10 x distance  units
  - Energy cost:  about  100 + 50 x distance  units

Distance is the straight-line distance between quadrant centres, so long
jumps are expensive in both time and energy. If you do not have enough
energy for the jump, it is refused.

If your WARP ENGINES are damaged you may only make short hops - one
quadrant at a time. Longer jumps are refused until the engines are
repaired.

On arrival the Klingons in the new quadrant immediately get a turn.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.5   N  -  NAVIGATE
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        MOVE TO SECTOR (ROW,COL)?

Moves you to another sector within the current quadrant. Use this to
close on a target, line up a torpedo shot, or move onto a starbase to
dock.

  - Time cost:    about  the distance moved  (minimum 1)
  - Energy cost:  about  10 + 5 x distance

You cannot move onto a sector occupied by a star. After you move, the
Klingons get a turn.

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6.6   E  -  SHIELDS
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        NEW SHIELD LEVEL?

Sets your shield strength by transferring energy between the reserve and
the shields, one-for-one. Type the level you want:

  - Ask for MORE than you have now: energy is pumped into the shields.
    If you do not have enough reserve energy, you get a partial charge.
  - Ask for LESS: the difference is pumped back into reserve energy.

Maximum shield level is 600. Adjusting shields uses one turn, so the
Klingons will shoot at you while you do it - raise your shields BEFORE
you pick a fight, not during.

If SHIELD CONTROL is damaged you can still lower shields (to recover
energy) but you cannot raise them.

See section 8 for how shields absorb damage.

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6.7   P  -  PHASERS
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        PHASER ENERGY TO FIRE?

Fires phasers at every Klingon in the quadrant at once. The energy you
spend is drained from your reserve. Each Klingon is hit for an amount
that falls off with distance - close targets take far more damage than
distant ones.

A Klingon is destroyed when its energy reaches zero. Phasers are your
reliable workhorse weapon: no ammunition, just energy.

Requires PHASER CONTROL. Costs one turn; the Klingons fire back.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.8   T  -  PHOTON TORPEDO
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        TORPEDO ANGLE,DISTANCE?

Fires ONE torpedo along a bearing. You have only 8 torpedoes at the
start of the game, so make them count.

  - ANGLE is in degrees:   0 = straight up (towards row 0)
                          90 = right (towards column 7)
                         180 = down
                         270 = left
  - DISTANCE is in sectors.

The torpedo detonates at the sector it reaches. It destroys a Klingon
at or next to that sector (a one-sector splash). If it reaches a star,
the star absorbs it harmlessly. If it leaves the quadrant, it is lost.

WARNING: a torpedo that hits one of your OWN starbases destroys it. You
take a heavy score penalty and a stiff message from Starfleet Command.
Check your fire.

To get an exact firing solution, use the Library Computer (C, option 3):
it prints the angle and range to every Klingon in the quadrant, ready to
type straight into the torpedo prompt.

Requires PHOTON TUBES. Costs one turn.

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6.9   D  -  DOCK
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Move onto the same sector as a starbase (B), then give the DOCK command.
Docking:

  - refills reserve energy to 1500
  - tops shields up to 600
  - restocks photon torpedoes to 8
  - repairs ALL damaged systems instantly
  - resets any life-support countdown

Docking costs a few time units. A starbase is your only way to repair
and rearm, so guard them - and know where the nearest one is.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.10  I  -  STATUS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prints a full status report: your quadrant and sector, condition, time
left, reserve energy, shields, torpedoes, hull damage, Klingons left in
the galaxy, Klingons you have destroyed, and a count of damaged systems.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.11  R  -  DAMAGE CONTROL REPORT
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lists every damaged system and its repair ETA in turns. If everything is
working you get  ALL SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL.

If DAMAGE CONTROL itself is down, the report tells you so - fix that
first, because nothing else repairs while it is offline (see section 9).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.12  C  -  LIBRARY COMPUTER
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Opens a sub-menu:

        1  GALACTIC MAP          (same as the G command)
        2  STATUS REPORT         (same as the I command)
        3  FIRING SOLUTIONS      angle + range to each Klingon here
        4  NEAREST STARBASE      bearing, distance, and which quadrant

Option 3 is the one to remember in a fight - it hands you torpedo
numbers directly.

Requires the LIBRARY COMPUTER system.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.13  X  -  SELF-DESTRUCT
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        SELF-DESTRUCT: PRESS Y TO CONFIRM

Press Y to blow up the Enterprise, taking every Klingon in your current
quadrant with you. Any other key aborts.

This ends the game. If those were the last Klingons in the galaxy it
counts as a (pyrrhic) victory; otherwise it is a defeat. A last resort
when you are doomed anyway and can take some of them with you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.14  H  -  HELP        Q  -  ABANDON MISSION
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

H   Prints the command list. Free, any time.

Q   Ends the mission early and shows the mission report. Counts as
    "mission aborted" - neither a win nor a defeat, but your score is
    whatever you had earned so far.


==============================================================================
7.  COMBAT IN DETAIL
==============================================================================

WHO SHOOTS WHEN
    You act, then every Klingon in your quadrant gets a turn: it may
    slide one sector toward you, and it may fire. The closer a Klingon
    is, the more likely it is to hit and the harder it hits.

PHASERS vs TORPEDOES
    Phasers hit ALL Klingons in the quadrant at once and cost only
    energy - but the energy you fire is SPLIT among the targets, and
    damage still drops with distance. Against one ship a phaser volley
    is decisive; against three, each gets a third of the punch, so a
    group fight is several volleys - and several turns of return fire.

    Torpedoes hit ONE target for a clean kill regardless of distance or
    how many Klingons are present, but you only carry 8 and you must
    aim them.

    Typical tactic against a group: torpedo one or two to bring the
    count down, THEN phaser - your remaining energy now splits fewer
    ways and finishes the rest.

KLINGONS WEAKEN - SLOWLY
    Firing costs a Klingon a little energy, and a badly drained Klingon
    hits softer. But this is a slow bleed: expect the enemy to stay
    near full strength for most of a fight. Do not count on outlasting
    a group from behind your shields - a three-ship brawl will breach
    600 shields before it grinds itself down, and then the hull hits
    start knocking out your systems.

CONCUSSION
    A very heavy hit that gets through your shields can physically hurl
    the Enterprise to a random sector of the quadrant. Disorienting,
    and it can throw off your firing position - another reason to keep
    shields up.

ROMULANS
    A few Romulan warbirds prowl the galaxy, CLOAKED - they never show
    on any scan. A cloaked warbird ignores you until it is provoked:

      - you navigate onto the sector it is sitting in
      - a Klingon drifts onto that sector
      - you open fire while it shares the quadrant with you
      - a torpedo detonates right next to it

    Once it decloaks (shown as R) it fights whoever it blames. If that
    is the KLINGONS, it will actually thin them out for you - and those
    kills count toward your mission - then re-cloak and slip away when
    the quadrant is clear. If it blames YOU, look out: a warbird hits
    far harder than a Klingon (up to ~220 a shot) and has more hull.

    Attacking a warbird - even a stray phaser or torpedo near it -
    always makes it blame you. Kill it with torpedoes, or with phasers
    if there are Klingons in the quadrant too. A warbird never stops
    you from winning; if you clear the last Klingon, the mission is
    over whatever the Romulan is doing.

    Warping out and back in re-cloaks any warbird you did not destroy.

RUNNING
    You can always WARP out of a bad quadrant. But the quadrant resets
    when you return (section 3), and warping burns time and energy you
    may need later.


==============================================================================
8.  SHIELDS
==============================================================================

Shields are stored energy that soaks up incoming fire.

  - When a Klingon hits you, the damage comes off your SHIELDS first.
    Energy the shields absorb is spent - you do not get it back.

  - Only the OVERFLOW, once the shields are beaten down, reaches the
    HULL. Hull hits raise your damage total and also drain reserve
    energy, and they are what can knock out your systems.

  - Holding shields up while Klingons are in the quadrant costs a
    trickle of energy each turn (more when shields are high).

  - You raise and lower shields with the E command, trading against
    reserve energy one-for-one. Unspent shield energy can be pulled
    back with E; absorbed damage cannot.

So shields are pre-paid armour. Before a fight, pour energy into them.
After a fight, pull the leftover back out so you have it for warp.

Starting shields are 0. Your first fight, if you rush in, is fought
with the hull exposed - don't.


==============================================================================
9.  SUBSYSTEM DAMAGE AND REPAIR
==============================================================================

The Enterprise has eight systems. A hull hit can knock any of them out:

        WARP ENGINES          long warps refused; short hops only
        SHORT RANGE SENSORS   no sector map (S command blanks out)
        LONG RANGE SENSORS    L command unavailable
        PHASER CONTROL        cannot fire phasers
        PHOTON TUBES          cannot fire torpedoes
        DAMAGE CONTROL        see below
        SHIELD CONTROL        cannot raise shields (can still lower)
        LIBRARY COMPUTER      no map, no C command

Each damaged system has a repair countdown (its "ETA", shown by the R
command). Every action-turn, damage control works the countdown down;
when it reaches zero the system is back.

DAMAGE CONTROL is special: while IT is the damaged system, no other
repairs happen at all. It still counts itself down, so it will come
back on its own eventually - but until it does, everything else stays
broken. If damage control takes a hit, your priorities are: survive,
and get to a starbase.

DOCKING repairs everything at once, instantly.


==============================================================================
10.  STARBASES AND DOCKING
==============================================================================

Starbases (B) are friendly. They are your only source of repair, fuel,
and torpedoes away from Earth. To use one:

  1. WARP to the quadrant that contains it.
  2. NAVIGATE onto the exact sector the B is in.
  3. Give the DOCK command.

The Library Computer (C, option 4) will tell you the bearing, distance
and quadrant of the nearest surviving starbase.

Starbases are NOT safe forever. Over the course of the mission the
Klingon fleet hunts them down; every so often you will get a  SUBSPACE
ALERT - STARBASE x,y LOST  message. If every starbase is destroyed you
can still win by killing the last Klingons, but you will have no way to
repair or refuel - so don't dawdle, and don't leave a wounded ship far
from a base.

Firing a torpedo into your own starbase destroys it and costs you a
400-point score penalty. Be careful with torpedo bearings when a B is
on the board.


==============================================================================
11.  ENERGY, TIME, AND LIFE SUPPORT
==============================================================================

TIME  starts at about 1000 units and only goes down. Warping, moving,
      firing, docking and being shot at all consume it. When time hits
      zero the mission is over - a defeat.

ENERGY (reserve) starts at 1500. It powers warp, impulse movement,
      phasers, and shield charging, and it is drained by hull hits and
      by holding shields up. Docking refills it.

LIFE SUPPORT: if your reserve energy hits zero, main power is gone and
      the crew is on reserve air. You have roughly 10 turns to reach a
      starbase and dock before  LIFE SUPPORT FAILED  ends the game.
      Restoring power (by docking) clears the countdown.

Watch the STATUS screen. If energy is getting low and you are far from
a base, break off and head for one BEFORE you are stranded.


==============================================================================
12.  CONDITION LEVELS
==============================================================================

The condition indicator above every prompt summarises your situation:

        GREEN    no Klingons in the quadrant, healthy reserves
        YELLOW   reserve energy below 500, or hull damage above 500
        RED      Klingons are in this quadrant (combat), or both of
                 the yellow conditions at once
        DOCKED   you are sitting on a starbase sector

RED means fight or flight. YELLOW means think about resupplying soon.


==============================================================================
13.  WINNING, LOSING, AND YOUR SCORE
==============================================================================

YOU WIN when every Klingon warship in the galaxy has been destroyed.

YOU LOSE if:
        - time runs out, or
        - your hull damage becomes total, or
        - life support fails after running out of energy, or
        - you self-destruct with Klingons still left elsewhere.

Either way you get a MISSION REPORT with your final score:

        SCORE = energy/10 + time left + 10 x Klingons destroyed
                - damage/10 - starbase penalty

In short: kill Klingons, finish fast, and come home with energy in the
tank, an intact hull, and every starbase you were given still standing.


==============================================================================
14.  STRATEGY NOTES
==============================================================================

  - SCOUT FIRST. Spend your early turns on long range scans and build
    up the Galactic Map before you commit. Know where the Klingons are
    clustered and where every starbase is.

  - SHIELDS UP BEFORE CONTACT. Enter a Klingon quadrant with shields
    already charged. Entering with shields down is how ships die on
    turn one.

  - PICK YOUR ROUTE. Long warps are expensive. Try to clear quadrants
    along an efficient path rather than criss-crossing the galaxy.

  - SAVE TORPEDOES for the dangerous shots - a close Klingon, or one
    your phasers can't reach. Phasers are free; use them first.

  - USE THE COMPUTER (C, option 3) for torpedo bearings instead of
    guessing. A wasted torpedo is 1/8 of your entire supply.

  - DON'T OVER-EXTEND. If you're low on energy, damaged, or down to a
    couple of torpedoes, go dock. A quick resupply run is almost always
    worth the time.

  - PROTECT THE BASES. You can't defend them directly, but every base
    the Klingons take is one less place to repair. The faster you win,
    the fewer you lose.

  - AFTER A FIGHT, pull leftover energy back out of the shields with
    the E command so it's available for your next warp.


==============================================================================
15.  QUICK REFERENCE CARD
==============================================================================

  MOVEMENT
        W  warp to another quadrant        (ROW,COL)
        N  navigate within quadrant        (ROW,COL)

  SENSORS / INFO                            (free - no turn passes)
        S  short range scan (sector map)
        L  long range scan (3x3 quadrants)
        G  galactic map (everything scanned so far)
        I  status report
        R  damage control report
        C  library computer menu
        H  help / command list

  COMBAT / SHIP                             (uses a turn)
        E  set shield level                 (0 - 600)
        P  fire phasers                     (energy amount)
        T  fire one photon torpedo          (ANGLE,DISTANCE)
        D  dock (must be on a starbase B)
        X  self-destruct

  END
        Q  abandon mission

  TORPEDO ANGLES        MAP SYMBOLS
        0   = up (row 0)      E  your ship
        90  = right (col 7)   K  Klingon
        180 = down            B  starbase
        270 = left            *  star   . empty

  CONDITION
        GREEN  clear      YELLOW  low energy / hurt
        RED    combat     DOCKED  at a starbase

  PLAY AGAIN: type  RUN  and press RETURN.

==============================================================================
