
The Great Game ToT:  Russia and England in Central Asia
by Michael J. Daumen
   daumen@mindspring.com


I.	NOTES ON PLAY

	This scenario is designed for the human player to control either the
British or Russian Empire.  The other nations in the game are weaker and not
as advanced technologically.  The Mountain Lands and Islamic States are two
mishmashes of nations, and probably won't be as fulfilling as any others.


II.	TECHNOLOGY

	Several technologies are used simply to make certain units obsolete.
Because they have "no, no" as prerequisties, they cannot be traded.

	A few technologies are reserved for creating events during the game.
These should not be traded either.  Russia and England have the technological
advantage, so other tribes should only expect to receive techs as a gift or
through research.


III.	UNITS

	All of the units are documented in the Pedia file, and their stats are
also available by pressing F2.  Unusual ones are explained below:

  A.	Agents are English and Russian adverturers who disguised themselves as
natives to learn more about the region.  They are similar to diplomats in that 
they can examine cities and establish embassies, but not affect units or cities.

  B.	Tibet gets the benefit of Monks, which have the same diplomatic effects.

  C.	The Russian empire can build serf infantry and regular units.  The latter
have improved hit points and firepower but are more expensive.

  D.	A mitralleuse is an early machine gun of French design.

  E.	Naval Guns are air units with movement and range of 1 as well as with
"submarine" capabilties.  Thus they cannot move overland or from their cities,
and are used exclusively for attacking ships that come too close (Thanks Hoek
for the idea).

	NAVAL UNITS

	The only ships that can attack ground units by coastal bombardment are 
gunboats, ironclads and battleships.  All the other ships are treated as subs,
and all naval units have no disadvantage in detecting other ships.


IV.	IMPROVEMENTS

	Several improvements have been modified to alter the feel of the game.
They are fully documented in the Pedia file.


V.	THE MAP

	The map includes several new terrains and changes to familiar ones.  Test 
of Time allows a player to access statistics in the Civilopedia.

  A.	Tundra has been replaced by plateau, representing arable land at high
altitude.  The special squares are Poppies and Groves.

  B.	Arctic has been replaced by steppe, the dry zone of short grass covering
most of the Eurasian plain.  The special squares are Cattle and Pasture.

  C.	Jungle has been replaced by dunes, arid regions where travel is especially
difficult.  Special squares are Quicksand (not beneficial) and Oasis.

  D.	Wine, Whales, Buffalo, Spice and Peat have been replaced by Goats, Pearls, 
Cotton, Tea and Salt, respectively.

  E.	Desert squares now costs TWO movement points to enter.

  F.	Mountains and Dunes are wholly impassable, meaning only the hardiest of
troops can travel there.


VI.	VICTORY

	The Russians are the protagonists of the scenario, meaning that it is up
to them to do some serious conquering.  Historically she did not advance at all 
in Turkey (mostly because the other European nations objected), managed to take 
some Persian territories in the Caucasus (as well as divide Persia into spheres of 
influence with Britian), but annexed most of the Turcoman khanates.  Russia must 
duplicate this feat to avoid losing.  Making headway outside Central Asia would be 
a bonus, but their primary goals in the region were access to the Mediterranean (by 
control of the Black Sea and Turkish concessions regarding passage through the 
Dardanelles), and a clear route to India should the need to march there arise.
	Britian's defensive advantage makes draws easier but victories harder. 
In actual history they took over Cyprus, Socotra and the Sind (the arid region in
northwest India with a few Afghani cities), while extending influence to Egypt and
the coastal regions of the Arabian peninsula.  It can consider the game lost if 
Russia captures Istanbul, Port Said (once the Suez Canal is built), or makes any 
inroads on the Subcontinent.
	As for the other nations, I make no promises that they will prosper.  It
will be difficult to take many cities, never mind not lose any.  Turkey and Persia
remained nominally independent until World War One by Europe's desire that no one 
nation take exclusive control of the region.  The Turcomans and Mountain Peoples 
have a sadder story, one of subjugation written both before and after the time of 
the scenario.  As for Afghanistan, what can be said that hasn't?  It resisted two 
of the largest empires the world has ever seen.


VII.	REVISION NOTES

	Once the Civ2 version of the Great Game was released I immediately thought a 
larger map could be used.  Research in another field led me to consider improvements 
to the tech tree as well.  Now, since Test of Time allows for more and more complex 
events, I resolved to learn its ins and outs and thought this was a good scenario to 
"convert" -- even though that meant redoing everything from the ground up!  But now 
the Crimean War and Sepoy Rebellion actually take place, and Britian has to take a 
more active role in the construction of the Suez Canal.  In addition there is more 
"flavor text" adding to the atmosphere of the game.
	I also used some valuable suggestions from Anzac and ArtKos, and some great 
units from Alex Mor.  William Keenan bears a great deal of credit for ensuring that 
the flags work as intended.
