FutureTrader

Copyright (c) 2001 Zazicle (zanderk@hotmail.com)
Website: http://zazicle.port5.com/iw2

MULTIMOD VERSION - REQUIRES MULTIMOD.
REQUIRES UNIGUI.

FutureTrader is a single-player modification for Independence War 2: Edge of Chaos.

Installation
Requirements:
1. Independence War 2: Edge of Chaos version F14.6
2. UniGUI - http://zazicle.port5.com/iw2
3. Multimod - http://www.independencewar.com/downloads/iwar2/mods/multimod.zip

First place this zip file ( zzFutureTrader_unigui.zip ) in your ./IWar2/mods directory. When you start Edge of Chaos you must select FutureTrader in the 'Extras' menu.

Using FutureTrader
FutureTrader makes a number of changes to the existing EoC single-player game. Firstly, it adds the FutureTrade Screen, a GUI which allows the player to buy and sell cargo and items. To open the FutureTrade Screen, dock to any station and open the UniGUI Hub. To open the Hub, hold down CTRL and ALT and press U.

If nothing happens, then either you haven't installed UniGUI correctly. I recommend you read the UniGUI readme file - it is called 'zzUniGUI.html' and is in the zzUniGUI.zip file.

When the screen loads, you can select from any cargo supersets on the left of your screen. The relevant cargo items will be available for purchase on the right side of the screen.

You can also sell these items, but for less than they cost to buy. All prices are in Currency Units, or CUs. You can get CUs in two ways:

1. Selling goods in the FutureTrade Screen.
2. Recycling cargo in Lucrecia's Base.

The recycling values of all goods in Lucrecia's Base have been altered by FutureTrader. Instead of the standard recycling values, you will get an amount of CUs equal to one-tenth of the value of the cargo.

You can see the value of any cargo pod by targeting it when you are in space. To balance this increase in the recycling value of cargo pods, the manufacturing cost of every item has been increased five-fold.

Purchasing New Ships
If you select the '[SS] Combat Vehicles' cargo superset when in the FutureTrader FutureTrade Screen, you'll be able to purchase the following ships:

1. Turret Fighter
2. REM Fighter
3. Storm Petrel
4. Advanced Patcom
5. Heavy Corvette

While the first two are standard trade/manufacture items, the final three are a bit more exciting. If you are in Act 1 or above, you can purchase or sell the Storm Petrel for approximately 30,000 CUs.

The Advanced Patcom and Heavy Corvette weigh in at a hefty 90,000 CUs, but you'll only be able to get them in acts 2 and above. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be possible to allow the player to purchase and use other third-party ships unless they are manually made to replace the standard ships.

Advanced Information
1. You will find that some stations in the game will have a wider range of goods on offer than others.

2. The costs of goods will also vary wildly from one station type to the next. If you want to buy some raw materials, don't go to 'The Ritz', go to a Mining Base and you'll get a much better deal.

3. You won't find Antimatter PBC's for sale at 'Maurice's Freighter Depot', you're much more likely to find them at 'St. Elmo's Naval Research Institute'.

4. Don't expect to be able to equip your ship with a Compact AI CPU and twin Neutron PBC's when you're in Act 1. You'll have to wait until the later acts before you'll find some of the more exotic items for sale.

5. If you dock to a station owned by a friendly faction (e.g. The Stepsons, League, Kong, etc..) then they might give you better deals than you'd get elsewhere. You can which stations are friendly because they appear blue on the contact list.

Important Notes
If you undock from a station while the Screen is active then the screen will automatically close.

The FutureTrade Screen will also quit automatically if a cut-scene plays or an external camera is activated while the screen is being displayed. The screen is controlled entirely using the mouse pointer - you cannot use joystick or keys to control it.

Written by Zazicle - February 2002.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This mod is not supported by Infogrames or Particle Systems Ltd.