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

  All music in Medieval Chess was written by Eric Richardson at EMU
Studios.  Eric invites music comments and questions.  You can write
to him at:

                EMU Studios
                PO Box 1992
                Oak Harbor, WA 98277-1992

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

Disclaimer:  This product is released on an AS IS basis without any
             kind of warranty.  This inlcludes product quality,
             condition, perfomance or merchantabilty.  JV Enterprises,
             the programmers, and its distributors shall not be held
             liable to the purchaser or any other person or entity for
             any liability, loss damage or disappointment directly or
             indirectly involving this product.

(c)1996 by JV Enterprises
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Version 1.0



                      M E D I E V A L  C H E S S
                      --------------------------

NOTE:If you are having any problems loading or running Medieval Chess
be sure to check the Troubleshooting guide at the end of this file.



Contents .............



        I.      Chess vs. Medieval Chess
        II.     The Rules
        III.    Controls and Quick Reference
        IV.     Playing over the Phone or with a Direct connection
                    (Registered users only)
        V.      Playing the Game
        VI.     Troubleshooting





I.   Chess vs. Medieval Chess
     ========================

    There are many similarities between the rules of chess and the
rules of Medieval Chess.  However, because of the content of the game
some rules of chess do not apply.

    First, there is no check or check-mate in Medieval Chess.  The
object of the game is to defeat the king, in combat.  Placing the king
in check-mate does not constitute a win.

    Second, when a pawn reaches the other side.  It will automatically
replace itself with a missing piece.  If there is no pieces missing,
the pawn will wait till one is defeated.

    Finally, the el-passant rule was eliminated.  A player combats for
the same square as their opponent.

    All other rules of chess apply.  This includes rules of movements and
attacking.  King-side and Queen-side castling are also available, so long
as the King or corresponding Rook has not moved during the game.



II.  The Rules
     =========

    The object of the game is to defeat your opponent's king in battle.
There are six diffenent pieces that you can use.  Each piece has a
different ability and strength.  The most important piece of the game is
the King.  Then comes the Queen, Rook, Knight, Bishop, and finally the
pawn.

    Yes, we know that the Knight and Bishop are rated about the same.
But after you play and get the hang of Medieval Chess, you will see why
we rated the Knight higher.

    When a piece confronts an opponent, the screen then changes into
an attack arena.  The player that instigates the attack gets the
advantage: extra strength.  Attacking a King, however, will not award
you with any advantage.

    In the attack mode, each piece differs in speed, strength, weapon
type, weapon recharge, weapon speed, and weapon damage.  The king also
has a magical defense that is stronger when more of his pieces are
remaining on the board.

    The battle will continue until a piece is defeated.  Any damage
sustained in battle is permanent, but each piece will slowly heal as
the game continues.


The Pawn                            The Knight

    Speed:    Medium                    Speed:    Fast
    Strength: Very low                  Strength: Low

    Weapon:   Spear                     Weapon:   Sword
    Damage:   Very low                  Damage:   Low
    Recharge: Very fast                 Recharge: Fast
    Speed:    N/A                       Speed:    N/A


The Bishop                          The Rook

    Speed:    Slow                      Speed:    Very slow
    Strength: Medium-high               Strength: Very high

    Weapon:   Spark                     Weapon:   Boulder
    Damage:   Medium-low                Damage:   Medium
    Recharge: Medium                    Recharge: Medium-fast
    Speed:    Very Fast                 Speed:    Medium


The Queen                           The King

    Speed:    Medium                    Speed:    Slow
    Strength: Medium-low                Strength: High

    Weapon:   Fireball                  Weapon:   Electrical charge
    Damage:   Very high                 Damage:   High
    Recharge: Slow                      Recharge: Medium-slow
    Speed:    Fast                      Speed:    Very fast



III. Controls and Quick Reference
     ============================

    These keys are available from the Game Menu only, except
as noted.  

       ESC: Quits the game, and hangs up modem (if connected.) From
            inside the game or anywhere else, returns to Game Menu.
       TAB: Pauses game.  (Does not work in modem or direct connection
            game.)

        F1: Player one selection of control device.  If playing modem or
            direct connection game, use this to set your computer's
            control device.
        F2: Player two selection of control device.  
        F3: Toggle between four levels of volume for sounds and music.
              (F3 works from inside the game as well)
        
     For registered users....
        F4: Hang up and reset modem.
        F7: Setup a SLAVE Null (direct) connection.
        F8: Setup a HOST Null (direct) connection.
        F9: Setup a SLAVE Modem connection and wait for ring.
       F10: Setup a HOST Modem connection and dial number.


    Medieval Chess allows play from a keyboard, joystick, or mouse.
Only one player can use the joystick or mouse at one time, unless you
are playing over a modem or direct connection.  The keyboard will
automatically be split if both players choose keyboard.
Otherwise keyboard control is set to setup #1.


       Joystick                                 Mouse
       --------                                 -----
          up                                      up
          |                                       |
   left - + - right                        left - + - right
          |                                       |
         down                                    down

   button #1 = Action                   left button = Action


     Keyboard Setup #1                    Keyboard Setup #2
     -----------------                    -----------------
   7/home   8   9/PgUp                        E   R   T
          \ | /                                 \ | /
      4   - * -   6                           D - * - G
          / | \                                 / | \
    1/End   2   3/PgDn                        C   V   B

  Enter, 0/Ins = Action                  SPACE Bar = Action 



IV.  Playing over the Phone or with a Direct connection (REGISTERED USERS)
     ==================================================

    If you have registered the game, you can also setup the
Modem/Null modem connection as well.  To play with a modem connection
you will need a modem with Error Correction available.  Most modems
have this feature.

Null Modem (Direct Connect) - To setup a direct connection you
     must have a Null Modem cable connected between your computer
     and another PC.  One system will then press 'F8' for host, and
     the other 'F7' for the slave.  The systems will ask you what
     Com port you have the connection made in.  Enter a number from
     1 and 4 which represents what port you have a connection in.

     Then both computers select 'Modem/Null Play' from the menu
     and select 'Begin Game'.  A "please wait" message will appear,
     then the game will start.  If the game does not start after you
     both selected 'Begin Game,' you have the wrong com port setup.

Modem Play - To setup a modem play, one system will dial with 'F10'
     and the other will wait for a ring with 'F9.'  Both will ask
     you what com port you have a modem in.  Select 1 to 4.  If you
     don't know what com port your modem is in, you can test for
     it, explained below.

     Once you have selected a com port, the person who pressed 'F9'
     will then wait until the phone rings.  If there is no connection
     within 3 minutes, the program will go back to the game menu.

     With, 'F10' there will be a brief pause as the program sets up
     the modem, after a "#:" will appear on the screen.  At this
     time, type the phone number you wish to dial.  You can use '*70,'
     to cancel call waiting before you start to dial.  (The Shift key
     is not active in this game, to type in the '*,' press the '*'
     key above the number pad on the far right of your keyboard.) When
     you hit RETURN/ENTER, the modem will start to dial.  Both
     computers will notify you of a connection when one was made.

     (You can use 'F10' to test to see if your modem is on the com
      port you selected. Just follow the instrutions above, and
      enter any number, like '118.'  If your modem does not
      begin to dial, the com port is setup incorrectly.)

     Once a connection is made, both computers select 'Modem/Null Play'
     from the menu and select 'Begin Game'.  A 'please wait' message
     will appear, then the game will start after a brief pause.


NOTE: In both Null or Modem play you can cancel waiting at the
      'please wait' message with the 'ESC' key.

Hanging up: While playing you can go back to the game menu with
     the 'ESC' key.  Once in the game menu, pressing 'F4' will
     hangup the modem and disconnect the line.



V.   Playing the Game
     ================

    After the game loads, the game board will appear and a scroll
will open.  This is the game menu.  you can select the number of
players, the color of the opponent, and the difficulty of the
comptuer.  After you have made your selections, the computer will
display: Re-select, Begin Game.  If you have made an error,
You may choose Re-select to change your selections for the game.
If you wish to exit the game Pressing 'ESC' from the game menu will
do so.  Pressing 'ESC' from anywhere else will return you to the
game menu.

    Some selections will not be available until you register the
game.  You can get a Passcode by registering the program from JV
Enterprises.

    The white player always make the first move.  The cursor will
appear on the King's starting location.  To select your character,
move the cursor with the joystick, keyboard, or mouse to the desired
position and press the action button.  The cursor will then disappear
andyou will now have control of that piece.  If you select the wrong
piece, press the action button again, and the cursor will appear.

   Guide the character to the desired location. All pieces may move
freely around the board.  The Knight will jump over a square that
is occupied.  To make your move, press the action button after you
have moved your piece.  If you make an illeagal move, the character
will automatically relocate to its previous position and
the cursor will again appear.

    In the attack mode, there are two swords located on opposite
corners of the screen.  The upper-left one corresponds to the white
player, while the lower-right one corresponds to the black player.
The length of the sword determines your strength.  The handle, if
red, warns you that your weapon is recharging, and that you cannot fire.

    To move your player, in the attack mode, direct it with the
joystick, keyboard, or mouse.  To fire your weapon, press the action
button.  You may use a blocker as a shield, and the blocker will absorb
projectile weapons.  However, after a few hits, the blocker will vanish.
Be careful, as projectile weapons can go over the corner of blockers.



VI.   Troubleshooting
      ===============

Q. My mouse is not working?

   A. You must have a mouse driver installed for DOS.  You will find
      the driver under CONFIG.SYS as:
                                Devicehigh=\dos\mouse.sys
      or in AUTOEXEC.BAT as:    
                                mouse
      The name of the mouse driver may differ from computer to computer,
      check with the computer manual to find out how to add the driver
      to the computer.


Q.  I get a 'Not enough Memory' message?

   A. You need at least 1040k of XMS, EMS, or DPMI memory.  If you have
      enough of one, and it still does not work, check to make sure that
      you have enough EMS.  Because of a bug/feature of EMM386.SYS
      program, EMS memory is the first thing DPMI uses if available.  If
      you only have 256k of EMS memory, that is all Medieval Chess will
      find.  It is best if you can change the line to have no EMS
      or change it to a number larger than 1040.  To change, edit the
      CONFIG.SYS file:

                    ...\WINDOWS\EMM386.SYS RAM 1280
                                   or
                     ...\WINDOWS\EMM386.SYS NOEMS  

      If there is more on the line or the name is not identical, don't worry.
      The important part is the 'RAM' & 'NOEMS'  The number is how much
      RAM you wish to reserve, if you wish to turn off EMS, 'NOEMS' is
      used in place of 'RAM.'
        

Q.  I get the game up, but it locks up usually at the title screen, or
    hangs sometime in the game?
Q.  The game runs, but I have no sound; and when I exit, the message
    "IRQ Timeout" appears?

   A. If you are running Medieval Chess from Windows 95, and you are
      using a 486 or 386, Windows 95 sometimes does not seem to handle
      DOS interrupts correctly.  We did our best to minimize this with
      our interrupt coding.  However, we could not eliminate it.  If
      it occurs often, we suggest that you boot the game from DOS, either
      by restarting under DOS, or by going into the Proporties with a
      right click on the Medieval Chess' short cut. Under Program, in the
      'Advanced' section, change 'suggest MS-DOS ...' to 'MS-DOS Mode',
      see online help in Windows 95 for more details.

      Restarting the game a second or third time, from Windows 95
      usually works fine. Also try not to have any ohter applications
      running while playing Medieval Chess, they could conflict with it. :)


Q.  The game runs, but there is no sound?

   A. In order to get sound and music, you need a Sound Blaster or
      compatible sound card.  If you have one, and are running the
      game from Windows 95, see Question above.


Q.  When I run the program, I get an "Error opening file" or "Error
    reading file?"

   A. All the files contained in the 'MEDIEVAL.ZIP' file must be in
      the same directory in order for the game to run.  If you have
      all files and you are running from Windows 3.1x or Windows 95,
      make sure that the working directory in Proporties is the same
      directory as where all the files are.  See documentation for
      Windows 3.1x or Windows 95 for more details.


Q.  After I played for a while, my screen saver came up! What can I
    do to stop that? (under Windows 95)

    A. Check the Proporties for Medieval Chess under Misc, Make sure
       that there is no check mark under "Allow Screen Saver", then
       click on Apply.


Q.  All this talk about shortcuts, what are they?

    A.  A shortcut is a file that Windows 95 creates to make it easy
        for you to start an application.  Shortcuts also store specific
        settings that an application uses, that can be changed by right
        clicking on the shortcut, then clicking on Proporties.


Q.  I read all the questions, and my question is not listed?

    A.  You can send your question to us at: jvent@vegas.infi.net,
        we will try to answer your question as quickly as we can.
