RESCUE ON FRACTALUS

Wanted: Air Pilots
All right! Listen up! You've got a right to know why you're here - why
they suddenly need us Air Pilots.
A life and death struggle is raging throughout this grubby galactic
quadrant. It's us against the Jaggies and they've just upped the stakes.
They've dug in on Fractalus, the most inhospitable planet this side of
the Kalamar system. It's a neat trick. Our highly trained Ethercorp
pilots were holding their own in space battles, but down on Fractalus
it's a different story. We're losing anywhere from five to fifty Space
Pilots at a clip. Our job's to rescue those spacers.
Go ahead - laugh. I admit it's funny. Five years ago, the Corps 
couldn't phase us out fast enough. "No need for Air Pilots in the
Ethercorps," they said. "Those dogs have had their day." Well, great, 
but those Space Pilots can only fly space. To be fair, they'll save us
in the end, but now we have to save them-especially those golden "Ace 
Pilots. We can't win without them!
Here's how it works. They've rigged up a Mother Ship to ferry us within
booster range of Fractalus. That's where it gets sticky. The Jaggies 
have got defences on that planet - gun emplacements, saucers - the 
works. And Fractalus is one hot cauldron of craggy mountains and 
canyons, covered by the worst air you've ever flown in. It's thick 
cyanitric acid - it'll dissolve your flight suit within minutes. 
Finally, theres the planet's hyper rate of rotation. The nine minute 
days have driven more than one pilot nuts.
But theres good to go with the bad. You'll have Valkyrie Fighters, the
best pure flyers we've got. And don't call them V-Wings-that's not 
correct terminology. To make room for those Space Pilots they had to
strip out a lot of the offensive weaponry. But they did install a Dirac
Mirror Shield. It can take a big hit, but you pay for each one out of 
your energy reserve.
The one offensive weapon they left us is hot; the AMB-Anti-Matter
Bubble-Torpedo. It'll destroy a target if it hits anywhere near it!
Finally, each Valkyrie's been fitted with the Etheric Navigation System
a computer-enhanced viewscreen which overlays your forward main window.
It lets you see where you're going in Fractalus' acid fog atmosphere.
That's it. Get going. Forget the past - just go get us a future.

Your Mission:
Sorry. No time for a briefing now. Ethercorps pilots are down - out of
action. They need help - fast.
First, we toss you out of the Mother Ship, straight down to Fractalus.
That part's all automatic. But you're on your own when you hit the 
atmosphere.
Your job is to fight through the Jaggi defences and find stranded 
pilots. They won't be jumping up and down waving at you. So, use your
instruments and viewscreen to find their crashed ships. They'll wait 
inside until you land in range.
The rescue's a snap. As soon as you shut down your engines, the pilot
will come running and knock on your rear air lock door. Let the spacer
in.
When you pick up your quota of pilots, or run out of energy, it's back 
to the Mother Ship. As you get better, we advance you to the higher
levels - the more hellish parts of Fractalus.
Got it? Prepare for Mother Ship Launch.

LOADING INSTRUCTIONS

COMMODORE 64

Cassette
Make sure that all peripheral equipment such as disk drives and 
printers are disconnected.
Press down the SHIFT key. Without releasing the SHIFT, press down the 
RUN/STOP key. Release the RUN/STOP key and then the SHIFT key.
Your TV will read "Press play on tape." Please follow these 
instructions. When the title screen appears, please press the STOP on 
your cassette recorder.

Disk
Please make sure that all peripheral equipment such as cassette players
and printers are disconnected, and that only your disk drive is 
connected. TO LOAD YOUR DISK: Insert disk, label side up. Turn computer
and disk drive on. Type: LOAD "*",8,1 and press RETURN.

ATARI

Cassette
Before you load the cassette into your tape recorder, please make sure
that you have disconnected all peripheral equipment such as disk drives
and printers.

Press PLAY on the tape recorder. Hold down the START on your ATARI 
computer while turning on your machine. After you have heard a "beep" 
press the RETURN key. Your program will start loading. This should take
several minutes.

Disk
Your 800 should be off and with no peripherals except your disk drive
attached. Turn on your disk drive. Place diskette into drive one. Turn
on your Atari 800 computer. The game will automatically load from this
point on.

APPLE

Disk
Plase disconnect all peripheral equipment.
Insert diskette into disk drive with system OFF. Then turn system ON.
The game is ready to vbegin after the title screen appears.

CODE RED!

1. To set the difficulty level, press the following keys - Atari: SELECT
key to raise the level; press SHIFT and SELECT together to lower it. 
Commodore: F3 to raise the level, F5 to lower it, Apple -> to raise the
level, <- to lower it.

2. To begin the game and automatically lauch your ship - Atari: press 
START. Commodore: press F1. Apple: press the SPACE BAR.

3 Use the joystick to fly the Valkyrie Fighter when you enter the, 
atmosphere of Fractalus. You'll know you're on your own when the 
message MANUAL appears at the top of the screen.

4 Jaggi Gun Emplacements appear as green domes on the mountain peaks. 
Watch for the cross hairs to appear on the Main Window when an enemy is
near. Line up the enemy in the cross hairs on the Main Window or 
Targeting Scope. Launch a torpedo by pressing the red fire button.

5 Locate a pilot by watching for a "blip" on the Long Range Scanner or
a flashing green beacon on the surface of Fractalus. Fly towards the 
pilot keeping your ship's altitude low.

4 Pilot in range: Watch the Long Range Scanner on your instrument panel
When the pilot "blip" is centered near the bottom of the Scanner, press
the LAND (L) key to land the ship. Press the SYSTEMS (S) key to turn 
off your engines and shields. The screen will display PILOT IN RANGE.
If the pilot is not in range the screen displays: PILOT TOO FAR. Take 
off again by pressing INCREASE THRUST (Atari, Apple: ->; Commodore: >), 
and move your ship closer.

7 Rescue the pilot: Press the AIR LOCK (A) key to open the air lock 
when the pilot knocks on the door. The air lock automatically closes
after the pilot comes safely inside.

8 Take off. Press INCREASE THRUST (Atari, Apple: ->; Commodore: >), and
search for the next drowned pilot.

9 The Mother Ship will return to your sector to check on your progress.
If you're in trouble-low on energy, taking a lot of heat - Mother Ship
will try to show up sooner. When it's near, the Mother Ship light on 
the control panel will begin flashing and the message MOTHER SHIP! will
appear at the top of the screen. If you've rescued your quota of pilots
or are low on energy, press the BOOSTERS (B) key to fire the boosters.
Your ship will automatically leave Fractalus and dock with the Mother
Ship.

SCORING
Event	                                              Point Value
Each second of flight .................................... 1
Gun emplacement destroyed .............................. 100
Saucer destroyed ....................................... 250
Pilot picked up ........................................ 200
Ace picked up ......................................... 2000
Pilot returned to Mother Ship (bonus) .................. 500
Pilot returned over quota (bonus) ..................... 1000
Level completed ................................ Level x 200
Note: If you return to the Mother Ship before you have rescued your
quota of pilots you may continue at the same level, but will not 
receive a bonus for completing that level. If you continue at a lower 
level, you forfeit your previous score.

The Good Stuff

Air Pilots' Crib Sheet
Landing
When you first land, you will hover on your shields a few centimetres 
above the ground. While "hovering" you can turn your ship towards the
pilot's crashed ship. If you've managed to land in range, turn your
systems off and you'll get the message PILOT IN RANGE. The downed pilot
will now run towards your ship, even if you can't see him (if you see 
his ship, you'll see the pilot). If you turn your systems on again 
before the pilot is safely inside your ship, the shield's high energy
field will vaporize him!
If you land beyond a downed ship, the message SHIP OFF SCOPE will 
appear on the screen. If this happens, turn your systems back on - 
dont lift off - note the current heading on the compass, and execute a
180 degree turn. If you are still too faraway, use the thrusters to
move within range.
Before taking off with your pilot, it's a good idea to destroy the 
wrecked ship. This will keep the Jaggies from stealing our
technological secrets.

Ace Pilots
If you see a pilot wearing a purple helmet running towards you, you've
just rescued an Ace Pilot. Ace Pilots are worth ten times more than a
regular pilot - 2000 points vs. 200 points. They are also packing more
power in their energy cells. And they're rare - not many get shot down.
After all, they are Aces!

Levels
When you first begin the game, you may select a level from 1 through 16
After you complete a mission, you will continue at a higher level, in
fact, you may skip up to three levels at a time if you are extremely 
brave. The bonus for completing a level will be higher if you skip 
levels.
Levels 1 through 3 are training levels. For Level 1, you enter a sector
of Fractalus that has been cleared of the dreaded Jaggies by our 
Droidcraft.
On Levels 2 and 3, you enter the planet's atmosphere above a region 
which has only a few Jaggi gun emplacements.
The higher levels (4 and above) have more emplacements, saucers, and 
pilots, and the Jaggies become even more aggressive, tenacious, and 
accurate.
Levels 1 through 15 will take place near Fractalus' South Pole where 
it's summer during this time of the year. This will save you from the 
mindshattering short day ordeal since the sun never sets on that part 
of the planet.

Jaggi Gun Emplacements
On Levels 2 and above, you will find Jaggi Gun Emplacements on the 
peaks of some mountains. These automated emplacements fire high-energy 
ion beams at your ship. You can avoid being hit with some slick evasive
flying or by knocking out the emplacements. Your Dirac Mirror Shield
will deflect most of the energy from a direct hit but your energy level
will drop and you will be thrown off course.
Since gun emplacements will still be able to hit your ship while you
are on the surface, be sure to destroy any in the vicinity before
landing to rescue a pilot.

Saucers
On Levels 4 and above, the enraged Jaggies will fly their inertialess
saucers directly into you. These "suicide" saucers can either be shot
down with your AMB torpedos or dodged. If they hit your shields, they 
will drain off more energy than a gun emplacement hit. The saucers tend
to occupy the higher altitudes, although they have been known to dive
into the canyons when especially irritated.

Night Flying
On Level 16 and above, you'll be dropped closer to Fractalus' equator.
Here - as you streak through the nine minute days and nights - you'll 
have a chance to work on your night flying skills. When night flying, 
you're "flying blind," so to speak - there's not enough light to 
activate your Main Window viewscreen. So, you'll have to rely upon your
instruments and wits alone.

MODIFIED VALKYRIE CLASS FIGHTER
Powered by: Twin 27,000 kg F-27 Firedrake after-burning turbojet
            engines
Boosters: Twin 80,000 kg ARD/VARC anti-matter reaction drives
Wing span: 12.8 metres
Wing area: 67.1 square metres 
Length: 18.4 metres
Mass: 30,315 kg
Max cruising speed: 8,640 km/h (mach 7.2)
Range: 2.150 km at mach 3.4 cruise/climb 
Accommodation: Crew of 1; 20 passengers
Shields: Dirac Mirror Shield 
Sensors: Long Range Etheric Navigation System 
Armament: Anti-Matter Bubble (AMB) Torpedo generator
First Flight: February 29, 2184

Progressive development of the F-27 Firedrake yielded a small family of
twin-engined, twin-tailed, V-Wing designs. The largest of these, the
Valkyrie Class Fighter, was originally used as a light bomber and 
ground attack craft, but has been modified for behind-the-lines combat 
in the Jaggi War of '84.

IMPORTANT!
Flying rescue missions means defeating the stubborn Jaggi defences. So,
you may wonder "Who are the Jaggies? What are they like? What if i'm
captured by them?"	
First, the name Jaggi is a short, pronounceable word for Jhagga Ri 
Kachatki - an "intelligent" life-form from the star system Tepdi Vad 
Neroleil Rahcre, located in the distant outlying dark sector of our 
galaxy.
Second, don't wony about being captured- they don't take prisoners.	
That much we do know about them. Experience also teaches us they're 
tenacious, suicidal fighters, choosing to do battle in the most 
inhospitable environments. Fractalus is an ideal example.
Although the Ethercorps has yet to capture or recover a complete Jaggi
we do have this report from Ethercorps intelligence.
Twenty hors ago, Lieutenant Ace, Yolea Malura, crashed on Fractalus.
This morning her Commander made Etherwave contact with her. This is
a transcript of her final transmission:	
"Lieutenant Malura to Mother Ship. Hope you can read me. I've been down
here in this atmosphere so long it's starting to get to me. I kept the
air locks closed as best I could, but they were pretty tom up.
During the nights I see brief flashes as other ships fall to the 
surface, but during the days there's nothing to see but this awful 
yellow acid-smog. I had my shields on for a while until I realized
the Jaggis could still track me. I'd fry anyone trying to rescue me...
so I tumed them off and waited. You'll never believe how lonely it is 
down here, waiting but it's not quiet. The acid makes a continuous 
sizzling sound, very faint but always there, as it eats away at the 
hull of my ship.
Hey, what's that! I think I see a pilot running towards me! I knew you
guys wouldn't let me down! 
Wait! There's something weird here. He doesn't look quite right -
his helmet is green? Commander! We don't have any... My God! What 
the... It's a ... it's going to.... [scream]"
There was nothing more except Etherwave static. And we haven't been
able to raise her on the Emergency Frequency. Get those spacers off 
that hellhole and fast!

VALKYRIE FIGHTER CONTROL PANEL:
	
1 Score. Resets automatically when you begin a new game.
2 Compass. Gives you a sense of direction when making turns or finding
  your way back to an overflown pilot.
3 Wing Clearance Bars. Show how far the nearest mountain is to the tips
  of your wings. Helpful for making tight turns in canyons.
4 Thrust Level. Shows your engine thrust level. The more lights turned
  on, the higher the thrust.
5 Dangerous Altitude. This column lights up when your ship moves close
  to the ground. All lights are lit when you land.
6 Artificial Horizon. Indicates your ship's current bank (left/right)
  and climb (up/down).
7 Altimeter. The red bar represents the altitude of the terrain. The
  light blue bar shows your ship's altitude. Your altitude above the
  ground is determined by the amount of light blue showing. If there
  isn't any light blue, you've either landed or crashed (or you're 
  about to).
8 Targeting Scope. Targets Jaggi gun emplacements and saucers, and
  downed ships. When there is more than one object, the cross hairs 
  target the closest one.
9 Main Window. Enhances visible light with computer imagery.
10 Cross Hairs. Appear on the Main Window to target any visible enemy.
   A second set of cross hairs on the Targeting Scope is always
   displayed.
11 Enemy Lock-On Indicator. These lights flash while the lock-on system
   is analyzing stray radiation. When an enemy gun emplacement begins
   to lock on to your ship, these lights go out, then turn on again one
   by one, starting at the left. When all six lights are on, the gun
   emplacements will fire. You can cause the gun emplacements to "lose
   lock" by evasive manoeuvring.
12 Energy Level Indkator. Displays the energy level and changes colour
   as your energy level is depleted; flashes and beeps when it gets 
   critically low. Additional energy is available from each rescued 
   pilot's energy cell. Your energy cells will be completely recharged
   each time you return to the Mother Ship.
13 Long Range Scanner. The Scanner picks up the pilot's emergency 
   beacon and displays it as a blip. The V shape on the Scanner shows 
   the field of view in front of your ship; your position is at the 
   bottom of the V. When you are within two units of a downed pilot the
   Scanner will begin flashing and beeping continuously. Then you can 
   pick up the pilot. 
14 Shields On. This light indicates when your Dirac Mirror Shields - a
   low power version of the Mother Ship's invisibility shield - are 
   activated and drawing power. The shield surrounds your craft with a
   powerful Dirac wave which reflects all known forms of energy - 
   however, it can't handle the side of a mountain at full throttle!
15 Mother Ship. This light flashes, a bleep sounds, and a MOTHER SHIP!
   message appears at the top of the display when the Mother Ship is in
   range. You should pick up more than half your quota of pilots before
   the ship reappears.
16 Air Lock Open. Light indicates when the air lock is open.
17 Range to Pilot. Shows the relative distance to the pilot indicated 
   on the Long Range Scanner. When no pilot is sensed, "0" is shown.
18 Enemies Destroyed. Shows the number of gun emplacements and saucers
   you have destroyed.
19 Pilot Quota/Rescued. Shows the number of pilots you must rescue and
   bring back to the Mother Ship in order to advance to the next level.
   Every time you pick up a pilot, this number is decreased. It flashes
   when you've reached your quota and counts the number of pilots 
   you've rescued beyond your quota. An admirable feat!

FLIGHT CONTROLS (Commodore)
F1                Starts the game
RESTORE           Restarts the game from the beginning. The current
                  scores will be lost, although the high scores will
                  be recorded.
SPACE BAR         Freezes the screen during a mission. Press again to
                  continue.
F3                Increases starting level of game
F5                Decreases starting level of game
>                 Increase thrust: you can select eight different
                  engine thrust levels. The faster you fly, the faster
                  the Valkyrie fighter responds to flight control. And
                  the higher the game level the faster you fly! After
                  you've landed, this key becomes your "launch" key -
                  press it and your engines will lift you off the 
                  surface.
<                 Decrease thrust: Decreases your ship's thrust, but 
                  doesn't turn off the engines.
L                 Land: When a pilot is in range, this key will put
                  the ship into an automatic landing maneouvre. If your
                  altitude is too high, the message TOO HIGH will 
                  appear. Fly to a lower altitude and try again.
S                 Systems: After you land, use this key to turn all 
                  systems on and off. If you leave your shields and
                  engines on, the powerful energy field around your 
                  ship will burn any nearby life forms to a crisp.
                  Knowing this, the downed pilots will not leave their
                  ship until your engines are off. Don't turn the 
                  engines on again until the pilot is safely inside and
                  the airlock is closed.
A                 Airlock: you must open the air lock doors to let the
                  pilot inside. The air lock will automatically close
                  when the pilot is safely inside the ship, or if the
                  engines are turned on.
B                 Boosters: fires the boosters rockets to return to the
                  Mother Ship if it's orbiting in your planetary sector.
                  You can't leave Fractalus without firing your booster
                  you will only get as far as the upper reaches of the
                  planet's dense cloud cover.
F7                DEMO: Press this key to observe video recordings of
                  mission flown by Droidcraft (the screen message will
                  read DEMO DROID). These Droids are not skilled enough
                  to rescue pilots. They are used only to clear out the
                  dreaded Jaggi gun emplacements.
Good luck!

Joystick: you control your Valkyrie fighter with the joystick and 
certain keys on the keyboard. Since your ship is a true flyer, go easy
on the joystick. Experienced pilots make small adjustments with the
joystick rather than forcing it from side to side. Before the game
begins you may use the joystick to increase/decrease the level (push
fordward/pull back) or start game (fire button). During the game, the
Apple's second fire button will land or lauch the ship.

UK CUSTOMERS ONLY
This software tape has been carefully developed and manufactured to
the highest quality standards. Please read carefully the instructions
for loading which are included.
If for any reason you have difficulty in running the program, and 
believe that the tape is defective, please return it directly to the
following address:

Activision UK Ltd., 15 Harvey House,
Marylebone Road, London NW1 SHE.

Our Quality Control Department will test the product and supply an 
immediate replacement if we find a fault. If we cannot find a fault the
tape will be immediately returned to you, at no charge.

Please note that this does not affect your statutory rights.

Credit

RESCUE ON FRACTALUS! was created by the Lucasfilm Games Division. David
Fox directed the project and created the concept, transition scenes, 
animation, and documentation. Loren Carpenter of the Lucasfilm Computer
Graphics Project did the 3-D fractal landscape image generation and 
co-created the concept. Charlie Keilner was responsible for animation,
music, sound and flight dynamics; Gap Winnick provided animation: James
St. Louis and Douglas Crockford created the load screen animation 
sequence; David Levine provided support; and Peter Langston, the Games
Group Leader, contributed to the concept and designed night flying, 
music and sound. Special thanks to George Lucas. 
Commodore 64 conversion by Jack Thornton of SoftTalent. 
Apple conversion by Craig Seastrom of TMO Software.

TM & (C) 1985 Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved.

Rescue on Fractalus, Fractalus, Ethercorps, Etheric Navigation System,
Etherwave, Jaggi, Jaggies, J'hagga Ri Katchatki, Tepdi Vad Neroleil 
Rahcre, Modified Valkyrie Class Fighter, V-Wing, Firedrake, Droid, 
Droidcraft, ARD/VARC, Dirac Mirror Shield, Anti-Matter Bubble (AMB) 
Torpedo, Kalamar and the names of all characters and game elements are
trademarks of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Atari is a registered tradmark of Atari Corp. 
Commodore 64 is a trademark of Commodore Business Machines, Inc.
Apple is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.

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