PRIVATEER II : THE DARKENING
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Unofficial FAQ and Information Guide v1.00
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By JOHN PORTWIN, JANUARY 1997 (john@pmbbs.demon.co.uk)
[SECTION ZERO] INTRODUCTION
[0.0] Copyright
[0.1] Trademarks
[0.2] Disclaimer
[0.3] Where can I get this FAQ?
[SECTION ONE] VITAL INFORMATION AND FAQ
[1.0] Introduction
[1.1] How many CD's should I have?
[1.2] What version should I have?
[1.3] Where's my starmap?
[1.4] Why can't I buy the Freij Mk II?
[1.5] The game crashes every time I land on Hermes or Hephasteus
[1.6] Why can't I see any missions?
[1.7] Where can I buy the Kraven Mk IV lasers?
[1.8] Where can I buy the Return To Sender and Blindfire?
[1.9] The Angus Santana mission
[1.10] Matrox card problems
[1.11] Running on a 486
[1.12] CH Pro Throttle
[SECTION TWO] GAME STATISTICS
[2.0] Guide
[2.1] Ships you can buy
[2.2] Cargo ships you can rent
[2.3] Ships you could meet
[2.4] Guns to buy
[2.5] Missiles to buy
[2.7] Mines to buy
[2.8] Decoys to buy
[2.9] Modules to buy
[SECTION THREE] GAME TIPS
[3.0] Warning
[3.1] Good trade routes
[3.2] Good illegal trade routes
[3.3] The Senator's Daughter
[3.4] How to cheat
[3.5] Why can't I complete any escort missions?
[3.6] How to win every battle
[3.7] A note on upgrades
[SECTION FOUR] AFTERWORDS
[4.1] Thanks to..
[4.2] Newsgroups
[4.3] Adding to this FAQ?
[4.4] And finally...
Privateer, Origin and We Create Worlds are all registered trademarks of
Origin Systems Inc. The Darkening is a trademark of Origin Systems, Inc.
Electronic Arts is a registered trademark of Electronic Arts. All names and
references to objects within the game are copyright Origin Systems Inc and
its parent company Electronic Arts. Any trademarks ommited are still
acknowledged.
[0.2] Disclaimer
The reason I wrote this FAQ is to educate everyone and "fill in the blanks"
that are seemingly left in the game's manuals. It is not endorsed in any way
by Origin/Electronic Arts, neither is it competition to any strategy guides
that have been or may be released by Origin or Electronic Arts.
The author John Portwin shall not be held responsible for any damage to
property, persons or information caused by this FAQ. Use at your own risk.
... a Shakespeare quote comes to mind ..
[0.3] Where can I get this FAQ?
The most recent version of this FAQ will always be available at:
http://www.pmbbs.demon.co.uk/p2faq.txt
and
http://www.sci.fi/~scalper/priva2/priva2.html
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*[SECTION ONE]* GAME INFORMATION AND FAQ
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[1.1] How many CD's should I have?
Although it seems there should be four CD's with the game (the holder has
space for four) the game runs on three CD's.
Apparently the beta versions came on four.
[1.2] What version should I have?
UK and European versions are version 16, USA versions 17.
[1.3] Where's my starmap?
If you bought your copy of Privateer II in Europe, you won't get a map.
US versions do. There is one available on the net at:
http://www.sci.fi/~scalper/priva2/map.gif (it is around 400k)
[1.4] Why can't I buy the Freij Mk II?
It becomes available later on, after the news bulletin about it is released.
It can be bought at most ship dealers (not all) for 200k credits.
[1.5] The game crashes every time I land on Hermes or Hephasteus
Ah, another sufferer :-) don't worry, you're not alone by far. Some possible
solutions:
1) Try landing with CD 1 in the CD-ROM.
2) Increase your FILES and BUFFERS settings in your CONFIG.SYS.
3) Turn off "VIDEO TRANSITINONS" from the options menu.
4) Don't use Smartdrive.
5) Don't use a 3D graphics card.
6) Upgrade your video card BIOS.
Apparently a patch is coming soon to fix this release.. it's nice of us
beta testers to find this out for Origin!
[1.6] Why can't I see any missions?
You need to advance sufficiently far in the main "plot" to be offered
missions.
[1.7] Where can I buy the Kraven Mk IV lasers?
You can't, not until they are offered to you by Ralph McCloud. You must
save him from pirates and then meet him in the bar where he will offer them
to you.
[1.8] Where can I buy the Return To Sender and Blindfire?
As above, they are rewards for completing missions later in the game.
[1.9] The Angus Santana mission
In some cases, the PADD tells you about this mission even after you
complete it. It goes after a while.
[1.10] Matrox card problems
Apparently, white flashes occur during video clips if you have a Matrox
video card. The company is currently working on a fix for this problem.
[1.11] Running on a 486
Privateer 2 will run on a 486 (DX-50 is the lowest though) with a good
graphics card, although you will get slow movie playback and the game will
slow down when there are many ships around or you are near a planet.
I have successfully run P2 with a DX-50, 8mb RAM, 2xCD-ROM. It was still
playable :-)
[1.12] CH Pro Throttle
A driver for this is available on CD-ROM 1, filename PRIV2.KEY.
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*[SECTION TWO]* GAME STATISTICS
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[2.0] Guide
This section has vital information on ships that you can buy through the CCN,
all pirate and military ships, as well as cargo ships. Type refers to the
class shown in the manual:
L - Light fighter
M - Medium fighter
H - Heavy fighter
T - Transport or cargo ship
Where an entry is left blank, it is unknown. Our recon crews are working on
updating the information held here.
[2.1] Ships You Can Buy
Ratings apart from Cost and given Speeds are out of 10.
Type Class Top Spd Armament Reward Class Weapon Loadout Reward
LIGHT FIGHTER [ML1b] L Military 440 2 STRE
MEDIUM FIGHTER [ML2b] M Military 440
HEAVY FIGHTER [ML3b] H Military 320
HEAVY FIGHTER [ML4X] H Military 559 4 STRE
DESTROYER [ML4D] H Military 240 2 MIOC
CARRIER SHIP [MC0S] T Military
DREADNOUGHT [MDRE] H Military
TRANSPORT [CCTb] T Military
PROTOTYPE SHIP [MCPH] H Military
SKULL [SKUL] L Jincilla 559 2 STR2, Snipe 50
VELDOR [ML05] M Jincilla 379 4 STRE 50
TACON [PRHa] H Jincilla 379 5 FLX2 50
SHUTTLE [SH1a] T Jincilla 240 2 Turret 100
CRUISER [PR6a] H Jincilla
VECTOR [PLM2] L Kiowan 359 2 STR2, Snipe 50
LEIGHAT [MLAS] M Kiowan 400 50
KRELL [PRHb] H Kiowan 400
SHUTTLE [SH1b] T Kiowan 47 2 Turret 100
CRUISER [CR2a] H Kiowan
DEMON [PLM3] L Chirichan 279 2 STR2 50
HERON [ML04] M Chirichan 400 4 STRE 50
TESTMOS [PR2a] H Chirichan 440 5 FLX2, Brute 2 50
SHUTTLE [SH2a] T Chirichan
CRUISER [CR2b] H Chirichan
TEMBLER [PLM4] L Papagod 407 3 STR2 50
ECANTONA [PR2b] M Papagod 400 4 STRE, Snipe 50
ASHEARER [ML4b] H Papagod 480 5 FLX2 50
SHUTTLE [SH2b] T Papagod 59 2 Turret 100
CRUISER [PR06] H Papagod
VENDETTA [KN1b] L Kindred 379 3 FLX2, Snipe 100
BLADE [PL4b] H Kindred
TRANSPORT [TRAN] T Neutral
[2.4] Guns to buy
ID Code Price Range
STREAM LASER STRE 600 250
VOLT LASER VOLT 3000 150
FLUX BEAM FLUX 5000 200
STREAM LASER Mk II STR2 7000 250
FLUX BEAM Mk II FLX2 8000 250
MASS ION CANNON MIOC 10000 200
KRAVEN LASER Mk IV KRAV ???? 250
HI-EX MINES MIN1 150 10 Simple explosives
PROXIMITY MINES MIN2 200 10 Detonate on contact
VIRAL MINES MIN3 350 10 Shuts down ships for 5-10 secs
[2.7] Decoys to buy
DECOYS Mk I DEC1 400 15 50% chance of decoying missiles
DECOYS Mk II DEC2 800 15 75% chance of decoying missiles
[2.8] Modules to buy
ID Code Cost Function
COOLANT UNIT Mk I CUL1 6000 Cooling process up 30%
COOLANT UNIT Mk II CUL2 12000 Cooling process up 50%
COOLANT UNIT Mk III CUL3 24000 Cooling process up 110%
COOLANT UNIT Mk IV CUL4 48000 Cooling process up 150%
AFTERBURNERS Mk I AEM1 4000 Increases speed + accel by 10%
AFTERBURNERS Mk II AEM2 8000 Increases speed + accel by 20%
AFTERBURNERS Mk III AEM3 14000 Increases speed + accel by 30%
AUTO-REPAIR UNIT Mk I ARU1 8000 Repair combat damage (not armour)
AUTO-REPAIR UNIT Mk II ARU2 16000 Same as Mk I, but faster
SHIELD UNIT Mk I SEM1 7000 Shield regeneration rate up 50%
SHIELD UNIT Mk II SEM2 14000 Shield regeneration rate up 75%
SHIELD UNIT Mk III SEM3 25000 Shield regeneration rate up 100%
BSE TRANSMITTER Mk I BSE1 12000 "Momentarily" shuts down enemy
BSE TRANSMITTER Mk II BSE2 18000 Shuts down enemy "for a while"
WARP SHIELDS WARP 25000 Powerful shield "for a while"
BLINDFIRE TARGETING BLF1 ???? Tells you when to shoot
RTS ANTI-MISSILES RTS ???? Chance of returning missile to firer
SIGNAL FILTER VFLT 6000 Blocks BSE chances by 50%
NUKE'EM NUKM 4000 One shot, destroys nearby enemies
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*SECTION THREE* GAME TIPS
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[3.0] Warning!
Reading the following can spoil your enjoyment of the game!!
[3.1] Good legal trade routes
"Chain" cargo routes together (eg. Crius-Anhur-Hermes-Crius) for the most
money.
Trade between Bex (buy lumber, beer and livestock) and Hephaestus, for about
7000 credits per return trip.
Between Crius (buy cyber limbs and medikits) and Anhur, around 10000 per trip.
Between Leviatha (Livestock, Optic Nerves) and Hermes (Hardware and Ores).
Between Hermes (buy blood, optic nerves, solar generators) and Crius.
Between Anhur (buy Cesium and Platinum) and Hermes (Biopolys, Optic Nerves,
Cyber Limbs and blood).
[3.2] Good illegal trade routes
Trying to run these trips without a strong ship can greatly reduce your
life expectancy. You have been warned!
Between Bex (buy Human Organs, Pleasure Borgs, Brain Implants) and
Hephasteus.
Between Massanas (buy black market items like brains, organs) and Ostina,
for around 9000 credits per return trip.
Between Karatikus (buy organs and brains) and Janus IV (guns, solar
generators and comm units) for a good profit, around 10000 credits per trip.
[3.3] The Senator's Daughter mission
I'll explain the workings for those that are interested!
* First waypoint (at a randomly generated location):
One ship carries 70 tons every 12 hours
The other carries 100 tons every 16 hours
Time = 12 days (one day = 32 hours) = 384 hours
So total number of trips by each ship:
Ship One : Carries 384/12 = 32 trips
Ship Two : Carries 384/16 = 24 trips
Therefore, total amount of cargo carried:
Ship One : 32 x 70 = 2240 tons
Ship Two : 24 x 100 = 2400 tons
So divide 2400 by 120 (like it tells you in the question) : Nav Point 20.
* Second waypoint (at Nav point 20), with laser towers
Four department heads, four seats.
No. of ways of choosing a seat to go in first position = 4
Therefore, next department head has 3 choices
Next one has two choices
Then the last one has only one choice:
4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 24. So go to nav point 24.
* Third point (at Nav point 24), with pirates
The poor bloke throws up 9 litres = 9000 cubic centimetres, into a waste
bin of dimensions 36x36x36 centimetres.
Therefore area of bin base = 36x36 = 1296 square centimetres.
So, height reached by puke = 9000/1296 = 6.94 cm = 7cm rounded up.
Multiply by 3 : final nav point = 21.
I haven't managed to rescue the girl alive (she is always found dead), but
you get your 14,000 credits.
[3.4] How to cheat
Many thanks to Daniel Pye for this information.
** BACKUP YOUR SAVED GAME BEFORE YOU DO ANY OF THIS!! **
If you want a lot of money, just use a hex editor on a saved game (game00.iff
- game09.iff) edit position 0x03E-0x041 and 0x13E-0x141. Change those bytes
to FFFF FF00. Make sure that you change it in both spots. Doesn't
work on all versions..
More detailed cheating (use a hex editor on game00.iff-game09.iff):
mount # location in savegame Types = Units
------- -------------------- ------ -----
1 226 Hex/550 Dec 00 = Coolant Unit Mk I
2 22E Hex/558 Dec 01 = Coolant Unit Mk II
3 236 Hex/566 Dec 02 = Coolant Unit Mk III
4 23E Hex/574 Dec 03 = Coolant Unit MK IV
5 246 Hex/582 Dec 04 = Auto Repair Unit Mk I
05 = Auto Repair Unit Mk II
The amount that you have is stored 06 = Afterburner Enhancer Mk I
at the location - 4 07 = Afterburner Enhancer Mk II
example: Hard Point 2 is at 08 = Afterburner Enhancer Mk III
22E (hex) then the amount of the 09 = Shield Enhancer Mk I
item on the hardpoint is at 0A = Shield Enhancer Mk II
22A (hex) 0B = Shield Enhancer Mk III
0C = BSE Virus Transmitter Mk I
Mount locations are in the 0D = BSE Virus Transmitter Mk II
following order when more than 0E = Signal Filter
five of them. 0F = Warp Shields
10 = Nuke'm
1 2 11 = Hi-Ex Mines
3 4 12 = Proximity Mines
5 6 13 = Viral Mines
7 14 = Decoys Mk I
15 = Decoys Mk II
Missile mounts:
Location in file:
mount # location in savegame Types = Missiles
------- -------------------- ------ --------
1 256 Hex/598 Dec 00 = Snipe
2 25E Hex/606 Dec 01 = Brute Mk I
3 266 Hex/614 Dec 02 = Brute Mk II
4 26E Hex/622 Dec 03 = Python
5 276 Hex/630 Dec 04 = Disrupter
6 27E Hex/638 Dec 05 = Banshee
7 286 Hex/646 Dec 06 = Proximity
07 = Stingray Torpedo
08 = Hellraiser Torpedo
Hardpoint Location on Ships With More Than 4 points are in the following
order.
1
2 3 ***Amounts of missiles are stored at the missile address
4 5 -4 example: Hardpoint 1 is at 256. The # of missiles
6 7 on that point is at 252. You will not see them in the
booth though.
Gun Mounts:
Location in file:
mount # location in savegame Types = Guns
------- -------------------- ------ --------
1 296 Hex/662 Dec 00 = Stream Laser Mk I
2 29E Hex/670 Dec 01 = Stream Laser Mk II
3 2A6 Hex/678 Dec 02 = Volt Laser
4 2AE Hex/686 Dec 03 = Flux Beam Mk I
5 2B6 Hex/694 Dec 04 = Flux Beam Mk II
05 = Mass Ion Cannon
06 = Kraven Laser MK IV
Hardpoint Location on Ships With More Than 4 points are in the following
order.
1
2 3
4 5
[3.5] Why can't I complete any escort missions?
Don't leave the ship you're supposed to be escorting - only jump after it
does, and land after it lands. Then you will complete your mission.
[3.6] How to win every battle
Try to never attack a ship head on. The majority of enemy in the game will
rush you head on and then fly around in aimless circles. Get behind a target,
match speeds and you can just blast the sucker to hell..
If you are attacking a shuttle, first knock out it's escort and then get
in it's blind spot (the side with no laser turrets) and blast away..
[3.7] A note on upgrades
Since you don't lose any money when you buy/sell equipment, it makes sense
to upgrade your ship (a Shaman with good shields and afterburners and a
couple of MIOCs still packs a huge punch) first and *then* once you have
a good amount of money to sell all and get a really good ship.
