Back to: READ ME

Table of Contents:

Getting Started

This guide assumes you have properly extracted all of the files. If you have not please refere to READ_ME.txt - Section I

Step 1) Run NetworkDefense.exe - This is the main executable for playing Network Defense. Several other executables are included such as Debug_NetworkDefense and DedicatedServer but these are used for other purposes. Since we are only interested in playing the game, we can ignore them for now.

Step 2) You are now looking at the "Main Menu":


The first thing to do is to find the Connection Information and in the User Name field, enter your name:


For now we will host the game our selves, so leave the rest of the Connection Information as it is and click the Host Game Button.

Step 3) Now you are at the "Host Menu" where you can set up a game:


Here each valid map in your /data/maps directory will be loaded for browsing. You can click the Next Page and Previous Page buttons to browse through the different maps.

On a given page, there will be up to 4 maps shown, each with their most importaint information displayed:


Here is a breakdown of the information displayed for each map:
  • Title - The name of the map
  • Players - The maximum number of players allowed to connect while hosting this map
  • Wave - The number of waves of creeps, this can give you a rough estimate of how long a game on this map will take
  • Money - The starting money for the map. This money will be divided evenly among all the players when the game is started
  • Interest - At the end of each wave, each player’s remaining money will accrue interest at the rate specified here
Then of course is the all importaint Select button which will choose that map for hosting.
And finially, information about the author of the map.

When you are happy with your map, the last thing to do is choose which port you will host on. This is importaint if you want to have some one else connect to your game. The number you type in the Port field is what you will need to tell your friend trying to connect.
NOTE: ports below 1024 are reserved and should not be used!


Finially, click the Create Game button to begin hosting!


Now your game is hosted! Please continue to the next section to learn about playing Network Defense.


Flow of the game

Network Defense has 4 distinct gameplay phases:


Phase 1) This is the phase you start in immedately after hosting a game. If you intend to play with other people, you should wait in this phase for them to connect.

This is what the Phase 1 interface looks like, and it shares most of the components with the interfaces for the rest of the phases:
The Player List deserves some explaination:



Phase 2/3) The Build phase and Wave phase are the heart of the game. In them you can do 3 things: Building new turrets:
  1. Start Next Wave - Only the Host will see this option, it will triger the next wave of creeps to begin spawning
  2. Info - Tells you what the turret does
  3. Build - Clicking this will allow you to build a turret.
    • a. Previous Turret - Scroll to the previous turret
    • b. Next Turret - Scroll to the next turret

When deciding on a turret to build, consider the info it presents: Two things are required to be able to build a new turret:
  1. Enough Money
  2. Valid Placement
When you click the Build button, the map will be overlayed with build restricted areas.
By default all Creep paths and other turrets are automatically restricted.
In addition to the default restrictions, map makers may define other areas of the map they do not wish you to build on.
For instance, in this map, the stone wall and sky are restricted, as well as the Fruite Basket in the End Zone.
Its a good idea to build turrets as close to Creep paths as possible and fit as much path in the range indicator as possible since this will give the turret more time to fire on passing creeps.

Once a turret is build, you can view it's range by simply mousing over it.

Selling turrets:
This is useful if you are running short on money and need to place new turrets or need money to upgrade your current turrets.
To sell a turret left click the turret you want to sell. You will know it is selected because a green ring will appear around it. The sell button will appear to the left of the console and include the amount of money you will gain when you sell the turret. Once you are sure you want to sell the turret, left click the sell button. You will not be asked to confirm this action!


Upgrading turrets:
Some turrets will have the option to upgrade. To see if a turret can be upgraded, simply Left Click on it on the map. If the turret can be upgraded your interface will now look like this:


This interface works just like the Build turret interface, except it is giving you info on the next level which you can upgrade to.

Phase 3) In the Wave phase you can do everything you did in the Build phase, but Creeps will be spawning and creeping along their paths toward the End Zone. If a Creep makes it to the end zone, it will disapear, and you will be one point closer to the Lose Threshold.


Here 2 creeps have escaped, but the loss threshold is 20, so Im ok for now. If 20 Creeps escape, I will lose the game.

Thats it! Now you are ready to play Network Defense!
If you like it please feel free to drop me a line on my forums at www.darkrockstudios.com
Also check out the Content Creation tutorials and try your hand at making a Map of your own!