VGA Planets (VGAP) is a moderately graphical, multi-player, turn-based game.
It resembles an 11 player chess game with a very large game board and game pieces with very special abilities.
It is not a real-time high graphics game like Quake or, my favorite, Return to Castle Wolfenstein ET, where you can find me,
from time to time, and frequently getting blowed-up, as "Guntag ze Mohle" but one with customizable static images and sounds
of your choice, using various editors, and applying them to the games local settings and configuration files.


To play the game, your requirements are:
1 - A home PC or access to one that has DOS or Windows or other operating system that can run the game software.
It is written in Visual Basic, so a Microsloth operating system or emulator is needed.
2 - Minimum graphics capability of 600x480 and 16 bit color. If you have higher resolution abilities, your game tactical and strategic maps will be larger also!
3 - Sound output capable of playing .wav & .mid files for a more enjoyable game.
4 - Internet access, like the one you are using to see this page
5 - Email capability, and/or ftp in some cases.
6 - A quantity of reasoning of at least the level of the average adolescent.
Knowledge of geometry is helpful. Quantum Mechanics & Non-linear temporal physics are not required, but you will rule if you understand that stuff

VGAP features all the realities of life. Economic, strategic, tactical, racial, alliances and deceitful axis combats,  in space between galactic scale empires, and is a thinking man's game, emphasizing strategy, diplomacy and management of your people, subjugated natives and several interstellar fleets.
VGAP is designed to be played by two to eleven players.
Currently the primary mode of data transfer is by electronic mail (e-mail) turn execution sequence, but was originally designed to be conducted via a multitude of BBS systems, where players would 'dial-up' to a local BBS and could download their results (RST) file and upload their turn inputs (TRN) file.  Today, e-mail is the most common method of communication between player and host.  Sending the host/player a game file by e-mail requires that it be attached outside of the message body, and in MIME or UUE encoding, as these are of binary file format, not ascii format like the text of this page.

The main difference between VGAP and standard turn-based board games like chess, checkers, risk or 'axis & allies', is that in this game, all players plot moves at their leisure, but are all processed by their games host at the same time. You will at times anticipate what your opponents are going to do and plot moves accordingly. This requires a slight shift in perception: as you give your orders, you do so based on the information you have at the beginning of the turn. But later, as the host processes your orders, so are the those of the other players. With chess, for comparison, your opponent has to wait until after you move before he can react to what you do. He may have a move in mind, but seeing you do something else may cause him do act differently. In VGAP you can usually change your plots, up to a certain time set by the host, but you can't be absolutely certain of what the other players are going to do. It is very important to keep this in mind.

Many fans have become hosts for the game, and have created websites (like this one) through which a variety of games from standard vanilla default to wildly customized games can be found for your enjoyment. Hosts may even be players in their own games. Many players do not like this, being the untrusting Orions they are. Other popular forms of game play are by "blitz games" which are the closest to live combat, are played via ICQ or IRC and have limited time to complete each turn,  and of course the slow but sure method of distributing files via floppies (or re-writable cds for us high-techies) when playing among friends at work or school, for example, still exists.

The Echo Cluster is a scantily detailed virtual part of a galaxy located several billion light years from here. It consists of up to 500 single planet locations, which is the default "arena" in which up to eleven races administer their own unique empire.  The host 'masters' a game with many, potentially thousands of different setting combinations.  The first turn is hosted, and then all players are sent their RSTs containing only their current situation.  By default, no other player information is distributed directly to any of the other gamers, but this can be altered by game settings and other features offered by hosts.  Players then 'unpack' their RST files, open and plot all their actions, then 'pack' their TRN file and send back to the host for processing at a stated future time. Plotting actions initially takes only a few minutes.  Eventually when your empire expands to over a hundred planets & ships, it can take several hours to plot all actions.  This process repeats all over again until the game ends, which can be by total eradication of the other players or my mutual agreement by all parties in the game.  Your host will generally schedule a time limit for sending in your TRN files.  This can be set from minutes to weeks, every day at a certain global time or even only once per week or longer.  Like reality, these campaigns can last many months, and some have been known to go on for YEARS! The further along in turns you are, the longer it usually takes to perform your commands, depending on how much detailed control you want to have over your empire.

At the start of the game your sole assets are (by default) a home-world, a low tech starbase and two low tech starships. Different starting scenarios will be possible, and make up for some of the plainness that the same old thing can be like.  These are the only things left of your original fleet since you had to disband most of the ships you reached the Echo Cluster with. You will need to manage your planet’s population, money, minerals and other resources wisely, for these are your only sources of production early in the game.  However, you will need more resources if you are to become the ruler of the Echo Cluster.  You will solely be responsible for all of the decisions that affect your growth and production... how to best develop your planets, what type of ships to build and who to trust or to annihilate.  Do not forget about the other players who also have an empire, and are bent on your ultimate destruction. In the end it all comes down to one thing..  There Can Be Only One.

A side note, this game is for Everyone... yes even Microsloth's very own Bill Gates has been known to play this game, probably in an assimilation attempt which failed.

Now that you've read what VGA Planets is and how it basically works, how about disemboweling its working to see what it is exactly all about.
If you like, read up on the fictional history of the Echo Cluster and your empire here

Most FAQ's are listed in this l-o-n-g  forum posting.