Gunboat: gunboat manual and keys

1 Press X to go to Pilot’s Station
2 Press F1 to turn on the Main Power
3 Press F2 to turn on the engines
4 Press V to move to the Bow (front) Gunner’s station
5 Press F1 to turn on the master power for the bow guns
6 Press F2 to remove the safeties from the bow guns
7 Press F3 (optional) to turn on the spotlight
8 Press B to move to the Midship Gunner’s station
9 Press F1 to turn on the master power for the midship gun
10 Press F2 to remove the safety from the midship gun
11 Press F3 (optional) to turn on the spotlight
12 Press N to move to the Stern (rear) Gunner’s station
13 Press F1 to turn on the master power for the stern gun
14 Press F2 to remove the safety from the stern gun
15 Press F3 (optional) to turn on the spotlight

From the Pilot’s Station, use the following commands to change the speed
and direction of the boat:

Up arrow/joystick forward Throttle forward
Down arrow/joystick back Throttle back (use this to move
into reverse and back up)
ENTER/joystick button Slow down
Left arrow/joystick left Turn left
Right arrow/joystick right Turn right

From any of the three gunners’ stations, use the following commands
to change the speed and direction of the boat:

F4 Reverse Course
F5 Branch left at the upcoming fork in the river or river mouth
F6 Branch right at the upcoming fork in the river or river mouth
F7 Slow down
F8 Speed up
V Front (bow) station
B Midship station
N Stern (rear) station

These commands are generally available to you at any point during
the simulation:

ESC Pause Action/Resume Action

S Sounds On/Off – Allows you to run the game wihout the music,
engine sounds, or battle noises.

CTRL Q Exit to DOS

Z Move to the Pilot’s Port (left) View Screen

X Move to the Pilot’s Main (center) View Screen

C Move to the Pilot’s Starboard (right) View Screen

V Move to the Bow (front) Gunner’s Station

B Move to the Midship Gunner’s Station

N Move to the Stern (rear) Gunner’s Station

E Engine Sound On/Off – The PBRs huge engines are pretty
noisy, especially when you’re moving fast. If the roar
bothers your concentration, turn it off.

D Detail Level Low/Hi – Reduces the level of simulation
detail for added speed on slower machines.

TAB Return to Base – When the carmage gets extreme, or the
mission’s over, this is how you get home again.

M Mission Map – Get an overview of your position, and the
surrounding area. The maps are based on actual maps
of Vietnam, the riverways of Colombia, and the Panama
Canal Zone. The Practice Mode maps shows the sloughs
and rivers of the northeastern San Francisco Bay, where
the U.S. Navy’s Mare Island PBR training center and
operations base are located.

= Time Compression – If you want to speed things up a little on
your way to the front, press this three-way toggle key once.
To speed them up even more, press twice – and hold onto your
stomach. Because time compression also speeds up the enemy’s
thinking processes and response rate, press it a third time
when you suspect that enemy forces are nearby, or find
yourself under fire. This turns off the Time Compression
entirely.

Backspace Extra Time Compression – When you find yourself in a
long, quiet stretch – or a very big hurry – hold down
this key to get maximum time compression. To slow down
again, just release the Backspace key.

F9 Identify Target – When you have a potential target in view,
you can ask for identification. (To get a clearer idea of
what kinds of targets you might encounter, turn to Section 5.)
Use this command often: shooting at friendlies is one of the
better ways to get yourself court-martialed, so this is your
insurance of continued job security.

C to view the right-hand panel

X to view the center panel

Z to view the left- hand panel

F1 Master Power On/Off – The PBR’s main power switch. Turn it
on to power up the boat. Turn it off, and every powered
system on the boat quits.

F2 Engine Power On/Off – Powers up the engines. They take a
few seconds to warm up.

F3 Radar – The radar display maps the nearby coastline, along
with vehicles, boats, surfacing mines, anything else that’s
nearby and interesting. Use of radar is strictly optional,
you may find it useful for “seeing” around corners – and
indispensable for getting around at night. The Raytheon
1900/W unit is surface-scanning, and doesn’t include
sonar, so don’t count on it to tell you about underwater
obstacles.

F9 Identify Target – Gives you a positive ID on any potential
target that’s directly in front of the boat.

F10 Open Fire/Cease Fire – Press F10 to order the gunners to
open fire on a nearby target. The gunners who are in the
best position to get a clear shot respond immediately. This
command does not fire the mortars: to do that, you must move
to the stern gunner’s station. To cease fire, press F10
again.

ENTER Throttle Neutral – Moves the throttle into neutral. Each
time you press Enter, the boat slows down a little, until
it eventually stops it dead in the water. The throttle
stick on the helm comes to rest in a neutral position.

Up Arrow/Joystick Forward

Throttle Forward – increases power to the water jets,
propelling the boat forward. Press ENTER or pull back on
the joystick to slow down. The throttle levers at the
right of the screen move up as you accelerate, and the RPM
gauges indicate how much power you’re getting out of the
engines.

Down Arrow/Joystick Back

Throttle Back – This command drops deflectors down behind
each of your two jets, reversing the thrust and effectively
putting you in reverse. If you’re moving forward when you
first throttle back, the RPMs drop down to zero as you slow
down, then pick up again as you begin to move backward. The
throttle levers at the right of the center view screen move
down as you back up.

NOTE: The twin engines (especially the big 450-horse-power ones) can
create a lot of racket when they’re running wide open. In situations
where stealth is more important than speed, slow down until you’re
under the halfway point on the RPM gauges. Running under the full-
throttle mark quiets the boat down considerably.

Left Arrow/Joystick Left; Right Arrow/ Joystick
Right Turn Left/Turn Right

These commands rotate the water jets, causing you to turn
left or right. If you lose one of the two engines or jets,
the boat becomes much harder to steer, and may not respond
to your attempts to control it. The steering wheel on the
center panel moves in response to your turning commands.

F4 Reverse Direction or, in simple language, turn around

F5 Branch Left at the upcoming river mouth or fork

F6 Branch Right at the upcoming river mouth or fork

F7 Slow Down (he’ll let you know when you’ve slowed to a stop)

F8 Speed Up (he’ll tell you when you’ve reached maximum speed).

Gauges & Indicators

The Pilot’s Station includes a collection of gauges and indicator
lights that can give you a great deal of important information about
your PBR’s systems. They include:

RPM Gauges – One for each engine. They work in both forward and
reverse. RPM is a measure of power output, not speed, so don’t
depend on these as speedometers.

Fuel Gauges – Each of the two engines has its own separate fuel tank;
these gauges show how much fuel you have left in each tank. You can’t
transfer fuel from one tank to the other; if you lose one tank in
combat, or just run out of gas, that engine is dead for the rest of
the mission.

Water Jet Direction Indicator – The PBR doesn’t use rudders to turn:
instead, the water jets swivel around, causing the boat to turn left
or right. The pointer in this bar shows which way each water jet is
trying to point – though whether or not you actually make the turn
depends on the condition of your engines and jets, and what’s in the
water. If your jets get damaged or you lose engine power, the
Direction Indicator’s accuracy can’t be trusted.

Engine Status Light – These lights are located right above the power
switches for each engine. As long as the light is green, the engine
is fine; when it flashes red, that engine is history.

Compass – Like any computerized compass, this one expresses your
heading as a number between zero and 360 degrees. North is zero; east
is 90 degrees; south is 180 degrees; and west is 270 degrees.

Clock – Like any other clock.

Time Compression Indicator – For a full explanation of time
compression, see page 25 above. This gauge shows which of the three
Time Compression settings you’re currently using.

Slew Rate Indicator – The Slew Rate is discussed in the Keyboard
Command section on the previous page. This knob shows which of the
three Slew Rate settings you’re currently using.

Computer Pilot

When you leave the pilot’s station, the computer pilot takes over.
Before you leave the helm in his hands, there are a few things you
need to understand about this guy.

PBR Reference Section

PBR Technical Specifications &
Development History

The PBR (Patrol Boat, River) is a military adaptation of a commerical
boat originally designed and manufactured by United Boatbuilders of
Bellingham, WA. Over the past 25 years, the U.S. Navy has
commissioned three generations of the PBR:

PBR Mark 1 (1966)

Length: 31′

Maximum Width: 11 feet

Top Speed: 28 knots

Engine: 215hp General Motors diesel truck engine; Jacuzzi water jet
propulsion pump.

Draft: 18″ fully loaded

Crew: Four

Radar: Raytheon 1900/W surface-scanning unit

Cost; $75,000 (in 1966 dollars)

As the first U.S.-made PBR, the 120 Mark I boats delivered in 1966
formed the foundation of the U.S. Navy’s forces in the Mekong Delta.
It was smaller and slower than its successors, but proved the
viability of riverine warfare beyond a doubt. Its twin 215-horsepower
diesel engines are included as an option in the Gunboat simulation.

PBR Mark II (1967)

Slightly longer and more powerful than the Mark I. The protective
aluminum gunwales on the Mark II’s hull were a major improvement over
the Mark I, which was annoyingly prone to being sliced open whenever
it made hard contact with rocks, underwater obstacles, or other boats.
Over 130 Mark II PBRs were sent to Vietnam between 1967 and 1969.

PBR Mapk III (1976)

The viciously powerful post-war version of the PBR, the Mark III is the
Navy’s most current riverine craft. The engines – 450- horsepower
monsters with a maximum speed of nearly 50 knots – put out enough
power to give a hydrofoil a fair race in open water. In addition,
the Mark III is more maneuverable than anything you’ll find in Road &
Track. You can brake down from top speed to a dead stop, or complete
a 180-degree turn, in just a single boat length. On the down side,
though, it’s somewhat noisier than its predecessors, which means your
engine choice often comes down to a question of speed over stealth.

In 1978, the PBR Mark III cost about $500,000, minus guns.

Over the years, the term PBR (Patrol Boat, River) has described a wide
variety of boat types that were outfitted to perform the same
function. The PBR in Gunboat fits the Mark II and Mark III
specifications described above, but can be equipped with weapons and
engines that saw use on the Mark I.

The Brown Water Navy:
an Overview of American PBR
Warfare

Throughout its 200-year history, the U.S. Navy has focused on big
boats – enormous ocean-going vessels with tremendous range and
firepower; free-floating cities capable of supporting vast military
operations by sea, land, and air. Because of this emphasis on
dominating the world’s oceans, the Navy arrived in Vietnam with only
one previous experiment in small-craft riverine warfare: a fleet of
tiny boats that had patrolled the coastlines and rivers of Dixie a
hundred years earlier, during the American Civil War.

Made for the Mekong

The beginnings of modern riverine warfare can be traced back to French
colonial forces who occupied Vietnam during the early 1950s – and to
the Vietnamese themselves, who had used the waterways of the Mekong
Delta as major highways (and, on occasion, battlegrounds) for centuries.
In 1953, the French designed the first prototypical PBR-type warboats
specifically for use on Vietnam’s endless riverways, and introduced
them as the core of a new Vietnamese Navy that was specially geared
toward riverine combat. (Only later did the French officers in charge
add a fleet of ocean-going ships.) In 1955, the French turned full
control of the colonial navy over to the Diem government.

That same year, the first American naval advisors arrived in Vietnam,
and immediately grasped the tremendous strategic potential of the
Vietnamese Navy’s riverine fleet. When the Gulf of Tonkin resolution
was passed in 1964, the naval advisors seized the chance to quickly
upgrade the fleet with faster, quieter, newer, more heavily armored
boats, which would enable them to secure the critical Mekong Delta
region. From here, the U.S. and South Vietnamese could dominate all
of Vietnam.

To save time and money, the Navy bypassed the usual development
process, and went shopping for an existing commercial boat that
might do the job. At United Boatbuilders of Bellingham, WA, they
found what they were looking for: a slick little jetdriven cutter
with a big GM-built engine, and no propellers to get tangled up in
sandbars and seaweed. A military contract was issued in 1965, and
by March 1966 the first 120 PBR Mark I boats arrived in Vietnam.

The Brown Water War

The American-made PBR was far faster and more powerful than the earlier
generations of riverine craft, and the first U.S. PBR crews found
themselves literally writing the book on a whole new type of combat.
Every day demanded that they invent new tactics; every season over
the next four years saw further evoluion and refinement of their
strategies and skills.

Over the course of the war, “Brown Water Navy” missions fell into three
classes:

o interdicting Viet Cong supply lines along the Vietnamese coast;

o flushing out NVA guerillas who infiltrated the inland Delta
waters (this was especially critical – and tremendously
effective – during the 1968 Tet Offensive);

o and working in convoy with armored troop carriers and other
boats on strike force missions throughout the Mekong region.

In the early years of the conflict, PBRs weren’t based at onshore docks
or harbors. Instead, they were attached to and serviced by LST (Landing
Ship Tank) vessels, which were anchored offshore. The crews lived on
these ships, the PBRs were supplied and maintained by them, and every
mission began and ended there. LSTs would stay at anchor for about six
months, providing a floating command base for PBR units, before
returning to their own home bases in Japan, Singapore, or the
Philippines. Later in the war, as the U.S. established harbors and
bases in the Mekong, PBR support facilities were moved onshore.

The PBR’s size, stealth, and speed inspired its crews to invent some
rather imaginative uses for their craft:

o On night missions, the crew would cut the engines completely
and drift with the current (or wait at anchor in a secluded
area), silently biding time, watching. A nearby enemy unit
settling in for the night would abruptly find themselves
rudely awakened by blinding spotlights as one or two PBRs
suddenly materialized out of the jungle darkness with all
guns spirting out a rain of fire.

o In early 1969, the Navy used giant CH-54 Flying Crane
helicopters to airlift PBRs into isolated battlezones that
were unreachable by waterway. Their appearance in these
inaccessible areas took the Viet Cong by tremendous surprise
– an advantage that the PBR units usually turned into
decisive victory.

o And no, the onscreen reference to waterskiing isn’t just a
fantasy. Jim Mesko, who has written extensively about
Vietnam PBR units, notes: “In reality, PBR patrols were just
like any other military operation – long, tedious, boring
days that were sometimes punctuated by minutes of sheer
terror.” During those long, tedious, unbearably hot and
humid days on the Mekong, American PBR crews actually did
haul out the ropes and skis, and perfected their wake-
hopping techniques during a little spontaneous R & R. With
its powerful jets and tremendous speed, the PBR was a world-
class water ski boat.

COMMAND CHART

“Go To Station” Commands

Pilot’s port (Left Station)……………………. Z
Pilot’s Main Station………………………….. X
Pilot’s Starboard (Right) Station………………. C
Bow (Front) Gunner’s Station…………………… V
Midship Gunner’s Station………………………. B
Stern (Rear) Gunner’s Station………………….. N

While In a Pilot’s Station

Power On/Off…………………………………. F1
Engines On/Off……………………………….. F2
Radar On/Off…………………………………. F3
Steering Slew Rate: Hi/Med/Low…………………. –
Throttle Forward……………………………… Up Arrow
Throttle Back………………………………… Down Arrow
Slow Down……………………………………. Enter
Rotate Water Jets Left………………………… Left Arrow
Rotate Water Jets Right……………………….. Right Arrow
Indentify Target……………………………… F9
“Gunners, Open Fire/Cease Fire”………………… F10
Detail Level: Low/Hi………………………….. D

While In a Gunner’s Station

Power On/Off…………………………………. F1
Gun’s Safety On/Off…………………………… F2
Spotlight On/Off……………………………… F3
Aim Slew Rate: Hi/Med/Low……………………… –
Aim…………………………………………. Up Arrow, Down Arrow,
Left Arrow and
Right Arrow
Fire………………………………………… Enter
“Pilot, Reverse Course”……………………….. F4
“Pilot, Branch Left”………………………….. F5
“Pilot, Branch Right”…………………………. F6
“Pilot, Go Slower”……………………………. F7
“Pilot, Go Faster”……………………………. F8
Identify Target………………………………. F9
“Gunners, Open Fire/Cease Fire”………………… F10
Detail Level: Low/Hi………………………….. D

General Game Commands

Engine Sound On/Off…………………………… E
Sounds On/Off………………………………… S
Pause Game…………………………………… ESC
Return To Base……………………………….. TAB
Exit To DOS………………………………….. CTRL + Q
Time Compression Off/On/Hi…………………….. =
Time Compression While Pressed…………………. Backspace

Mission Information

View Map…………………………………….. M
Chase Boat View………………………………. ,
View Assignment………………………………. .
View Damage………………………………….. /

Vietnam
The Vietnamese scenarios reflect the war as it was in 1970, and the
equipment you encounter there is the similar to what the original
riverine units faced during those days. Among the unfriendlies
you’ll meet:
Page 51 follows:
—————-
PT76 Tank
A light, thinly-armored Soviet-made reconnaisance tank. Watch out
for the 76mm guns, and the infantry units that are usually part of
the cargo.
T55 Tank
A Soviet World War II dinosaur with stubbornly thick armor and a
wicked 100mm gun. Nothing to do but turn tail and run, or grit your
teeth and lean on the throttle – you don’t have the armament to deal
with it.
BTR 6O/BTR 70
Another Soviet export: a fast light-armor infantry carrier, equipped
with a .5Ocal machine gun and a 3Omm grenade launcher. Nail it with
.50 caliber rounds – before it nails you.
RPG7
This Soviet missile launcher isn’t as deadly to boats as it is to
tanks – though will still put a hole in your aluminum hull. Shoot
down the missile if you can; then take out the launcher belore it can
fire another one.
Machine gun nests
These are basically sandbag piles. Use .5Ocal guns or grenades.
Bridges
You’ll encounter a wide assortment of bridges. All of them can be
taken down with your mortar launcher and enough persistence.
Sampans
The natives make these boats out of reeds. Everyone in Vietnam used
them, including civilians and the U.S. forces, so you should be extra
careful about firing on the right ones. (Blowing up old ladies on the
way to market is a good way to get courtmartialed; blowing up your
own troops is an even better one.)
Page 52 follows:
—————-
Infantry
VC infantry wear either fatigues or the standard-issue black pajamas.
Be sure to get a good ID before blazing away at them.
Trees
Green, leafy stationary targets. You don’t get points for blowing
them up.
Docks
Used by both us and them, and the civilians as well. Like bridges
and sampans, don’t blow one up without good ID – or good reason.
Your
mortar launcher is your best bet.
Water Buffalo
Hamburgers, anyone?
Colombia
The Colombia scenarios represent an escalation of the current
American
war on drugs. You’re going up the tropical rivers to clean out drug
refineries, chemical storage dumps, docks, and fortified strongholds
of the Medellin Cartel. One thing here that you won’t find
elsewhere:
some of the enemy armament you’ll come up against is American-made.
Even at black-market prices, these high rollers can afford the best.
M48 Tank
The good old Made-In-America World War II-vintage Patton tank working
here for the Other Side. Lucky commanders can get away with lobbing
mortars at it. Smart ones just get away.
Huey Gunship
A big old lumbering U.S. battle chopper outfitted .30 and .50 caliber
guns – and sometimes, TOW-2 wire-guided missiles. Your .50 caliber
gun
should be enough to swat it out of the sky.
Page 53 follows:
—————-
Pickup Truck
Could be Juan Valdez hauling his mountain-grown coffee beans into
town. Or, it could be a small arsenal-on-wheels, complete with
TOW-2 launchers and machine guns of varying sizes in the back. If
it’s
the latter, take it out with your .50 caliber gun or grenade
launcher.
PT 76 Tank
Light, thinly-armored Soviet-made reconnaisance tanks. Watch out for
their 76mm guns, and the infantry units that are usually part of the
cargo. Use your .50 caliber guns.
BTR 6O/BTR 70
Another Soviet export: a fast light-armor infantry carrier, equipped
with a .50 cal machine gun and a 3Omm grenade launcher. Nail it with
.50 caliber rounds – before it nails you.
Power Boats
Flashy, fast small and medium-sized power boats. They’re usually
bristling with small arms. Like any unarmored vehicle, it’s
vulnerable to your .50 caliber gun or your grenade launcher
Huts
Colombian huts tend to be more substantial than Vietnamese hooches –
and require more substantial ammo. But they don’t last long in a
rain of grenade fire.
Machine Gun Nests
Your basic stack of sandbags. Use the .50 caliber gun or the grenade
launcher.
Mortar Nests
A sturdy sandbag structure that’s reinforced with tree trunks. It
houses a single mortar launcher. In this case, fight fire with fire,
and go for your own mortar.
Page 54 follows:
—————-
Enemy Fortification
A solid brick building that probably contains a large salvo of
mortars, and possibly other heavy armament as well. Defensive
driving is your best best when caught in a hail of fire from one of
these fortifications. Generally, the shells tend to fall in an
identifiable pattern. A sharp pilot who discerns the pattern can
anticipate and evade incoming fire, ensuring that the PBR comes
through in one piece.
Mercenaries
Infantry by any other name. Deal with them accordingly.
Panama
The Soviets supply most of the armament you’ll see in Panama; until
very
recently, they were a more reliable source of spare parts.
T62A
A widely-exported Soviet tank with heavy armor and big guns. Not
modern, but formidable. Don’t even try to stop them.
PT 76 Tank
A light, thinly-armored Soviet-made reconnaisance tank. Watch out
for the 76mm guns, and the infantry units that are usually part of
the cargo. The thin armor won’t stop your .50 caliber shells.
BTR 60/BTR 70
Another Soviet export: a fast light-armor infantry carrier, equipped
with a .50 caliber machine gun and a 3Omm grenade launcher. Nail it
with .50 caliber rounds – belore it nails you.
Page 55 follows:
—————-
Radar Installation
Think of it as a sitting duck. It’s huge, stationary, extremely
visible (that big dish can be seen for miles), and vital to the
enemy. It’s also very vulnerable to fire from your .50 caliber gun,
if you can get within range.
Anti-Ship Missiles
Positioned to keep the Panama Canal clear of unwelcome traffic, this
one means double trouble for you. The airborne missile can wipe you
out in mere seconds, unless you slow down, take careful aim with your
.50 caliber, and shoot it out of the sky belore it reaches the boat.
Even if you succeed, the launcher can instantly lob another one at
you
– so don’t hesitate to destroy the launcher, too.
Mi-24 Hind Helicopter
In the Canal Zone, these Soviet-made choppers are thicker than
mosquitos, and even more annoying. They carry lots of AT-6 Spiral
missiles, which they will gleefully hurl at you. On the other hand,
they’re not the most maneuverable of beasts, so it’s not impossible
to
take out a low-flying Hind with your .50 caliber machine gun.
Power Boats
Flashy, fast small and medium-sized power boats. They’re usually
bristling with small arms. Sink them with your trusty .5G caliber
machine gun.
Trucks/Buildingsd/Infantry
Ubiquitous targets. If you can’t handle these by the time you get
to Panama, you don’t deserve your stripes.
Statuary
Sorry – there are no bonus points for defacing local monuments.