From: baltman@prodigal.psych.rochester.edu (Brian Altman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games
Subject: Hellcats.txt (as text!)
Date: 2 Sep 92 04:26:51 GMT
Organization: University of Rochester (Rochester, NY)

At long last..Hellcats: the Text!

Date: Sat, 29 Aug 1992 10:57:33 -0500  From: Ted Wagner
<trwagner@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu>   	Please replace the former
Hellcats_over_Pacific.txt with this updated version.  The last version had a
text wrap problem in the text formating.  A few errors were fixed as well.
------------------< cut here >---------------------------------------
Hellcats Over the Pacific FAQ/Tips Version 1.1  UPDATE  August 29,1992  Ted
Wagner  trwagner@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu
************Introduction***************************************  	I saw a
lot of questions on this game and felt that a FAQ/Tip  document would be
useful.  This document is not intended to replace  the manuals.  It is meant to
enhance the novice HOtP gamer's pleasure  and skill in the game. 	I fully
support all efforts to complete the missions without  cheating and to buy this
product from Graphic Simulations or a licensed  software retailer or mail order
company.   	Hellcats Over the Pacific FAQ/Tips was created with the HOtP
enthusiast in mind.  It is my hope to expand this document in the  future to
accommodate the new scenarios to be released in a few months  and the new
Hellcats version next summer.  This document will include  FAQ's, Tips and
Hints while playing this game, easy 'cheat' methods,  neat stuff to try or see,
and an appendix with a list of all the gracious  people who were instrumental
in the completion of this document.  A couple  people had sent some
reproductions of the HOtP manual typed by hand.  Thank  you for your
contribution, however, I cannot print what is in the HOtP manual without
permission from the author.  (And besides, as I will mention  many times, this
is a game worth buying...if you buy the game, you have  the manuals.) 	I hope
this document is useful to everyone who reads it.  If you have  any suggestions
for changes to this document, please e-mail me at the  address above.  	I tried
to get everything in here that everyone sent.  This will grow  in the future,
there is no doubt about that!  Some of these look like  redundant questions.
Some of the hints, tips, and FAQs do look the  same...but are subtly different.
I left it that way because of the way  people read and understand things.  Some
things click for some people,  some other things click for other people. 	This was a rather rushed job as I completed this while on vacation here between
August 13-August 26.  The updated version which will be released  this fall
will promise to be a bit more organized with sub-categories  beneath sections.
This should make it much easier to find things. 	If you get the new
scenarios or just have some stuff to add that is  not included in this
document, please e-mail me at the address at the top  of this page.
************Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)*****************  Q:What does
HOtP stand for?  A:Well, it is the acronym for the game  Hellcats Over the
Pacific.  Q:I've completed many carrier landings (both regular and sinking) but
I have not always been able to take-off again.  On a non-sinking ship, I have
never had enough room to either turn my plane around, or get up to take-off
speed.  Is it possible to turn around on a carrier to gain runway space ?
A:The answer to your question is provided in Tip # 29.  Q: I can't ever win the
'Bomb the Base' mission even though I plant a bomb directly on the rising sun
flag in the middle of the runway.  What am I doing wrong?  A:The flag is
actually on the grass between two runways.  This is hard to tell on B&W
screens.  If you hit the flag, you miss the runway.  Q:What's wrong with my
plane?  The Zeros run circles around me!  A:If you try turning with your flaps
down, you'll find that you can keep up  with the zeroes.  Q:Why does the plane
seem to over react to stick movements?  A:Your mouse speed is set too fast. Use
the control panel and set mouse  speed to "tablet".  Q:Why don't I get credit
for bombing the enemy's runway?  I know I dropped the bomb right on it!
A:Again, you dropped the bomb on the Japanese flag.  You need to make sure you
drop a bomb right in the middle of the runway.  Try to drop the bomb in the
center (width) and the middle (length) of the runway.  Once you get the hang of
it, you will be able to plant the bomb anywhere on the runway.  Q:Why is my
Hellcats program growing in size?  A:Each time you use it on a new size of
monitor or 1/2 or 1/3 size, then  Hellcats generates a picture of the cockpit
and other stuff to match this  size, and stores it in the program for faster
redraws.  So using it on a  21" monitor may add significantly to the program
size.  Q:How can I visit or look around the hellcats scenarios real quick?
A:There is a hidden command that put you in the 'Superman chair' and allows you
to move all around at a great speed.  Just type 'Control S' while playing. Your
plane is now immobile, you can move it around with the key pad. for example,
'7' to go up, '8' to go forward, '5' to stop.  You can press  repeatedly on the
keys to accelerate, but be careful with the speed, it  will lead you outside
the game !  You can fire when in this mode, but the  point will not be added to
your score. if you try to bomb, that bomb will  fall when you resume the game.
Be careful when resuming the game, the  plane will be nose DOWN and the engines
will be OFF ! so remember to gain  a lot of altitude! (ctrl-s will get you
back).  Q:I can't get the hang of getting behind the zeros, how can I
improve...is  there a quick way to learn?  A:Well, no.  Practice with the
training mission.  Practice tight turns using your flaps, gear, and decreased
throttle.  OR, you can uses the  'a' key.  It will put on the 'autopilot' and
your plane will lead to the  nearest zero around.  When you have a plane in
sight, hold down the 'a'  key while in flight.  Keep track of your altitude and
pull out if you  are down to 100 feet.  The autopilot locks on to the nearest
plane on  radar and follows the zero around and tries to get behind it.
Autopilot  will not work in Flight Training.  Neither will the 'e' (enemy
view).  Q:Can I hide from the radar from the Zeros or the Japanese ships?
A:Yes.  You have to stay very low; you can see the effect when you fired on a
zero and somehow it disappeared from your radar at some point in it's fall. You
just need to do the same.  Stay up off the trees around 200-300 feet!   You can
do this if you are short of ammo and there are still zeros around.   Just make
sure the zeros are not in sight.  Chances are that they can see  you if you can
see them.  Q:How can I sink a enemy carrier?  A:You must put 3 bombs on it.
One method is to fly very low on the same heading as the ship.  Use rudders to
fly in a zig-zag pattern when approaching the ship to escape the AAA
(Anti-Aircraft Artillery) fire.  Another method is to climb to 9,000 feet and
dive bomb the carrier or ship.  Q:How can I outrun a zero that's behind me?
A:You can use the flaps ('f' key) as an air brake to slow your plane.  Then
you can do a tight turn to the opposite heading from your original heading.
When your heading is where you want it, then retract your flaps and gear (if
down) and increase the throttle fully.  It will never be able to follow you,
and you'll be behind it soon!  Q:What happens if you jump and a plane hits you?
Does the plane explode? Are you killed?  A:Well, when a plane hits,  it has
only happened to a few pilots as of  this date, you die.  The plane explodes.
The same thing happens if you  run into a parachute from a Japanese pilot.
Q:Where is the second F6F Hellcat going in 'The Duel?'  A:The other pilot is
heading toward the carrier.  He usually runs into other Japanese pilots and
they end up in a dog fight.  If you follow your wing-man, then you are bound to
end up in a dog fight.  Q:How much time has elapsed if you resume a mission
after loosing the first hellcat?  A:It depends.  If you live, and are close to
your base, not long.  It is hard  to tell since there is not clock or game
timer which is visible.  In  'Scramble,' if you lose your plane and you are
close to the base and are  found, it is not very long. You can usually see the
other planes on radar  when you are in your new plane.  Q:Can you land on the
bridge in 'Bomb Base?'  A:Yes.  It has been done.  However, watch out.  The
bridge is in enemy  territory.  Many pilots report that if they come to
complete stop on the  bridge or near it, then they are captured by the
Japanese.  Q:How does the collision detection work? Only in the middle?  A:This
author is not 100% sure.  But, it seems to be the way it works with  naval
objects.  If it is the ground, then the first contact of your plane  and the
ground usually results in an explosion.  Q:Sometime in the play back, after
crashing, it seems that the hellcat  literally falls in the sea the last few
meters. What happens ?  A:Refer to the question above.  The water seems to be
treated as a transparent object to a certain depth.  (sort of like what happens
in REAL water)  When you hit a certain depth after penetrating the water, the
Hellcat will always explode.    Q:How is it possible to have enough fuel to go
in the extreme north-west of  the map (and see the north directional arrow)?
A:Don't forget the previously mention 'cheat' key.  (ctrl-s)  Also, this
author has been able to do this on a full tank of gas at 70% throttle at
Triple speed.  However, I run out of fuel and cannot get back to a base.   You
can also Island hop.  Pause the game, do command-m for map, and look  for the
nearest airfield.  Most are friendly.  You can fill-up, take off  and reach an
island closer to the directional arrow, then take-off again  with full tanks,
then return to that nearest island and fill up again!  Q:Why is it so easy to
crash on landing contrary to what films show of actual landings from WWII?
A:Hopefully, if you are having troubles with landings, you have purchased this
game.  If so, you can refer to the manual for landing tips for tail draggers.
Also, if you have Flight Simulator 4.0, refer to their manual section on
landing the bi-plane.  (Besides, nothing is as easy as it *looks*).  ;-)  In a
nutshell, make sure you are straight and level when you land the plane.  Make
sure your Artificial Horizon instrument indicates that you are parallel to the
ground.  Once you get the hang of it, it is pretty easy.  Q:Why, in frontal
passes, do the zeros seem to always damage the hellcat engine, also contrary to
actual experience.  A:Try evasive maneuvers when you are approaching the Zeros.
If your radar is scanning on '1 mile' mode, and you are one square away from
the Zero, use your rudder and weave to the Zero.  It also helps to be at a
slightly  higher altitude than the Zeros and to have the sun at your back.
Engine  damage will commonly influence the outcome of your mission.  So, don't
stay on a straight path.  Most combat pilots don't unless they are flying
F-16's.  Q:Why if you pause the Flying Fortress mission when the hellcat is
still in  the hanger, does the B-17 still take off?  This makes it a little
difficult  to catch up and protect it.  A:Well, you are pausing it for you.  If
you pause the game in 'Scramble' and pay attention to your radar, it does move.
If you pause, it is wise not  to pause that long.  Pausing in the air seems to
not have this same effect  for some reason.  It is best to have all your
settings as you want them  before you begin and saved.  Q:If I try to dogfight
with another pilot using the autopilot key a', half  the time the autopilot
drives me into the ground.  Am I doing something wrong?  A:Yes.  Your autopilot
is not smart enough to know when you are too close to the ground.  Watch your
altimeter.  If you are getting down to 300 or so feet and are above 180 knots,
get the hell out of dodge!  Pull up on the stick or make a steep climbing bank.
If you don't, you will auger into the ground and will go home in a pine box.
Q:What is the "ultra" cheat key?  A:Well, it depends on how you want to cheat.
The 'e' key will give you the enemy's viewpoint.  'a' is the autopilot key, as
you already know.  'crtl-s',  as you again know, is the speed key to travel all
over the scenario at high  speeds.  Q:How do I resurrect a dead pilot & modify
other scores 'n' stuff?  A:Well, there is a utility called 'Hellcats Rescue.'
It will resurrect  your pilot from his death.  You may also edit your copy of
Hellcats with  Res-edit.  There is a section explaining how to do that.  Don't
use res-edit  unless you have done so before and know how to use it correctly.
 In order to really appreciate this game and earn rank ethically, most Hellcats
pilots do *not* cheat.  Q:What hardware is needed to run Hellcats?  A:You need
2megs of RAM, system 6.0 or higher, and a microprocessor of 68020 or higher.
The best machine to run this on is a Quaddra, fx, or an si.  It  will work on
others, but these are best.  It runs much faster if installed  on a hard drive.
If you are using system 7, do *not* increase your virtual  memory above 50% of
what the real memory is or the game will be sluggish.  Q:Does it use color?
A:Once you use color, you will never want to go back to B&W.  It is better  to
use color because you have *MUCH* better visibility.  Q:Is the flight
simulation fairly accurate?  A:It is not perfect.  Reality will be hard to see
on computers in the near  future.  Like most games, this is a simulator.  It
simulates the real thing.   The programmer researched the physics of the F6F
Hellcat and the Zeros.  The action and reactions, sounds, and other items are
as realistic as you can  get at this time.  This is one game that is bound to
improve with time!  Q:Does Hellcats run under System 7?  A:Yes.  Q:Can two or
more people play using networked Macs?  A:No.  The current version of Hellcats
does not allow this.  There is a new version *expected* to be released next
summer that may incorporate network flying and combat.  Q:Does it support the
creation of general mayhem on the ground, or can you only shoot down other
planes?  A:Oh yes.  You can take out AAA batteries, other aircraft, bomb
hangars, and other ships.  Many people report completing a mission and getting
their mission award and resuming the mission to go back and take out the AAA
batteries and any planes on the ground.  Q:Is it possible to collide with
another plane?  A:Yes.  If you slam into a plane, you will explode and, of
course, die.  This  is another reason for evasive maneuvers when coming
directly at another plane at the same altitude.  This is another danger of
autopilot.  Try not  to use autopilot when coming head-to-head.  Q:Is it
possible to shoot down the pilot after he ejects?   A:No.  Don't even waste
your ammunition.  Q:Is it possible to collide with the pilot after he ejects?
A:Yes!  Colliding with a parachute, as discussed before, or the pilot, or  the
lines, will result in immediate death.  Besides, shooting a pilot in a
parachute is a war crime.  If you could do it, you would probably be
discharged for unmilitary conduct and a bunch of other stuff and probably  be
executed.  Q:Is it possible to fly under the bridge?  A:Yes.  It has been done.
Upside down and some have landed on the bridge.   Q:What's in the "off limits"
area to the west in "Flight School"?  A:A lake with two sailboats enjoying a
relaxing afternoon.   Q:What happens if you shoot or bomb your own carrier,
base, other Hellcat,  etc?  A:You usually get a warning that you destroyed a
friendly unit when you land. After two more occurrences, you are discharged.
In "The Duel" someone shot down Lt. Cmdr Herbert *and* sunk the carrier, then
bailed out of my plane.   He was given a court martial and executed.  Q:What is
the highest score anybody has made?  A:The sky is the limit.  That has not been
recorded as of yet.  That would be  a little trivia.  If you are a 'net-person'
you could find out in comp.sys.mac.games.  Q:Has anybody successfully completed
all of the missions without cheating,  i.e., without using ResEdit to resurrect
a dead pilot?  A:Yes.  Many have.  This author has completed all but 'Divine'
without cheating.  Q:Are the planes in the training mission SUPPOSED to be shot
down?  A:Yes.  Please feel free to do so.  You should decide to either practice
bombing or downing the drones.  The drones are good practice for attack
angles.  They are not that good in evasive situations and do not attack you.
When you first load up with bombs in the training mission, you get six!   You
will only get two if you reload after that.  Q:Just because I see something on
radar, does it see me? Will they  immediately come after me, or do I have some
time to pursue my mission  before I worry about the Zeros?  A:Maybe, maybe not.
Most likely yes.  Unless you are in 'Scramble' or  'Flying Fortress,' you can
take your time.  Usually Zeros are easy points  and it is fine to try and take
them out.  You *DO* need to worry about  the Zeros in 'Scramble' and 'Flying
Fortress' as your objective in those  missions is to protect.  ************Tips
and Hints*************************************  Tip 1: In Bomb Base you get
credit for shooting the planes that are on the  ground.  Tip 2: You rarely (if
ever) need a full tank of gas, and the difference in performance is amazing.
Tip 3: Engage the enemy bomber in "Scramble" from above and to the front. You
can usually get him smoking on the head-on run.  Tip 4: You can't ditch w/ your
gear down.  Tip 5: Another approach to the bomber in scramble is to fly very
fast at  about 100 feet until almost (<1/3 mile) directly under it, then pull
up  and roll around.  You'll be approaching it from slightly behind and almost
directly below it, giving you  about 10 seconds of good shot time and  putting
you directly behind it after the maneuver.  Tip 6: I learned about the "tablet"
mode for mouse movement speed only after I installed a Gravis mouse stick. I
was playing Hellcats with my normal mouse setting, and was getting  jerky
flight movement. Using a mouse set to "tablet" speed, from the control panel,
did wonders for flight control.  Tip 7: The Setup:  To get a direct hit on a
pinpoint target (as in the test  target in the training mission) fly at the
point you want to hit low  (500 feet or less) and fast (200 knots IAS as target
is likely to be HOT  as in Battleships).  Zoom straight down when target goes
below your panel  view.  Tip 8: The Climb and the Flop:  When target appears at
the edge of your  view, pull up sharply until you are vertical, climb until you
are about to  stall and pull over so that as you stall, your plane flips over
and you  are pointing straight down at the target.  Tip 9: Timing the Drop:
Watch your shadow on the ground.  Give this a  couple of tries on the training
mission target to get a feel for how the  shadow indicates your position and
the time to drop your ordinance.  Tip 10: Pulling Out (or Popping your Rivets)
A:  BETTER OFF DEAD METHOD:  After the drop, cut the engine, continue to fall
until you hit 500 feet, put down your flaps and simultaneously pull back hard.
Immediately re-throttle. You'll scrape the ground and bounce up to around 600
feet again.  B:  MOMMA, I WANNA GO HOME METHOD: Hit the flaps the moment you
drop the bombs and pull back to a steep dive.  Hold this attitude till you
reach 200 feet and then pull level and retract  the flaps.  You'll be out of
AAA range quickly.  WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! Never attempt this bombing
maneuver when there are enemy fighters (smoking or not) around.  They WILL hit
you when you slow down for the stall.   Tip 11: Dodging AA:  Never
underestimate the view from behind, from this vantage point you can see the AAA
machine gun fire before it crosses your plane, and thereby dodge potentially
mission ending bullets.   Tip 12: Fuel Levels: Most of the Missions (except
"Divine Wind") are fairly short in flying time as compared to your fuel
capacity.  Especially in the carrier missions you should keep your fuel at half
and only make one pass at the target.  Once you have eliminated fighter
support, you can always land, refuel and rearm.  This works great with "Bomb
Base" and "The Duel".  I keep my fuel at just over half for both and my
takeoffs are easier.  "Flattop" is also a good example.  You should lower your
fuel levels each time you fly a mission and see how close you come to
"dead-stick"/BINGO landings.  Tip 13: Desperate kill :  If your engine is out
or you are out of fuel after the first pass of a carrier (with two hits) and
you are too low for expecting going back home (or whatever), try to crash you
plane into the carrier (and don't forget to jump before and high enough).  That
way you can kill the carrier and you have a reasonable chance of being rescued
(anyway it has worked several times with me). Anyway, you won't get a medal for
your mission as you lost the aircraft.  Tip 14: There is a small village in the
south-east of Henderson Field--three  houses and a small lake--try these out
for target practice.  Tip 15: South of Henderson field there is a bridge that
can be "sunk."  Tip 16: The north west quadrant there are several strange,
small, islands and  a field right in the middle of the sea.  Tip 17: Put the
gear in the down position to dramatically decrease your speed.  Tip 18: Flaps
can be used as air-brakes to slow your speed down and to make  tighter turns.
Tip 19:  How to land on a listing carrier: Land like you usually do, but keep
the Hellcat on a horizontal plane *with* the listing carrier and use the
rudders to maintain your heading and position relative to the horizontal plane
of the carrier.  Tip 20: When your machine (Macintosh) crashes during a
landing, or your  aircraft gets flamed or something like that, just hit <Esc>
and end (or  is it abort) mission.  You will then survive keeping the points
from previous missions, plus what you have added to your permanent score on the
current mission. This does not work if you get hit direct by a bullet though.
Then you're dead immediately.  Tip 21: Getting someone off your tail: Plan A:
start a tight turn, drop the gear, reduce thrust, and kick in  the flaps.  Plan
B: build up as much airspeed as you can, go level, kick the flaps in and pull
up into a vertical position.  (Plan B may not be a good thing to try with a
sick engine).  Tip 22: To keep from over pursuing your target (aircraft):
Reduce speed quickly: lower the flaps, drop the gear and reduce the thrust.  If
necessary, climb.  If you get really close, the zeroes will turn, so  take a
guess and turn in that direction. If you guessed wrong, just  complete the
circle and pick your victim up again.  Tip 23: Don't waste ammunition!  You
only get a certain amount! a) if you see flames, break of the attack and move
on to another target b) lots and lots of quick bursts are better than a couple
of long ones, especially at long range.     Tip 24: In most of the scenarios,
you most likely don't require a full tank  of gas--half at most.  Take what you
need, but not more!  If you don't  need bombs, don't take them.  In some of the
scenarios, if you do a good  job of protecting the carrier, you can land back
on the carrier and rearm,  this time with a bomb load.  Tip 25: A technique to
use when dog-fighting is a "skidding turn." (This,  generally,is not a good
idea when actually flying a real plane but in HOtP  it can work.  All you have
to do is keep constant power (I use around 60-70%)  bank in the direction of
your turn and keep constant rudder pressure in the  same direction.  You can
alter your bank and pitch to keep from stalling,  just keep the rudder
pressure!  Using this you can out turn a zero!  Watch  for a stall (too slow)
and your altitude.  Also watch for "cross-controlling"  this is, right
rudder--left bank (or vice versa).  If you stall while  cross-controlled you
can spin the plane.  You can recover from a spin by  pitching down (to increase
airflow over the wing--it seems weird, i know)  and holding opposite rudder to
the direction of the spin.  The Hellcat in  HotP does not recover from spins
very well and don't try this too close  to the ground.    Tip 26: Another trick
when going after a carrier is to dive at the red-dot  on the deck.  Go up to
around 8-10K feet, cut power to 60-70%, and head  directly for the nice red dot
on the deck.  At about 1000-1500 feet (a higher  percentage hit occurs at
500-800 feet...but the chances of being shot down  are higher) drop both (or
one) bomb, break away from the escort (if there  is one), and go to full power
like a bat out of hell!  Tip 27: When dog-fighting, it is usually better to
come in low, a little off  to the side, and start turning BEFORE the enemy
fighter flies past you.   Put the flaps in the up position so you can turn
faster, and if you're  about to crash, use your rudders to pull you up without
having to un-bank  (actually, this rudder technique works for all turns).  If
you do this, you  come up behind the enemy, relatively close, and you just have
to shoot at  him until he gets hit.  Make sure you don't go too fast and fly
past him  (or worse, crash into him if you're not careful).  Tip 28: When
attacking any target that shoots back, other than fighters,  their shots always
seem to go in bursts.  Just stay out of the stream when  the burst starts, and
then get back to business.  This is especially helpful  against that stupid
bomber.  Tip 29: Steering your Hellcat: This  took a lot of people a while to
learn.  If you're on a runway  (especially on a carrier runway),  hold the
brake (space bar) down and  increase, decrease your throttle, and steer with
your mouse.  This will  enable you to turn in circles without moving.  This is
especially helpful  on the carrier when you have little room.  When on the
carrier, make  sure you are in the middle of the deck.  Tip 30: Another helpful
landing tip: Use the rudder to line yourself up with the runway, when landing,
rather than ailerons.  This will keep your plane level but still allow you to
move left and right.  If you have a Gravis Mousestick, try the setting the
other  two buttons to control the rudder.  Tip 31: Tip within a tip: If you
don't have a Gravis Mousestick, get one!! It makes quite a difference, and
feels more realistic too (Whoever heard of using a mouse to control a plane?).
Tip 32: In 'The Duel,' Try to hit one or both of the leading zeroes as you  go
into them head on, and even if you miss, go after them immediately,  otherwise
they'll ignore you and go straight for the carrier.  Tip 33: In 'The Duel,'
after you've shot down all the zeroes, follow the other Hellcat to the enemy
ships, and wait for him to bomb them, after which you can finish them off.
Tip 34: In 'Scramble,' one way to minimize exposure to the gunners is to
attack in a steep dive from 4 or six o'clock--there is a gap in the coverage
there.   Tip 35: In 'Divine Wind,' keep an eye on long range radar after the
fourth  or fifth zero...if there is no others in sight, land and reload as
quickly  as possible, as a whole bunch more will show up, and you'll need the
ammo.  Tip 36:In 'Flying Fortress,' fly ahead of the B-17 on the way there, and
behind it on the way back.  Tip 37: When your Hellcat is damaged, its a lot
easier to ditch in water  than it is to land, even at an airfield.  Tip 38: In
'Bomb Base' and 'Capture Island,' after bombing the runway its  possible to
take out the AAA batteries on either end of the enemy runway,  after which you
can strafe the airfield to your heart's content.   Tip 39: Another fun HotP
thing to do:  In "Flying Fortress" mission, when returning, let the B-17 get
well ahead of you (10 miles or so) and configure your Hellcat to fly
strait-and-level.  Then use the "e" cheat to see what the "enemy" sees.  What
you will see is the bomber base and final approach and landing!  Keep swapping
back-and-forth to be sure that your Hellcat is doing what you think it's doing.
Then, you can land, refuel, and take off and go try to sink both ships that
where near the island!  Tip 40: Change the Gravis joystick's settings so that
instead of the gear  and flaps on the base's buttons,  place the throttle
controls there.  It  makes the plane a lot easier to fly with the speed
controls handy.  If you  are right handed, the flaps and gear are easily
accessible on the left side  of the keyboard.  Tip 41: The biggest mistake
people make in all flying games is to simply  cruise  around with the throttle
wide open all the time.  Use your throttle  wisely. Drop down to about 80% once
you get behind the bogey and shoot that sucker out of the sky!  Tip 42: Make
liberal use of the rudder controls, <shift><z> and <shift><x>.  With these you
can out turn the zeros. In fact, with good airspeed you can  turn faster with
the rudders than by banking. They also provide excellent  attitude control when
you are on your side in a turn. I find this very useful  when turning close to
the ground. They can be used to do snap rolls. When  flying slowly, bank one
direction then hold hard opposite rudder. This  takes a little fooling around.
The most important use of rudders is to  line up a target, either on the ground
or in the air.  Tip 43: In 'Flattop' where you take off from a field and try to
sink a carrier, I've found that the most effective technique is as follows:  1.
Fly directly north (? or whatever the direction the runway is pointed) at
50-100 ft. altitude till you get to the ocean.  2. Turn left and fly directly
at the midsection of the carrier (again as  low as possible about 50 ft.).  3.
Fire the machine guns constantly, spraying the carrier as you approach.  4. At
the last second, release the two bombs and pull up sharply to avoid slamming
into the side of the carrier.  5. Get the hell out of Dodge.  6. Gun down the
Japanese plane while returning to base.  Tip 44: Be careful using the autopilot
down close to the deck.  If you've  damaged the Zero, and there aren't any more
in range, the autopilot will  release when it crashes.  If you happen to have
the controls "hard over"  in some way, you could crash yourself before you
realize what's happening.   Tip 45: Points of targets.  [This *is* in the
manual, but this has been included as a quick reference  type of thing.  I will
not, at this time, re-type anything else that is in  the manual.  If you bought
the game, you should have it.  If not, then buy  the game so you have the
documentation.  At $36, this game is well worth  the price].   Fighter
500 Bomber	          1000 AAA battery       50     (anti-aircraft
artillery) Carrier           2500 Battleship        1500 Cruiser           750
Runway            100  Points to advance in rank  Ensign	           0
Lieutenant, JG     2,000 Lieutenant         5,000 Lt. Commander     10,000
Commander         20,000 Captain           40,000  To sink ships Carrier
   3 bombs Battleship         2 bombs Cruiser            1 bomb   Tip 46: The
bomb indicator is striped when you are on the ground.    Tip 47: If your
mission doesn't need them, leave bombs behind.  They are  heavy  and decrease
performance.  Take as little fuel as possible for the  same reason.  A full
tank is 1500 pounds and is good for 3 hours at 70%  throttle.  Tip 48: Pressing
tab switches radar range from 15 to 3 to 1.  You are at  the center of the
radar screen.  If it is set at 15 it means it 15 miles  from the center to the
edge.  Tip 49: If the radar says an enemy is very close but you can't see it,
it   is above or below you.  Autopilot can usually tell you which.  Tip 50:
Command T is the triple time option.  It makes the game go 3 times  as fast
when you are over 500 feet.  It is good for long trips to bomb a base.  Tip 51:
You have enough ammo to fire for 45 *continuous* seconds.  It is best  to fire
in short bursts.  The manual suggests 2 to 3 seconds.  You can re-arm and
refuel when you land.  You must be at a full stop (brake with space bar), and
your engines must be off (hit "m").  Tip 52: To take off go to full throttle by
holding down the "=" key.  The  manual says you must be going 80 knots to take
off.  That's about right.   Just pull back slowly and your up.  When you
approach lift speed, the nose  of the plane dips due to lift on the tail.  You
won't necessarily be able  to take off at this point.  You do not need flaps
for takeoff but they help.   You may need them on a carrier if you have a lot
of fuel and bombs.   If you  need to get off the ground in a hurry and have
bombs, use flaps.  Tip 53: If you drop a bomb while flying level it will have
forward momentum  and will be VERY inaccurate.  That is why we use a technique
called dive bombing.  The manual suggest you climb to 8 to 12 thousand feet.
This is about right, as any lower any you will get shot up by flack (AAA fire)
and it will be hard to line up the shot.  The ideal angle of a dive is 60 to 80
degrees.  A good technique is to make sure you're level and look strait down.
The field should be about 1/3 the way down the screen (this only works if you
are level).  To look down hit the down arrow twice.  If the "Pan Cockpit View"
option is checked the view will sweep the area, if not the change is  instant.
I keep it on.  You should drop the bomb between 1 and 2 thousand feet to 500 to
800 feet.  Any higher is inaccurate, any lower is too  dangerous.  Tip 54: If
you are damaged you have 3 options in landing.  You can attempt a disabled
landing, a ditch (water landing- make sure gear is up), or bail out.  Landing
is the preferred option since you will keep the plane and get mission credit.
Bailing out loses the plane, and mission credit.  Also if you successfully
land, you are much more likely to live than the other two options.  Bailing out
is the most risky.  Tip 55: To land normally on any surface the manual gives 6
guidelines: 1.  lower landing gear 2.  line up a few miles behind intended
touchdown point 3.  reduce throttle to maintain a speed between 70 and 120
knots 4.  allow altitude to decrease until just above the surface 5.  reduce
throttle to 0 when touchdown point is made 6.  level the altitude of the
airplane (flare) and let the landing gear touch  the ground.  After you touch
down hold down the spacebar to brake.  Move the  mouse forward to cause more
friction on the ground.  Landing in Hellcats isn't nearly as hard as in other
flight sims.  Tip 56: To land on a carrier you must catch an arresting wire.
They are  on  the back half of the carrier.  That is the side with the numbers.
 The tower  should be on the right.  Using flaps will give a steeper decent.
If you miss  the wires, gun the throttle and try again.  Don't  land on a
damaged carrier. If you do, reload quickly, and take off quickly or you will go
down with the  ship!  Tip 57: If your Hellcat is on fire and you have no
control, *bail out*!  Tip 58: When dog-fighting, try to get behind the zeros.
Try not to let them  get behind you.    Tip 59: The first time you play a new
copy of Hellcats it will take about   a minute to "build instrument panel".
This needs to be done only  once,  but makes the file bigger.  If you decide to
play a game with  a different  number of colors, or a different screen size, it
will  also construct the  instrument panel and get bigger.  Tip 60: When
attacking enemy targets, try to hit them as you fly over them  length wise.
This way, you don't have to time your bombs exactly to hit if  you're coming in
to your target on a perpendicular angle.  This is also very  good because many
times, you can sink an enemy carrier with only 2 bombs if they hit near the
middle of the carrier.  Tip 61: You can actually sink a carrier with one bomb!
If you can manage to  drop the bomb in such a way that it goes under the flight
deck and explodes on the main deck (under the flight deck), then the carrier
will sink.  It looks great in instant replay because after the bomb explodes
within the carrier, you see debris fly all over the place.  Tip 62: In
'Flattop,' the enemy fighter is going after your cruiser.  Kill  it before you
attack the enemy carrier, it's an easy 500 points.   Tip 63: Make sure the
"Triple Time" setting is turned off if you are trying  to attack targets.  Tip
64: Everyone has their favorite scenario and has his/her own opinion of  which
one is easiest.  This author started out with 'Scramble.'  I died  several
times.  However, it taught me a lot about combat flying.... approaches, attack
angles, general strategy, evasive maneuvers...etc.   Pick the scenarios at
random.  This makes it more fun, and realistic.
****************Cheating************************************  It is hard to
'cheat' per se.  We have already discussed the 'e,' 'a,'  'ctrl-s,' and
'command-t' keys.  We are now getting into more sophisticated  cheating.  Most
game pilots don't do this.  Please be warned again, if you  have *NOT* used
Res-edit before, please do not try this stuff.  If you still  want to try, MAKE
SURE YOU MAKE A BACKUP COPY AND EXPERIMENT ON YOUR BACKUP  COPY!
****************Hellcats and Res-edit (APPENDICES)*************************  To
resurrect a pilot:  For the ResEdit-headed, the 'HEL1' resource contains the
pilot data.  The  first resource ('HEL1') is unrelated to the second one (I
forget the ID's,  but they do have names).  In any event, the HEL1 resource
containing the pilot data is a list of 20 records 64 bytes each.  The first 32
bytes seem to be reserved for the  pilot's name.  These are Pascal-style
strings with a preceding length-byte.   The 32 bytes of data following the
space reserved for the name appear to be  shorts (integers of 2 bytes in length
each).  The first word is whether you  are alive or dead (0=alive, 1=dead).
Changing this to 0 can resurrect the  dead pilot.  The integers that follow are
rank, # of fighters downed, bombers, etc.  There  are a few bytes in there that
appear to do nothing.  Some seem to increase  your score but have no mention of
how or why (perhaps reserved for subs and  other targets in future scenarios).
The rank can go from 0-5, the others  don't appear to have a cap.  Explore,
have fun.  The score is not stored in the resource - instead it appears to be
calculated  on the fly based upon # of various targets you've downed.  Rank
however is  not calculated.  (Information from by John Calhoun)  Q: Is there a
Hellcats patch?  A: Yep.  However, this author does not support patches
ethically.  Again,  this is a first rate game.  It is worth buying.  You won't
be sorry if you  do.  I know some do not want to wait for their unlock code and
still want  it for that reason.  Whats the big deal with waiting 2 weeks?  It
*is* a  pain.  But, I think if we get high quality games like this one, we
should  support the efforts of the programmer and his company or distributor.
****************Try this stuff!********************************  * Try to ditch
and take off after a loooooong slide (possible)  * Try to land on a enemy
carrier (possible ??) [This can be done, if you make it you are lucky.  Do not
come to a full stop  or you will be a POW]  * Fly and dogfight inverted [upside
down]  * Try to follow one zero without killing it. (very good practice)  * Try
to land on the mountain, or a wounded carrier.  *  Bomb everything in flight
training.    *  Place a bomb on the top of the control tower in flight
training.  *  Bomb all the bases (friendly or enemy) on your map after
completing  'Scramble.'  *  In 'Scramble,' take off with bombs and kill one
Zero and the Beatty.  Let  the other Zero go.  Stay a good distance away and
follow it on radar.  See  where it goes!  *  Fly upside down at 200 feet when
flying over the runway at Henderson Field.  Buzz the control tower!  *  Fly
your plane, fully loaded with fuel and bombs, straight into your  carrier or
friendly ship.  Bail out at 200 feet!  See what happens!  *  Fly by the bunkers
in 'Bomb Base.'  See if you can see the doors.  *  In 'Bomb Base,' try to get a
bomb to hit the doors on the bunkers.   [use replay as soon as you know your
bomb hit so you can see how it went].  *  Try to get right over the Beatty in
'Scramble.'  When you are maintaining  the same speed as the Beatty, try to
maintain a height of about 100 feet  above it.  Push your down arrow twice to
get a bottom view.  You can sit  there and watch as the Zeros try to shoot you
down....they will put their  machine gun fire into the Beatty!  Also, if you
are at LEAST 100 feet above  the Beatty, you can drop a bomb right on top of
it.  As soon as you release  the bomb, lower the flaps and go to full throttle
and go vertical.  By the  time the bomb hits the Beatty, you should have
climbed at LEAST 400-500 feet.
****************Credits***************************************  I wasn't sure
if I should credit certain people.  So, I credited a lot of  you.  Below are
the names of about everyone who contributed.  If you did  contribute and your
name is not below, your item was a repeat and I  apologize.  I used the first
of each suggestion.  I do wish to thank  EVERYONE on the net who contributed
either with wish-lists, suggestions,  or just undying support to see the
finished product.  I want to thank all of you.  Without your help, this project
would have  taken several longer weeks than it has.  Without all of your
contributions,  this never would have come about.  [Order of contributors is
not in any particular order.  It is merely random.   Order of names has no
significance on the amount of material provided to  this author].  If I
misspelled anyone's name, I apologize.  I just cut and pasted names  so they
are spelled just the way they were when they were cut from the mail  messages
that were sent.  Charles Lamonte Babak Gohari Howard Berkey Jim Hogue Derek
LeLash Povl H. Pedersen Michel Pollet Mathieu Lafourcade Bob Lesser "Mike" Brad
Ward Peter Newton Mike Tanner                              John Hirsch Jim
Melton Howard Berkey michel@segin.com James Stricerz Joe Mac Ramiro Sarmiento
Jon Pugh Erik Hoel Wile E. Steven John Knezevich Peter Rigsbee  


Well, there you go. 

-Brian