Microsoftr Ants! FAQ For Windows 95 & 98 Written by William Sigler, Jr. (ssigler@prodigy.net) c1999 Please do not reproduce this without my permission. Also, please do not change ANYTHING! And if you do have my permission to copy this to your website, etc., GIVE ME CREDIT! Thank you. WHAT'S NEW? Revision 1.00: Everything! (2/3/99) CONTENTS 1. Where Can I Download It? 2. What Happened To The Other Ants? 3. How Do I Play? 4. How Do I Win? 5. Controls 6. Ants 7. Levels 8. Strategies 9. Credits 1. WHERE CAN I DOWNLOAD IT? Go to http://zone.msn.com/msn_home.asp, and click on `Games List'. Then scroll down to `Strategy Games', and click on `Ants'. Then, click on `Downloads', and then click on `Download Ants'. Now, follow the instructions to download the installation file. Open the file once it is done, and install the game. 2. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHER ANTS? This game is designed for multiplayer. Even though you can play the game on your own and check out the levels, there will be no competition. 3. HOW DO I PLAY? To play, you must set up an account with the site. It's free, and easy. Once you have done that, go back to the `Ants' menu, and click on one of the game rooms. Then, make a game, or join one, and then you can start playing after it is launched. 4. HOW DO I WIN? To win, you must gather food to get points. The person with the most points when time runs out wins. 5. CONTROLS To select an ant, click it. To move an ant, select it, then click it where you want to go. When you get a power-up, click the power-up button (next to move), and then click where you want to use it. To gather food, select your ant, and then click on the food to make it go and grab it, then return to your anthill to store it (It will do this until your ant is disturbed). To attack, select an ant, and click on an enemy ant. To ally, click on another person's anthill, and click team-up. He can either accept or decline your offer. When you are a thief ant, select him, and click it's power-up button, then click on an enemy's anthill. When you are a swim ant, select him, and click on your power- up button, then click in the water to build bridges. To destroy them, just repeat. And to hatch another ant, when you have 200 points, click on your anthill, and then on the hatch button. Shortly after, another ant will appear. 6. ANTS The attack level is out of 10, and I will show you the strengths of each of the ants, as well as telling you which levels they are on. -Regular Ant: Can be powered up. Attack: 8, Levels: Treasure, Islands, Medium, Gauntlet, Small, Tiny -Swim Ant: Can swim, and build bridges by clicking on the power-up button, and then clicking in the water where you want to build. To destroy it, repeat the same process. Attack: 6, Levels: Treasure, Islands, Gauntlet, Small -Fire Ant: Is immune to fire. Can create and put out Firewalls by clicking on it's power-up button, and clicking where you want to put it. To put it out, repeat the same process. Try firing the ant's hill. (Explained later) Attack: 7, Levels: Treasure, Medium, Islands, Gauntlet, Small -Bomb Ant: Can create bombs by clicking on the power-up button, and then clicking where you want to place it. To defuse bombs, repeat the same process. Try putting bombs around where you want protection. Also, put bombs around for offense, too. Attack: 6, Levels: Treasure, Medium, Islands, Gauntlet -Comb Ant: Is super strong, and when attacking, can send enemies flying 6-7 spaces! Hurts enemy twice as much. Also automatically attacks any enemy ant that gets too close. Get as many as possible! Attack: 10, Levels: Treasure, Medium, Gauntlet -Thief Ant: Can steal 50 points worth of the opponent's food, by clicking on the power-up button, and then on the enemy's anthill. Get them before your opponent does. It can take four bombs before it dies. Attack: 7, Levels: Treasure, Islands, Gauntlet, Small 7. LEVELS -Gauntlet: (10 minutes, 6 starting ants, 12 maximum ants, Power-ups: Comb Ant Belt, Bomber Goggles, Diver Mask, Thief Bandanna, Fire Helmet, Food: Banana- cherry Jell-O-15 points) Send your ants to the large gelatin. Also, send your ants to get the Comb Ant belts, then send them to get food, so when the enemy tries to get food, they will be whacked (But also tell them to get/store food after they attack). Also, get a Fire Ant, and put a fire around the enemy's hill, so they can't get in or out. Then, also get a thief and keep stealing their food. Also, open a section of the fire and put two Comb Ants there, and when new ants hatch, tell them to attack it. Eventually, you will claim victory. -Treasure: (12 minutes, 6 starting ants, 15 maximum ants, Power-ups: Comb Ant Belt, Bomber Goggles, Thief Bandanna, Diver Mask, Fire Helmet, Food: Candy-30 points, Cheese Cracker-25 points, Potted Meal-20 points, Chicken Leg-15 points, Critter Cola-15 points, Choco-Fishy Snax-25 points, Pizza! In a Tube- 20 points, Steak Whiz-25 points) Know your opponent's strategy. If your opponent likes to fire your anthill, have two Fire Ants. Most opponents like to get Bomb Ants or Comb Ants. So, get some Thief Ants, and Comb Ants. Take two ants, and get the Thief Bandanna at the top or bottom, then do it again with two other ants at the opposite side. Then steal with your Thieves, and get food with your Comb Ants. They will attack automatically, so remind them to keep going once they finish. A Thief can take four bombs before dying. If a Bomb Ant places a bomb next to his base, hit him onto it, and if he doesn't blow out of your way finish him off. Once he is out of the way, keep stealing. Take the rest of your ants, and make it so you have two Comb Ants and Thief Ants, and one Fire Ant and Bomb Ant. Also, take your Fire Ant, and fire his hill. (Surrounding the entrance to his hill with fire.) If he has some Fire Ants, put bombs around instead. Also, if your opponent is black or red, you could knock them into the water. Also, if your opponent is way ahead, take all the thieves on the map, then steal with all of them. You should be able to take away 200 points at a time with this! Also, fire the hill, and knock away all his ants with Comb Ants. Also, any other ants you could spare could help the Comb Ants. Also, if you are in a really close game, change them all (Except thieves) to divers, and grab the things at the top if you are green, and the bottom if you are red. If the food at the bottom runs out, grab the food to the left. You should also be stealing. -Tiny: (6 minutes, 3 starting ants, 6 maximum ants, Power-ups: None, Food: Candy-30 points, Gummi Worms-20 points) Tell your ants to get separate candies in the center. (NEVER go to the Gummi Worms, unless the candies have run out.) If your opponent hatches some eggs, you should hatch one too, then attack the enemy ants at the center with the newly hatched one. Also, try to lure the other ants away with your ants if possible. Remember that you should always watch your ants in the center, the candies WILL run out. Once it all runs out, get the Gummi Worms. -Small: (8 minutes, 4 starting ants, 6 maximum ants, Power-ups: Fire Helmet, Diver Mask, Bomber Goggles, Food: Pretzel-25 points, Lollipop-20 points) Get some of your ants to get the pretzel, while the others grab the power-ups. Lay bombs around your food, and the enemy's ants will start to blow up. Once they hit it, hit them into the water. Also, fire the enemy's anthill, and surround the flowers that drop power-ups with bombs, or more fire. When your pretzels run out, get the other ones, and if you don't need Bomb and Fire Ants for protection, change your ants into divers so they can get them faster. If your opponent is surrounding his food with bombs or fire, put it out, and knock his out into the water. Also, attack ants whenever possible. -Medium: (10 minutes, 6 starting ants, 12 maximum ants, Power-ups: Comb Ant Belt, Fire Helmet, Thief Bandanna, Bomber Goggles, Food: Hamburger-10 points, Fried Eggs-20 points, Corn Dog-15 points, Chocolate Bar-20 points) Select all your ants, and tell them to go to the middle. Tell the three ants in the back to get the food that is not surrounded by the water. Tell your ants to get power-ups. If you get a thief, tell him to steal the opponent's food, and if you get a Fire Ant, tell him to get the food the other three are getting. Bring one or two Comb Ants to the enemy hill, and hit the enemy ants into the water. Also, kill all Fire Ants of your opponent's, then take your own, and fire his hill except for one square. Then, as the ants are hatched, knock them into the water. Also, always be stealing. Keep doing this to win. -Islands: (12 minutes, 8 starting ants, 12 maximum ants, Power-ups: Dive Mask, Fire Helmet, Thief Bandanna, Bomber Goggles, Food: Candy- 30 points, Alphabet Candy-20 points, Twinkie-20 points) For the other ants besides green, just change the directions around so you are going the right way. Tell your ants to get the bomber goggles. Tell the bomber on the first island to set a bomb so it is on the left side, near the next island. Now place an ant in front of it, and blow it to the next island. Now make the next bomber place a bomb, so that it will blow the ant to the island above. Now, after your ant is on that island, place a bomb just above the flowers on the left, so that it will blow your ant diagonally, to the mainland. After your ant is here, grab the Fire Helmet, and then grab the next, now grab the Swim Masks, then the helmets, then circle back around, and keep going through until you come out with a Swim Mask. Now, build 2 or 3 lane bridges, and tell your ants to get the candy. Be sure to check the bridges often, because eventually, they will sink. After the candy runs out, build a bridge to the mainland, and tell your ants to get the Alphabet Candy. Also, get some Fire Ants, then make a bridge over to the enemy, fire their hill, destroy their bridges, and kill their ants. Now unfire one square of their hill, and when new ants hatch, knock them into the water, while your other ants are gathering food. Also, you could grab a Thief Bandanna, and start stealing. Also, put fire around their power-ups, and guard them to make sure Fire Ants can't put it out. Also bring a Fire Ant to keep the fire alive. Also, either steal their food, or block them from using it. So, you could put fire around the Twinkie, and steal their candy, or vice- versa, or steal both, fire both, and so on. The same goes with the Alphabet and regular candy. 8. STRATEGIES -If you need more ants, hatch them at your anthill when you get 200 points. -If you need help fighting, send a couple of Comb Ants along. -Secure all the food, power-ups, etc. that you can. -Use the geography to your advantage. -Team up if possible. -Fire your opponent's hill, or leave one square open, then kill the newly hatched ants. -Try to aim enemy ants for the water. -Surround your food door with fire and bombs. Keep guard with a Fire Ant and a Bomb Ant to make sure it isn't put out. -Always keep gathering food. -When you steal, you take away 50 points from your opponent, as well as gain 50 points when you return to your anthill! -Every time you kill an enemy ant, he loses 200 points! -Try to play with people your own skill level. -If you are always losing because of a certain type of ant your enemy uses, pick a level that doesn't have that ant! Tiny doesn't have any power-ups. -Go for the food that gives more points. -Try to create shortcuts whenever possible. -To heal your ant, send him back into the anthill. -Practice hard, and develop a strategy, and you shall become a master. 9. CREDITS William Sigler, Jr. (ssigler@prodigy.net) I made the FAQ! Bandit (http://ants.hypermart.net) (bandit05@hotmail.com) I used his strategy guide on his website for a lot of stuff. Microsoft Internet Gaming Zone (http://zone.msn.com/msn_home.asp) I used this site to download the game, play the game, and get some tips.