Contents

INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 4
QUICK START .............................................................................................. 4
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................... 4
BEFORE THE GAME .................................................................................... 5
MAIN MENU ................................................................................................ 5
SINGLE PLAYER .................................................................................... 6
MULTIPLAYER ..................................................................................... 8
SETTINGS ........................................................................................... 12
INTERFACE ................................................................................................ 13
THE OBJECTIVES SCREEN ................................................................. 13
THE STRATEGIC MAP ....................................................................... 14
THE TACTICAL MAP ......................................................................... 15
ORDERS .............................................................................................. 15
THE VEHICLE STATUS DIAGRAM .................................................... 19
BONUSES ............................................................................................ 19
THE GAME CONTROLS ............................................................................ 20
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS .................................................................. 20
CAMERA MOVEMENT ...................................................................... 21
COMMANDING THE TROOPS .................................................................. 22
THE HEALTH BAR ............................................................................. 23
ICONS ................................................................................................. 24
TROOPS AND ARMAMENT ..................................................................... 24
INFANTRY ........................................................................................... 24
ARTILLERY ......................................................................................... 26
TRANSPORTATION TRUCKS AND APCS ......................................... 27
TANKS ................................................................................................ 28
SHIPS ................................................................................................... 28
TRAINS ............................................................................................... 29
PLANES ............................................................................................... 29
OTHER OBJECTS ................................................................................ 30
THE GAME SYSTEM ................................................................................. 31
UNIT PARAMETERS .......................................................................... 31
HEALTH .............................................................................................. 31

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 AI BEHAVIOR ..................................................................................... 31
ARMOR AND STRUCTURE ............................................................... 32
CREW AND GUN SQUADS ................................................................ 33
FIELD OF VIEW .................................................................................. 33
SPEED OF MOVEMENT ...................................................................... 33
EXPERIENCE ....................................................................................... 33
USEFUL HINTS .......................................................................................... 34
EXPLORE, RECONNOITRE AND DON'T FORGET TO CARRY OUT
RECONNAISSANCE ........................................................................... 34
TANKS AND INFANTRY .................................................................... 34
FIGHTING ENTRENCHED INFANTRY ............................................... 34
USE ABANDONED VEHICLES ........................................................... 34
MOVE OR CARRY OUT ASSAULT? ................................................... 35
WHY DO MY TROOPS NOT CARRY OUT MY COMMANDS? ........ 35
FOR HARDCORE PLAYERS ................................................................ 35
LET THE TROOPS ACT ON THEIR OWN .......................................... 35
BOXES AND BARRELS ...................................................................... 35
HELP AND SUPPORT ................................................................................. 36
THE SUDDEN STRIKE WEB SITE ...................................................... 36
E-MAIL SUPPORT ............................................................................... 36

3
INTRODUCTION
Sudden Strike III: Arms for Victory is a new addition to the Sudden Strike
Series. This strategy game is based on the events of World War II in a few
battle sites. Vehicles, armament and other objects in the game are designed to
resemble their prototypes which participated in the real battles. You will have
hundreds of tanks, numerous aircraft and ships, battalions of infantry and
substantial artillery. Your enemy will have the advantage of numbers and/or
operational benefits. You will have to deal with strategic and tactical tasks,
sometimes fighting in a few distant locations at the same time, being able to
control your army as a whole or a single unit with ease.

QUICK START
After installation, click on the Sudden Strike III icon on your desktop. You can
also run the game from the Start menu by selecting the Fireglow Games group,
and then clicking on Sudden Strike III in it.
We recommend completing the tutorial before undertaking a campaign. To run
it, please open the SINGLE PLAYER menu, choose the CUSTOM SCENARIO
option and click on Sudden Strike III Tutorial.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
To avoid compatibility issues, we recommend updating your sound and video
drivers to the latest version.

PC requirements Minimal Recommended configuration

configuration

Operating system Windows XP® Windows XP®

Windows Vista®
DirectX version DirectX 9.0c DirectX 9.0c or higher
CPU Athlon 3200+ Athlon 3500+
Pentium IV 2.8gHz Pentium IV 3.2gHz
Video card Radeon 9800 Radeon X800
GeForce 6600 GeForce 6800
RAM 1Gb 2Gb
Hard disk 1Gb 1Gb
Sound card OpenAL-compatible OpenAL-compatible, 5.1

4
BEFORE THE GAME
Place the Sudden Strike III DVD in your DVD ROM drive. The installation
program should start automatically.
If this is not the case, your DVD ROM autoplay function has probably been
deactivated. If so, the installation program may be started by double clicking
the program Setup.exe on the Sudden Strike III DVD.
Follow the on-screen instructions. When the installation has been completed,
Sudden Strike III can be started by clicking on the icon on your desktop or
from the Windows® Start menu.

Installing DirectX
To run, Sudden Strike III requires Microsoft DirectX 9.0c or higher. During the
set-up process, the version of DirectX will be checked and, if there is an older
version installed on your PC, you will be asked to update your current ver-
sion. Please select "Yes" when the installation program asks you to update
DirectX or otherwise the game may not function properly.

Copy protection
To function properly, the original DVD of Sudden Strike III: Arms for Victory
needs to be placed in your DVD ROM drive while you play.

MAIN MENU
When running the game for the first time,
you will be asked to create a player profile.
Please enter a name and click the CREATE
button. Another menu will open:

5
SINGLE PLAYER
Select this menu if you would like to begin a campaign or custom scenario,
choose another campaign or load a previously saved game.
MULTIPLAYER
Select this menu to begin a LAN game or play on the internet. You can create
your own server or join a game. Please read the corresponding section below.
SETTINGS
Select this to adjust the game settings.
HALL OF FAME
This menu allows you to view the statistics of completed campaigns, custom
scenarios and multiplayer games. You also can learn about the authors of the
game here.
EXIT TO WINDOWS
By selecting this option you can leave the game. You can close the application
at any time by pressing Alt+F4.
You will see the version of your game in the top left corner of the screen. This
is necessary to provide you with support.

SINGLE PLAYER
Select this menu if you would like to begin a campaign
or custom scenario, choose another campaign or load a
previously saved game.
There are five campaigns. Having chosen one of them,
the player will be participating in the greatest battles of
World War II. This menu consists of the following
choices:

6
NEW GAME
Select this menu to begin a campaign or a cus-
tom scenario.
When you choose "CAMPAIGN" or "CUS-
TOM SCENARIO", a selection screen ap-
pears. To the left is a list of campaigns or cus-
tom scenarios, left-click on it to highlight an
item. In the top right corner of the screen you
will see the information about currently high-
lighted campaigns or custom scenarios. Be-
low to the right is a "START" button. Click on it to start the first mission of the
highlighted campaign or custom scenario.
The "BACK" button to the left will take you to the previous menu.
In Sudden Strike III you can take part in the following campaigns:

There is a tutorial mission which is one of the custom scenarios.

LOAD
Select this option in order to load a previously saved game. This will take you
to the selection screen where you can select one of your saved games. High-
light a saved game then press the "LOAD" button in the lower right corner of
the screen. In the top right corner of the screen you will see the information
window regarding the selected saved game.
The game is saved automatically at the beginning of each mission.
Under the list of saved games you will find the "DELETE" button. These will
delete the highlighted game.
The "BACK" button in the lower left corner of the screen will take you to the
previous screen.

7
SAVE
This menu is available when a mission is in progress.
1. Type the name of the saved game into the input window at the top
left corner of the screen.
2. In the lower right corner you will find a "SAVE" button. Click on it to
save the game under its current name.
Under the list of saved games you will find the "DELETE" button. This will
delete the highlighted game.

REPLAY
In Sudden Strike III you can replay a previously recorded game. Highlight a
recorded game in the list then click on the "LOAD" button in the lower right
corner of the screen.
Under the list of saved games you will find the "DELETE" button. This will
delete the highlighted record.
The "BACK" button in the lower left corner of the screen will take you to the
previous menu.

MAIN MENU
This option will return you to the main menu. If there's a game in progress, you
will be asked whether you would like to stop playing or not.

MULTIPLAYER
In the multiplayer menu you can create a new game or
join an already existing game. The following menu will
appear:

8
CREATING A GAME
Select the CREATE option to host a game. A list of available maps will appear.
Highlight a map to see its description and preview to the right. Double-click
on the highlighted map or press the CREATE button in the bottom right
corner of the screen to host the game. Others can now join you.
If you are hosting a game, you can get rid of unwanted players. When the
teams are formed and everyone is ready, you will be able to start the game.

JOINING A GAME
Select JOIN to connect to a server.
Wait a few seconds to view the servers on your local network. The time
depends on the performance of your LAN. Sudden Strike III will look for
servers on your LAN and, if there are any, you will see the list of the games.
Select a game from the list to read the information about it. If you would like to
join the game, double-click on the highlighted game or press the JOIN button.
If you know the IP address of the server, enter it in the input field at the bottom
of the screen and click on the JOIN button.
The IP address must have four number groups, separated by dots, for example
192.168.0.1
It can happen that settings of the Windows® built-in firewall or other soft-
ware disable connections with a server located beyond the address space of
your network. To solve such a problem, please ask your network administrator
to help.
Sudden Strike III utilises the following network ports:
Protocol Port
UDP 14816

PLAYING VIA GAMESPY

You can also take advantage of the GameSpy matchmaking service to host a
game and find other players. You will find more about GameSpy at
www.gamespyarcade.com

9
THE MULTIPLAYER LOBBY
When you have hosted a game or joined a server, you will be taken to the
multilayer lobby. Here you will select a team and configure the colour and
country to fight for.
All the players who have already joined the game (yourself included) are
shown in this screen. Each player has to select a team (the possible choices
are the blue Team and red Team), one of the eight colours, one of the five
countries and then indicate they are ready.

SELECT A COUNTRY
In Sudden Strike III you can select one of the following countries:
The UK
Germany
The USA
USSR
Japan
The reinforcements you will receive during the game depend on this choice.
You also can select a random country.

CHOOSE YOUR COLOUR

In Sudden Strike III the colour of the player defines the initial location on the
map and the place where reinforcements appear.
If you would like to be dropped at a random location, select a question mark
instead of a colour.

CHOOSE A TEAM
In Sudden Strike III you can play for either the blue or red team. The colour of
the player is not bound to the colour of the team, but it's logical to distribute
the players in teams as follows:

10
 BLUE TEAM RED TEAM
BLUE RED
CYAN BROWNISH
WHITE ORANGE
MAGENTA YELLOW

THE CHAT WINDOW

In this window you can communicate with the other players waiting for start
of the game. Type a message in the input line and hit Enter to send.

ARE YOU READY?

When you are ready, light a green indicator in the uppermost line (the one with
your name). If you didn't select your colour & country, these will be assigned
randomly.
If you would like to change your colour or country, we recommend you turn
off the 'ready' indicator. The game will commence only if all participants
are ready.

THE RULES OF THE GAME

The minimum number of players is 2, the maximum is 8. The players are split
into two teams. The objective of each mission is described in the information
window when joining or hosting a game, and in the 'Objectives' screen (hit F9
to examine your objectives). Usually the task is to capture all, or certain, flags
on the map. A team is defeated when it loses all its flags.
The flags are marked with circles on the 3D map. They are shown as animated
target icons on the mini-map and strategic map. In the 'Objectives' screen each
is represented as a colour square.
To capture a flag, you must deploy your forces near it and keep at least one
unit nearby. A timer will be shown and a countdown will start. When the
countdown finishes, the flag is captured by your team and reinforcements
should appear. Please note: when no friendly units occupy the flag, the timer
resets.

11
 To take an enemy flag, eliminate all enemy units
nearby and leave a few units to guard the flag while
the countdown is in progress.
Capturing a flag can give a team additional rein-
forcements, once or periodically, depending on the
map. In some multiplayer levels varied reinforce-
ments will be given for different combinations of
flags, for example each single flag gives you a small
squad of infantry but combined together they will
give you a heavy tank platoon. Also, flags can provide a bonus like an artillery
strike or air raid.
You can send your party an alarm. To do this in the game, open the chat by
clicking on Enter then enter your message and click on the desired spot on
the mini-map. The coordinates will be added to your message. Press Enter
to confirm the message and your friends will see the mark on the same spot
of the mini-map. To move the camera to that spot, press Space. You must
wait at least 15 seconds to send another message.

SETTINGS

PLAYER PROFILE
You can select, add or remove a player's profile. All your settings are placed in
it, including saved games, screenshots etc.
GAME SETTINGS
Save replay: when this option is on, the game will be recorded. Later
you can replay it from the REPLAY menu.
Game speed: you can adjust the speed with this slider. This option is
not available when a replay is being recorded.
Scrolling speed: speeds up or slows down the camera movement
and zooming speed.
Difficulty level: this switch doesn't affect any mission in progress
and should be adjusted before you start.
Keyboard shortcuts can be switched to Classical RTS or Sudden
Strike. In the Sudden Strike mode, the "Q", "W", E"", "R" keys are

12
 mapped to the first row of the order panel. In the Classical RTS mode,
"A" is connected to Attack, M to Move and so on.
GRAPHICS SETTINGS
Gamma Correction changes the brightness of the picture. Adjust
this setting if the screen seems too dark or too bright.
Graphics setting switches the level of detail to provide, depending
on your choice, the fastest possible output or the most realistic
picture. If you have time lags while playing, we recommend you
switch this setting for best performance.
Screen resolution supports all resolutions from 800x600 to the maxi-
mum available on your PC. We recommend you set the native resolu-
tion of your monitor for best results.

SOUND SETTINGS
You can adjust the levels of music, sound effects and voices. The game sup-
ports 5.1 OpenAL-compatible devices.

INTERFACE

THE OBJECTIVES SCREEN

Before starting a mission, the Objectives screen will appear for a short brief-
ing. It will introduce the mission objectives and strategic information pro-
vided by the High Command regarding the location of your troops and ex-
pected enemy forces.
The mission objectives are marked with numbers in squares. You can select an
objective by clicking on it with the left mouse button and read the details in
the window to the right.
To begin, click on the START button in the lower right corner of the screen. At
any point during the game you can open the Objectives screen to check your
tasks by pressing F9.

13
THE STRATEGIC MAP
To activate strategic mode, use the Tab key or the upper button found on the
right side of the mini-map.
On the Strategic Map screen you can view the locations of your troops and
visible enemy units, as well as strategic objects.
Some of the strategic objects can be controlled from the strategic map.
Objects such as carriers, battleships, radars and airfields have special icons.
Select the desired object with the left mouse button. A menu will appear on the
right side of the screen. Most of the objects have two commands: Attack
Ground and Cancel. To shell a location, select the Attack Ground command
and click on the desired point with the left mouse button. A mark will appear
and the strategic object will begin to operate. Click on the Cancel button if you
have to stop the strike.
If you choose a carrier or airfield, a list of available planes will appear above
the menu. To add a plane to the flight operations plan, click on a plane with the
left mouse button. To remove a plane from the plan, use the right mouse
button. When you are prepared to launch an air strike, select the Take Off
command and planes will begin to take off one by one. Use the Cancel button
to stop them.
Double click on an object to view it. The screen will switch to the 3D map
and the camera will show the object.
Attention! Do not attack your own forces. It takes time for a plane to take off
or for a gun tower to take aim. Within this period of time, some of your units
can approach the target location and come under friendly fire.
To switch back from the strategic map, you can use the tab or escape keys or
click on the BACK button. You can also double click on a point on the map.
The screen will switch to the 3D map and the camera will move to the location
you have pinpointed.
The tab key switches the screen between the 3D map and the current strate-
gic screen. The strategic screens are OBJECTIVES and STRATEGIC MAP.
You can also use F9 and F10 to call up these screens.

14
THE TACTICAL MAP
The tactical map, or mini-map window, is located
at the bottom of the screen to the left. This map
helps you to navigate. To move the camera to a
location, just click on the desired point with the
left mouse button. You can also order your troops
to move or fire at the location by clicking on the
mini-map with the right mouse button.
The mini-map can operate in two modes. In the
first mode, the projection of the camera moves
over the static map. In the second the camera remains static while the map is
rotated.

ORDERS
The Order panel is located at the bottom of the screen to the right. All the
available orders are listed below. The keys mentioned in this section will work
if the keyboard shortcuts in the Settings screen are set to Sudden Strike.

MOVE TO POINT
This order sends troops to the designated location.
Having selected one or more units, right-click on the desired loca-
tion on the 3D or mini-map to make them move to the respective
location on the terrain.
The artillery can be commanded to move only a very short distance.
The order of troops at the target location copies their starting ar-
rangement. To move the troops closer, hold down the Ctrl key while
clicking on the right mouse button.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is Q.

15
ATTACK
This command makes your troops attack a certain enemy unit.
Having selected one or more units, place the cursor over an enemy.
The cursor should turn into a target icon. Right-click on the enemy
to confirm the attack.
In some cases the cursor can turn into a target with yellow strokes.
The outer strokes mean the range is too big for any of the selected
units to shoot. The inner strokes indicate the target is in the dead
zone.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is W.

ASSAULT
This command is similar to MOVE TO POINT. The difference is that
your troops cease to move once they see an enemy unit within reach
and attack it until it's destroyed. The troops will then continue ad-
vancing towards the target position.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is E.

ROTATE
This command turns the selected units in the desired direction. This
helps to save extra time for attack.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is R.

UNLOAD PASSENGERS / UNLOAD CARGO /

DETACH THE GUN
This command is only available for transportation like trucks or APCs.
If there are passengers inside the transportation and a gun is at-
tached to it, the first UNLOAD command will detach the gun and the
second will unload the passengers. To unload a certain crew or pas-
senger, click on his portrait which is shown just above the status
line.
To unload passengers, the gun must be detached first. The crew

16
cannot be unloaded while passengers remain in the vehicle.
The command also unloads the garrison from houses.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is A.
Please note this command takes effect immediately and cannot be
delayed.

ATTACK GROUND
This command comes in useful when shelling numerous enemy units
and entrenched infantry in particular.
Having selected one or more units, place the cursor over an enemy
and double-right click on it.
This is the default command for howitzers, mortars and field can-
nons.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is S.

SCATTER
This command disbands a tight formation of infantry. We recom-
mend you use this command when hiding an infantry squad in the
woods or in a village. At least two soldiers must be within the se-
lected units.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is D.
Please note this command takes effect immediately and cannot be
delayed.

SUPPLY / REFUEL
This command designates a certain vehicle which should be resup-
plied or refueled. In most cases supply vehicles and tankers suc-
cessfully act on their own.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is F.

17
USE BINOCULARS OR TELESCOPE
Some infantry units in Sudden Strike III, such as officers and snip-
ers, have binoculars or telescopes. By using binoculars or a tele-
scope, you can extend the field of view in the desired direction.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is Z.

LAY A MINE
Use this command when setting up mine fields. The fuse charge can
be activated by any unit.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is also Z.

SEARCH FOR MINES / DISCHARGE MINES

Use this command once to search for mines. To discharge the mines,
if any, use this command again.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is X.

HEAL
Use this command to heal the wounded manually. Injuries to the
most valuable units, such as officers or specialists, must be attended
to as a priority.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is C.

REPAIR A VEHICLE
Use this command to repair damaged vehicles manually.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is also C.

STOP / CANCEL
The keyboard shortcut for this command is V.

18
 FIX A BRIDGE / FIX RAILS
Having selected a sapper, place the cursor over a destroyed bridge
or broken rails. The cursor will turn into a hammer. Right-click to
confirm the command.
The keyboard shortcut for this command is also C.

THE VEHICLE STATUS DIAGRAM

This diagram appears just above the command panel. To
show it, place the cursor over any vehicle or cannon. The
diagram shows the level of damage to all parts of a vehicle or
cannon, crew or gun squad and armament.

BONUSES
In some missions you are given bonuses. These are the vertically stacked
icons in the upper left corner of the screen. Place the cursor over such a bonus
and examine the status line to see what it is. You will see a short description of
the bonus. To use it, left-click on the icon then right-click on the target loca-
tion. To cancel, left-click on the bonus again.

Artillery strike
This bonus calls an artillery strike to a certain point. In a few sec-
onds, 10 shells will hit the target. This is useful against a tight forma-
tion of units.
Planes
Planes can be scout aircraft, attack planes or bombers. Before send-
ing the planes, make sure they are not within reach of air defence
units.

19
 Designate a target for the Navy
When you have big ships under your command, you can use this
bonus to shell a location. A white animated cross and the message
"TARGET DESIGNATED" should appear at the target location. Ships
should shell the point for 1 minute.
Message
Click on the envelope icon. A message box will open. Read it and
click on OK.

THE GAME CONTROLS

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
To get help on keyboard shortcuts when playing, hit F1. The table below
contains the default shortcuts. You can always turn them on by selecting
Sudden Strike mode in the SETTINGS screen.

KEY ACTION KEY ACTION

F1 Help Space Camera to place of

attack

F2 Quick save Alt Show unit icons

F3 Quick load CapsLock Turn on unit icons

Ctrl+F5 - Ctrl+F8 Save camera location Enter Open chat /

/confirm msg

F5 - F8 Restore camera loca- BackSpace Transfer troops to an

tion ally

F9 Objectives screen Tab Toggle strategic

screen

F10 Strategic map Hold \ Show score

Ctrl+0 - Ctrl+9 Assign units +/ - Game speed

to a group

0-9 Recall a group Shift Queue order

20
 KEY ACTION KEY ACTION

0 - 9, double hit Move camera Q, W, E, R Keys are mapped to

to a group A, S, D, F the respective slots
Z, X, C, V on the Command
panel

Comma Hold move Y, U, I, O, P Select specialists

Dot Hold fire Pause, Pause, make screen

Print Screen shot

/ Cycle behaviour

Apostrophe Mini-map mode

CAMERA MOVEMENT
You can move the camera by one of the following means:
- driving the cursor to the edge of the screen
- hitting cursor keys (arrows)
- double-left clicking on the desired spot of the mini-map
- holding down the Ctrl key together with the left mouse button and
dragging the screen
- calling one of the saved camera locations connected to one of the
F5, F6, F7 or F8 keys
To zoom, roll the mouse wheel. To change the angle of view, press the mouse
wheel and move the mouse to incline the camera.
To move the camera to the place where your units were attacked for the last
time, hit the Space key.
To save the current camera view in one of the four slots, use Ctrl+F5 -
Ctrl+F8.

21
COMMANDING THE TROOPS
To issue a command, you always do the three following steps:
1. Select the troops.
2. Give a command.
3. Confirm your command with a right-click*
* Some orders, like SCATTER or CANCEL, take effect immediately and do
not need to be confirmed.

Step 1. Select the troops

The selected troops have a selection bar above them (which is also called
"health bar"). To select the troops, do one of the following:
1. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the cursor.
2. Place the cursor over a unit (tank, soldier etc.) and left-click. (Hold
down shift to add units to the current selection).
3. Recall a previously assigned group by hitting a digit key.
4. Double-left click to select all units of the same type (i.e. double-click
a rifleman and all riflemen will be selected).
5. Hold down the Ctrl key and double-left click to select all units of the
same class (i.e. double-click a rifleman and all soldiers will be se-
lected).
To assign troops to a group, hold down the Ctrl key and hit a digit key. A small
digit will appear near each unit in the group. You can recall the group later by
pressing this digit. To view the group on the 3D map, double-click on the digit.

Step 2. Issue an command

You can give a context command by selecting the troops and placing the
cursor over an object or location. If the cursor changes, it means the context
command is available. To issue a context command, confirm it with a right-click
on the 3D map or mini-map.
If you would like to issue a certain command, you can select it by clicking on
its icon on the Commands panel or pressing the matching key (see ORDERS
section). You should confirm the command with a right-click.

22
Step 3. Confirm your command
To confirm your command, you should right-click on the desired object or
location.
When the command is confirmed and accepted, you can see a small a small
animated circle on the 3D map and mini-map.
If you would like to issue a sequence of commands, hold down the Shift key
while confirming the commands. While holding the Shift key, you can see the
queue of commands on the 3D map.

THE HEALTH BAR

The health bar indicator consists of 5 colour stripes, shown above the se-
lected troops. The stripes indicate the following parameters:
- The bottom stripe is showing the percentage of health. The stripe is
green if the percentage of health is between 50% and 100%, yellow if
between 33% and 50% and red if less than 33%.
- The orange stripe represents the percentage of fuel. Vehicles can't
move without fuel. When a unit is low on fuel, it gives a warning.
When the fuel tank is empty, the unit cannot move and its icon
flashes.
- The magenta stripe shows the experience points. Read more about
this parameter in the GAME SYSTEM chapter.
- The upper yellow stripe represents the primary ammunition This am-
munition is used for the main gun or weapon. When a unit is out of
primary ammunition, its icon flashes.
- The lower yellow stripe represents the secondary ammunition (such
as grenades for soldiers and machine gun ammunition for tanks).
You also can view the status of a unit without selection by placing the cursor
over it. All of the 5 parameters are also presented in form of numbers in the
status line.

23
ICONS
To help the player, each type of unit in the game has its own icon. To view the
icons, hold down the Alt key. To turn them on permanently, hit the CapsLock
key. Soldiers have square icons. Vehicles have coloured triangles instead.
Their colours mean the following:
- Red indicates artillery, be it a regular field gun, howitzer, air defence
or self-propelled gun.
- Orange indicates supply vehicles and tankers.
- Cyan indicates transport ships, trucks and APCs.
- Green indicates tanks and armoured vehicles.

TROOPS AND ARMAMENT

INFANTRY
This is the basic fighting unit in the game. Soldiers can occupy houses and
trenches, carry out reconnaissance, drive various vehicles, repair objects and
form gun squads.

RIFLEMEN, SUBMACHINE AND MACHINE GUNNERS

These soldiers are equipped with firearms and grenades. They can elimi-
nate the enemy infantry and light armoured vehicles. Sometimes these
soldiers can destroy enemy tanks within reach of their grenades. Rifle-
men and snipers have a longer range than machine gunners. Submachine
gunners have the shortest range, but good moving speed and rate of
fire.

OFFICER
Officers are equipped with binoculars. It helps them to observe the
surroundings. When attacking, be sure to send a surveillance patrol,
consisting of an officer and a few soldiers. The officer will use binocu-
lars, while the rest of the squad are keep a lookout.

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MEDIC
Medics can administer first aid to the wounded. Unfortunately, unlike a
mobile hospital, a single medic cannot help a large number of wounded
soldiers.

CREW
Only crew and mechanics can drive vehicles.

MECHANIC
Mechanics can drive or repair any vehicle. They are also awarded expe-
rience points for that.

AT UNIT
Equipped with an anti-tank rifle or a rocket launcher, these soldiers are
very useful against armoured vehicles. Rocket launchers cause more
damage but reveal the personnel with a thick white smoke. AT rifles are
good against light and medium tanks. Heavy armament reduces the agility of
these soldiers.

SAPPER
Sappers, also referred to as engineers, can set mine fields or disarm
mines, repair bridges and railroads.

MARINES
Marines are tougher and more agile than other soldiers.

FLAMETHROWER
Flamethrowers cause considerable damage to the enemy, but have a
very short range of fire.

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ARTILLERY
Various types of artillery in the game carry out different tasks. Anti-tank artil-
lery is good when fighting against armoured troops, long-range artillery is
good for softening up, self-propelled guns support assaulting tanks, air de-
fence artillery protects the ground forces from enemy aircrafts.

AIR DEFENSE
Anti-aircraft gun mounts and mobile AA guns. In the first in-
stance they protect the ground against aircraft. They can be
guided by a radar to speed up aiming. These powerful and rapid
firing guns are also very good when it comes to engaging in a
battle with tanks. The disadvantage of big AA guns is their
weight which does not allow the gun squad to move the gun without the help
of a truck.

FIELD GUNS
These guns can shoot using either a direct or ballistic path to
stop a tank, or to get rid of entrenched infantry.

HOWITZERS
Howitzers fire shells only along a ballistic path. A massive bom-
bardment can make the enemy panic, eliminating a pack of units
in a few seconds. On the other hand, they use so much ammuni-
tion that you have to set up an ammunition depot nearby. The
howitzers cannot defend themselves against the enemy in their dead zone.

MORTARS
Mortars are useful for attacking the enemy within medium range
on rugged terrain.

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ROCKET LAUNCHERS
This is a very effective weapon. By the intensity of fire a single
rocket launcher can overcome a battery of howitzers. The prob-
lem here is that a rocket launcher uses even more ammunition.

SELF-PROPELLED GUNS
SPGs are more agile than tanks and have better firepower. SPGs
also usually have an open fighting compartment and are equipped
with thinner armour than tanks of the same class. Please take
into account that an SPG with a broken thread is a helpless
target.

NAVAL AND COASTAL ARTILLERY

These are paired or triple guns of large calibre, mounted under
the thickest armour. Their firepower is amazing. They are very
tough but the disadvantage here is that coastal turrets are static,
and the ships themselves represent very good targets.

TRANSPORTATION TRUCKS AND APCS

To increase the mobility of your infantry, it is recommended you use trucks
and APCs when transferring infantry squads. Trucks and some APCs can also
tow a gun. To attach a gun, make sure there is enough space for the gun squad
in the truck.

ARMORED CARS, JEEPS AND MOTORCYCLES

Use these vehicles to carry out reconnaissance. When the en-
emy is located, fall back at once. Jeeps and armoured cars are
useful for destroying the ammunition depots and supply ve-
hicles to the enemy's rear and carrying out raids.

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SUPPLY VEHICLES
Use supply vehicles to provide ammunition when it is
needed. Take precautionary measures to keep the supply
trucks and tankers out of enemy reach because they can
destroy troops nearby if they explode. Supply vehicles
can unload the ammunition to provide a depot near a gun. In this case the gun
will be able to load the ammunition directly from the depot. Likewise, the
tankers can unload the fuel for depots.

TANKS
Combination of mobility, armour and firepower make tanks irre-
placeable in assault. Try not to loose just one of these benefits
in the battle. Repair your vehicles promptly. Do not forget the
wounded crew. Place experienced crew in tanks as this will give
you better rate and accuracy of fire.
- Light tanks are best for reconnaissance, because they are
mobile but vulnerable to grenades and AT rifles.
- Medium tanks are all-purpose
- Heavy tanks are slow. Use them in ambushes.

SHIPS
The naval operations play an important role in Sudden Strike III. Most of the
campaigns begin from a landing. The reinforcements are provided by sea. The
big ships are controlled from the strategic map.

BOATS
The boats are used to land the troops at the coast.

TRANSPORT SHIPS
Reinforcements also can be brought by the transport ships.
Some ships can dock in ports. Some ships can land to
unload the cargo directly at the coast.

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BATTLESHIPS
Support of a battleship and moreover, a
naval squadron, can affect the outcome
of a ground operation. Such vessels can
be destroyed but only with a massive bombardment or several air raids.

CARRIERS
The carriers can be controlled from the
strategic map. Besides the planes on
the flight deck, there are more aircrafts
in the hangar. Select the desired num-
ber of planes and send them wherever
necessary. When the flight plan is fulfilled, the planes will return to land on the
carrier.

TRAINS
Trains bring the reinforcements. If the railway is dam-
aged, it is necessary to bring in the sappers to carry
out repairs.

PLANES
In Sudden Strike III there are three types of the planes. These
are scouts, attack planes and bombers. The planes can take off
from an airfield or carrier. They also can be sent from outside the
map. When sending a plane, make sure it will not be hit by the
enemy air defences.

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OTHER OBJECTS
BUILDINGS, PILLBOXES, BLINDAGES
- Any building can be occupied by commanding infantry to
enter. Select your soldiers, place the cursor over the building
(the cursor will change) and right-click on it.
- If a building is taken by the enemy, your soldiers can try
storming it. Any building can be occupied by commanding in-
fantry to enter. Select your soldiers, place the cursor over the
building (the cursor will change) and right-click on it. Wait a
moment while the building is being captured. If your side wins,
the building belongs to you; otherwise your soldiers are dead.

RADAR POST
Radar posts warn you of enemy aircraft or vessels. The
radar is a concrete fortification with an aerial on top of it.
Command your soldiers to occupy it and the radar will
begin working. Look at the strategic map. An orange sec-
tor should appear. It indicates the working zone of the radar post. If aircraft or
vessels appear in the zone, you will be warned by a voice and a loud siren.

AIRFIELD
The planes can be based on an airfield. For the plane to take off, go to the
strategic map and select the airfield (please see the STRATEGIC MAP sec-
tion).

AMMUNITION DEPOTS
Use the ammunition boxes and depots to supply your troops. If
your troops units are out of ammunition but located near the
depots, you can supply your units directly. To do so, select the
units, place the cursor over a depot and right-click on it. Troops
will approach the box and begin reloading. If the troops are located too far
away from the depots, you have to use the supply truck to transfer the ammu-
nition boxes and supply your units.
The ammunition boxes can be unloaded using the UNLOAD CARGO com-
mand.
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FUEL DEPOTS
Use the fuel depots to refuel. The fuel barrels and tankers operate
the same way as ammunition depots and supply vehicles.

THE GAME SYSTEM

UNIT PARAMETERS
Some of the unit parameters are described below. Some of them can be in-
spected via the damage diagram (armour, crew, state of weapons) or status line
(health, primary and secondary ammunition, experience, fuel). Some param-
eters cannot be inspected visually but have a direct effect on the units (burst
reloading delay, field of view, speed of movement). This information gives you
an advantage when fighting.

HEALTH
This is the most important value. It is represented by the uppermost stripe of
the health bar. Its colour changes from green to yellow and red, depending on
the health percentage. If the percentage of health reaches the critical level of
10%, crew leave the vehicle. Soldiers hit the ground when low on health. This
also depends on behaviour.

AI BEHAVIOR
In Sudden Strike III there's a new way of controlling troops through their
behaviour, which can be aggressive, defensive or cautious.
Aggressive behaviour forces a unit to approach as close to the enemy as
possible. Reducing the distance helps to cause more damage to the target, but
also increases the risk of being hit. Aggressive soldiers do not lie prone when
hurt.
Pay close attention: the aggressive behaviour reduces protection of your
troops!
Cautious behaviour makes your units fire from the maximal distance thus
increasing their chances to survive the attack. Soldiers lie prone if there are
enemies in the range of their sight.

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Defensive behaviour is a compromise between aggressive and cautious.
When there is nothing to do for some time, your units begin to undertake
some tasks. Soldiers try to cover in trenches, occupy the buildings, take aban-
doned vehicles and guns. Soldiers do not try to occupy trenches in aggres-
sive mode. Special soldiers, like mechanics, snipers, medics and officers, do
not try to occupy guns without a direct command.
If a mechanic has occupied a building and a broken tank appears nearby, the
mechanic will leave the building to fix the vehicle if there are no enemies in the
range of sight.
By changing the behaviour of a vehicle, you change the behaviour of its crew
and passengers.
Supply vehicles in aggressive mode supply troops at the maximum distance.
Switching behaviour to cautious makes them work at a smaller range.

ARMOR AND STRUCTURE

The amount of damage received by a vehicle per hit depends on its armour.
The rule for causing greater damage is very simple: shoot with the biggest
possible calibre to the weakest spot. When firing along a direct path, try to get
as close to the enemy as possible. The shorter the shooting distance, the more
damage will be caused to the target. Note: no damaged is caused by shooting
with a small calibre weapon against very thick armour.
Each vehicle or gun consists of a few parts. When these parts are hit, a certain
penalty is applied. The damages are shown in the damage diagram. Damaged
parts gradually change colour from green to red. A broken part means a re-
spective penalty which can be fixed by a mechanic or automatically for extra
time.
- Broken threads or chassis immobilize the vehicle for a minute.
- A damaged engine bursts into flames and costs the vehicle one hit
point per second.
- If a gun is hit from rear, the gun squad can be killed or severely
wounded.
- Hitting the cabin of a truck will wound the driver.

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CREW AND GUN SQUADS
It is necessary to have enough crew for vehicles and guns to operate. Having
less crew than necessary slows down the shooting speed and sometimes
makes it impossible. The number of crew members in a vehicle or gun is shown
in the damage diagram in the form of small stars. The armament of the vehicle
is also shown there.
- If a weapon's colour is green, this means it has enough crew to shoot
at maximum speed.
- Yellow means a slower speed.
- Red means there is not enough crew to shoot, or no more ammuni-
tion for this weapon is available.

FIELD OF VIEW
In most cases the outcome of a fight depends on the field of view. Officers and
snipers have the best field of view when using binoculars. The rest of the
infantry has a smaller field of view. The lighter the vehicle, the better field of
view it has. Heavy tanks and SPGs have the worst field of view and are always
to be accompanied by infantry.

SPEED OF MOVEMENT
The speed of your troops depends on the type of terrain they are passing
over. The best possible choice for any unit is a road. Tracked vehicles move
with good speed on grass and sand, while dirt or swampy ground slows down
wheeled vehicles substantially. In Sudden Strike III you will see amphibious
vehicles which can either travel on the ground or swim.
When moving over a short distance, the type of terrain doesn't count and
your troops select the shortest path. Travelling over a longer distance will
make them select the fastest path, where the type of terrain is taken into
account. .
EXPERIENCE
Experience is a very important parameter. It has an effect on the field of vision,
damage caused to the target, speed of reloading and shooting accuracy.
Experience comes into play in the following cases:

33
 - when firing
- when sustaining damage
- when supplying, attending to injuries or repairing
- when destroying the enemy
When a vehicle is hit, the experience for this damage is divided between its
crew.

USEFUL HINTS
EXPLORE, RECONNOITRE AND DON'T FORGET TO CARRY OUT
RECONNAISSANCE
- Reconnoitre before you start anything. This is the basic rule of Sud-
den Strike. Reconnoitre before you transfer troops or shell a loca-
tion.
- Use light armour, jeeps and single soldiers and snipers to explore the
surroundings.
- Leave the posts in the buildings. The higher a building is, the better
field of view is secured.
- Try to cover your infantry in the woods or behind objects. It will
make it harder to kill your scouts.

TANKS AND INFANTRY

Always use tanks together with infantry. If all the soldiers are killed, command
a crew member to leave the tank.

FIGHTING ENTRENCHED INFANTRY

Command tanks and guns to ATTACK GROUND when fighting entrenched
infantry.
USE ABANDONED VEHICLES
- If you see an abandoned vehicle, command a crew member to oc-
cupy it and drive it away from the front line for repairs. Refuel it and
reload the ammunition for the new crew.

34
 - If an abandoned vehicle is not of any interest for you, destroy it to
get extra experience points for your troops. When leaving a broken
tank on the battlefield, unload the crew and destroy the vehicle. The
enemy must not be able to reuse it.

MOVE OR CARRY OUT ASSAULT?

There are two commands which resemble one another. MOVE TO POINT
makes troops move faster, while ASSAULT mode causes them to stop each
time they see the enemy. Never use MOVE TO POINT if you expect to be
ambushed.

WHY DO MY TROOPS NOT CARRY OUT MY COMMANDS?

Give your units more time. The bigger and heavier the tank is, the more time it
requires to make a manoeuvre. You should get a voice message if your forces
couldn't fulfil a command.

FOR HARDCORE PLAYERS

To switch behaviour, use the button which is located to the left of the com-
mand panel.
1. Left-click to change behaviour from cautious through aggressive to
defensive.
2. Right-click to cycle behaviour from cautious through defensive to
aggressive.
3. If the button indicates a mixed mode, left-click to turn the selected
troops to cautious mode or right-click to make them aggressive.
LET THE TROOPS ACT ON THEIR OWN
If you do not want some units to act on their own, use the HOLD FIRE and
HOLD MOVE buttons. However, troops with held fire and movement are to-
tally helpless. Use behaviour instead.
BOXES AND BARRELS
When an ammunition box or fuel barrel is hit, they explode with a shock wave.
Use this when enemy units are spotted near ammunition or fuel depots.

35
HELP AND SUPPORT
THE SUDDEN STRIKE WEB SITE
If you have any problems installing or running the game, you should check
the SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS chart. If the hardware complies, please view
the FAQ section of the Sudden Strike Web Site at
http://www.suddenstrike.com/

E-MAIL SUPPORT
If the FAQ section does not help, please send an e-mail to:
ss3support@suddenstrike.com.

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