5th Fleet (PC)
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Overview, Installing, Running, Saving Games, PBEM, Solitaire, Version 1.2 Patch, Scenario Module 1, Rules Manual, Get it
Scenario Summaries
Overview
This page is about the PC version of 5th Fleet published by Avalon Hill in 1994. 5th Fleet (PC) is based on the boardgame of the same name, depicting hypothetical conflicts in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf in the late 1990’s.
Comparisons to the board game
5th Fleet (PC) should be seen as the next evolutionary step in the series of five “Fleet” board games published by Victory Games in the late 1980’s. It essentially IS the board game played on computer, with essential rules such as hidden movement, and fuel/ordnance supply incorporated with no record keeping required on the part of the player. Indeed 5th Fleet (PC) may come as close as possible (in concept) to the perfect conversion of a board wargame to the computer. According to Joseph Balkoski, the designer of the Fleet series:
There is a computer version of 5th Fleet (1994) that uses an updated game system, the most important change of which is a near-total lack of intelligence about enemy movements unless detection occurs.
5th Fleet (PC) uses the same sequence of play as 3rd Fleet (board game) — i.e. the sequence of the six phases of the turn (Air, Surface, and Sub for each player) is randomly determined. Other similarities between the computer game and the board game are less obvious, and there are some key difference. The Avalon Hill GENERAL, Vol 29, No 4, contained a preview article about 5th Fleet (PC) by Mike Innella, VP of Stanley Associates, the company that programmed the game for Avalon Hill. Mike said:
Anyone expecting a direct port of the board game to the computer is going to be pleasantly surprised. Our goal was to keep the feel of the board game, while taking advantage of what the computer has to offer. We were fortunate in that Joe Balkoski, the designer of the original series, was brought on to assist in the conversion to the computer. His assistance was invaluable in determining which rules should be changed to reflect the electronic format. A good example of this is the rule dealing with detection. In the board game, all units are continually in plain view on the map. However, players are not allowed to attack units that have not been formally “detected.” Needless to say, it was not unusual for recon airplanes to fly missions where there just happen to be undetected units. Knowing this, Joe structured the [board game] detection tables to make detection more difficult. In the computer game, undetected units are not displayed on the map at all. If the detection rules had been taken directly from the board game, it would have made detection of enemy units almost impossible without accidentally bumping into them.
Other changes involve logistics such as fuel and ammunition expenditure. In the board game, logistics are an optional rule. Since computers are good at keeping track of complex information, we were able to include logistics as a standard feature without making the game more cumbersome to play.
To keep game play interesting, the computer opponent has three levels of difficulty and two levels of aggression. You can play each scenario as the US or Russians. In addition, units are randomly placed as determined by each scenario. This means that you can’t rely on enemy units showing up in the same place each time.
Installing 5th Fleet
The install program for 5th Fleet merely copies the game files from the distribution diskettes (or CD) to a directory on your hard drive. When the install program asks if it should modify your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files, answer NO — you’ll customize these files later, if needed.
After installing 5th Fleet, be sure to install the patch. Do not install the scenario module before the patch. In fact you may want to hold off on the scenario module until you get the main program running.
Getting it to run
Due to the Expanded Memory (EMS) requirement of 5th Fleet, along with the need for at least 590 KB of conventional memory, it is sometimes difficult to get it to run. Two text files have been prepared with instructions, depending on your operating system. These instructions have resulted in operational installations on varioius computers from a 486 to a Pentium III.
Windows 95/98 | Windows XP
Another option is to use a DOS emulator — try DOSBOX, which is particularly useful if you've got Pentium III or IV running Windows XP/NT/2000.
Saving Games
There can be one saved game file for each scenario, so each time you click the Save button any existing save file for that scenario gets over-written. A game can be saved at the conclusion of (not during) any phase. The saved game filename has a .sav extension.
If you start a scenario for which a saved game file exists, you will be asked whether you want the saved game or a new game. You can also delete the existing saved game file for the scenario when you receive this prompt. The saved game will not be deleted until you click Delete Saved Game in the prompt.
When you start a saved game the program ignores any settings that existed on the scenario selection screen for player configuration, AI, and WEAX and loads them from the .sav file.
Playing by Email
The PBEM rules in the printed 5th Fleet manual employ an outdated method of direct modem-to-modem connection. Don’t bother figuring out the program’s COMNET system. See how to play 5th Fleet using today’s email software in the downloadable rules manual.
PBEM NOTES
From October 2001 to February 2002, five 5th Fleet (PC) gamers tested the PBEM procedures using a large number of the scenarios, in a match-play format. 13 matches were played, comprising 26 games. We noticed the following:
- There is no PASS option in PBEM — the program simply never allows you to PASS.
- The PASS option is available during "Hot Seat" play (two players at the same computer).
- The internal scoring routines were sometimes incorrect, especially when scoring the arrival of convoys in ports.
- Some of the scenarios seem to be very unbalanced (e.g. Convoys to Iran).
I would be interested to know if anyone has used the program's built-in COMNET funtion to play via modem, and noticed if the PASS option and scoring problems cited above exist when using this method of play.
Playing Solitaire
Despite the various levels of difficulty and aggressiveness you can set for your computerized opponent, the built in AI is extremely easy to defeat. In fact this was a common criticism of the program in the initial reviews. Here's my take on it:
- Play solitaire against the AI only to familiarize yourself with each scenario.
- Play against a human opponent when you want a competitive game.
BTW, an interesting solitaire variant is to play a game using the 2-player "hot seat" settings (as if two players were playing a live game on one computer.) This method is like playing solitaire with a normal board game, except with hidden movement and neutral shipping, many of the scenarios are quite entertaining, even though you are playing both sides.
Version 1.2 Patch
Note: If you installed the game file from the Underdogs website, it supposedly already has the patch applied.
If you installed from the diskette or CD, then download the following archive file and unzip it to your 5th Fleet directory. To install the patch, exit to DOS, navigate to your 5th Fleet directory and type patch.
- 5f_12.zip (305 KB)
The following bugs have been fixed in the patch.
- Bombing attacks are no longer allowed during the first 8 hour turn. This prevents the unfair first strike against undefended bases advantage.
- Air units on bombing missions that missed their targets could not be assigned to a strategic mission in the following turns air phase.
- Missile or torpedo quantities no longer get magical boost to 255.
- SSM and Bomb sorties from carriers are now tracked properly.
- Teleporting task force units problem is fixed. When saving a game or playing by E-mail units formed in a task force sometimes teleported to another task force.
- Fixed random system lockup when selecting Air Missions button followed by the Surface Ships button.
- Fixed air unit names in the combat display occassionally represented by an invalid string.
- Fixed graphics glitch which superimposed large square counter over the phase selection screen bottom right.
- Fixed inaccurate missile strengths for secondary SSMs.
- Fixed scoring for destroying enemy bases.
- Fixed screen update for strategic display when selecting first hostile unit.
- Fixed resolution of air-to-air combat over TFs defended by CAP.
- Unrelated soundfx being spliced together.
Scenario Module 1
NOTE: Apply the version 1.2 pach BEFORE installing the scenario module.
Download the following archive and unzip it to a temporary directory. Do not unzip to your 5th Fleet directory, because the scenario install file will overwrite the 5th Fleet install file.
- 5f_mod1.zip (782 KB)
To install the scenarios, exit to DOS, navigate to the directory containing the unzipped scenario files and type install. Fourteen new scenarios will appear on the list in the Scenario screen the next time you start 5th Fleet.
Rules Manual
An electronic (e-book) version of the rules. Simply download the .exe file to your computer and run it like any other program. Requires Windows and Internet Explorer engine.
- 5fmanual.exe (approx. 1 MB)
Where to get 5th Fleet PC
If you just want to try the program to see if you like it:
- The Underdogs. Warning: Make sure your popup killer is turned on!
- abandonia.com
Email from Iwan (May 2006): The copy on The Underdogs is indeed pre-patched to 1.2, but in my case it always crashes DosBox. A better alternative would be to download a copy from www.abandonia.com, then patch it to 1.2 using the patch you have available in your site. Hope this helps people who, like me, seems unable to get 5th fleet to work on DosBox.
If you decide you want a boxed verison of 5th Fleet, with a nice color 48-page rulebook, 96-page reference manual, scenario cards, and mapsheet:
- eBay! — It may be found in more than one category. Your best bet is to search for 5th Fleet from the EBay front page.
- Game Trading Zone — The largest online swap-meet for electronic games.
5th Fleet was distributed on either five 3.5-inch floppies or one CD. The files are the same in each — the only difference is the distribution medium — so there is no advantage to the CD edition over the floppy edition other than not having to swap disks during installation. In either case you will need to upgrade to Version 1.2.
Updated 20 January 2008
This page is maintained by Robert Morss, rdmorss at morssweb dot com
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