1BZFLAG(6)                           BZFlag                           BZFLAG(6)
2
3
4

NAME

6       BZFlag - a tank battle game
7

SYNOPSIS

9       bzflag [-badwords filterfile] [-config filename] [-configdir directory‐
10       name] [-d | -debug] [-date mm/dd/yyyy] [-dir  |  -directory  directory]
11       [-e  |  -echo] [-ea | -echoAnsi] [-h | -help | --help] [-latitude lati‐
12       tude] [-list list-server-url] [-locale locale]  [-longitude  longitude]
13       [-m  |  -mute] [-motd URL] [-multisample] [-nolist] [-nomotd] [-notime]
14       [-solo number-of-robots] [-team {automatic | red | green | blue |  pur‐
15       ple | rogue}] [-time hh:mm:ss] [-v | -version | --version] [-view {nor‐
16       mal  |  stereo  |  stacked  |  three  |  anaglyph}]  [-window   widthx‐
17       height[{+|-}x{+|-}y]]   [-zbuffer   {on   |   off}]   [[callsign[:pass‐
18       word]@]server[:port]]
19

DESCRIPTION

21       BZFlag is a 3D multi-player tank battle game that allows users to  play
22       against  each  other in a networked environment.  There are five teams:
23       red, green, blue, purple and rogue (rogue tanks are black).  Destroying
24       a  player  on  another  team scores a win, while being destroyed or de‐
25       stroying a teammate scores a loss.  Rogues have no teammates (not  even
26       other  rogues),  so  they cannot shoot teammates and they do not have a
27       team score.
28
29       There are three main styles of play:   capture-the-flag,  free-for-all,
30       and rabbit-chase.  In capture-the-flag, each team (except rogues) has a
31       team base and each team with at least one player has a team flag.   The
32       object is to capture an enemy team's flag by bringing it to your team's
33       base.  This destroys every player on the captured team,  subtracts  one
34       from  that  team's  score,  and  adds  one  to  your  team's score.  In
35       free-for-all, there are no team flags or team  bases.   The  object  is
36       simply  to  get as high a score as possible.  In rabbit-chase, the lead
37       player is chosen as the target for all other players. When  the  rabbit
38       (target)  is destroyed, the live player with the next highest score be‐
39       comes the rabbit. The object is to remain the rabbit  for  as  long  as
40       possible. The rabbit is marked as a white tank.
41
42   Joining a Game
43       To  get  quickly  started,  select  the  "Join Game" menu in the BZFlag
44       client using the arrow keys on your keyboard.   Choose  the  "Select  a
45       Server"  link  and  pick  one  of the servers near the top of the menu.
46       This should take you back to the "Join Game" menu where you should then
47       provide  a  callsign.   Select the "Connect".  Within a few seconds you
48       should be on that server ready to play.
49
50       BZFlag includes a global registration system  that  allows  players  to
51       register  a  callsign that defines them uniquely on the BZFlag network.
52       Some servers require registration for all users, some require it to ob‐
53       tain  administrative  abilities.  If you attempt to use a callsign that
54       is already registered, you may be  denied  access  to  a  server.   See
55       https://forums.bzflag.org/  for details regarding callsign registration
56       and to check on available names.  Once registered, you will be able  to
57       provide  your password in the "Join Game" menu and have it used for au‐
58       thentication.  You are encouraged to register your callsign.
59
60       There are generally public BZFlag servers running around the clock  all
61       around  the  world,  available  over  the Internet.  Similarly, private
62       servers can be set up for running local network games.   See  the  bzfs
63       manual  page  (bzfs.6)  for details on starting a new server, public or
64       private.
65
66   Options
67       -badwords filterFile
68                      Specify a file containing bad words to be replaced  with
69                      !@#$%^&* characters when they appear in chat.
70
71       -d or -debug   Adds  some  diagnostic output. Can be specified multiple
72                      times to increase verbosity.
73
74       -dir or -directory directory
75                      Looks for data files in directory first.  This  defaults
76                      to  a directory named data in the current directory.  If
77                      not found there, the game looks for data  files  in  the
78                      current  directory, then in the default installation lo‐
79                      cation /usr/share/bzflag.
80
81       -config        Specify the configuration file to load. The name is rel‐
82                      ative  to  the  default configuration directory. This is
83                      usually only used by developers.
84
85       -configdir     Specify the configuration directory to use. This will be
86                      the  default  config  directory used by this instance of
87                      the game. This is really only needed if you can not  use
88                      the default directory.
89
90       -date mm/dd/yyyy
91                      Specifies  the  date  for positioning celestial objects.
92                      This option is available only when  bzflag  is  compiled
93                      with debugging enabled.
94
95       -e, -echo      Copies  all  message  window output to the shell on *nux
96                      and OSX, to stdout.txt on windows
97
98       -ea, -echoAnsi Copies all message window output like  -echo  preserving
99                      the ANSI color coding on *nix, same as -echo on windows.
100
101       -h, -help, --help
102                      Prints  a  concise  list  of the bzflag command line op‐
103                      tions.
104
105       -latitude latitude
106                      Uses latitude when computing celestial object positions.
107
108       -list url      Look for list servers using url.  A built-in url is used
109                      by  default  (the same url is the default for bzfs).  If
110                      url is default then the url is reset to the built-in url
111                      (the  url  is  remembered across invocations of bzflag).
112                      list servers keep a list of bzfs servers accessible from
113                      the  internet and are queried when using the Find Server
114                      menu.
115
116       -locale locale Set the locale used  to  display  messages,  menus,  hud
117                      alerts, etc.
118
119       -longitude longitude
120                      Uses  longitude  when  computing  celestial object posi‐
121                      tions.
122
123       -m, -mute      Disables sound.
124
125       -motd URL      Specify an alternate URL for the message of the day dis‐
126                      played           when           bzflag           starts.
127                      https://www.bzflag.org/motd.php  is  the  default.   See
128                      -nomotd.
129
130       -multisample   Uses  a  multisample buffer for rendering.  If multisam‐
131                      pling isn't available then the application  will  termi‐
132                      nate.
133
134       -nolist        Disables list server querying.  See -list.
135
136       -nomotd        Disables  queries for the message of the day when bzflag
137                      starts.
138
139       -notime        Removes a previously set fixed time for celestial object
140                      positions.  See -time.
141
142       -solo number-of-robots
143                      When you join a game, you'll also cause number-of-robots
144                      robots to join too.  This is an experimental option  and
145                      the  robots  are  extremely  stupid players.  Robots are
146                      added to teams at random.
147
148       -team team-name
149                      Chooses the player's team.  If there are no  team  posi‐
150                      tions  available  and  the  team-name is set to be auto‐
151                      matic, the player will try to join as an observer.
152
153       -time hh:mm:ss Specifies the local time used for positioning  celestial
154                      objects,  which  will  remain  fixed  rather  than  move
155                      through the sky as the day  advances.   Use  -notime  to
156                      undo this setting.
157
158       -v, -version, --version
159                      Prints the version number of the executable.
160
161       -view {normal | stereo | stacked | three | anaglyph}
162                      Chooses  one  of  the  possible display options.  Normal
163                      will render a single view to the entire screen.   Stereo
164                      will try to allocate a stereo (in-a-window) capable buf‐
165                      fer and then draw a single view in stereo.  Your  system
166                      must  support  stereo-in-a-window  buffers.   Three will
167                      render the front view to the upper right quadrant of the
168                      display,  a  left view to the lower left quadrant, and a
169                      right view to the lower right  quadrant.   This  is  in‐
170                      tended  for systems capable of driving multiple monitors
171                      from various areas of the display  surface,  yielding  a
172                      wrap  around view. stacked will render the two right eye
173                      view on the upper half of the display and the  left  eye
174                      on  the  lower  half.  anaglyph supports red-cyan stereo
175                      viewing glasses. Note that setting an  unsupported  view
176                      option  will  often  lead to BZFlag not running success‐
177                      fully. To correct this, run with -view normal.
178
179       -window widthxheight
180                      Runs the application in a window instead of full screen.
181                      Specify the width and height of the window after the op‐
182                      tion.
183
184       -zbuffer {on | off}
185                      When off is chosen the game will not attempt to allocate
186                      a  depth  (z)  buffer and will use a different rendering
187                      technique for hidden surface removal.  Some systems  may
188                      be  capable  of  using  a  higher screen resolution if a
189                      depth buffer isn't allocated.
190
191       [callsign[:password]@]server[:port]
192                      Specifies the callsign you want, and  the  host  running
193                      the  bzfs  server. Multiple independent games can be run
194                      on a single network, or even on  different  ports  on  a
195                      single  computer.  Which  server and port you choose de‐
196                      cides which game you enter.  The callsign and  the  port
197                      are  optional.  If you don't specify a port the standard
198                      server port will be used, and if  you  don't  specify  a
199                      callsign  the  callsign  used  for  the previous game is
200                      used.  If that cannot be found then bzflag  will  prompt
201                      for a callsign when joining a game.
202
203   Controls
204       Tanks are controlled by moving the mouse within the large yellow box in
205       the main view.  When the mouse is inside the small yellow box, the tank
206       is motionless.  The large box is the limit of the tank's speed.
207
208       Shots are fired by pressing the R left mouse button .  The type of shot
209       fired depends on what flag the tank has.  Normal shots last  about  3.5
210       seconds.  Reloading also takes 3.5 seconds for normal shots.
211
212       Pressing  the  R middle mouse button drops a flag.  Nothing will happen
213       if the tank has no flag or is not allowed to drop  the  flag  for  some
214       reason  (e.g.  it's  a  bad flag).  Flags are picked up by driving over
215       them.  A dropped flag gets tossed straight up;  it falls to the  ground
216       in about 3 seconds.
217
218       Pressing  the  R  right mouse button identifies the closest player cen‐
219       tered in the view.  If your tank has  the  guided  missile  super-flag,
220       this will also lock the missile on target.  However, the target must be
221       carefully centered for the missile to lock.
222
223       When the server allows jumping or if the tank has the jumping flag, the
224       R  Tab  key  jumps.  Tanks can jump onto buildings, however there is no
225       way to shoot downward (or upward) with a regular shot.  The guided mis‐
226       sile  and the shock wave are two ways of destroying a tank on or from a
227       building.
228
229       The current radar range can be changed by pressing the R 1, R 2, or R 3
230       keys above the alphabetic keys for low, medium, and long range, respec‐
231       tively.  The R f key toggles the flag help display, which describes the
232       flag  in  the  tank's  possession.   Displaying help does not pause the
233       game.
234
235       The R Pause key pauses and resumes play.  When paused, the tank  cannot
236       be  destroyed  nor  can  its  shots  destroy other players.  The reload
237       countdown is suspended and the radar and view are blanked when  paused.
238       A  paused  tank has a transparent black sphere surrounding it.  Since a
239       paused tank is invulnerable a player could cheat by pausing just before
240       being  destroyed,  so  there's a brief delay before the pause takes ef‐
241       fect.  This delay is long enough to make  pausing  effectively  useless
242       for  cheating.   Pressing R Pause before the pause takes effect cancels
243       the pause request.
244
245       The R Delete key initiates a self destruct sequence.  You  will  see  a
246       countdown  that  can  be stopped by pressing R Delete once more. Other‐
247       wise, you tank will self destruct. This can be useful if your tank gets
248       stuck and there is no other tank around to shoot you.
249
250       The list of players and scores is displayed when your tank is paused or
251       dead.  Pressing the R s key toggles the score display  when  alive  and
252       not paused.
253
254       The  R b key toggles binoculars, which gives a close up view of distant
255       objects.  The R 9 key toggles Otto, the automatic pilot, on and off.  R
256       t  key  toggles the frame rate display and the R y key toggle the frame
257       time display. The time of day can be changed with the R plus and R  mi‐
258       nus  keys,  which  advance  and  reverse the time by 5 minutes, respec‐
259       tively.  The time of day in the game is  initialized  to  the  system's
260       clock.   In  addition, the latitude and longitude are used to calculate
261       the positions of celestial objects.
262
263       The R Esc key shows the game menu.  Use the R Enter and arrow  keys  to
264       navigate  the  menu and the R Esc key to return to the previous menu or
265       hide the main menu.  The menus allow you to start a new server, join  a
266       game,  leave  a  game  and enter another, change the rendering options,
267       change the display resolution, change the sound volume, remap the mean‐
268       ings of keys, browse online help, and quit the game.
269
270       The display resolution is not always available for changing.  If it is,
271       use the R t key to test a selected resolution;  it will be loaded for a
272       few seconds and then the previous resolution restored.  Press the R En‐
273       ter key to permanently select a new resolution. When you quit the game,
274       the resolution is restored to what it was before the game started.
275
276       Options  are  recorded between game sessions in the .bzf/<version>/con‐
277       fig.cfg file in the user's home directory.   This  file  has  a  simple
278       name/value  pair format.  This file is completely rewritten by the game
279       after each session.
280
281       You can send typed messages to other players by pressing the R m or R n
282       keys.   The  R m key will send a message to your teammates only.  Rogue
283       players cannot send these messages.  The R n key will send a message to
284       all  the other players.  After pressing the key, just type your message
285       and press enter or Control-D.  To cancel a message,  you  can  enter  a
286       blank  message  or press Delete, Escape, or Control-C.  Be careful with
287       the Escape key;  pressing Escape once will cancel the message, pressing
288       it  again  will show the main menu.  Backspace will delete the most re‐
289       cently typed character.  The Tab key doesn't add a tab to  the  message
290       but  instead  causes  the tank to jump (as usual).  You can also send a
291       direct message to a single player by pressing the R , or R .  keys. The
292       R  , key will send your message to your 'nemesis', i.e. the last player
293       who killed you or was killed by you. The R .  key will send  a  private
294       message  to  another  player. You can choose the recipient by using the
295       left and right arrow keys.  R o toggles the quick-admin interface.  Use
296       the  arrow keys to select a command, and then fill in the necessary pa‐
297       rameters
298
299   Scoring
300       An individual's score is the difference between that player's wins  and
301       losses.   A  win  is  scored  for each enemy tank destroyed.  A loss is
302       scored for each teammate destroyed and for each time the player is  de‐
303       stroyed.   The  score sheet displays each player's score and the number
304       of wins and losses.
305
306       A team's score is calculated differently depending on the  game  style.
307       In  the  capture-the-flag  style, the team score is the number of enemy
308       flags captured minus the number of times the team's flag was  captured.
309       Capturing  your  own flag (by taking it onto an enemy base) counts as a
310       loss.  In the free-for-all style, the team score is sum of the wins  of
311       all  the  players  on  the  team minus the sum of the losses of all the
312       players on the team. In the rabbit-chase style, scoring is  similar  to
313       free-for-all.
314
315       The  score sheet also lists the number times you have destroyed or been
316       destroyed by each other player under the Kills heading.  This lets  you
317       compare your one-on-one performance against other players.
318
319   Teleporters
320       The server can be configured to place teleporters in the game.  A tele‐
321       porter is a tall black transparent object  that  instantaneously  moves
322       any  object  (tanks  and  shots) passing through it to some other tele‐
323       porter.  The teleporter connections are fixed for the entire game.   In
324       the capture-the-flag style the connections are always the same.  In the
325       free-for-all style the connections are  random  and  reversible  (going
326       back through where you come out puts you back where you started).
327
328       Each  side  of  a teleporter teleports independently of the other side.
329       However, it's possible for each side to go to the  other.   This  is  a
330       through-teleporter  and  it's almost as if it weren't there.  It's also
331       possible for a side to teleport to itself.   This  is  a  reverse-tele‐
332       porter.  Shooting at a reverse teleporter is likely to be self-destruc‐
333       tive.  Shooting a laser at a reverse teleporter is invariably fatal.
334
335   Radar
336       The radar is displayed on the left side of the control panel.  It  pro‐
337       vides  a  satellite view of the game.  Buildings and the outer wall are
338       light blue.  Team bases are outlined squares in the team colors.  Tele‐
339       porters  are short yellow lines.  Tanks are dots the in the tank's team
340       color, except for rogues which are yellow.  The size of a tank's dot is
341       a  rough  indication  of  the tank's altitude: higher tanks have larger
342       dots.  Flags are small crosses.  Team flags have the team  color  while
343       super-flags  are white.  Shots are small white dots (except laser beams
344       which are line segments and shock waves which are circles).
345
346       The tank always appears in the center of the radar and the  radar  dis‐
347       play  rotates  with  the  tank so that forward is always up.  There's a
348       small tick mark indicating forward.  The left and right extremes of the
349       current  view  are represented by a yellow V whose tip is at the center
350       of the radar.  North is indicated by the letter N.
351
352   Heads Up Display
353       The heads-up-display, or HUD, has several displays.  First,  there  are
354       two boxes in the center of the view.  As explained above, these delimit
355       the ranges for the mouse.  These boxes are  yellow  when  you  have  no
356       flag.   Otherwise they take the color of the flag you're holding (white
357       for superflags).
358
359       Above the larger box is a heading tape showing  your  current  heading.
360       North  is  0, east is 90, etc.  If jumping is allowed, an altitude tape
361       appears to the right of the larger box.
362
363       Small colored diamonds or arrows may appear on the  heading  tape.   An
364       arrow  pointing  left  means that a particular flag is to your left, an
365       arrow pointing right means that the flag is to your right, and  a  dia‐
366       mond  indicates  the heading to the flag by its position on the heading
367       tape.  In capture-the-flag mode a marker in your team's color is always
368       present,  showing  you  the  direction  to  your team's flag.  A yellow
369       marker shows the way to the antidote flag (when you have a bad flag and
370       antidote flags are enabled).
371
372       At  the  top  of the HUD are several text readouts.  At the very top on
373       the left is your callsign and score, in your team's color.  At the very
374       top  on the right is the name of the flag you're holding (or nothing if
375       you have no flag).  In the center at the top is  your  current  status:
376       ready,  dead,  sealed,  zoned, or reloading. If you have a bad flag and
377       shaking time is enabled and your status is ready, the  status  displays
378       how  much  time is left before the bad flag is shaken.  When reloading,
379       the time until you're reloaded is displayed.  A tank is sealed when  it
380       has  the  oscillation overthruster flag and any part of the tank is in‐
381       side a building. A tank is zoned when it has the phantom zone flag  and
382       has  passed  through  a  teleporter.   When there's a time limit on the
383       game, the time left in the game is displayed to the left of the status.
384
385   Flags
386       Team flags are supplied by the server  in  the  capture-the-flag  style
387       game.   While  at least one player is on a team, that team's flag is in
388       the game.  When captured, the flag is returned to the team's base.   If
389       the  flag  is dropped in a Bad Place, it is moved to a safety position.
390       Bad Places are:  on top of a building or on an enemy  team  base.   The
391       flag  can be dropped on a team base only by a player from a third team;
392       for example, when a blue player drops the red flag on the green base.
393
394       A team flag is captured when a tank takes an enemy flag onto  its  base
395       or  when  a  tank takes its flag onto an enemy base (even if there's no
396       one playing on that team).  You must be on  the  ground  to  capture  a
397       flag.
398
399       The  server  can  be  configured to supply a fixed or random set of su‐
400       per-flags.  These flags are white and come in many  flavors.   However,
401       you  cannot  tell what a super-flag is until it's picked up.  There are
402       two broad categories of super-flags:  good and bad.   Good  super-flags
403       may  be  dropped  and  will  remain  for  up to 4 possessions.  Bad su‐
404       per-flags are sticky -- in general, they cannot be dropped.  The server
405       may  provide  a yellow antidote flag.  Driving over it will release the
406       bad flag.  The server may also allow a timeout and/or a number of  wins
407       to  shake the flag.  Scoring the required number of wins, surviving the
408       required amount of time or being destroyed will automatically drop  the
409       flag.  Bad flags disappear after the first possession.
410
411       Here is a brief description of each good superflag with the flag's code
412       in parentheses:
413
414       High Speed (V) Boosts top speed by 50%.
415
416       Quick Turn (QT)
417                      Boosts turn rate by 50%.
418
419       Agility (A)    Improves a tank's dodging capabilities.
420
421       Oscillation Overthruster (OO)
422                      Let's the tank go through buildings.  You cannot back up
423                      in or into a building, nor can you shoot while inside.
424
425       Rapid Fire (F) Increases  shot speed and decreases range and reload de‐
426                      lay.
427
428       Machine Gun (MG)
429                      Increases shot speed and  dramatically  decreases  range
430                      and reload delay.
431
432       Guided Missile (GM)
433                      Shots  guide themselves when locked on.  The missile can
434                      be retargeted at any time during its  flight  (with  the
435                      right  mouse  button).  This allows the player some con‐
436                      trol over the missile's steering.
437
438       Laser (L)      Shoots a laser,  with  effectively  infinite  speed  and
439                      range.   Just point and shoot.  The binoculars are handy
440                      for lining up distant targets.  The downside  (you  knew
441                      it was coming) is that the reload time is doubled.
442
443       Ricochet (R)   Shots  reflect  off  walls.  It is exceptionally easy to
444                      kill yourself with this flag.
445
446       Super Bullet (SB)
447                      Shots can go through buildings  (possibly  destroying  a
448                      tank  with  the  oscillation  overthruster flag) and can
449                      also destroy (phantom) zoned tanks.
450
451       Stealth (ST)   Tank becomes invisible on radar  but  is  still  visible
452                      out-the-window.
453
454       Cloaking (CL)  Tank becomes invisible out-the-window but is still visi‐
455                      ble on radar.
456
457       Invisible Bullet (IB)
458                      Shots are invisible on radar (except  your  own).   They
459                      are visible out-the-window.  Sort of stealth for shots.
460
461       Tiny (T)       Tank becomes much smaller and harder to hit.
462
463       Narrow (N)     Tank becomes paper thin.  It's very hard (but not impos‐
464                      sible) to hit a narrow tank  from  the  front  or  back.
465                      However, the tank is as long as usual so hitting it from
466                      the side has normal difficulty.
467
468       Shield (SH)    Getting shot while in possession  of  this  flag  simply
469                      drops  the flag (instead of destroying the tank).  Since
470                      the flag may not disappear you may want to  wait  around
471                      for  it  to fall to the ground so you can grab it again,
472                      but, be warned, the shield flag flies for an extra  long
473                      time (longer than the normal reload time).
474
475       Steamroller (SR)
476                      Tank  can  destroy other tanks by driving over them (but
477                      you must get quite close).
478
479       Shock Wave (SW)
480                      Tank doesn't fire shells.  Instead it sends out a  shock
481                      wave  in all directions.  Any tank caught in the wave is
482                      destroyed (including tanks on or in buildings).
483
484       Phantom Zone (PZ)
485                      Driving through a teleporter phantom zones the tank.   A
486                      zoned tank cannot shoot, but can drive through buildings
487                      and cannot be destroyed except by a Super  Bullet  or  a
488                      Shock Wave (or if the team's flag is captured).
489
490       Genocide (G)   Destroying  any  tank on a team destroys every player on
491                      that team.
492
493       Jumping (JP)   Allows the tank to jump.  You cannot steer while in  the
494                      air.
495
496       Identify (ID)  Displays  the identity of the closest flag in the vicin‐
497                      ity.
498
499       Masquerade (MQ)
500                      You tank looks like a teammate when viewed  out  of  the
501                      window.   Bullets,  radar and targeting reveal your true
502                      identity.
503
504       Burrow {BU}    You tank burrows into the ground up to your muzzle, mak‐
505                      ing  you  impervious to normal shots, as they sail above
506                      you. However your tank controls are sluggish,  and  any‐
507                      one, no matter what flag they have, can crush you like.
508
509       Seer (SE)      See  Stealthed, Cloaked and Masqueraded tanks as normal,
510                      as well as Invisible Bullets.
511
512       Thief (TH)     Tank is small and fast, when you shoot an  opponent,  he
513                      is not killed, but instead, you steal his flag.
514
515       Useless (US)   It's useless!
516
517       Wings (WG)     Tank  can  drive  around  in the air, and may be able to
518                      jump multiple times.  This can be useful when jumping or
519                      falling.
520
521       A  brief  description  of  each  bad  superflag with the flag's code in
522       parentheses:
523
524       Colorblindness (CB)
525                      Prevents tank from seeing  any  team  information  about
526                      other  tanks.   You have to be careful to avoid shooting
527                      teammates.
528
529       Obesity (O)    The tank becomes very large and easy to  hit.   It's  so
530                      big that it can't fit through teleporters.
531
532       Left Turn Only (<-)
533                      Prevents the tank from turning right.
534
535       Right Turn Only (->)
536                      Prevents the tank from turning left.
537
538       Forward Only (FO)
539                      Prevents the tank from going backwards.
540
541       Reverse Only (RO)
542                      Prevents the tank from going forward.
543
544       Momentum (M)   Gives the tank a lot of inertia.
545
546       Blindness (B)  Blanks  the out-the-window view.  The radar still works.
547                      It is effectively impossible to  detect  any  tank  with
548                      Stealth;  shooting a Stealth with Blindness is the stuff
549                      legends are made of.
550
551       Jamming (JM)   Disables the radar but you can still see.
552
553       Wide Angle (WA)
554                      Gives the tank a fish eye lens that's rather  disorient‐
555                      ing.
556
557       No Jumping (NJ)
558                      Tank is not allowed to jump.
559
560       Trigger Happy (TR)
561                      Tank can't stop shooting.  Watch out for that ricochet.
562
563       Reverse Controls (RC)
564                      Tank  driving controls are reversed from their usual be‐
565                      havior.
566
567   Observing
568       If a server is full or if you just want to watch a battle  without  in‐
569       terfering  in it, you can use the observer mode. To join a server as an
570       observer, select R Observer as your tank's team. The maximum number  of
571       observers can be restricted by the server admin, so you might still not
572       be able to join a full server.
573
574       When in observer mode, you can freely roam the world. Using  the  arrow
575       keys  you  can  rotate the camera in every direction. Holding shift and
576       using the arrow keys moves the camera left,  right,  forward  or  back.
577       Pressing  the  up or down arrow while holding the R ALT key will change
578       the camera's altitude. The R F9 and R F10 keys change the camera's  fo‐
579       cal  lengths,  giving a zoom effect. The R F11 key will reset the zoom.
580       Pressing R l lets you toggle the display of tank labels.
581
582       Repeatedly pressing R F8 cycles through different roaming modes:  free,
583       tracking,  following,  first  person  (driving  with) and tracking team
584       flag.  In tracking mode, the camera will automatically look at a  tank.
585       You  can  cycle through available tanks with the R F6 and R F7 keys. In
586       follow mode, the camera is positioned right behind the  targeted  tank,
587       whereas  you actually look from within the tank when using first person
588       mode. The last  mode,  track  team  flag  is  only  available  in  cap‐
589       ture-the-flag  games and will track the team flags. Again, use R F6 and
590       R F7 to choose which flag to track. One special option that can be used
591       with follow, tracking, and first person modes is that you can choose to
592       do it with the winning tank.  This is selected by cycling  through  the
593       tanks until you see the winner option. In this mode, you will always be
594       engaged with whoever has the best score (and is alive).  The default is
595       drive with winner mode.
596

User Commands

598       The  following commands can be executed by sending a message to all and
599       using these strings as the message
600
601       /bind key press action
602                      Bind a key press to an action. press can be up, down  or
603                      both
604
605       /cmds          Show a list of all client and server commands
606
607       /debug [level] Show or set the debug level to level
608
609       /diff          List  all  BZDB server variables that are not set to the
610                      default value
611
612       /dumpvars      Dump a list of all local variables and their  values  to
613                      the standard output
614
615       /forceradar    Force  the  radar  to  be  displayed (only works for ob‐
616                      servers)
617
618       /highlight pattern
619                      Highlight all messages containing pattern on the console
620
621       /localset variable [value]
622                      Read a local variable or set it to value
623
624       /quit          Exit the game
625
626       /retexture     Reload the textures of the game
627
628       /roampos {reset|send|angle|x y z [theta [phi [zoom]]]}
629                      Manipulate the observer camera (only useful  in  Roaming
630                      and Tracking modes). Without arguments, it shows a usage
631                      message and the current camera  location.  reset  resets
632                      the  camera's location to the center of the map and send
633                      sends information about the camera to the server.  angle
634                      moves  the  camera  outside  the map at a certain angle,
635                      looking towards its center. x, y and z are used  to  set
636                      the  camera's location, theta defines the camera's hori‐
637                      zontal angle, phi defines its vertical  angle  and  zoom
638                      sets  the camera's zoom level. All angles are defined in
639                      degrees.
640
641       /savemsgs [-s] [-t]
642                      Save all messages to a file in your config directory. If
643                      -s  is  provided,  coloring data are stripped.  If -t is
644                      provided, timestamps are added to the messages.
645
646       /saveworld [-g] [-m] [-o] filename
647                      Save the current world to filename. Specify -g  to  pre‐
648                      vent  the creation of groups, -m to save some primitives
649                      as meshes and -o to create a WaveFront OBJ file  instead
650                      of a BZW one.
651
652       /silence playerName
653                      Do not display any message coming from player with play‐
654                      erName name
655
656       /unsilence playerName
657                      Reshow messages coming from player with playerName name
658

FILES

660       ~/.bzf/<version>/config.cfg
661                      Stores options between game sessions.
662

SEE ALSO

664       bzadmin(6), bzfs(6), bzw(5)
665
666
667
668BZFlag 2.4.26                     2022-11-26                         BZFLAG(6)
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