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At times the map may be a bit confusing at first glance. With the visual aid below and a bit of reading you will master the nuances of navigating the map screen and base placement.

[edit] The Basics

To find the above screen click the exploration tab on the left menu bar. It will bring up the view map page displaying the map. From here on the words the map will refer to the above screen shot. The map is divided into four large boxes consisting of several medium boxes which are filled with small boxes. At the top bottom and sides are the points indicating north, south, east and west. To find a particular small box X and Y values are used to designate a location. X runs west and east. Y runs north and south.

[edit] Getting Used to X and Y

At the top of the map screen it says Explored with an x and y ranges below it. This shows how many metrols have been explored. If none have been explored click the explore tab at the top next to colonize tab. On that page it is possible to explore the area around the home base which allows the discovery of other bases in the area and opens up more area to place a new base in. The yellow arrow on the map under South shows another set of X and Y values. These are the group of coordinates that are currently being displayed in the overall map box. The third listing of X and Y ranges is indicated by the blue arrow. Those numbers show which small boxes are currently inside the highlighted medium box shown in red here. The game map screen highlights the medium box with a tan color. Next to the screen shot is a blow up of the selected medium box. Each consists of 20 coordinates.

X and Y follow a normal graph. X gets smaller going to the west (negative) and larger going east (positive). Y gets larger going north (positive) and smaller going south (negative). Look at the exploded red box the top left small box will be X:86, Y:0. The bottom right is X:90, Y:-4. And the center box would be X:88, Y:-2. With some practice finding coordinates for a new base will not pose a daunting task.

[edit] Colonizing

Once the requirements have been met through researches and exploration to build a new base start looking at where the new base should be placed. To place a base at the lower left of the example box locate the x and y. In this case it would be X:86 Y:-4. It is always a good idea to write down the chosen coordinates so that they are correct when entered in the colonization screen. Also when choosing a new location it cannot be too close to another base already placed on the map. If it is a message will show the minimum distance away a new base can be placed. To colonize click the colonize tab next to the explore tab. There it lists the costs of a new base and how far it should be from the home base. A base name can either be chosen by the player or randomly generated by clicking generate name. Once all the boxes are filled in click Send Colonization Unit. Before long there will be many bases to manage protect and possibly lose from attacks. Enjoy.