                                Command : DROP

NAME
   drop - Use planes to drop commodities in your own sectors

Level: Expert

SYNTAX
   [##:##]  Command : dropoff <TRANSPORTS> <ESCORTS> <SECT> <PATH|DESTINATION>
<COMMODITY>

The "dropoff" command is used to resupply  beleaguered  friendly  troops  with
food, shells, reinforcements, and other necessities of battle.

<TRANSPORTS>  represents a list of planes to transport commodities to the tar-
get sector.  Only planes with capability cargo and sufficient mobility,  based
in a sector stocked with petrol and the commodities to transport, will be suc-
cessfully selected for the mission.

<ESCORTS> represent a list of fighter planes which are  capable  of  escorting
the  transports  all the way to the target.  To be selected, escorts must have
fuel and mobility.

<SECT> represents an assembly point, where all of the planes  in  the  mission
meet  before  proceeding  on to the target sector.  The assembly point must be
owned by you or an ally, or you or an ally must have a ship  there.   It  must
not  be  more  than  four sectors away from any of the planes selected for the
mission.

<COMMODITY> is the name of the commodity which is to be dropped.

Route is a normal empire path specification. You may also give  a  destination
sector  on the command line, or at any time while giving the route, and empire
will use the best path from the current sector to the desired destination sec-
tor.

When  getting  a  path interactively, empire will show you the information you
have (from your bmap) concerning the current  area,  to  help  you  plot  your
course.

Air  drop  missions  can be intercepted just like any other mission.  See info
"Intercept".

Planes which arrive safely at the target sector will drop the goodies  off  to
the waiting people below.

Any  plane  with  the "mine" ability can mine a sector by dropping shells in a
sea sector.

Note that a plane must be at least 40%  efficient  before  it  can  leave  the
ground.

SEE ALSO
   Plane-types, bomb, fly, paradrop, recon, Mobility, Planes, Commodities

