X-WING

　When I first came onboard the Independence, I was anxious to begin my training. There was nothing I wanted more than to get behind the controls of a starfighter and blast away at Imperial ships. By the time I had read the Starfighter Pilot's Handbook, that desire had become unbearable.
　And after I had mastered the Pilot's Proving Ground, I knew that I was ready. But Hamo was always around, and he never failed to assure me that I had much to learn. Even after I had passed the Maze, in his own words, "with flying colors," he wouldn't authorize me for any real duty.
　Instead, he sent me back to the simulators, where I met Commander Wex "TIE-Die" Dafid, tactical training officer. From this tactical master I was to lean the lessons that kept me alive later, when the blasters were real and there were no second chances.

　X-wing Historical Combat Missions

　"All right, beings. For some of you. I'm your final hurdle. You've got to get by me to get your hands on a real starfighter. I'm here to make sure you don't leave here as TIE meat. We can't spare the ships."
　I think that this was meant to be a joke, but nobody laughed. We were all scared to death. Commander Dafid was the kind of instructor young pilots had nightmares about - a tough, experienced, no-nonsense kind of man who had seen it all and lived (barely) to tell about it.
　The tactical training officer paused and surveyed the room, his eyes locking with each of ours in turn. Absently, he rubbed the three-inch scar along his cheek with his good hand, and after staring each of us down, he'd mutter something practically inaudible that sounded vaguely like, "Hmm nnun." My first impression? A genuine nut case.
　In the stories floating around the mess, Dafid had ignored practically every rule of combat in his 150 or so sorties and had just about fragged a couple dozen times. That was how he learned the importance of proper tactical flying. But these were just stories. Who knew the truth?
　The commander had finished his survey and intimidation drill, or whatever it was, and began to lecture again, pacing the room like a caged rancor and occasionally rubbing the scar on his cheek. He seemed almost to have forgotten about us, but I knew that he hadn't.
　"Each mission you fly in the simulator is meant to teach you something. Be sure you learn your lessons. I don't care if you ace through each mission the first time or fail your first ten attempts. Just as long as you get the message. If I can help it, none of you will set foot in a starfighter until you've completed all the historical simulations." Dafid gestured toward the simulator and the big holo screen behind him. "Who wants to be first to demonstrate his skills in battle!" he asked.
　There were no volunteers.

　Mission Note: For these first missions, you are reminded which keys to press on the keyboard for many of the operations you perform. The keys to press are inside square brackets. To set cannon power, for instance, press the F9 key; it's notated as [F9]. Be aware that the square brackets are, themselves, used during the game. For clarity, curly brackets are used to indicate when you should press the square brackets during the game.

　Mission 1: Dev's Sidestep

　File Name: waistem
　Mission Briefing
　In this mission, you learn to adjust your power configuration system, target the enemy, and destroy unarmed Imperial TIE fighters and stationary cargo ships.
　Dafid's Training Objective
　"O.K., rookies. Here's your chance to beat up on some helpless opponents. It's not that much of a contest. I expect you to learn how to use your targeting computer, how to shoot straight, and how to move quickly from one target to the next. Master this lesson, and you'll go on to the next."
　Tactical Summary
　Your ship has "accidentally" hyperspaced into an Imperial Training Area. The enemy ships are mostly stationary or slow-moving, and only two are armed. This is an opportunity, therefore, for you to practice some combat skills in a low-threat environment.
　As the mission begins, you find the first TIE fighter less than one click ahead. Because no enemies are attacking you, it is not necessary to transfer laser energy to the shields. Also, because the enemy craft are moving slowly or not at all, keep your own speed low so as not to overshoot your targets. Switch to dual mode and destroy the first TIE. Query the CMD for the next target (another stationary TIE fighter), and destroy it, too.
　The FRT Rouh should be your next target. Switch to torpedoes and fire all six in dual mode to blow it up. You don't have to wait for a solid lock because the Rouh is not moving. Switch back to lasers and query the CMD for the next target. This is one of a pair of TIE Interceptors moving in a slow circle. Increase speed to two-thirds ([]]) power and destroy both. Then cycle forward ([T]) to the next target, the first of three stationary transports. Reduce speed to one-third ([[]) power while attacking them.
　After you have eliminated the transports, query the CMD again to locate a pair of circling TIE Bombers. Increase speed again to two-thirds ([]]), destroy the Bombers, and then query the CMD again to locate another pair of circling TIE Bombers. Now locate and destroy a stationary group of three TIE fighters.
　Next, cycle forward again to locate the first of two empty containers. Destroying these containers causes a pair of TIE fighters to appear with orders to attack you. They are about two clicks away, so you have time to eliminate the group of three TIE Interceptors about .75 click away. Go to full throttle to engage the attacking TIE fighters. Finally, query the CMD once more to locate the last group of enemy ships, a pair of TIE Bombers that attempt to evade you.
　Win Conditions
　Destruction of all enemy craft.
　Mission Note: T/F group Zeta hyperspaces into the mission after the destruction of CON group Phi. In the original mission design, they were supposed to come out when CON Phi 2 is attacked.