The browser version of Dot Conquest is played with a mouse and a keyboard. The idea is the same as on a phone (choose who, then say where) with a few keys on top for speed. Press F1 in the game at any time to see the list below on screen.
The mouse
| Do this | And this happens |
|---|---|
| Left-drag a box | Chooses your dots inside it. They are your group until you choose again |
| Right-click | Sends the whole group there: a city to attack, land to walk to |
| Double right-click one of your cities | The group falls back to it |
| Middle-drag | Moves the view |
| Mouse wheel | Zooms in and out |
A right-click always sends the whole group you chose, never a share of it. To split an army, choose part of it with a smaller box.
The game keeps your browser's right-click menu out of the way while you play, so a right-click is always an order.
The keyboard
| Key | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + A | Chooses every dot you have |
| W A S D, or the arrow keys | Move the view |
| Ctrl + 1 to 9 | Saves your group under that number |
| 1 to 9 | Chooses that saved group again |
| Shift + 1 to 9 | Adds your group to that saved group |
| Tab | Shows the scores |
| Esc | Pauses the battle (and opens the menu) |
| F1 | Shows the keys |
A note on Ctrl and a number in a browser. Some browsers use Ctrl with a number to switch between tabs, and take the key before the game sees it. If saving a group switches your tab instead, use the box to choose groups; everything else works the same.
Control groups, used well
Control groups are a shortcut, not a requirement: the box does everything they do. They help when you have two armies on two fronts. Save the first army as 1 and the second as 2, and you can switch between them without moving the view.
Pausing and thinking
Esc pauses the battle. In a battle against the computer there is no shame in it: look at the map, read the top bar, then decide. A Council pauses the battle for you, too, while you pick a card.
The scores
Tab shows every side: its cities, its dots and its share of the map, with the leader first. With teams, the rows stand team by team, yours first, and a side that fights beside you says "(ally)".
Fullscreen
The Play page has a Fullscreen button under the game. Fullscreen gives the map more room and keeps stray clicks off the page around it.
Practising
The Tutorial's drills teach choosing, sending and falling back one at a time. They are written for touch words (lasso, tap), but with a mouse they mean the box and the right-click.
Where to go next
- On a phone, later: lasso, tap, fall back.
- Telling sides apart: team colours and colour-blind patterns.
- If it runs slowly: the browser game is slow.