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<h1>Against the Storm Tutorial Walkthrough for Screen Reader Users</h1>

<p>This guide walks you through the first tutorial mission using the ATS Accessibility Mod.</p>

<p>If you're feeling confused about why certain things are happening, this guide attempts to answer those questions. Skip around using heading navigation if you're already familiar with some concepts.</p>

<p>Before you begin, familiarize yourself with the basic navigation model: Arrow keys move through menus, Enter/Right drills into a submenu, Left/Escape backs out. F12 at any time gives you a list of available hotkeys for the screen your on, useful if you're completely lost.</p>

<h2>Starting the Tutorial</h2>

<p>From the main menu, navigate to Play and press Enter. After loading, an intro sequence plays explaining the game's premise: the world is plagued by the Blightstorm, and you are a viceroy sent to establish settlements for the Scorched Queen.</p>

<p>Once in the tutorial, the game will begin displaying tooltips. With many of these, a limitation of the game is that you cannot press Enter to continue unless the animation is finished (the handwriting sound). Fortunately, there are only 6 or so tooltips in the entire tutorial.</p>

<h2>Orientation</h2>

<p>The first part of the tutorial orients you to four core mechanics:</p>

<ul>
<li>Moving around your settlement</li>
<li>Winning and losing the game</li>
<li>Blueprints for buildings</li>
<li>Pausing and unpausing</li>
</ul>

<h3>Settlement Navigation</h3>

<p>You navigate the settlement map using the arrow keys to move a cursor tile by tile. The mod announces what's at each tile as you move.</p>

<p>Key commands for navigation:</p>

<ul>
<li>Arrow keys: Move cursor one tile</li>
<li>Ctrl+Arrow keys: Skip to the next different tile in that direction</li>
<li>K: Announce your current coordinates (the hearth is 0, 0). You can press Alt+K if you'd like to hear coordinates every time you move your cursor.</li>
<li>I: Get detailed information about the object at your cursor</li>
</ul>

<h3>The Queen's Impatience and Losing</h3>

<p>The Queen's Impatience represents your time limit. It starts at zero and gradually increases. When it fills completely, you lose the mission.</p>

<p>Press S to hear your settlement summary, which includes your current Impatience level. The Impatience value increases slowly over time, but certain events can cause sudden jumps. There are also ways to reduce it.</p>

<h3>Reputation and Winning</h3>

<p>Reputation represents your progress toward victory. You gain Reputation by completing objectives, making good decisions, and keeping villagers happy.</p>

<p>Press S to hear your current Reputation in the settlement summary. When Reputation fills before Impatience, you win.</p>

<p>Important: Gaining a full point of Reputation also reduces Impatience by one point.</p>

<h3>Blueprints</h3>

<p>A Blueprint unlocks your ability to construct a specific building. Most buildings require you to earn their Blueprint before you can build them.</p>

<p>When you earn a Blueprint choice, press F3 to open the pending rewards menu. Navigate the options with Up/Down arrows. The tutorial will tell you which Blueprint to pick; in regular missions, you choose from random options.</p>

<p>Blueprint choice is a core mechanic. You cannot get every building in a mission&mdash;you must adapt to the Blueprints you're offered.</p>

<h3>Choosing Your First Blueprint</h3>

<p>Press F3 to open pending rewards. Navigate to the Woodcutters' Camp and press Enter or Space to select it. This Blueprint is now available in your building menu.</p>

<p>Note: After the tutorial, every settlement starts with the Woodcutters' Camp Blueprint automatically.</p>

<h3>Unpausing and Time Controls</h3>

<p>Press Space to unpause the game. You'll hear the ambient sounds of your settlement come to life.</p>

<p>Time controls:</p>

<ul>
<li>Space: Pause/Resume</li>
<li>1: Normal speed</li>
<li>2: 1.5x speed</li>
<li>3: 2x speed</li>
<li>4: 3x speed</li>
</ul>

<p>When you unpause with Space, the game returns to whatever speed you last selected.</p>

<h2>First Tutorial Mission: Orders, Gathering, and Glades</h2>

<p>This mission teaches:</p>

<ul>
<li>Building placement</li>
<li>Assigning workers</li>
<li>Receiving and delivering Orders</li>
<li>Marking trees for harvest</li>
<li>Opening glades</li>
<li>Gathering resources</li>
<li>The Storm and Cornerstones</li>
</ul>

<h3>Building a Woodcutters' Camp</h3>

<p>Your objectives are:</p>

<ol>
<li>Build a Woodcutters' Camp</li>
<li>Explore the forest</li>
<li>Keep the fire going</li>
</ol>

<h4>Placing the Camp</h4>

<p>Press Tab to open the building menu. You can navigate categories with Up/Down, or type a building name directly. Type "wood" and the Woodcutters' Camp should appear. Press Enter to select it.</p>

<p>You're now in build mode. Use arrow keys to move your cursor to where you want to place the building. Press D to hear what resources would be in range of the camp at this location&mdash;for the Woodcutters' Camp, this tells you which trees the workers can reach.</p>

<p>You will always be holding a building by the bottom left corner, no matter how you rotate it.</p>

<p>Press R to rotate the building if needed. Press Enter to place the building and exit build mode.</p>

<p>Tip: If you place the building and want to place another of the same type, use space to place but stay in build mode. Press Escape when done placing buildings.</p>

<h4>Construction by Villagers</h4>

<p>Once placed, villagers without other jobs will automatically collect the required materials (2 Parts from the Main Warehouse) and construct the camp. Unpause if you haven't already and wait for construction to finish. You can press Enter on a building to view its construction status.</p>

<p>The mod will announce when the building is complete.</p>

<h4>Assigning Workers</h4>

<p>Move your cursor to the Woodcutters' Camp using arrow keys. Press W to hear the current worker status&mdash;it should report empty slots.</p>

<p>There are two ways to assign workers. One is by pressing Enter on the building, navigating to the workers section, and assigning a worker to each empty slot one by one using Enter and arrow keys. But there is also a faster way (because assigning and unassigning workers is the main mechanic of this game).</p>

<p>To assign workers without opening the building panel:</p>

<ul>
<li>Press + or - to cycle through available species</li>
<li>Press Shift++ or Shift+- to add or remove a worker</li>
</ul>

<p>Tip: Beavers are ideal for the Woodcutters' Camp because they have the Woodworking specialization, giving them a chance for bonus wood.</p>

<h2>Your First Orders</h2>

<p>The mod will announce when new Orders arrive. Press F2 to open the menu hub, then navigate to Orders and press Enter.</p>

<h3>Understanding Orders</h3>

<p>In the tutorial, Orders are assigned to you. In regular missions, you choose from random options&mdash; usually two or three per order slot.</p>

<p>Your first Order requires:</p>

<ul>
<li>Two Woodcutters' Camps built</li>
<li>10 Wood gathered by those camps (starting Wood doesn't count)</li>
</ul>

<p>Rewards for completing this Order:</p>

<ul>
<li>3 Beavers join your settlement</li>
<li>A perk improving wood gathering speed</li>
<li>1 Reputation point</li>
</ul>

<p>Press T while on an Order to toggle tracking. Press O from the settlement map to hear tracked Order progress at any time. Orders start tracked by default. (In a normal game, you can have up to twelve orders at once, so it is useful to only track what you're actively working on.)</p>

<p>Tip: all stat keys, S, V, and O, can be accessed from inside menus (simply press them with alt).</p>

<h3>Building the Second Camp and Gathering Wood</h3>

<p>Press Tab, type "wood," select Woodcutters' Camp, and place a second one. Assign workers to both camps.</p>

<p>Press O periodically to check your Order progress. When both objectives show as complete, the Order is ready to deliver. The mod will announce this, but there is a delay (this is a game design).</p>

<h3>Delivering Your First Order</h3>

<p>Press F2, navigate to Orders, find your completable Order, and press Enter to deliver it.</p>

<p>You receive:</p>

<ul>
<li>3 new Beavers</li>
<li>The woodcutting perk</li>
<li>1 Reputation point (which also reduces Impatience by 1)</li>
</ul>

<p>Since you gained Reputation, press F3 to check for a new Blueprint reward.</p>

<h2>Exploring the Forest</h2>

<p>Your next objectives involve opening Glades. Glades are clearings in the forest containing resources, villagers, ruined buildings, and Glade Events. You open them by cutting the trees between your explored area and the Glade. Before cutting them open, they're visually hidden by clouds of fog.</p>

<h3>Using the Scanner to Find Glades</h3>

<p>The settlement scanner is essential for navigation. It organizes map contents into categories, subcategories, and individual items sorted by distance.</p>

<p>Scanner controls:</p>

<ul>
<li>Ctrl+PageUp/Down: Change category (Glades, Resources, Buildings)</li>
<li>Shift+PageUp/Down: Change subcategory</li>
<li>PageUp/Down: Change group within subcategory</li>
<li>Alt+PageUp/Down: Cycle through individual items</li>
<li>Home: Move cursor to the current scanner item</li>
<li>End: Announce distance and direction to current item</li>
</ul>

<p>Press Ctrl+PageUp or Ctrl+PageDown until you reach the Glades category. Use PageUp/Down to switch between glade types: Small, Dangerous, and Forbidden. Alt+PageUp/Down cycles through individual glades of that type.</p>

<p>Press End to hear the direction and distance to a glade, or press Home to jump your cursor there.</p>

<p>If you prefer, you can press Alt+Home to have the scanner auto-move your cursor as you navigate between items.</p>

<h3>Second Order: More Workers and Opening Glades</h3>

<p>Press F2, go to Orders, and review your new Order. Requirements:</p>

<ul>
<li>Open 2 Glades</li>
<li>Have 5 Beavers assigned as woodcutters simultaneously</li>
</ul>

<p>If you already assigned Beavers, you may partially satisfy this. Navigate to your Woodcutters' Camps and use Shift++ to add Beavers until you have 5 total across both camps.</p>

<h3>Opening Glades</h3>

<p>Your woodcutters will cut trees automatically within their range, but they prioritize marked trees. To open specific Glades faster, mark the trees between your explored area and the Glade you want to open.</p>

<p>Use the scanner to locate a Small Glade, press Home to jump there, then move your cursor toward your camps to identify trees in between. The mod announces tree tiles as you pass them. You can also press D on a tree to see if it is in range of a Woodcutters' Camp.</p>

<h4>Marking Trees</h4>

<p>To mark trees for harvesting:</p>

<ol>
<li>Move your cursor to any tree and press Enter to enter tree marking mode.</li>
<li><strong>Rectangle mode (default)</strong>: Press Space on one tree to set the first corner, move to another tree and press Space to set the opposite corner. This selects all trees in the rectangle. Press Enter to confirm the selection.</li>
<li><strong>Single select mode</strong>: Press Tab while in tree marking mode to switch to single select. Move to individual trees and press Space to toggle each one. Press Enter when finished.</li>
</ol>

<p>To unmark trees, press Enter on an already-marked tree. This enters unmarking mode, which works the same way&mdash;use rectangle or single select to choose which trees to unmark.</p>

<p>You can also toggle the status of individual trees using Backspace, without entering the special tree marking mode.</p>

<h4>Strategy for Opening Glades</h4>

<p>Use the scanner to find the Glade you want to open, press Home to jump there, then navigate toward your Woodcutters' Camp. Mark trees in a line or path between the camp and the Glade. Your woodcutters will prioritize these marked trees, cutting a path to open the Glade faster.</p>

<p>Tip: Make sure the trees you mark are within range of a Woodcutters' Camp. Press D while on a camp to hear its gathering range, or navigate to trees and check if they're announced as being in range of a camp, also with D.</p>

<p>Tip: You can move most buildings in the game with no penalty. When focused on a building, press M. This picks up the building and allows you to place it anywhere you wish.</p>

<h3>Delivering the Order</h3>

<p>Once you've opened 2 Glades and have 5 Beavers assigned, deliver the Order via F2 &gt; Orders. You receive 3 Humans, 30 Meat, and 1 Reputation point.</p>

<h3>Third Order: Gathering Food</h3>

<p>Your new Order requires building a Small Foragers' Camp and gathering 5 Vegetables.</p>

<p>Press F3 to pick your new Blueprints. Select the Small Foragers' Camp (and the Shelter if offered).</p>

<h4>Finding Vegetable Deposits</h4>

<p>Press Ctrl+PageUp/Down to switch to the Resources category. Use Shift+PageUp/Down to reach Nodes Small. Navigate until you find Vegetables deposits, then press Home to move your cursor there.</p>

<h4>Placing the Foragers' Camp</h4>

<p>Press Tab, type "forag," and select Small Foragers' Camp. Move to a location near the Vegetables deposit. Press D to confirm the deposit is in range&mdash;the mod will announce which resources this camp can reach.</p>

<p>Press Enter to place, then assign workers. Humans have the Farming specialization, making them ideal for this camp.</p>

<h4>Completing the Order</h4>

<p>Wait for your foragers to gather 5 Vegetables. Press O to check progress, then deliver via F2 &gt; Orders.</p>

<h3>Fourth Order: Gathering Clay</h3>

<p>Similar process:</p>

<ol>
<li>Press F3 to get the Stonecutters' Camp Blueprint</li>
<li>Use the scanner (Resources category, Nodes subcategory) to find Clay deposits</li>
<li>Press Tab, type "stone," place a Stonecutters' Camp in range of Clay</li>
<li>Assign workers (the Stonecutters' Camp has no specialization, so any species works equally)</li>
<li>Gather 5 Clay and deliver the Order</li>
</ol>

<h3>The Storm</h3>

<p>Around this time, the first Storm season arrives. Press T to hear the current year and season.</p>

<p>The game cycles through three seasons each year:</p>

<ul>
<li>Drizzle: 4 minutes, beneficial effects</li>
<li>Clearance: 4 minutes, neutral</li>
<li>Storm: 2 minutes, negative effects</li>
</ul>

<p>If you would like to see what these effects are, you can press F1 and check out the Modifiers section.</p>

<p>During the Storm, all villagers lose Resolve due to the Looming Darkness effect. Press V to hear species Resolve values&mdash;press it multiple times to cycle through species.</p>

<p>If Resolve drops to zero, villagers start leaving, causing Impatience penalties. For the tutorial, Resolve loss shouldn't cause problems. In regular missions, you must prepare for each Storm.</p>

<h3>Your First Cornerstone</h3>

<p>At the start of Year 2 (beginning of Drizzle), you earn a Cornerstone. Press F3 to see your options.</p>

<p>Cornerstones are permanent bonuses for your settlement chosen from random options. Examples include production bonuses, Resolve improvements, or Impatience reduction.</p>

<p>The tutorial offers:</p>

<ul>
<li>Exploration Contract: Gain 20 Reed and 20 Clay when opening new Glades</li>
<li>Carpenter's Tools: Faster production in the Crude Workstation</li>
</ul>

<p>Navigate with Up/Down and press Enter to select one.</p>

<h3>Fifth Order: Gathering Plant Fiber</h3>

<p>Press F3 to collect the Harvesters' Camp Blueprint. Use the scanner to find Plant Fiber deposits, place a Harvesters' Camp in range, assign workers, gather 5 Plant Fiber, and deliver.</p>

<h3>Sixth Order: Producing Building Materials</h3>

<p>Press F3 to collect the Crude Workstation Blueprint. This is your first production building&mdash;it transforms raw materials into building materials.</p>

<h4>Placing the Crude Workstation</h4>

<p>Press Tab, type "crude," and place the Crude Workstation. Unlike camps, production buildings don't have gathering range. Instead, workers fetch ingredients from nearby buildings or the Main Warehouse. For example, if a Woodcutters' Camp is in range, workers would fetch wood for Planks directly from the Woodcutters' Camp rather than first taking the wood to the warehouse then to the workstation. You can check what suppliers are in range with D.</p>

<h4>Understanding Recipes</h4>

<p>Press Enter on the Crude Workstation to open its panel. Navigate to the Recipes section.</p>

<p>The Crude Workstation can produce:</p>

<ul>
<li>Planks (from Wood)</li>
<li>Fabric (from Plant Fiber, Reed, or Algae)</li>
<li>Bricks (from Clay or Stone)</li>
<li>Pipes (from Copper Bars or Crystalized Dew)</li>
</ul>

<p>Many recipes have swappable ingredients. When navigating a recipe's ingredients, press Right to hear alternatives, and Enter to select which ingredients to use. You can use any combination, for example both Clay and Stone for Bricks, and your workers will use whatever happens to be available.</p>

<p>Enable the recipes you want by pressing Space to toggle them on. Make sure you enable ingredients you actually have.</p>

<h4>Production Efficiency</h4>

<p>Recipes have star ratings indicating efficiency. The Crude Workstation has zero-star (lowest) efficiency&mdash;it uses more ingredients and takes longer than dedicated buildings. However, having access to a recipe at low efficiency beats having no access at all.</p>

<h4>Completing the Order</h4>

<p>Assign workers, enable appropriate recipes with ingredients you have, and wait for production. The Order requires 4 of each building material (Planks, Fabric, Bricks).</p>

<p>Press O to check progress, then deliver when complete.</p>

<h3>Final Order: The Dangerous Glade</h3>

<p>Your final Order requires opening a Dangerous Glade and retrieving an Ancient Tablet from the Ancient Shrine inside.</p>

<h4>Finding the Dangerous Glade</h4>

<p>Use the scanner: Ctrl+PageUp/Down to Glades category, then PageUp/Down until you reach "Dangerous" glades. Press Home to jump there.</p>

<p>Dangerous Glades always contain a Glade Event with potential threats&mdash;but also better rewards than Small Glades.</p>

<h4>Opening the Glade</h4>

<p>Ensure your Woodcutters' Camps have workers and can reach trees bordering this Glade. Wait for them to cut through.</p>

<p>When the Glade opens, the mod announces its contents. The tutorial's Dangerous Glade contains an Ancient Shrine&mdash;a Glade Event.</p>

<h3>Understanding Glade Events</h3>

<p>Navigate to the Ancient Shrine using arrow keys or the scanner (Buildings category &gt; Ruins subcategory), then press Enter to open the Glade Event panel.</p>

<p>Glade Events have multiple sections that you navigate with Up/Down:</p>

<h4>Phase A: Before Investigation</h4>

<p>Sections available:</p>

<ul>
<li><strong>Decisions</strong>: If multiple options exist, choose one with Enter. This determines required goods and effects. The tutorial only has one decision, so this section is missing.</li>
<li><strong>Requirements</strong>: Goods needed. Press Right to see alternatives for each requirement, Enter to select.</li>
<li><strong>Effects</strong>: Working effects (during investigation), active effects (happening on a timer), and permanent effects (happening as long as the building is on the map).</li>
<li><strong>Rewards</strong>: What you receive upon completion.</li>
<li><strong>Start Investigation</strong>: Press Enter to begin.</li>
</ul>

<h4>The Threat Timer</h4>

<p>Glade Events have threat timers (active effects) that start when you open the Glade&mdash;not when you interact with the event. The tutorial's Ancient Shrine has a short threat timer you cannot beat, demonstrating how threats work.</p>

<p>The threat here: after the timer expires, 3 random villagers die to magic missiles. This is unavoidable in the tutorial.</p>

<p>Note: ShrineMissle is an internal game typo, not a mod bug.</p>

<h4>Swapping Required Goods</h4>

<p>The Ancient Shrine requires Scrolls, which you don't have. Navigate to Requirements, find the Scrolls requirement, press Right to see alternatives (including Fabric), and press Enter to select Fabric, which your crude workstation can produce.</p>

<h4>Starting the Investigation</h4>

<p>Navigate to Start Investigation and press Enter. Assign workers in the Workers section&mdash;more workers means faster completion.</p>

<h4>Phase B: During Investigation</h4>

<p>Sections change to:</p>

<ul>
<li><strong>Status</strong>: Progress percentage and time remaining</li>
<li><strong>Workers</strong>: Manage worker assignments</li>
<li><strong>Requirements</strong>: Delivery progress for required goods</li>
<li><strong>Effects</strong>: Currently active effects</li>
</ul>

<p>Workers will fetch the required goods from your Warehouse and begin working the event.</p>

<h4>The Curse Happens</h4>

<p>When the threat timer expires, 3 villagers die. The mod announces each death. A new threat timer starts&mdash;if you don't finish before it expires, 3 more villagers die.</p>

<p>With workers assigned and goods delivered, the investigation should complete before the second timer expires.</p>

<h4>Phase C: Completion</h4>

<p>When investigation finishes, the Status section shows goods remaining for pickup. Workers will automatically collect the rewards (the Ancient Tablet) and return them to storage.</p>

<h3>Delivering the Final Order</h3>

<p>Once the Ancient Tablet reaches your Warehouse, the Order becomes completable. Press F2 &gt; Orders and deliver it.</p>

<p>You receive 30 Amber (trading currency) and 1 Reputation point&mdash;enough to win the tutorial.</p>

<h3>Victory</h3>

<p>The victory screen announces your success and shows metaprogression rewards: experience points and unlocks for future missions.</p>

<p>You've permanently unlocked Blueprints for:</p>

<ul>
<li>Woodcutters' Camp</li>
<li>Small Foragers' Camp</li>
<li>Stonecutters' Camp</li>
<li>Harvesters' Camp</li>
<li>Crude Workstation</li>
<li>Small Hearth</li>
<li>Warehouse</li>
<li>Trading Post</li>
<li>Farm Field</li>
</ul>

<p>Press Enter to continue to the second tutorial mission.</p>

<h2>Keep the Fire Going</h2>

<p>One objective was never explicitly explained: keeping the fire going at the Ancient Hearth. A worker at the Hearth delivers fuel to keep the fire lit. If the fire goes out, all villagers suffer massive Resolve penalties.</p>

<p>Use the scanner (Buildings &gt; Essential) to find the Ancient Hearth. Ensure it always has a worker assigned. You can also press Alt+H to jump back to the hearth from anywhere in the settlement.</p>

<h2>Key Concepts Recap</h2>

<p>You learned:</p>

<ul>
<li><strong>Navigation</strong>: Arrow keys move the cursor, scanner finds things quickly, F1/F2/F3 access menus</li>
<li><strong>Win/Lose</strong>: Fill Reputation before Impatience fills</li>
<li><strong>Blueprints</strong>: Unlocked from F3 pending rewards, limited choices per mission</li>
<li><strong>Orders</strong>: Accessed via F2, provide Reputation when delivered</li>
<li><strong>Building</strong>: Tab opens build menu, D checks range, Space places, workers assigned via +/- or building panel</li>
<li><strong>Camps vs Production</strong>: Camps gather from range, production buildings use ingredients from storage</li>
<li><strong>Recipes</strong>: Can have swappable ingredients, have efficiency ratings</li>
<li><strong>Seasons</strong>: Storm reduces Resolve, prepare accordingly</li>
<li><strong>Cornerstones</strong>: Yearly perks from F3, adapt to options given</li>
<li><strong>Glade Events</strong>: Multi-phase interactions with threats, requirements, and rewards</li>
</ul>

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