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How To Play

SpaceBones is a voice-controlled space pirate MMORPG for Alexa devices. Once it's an active skill on your Amazon account, say "Alexa, open Space Bones" to begin. The first time you play, you're given a new pirate ship with a globally unique name, captained only by your Alexa devices - your progress follows your Amazon account across every Echo or Fire TV device you use it on.

Your First Few Minutes

  1. Say "Alexa, open Space Bones." Lucy, your onboard assistant, will greet you and give you a status update.
  2. Say "Status." You start DOCKED in the Sol star system. Lucy will tell you your level, health, fuel, and how much NP (Nuclear Pasta - the game's currency) you're carrying.
  3. Say "Launch." This undocks your ship so you can travel and explore. You can always say "Dock" to return to a station and repair/refuel/upgrade/sell.
  4. Say "Explore." This searches your current star system for hidden treasure, cargo ships to loot, or other players' ships to fight.
  5. Say "Attack" if Lucy finds a ship worth fighting, or just keep exploring to stockpile NP.
  6. Say "Dock", then "Unload" to convert the NP you're carrying into money, and "Repair" / "Fuel" to patch up and refuel before heading out again.

HINT! Different star systems have different-difficulty cargo ships, and different prices for repairs, fuel, and NP-to-money conversion. Some systems are far more profitable than others once you're strong enough to reach them.

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Command Reference

Every voice command Lucy understands, grouped by what it does. You don't need to say "Lucy" first, but you can - both work the same way.

Status & Basics
SayWhat it does
Status / "Where am I?"Lucy reports your level, health, fuel, money, NP carried, and current star system.
DockReturns to station in your current star system. Required before repairing, fueling, unloading, or upgrading.
LaunchUndocks your ship so you can explore or travel.
HelpLucy explains what you can do right now, based on your current status.
Exploring & Traveling
SayWhat it does
ExploreSearches your current star system for hidden treasure, cargo ships, or other players' ships.
Travel to [star name]Travels instantly to a star system you already know about, using fuel based on distance.
Travel (no destination)Lucy lists nearby star systems you can travel to.
Express PassInstantly returns you to Sol in an emergency (consumable item).
Combat
SayWhat it does
AttackAttacks the ship Lucy just found while exploring. Winner loots NP from the loser.
RunFlees from a fight instead of attacking.
Economy & Upgrades (while docked)
SayWhat it does
RepairRestores your ship's health, at a price that varies by star system.
FuelRefuels your ship, also priced per star system.
UnloadSells the NP you're carrying for money, at that star's conversion rate.
UpgradeLevels up your ship if you have enough money in the federation bank. See "Upgrades" below for costs.
Star Leasing New
SayWhat it does
Lease this starLeases the star system you're currently docked in (level 5+ required, only certain stars are leaseable). While you hold the lease, you earn a cut of what every other player spends on repairs and fuel there.
Renew lease on [star name]Extends a lease you already hold before it expires. Leases run 30 days.

Lucy will tell you how much rent you've earned since your last login the next time you open the skill, and warn you when a lease is close to expiring. Track your leases' full earnings history anytime on your website dashboard.

Rare Metals New

From ship level 2, exploring can turn up rare metals: twenty kinds in five tiers (common, uncommon, rare, epic and legendary, from Iron to Rhodium). The rarer the metal, the more it is worth. Metals ride in your ship's hold, so they are lost if your ship is ever scrapped. Each star system only holds a limited supply that refreshes over time, so a busy system can be picked clean. A metal find ends that explore, so say "Explore" to keep looking.

SayWhat it does
Metals Menu / "What metals do I have?"Tells you what's in your hold by tier. On Echo Show it opens a screen with every metal you carry. Also "my metals", "check my metals".
Explain metals / "How do metals work?"A short overview of what metals are for and where to manage them.
What is [metal] used for? / "What is silver?"Says which shield and weapon level needs that metal next, what you hold, what it sells for, and how to sell it. Anything your gear no longer needs, you can sell.
Close metals menuLeaves the metals screen and returns to your status.
Metals Exchange New

Trade metals with other players from anywhere, with no docking needed (ship level 5 and up). Everything is priced in money from the federation bank, so "Unload" your NP first. Sellers pay a 5% fee, a listing stays up for 7 days, and the Federation will buy any metal instantly at 10% of the exchange price (its Federation buy price), so you can always sell one. The same order book is on the website at spacebones.io/exchange (link your account to trade there), and Echo Show has an exchange screen where you can tap a metal to buy, sell, or take a listing down. Say the amount when you buy: "buy 1 iron".

SayWhat it does
Open the exchangeSummarises what's for sale, your listings, and recent sales, with suggestions for what to say next.
Is [metal] for sale? / "Is anyone selling [metal]?"A yes or no, the cheapest price, and how to buy one.
What is [metal] worth?The exchange price, the cheapest listing, and what the Federation would pay.
Sell 2 [metal] / "Sell all [metal]"Quotes the price and fee. Then say "List it" to list at that price, "List it at 35000" to name your own, or "Sell to the Federation" for an instant sale.
Sell [metal] to the FederationQuotes the Federation's price and sells instantly when you confirm.
Buy 2 [metal]Quotes the cheapest listings and total. Say "Buy it" (or "yes") to go ahead.
My listingsWhat you have up, and what sold while you were away (also mentioned in your status report).
Cancel my [metal] listing / "Cancel all my listings"Takes a listing down and returns the metal to your hold.
Change my [metal] priceReminds you how: take the listing down, then list it again at the price you want.
Close the exchangeLeaves the exchange screen and returns to your status.
Shields & Weapons New

Metals upgrade your shields and weapons, level 0 to 500 for each. Every level costs one specific metal (see every level's cost), there are no failed upgrades, and the bonus grows from +0.2% at level 1 to +200% at level 500. You can only upgrade while docked at a station of the right kind. Shield stations: Tau Ceti (orange-3), Mu Cassiopeiae (green-7) and Zavijava (blue-11). Weapon stations: Epsilon Indi (red-2), 61 Virginis (blue-5) and Chara (orange-9). Ask anywhere else and Lucy names the nearest station and tells you where to travel. When you come across another player's ship with upgraded shields or weapons, Lucy tells you before you attack. Your levels also show on your dashboard.

SayWhat it does
What level are my shields? / "My gear"Your shield and weapon levels and bonuses, and what the next level needs and how many you hold.
Upgrade my shields / "Upgrade my weapons"Quotes the cost and the new bonus; say "yes" to upgrade. Docked at the right station only.
Travel to orange-3Places are spoken as colour and number, like "orange-3" or "red-15"; Lucy uses them when pointing you to a station.
Website Account New
SayWhat it does
Link my accountGives you a 6-digit code, valid for 10 minutes. Enter it at spacebones.io/login after signing in with your Amazon account to see your ship, stats, and leases in a browser.
Purchases
SayWhat it does
What can I buy?Lucy lists what's currently available to purchase, and current pricing.
Buy [item name]Purchases an item or subscription Lucy just mentioned, through Alexa's in-skill purchasing.
Cancel [subscription]Cancels a subscription you've purchased.
Quick Links
SayWhat it does
See leaderboardSends you to the website leaderboard (on Echo Show / Fire TV, opens right on screen).
See marketSends you to today's star market prices.
See mapSends you to the interactive star map.
The stars will never be won by little minds; we must be big as space itself.
— ROBERT A. HEINLEIN
Project

Upgrades

Upgrades are suggested when available, only while docked, and only when you have enough money in the federation bank (converted from NP via "Unload"). To become level 2 you need $2,000 in the federation bank; each level after that costs 1× that level in thousands - level 8 costs $8,000, and so on. Higher-level cargo ships carry more loot, so upgrading as soon as you can afford it pays for itself quickly.