There's currently a problem with a blacklist server which is used by Team17's WormNET. With that one server being "down", the blacklist check cannot be done, resulting in a "negative" response and a ban. Hopefully it will be fixed soon.

• 0. Introduction
        
  • Welcome to Worms: Armageddon! You have managed to join the online part of this old game, but you have got stucked now? Don't worry, that's normal. Right now you can't imagine how much this game have been developed through the years. With the help of this guide book we would like to introduce you to the "worms world" as fast as possible. This guide book contains the most important things you should know about. We tried to keep it as simple and understandable as possible. It is highly recommended to read this book, it is not that long.
    
             
  • 0.1 How to use this guide book?
                
    • All the parts of this book are separated in chapters. The text of the chapters are hidden to make the contents of the book more easier to see. Just click on the link "Show" under a chapter after the word "Spoiler!" to make the text of the chapter visible.
             
     
• 1. Technical information
        
  • 1.1 Updating the game
                
    • Spoiler! View

      You can check the version of your game in the main menu of the game if you move your mouse over the label "Worms Armageddon" (version number will be shown in the bottom).
      
      
      You can check the latest Worms: Armageddon version here. If that version is newer than the version of your game then download and install the update. (The newest version is 3.7.2.1 (07-08-2015))
             
  • 1.2 Game lags
                
    • Spoiler! View

      If your game lags then go into Settings and click the button "Advanced". Then on the left side in the Graphics section from the dropdown list choose "Direct3D 9 (CPU)" or "Direct3D 9 (shader)". Restart the game!
      
             
     
• 2. WormNet
        
  • 2.1 About WormNet
                
    • Spoiler! View

      The server, Worms: Armageddon is using for online games, is called WormNet. When you join there you have to choose a channel where you would like to play at.
      
      
      
      #PartyTime and #RopersHeave are rarely used, you can find all the people in #AnythingGoes. Double click on it to join there. When you joined the channel you can find the players on the right side and the games on top left of the screen.
      
      We know that playing online like this is not so convenient. There is no buddy list, hard to chat in private and the game must be opened all the time. The solution is using a little software, called Snooper. You can read about snoopers in the next section.
             
  • 2.2 Snoopers
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Snoopers are little, easy-to-use applications written by wormers to make WormNet more convenient. First of all you don't need to open the game to be online in #AnythingGoes. You can chat, host and join games, have buddy list, set notifications and many other things that makes your life easier. In short, a snooper is a must-have for a wormer. Furthermore these applications are open source, so you can fully trust in them, they don't have any harmful things.
      
      The most used snoopers are Great Snooper and The Wheat Snooper, but ProSnooper is also still in use. Use which you like the most.
      
      

      Great Snooper	Info	Download
      The Wheat Snooper	Info	Download
      ProSnooper	Info	Download

             
  • 2.3 Game names
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Game names are usually scheme, clan or player names. Schemes are game modes. If a host name is a scheme, then that game mode will be played there. If the game name is a clan name then a clan vs clan league game (clanner) will be there, if a game name is player name then an 1v1 league will be there. This is a habit, we use password for a game very rare.
             
     
• 3. User files
        
  • 3.1 Maps
                
    • Spoiler! View

      There are two types of map files: PNG and BIT maps. Both are widely used. BIT maps will get a generated texture in the game (Forest, Desert, Hostpital, etc). PNG maps are PNG pictures. These maps/pictures must have at most 112 colors. The height and the width of a map must by divisible by 8 otherwise the game cannot load it. The maps are stored in <GameDirectory>\User\SavedLevels directory. You can use subdirectories for the maps within this directory.
      
      There are two big websites where you can download maps for every scheme. These are TUS Maps and Worms Map Database. To load a map, right click on the map picture in your host at the top right corner, then the map editor will be opened. There, under the map there is a dropdown list from which you can choose your saved maps.
      
             
  • 3.2 Scheme files
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Scheme files are files with .wsc extension. These files must be copied to <GameDirectory>\User\Schemes directory. You can use subdirectories for schemes within this directory. You can download all the popular schemes from TUS Schemes. It is recommended to click on the "League" button at the right side to get the schemes that are accepted in league, because there can be several versions of a choosen scheme. There are also a lot of schemes with description at http://worms2d.info/Schemes.
      
      To load a scheme file in your host choose it from the dropdown list in the top right side under the map.
      
             
  • 3.3 Scheme editor
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Unfortunately, with the scheme editor of the game you cannot access all the options that can be edited of a scheme and thus you cannot really fine-tune it. But there are good scheme editor tools with which you can create cool fine-tuned schemes. The most used is SchemeEddy that you can find here.
             
  • 3.4 Replay files
                
    • Spoiler! View

      The game creates a replay from every game you play, it doesn't matter if you are the hoster or not. You can find these replay files in the <GameDirectory>\User\Games directory. You can open them by double clicking on it. While watching the replay you can change the speed using keys 1-9, you can stop it with key 'S' and you can restart it with key 'R'. If you would like to start the replay from a specified time right click on the replay file and choose "Playback at...". Finally you can also export the map/scheme that was played from the replay file by right clicking on it and choosing "Extract Map"/"Extract Scheme". The extracted map/scheme will be put into <GameDirectory>\User\Savedlevels or <GameDirectory>\User\Schemes directory regarding if  you extracted a map or a scheme.
      
      When you play a league game you always have to attach the replay file of the game when you are reporting. Attention! If you installed the game into "Program Files" directory on a newer version of Windows than Windows XP and you don't have admin rights, then the game cannot write into the Games folder, so the replay files won't be generated.
             
     
• 4. Schemes
        
  • 4.1 About Schemes
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Game modes are called schemes. They can be grouped by ground schemes, rope based schemes, race schemes and other schemes. There are a lot of them, here we would like to present you the most known ones.
             
  • 4.2 Ground schemes
                
    • Spoiler! View

      The most known ground schemes are Intermediate/Normal, Team 17, Elite, Hysteria and BnG. The goal of these schemes is to kill the opponent team(s).
      
      Intermediate (or normal) is the traditional default game mode. It is played with 8 worms per player in 1v1 mode, and 4 worms per player in case of 2v2. In the league scheme there are no crates falling. More info and replay
      
      In Team 17 (T17) in the beginning of the game you will have very weak weapons only. But in every turn a weapon crate (cr8) falls, from which you can get stronger weapons. T17 is played with 4 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 2 worms per player in case of 2v2. You must use map type dual-layer cave.
      
      Rope and bungee knocking are not allowed. More info and replay
      
      Elite is a scheme similar to Intermediate, but with only 20 seconds turn time, fewer weapons and instant mines. It is played 4 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 2 worms per player in case of 2v2. Rope and bungee knocking are not allowed. Only opened maps are allowed. More info and replay
      
      Hysteria is a special scheme where quick thinking and reflexes are vital. Each turn only lasts for a meagre one second, in which the player must select and fire a weapon. This may sound crazy for the first time, but there are still a lot of possibilities to do. It is played 4 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 2 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      BnG (Bazooka and Grenades) is a traditional scheme. In the beginning of the game you must teleport your worm one of the sides of the map and your opponent(s) must go to the other side. Worms can't walk and you must kill your opponent using bazooka and grenades only. There are several rules like: no darksiding (= you must not teleport where your worm can not be hit), grenade can't be stopped on the ground for more than one second before exploding and hitting a worm and straight shots of bazooka are not allowed. It is played with one worm per player both in 1v1 and 2v2 modes. More info and replay
             
  • 4.3 Rope based schemes
                
    • Spoiler! View

      In these schemes you will need to use ninja rope a lot which is really fun. The most known rope based schemes are Shopper, WxW Shopper, and Roper. The goal of these schemes is to kill the opponent team(s). These schemes need special type of maps.
      
      Shopper is the easiest rope based scheme. There are 3 rules here: AFR = attack only from rope (except with ground weapons, ex. shotgun), CBA = take at least one create before attack, KTL = kill the leader (in fun games only). This scheme is like a rope based Team 17, you can get strong weapons from crates. In fun games the rules "AFR CBA KTL" should be sent to the hoster or you may be kicked out from the game. In league, Shopper is played with 4 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 2 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      WxW Shopper (WxW in short) is a hardened shopper where you also have the rule WBA = touch all the marked walls before attack. This scheme is played usually on linear maps where you can rope very fast and a lot of roping tricks can be done, that's why ropers like it much. In fun games the rules "AFR CBA KTL WBA" should be sent to the hoster or you may be kicked out from the game. In league, WxW Shopper is played with 3 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 2 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      Roper is the hardest rope based scheme. It is usually played on a special type of maps which look like 2 trees. The rules are the same as in shopper, but here health crates are falling. You have got bazooka, grenades and mines to attack. In the first turn only bazooka can be used. You must not block the worm of your opponent. After sudden death there are no more crates falling, you must touch the left and the right border of the map before attack. It is played with one worm per player both in 1v1 and 2v2 modes. More info and replay
             
  • 4.4 Race schemes
                
    • Spoiler! View

      All the race schemes need special maps. Rules are usually start to finish (s/f). You must teleport your worm(s) to the "start" word and you must touch the "finish" word using the least turns or the least time (time trial races).
      
      Rope Race: (RR) race with ninja rope. There are two types: in Big Roper Race (Big RR) you must reach finish using the least turn count. Usually a turn lasts 30 seconds and by throwing a banana bomb this time can be exceeded with 10 seconds of retreat time. In Time Trial Rope Race (TTRR) you have to reach the finish in one turn as fast as you can. More info and replay
      
      Boom Race: you move your worms by exploding bombs. Obviously the god mode is on so the worms won't get damaged. You should enable boom race mode in the host by typing "/boom" and pressing enter to prevent the worms of other players to move when you explode a bomb. More info and replay
      
      Parachute Race: you have to reach the finish using jumps and with the help of the parachute and of course with the help of the wind. More info and replay
      
      Battle Race: you have to reach the finish only by various type of jumps. Some maps can be really tricky. More info and replay
      
      Jetpack Race (JPR): you have to reach the finish using the jetpack. This scheme is usually played in time trial mode, so you must finish in one turn. More info and replay
      
      Super Sheep Race: (SSR) you have to reach the finish or checkpoints with the Supersheep. This scheme needs a lot of patience. More info and replay
      
      Bungee Race: you have to reach the finish with bungee jumps. More info and replay
             
  • 4.5 Other schemes
                
    • Spoiler! View

      Darts: is really popular nowadays. You have to fly with your worms to as close to a target as you can. The player who collected more points wins the game. Darts is played with 8 worms per player. Here you can find some darts replay files
      
      Plop war: on a special map you need to plop all your worms by exploding weapons using the least turns. It is played with 8 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 4 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      Holy war: build your hides with girders, then destroy the enemy using holy hand grenades. It is played with 8 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 4 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      Supersheeper: this scheme is quite popular nowadays. Destroy the enemy team using super sheep. More info and replay
      
      Abnormal: the base of this scheme is Intermediate (normal), but the goal here is to kill your team using the least turns. People can do this really creatively. It is played with 8 worms per player in 1v1 mode and 4 worms per player in case of 2v2. More info and replay
      
      Surf Shopper / Surf WxW: these schemes have the same rules as shopper or wxw, but you have to surf on the water before attack (SBA). These schemes need special maps where you can do surfing. To be able to continue your turn after surfing you must enable TestStuff in the host by typing "/ts" and pressing enter.
      
      Fly shopper: is the same as shopper but you have to fly over a thing before attack. It is played on a fly shopper map.
      
      Bungee shopper: is a shopper with the rule AFB (attack from bungee) instead of AFR (attack from rope).