Manual Buildings
Original 1996 manual, converted verbatim from the game's manual.doc.
Apartments Housing for your population. Build apartments so that your population can continue to thrive. As you advance through the game, your available apartments will become more and more extravagant.
Assault Factory The Assault Factory is one step up from the Weapons Factory. With the Assault Factory, you can build new types of military vehicles, as well as generate old vehicles with more efficient production.
Bunker Medium-level stationary defense fortification. Use the Bunker to protect your colony from invasions.
Camp Your first military installation, the Camp is used for training ground troops.
Coal Mine Build Coal Mines over the Coal deposits. They will automatically harvest Coal from the ground, which must then be routed to a Smelter, which will convert Coal and Iron into Steel. Coal is also necessary to power your Coal Power Plants, so you may want to build Coal Power Plants near Coal Mines.
Coal Power Plant This is your basic, level-one power plant. Power Plants are necessary to power the buildings of your colony. The Coal Power Plant requires Coal to operate, so you may want to build your Coal Power Plants near Coal Mines.
Command Center The Command Center is needed for more advanced buildings and technologies, including the upgrade from a World Map to a Radar. It is not available to you until you have achieved a sufficient level of research.
Dread Factory The most advanced military factory you can build. With the Dread Factory, you can build the most powerful types of military vehicles, as well as generate old vehicles with more efficient production.
Embassy Embassies give you access to the Player Relations window, which allows you to set relations with other players, including AI players. In multi-player games, use to create alliances.
Farm Build Farms in order to feed your people. Some terrain may be more arable than others; be careful where you place your Farms.
Fort High-level stationary defense fortification. Use the Fort to protect your colony from invasions.
Iron Mine Build Iron Mines over the Iron deposits. They will automatically harvest Iron from the ground, which must then be routed to a Smelter, which will convert Iron and Coal into Steel.
Lumber Mill Build Lumber Mills near trees, and they will automatically harvest trees and convert them to Lumber, which you can then route to various locations. Lumber is a crucial material needed for creating new buildings.
Nuclear Power Plant This is the most advanced Power Plant you can build, and the most efficient way of producing power for your colony.
Office Buildings Work space for your population. Build office buildings so that your population can continue to thrive. As you advance through the game, your available office buildings will become more and more extravagant.
Oil Power Plant This is your level-two power plant. The Oil Power Plant requires Oil to operate, so you may want to build your Oil Power Plants near Oil Wells.
Oil Well Build Oil Wells over oil deposits. They will automatically harvest oil from the ground, which must then be routed to a Refinery, where the oil is converted to gasoline. Gasoline production is registered in one of the status bars in the Global Tool Bar.
Pillbox Low-level stationary defense fortification. Use the Pillbox to protect your colony from invasions.
Refinery The Refinery converts crude oil into gasoline. It is a good idea to place your Refinery near an Oil Well, so that your Trucks have a short distance to travel when routing oil.
Repair Facility The Repair Facility is necessary to repair damaged vehicles.
Research Institute Once you build a Research Institute, the Research Window will become available to you. Multiple Research Institutes will allow you to research individual items more quickly, but will now allow you to research multiple items simultaneously.
Seaport Use your Seaport to dock Cargo Ships, which are used for routing materials across bodies of water.
Shipyard Use the Shipyard to create a variety of sea vessels.
Smelter The Smelter is necessary for production of Steel. Route Coal and Iron to the Smelter, and it will automatically begin generating Steel. It is generally a good idea to place the Smelter equidistant from both your Coal Mine and your Iron Mine.
Space Ship Your first building, the space ship will be used by you primarily as a warehouse, storing all raw materials you land with, as well as any you may mine in the future. You cannot build another space ship.
Vehicle Factory The Vehicle Factory is your first vehicle-generating installation. You can create new Cranes and Trucks from the Vehicle Factory, as well as some low-level scout vehicles.
Warehouse Use Warehouses to store materials. Since materials have to be routed to various locations within your colony, strategic placement of Warehouses can aid in the efficiency of vehicle and materials production.
Warship Factory Use the Warship Factory to create advanced military sea vessels.
Weapons Factory The Weapons Factory is the first in a series of three military factories you can build. These installations are used to create new vehicles for doing battle with your opponents.
Xilitium Mine The Xilitium Mine will become available to you in the later stages of the game, after necessary research. Xilitium, when harvested from the ground, can be very useful in the construction of advanced weapons.