New PBW Game - Furball V: Pinball

[Puke]

Bear with me while I steal some forum space to plug my next PBW game:

Puke's Furball V: Pinball
Status: Game open to new players

Game description
PUKE'S FURBALL FIVE - A.K.A. Pinball
projected start date Septermber 19

This is the fifth installment in the Furball Series! If you are familiar with these events, you will know that the ODD numbered games are all solid games. One system, and as many players and planets as will fit. Max Tech, and bash it out until only one player is left. Thats what we have here and now. This isnt a traditional Space Empires game with strategy and politicking, its a slugfest. Less thinking, more shooting, and a break from the regular program.

The EVEN numbered games will follow experimental formats. Furball 2 has had its historical files deleted for security reasons, and Furball 4 placed each player in his/her own system. A one-way warp point droped them in a central system, from which other one-way warp points lead back to the other player's systems. Maya Max and Dream Place managed to crash the game with their monsterous fleets before it was all over.

This game will take some inspiration from the EVEN numberd Furballs, and though it is number 5 in the series, there will be one experimental feature: There will be a random movement of 12 sectors in the system. This means that all Ships, Bases, and Units will be yanked to a different random spot, probably over someone's planet, every turn. Destruction will be wanton and random, and the path people are pulled in may rake them over lots of other planets along the way. Strange things may happen, but only one player will be the Bally Table King!

What is more, there will be some technology restrictions. In keeping with the spirit of Pinball, and to prevent all the defenseless planets from being wiped out early on, weapons will be limited. That is to say, that there will be no weapons aside from Tractor/Repulsor weapons, and Point Defense. All Unit technologies will remain, including Fighters and Troops. Ramming Warheads will remain, and Troop Weapons will remain. As a final trump, Stellar Manipulation will still be enabled, as Geoschmo used to great effect during Furball 3.

Intel will be disabled. thats DISABLED, as in TURNED OFF. you will have ZERO racial points. Please submit a ZERO point empire. This is a MAX tech game. There will be NO research. It should be obvious what this means for Empire Creation, spend those points wisely. Note that since most weapons are removed, racial weapons will also be removed, so think twice before purchasing a racial technology.

This game will conform to gentlemen's rules. Please, no predetermined alliances, or surrender to your buddy. If you need to surrender, do it to the guy thats kicking your butt. If your buddy is in the game, decide wither or not to be on his side after you meet him and the other empires. The same goes for grudges against the guy that beat you in the Last game you played. Please try not to carry over bad feelings, we're all grown up here.

Also, please do not knowingly exploit bugs in the game. I have not been paying attention to the Shrapnel Forums in recent months, so I am not even sure what these currently are. If anyone has information, please post it in the game forum.

Starting resources: 100000
Starting planets: 10
Home planet value: Good
Score display: Own
Technology level: High
Racial points: 0 (thats ZERO)
Quadrant type: CUSTOM
Quadrant size: ONE SYSTEM!
Event frequency: None
Event severity: n/a
Technology cost: n/a
Victory conditions: Last Empire Standing
Maximum units: 20K (or max allowed)
Maximum ships: 20K (or max allowed)
Computer players: None
Computer difficulty: n/a
Computer player bonus: n/a
Neutral empires: No
Other game settings: SEE ABOVE

projected start date Septermber 19

Game information
Owner: puke
Turn number: Not Started
Players/max: 0/12
Last turn:
Next turn:
Turn duration: 72 hours
Turn automation: Fully automatic turns (key)
SE4 Version: Stock v1.84 (Gold Patch 3)

[geoschmo]

Hmmm, I don't know about this one Puke. My first impression is that the system movement is going to make assembling any kind of fleet next to impossible. So your single ships are going to get toasted trying to drop troops on the other guys planets. The way I see it the only way to do anything in this game is gonna be stellar manip. But everyone will build system grav shields to prevent this and the game will stalemate.

That being said I will join anyway because I wan't to see what someone does to prove me wrong.

[Loser]

This sounds like fun!

Waitaminute... Ships with no weapons agaisnt Large Weapon Platforms with Max Tech weapons (and Relics, no doubt)... I'm not too sure about that.

Or, since Weapon Platforms use Ship weapons, are they limited to Tractors, Replusors, and PDC as well?

[Loser]

Originally posted by geoschmo:
But everyone will build system grav shields to prevent this and the game will stalemate.

Not if someone can get a Star Destroyer to the center before the Grav Shields are in.

[Arkcon]

Originally posted by Loser:

quote:

---

Originally posted by geoschmo:
But everyone will build system grav shields to prevent this and the game will stalemate.

Not if someone can get a Star Destroyer to the center before the Grav Shields are in.

---

And destroy the entire universe? Boy, that's a feather in their cap. I gotta get in on this one.

[geoschmo]

If it's the same map he's used for previous Furballs there wont be a star. I was talking about planet destroyers.

[Loser]

Originally posted by Arkcon:
...destroy the entire universe? Boy, that's a feather in their cap. I gotta get in on this one.

Oh yeah.

Originally posted by geoschmo:
I was talking about planet destroyers.

Planet Destroyers work without a Star? I thought all Stellar Manipulation needed a Star in the system to work?

[ August 27, 2003, 18:02: Message edited by: Loser ]

[geoschmo]

Originally posted by Loser:
Planet Destroyers work without a Star? I thought all Stellar Manipulation needed a Star in the system to work?

Nope, Planet destroyers work fine in a system with no star. Warp openers and closers as well, allthough those wont be a factor in this game.

But I believe you do need a star in a system to use a planet creator to build a planet out of asteroids.

[ August 27, 2003, 18:23: Message edited by: geoschmo ]

[Puke]

yep, you need a star for planet creators but not for destroyers.

and yes, weapon platforms use ship weapons, so they will be limited as well. I have ammended the games description on PBW to also include shield destroyers, so that boarding parties can be a factor.

and as to random movement and fleet assembly, it wont be a problem at all. The Last time I tested it (a few Versions back) random movement worked as follows:

The game picks a random sector, and moves all ships / bases / units towards it by X number of sectors. in this case X is 12, so that everyone will end up in the same sector at the end of each turn, but it will be a different sector each turn, and everyone will take a slightly different path to get there, depending on their point of origin.

and no, there wont be a star.

[Loser]

Originally posted by Puke:
weapon platforms use ship weapons, so they will be limited as well.

Good, planets defended by Massive Mount ReplUsers... fun, fun, fun.

Originally posted by Puke:
I have ammended the games description on PBW to also include shield destroyers, so that boarding parties can be a factor.

I was thinking "ram until shieldless" would be the plan.

Originally posted by Puke:
The game picks a random sector

Sector? That's how it works... Everyone's stuff will fight every turn (everyone's stuff that doesn't get wacked by another planet on the way to the magic sector).

Originally posted by Puke:
and no, there wont be a star.

Dangit, I wanted to burn everything.