[PBEM game] Entwined Destiny (Over)

[alexti]

- Map: Any smaller (not huge) map (Inland, Ringworld, or anything with 8-12 provinces per nation)
- Victory conditions: depends on map: the target is to determine the winner by turn 60-70 (to satisfy hoarders we can stop let's say at turn 60 and calculate the score of each alliance, counting their gold and gem income (including from gem generators) and various assets (maybe averaging over few turns). It's a bit of work, but that's just once, not every turn.
- Diplomacy: probably on, mostly because I don't like restrictions which are hard to enforce.
- In the case of Theater: do you want to keep the forts at the chokepoints? I'm for no forts (mostly because they leave the province undefended).

Essentially, I don't want to commit time to do mindless micromanagement and I'll agree on any settings that eliminate it.

[Alneyan]

The vote will be over by Thursday late afternoon/early evening, GMT (approximatively 48 hours from now).

On a side note, if hoarding items are the problem rather than the size of the map, it should be possible to remove them from the game altogether; setting clams and fetishes to require Earth 5/Death 5 should do the trick. You would be allowed to use them here, but if you have that many gems to throw away, the game is likely already won for you.

Alternatively, a houserule banning clams/fetishes can be set, and the lurking host would inspect turns searching for equipped clams/fetishes. Woe to the player found with such items equipped. I would rather avoid a limiting figure here though, as it would be harder to check by both the players and myself.

An allowance may be needed for Bloodstones; one or two such items could be equipped for their blood bonus, or something of the like. I do not expect a ban on hoarding items to have much support, but who knows.

[WraithLord]

- Map: Any small to medium. not TOW. Inland, Ringworld, IO, tyrnade are cool.
- Victory conditions: Yes.
- Diplomacy: On. agree with alexti. Hard to enforce and this will give an advantage to those who'll insist on hidden diplomacy.
- In the case of Theater: don't mind.

Anyhting that helps towards a fast paced game with little end game micro is good by me.

[YellowCactus]

Map: Abstain

Diplomacy: I want to be able to have diplomacy. It's a valuable part of the game. (Besides, we have no way to enforce this 'gentleman's rule'. That alone makes it a bad rule.) I remember Norfleet.

Victory: Total Annialation! (however you spell it)

[Yvelina]

As it is it is more then inept for hoarding especially since you could look up the starting province numbers in the mapfile and then you would know the enemy capitols without scouting and can try a shoot out of the blue with 5 flames or so . Chances for being successful are quite high since most players leave most of their forgers in their capitol .

You know, I understand you are trying to get your hoardfest, but please do not insult my intelligence. Only a fool keeps her clamholders, forgers, or any mages of note in her capital. Or together, for that matter. Speaking for myself, I use black servants, not scouts, I keep four separate labs with no other mages in them, so that they appear empty, and I keep domes over all of my mages. By the time people are ready to blow a hundred fire gems per turn on artillery spells, I also have a hundred gems invested in domes, hundreds of wolves patrolling the province to elliminate assassins and soak up some of the fire.

And if you doubt this, I can give up the last turnfile of one of my last games. You will see that exact set-up: turn 80 or so, 150+ clams and fetishes, 80+ blood stones, most on black servants, in provinces that look exactly like 30 others. By the time everyone else surrendered, they had given up on using artillery spells, because only one of about 20 actually got through and killed one smith and 20 wolves. A few of the enemy mages met a fiery death, so I think I came better off, all together.

[EDIT] I attached a screenshot of the last turn. The red arrow points to my capital. The Black arrows point to the two provinces where my generator items are held... I am, of course, Vanheim.

Anyway. Our team's votes:

Maps: Inland (no VC) Most fun
ToW (80% of the central isle) Best fighting
Ringworld (no VC) Instant warfare, just add players

Diplomacy: We are willing to trust players to keep all the diplomacy (trash talk, in our case) to this thread.

Castles: We do not care - both ways are fine with us.


Oh, and Petar is to be talking for us from now on. I'm into finals week, and he's the one who enjoys arguments like this one.

[Boron]

Yvelina you may believe it or not i don't want to get my hoardfest . I was more argumenting just with Panther and the other anti-clamhoarders that hoarding is a winning strat and a no-brainer and so on .

After the game started you will see that Aku + me didn't plan a classic hoard approach in the game .
We just want no constricting rules but most possible freedom for all participants .

Both rules on clams and easy to achieve victory conditions are in our option unfair and constricting .