really big games

[Nitram Draw]

Sounds like a good idea to help the AI without having any "house rules" to follow.
Could you post one of your saved maps?
Have you tried doing a map for a game where all races start on the same planet type?

[dogscoff]

QUOTE:
Seems to me the *internet* software is defective here, it should not CARE what file type is used standard or not....
/QUOTE

Welcome to the wonderful world of windoze. Real operating systems use information from inside the file as well to determine what kind of data it is.

------------------
"Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?"
"Uh, I think so, Brain, but balancing a family and a career ... oooh, it's all too much for me. "

[rdouglass]

quote:

---

Originally posted by dogscoff:
QUOTE:
Welcome to the wonderful world of windoze. Real operating systems use information from inside the file as well to determine what kind of data it is.

---

Oh, you mean like the Mac OS with its' resource forks??? (Not to start a flame, but just to point out that virtually all file-type schemes have some inherent problem or two...)

I brought up the map editor and started with a clean slate. I created a single star system. In that system I just kept adding planets. Everything was roman # to xxx, then the next was 31. Unfortunately everything after that was also 31, but it did not crash. When I tried editing my big map I must have selected one of the systems with more than 31 planets so that was why it crashed. I am now working on another map from a generated 253 system rich in ruins which is restricted to 1,2,3 star systems no trash and has warp points located anywhere in system. I am adding sphereworlds rock no atmosphere at three system intervals and will post in the maps/scenarios when I am done. There will be two Versions, one with just the spheres and another with many thousand planets. For me the map3.map is history, it was just a first hack posted to let you know what was possible. I expect the next map to Last me a month or two of game time, but if you have any ideas for what would be really neat in a map let me know here, maybe I will start over again.

[jc173]

Actually the txt file worked fine for me I just changed the extension after I downloaded it and voila huge map... wow really huge map. I'm kinda wondering if I have the organizational skills to actually play this one

[Nitram Draw]

How about trying a smaller Version of your map? If the problems are with the size this should help.
Sounds like even a smaller Version would be very interesting to play on!

[dogscoff]

QUOTE:
Oh, you mean like the Mac OS with its' resource forks??? (Not to start a flame, but just to point out that virtually all file-type schemes have some inherent problem or two...)
/QUOTE

Never used MacOS. I was actually thinking of my amiga (Yup, still going). I believe other unix like OSs have sensible filetype rec as well.

------------------
"Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?"
"Uh, I think so, Brain, but balancing a family and a career ... oooh, it's all too much for me. "

I posted new maps in scenario/mod archive for those who did not like map3. They feature sphere worlds at strategic locations and a rich ruins environment. There is a starting map then added 67% large good worlds to 3834 planets. Later I will post a final map with 7-8k planets, then start playing the thing to see if it is survivable.

The final map is posted as map6.txt, finishing took 7 hours so my estimate that I could cut the time in half was wrong. It takes a long time to build these maps. As I said before compared to game time it is not all that long.

[This message has been edited by LCC (edited 19 May 2001).]

Using map6 I started a game with 10 good planets and high resources but low tech using the changes mentioned previously to settings.txt but no change to the AI files. I used TDM-Modpack races with my race (Rock None (like the Rage of course), Ancient Race, Physical Stength 90, Reproduction 120) in and around system Ike. The Cue Cappa are in Ein, the Narn in Yak, the Ukra Tal in Red, plus Abbidon, Amonkrie, Colonial 2000, Cryslonite, Drushocka, Eee, Krill, Phong, Piundan 2000, Pyrochette 2000, Rage 2000, Sallegra, Sergretti 2000, Toron, Toltayan, and Xichung 2000 (contact & war on turn 2).

In case you did not get the map, system Central is a nexus with 10 warp points. Sytems Ike, Ein, Yak, and Red are nexus systems connecting to Central.

I ran all on full AI for ten turns to see what would happen. By turn 10 6 races had found and entered Central. All but two races who had contact with another race were already at war. There were a few trade treaties but it was the exception not the rule. There were light cruisers in combat. There were fleets of 25 destroyers, fast work for ten planets 10 turns when they had to learn the tech first....

I will not post any more about the game unless people are interested, but it will certainly require me to modify my strategy since there are at least 7 races able to reach me with warships within the first 12 turns.

[This message has been edited by LCC (edited 19 May 2001).]

Also the Piundan are/were in Oil, which I overlooked in my first glance at the AI. When I got there on turn 10 there was no colony so there must be a war going on. Systems with a race one warp point away from a major nexus (two warps from Central) - Colonials @Hen, Drushocka @Ivy, Krill @Red, Sallegra @Nizzarum, Toron @Zanthis. Two warps away - Cryslonite @Osteo, Phong @Ivy, Rage either Red or Osteo, Sergetti @Yak, Toltayan @Oil, Xichung @Ike. Isolated races are Abbidon 6 from Yak or Ein, Amonkrie 4 from Hen, Eee (also Ancient Race) 4 from Hen or Nizzarum, Pyrochette 4 from Zanthris. I met ten by turn 10 and expect to meet at least 16 by 16. As I said when developing the map, I want to watch the AI and see how it performs in a rich environment - not really cheating, more a simulation than a game.

[This message has been edited by LCC (edited 20 May 2001).]
The Piundan were not in Oil they just claimed it from a system 1 warp point away.

[This message has been edited by LCC (edited 22 May 2001).]

[jimbob55]

try Pasting this to the bottom of the system types file
(before the ===== EOF lines and one line after the Last entry)

quote:

---

Name := Bloated 1
Description := Standard solar system.
System Physical Type := Normal
Background Bitmap := Starmap.bmp
Empires Can Start In := TRUE
Mask Background Objs := FALSE
Non-Tiled Center Pic := FALSE
Number of Abilities := 0
WP Stellar Abil Type := Normal Warp Point
Number of System Objs := 29
Obj 1 Physical Type := Star
Obj 1 Position := Ring 1
Obj 1 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Star
Obj 1 Size := Any
Obj 1 Age := Any
Obj 1 Color := Any
Obj 1 Luminosity := Any
Obj 2 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 2 Position := Ring 2
Obj 2 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 2 Size := Huge
Obj 2 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 2 Composition := Any
Obj 3 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 3 Position := Ring 3
Obj 3 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 3 Size := Huge
Obj 3 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 3 Composition := Any
Obj 4 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 4 Position := Ring 3
Obj 4 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 4 Size := Huge
Obj 4 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 4 Composition := Any
Obj 5 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 5 Position := Ring 4
Obj 5 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 5 Size := Huge
Obj 5 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 5 Composition := Any
Obj 6 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 6 Position := Ring 4
Obj 6 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 6 Size := Huge
Obj 6 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 6 Composition := Any
Obj 7 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 7 Position := Ring 5
Obj 7 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 7 Size := Huge
Obj 7 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 7 Composition := Any
Obj 8 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 8 Position := Ring 5
Obj 8 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 8 Size := Huge
Obj 8 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 8 Composition := Any
Obj 9 Physical Type := Storm
Obj 9 Position := Ring 5
Obj 9 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Storm
Obj 9 Size := Any
Obj 10 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 10 Position := Ring 6
Obj 10 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 10 Size := Huge
Obj 10 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 10 Composition := Any
Obj 11 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 11 Position := Ring 6
Obj 11 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 11 Size := Huge
Obj 11 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 11 Composition := Any
Obj 12 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 12 Position := Ring 6
Obj 12 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 12 Size := Huge
Obj 12 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 12 Composition := Any
Obj 13 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 13 Position := Ring 3
Obj 13 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 13 Size := Huge
Obj 13 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 13 Composition := Any
Obj 14 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 14 Position := Ring 3
Obj 14 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 14 Size := Huge
Obj 14 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 14 Composition := Any
Obj 15 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 15 Position := Ring 4
Obj 15 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 15 Size := Huge
Obj 15 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 15 Composition := Any
Obj 16 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 16 Position := Ring 4
Obj 16 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 16 Size := Huge
Obj 16 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 16 Composition := Any
Obj 17 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 17 Position := Ring 5
Obj 17 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 17 Size := Huge
Obj 17 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 17 Composition := Any
Obj 18 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 18 Position := Ring 5
Obj 18 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 18 Size := Huge
Obj 18 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 18 Composition := Any
Obj 19 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 19 Position := Ring 5
Obj 19 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 19 Size := Huge
Obj 19 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 19 Composition := Any
Obj 20 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 20 Position := Ring 5
Obj 20 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 20 Size := Huge
Obj 20 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 20 Composition := Any
Obj 21 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 21 Position := Ring 5
Obj 21 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 21 Size := Huge
Obj 21 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 21 Composition := Any
Obj 22 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 22 Position := Ring 5
Obj 22 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 22 Size := Huge
Obj 22 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 22 Composition := Any
Obj 23 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 23 Position := Ring 5
Obj 23 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 23 Size := Huge
Obj 23 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 23 Composition := Any
Obj 24 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 24 Position := Ring 5
Obj 24 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 24 Size := Huge
Obj 24 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 24 Composition := Any
Obj 25 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 25 Position := Ring 4
Obj 25 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 25 Size := Huge
Obj 25 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 25 Composition := Any
Obj 26 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 26 Position := Ring 4
Obj 26 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 26 Size := Huge
Obj 26 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 26 Composition := Any
Obj 27 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 27 Position := Ring 5
Obj 27 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 27 Size := Huge
Obj 27 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 27 Composition := Any
Obj 28 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 28 Position := Ring 5
Obj 28 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 28 Size := Huge
Obj 28 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 28 Composition := Any
Obj 29 Physical Type := Planet
Obj 29 Position := Ring 6
Obj 29 Stellar Abil Type := Normal Planet
Obj 29 Size := Huge
Obj 29 Atmosphere := Any
Obj 29 Composition := Any

---

And this to the end of your quadrant types file (before EOF line also)

quote:

---

Name := Insane
Description := Silly number of planets.
Min Dist Between Systems := 1
System Placement := Random
Max Warp Points per Sys := 6
Min Angle Between WP := 50
Number of System Types := 5
Type 1 Name := Bloated 1
Type 1 Chance := 90
Type 2 Name := Storm 1
Type 2 Chance := 1
Type 3 Name := Storm 2
Type 3 Chance := 1
Type 3 Name := Storm 3
Type 3 Chance := 1
Type 4 Name := Storm 4
Type 4 Chance := 1
Type 5 Name := Storm 5
Type 5 Chance := 1
Type 5 Name := Destroyed Star
Type 5 Chance := 5

---

This will create a quadrant with 29 huge planets in 90% of the systems. It takes about a minute to generate the quadrant on my system (celeron466). May lead to range check errors as the AI spreads..... cough.

Rough estimate of 2209 planets of each type with random atmosphere distribution. Enjoy.