06-11-2004 20:45									#1
	Anyone up for a new PBEM? Enter the AD-FREE zone

Looking for players interested in starting a new game.


SMAX, 4 players, standard/large planet, average settings and standard PBEM rules. Maybe someone would like to set it up for us?

My preferd factions are CyCon and Hive....

So, anyone up for it?

	06-11-2004 20:52									#2
	I need a game Enter the AD-FREE zone

So yeah, I'm up for it. I'm not currently in any PBEMs. My e-mail is Arcainite@aol.com

I'll play the Pirates.

	07-11-2004 08:55									#3
	Full PM-box? Change here!

what version?

I think i am updated, if not wont take long...count me in as Spartans

I dont have crossfire

PREXT at msn dot com

	07-11-2004 19:48									#4
	Inflate your Upload Space

Count me in as Morgan

	07-11-2004 20:29									#5
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I would like to play, if you want a 5th playerand don't mind having a noob on board.
It would be my first game so you would have to direct me to that thread with all the PBEM etiquette. I'm still not clear about all the bugs and how to avoid them, like changing someones citizens to specialists on teh F4 screen, the whole probing shebang and voting for the governor.

I favour any flexible faction like drones, PKs etc.

	08-11-2004 05:16									#6
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quote: Originally posted by Platypus Rex what version? I think i am updated, if not wont take long...count me in as Spartans I dont have crossfire PREXT at msn dot com

Sorry mate, this is a SMAX game (alien crossfire)

Ok. we have 4 players. Now, lets see if anyone wants to step in as a CMN and set this game up for us and hold passwords etc.

	08-11-2004 09:05									#7
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quote: Originally posted by Phobus Now, lets see if anyone wants to step in as a CMN and set this game up for us and hold passwords etc.

I can do that

Phobos: Cycon
Arcainite: Pirates
Sebed: Morgan
Senethro: Drones
Suggested AI: UoP; Angels; Peacekeepers

(please all send me an e-mail - anything - to:

xxxlinfrew@aol.comxxx (without the 3xxx's at front and back, of course), especially if you have a favorite password you want used

(Senethro - I'll e-mail you a primer on PBEM playing that'll get you past some of the "what the heck do I do now" questions that you'll encounter in the mechanics of the diplo boxes, opening, saving, turn completing etc)

settings: standard/large planet, average settings and standard PBEM rules

Difficulty level?

Customized in-game rules? (these are the usual PBEM ones when the Cycon are involved. "steal tech" should not be activated, as that is the CyCon's unique faction advantage, and to give that ability to the other players would create an unbalanced playing field.)

	08-11-2004 09:19									#8
	Enter the AD-FREE zone

Great!

I suggest Trancend difficulty level. Also, if its ok with the rest of you, that we turn spolis of war of cause thats one of the Cyborgs special abilities. The rest looks good.

The AI factions are fine with me.

	08-11-2004 14:47									#9
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I agree

	08-11-2004 16:03									#10
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Transcend is good, spoils of war should be off. Otherwise I'm ready.

Googlie: Much appreciated, I've picked up a few hints from searching but some clarification would be very good. My email address is
XXXah59@st-andrews.ac.ukXXX

Last edited by Senethro on 09-11-2004 at 05:51

	09-11-2004 22:38									#11
	Help yourself to an AD-FREE life

Okay - am in the final stages. Just a couple of tweaks to create balance, then I'll playtest out some 30 to 40 turns.

One question though.

How weak - or strong - do you want the AI to be?

• A pushover for the first faction that encounters them
  
• able to hold their own defensively for the first 50 turns or so, but no real threat
  
• good enough to perhaps challenge for a military or co-op conquest
  
• strong enough that it'll take some human-player alliances to beat them back
  
• The works - able to win any way - and needing a human-player axis to defeat them

	09-11-2004 23:29									#12
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For me AI might be not too weak, but not too strong.
My email: sebed@poczta.onet.pl

	09-11-2004 23:56									#13
	Get a bigger avatar today!

I like the idea of human factions ganging up on the AI.

I sent you an email before Googlie but maybe you didnt get it. Ill resend it to you as I have a password I would like to use.

xxxsyrad_alien@hotmail.comxxx (without the xxx).

	10-11-2004 00:51									#14
	Support Apolyton, buy Galactic Civilizations

Google:
How are you planning to tweak the AI so that its harder? If you're going to do it by giving them preset alliances and disposition to the human factions then "strong enough that it'll take some human-player alliances to beat them back" would be good. If you plan to do it by giving them even bigger production bonuses than transcend AI then I would rather they were able to hold their own defensively for the first 50 turns or so, but no real threat.

	10-11-2004 06:51									#15
	Lose 30 kilos (of popups)

Well, the conventional ways (forests or more units or some additional facilities) just result in the AI building more useless units.

And giving them mines or boreholes with starting crawlers has the unexpected effect that the AI cashes in those crawlers for prototypes, or to use as explorers!!

So now we employ a slightly different arsenal. A remote energy park with crawlers "lurking" for a few hundred (they can't move until a unit bumps into them) crawling energy to a super science base. That has the disadvantage that it boosts their early research rate (say twenty crawlers at 2 energy each, pre EE2) then after EE2, each one is producing 6 or 7 energy for a decent, but not overwhelming boost.

Our current preference is some energy satellites. That has the advantage that research grows as # bases grow and as population in those bases grows as well.

Then there are master-slave relationships that can be put into effect. Slave a researching Zak to an ICS minded Lal, and you get a decent powerhouse of a builder team. Or slave it to Sparta or the Believers, and, wow, what a great momentum team gets formed.

These are the kinds of things we're doing now, and it does give the AI a chance to shine as a builder faction (they actually do build crawlers!!)

	12-11-2004 21:02									#16
	Lose 30 kilos (of popups)

Shall we begin already? I'm on British time and although I can manage 1turn/day it might be passed on at strange times.

	12-11-2004 23:16									#17
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Just give me another 24 hours. I made the AI a bit too strong, and as well, I've had to tweak a human start position as I ran into an expansion bottleneck (huge fungal tower popped on the only route to the rest of it's landmass)

A wee bit of patience will produce that much more satisfying a game.

GGLIE

	13-11-2004 00:38									#18
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

I apologise, I wasn't aware of the effort you were taking with tweaking the map. Its much appreciated.

	13-11-2004 05:45									#19
	Lose 30 kilos (of popups)

Turn order will be:

University (AI)
Morgan (Sebed)
PeaceKeepers (AI)
Consciousness (Phobos)
Pirates (Arcainite)
Drones (Senethro)
Data Angels (AI)

I gave it the temporary name PASS (for Phobos-Arcainite-Sebed-Senethro) - I haven't opened a turn reporting thread here 'cos you'll prolly select a more descriptive name for the game

The AI's got some interesting relationships and strategies to follow, but I haven't set up any in Vendetta with any of the 4 of you. Winning their trust might be worth it, though ..................

2101 will be sent to Sebed imminently, together with a general password distribution (and I apologize in advance if anyone has sent me a preferred password - my e-mail since I got onto Verizon here has been very spotty - oodles of mails just dropped into the "great black hole"

EDIT: 2101 has been sent to Sebed of the Morganites, and passwords have been sent to all

PS - I didn't know if you wanted "No contact until meeting or getting commnlink" so I set it up that - if you want - you can agree to contact each other from the game beginning. If you decide against it, then just self-police (ie don't contact anyone until you've met, or have gotten their commlink through podpopping or from another faction)

Last edited by Googlie on 13-11-2004 at 20:12

	13-11-2004 07:00									#20
	Support Apolyton, pre-order Civilization IV

Nice!

Thanks alot for taking time to create this game for us. Im interested to see what youve done with the AI Anyway, much appreciated.

I think we only should contact each other once we meet in the game (if my memory serves me right I think thats what the rules say also).

As for the name heres a suggestion: Alpha Omega
But im sure someone can come up with something better

Oh and btw Googlie my nick is Phobos, not Phobus. Just for the record

	13-11-2004 09:45									#21
	Support Apolyton, buy Galactic Civilizations

Sorry about that, Phobos (I'd like to say that I got it right when I entered it into my e-mail addy book - well, I could say it, buit I'd be lying)

GGLIE

	13-11-2004 13:51									#22
	Remove this text

I created Alpha Omega turn tracking thread for our game and sent turn to Phobos