I ordinarily wouldn't make a useless "hi I'm a newb" post, that's why I'm making one that isn't useless!
I purchased Dom3 some time back, and my roommate and I agree it is one of the finest strategy games ever devised. After an absence, I wanted to start getting into MP..... but because of the lengthy durations, I am not eager to spend much time making myself into meals!
Anyway, I tried searching the forum for a multiplayer primer, and unfortunately there doesn't seem to be one. Obviously, it would save a great deal of headache (especially for new-ish people wanting to host their own games) if we could get an old pro to write up a guide for joining and playing in MP games, and then get this guide stickied.
Beyond the normal "this is how you submit your pretender, and your turn" sort of thing, I was particularly curious what sort of settings are generally used in MP games. The most relevant factors that come to mind (if there is a significant bias) would be Indy strength, research difficulty, and provinces/player. I understand there are blitz games and what-not, but I think mostly this would concern your typical 20-ish players, 24 hour turns type of game.
I apologize if this post makes me look like more of an idiot than just jumping in a couple of games and finding out, but I didn't see any with open slots, nor did I find a primer using the forum Search, or skimming the first several pages of posts (it should be STICKY).
Well met, and be safe until we meet in the field of battle.