Rules Question - contest

Nyx · #1 January 25th, 2001, 08:04 PM

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I wonder if a new rules change is coming, or if they're finally fixed with what we have. If you really want to keep abuses to a minimum, I'd ban all diplomacy with the AI at all to prevent the domino surrender effect, which can get out of hand.

You wouldn't get an objection from me on that one. It would certainly take longer if you had to mop up every single planet with troops and didn't receive all the tech/free planets that you do when they surrender. It wouldn't stop there eventual demise, but it would take longer.

I had thought about those, but decided that someone who could force the AI to surrender swiftly deserved that advantage. It left in the rivalry between economists and warmongers. Maybe you could enslave them with troops faster than I could build up my score, maybe you couldn't. But I am open to suggestions, after all, it is a contest for your benefit, we're just the hosts.

Another one I contemplated but didn't go with was the team option, all AIs vs all humans.

Geo in particular, how would you feel about those being ammended? It is getting late in the contest.

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(Don't tell Nyx though, I have a good game going and I don't want to start over again.)

Sorry, I'm evil and darn near omnipresent.

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Compete in the Space Empires IV World Championship at www.twingalaxies.com.

geoschmo · #2 January 25th, 2001, 08:23 PM

Personnally I am happy with it the way it is now. (Of course at Last count I was still in first so I am not sure its fair to ask me. laf)

I am very concerned about the no maintenance "trick" that Drake found. I think that is a serious flaw that could have destabalizing effects. I tested it out myself and it was too easy to get.

You start with a Merchant race which is free and gets you +5% off of maint. Then with your 2000 points you can get you your maint apptitude up to 117% which gives you 22%. Then it's simply a matter of knocking 5 points or so off of 3 other categories and you can get to 25% off maint without any noticble deficencies.

Because of the strange way its calculated, +25% off maint (which is base of 25%) give you Zero Maint cost for your ships. It should reduce your maint to 18.75% (75% of 25%) but t doesn't. IMHO that is a pretty serious flaw.

Of course if everybody does it then it isn't really unfair. But some may not know how to do it, and if you know how but don't do it it puts you a serious disadvantage, which eliminates some of the variety of available race characteristics that I like so much about SEIV.

You would end up with all pretty much identical races in your contest. Kind of a IROC challange for SEIV. If that is what you want, and I don't think you do, then post a preprogrammed race on your website and require people to use it.

Otherwise you should at the very least inform people how to do it on your website, for those that don't read the forums, or put a limit on how much maint reduction is allowed in the race that is used for the contest.

Perhaps a third option would be to allow people to use one of the 8 stock races that are in the retail game with no modifications. I don't relly like that idea though, especially since that would disqualify my entry that I have already posted.

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"Today is a good day to die" --- Cherokee Indian saying (What, you mean you thought Worf thought that one up?)

Talenn · #3 January 25th, 2001, 09:07 PM

Yes, the 'cost' to purchase maintenance reduction is ridiculously low given the current effect. I cranked it up to 200 RPs/point of Maint and that number seems to be working fairly well.

Anything lower and it becomes a 'no brainer'. Ship maintenance is easily the largest expense you have and painlessly reducing it to nil is far too attractive an option at the 'default' price.

Talenn

Emperor Zodd · #4 January 25th, 2001, 09:13 PM

Make sure you e-mail Aaron about this so it gets fixed in this coming patch.

Zanthis · #5 January 25th, 2001, 10:02 PM

geoschmo wrote:

quote:
Because of the strange way its calculated, +25% off maint (which is base of 25%) give you Zero Maint cost for your ships. It should reduce your maint to 18.75% (75% of 25%) but t doesn't. IMHO that is a pretty serious flaw.

As I mentioned under another topic, this is intentional (just don't ask me why it is intended). It used to work they way you thought, geoschmo, but got changed in 1.08 (which means patch 1.19 for us non-beta people). Reproduction got the same change. Very annoying if you ask me. I hope they unfix this soon.

geoschmo · #6 January 25th, 2001, 10:16 PM

Yes, I saw your post Zanthis, but I could not remember what thread or who said it before. But I remeber it helped me understand what was going on. Thanks.