A Mercenary Team anyone?

[Golden Bear]

A thought that I have had about a merc team in a demo game is that could have a "landslide" (deviation amplifying) effect.

-It takes money to hire the merc team
-The merc team will only fight on one side in a war
-(presumably) the merc team will take the highest bidder
-Typically, the stronger nation is the one with the most money.

Thus, it might turn out to be a means to help stronger teams become even stronger while being unavailable to weaker teams.

I'm not certain about whether people think that this is a good thing or not, but it could well work out this way.

[UnOrthOdOx]

We fight for a specific fee, not 'the most money', and there will be no bidding. We will attempt to get that fee affordable, but not cheap.

With gifting units, it's possible each side hires some units.

The 'stronger' nation probably has a greater need for their gold to support their own troops, and fund their research whereas the team fighting for their existance may divert all funds to hiring.

[Enigma_Nova]

I assume you guys are going for the Pyramids (USuff) so you can make use of all that money, right?
Otherwise you're like a big fat sack of cash, and someone might get greedy.

[ormuzd]

Originally posted by inamirrordarkly
Being new to demo games I may end up mostly observing, but I would like to throw my hat (and sword) in with the Merc Team.

Do not be so sure. In my first SPDG I have been FAM for 3 months in a row

[polarnomad]

FAM?

[Krill]

Foreign Affairs Minister. The job has much more importance in MP games than in SP games though.

[Enigma_Nova]

A Diplomat is a person who can tell you to go **** yourself, and have you feel good about it afterwards.
It's an important position to any successful team that tries to hide the brutal, evil, machiavellian truth.

[UnOrthOdOx]

All applicants have been authorized again this morning.

inamirrordarkly
rush

there should be a 'private forum' button where the join button formerly was. Once in, I suggest subscribing to the Merc forum for easier access in the future.

[inamirrordarkly]

Originally posted by Golden Bear
-The merc team will only fight on one side in a war

Even without gifting units The Merc Team wouldn't have to choose sides.

For example: Civ A and Civ B are at war. Both Civs rent units which remain under Merc control. During this time Merc Team would technically be in a state of war with both Civs.

I'm trying to think of an analogue in real life but it escapes me right now. The only thing I can think of is if the Soviets had turned against the Allies in WWII but continued to fight the Nazis as well.

edit: Additonal research turned up Chiang Kai-shek who refused to join the Communist Party of China in their war against the Japanese and insead fought both of them.

[Golden Bear]

Curious. I posted a legitimate concern and an explanation of a completely reasonable sequence of events. I continue to believe that this team, by playing a different game than the other participants, will be an unbalancing factor that will tilt the board more aggresively towards the already winning teams.

Instead of looking for reasons that I am incorrect without considering the thesis seriously, it might be at least more amusing to consider that there is some reason for concern in my statements and take them seriously.

Wanting something is not the same as having something.

[ChrisiusMaximus]

GB i share your concerns, as i know others do. I cant speak for my team as a whole but i personally would seek to eradicate this team if it was a single player pbem.

There too much of an unkown quantity for me and Ill continue to view it that way.

still as with most things in life i go with the majority and accept there place in this game due to the majorities backing of the concept.

[Kloreep]

I'm not so sure about that, GB. I can see why you bring the issue up, but I think with properly balanced costs, we will just be another factor.

Yes, stronger teams will tend to have more gold with which to hire us. But they will have to set aside that gold to pay us with, instead of putting it into research or rushing or something else that would be effective. The Merc team is just another way for that stronger civ to make use of their extra money; it's not like we're setting out to aid the stronger team in each conflict. If a stronger civ decides to put its money into research while a smaller civ decides to hire us in an attempt to take them down a peg, we might act the other way. It all depends on who's willing to hire us and who has the cash to. I don't see us as being any more unbalancing than the fact that stronger civs also tend to be able to build more units, research faster, etc; we're simply adding another way the stronger civ might choose to manifest its power.

[Golden Bear]

Chris, why aren't we on the same team?

I don't know why I posted that, except that I don't like to be misunderstood or misquoted. I also am going with the consensus, not necessarily the will, of the majority, here.

[troglodyte]

Accepting members?

Can I apply for membership? Do I have to provide a CV?

I work in Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Liberia, so may drop off air for a week or so a month (although our ICT are promising us broadband satellite connections), but would love to be involved with what seems to be a great concept.

PS I know many of Bob Denard's and Mike Hoare's sidekicks and am hoping to leverage that into membership!

==trogs

[troglodyte]

Accepting members?

Can I apply for membership? Do I have to provide a CV?

I work in Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Liberia, so may drop off air for a week or so a month (although our ICT are promising us broadband satellite connections), but would love to be involved with what seems to be a great concept.

PS I know many of Bob Denard's and Mike Hoare's sidekicks and am hoping to leverage that into membership!

==trogs