Common questions about CMNing and their answers

binTravkin · January 30, 2006, 05:39

There are some new people around wanting to CMN.
Unfortunately, they often get old or faulty info about how things should be set up.

The purpose of this thread is to be a place where anyone having a question about CMNing which has not already been answered here can ask and it will be answered by expierenced CMNs present.

Posting rules:
1.Never post anything which is already answered upon. This implies you scan the thread before posting.
2.Pose your questions in following form:

Question: your question in short, but easy to understand form

3.Be nice, be patient, open a new thread if discussion needed.
- People answering you do not have all day to do it and are doing it voluntarilty
- People reading this thread want it to be short and precise
4.For CMNs: quote the question you're answering for and answer in following form:

Answer: your answer in short, but easy to understand form

As an example I have provided first three questions and their answers:

Question:
How do I ensure a scenario has proper difficulty?

Answer:
To create proper diffculty scenario:
1.eliminate all factions.
2.set difficulty in 'scenario settings'.
3.set global 'force current diff' in 'scenario settings'.
4.(re)load factions.
5.NEVER delete last unit of a faction or start again from 1.
6.do other stuff (place units, add techs etc).
7.Give all factions a tech enabling SE choice
8.Save, run scenario and check the SE switch cost
9.if problem persists, try setting difficulty level forth and back, setting global flag on and off in different combinations, if no success, restart from 1.

Question:
How do I make factions have tech choices I want them to?

Answer:
Use the tech predictor attached.
1.Set 'traded techs' on (game always considers techs given by CMN as traded).
2.Set the starting tech count
3.Set the starting tech(-s)
4.Test which faction slot (number in faction order) is the best by changing them.
5.Test your needed early b-line (say CE->IE->IA) by clicking 'research' on the next needed tech and checking if the one needed after it is available for research.

Normally slots 1,4,7 are somewhat good for factions with 1 starting tech wanting to aim for IA with no or one sidestep.

Question:
I have problems setting the game up so that Uni has it's free tech or that player can actually pick it (AI picks instead).

Answer:
If you set up scenario properly there should be no problems.
Setting up scenario properly means that the year when you set things is 2100 (or whatever the start year is) and you do no resetting or advancing of year whatsoever.
Once you have set all up, you just save it and run* the first turn and set passwords.
When seeing first prompt of next turn (2101 or startyear + 1), save the file and send to first player.
I myself have never had free tech pick problems with scenarios set up this way.

* - run here means you do not play it on in scenario editor, but instead use 'play scenario' or 'multiplayer scenario' (for MP games) feature.

Maniac · February 11, 2006, 16:24

Question: How do you give factions "ghost" secret projects?

Darsnan · February 11, 2006, 16:56

Originally posted by Maniac
Question: How do you give factions "ghost" secret projects?

"Ghost Secret Projects" are simply what I call the effects that can be induced onto a Faction by editing a Faction's text file (which is then imprinted onto a game file) to mimic the effects of an SP. Do you have MS Word? If so I'll send you the file.

D

Maniac · February 11, 2006, 18:41

Originally posted by Darsnan
Do you have MS Word?

Yep

If so I'll send you the file.

Would be great.

binTravkin · February 13, 2006, 04:41

It opens with OpenOffice too..

Kataphraktoi · February 13, 2006, 21:45

How did you give the AI in 'uncharted waters' the +2 mineral at all base SP then darsnan? Thats not a faction edit, is it?

And its not on the SP list, assuming you did infact add it?

Darsnan · February 14, 2006, 00:25

Originally posted by Kataphraktoi
How did you give the AI in 'uncharted waters' the +2 mineral at all base SP then darsnan? Thats not a faction edit, is it?

No, its not a Faction.txt edit. Look at the first post in the Uncharted Waters thread . I gave the AI's satelites to start with, which compensates the AI's nicely for their lack of crawler usage.

D

MMC · April 4, 2006, 23:50

Wouldn't it be a good idea to say what a CMN actually is? It is answered elsewhere, but this thread would seem the most obvious place to ask the most obvious question.

PS: Plus I forgot what CMN stands for

(Although I do know that it's like a Civ Dungeon Master / Game Master)

binTravkin · April 5, 2006, 08:31

CMN stands for Creator-Narrator-Moderator, but generally you can go for a CMN if you need someone to do these things:

- make a balanced map (at least more balanced than random)
- set up scenario (like putting in appropriate factions and other fancy stuff)
- beef up your AIs
- keep passwords (so you dont lose them if you lose a player)
- make objective judgement in controversial or other jurisdiction-requiring situations
- make game time edits like eliminating/turning over to AI factions

And probably more..

Peter Triggs · April 5, 2006, 08:45

I was in the process of seconding the question when bin Travkin answered it.

BTW, MMC, you may live to rue the day you uttered:

My biggest skill would have to be 'trawlling': I can sift through several 1000 lines of uncommented code without getting lost or bored (don't ask why - I'm not even sure). I can help with documenting which bits do what in the source code.