New "Ancient Empires" PBEM created

[Kull]

Originally posted by Steve Clark
I'll take my turn tonight.

I have a problem. Something came up and I'm going to have to get on a plane to Florida Thursday morning. I won't be back to Colorado until Tuesday (family business emergency). I really hate for the AI to take over my turns this early in the game so I'm wondering if perhaps Kull can play my turns for me, with instructions from me?

No problem. Let me know when to take over, and email instructions & password (if necessary) to paul_cullivan@raytheon.com (I'm away from the home email until 10/18). Hope the trip works out (although sentences containing the words "family" and "emergency" are rarely a good thing)

[Steve Clark]

Thanks Paul, I sent you a detailed email.

Talk to you guys when I get back on Tuesday night (if all goes well).

[germanos]

All the best for you and your family Steve

[yop73]

Game on

[Stefan Härtel]

All the best for you and your family Steve :b:

Ditto

[Civfan]

yahooooo

[germanos]

, just realized its my turn after Cibfan now.

Assyria expansion inspired some mercinaries to join us. They have a powerfull and fast Chariot. Their first deed was to bring another Town under Assyrian control, complete with loot and slaves.

Calah founded.

[Kull]

It is the dawn of recorded history, and throughout the world great changes are afoot. But along the banks of a great river, utterly oblivious to "world events", living moment-to-moment and aware only of the information brought in by his senses, a young hunter spots the spoor of a great lion, and - heart quickening - follows the trail as it leads beyond the river valley and into the Western Desert.

Two suns pass, ten, hundreds and more, and all evidence of their passage has disappeared from that spot. The unchanging cycle continues at that place, until one day something unusual occurs. At the edge of that river - the eternal Nile - two buzzards tear at the dessicated flesh of some unlucky animal. But their feast, such as it is, ends suddenly as they sense danger and ponderously launch into the air, seeking refuge in the sky. And at that moment, down from the hills, around a bend in the trail, strides forth a man of grim visage. Is he old? Young? It's impossible to say. And to the buzzards circling overhead, only this much is certain: The man walks with purpose, his eyes are fixed on the horizon to the north, and he wears a cloak of lion-skin.

[Stefan Härtel]

At the earliest remembered instant of human conciousness, two tribes of nomads migrated from a large and powerful city known as Hagmatana to the north.
The winds of the mountains were blowing cold into their faces, and the sky was dark, but yet, the brave men and women did not obey the laws of nature they cherished so much earlier. "We are powerful now!" shouts a leader, and the call wanders through the masses.
By midnight one day, all are assembled around a campfire, and one suddenly begins to hum a melody later forgotten and not rediscovered five millenia later; the brave nomads will be humming this melody for all the years to come until they establish a settlement at the slopes of a sleeping volcano, later to be known as Mt. Demavend; now worshipped as The One Mountain whose slope is connected to the roots of the world, and whose peak is the seat of the Wise Lord, the one Ahura Mazda, and the settlers do not doubt that this is the unique Stairway To Heaven... but that lies so far in the future...

[Kull]

I, the powerful King Agamemnon am pleased to announce the conquest of the fortified town of Sparta. The Mycenean Skirmishers displayed extreme bravery, battling successfully to the last drop of red blood (Cavalry support was available, but the infantry refused to accept it!) Soon a new Sparta will arise from the ashes of the old.....

[yop73]

Nothing going on in the Minoan empire, we did however conquer a town in the past turn.
King Minos has then enslaved the survivors. Those slaves told stories about another great barbarian town on the other side of the Island of Crete.
King Minos has send some soldiers.

[Steve Clark]

I am back guys, all went very well, thank you.

And thank you Paul for taking two turns in my absence. The conquest of the Spartan village will clear the way for Grecian expansion on the mythological peninsulas of Zeus. Truly Ares found favor in the noble Mycanaen Skirmishers!

[germanos]

Sorry Civfan: Assyria moved.

Assyrians continue their exploration of the world.

[Kull]

In tiny mud-brick huts on the banks of the river Nile, a small group of people have come together and formed the little village of Memphis. For thousands of years people such as this have lived in harmony with the land, their agrarian lives governed by the clockwork precision of the annual rise and fall of the life-giving river. But over the past few seasons an air of doubt, even a gnawing undertone of fear, has begun to permeate the minds of the villagers. Traders come, as they always have, but now they bring bring more than just their wares. Whether boisterous or sly, these men can always be counted upon to brag of the quality of their cloth, the perfection of their pottery, the sweet deliciousness of their fruits, and always they have stories of the strange outside world. But now there are darker tales - those told when business is done and men lounge about a campfire in the hushed quiet of the night.

On one late autumn evening, after a large number of tongue-loosening millet beers, an earthenware peddlar from the Delta shared a troubling story. "About twenty suns ago, a band of thugs from the Libyan desert took over a small village just south of here. They killed the headman, took some of the girls and now demand regular support from the farmers. It's a shocking thing, men who won't work and live off the backs of others!" Many of the Memphis villagers gazed at one another, shaking their heads in dismay. A village elder soon gave voice to the unspoken thoughts of all. "What is the world coming to?" he wondered, "What kind of men would attack simple farmers, who seek only to care for their families and live in peace with their neighbors?" The resulting silence was finally broken by a deep voice, brandishing a thick Babylonian accent and a slight alcohol-induced slur. "That's bad enough, but there's worse to come". The barrel chested merchant with the long heavy beard was an oddity in these parts - foreigners being few and far between in the Nile region. "I've seen similar things in other towns, particularly in the far northeastern land of Canaan. Many of the villages there built walls and trained their men to fight with spears. And that'll deal with these roving bands of criminals, I assure you!" He laughed then, loudly, with the deep satisfying sound of one who's been an eyewitness to evil getting it's just deserts. But his next words were stunning.

"There is something else you need to know. In both my homeland of Babylonia and the nation of Assyria to the north, far greater changes are taking place. Towns themselves are warring - one against another. If that wasn't bad enough, the most violent and powerful headmen are calling themselves "kings" and assuming rule over the defeated towns! These kings gather men from all their subject lands and group them together as an "army" - a group of warriors far larger than anything a single town or city can oppose!" The Babylonian paused for a great quaff of the local Brew, and - perhaps thinking that it's not a good idea to scare the customers - changed the subject. "So, how's the harvest look this year?", he asked the nearest elder. They spoke quietly of grain yields, storage jars, and rodent pests, but the remaining villagers and merchants had been stunned into silence. Most had never seen a man killed in anger, and suddenly - unlooked for - they had learned something terrible. That great evil was afoot in the world and that men existed who would happily snuff out human lives in numbers beyond imagining!

It is a quiet band who leave the flickering fire, returning to their simple mud dwellings, each containing all these men hold precious in the world. The stars stare down just as on other nights, but this time they look upon a community who's world has turned upside down.

[Stefan Härtel]

The brave travellers have continued their journey.

[Kull]

Hi Steve, glad you made it back and that all is well! In case you were wondering what went on in Greece during your absence........


Long after the Egyptian villagers had shuffled off to bed, a grizzled old merchant poked at the fire and smiled softly. Seeing this, and with a tongue now thoroughly loosened, the Babylonian couldn't help himself, "Out with it old man! If that's a joke you're thinking of, we want to hear it!" Several other merchants slapped the sands to signify agreement, and after a pause the smiling man responded. "I may have a few years on you, bearded one, but my hand is quick and this staff can instill respect quicker than you think!" Noting the light tone, the Babylonian bowed his head in mock submission and returned a grin of his own. "I believe you old father, so spare me the lesson and share your tale with us!"

"Well, it's not a humorous story, but one of war, much like yours. I simply smiled at the poor innocence of our good Memphians - alas the world has many nasty surprises in store for them, I fear! So....you know of the seafarers? Those who serve Minos?" The big Mesopotamian nodded affirmatively, and raised a jar of beer in salute. "Yes, by the gods - and their wine even more!" Nodding, the old man toasted back. "I spoke with one in Canaan a few seasons ago, and he had a tale from the distant north. It seems that two towns shared power on a great peninsula, and the two kings bore a deep mutual enmity. The greater of the two, Agamemnon, sent a pair of armies to assault his enemy. One was the usual group of citizen skirmishers, fleet of foot but poorly armed. The other - and this I've never seen and can scarcely credit - was composed entirely of mounted horsemen! This new innovation was unknown to his enemy, and thus the Achaean King was confident of victory. His plan called for the skirmishers to attack one part of the town, drawing the full attention of the enemy, at which time the mounted army would sweep in from the rear and complete the conquest. But it was not to be! The horsemen were led by the king's drunken nephew Athos, and the fool and his men became lost in the hill country. Thus when the poor foot troops launched their attack, they did so alone and outnumbered. At first the battle went ill for them, but when all appeared lost, the king's brother Menelaus came to the fore. He spied the enemy king, engaged him in single combat, and at the last, slew him with a great thrust of his spear. At this the enemy lost heart and surrendered themselves as slaves! They say that scarcely a tenth of the Achaeans were still standing, so it was truly a great and awesome victory!"

The old merchant finished with a flourish, and the listening merchants - ever appreciative of a fine tale well told - hooted their approval. Inspired, the Babylonian leaned forward and launched into a totally improbable tale involving Assyrians and onager-drawn contraptions called "chariots" (the old merchant rolled his eyes at the very thought of so unlikely a device) while the fires flickered and more beer was poured, and the night flowed on as smoothly as the Nile.

[Steve Clark]

I'll write up the details tomorrow.

[Kull]

Note to Players:

I was talking to Chris62, and he's volunteered to take over the Hittites! So CivFan, if that civ is locked by a password, please pass it along to Chris (Edit: Duh! Civfan was smart & courteous enough to unlock them earlier, so it's not an issue. Thanks, pal!)

Since the Minoans haven't moved yet, I recommend we let Chris begin play immediately after Yop's turn.

[Steve Clark]

Any way we can get this moving a little quicker? At this rate...well, you know....

[Chris 62]

What's the deal on this wraith thing?

Do I have to add a different events file to the new MP file?

[germanos]

Originally posted by Steve Clark
Any way we can get this moving a little quicker? At this rate...well, you know....

I notify Kull (by e-mail) as soon as I have played. I suggested this before, but nobody said they would do the same. We do have a 24 hour timelimit though. It would be very helpfull if we remind eachother of the turns that need to be played. Bump the next in line if it takes to long.



Chris: AFAIK the wrath is embedded in the save-file you download. (Kull, correct me if I am wrong )

[Stefan Härtel]

Hey, Kull, did you receive my mail?

[Steve Clark]

I just emailed and PMed yop to take his turn. Are we on the 48-hour rule?

[yop73]

Sorry guys, but I can't play on thursday.

[yop73]

And here's the file. Nothing happened. I'm about to build my second city.

:king: Yop

[Chris 62]

OK, working on the assumption that nothing further need be done, turn played.

For now, I will always include "Hitties" in the save, and I suggest you all put your civ name this way, things tend to get confusing as the game moves along.

[Chris 62]

Shameless plug:

I reviewed this scenario for Civfanatics:

http://www.civfanatics.com/reviews/r...reatness.shtml

[Kull]

Originally posted by Stefan Härtel
Hey, Kull, did you receive my mail?

I got home last night, so yes I did......and yes, I will!

[Kull]

Originally posted by germanos

I notify Kull (by e-mail) as soon as I have played.

Indeed he does......unfortunately Apolyton sends it to my home email address, so that doesn't help much when I'm on the road and using the work one! It would probably be best if we all used the "PM" feature to notify instead of email. It works great since you are notified the instant you log onto Apolyton.

I suggested this before, but nobody said they would do the same.

"I, Kull, do solemnly swear to PM the next opponent as soon as I complete my turn."

We do have a 24 hour timelimit though.

Chris thinks this is unrealistic, and certainly our experience supports that. Here's what I recommend: Each player post the minimum timelimit they are personally comfortable with. This does not have to be the same for everyone. For example, Ming could probably sign up for a 1 hour time limit since he never sleeps and he's always here! Also if you choose, for example, 24 hours but you have problems with a particular day (f/e Yop and Thursday), then just add the caveat. Likewise, if someone is away for a weekend or something, just post the circumstances and we'll work around it (have someone play your turn, agree to let the AI do it, insist we give you 48 hours, etc.) The whole idea is to stay in touch and keep things moving at a reasonable pace. Is this acceptable? (Please post!)

I personally am comfortable with the 24 hour limit. If 25 hours have passed and I haven't posted to request an extension, the AI can play that turn for me (groan).

Chris: AFAIK the wrath is embedded in the save-file you download. (Kull, correct me if I am wrong )

Correct. The PBEM game includes two scenario files. One is for "normal" play while the other is preset to Barbarian Wrath. There are also two readme files in the PBEM zip. "Readme-PBEM" briefly describes the PBEM changes. Two thirds of the way into "Readme" is a section that discusses Barbarian Wrath and it's SoG impact in some detail.

[Kull]

Originally posted by Chris 62

I reviewed this scenario for Civfanatics:

Thanks for the nice review!