Important

[Voltaire]

No one wants to see the ACDG die, yet it seems as though its end is inevitable. The Hive, for the first time has been exuberantly late for the turn (in part because the Marshal at the moment has come down with either a bad hangover or the flu, you decide which), but the activity levels regardless of this have been abysmal. HongHu has returned to the Hive, and after speaking to her we both agreed that the way to salvage the ACDG might be to put a pause on it for the time being (this seems much more preferable to letting it die).

We do not know what the condition of the activity of other teams is, but if it is anything like that of the Hive the game has no chance of surviving. We need to find a way out of this crisis (one which faces all demogames at some point in time) because this game has been a fun part of our lives for over half a year, and we have made many good friendships in the process, the teams have become close families, and the fun times we have enjoyed together will live on in memory. Yet it seems wrong to let all this end just as the game was about to become interesting.

Therefore I implore anyone with any ideas as to how we can get through this crisis to come forward now and rescue our beloved ACDG—don't go! the drones need you, they look up to you.

[Snowflake]

I believe the recent period of relative inactiveness may be related to the fact that a lot of people are having midterm exams and papers. Good thing is the midterms should be ending soon so hopefully the team game will become more active and interesting again. I myself don't have a midterm but I have a filing due 12/2, I was planning to return after that but seeing that the team game is facing the risk of being eliminated I decided to come back now. I really don't want to see the game end like this. Everybody's put so much into it. I really love the team game and don't want it to die.

[AgentSubversion]

I have recently joined the University faction and have been attempting a reorginization to give the faction a rebirth. I have some ideas for fostering a better running ACDG and would like to set up a discussion for interested parties. Lets have a meeting in the chat room, it runs through java, so there is no reason people couldn't show up. I bet, and am sure, that intrest can be reborn if the game could be streamlined, especially communications and recruitment with the removal of 'dead' members from both sides. The DG is an awesome idea and I beleive in it's merits. I'll be posting again when I am in less of a hurry.

[Snowflake]

Would you please post your major thought when you have time AgentSubersion? So that people will have some ideas about what they would be discussing in the chat room.

[MrWhereItsAt]

Well I am only just trying to get the hang of what has happened to CyCon so far - opened the save for the first time just hours ago. I'm here for the moment.

[Kody]

A while ago I spent alot of time writing the ACDG introduction, and throwing some advertising out there to get new members.

What I've realised, but was afriad to say back then was that the future of this game depends on new members. Can everyone here honestly say they'll still be around in 6 months time? Can people even honestly say they will want to be around in 6 months time?

I believe it's not enough that you simply wait for people to ask you to join. However, you should make an active effort to make it easier and more interesting for new members. So what if some of these members leave after a few weeks. At least it was a few weeks where the game was more interesting because of their participation. In those few weeks maybe someone else will have joined to replace them.

Things don't last if they're stagnant. Believing that this game can survive with just the original people won't lead anywhere. Also who knows, maybe you'll have some wide eye newbie that turns into one of your principle members.

I'm not saying it's going to be an easy task, and probably not one where only one or two people will be able to do by themselves. I think the drones are doing pretty good at getting new members. The premise for the exisitance of their faction was learning strategy pure and simple. They stuck with it and they're still getting members. With other factions they need to rethink what they're offering to new members and do what they're supposed to be doing in their faction. Or they need to decide to change their direction and offer something that will interest new players.

If you pretend to offer something, but don't really. When the new member gets accepted, the person will take one look around and quit. It's happened a few times in the hive from what I've observed as the roleplay the hive advertised was swamped out by spam. (We used to alternate through stages of real roleplay+spam and just spam.)

(Now to figure out what is happening with the hive turn. I all seems rather dismal from where I stand.)

[MrWhereItsAt]

Originally posted by Kody
What I've realised, but was afriad to say back then was that the future of this game depends on new members. Can everyone here honestly say they'll still be around in 6 months time? Can people even honestly say they will want to be around in 6 months time?

I guess I qualify as a new member, in a way. I only just got into a team.

I think the drones are doing pretty good at getting new members. The premise for the exisitance of their faction was learning strategy pure and simple. They stuck with it and they're still getting members. With other factions they need to rethink what they're offering to new members and do what they're supposed to be doing in their faction. Or they need to decide to change their direction and offer something that will interest new players.

Yes, it was wanting to learn how to use the Drones that finally roped me in, as I have never properly used them before, and I think they could do very well. However, it was also the fact that they are not active on Poly that stopped me from joining them. On the one hand, an interesting faction that is not active here, on the other hand, factions based on Poly that just aren't as interesting. What a killer.

(Now to figure out what is happening with the hive turn. I all seems rather dismal from where I stand.)

YES! Someone play already. Anyone, even if you're not perhaps the legal player. If there's a complaint tell them you were giving the game life support, whereas they were strangling it.

[Kody]

I used to run the turns.

I've just asked Jamski to become the Hive's 24 hour mark player (unless rokossovky requests otherwise).

I think part of the reason for the delays is the critical pop booming that is going on. Also they've been trying to play to a level that is somewhat comparable to what I did. Problem is I used to spend days per turn doing that, and nobody has the time to do that anymore. I certainly don't.

Also I'm not sure it helped that when I was shown the previous two hive turns I pointed out many many errors.

[Jamski]

I've just taken over for the Hive, as Kody requested.

Forget the "Kody Planning" though I'm playing it my way.

The Hive team now = me untill someone else bothers to even post in the forum who is willing to play turns.

-Jam

[Maniac]

Could some explain to me what those fabled "midterms" are? Where I live there are currently exams twice a year around January and June. How can there be exams now when the academic year has hardly started??

[Jamski]

Some people's terms started back in September. Poor fools

-Jam

[Googlie]

One thing I'd like to do is to tweak the AI, but there's only one way of doing this and I'd need co-operation from a member of each team.

Miriam has developed a new tactic never seen before - The Colony Pod Rush

That's right. From infiltration I see that she has no less than 19 colony pods milling around that she intends to let loose on some unsuspecting faction - the'll clog up the roads and get in the defenders way while her rovers sneak through to attack bases.

Seriously, though, she does. Somehow when I set up her 3 starting bases I managed to get one as the template for new bases, and it was one where I had put constraints on the Governor as to what he could build, so all new bases are churning out CP's like crazy.

The only way I know to edit the AI mid-game is to turn it into an IP game (I'd host it) at the end of a turn cycle, with me taking Miriam and Tass taking the Angels, then saving it back as a PBEM after we've played the 2 AI faction turns (so the five teams wouldn't actually play a turn - simultaneous moves would be turned off)

But we'd need five representatives to be on-line and added to the IP game so that we'd have all passwords covered

Any thoughts?

G.

(And I'm more sanguine re the game than most - it's at a point where events are about to speed up, and after all factions have all commlinks (imminent) and perhaps elections called (Miriam might be a candidate if her CP's were population) things should get very interesting.

(And I'll be here in six months - what's 6 more to the 45 I've already accrued?)

G.

[Snowflake]

Go Miriam! We girls always surprise you male world don't we? I'm so proud of her.

As for six month, I've been here for only six month, but I wouldn't mind another six month as long as I can manage not to be kicked out from work.

[Hercules]

I don't think I have a fast enough machine for IP. I'll need to ask in our forum.

[Snowflake]

If nobody else in the Hive can do it I could give it a try. I have never done an IP game but I have cable connection at home if that helps.