Hate Roads - What are They Good For?

[Mead]

Originally posted by Jamski
My God, Ming.... banned after 8 days on 'poly. WOW. BTW, nice to see you in a civilised forum. I was "wondering" if SMAC was moderated at all.

-Jam

This was composed prior to my knowledge that Blockhead was banned:

BEGIN OF MESAGE COMPOSED BEFORE KNOWLEDGE OF BANNING

Originally posted by BustaMike


Excelling at SMAC requires intelligence and strategy. It's been a long time since I've seen nonsense like this here, but I'll tell you where I have seen it... at the Diablo 2 forums. Blockhead, no hacked item or uber character is going to help you here and I think you're in for a giant shock if you seriously think you can win against a good player w/o building roads.

Just my 2 cents.

Blockhead, despite your unconventional and provocative way of dealing with others, I wish your effort well.

For the record:

I will always make roads one a mine to boost production.

As I stated in my first post, Roads are the last thing I build (except for those on mines), but I will make them if I need them to launch a mindworm or other road enhanced army.
I will usually tear up the roads that any ally makes in my empire. This doesn't mean that I will tear up roads in the territory I invade. Usually by the time I decide launch my major invasions into the rest of the world I have shifted from the builder heavy phase of the game to the momentum heavy phase. By that time I'm not worried about them coming after me before I solidify my tech and infrastructure base. Often by the end of the game I have a well-developed road network (made by my now vanquished enemies before I took their lands) everywhere, except for my homeland. -- Don't destroy roads just for the sake of destroying them.

Be advised:

I am successful against the computer on Transcend and have not lost a game (nor have resigned/reloaded) against it for a while (~20 games). I think with directed research it's almost impossible to lose against the computer, even on Transcend. Blind research can be chancier.

BUT - As you know these are humans you are going against. I have only played SP, but my understanding is that humans will not be so easy (you play against humans so you know that anyway).

I play OK against the computer but my game has improved immensely based upon the techniques I have learned here.

Just some of the things I have learned from the postings here include:

Clean police scouts
Energy parks - and the immense potential for crawlers/trawlers in general
CLEAN MINERALS
Prob foils
Needlejet colony pods

There's probably other techniques I picked up in this forum that I incorporated into my game that can't think of right now. I am OK at SMAC SP, but lack hubris, and have the knowledge I am not the best (as well as totally inexperienced at MP or PBEM).

Farewell Blockhead, Flubber has lot of people rooting for him. If you can beat him people will realize that with good playing you can overcome the conventional wisdom.


JAMSKI -

Please set up a new thread Flubber v. Blockhead Challenge
Let us all know how the game is going. Please keep your reports of how they are progressing unbiased but entertaining. (I understand that there will aspects of the game that you won't be able to comment on without helping one side or the other, and that you?ll be able to base your reports only on info that is known to both sides).



Mead


P.S. for Blockhead
Please ensure your stay on the good side of the moderators, and don't do or post anything offensive that will keep us from enjoying your banter (at least until the challenge is resolved).


END OF MESSAGE COMPOSED BEFORE KNOWLEDGE OF BLOCKHEAD BANNED



FLUBBER and JAMSKI

Blockhead has been banned for 8 days so it looks like he will not be posting here for a while (but he can still read the threads right?). Flubber you'll still going to meet his challenge, right? Jamski you'll still serving as a stand in 'Googlie', right? Blockhead doesn't need to be able to post here for the conflict to commence, right?

Jamski please let us know the results. Flubber if you carry on with the Challenge, and Jamski is so kind as to act as a stand-in Googlie, and Blockhead is willing to continue then out of eveness you should not comment on Jamski's reports (because Blockhead won't be able to). The rest of us should be able to comment on Jamski's reports on the game. Jamski, of course, should be able share your and Blockhead's comments to him using the utmost of good discretion.

FLUBBER - the best result for you would be putting Blockhead in his place by mortal (whoops computer) combat.

BLOCKHEAD - the best result for you would be to prove to these mere mortals that yes, you are the best by defeating their champion.

MODERATOR - Should these combatants seek to continue the challenge I believe JAMSKI will be able to use proper discretion to keep us updated on the status of the challenge.


Mead

[Mead]

Originally posted by Googlie
Jamski:

Bad move not setting CMN passwords. For someone so insecure as BH, he'll set his own, play the turn then pass it on. Then he'll replay his turn but open Flubber's to see where his starting location is.

(That's why those self-passworded PBEMs are suspect)

G.

What the security of the game is not assured?

If we can't trust the security of the Flubber v. Blockhead challenge then any victory will be suspect.

Shame it would have been nice to see.

I would have been willing to challenge Flubber, but alas lack free time, a decent well-rounded Alpha Centuri skill base, and SMACX to do it.

Mead

[Googlie]

Originally posted by Mead
What the security of the game is not assured?

Well, certainly not for that first turn in self-regulated passwords.

And as recent events at the ACDG showed, even CMN-set passwords aren't immune from hackers (but that was more due to our fondness of using faction-identifiable words, like attack, rifle, polish, etc for Sparta and tree, forest, green etc for the Gaians.)

Our intrepid hacker ran a slew of tests to try and break the encryption, and came up with names that opened the various factions' turns although they weren't the actual passwords used.

So now as a contientious CMN I'll have to start using gibberish passwords like 17P3f6*31:2//4 (or whatever) so that any hacker would need to run thousands more simulations to get a match.

Just another thing to deal with

G.

[Lazerus]

lol christ this thread went from 1 page to 4 in the space of a few hours and i thought there would be 1 thing of use as a gameplay strategy mentioned instead i see old blockhead with his usual shouts of "everyone at poly sucks" and "im the best player of smax"

for the record i've played 1 game against blockhead upto 2160 (we switched to pbem after that and he refused to continue) i know the power graph is a dire tool for comparing yourself to people but when i go from half his strength to 2130 to overtaking him at 2160 and this is me playing a completley abysmal game (If i showed you the save of how im doing compared to what you've normally seen me do with Hive and ICS Jam you'd get the picture ) and i class myself as an average player ... Just thought i'd mention that

Also i still have that old save of chaos theory-rothe-blockhead, if i was playing as the Hive instead of chaos theory i'd definately have went to war and crushed u not long after that save was taken, your infrastructure revolved around alot of small bases each with around 5-8minerals, i can normally pack them in as tight as that and have most at 20.

[Lazerus]

Also no i don't care for a 1v1 with you incase you ask, like i said i consider myself average and so if you're the best lets not waste both our time


ps, Chaos theory do you play the Hive alot like that game you played ago agos ?
Wondering if you could post some saves since my style involves alot more smaller bases and a larger focus on higher mineral production rather then nuts. I've recently played quite a few SP games trying to see how early i can reach fusion while still getting eco-engineering and air power without making contact with anybody else (2207) what year does your play acheive it ?

[Flubber]

Originally posted by Mead

computer) combat.

BLOCKHEAD - the best result for you would be to prove to these mere mortals that yes, you are the best by defeating their champion.

No this challenge will not prove that since I am far from apolyton's Champion-- I assess myself as as quite a bit over average among all the players that have played here and pretty ordinary in the realm of players that have been here for a few years. If he beats me then he has only proven that he is better than the average apolytoner.

Note no turns received to date but that is not suprising if he is Europe as his flag suggests.

[Flubber]

Originally posted by BustaMike


P.S. Stupid question since I skimmed through some of this. Is this game a PBEM, since I thought blockhead didn't consider that to be real multiplayer?

He did say that but he couldn't rebut my explanation that my time to play is usually when I am responsible for taking care of our son. At 3 months of age, I cannot guarantee any consecutive time to play ip.


AS for trolling, I considered that he might be doing that so I avoided responding to any insults, enjoyed what I assess as the unintentional irony of some of his statements and waited for the banning. I did post a warning that mods don't accept insults.

Maybe I am stupid to accept the challenge but I will be playing smax so things will be ok

[Flubber]

Originally posted by Mead


What the security of the game is not assured?

If we can't trust the security of the Flubber v. Blockhead challenge then any victory will be suspect.

Shame it would have been nice to see.

I would have been willing to challenge Flubber, but alas lack free time, a decent well-rounded Alpha Centuri skill base, and SMACX to do it.

Mead

The secuity is only comprimised in that Blockhead could open my turn and see my start before my password is set. There are a number of other cheats which would provide similar information so absent any indications to the contrary, I will assume he is an honest player

Mead, the lack of smax is irrelevant as I do play vanilla smac and skill level is what is tested by the contest. A lack of free time is fatal ( although early turns only take a couple of minutes)

[Maniac]

Originally posted by Googlie
So now as a contientious CMN I'll have to start using gibberish passwords like 17P3f6*31:2//4 (or whatever) so that any hacker would need to run thousands more simulations to get a match.

Are you sure that would help? If I understand the explanation johndmuller provided me, the hacker just has to know the location of the encrypted password in the sav file, and the way it was encrypted. Then he could use some program to create a word that would give the same result when encypted, thus being as valid as the original gibberish password. In that case using gibberish or a real word wouldn't make any difference.

[Googlie]

To be honest, I really don't know, this not being my "area of specialty" I had assumed that he continuously tried 'faction-linked' words until he found one that matched, and that a gibberish sequence would not come up in his dictionary tries.

If, however, he's working from a known encryption then you prolly are right.

Just a pity that Firaxis didn't provide a "reset password" option for multiplating similar to their "change profile", etc options when in game

G.

[Jamski]

Well, I recieved a whole series of e-mails from our blockheaded friend....

First he's complaining that he doesn't have a starting tech. Neither does anyone.... so its a level playing field. Then he complains that the map is suspicious... then he askes me if I'm dead...

It won't help him much to see Flubber's starting postition before he's even built a base anyway... but let's assume that's he's an honest player.

He also says he won't apologise to Ming ever...

Anyway, he should post on to you sometime soon Flubbs, I think we've got all his objections sorted out.

Laz... what about we play again sometime? We didn't find any worthy opponents the last two games If blockhead wimps out of this PBEM, shall we take him on?

-Jam

[Ming]

He also says he won't apologise to Ming ever

No need for that... I just want him to agree to follow the rules and not insult people... If he's too stupid to do that... he can just find another site to post at, because he isn't going to be allowed back here until he does

[Jamski]

I passed that on to him, and got this response :

he did break own rulez, there's no way i will speak with him again

blockhead

Someone please tell me what planet I'm living on today.

-Jam

[Ming]

He claims I broke rules....
He thinks mods/admin shouldn't be able to send him a PM if he selected not to have PM's... He forgets that this is a private site... Probably thinks this site is a Democracy

Oh well... if he doesn't want to post here... his choice...
His problem...

[Flubber]

Well The game is off apparently-- I received this email from Blockhead.

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i would play, but when the game creator is idiot, is's not possible
i agreed to play smacx, not any mod pack
and when he took out all techs, it's modified game, not smacx (in
normal smacx each faction starts with specific tech)
btw there are 3 posts at apolyton about me that are really lie and it
only shows stupidity of ppl there
and moved colony pods is **** too, why he cant set up something
normal?

blockhead

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While I agree that we should have the starting techs-- ind base each IIRC . .. his complaint about what I take to be a " look first" setting seems odd. IN any event, I'm done with this.

Blockhead, have a nice life