Interested in PBEM: Life Is Only A Game...

[AndiD]

As someone told me in the "General" forum, if I'm interested in a PBEM, I just should start a thread here, someone will pull out a balanced map and people will join. ;-) (If not, then correct me, I'm new here and new to PBEM )

I'd prefer SMAX a little bit over SMAC, anyway Morgan for me and no aliens please.

When I understand correctly, I can feel free to do just a wee bit of roleplaying, well there goes:
(Any English teacher around, feel free to PM me errors in the text below, I haven't written english prose for quite some time and am always looking to improve )

-------------
"CEO?"
Nwabudike Morgan looked up from a pile of electronic paper on his big planet-oak desk.
"The presentation is ready, CEO", Nancy Reilly announced with a soft but yet firm voice. Her greatest moment in her three years as head of Morgan Entertainment was nearing. It had been difficult enough to arrange time and place for this presentation regarding the tight schedules of each of the board members and her own. And because of this she wanted to make sure that every possible minute of it would be put to good use even if it meant interrupting the CEO himself.
"I see, Nancy. I am just underway", Morgan replied in his low, guttural voice and got up slowly. "I think I should adhere to the old saying that I like to cite frequently: Time eats money, eh?" He allowed himself a slight chuckle and followed Reilly.
As they walked together through the corridots of Morgan Industries he reflected silently about the latest development prognoses he just read. The recent expansion had come to a halt because of a massive fungus belt but at least the production of the recently founded bases went according to earlier estimates. Core bases were suffering the odd mindworm and sealurk attack but otherwise looked well, too.
The foundation of Morgan Entertainment had happened within the first expansion phase already and although the base had gnerelly prospered well it had lacked a highly successful core product, a real cash-cow... well, until young, talented Nancy Reilly had successfully taken over the executive's position. He looked forward to the presentation since it would finally silence the few skeptic voices of the Board who had strongly voted against focusing on "entertainment" while life on Planet being rough and dangerous. Of course this would happen only when the presentation was successful... but with Nancy Reilly preparing it he had no doubt about that.
They finally arrived at their destination, the other members of the Board had already taken their seats and were mumbling to each other. Two of Reilly's assistants were busy preparing the holo screen. Morgan sat down and brought silence to the room by speaking a few well-set words and signalled Reilly with a wink that she could begin.
"Ladies and Gentleman... I proudly present... The Game of Planet", Reilly began in her best and most enthusiastic "selling voice". Although quite inappropriate for a Board members' meeting, it reflected best her current mood as well as her opinion about the game.
She forced herself to tone down and continued. "The game's premise should be well known to everybody in this room. Seven factions land on a Planet, start with two colony pods and one scout patrol unit and strive to global dominance, each one according to their respective conflicting goals and values."
She showed an overview of the available factions, most of them well-known to the audience.
Morgan raised a hand. "A very interesting list you have there. But who is 'Sinder Roze'"?
Reilly smiled. "Of course we encouraged our developers to invent lots of fictional additions and variations. Especially some part-time developers were commendably creative." She smiled to Morgan, they where the only two in the room who knew about Roze's (or Asa Wright's, that being her real name) other part-time occupation, and he smiled back.
"Maybe a demonstration would show the full potential of this game?" Morgan suggested.
Reilly gave a sign to one of her assistants. "Exactly what I intended, we have prepared a very interesting scenario..."

[Chaunk]

I'd like to play as the believers please, so long as we don't go for more than four people in the game. Games with more than four people take a long long long time to finish

SMAX is fine, transcend level prefered. Any map size above small is fine with me so long as we get a CMN to set it up - although if you've got morgan then I guess you'll want a larger map

Nice story by the way, I'll see if I can do some RP with the believers

[Enigma_Nova]

For the records, I have nothing against Chaunk.
I understand he won't enjoy a game with all the smack talk I produce.

I do tend to smack talk like anything, so prepare to get 0wn3d, newbie! have a good game.

I appreciate the University,
but tell me more about the map so I can make a better choice.

[Enigma_Nova]

"I'm game."

Morgan Industries' premier eccentric moved forward.
His thesis on business was to question the old methods, and to invent both new products and new organisational structures.
The latter was his favourite.

On Earth, his creativity would be unnecessary. Everything had been thought before.
Even if it hadn't, there were far too many people to convince of change.
Planet, however, was new. There were no preconcieved economic models, there aren't masses of people to convert.

"This can further prove my ingenuity and broadmindedness, and sharpen my ability to apply tactics."

A call from across the room reminded him:
"Maybe this will teach you about people, too."
The Eccentric's main problem was expressiveness.
He loved his ideas, and so would fight anyone who didn't want him expressing them.
He had fought his Government, his School, his Peers and even his Parents for his one singular goal - to have his ideas heard.

In Morgan Industries, an idea is an idea - the only times the one proposing the idea comes into it, is whether to trust his reports, and whom to mail the check to.
But in this game, there was no such issue.

4 people stood around. Not just with a logical desire to win and learn, but with an emotional desire to enjoy the game and defeat their enemies.

"I'll work with who I can, and leave who I can't!"
"In this game, you have to work with everybody."
Being full of ideas, the Eccentric liked to work on his own.

"And what should I enter your name as?"
The eccentric pondered.
"Nobody seems to understand much of how I think."
"Call me 'Enigma'."

And so it begins.

[DetriusXii]

I'd like to join. I'd like to play as the Spartans (as the Believers are taken). Email address is ajelovic2@yahoo.com

[AndiD]

Okay, to wrap it up, we have:
Chaunk: Believers
DetriusXii: Spartans
Enigma_Nova: University
AndiD: Morgan

It would be nice for me to have Lal as one AI (just a wish), if there aren't more requests, I leave it to the CMN to fill up the slots with humanoid AIs:
AI1: Lal (?)
AI2: ?
AI3: ?

Also nice would be a Large Map since there are Spartans and the Believers around ... I'll leave the environmental details (cloud, terrain, ...) up to the CMN.

Now we just need a CMN...

[Chaunk]

Am on the hunt for a CMN. Will let you know how the progress goes...

[Googlie]

Cando

Large map, average everything, transcend level, spoils on, random events off:

Believers - Chaunk
Spartans - DetriusXii
University - Enigma_Nova
Morgan - AndiD
Peacekeepers - PravinLal
Data Angels - Sinder Roze
Pirates - Ulrik Svensgaard

How do you feel about disabling the Empath Guild (my pet peeve - in setting up and observing over 100 PBEMs I see this SP as vastly overpowering - more than 80% of games are won by the player that gets it)

And how beefed up (if at all) do you want the AI to be:

> pushovers
> decent builders and worthwhile trading partners
> a credible threat to win by conquering or transcending
> damned difficult to beat by any means

G.

[Chaunk]

Re: Empath guild & AI, I say let AndiD decide. It's his game after all. I don't know though, but I don't think I've played in a Googlie special with type four ai (Although Roze looks like she might be in that category in unfinished business ) so that could be interesting...

Can I ask to allow stockpile energy in the build queues in this one please?

[Enigma_Nova]

googlie:
Make them have decent AI, but don't beef them up with starting units / 4 extra bases.
I want the Spartans and the Believers to have a chance in this game instead of smashing into a brick wall AI.

DetriusXii and I are in 2 PBEMs together.
Are trades across PBEMs allowed?

As for the Empath guild, you choose. I'll play either way.

[Googlie]

Originally posted by Enigma_Nova
Make them have decent AI, but don't beef them up with starting units / 4 extra bases.

Current thinking is to give the AI a preferred start position (2 or 3 bases prefounded) and some extra energy. Extra minerals just get converted into more units and they grow well enough in normal circumstances. But energy can be forever, helping their mid to late game research rate (and they do seem to do a decent job in building the lab-multiplying facilities when they have a decent energy stream)

I'm not a big believer in uber-AI's but some of the tweaks that Darsnan and I have discussed can make them into a fairly decent contender without disrupting the game (eg, if I give an AI faction, say, a neutronium armored defender, then take the prerequisiet tech away, all they do is reverse engineer the armor on everything, so we avoid doing that)

So any tweaks might be in the form of a small 4-tile energy park with 4 homed crawlers on them (except that as soon as they come out of "lurk" mode, the AI will use them to prototype or rush SP's - but there are workarounds to that too)

Plus we can use the scenario diplomacy choices to get the AI talking to each other and exchanging techs etc

And to a certain extent the AI's strategy can be set there too, so that they won't produce endless transports or 200 artillery units, etc

G.

[Googlie]

Originally posted by Enigma_Nova
DetriusXii and I are in 2 PBEMs together.
Are trades across PBEMs allowed?

Only after you have discovered Matter Transmission, and build a Psi Gate in each game, then discover Temporal Mechanics, allowing time distortion to give you access to alternate universes

GGLIE

[Enigma_Nova]

-_-''

I mean, can I gift something to him in this game, so that he gifts something to me in the other game (or vice-versa)?

[Googlie]

Sure - no problem with that. You'll have to wait until in-game contact, though (or mutually agreed probes)

G.

[AndiD]

Googlie:
How do you feel about disabling the Empath Guild (my pet peeve - in setting up and observing over 100 PBEMs I see this SP as vastly overpowering - more than 80% of games are won by the player that gets it)

And how beefed up (if at all) do you want the AI to be:

> pushovers
> decent builders and worthwhile trading partners
> a credible threat to win by conquering or transcending
> damned difficult to beat by any means

OK, if noone disagrees disable Empath Guild please, I don't think I ever got it in game but I've read enough about it to be scared... ;-)

About the AI, well I think, a good mix of styles 1, 2 or even 3 would make it , maybe faction agenda-related if possible (Lal rather builder-style, ). Enigma has made a valid point about the AI though concerning the early goals of Believers and Spartans.

Chaunk:
Can I ask to allow stockpile energy in the build queues in this one please?

I've read this quite a few times now, must confess I'm using the queue way to little, what does it mean?
If it means getting more energy credits by doing so, then allow it of course, perhaps I'll finally learn to use the queue regularly that way ;-)