ADB001 Signup thread: First ever Aldebaran MP game.

[Avenoct]

A few of us from the ACS003 No-crawlers game are getting ready to play the first ever MP Aldebaran game. If you are interested in joining the game we're likely to get up and running fairly quickly, so posts after the game start will be bumped into a second MP game if that happens.

We're going to be playing this as a scenario so installing the game will not be necessary. Instead we'll be playing out of a scenario folder that contains the Aldebaran engine (a whopping bunch of .txt files). Each player will need a copy of that folder on their first turn. Subsequent turns should be saved and played from that folder.

I'm not going to even try to explain what Aldebaran is all about here. If you're curious, check the Creation Forums or the Aldeb web page.

The players so far are :

Scipio Centaurus
Quantaga
Arima
Smack

The available factions are:

United Non-Complicty Front
Syndicate
Planetlovers
Universality
Nauticon
Peacemakers
Galactics

Go to the Aldebaran Web Page and click on the faction leader-graphics to get an idea of their dispositions. Also, while you're there you might want to download the graphics...it's entirely up to you as they aren't needed to actually play the game.

So, players, pick a faction that you think you'd like to play and send me or post your email if you're not in the above list (I have your emails already).

Also, world parameters:

I'll suggest playing on the Standard map of Aldebaran with all victory conditions on, and otherwise average. A random map would also be easy enough to set-up. A standard-size map will get things rolling fairly quickly. Other suggestions are welcome.

Stockpile Energy and other 'cheats' are fine, except for retro-engineering. If you get access to a special 'standard' unit you may not retroengineer the chassis.

-Smack

[Arima]

I'll take Peacemakers. They fit my style of play very, very well.

[Scipio Centaurus]

I'll take the Syndicate.

[johndmuller]

Smack,

Consider me (at least tentatively) interested; I went to your site, but it said it had used up its transfer allowance or something like that (suggesting, I think, that you give them more money for a more deluxe hosting service), there might have been some mention of a mirror site,...., but anyway, I have to play the ACS003 turn, so I'll look again later on.

I would appreciate massive reassurances that installing this stuff will not corrupt my otherwise contented installations of SMAC and SMAX and/or cause any erstwhile normal games I might start to sprout Osama bin Ladin characters or BEM's or whatevers. I don't think I have any disk space problems, but I am running NT4 on the machine I would want to use (it does OK with SMAX, except the sound is rather poor - in SMAC I get an interesting echo cho ho o).

If you think you know who I should play, then just give me them - and show me some mercy until I figure out what's going on.

John

[Avenoct]

Massive Reassurances Department

Excellent concerns. I too would be hesitant to fiddle around with the muscles and brains of Smac if I thought I might have to go through the hassles of a re-install. This is why I've doubly protected against this possibility. The scenario format puts all the brains of Aldebaran into a folder which you keep anywhere. Thus SMAC only 'dips in' to this extra gray-matter when it plays a scenario from that folder. When you go back to the game main menu and choose anything else you're in regular SMAC. A scenario is just like any other saved game except that it looks first in the folder in which it is kept for possible rules changes.

Make sense? I hope so. I'm signing you up as the Nauticon. They need role-playing help and are very strong faction because of the hydromechanics of Aldebaran.

Speaking of role-playing, feel free to help develop the future-history of the factions by reading the introduction by Kassiopeia and posting creatively if you choose to on the turn-tracking thread.

Also, JohnD, you are correct that my web-provider, Yahoo, wants my money. The downloads are mirrored on the Network Node untill I find a more generous home for the webpage.

As to safety if you want to fully install the game engine rather than just play a scenario:
[General advice when dealing with any situation in which you have different files that must have the same name (ie alpha.txt, techlongs.txt, etc.)...Make backups and/or make a habit of swapping files efficiently. For a Mac user I reccomend simply duplicating the Data Folder and setting the original somewhere safe...for us, changing games means just swapping one Data folder for another. For a PC user, I've heard all your files are intermingled in the game directory. Still, the procedure is the same...duplicate your game folder and set the original aside. The above only applies if you are 'full-installing' from the webpage or the Network Node.]

So, I hope that HerrDoktor Provost JohnDmuller is convinced that our voyage to a new planet will be a safe and happy one. I'll give this thread another 12 hours before I send our turn 1.

-Smack, speaking for: The Committee on ExtraChironian Explorations.

[Qantaga]

I was having the same difficulties as HerrDoktor signing in to look at the faction profiles.

I am happy to try any faction, Smack. Depending on which one you take (or any new players want), just give me one that you think will add the most flavor to the game lineup. I trust your Aldebaran intuition.

[Avenoct]

Game order and factions:

Scipio Centaurus : Syndicate
Quantaga : Planetlovers
Arima : Peacemakers
JohnDMuller : Nauticon
Smack : Outlaw (UNF)

AI: Galactics, Universality

If you're late to this thread, I'm more than happy to CMN a second game for you, so go ahead and sign up if interested.

[Edit: Umm..turns out we don't need to play out of the download folder after all..see the end]

The download here is the 'AldebMP' folder out of which you should play each turn. IE, when you recieve a turn, put it in this folder and then start the game normally. Choose MP, load MP scenario, then the current turn. Each player needs this folder.

I'll be emailing the first turn shortly!

P.S. It's odd that some of you can't even reach the web-page. How annoying. I'd be glad to email you the graphics which I highly reccomend, or visit The Network Node Mirror for Aldebaran

-Colonel Awen (Smack)

[Qantaga]

Excellent!

Let the game begin.

[Avenoct]

Heh, I said I'd wait 12 hours. I waited 2.

2301 sent to Scipio of the Syndicate. Scipio, start a turn tracking thread when you finish your turn. Also, each player will be able to choose a password for their turn. If you've never played MP, or have any troubles, give me an email.

**Smack crosses his fingers praying that this innovation actually works**

-Colonel Awen of the United Non-Complicity Front

[Qantaga]

Arima, since I will be sending turns to you, I will need your e-mail (or perhaps Smack knows it). If you could send me an e-mail to:

qantaga@aol.com

Thanks.

[Scipio Centaurus]

First turn played and sent off. I created a turn tracking thread called "Turns of ADB001...". I'm too lazy to look up how to make a link to it from here, so you can scan the MP forum to find it.

- Scipio

[johndmuller]

Link:

ADB001 Turns Thread

[Avenoct]

Sent Qantaga Arima's email.

So it turns out, only the player of the first turn needs the scenario folder for Aldeb. Sorry for the confusion. This makes things far easier. I'll say again that if anyone comes to this thread a bit late, I'd be glad to set up another MP game, or teach someone how to do it.

-Smack