tech paradigm issues

[Curumbor Elendil]

I am currently designing a units and rules patch for Civ2 multiplayer games. One of the changes I want to make is to increase the tech paradigm, since typically in MP games people are discovering Mono by 500 BC and Industrialization by 500 AD. Spaceships are landing in the early 1800s. However, there is an odd problem. When I change the tech paradigm in the rules.txt, it doesn't affect multiplayer games. It works as usual in single player. The host rules.txt is supposed to govern the game rules in multiplayer, but that doesn't work for the tech paradigm. In fact, during testing, it was discovered that even if everyone is using the same rules.txt with a massively altered paradigm (we used 200/10) there is absolutely no effect.

The only possible solution is to include a scenario file every time you want to play a game, which stands in the way of creating a "standard modpack," but also there's controversy over whether changing the tech paradigm in scenarios works in multiplayer either. More testing is needed.

Any suggestions?

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[Curumbor Elendil]

P.S. If you're interested in discussing other issues related to the creation of a "standard multiplayer mod," check out the Civ2 multiplayer forum, where a lively thread is underway.

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[The Capo]

In response to your issue with Scenarios, we in the History of the World Scenario have found that our 15/10 implimentation has effected the game.

So maybe we should investigate why that worked, becuase you said yourself that scenarios in MP don't seem to have the tech degradation. Further when me and GNGS Spam were playing my Thirty Years' War scenario in MP the tech paradigm was in effect as well. What could it be that you are doing wrong, or I am doing right?

Maybe it merits a deeper look.

Or I could send you the scenario and we can test it again to see if it holds, the the tech paradigm in the TYW scenario is pretty major, major enough to notice outright.

[Curumbor Elendil]

Well, I know for a fact that just increasing the tech paradigm in the rules.txt does nothing. Now, it may be that increasing the tech paradigm under Scenario Parameters does something special. However, we did that in the New Millennium game, and it doesn't seem to have affected things much. Of course, the problem may be that we had to edit save files and so on, so maybe the Scenario Parameters are no longer in effect. I'm doubtful, though, because when I load a save game, I can turn on the cheat menu and see the Scenario Parameters, just as they should be. Maybe all 7 of us are just abnormally good players. The real thing to do to test this would be to increase tech paradigm in a scenario to something like 2000/10 and then see what it does. However, even this doesn't solve my problem. Because I'm trying to create a modpack that you can use on your own, randomized maps. No one is just going to play the same scenario file over and over.

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[William Keenan]

Changing the tech paradigm under Scenario Parameters is the only way to effect a saved game or scenario.

The tech paradigm in the RULES.TXT is only used when starting a new game.

[St Leo]

My advice is to have as few trade arrows available as possible.

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Leons Petrazickis (St. Leo)
http://aventine.cf-developer.net/minizigg/
petrazi@sprint.ca

[Curumbor Elendil]

quote: Originally posted by William Keenan on 04-04-2001 05:50 PM Changing the tech paradigm under Scenario Parameters is the only way to effect a saved game or scenario. The tech paradigm in the RULES.TXT is only used when starting a new game.

Right - but even starting a game with an altered rules.txt does not change the tech paradigm in multiplayer games. Strange but true.

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[Curumbor Elendil]

quote: Originally posted by St Leo on 04-04-2001 06:34 PM My advice is to have as few trade arrows available as possible.

You can do that if you have standard map, but the idea here is just to have a standard rules.txt (and units file). How do you reduce trade arrows in the rules.txt?

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[Henrik]

You can alter the amount of trade arrows generated by terrain...

[Curumbor Elendil]

Yeah... But that affects what - oceans and specials? Not really the bulk of trade arrows. Maybe increasing the cost of libraries and universities, superhighways, caravans and freight would help.

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Curumbor Elendil
http://pantheon.yale.edu/~jps35/
ICQ 56126989

[Snog]

I have the tech paradigm set to 20/10 in my scenario Old and New. I have played that several times multiplayer and it always worked. Of course, it's set up that way in the .scn file as well, not just in the rules.txt. So maybe the solution is to get it working single player with a .sav or .scn file and then introduce the other players.

--Snog