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This is a joint Apolyton-CFC NES. It will be fairly plot-driven at first, more open ended later on, with plenty of opportunities for customization and choice all the way through.
It is set on earth, thousands of years after an apocalyptic event. The climate is recovering, and in certain regions humanity has clawed its way back into the industrial age, but resources are still scarce and civilizations isolated.
Thus the Apolyton players and CFC players will each start in separate regions, initially with little or no contact between sites, surrounded by non-industrial cultures.
I will run one thread on CFC, and another on ‘poly, and open an ‘Embassy Thread’ for when you gain reliable contact shortly after we start.
Because Non-Player Countries will not initially be playable, it is important that you declare your intent to play now. I will be custom-editing the map and stats for how many players there are. If you intend to play, please post a “I would like to play” or some recognizable variant thereof. If you change your mind, please post a “I have suddenly and inexplicably changed my mind”, or some variant thereof.
Any and all experience levels welcome.
I will be updating once a week, more often (yeah right!) if appropriate and feasible.
If you give me a compelling reason why you should be on the other site’s “team”, I will probably allow it.
The premise is based upon the short story Slow Birds by Ian Watson. It’s a good little story; you can go read it or not. Having read it will not confer any advantages or disadvantages to you in the game.
This is not historical. It may or may not take place in our world’s timeline; what little history your civilization knows will be given to you upon the opening of the scenario. More may be discovered as you play.
Thus aside from some background culture and a bit of basic local history, the character of your nations will be open to a wide degree of customization.
Rules, Orders, and Stats
Orders are not based on a mechanical rule system. The nation statistics are there for your convenience, not to require you to bang your head on the wall trying to figure them out. You could probably mostly ignore them and do just fine.
Everything you write is an ‘order’ of sorts. Your descriptions, actions, stories, however you choose to express the way your country is functioning and where you want it to go will form a library of prose from which the conditions of your country will be drawn.
So you are encouraged to integrate abstract orders with the real life manifestations they represent.
Example of lame orders:
“Increase economy. Train more soldiers. Stomp out the rebellion”.
Example of good orders:
“With the recent influx of countryside immigrants into the port city of Veracruz, drawn by the prospects of work in the new steel mills, we must take measures to accommodate the growing population. With money from industrial taxes supporting the municipal budget, we are slated to begin construction within the year of basic housing and infrastructure within the year on the new riverside residential suburb. Improved water and electric facilities will come within two years, and amenities and a market district following that” etc.
That said, it’s probably better to write lame orders than no orders.
Secrecy and Espionage
A fair bit of the decisions you must make will be based upon trying to get information on the circumstances you face. It’s a shattered world, and you know little (or incorrectly) of what came before the present or now lies much beyond your borders. So guess what? The full map will not be known to you, nor will completely filled out, up to date statistics of your enemies be available to you.
Things that would really be widely known (at least to your government) will be posted in the public update, things that would be secret will be passed on to you secretly through pm or email.
That’s why your espionage strength will be very important—it is crucial to find things out about other players and limit what they can find out about you. IMPORTANT- Espionage must be done in game! Do Not look at the other site’s thread unless I permit you to, or use out of character knowledge. That said, it’s probably wise not to post top secret battle orders in the thread, firstly because I can’t stop players from seeing them, only find out after the fact, and secondly because your allies might decide they don’t want to be your allies anymore (players from the same site are not bound in an unbreakable alliance—whether you cooperate with them is up to you). I frown upon, and by frown upon I mean gleefully punish, dishonorable play.
Tough Times
This will probably be a challenging game for your nation. It’s possible you’ll slide through without ever being seriously worried that your country will be eradicated, but not likely. Life is not fair, history is not fair.
If you see something you don’t agree with, by all means bring it to my attention. I may have made a factual mistake; I may have made an error in judgement. But keep in mind things will not always go your way. I will not give your nation difficulties without reason, and I will certainly not intentionally ignore your orders.
But keep in mind that a lot of the fun of a game can come through extricating yourself through difficult situations, or merely surviving when the odds are thoroughly stacked against you. Enjoy the challenge of dealing with the difficulties your people face!
It is set on earth, thousands of years after an apocalyptic event. The climate is recovering, and in certain regions humanity has clawed its way back into the industrial age, but resources are still scarce and civilizations isolated.
Thus the Apolyton players and CFC players will each start in separate regions, initially with little or no contact between sites, surrounded by non-industrial cultures.
I will run one thread on CFC, and another on ‘poly, and open an ‘Embassy Thread’ for when you gain reliable contact shortly after we start.
Because Non-Player Countries will not initially be playable, it is important that you declare your intent to play now. I will be custom-editing the map and stats for how many players there are. If you intend to play, please post a “I would like to play” or some recognizable variant thereof. If you change your mind, please post a “I have suddenly and inexplicably changed my mind”, or some variant thereof.
Any and all experience levels welcome.
I will be updating once a week, more often (yeah right!) if appropriate and feasible.
If you give me a compelling reason why you should be on the other site’s “team”, I will probably allow it.
The premise is based upon the short story Slow Birds by Ian Watson. It’s a good little story; you can go read it or not. Having read it will not confer any advantages or disadvantages to you in the game.
This is not historical. It may or may not take place in our world’s timeline; what little history your civilization knows will be given to you upon the opening of the scenario. More may be discovered as you play.
Thus aside from some background culture and a bit of basic local history, the character of your nations will be open to a wide degree of customization.
Rules, Orders, and Stats
Orders are not based on a mechanical rule system. The nation statistics are there for your convenience, not to require you to bang your head on the wall trying to figure them out. You could probably mostly ignore them and do just fine.
Everything you write is an ‘order’ of sorts. Your descriptions, actions, stories, however you choose to express the way your country is functioning and where you want it to go will form a library of prose from which the conditions of your country will be drawn.
So you are encouraged to integrate abstract orders with the real life manifestations they represent.
Example of lame orders:
“Increase economy. Train more soldiers. Stomp out the rebellion”.
Example of good orders:
“With the recent influx of countryside immigrants into the port city of Veracruz, drawn by the prospects of work in the new steel mills, we must take measures to accommodate the growing population. With money from industrial taxes supporting the municipal budget, we are slated to begin construction within the year of basic housing and infrastructure within the year on the new riverside residential suburb. Improved water and electric facilities will come within two years, and amenities and a market district following that” etc.
That said, it’s probably better to write lame orders than no orders.
Secrecy and Espionage
A fair bit of the decisions you must make will be based upon trying to get information on the circumstances you face. It’s a shattered world, and you know little (or incorrectly) of what came before the present or now lies much beyond your borders. So guess what? The full map will not be known to you, nor will completely filled out, up to date statistics of your enemies be available to you.
Things that would really be widely known (at least to your government) will be posted in the public update, things that would be secret will be passed on to you secretly through pm or email.
That’s why your espionage strength will be very important—it is crucial to find things out about other players and limit what they can find out about you. IMPORTANT- Espionage must be done in game! Do Not look at the other site’s thread unless I permit you to, or use out of character knowledge. That said, it’s probably wise not to post top secret battle orders in the thread, firstly because I can’t stop players from seeing them, only find out after the fact, and secondly because your allies might decide they don’t want to be your allies anymore (players from the same site are not bound in an unbreakable alliance—whether you cooperate with them is up to you). I frown upon, and by frown upon I mean gleefully punish, dishonorable play.
Tough Times
This will probably be a challenging game for your nation. It’s possible you’ll slide through without ever being seriously worried that your country will be eradicated, but not likely. Life is not fair, history is not fair.
If you see something you don’t agree with, by all means bring it to my attention. I may have made a factual mistake; I may have made an error in judgement. But keep in mind things will not always go your way. I will not give your nation difficulties without reason, and I will certainly not intentionally ignore your orders.
But keep in mind that a lot of the fun of a game can come through extricating yourself through difficult situations, or merely surviving when the odds are thoroughly stacked against you. Enjoy the challenge of dealing with the difficulties your people face!
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