SMAniaC Prime

[Mart]

SMAniaC Prime
This pbem game uses SMAniaC mod
Game setup discussion here

Players

Maniac
Atlanteans
peter_steenbeke at hotmail dot com
GMT+1

Humphrey
Templar
warddamien - hotmail - com
GMT

Leon Trotsky
Peacekeepers
trotsky / adinet / com.uy
GMT-3

Kataphraktoi
Spartans
william-pembrook-net
GMT-5

ERKUTHER
Cult
erkuther at techie dot com
GMT-8

AI
Empath
Ghost

==========
Faction 1=ATLANTIS
Faction 2=TEMPLAR
Faction 3=GHOST
Faction 4=PEACE
Faction 5=SPARTANS
Faction 6=EMPATH
Faction 7=FUNGBOY

==========
Rules

• Upgrades using the design workshop can only be done at the end of the turn. This to prevent upgrading eg a simple scout rover to the best modeal available and let it attack the same turn - makes it harder to defend
• Retro-engineering allowed, except for using basic unit types such as probe teams, AI formers, etc...
• Social Engineering settings may be changed only once per turn. No “quickie” changing.
  
• Stockpiling in Build Queues allowed at any time
• Multiple drops or orbital insertions using the right-click menu is forbidden. So is airdropping from outside a base/airbase, or after having moved (except on a magtube) using the same method.
• Base growth through Colony Pods - can be used to increase a base size up to the applicable pre-facility limit, but cannot be used to breach that limit without the facility being built.
• Psi (or any other) units cannot be assigned multiple waypoint patrol routes (to avoid instant demon boil bug)
• It is not allowed to set the home base (Control-h) for a unit to be the base of another faction when the diplomatic stance is pact. The unit will then require no support from either faction.
• No base trading with the AI. Extortion and gifting is allowed.
• It is not allowed to trade technology to AIs in exchange for credits if as a result the AI's energy reserves would go into the negative.
• Cannot change an infiltrated faction's workers to specialists, for example by using the F4 screen (or the bases icon of the F2 screen)
• Transparent Commlink Logs - It is forbidden for any player, whether playing the turn or just browsing the .sav, to open a .sav file (current or past) with a text reader program (eg word, wordperfect, notepad, etc etc) as the in-game commlink exchanges are embedded in text in the .sav file and can be read by anyone. For that reason, and also to keep the save file size low, it's highly recommended to do all private communications per e-mail.
• It is forbidded for any player, whether playing the turn or just browsing any gamesave, to select left hand menu, then Game, then Resign. If hit accidentally, then immediately select the "No! Get back in there and fight" option. Selecting the "yes, time to slink away in shame" option triggers the game end scores and map expansion from the start (thereby revealing the start locations and limits of expansion of all seven factions).
• No communications without the correct commlink.
• Council notification - immediate broadcast to all players (Post in the thread and e-mail to all immediately by player who has called elections, citing candidates and votes. After each player's turn, post in the thread the running totals)
• If an aggressive probe action (anything except infiltration) is used on a faction you have a truce, treaty or pact with, you must select 'Declare Vendetta' in the dialog box that appears afterwards, and notify the victim of your transgression, unless you have received permission in advance. No notification is required in other cases.
• Demanding withdrawal to a human player through the menus rather than by negotiation is prohibited.
• Bribing (or accepting bribes) for votes through the diplomatic channel box by clicking on the human faction leader's picture is prohibited (must be conducted by diplo message or e-mail).
• Multiple reloading of the game to try for different effects is forbidden. If a reload is necessary because of a game crash etc., an explanation should be posted to the turn administration thread.
• This bug is not allowed: Normally, a base must have an Aerospace Complex to be able to build orbital facilities. However, if an Aerospace Complex is the item currently being built, then orbital facilities can be added to the build queue. If production is switched to something other than the Aerospace Complex, the orbital facilities remain in the build queue and will be built without the need for an Aerospace Complex.
• This bug is not allowed: On the turn a terraformer completes its terraforming task, its "flag" will be grayed out indicating that it has moved. Clicking on and activating the terraformer will allow a new terraforming command to be issued to the terraformer with the correct number of turns to completion displayed. Clicking on and activating the terraformer again, cancelling its new orders; at this point, the terraformer will have regained one movement point. Using the more advanced technique of this bug is also disallowed.
• It's not allowed to perform probe actions on a base that from one faction revolted to another human faction, unless the new owner decides and announces to keep the base. If the faction doesn't want the base that revolted to them, they have to gift it to an AI of their choice directly after receiving it if possible. If not possible, they have to starve the base and build a colony pod in order to destroy it, again as soon as possible (without hurrying). While disassembling the base, the new owner has the right though to sell off any facilities present in the base.
• It is not allowed to mind control with standard probe teams units or bases of any faction that runs a +3 or higher SE Probe rating.
• Due to the probe rollover bug, an enhanced probe team mind controlling a unit of a faction running +3 or higher Probe SE, would only have to pay half the credits it would have had to pay without the bug. To compensate for that bug, the probing faction needs to get rid of a sum of credits equal to the probe cost. This can be done by for example significantly overpaying for a hurry order, meaning the credits are wasted.
• It is not allowed to locate bases in unexplored tiles.
• You can't ask an AI to stop the war with a human, unless you have permission of that human.

==========
Setup

______________________________________
Preference..	|	Settings

Map size	|	Standard
Ocean		|	50-70%
Erosion		|	Medium
Life		|	Medium
Clouds		|	Medium
Difficulty	|	Transcend + enhanced AI

Transcend	|	Yes
Conquest	|	Yes
Diplomatic	|	Yes
Economic	|	Yes
Cooperative	|	No
Do or Die	|	No
Flexible start	|	Yes
Tech stag	|	No
Spoils of war	|	No
Blind research	|	No
Intense riv	|	No
No survey	|	Yes
No scatter	|	No
No rnd events	|	Yes
Time Warp	|	No
Iron man	|	No
Rand person	|	No
Rand social	|	No

==========
Remarks

• This is a game with roleplay emphasis. Each faction has different starting conditions so you need to adjust. They are balanced, but you need to play every faction differently, according to what you have. This is to make the game interesting and give you something that possibly surprise you. Plan for the future and be prepare to do something that you may have never considered before. Be creative and flexible.
• AI are enhanced from the special files. They are more powerful, though in the test they showed moderate growth in the first 36 turns I checked, however do not underestimate them. Consider cooperation for additional benefits.
• Remember not to use AI units.

[Mart]

2101 sent to Maniac (Atlanteans) over 12 hours ago. I could not post, since poly database was off-line

[Maniac]

MY 2101 to Humphrey

I think combat in this game would be very interesting.

Two naval factions (Atlanteans, Shadow Ghosts) with the Spartans who can also quickly b-line to it.
Three psionic factions (Cult, Templar, Empaths) with the Spartans who can defend well against it due to high morale.
I think using a wide variation of unit types will be necessary in this game => more strategy

[Humphrey]

Does the 'SMAniaC' link in your sig include the latest update or do I need to download that as well (new computer, need to re-download SMAniaC)?

[Maniac]

The SMAniaC link is up to date to last weekend. That one should be downloaded. The update not.

[Humphrey]

2101 sent to Leon Trotsky.

[Leon Trotsky]

Forgive me Maniac, for I have sinned... I played the turn before installing the mod itself, thinking that any changes to alpha.txt would be included in the save file. Would it work?

[Mart]

Trotsky, how the turn looked like? You must have had things messed up, like techs for example.
I think you should install full mod first, then test it playing a few turns some SP game.
You may replay the turn then. You would give 1 relod message.

[Leon Trotsky]

I promise it won't happen again. I didn't want to meddle with ModMan, so I solved the problem quite brutally:

[Humphrey]

Oh, everyone else does that too (copies all the files), don't worry!

[Kataphraktoi]

Sorry for delay, just now logged onto poly. Real life has been in my face lately. Should play the turn sometime today.

[Kataphraktoi]

One reload, because i loaded in wrong directory, yeah...lol. I didnt pop any pods on turn 1, so no problem.

Sweet, 4 players to extort techs and cash from err i mean sign mutually benefitial trade agreements with. Yeah.

[ERKUTHER]

Sent to Maniac 2102

I'm not sure how this will show up, but I finished my turn and couldn't remember if I was just supposted to save and exit or click on turn complete, so first I saved and exited, then checked the tread again, realized I needed to do turn complete. Went back to the save and did that. I'm sure it isn't a big deal, but I just wanted to put it out there.

Ohh, and I forgot to change the file name when I passed it to you Maniac I'll do better next turn

[Mart]

Erkuther,
What you did is often called mid-saving. You save a multiplayer game, which then exits and you later reload it - the very same mid-save. It is a game feature, very useful and sure legal.

[Maniac]

Originally posted by ERKUTHER
realized I needed to do turn complete. Went back to the save and did that. I'm sure it isn't a big deal, but I just wanted to put it out there.

It still shows as your save. Could you please recheck and resend?