The Alien RPG

[eclipse4449]

I would like to set up a game that includes both Alien Factions.
I will be H'minee, I need an interesting person to play as Marr.

Because the aliens have an edge over other factions I suggest the 3rd player choose 2 consecutive factions of their choice and if their is a 4th player interested the same can apply.

Your 2 factions shall be able to trade techs etc.
EDITED Post # 2 updated scenario info

P1-H'mnee -Eclipse4449
P2-Marr - sgtslick
P3 -4-wdplays University and Hive.
P5-6-Larrin Morgan and Peace Keepers
P7-Gaians -Eldramatico


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[eclipse4449]

I see some interested players have arrived I welcome you.

I now see this as a special map a map either already created or specifically designed for this scenario.
I would like these powerful aliens to begin their war almost immediately to do this they both should be relatively close on the same landmass and after for an example 20 turns the war is commenced, if it starts on the 20th turn (and thats just an example, we might need a longer span) a certain amount of diversity will occur between these aliens foes, one example is that Marr build a few strong units while H'minee focused of light weapon units to capture mind worms. On the day the war begins their will be no doubt that those 2 players will be elated

Here's where the Human Factions have their fun, since it would not be wise for an alien faction to turn its attention toward the human factions on planet for fear it would draw needed power from conquering its mortal enemy, any attacks on an alien faction would tilt the war one way or the other. I think the human faction should accept that one of the alien factions will win therefore this divides you between 2 beliefs, planet(H'minee) or terraforming the planet the opposite of preserving the planets as a whole(Marr). This division sets your alliance and creates a human condition that you may decide to prevent the other from attacking your so called alliance alien.

as I mentioned I am willing to allow a player(s) to take 2 factions but with concept in mind they would both need to be on the same alliance. So thats 6 factions, the 7th would if AI controlled would be for example Morgan or Data($), maybe(troublesome probing)

The last point I would be interested in doing is ommitting the normal rule of contact before actual meeting. In this scenario let us assume all human factions see the aliens arrive and where they crashlanded and you are controlling 2 factions that havent met, this make no difference because you plan is to once met they trade up, so in reality you have met they are both you so the rule make no sence here, right from the start comunication is open to all and a turbulant way of life then takes shape. It is the 7th faction's decision which way they will lean, so if Data for example likes your Gians faction but not your Peace keeper faction, just assume it does because the Peace keepers will reap the benifits anyway and the small chance that your Society choices will be simular sence you are trading techs with yourself, so it is possible she becomes both of your factions Pact brother. The other 2 factions take heed that take scouting and finding the 7th is particularly important(I assume everyone would want the AI on the highest difficulty level).

[eclipse4449]

Is anyone interested in being Marr?

[bdanv]

@eclipse4449: maybe you can draw in some attention if you post here some more details (like you did in the CFC thread)..

[eclipse4449]

Originally Posted by bdanv

@eclipse4449: maybe you can draw in some attention if you post here some more details (like you did in the CFC thread)..

Of coarse I will, be glad to,

[Eldramatico]

Hi,

I would be interested in playing a single faction

[eclipse4449]

I am glad you are interested! You have the option of any faction but H'minee. As you can tell from the title the game is focused on the Aliens. I'm hoping to find a player for Marr that is just as powerful with words as he would be with his weapons.

So let me know what you think.

[Eldramatico]

I would probably take the Angels or the Gaians, as my single faction. Anyone interested in playing Marr or a team of 2 factions is welcome, and would make the game much more interesting.

[Darsnan]

Note that I can CMN this game for you if you wish.

D

edit: note that I will be OOT till Sunday.

[eclipse4449]

@Darsnan yes I appreciate your offer. we need to find a specific map or have it created for this scenario, are you the man for that job? If so I'll send you a pic of my idea of placement for factions.

I have given more focus and desription in Post #2 of this scenario

2 things to consider here, if you are only willing to play 1 human faction their will be more players involved and everyone knows they take a long time and people drop this is why I consider 2 human factions which then is 4 players, the 7th faction will be an AI and to be considered focal point.

[Darsnan]

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

I now see this as a special map a map either already created or specifically designed for this scenario.

I can specifically design a map for this scenario if you like. Just tell me the world parameters you want (map size, land/ sea ratio, NL level, etc.) and I can take it from there. I also have a nice set of units which I add to my games which make the AIs more challenging as well: let me know if your interested in having theses added to the game as well.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

I would like these powerful aliens to begin their war almost immediately to do this they both should be relatively close on the same landmass and after for an example 20 turns the war is commenced, if it starts on the 20th turn (and thats just an example, we might need a longer span) a certain amount of diversity will occur between these aliens foes, one example is that Marr build a few strong units while H'minee focused of light weapon units to capture mind worms. On the day the war begins their will be no doubt that those 2 players will be elated

I remember Blake creating a scenario where he had what he called a “Meat Wall” which was simply a faction that was going to get steamrolled by another faction. The intent was only to slow down the juggernaut AI so that the human player could establish himself. I could do something similar here by putting a weaker AI between the two Prog factions: this would then allow the Progs to “sharpen their claws” as it were by tearing thru this weaker human faction before ultimately encountering each other and going to war.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

Here's where the Human Factions have their fun, since it would not be wise for an alien faction to turn its attention toward the human factions on planet for fear it would draw needed power from conquering its mortal enemy, any attacks on an alien faction would tilt the war one way or the other. I think the human faction should accept that one of the alien factions will win therefore this divides you between 2 beliefs, planet(H'minee) or terraforming the planet the opposite of preserving the planets as a whole(Marr). This division sets your alliance and creates a human condition that you may decide to prevent the other from attacking your so called alliance alien.

Depending on how many people contact you about this game, why you could have just the two Prog factions played by humans, and I could set up a triumvirate of AIs to create a third (and/ or fourth) interesting block to play against.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

I assume everyone would want the AI on the highest difficulty level).

Note that I can make some very difficult AIs to play against. Just tell me how difficult you want me to make the AIs.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

2 things to consider here, if you are only willing to play 1 human faction their will be more players involved and everyone knows they take a long time and people drop this is why I consider 2 human factions which then is 4 players, the 7th faction will be an AI and to be considered focal point.

That would be very interesting if I were to play the “Meat Wall” faction: I could make it more challenging for the two Progs at first. Or if this game ends up being just the two Prog Factions played by humans, then I could play an attenuated human faction - one where I keep a very small number of cities off by myself, but I feed the AIs good units/ intermingle my own units with the AIs to make more potent attacks by the AI human factions/ etc.
Anyways, just some thoughts from my end. Let me know if any of this interests you, or if you have any follow-up questions.

D

[eclipse4449]

Wow you have some pretty amazing ideas let us start with the map.
I'm not sure the appropriate size for this idea but the map should be shapped like a skull.
let us say the progs take the eye positions
the AI faction takes the chin
there are 4 factions left that are 2 separate alliances, these guys placed at the high and low of the cheekbones on each side.

it is whether by discussion the alliances share the same side or they are positioned in a cross maner.

map should be large enough that a decent amount of travel is required to meet the other players also and this is hard for me to describe but I'll try. Consider 3 units separated far enough apart that they are beyond each other visual range, lets call where these units are are called lanes, so lets say the progs have an area no less than 3 lanes east to west, a little more is a bit better. but the 4 human factions would need 6 lanes east to west.
And the AI at the chin would have at least 4 lanes to travel straight north.

So I know your thinking what is this lanes stuff right, well consider it a way to curb stacks-of-doom. Squad based stacks ar good because I like a rounded attack force with a few attacking, a few defense, a few artillery and a special unit.
so a compromised limit rule will be created.

You mention the AI diffieculty can be at any level, what I'm thinking here is that this AI will become an key asset to one of the human factions so it has to be high enough to become this. As I mentioned in post#2 these 4 factions are divided into 2 alliances, each of these alliance side with one of the progs so that AI needs to be a key player

Lets say that this turns out to be a 4 player game and all 4 players are very good and they don't use exploits pretty soon these players will know weekness of the other player and will take advantage of it, this is normal but for this game there is the alliance factor and that division is based on the progs beliefs

[Darsnan]

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

I'm not sure the appropriate size for this idea but the map should be shaped like a skull.

Human or Prog skull?

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

let us say the progs take the eye positions
the AI faction takes the chin

Would it be better for the AI faction to take the nasal cavity? This plays along with my idea of putting a barrier between the two Prog factions to begin, and that they each have to tear thru the AI to get at each other. I could even make it more interesting by placing something worth fighting over in the region as well. Let me know if this idea appeals or not, or if you’ve got questions I can flesh it out moreso.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

there are 4 factions left that are 2 separate alliances, these guys placed at the high and low of the cheekbones on each side.

Ah, OK, I think I’m seeing how you want them placed: the skull is on its side, with one socket in the northern hemisphere and one in the southern hemisphere. Also since the map wraps, the chin is actually adjacent to the eye sockets (say just to the east of the two eye sockets) – is this correct? If so then scratch my comment above about placing the AI at the nasal cavity (unless you have any ideas about this). For the two-faction alliances I can also put a “via appia” connecting the two allied factions – say either a road or mag tube connecting the two: this would then allow the player to immediately be able to hustle supplies/ military units between his two factions.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

it is whether by discussion the alliances share the same side or they are positioned in a cross manner.

I think the cross configuration would induce more subtle diplomatic negotiations, whereas the “same - side” option would embolden players the military options. Just my opinion on this.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

map should be large enough that a decent amount of travel is required to meet the other players also and this is hard for me to describe but I'll try. Consider 3 units separated far enough apart that they are beyond each other visual range, lets call where these units are are called lanes, so lets say the progs have an area no less than 3 lanes east to west, a little more is a bit better. but the 4 human factions would need 6 lanes east to west.

That sounds like a Huge map to me.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

And the AI at the chin would have at least 4 lanes to travel straight north.

I thought you wanted early combat? Or are you saying you want 4 lanes from the nearest AI city?

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

So I know your thinking what is this lanes stuff right, well consider it a way to curb stacks-of-doom. Squad based stacks ar good because I like a rounded attack force with a few attacking, a few defense, a few artillery and a special unit. .

There are no “Stacks - of – Doom” in SMAX like there are in BtS - the AI isn’t programmed that way. Note that if I build the map correctly I can artificially induce the AI’s into generating simulated stacks of doom.

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

You mention the AI diffieculty can be at any level, what I'm thinking here is that this AI will become an key asset to one of the human factions so it has to be high enough to become this. As I mentioned in post#2 these 4 factions are divided into 2 alliances, each of these alliance side with one of the progs so that AI needs to be a key player

LOL! OK, maybe I’m still not clear on the map layout. You want the lone AI to become a key asset to one or several of the PBEM players? That’s actually very difficult to do in SMAX, especially with this many players involved. The AIs usually get pwn’d one way or another, and if I create a very strong AI, then if one player dominates this AI then the game becomes very unbalanced because said player has a huge advantage over other players. In my experience I’d say its better to have this AI as “meat wall” or somesuch – something where it is eliminated relatively early and so can’t be abused by human players. FYI as to my thoughts on this.

D

[eclipse4449]

I wish i had your email address for further details

Originally Posted by Darsnan

Human or Prog skull?

I like this and agree with the nasal cavity location and I also like the second idea of something worth fighting over but looses the idea I wanted for the 4 human factions to seduce the AI into being its Pact brother(s)

Oriontation I guess doesn't matter but I pictured the skull in the proper (human skull) orientation, and now this is getting much more detailed and I thank you for this, but I had not considered the maps wrapping effect that was thought of since the AI was farthest away from the aliens via land, this I'll think about, (again the idea here is 1 human player picks 2 human factions and chooses 1 of the Progs as its conceptual way of life preserve planet Caretakers or remove fungus and create Eco damage Usurpers).

I see that this might be nice for the human factions but it must not reach the progs.

I am more for the same side option but want to give some options to joining players

not sure

I've lost you here, let me try this again. Lets just focus on the top of the map for a second, this is where the progs are(each prog could have a land feature that would best work for its idealism), the progs are opposite each other on this map, let us imagine for a second that the cartakers send a small group of units together in a straight line to the Usurpers, simaltaneoully the Usurpers send 2 groups in a straight line to the caretakers but one group is above and the over is below the cartakers path, as they pass each other they are undetected because there is enough room available. There is no road or tube here this just represents the area involved.

The early combat I mentioned happens because the other prog know exactly where the other is, no need to scout.

Ok the 4 human controlled factions, 2 factions opposite the others, now consider the lanes again for these guys but now consider it larger top to bottom due to it being 2 factions. the AI is centered between these factions but at the bottom of the map with enough area it would only expand north between these human factions if it really grows huge.

No need, I had never seen an AI do this but some human players do so I just wanted to cover it

I've attached a pic, the little circle are bases the big circles are nothing, the lines are nothing but represent voume of area each faction needs
Thanks
Ray

D

[Darsnan]

Originally Posted by eclipse4449

I wish i had your email address for further details

d a r s n a n a t g m a i l d o t c o m

OK, your pic is worth a thousand words. Once you let me know the map size you'd like, I can draw up a first draft of this and we can go from there.

As far as the layout of factions is concerned, has anyone contacted you with any ideas in this regards? I think this might be an area where having the players provide their input would be beneficial for the game overall. Just a thought on my part.


D

[Eldramatico]

So if I understand correctly we would need two or three more players:

P1-H'mnee -Eclipse4449
P2-Marr (player needed)
P3-4-Two factions choosen by the player (one player needed)
P5-6-Two factions choosen by the player (one player needed)
P7-Gaians((or Angels) -Eldramatico

[eclipse4449]

.0
3

Originally Posted by Eldramatico

So if I understand correctly we would need two or three more players:

P1-H'mnee -Eclipse4449
P2-Marr (player needed)
P3-4-Two factions chosen by the player (one player needed)
P5-6-Two factions chosen by the player (one player needed)
P7-Gaians((or Angels) -Eldramatico

That is exactly correct.

P3 should be a combination that compliments each of strength and weakness
P5 same as P3

Since it is the players choice of factions it doesn't matter to me if the Peace Keepers (for example) are chosen twice.

If miraculously 6 players want to play, 3 Usurpers and 3 Caretakers and an AI choice, any I doubt that would fly but it would be great never the less

[Dolgorukov]

P3 - Dolgorukov (Morganites and Believers)

Do we really need to have two factions per player, can't you just make one faction as big as two at the start of the game?

[Darsnan]

Originally Posted by Dolgorukov

P3 - Dolgorukov (Morganites and Believers)

Do we really need to have two factions per player, can't you just make one faction as big as two at the start of the game?

Yes you can but a) there would be an efficiency penalty by going with just one faction, and b) players get the benefits (as well as headaches) of 2 factions instead of just one. Of course you could always play 2 factions that are the same (i.e. 2 PK factions).

D

[eclipse4449]

Post #1 updated

@Eldramatico it appears you want the slot I intended to be an AI, if that is true do you get what that factions role is ei if it was an AI the human players work to bring you on thier side as factor to help them win against the opposing Alien faction but not entirely out of the question. If you choose Gaians why would you side with Marr?

The map is virtually East vs West and the bottom Gaians((or Angels) is neutral and not a solo with its own agenda, this is not law but I hope you can see what I'm doing here 3 vs 3 specifically. We already know the aliens will be far more powerful than the others, lets say thier differences are balanced, and now Dolgorukov (Morganites and Believers) bring a new strength to either H'minee or Marr.
The P5 slots need to pick factions that can match that composition.

To be clear P3 and P5 must choose an alien side