The Anteroom - community discussion thread

[phonicsmonkey]

Hey all you Throne Roomies! I thought it was about time we had our own off-topic thread so we can gather and shoot the breeze about anything that takes our fancy.

There's enough of us hanging around these days to make a decent sized crowd for some banter. (just remember to follow the org rules or I may have to instagib you :clown:)

I might begin by introducing myself: I am phonicsmonkey and I am a hotseat addict.

Since 2007 I have been playing in and hosting hotseat games here in the Throne Room and now I have the privilege of moderating the forum too...I'm keen to grow the community and as most of you know I'm evangelical about the great TW experience to be gained from playing against other humans. I have more recently been enjoying the M2TW RPG V&V as well.

Despite having a personal limit of three hotseats at a time I currently find myself playing in six of them and being the admin for five....I just can't help myself it seems...

[Zim]

I know how that feels. :laugh4:

One OOC thread to rule them all? ~:cheers:



Despite having a personal limit of three hotseats at a time I currently find myself playing in six of them and being the admin for five....I just can't help myself if seems...

[phonicsmonkey]

Zim, I'm surprised you didn't push for Norway in WotK2...

[Zim]

It was tempting....

Also, death to the Mongols.

[phonicsmonkey]

Myth has been sending me screenshots of defeated Mongols in an attempt to psyche me out...

[Zim]

He's playing the Shah? I think I'd be up for some psychological warfare in that situation as well, probably starting with pictures of the Shah crying while huddled in a fetal position. :clown:

[phonicsmonkey]

I must say that playing hotseats in SS6.3 and SS6.4 has made me want to play a SP campaign again...my last one was in BC 1.05 back in the old days before Commanders of the Faithful (2008 maybe?) so it will have been a really long time.

Think I might try a Turkish campaign and fight the Mongols myself...

Anyone else still playing SP M2TW?

[Nightbringer]

I just started playing some ss 6.4 again myself. I came back to an old byzantine game where I am attempting to recreate the Roman empire. I am also doing a relocation game with Aragon in Italy.

On a side note, you invitation to chat here seemed almost ominous.
"Come have a chat with me..."
Oh no, I am going to be flayed alive for opposing the Khan!
:scared:

(probably just my paranoid nature feeding off a "...")

[phonicsmonkey]

I think all in all I preferred to be the Caliph than the Khan - just a bit friendlier, know what I mean?

Although there aren't many left now who remember me as such...

[Nightbringer]

Khan does have a long and, storied, history. Its good we have a strong player like yourself to really put the fear of Mongols in us all.
I look forward to my lands becoming a smoldering wasteland as armies clash in it. :)

[phonicsmonkey]

Its good we have a strong player like yourself to really put the fear of Mongols in us all.

In the interests of full disclosure I should point out that I have never actually won a hotseat...:laugh4:

EDIT: some images from the first Wrath of the Khan game:

https://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa181/phonicsmonkeytw/0002-4.jpg

https://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa181/phonicsmonkeytw/0005-3.jpg

https://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa181/phonicsmonkeytw/0026.jpg

https://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa181/phonicsmonkeytw/0076.jpg

https://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa181/phonicsmonkeytw/0015-3.jpg

[Nightbringer]

those are awesome images.

As to you never having actually won. Not everyone can hope to be as good as I am Phonics.

:)

(or maybe there just haven't been many hotseats that actually ended)

[phonicsmonkey]

those are awesome images.

As to you never having actually won. Not everyone can hope to be as good as I am Phonics.

:)

(or maybe there just haven't been many hotseats that actually ended)

It was quite the epic campaign - ask Silver about it...I confess I have been on the winning side in most games, at least the ones that finished.

Britannia and CotF, DoW...I straight up lost the LotE game after rushing into an early lead. Quirl totally kerbstomped me with his Qara-Suu....still gives me nightmares to think of it...

Obviously lost the WotK game - Mongols thrashed us in the end...

Don't like to talk about WWC these days....and Dual Alliances is going quite well although Thanatos or Triforce are likelier winners than I.

[Nightbringer]

DA is an interesting game. I thought I was a goner when the HRE turned on me, but things have been turning around pretty well. Triforce has been a huge help and is looking to become pretty dominant in that game. At least in the west, I really have no idea what the East is like.

[phonicsmonkey]

I really have no idea what the East is like.

Mostly Purple and Yellow, with a bit of Teal thrown in for good measure

[Nightbringer]

sounds like how it usually goes. Personally, I have never seen a game in which the Turks have had a huge amount of success. Although they do seem to be doing well in GA

[phonicsmonkey]

sounds like how it usually goes. Personally, I have never seen a game in which the Turks have had a huge amount of success.

They are always stuck between ERE and Egypt - it's a rough place to be

[Myth]

LOL :D About time we had such a thread!

OK first of all - I play SP on occasion. Like once every two days or once per day If i have the time. I have a save in SS 6.4 for England, the ERE and recently - Portugal. Man if you want a challenge, start a 6.4 Early game with RR on. Even without BGR Portugal just doesn't have physically as many troops as it needs to beat the might of money scripted, free troops Gracul AI Moors. Even with Crusade mercs they still have 3x your armies! Even if you blockade the land-bridge into Africa! Just wow... And the Ai gets such huge bonuses on the battle map in SS that a unit of skirmisher cav will charge and kill 70% of your general's bodyguard. And the Moorish FL general's Bodyguard stalemates two units of Mailed Knights, your own General + a unit of light cav! Oh and their spearmen sometimes can outrun your knights :D

Autoresolve actually becomes the better choice if you have enough heavy infantry mercs from the crusades.

BTW I installed Broken Crescent yesterday, just to see what the fuss was about. 8000 gold for dirt roads? What? It also seems very imbalanced. But everyone is talking about the 3.0 version coming soon so... we'll see.

TATW is awesome but also imbalanced. Pick the Elves and just stomp with archers who fire farther than siege weapons, run faster than horses and don't tire. And have 11 ranged and 15 melee attack. And shields.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Can I ask why such a name for this thread - the Anteroom? What does it mean?

[phonicsmonkey]

Can I ask why such a name for this thread - the Anteroom? What does it mean?

Good question, it means the same as antechamber - a side room off the main Throne Room in which we can wait and chat.

Myth I haven't played Broken Crescent since 2.0 and I preferred 1.05 to that version. I guess it depends how much you are into the medieval islamic world - I just found BC different from anything I'd experienced before and loved it. It opened my eyes to that whole period of history...

I haven't tried TATW despite all the good feedback - I just don't really like the idea of the fantasy setting. I might give it a go if I start enjoying SP again.

[Nightbringer]

I played TATW for a bit, and truly admired it in every way. It truly is a masterpiece of a mod, but for some reason I never found myself as hooked on it as I have been with SS. I doubt its the setting, as I love LoTR, (books, not movie, but the visuals in the movies work great for it, that's a whole 'nother topic though).
I don't think the balance was a problem for me either, it felt right that elves should be superhuman.

I think the issue ended up being the diplomacy. When it worked as it was supposed to it was too, predictable. Which I guess is related to the fiction. LOTR is less about the strategy and politics of war and more about characters and the more personal aspects of war. Which the tW engine does not do well.
The good guys fight the bad, and that makes it feel more like just one big war, rather than a series of wars with everyone trying to gain power. That is what I enjoy about TW games. The predictability in TATW killed my excitement to see who would rise and fall.

If I were to play another fantasy based TW mod, I think I would go for a "Song of Ice and Fire" based one. Lots of backstabbing and shifting balance of power in that.

[phonicsmonkey]

I haven't read fantasy for many years and haven't come across the Song of Ice and Fire. Good is it?

By the way I have been playing SS6.4 on VH/VH (same settings as WotK2) and have been pleasantly surprised at the level of difficulty on the battle map. It seems like on those settings the cavalry speeds have been adjusted so that you can't as easily win huge battles with a few horse like previously. Which is good for hotseats with led battles.

[Nightbringer]

yep, I feel like the balance in 6.4 is really in the sweet spot. Cav feels powerful but not indestructible.

As for A Song of Ice and Fire, I would definitely recommend it if you were looking to read some more fantasy. It can be pretty graphic and is definitely "dark" fantasy. It is also quite an investment of time, with 4 books currently with ~800 pages each. And a new one coming out soon. The first book is "A Game of Thrones." There is an HBO series of it right now but I haven't seen any of it so I can't speak to the quality of that. There is also an RTS being made based on it, I think that is still a long way off though.

[phonicsmonkey]

Ah it's Game of Thrones. You are officially the third person to recommend that to me. The TV series is for Sean Bean fans as far as I can tell :laugh4:

Speaking of TV, I can't get enough of Spartacus...I just rewatched Blood and Sand after seeing Gods of the Arena. Love it. The acting and dialogue is terrible on the whole but the plot is pretty good and it's full of sex and violence, which is what the monkey likes...

[Nightbringer]

well, there is lots of sex and violence in those books. As for spartacus, I tried and episode and the history major in me had to shut it off. I might enjoy it as entertainment if I gave it more of a chance though.

[phonicsmonkey]

That is the only way to enjoy it. History it is not. My wife calls it gladiator-p0rn and she has it about right. It will be interesting to see whether they attempt to be historically accurate at all about the much-better documented events that follow his escape from the Ludus...

[Zim]

Make that 4 people, it's a great series. My father's reading the books right now. I'll have to ask him how the show compares.

Aside from exposure to the Sharpe series through my father I hadn't really seen much fo Sean Bean before, but I was pleasantly surprised to see Aiden Gillen (from The Wire) in the show.


Ah it's Game of Thrones. You are officially the third person to recommend that to me. The TV series is for Sean Bean fans as far as I can tell :laugh4:

Speaking of TV, I can't get enough of Spartacus...I just rewatched Blood and Sand after seeing Gods of the Arena. Love it. The acting and dialogue is terrible on the whole but the plot is pretty good and it's full of sex and violence, which is what the monkey likes...

[Myth]

1. ASOIAF is one of the greatest fantasy series ever! It's in my top 4 with LOTR, WoT and the Chronicles of Amber. Definitely read it. READ IT. NOW!
2. Watch the TV series after you have read the book. GRRM has done his best with the scripts and advising the HBO staff, but there is only so much stuff one can fit in 10 episodes per season. Books first, TV after.
3. SS is great. Definitely play with Gracul's AI, the other AIs are too passive and it's too easy to have unbreakable 200 turn alliances. Gracul is the way to go if you want a challenge. Try BGR4 if you have tons of time to read and learn the rules. It's somewhat of a chore though, so i've abandoned it for now. BTW in an Early campaign in SS Genral's Bodyguards still rule the battle map. Wherever there is only one enemy cav unit (or better yet-none) you can win with a GB alone. I've taken every rebel settlement on the British Isles in SP with just a unit of GB and a unit of Miles cav. I siege, the AI sallies and I kill them. This doesn't work in hotseat however, as when the Rebel turn comes the AI just autocalcs the sally battle and you lose horribly.

Monkey I'd also advise you to play with Real Rercruitment on in SP - it makes it harder to blitz the AI since you lack quality troops and the AI can always out-spearmilita you with it's massive gold and unit boosts. As England I eliminated the moors but had to fight around 6-7 full stacks to do so! And they had a bunch more but I eliminated them before they could use them!

Oh TATW is great value for a mod. It shows superb effort has been put in the making of it. What I also don't quite enjoy about it is that he map is huge but kind of bland - a settlement every 500 miles or so, not like the clusterfark that is Western and Central Europe in regular M2TW :D

BTW there is a Weseteros mod in the making (hosted on the .net) I've downloaded the alpha and it's nice, but the full version looks so much better.. *drool*. Go and check it out if you want.

[Visor]

I've won a few hotseats. I like a lot of the mods released, BC, TATW, SS, KGCM. (KGCM is good for SP IMO). (Just not the HS patch version.)

I've killed the Mongols turn 2 as Khwarez on LE before.... ;)

I've seen the Turks do well once in a hotseat game, SS6.3. But they would've lost against me (Cumans, love my Cumans) and the Romans.

[phonicsmonkey]

I've killed the Mongols turn 2 as Khwarez on LE before.... ;)

They don't believe you over at TWC

[Visor]

Cause they are heretics. :P I'll post some pics.

[phonicsmonkey]

No need to prove it to us, we're a trusting bunch here at the Org.

Pics are always nice to see though..

[Visor]

https://img819.imageshack.us/img819/5785/mk1o.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/819/mk1o.png/)

Trying times for the Khwarezmian Empire, massive Mongol hordes surround the settlements of Khiva and Konjikala.

https://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3043/mk2p.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/535/mk2p.png/)
https://img600.imageshack.us/img600/9392/mk3g.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/600/mk3g.png/)

We're gonna need some help, so a jihad is called on Urgench.

https://img546.imageshack.us/img546/5552/mk4.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/546/mk4.png/)
https://img715.imageshack.us/img715/5830/mk5.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/715/mk5.png/)
https://img190.imageshack.us/img190/6046/mk6.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/190/mk6.png/)
https://img219.imageshack.us/img219/4462/mk7n.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/219/mk7n.png/)

All possible forces are gathered for the strike on the Mongols.

https://img14.imageshack.us/img14/8351/mk8e.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/14/mk8e.png/)

All of Islam has united to fight this barbaric foe.

https://img17.imageshack.us/img17/1256/mk9.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/17/mk9.png/)

The situation. Note how the Mongols didn't attack the settlements or Sultan Jalal.

https://img163.imageshack.us/img163/9999/mk10j.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/163/mk10j.png/)
You can easily win by opening the gates with a spy and killing off genghis with the jihad armies, but that's cowardly. :laugh4:

https://img197.imageshack.us/img197/8782/mk11ic.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/197/mk11ic.png/)

Aradai the Wrathful faces three full Khwarezmian armies. Who will win? Note the AI always moves him there.

https://img843.imageshack.us/img843/3320/mk12.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/843/mk12.png/)

Battle rages and Aradai falls.

https://img193.imageshack.us/img193/4729/mk13.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/193/mk13.png/)

The Shah triumphs! The Mongolian army is utterly destroyed.

https://img638.imageshack.us/img638/5332/mk14.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/638/mk14.png/)

Prisoners of War. I didn't think there would be enough left in Aradai's army, so I released them.

https://img651.imageshack.us/img651/4606/mk15.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/651/mk15.png/)

The victor, Enver Kagan is adopted into the family for his battle prowess. All hail Enver Kagan the Mongol Slayer!

https://img197.imageshack.us/img197/7685/mk16.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/197/mk16.png/)

The remnants of Aradai's pitiful army withdraws to Urgench. Note Urgench is under siege from the start of the turn, so the army will go outside the settlement, and be allowed to be attacked again. You can also not bother with this and beat it in a siege using the spy to open the gates.

https://img192.imageshack.us/img192/4581/mk17.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/192/mk17.png/)

The Captain is drawn into battle along with Genghis Khan the Tyrant. Who will soon be Genghis Khan the Dead.

https://img841.imageshack.us/img841/4138/mk18.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/841/mk18.png/)

Captain Berkei dies foolishly.

https://img546.imageshack.us/img546/4097/mk19.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/546/mk19.png/)

The Khan is dead! Long live the Shah!

https://img717.imageshack.us/img717/6551/mk20.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/717/mk20.png/)

The victory is absolute. Enver Kagan shows his prowess in killing the feared warlord Genghis Khan of the Mongols.

https://img838.imageshack.us/img838/953/mk21.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/838/mk21.png/)

This time no mercy is shown.

https://img232.imageshack.us/img232/9945/mk22.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/232/mk22.png/)

The Khan is dead.

https://img717.imageshack.us/img717/429/mk23.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/717/mk23.png/)

Urgench is sacked, the inhabitants are brought under the rule of the Shah.

https://img827.imageshack.us/img827/6707/mk24.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/827/mk24.png/)

What's this? Another Khan dead?

https://img807.imageshack.us/img807/9125/mk25.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/807/mk25.png/)

The Holy War is over, the followers of Mohammed rejoice at the capture of Urgench.

https://img8.imageshack.us/img8/4078/mk26.png (https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/8/mk26.png/)

The Mongols are destroyed! Tada!

[LooseCannon1]

They don't believe you over at TWCThat was me. And now that he's finally posted the screen shots :hail: :2thumbsup:

In case no one realizes it. I was chief beta-tester for 6.2 and this strategy never crossed our minds. I've got to Pm gracul and remind him to put "horde" mode back into the mongols for the next update .:laugh4: That'll teach you. :wink: :tongue:

[Kogitsune]

1. ASOIAF is one of the greatest fantasy series ever! It's in my top 4 with LOTR, WoT and the Chronicles of Amber. Definitely read it. READ IT. NOW!
2. Watch the TV series after you have read the book. GRRM has done his best with the scripts and advising the HBO staff, but there is only so much stuff one can fit in 10 episodes per season. Books first, TV after.


can't agree more with 1.WOT 2.ASOIAF 3.LOTR

Just checked my amazon account.. i've pre-ordered book 5 of ASOIAF abt 2 years ago, and it notified me today that it would ship next week ... finally!
As for the HBO show of ASOIAF: very enjoyable (as usual with HBO) and very true to the books, however not deep enough to fully appreciate the story if you haven't already read the books, you miss a lot of stuff I feel one shouldn't be missing :)

[Zim]

I've been wondering about that. I hadn't read the books yet because I was afraid they'd spoil the show more than the show would spoil the books (figuring the first book would have far more detail, plus maybe some story lines that the show might not have been able to include).



As for the HBO show of ASOIAF: very enjoyable (as usual with HBO) and very true to the books, however not deep enough to fully appreciate the story if you haven't already read the books, you miss a lot of stuff I feel one shouldn't be missing :)

[Kogitsune]

The show wont spoil the books, because the books contain a vast amount of details the show doesnt. Plus, the books are so superbly written, that even though i did like the dialogues in the show, the books still come out far on top.
besides, it's only book 1 which as been filmed, you can still breeze through it and enjoy the next 4 :)

I assure you, if you dig fantasy, ASOIAF is a must read

[phonicsmonkey]

With all these fantasy fans in the house maybe someone should start a TATW hotseat?

[Zim]

I can confirm TATW works well in hotseat mode. Or at least it did a year or so ago.

I could run one if there were interest. We'd have to decide whether to do it more free for all or split into teams. There are also some factions that were small and surrounded (Isengard) or spread out and surrounded (Misty Mountains)...

[Kogitsune]

i'll prolly read it, but i'm more a pbm kinda person :)

[phonicsmonkey]

Have you played in a hotseat before?

[Kogitsune]

yes, that's how i know i'm not really cut out for it ;)

i prefer to post a lot on the forum, while keeping ingame activities to a minimum ;-)

I was hoping to find an EB rome PBM here, but alass :)

[Nightbringer]

What is the difference between a pbm and a hotseat? They seem like they would be the same to me.

[LeoCordis]

Maybe he is talking about playing only one faction? I don't know.

[phonicsmonkey]

Yeah I think what Kogitsune is talking about is a succession game, where a group of players each take control of the same faction for a set number of turns

[Zim]

Succession or rpg? The former could be arranged quite easily.


yes, that's how i know i'm not really cut out for it ;)

i prefer to post a lot on the forum, while keeping ingame activities to a minimum ;-)

I was hoping to find an EB rome PBM here, but alass :)

Maybe, although back in the old days PBM was used for both types of games.


Yeah I think what Kogitsune is talking about is a succession game, where a group of players each take control of the same faction for a set number of turns

[Kogitsune]

Yeah I think what Kogitsune is talking about is a succession game, where a group of players each take control of the same faction for a set number of turns

yes.
people can control a single avatar, or even just roleplay a non-playable character which can influence the real ingame events and stuff like that :)
Like the ptolemai thing going on in the subforum here...
Although everybody participating has an avatar in that game, but you get the picture..

[LeoCordis]

The Ptolemai RPG, Kings of the Nile is great. You should really get involved. Obviously the culture is a bit different but the RP'ing is just as good, as is the gameplay.

[Kogitsune]

my knowledge of the ptolemai is quasi nihil,which would limit my rp capacities i'm afraid

but if i'm bored enough, i might read up from the start and join in after all :)

[LeoCordis]

Most of the RP is in terms of communication and basic historical knowledge. If you feel competent enough to take part in an Ancient Rome based RPG you would definitely be able to take part in a Ptolemai one. :D

[Zim]

Yeah, it's quite easy to get into the rpgs here. KotR was one of my favorites and I didn't know anything about the Holy Roman Empire when I joined.

[phonicsmonkey]

RPGs are hot property right now - our next Tales from the Throne Room will focus on them

[phonicsmonkey]

it's been quiet in here the past few days and all the HS are running late. Is there something going on that I'm missing?

[Visor]

Yeah, me. I got issues in RL.

[phonicsmonkey]

*wipes down the bar and pours another drink*

what's troubling you fella?

[Visor]

*shakes head*

It's not problems, too much is happening.

[Myth]

Well I'm still here. Any chance for a rematch vs the .net? BTW Visorslash in a .org vs .net will you play for us or them? :)

[Visor]

Dunno.... maybe org.

[phonicsmonkey]

Any chance for a rematch vs the .net?

I think Mordrorru would go for it. I'm probably out this time though, but happy to admin it as long as you guys don't bicker all the time like we did :laugh4:

[Zim]

Those final faction ratings looked painful. :sweatdrop: Go Moors, though.

[Zim]

Hmmm, no holidays here in the U.S. that I'm aware of. Not sure what's up with just about all of the hotseats freezing.

[Visor]

I already said it was me. :P

[Zim]

You're holding up all of the hotseats, even the ones where it isn't your turn? I knew it! :holmes:

[Visor]

I am a master of sabotage. :evilgrin:

[Myth]

Well, UOTI is slowed down because Ignoramus is MIA.
FN is running at its average pace.
GA is running at its average pace.
CoG is going trough a change of player.
WOTK2 was slowed down because of that same player who went MIA.

BTW Phonics what will happen to France in WOTK2? Think I can switch and let the K-Shah be AI (that might make it too easy for you however)

[phonicsmonkey]

I usually let people miss a few turns before I make the difficult decision to replace them. France is a long way from the Mongols so a few subbed turns won't make too much of a difference. Ash might just be on vacation and has forgotten to tell us.

[Myth]

Well I always notify someone when I go away, and I let them know how long I will be away. Since he had a relatively low number of posts I decided to just replace him all together. I've been in other communities where fresh eager-beaver posters join games and are very prolific for a month, then disappear forever. Plus I like having Thanatos Eclipse in my team :D

[Thanatos Eclipse]

well, if he comes back in the next couple of turns, I'd be happy to let him take back over if he wants :)

[phonicsmonkey]

hey I wasn't criticising you, just thought I should explain.

Thanatos, if Ash doesn't come back would you like to join us in WotK2? Seeing as you have SS6.4 installed now...

[Thanatos Eclipse]

No criticism taken, but if he did just forget or something, I thought I'd let it be known I wouldn't mind handing it back over to him.

Well, with my prospects in FN looking gloomy and DA effectively done unless triforce resurfaces (tear), sure

[phonicsmonkey]

Woohoo!

By the way I just besieged your capital Minsk in FN :devil:

And Myth, if the K-Shah gets knocked out there will no doubt be an opportunity to rejoin later as another faction so don't worry.

[Thanatos Eclipse]

By the way I just besieged your capital Minsk in FN :devil:

Minsk is my capital? I always thought it was my other city. Oh well, I already raised taxes and abandoned Minsk to your army. Apparently you can see forces hidden beside watch towers :p

[phonicsmonkey]

Oh well, I already raised taxes and abandoned Minsk to your army.

Very kind of you

[Myth]

That or the K-Shah single-handedly defeats the mongols...:smartass2:

BTW I see a recent tendency of games here being fought battles, which IMO is a good thing. Autocalc is not fair - those with heavy infantry and lots of defense always stomp and don't fear anything if they make a full stack. Fought battles are imbalanced sure, yes a GB unit can win a battle all by itself, but still at least the option is equally available to everyone.

Just now I saw that Scotland in CoG had 3 or so generals in it's city. I immediately autoresolved and was happy with losing 400 men out of some militia and peasants (puiled back my miles). The AI in SS has given me tremendeous grief with it's uber combat bonuses on these GB units. So fought battles are great if you are desperate or if you get the jump on an equal enemy force, but the option to autoresolve some annoying siege assaults or things that would actually make your life harder to fight is still there.

But fought battles are awesome for factions that have archers or jav-cav. If another Britannia game is made, it should definitely be a fought battle system - England has Armoured Swordsmen who are cheap on upkeep and have as much defense as a Dism. Feudal Knight, as well as Armoured Sergeants. With these units it can walk over enemy armeis that normally would splatter them in a fought battle. Wales and Ireland would be very intimidating in fought battles to be sure.

[phonicsmonkey]

That or the K-Shah single-handedly defeats the mongols...:smartass2:


That's the spirit!

I'm not sure which kind of game I prefer. When the battles are fought there is always the possibility of a small faction successfully defeating a larger one, if the strategy is right. However sometimes you get onto drama over battle map 'exploits' which can get ugly and ruin games. Also once everyone understands that a couple of horse can take out a full stack games can get really cagey and slow-paced with lots of forts whIch is not to everyone's taste.

On the other hand while AR is simpler (and quicker to play) it is also biased towards certain factions and it's much more difficult to turn the tables on a larger faction which can outproduce you, making games more predictable.

[Kogitsune]

anyone tried that you are the senate thing on twc?

[Zim]

We seem to go through phases.We went from all autoresolve to mostly fought battles back around the first BC hotseat here, then back to more autoresolve because people thought it was more fair. I wouldn't mind seeing more hotseats with fought battles, although I think it works better with mods that heavily rework the battles.


That or the K-Shah single-handedly defeats the mongols...:smartass2:

BTW I see a recent tendency of games here being fought battles, which IMO is a good thing. Autocalc is not fair - those with heavy infantry and lots of defense always stomp and don't fear anything if they make a full stack. Fought battles are imbalanced sure, yes a GB unit can win a battle all by itself, but still at least the option is equally available to everyone.

[phonicsmonkey]

6 hotseats and 2 RPGs! I can't remember the Throne Room being more active..keep it up everyone!

[Myth]

I was thinking maybe we should get a thread dedicated to people telling when they go MIA, for how long, and whom they appoint as a sub for which game. Anyway I'll do this here for now. I'm going away to the beach until next Sunday, or maybe even a bit longer. Ideally my turns in UotI and FN won't come up until then as they are the most important (as in, most intense situation and thus a mistake from the sub can ruin things) but As subs i want:

UotI: Zim or Phonics if he is unavailable. But Zim knows my plans and standing forces, and knows where the enemy is.
FN: slysnake, I'll leave him detailed instructions.
CoG: I trust any one of my three teammates there to make the right decisions. Phonics should step in as Admin for this game I reckon as he has the admin pw.
WotK2: Anyone really, but I'd prefer if it was someone who is closer to the action and can benefit from seeing the deployment of enemy troops and the way I've blocked things as the K-Shah.
GA: Anyone from Thanatos Eclipse, Nightbringer or Zim. Things are fairly self explanatory there.

I'd also ask the admins of each game to reset my password if my turn comes up. I'll fix it when I come back.

[LooseCannon1]

An absence thread similar to twc's would be nice if people remember to use it. But sometimes even reliable people suddenly go MIA. We've had quite a few games die in the past month over there and a few of us were left scratching our heads over the missing.

edit: And if I go missing you should expect the worst. When I leave I'll make sure people know it. You'll get a lot of "#$%&*" :laugh4:

[Thanatos Eclipse]

An absence thread similar to twc's would be nice if people remember to use it. But sometimes even reliable people suddenly go MIA. We've had quite a few games die in the past month over there and a few of us were left scratching our heads over the missing.

I know, I was sad that Dual Alliance had to died when Tri went missing. Hope he's ok though, he didn't seem to me to be the type to just disappear.

[Nightbringer]

I know, I was sad that Dual Alliance had to died when Tri went missing. Hope he's ok though, he didn't seem to me to be the type to just disappear.

I know, I too am worried something may have happened.

[ArcturUs]

WotK2: Anyone really, but I'd prefer if it was someone who is closer to the action and can benefit from seeing the deployment of enemy troops and the way I've blocked things as the K-Shah.

I have subbed you for WotK2 :2thumbsup:

[phonicsmonkey]

Thanks Ezil

It's always weird that people disappear from here after (sometimes) years of regular activity and without saying goodbye. You guys probably don't remember Ramses II CP but he was a guy I really worried about after he vanished.

Fact is we have no way of knowing! Maybe there's a serial killer at work hunting down orgahs one by one...

[Nightbringer]

Or maybe those who disappear are in fact SPIES from some rival site, possibly the .net!!!
hmm, so thats how they won WWC, crafty devils!

Seriously though, I completely agree phonics. I am truly wondering where triforce has gone. He is the person who started me on hotseats in the first place back when I myself was a netter and it is very strange for him to disappear so suddenly. From the net as well as here.

It would be all too easy (and completely understandable) for a loved one to being completely overlook someplace like this when informing friends etc in the event of a tragedy.

On a lighter note. :)
Speaking of WWC, how exactly did you (or whoever did it) come up with the name "The Orgsome Foursome?"
My girlfriend and I both agree it is a hilarious name and I would like to give its creator a cookie.

[phonicsmonkey]

I came up with that. There was an Australian rowing team at one of the Olympics called the "Oarsome Foursome" so I punned on the pun if you like.

Unfortunately having a great name doesn't always equal win. Just ask Grasshopper Zurich

I like cookies.

[Nightbringer]

Ok, I'll need your name and address. Oh, and do you have a favorite kind?

[phonicsmonkey]

I like Anzac biscuits (http://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipe/Anzac-Biscuits-L79.html) but I'm not giving my name and address to a weirdo interweb stalker like you...:clown:

[Visor]

Anzac biscuits are delicious.

[Nightbringer]

mm, those are delicious. In fact, I have some right here in my cargo van with tape over all the windows. Just come on in...:deal2:

[phonicsmonkey]

So.....tempting....

...surely it can't be a bad idea....

[Myth]

Hey guys, I'm still alive and back :)

BTW I did leave one internet community where I was very active for a year and a half. I was running some RP games, and playing in some. I left without saying goodbye because people there really liked me and my writing and would have begged me to stay.

[Nightbringer]

Hey guys, I'm still alive and back :)

BTW I did leave one internet community where I was very active for a year and a half. I was running some RP games, and playing in some. I left without saying goodbye because people there really liked me and my writing and would have begged me to stay.

Stroken the old ego I see. :laugh4:

I understand what you mean, but I know if you leave here I would still want you to let us know, even if we can't convince you to stay.


...and that way we can FORCE you to stay :evilgrin:

[phonicsmonkey]

I'm starting to think NB is the hotseat serial killer...

[Nightbringer]

I'm starting to think NB is the hotseat serial killer...
And I'm starting to think you think a little too much...

:)

[phonicsmonkey]

somehow I have ended up being the mongols in 2 out of 3 games

[Myth]

Aye I'd warn you here as this is more of a competitive gaming field and less of a role playing, writing kind of thing. Not that I'm planning on leaving for now. BTW phonics you are playing in WotK2, GA and FN. Care to get another game going?

[phonicsmonkey]

BTW phonics you are playing in WotK2, GA and FN. Care to get another game going?

I'm going to try to stick to my self-imposed 3 game limit (if you count V&V I'm already breaking it)

But don't let my reticence stop you from firing up another game, I'll help you recruit and promote it and provide backup admin support.

What happened to your Dark Ages idea?

[Myth]

Umm.. there was some interest, but not enough. I've been playing the mod, it definitely needs some polishing. ATM it's too imbalanced for hotseat play IMO, unless we do it for funzies. I'd rather we start a TATW hotseat.

[Zim]

For a TATW hotseat, would that be teams?


Umm.. there was some interest, but not enough. I've been playing the mod, it definitely needs some polishing. ATM it's too imbalanced for hotseat play IMO, unless we do it for funzies. I'd rather we start a TATW hotseat.

[LooseCannon1]

Umm.. there was some interest, but not enough. I've been playing the mod, it definitely needs some polishing. ATM it's too imbalanced for hotseat play IMO, unless we do it for funzies. Oh, I didn't know there were going to be cash awards.:laugh4: Looks like I have to play better.
I'd rather we start a TATW hotseat.And Third Age is not unbalanced? Maybe compared to Last Kingdom.

[Myth]

TATW is imbalanced but at least the buildings do what they say they do, there are no bugged scripted actions (ally with the vikings to nullify them for example), there is no nation that gets virtually no chance of survival (Normans, Northumbria), so on and so forth.

I'd still be up for a dark ages game using TLK if at least four guys want to join.

[LooseCannon1]

TATW is imbalanced but at least the buildings do what they say they do, there are no bugged scripted actions (ally with the vikings to nullify them for example), there is no nation that gets virtually no chance of survival (Normans, Northumbria), so on and so forth.

I'd still be up for a dark ages game using TLK if at least four guys want to join.Oh, I agree with your comments on TLK.:2thumbsup: It's like they didn't know how to create a mod. Make it playable, test it , make it more playable, test some more, then add in the pretty stuff. They went for the pretty stuff first.:no:

Have you been following our game over at twc? We've had a lot of players drop out for no reason so there are quite a few available factions. It's only the 4th turn. Even the admin quit (claimed college interfered):laugh4:

[phonicsmonkey]

So we have some factions starting to die off in the Kingdoms games. Egypt is out of the Crusades game, Turkey will probably follow soon....Lithuania is on its last legs in the Teutonic game and the Norwegians are surrounded by angry Danes. Plus in Britannia it looks like Wales might be on the way out.

Does this mean we're ready for a new hotseat?

Did someone say TATW? Do we have a show of hands for that? I think Zim said he would admin one of those.

And if there's enough interest we could do another SS6.4 campaign and skip it ahead 100 turns or so to a nice starting point...

[Ignoramus]

So we have some factions starting to die off in the Kingdoms games. Egypt is out of the Crusades game, Turkey will probably follow soon....Lithuania is on its last legs in the Teutonic game and the Norwegians are surrounded by angry Danes. Plus in Britannia it looks like Wales might be on the way out.

Does this mean we're ready for a new hotseat?

Did someone say TATW? Do we have a show of hands for that? I think Zim said he would admin one of those.

And if there's enough interest we could do another SS6.4 campaign and skip it ahead 100 turns or so to a nice starting point...

I'm up for one, particularly SS6.4, but Wales ain't dead yet!(You mustn't believe Myth's myths :clown:)

[phonicsmonkey]

I'm up for one, particularly SS6.4, but Wales ain't dead yet!(You mustn't believe Myth's myths :clown:)

Glad to hear it!

If you're interested in SS hotseat action in the short term I think the Clash of Gods guys are looking for someone to replace Visorslash...

[LooseCannon1]

I'm up for another game as long as its not on vanilla Kingdoms/M2TW. Can't play that without mods anymore:laugh4: I can also help co-admin if needed.

[Myth]

Hmm.. For UOTI I'm predicting a united Englihs-Norwegian victory but the stone forts and lack of trebs means it will take a long time to finish. Also Ignoramus is a cunning foe and is fighting tooth and nail to stay alive. But I did PM him, twice I think, asking him to join CoG! before it even started, both times I was given the silent treatmet :( You up for joining now?

Now in FN, yes Norway/Lithuania will die, but they are Zim and Thanatos and both those guys are busy, though It'd be great to have them in more games.

Who took out Egypt in the Crusades game?

Anyway, we could play a SS 6.4 game, skip it 200 years in the future and see what happens, that'd be fun. But we need some objectives. How about, the first to get 500,000 gold wins? However seafaring nations will have a tremendeous advantage... Tough pillaging might also be an option :D

[Zim]

Just a heads up, I will be gone from sometime late tomorrow until the following Saturday. Any of my allies can sub for me in any hotseat I'm in, or Phonics for the Teutonic or Britannia ones (being enemies in GA I don't think it would work out there. :clown:). Phonics has my pw info.

With GA coming to a close and my expected life span in FN being quite short I'd be more than ready to join or run a game or two when I return.

[phonicsmonkey]

Who took out Egypt in the Crusades game?

Anyway, we could play a SS 6.4 game, skip it 200 years in the future and see what happens, that'd be fun. But we need some objectives. How about, the first to get 500,000 gold wins? However seafaring nations will have a tremendeous advantage... Tough pillaging might also be an option :D

Antioch.

Why not just use the standard VCs? :shrug:

[Ignoramus]

Hmm.. For UOTI I'm predicting a united Englihs-Norwegian victory but the stone forts and lack of trebs means it will take a long time to finish. Also Ignoramus is a cunning foe and is fighting tooth and nail to stay alive. But I did PM him, twice I think, asking him to join CoG! before it even started, both times I was given the silent treatmet :( You up for joining now?

I must apologise for that. I'm a bit of a procrastinator sometimes, and I must have forgotten to reply to you. I'll have a look at the CoG thread.

[Myth]

Version history for 'The last Kingdom'

Version 3.06 (18th August 2011)
- added 'High Quality Sky Textures Project 1.0' by Hereje
- corrected royal banner for Vestfold\norway
- corrected glitches
*** known error corrections
- Isle of Muff renamed to Isle of Muil, settlement renamed to Tobar Mhoire
- Pics for 'Followers of Christus'
- Pics for 'Ridire bodyguard'
- simplified Hotseat configuration
- moved misplaced resources
- set Vikings to 'War' and negative attitude with everybody except the three other Scandinavian factions.
- set East-Anglia to 'Neutral' with Wesex
- Rebel unit 'Ridire Bodyguard got a skin now
- Vikings will not siege own settlements
- Lindholm can build port
- River port that blocked ship travel has been moved into a 'bay'
- tooltips corrected (coal mines)
- Berserker and Hirdmen now properly available for slave faction
- Normans no longer destroy churches after conversion
- Loyalty of Northumbrian heir increased
- removed vanilla units from custom battle
- fixed <beserker_vnv_trigger2> ancillary trigger
*** other changes
- incorporated Ulfhednins "True to the sagas" submod:
several historical names and characters\family trees corrections (Vestfold, Wessex and Normandy)
spawn of historical characters (Vestfold and Normans)
adjusted several rebel garrisons in Scandinavia to include historical generals and kings
Berserker and Hirdmen now properly available for slave faction
coming of age and min adoption age set to 12 years
occurance of a Norwegian rebellion
- initial invasion fleets have alternate co-ordinates for AI
- made Magyars playable in custom battle
- changed unsuitable accent of factions
- strat models for rebel factions corrected
Version 3.05 (17th July 2011)
- inital release

Soo we have a new patch for TLC that is not savegame compatible. Anyone up for a hotseat in the Viking age now?

[Nightbringer]

Hi everyone,
while fuddling about with the export descr unit file for ss 6.4 I accidental overrode my backup of the file. Could someone please upload it for me as I need it for a couple of the hotseat games we are playing here.
Thank you very much!

[LooseCannon1]

Hi everyone,
while fuddling about with the export descr unit file for ss 6.4 I accidental overrode my backup of the file. Could someone please upload it for me as I need it for a couple of the hotseat games we are playing here.
Thank you very much!Here you go.

[phonicsmonkey]

I've been following this thread (http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=477703)at TWC with interest due to the many issues it raises around hotseat games.

Generally I'm pretty happy with the way the games are played here (and I thank Visor in particular for singing our praises in that thread). The difference between the way the games are played at TWC and here is largely cultural but I think that goes a long way to explaining why we don't have the same level of drama here as they seem to have there.

What I'm getting at is that, for me and for many of the players I know fairly well, playing HS at the Throne Room is not really about winning as such, but is more to do with enjoying the RP and interaction with other players. For my own part I always play to win but I don't really care if I don't win, so long as I find the game entertaining enough. For example one of the best games I've ever played in was WotK where we suffered a catastrophic loss (which was sign-posted a long way back from when we eventually called it quits). So long as I can play out an interesting narrative in the game and get the chance to see at least some of my plans play out (for good or ill) I end up enjoying the game.

I think (hope?) that many of my fellow players here feel the same way.

As to the issues in the TWC thread I'm interested in the idea of simply allowing reloading of turns.

I'm sure that despite its being banned here it does actually happen a fair bit and while there are some rules in place which can mitigate the effects and are sensible (like the agent rules in WotK2), perhaps it's time to accept that we may get a better standard of game by just allowing it?

I don't reload the game myself to get different results - I'm a moderator here and have to set a good example! Having said that if I weren't a mod (or even if it were allowed!) I still probably wouldn't do it because A) I don't care enough about winning and B) I really don't have enough time to do it...

On the other hand as I've been alluding to I think the atmosphere and general conduct of games here is really of a high standard and perhaps we shouldn't fix what isn't broken. I also assume that this would only apply to AR games. I wouldn't want to allow the endless replaying of battles on the battle map until every last soldier is wiped out...

I'm interested in your thoughts guys. Not looking for a confessional, just a theoretical discussion..

[Zim]

It's an interesting idea but I always thought the players here were good about not reloading. Wee're really lucky in some ways here in the Throne Room. I think some of it may be that hotseats started in this part of our forums that was always about roleplaying (in ye old days this was the aar forum :Mr-T:*).

If you allow reloading I'm not sure it would change things a whole lot. We'd likely see a win ratio for whoever initiates the battle in AR hotseats similar to what we get in games with played battles. People who would never have reloaded before will likely give it a couple tries in turns with especially important battles/agent missions. Then there would be those few that would spend hours and hours redoing turns again and again

*5 Santas (outside of the Santa smilie section :dizzy2:) but had trouble finding a regular old man smilie, so I used MR T instead. I pity the the foo'.

[Thanatos Eclipse]

I pretty much agree with what you guys are saying. If someones going to do it, they do it. Although, I've never really seen it as an issue here and making a rule about it would just encourage it; and some of us already spend more time then we'd sometimes like on turns :p

Here Zim, I've always thought this lost guy looked rather like an old man with a beard :lost:

[Myth]

I'm at work now, I only read the first post and a couple down the path. In the beginning I didn't know reloading was illegal. It didn't really change much for me though. There are two abuses to reloading that really truly shine - reloading on percentage based stuff and stuff based on chance (like how many buildings get damaged after sacking or what negative trait your general gets when you accept a new moth/adoption) and reloading so you scout out the enemy armies.

I don't do the first because it takes so much time it's just not worth it. Plus I'm mostly lucky. I don't do the second because I always scout around and try to have as much LOS as I can anyway.

I DO load sometimes when I missclick, attack with just my general or get my army stuck on an enemy threatened square even though i plainly saw the enemy there already.

Occasionally I load to see what would have happened if I had done this or that. Post-factum of course. 95% of the time my assumptions had proven correct, it's really not that hard to judge the outcome of an AR battle once you get accustomed to the AR balance in that particular mod.

For fought battles though I can't beleive anyone wouldn't load if the fist thing that happens is their 10 star general dies to an AI flaming arrow or the instant-stakes that they get (the AI can put up stakes while the battle is in progress. It can even reus them lol). For now I've fought battles only against the rebels, except for GA where I've been smashed around by SS without any real chance to return the favor yet.

If a rule is poster where the first thing is done is an assasination attempt, then all merchant aquisition attempts and then the battles and spending moey, it can easily be checked if someone is loading to beat the RNG or not. As for battles, AR hotseats can't change that much. No matter how much you load, you either win or lose with this specific setup vs the enemy.

edit: regarding the guessing/using of other people's PWs or abusing the admin PW, that's too pathetic to even consider. I don't want to win that much and I don't think anyone else playing here does.

[phonicsmonkey]

In the beginning I didn't know reloading was illegal.

That's understandable, we don't talk about it much...I even forgot to put it in the rules for WotK 2 the first time (it's edited in there now) :2thumbsup:


There are two abuses to reloading that really truly shine - reloading on percentage based stuff and stuff based on chance (like how many buildings get damaged after sacking or what negative trait your general gets when you accept a new moth/adoption) and reloading so you scout out the enemy armies.

Those are the two major reasons why it has to be disallowed. There's just no point in having a %-based skills system for agents or restricted movement and line of sight if you can just reload an infinite number of times and cover a whole area. :no:


I don't do the first because it takes so much time it's just not worth it.

I think this is the main restraining factor for most people who have a life. Who seriously wants to spend ages at the machine just reloading and reloading to get a different result? Where's the fun in that? :dizzy2:


I DO load sometimes when I missclick, attack with just my general or get my army stuck on an enemy threatened square even though i plainly saw the enemy there already.

This is where I have most sympathy with the view that reloading should be allowed. Accidents happen and it's annoying. Having said that I tend to leave my mistakes as they land (which has caused a few disastrous outcomes in some games!) :bow:


Occasionally I load to see what would have happened if I had done this or that. Post-factum of course.

I don't have that much sympathy with this. Arguably you're getting access to information by doing this that you wouldn't get if you played it straight, which gives you an advantage (experience I guess). :no:


it's really not that hard to judge the outcome of an AR battle once you get accustomed to the AR balance in that particular mod.

Which is why we don't see more lost battles. Rather than people trying, failing and reloading I think most of us only fight when we have a clear advantage or we have no other choice. :yes:


For fought battles though I can't beleive anyone wouldn't load if the fist thing that happens is their 10 star general dies to an AI flaming arrow

What are you doing putting your generals in arrow-range?! :laugh4:


or the instant-stakes that they get (the AI can put up stakes while the battle is in progress. It can even reus them lol).

I have never seen that! You learn something new all the time...:book:


As for battles, AR hotseats can't change that much. No matter how much you load, you either win or lose with this specific setup vs the enemy.

According to that TWC thread, reloading naval battles can produce dramatically different results in terms of the number of ships sunk. :book:


regarding the guessing/using of other people's PWs or abusing the admin PW, that's too pathetic to even consider. I don't want to win that much and I don't think anyone else playing here does.

It's super lame and a total waste of time. Nuff said. :2thumbsup:

[Zim]

For fought battles though I can't beleive anyone wouldn't load if the fist thing that happens is their 10 star general dies to an AI flaming arrow or the instant-stakes that they get (the AI can put up stakes while the battle is in progress. It can even reus them lol). For now I've fought battles only against the rebels, except for GA where I've been smashed around by SS without any real chance to return the favor yet.

Obviously you haven't seen my character track record in MTW2 rpgs. Most of them have died in some similarly pathetic manner. I must admit none were anywahere near ten stars, though. :clown:

[phonicsmonkey]

Obviously you haven't seen my character track record in MTW2 rpgs. Most of them have died in some similarly pathetic manner. I must admit none were anywahere near ten stars, though. :clown:

This is true! :clown:

[Myth]

At the beginning, I meant: the first few turns of Uoti :D I used to do that "what if" when I was learning. Most of it i'd done in SP. If we start a vanilla campaign I won't need to do it. Or a SS one. But when I started playing here I had zero experience with Britannia or FN. I tried a lot of the stuff in SP vs the AI. I went around and started with each faction in SP to take a look at their units, terrain and settlements.

From then on I've mostly attacked when I would know beforehand that "yes, bringing such and such armies to the front will mean I win". The logistics of moving units can't be fixd via loading, sine it takes more than one turn to consolidate a stack, and positioning plays a key role.

Sometimes I've retreated out of caution, then I upload the save, and then something gnaws at me and I try to attack just in case. But that doesn't happen any more, I pretty much have all the info I need on the basic army strength in AR, of unit composition etc. And with my new job ihardly have the time to play M2TW scientist.

My overall view is that it's pretty obvious who is a good player and who has more to learn. I consider myself the latter, while some of the vets here are in the former. Who wins and who loses a hotseat may not always be because of their skill. Sometimes people just get unlucky or fall short in diplomacy. Or there's greedy neighbors who just want thieir stuff and that's that :D

Realoading naval battles - well I didn't know that. But I tend to run the hell away if i see more ships vs me, especially if i have an army on board. I do the same in SP.
BTW the stakes thing happens in SS. It happened to me as England in SP when I attacked some Irish rebels who had Yeomen arhcers. Ouch...

[Cecil XIX]

I don't spend much time at TWC, and when I do I rarely log in, but I think it just comes down to the fact that the Org is a smaller, more close-nit community. Zim also makes a good point about how the forums are organized. Here, hotseats are placed in the same category as games about roleplaying. Over there, they're placed in the same category as the more impersonal, online multiplayer of TW games.

[phonicsmonkey]

At the beginning, I meant: the first few turns of Uoti :D I used to do that "what if" when I was learning. Most of it i'd done in SP. If we start a vanilla campaign I won't need to do it. Or a SS one. But when I started playing here I had zero experience with Britannia or FN. I tried a lot of the stuff in SP vs the AI. I went around and started with each faction in SP to take a look at their units, terrain and settlements.

This is totally fine IMHO and quite advisable. Wish I'd done more of this before we re-started WWC...

[Myth]

I'm actually thinking of writing an extensive guide for hotseat play. I'll post it here, and I'll be expecting comments and tips from the others. Hopefully this will bring in new blood to the throne room. You can try and make it a featured item on the main page Phonics.

[phonicsmonkey]

Fantastic idea Myth! I'd be happy to proofread and contribute and I can certainly get it a spot on the Front Page.

[phonicsmonkey]

ok guys, I want to talk about stories.

Stories are what the Throne Room used to be all about. AARs, Succession game writeups and a heap of stories to support and add flesh to the various RPGs which were hosted here.

So much so that when hotseating started it was only natural that each game should have some kind of AAR or story thread that was contributed to by some or all of the players.

Stories in hotseats can be used for a number of things:

- For immersion in your faction, enriching your RP experience and that of others.

- For communicating good or bad news to other players. Bragging rights or condolences, loudly proclaiming victory or mourning the loss of a key army or territory.

- For predicting the outcome of a game.

- For spreading misinformation among the other players.

- For revealing secret plans to the world.

- For documenting something strange or interesting that happened and which you don't want to pass by without the proper recognition.

You don't have to search far in the Throne Room to find excellent stories written by hotseat players who are long gone or still here, but sadly the practice of story writing has largely died out.

I would like to try and revive it - on a personal level I love to read and write stories but more broadly I think it's part of our unique culture which sets us apart and makes the Throne Room a special place.

Perhaps you feel intimidated or self-concious about putting words down? Don't be: I strongly believe that everyone has a story to tell and even if your first language isn't english or you don't think you are a good writer I encourage you to have a go. Your fellow gamers will enjoy your attempt no matter what, for all the reasons above and more.

If you need inspiration, I can point you to some beloved stories of our Throne Room tradition, whether they be beautifully written epics (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?121165-Legends-of-the-Khan-BC-Hotseat-story-thread&p=2466747&viewfull=1#post2466747), hilarious comedies (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?121165-Legends-of-the-Khan-BC-Hotseat-story-thread&p=2347898&viewfull=1#post2347898), or simple tales of crushing victory (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?121165-Legends-of-the-Khan-BC-Hotseat-story-thread&p=2529524&viewfull=1#post2529524).

Please, next time you play your turn in a hotseat think about the story you are writing just by moving the pieces around, and try to put some of it down in words for us to enjoy. And if the game you're in doesn't have a story thread but you have a story to tell, let me know and I'll make sure you have somewhere to tell it.

[Thanatos Eclipse]

:thumbsup: I support this message!!!


Really, it's a lot of fun. Even if you don't consider yourself a writer, give it a try. I never thought much for writing in the past, but I've really enjoyed some of the stories I've written here :2thumbsup:

[Zim]

I wrote stories once upon a time. Even had an HOF nomination (did I mention that one was mostly the work of far superior cowriter Overknight? :clown:).

I really need to get back into it. I fell off as I ended up playing in more and more games.

[Visor]

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?137555-Preliminary-Sign-Up-for-Capo-di-Tutti-Capi-IV

Need some more players, please?

[Zim]

More than 71? I always forget how big the Capo games get.

[Visor]

Yeah 100-125 for this one.

[Myth]

It's my not so seret dream to become a fantasy writer some day. I've been working on my world for years now, putting down ideas, refining the map, the cultural and political details, the religion, the magic system etc... I've been writing on othe forums under other names. I've had a "female POV" phase to improve my way of writing from behind a woman's eyes. There are two internet communites who would swear and vigoriously defend the truth that I'm a female :D I've had people who don't know me message me in private to compliment my writng or to ask what will happen next etc. (that's what's keeping me from being discouraged from the reality of the situaton - namely how far away a writer's career is from where I'm at right now)

I need practice in writing. Perhaps I'll start contributing here, since I've mostly abadoned the oter communites for various resons.

[Zim]

Visorslash Is that about average for most years or do the numbers fluctuate? Pretty much all I know about Capo is that it's busy and they advertise a lot. :clown:

Myth There's been a lot of great stories here, some of it unfortunately buried. I look forward to reading anything you write, an will try to do some scribblings of my own as well. :bow:

[Visor]

@ Zim

Uh, not really the averagecompared to other games. Capo is a massive game, one of a kind really, I think. This one will have the most players yet I think. And yes they do. :tongue: I don't think its a yearly thing... but the numbers of players for the games have been steadily increasing. BUt it will flucuate.

In regards to stories, I haven't written anything for a hotseat in a while, I've written two over at TWC though.

[Zim]

I was speaking about the big Capo games in particular. I know most mafia games are much smaller.

I thought it was yearly, but that might just be an impression made by the fact that the big Capo games are far enough apart I tend to forget about them until the announcements start. :clown:

[Visor]

I was speaking about the big Capo games in particular. I know most mafia games are much smaller.

I thought it was yearly, but that might just be an impression made by the fact that the big Capo games are far enough apart I tend to forget about them until the announcements start. :clown:

Ah okay. Yeah, the playerbase for each game is getting bigger. It didn't happen last year. It may have used to been yearly, I wouldn't know.

You could be onto something, the announcements are many. :tongue:

[Zim]

There are a lot of them, but I seem to recall they used to be more frequent and then the advertising became more ordered.

I can sticky an ad for it here if you like, although I think most regulars peek in this thread from time to time.

Did a bit of searching in Romanic's excellent Gameroom statistics thread. It looks like other than last year Capo has been yearly. The first game had over fifty participants, up to seventy odd participants the next two, and if they're still in the preliminary recruiting stage this one is looking even bigger.

[Cecil XIX]

I can't help but wonder if the decline in storytelling is related to the fact that we started sequestering TW RPGs in their separate forums starting at the end of KotR. Does anyone remember why this decision was made? I assume it has to do with reducing the amount of threads cluttering the forum, but I'm wondering if there aren't some unintended consequences.

[Zim]

I'm pretty sure it was related to thread clutter. Threads for other games could be very hard to find, especially as rpgs were larger through the next few years and at times we had two or three.

Hotseats used to produce a lot of stories as well but over time we've become more focused on the gaming side.

[phonicsmonkey]

I always assumed that was at the request of the RPG players, for convenience. It's something I'm happy to consider reversing if you think it's better that RPG threads should sit in the main TR.

[Zim]

That was around the end of Econ being mod and beginning of TC, wasn't it? I could ask TinCow about it.

Since that happened I know new rpgs have tended to ask for subforums, likely for convenience (and maybe because they saw existing rpgs doing it).

[Myth]

Guys I"m leaving from today until Tuesday.

[phonicsmonkey]

subs?

sly in FN?
NB, Than in GA?
Zim in UotI?
who in CoG?

[Myth]

Slysnake or Visorslash in FN, anyone who is on my side in GA (so Zim included). Only Zim in UotI. Anyone of my three allies in CoG. I doubt WotK will do a full round before I get back, but if it does, anyone who feels comfortable fighting 5-6 lead battles.

[Nightbringer]

I should be available for any or all of those.

[phonicsmonkey]

Guys, I'm going to be away from tomorrow until Friday at a conference.

I'll have forum access so I'll be able to arrange subs and and when my turns come up, if they do.

Zim will cover my admin duties for me.

[Myth]

I'm back FYI.

[Ignoramus]

I tend not to write stories in Hotseats because it gives away too much information. Crowing about your latest victory overt your enemy might give other players an incentive to attack. Notwithstanding, I tend to roleplay my in-game messaging as far as possible, even to the extent of revealing the location of my king to enemy players.

[Zim]

Very reasonable. Of course, stories can be vague enough to give the wrong idea...

[Ignoramus]

BTW, I love reading Myth's propaganda in UotI.

[Zim]

Propaganda? Are you suggesting it's less than 100% accurate? :clown:

I like it as well.

[Myth]

Lol :D Too bad that smug bastard John got silenced by the Irish assassin...

[phonicsmonkey]

I read yesterday about the principle of convergence which states that war is an information-gathering exercise. When both combatants eventually discover the same information their assessment of each others' strength converges and peace negotiations can follow.

[phonicsmonkey]

Guys, just in case anyone is in any doubt, I consider the use of this bug (http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=481048) an exploit and therefore against the rules of hotseat games in the Throne Room

[Myth]

Why am I not surprised that Mordorru is defending this bug? The same guy that condones loading and has admitted to loading to get a perfect turn. He played in WWC right?

[Nightbringer]

Well, I know I have never intentionally used this bug as I did not know about it, but it seems like it would be very easy to accidentally do... I hope I haven't.

[Ignoramus]

Their community has really gone down the toilet. What's the point in playing a medieval strategy game, where cheating's the norm, and the person who wins is the one who knows the most exploits?

[LooseCannon1]

Why am I not surprised that Mordorru is defending this bug? The same guy that condones loading and has admitted to loading to get a perfect turn. He played in WWC right?
Yes, and he used the movement bug quite well against me in the second hotseat I was in. His only reason to want it used is because it takes too long to cross the map without it . :rolleyes: :huh:

The funny thing is in the 2 games I'm in where reloading is allowed, I've played 19 turns and reloaded once.

Their community has really gone down the toilet. What's the point in playing a medieval strategy game, where cheating's the norm, and the person who wins is the one who knows the most exploits?I promise everyone I didn't bring any of those bad habits over here with me.

[phonicsmonkey]

While I agree with you Iggy that it doesn't make any sense to play the game that way, let's not indulge in TWC-bashing. The only reason I posted was in case anyone here was also reading things over there and was in doubt as to whether this is considered an exploit or not. It's nice to know no-one doubts that.

As to the point about how long it takes to cross the map, that's what mods are for! But I don't need to preach to the choir here, just so long as everyone is aware.

In general, and for further guidance, most of the time I apply the principle that if the AI doesn't do it (and can't do it) then it's a bug and an exploit.

Nightbringer, the way I understand it the safest way to avoid this bug is to make sure that when you select an army or navy to move it you do so by clicking on the campaign map icon and not on the unit cards. Then it won't happen.

[phonicsmonkey]

The two .org games I'm in for 3 months have only reached turns 5 and 8 with only 10 and 8 players in each.

Sorry mate! :laugh4:

In our defence, it's quality not quantity that counts!

[Myth]

By far the fastetst paced game I'm in is UotI. Perhaps 4 is the magic number?

[LooseCannon1]

Sorry mate! :laugh4:

In our defence, it's quality not quantity that counts!:2thumbsup: Hey, I wasn't complaining about the speed, I was just trying to show that you make a commitment when you play a game but that some people aren't that willing to commit a little time. We've got a six-player game that's moving a turn a day. We had a four-player do three turns in one day, but one guy just up and quit and it died. And then there are 12, 15, 16 player games with one admin trying to run things and those take forever. But trying to justify an exploit because it takes too long :creep: to cross the map and some people might lose interest in the game??:disappointed:

[phonicsmonkey]

so, better odds on the Mongols in FN now I have the Danes on my side? Which alliance will win?

And who's going to win the Crusades game?

[Cecil XIX]

I dare say that I will emerge triumphant in the Levant!

[phonicsmonkey]

It's basically purple on light blue violence down there now, isn't it?

[Visor]

so, better odds on the Mongols in FN now I have the Danes on my side? Which alliance will win?

And who's going to win the Crusades game?

I'm going to say we'll win the war. It might take some time, but we've got the forces and the positions.

[phonicsmonkey]

And we think NB will win GA...

By the way, coming up next to replace GA will be another SS6.4 grand campaign, probably using one of the saves I created for WotK where we skipped ahead 100-ish turns, but without the Mongols because that part of the script was broken in those tests.

Dogs of War 2?

[Thanatos Eclipse]

I dare say that I will emerge triumphant in the Levant!

That's just cause Turky won't lay down and die. :clown: It's like a game of cat and mouse and grizzly bear. He's currently chasing one of my armies deeper and deeper into Turkish Territory with his super army, while my Horde lumbers up from behind. Although...that's not my only Horde ;)

In Antioch we believe in quantity not quality!!! (But we have some pretty good quality too)

[phonicsmonkey]

That's just cause Turky won't lay down and die. :clown: It's like a game of cat and mouse and grizzly bear. He's currently chasing one of my armies deeper and deeper into Turkish Territory with his super army, while my Horde lumbers up from behind. Although...that's not my only Horde ;)

I would love to see a screenshot of this! Also, at the risk of sounding repetitive, it sounds like it would make a good story.

[Thanatos Eclipse]

I would love to see a screenshot of this! Also, at the risk of sounding repetitive, it sounds like it would make a good story.

Maybe, if I ever find the time

[phonicsmonkey]

By the way guys, I have put together and am going to try to maintain a list of active players (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?102202-Lists-Completed-Games-and-Active-Players&p=2053367914&viewfull=1#post2053367914)which should help with recruiting for new games, finding replacements for lost players and for finding subs.

Let me know if you see any errors.

[Myth]

I'm going to say we'll win the war. It might take some time, but we've got the forces and the positions.

We'll see about that!

[phonicsmonkey]

If anyone, in reading Tales from the Throne Room, has any ideas or would like to contribute just let me know. I'd be more than happy to involve others in the project...

[Nightbringer]

I love reading them, but don't really know how to contribute.

One thing that might be interesting is to pick a random person to interview about a game they are in, or even one from each game. This would be a lot mroe work for you, but it would be interesting to hear what different people think about hotseat games as they progress, in addition to a summary of what is happening.

[Myth]

I have 4 days off coming up, I'll whip something up for one of the games probably. Which game is the most worthy of some PR?

[Ignoramus]

UotI - it's been great plundering England(shame we haven't sacked London yet though)!

[Myth]

Perhaps I should wait a few more turns, until I come knocking on your walls with elite armies and a surprise? :)

[phonicsmonkey]

Perhaps I should wait a few more turns, until I come knocking on your walls with elite armies and a surprise? :)

yeah, wait a little bit until it's time for another Tales installment...they should be at least a couple of weeks apart I think

can't wait for your contribution though!

[Myth]

I'll just write a story though.

[phonicsmonkey]

I'll just write a story though.

Go ahead!

[Ignoramus]

Perhaps I should wait a few more turns, until I come knocking on your walls with elite armies and a surprise? :)

"Look Mum, it's a trebuchet...!"

:clown:

[Myth]

Guess again :)

[phonicsmonkey]

Guess again :)

Myth has discovered gunpowder!

[phonicsmonkey]

I made a pledge a long time ago to always check on the hotseats before I sleep, that way I won't end up going over my own time allowance for each turn :)

slysnake is the new teacher's pet! Everyone be more like him! :clown:

[Myth]

I check totalwar.org frequently. Like, around 30 times per day. 90% of that is when I'm at work. But when I go away to my hometown or somewhere else I don't do it that often. I also recently returned to two online communities I had given up on. I suppose old habbits never die :)

And yes phonics, the cannons have arrived!

[Ignoramus]

And yes phonics, the cannons have arrived!

Ah, of course. Well, at least you've got no excuse now!

[Myth]

Excuse for what?

[Zim]

He probably means an excuse not to finish Wales off. :clown:

England's not the only one with cannons shortly. :beam:

[phonicsmonkey]

Good times for Mongols everywhere :2thumbsup:

[phonicsmonkey]

hey deguerra, great story! Also Thanatos, great stories too...I'm enjoying reading them all.

Must find something Mongol-related to write about.

[Myth]

By the way, where is everyone from? How old are you? What was your first TW experience and when? What interesting thing can you tell us of your ancestors? What are your favorite historical figures? I'll start:

1. I'm from Bulgaria.
2. 26 years old come tomorrow.
3. My first TW experience was looking trough Google for a good "Roman Empire" themed strategy other than Caesar III that would run on my old laptop, this was in 2009 I think. I installed Rome: Total War. I heard "Divinitus" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GityoGjUj0g) for the first time. I got smashed by AI Gaul as the Julii on VH/VH. I was in love. Then I saw M2TW, a better RTW for my favorite period - the middle ages. We've been in a healthy, long-term relationship ever since.
4. The proto-Bulgarians that give our country its name worshipped Tangra (Tengri) and were great horselords from the east, much like the later Mongolians we all love so much. The Bulgarian nation however, has Haplogroup Rh blood, meaning it has older blood than anyo other nation in Europe. We are (by blood) actually descendands of the ancient Thracians, whom were the most populous tribe at the time of Herodotus.
5. My big three are Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Charlemagne. Though I've recently decided to read up more on the other great Roman generals like Scipio Africanus, Marius, Sula and Pompei.

[Visor]

1. Australia
2. Guess
3. Brother said that Medieval II was coming out, and it was an awesome game (I didn't care much about games), he told me to give it a shot, I did, and got hooked. 2008 maybe?
4. They're Australians. 'Nuff said. :laugh4: Everyone knows First Fleet, etc. That's Australia for you. :tongue:
5. I've always liked Alfred the Great, Attila the Hun and Baldwin IV.

Notes: My name is actually on the Valhalla thread at TWC. Right at the start, those were the good old days back there.

[Myth]

Heh. My mother and her (bf? whatever you call him) are moving from the UK to Australlia soon. Seems there is no financial crisis for you guys :)

I'd put you around 20-22 age. You backstabbing Aussie :daisy:! :D

[Visor]

Heh. My mother and her (bf? whatever you call him) are moving from the UK to Australlia soon. Seems there is no financial crisis for you guys :)
Nope. :2thumbsup: Well, it's not as bad as the rest of the world.


I'd put you around 20-22 age.

Wrong. :tongue:



You backstabbing Aussie :daisy:! :D

I've changed from what I used to be. :P

[phonicsmonkey]

Very nice story Myth, and you're Bulgarian! I didn't pick that...always had you down as an Englishman.

The name Stoichkov mean anything to you?

[deguerra]

Well it says a fair amount in my profile anyway :P

1. I am a German that will receive Australian citizenship on Monday.
2. 24 (sigh)
3. Shogun. Yes, I've been doing this for that long.
4. My father's ancestors are from northwestern Germany. The only tidbit of interest is that some had the last name "Römer" = Roman. Who knows if that means much, though. My mothers ancestors are from Silesia, with a large mix of Polish speakers with German names and German speakers with Polish names. Her maiden name was Czypczyk before they (sadly) changed it in the early 1900s.
5. Caesar (if we are talking classically historically). I always had a thing for Lincoln and (to a lesser extent) d'Estaing. Finally, Arminius for patriotic reasons :clown:

[Nightbringer]

By the way, where is everyone from? How old are you? What was your first TW experience and when? What interesting thing can you tell us of your ancestors? What are your favorite historical figures? I'll start:

1. I am from the USA, Seattle specifically if anyone is familiar with the Emerald City.

2. I'm 20

3. I spent much of my late childhood/early teens in a gaming store playing miniatures games (Warhammer in particular, which is where I got Nightbringer from). While there the owner occasionally played MTW which I was fascinated by. He showed me it a bit and I (well, my parents) purchased the game. I then went on to play RTW extensively, followed by BI, then M2TW (which eventually became modded M2TW).

4. I don't honesty know anything about my ancestors except that my grandfather dove at the Bikini Isles during WW2 investigating the nuclear tests there.

5. I have always been pretty into Alexander as I share my name with him, but more recently I have come to greatly like Trajan, Hadrian, Diocletian, Justinian and Theodora. (I like Roman history) I also have a real soft spot for Gilgamesh.


And just because I find it interesting to know what people do/study. I am a history+psychology double major.

[Myth]

I used to stury design and multimedia but I've been in sales for the past four years. I'm working on a freelance after effects project and hope to some day be free of the bounds of being a sales rep.

[LooseCannon1]

1. I've been a Florida(USA) "native" for 13 years.

2. Older than deguerra and Myth combined.

3. Got the RomeTW demo on a PCGamer magazine-and hated it. Wow, was that demo awful. Then, when M2TW came out saw somebody's video on YouTube about how they conquered the world and thought it was cool. Best Buy had it on sale for half price that week-one month after release-so I went and bought it. I have a total of $43 in M2TW & Kingdoms-both bought in first month of release. That's less then one penny per hour of entertainment. I refuse to pay full price or deal with Steam.

4. I'm a combo of Italian, German & Dutch. And I've got cousins with Irish, English, French, Polish, Greek, and African blood-and probably more. We are an American melting pot.:laugh4

5. So many to choose from. Albert Einstein, Galileo. and Marie Curie.

Now guess what my ORIGINAL field of study was going to be!!

[Myth]

Nuclear physics. Wow, you're a veteran here, and I thought I was older than most (i think Zim and Monkey are above 30)

Monkey: Stoichkov... Yes there is not one single Bulgarian who doesn't know him. I was a kid back in 94 but I've watched the games. Most of the girls I talk to these days have been born after '89 and have only heard about that legendary team.

Unfortunately Stoichkov sucks as a coach, and his English is hilarious. This interview (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ABhGlMrLgk) with him is a running gag amongst Bulgarians, alongside (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LTLEVC-sfQ) known to mankind (also contributed by us).

So yeah, there are exceptions going both ways when it comes to English :)

[Zim]

How far above 30?


Nuclear physics. Wow, you're a veteran here, and I thought I was older than most (i think Zim and Monkey are above 30)

[LooseCannon1]

Nuclear physics. Wow, you're a veteran here, and I thought I was older than most (i think Zim and Monkey are above 30)Close. Astrophysics-until I found out NASA only used military pilots for the job I wanted and military pilots can't wear glasses with 3 mm think lenses. And laser surgery wasn't invented yet.


How far above 30?AARP keeps ending me brochures asking me to join. AARP-(formerly the American Association of Retired Persons) is for those of us over 50.:laugh4: Next year I can celebrate my 29th birthday for the 25th time

[Zim]

I was sent a membership card with my name on it. Just have to join to activate it. :clown:


AARP keeps ending me brochures asking me to join. AARP-(formerly the American Association of Retired Persons) is for those of us over 50.:laugh4: Next year I can celebrate my 29th birthday for the 25th time

[phonicsmonkey]

Ah the AARP, the most powerful lobbying group in America (and probably therefore the world.)

Second most powerful? The National Association of Realtors. Now ask yourself - why is healthcare reform so controversial in the US and why have regulators never cracked down on dodgy lending practices?

[/politics]

I'd better play this game I guess..

1) I was born in the US, moved to England when a child and spent most of my life there before moving to Australia where I now reside.

2) I am 33 years old

3) I was lent a copy of RTW, got hooked on it (sitting up until 3am one weekday night so I could take Rome with my Carthaginian elephants) and then discovered mods (SPQR, RTR, EB). Bought M2TW on release while I was unemployed right after moving to Australia, ended up at the org and haven't looked back. Couldn't get on with ETW and skipped NTW. Got TWS2 which is good but there's no decent hotseat mode.

4) As far as I know my family go back to Ireland and Northern England. I am apparently a descendant of Iron Mad Wilkinson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilkinson_(industrialist))but I have nothing to substantiate this. My father was in the CIA (this is where I get my sneaky monkey genes).

5) Hmm, so many great historical figures. Right now I am interested in Genghis Khan, Alexios I Komnenos and Khalid Ibn al-Walid.

[Nightbringer]

Australia, huh, I thought you were native English and that you lived in England. I guess I was wrong on both accounts.

[phonicsmonkey]

Australia, huh, I thought you were native English and that you lived in England. I guess I was wrong on both accounts.

Me? Nup.

My mother is English and my Dad American. I have both passports.

[Myth]

Having the freedom to choose between England, USA or Australia is great. Or as the French would say

"Humph!"

BTW I'd like it if the other UotI players contributed stories. I wrote this in about 30 min while I had free time in the office. It's not that hard to do.

[Ignoramus]

Myth: Sorry for not contributing anything as of yet to UotI. Your story was really enjoyable - I can no understand the king I'm fighting against. I've been really busy with uni essays ATM, so have had little time for writing. I would have liked to do one when Llywelyn was playing England's Hannibal. I'll see if I can knock something up sometime soon.

[phonicsmonkey]

Igno, are you going to pick a faction for the new game so we can get started?

[Zim]

Since Myth won't guess my age I'll just go ahead:

1) I was born in the US, moved to Italy within a year or so. Since I've lived all over my home country and in one other. Currently I'm in the Northwestern United States.

2) 28 years old

3) Bought RTW and MTW together because a friend played the former. Until then the closest thing I'd ever played was the Age of Empire series. In the early months of playing I did the Julii short campaign probably nearly a dozen times, as well as a playthrough of the long campaign. In MTW I played mostly the Viking campaign. From there I went on to BI, eventually started with some minor mods (like one that made the Romano Brits playable) and finally started with succession games here in the Throne Room and the RPG of the time, King of the Romans. I remember the very first hotseat here and started the very first Kingdoms ones (one of which is where Phonics got his reputation for betrayal ~;p).

4) I'm related to William Wordsworth on one side and minor Scottish brigands on the other. Also, supposedly if a few hundred thousand people died mysteriously tomorrow I could come into ownership of a castle in Ireland.

A little bit closer, if my great grandmother did not have tubercolosis my family would never have settled in the U.S.

5) Despite a strong interest in history there aren't really many historical figures that I like more than others. Some of my favorite books feature first hand accounts from more normal people, including minor knights from the fourth crusade and John Hersey's Hiroshima. I also have in terest in some of the late Roman Era barbarian generals that were employed by the Empire, like Stilicho, and Russian generals during the Napoleonic Wars such as Kutuzov.

[phonicsmonkey]

Having the freedom to choose between England, USA or Australia is great. Or as the French would say

"Humph!"

Yeah, my son will benefit the most from it as he'll be able to choose to live and work in any of the three countries or Europe. Unfortunately for me that means that like many young Australians he will probably leave this country and settle abroad...

Still, he's only just short of three years old so I have a while to worry about that. :laugh4:

[deguerra]

any of the three countries or Europe

You English and your refusal to admit you are part of Europe :clown:

like many young Australians he will probably leave this country and settle abroad...

There are some (like me) bucking the trend. Plus I'd have at least 2 or more German friends joining me if getting residency here wasn't so difficult.

[phonicsmonkey]

You English and your refusal to admit you are part of Europe :clown:

Never have been, never will be!


There are some (like me) bucking the trend. Plus I'd have at least 2 or more German friends joining me if getting residency here wasn't so difficult.

To be fair with the rest of the world in recession or close to it it's a less attractive option at the moment. A lot of ex-pats have come back to Oz in the last couple of years.

[Myth]

Well since I'm participating in every game on the forum, I'm letting you guys know I'll be away from tomorrow (Friday) until Sunday.

UotI - the game is almost done. Zim can sub me if my turn does come up after today.
FN - slysnake can sub me. Or Monkey, if he decides to backstab Visorslash (comeoooon. Ya know ya wanna! :D)
WotK2 - unlikely, as the game moevs slowly. But anyone can sub me, apart from the Mongols.
CoG! - any one of my three allies, though I prefer it be Thanatos Eclipse, they all know what's up though.
EotTA - I'd prefer it that I were not subbed, I just had my turn today and it's unlikely that it will come up before Sunday, but since the weekend is excluded from the regular timeframe i'd like to play it when i get back.
LS - I'll play today, if my turn comes up I'd like to be subbed by whomever knows Jersualem's position best.
MoT - I'd prefer not to be subbed, having played my turn only recently it should not come up anyway

[Thanatos Eclipse]

LS - I'll play today, if my turn comes up I'd like to be subbed by whomever knows Jersualem's position best.

Other then GH, that'd be me ;)

[Nightbringer]

I am having a lot of computer issues and will be unable to play my turns for at least a few days. I will try to give more information tonight.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Can someone help me a bit? I haven't installed M2TW for a long time so need some help. Do I need the 1.3 patch for Vanilla M2TW before installing Kingdoms or can I just install Kingdoms on my Vanilla game(with no patches)?

[Visor]

You can install Kingdoms on Vanilla, no patches. It will patch the game for you (Kingdoms).
You can also patch it first, then install Kingdoms, both methods work.

Though depending on which method, whether (1.0, 1.2, 1.3 then Kingdoms using downloaded and installed patches) or 1.0, Kingdoms (which patches it to 1.3) you use, some generals may have different portraits. Just an aesthetic note, but it doesn't matter.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Thanks! :bow:

[deguerra]

Ibn-Khaldun! (that really doesn't roll off the tongue. Can I call you Ikhy? :clown:) Long time no see!

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Hey there, deguerra!

Yeah, I have been away from the Org for quite sometime.. People call me Ibn and I-K so Ikhy sounds good enough too! :laugh4:

[phonicsmonkey]

Also, don't forget there is a patch for Kingdoms which you apply last

[Myth]

I fired up the Americas expansion from Kindoms. It seems interesting and the factions are quite varied. Has a hotseat for this been tried in the past?

[Visor]

Twice at TWC, not sure here.

[Myth]

How did those go?

[phonicsmonkey]

Never here so far.

Gunpowder is meh as far as I'm concerned. Also it's impossible for natives to kill New Spain because they can't build boats.

[Myth]

I saw that the Mayans can't build them at the start. Are they forever confined to the mainland, regardless of their tech tree? Also, the Apache seem to be in the best position overall - at the Northern edge edge of the map, surrounded by easy to keep rebel provinces, in possesion of 12 attack 12 ranged attack 150 men units and with the option to call a "Warpath" (Jihad) from turn 1.

Gunpowder isn't very M2TW-ey for me either, but I'd suffer it for the sake of a new game, however the lack of boats means New Spain will forever be sending new uber stacks towards the Mayans.

[Visor]

Well, if you mod the natives to give them boats, problem solved.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Also, don't forget there is a patch for Kingdoms which you apply last

Thanks! I had already forgotten that. :balloon2:

[Myth]

Well since I'm participating in every game on the forum, I'm letting you guys know I'll be away from tomorrow (Friday) until Sunday.

UotI - the game is almost done. Zim can sub me if my turn does come up after today.
FN - slysnake can sub me. Or Monkey, if he decides to backstab Visorslash (comeoooon. Ya know ya wanna! :D)
WotK2 - unlikely, as the game moevs slowly. But anyone can sub me, apart from the Mongols.
CoG! - any one of my three allies, though I prefer it be Thanatos Eclipse, they all know what's up though.
EotTA - I'd prefer it that I were not subbed, I just had my turn today and it's unlikely that it will come up before Sunday, but since the weekend is excluded from the regular timeframe i'd like to play it when i get back.
LS - I'll play today, if my turn comes up I'd like to be subbed by whomever knows Jersualem's position best.
MoT - I'd prefer not to be subbed, having played my turn only recently it should not come up anyway

Like I said in the Britannia thread, I'll be away from tomorrow until Sunday. Please use the list above. If games come up where I do not want to be subbed and you absolutely must sub me, i'd like anyone who is my ally in TATW and knows how to use the elves in a lead battle, especially in a siege assualt. For the March of Time game, I really, really want to play my next turn. Honestly, it's too early to give my save to anyone, as I'm the only one who knows all my dealings diplomacy wise.

[deguerra]

Like I said in the Britannia thread, I'll be away from tomorrow until Sunday. Please use the list above. If games come up where I do not want to be subbed and you absolutely must sub me, i'd like anyone who is my ally in TATW and knows how to use the elves in a lead battle, especially in a siege assualt. For the March of Time game, I really, really want to play my next turn. Honestly, it's too early to give my save to anyone, as I'm the only one who knows all my dealings diplomacy wise.

My condolences for your grandfather. I lost mine a couple of years back and know it can be a hard blow. As to subbing, I highly doubt we'll make it to your TATW turn.

[phonicsmonkey]

My condolences for your grandfather.

Mine too - sorry to hear it Myth.

[Zim]

:bow: Mine as well. I've lost three grandparents and each time it's very tough.

[Nightbringer]

My condolences as well, I have lost both my grandfathers and I know it can be very hard.

[Visor]

My condolences Myth.

[phonicsmonkey]

Silver, you are two (WotK and GA) out of three (DoW) so far in the Throne Room...nice

[Cecil XIX]

Sorry to hear that Myth, I know that's a tough time.

[Myth]

Thank you guys. I appreciate the support.

[Myth]

I updated every single game here bar the TATW one, so you'll excuse me if I did not send out PMs (it's 1 am and I have work tomorrow).

[phonicsmonkey]

I updated every single game here bar the TATW one, so you'll excuse me if I did not send out PMs (it's 1 am and I have work tomorrow).

Myth! Doing the heavy lifting!

[Myth]

I'll be away for the weekend again. Be back Sunday.

[Myth]

Away from tomorrow (Monday) until Wednesday. Won't be in town and probably won't log on at all.

[_Tristan_]

Hi, guys... A quick word to let you know I'm not dead (yet... ) but I've moved to Haïti (yes, Haïti... not Tahiti !) so preparing and settling in has occupied a lot of my time and kept me away both from my comp and a fortiori from the .Org.

I'm sorry for those I let down in quitting so suddenly but everything was very hectic from the start and things are just starting to get more quiet.

I see the community still seems to be striving under the auspices of Phonics and Zim and I hope I'll be able to join you all back when I go back to civilization...

In the meantime, expect to see me passing through just to get a feeling of a place...

See you

Tristan

[Nightbringer]

Hi, guys... A quick word to let you know I'm not dead (yet... ) but I've moved to Haïti (yes, Haïti... not Tahiti !) so preparing and settling in has occupied a lot of my time and kept me away both from my comp and a fortiori from the .Org.

I'm sorry for those I let down in quitting so suddenly but everything was very hectic from the start and things are just starting to get more quiet.

I see the community still seems to be striving under the auspices of Phonics and Zim and I hope I'll be able to join you all back when I go back to civilization...

In the meantime, expect to see me passing through just to get a feeling of a place...

See you

Tristan

Glad to hear things are well with you, and look forward to your glorious return in full.

[phonicsmonkey]

Hey Tristan! Good to see you. We lost WWC but I took your Mongols on to second place in the teutonic game..what's it like living in Haiti?

[Cecil XIX]

Nice to see you back, Tristan!

[Myth]

Hi, guys... A quick word to let you know I'm not dead (yet... ) but I've moved to Haïti (yes, Haïti... not Tahiti !) so preparing and settling in has occupied a lot of my time and kept me away both from my comp and a fortiori from the .Org.

I'm sorry for those I let down in quitting so suddenly but everything was very hectic from the start and things are just starting to get more quiet.

I see the community still seems to be striving under the auspices of Phonics and Zim and I hope I'll be able to join you all back when I go back to civilization...

In the meantime, expect to see me passing through just to get a feeling of a place...

See you

Tristan

Hello Tristan, nice to see you're alright. You have a reputation as a beastly player over here, you should come back and let some of us youngbloods test your mettle! :bow:

[Zim]

Welcome back Tristan!

[_Tristan_]

Hey all,

Things in Haiti are just what you might imagine them to be... A country that thrives on foreign aid because it lacks in almost anything in matter of decent living conditions (there are still a lot of refugee camps... And I really mean a lot). Reconstruction is still at a standstill. Most people's lives here are lived in squalor but most manage to get by on the few they gain every day.

Some manage to live a western kind of life (and us lucky UN personnel among them).

But I try to focus on the good side of things : we get sun (and lots of it) every day and Haitian people are rather cool when you get to know them. Plus working in this international environment is a big plus.

That's about it.

@Myth : I hope to be able to come back and give some of you young ones the spanking they deserve :yes:

Cheers