The S&T Times

Cause it's in between 3 and 5 and probably the most popular one
 
It also helps that it was the people on 4 that thought it up and made it.
 
But even though it's the largest communtiy for the Civ S&T, it doesn't go over 25 active people. :(
 
VERY true! And that is why I like the sub-forum just like it is. Small communtiy, but a very kind, active community.
 
S&T Times: Third Edition

Welcome to the Third Edition of the S&T Times. Tomorrow's Dawn is the acting editor for this month's edition
in place of Tambien and those of us here at the S&T Times Staff have put together some excellent articles for you all.
Of special notice is this month's feature article; an one-on-one interview with Pacifist46,
author of the popular 18 Civs; Mongol Version story. We sincerely hope you enjoy The Third Edition of the S&T Times.
From all of us, to all of you.

~Dawn.

Community Spotlight: Civilization IV Mods
by Tycho

The Rhye's and Fall of Civilization mod is quite possibly the most popular mod on Civilization IV to write for.
This is apparent in the large amount of Civilization IV stories centered around the mod, coming in second right after Vanilla/Warlords/BtS stories.
One can usually tell if a story is played on the Rhye's and Fall of Civilization mod when it has the acronym RFC added to the title or the first entry on the story.

Since it is a historically based mod, Rhye's and Fall of Civilization is ideal for writing stories in the history-book style.
These stories act as if the writers were telling the story like a real historian, detailing decisive battles,
the founding of cities, important technological and scientific innovations, and much more.
Stories like The Land of the Tsars, Pharaohs Lords of the Sun, and Ragnar's Revenge are written in history book style, and are impressively interesting reads.

Although RFC runs on the rails of historical accuracy & development for the most part,
that doesn't stop many players from going off road and derailing history.
Destruction of History 2 by Yoshiegg737 is a prime example of this; derailing history by taking the Greeks and directing their development
in the most absurd and comedic ways possible often colonizing parts of the world that just don't make sense.
And you might just see the scariest Babylon (and USA) you've ever seen in The American Dream by Tlönitte.

Stories written in the narrative style are also prominent as well.
Stories such as SouthernKing's Empire of the North is told from the point of view of many characters,
and Icaria909's The Spanish Empire hints at many things happening behind the scenes
and subtly builds up drama in between the scenes and the backdrop of the characters' modern world.

Like the previously mentioned Destruction of History story, there is no shortage of comedy in the library of RFC stories. China: All Under Heaven,
Rome: The Eternal Empire and Persia: Destructor of Civilization are excellent examples of RFC stories written in comedic style.

And finally, the story America's Dawn by Kilroy Was Here deserves on honorable mention for being a dedicated strategy demonstration in the form of a write-up. For those wishing to jump in and make a story involving the RFC mod, each version of Civilization IV, including Warlords and Beyond the Sword come with the RFC mod pre-packaged. You will however, need to download the final version (1.187) from the Rhye's & Fall of Civilization subforum.

Visit the Rhye's and Fall of Civilization subforum in the Mods & Customization forum of the Civ4 directory for more details.
Credit for the Rhye's and Fall of Civilization mod goes to Rhye for his good work.

Story Reviews
by Alexius08

Civ 3
Conquest of the World
by Quintillus

This story is about the rise of the Greeks in a game using the Huge Earth map,
starting from their homelands in New Guinea and featured island-hopping in the beginning to compensate for the isolated position.
Like most other Civ3 stories, this one features lengthy campaigns and almost-constant wars.
The author's constant brainstorming and willingness to engage in dialogue with his readers on various topics pertaining to the story
is a testament to its popularity and its' well-deserved second spot on the list of most-viewed stories.

Score: 83/100

Civ 4
The History of Humanity - The Lost Stories
by The Number Pi

This story is the most viewed story in The Number Pi's History of Humanity series for featuring a story within a story:
The first part was played in Rhye's and Fall of Civilization and the second part was played in Next War. Both parts seamlessly fit together within the story. The leaderhead switch mechanics from RFC were also referenced within the story in a satisfactory way.
The Number Pi started as the English, then collapsed and managed to switch to America before London could be overrun by neighboring Europeans.
Then, starting over at America, the player established complete hegemony over the New World and set the stage for the Next War part of the story.

The author's ability to fit two mods together for a single story is in itself amazing,
and this alone makes the whole series the Civilization story equivalent of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Score: 89/100

Civ 5
The War Room - Total War in Civilization V
by Lighthearter

This Interactive After Action Report (IAAR) comes from Lighthearter,
known for hosting the most active IAAR in the forums.
Participants are given control of some units and are required to submit their orders for those units.
They also wrote situational reports based on the surroundings of their units.
Overall, this IAAR consisted of nearly-realistic wartime communication among the participants.

The War Room- Total War in Civilization V had the potential of being another legendary IAAR.
However, lack of interest drove this to a premature end.

Score: 75/100

Interview with Pacifist46
by JamesCaesar

Pacifist46 is the acclaimed author of the Civ4 story: 18 Civs; the Mongol Version.
We were fortunate enough to have been able to interview him as our featured writer for the Third Edition of the S&T Times.

James: What got you into Civ?
Pacifist: My parents bought me the "Chronicles of Civilization" for my birthday (this includes Civ I-IV), it would have been back 5 years ago now I think. It was around the time the Warlords expansion pack came out. I tried Civ IV and was absolutely hooked on the first game - I don't remember ever being hooked on any game like that since Empire Earth II, and I haven't been hooked on one like since. Anyway, then I looked around to see if there were any expansions, and Warlords was just coming out, so I got that ... It just never seems to get dull or repetitive

James: How did you find out about the forums?
Pacifist: I was looking for new scenarios to play. I'm a huge fan of all Civ IV scenarios - I've actually made quite a few and uploaded them. Anyway, I didn't know much about Internet forums back then, but I reasoned there must be some user-made scenarios somewhere on the net, so I Google-searched for it. This site was the one that came up that really stuck out. It seemed much more friendly towards casual Civ players than others like Apolyton and also the easiest to use. So I registered, and started browsing the forums, and suddenly I was spending a large chunk of my time reading threads and articles - I improved my game dramatically - and even since I stopped being as active as I was, I've never stopped checking the forums from time to time.

James: What is the inspiration for your stories?
Pacifist: I read a few stories which inspired me in different ways to start my own. I think I was most impressed with Princes of the Universe, DMOC's The French Struggle, and Flouzemaker's Gilgamesh's Court. I also read some of Mad Scientist's RPG games - these are just brilliant in my opinion (check out the Suryavarman one!). Collectively, they inspired me to contribute my own story to the forums. When it came down to deciding on a style however, I decided I wanted something easy to read and also, funnily enough, easy to write. I decided that going for the grand, saga-type storytelling style of Sisiutil in Princes of the Universe was too time-consuming and also probably I wasn't good enough a writer to pull it off. The humourous dialogue concept with advisors however, as used in Gilgamesh's Court, seemed a perfect idea, so I went with that. Since then I've evolved my own style, which is ever-changing, but that was the story that first inspired the style.

James: What are your favorite Civ 4 Stories?
Pacifist: I'd say those I've just mentioned. People will have to head back through the section to check them out, but they're definitely worth a look. The RPGs are probably my favourite - just because they're all different and you can try the ideas out yourself as well - they're fun. I'll mention the ALCs as well - although more for instructional purposes. And also interesting are TheMeInTeam's Let's Play YouTube videos - but now I'm using the term story a little loosely!

S&T Writers Challenge

by Mayor

Welcome to the S&T Writers Challenge. A place for writers to go head to head and show off their skills.
A place for new writers to make a name for themselves and where experienced writers can try new writing styles and concepts.
What do you have to do to participate? Download the enclosed save, play it, take some screenshots and write a story about it!
The only general guideline for your story is that it has to consist of at least 1000 words and exceed no more than 1500 words°.
When your story is finished you send it in a PM to me. I’ll judge the stories with the help of two other (guest) judges.
If your story is judged the best, then your story will be featured in the next S&T Times.

Also, pertaining to a question I received about challenges for Civ III and Civ V. I don’t have either version on my computer this means that I can’t make maps for III or V challenges. However, if you do have one of these versions feel free to make a challenge yourself. Just PM me the details and provide me with the save and I’ll make sure it becomes an article. (If you create a challenge you are allowed to compete in that challenge since you won’t be judging then. You will however, be first in line to judge that challenge if you choose so)

Just as the first challenge this one uses the Rhye's and Fall of Civilization mod.
Like the first Writer's Challenge, I’ve created a WorldBuilder save but the premise of it is that
there are several historical colonial empires to choose from for the premise of this story:
You may choose The Spanish, The British, The Portuguese or The French.
These empires are roughly based on their historical equivalents.
The Spanish Empire is the empire that is the most important one,
since this will be the main subject of your story.
The empire's foundations are built on top of the spawns of the Aztec, the Inca, and the Netherlands.
This means that uprisings will happen quite frequently should you choose the Spanish Empire.
Furthermore, all empires have severe problems with their economy.
There is no specific end for this story; just make sure it is within the length stated above.
The deadline for submissions is on October 21.

Good Luck and have fun!

°There is an margin of 10%
 

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So, speaking of the writers' challenge, what happened to last month's? ;)
 
I do believe we had no entries, but Mayor can confirm or deny that.
 
I can confirm that.
Unfortunately we didn't have an entry for last challenge. For now, I'm going with the theory that people were to busy with RL since a new (school)year has just started.
 
naah, writer's challenge is more important ;) :p
 
naah, writer's challenge is more important ;) :p

i did the other one, it's just that i always collapsed when the Aztecs then the Americans came.
 
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