DaftCivNES

[Daftpanzer]

Welcome to DaftCivNES

The idea is a light/gamey NES, based on the Civ series, but with the human-ness of NESing, taking some ideas from my old projects, and testing out new ones. Inspiration arrived while looking through info about Civ5 (which I haven't played). I would like to run a fast game to completion to see how it goes...

Again this is a light NES, orders etc can all be in the thread if you wish, and there are no automatic story bonuses (although background is always welcome). I am looking for no more than 9 players to begin with...

I am aware of my previous failings and will feel lucky to have any players


The World

The game takes place on a 're-mixed' Earth, where there are versions of each continent, but not quite the same shape. The same deal as several other NES's I have run. This particular map was done very quickly and may be improved later. The shroud will be revealed for all players as each expands. The types of terrain will definitely have an impact on things like combat and city development.

You can customise your 'civ' and choose to start anywhere in the world - e.g, to start in this world's version of the middle east. It will have similar climate and NPC cultures, but the geography will be different.

For Example:

Hurians - Daftpanzer
Colour: Grey/blue
Culture: mix of Hittite/Persian
Traits: Industrious, Militaristic
Start position: middle east
Occupation: copper mining

Would give your this: (not actually appearing in the game)




Map Icons

Again this is a mostly visual NES, but should be greatly streamlined compared to some of my recent efforts. The following things are on the map:

* Resources - will be controllable/captureable, each giving one and only one Raw point to spend (more on that later). The different kinds of resources you control also have different subtle benefits. Unlike DaftNES3 they will not 'level up'. Ownership is noted by coloured dots - no dot means an unclaimed or contested resource. Resources should be near your Camps / Cities or you will tend to lose ownership (unless you have deals with local NPC, or you have become good seafarers and its near the coast, or its the modern age).

* Armies - are shown by helmets (defensive stance) or swords (aggressive stance). They have veterancy levels that are shown by the small gold stars (more is better). Your civ will have a military 'pool' listed in the stats, these units are assumed to be mostly concentrated in your army/armies, each army having an equal share. Armies need to spawn from some kind of settlement.

* Fleets - are aquatic versions of armies, but have just the one stance, always shown by the anchor icon.

* Camps - are basic centres of population, but give no special points. Useful for maintaining ownership of nearby resources. They can be moved around on the map quite easily. As you tell your people to 'tinker' (see Stats: Raw actions), or you just get lucky, they will transform into Cities.

* Cities - are your advanced (and immobile) centres of population. Each one gives an Eco point to spend, provided you also have one Resource for each city (it doesn't matter what kind). Cities breathe resources - having a surplus encourages more cities to appear and makes them more stable, but having a lack means people are starving and/or unemployed, in which case there will probably be riots and some cities reverting back to Camps.

* Wonders - can be built, or rarely appear for free. They can be in cities or be placed strategically on the landscape. They will have various effects and have great influence over people.

* Capitals - can be Camps, Cities, or even Wonders. They are noted by underlined text on the map. Your influence is centred on your capital. It can be moved around, but may take a turn or two to re-establish fully.

* Religions - are shown by special icons appearing over the Camps / Cities where they spread. Religions can both unite and divide people. You may wish to use them as a tool, but be wary of complications moving into the modern age...

* Other Things - will be described as they are encountered.


Stats / Rules

Civ name: Player name
Culture:
Traits:
Com / Raw / Eco:
Military:
Civics:
Techs:

Important/Confusing - in this game, you have different kinds of points to spend. These cannot ever be banked, and they can't be split between different tasks. For example, if you want to use Command points to form new armies, you must spend all your Command points on that action that turn, or at least leave some Command points unspent. You cannot also spend one Command point on civics, etc. This is both to keep things simple, and hopefully create some interesting game dynamics (?).

Com[mand] - these points basically represent effective 'leadership', not necessarily related to the size or power of your civ. Extra Command points are gained from having cities that are stable and really thriving, or from inspirational achievements (?).

Spoiler for Command options:

* new army/fleet: You can spawn one new army or fleet, for every Command point (you can mix fleets and armies here). Reminder that armies are just the organisation and 'focus points' for your military, you will need to build the units also.

* 'level up' army/fleet: Each Command point will add one level of veterancy (star icon) to any fleet or army of your choice. This represents improved leadership and organisation.

* build wonder: Begin building any wonder, you can use wonders from the civ games as a reference. At least one Command point is needed to get things going. Thereafter you can use any combination of Command, Raw or Eco points to finish the wonder. The number of points invested and the number needed will be shown on the map. You can of course choose where to build the wonder, it should be within friendly territory!

* move Capital: Can move from its current location to any Camp, City, or Wonder. Having more Command points means the capital can move further with less disruption to your civilisation.

* move civic slider: For each Command point, you can move one of the civic sliders +1 or -1 (please see civics below).

* revolution: For each Command point, you can move one of the civic sliders by up to 5 notches. Be warned that a messy revolution can lead to cities and armies breaking away to form NPC's or join other civs.

* religion: Increase support for a religion of your choice, within in your borders and beyond. You can also spawn a new religion here. The strength of this action will obviously depend on your Command point rating.

* political influence: Attempt to influence the ruling classes of another civ or an NPC. The weight of influence will obviously depend on your Command point rating. This can alter another civ's civics in the process.

* spying: Attempt to do any covert action against an opponent - incite unrest, steal technology, etc. Alternatively, you can do 'counter intel', the effect of which will last for a few turns afterwards. The strength of this action will depend on your Command point rating.

* stability: There are no hard stats for stability. Sometimes you will hear of cities rioting, and you can use Command points to try to restore order. The strength of this action will obviously depend on your Command point rating, and the effects will last for a few turns afterwards.

* enslave: for every Command point, you nominate one Camp or City to be enslaved, and can spend an additional two eco points this turn above normal. This obviously makes the target peoples unhappy, that is if the enslaved Camps / Cities don't disappear from the map.

Raw - these points represent your economy at its simplest level, and come from owning Resources on the map.

Spoiler for Raw options:

* 'tinker': this is how civilization progresses. This is a focus on 'advancement' and you get to choose what area to focus on, thinking roughly in terms of the typical civ tech tree (though you might not get your choice exactly). It is likely that your first true city/cities will appear from 'tinkering'. The effect depends on your Raw point rating. As the game progresses, this action won't give much in the way of actual tech progress (you will need proper research using Eco points) but could lead to special weapons and resources being discovered.

* claim resource: You can attempt to claim one resource on the map for every two Raw points spent - but you can always claim a minimum of one. Claimed resources will then provide one Raw point in subsequent turns. The target resources should be unclaimed - claimed resources can be captured through war, or traded through diplomacy. Also the resources should not be in hostile territory, or too far from your Camps / Cities - except if you are friendly with a nearby NPC, in which case you won't need a nearby settlement of your own (NPCs will never rarely own resources).

* build raw units: Each Raw point spawn one unit to add to your military pool. Raw units are basic warriors / peasants, spearmen, archers, slingers, horsemen (only if you have horses!) and galleys. They shouldn't include metal-heavy units like swordsmen or hoplites.

* build camps: You can settle one Camp on the map, for every Raw point spent. Camps help to keep nearby resources under control, and could eventually grow into Cities. Again, Camps may fail if they are in hostile territory or too isolated from the rest of your civ.

* move camps: You can relocate one Camp for every Raw point spent. Again, the Camps may die if moved into hostile territory.

* build wonder: If you already have a wonder underway (see Command points) you can use Raw points to fill up the total number of points needed.

Eco[nomy] - these points represent a higher tier of your economy, stuff that happens in and around cities. Remember you can never have more Eco than Raw!

Spoiler for Economy options:

* research: Like 'tinkering' but here you can pursue the full range of tech advancements throughout the game. Again, you can think roughly in terms of the typical civ tech tree, but you might not always get your desired choice.

* build eco units: Eco units are a step up from Raw in terms of equipment (that's not the whole story in battles, of course, but its one advantage). Here you can build swordsmen, catapults, knights (with horses) etc, whatever is appropriate to your level of technology and the resources available. UU's are not specifically buildable, but could appear as special bonuses.

* build cities: Build one new city for every two Eco points, but you can always build a minimum of one. A new city should be placed in territory that is well under your control/influence. The new city can give you one extra Eco on subsequent turns, but again, your Eco income cannot exceed your Raw income. If you don't have enough Raw to support more cities, maybe claim more resources or make a deal with someone who has an excess...

* bribe/gift: Used to influence foreign peoples/armies, or you can direct this at your own people to make them happier. Again there are no solid stats for this kind of thing, but it will work better with more Eco.

* army supplies: Eco is devoted to supporting the military. The target army/armies will have an advantage this turn, for both attacking and defending. The effect depends on the ratio of your Eco to your military size, but will always help.

* build wonder: If you already have a wonder underway (see Command points) you can use Eco points to fill up the total number of points needed.

Civics - these are three sets of paradox-style sliders that start in the middle and can be moved to one of two extremes (+10 should be considered extreme). These also define your type of government and will have subtle effects throughout the game.

Spoiler for Civic details:

* Freedom vs Control - freedom does mean more innovation and cultural influence, but also means your people are more likely to be influenced in turn by other cultures and religions, or do things that basically act against your will.

* Enterprise vs Privilege - on the one hand you have free trade and innovation all those shenanigans, giving various bonuses effects. On the other hand you have a leadership that has more bargaining chips (Command points) and a tendency for the upper classes to be more loyal.

* Centralised vs Decentralised - centralised powers are more responsive to changes in politics, religion, changes in technology etc, but are generally more difficult to control, especially if ruling large areas, or if foreign/conquered peoples are living under your rule. Decentralised powers are easier to control, but harder to drag in any new direction, and more liable to break apart under stress.

Techs - a list of your cutting-edge techs only, to give a general idea of how 'advanced' this civ is. Again, this refers to the various civ tech trees you may be familiar with.


Gameplay / Orders

Note that the passage of time will occur in civ-like fashion. Your orders may include:

* Spending of Com, Raw and Eco points (each type must be spent on one task only per turn).

* Ordering armies around

And that's it. I will handle all diplomacy with NPC's, either in the thread or via PM...


NPC's

Only players will have true (colourful) 'Civs'. The plain white names are all NPCs that can be attacked or negotiated with individually. They can be a Camp / City, or a roaming Army / Fleet, or a combination of both. They operate on the basis that human beings are fundamentally lazy - militaristic NPC's are far more likely to appear if players are expanding aggresively! NPC's should be quite happy to negotiate to allow in your religion, or your access to resources etc in return for protection or gifts. If they have fleets or armies, you can use them as allies. And yes, eventually they can peacefully assimilate into your civ. Finally, NPC's can be start points for players that are defeated or join later.


Joining the game

You don't have to be there from the beginning, and you can 'respawn' if killed.

* Culture: please only a brief description, or ideally just mix a couple of real-world civs. You can just copy a real-world civ if you really want. Please keep culture relevant to the continent you want to start on - eg, no aztecs in ancient europe.

* Traits: I am thinking more of civ3's traits here. Please pick any two. You can invent your own kind of trait if you really want, so long as it is relevant. These will have various subtle effects throughout the game.

* Start position: again, this can be any part of the real world, which will be roughly translated onto the re-mixed map in which we are playing. Alternatively, if you are starting late, you can pick any NPC settlement on the map to morph into.

* Occupation: you will start with a first settlement that can be focused on crop farming, cattle farming, copper mining, gold mining, stone quarrying, fishing, hunting, or harvesting some other luxuries. This will also define what kind of starting techs you have.

Start Template:
Civ name - Player name
Colour:
Culture:
Traits:
Start position:
Occupation:
List of city names (optional):

Thx for reading this

[Matt0088]

I can guarantee that you'll get more than nine players Daft, maybe even under 24 hours.

Zora - Matt
Colour: NavyBlue
Culture: Mostly Phoenician with some Egyptian elements thrown in (Currently, something probably related to religion). More detail to come.
Traits: Commercial (Or is it Financial? I've been playing too much Civ3), Expansive
Start position: Middle East, Wherever would be a good position for a trade center(s).
Occupation: Agriculture, Tin Mining, Masonry, and Trading
List of city names (optional): Will appear here soon (hopefully).

Commentary on these new (efficient!) rules to appear if you would like any Daft.

[Terrance888]

Garunur: Charles Li
Culture: please only a brief description, or ideally just mix a couple of real-world civs. You can just copy a real-world civ if you really want. Please keep culture relevant to the continent you want to start on - eg, no aztecs in ancient europe.
I say Anglo-Saxon government (Kings) with Chinese Values and Norman Battle Tactics.
* Traits: I am thinking more of civ3's traits here. Please pick any two. You can invent your own kind of trait if you really want, so long as it is relevant. These will have various subtle effects throughout the game.
Commercial, Scientific
* Start position: again, this can be any part of the real world, which will be roughly translated onto the re-mixed map in which we are playing. Alternatively, if you are starting late, you can pick any NPC settlement on the map to morph into.
Fertile Cresent, not Mesopotamia, Syriaish
* Occupation: you will start with a first settlement that can be focused on crop farming, cattle farming, copper mining, gold mining, stone quarrying, fishing, hunting, or harvesting some other luxuries. This will also define what kind of starting techs you have.
1# Timber Harvesting (good quality hardwood) #2 Timber Trading #3 Ship Building
or
1# Fishing 2# Gold mining #3 Trading

City Names: Antichlan, Caratorlan, Doscat, Lorlan.

[badunoff]

Civ name - Badunoff
Colour: Red
Culture: Romans and Mayans
Traits: Expansionist/Technological
Start position: Amazon
Occupation: Cattle Farming, tin mining, hunting
List of city names (optional): Kirumberg, Fitheltinsvile, Redfillton

[bestrfcplayer]

I might join this, but not imedeantly.

[<nuke>]

Civ name: Tirza
Colour: Dark Blue
Culture: Hebrew, Ottoman, with a touch of Roman
Traits: Militaristic, Industrious
Start position: Israel?
Occupation: copper mining, stone quarrying, crop farming,
List of city names (optional):Jericho (Capital), Jazer, Asher, Adrekm, Adrel, Ekron

[ChiefDesigner]

* Civ name: Bunjin
* Player name: ChiefDesigner
* Color: White

* Culture:
The Jin or Bunjin tribes resemble other Southeast Asian semi-Sinicized tribes.

* Traits:
DIPLOMATIC: NPCs more likely to agree to requests
RELIGIOUS: State religion easier to spread; begins with a religion

* Start Position: south China, along a river

* Occupation: The settlement of Yanshan was built around salt extraction.

[Massive Attack]

Civ Name: Ymo
Color: Yellow
Culture: Saxon, Frank, and oh let's throw in some Korean
Traits: Commercial, Seafaring (if doable)
Occupation: Fishing, Trading
List of City Names: Ymo, Rika, Tvagil

[Eltain]

Start Template:
Civ/player: Ikraami - Eltain
Color: orange-red? ugly color, please
Culture: egyptian-mongolian
Traits: expansive, militaristic
Start position: mordor or, if that doesn't apply, himalayan mountains
Occupation: cattle raising, copper mining, gold mining
City names: Ikraam, Hania, Sadaf, Lujym, Dima

[Immaculate]

The Thuggee
Civ name: Thuggee - Player name: Immaculate
Colour: Purple (darker if there are two)
Culture: Based on a dedicated and secretive cult (not necessarily religious) with multiple layers of control, the depth of which and the actual leadership thereof remaining a mystery. Otherwise very much like the Babylonians except replace the priesthood with the mysterious layered cult-like organization.
Traits: Commercial, and trying to make one up: Intrigue (the culture has a penchant for secrecy, intelligence, spying and dirty politics) (otherwise 'Cultured'?)
Start position: Mouth of the Euphrates
Occupation: primarily trading, farming, stonework and pottery in that order
List of city names (optional): use the Babylonian ones from CIV? Assur... etc.

[Blaze Injun]

Hey,

Submiting 9th, 7 hrs 56(?)minutes

Civ name Orn/Ornian- Blaze injun
Colour: Light Purple/Lavander
Culture: Norse/American Indian
Traits: Commercial/Seafaring (Can be more detailed if needed)
Start position: Mid-Atlantic coast of North America, Chesapeake Bay type
Occupation: Trade, Fishing & Mining
List of city names (optional): Arkautumn (capital), Onochipawee, Saganitakee, Weskai
Ornashakwai, Onosh

[Gelion]

Boat is full...

[Daftpanzer]

Thanks very much! That's nine players. Almost done with the update 0 map, taking a break now.

Sorry Gelion

@Charles, you haven't given me much to work with, so I'm afraid I haven't added you . A mystery player has joined via PM.

[Terrance888]

Sorry! I had my internet cut out.

Done, please ad me in

[Gelion]

I will enjoy just reading as, from what I am able to see in the rules, this is the very type of scenario I tried to design years back. Let me know if you need a Schytian barbarian horde later on.

[Omega124]

Kideajin (Land of the Forest)-Omega
Colour: Grey
Culture: Mostly Iroquois and other Northeast Natives
Traits:
Start position: America
Occupation: Hunting and crop farming
List of city names (optional): Kideajin, Wertania (The Clearing), Hutim Kill (Large River), Ho-Squadalia (Far Hunt)

[Daftpanzer]

Just got back from a run along Portsmouth seafront, its like a mid-summer's day outside, global warming is nice so far

Terrance, Gelion and Omega, you will have first refusal for being replacement players when others inevitably drop out...

[Daftpanzer]

UPDATE 0:

The clever peoples of Kirumba have domesticated the giant ground-birds of the jungle. For now they are unaware of the Orn peoples of the north.

The isolated people of Ymo have begun to take to the water in sturdy galleys.

A chain of proto-civilizations spreads across southern asia. They are threatened by northern nomads, and by each other.

The Bunjin tribes have created the first true religion, which already spreads to nearby tribes.

MAP:

Spoiler:

NOTES:

* I am not happy about european city names for native american civs. This is a gamey NES but not that gamey!

* @ChiefDesigner, I am going to make the Bunjin religion into generic Taoism, unless you have a better idea

* @Matt0088, I meant to say, I would love to hear any opinions about the rules...

* In future, people may get bonus Eco points from trade (which happens automatically), I need to work that out.

EXAMPLE ORDERS:

I thought this might be helpful, totally hypothetical of course... A reminder that each kind of point (only Command and Raw at the moment) must be allocated on one task per turn, and can't be split between different ones.

The Zora can spend their Command point a on level-up for their army, spend their Raw points on units, and then send their army to capture the copper ore resource from the Tirza.

The Oskfites can spend their Command point to influence the Nenhaj NPC, use their Raw points to claim the unused rice resource in the north-east, and have the army on defence.

The Thugge can spend their Command point on starting a wonder, and their Raw points on 'tinkering' which will most likely result in Assur becoming a true city, while the army stays on defence.

The Bunjin can spend their Command points on spreading their religion further, and their Raw point to claim the dye resource in the east, while the army stays on defence.

Etc etc.

STATS:

Spoiler:

Orn: Blaze Injun
Culture: Algonquian (native american) with Norse elements
Traits: Commercial, Seafaring
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 1 Warrior, 1 Archer
Civics: +1 Enterprise, +1 Centralised
Techs: Bronze Working, Alphabet

Kirumba: Badunoff
Culture: Mayans, with Roman aspects
Traits: Expansionistic, Scientific
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 1 Warrior, 2 Archers
Civics: +1 Control, +1 Privilege
Techs: Alphabet, Masonry, Mysticism

Ymo: Massive_Attack
Culture: Saxon, Frank, with Korean aspects
Traits: Commercial, Seafaring
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 2 Warriors, 1 Galley
Civics: +1 Freedom, +1 Enterprise
Techs: Alphabet, Mysticism

Zora: Matt0088
Culture: Phoenician / Egyptian
Traits: Commercial, Expansionistic
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 1 Warrior, 1 Archer
Civics: +1 Freedom, +1 Enterprise, +1 Decentralised
Techs: Irrigation, Bronze Working

Tirza: Nuclear Kid
Culture: Hebrew, Ottoman, with Roman aspects
Traits: Militaristic, Industrious
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 2 Warriors, 2 Archers
Civics: +1 Control, +1 Centralised
Techs: Bronze Working, Masonry

Thugge: Immaculate
Culture: mainly Babylonian
Traits: Commercial, Secretive
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 1 Warrior, 2 Archers
Civics: +1 Control, +1 Enterprise, +1 Centralised
Techs: Bronze Working, Alphabet, Mysticism

Oskfite: MYSTERY PLAYER
Culture: Indian
Traits: Agricultural, Scientific
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 3 / 0
Military: 2 Warriors
Civics: +1 Control, +1 Centralised, +1 Privilege
Techs: Irrigation, Bronze Working

Ikraami: Eltain
Culture: Egyptian, Mongolian
Traits: Expansionistic, Militaristic
Com / Raw / Eco: 1 / 2 / 0
Military: 2 Warriors, 2 Archers
Civics: +1 Control, +1 Privilege
Techs: Bronze Working, The Wheel

Bunjin: ChiefDesigner
Culture: Jin or Bunjin tribes resemble other Southeast Asian semi-Sinicized tribes.
Traits: Diplomatic, Religious
Com / Raw / Eco: 2 / 1 / 0
Military: 1 Warrior
Civics: +1 Freedom, +1 Decentralised
Techs: Alphabet, Mysticism

[Immaculate]

Thugge: Chapter 1- Rule by The Tiered Circle Society

The average individual living amongst the Thugge does not know who their ruler is. They know only that those of the ‘Circle’ or ‘Society’ as it is known popularly collect taxes, provide infrastructure and ultimately must be obeyed for they control everything in Thugge society from the militia and burgeoning army to funding for private investment to the distribution of grain to the organization of trade caravans. They are perhaps best known for, however, their labyrinthine network of secret police and informants that secure their domestic power base.

Only approximately 10-15% of the population belongs to the ‘Society’ and two neighbors belonging to unassociated arms thereof may or may not know of their mutual membership. This is because within the ‘Circle Society’, lower ranking members know only their immediate supervisors. They may be aware that other members lie within the circle somewhere above them within the hierarchy but would not be aware of what the hierarchies contain or what their responsibilities are. When the society meets, its members are masked and their identities hidden; only one’s immediate superior, or handler, would know the identity of the member. How many layers there are or how they are divided remains a mystery to all but the highest and most secretive tiers of the ‘Society’.

An Artist's Rendition of a Circle Society Member

The leadership of the ‘Society’ remains a mystery. Some say it is a group of men not unlike the trade oligarchies of other nations and of major merchant houses, others that the leadership lies with the ancestors and that the spirits of the ancestors lead through the occult layers of the ‘Society’. Others say that a dragon who lives in the great Assur river leads the society. The truth is, it doesn’t matter. The Society’s rule is absolute, ruthless and highly obfuscated.

[Immaculate]

A message from the Thugge of Assur
To the Zora

A man wearing extensive veils appears in your court. He claims to be a representative of the Circle Society leadership of Assur. In badly accented Zorite, he offers trade, "Zorites, your nation is one of trade and commerce. As is ours. We wonder if we might work towards establishing caravan trade with one another in the not too distant future?"

EDIT OOC: the goal would be to accelerate trade between our people. Our first concern would be safety and development but once we have that secured, we might want to make us of our commercial trait by developing a 'joint-project'?