BTS Game : To Do

[DaveShack]

Format: BTS Pitboss Sequential seems to be concensus
Turn Timer?
Number of teams? Poll open
Game Admins? Any needed for Pitboss?
Rules? Anything really needed if sequential?
Map settings?
Signups
Forums (need #teams)
Announcement
Host
Launch

 

[General_W]

1. Format: BTS Pitboss Sequential seems to be consensus
2. Turn Timer 24 hours is what I've heard most often. But we'd better poll this, I think.
3. Number of teams? I'll go vote right now (looks like 5 is winning)
4. Game Admins? I think we need one... just in case. Hopefully there won't be anything for them to do.
5. Rules? Yes. I think we really need a basic set. At least covering things like exploits and any out-of-game espionage (like creating multiple CFC accounts or something) That last ruleset is a good starting point, I think: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=167795
6. Map settings: Better poll this one also. I think we need to do a Standard (or maybe even smaller!) map - but that's just me.
7. Signups: In progress.
8. Forums (need #teams)
9. Announcement: I'll work on some pretty pictures for this maybe? I think we should wait for the mainpage announcement till we've got the details nailed down. Maybe aim to announce it October 24th? (1 week before start)
10. Host: DaveMcW?
11. Launch: October 31st

 

[champ82]

I am interested in this.

Yes I am a “noob.” I hate that word, btw. I have plenty of experience playing single player Civ 1, 3, and 4. I can usually beat Monarch in BTS. I don't expect to win, but I doubt I'll be as predictable a “noob” as one might expect. And you got to start somewhere, right?

 

[classical_hero]

I think we might need to push back tthe start time since we have not recruited well so far.

 

[DaveShack]

More todo's.

Start teams -- perhaps one thread for each team.
Encourage breaking up 'ringer' teams?
New sign-up thread, or massage the existing one?
Decide if we actually need admins. And who they are.
Get a confirmation from the host that we're still all systems go.

Test sequential pitboss! In particular can the game be paused?

 

[peter grimes]

Test sequential pitboss! In particular can the game be paused?

I'd add to that a test to extend the turn-timer from 24 to 48 hours - just thinking ahead to the later game where the turns take a couple of hours to execute. I'm told this can be done, but we want to make sure that the pitboss host can do these things without an error creeping into the save file.

 

[DaveShack]

I tested sequential. The game can be paused and unpaused by any team.
Civstats only sends an email at the end of everything, and it shows all but the current team to play as being done. So a turn tracker would be needed.

 

[General_W]

Thanks DaveShack!
That's good to know.


Let me respond to this one:

Decide if we actually need admins. And who they are.

I think we'll need at least 1 Admin, just in case a dispute comes up over (God-forbid) someone cheating or something. Better to have an Admin in place from the beginning vs trying to name one in the midst of a fight.

However - I don't think status as an "Admin" must necessarily prevent someone from joining a team and playing. There are a number of players who I would trust to be impartial as an Admin, even if I were on a seperate team from them.
Ginger_Ale, Peter Grimes, & Kylearan all come to mind.

Hopefully their title would just be ceremonial anyway.

 

[peter grimes]

I'd be willing to "Adjudicate", but I wouldn't play on a team . I'd rather just lurk all the teams in that case.

But if someone else really wants to do it, and they really want to be on a team as well, I won't have a problem with it.

We do need to have one, though. In each MTDG so far, at least one issue has arisen that's had to be appealed to an out-of-game decider

 

[Kylearan]

Hi,

I could have sworn I had posted a reply to this thread, but it looks like I didn't. Er.

I'd be willing to be admin (or part of an admin group?) for this game if people want me to. I'd like to participate as a player too, though - but would refrain from doing so if people have objections to that. In that case, I'd lurk all teams, just as Peter said.

-Kylearan

 

[DaveShack]

It looks like GA is planning to admin and not play, so we're good in that area.

There is also a potential exposure with hosting and playing, since it's necessary for the host to have the admin pw to start the pitboss every time it needs to be restarted. It is not necessary to view the map though, so I think any trustworthy player can host.

 

[General_W]

I'm hoping we can get DaveMcW to host. I sent him a PM asking.

Is there anyone else with the ability to host a PitBoss for a long period of time?

 

[Domino369]

This looks rediculously interesting...

Lets see...my history...
I started playing Civilization Call to Power on linux and I loved it so much. I'd play it like crazy tho some of the mechanics were a little broken (lol wtf I can't refuel my plain so it dies in my capital city? xD) From there I moved on to Civilization 1, but I found it boring so I went back to Call to Power xD
Fast forward a few years...I start playing civ 3 immensely and loved everything about it. I upgraded all the way to C3C but lost it at a (sorry, a lil geeky here) computer club play in. Hey, a 5 year run ain't that bad lol.
A year and 2 track and field state qualifies later, I get Civ IV (around when it came out) and I loved it despite my old computer barely able to play it. During this time I had my first and only multiplayer game in which my fried got owned by the AI so I went to save him with my macemen (everyone else and him had axemen) but I was too late (at least deemed by me heheh) In the end, I won that game. That game was however in normal speed and I just distrust that speed because of how fast things get done, Marathon FTW. Anyways, I followed the series from there on. Played colonization as well but BTS triumphs for its more openness (especially the Rise of Mankind mod that I've been playing)
That's another thing, I've basically grown to mods since about a year into civ 4, so I may be a lil rusty with the core game mechanics. I've also found myself more of a builder as I prefer to get every building I could possibly get into every city leading to a lacking in military until I get to like Renaissance era (or industrial in some games) but recently I've been deviating from that by focusing on production. Still a little slow in early games and not truly multiplayer savy, I want to join this as this sounds like one of the best things I've come around since DnD lol

 

[General_W]

Welcome Domino369!
Hope you have a blast playing with us!

 

[Viva_Chingon]

Hey everyone, new around these parts and trying to get my feet wet by playing a game with you. I am mostly trying to take it all in right now -- not as many suggestions as I have questions, to be honest.

Very interested. If there's anything that needs to be done then let me know and I'll try to help!

 

[Ginger_Ale]

I hope to post an updated checklist sometime soon so that we can clearly see what we need to accomplish and then figure out how it will get done. There isn't too much that needs to be done: primarily just a map and a server.

 

[Sullla]

Ginger Ale, would you like me to organize the map setup efforts? With your approval, I would like to set up some polls in the individual team forums related to game and map settings. The general polls here provide some good ideas, but they're kind of... disorganized. And the sooner we get moving on this, the sooner we can get the game started.

 

[General_W]

I know you (rightly) asked Ginger_Ale - but I just wanted to say that I 100% support you just taking over the whole map making process.

Thanks for jumping in Sulla!

 

[oyzar]

Don't we need to get a host? Shouldn't that be like #1 on the todo list?

 

[Niklas]

Yes, I believe that's why GA listed a map and a server.

Sullla: Can I ask that you not do traditional forum-controlled polls? Typically you would post a question, and we would argue that for a bit before each of us reaching a decision, but if there's a poll in the first post then people tend to vote right away without waiting for the discussion. It should be easy enough to count the votes of 10-20 people manually.