Hall of Fame Challenge Series XVI Discussion Thread

[Noble Zarkon]

Challenge XV is nearing completion so time now to give consideration to Challenge XVI, building on the success of XV.

The purpose of this thread is to allow members to provide input for the new Challenge series. Please use the guidelines below to submit your ideas for consideration. Challenge XVI is tentatively scheduled to start in the next couple of weeks.

Also, feel free to provide positive or negative feedback on Challenge XV.

The information required to properly define a game:

Settings:
Victory Condition - Required
Difficulty - Required
Starting Era - Required
Map Size - Required
Map Type - Optional
Speed - Required
Civ - optional (might be best to pick one)
Opponents -- optional (might be best to pick some or all)
Required Options - optional (see below)
Illegal Options - optional (see below)

Options:
City Flipping after Conquest
No Barbarians
Raging Barbarians
Aggressive AI
Random Personalities
Permanent Alliances
Always War
One-City Challenge
Require Complete Kills
No City Razing
No Vassal States
No Tribal Villages
Choose Religions
No Random Events

 

[Noble Zarkon]

Reserved.

 

[elitetroops]

Victory Condition - Space Colony
Difficulty - Monarch
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Standard
Map Type - Global Highlands
Speed - Normal
Civ - Holy Roman Empire (Charlemagne)
Opponents - Hammurabi, Saladin, Genghis Khan, Wang Kon, Boudica, Mansa Musa
Required Options - No Tribal Villages, Aggressive AI
Illegal Options - No Barbarians


Victory Condition - Conquest
Difficulty - Immortal
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Small
Map Type - Any
Speed - Quick
Civ - Mongolia
Opponents - Willem, Asoka, De Gaulle, Sitting Bull
Required Options - No Tribal Villages, No Random Events
Illegal Options - None

 

[enKage]

I'd like to have more no-ancient starts and mostly unusual mapscripts,

 

[elitetroops]

I updated the Charlie suggestion above from large to standard size. The global highlands script seems to produce a ton of lands, with low sea level it can have twice as many land tiles as a low sea level pangaea map, and even several hundred more than a terra map. Also, it seems the monarch/large/normal/space slot was claimed only a few weeks ago, let's not target it immediately. The standard slot is a lot tougher, but maybe it could be beaten with these settings. If you want an easier slot, speed could be changed to epic.

My idea with that suggestion was to have a slow starting leader on a map that isn't very good for early rushes, with opponents who aren't the best early rush targets. But with so much land and the Rathaus, he has potential for a very strong late-game economy.

 

[Pollina]

Here's a quick little suggestion. I may think of more, if I have the time.

Victory Condition - Culture
Difficulty - Emperor (or other)
Starting Era - Future
Map Size - Small
Map Type - Terra
Speed - Epic
Civ - America
Opponents - De Gaulle (France), Churchill (England), Stalin (Russia), Bismarck (Germany), Mao Zedong (China)
Required Options - none
Illegal Options - none

 

[smitsk00]

Victory Condition - Culture
Difficulty - Noble
Starting Era - Renaissance
Map Size - Standard
Map Type - Medium and Small
Speed - Quick
Civ - Inca
Opponents - any
Required Options - Permanent Alliances, OCC
Illegal Options - none

Victory Condition - Space
Difficulty - Prince
Starting Era - Medieval
Map Size - Large
Map Type -any
Speed - Normal
Civ - Mao Zedong (China)
Opponents - (must include) Julius Ceasar (Roman), Tokugawa (Japan), Charlemange (Holy Roman), Wang Kon (Korea), Gilgamesh (Sumeria), Mehmed (Ottoman), Sitting Bull (NA), Zara (Ethiopian), Montezuma (Aztecs), Napolean (France), Stalin (Russia), Churchhill (England), Ragnar (Vikings), Saladin (Arabia)
Required Options - Always War, Raging Barbs
Illegal Options - none

 

[shulec]

NZ, I would suggest you review the previous challenges to see how many games were submitted for non-ancient starts. My recollection is that they are not the most popular games, and quite the contrary. This does not seem to be evident in the suggestions in this thread.

 

[Pangaea]

NZ, I would suggest you review the previous challenges to see how many games were submitted for non-ancient starts. My recollection is that they are not the most popular games, and quite the contrary. This does not seem to be evident in the suggestions in this thread.

Don't have stats to back it up, like shulec probably does, but personally I wouldn't be interested in non-Ancient starts. Don't really care about completing some type of EQM (would be miles off atm), and the early game is what is most interesting, so playing with anything other than Ancient would not truly interest me. I reckon many others are in the same position. Not everybody want to fill out their EQM.

 

[Noble Zarkon]

Yes that would my instinct as well, some have complained about too many non-Ancient starts in previous Gauntlets! I think one might be ok in the series?

 

[smitsk00]

I have always enjoyed having to adjust my early game to non-ancient starts and have often done these first.

In a 10 game challenge, I have always wanted a chance to do 2-3 non ancient starts as they are rarely used in gauntlets. Plus - it makes Diety players who win or lose in the first 30-80 turns seem a little more human to the rest of us.

As a side note: I do try to fill up my EQM tables (1 game away from Emperor EQM as soon as I get my Vanilla working), but have never overtly done so using challenge games. I am not sure that this is really an issue.

 

[enKage]

Non-ancient starts are very nice in terms of completeing Elite QMasters. Preferably have some, maybe using not common mapscripts and a wide choice of leaders.

But I agree, that there should not be more than let's say 3-4.


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One thing I would like to see is a wide choice of leaders to a specific game. Give us choice between limited number of leaders and civs to some games. (fe. space game when you have to pick any spiritual except Mansa and Gandhi etc., fast conquest when you have to choose a leader with UU replacing Mustketmen or Maces))


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(and dont run SGOTM for at least 2 months so I could complete the games )

 

[enKage]

HBah!
I want a game for the highest score domination defeat!

 

[elitetroops]

Victory Condition - Conquest
Difficulty - Deity
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Standard
Map Type - Lakes
Speed - Epic
Civ - Ottoman
Opponents - any
Required Options - none
Illegal Options - none

Victory Condition - Diplomatic (UN)
Difficulty - Warlord
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Large
Map Type - Hemispheres
Speed - Standard
Civ - Portugal (Joao)
Opponents - Shaka, Victoria, Tokugawa, Gandhi, Pacal, Zara Yaqob, Brennus, Lincoln
Required Options - No Tribal Villages, No Random Events
Illegal Options - No Barbarians

 

[kcd_swede]

I'd like to see at least one game with Always War, pref at Emperor or above.

Victory Condition - Any
Difficulty - Emperor (or Immortal)
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Standard
Map Type - Lakes
Speed - Epic or Normal
Civ - Mali (Mansa Musa)
Opponents - Any
Required Options - ALWAYS WAR, No Tribal Villages, No Random Events
Illegal Options - No Barbarians

btw - I don't think the meaning of the challenge series is to help you fill your eqm. One or two non-ancient starts is my pref, but only where it makes sense from an interesting or unique challenge (such as Future Start culture VC)

 

[smitsk00]

btw - I don't think the meaning of the challenge series is to help you fill your eqm. One or two non-ancient starts is my pref, but only where it makes sense from an interesting or unique challenge

+1 Yes and yes and yes

 

[AutomatedTeller]

Settings:
Victory Condition - Space Colony
Difficulty - Monarch
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Standard
Map Type - Medium and Small
Speed - Normal
Civ - Mao
Opponents -- Must include Shaka,
Required Options - raging barbs, random events

The main idea here is raging barbs, nutty opponents and a space race.

Settings:

Victory Condition - Diplomatic
Difficulty - Noble
Starting Era - Ancient
Map Size - Large
Map Type - Pangea
Speed - Normal
Civ - Any
Opponents -- any
Required Options - Random Personalities, no barbarians

I think it might be interesting to have a diplomatic game where you don't actually know how the AI reacts. And I figure it would be hard enough without other distractions like barbs or a need for ships.

 

[Gr8scott]

Difficulty - Emperor (or Immortal)
Required Options - ALWAYS WAR

For a standardish setting, normal size / Pangaea, what is the highest difficulty anyone has won with always war?

I remember playing a GOTM I think at prince and it was a brutal setting. Getting the great wall and uber units was fun, but winning at immortal would be amazing imo... has someone done that??

 

[Seraiel]

There was a Deity-AW-challenge not so long ago, I believe 1 or 2 people finished it. HC was allowed in it, otherwise it'd probably been impossible.

 

[Noble Zarkon]

There was a Deity-AW-challenge not so long ago, I believe 1 or 2 people finished it. HC was allowed in it, otherwise it'd probably been impossible.

This was Challenge-XIII-08 on a Small map. On Standard I can't find anything above Prince.