Events are random ways to break up monotony, not add to it. There are usually going to be turns during the course of a Civ game that don't amount to much, and an event can help to break up the whole 'just 4 more turns' mentality. I, for one, love them, and would like to see many, many more of them. I like many of the ones posted here by Bringa, kumquatelvis, nihonjeff, xienwolf, and SwordofStriker, and would like to see them implemented in game in some form, even if modified.
The events I continuously see (the Calabim Refugees, the Khazad Smith, and the Balseraph Carnival) sprouting up over and over again every game should be broken up with more general events like those suggested here. Having the same events come up regularly makes them less like random points of interest, and more like random points of annoyance. I hope that with more variety of events available, it will lead to a greater variety of events in play.
Great work to the whole community, keep the great ideas flowing.
I wasn't critisizing the events mentioned here, i was critisizing the direction being suggested for them.
you mention having the same event come up over and over again every game makes them seem like annoyances, but i ask, if we add a bunch of events that have no real consequence, or strategy, what are they but basically the same event over and over again with slightly different wording? choose A, B, C, or D and something happens.
Generally speaking, most events currently in the game i find tedious not because they occur every game and over and over again, but because there is only one real choice, or the choice is relatively pointless/meaningless. the herbalism event for example, loose a population that early is devastating, just to get 2 health that if you can use at all won't be for a hundred turns or more? get a happiness for 10 turns when you likely aren't at your threshold anyway and even if you are, what can you do, get an extra pop for 4 or 5 turns before you have to starve him to death because the happiness wore off?.
@Inkling: In response to your "sarcasm" section, I can state that at least for my events I have written, there is NO pre-requisite to selecting ANY option in the linked series, and generally only some small amount of gold in your coffers for 1 or 2 options in the others. But even with no money available, I always leave at least 2 options open if possible. And typically the results of mine aren't game-altering, but are not inconsequential either (like Woodsman 1&2 on your starting scout if lucky with the lioness).
I can see that you do realize the flaw in the CURRENT spread of events, so keep that in mind as you write some new ones. That is what I was meaning to encourage people toward with the section that you quoted me on. Remember where the game has some drudgery to it, and try to make your events breathe some life into that period of the game..
again, i apologize for the sarcasm, but sarcasm works when eloquence fails, assuming you don't just piss the person off royally.
but the point i am making is, what you suggest i fear will only add to the drudgery
to critique a little, the suggestions so far are creative and interesting, but of the ones i've read most either have a clear choice, are a "something happened" event, or are pretty well inconsequential no matter what you choose, and before your edit, yours were just a crap shoot, i mean you had no knowledge whatsoever about how things would turn out.
i would much rather see events with a true strategic element. you come into possession of letters between the ruler of one nation and a relative that critisize a second nation. what do you do. return them for a diplomatic bonus, sell them to the nation for cash, turn them over to the second to sour relations. go public with them, fermenting war between the two but taking a diplomatic hit yourself
is a war to your advantage, or is it better just to hurt their relations,i.e. hostile without hostilities. could you use the diplmatic boost to further your negotiations, or are you desperately in need of the cash. the choice depends on your situation, and its one you have to put thought into. it could be better, but this is an event that requires a decision with strategic implications. its also an event they don't really want.
this is the kind of thing that would add to game play, would break up monotony. you thiink and strategize, you're not choosing just A or B because it is the best option when this event comes up period, or because it doesn't really matter which you choose.etc, etc. ad nausium.
but having to sit through 20 herbalism or similiar events before something like this one isn't going to make it any better, quite the opposite i imagine. frequent events will only make events stale. you won't be shouting "yeah" when an event like this comes up, you'll be sighing "finally"
for 2 turns
from Palace
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