News: Current Game Schedule for GOTM and COTM

[AlanH]

Anyone creating a game should use the guidance I gave previously concerning the game description field, then email the start file to me at thealanh (at) me.com. If you post a pre-game thread in this forum containing the starting image and the text describing the game, I'll create the release page on the GOTM server with the download link.

 

[Più Freddo]

Anyone creating a game should use the guidance I gave previously concerning the game description field, then email the start file to me at thealanh (at) me.com. If you post a pre-game thread in this forum containing the starting image and the text describing the game, I'll create the release page on the GOTM server with the download link.

Please use the .BIQ files I have posted as a starting point, that takes care of the rule changes for the competition. They do not contain any map or selection of difficulty level or played civilization.

When you have created a scenario, you must open it as if to play it and make sure that the boxes "enable scientific leaders" and "respawn eliminated civilizations" are UNTICKED. Make a screen shot and save the game immediately. This is the starting save. I've found no control in the editor for these last settings.

 

[Lanzelot]

I've now prepared GOTM138, but before I post it, one question: in the GOTM.bix file, none of the air units has lethal sea or land bombardment. Is that correct?!

 

[AlanH]

I'm sorry, I can't check the .bix at the moment as I'm away from home. Does it match the rest of the modifications that are listed for GOTMs? They should be:

The Great Wall Wonder: gives free walls in all your towns/cities on the continent
Explorers and equivalent unique units have been moved from Navigation to Astronomy.
Space Race - SS Stasis Chamber Has been moved from Synthetic Fibers to Robotics.
Republic Government Unit maintenance cost is 2 gpt/unit with free unit support of 1/3/4 for town/city/metropolis.
Archer/Bowmen added defensive freeshot at 1/0/1.
Longbowmen added defensive freeshot at 2/0/1.
Marines Increased attack strength from 8 to 12 and cost increased to 120 shields.
Radar Artillery Movement increased to 2 and rate of fire increased to 3.
Air Unit Operating Ranges most have been increased up to the maximum hardcoded limit in Civ3v1.29.
Lethal Sea Bombardment for all air units that can bomb targets.
Lethal Land Bombardment for all bombers and steath bombers.
F-15 stats increase to 8/4/1 (range of 8) with bombard at 6/0/2 lethal land & sea
Helicopter transport capacity has been increased to 3.
Stealth Fighter stats increased to 8/6/1 with bombard at 6/0/2.
Stealth Bomber stats increased to 0/5/1 with bombard at 18/0/3.

 

[Più Freddo]

I've now prepared GOTM138, but before I post it, one question: in the GOTM.bix file, none of the air units has lethal sea or land bombardment. Is that correct?!

It seems this mod hasn't made it to the list. If you feel like it, why don't you go ahead and add it? It's your game.

 

[Lanzelot]

OK, I've added now the following, which were missing in GOTM.bix:

• Lethal Sea Bombardment for all air units that can bomb targets.
• Lethal Land Bombardment for all bombers and steath bombers.
• F-15 stats increase to 8/4/1 (range of 8) with bombard at 6/0/2 lethal land & sea

All the rest were already correctly set up, including this one:

• Air Unit Operating Ranges most have been increased up to the maximum hardcoded limit in Civ3v1.29.

I'm not sure, what this is about? It means that the "Operational Range" of all planes is set to 362. I compared this with the settings in the standard PtW and C3C rules, and there it is 6 (10 in C3C) for Bombers, 12 (16 in C3C) for Stealth Bombers, and so on.

I'm not sure, whether that is what we want, but I left it that way now.

I also added one more change, which is already in the standard C3C rules: lethal land & sea bombardment for Cruise Missiles. I think this makes sense, because if bombers have it, it doesn't make sense that Cruise Missiles don't...

I also double checked, that the base worker turns for Outpost, Radar Tower and Airfield are "1", but this was already fixed. I remember there was one more bug in the GOTM scenario file, which mad-bax had fixed shortly before he disappeared, but I can't remember what it was?! Does anybody still remember? We can then re-fix it for the next GOTM if necessary.

Attached is now a new version of the GOTM.bix, which should hopefully be as close to the original as possible.

 

[Più Freddo]

I think that was the Worker for Settler mod. I did that in my file.

 

[Lanzelot]

Yes, could be.

By the way: in the current COTM110 I popped two towns from huts yesterday: one had instantaneously size 3 and the other one size 4. But popping towns is ok in XOTM, isn't it? Only settlers have been disabled?!

 

[Più Freddo]

By the way: in the current COTM110 I popped two towns from huts yesterday: one had instantaneously size 3 and the other one size 4. But popping towns is ok in XOTM, isn't it? Only settlers have been disabled?!

As far as I can remember, no one has found a way to switch that off. However, the sizes puzzle me. Does anyone know the mechanism for that?

 

[Più Freddo]

I would be more than happy to alternate with you and any others who want to create games. I could start with COTM 111 Korea if you like.

Hello greatbeyond, are you there? Will you create this game?

 

[Memento]

COTM 111 Release Date 10.01.2015

 

[Più Freddo]

COTM 111 Release Date 10.01.2015

No, we've had delays. The table in the first post is no longer valid. I have no access to it and can't update it. The current table is here.

The scheduled release date for COTM 111 Korea is 21 January 2015. Ideally, the game design should be ready by the 18th and a pre-game thread started. That gives us three days. So I guess, since greatbeyond has not responded here and not to a personal message I sent a few days ago, I'll have to get to work on it myself.

Any wishes as to the design?

 

[AlanH]

I'll try to update the first post tomorrow

 

[Memento]

Any wishes as to the design?

smaller than 110

 

[AlanH]

I'll try to update the first post tomorrow

Tomorrow came a little late.

The first post should now reflect the schedule posted by Più Freddo above. Please let me know if you spot any errors or omissions.

 

[Lanzelot]

You can pencil me in for GOTM139.

 

[Più Freddo]

I have now added greatbeyond as designer for COTM112 and Lanzelot (happy birthday!) for GOTM139.

 

[Più Freddo]

It is possible to play the Civilization of Austria with the standard distribution of Conquests if one changes the Pediaicons.txt file slightly. The leaderhead of Charles V and artwork for an Austrian Hussar as unique unit replacing Cavalry are provided but not enabled.

Enabling Austria is a manual step to be made using the operating system tools on the computer. It consists of renaming the original file to something else and either copying a replacement which would be provided or editing a copy of the original yourself.

This has alredy been made once in the COTM series, way back in COTM07. At that time there was a little test game before the real event in order to iron out any rough spots and allow everyone to solve technical problems.

Would you be interesting in playing Austria? Please vote in the poll!

 

[AlanH]

I have now added greatbeyond as designer for COTM112 and Lanzelot (happy birthday!) for GOTM139.

I've updated the game schedule in the first post. Please let me know if it is correct.

 

[greatbeyond]

Bix versus Biq issues.

The bix file Lanzelot posted is for the Play The World editor.

Conquests uses a Biq file. Now you can open a bix file with the Conquests editor and save as a Biq file. There are some differences in editor options with the Conquests editor (more options too).
You also don't have access to the new civs that were included with Conquests. Even when you save it as a Biq file they will not be there. I am not sure if starting with a bix file in conquests creates any other type of problem.

All of the changes listed by AlanH are already done in the standard biq file (by default) when you open the editor. Any additional changes that are made by the map creator would necessitate saving your working Biq file to another name.

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One change you may want to make sure to do is to change the probability that Iron will disappear to zero. (Resources Tab in the Conquests Editor.)

This was something that was agreed on a long time ago near the start of the GOTM/COTM series. The reason, as I recall, was that as a human player, you could start out with Iron ( or acquire it) and then have it disappear and never return, as well as not having another Iron resource. This could tilt the gameplay far in favor of the AI, but more importantly one competitor could have this happen while another never suffers the same fate greatly skewing contest results.

One other thing is to make sure Debug mode is turned off before you submit the starting save. I use it in play testing, but leaving it enabled would allow participants to cheat.

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I am experimenting with COTM112. One change I am working on is giving the Indians a "Fast Worker" just like in Civ4, it completes tasks 50% faster than a normal Worker. I am considering it to make the difficulty level a little easier for those not comfortable with Demigod. You would still be able to build a regular Worker for those who don't need the slight bonus and would still only require one starting file.