The S&T Times
- Thread starter Tambien
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MoreEpicThanYou
The most Epic.
That's 3 votes! *waits for interview PM*
mbkkbm
Silly American
I also nominate METY!
...
Ok, and you too
Excellent.
Verarde
Pondering Wearing A Hat
Thanks for the mention of my story! Update 2 is still being worked on, it appears that it will be lengthy. Lots of background and plot details there.
Tambien
Theseus, Duke of Athens
Special Edition!
Interview with Helmling
by Mayor
This month I have the honour to interview Helmling. In the last month two CiV stories have been concluded, The Philosiper King and Unbound. Both stories were written at the same time, with a similar writingstyle but apparently by different writers.
When we started thinking about this edition of the Times I needed a replacement for the S&T Writers challenge. So, I chose Unbound, a story that I had grown to like over the length of its publication.
Q:Are you truly Helmling?
I am Helmling. Thats my real name. When I play Civ, I name my character after myself and then I make it worse and name my cities after family and friends. The protagonist of the Philosopher King ended up being named after my son. So it feels a little absurd--okay, very absurd. Theres something inherently vain about playing a game that simulates having complete control over a civilization for 6,000 years, but I guess Ive taken it to a new level.
Q: How did you end up on CFC? And how did you end up writing stories?
You know, its been so long that I dont remember why I settled into CFC as opposed to the other online Civ communities. I know the first couple of stories I wrote, which were really just game reports, were posted somewhere else, but I cant remember where. I guess Im a little like my Unbound character in that way. My memory is terrible.
Q: You have been a longtime writer starting in 2004 with The Philosopher Kings series. You have written a lot of those, where do you find the inspiration for al these?
Well, Civ got its hooks into me many, many years ago. So usually my inspiration for writing a story is just having a really good game that I thought was interesting enough to share.
This time, though, I started considering doing another story after I read something about Platos Republic. Somewhere I happened to read that the Ayatollah had actually been inspired by the model of the Philosopher Kings. That got me thinking more about how manipulative Platos ideal society really was, which made me rethink the way I had used the philosopher kings as a utopian civilization in my games. I decided it was time to explore the dark side.
Q: Sisiutil, another great writer, can be quoted in saying that your Philosopher Kings series inspired him to write Princes of the Universe. How do you feel about that?
I really think hes proven himself to be the ultimate Civ story teller so Im very flattered that he would say that.
Q: In 2007 you began to write the story Unbound. This story ended prematurely because of a lost save. Why did you wait until now to give it another go?
Civ takes up so much time. Its been nearly twenty years of addiction for me. So when that save game mishap occurred, I guess I decided it was fate telling me not to spend heaven-knows-how-long writing another series of stories. Obviously, though, the idea was always there in the back of my mind.
Q: You recently finished The Unbound which was very well received by everybody. Where did you get this idea?
I really like the mythology Ive built up to explain the Civ experience. Basically, I made Sid Meiers Alpha Centauri a prequel for Civ. In this mythology, each Civ game takes place in a different alternate universe after humanity has been wiped out and rebooted by some super-powerful aliens. That explanation also gets me off the hook a little bit with using my own name. Since its another dimension, that means the Helmling in the game isnt exactly me. In fact, thats something I started playing with in really subtle ways in Unbound.
Q: People were rather disappointed that your story was finished; I know I was. Why did you end the story and not include an extra part?
I figured people might be disappointed that none of the three games in the stories were played through to a victory condition. For me, though, the stories are really a single meditation on power. Once Id followed the characters through the emotional arcs I wanted to take them through, the project felt complete.
Q: You recently finished a new story in The Philosopher Kings series. Can your fans expect a new part in the near future?
I think fans might be exaggerating. I am grateful to everyone who read through the story and enjoyed it. Any writer just wants to be read, first and foremost.
I will say, though, that there are always possible stories buzzing around my head when I play this game. That said, Im actually trying not to play right now. I have a few other writing projects that I want to focus on and Civ tends to push other things out of my mental queue.
I guess Ill confess that theres one idea in particular that wont go away. If I ever sit down to do it, then it would be by far the most ambitious thing Ive ever tried to write here--hell, it may be the most ambitious thing Ive ever written, period.
Tambien
Theseus, Duke of Athens
WARNING: DO NOT, under ANY circumstances, bump OLD, DEAD or FINISHED stories. They have been written and finished, they belong in the past, and any subscribers really don’t want more subscription emails. NEVER, EVER, NECRO THESE STORIES.
The Twelve Days of Civmas... well, it's old, but it's not exactly a story, is it? But it's Christmas, and this time round I thought I'd have a bit of fun with the article. A gift to all of you, so to speak.
It's not a long piece, I grant you, but the product of several posters, including the creator - PreLynMax - and Paradigm Shifter (producer of the unforgettable line
FIVE GOL-DEN AGES
) is both heartening and a good laugh, whichever Civ version you play. It includes a surreptitious reference to the old Spear beats Tank problem, and the good humour of all the participants makes for what is undeniably a good read.
And to all of you - Merry Christmas, wherever you are; whether you're playing in the snow, watching the rain or basking in the sun, make this giving (or should that be Civving?) season a great one.
~General Olaf
The Twelve Days of Civmas... well, it's old, but it's not exactly a story, is it? But it's Christmas, and this time round I thought I'd have a bit of fun with the article. A gift to all of you, so to speak.
It's not a long piece, I grant you, but the product of several posters, including the creator - PreLynMax - and Paradigm Shifter (producer of the unforgettable line
FIVE GOL-DEN AGES ) is both heartening and a good laugh, whichever Civ version you play. It includes a surreptitious reference to the old Spear beats Tank problem, and the good humour of all the participants makes for what is undeniably a good read.
And to all of you - Merry Christmas, wherever you are; whether you're playing in the snow, watching the rain or basking in the sun, make this giving (or should that be Civving?) season a great one.
~General Olaf
Seron
Warlord
Great interview Tambien! I enjoyed reading it quite a lot.
Tycho
AFK Forum Warrior
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2011
- Messages
- 3,240
Not yet.
JamesCaesar
People-Vulture
Oh choxorn, if only you knew what was happening behind the scenes of the times.
MantaRevan
Emperor
- Joined
- Oct 9, 2011
- Messages
- 1,537
AHHH!!! Sub post!
MoreEpicThanYou
The most Epic.
Let me guess: Tambien's missing, you're busy with the 2011 S&T Awards special, and of course the 2-page long tribute to me? 
Optical
The Fall of the Eleventh
Classified information.
Seron
Warlord
Ja, I have had a lot happening with me moving to a new house and other less important stuff. Hence, me taking this much time to respond.
Tomorrow's Dawn
Heroes Never Die
6th Edition
January 2012
Editor's Note
Welcome to the Sixth Edition of the S&T Times.
This month, we have another round of Story Reviews from Alexius08 and Tycho decides to shine the spotlight on the Caveman2Cosmos mod.
We are also pleased to present coverage of the 2011 Civ4 S&T Awards, hosted by MoreEpicThanYou. We hope you enjoy reading this edition of the S&T Times.
~Tomorrow's Dawn, acting editor
Story Reviews by Alexius08
Civ 3
Uncharted Territory: Aabraxan Plays Nice by Aabraxan
The story is set in an unmodded version of Civ3, playing as the Turks on an Archipelago map.
With a promise to be nice to the AI opponents, the author avoided waging war as much as possible until he started one against the Germans.
Then the Persians followed and drew the Sumerians against his side, after which, he managed to score a cultural victory with some wonders in his capital.
His gameplay remained somewhat faithful to the theme of the story, although there were times that he was excessively aggressive on his neighbors.
If he remained pacifist however, he could have performed better with respect to the theme.
Score: 84/100
Civ 4
The PETA Alliance: A No-Animal-Cruelty Variant Report by AWeeMoose
In this story, the author played with random civs for himself and his opponents. He decided to be nice with all animals he met;
he avoided any and all forms of animal exploitation (including trades involving animal resources),
he freed them from people who subjugated them, and he never dared to attack them without being provoked beforehand.
Although most short stories are disappointments for omitting some details,
this one had the perfect balance between brevity and complexity. As he explained,
"I prefer to write short, humorous comments to long, non-sensical, fictional tales".
Score: 88/100
Civ 5
Betrayal of the Gods - Montezuma Seeks the Stars by nanothegreat
The story is played on an unmodded version of Civ5, as the Aztecs.
Montezuma is depicted as a leader who slowly lost his belief of the Gods after suspecting a conspiracy to destroy the world.
He then turned to science and tried to construct a ship capable of reaching the heavens as he prepared to wage war against the Gods themselves.
Written in a dialogue format, the main character reflects the development of humanity as it pushed against established traditions in the pursuit of knowledge.
The dialogue in my opinion, is flawless.
Score: 89/100
Mod Reviews by Tycho
Hello there once again, fellow members of the S&T forums, today we will be going over the Caveman to Cosmos modification for the Civilization: Beyond the Sword expansion.
Some of you might have already heard of this mod before. That is because of one simple reason; Caveman to Cosmos (also abbreviated to C2C) is easily the largest Civ4 mod out there, larger than even Rise of Mankind: A New Dawn. C2C has earned a fearsome reputation as a computer killer, slowing down and crippling even some high end ones. If you're looking for the biggest & baddest mod out there and have the proper rig to handle it, C2C is the mod for you.
The list of features is enormous in scope:
Spoiler :
A substantial listing indeed. With everything that's been included in this mod, there is just about anything that could happen…
A writer can go just about anywhere with a C2C story. Take Vokarya’s AAR, Ramkhamhaeng of the Incas for example. Ramkhamhaeng of the Incas is both an entertaining and informative read into the world of C2C. It's a good place to start for anyone who wishes to learn more about the Caveman to Cosmos mod before they fire up on their own rig.
All in all, C2C is a huge mod with an incredible amount of features. You can do just about anything with this mod, with its' near unlimited possibilities, so feel free to experiment first! See what you can do with the mod, and if you're feeling creative, develop a story for your game and post it on the forums for all to see.
Credits to the makers of the mod and all assorted mods in this collection-compilation:
Spoiler :
Link to most recent version HERE: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=288570
2011 Civ4 S&T Awards Coverage by Tomorrow's Dawn
The 2011 Civ4 S&T Awards was created and hosted by MoreEpicThanYou, a well-known member of the Civ4 Stories & Tales community.
His objective was to form a general consensus of the best written stories of the year by reaching out to the community.
The first round fired up in the Narrative Category with Hammer & Steel pulling ahead of the pack with a whopping 10 nominations,
setting itself apart as the clear leader with a 3 point lead on the first round runner-up, The Celestial Bureaucracy.
Competition in the Comedy & History Book Categories was not so one-sided in comparison, although Glory To Greece: All Trade Leads To Athens & An Iberian Love Story
held the leads in their respective categories, strong competitors were not far behind.
To qualify for the second round, a story must have accumulated at least 3 votes.
And while voters could nominate their 3 favorite stories in each category; voters in the second round were only allotted 1 vote per category.
In Narrative, The Celestial Bureaucracy managed to reverse its' fortunes against Hammer & Steel, taking home 7 of the Narrative votes.
Comedy was conquered in one fell swoop by the fan favorite, Welcome To RandomLand.
And finally, Pharoahs, the Lords of the Sun took the History Book category amid strong competition in the form of An Iberian Love Story.
Congratulations to all the winners and the nominees from all of us here at the S&T Times.
And that concludes our coverage of the 2011 Civ4 S&T Awards, hosted by MoreEpicThanYou.
Links to the thread can be found below.
Round 1 Nominations
Round 2 Nominations
Winners Announcements
hoplitejoe
Top fun-poster
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2010
- Messages
- 5,470
The Civ4 story review link is wrong.
Good to see this still going though
Good to see this still going though
May I suggest a mod request section? Technically I'm looking for interest in a mod based off of Orson Scott Card's Memory of Earth and sequels or Ender's Game and sequels or both. Thanks for any interest, PM me if you want, I don't care
EDIT post 1501.. now I'm going to go see where I put 1500...
EDIT post 1501.. now I'm going to go see where I put 1500...
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