Aurora 4x
VB6 Aurora => Aurora Chat => Topic started by: Panopticon on August 15, 2011, 03:52:00 PM
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As the previous community game seems to have petered out I thought I'd try to gauge interest in another one, albeit with somewhat different parameters.
I've been running this style with my friends for a few months and it seems to work pretty well, basically each player plays the role of a single faction and sets general policy and direction for the faction, IE their international policy, general trends in research, and long term goals of exploration. They hammer out agreements with each other in public forums or private messages and give their results and decisions to me via PM, then I advance time and work on the details.
My latest game with my friends included a mercantile oriented Arab empire. A xenophobic and hostile Holy European Empire, and the ever practical Russians. They each took distinctly different paths into space and squabbled, spied on, and traded with each other while doing so. For my part I designed the ships, ran the combat, and the exact details of construction and research, I also designed a Pirate fleet composed of ships stolen from all the factions based out of Titan and ran that as a villain till they got their act together and blew them away.
Would anyone be interested in playing this type of community game?
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I would be very interested. :)
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I'd be interested but I'd need to hear more. By 'factions' do you mean multiple groups working together to run a single government, or would they be separate but competing empires all starting from a single planet (like so many of the earth-based campaigns in the Aurora fiction section)?
If we're jointly running a single empire, how does decision making work? Majority rules? Secret ballot? Each player has a number of 'influence points' to spend to sway policy to their chosen path? Everybody controls 1/5th of the research labs?
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I'd be interested as well.
How closely would you keep this to Aurora? From what you write it's more of an abstract control the players have over their faction - I don't know what past community game you're refering to as I haven't been around for so long, so I'm eager for all the details you could give =)
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Father Tim, I usually run it with several separate but competing empires starting from the same planet, if you've read Steve's Trans-Newtonian campaign reports it is essentially like that.
I suppose there is nothing stopping a couple players, if they agree, from joint control of an empire though.
Vynadan, it is kinda abstract yeah, think of it as simply roleplaying without a set of rules in front of you. People can be as precise as they prefer.
The way I ran my last one is I provided the players with their starting resources, they would give me general or specific direction for how their faction would go forward and interact with other factions, then I would advance time for a while (exact time was not specified, could be a few months, sometimes a couple years) until something interesting happened, a goal was met, new designed ships were completed, an attack begun, or ruins discovered, things like that.
Once an event hit I stopped progression and did a report to the group of all the information that their factions would reasonable know, classified stuff would be reported to the individual via PM.
The players in turn would have private negotiations between each other, the results of which were reported to me. As well as public announcements and meetings which all could see. This allowed people to trade tech and resources, make and break alliances publicly or privately, and so on.
The level of detail in guidance is totally up to the player, you could present me with a list of tech research and goals and have me not deviate from it, or you could say something like "The Free Republic of Manila wishes to put a mean armed satellite into space as soon as possible, we are open to trade for the required technologies." And then just let me figure it out from there.
Though for trade I'd hope you guys could work out your own deals between each other, it was a part of the game my other players enjoyed.
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I'd be interested.
--Mav
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I now imagine it as a sort-of interactive fiction going on between several authors ... Sounds fun :)
Though dependent on the increments the players would need to be very active or just wait a while ... but that gives time to write nicely about what happened ... Yeah, I'd definatly like to have a go xD
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i'd be interested to participate.
as a 97% noob it would be interesting! i'd be like the mascotte empire. (Hetalia!)
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Sounds like it could be fun - perhaps I should resurect the old Nuclear War state of Dementia!
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So that looks like 5 people so far, that's a decent start, now we need to figure logistics I guess, specifically where to keep threads about this, I'd hate to just flood this one with the game stuff, might be a bit annoying for those who don't care to read it.
Also those of you who want to play should think about what kind of faction you want to run, create your character concept essentially.
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Perhaps ask for your own Fiction Section on the roleplay forum area.
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I was thinking of playing a xenophobic, espionage based, closed-borders Israeli empire, where the Mossad have taken over the entire government, displacing most of the civilian leaders.This would mean a strong espionage presence and an aggressive stance towards exploration and colonisation. This may not be conducive to trade, but there would still be some civilian leaders who fight the takeover, namely in the trade sectors. Remember: When everyone is out to get you, it's your job to know about it.
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my empire would be an italian meritocratic country led by a group of scientists
we would be set quite far into the exploration and exploit of the world for the research of SCIENCE!
But all while staying under a Fascist form of government.
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classy, anyone know who I should message to ask for my own section?
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classy, anyone know who I should message to ask for my own section?
That would be me.
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I'll take on the Nation of Deseret. Basically, Western Washington state, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico broke away from the US during the 2nd civil war to establish a democratic nation based around high moral standards, fiscal conservatism and religious ideology. Or in other words, the Mormons have taken over and are bound and determined to take their message, and population, to the stars.
:D
--Mav
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Interesting empires.
How about Orangia-- New Jersey secedes from the union on the principle of insufficient support for artificial tanning product research, and the refusual by the government and the UN to cover the use of such products under government supported healthcare plans. Their military might of thick-necked guidos is feared by all on the former eastern seaboard of the former united states-- and beyond.
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Feared? Or despised?
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I'd like to lead a Japanese Empire =)
Will it be a pre-TN or post-TN start? Or in what year would we start?
If it's to be a post-TN start I'd describe this Japanese Empire as a technocracy; After being a major technological centre of Earth in the previous decades the Japanese politics shifted with the discovery of TN materials, heavily investing into research and several scientists influencing the political scene from their publishing and research about the never before seen materials and their properties.
In addition to the 'tradional' democratic government Japan has to date a Scientific Council was founded, including a dozen or so of the nation's best scientists. This council functions as an advisor to the Prime Minister. Behind the scenes, the Scientific Council holds quite some power in the nation, as much of the Prime Minister's approval depends on his attitude towards the council, which the populace holds in high regard since the TN discovery.
Their policy favours research and the appliance of such technology to further advance scientific knowledge and explore Sol as well as further space in hope for new discoveries, ressources, potential earth-like planets to colonise for the overpopulated japanese isles and perhaps foreign, sentient life.
For a pre-TN start I'd obviously have to alter that quite some ... hmh.
I'd just claim that a group of researches are activly conducting research into the TN technology - this'd take until the faction researches TN tech obviously - and then a political and cultural change takes place in the until-then 'ordinary' Japan, leading to the above mentioned state within a few years. I assume an 'ordinary' Japan to be roughly the way we have it in the real world. If we get a subforum for this game I could very well write political or non game-essential 'updates' for my faction to outline the political changes and happenings beyond the game :D
*edit*
Actually, what'll be the options for the game? I guess real stars will be enabled as we're all heading out from Sol - but what about 'disaster', realistic commander promotions, political boni for officers, TF training, starting NPRs, our three little well known guests and - although I'm pretty sure it'll be on - maintenance? What does our mighty Dungeonmaster Spacemaster think, and the fellow players (a voting?).
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Actually I would vote no real stars, because you still start in Sol but you get cool things like nebulae and black holes! :)
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Actually I would vote no real stars, because you still start in Sol but you get cool things like nebulae and black holes! :)
I'd agree - also makes the system names less likely to be confusing.
On other options I'd suggest realistic promotions & political influence to be enabled, no disaster, maint on, no auto jump gates, TF experience enabled. For the unholy trio I'd suggest Precursors & Swarm yes from the start, Invaders to be enabled at some (random?) point by the SM. I'd suggest 3 Starting NPRs (in addition to the specials)