Aurora 4x

VB6 Aurora => Aurora Chat => Topic started by: sublight on June 11, 2015, 05:51:57 PM

Title: Looking for Players: Multi-faction scenario
Post by: sublight on June 11, 2015, 05:51:57 PM

Hey, I was planning on starting a new game for an AAR featuring two or three factions pitted against each other in a King of the Hill or Capture the Relic type scenario.

All civilians, colonies, and most of the galaxy would be pure background fluff absent from the actual game to keep time flowing fast and action packed. Just two or three home world systems, the prize system, and two or three empty intermediate systems.

Would anyone be interested being a player in a small combat-focused multiplayer scenario? At the very least I was hoping a few people might volunteer to suggest technology/fleet strategies to make the factions more distinct.

Background teaser:

Parallel Worlds:
Humanity never did conquer the stars, but the invention of the Jump Drive was in some ways better. With a small gravitational impulse at a resonance point one could jump into the dimensional void. Shift your focus, pop back, and bam! A new version of Sol from a parallel dimension. Mineral deposits could be re-exploited. Industrial processes could run without risk to the home world. Some alternate versions of Earth were sterile, others were contained fertile biospheres ready for colonization. Once we even found an alternate version of ourselves jumping between the Sols. The initial misunderstanding was somewhat regrettable, but it did drive innovation to new heights before peace was made that lead to a new golden age of trade and exploration. Sadly, this peace was far frailer than most thought: based on duplicate resource in plenty too cheap to justify conquest with no need or incentive to actually share territory. Once the Unique was found peace was doomed. Only one could claim it, and that one would be us!

Title: Re: Looking for Players: Multi-faction scenario
Post by: Panopticon on June 12, 2015, 01:27:01 AM

I'm down

Title: Re: Looking for Players: Multi-faction scenario
Post by: AL on June 12, 2015, 02:03:03 AM

I'm interested in hearing more.  I've got exams coming in a couple weeks but after that I should be free.

Title: Re: Looking for Players: Multi-faction scenario
Post by: sublight on June 12, 2015, 07:48:21 AM

This is the first-draft on the scenario setup. If anyone has a strong preference to see something changed shout out.

The Objective

• Deliver construction battalions to The Hill
• Defend the hill long enough to excavate the MacGuffin. (2 battalion years?)
• Transport the MacGuffin back to your home world. (As bulky as a terraforming installation?)

Galactic Setup

• Two or three player factions only. If there is overwhelming interest I can setup extra games, but they would have to be run by others.
  
• Only the 5-7 systems of strategic interest exist on the galactic map. (the home worlds, the Hill system, and connecting 'jump space' systems)
• Jump points in Solar Systems are 3.5 billion km from the Sun as seems to be average.
• Jump points in the intermediary systems will be 2 billion km apart to give a total 9 billion km separation between Earths.
• Starting jump gates only on JPs leading out of home system.
  
• Military colonies only, and only in the parallel Sol systems. (Listening posts, ammo/fuel dumps, PDC guardians, etc)
• Civilians and their colonists, mining centers, etc exist only in write ups and will not participate in the scenario.
• The minerals supply chain also exists only in writing, so no mineral restrictions.

Faction Setup

• Standard 500 million start.
• Standard industry, shipyards standardized at 4: Two each for naval and commercial construction: One small (3 expansions) and one large (5 expansions). Each expansion is either +1 slipway or 2x max tonnage. Alternatively, a small shipyard may be scrapped for +40 factories of choice or a large scrapped for +80 factories of choice.
• Standard 8,000 BP for starting ships/fighters/missiles plus additional 4,000 BP for additional PDCs/fighters/missiles.
• Starting ships must fit in a starting shipyard.
• Factions start with all TL3 technology plus 36k RP for customization.
• TL1 and TL2 components may be researched for free. Other components may pay research costs out of either customization RP pool or BP pool.
• One or more techs worth at least 6k RP in total purchased from the RP pool must be designated 'New, not yet in production.' So you can start with magnetoplasma drives researched, but it should not be possible for any starting ship or missile to be equipped with that.
  

My definition of Tech Levels:

Off-Topic: show

TL1: TransNewtonian Starting tech.
TL2: Any tech 2.5K or less with no prerequisite techs costing more than 1.25K. Also includes Pebble Bed reactors, Nuclear Pulse propulsion, and Jump point Theory.
TL3: Any tech 5K or less with no prerequisite techs costing more than 2.5K. Also includes Fast Reactors, Ion propulsion, and any tech 2.5K or less that required Jump Point Theory.

MultiPlayer Mechanics:
If we go this route turns would be run in 10 day auto-increments until something of strategic interest happened or 3-months pass without incident. So if a battle occurs on day 11 the faction leaders would be notified on day 20. Fleet admirals will be take initiative, and standing orders or contingency plans are encouraged. I will try to process turns within 7 RL days. I ask that factions be prepared to have order updates within 3 RL days of a major event (battle aftermath), or a day an a half of a minor update (sensor contact update).