Turns of RP1 game

Tau Ceti · June 29, 2000, 16:44

Players (in turn order):

Gaians: Basil, Michael_Carney@mindlink.bc.ca
Peacekeepers: JoeR, un6b@rz.uni-karlsruhe.de
Hive: Waynehead, waynehead@prodigy.net
Morgan: Velociryx, quazimojo1@aol.com
Spartans: Kinjiru, jonathon_wood@rocketmail.com
University: Ogie Oglethorpe, Ogie_Oglethorpe@velociryx.every1.net
Believers: Googlie, googlie@mybc.com

Moderator: Tau Ceti/Basil

Settings: Huge planet, abundant native life, average everything else.

Other settings: Standard except no Unity Pod scattering.

Additional rules:

1) A faction may not use any advanced SE setting that conflicts with its agenda. For example, the Morganites may not use the Green setting, because it conflicts with Free Market. They could use Simple economics, because that is not an advanced SE setting.

2) A faction may not win a cooperative victory with another faction with an incompatible agenda. In this particular game, this means that the Hive may not win a cooperative victory with the Peacekeepers.

3) Research settings: Factions emphasize their "default" interests when researching. (The default interests are:
Gaians: Explore
Peacekeepers: Explore, Discover
Hive: Conquer, Build
Morgan: Build
Spartans: Discover, Conquer
University: Discover
Believers: Explore, Conquer)

4) No cheats. Refer to the various cheats threads if you are unsure, or pose a question here.

5) This is a role-playing-oriented game, so play your faction to the hilt, and don't worry too much about winning!

[This message has been edited by Tau Ceti (edited June 29, 2000).]

Basil · June 29, 2000, 21:41

MY 2102 to JoeR (Peacekeepers).

Thanks to Tau Ceti for setting this up!

Lt.-Commander Deirdre Skye, lately Chief Botanist & Xenobiologist of the Starship Unity and now de facto leader of a ragtag band of humanity struggling to eke an existance from the soil of the planet named Chiron, looked with satisfaction out of the window of her improvised headquarters and over the clearing below. The botanical staff had done wonders, finding places to plant so many of the seeds brought from Earth, and quickly and effectively training the other colonists who had joined the botanists' colony capsule. But the clearing in question was the site of the greatest experiment: would trees really grow in this radically different environment?

It seemed strange, and so lucky, that although the atmosphere was unbreathable by humans, Terran plants could prosper in it. Deirdre's calculations showed that white pine would prosper in this clearing. It seemed unbelievable... so unlike the native home of the pine in far-off Canada. Deirdre smiled to herself. If her calculations were right, and even these pine grew, the little colony would have little fear of hunger once the first crops were in.

[This message has been edited by Basil (edited June 30, 2000).]

joer · July 1, 2000, 00:19

Turn MY 2102 to Hive.
--
Two colony pods, under the guidance of the space navigation pilot subcommittee, made their safe landing today on a larger landmass of the peaceful planet, Chiron. However, since there were still communication and interface problems with the geography and exploration subcommittee, the landing sites did not show the expected plant and nutrient density. A new subsubcommittee for communications has been set up, so this doesn't happen anymore.

For now, the leadership of all committees has been handed to Chief Commissioner Joseph Ral, until we get the infrastructure up to elect him in a democratic voting system.

So far, the radio frequency observation institution has received no other communication frequencies on any channels. As long as we are here alone on this planet, our talents can build up a legal and institutional system to provide and guarantee fairness and human rights to all of our citizens.

-Report of the press committee, in the representation of the UN on Chiron, UN HQ, MY2102.

Tau Ceti · July 2, 2000, 07:32

The birds and animals fall silent, the clouds split open, and a dazzling light begins to shine through. In the middle, one can make out the face of an old bearded man.

'My children, wherefore go you not forth to prosper and multiply?' he says in a booming voice. 'What causeth this delay?'

waynehead · July 2, 2000, 13:25

Passed to morgan.

Basil: it's bad enough that you and your ilk survived planetfall, the last thing I need is superfluous, inane messages questioning my actions. Perhaps if you stay quiet you can stay alive.

-----

PS: I've been outta town since friday, so I apologize for the delay.

Kinjiru · July 5, 2000, 16:15

As the three Prime Evils gather in this new land they chuckle as the recall their victory over the young 'paladin' Vel and the forces of good...

********************************************

Vel, where are you my man. Has Diablo II overtaken your world?

Kinjiru · July 8, 2000, 15:56

In a brief moment of respite, Commander Kinjy paused to reflect on the last few months on this strange new world.

In the crazed moments prior to the explosion of the Unity, most of the 'Spartan' forces were scattered. And sadly, most did not make it out of the inferno alive...

However, those who did manage to make it to the escape pods quickly established contact with the others once everyone landed safely. Unfortunately, long-range transmissions are still impossible, though his comm crew was working non-stop on the problem.

It seems impossible that the only ones who made it to Chiron were the Commanders people and so establishing contact with any other survivors is critical. If any others are found and can be consolidated into the new Spartan society, then all would be well. If not, well, the Commander would not let the rights of his people to be constrained by others. Kinjy's people were well trained and armed, and would meet any threat will their full resolve.

A smile crossed the Commander's lips as he thought about how quickly their first outpost came together. Dubbed 'Sparta Command' the outpost was cobbled together from the equipment in the Unity pod, and the wreckage of the pod itself. Though thier little fortress was little more than temporary shelter at present, the Commander had personally charted the construction plans for the future and the base would become a true fortress... with time.

The smile darkened however, as the Commander once again pondered the native fungus. While their landing spot was burned clear of the cursed stuff, the surrounding area is still full of the reddish plants, making initial scouting nearly impossible. The supplies for a second outpost are ready, but until the outlying areas can be fully scouted, the Commander was loathe to commit to a base site.

But, life would be boring without challenges to overcome...

**************
Turn sent on to Ogie!
[This message has been edited by Kinjiru (edited July 09, 2000).]

Ogie Oglethorpe · July 9, 2000, 06:55

Extract from "Personal Research Diary, Professor ZarkOg - MY 2102"

"The breaking of the unity offers a grand experimental opportunity into the realm of Social Sciences. My plan is then to catalogue the events as a record of this scientific endeavor.

My2102 marks the beginning of this 'experiment'" then. While the whereabout and even existance of others from the unity mission are unknown, the members of this experiment have banded themselves together in a home base if you will, named University Base. We found ourselves extremely blessed in that we were able to aquire Unity Mainframe technology and have incorporated into the escape/colony pod configuration. We beleive this approach going forward will allow unparalled inter-departmental/base communication and speed our research efforts nicely.

Our research efforts and ability to research will undoubtedly be the most paramount issue we face in the upcoming years"

********************************************

Turn sent to the slow witted, self rightous, backward thinking believers.

Its in your hands Googs. Good luck.

Velociryx · July 10, 2000, 16:11

Vel sat in the pressure tent and contemplated the day.

Not bad....nobody died. A few banged up and bruised, of course, and everybody scared to death, but that was to be expected.

One of his functionaries came in, a lovely red-haired woman with ivory skin and arresting green eyes. He made it a point to remember her name when he'd seen her shortly after the first assembly.

"News, Jenna?" He asked, raising an eyebrow as he took her wonderfully soft hand.

"Yes. We've got the colonists broken up into two teams, as you requested and are ready to depart."

"Excellent....inform the Alpha group that I'll be leading them, and have the Beta group elect someone to serve as the leader. I don't need to know who it is, but when they find a suitable base site, their first task will be to establish a means of communication with us."

She nodded. "I'll attend to that right away, sir."

Vel scoffed, and she turned around, curious.

"Don't ever call me "Sir" again." He said with a smile. "Doesn't fit."

She smiled back. "I'll see you when you're ready for the Alpha team to depart."

Now it was his turn to smile. "You're with Alpha group then?"

"Of course."

She departed, and Vel steepled his fingers together and blew out a long sigh. Soon, the Chironian Corporate Wonder would be born, and he could at long last begin the arduous process of creating the most amazing economic engine of sucess ever seen on either world the Human race had set foot on, and when the seed they were about to plant took root and began to grow, it would usher in an era of peace and prosperity unmatched anywhere.

Briefly, his thoughts turned to the other leaders, and his heart went out to them. Good folk, all, but somewhat misguided. Most of them were Hell-bent on pursuing out-dated philosophies or dogma, but his people....ahhhh, there was the rub....his people would be building a society where creativity, drive, and ambition were well respected and rewarded, and under such a free and open system, how could they do less than thrive wonderfully here in this new place?

And they had good ground, too. Rich and fertile, according to preliminary analysis, their new homeland should be more than capable of providing them with everything they'd need to build their economic engine from the ground up....all that remained to be done was for the final order to be given, and the march through this wonderland-wilderness would begin.

Slowly, he got to his feet.

It was time to begin.

-=CEO Vel=-

Rynn: · July 10, 2000, 22:49

MY2102

The braking thrusters deployed as the cumbersome escape pod plummeted to the surface of the Alien planet. Brother Joaquim was leading the singing, but as I glanced over at Sven I noticed that he was gripping the restraining harness tightly with white knuckles. “Funny,” I thought. “He must have paradropped many times from aircraft – and I was sure that he’d been on several of the planetary expeditions as well.”

His eyes caught mine, and a wan smile formed at his mouth.

“Sister Rynn, I’m … terrified of flying,” he said.

“Sing, then,” I commanded. “It’ll release the tension.”

He grunted.

“….walk upon Chiron,s pastures green, And did that countenance divine…”

I looked around the faithful. “What were we getting ourselves into?” I wondered.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++

The landing was hard and jarring, the shuttle escape pod finally resting at an awkward angle just above the beach of a small continent.

I was the first to the hatch, keying the controls.

“Password”, came a metallic voice.

I almost uttered a profanity.

“Password?” What password? Why wouldn’t this hatch open? Were we doomed to spend eternity locked in a mechanical cell, delivered from the holocaust of the Unity’s last moments to perish as prisoners for want of a password?

I looked over at Sven.

“Stand back,” he commanded, unslinging his shredder rifle.

One blast, and the door was blown open.

Grabbing our breathers, we stood and surveyed the alien landscape.

“New Jerusalem,” I said, reverently.

The faithful took up the refrain.

Rynn: · July 10, 2000, 22:51

(Explanation:

You'll get a warning that I played the turn twice - I forgot that Bas had assigned passwords, and tried to open it with my own, clicking on OK afterwards - I guess it played the turn with nothing happening.

Then I remembered, found it, opened the .sav file again, and so you'll get the replay message)

Rynn

Basil · July 10, 2000, 23:25

Umm. For whatever reason, I can see the whole map.

Don't know why this would happen, or what people want to do about it.

Turn to JoeR.

[This message has been edited by Basil (edited July 10, 2000).]

Rynn: · July 11, 2000, 02:07

For presumably the same reason I too could see the whole map - wasn't sure if we were meant to so didn't comment.

One unusual thing, tho. I always change the SE allocation for the Believers for the first ten turns to max out the credits (no point in allocating to labs when nothing happens for ten years), but when I clicked the HQ/SE choices I was prompted as to which faction - I could have changed any faction's.

Glitch somewhere.

Sister Rynn

Tau Ceti · July 11, 2000, 15:57

Ah, the scenario editor has been activated. That is a nasty bug which shows up from time to time. The editor will be activated in all PBEMs that pass through that particular player, and will be available and fully functional to all players thereafter.

Usually, a reinstall will cure it, so I guess someone will have to perform that... who was the first player to be affected? Ogie? Googlie/Rynn?

In any case, this game will need to be restarted. Can you play with the same map again, or should a new one be made?

Ogie Oglethorpe · July 11, 2000, 21:28

The map was visible to me as well.

Ding Dang Doodley!!! (it's the Ned Flanders in me coming out!!)

We just got on board one turn down and now a restart. I imagine I'll be able to explain all the rules and allow my unborn to play in my stead by the time this game gets interesting. Ohh well. Any journey begins with the first step so.... let's try it again if we must.

Kinjiru · July 12, 2000, 17:18

"Mmmm.... butter-flavored Dang Doodley... mmmm..." (and yes, that would be my Homer Simpson coming out...)

I do not recall seeing the full map in my game. Ogie, could you see it?

Rynn: · July 12, 2000, 17:58

I'd vote for a new map (remove the temptation to peek at the still saved old one)

Would also give you the chance to change Believers to Sister Rynn

(And Kinji - I don't doubt you don't recall seeing the map - you missed seeing Ogie's opening line as well .... just poking gentle fun)

Rynn

[This message has been edited by Rynn: (edited July 12, 2000).]

Kinjiru · July 13, 2000, 08:00

Ah yes, right you are Rynn. Guess I was blinded by all the Simpson's stuff running through my head... =)

Tau Ceti · July 13, 2000, 16:14

Looks like we have tracked down the source... I will send a test game to Ogie and restart the game on a new map when I have the time.

Kinjiru · July 13, 2000, 18:12

The problem might actually lie on my end. I am running the NoCD crack and that could be causing the issue, though I doubt it.

I won't be checking in much for the next two weeks... off to Puerto Rico! See you all when I get back!

joer · July 14, 2000, 11:29

After a forced non-SMAC-break of a few days (holding up any pbem games I am in), I see that this game has some problems. I played my turn, but ran into the same problem: whole map visible, all faction datalinks revealed, scenario editor on.
I will not send the next turn to waynehead, but will wait instead for the start of a new game. I vote for new map, since some of us have seen this one. I'd also like to be in the next game.
-joer.

Googlie · July 22, 2000, 09:20

Status?

Rynn: · July 24, 2000, 17:02

TauCeti:

Any luck?

It looks like kinji will be back around the 28th or so, but it sure would be good to get this game restarted.

Rynn

Tau Ceti · July 25, 2000, 11:48

It should be ready by then at least.

Kinjiru · July 27, 2000, 13:38

I am back and ready to give it another go.

Tau Ceti · July 28, 2000, 20:40

Ogie, if you are reading this and do not check your mail too often, I sent you a test file yesterday to check for the scenario editor bug. I cannot restart this game until I get your reply. Apologies for not sending it earlier, though.

Kinjiru · July 30, 2000, 13:45

Any word from Ogie yet?

Tau Ceti · July 30, 2000, 18:04

No, nothing so far. Maybe he is on holiday too.

joer · July 31, 2000, 06:34

I got a mail from Ogie this morning (a turn from another game), so he should be around.
-joer.

Tau Ceti · July 31, 2000, 08:42

Well, if he is in other games without the same trouble, that is all the confirmation I need. Time to send out version 2...