Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I unfortuantly have so many projects at the moment that I don't really want to commit myself to a game, but as long as turns are at least 60 hours, if you are ever short of a player, PM me here (I usually check every couple of days) and I will be happy to join!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I’ve been planning to join KOTH for a while, but I had to wait for one of my two PBW games to finish before taking on another game.

Having played for less than a week on my first KOTH game, I really like how the game turn rate feels more like an offline AI game (22 turns in < 7 days.)

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Yep, they can move pretty quickly!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

The games do move pretty fast. The Glyn vs Fuzzie game is over Glyn’s time traveling dinosaurs defeated Fuzzie’s Dragon horde.

Good game Fuzzie!

I had a good starting position that aided by initial expansion greatly.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Congrats on your first win, Glyn! And for Fuzzie, look on the bright side...you didn't fall down the hill far http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Yeah was a fun game Glyn.

Thanks for the encouragement Slynky. Anyway, who wants to climb the hill when the bottom of it is so cozy? I can't fall off and hurt myself. :}

Can't wait till my next game. I don't know why more people are not involved with this. It's fun, challenging, and one can learn a lot.

Have a great weekend all!
Fuzzie

Fuzzie was but not no more! Cuz Fuzzie be a heap of "was a Fuzzie" on the floor.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif Your name reminds me of my grey cat, Mr. Fuzz! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif

...and to keep this slightly on topic, lets just say that I'll probably be keeping you company at the bottom of the hill for quite some time!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

That's funny. I have a cat named Fuzz Jr. Actually he has many names based on "Fuzz". This is not where my acronym came from though.

I am glad I won't get lonely down here on the bottom. Who knows, I may be the way for you to climb to the next stage :} . There's hope for ya!

Fuzzie

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Look on the bright side, Fuzzy. Your next opponent is a KOTH newbie (me), so you should be marching (or whatever it is you do) back up the ladder in notime at all.

Then again...I don't intend to make it too easy on you.

See ya in our game...at the other end of my gunsights!

(Please contact me to work out game details..Thx)

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Hello Child of the Emperor. What is the Emperor ruler of?

Did you get my email about the game? Let me know if it gets eatten by the email monster :}

Welcome to KOTH. I have only played one game so far. I am looking forward to evading your gun sites.

See ya in the battlefield (can space be called a battlefield?).

Fuzzie

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I'ts a Warhammer 40k reference, a Miniatures game set in the future (my other hobby). The forces I play are known as the Emperor's Children... I started posting with that name years ago and then kept the name in other forums.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Okay, thanks!
Fuzzie

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

On the first day, humankind discovered fire.
On the second day, humankind discovered writing.
On the third day, humankind discovered electricity.
On the fourth day, humankind discovered computers.
On the fifth day, humankind discovered the Internet.
On the sixth day, humankind discovered Space Empires.
On the seventh day, humankind discovered KOTH updates.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Quite the imaginative update there, Alneyan http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Rand has surrendered to Renegade 13:

It seems Rand got off to a bad start in the beginning, possibly due to some time off at the very beginning due to me having some fairly serious computer problems (Motherboard died). Whatever it was, when Rand surrendered I controlled a good 3/4 of the map with Rand controlling the other 1/4.

Good game Rand, and I hope to meet you on the hill some other time. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif Good luck with your next game!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Top news story!

Child of the Emperor beats Fuzzie.

At least in Fuzzie's eyes, the game started out really well. There was hope gleaming in her eyes, but when it came time to venture from her own system, she discovered she was stuck between her feroscious enemy and a ship eating black hole (in which the warp point that lead to it damaged ships). After struggling to try to find new planets to colonize, and to develop tech levels to enable her to build ships which could maneuver past the black hole, Fuzzie came under attack by Child of the Emperor. With their uncanny ability to build ships like rabbits reproduce, Fuzzie soon was infiltrated with enemy ships. Well, we can guess the final outcome, Fuzzie was soon compelled to declare defeat.

Good Game! Congrats Child of the Emperor

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Sometimes you can eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you... Unfortunately, Fuzzy was stuck in a difficult spot in this game. On one side was a ship-damaging wormhole leading to black-hole, and on the other we met in the first new sector Fuzzie could have established new colonies, so whilst we fought it out there I was able to expand uncontested in the other direction, and eventually overwhelm the dragons. I'd like to say it was skill...but realy it was just my better position. Good game, and thanks for sticking it out!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Hey Child of the Emperor! Don't under estimate yourself. You played a good game. Sorry, I couldn't give you more of a fight. Maybe next time.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Congrates Renegade 13!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Thanks, and good luck in your next game! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif I hate it when you get stuck in those bad spots, tends to make expansion just a little difficult http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Bad starting positions in KOTH was one of the main reasons Geo created the Balance Mod. For important games, I propose to my opponent we use it (so the map doesn't decide the winner before the game even begins).

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Fuzzie, hang in there! Your dragons will find a good nesting place soon!

Congratulation Emperors Child.


Congratulation’s Renegade, though I don’t understand how your mother board failure could cause Rand to get off to a bad start??? (Did you throw it at him?). I’m looking forward to our game!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Slynky, do you use this MOD in all your KOTH games, or just the important ones - like now, as you are the residing King. I would consider that an important game when someone finally makes it to you and challenges you.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

To All, I am curious. Does anyone have any idea how often a player is disadvantaged by location in the game? Also is it possible for a player whom has a bad location to win if the two opponents are different but equal in skill and strength.

Then one more question, if this occurs quite often, then why isn't the Balance MOD used as the default settings for all KOTH games? I know that there is one option in place in which a mediator can create a balanced map. I just ask these questions for info purposes. I am not complaining, whinning, etc about my own random location in my last game. It made the game very interesting and actually is a bit more realistic - you never know where a civilization will take root. I learned a bit at what not to do if I am in that position again. :}

Thanks for sharing and satisfying my curiosity.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I suppose it is possible for someone to win even in a disadvantaged starting position, but it's not very likely. Fortunately, it doesn't happen very often that such a situation occurs. I've played 9 KOTH games now (I think...) and on my 3rd game I ended up starting right next to my enemy, and had barely any room whatsoever to expand. In that spot, the only choice you really have is an immediate assault on your opponents homeworld, hoping that they're focussing less on defense, and more on expansion. Didn't work for me, but then again, I didn't expect it to! But I've only had a bad starting position 1 time out of 9, so that's not too bad.

What the balance mod does is basically kills all variety in the map. Every system has a single medium sized planet for every possible combination of rock/ice/gas and atmosphere type, thereby putting no player at a disadvantage. There's also (I think) no black holes, etc. It removes all advantages/disadvantages the map can provide, but also (in my opinion) kills anything that could make the map interesting, since every system is identical except for where the planet is in the system.

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif I'm not quite THAT evil! Nah, I'm not sure why the delay hurt him, but that's what he said in his surrender message so that's what I'm going on. At least, it was something like that, I may be misinterpreting (a likely possibility with me!).

I too am looking forward to our game, and good luck!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

It sounds like the balance MOD does take a bit of the environmental variety out of the game. I see why it is not used a lot more. It does look like it would be a great MOD to really determine who is a "Better" player, but this also can be miss leading. There are so many different elements to this game. I have discovered (since playing my two KOTH games) that a game winner is not easily predicted based soley on experience and skill/ability. How you set up your empire, your galactic placement, the computer generated map, and every single descision you make all determine the games out come (plus the addition of a little luck). I am so glad that all of you and whomever set up this game, set it up on the principle of just having fun along with the idea of learning to become a better player. It makes this league a much more enjoyable experience. Happy gaming All!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Default settings are pretty much as basic as they come: they were first set by Geo a few years ago, back in the days when there were no Balance mods (PvK Balance mod is also quite good in my opinion for Empires).

I know I am not too fond of the Balanced systems myself because they are so deterministic, and tend to make expansion a lot more straightforward, since you know what is inside each and every system. Expansion is perhaps even more important under the mod, as more systems always equal more resources, whereas you might have wealthier systems with random systems. On the other hand, I dislike very much random starting points, particulary the "start next to a neighbour" situation. So, tastes vary I guess.

I would say it is possible to win despite a bad starting spot, with a faster expansion, or cunning tactics (or plain old luck with the strategic battles). I know Primitive trashed me good in our battles in *that* game, while our economies were pretty much balanced, and I had an edge in Stellar Manipulation. On the other hand, in my first game with Belisarius, my undefended homeworld somehow kept at bay his four raiders, so quirks in the game can be beneficial.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Thanks for sharing your experiences/ knowledge/ opinion. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I would hope any challenger would agree to the Balance Mod for the Hill game. I also played the Balance Mod in the game that won me the chance to play for the Hill. Usually, on level 1 or 2, I just take a standard map.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Anyone who has played the game a lot knows the "space empires evenly across the galaxy" setting doesn't work. Around 3 out of my first 5 games stated be beside or one system away from my opponent. It got to be so bad I finally asked the question and then I learned it occurred often.

The problem is, by the time players arrive at the top of the Hill, their skill level has to be fairly close (assuming all the wins getting there weren't just luck), so being placed even slightly badly can make the difference in winning and losing.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

This makes a lot of sense.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Glyn, I'm sorry but there's going to be a slight delay in starting our game, due to my stupidity. I uploaded my .emp file not knowing that we both chose the same shipset! We must both have a fondness for the Jraenar it seems! I've sent a new .emp file to Alneyan (this time I'll be the Phong). I hope this isn't too much of a problem, and sorry for the delay. I shoulda checked what your shipset was before uploading my empire file http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/redface.gif

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

That’s Ok. I got a chuckle when I saw we had the same ship set. It might be interesting to play with the same ship set.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

We have had a major increase in players for the past few updates (five more players). If the current trend goes on, KOTH-goers will become a voting block, instead of a voting bloke.

In other words, yup, KOTH is again updated, and games are up and running.


I don't think playing with the same shipset would have been so bad here, since there is only one other Empire besides yourself (if it ain't yours, it ain't be good). Then again, I'm definitively on the lunatic fringe for "me no likes shipsets".

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Alneyan, go ahead and put me back on the hill. I've got an itch to play a few more games. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

That is wonderful news Alneyan!

I am curious though, why do you not like to use shipsets? I find this very interesting. :}

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I would much rather *know* where the enemy ships are, rather than merely looking at them. I sometimes think about my turns when I'm not at the computer, but I can only "picture" the presence of these ships then. Being unable to rely on the graphics seem to make it easier to recall all these details about the ships, including who they belong to, their rough status, and so on.

So, shipsets don't help me at all for that, and are somewhat of a problem: many shipsets are too dark for my tastes (or too small; the Praetorians are a case in point), and I have trouble seeing what sort of hull it is at a glance with most shipsets. So I only use one or two shipsets, the ones I am most used to and the easiest to "use".

I guess it's kind of odd, and I can't explain it any better than that.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Hehe, yeah, those Praetorian scouts of mine are hard to see sometimes. Even I miss them!

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Thanks Alneyan for the explanation. I wonder, are you a mathmatician of some sort? I am artistic and see things visually and the different types of ship sets help me remember where they are when mentally visualizing them. It is very interesting how different people's brains work. I wonder how many folks agree with you.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I do a lot of thinking in abstracts.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

well, you're a mouse..... just joking with ya. :}

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Having been notified there is a challenger for the Hill, I suppose the first thing to do is discuss the settings with you, Parabolize.

So, as you are aware, I prefer this sort of game to be played on the Balance Mod with manual placement of empires. After that, would you like standard settings or would you like to mix it up a bit http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...es/biggrin.gif?

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Oh, I know. Now just hold still for a second while I innocently reach for my hammer...

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

KOTH has been updated - again. Two updates in a row are quite unusual, so... well, they're quite unusual. I do have a problem though: I can't get the updates to show on my browsers. Does the rest of the world get the updates? If the site looks grossly outdated, I guess the last update (and this one) didn't make it.

If only the scouts were the only hard ships to see. Even Dreadnoughts are tough to see, and anything below Light Cruiser level comes with an in-built cloaking device. "Excuse me, are you trying to tell me you ran into an enemy fleet? I stared at the displays, and saw no such thing, so stop fighting the enemy that isn't there in the first place. Do you copy? Colossus, this is allied command, please respond!"

Fuzzie, I'm majoring in English, so that should answer your question. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif Okay, I used to have a very intuitive grasp of maths, but that didn't last for long. I'm sure 6 times 9 equals 42, though.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

And so, we know that God does math in base 13 http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

I don't see any updates. I assume that I should be on the second tier waiting with an open slot, but I still see myself listed as in a game with Fuzzie.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Looks like it did yesterday. That is to say, I see no one in line to play me as Parabolize should be http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Thanks. I have sent a message to Fyron, so hopefully it will all get sorted out.

I agree Douglas: Douglas Adams *is* God. Okay, perhaps not then: *I* am God, instead. A God that cannot edit a very minor part of his creation, let alone the whole World_1.6.exe thing, but still.

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

LOL

Re: Are you tough enough to be the \"King of the Hi
 

Hi Glyn...so nice to see you so soon in game! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif