Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Thanks for your input Chris. You hate themes? :) I love themes. Especially if they can be fleshed out and are workable. I like the 3 realms especially. Sure they cut down on freedom somewhat, but that is sorta of the goal behind the RPG/Roleplaying/Scenario deal. I think though there may be more than 4 viable choices of nations for each of the themed teams so there may be some choice (if we only go with 3 human teams) and a wide selection (much more than the current game) of pretenders. Benefit of predefined or semi predefined teams (nations) saves time (unless your cool with first come, first sever) no need to auction/bid/ or use another scheme to assign nations. This game type doesn't appeal to everyone though, I am aware of that.

Interesting idea about duplicate nations, possible with the multi era mod, don't know about single age without creating duplicate nations.

Will look into the BDS mod.

Only 3 pretenders left to go:

Arco
Bandar Log
Marignon

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

More importantly, they cut down on the min-maxing, squabbles over who gets what nation, and playing to win instead of to have fun.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

The problem is that arbitrary restrictions hurt nations asymmetrically. Nations who want to take pure scales aren't very effected by having their pretender options limited. Bless nations who happen to get the blesses they want 'in-theme' stay really good.

On the other hand, bless nations who lose access to the bless they want are severely hurt.

Similarly, any nation who needs a rainbow pretender gets the shaft since you seem to have decided its unthematic to use your pretender to diversify. While nations who already have quite diverse magic don't get hurt as badly.

I'd say this makes the min-maxing worse, because there are some nations that are clear winners, and some nations that are clear losers, even moreso than usual (since you generally can't use your pretender to make up for your liabilities with the draconian restrictions imposed).

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Good counterpoints Squirrel. But you do sorta make the case for experienced players and the play to win mentality (perhaps the two go hand in hand). Well, I suppose you can't have your whole RPG cake and eat it too (or can you). :)

There are of course many ways to play and view the game. Many ways to view the nations. I tend not to view players or nations or anything or anyone else as "winners" or "losers" but that is just my naive thinking perhaps.

I think though that with 3 paths instead of two we might capture more of the thematic essence (such as in the 3 realms idea) of many nations and also expand the bless options. And pretender options will be greatly expanded.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Reminder, two pretenders left to upload:

Children of Crom:

http://img.youtube.com/vi/W5K3AKl5qpc/2.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWEQi...eature=related

Marignon (Jorus)

Usurpers:

http://i44.tinypic.com/15dkjs3_th.jpg

Arco (Penguin Zero)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

I think that if everything has been discussed, then these guys' teammates are perfectly capable of uploading pretenders for them.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Margie is in!

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Sure Ano, but I'd like to know Penguin is actually about and paying attention since the game is going to start shortly after his pretender is uploaded. I for one don't want to have to play multiple nations!

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

A prudent decision, though I share Ano's desire to get underway as soon as possible, I am aware part of function of pretender uploads is also to make sure the player is still alive! I don't want anyone playing multiple nations on a long term basis.

Options for Usurpers:

I still have Kupiko listed as an alternate for your team and Chrispedersen as Team Advisor. Perhaps either one can return.

Tonno, our alternate, may be interested (just needs to be sworn to secrecy/forget what he knows) :), or perhaps someone else you know.

Let's try to get underway as soon as possible though.:)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

If Penguin is still nonresponsive tomorrow, I support finding someone to replace him.

Note that I'm only subbing for Chrispedersen, so Chris stepping in to fill Penguin's shoes isn't really an option. He should be replacing me around the end of the week.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

[quote=Septimius Severus;745816] Kupiko has had internet problems in his other game and had mentioned dropping out. He has missed 3 turns. I thought Tonno was banned until he bought the game?

Jorus

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Penguin Zero's last activity was today, 02:34 and last post - in the middle of April. Perhaps we should PM him.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Ouch. I see you guys have started without me.

Probably for the better - I have fallen ill AND have a deadline. Sorry for keeping you waiting.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

I am aware of the issues with Kupiko. We do need to get this game going today, if at all possible.

Noobliss, we haven't started yet, so if you feel inclined the Usurpers likely need a person. Can you play at least temp?

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Unless you have an unorthodox team strategy (knowing Chris he probably does), or your Ashdod and/or willing to take risks, or employing SC pretenders, the first few turns are generally routine with not much happening. So failing anything else, if the build for Arco has been discussed, a pretender could be uploaded by the Usurpers teammates. The Usurpers could use that time to find a sub, take turns playing for the missing player, etc. I don't want to go that route but we may have no choice.

Captains (or acting Captains) generally have overall responsibility for subs/replacements on their team. As well as the player who is absent to some degree. This is why I encourage the lineup of alternates ahead of time and the continuing communication of team members. We all know how fickle fate can be. Dom3 games can run for long periods so a stalwart crew is essential for a team game. Sometimes/oftentimes captains must be proactive.

I am hearing something from Gandalf regarding Mictlan's pretender. Something about a forgotten password? Algae, what is going on? A single password for all team pretenders is a good idea in my opinion.

Jorus, Tonno, tells me he has acquired a legit copy of the game. His banning here, though would not necessarily affect his being able to play in our game (once he has gotten his game straightened out), we have our own team forums and such.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Is there any slots still open or too late?

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Probably Arco slot is still open in case you really are going to play :)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Arco slot definitely still open. Come chat on our forums once Sept lets you in!

Please PM me if you're definitely interested - i'll get a pretender submitted for you so you'll be all set to take your first turn.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Game is started. I've taken Arco's first turn for them. We are in need of a player for Arco longterm however.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. Upload Pretenders!
 

Ok, I am updating the main post and title thread.

Willburn and Militarist had indicated interest. Militarist was interested in the Usurpers at one point but everything was full at that time. Please contact them and let me know.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

I am still interested in the archo :) !!

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Willburn wins the first person to contact me prize! Sept, would you please give him access to the team forum?

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Thanks for letting me play guys :) I am really exited to play with all of you!

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Good luck, Willburn!

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarge! :)
At last!
And, Ano, you shouldn't forgot Uncle Chernomor for Pretenders' names. ;)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Welcome, Willburn.

Your forum account is good to go. Team rosters updated.

Good luck and may the best team win. ;)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Remember, I suggested adding another nation to our team? ;)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

I wanted to take minute to provide some clarification regarding direct connect and our game for our players, since many have asked questions and/or are not that familiar with direct connect.

1. You can play in multiple games via direct connect on Gandalf's server at one time, the only thing you need to remember/jot down is the port number for each game.

2. Our game should be running on both the fixed (currently 32 hour) timer and quick/fast host (all turns are in). So the game can/will host whichever comes first. Remind me to confirm with Gandalf on that as the default auto behaviour.

3. Your comp is only connected to the server for a few seconds when you connect, select your nation and enter your password. During that time your comp is either downloading a .trn file (if you are playing your current turn for the first time and/or viewing or playing another nation's turns)or uploading your .2h (orders) file. The rest of the time your offline, just like a PBEM game and can play your turn via the "Play an existing game" menu option. End your turn and when your ready to send your .2h, that is when you should select connect from the network menu.

4. You can view your teammates turns (especially useful for Captains and Advisors) easily. The thing to remember when just viewing someone else's turn is, after connecting, entering the password, and selecting the nation, remember not to hit the 'End Turn' button, but rather select the options menu and hit 'Quit Without Saving'. This prevents the comp from generating a .2h file and your accidently uploading a .2h for someone else when you don't mean to or otherwise causing them to stale.

5. When you connect to the game, you'll see the game timer and you can also mouse over the different nations to see (who controls them human/AI) and whether or not that player (if human) has submitted their turn (2h.) file. This way you can check on the status of your teammates turn submissions.

6. All in all, I think you will find direct connect is quite cool. It runs smoothly, leads to faster turn submissions and hosting, and automates a lot of tasks that you'd have to do manually with PBEM (creating folders, moving .trn and .2h files, attaching files to e-mails, etc).

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

It's a matter of personal taste, of course, but direct connect is pretty inconvenient, in my opinion. Although there're obviously some benefits for a team game (easier sharing turns, but):
1. Sharing turns can be easily implemented with setting up redirection at your email account. I do so whenever I play a team game and\or want to share turns. This is pretty easy and needs to be done only once.
2. No warning that the game will soon be hosted
3. No notification of the new turn available
4. No way to view staling data\logs and other useful features available at llamaserver
5. I haven't yet found the way to view score tables. Perhaps they are available from web at Gandalf's server (I don't know) but they're definitely not included in the basic direct-connect engine. Also, a very useful thing.
6. It's really easy to make a mistake when playing by DC. Submitting something wrong by hitting wrong button is pretty easy. Discussable but that's my personal opinion & experience.
7. Regarding "ease of sharing turns". Have you noticed already that once you choose another nation to play, the .trn file of the previously played nation is deleted from the game folder? Thanks god, they don't delete .2h! Yes, it's very easy to share turns, but to have more than one at once you need to
a) download a turn
b) create another folder (with different name)
c) copy the .trn there
d) repeat 4 times
I already created a .bat file for this purpose. Perhaps I may live with it. But is it convenient? Eh, I doubt it not to say the less
8. You need to password protect your pretender while you definitely don't need it with llamaserver. When you have two view turns of 4 nations each turn and reenter the password each time you restart dominions, it's irritating not to say the less

So, all in all, playing by DC is... decent at best. Llamaserver offers much more and there's little chance to make a mistake. I greatly respect all the work Gandalf does for this game and for the whole community, all this is no way aimed against him. I just think that Dominions direct connect engine just sucks in comparison with Llamserver and is no way "cool".

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Chris's saga continues:
I am in my new place, however the landscapers cut both phone and internet. AT&T says it will take 7-10 to trench and lay new lines, since they have to trench through pavers and driveway.

In the interim, I trust Squirrel implicitly.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

For those who maybe interested, I've completed my in-depth look at LA nations for game 3. I think I will go with 3 human teams (4 players each) and the 4 member AI team, plus maybe 1 merc nation. 12 or 13 human players total.

Each team gets their choice of several nations, I've listed them below in the order they meet the paths/themes. Path limits will be similiar to this game, 9+ in your team's paths, 3 or less in everything else. The genocidal AI team might be rainbow themed (level 6 or less in all paths).

Underworld Realm::evil: - Thematic Paths: Fire, Blood, Death

Themes: Devils, demons, darkness, undead, spirits, heat, hellfire, bloodlust, you get the picture.:)

Common unit attributes: Heat resistance, darkvision, H3/powerful preists, blood sacrifices, reanimation.

Nation Choices:

Abysia
Marginon
C'tis
Mictlan or Gath (not both)
Agartha

Earthly Realm::world: - Thematic Paths: Earth, Nature, Water

Themes: Humans, animals, creatures, plants, forests, mountains, lakes, dirt, rocks, sticks, etc.

Common Unit Attributes: Mountain/Forest/Swamp Survival, Assassins, Castle defense/seige/forge bonus, etc.

Nation choices:

Pangaea
Patala
Pythium
Jomon
Ulm
Man
Mictlan or Gath (whichever one is not taken by the Underworld Team)

Heavenly Realm::angel - Thematic Paths: Air, Astral, Water

Themes: Sky, stars, celestial magic, wind, snow, rain, ice, cold, storms, clouds, thunder, lightning, light, mental magic, temporal & dimensional magic, astrology, etc.

Common unit attributes: Cold resistance, fortune tellers, stealth troops, etc.

Nation choices:

Caelum
Midgard
Utgard
Bogarus
T'ien Chi'
Atlantis
Arco

AI gets whatever is left including choice of Ermor, R'lyeh.
Next up: Pretenders.

Comments, suggestions, balance experts?

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Actually very little of that has to do with whether its direct connect or pbem. Most of it has to do with the server and the person running the game. But basically everything available to one is available to the other if they want it. There is nothing about direct connect vs pbem which makes most of those things any different.

1) Not much reason this couldnt be accomplished the same way.
2) Also available in the same way. Thats a server thing, not specific to the mode.
3) Same again.
4) Same again.
5) Same again.

6) The only difference I see here is that "quick host" might be abit quicker with direct connect. So if you are the last person making the turn for that game then it might be harder to turn in another turn correcting your error. But if its a concern then direct connect can be done offline, and only connect when you are sure.

7) I believe that if you do all 4 at the same time instead of telling the game "I no longer play this one but instead play another" then the cleanup doesnt occur.

8) Im not sure if no-need to password protect is a good reason not to. But many people play on my server without it. Only occasionally have I ever had a complaint and that was even more rarely proven to be purposeful. In any case it was easily handled. I do see who does each turn.

The information files you refer to are a basic part of the game. The stats are by using the --statfile switch, and the scores from the --scoredump switch (already created in html webpage). Both are standard on all of my games, even the little blitz ones. I also often offer email notifications, email of turns, sms text messaging to cell phones, ftp, and a variety of other options for notification and turn handling.

While the LLama and Matryx servers have done wonderful jobs, they are both working with the same material. I tend to offer some extras like more switch support (such as for AI) or turning off the ability for players to go AI. I do admit that my server is hurt by the lack of a menu system. Its wide open for what the person running the game wants to do. If the various forums didnt already have me running over 100 active games I might fix that. But be cheered, if you choose to run a game on my server all of those options and more will be available. And I am usually available in the Chat (the link up by the Forums Rules on this page) if anyone has any questions about this.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

There has been much hype about PBEM but really much of what is available via PBEM is available via Direct Connect (on Gandalf's Server anyway).

A lot of options I haven't chosen to yet implement (I've been busy getting the game going) are available via Gandalf's server including: E-mail notifications of hosting, e-mailing of turn files, staling data and score graphs (both systems do this outside of the game), e-mail sending of .trn files, etc.

Regarding multiple turn sharing, if the game does delete a .trn file when you switch nations (meaning you can't view 4 trn files like you say simulateously) and if you want to do it, why not just copy the .trns somewhere else as they come in and replace them in the same folder when you are ready to view all the trns at once? :o

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Actually, correction to my above posts, you can actually select all of your teams nations to view at the same time and the comp will download all 4 .trn files. Just have to enter the same password 4 times (or different ones if you used a different team passwords, not recommended). At that time if you hit exit, you will see you have all 4 turns in the folder. You can now view those turns offline.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

chrispedersen
We'll be waiting for you!
Gandalf Parker
Actually I want to thank you very much for the job you're doing. I greatly appreciate it even though I rarely play. It's all your (and llama's) pure enthusiasm and I really, really appreciate this.
I do not want to say that something is good and something is bad, just expressing my opinion that basically without enhancements (a server and application) Dominions play-by-network system is very inconvenient. Llamaserver actually showed us how the things should have been done. And, frankly speaking, that would not be hard to implement inside the game. That's, once again, only my opinion.
Regarding this particular game, your custom AI options are very good, in my opinion. That's what is really useful to newer players. But if more options (at least something from what I mentioned above) are possible on your server than I'd definitely like it on in this game. Thanks in advance.
Septimius Severus
That's exactly what makes me cry. I described the steps a) b) c) -> repeat. Believe me, it's a lot less convenient then receiving 4 emails.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

you mean something like this? :)
http://www.dom3minions.com/lab/MakeGame.htm
Thats from a year before LLamaserver. And Esben Mose Hansens server showed us before that. And Matryx has showed us what it should be. But they all fill a niche.

Everything has its pros and cons.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Thank you :)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Yes, sure)

Btw, those AI + Atlantis are IMPRESSIVE...

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

To chrispedersen:
Good luck!
Abyssia and Gath are mentioned as old enemies. I would prefer that they do not belong to one team. And while LA Agartha is undead-oriented, I'd think that their connection to Earth is older and stronger (and there are few nations in LA without Death :) ).

Quite possibly. I'd say, in addition to Agartha question, that Jomon is probably may be also connected to Heavenly Realm - dragons, etc.

I'm also not sure that Midgard and Utgard belong to the same team - ancient enemies, too. Maybe Utgard would look better in Earth Realm? And not sure about LA Atlantis - maybe send them to Earth Realm? This would also bring advantage of giving amphibious nations to 2 teams...
About merc player - I already said that it would be good if they had a full range of spying/assassination abilities. Still not sure which LA nation would be best candidate, but maybe Ulm vampires? ;)

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

thanks for the kind wishes, ano, wrana.

With utgard, midgard, caelum, and bogarus you have a very credible cold team.

With abysia, patala, gath, ctis and marignon you have a credible heat team.

With Rlyeh, mictlan, atlantis, you have an excellent water team. Jomon would be an interesting addition, although personally I consider them horrible.
Of course it would require *water*. Which would suggest a different map. But since you are having fewer players, a different map is probably in order.

Mictlan, ulm, pangea and bogarus make a very credible blood team.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

For llamaserver games it is really for the best not to. Only the admin can change email addresses, so the only way to take a turn for a given nation is to send in turns from the email address the turns are attached to. There's really no need for an extra layer of security. And it would only add extra work for you each game, while making it (slightly) more of a hassle setting up subs. For a direct connect game I would always use a password, otherwise you're giving everyone the opportunity to look at your turns, even accidentally.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

As I mentioned, I was able to download all 4 .trn files for my team by selecting the 4 nations and hitting exit to go offline. All were in the same folder and could be viewed. They could also be played offline, which would generate .2hs which should not be deleted by the system according to what you have said. So if viewing 4 .trns at the same time is what your after it can be done quite easily, no need for a batch file.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

When you hit "no, reselect nations" after having connected to server, any .trn files that previously were in the folder, are deleted

If your goal is just viewing all your team's CURRENT .trn files (not older ones) in one sitting, when a new turn becomes available, connect to the server, "hit no, reselect nations" select your four nations, enter passwords, hit exit and the new turns are available to be viewed and presumably played as well offline. If as you say they are deleted when you next connect, you can reselect them again or wait to connect until you have finished viewing what you need to view.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Ok, the problem has been solved. I didn't know I could select more than 1 nation. Thanks, Septimius.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Yep, that's the beauty of direct connect for team games. As long as you use the same team password (to make things easier, the shorter the better), any member should be able to view/play any other members turns easily. You could actually select all of the nations in the game if you are the admin or know the passwords and view/play them all offline. When a sub is needed there's no need to change a nation's e-mail address (and the have to change it back) via the Llamaserver menu.

Of course probably the same thing can be accomplished via PBEM with a common/shared team e-mail address or e-mail forwarding (I think Llamaserver lets you use the same e-mail addresses for different nations, but I am not sure, been awhile). But why move files around and worry about e-mail attachments when/if you don't have to?

Wrana and Chris thanks for your input on game 3.

Wrana, old enemies of course doesn't mean they can't be on the same team if they are thematically similar. Its sorta of a clash between Good/Evil with the Earth realm someone in the middle. :D

Atlantis could reprise their role as the merc if desired, assassins can be added easily via .map file or mod, though a rainbow nation might suit them better.

Chris, if I use another random land map, I may choose to exclude R'lyeh (and Atlantis starts on land in LA anyway).I will be sure to pepper in some mountain and freshwater masks though and perhaps a few underground lakes. Or I can look for a suitable pre-made map that includes an even distribution of sea provinces.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

I see that Stagger has opened up another thread for our game on Sombre's forums (haven't been looking at it (the other forums) much). It's a love/hate relationship it seems and I've got detractors and supporters. Tell me something new! :D Critical perhaps, but it does provide an outlet, though it is painful to see the rifts in the community finally take their toll. I've always encouraged open civil debate and discussion though. Wherever it may take place. Squirrel, tell em to keep a spot open for me on the outlaw forums, in case I want do so some recruiting there for a future game. :) Hehehe.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

Not Sombre's forum, SS, a forum for people who just like to play this game. And you are welcome to join, post, and recruit without restrictions. Others are free to join your games or criticize your behavior as they please. It may sound a little rough, but it's working quite well.

http://z7.invisionfree.com/Dom3mods/index.php?act=idx

Come on by. And any level of player is welcome. Just try to bring a sense of humor, too. :)

Good luck with your game.

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

If I visit, I will need a sense of humor, that much is true. :) Every one is entitled to their opinion of course, but I do think people should be civil in debate and though we may have disagreements, we should always try be as friendly as possible towards one another. I say mend fences, but if you can't/won't do that, then why hold grudges? That gets us nowhere as a community or as people. Frankly, I did not think I was considered important enough to have my own critique thread. I don't think we have another Overlords situation on our hands though, but it remains to be seen how the merc idea will work out.

I do think people ought to be able to organize/join simple games, complex games, vanilla or modded, PBEM or Direct Connect, etc, as they please, in an environment which is conducive to that freedom and that right. I had always considered the forums here to be that place, and I hope it will remain so.

I've a question for Gandalf since I am relatively new to direct connect myself, Gandalf, what are the boxes [-] next to certain nations I see when connecting. They don't seem to have to do with turn submission status (since I seem to have noticed them for nations with completed turns and uncompleted turns). Am I wrong and they are related to turn submission status or do they have to do with who is currently connected?

Re: Noobs and Vets II: Days of Infamy. MA, BI. In Progress.
 

You mean the chain links? Those mean "connection".
Altho the game is pretty bad at seeing disconnects so some people seem to be hanging on after they leave because they use the red X to quit instead of the games disconnect.