MP: Mo-Fr 12.00hUTC fixed scheduled (running again
 

Schedule:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 12.00h UTC plus QuickHost, which essentially means that you have at least 24h to complete your turn and more time on the weekends!
(12.00h UTC = 13.00h BST (UK) = 14.00h CEST (Europe) = 07.00h CDT (Central US)) = 06.00h MDT (Denver))

Settings:
standard MP.

Map:
Karan (6-8 Players)

Nations:
See next post.

Now hosted at:
Host: zombie.dyndns.org
Port: 10000


{EDIT: Initially the topic was "MP: slow 99h Quick-Host", but we refined the schedule now. The acutal schedule wont change anymore.}

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Nations:

Abysia:JJ_Colorado
Ulm:Mark the Merciful
C'tis:Kel
Caelum:Chazar
Marignon: undead dolphin hacker
Pangaea:Cainehill
R'lyeh:Pickles
T'ien Ch'i:Reverend Zombie

[ June 21, 2004, 08:57: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

A topic of "50h Quick-Host" with 80 hour turns is somewhat misleading. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

You might consider 48 hour, no quick hosting. (48 is better than 50 (or 80) because the turns are due the same time of day and don't shift around.)

Or 48 hour QH, and make sure you get your turn in on the Last hour or so, thus kicking off the next turn, which you take, and probably have at least 72 hours, possibly 96, before the next turn is due.

This would work especially well if you ask someone in the game to delay their turn on those weekends, helping to ensure that it takes closer to 48 hours rather than 24 or less.

If you get one going, I for one would join (especially if it winds up having any sane hourly setting - 48, 72, or 96). But you still need a hosting solution, and if it takes a month to start, I may already have a full plate.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

I'm in and would like to try a big map using Abysia. I like the QH idea....

John

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

If it's a regular interval (24,48,72,96) and *not* quick hosted, I would be in for Abysia (or C'tis) http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif
- Kel

[ June 17, 2004, 17:42: Message edited by: Kel ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

@KEL: Where is the drawback with Quick-Host? Even with Quick Host, the time limit is still at least 48h, so I dont see the drawback of enabling quick-hosting.

Or do you suggest a fixed schedule?

@ALL:
If anyone of us ecounters an open slot at moosehansen's server: grab it! If there isnt a slot available withn the next two weeks, I'll host via PBEM if no one else volunteers... (sigh)

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">The drawback (as I've just discovered in another game) is suddenly unpredictable deadlines. With a fixed and regular turnaround, you can get into a routine; with an ever-changing schedule - because of quickhost - you can miscalculate and suddenly find you've missed a turn, which is very frustrating.

Meanwhile, please count me in as Ulm if you find a hosting slot.

Mark

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">What he said. ^^^

Weekends shouldn't be a problem with a 48 hour hosting, at any rate. You could make a turn on thursday and then again on monday if you really needed to.

- Kel

[ June 17, 2004, 19:00: Message edited by: Kel ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Ah ok, I see. I would have set a timer to 48h whenever I submit a turn, but this gives only a lower bound on the true limit and is probably too messy as soon as you play more than one game...

So what about a fixed schedule, like...
{Edit: I moved the schedule proposal down to the inital post in order to keep this thread readable for new people interested in taking part. All current info can be found at the bottom in the initial post.}

[ June 18, 2004, 10:05: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Works for me.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Sure. Gives you the flexibility to host when you want, too (if everyone turns in a turn on the weekend, for example).

- Kel

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

I'd be in, not sure what nation yet.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

I can maybe arrange to host your game for you on kludgemush.com, but I don't want to play.

My only condition is that I get to name your game something snarky.

[ June 18, 2004, 07:19: Message edited by: Norfleet ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Works for me

Edit: You may want to change the thread name to reflect your new proposal (and possibly attract more players).

[ June 18, 2004, 08:40: Message edited by: Mark the Merciful ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">That sounds nice, thank you, although I dont know what 'snarky' means, but I am not worried by names anyway, that is names that are outside of the game.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">
That sounds like a personal problem to me, soldier. Not to be rude or anything, but has the thought of upgrading your Internet connection and/or moving to a civilized country occurred to you?
</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Thanks for pointing out the pigeon protocol, but I was aware of that possibility. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/rolleyes.gif And yes, I have thought about upgrading, but I'll do it next spring when I have to move again and may rejoin with my beloved again. So living alone and commuting often makes a DSL-connection too expensive for me in my view, and the ISDN that I have isnt to bad either if you dont insist on staying Online all the night long. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Just another question on quick-host: If it's enabled together with that fixed schedule, then there wouldnt be any problem, would there be?

Say that it will next host on Tue 12.00h, but now all turns were committed by Tue 11.00h, so it will host at Tue 11.00h and skip the hosting at Tue 12.00h, scheduling for hosting on Wed 12.00h. (Was explained that way in an older thread) So everybody knows for sure that his turn will be available (at least) after 12.00h and that he has only to commit before 12.00h the next day without getting a stale turn.

So enabling QH doesnt hurt with a fixed schedule, while the benefit would be that the player who commits his turn as the Last one could download his turn immediately without waiting (and reconnecting to the internet) and that we might occasionally have a turn on some weekends if everybody happens to be available, yet without any risk of stale turns, right?

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Hi
I would like to be in, provisionally as R'lyeh if that's OK.

Pickles

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Never mind, I think I was wrong.

[ June 18, 2004, 13:49: Message edited by: Reverend Zombie ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">If it's quickhost, then it isn't fixed schedule, and people can get screwed because they can't predict when the next turn is due.

For instance : 24 Hour fixed schedule, turns going at 6 am. At 6:15 am, you take your turn, and know you have almost 48 hours until you have to get your next turn in, because the turn you just took doesn't get processed until 6 am the next day, leaving another 24 hours before the next one.

With 24 Hour quickhost, and a turn that went at 6 am, you take your turn at 6:15, and again figure you have almost 48 hours. Unfortunately, everyone winds up taking their turn very early; the Last one gets turned in at 8:15 am, and the turn processes. The next turn will now run 24 hours later, at 8:15.

Now, instead of having 47+ hours to come back and take your next turn, you only have 26 hours from when you took your turn. Coming back the afternoon of the next day, which you figured left plenty of time to spare, and you find that you missed your turn and got screwed.

Quick Host means you don't know when the turns are due - it's nice if everyone is Online a lot, but it makes it difficult to know when the next turn will be due, and it makes it difficult to go away for anything much over the quickhost interval.

I might be mistaken - but I am pretty certain that you can only have Quickhost or fixed schedule, not both.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

No, that isnt true, I have just tested it:

If it is Quickhosted with a fixed schedule, then if a quick host happened, the next schedule gets skipped:

So in your example, committing a turn at MON 6:15h still leaves you 47.75h: if there is a quick host before TUE 6:00h then there will be no hosting at TUE 6:00h but only on WED 6:00h as you had calculated. (Even with further Quick-hosts happening before TUE 6:00h! If there is then another Quickhost after TUE 6:00h, then WED 6:00h is skipped as well.)

Any quick-host seems to set a flag: When a scheduled time is reached, this flag is checked. If it is set, nothing happens, but the flag is deleted. If it is unset, then the turn will be hosted. So if you dont set a time intervall, but only fixed hours for each day and do quickhost, then there is no such problem as you described, because a quick host will actually only prolong the time to the next hosting.

I actually just tested this behaviour on my own machine with two players. Test it yourself, which is easy as the server displays the hours until next hosting. The important part is not to set a time intervall (leave at zero).

So I strongly vote for enabling it, as there is nothing to lose. If someone wants to keep to the schedule: fine! The player committing Last can play immediately again if he wishes so, without redialing into the net again...

[ June 18, 2004, 16:51: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

So it's a twice-a-week-hosting?

Sounds great to me. If noone wants to, I'd very much like to play Ermor and be everyone's favourite target. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...s/rolleyes.gif

I assume we're playing 2.12 (and patch as soon as available).

Edit: Umm... or did I misinterpret the Monday-Friday thingy meaning Monday And Friday, than rather Monday TO Friday?
Then I have to resign again, I just won't be able to do a turn every weekday.

[ June 18, 2004, 16:58: Message edited by: Karacan ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Quickhost and a FIXED schedule is BAD.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Wrong. If you set it to host at a FIXED time every day, and the Last player sends his turn in, at, say 1130, the game immediately hosts, because it is set for quickhost. Because it is set for quickhost, the game then immediately hosts. The player who Last sent his turn in sees this, takes his turn again. Then the game will host AGAIN at the fixed time of 1200, and everyone will STALE!

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Quickhost with fixed schedule is BAD, 'mkay?

What you're thinking about that is harmless is Quickhost with a timer. If the game is set to host in, say, 48 hours, and the Last player sends his in turn at 0900, the game will host. The next time the game will then host is in 48 hours from 0900, or when all players have again submitted their turn. Say this happens tomorrow at 1700. Then the game will host again in 48 hours, or when somebody else sends in their turn. The result being that the game will not host on a consistent schedule unless somebody is staling, but you will ALWAYS have at LEAST 48 hours.

The game will therefore not host on a consistent schedule, but you will ALWAYS have 48 hours. Maybe more....but don't count on it, slacker! Besides, if you really need more than that, then you are deliberately procrastinating.

Would you like be to open a port for sign-in now?

[ June 18, 2004, 18:27: Message edited by: Norfleet ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Wrong. If you set it to host at a FIXED time every day, and the Last player sends his turn in, at, say 1130, the game immediately hosts, because it is set for quickhost. Because it is set for quickhost, the game then immediately hosts. The player who Last sent his turn in sees this, takes his turn again. Then the game will host AGAIN at the fixed time of 1200, and everyone will STALE!
</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I have tested this and found something different, same as Chazar, three Posts below.

Quickhosting prior to the fixed time will cause that next-scheduled fixed host time to be skipped.

[ June 18, 2004, 18:50: Message edited by: Reverend Zombie ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Is that so? This is not how I remember it. Perhaps they changed it in a patch. If you're volunteering to make this the game that guinea-pigs this theory, fine by me. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

[ June 18, 2004, 19:18: Message edited by: Norfleet ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Guess we'll guinea pig things. I'll take Pangaea - we going on Karan then, with 6 players?

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">No, sorry. It started out as 48h, but it's intended to be at least 5 times a week hosting now.

I guess twice a week will take to much real time to complete the game...

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

You might want to do a head count, it's been a bit of a confusing start http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

We went from 2-5 days to 24 hr.

- Kel

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

!!!New Players interested in participating: Please look at the continually updated first post of this thread!!!

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Sure, but I dont know how. I mean, there is the second post in this thread, which I edit to maintain it updated, and I hope that everyone took a look at. Currently it list:

Abysia:JJ_Colorado
Ulm:Mark the Merciful
C'tis:Kel
Caelum:Chazar
R'lyeh:Pickles
Pangaea:Cainehill


Or should we ask that everybody sends me/us a life-sign? Or should I simply use the email message mechanism of this forum to send everybody a message once the server is up and running?

[ June 19, 2004, 18:52: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">That's not snarky. Besides, the conditions dictate that I will come up with the snarky name.

It shall be...."Fat Obstreperous Jerks".

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">By "standard", I assume you refer to the commonly accepted MP standard of Indy-6, Sites-50, blah, blah, blah.

You may begin sign-ins at:
kludgemush.com 10297

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

I would like in as T'ien Ch'i.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">No need for insulting!
(BTW: I've lost 7kg Last month so I'm not fat anymore!!!)
EDIT: I looked up "obstreperous". Seems ok with me now that I know the meaning...

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">No, I meant standard as the game offers it! What does everybody taking part else say?

[ June 19, 2004, 21:06: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

If I am in, I vote for the settings as specified by Norfleet, which are "standard" in much of the MP community, though not the "defualt" ones the game gives.

As for Fat Obstreperous Jerks, it is a small price to pay for free hosting, no? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/tongue.gif

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

You're in...

...I am a bit worried about setting that I don know about. If these are standard, then I will abide, but it would be nice if someone could explicitely list them here...

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">No, I meant standard as the game offers it! What does everybody taking part else say? </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I figured you meant standard MP settings - which as Norfleet wrote, tends to be Indy-6, Sites-50, normal research, normal richness, common events, and usually (but not always) Hall of Fame 15.

I'd lean towards those settings - Indy strength 3 is ... single ply tissue paper. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif It's a very easy setting that is, I think, meant to ease newcomers into the game, as they don't get their initial armies slaughtered right away.

So - as one of the players, I vote for the standard MP settings. I'll play either way - Indys-3 simply means less time chasing down routed satyrs in the early game. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Thanks!

Soooo...we're waiting for everybody to join in right? Come on everybody! So far only Caelum and T'ien Ch'i have been uploaded...

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Standard MP is better by me than default but either is OK

I wanted to mess with my pretender which would mean uploading on Monday. If this is too slow - one day making a difference for some reason - I will do it tommorrow (well later today GMT)

Pickles

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">That's fine with me! But I wouldnt mind someone else joining until the game is finally started... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif So once Norfleet has set up the game and opened a port, we should start after all six of us have uploaded their pretender If anyone else still wants to join, please post here!

About Quick-Host:
Actually I learnt that the behaviour is as I described from a very old thread on this board, before testing it myself...

The important thing is that the hosting time interval is set to 0, and only Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri are set to a certain time. Mixing a time interval with certain fixed days is what makes things truly messy!

[ June 19, 2004, 12:29: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">That would be very kind, although we didnt come up with a "snarky" name so far... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif How about something like "PulseOfGods" picking up the theme of a fixed schedule? No? Well, I guess "UTC12" would do for me pretty well...

Are all our settings clear? (see first post on this thread)

- I wouldnt mind if renaming is enabled to help management, but I respect people who want it disabled, as it can surely be abused.

- It would be probably sensible if there is a masterpassword set, but I would prefer if you, Norfleet, would keep that a secret to yourself only. Just in case of emergency.

[ June 19, 2004, 12:18: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Is there room left in this game?

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

@undead dolphin hacker:
Yes, there is still one final slot available, so you're welcome. Please respect the nations already taken (not everybody has ulpoaded his pretender yet), which are tracked in the second post of this thread.

@Pickles: No need to hurry I'd say - after all this Game is sort of assumed to be pausing on weekends anyway http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

@Kel and others, HEADCOUNT DONE
Everybody enlisted has either uploaded his(?) pretender or posted recently in this thread, except for one player which I've sent a private message to now, giving a deadline for any kind of response until monday noon. Assuming that he will respond an that undead dolphin hacker joins, we're eight which is nice for Karan.

[ June 20, 2004, 12:03: Message edited by: Chazar ]

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Still here - just didn't have a reason to post. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Just fiddling with my Pretender design - will be uploaded this evening.

Mark

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

OK, Ulm is up.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Mark me down for Marignon.

And what's the command line switch to make a shortcut that immediately connects to a given server IP/Port?

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Using Windows, I create a Dom2 shortcut and edit the properties as follows. For this game:

"C:\Program Files\dominions2\dom2.exe" --tcpclient --ipadr kludgemush.com --port 10297

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Using Windows, I create a Dom2 shortcut and edit the properties as follows. For this game:

"C:\Program Files\dominions2\dom2.exe" --tcpclient --ipadr kludgemush.com --port 10297 </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Danke.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Cool, so we might get it going already on monday, but probably not before 12.00h UTC to avoid stale turns for everyone... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Eight pretenders uploaded - looks like we can start it Monday, eh? And there was much rejoicing. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Okay, the game has been started. Currently the timer is disengaged.

The system time, as of now, according to date -u, is "Mon Jun 21 04:10:52 UTC 2004". I have no idea whether this is correct or not, as I have no idea what time it is now HERE, let alone what time it is where the server is, not that I know where the server is physically situated, so I'm just gonna go with that. If this time is wrong....well, somebody had better complain fast.

I will engage the timer and set it to begin sometime after 1200 UTC by the system clock.

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Ok, so can someone who followed all of the Posts and arguments (?) below update the rest of us on when exactly the game is gonna be hosting? :-)

Thanks!

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

Weren't we starting with 4 provinces ?

- Kel

Re: MP: Mon-Fri 12.00h UTC fixed scheduled host (game in progress)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">That was the plan, yes. Not sure it's worth restarting to get 4 provinces now though - probably take a full day or more to get everyone to upload a pretender to a corrected game.