Bug: Problem with LA start positions

[Gregstrom]

I've just started the LA game Pyrothere on the Spring Rains map, only to encounter an issue.

To the best of my knowledge LA Atlantis should only ever start the game in a coastal province, and IIRC this requirement will override set starting points. However; when Pyrothere started, LA Atlantis found themselves some distance inland. After a little work I reproduced this, and saw them start in province 209. 209 was one of the set start positions, which is fine, but it isn't coastal.

I've looked at the map in text format and in the map editor, but can't see a problem with it. Can anyone explain this?

PS: I'm using an edited .map file, with a series of start points using the #start command, and only one of them is coastal.

[Starshine_Monarch]

Perhaps the game is just smart enough to know where it's not allowed to start and, if it can't set up in a coastal province, it'll just pick another one? Are you sure the map isn't set up so that there aren't any set starts on the coast? Maybe there was only one and LA Marignon got it?

[Gregstrom]

Exactly one coastal start point has been set, and I'd been presuming Atlantis would get it because it was the only valid start position for them.

It has been seen (possibly in Preponderance?) that if LA Atlantis is given a nation-specific start point that isn't coastal then that point will be ignored and a coastal province chosen instead. I'm surprised something similar didn't happen in this instance.

[Ballbarian]

Use:
#specstart


So for LA Atlantis to start in province number 135:
#specstart 66 135

I suspect what you are seeing is that another nation has claimed the coastal province (since it is a perfectly valid start for whichever nation got it) and LA Atlantis is picking from the left overs.

[cleveland]

Originally Posted by Ballbarian

Use:
#specstart


So for LA Atlantis to start in province number 135:
#specstart 66 135

I suspect what you are seeing is that another nation has claimed the coastal province (since it is a perfectly valid start for whichever nation got it) and LA Atlantis is picking from the left overs.

VERY IMPORTANT: You must also mark the province as nostart in the map editor!

If you don't, other nations with lower ID numbers can be assigned there first, whereby Dominions will ignore your #specstart command. However, #specstart overrides nostart when marked in the map editor, a key fact I wish I'd known about an hour ago.

So in the above example, you'd need to mark province 135 nostart in the map editor, AND include...
#specstart 66 135
...in the map file.

Another neat thing I figured out: #specstart is NOT age specific. For example, if you want to make a map that will always force Ermor to start in province 100, regardless if it's an EA, MA, or LA game, simply include the following code...
#specstart 1 100
#specstart 28 100
#specstart 50 100
...and it won't break anything! Of course, you'll also have to mark province 100 nostart, as stated above.

[chrispedersen]

Very very cool cleveland.
Should be stickied.

[Gregstrom]

Thanks, Ballbarian. Not having read through the map manual yet, I'm not up on what the commands are and what they do. I was vaguely aware of the #specstart command, but didn't think I could set a #specstart for only one nation in a game. Obviously I can, which is a good thing.

[Endoperez]

It could be that some other nation already started at the coastal startsite, or it could be that the game tries to find a working startsite only for a certain amount of tries, and accepts start province of any terrain if it couldn't find the perfect one.

Otherwise, playing a nation that wants to start in a Forest in a map without Forests might crash the game.

[vfb]

LA Marignon likes starting on a coast too. Are they in the game?

[Alpine Joe]

I am LA Marignon in that game, and I am starting on the coast.