Are you tough enough to be the "King of the Hill"?

[geoschmo]

I don't think you need a mod really. I'm fairly certain you just made a mistake and didn't turn them off when you generated the map. It happens, it's no big deal. And you should only have to turn off ruins at the point when you actually generate the map. Once you modify the map with common starting points and go back and start the game up it shuldn't matter wheter you have them turned off or not. The game shouldn't add them in at that point if they weren't in there at map generation.

If you did want to make a mod to turn off ruins, you wouldn't need to set the mod up on PBW. You use the mod to generate map files and then use them in the stock game. The only time ruins are assigned to a map is when it's created. Even if you did want to be doubly sure and start the first turn using the mod, I don't think the players would need the mod. The balance mod that I made modifies the system type files which are used at map generating time and the players don't need the mod to play their first turn.

In fact if you only change the files that control the chance for ruins to appear, the players may not need the mod at all. The balance mod I mad tweaks those system type files that are used for map generation and the players don't need to use it for their first turns, even when it's used to actually create the first turn. Hmmm, maybe I should just tweak out the ruins in the balance mod.

You don't need to turn off the unique techs. That would change the components file and make a mod that the players and PBW would have to have, but it's unneccesary. Without ruins there is no way to get those techs anyway.

[Slynky]

Making a mod to insure there will be no ruins seems like overkill (but if, like the Balance Mod, the mod is not needed by the players, what the heck, right?).

But, all one need do is follow the same steps I do when creating a game:

(1) Start SE4
(2) Turn ruins off
(3) Generate whatever type of map you want over and over till one looks interesting
(4) Save the map file
(5) Exit the game
(6) Load map into Map Editor and set starting points
(7) Save and exit
(8) Start SE4
(9) Load the saved map
(10)Load an empire with Ancient abilities and start a dummy game (and look under Special).

Steps 8-10 take less than 2 minutes to do. And once the map has no ruins on it, I don't think generating a game with the loaded map will cause ruins to suddenly appear even if the game has ruins turned on. But, I turn it off anyway (as added insurance) .

[Alneyan]

I have a hunch ruins are added when creating the game, and not before. I will launch a test game to check that though. Well, the hunch was quite wrong, so I guess I forgot to turn off the ruins when creating the map (I do both just to make sure, when I don't forget...).

Geo, the ruin thingies appear even when normal ruins are removed from the files. I think it is because of the techareas files, and the flag "Can only be found" (or some such name). On the other hand, both players can agree not to use these things if they do appear by mistake, and/or they could be modded out of the game by common agreement. I think I will be using my no ruins safety measure from now on, which will not be needed by the players. That way, even if I do forget once more to turn the ruins off at one stage or another, it won't be half as bad for the players themselves.

So Slynky, do you want me to give it yet another try, with another foolproof measure to make sure those ruins are out of the game? Your idea about loading an Ancient Empire and checking makes sense too; don't ask me why I didn't think of it before.

[Slynky]

Alneyan said:So Slynky, do you want me to give it yet another try, with another foolproof measure to make sure those ruins are out of the game? Your idea about loading an Ancient Empire and checking makes sense too; don't ask me why I didn't think of it before.

We have a saying that goes something like this, "Third time's the charm." So, I don't see why not let you have at it again (as punishment for the other 2 games if nothing else ).

I will have to work up an empire file tonight when I get home, though, so the game will probably be started tomorrow sometime. Tonight I have to take my daughter to Girl Scouts so I will be starting later than normal on the PC.

[Alneyan]

I will take care of it then, with the foolproof "anti standard ruins thing", combined with Geo's Balanced systems.

[brianeyci]

Come on Kwok, lets keep partying. Don't tell me you aren't ready for my crystal ships yet =D.

Brian

[Slynky]

Alneyan said:
I will take care of it then, with the foolproof "anti standard ruins thing", combined with Geo's Balanced systems.

Thanks, Alneyan .

[Captain Kwok]

brianeyci said:
Come on Kwok, lets keep partying. Don't tell me you aren't ready for my crystal ships yet =D.

Sorry for the delay!

[brianeyci]

Np. Just so you know there's a lot of crystal ships coming. A lot. Around 50 or so. If 4 crystal ships can hold off 40 of your ships... .

Brian

[Captain Kwok]

Well, you might have realized those are outdated destroyers without mounts or any other high damage weapons... of which many were support type ships as well.