Capuchin - Big newbie EA game - started

[everz]

No problem.

[Wokeye]

NP here

[DonCorazon]

So sad to see a Niefelheim giant get leprosy. What a waste!

But despite the sorcerous onslaught of TC that continues to dramatically reduce Niefelheim's magic academy, we are happy to report getting off one icy spell that decimated a small part of TC's army. The western front appears to be lost - only one regiment, The Blizzard Corps, managed to escape the ruins of Niefelheim's western post. Things look a little better in the East, where Niefelheim won its only victory against TC with the help of an unusually cold winter (if only I had more water gems. Note to self: site search early on) and has managed to cross the straits to the North.

(Caveat: have yet to look at latest turn. Good chance some new sorcerous concoction has obliterated us)

[Wokeye]

The occupational health risks of falling giant icy teardrops are unnacceptible, so the Triton Lords march (float?) on TC. Winter comes in greater numbers.

[DonCorazon]

I am going AI. Useless to fight. Frankly a little disappointed in some of these endgame strategies (exploits?) E.g. TC attacks with his Pretender who has cast Ritual of Returning upon himself and holds Unquenched (creates Heat from Hell).

TC Pretender's first action is to cast Mists of Deception, then I am assuming the Heat from Hell damages his pretender so the Ritual of returning kicks him home. There is a message that says TC is routed. But Niefelheim's entire army runs around fighting the illusionary warriors for what seems like forever amidst the Heat from Hell. Even though TC's pretender vanishes, it seems these spells remain in effect. The battle goes so long I cannot even bear to finish watching it and Niefel giants start dropping from fatigue and eventually get the message Niefelheim is routed. Huge Niefel army is slaughtered.

What kind of battle is that? What is the point of carrying on?

I am going to post this on the main thread and see if there are counters to this or if this is one of those unstoppable slaughter moves. The more I learn of these the more I become somewhat disenchanted with how these games end. If there are no counters then it seems it just is a race to research artifacts / summon tartarians.

btw - seems like a pretty advanced move for a noob game. Nice job >.< if you came up with it on your own.

Bye Capuchin, bye cruel world. I will be sure to distribute gems and magic items to those who wish to fight on.

[Kamamura]

DonCorazon - yes, it's a known exploit. Some people just do anything to win, even if it means spoiling the game for others. I recommend not playing that person in future again.

[llamabeast]

That's an exploit which shouldn't be used. Dammit, I wish I'd said that somewhere explicitly.

I guess it's quite likely that T'ien Ch'i either thought of it himself (I'm impressed!) or read the suggestion on the forum without reading the following community digust, in which case he certainly doesn't deserve any harsh words from us. But in any case, it's definitely not a fair move.

I'm actually open to rolling back the turn and asking just T'ien Ch'i to retake his turn but do something else with his pretender. DonCorazon, would you have the stomach to continue the game if I did that? It is indeed a silly way for the game to be finished for you.

Finally, although the end game seems different to the early and mid games and can initially be frustrating, I can reassure you that there is still plenty of strategy and options. It's not as if you have to have artifacts or Tartarians to win, so you shouldn't think that. I almost never bother getting artifacts in fact, and tend to get Tartarians as an afterthought (not that I'm one of the best players, but I've won a few games). It is a bit different though, and requires some thought. Anyway, whoever wins the early and mid games tends to win the late game (assuming they're not ganged up on), because they tend to have more gold, gems and research.

[lch]

DonCorazon said:
If there are no counters then it seems it just is a race to research artifacts / summon tartarians.

Damn, he discovered the secret! Quick, get the thought police!

Somehow I think that people are overreacting about this. As DonCorazon pointed out himself, he would probably have lost regardless of this. Endgame pretty much consists of finding and using deadlocks which other players are unable to get out of. This specific case might be exploiting a game mechanic, but so are lots of other things. Finding a good combo is the bread and butter of this game. Retreating before the script runs out is frowned upon, but I'd give it the benefit of doubt and assume that the interaction with armor of virtue was not planned. Even if it was, waiting a few more turns would hardly have affected the outcome.

I remember some heated discussions and angry mails from some old games of mine, and compared to this it's surprising to see people quitting like this. You dropped a brick, no problem with that. Consider it a coming of age and do it differently in the next game.

[Wokeye]

If Everz and DC want to play on I'll also play on, but otherwise I think the game is really over.

Regardless of the events of last turn, Everz was going to stomp us all. He had 3x the research of the rest of us, all the good unique items made and equipped on his army of tartarians - where the rest of us were at/just out of mid game.

I have no hesitation in conceding victory. He played well. I enjoyed the game immensely, but was not looking forward to the being broken as one of two TC enemies next in line after Neifel.

Thanks for hosting Llamabeast!