Accidental/Intentional map design problems.

[Lord_Bob]

<I have checked the math, and it is true that one/two players a game are normally going to draw the short straw on games on wraparound maps.>

<I apologize. However, it is bad luck, and a lack of change on provinces per player from the days of no wrap-around maps.>

<Also, apparently capital placement was random?????? on this map. So I would expect things to be odd.>

So I'm playing BAG, and it seems that someone placed me only three moves from the enemies capital. To be clear:

(MY Capital)-(A province)-(A province)-(Enemy Capital)

There were supposed to be 15 provinces per player.

We seem a little, close, for 15 provinces a player.

I'd be curious to look at the whole map and see if any people benefitted with wide open spaces for thier capitals.

Is it because we added one empire on at the last minute?

If Patala and Tien Chi are the only capitals with this problem, then it is probably that.

Really, cheating with the map is completely unacceptable and this degree of misplacement is extreme.

I heard the exact same thing happened in the Everymore with two of the water nations.

I'd like some feed-back on that.

If some people have developed the habit of thinking it's cute to rig the game by sticking nations close to each other I want to find out.

Oh, and to be clear, if the original map contained those two capitals adjacent, and this is not the result of a player being added at the last minute, I am must definitely accusing someone of cheating. I don't think Lazy_Perfectionist would be involved, but someone is.

[NTJedi]

Most likely the map was created before patch_3.10 and someone is playing a new nation which was not listed on the original .map file.

[Meglobob]

It happens...no one is cheating, its just plain bad luck.

In a recent MP game I was in, 3 nations started alot closer together than all the others. That was before the 3.10 patch.

Squeezing an extra player or 2 in can result in this.

[Ballbarian]

Really, cheating with the map is completely unacceptable and this degree of misplacement is extreme.

Cheating is the least likely cause.

I checked the map file that was uploaded in the BAG thread, and it contains NO predefined starts. It does however contain some provinces which are set to be "no start". Start positions would therefore be placed randomly by the game engine and your problem is likely tied directly to the number of players versus the number of unblocked provinces.

[Folket]

Two provinces between you and only one other player. That is not bad at all. It happens all the time that you only have one province between and more enemies two provinces away. The most extrem I have seen is two pair of players starting next to eachother.

[Archonsod]

Worst start I ever seen was on Cradle of Dominions. IIRC it was Sauromatia or a similar non-aquatic nation getting that one province island as their capital. Bit of a crippling position really, needless to say we restarted the game.

[Edi]

Are you sure that wasn't Parganos, Archonsod? Because IIRC Cradle only has one inaccessible island province and it's always been nostart.

[konming]

I recently played a game with 16 provinces per player, and there are two capitals within three provinces of my capital. And they completely blocked my way to the east and south, and north +1 is the map edge. Talk about bad luck.

[Humakty]

The same happens to me all the time. As I only play SP, must I think the AI cheats ?
If it is the case, my PC will be offered a just but short trial, before being thrown through the window, or staked and burned in public. (to offer bypassers a little warmth during these cold days)