RP-Heavy LE (Player Roster Full - Map 2nite) - OOC

[JaydedOne]

READ ALL RULES CAREFULLY BEFORE ASKING TO JOIN -- I WILL ASSUME YOU CONSENT AND AGREE TO ABIDE BY ALL RULES IF YOU SIGN THIS THREAD WITH A DESIRE TO JOIN THE GAME.

Game rules/theme:

This game finds the world of Dominions in its end times. Many of the more fantastic creatures have disappeared from the world, reachable now only through the most powerful magics. The Pretender Gods, while still obviously potent, are unable to bestow blessings of the same power as those found in previous eras. With magical resources steadily dwindling, would-be godlings find themselves forming uneasy temporary alliances, ever-mindful of their ultimate goal as they inch towards establishing Dominion.

Rule 1) Pretender choices are limited as follows:

PHYSICAL FORM: The more fantastic and monstrous Pretender Gods are disappearing as the land reshapes itself. The only Gods who may be chosen are those who possess the normal full set of item slots, UNLESS they are a mounted humanoid and therefore lacking the feet slot. No exceptions. Note that you may have MORE than the normal full set under this rule (such as, say, the Freak Lord). Shapeshifters ARE allowed IF their default form has its full complement of slots (i.e. a Bog Mummy qualifies whereas a Red Dragon does not.) This also allows for most Pretenders to be of a default form that would, in fact, communicate with its fellow aspirants. ;-)

Only C'tis, Ermor, Ulm and Agartha may take Undead pretenders.

MAGIC: Due to the failing of magic, no Pretender may have more than ONE Path of magic at level 8 or higher. Choose wisely.

Rule 2) ALLIANCES: While I decided against setting up alliances of my own design at game start, I will attempt to encourage them without being overly officious regarding what they may or may not do. Future games may involve a bit more mechanics, but for a dry run, I feel it's best to start simple. Therefore, consider the following:

WARM-UP AND DEAL-BROKERING PERIOD: For a week after pretender designs have been submitted but prior to Turn 1 being hosted, open negotiations between players will commence. Such negotiations should be done in-character and should be presented via the IC game thread. There will be plenty of time for subterfuge once the game begins; for this week period, all discussions should be out in the open as alliances begin to become public knowledge. What these alliances consist of is entirely up to the players. They may share information about their geographic locations at game start, their willingness to exchange gems, etc., plan on dividing up victory points -- whatever they prefer. There will be no binding out-of-character requirements with regard to these alliances and deals made outside of the game interface. Caveat emptor.

3) ROLE-PLAY

a) INTRODUCTIONS: All Pretenders, during the warm-up period, must send a greeting to their fellow pretenders via the IC game thread. It may be either an in-character missive or an out-of-character "scene" similar to what you see in AARs which depicts the Pretender God (either through its own eyes or those of its chief worshipper(s) in the case of dormant/imprisoned gods) and gives other players the knowledge of a) the PHYSICAL FORM of said God and b) the basic personality of that God (which you're of course free to determine of your own accord.)

b) UPDATES: Every year of game-time (i.e. 12 turns) players are expected to write a minimum of TWO (2) role-play-oriented posts to the IC game thread, in either missive or scene format within that span. Again, I'm leaving this flexible as people tend to have strong preferences for either the first or third-person format. While there is no character requirement for such posts, a few paragraphs is the base expectation. Feel free to trash-talk, update with current news of your conquests, tell stories of your god interacting with his/her worshippers -- whatever. Just keep it in-character and have fun.

c) IN-CHARACTER AT ALL TIMES: This is the OOC game thread, to be distinguished from the IC game thread. The OOC game thread is where all OOC chatter, such as questions re: hosting, game rules, or other such elements, should be brought. The IC thread, on the other hand, is where all missives, stories, scenes, epic poems, etc. should be posted. THERE IS NO OOC CHATTER ON THE IC THREAD. Keep it pure so that it creates a narrative we can all enjoy. Feel free to post screenshots in the IC thread so long as they enhance the story rather than detract from it. All messaging regarding game strategy, alliances, etc. , be it in the game engine or outside via e-mail or bulletin boards, must be done in-character. While I cannot police this 100%, I ask that you do this on your own honor and without metagaming.

d) ENFORCEMENT: I've learned, as a storyteller for over 20 years, that one cannot enforce good role-play. That said, individuals who violate the rules of my game repeatedly after warning will simply not be invited to future games.

4) COMMITMENT: This game, as written above, will require a fair amount of commitment, both in terms of maintaining the hosting schedule and in terms of continuing the role-play as expected. If you decide to play, play by the rules and play until the end. Failure to do so, particularly for no justifiable reason, will lead to a ban from future games that I host. A family emergency is justifiable. Getting "busy" is not. Plan now to have the time or plan to not play.

Game settings (open to slight variation after discussion if something seems completely unreasonable or poorly considered):

Late Era
48 hour quickhost (I am willing to go to a longer hosting schedule, but not a shorter one. Suggestions welcome.)
Map - Randomly generated medium map (15 provinces per player) with map file modified to accomodate special victory points.
All nations (or as many as we have sign-ups come game start)
Income, resources, supplies - 100%
Magic sites - 50
Hall of Fame - 15
Indies - 5
Renaming allowed - Names MUST be decent in-character names (i.e. no Mr. Bubbles Pretenders for R'lyeh. ;-))

PASSWORD REQUIRED FOR ALL PRETENDERS - failure to comply will equal forfeiture of your spot. Given recent events, I feel it's important to be clear on this front.

Victory by cumulative VPs - 6 - 3 sites, each worth 1 pt. Capitals are worth 0 VP, in order to provide less incentive to immediately remove a player from the game. Sites will be distributed evenly across the map and will be fortified and filled with heavy independent resistance in order to prevent those players beginning with proximity from gaining too heavy an advantage.

I will post server details as I become more acclimated to setting up my host. I should have them by the weekend.

Questions? Comments? Anything I've missed?

Players:
JaydedOne - Ermor
WSzaboPeter - Man
Ramshead - Ulm
Kissblade - R'lyeh
Quietly - Agartha
Cainehill - Tien Chi
Hadrian_II - Marignon
Death - Jomon
Atul - Atlantis
Djo - C'tis
Calmon - Mictlan
Upstreamedge - Pangaea
ReverendZombie - Patala
Kydorias - Caelum
YellowCactus - Pythium (? - Need to check after work to see if they even still exist LE.)
DominionDay - ??? (Need a nation pick and soon; not a lot left.)

[djo]

Your VP distribution (36 needed, 3 available, right?) might be a bit skewed toward a long game. You know they only accumulate 1/yr?

Even if a player takes and keeps one of three VPs continuously, it'll still take 36 years, or 36 * 12 = 400+ turns to get that many VPs.

Anyone played games with cumulative VPs to suggest some good numbers?


(I will probably play, but I'll wait to claim a nation. Makes the choice easier.)

[WSzaboPeter]

Ermor please. If Man is taken. (But if you change your mind I will be glad to play the Trades Guild of Man.)

[JaydedOne]

You saw where I already claimed Man, right?

[JaydedOne]

djo said:
Your VP distribution (36 needed, 3 available, right?) might be a bit skewed toward a long game. You know they only accumulate 1/yr?

Even if a player takes and keeps one of three VPs continuously, it'll still take 36 years, or 36 * 12 = 400+ turns to get that many VPs.

Anyone played games with cumulative VPs to suggest some good numbers?


(I will probably play, but I'll wait to claim a nation. Makes the choice easier.)

I had no idea actually. I thought it was per month. How does that work? Do portions of a year toll at all or do you have to control a point for a full consecutive year? Or is it whoever controls it at the turning point of the year?

[WSzaboPeter]

For VP I would suggest a smaller number. This way if someone would get all 3 VPs he/she needs 144 turns to win, but I think if someone can hold all 3 VPs scattered around the world for 44 turns he is a clear winner... And why 144 then?
I would suggest 17 needed, if the VPs are far from each other.

Only C'tis and Ermor may take Undead pretenders.

I think the Ktonian Dead Agartha is suitable for undead pretenders. But you know.

[djo]

VPs are one per year, and it's whoever holds the province in summer. I think it's the mid-summer turn, not 100% sure.

I agree that Agartha should be allowed an undead pretender, too--their main mage/priests are necromancers!

[RamsHead]

I'd like to play Ulm. They are so foreboding (sp?). I was wandering two things though. One, what's IC and OOC stand for? Two: How come Ulm can't have a GK or VQ. Both seem very thematic to me. Oh and Mr. Bubbles is the pretender for Atlantis not R'lyeh. I should know.

[djo]

IC = in character, OOC = out of character (and splitting the conversation into two threads is a very good idea!)

I almost played Ulm in the Yarnspinners game. It should be great roleplaying fun. I would give Ulm a VQ exemption. I'm very generous when it's not my game.

20 provinces/nation may be too many; role-playing seems to thrive better when the nations come into contact. You may want that earlier rather than later.

[JaydedOne]

Good points on all fronts.