VGAP Skill Codes
Rob Bos
ARGH! I just typed out this whole thing, and screwed up, and now I
have to retype it!
Ah well, can't be helped. my 100 words per minute (/brag) should
minimise the time that this takes. :).
For the past week, I've been working on a system of rating VGA
Planets players that is clearly defined and usable; since most
players are good in different areas that cannot be pigeonholed
into "Newbie", "Advanced", "DemonSpawn", it seemed to me that
there had to be something a little more versatile.
It occured to me reading the Jihad (alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
alt.b4d for short) Codes, and later, the Geek Codes, that something
very like that could be easily adapted to the VGA Planets community.
For instance, the entry I wrote today while waiting in line to sell
off a textbook:
5. Rate your diplomatic skills:
D+++: My Word is a command to My disciples; I am as "mystical as the
threefold earth;" I start wars by sneezing, I end them by saying
"Nice Doggy." I can negotiate my way out of any given situation,
and often win games without building warships. I write more
messages every turn than I get from the Host program. The Tim
Continuum obeys my every whim.
D++: Alliances are second nature to me; I never have to break any
agreement I make because there are as many loopholes in them as
there are people who listen to them. I actively stir up crap
(without making it obvious) between as many races as possible at
every opportunity... I can almost always drum up support for a
campaign. I am usually privy to the intelligence on conflicts
in most areas of the Cluster.
D+: I carefully make my alliances and non-agression pacts according
to my Plan To Take Over The Cluster... I am involved fairly often in
affairs beyond my circle of neighbors.
D: I make use of alliances and non-agression treaties often, but I
can do without them. I am about as likely to make a proposal for an
alliance as reject it. I write messages when I want something, when
someone writes me, when I need information.
D-: Beyond the local group, the rest of the Cluster can go f***
itself for all I care. I will not usually approach anyone for an
alliance or a non-agression pact, but I do respond to my messages.
I will ally if there is obvious benefit to me with minimum risk.
D--: My diplomacy is done from behind a large fleet of warships. I
will not ordinarily agree to any form of association with any other
race unless there is a lot in it for me... Diplomacy is regarded in
bad taste.
D---: Diplomacy is for losers, weaklings and the Federation. The
Tim Continuum obeys my every whim. I am more likely to respond with
a declaration of war than an agreement to an alliance request. I
can fight my way out of any given situation, I don't need friends to
get information, I have... other means.
--
Rob Bos, SFU Comp.Sci, rb...@sfu.ca.
The Killing Floor, now in Beta 5: Battle drills for VGAP4!
My TKF informational-type page: http://www.sfu.ca/~rbos/tkf/
Where to sign up, fleet strategies and tactics, beta reports.
c:\dos .... c:\dos\run .... run\dos\run
Roger Burton West
>It occured to me reading the Jihad (alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
>alt.b4d for short) Codes, and later, the Geek Codes, that something
>very like that could be easily adapted to the VGA Planets community.
Yes, I like it; if we can keep it down to a single line, it's very
suitable for .sigs and so on. (It could also be a bit of "light relief"
in the FAQ... :)
Roger
--
/~~\_/~\ BEWARE ,,, |~) _ _ _ _ |~) __|_ _ _ \ / _ __|_
| #=#======of==# | |~\(_)(_|(/_| |_)|_|| | (_)| | \/\/ (/__\ |
\__/~\_/ FILKER ``` _| ro...@firedrake.demon.co.uk
Vote Chris Bell for TAFF in 1998 http://www.firedrake.demon.co.uk/
Tony Evans
Roger Burton West <ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>>It occured to me reading the Jihad (alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
>>alt.b4d for short) Codes, and later, the Geek Codes, that something
>>very like that could be easily adapted to the VGA Planets community.
>Yes, I like it; if we can keep it down to a single line, it's very
>suitable for .sigs and so on. (It could also be a bit of "light relief"
>in the FAQ... :)
Seconded!
How about (not all of these fit together very well),
Tactics (T+++ to T---)
Colonization (C+++ to C---)
Economics (E+++ to E---)
War (W+++ to W---)
Ships (S+++ to S---) (e.g. S+++ I build more ships than China has
grains of rice, a 5000 ship limit would still be too restrictive.
I'll build B200's until I'm out of everything rather than wait around
for a few turns, S--- Ships? You mean the game has ships?).
Favourite Race (Fr[123456789ab] or FrFed/Pri/etc)
Most Hated Race (Ha[123456789ab] or HaFed/Pri/etc)
I'll have a further think........(I'll also dig out the geek code so I
can refresh my memory about the content)
Tony
--
Sin lies only in hurting other people unnecessarily. All other "sins"
are invented nonsense. (Hurting yourself is not sinful - just stupid.)
http://www.tagman.demon.co.uk/ (ICQ : 170850)
Rob Bos
Roger Burton West (ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: >It occured to me reading the Jihad (alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
: >alt.b4d for short) Codes, and later, the Geek Codes, that something
: >very like that could be easily adapted to the VGA Planets community.
: Yes, I like it; if we can keep it down to a single line, it's very
: suitable for .sigs and so on. (It could also be a bit of "light relief"
: in the FAQ... :)
That was my second thought, ;). Soon as I get around to typing it up I'll
let you know.
Right now I have five relevant questions, and will keep it to
a maximum of six for brevity, all rated from X+++ to X---, some with an X!
rating.
1. How much of the Lore do you know?
(programming information, a nice touch I thought)
2. How many turns can you play in a week?
('turns' more accurate as a rating of player capacity than 'games')
3. How many full games have you played?
(as a measure of general experience)
4. What kind of combat skills do you have?
(not written yet)
5. What kind of diplomatic skills do you have?
(posted today)
But off the top of my head, I'm thinking of adding
6. What kind of economy do you build? --What purpose?
6. What names do your opponents call you? --funny, but is it needed?
6. How obsessed are you with your VGAP fix?
(a possible measure of raw tenacity)
I like the last one, but I'd also like to leave it open.
Rob Bos
Tony Evans (to...@tagman.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: Roger Burton West <ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk> wrote:
: >>It occured to me reading the Jihad (alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
: >>alt.b4d for short) Codes, and later, the Geek Codes, that something
: >>very like that could be easily adapted to the VGA Planets community.
: >Yes, I like it; if we can keep it down to a single line, it's very
: >suitable for .sigs and so on. (It could also be a bit of "light relief"
: >in the FAQ... :)
: Seconded!
Thanks. The FAQ version would have to be kept down to 'meat and bones'
issues... I'm calling it version 0.9, while the full version would have
the copiously detailed player spec. What I'm shooting for in the FAQ version
is something that hosts can use to spec their games. Something one-line that
can encompass player reliability, skills, and competence.
Rather than "Advanced game starting on..." you could have "I'm looking for C+
(Combat skills) rated or higher players to fill a game starting on..."
The later versions can have the copiously detailed questions.
For instance:
Question 56. What do you do when the Privs attack?
P!: Hey! I _play_ the Privs!
P+++: No Privateer could ever stand a chance against me. I am the
Anti-Privateer.
P---: Privs? WHERE? RunAwayRunAway RUN!
Tony Evans
I know it's bad form to follow up your own posts, but then, I never
denied the accusation ......
[ very rough attempt - butcher at will ]
Rate your level of knowledge of undocumented features, bugs and the
more obscure friendly codes.
U+++: I am Tim Wisseman. If there's a feature, a bug, a friendly code
or an angle, I know it. I've written PhD papers on the mathematical
formulae used to model native/colonist economics. I can recite fc's
in alphabetical order. I know which bug to use, when to use it, and
how to make sure the enemy doesn't know it's been used. I can tell
which other players know about the features, and take action early in
the game to neutralise them.
U++: I use undocumented features regularly in my Plan To Take Over The
Cluster. I know which side of the screen to fight on, and how to get
there. I might not always know about a feature, but once I see it in
action, I know how to use it to my advantage. I can usually tell when
the enemy is preparing to use an uncommon feature, and take action to
prevent it.
U+: I can usually remember most fc's without checking the
documentation. I have a few favourite tricks which use undocumented
features, but sometimes they are more hassle than I can be bothered
with. If there's an obvious goal, then I consider and usually use
features and fc's to achieve it. Sometimes I spot the enemy doing the
same.
U: I know there are some undocumented features. I once flew around a
gravity well at warp one for a while before noticing. I know there is
probably a friendly code for just about everything I want to do - but
need to check the docs to find out what they are. Sometimes I
remember at the last minute and use a bug, but just as often, I
forget.
U-: I keep seeing undocumented features mentioned in the newsgroup. I
saw a web page about it too. There's a ship flying round in circles
next to one of my planets, I think that's something to do with them.
I don't use them myself, I can't find the right menu option. I have
the fc's printed out and next to me when I play.
U--: I've heard about these undocumented features. Personally, I
don't like the idea. I mean - if some people don't know about them
it's not fair to use them is it? I can't be bothered trying to find a
calculator just to work out how much I should tax my colonists, just
wing it, that's what I do. I don't think anyone else uses them
either, at least, I've never seen them.
U---: None of the so called undocumented features exist. They never
work - I've tested them all in my own custom written VGAP utility.
They are all excuses from under-skilled players who just want to try
and scare newbies. They don't exist, so I don't use them.
Fletcher
Heh - pretty funny. I got a kick out of it.
Ashton
Roger Burton West
>Thanks. The FAQ version would have to be kept down to 'meat and bones'
>issues... I'm calling it version 0.9, while the full version would have
>the copiously detailed player spec. What I'm shooting for in the FAQ version
>is something that hosts can use to spec their games. Something one-line that
>can encompass player reliability, skills, and competence.
Makes sense. (Except, doesn't every host want "reliable" players?) OK,
let's shoot for a 5-6 question version for the FAQ and
game-specification, with expansions as wanted for "player intro" pages
on the web, for example...
Rob Bos
Tony Evans (to...@tagman.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: I know it's bad form to follow up your own posts, but then, I never
: denied the accusation ......
: [ very rough attempt - butcher at will ]
Oh... I will. :>)
: Rate your level of knowledge of undocumented features, bugs and the
: more obscure friendly codes.
That's actually the spirit behind question one: How much of the Lore do you
know?
: U+++: I am Tim Wisseman. If there's a feature, a bug, a friendly code
: or an angle, I know it. I've written PhD papers on the mathematical
: formulae used to model native/colonist economics. I can recite fc's
: in alphabetical order. I know which bug to use, when to use it, and
: how to make sure the enemy doesn't know it's been used. I can tell
: which other players know about the features, and take action early in
: the game to neutralise them.
Good... I can use that. Although I wrote in L! as "I _wrote_ the game" and for
L+++ put in (lemme check) "Know enough to clone the game, can create
alternative host and client programs at will compatible with most if not all
file formats--and then went into approximately what you wrote. My version is
handwritten, and for the sake of extreme laziness, I'll use yours. :).
Rob Bos
Roger Burton West (ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: Makes sense. (Except, doesn't every host want "reliable" players?) OK,
: let's shoot for a 5-6 question version for the FAQ and
: game-specification, with expansions as wanted for "player intro" pages
: on the web, for example...
Reliability. Hmm...
6. When do you usually drop out of a game?
Note: The +++ rating must be signed in blood by three hosts which can
attest to your tenacity and fortitude. Missing turns also counts against
your rating.
W+++: Never! I fight to the bitter, bitter end with every resource I have
available within reach of my grubby little paws. I mass my probes in
guerrilla attacks on obscure outposts, get help from every possible
corner, and use every sneaky dirtyhanded trick in the book. When
feasible, I run like hell. When not feasible, I fight like a
cornered raccoon.
W---: First threatening message.
Rob Bos
Rob Bos (rb...@sfu.ca) wrote:
: Roger Burton West (ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: : Makes sense. (Except, doesn't every host want "reliable" players?) OK,
: : let's shoot for a 5-6 question version for the FAQ and
: : game-specification, with expansions as wanted for "player intro" pages
: : on the web, for example...
By the way, I'm keeping my working copy in
http:/www.sfu.ca/~rbos/vgap/info/VGAPCode.txt
if you want to see it in progress and make suggestions.
Bi0Menace
I have a slightly different way of saying these:
>P!: Hey! I _play_ the Privs!
>
>P+++: No Privateer could ever stand a chance against me. I am the
>Anti-Privateer.
Lizard.
>P---: Privs? WHERE? RunAwayRunAway RUN!
Borg.
The Biodegradable One
A voyager song:
"A three week tour, a three week tour...
The wavefront started getting rough...
The tiny ship was plucked
Because of the incompetence of the crew
The starship was totally..."
F_ALK
rb...@sfu.ca (Rob Bos) wrote:
<snip>
>2. How many turns can you play in a week?
> ('turns' more accurate as a rating of player capacity than 'games')
Ouch, I don't think you should use this like that. I *can* play
about 40 turns per week, but of course, I will not earn any money, lose my
girl, will never finish my diploma and so on.
Better question would be, "How many turns do you usually do per week ?"
As well, you just need to have played lots'n lots, you don't need to do it
right now. The Knowledge won't be gone, and you need less time to "learn"
the upgraded tactics / bugs / features.
>4. What kind of combat skills do you have?
> (not written yet)
Hard to say, as your (1) Lore will play into it.
let's say: 4.What are your combat and tactics - skills ?
here's my try:
CT!: I know how many torps /Fighters I need to win with my damaged Tech6-ship
against any supercarrier under any PHost-Configuration.
CT+++: I regulary invent new tactics, which will lead to death of all my
enemies. I know which ships are needed to kill any enemy fleet under any
T-Host-configuration, and how to deploy them, even if playing with a weird
Altlist. If an enemy uses an unknown tactic, I will counter it and kill
his entire attacking fleet in less than 5 rounds (adapt, adopt, and improve)
CT++: I know lots of tactics and rarely invent new ones, to disturb my enemies.
I know which ships are needed to kill any enemy fleet under T-Host-standard-
configuration. If an enemy uses an unknown tactic, I'm baffled, but will
adapt and adopt his tactics, so he will not win without severe losses.
I know how to make a ship unusable with minimum effort at the first sight
(this means, a not so weird Altlist)
CT+: I know most standard tactics. I know which ship regulary defeats another
ship, or at least I know how to sim it. If an enemy uses an unknown tactic,
this usually leads to the loss of a cluster, before I know countermeasurements.
I don't need long to find specific weaknesses in a ship-design (if there are
any).
CT: I know the standard-standard-tactics, and where to get the others.
I know which ship will win over another every time. A large part of my empire
will fall, if I am confronted with a new tactic. If playing with an Altlist,
I do have problems.
CT-: I know there are standard tactics, and where to get them. I know some
ships are somewhat better than others, but I can't tell why. Altlists will
diminish my chance of success, unless I played a few games with it before.
If anyone uses a new tactic, my game will end soon.
CT--: I think my enemies know tactics. Sometimes some ships win battles, I bet
there is a system behind that. If anyone of my enemies uses a standard-tactic,
I'm doomed.
CT---: Gimme a club/cube, and I show you my tactic.
>6. What kind of economy do you build? --What purpose?
Very, very, very hard to handle.
I don't know what kind of economics is better, if I don't know the
circumstances of that empire.
>6. What names do your opponents call you? --funny, but is it needed?
That's nice ..... I'm in a game with mostly other physics-students, and
somehow I seem to be their "god", we a had few rounds of PTscore running,
and I wasn't doing well up to turn 20. I was satisfied with my economics,
just that turn when the 500 limit was reached. But still,
no one wanted to attack me....... I was quite surprised, that I wasn't taken
out the time I was "easy prey".
CU
F alk
Rob Bos
F_ALK (schar...@physnet.uni-hamburg.de) wrote:
<CT section snipped>
I'll combine it with the section I just wrote... some good material.
Although the "obscure tactics" is a totally different area... I've been
kicked by players who could really care less about the precise host order,
or obscure towing rules, they just go in and kick butt.
: F alk
Rob Bos
Rob Bos
OK, I've got the basic, six-question version of the VGAP Codes for the FAQ
pretty well done. I don't think I can do any better than this, so ideas
and critiques would be helpful.
The VGA Planets Skill Rating Sheet v0.89b
This version is shorter, designed for the FAQ as a standard for game hosts to
determine reliability, player general/combat/diplomatic skill for their games.
1. How much of the Lore do you know?
(obscure game info, a nice touch I thought)
2. How many turns can you play in a week without getting yelled at by a
significant other/boss/parent/sibling?
('turns' more accurate as a rating of player capacity than 'games')
3. How many full games have you played?
(as a measure of general experience)
4. What kind of combat skills do you have?
(For host game player selection, i.e CT rating or up)
5. What kind of diplomatic skills do you have?
(For host game player selection, i.e D rating or lower)
6. At what point will you drop a game?
(to judge reliability)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. How much of the Lore do you know?
(Or, Rate your level of knowledge of undocumented features, bugs and the
more obscure friendly codes.)
L!: I _wrote_ the game. You young whippersnappers, think you know
everything... well lemme tell ya this, you think you know *all* the
undocumented features? You think you know *all* the friendly codes, *all* the
bugs? HA! I've put some in there you will NEVER guess at, NEVER! HA HA HA
HAHAHAHAH! <ahem>
(Special thanks to Tony Evans)
L+++: If there's a feature, a bug, a friendly code or an angle, I know it.
I've written PhD papers on the mathematical formulae used to model
native/colonist economics. I can recite fc's in alphabetical order. I know
which 'bug' to use, when to use it, and how to make sure the enemy doesn't
know it's been used. I can tell which other players know about the
features, and take action early in the game to neutralise them. I can
quote the full host order from memory.
L++: I use undocumented features regularly in my Plan To Take Over The
Cluster. I know which side of the screen to fight on, and how to get
there. I might not always know about a feature, but once I see it in
action, I know how to use it to my advantage. I can usually tell when
the enemy is preparing to use an uncommon feature, and take action to
prevent it.
L+: I can usually remember most fc's without checking the
documentation. I have a few favourite tricks which use undocumented
features, but sometimes they are more hassle than I can be bothered
with. If there's an obvious goal, then I consider and usually use
features and fc's to achieve it. Sometimes I spot the enemy doing the
same.
L: I know there are some undocumented features. I once flew around a
gravity well at warp one for a while before noticing. I know there is
probably a friendly code for just about everything I want to do - but
need to check the docs to find out what they are. Sometimes I
remember at the last minute and use a bug, but just as often, I
forget.
L-: I keep seeing undocumented features mentioned in the newsgroup. I
saw a web page about it too. There's a ship flying round in circles
next to one of my planets, I think that's something to do with them.
I don't use them myself, I can't find the right menu option. I have
the fc's printed out and next to me when I play.
L--: I've heard about these undocumented features. Personally, I
don't like the idea. I mean - if some people don't know about them
it's not fair to use them is it? I can't be bothered trying to find a
calculator just to work out how much I should tax my colonists, just
wing it, that's what I do. I don't think anyone else uses them
either, at least, I've never seen them.
L---: None of the so called undocumented features exist. They never
work - I've tested them all in my own custom written VGAP utility.
They are all excuses from under-skilled players who just want to try
and scare newbies. They don't exist, so I don't use them.
--
2. How many turns can you play in a week without getting yelled at by a
significant other/boss/parent/sibling, and without shirking other
responsibilities? (eating counts as a responsibility.
T+++: I... am a VGA Planets machine. I have no responsibilities. Every
waking hour is spent in front of a computer in which I have one of my
games running in the background while I work or am working on something
VGAP-related... when, of course, I am not actually playing.
T++: I usually play between 9 and 12 turns a week, the equivalent to three
triweekly games, one daily and one triweekly, or a daily and a onceweekly
matter, 12 games of one turn/week. Take your pick.
T+: 6 to 8 turns per week.
T: 3 to 5 turns per week.
T-: 2 turns per week.
T--: 1 turn per week... very busy. (if you're so busy, stop reading this!)
T---: I have little opportunity to play these days, unfortunately. I will get
into a game occasionally, but it can't be helped.
--
3. How many full games have you played?
(as a measure of general experience)
G+++: More than you could possibly comprehend, little man... in fact, more
than I comprehend myself. I have played more games than there are people
who despise the Privateers. Almost every person who plays this game has
reason to fear me.
G++: Memory fails to yeild the precise number, but over the years, I have
played at least 20 hard-fought games to the death.
G+: I think, between 10 and 20 at least. Never really bothered to keep
much track.
G: Between 5 and 9 games. You see, I notch my monitor for each race I
have wiped off the face of this earth directly. I hope to have a nice
floral pattern in 10 years or so... with a little luck, I may even have
whittled my monitor down to a few dials and the tube.
G-: I have played a few games, between 2 and 4. Really enjoying it so
far.
G--: I have finished one game, and am looking forward to / playing in my
second.
G---: I'm still on my first game... and having a blast. Thinking about
registering to use those big-ass battlewagons and high-tech drives... they
are pretty slow.
--
4. What are your combat and tactical skills like?
*Note: Combat and tactical skills have little to do with how much you
know about the game... I've been kicked around the block by people
who really could care less about "Host sequence" or "Tow Rules".
(Special thanks to F alk for much of the material here)
CT!: I know how many torps /Fighters I need to win with my damaged
Tech6-ship against any supercarrier under any shiplist.
CT+++: I regularly invent new tactics, which will lead to death of all my
enemies. I wear an extremely smug smirk on my face at all times. I can
see immediately which ships are needed to kill any enemy fleet under any
shiplist, and how to deploy them. If an enemy uses an unknown tactic, I
will counter it and kill his entire attacking fleet in less than 5 rounds
(adapt, adopt, and improve). I fight in ways which leave my opponents
baffled at every turn, my ships are as extensions of my will... My
intentions are as the winds above the clouds. Mediocre players cower
in My presence.
CT++: I know lots of tactics and invent new ones as they come to me, to
disturb my enemies. I can make use of altlists effectively. If an enemy
uses an unknown tactic, I'm baffled, but will adapt and adopt his tactics
quickly, so he will not win without severe losses. I know how to make a
ship unusable with minimum effort at the first sight (this means, a not
too weird Altlist). I fight with skill and daring, and confuse my
opponent regularly. Newbies prostrate themselves before me.
CT+: I know most if not all standard tactics, and can adapt new tactics
to my general strategy once I figure them out. I know which ships
regulary defeat other ships, or least I know how to sim it. If an enemy
uses an unknown tactic, this usually leads to a temporary loss of a
cluster, before I figure out countermeasurements. I don't need long to
find specific weaknesses in a ship-design (if there are any). I command
my ships like fine tools.
CT: I know some standard-tactics, and where to get the others.
I know which ship will win over another every time. I have trouble
reacting to and adapting fundamentally new approaches to the game unless
they are explained to me, but will incorporate what I have learned into
each new game as I play, getting better and better.
CT-: I know there are standard tactics, and where to get them. I usually
ignore tactics that are not relevant to the games I am playing in at any
given time. Altlists will diminish my chance of success, unless I played
a few games with it before. If anyone uses a new tactic, I need time to
come up with a counter.
CT--: I think my enemies know tactics. Sometimes some ships win battles, I
bet there is a system behind that. If anyone of my enemies uses
something I haven't seen before, I'm doomed.
CT---: Gimme a club/cube, and I show you my tactic.
--
5. What kind of diplomatic skills do you have?
D+++: My Word is a command to My disciples; I am as "mystical as the
race unless there is a lot in it for me... I regard diplomacy as in
bad taste.
D---: Diplomacy is for losers, weaklings and the Federation. The
Tim Continuum obeys my every whim. I am more likely to respond with
a declaration of war than an agreement to an alliance or
non-agression pact request, since they are obviously worried about
conflict with me. I can fight my way out of any given situation, I don't
need friends to get information, I have... other means.
--
6. At what point will you drop a game?
R+++: I fight to the bitter, undying end of my empire. My ships run
guerrilla ops, the planets I am losing get scorched earth implemented, I
hurl any form of abuse I can think of, attempt to garner support from any
possible corner, run if I have to. I would never drop a game, I have to
be evicted, kicking and screaming, with every last breath. NOTHING is
getting MY planets, not even over my dead body, NO WAY!
R++: Usually when the situation seems utterly hopeless, I stop playing,
but only in very rare situations: if I have *no* chance left and no
chance of rebuilding, if I am under attack from most of my neighbors and
no military to speak of. I will usually hang on long enough to implement
scorched earth and make sure the enemy doesn't benefit from my territory.
R+: When the situation is extremely grim, I sometimes bail. A surprise
invasion taking out a large proportion of my empire, a quickly crumbling
defensive effort.
R: If there is a good chance I won't survive the next month, I'm off to
greener pastures. A surprise invasion, a slowly crumbling defense, a
repelled attack, these are not worth following up on. If I'm too far
behind in the scores, why bother?
R-: When the situation starts to turn against me, I don't have much
stomach for going on. If I'm not in the top five, there's really no hope
anyway.
R--: Someone makes a threatening move, and I don't have a large
military/diplomatic/economic advantage, I'm out of there.
R---: Someone makes a threatening move, and I'm out of here. I play the
game for fun, not to get wiped out. So what if I have the Borg Fleets Of
Doom on my side? If I'm not at the top of the scores, I'm nothing.
Sonic Hedgehog
Tony Evans wrote:
> Rate your level of knowledge of undocumented features, bugs and the
> more obscure friendly codes.
>
> U+++: I am Tim Wisseman. If there's a feature, a bug, a friendly code
> or an angle, I know it. I've written PhD papers on the mathematical
Interesting, I thought a BUG was something the programer DIDNT know
about, if he knows about it then its an undocumented feature ;-)
> U: I know there are some undocumented features. I once flew around a
> gravity well at warp one for a while before noticing. I know there is
Undocumented you say......
> U-: I keep seeing undocumented features mentioned in the newsgroup. I
> saw a web page about it too. There's a ship flying round in circles
What are you if you're Genya who compiles the "Undocumented host
feature" list ;-)
By the way, Genya's "Undocumented Host feature" list is found on my
site (with permission from Genya)
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------.
| Steven Gedye The 'Sonic Hedgehog' Wellington, New Zealand |
| sgedye(at)netlink(dot)co(dot)nz http://www.netlink.co.nz/~sgedye/ |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
| VGA Planets Common Player Utilities List can be found at |
| http://www.netlink.co.nz/~sgedye/vgap/ |
'--------------------------------------------------------------------'
Roger Burton West
>2. How many turns can you play in a week without getting yelled at by a
> significant other/boss/parent/sibling, and without shirking other
> responsibilities? (eating counts as a responsibility.
Suggestion: have a rating for how many _more_ turns you can play. If
we're using this to recruit people for games, it seems more useful.
Cheers,
Rob Bos
Roger Burton West (ro...@firedrake.avertspam.demon.co.uk) wrote:
: >2. How many turns can you play in a week without getting yelled at by a
: > significant other/boss/parent/sibling, and without shirking other
: > responsibilities? (eating counts as a responsibility.
: Suggestion: have a rating for how many _more_ turns you can play. If
: we're using this to recruit people for games, it seems more useful.
I'd thought about that... I believe that it would have to be updated
too often. This way, it can be left to the user to decide "Can I fit
another game into my schedule?"
Although that approach has its merits too.
--
Rob Bos, SFU Comp.Sci, rb...@sfu.ca.
VGAP Code (.89a) Block: L+ T+ G CT++ D- R++
Chris Croughton
Roger Burton West wrote:
> Suggestion: have a rating for how many _more_ turns you can play. If
> we're using this to recruit people for games, it seems more useful.
Won't this need to be updated rather often, though? I mean,
I might say now that I can deal with another 4 turns per week
(I can't, in fact - you may have noticed <g>) but then join
another game which uses up the spare time.
Admittedly the same is true of the original version (if the
person gets / loses a girlfriend or something like that) but
it's less likely to change than the number of games being played.
IMO, of course.
But I do like the code idea...
Chris C
Rob Bos
The FAQ version of the Codes is pretty well finished, version '0.9' as it
were. Now to work on the full version, and I need questions!
Some of the ones I've got right now: (7-12 I've already done)
13. How do you feel toward newbies?
++Resent their constant fear of death.
--Kill them on sight.
14. How do you feel toward self-described 'advanced' players?
--Resent their frozen smirk.
++Kill them on sight.
15. Have you seen all the shows from which the Eleven were borrowed?
++BattleStar Galactica was quite good.
--Nope... STTNG is about as far as it goes.
16. How much VGAP-related programming skills do you/have you done?
++Several addons written, etc.
--RST/TRN files are black boxes to me.
--
Rob Bos, SFU Comp.Sci, rb...@sfu.ca.
[VGAP Code (.9): L+ T+ G CT++ D- R++]
The Killing Floor, now in Beta 5: Battle drills for VGAP4!
My TKF informational-type page: http://www.sfu.ca/~rbos/tkf/
Where to sign up, fleet strategies and tactics, beta reports.
Real men don't read manuals!
Tony Evans
rb...@sfu.ca (Rob Bos) wrote:
>were. Now to work on the full version, and I need questions!
How about,
Ships
-----
+++ I build more ships than China has
grains of rice, a 5000 ship limit would still be too restrictive.
I'll build B200's until I'm out of everything rather than wait around
for a few turns
--- Ships? You mean the game has ships?).
Thinking Time
-------------
+++ I spend several days considering each possible move carefully, I
sim every battle, I set up games using Overlord to test out theories
and patterns before I even begin to move things around with the
client.
--- I spend about 1 second on each order. I find it more fun that
way
Add-ons
-------
+++ Add-ons? Love em, can't get enough. Every game I host/play in
has to have at least 10.
--- Add-ons suck and ruin the original game. Give me pure-planets
anyday!
Tony Evans Have Fun
--
Sin lies only in hurting other people unnecessarily. All other "sins"
are invented nonsense. (Hurting yourself is not sinful - just stupid)
[ VGAP Code : L T G-- CT-- D R+ ]
http://www.tagman.demon.co.uk (ICQ - 170850) (Blade on IRC)