For now, competition is suspended. If a new competition is begun, a new thread will be created.Hello friends, old and new. I recently had the urge to start up a new succession game, but as I went to generate the map, I kind of felt . . unexcited? I've been playing in community games on and off for quite some time now, and the old formula is getting a little stale. Not to say it's unenjoyable, but I want some contrast to the same-old same-old. You know, the 'Mad King sent us on a suicide mission to goblin territory,' or the, 'We've embarked on a terrifying glacier and there are zombie polar bears in the booze wagon!!', that kind of thing has become less and less compelling. The issue isn't so much with the writing or the narrative that players bring to the table (this is what makes the formula so interesting in the first place), but the format and the ruleset that define what style of narrative is created. Who hasn't gotten to the end of their turn as Overseer, having produced wonderful in-character journals and described game-changing events, only to be forced to awkwardly pass the crown to some bozo in a completely OOC fasion? I also wanted to design a succession game where players felt like they could really leave a mark, you know, build some kind of unforgettable legacy that won't just get trashed or forgotten by the successive rulers.
Behold, my attempt at designing a competitive fortress succession game.The Rules:
The Rules:- All players will begin play on the same Embark.
- All players will be given a week IRL to complete a single in-game year. This defined the game Round.
- Players will attempt to attain the highest quantity of a specific variety of item. This quantity is your "Score."
- Players will use any and all means to attain the highest Score. However, see rule 14.
- Players will dwarf themselves in their instance of the game, and this will be publicly declared at the start of the round. Should this named dwarf die, they will be ineligible for a win. See rule 16.
- A win is defined as having the highest count of the specified item type by the 1st of Granite the following year. This is the Time Limit.
- As host, I will announce the specified item type, act as judge of these final item counts, and maintain this forum thread.
- When the Time Limit has been reached, players will upload their saves to DFFD for adjudication.
- The player who achieves the highest Score will be declared Winner.
- The Winner will receive COMMENDATIONS AND PRAISE from all, and any journals they have created will be forever immortalized on this OP.
- The Winner's map instance will become the new Embark.
- Play will begin anew, with my announcement of a new specified item type, and any new players may join at this point.
- And So on and So forth, until a yet-to-be-determined stopping point (Life, Lag, and / or an IRL Apocalypse are my predictions).
- No player shall use DFhack to cheat, of course, but I may run cleanup scripts at the end of each year.
- Addendum to the above: Players can use Therapist or DFhack's labor manager, or other "non-invasive" scripts as they see fit.
- Players may save scum as they see fit.
- No player shall send expeditionary forces outside the fortress, in the interest of game stability.
To summarize; You will be given an in-game year to make as much of the specified item as you possibly can. This will test your game knowledge, efficiency, and tenacity. Upon finishing that year, you will upload the save and I will confirm whatever number you have come up with by investigating your save, and then publicly declare the scores and the winners to all. That map will become the starting map for the next year, a new specified item will be declared, and the next set of players will attempt to 180 whatever mono-industry was established the previous year, to meet the new demands and achieve the win. As well, the winner of the previous year will have their named dwarf kicking around the following year, which is kind of fun.
Some potential questions are answered below:
"But why would anyone journal about their game, if it would just reveal tricks or strategies to the other players?"
Well, I suppose that's part of the fun. I would definitely avoid declaring your final score before I see your save. I won't demand you journal, but I can definitely see how a keen writer could tell an interesting story of pursuing some mad goal, while also keeping the details of their operations hidden. A person could also write an in-character journal and post it at the very end of the week. I'm leaving this up to you.
"What is stopping people from save-scumming at the last minute, once they hear about the other player's progress?"
I will request that you don't publicly post the link to your save, and instead send it to me in a PM. That way, I can judge the scores 'behind the curtain' and do a final reveal once everything has been tallied.
"What is stopping people from cheating? How could you even tell?"
Frankly, nothing. But the glory of winning is fairly small, while the possible !!FUN!! to be had in a genuine attempt is off the charts. While adjudicating I will keep an eye out for obvious signs of unfair play, and should a player end up with a score that *ahem* dwarfs the other's, I might request an explanation of their strategy. A well-documented journal will also serve as proof of fair play.
"So won't this give a huge advantage to the the winner of the first year, since they will be playing on their own map and with their own "setup"? Couldn't they sabotage the productivity of the fortress in some mischevious attempt to stall other players?
Actually, that might be an issue, but perhaps also part of the meta-game? We shall see how broken it really is.
"Say I win the first year, but lose the second year and it turns out my named dwarf died during the other player's turn? Do I auto-lose?"
Every year, you will be given a chance to pick a new dwarf to be named after you. You can shift your title from one dwarf to another, but only once and only at the beginning of your turn. This is declared when you begin, so as to prevent any cheating or last-minute renaming. I encourage you to pick a healthy, happy dwarf!
"Can I join in the later rounds?"
Absolutely. You can drop in and drop out as you see fit. Don't like mass producing silver spears? Take a break and come back next week. Thanks to Spriggans for this question.
The Embark:
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________For round 6, we're playing Zoo Tycoon, but in Hell:
Undead Zoo! Vesh's demon has whispered in your ear - variety is the spice of Death! Each unique 'species' of caged undead creature is worth a point at the end of the year. (clarification below). High score wins, ties are unlikely and will be dealt with in a democratic fashion.So, clarification and examples:
1. Species, not kinds. A creature is a creature, regardless of sex or profession. For example, gobbos: A Bowman is the same as a Lasher, and a female goblin is the same as a male goblin.
2. Caged body parts will be counted as another member of their original species. So, an undead dwarven hand and an undead dwarven torso are equivalent to a 'complete' undead dwarf. The list of potential 'unique' undead body parts totally dwarfs the list of potentially-acquirable unique species, and would sort of ruin the challenge, since splitting apart a creature or two and caging the results would nullify someone elses concerted effort in capturing, killing, and reanimating a variety of species.
3. Vampires will count as undead and the above scoring rules will apply. So, assuming you can capture or create two vampires of different species, you would receive two points. do this it would be legendary
4. Thralls, Husks, and other varieties of undead will count as well, though we are unlikely to encounter any AFAIK. Perhaps a captured tavern visitor, though, we don't really have a tavern right now. .
Round 6 save is here:
https://dffd.bay12games.com/file.php?id=15308Round 6 scoring rules posted here:
http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=177212.msg8213841#msg8213841_____________________________________________________
For now, competition is suspended. If a new competition is begun, a new thread will be created.
Author
Topic: Numbercurse - Competitive - The Curse has been Lifted (Read 32673 times)