Explaing the essences of MP to an MP newbie

[Ted Striker]

When Civ 3 comes out, I look forward to kicking Ming and AH's asses.

What does a typical Civ2 MP setup consist of?

Do you guys play in 4 hours chunks once a week, then pick up where the game left off the next week? What do you do if a player can't make it? Let the computer run his civ?

[oedo]

Originally posted by derek
When Civ 3 comes out, I look forward to kicking Ming and AH's asses.

good luck!

What does a typical Civ2 MP setup consist of?

depends on what you like. different communities play different settings. everyone has to find his own preferences.
the most common settings seem to be:

1x1x, deity of course. mainly no city bribes and raging hordes
1x1x, king or emperor are popular since they are more balanced
1x1x, prince for the super newbies

2x1x, deity, commonly known as Rah settings

2x2x, king for duels and competitive games. 98% of the zone games were running on these settings.
what happened to the zone anyway?

actually any settings have been tried out. 1x2x may be the exception.

Do you guys play in 4 hours chunks once a week, then pick up where the game left off the next week? What do you do if a player can't make it? Let the computer run his civ?

I wish. from my experience continuing a game is hardly possible. even when all players agree and set a continuing time the game is most likely finished with the end of the first session. games with even only one AI become too unbalanced and soon all remaining players will find out the game isn´t worth being continued anymore.
but this mainly depends on who you´re playing with. if you know the other players well, there´s a better chance of keeping a game alive. it´s no guarantee though.

[Ted Striker]

Thanks for the info!

So it sounds like the games are played in one long, initial sitting.

Maybe I'll see you in the games.

[DrFell]

Originally posted by oedo
what happened to the zone anyway?

I play on the zone all the time, unfortunately there aren't many good players there anymore...

[Rasputin]

Getting people to return week in week out is very hard, real life of course gets in the way, especially when you tlaking trying to finish a 7 player civ game, playing just one session a week can take litterally months to finish. See the History of the World Threads for an example of how long a game can continue and how frustratingly hard it is to get players back each week. To keep the game going we use SUBS, which play your civ while you not there that session , this tends to keep the game rolling, but bring sin all sorts of troubles when the original player gets back and doesnt like what was done.

But a one session game is impossible to finish in MP. Most one session games jsut iuse Power Graph of other contrived finish point after a set time.

[Ming]

Originally posted by derek
When Civ 3 comes out, I look forward to kicking Ming and AH's asses.

I look forward to kicking your ass

I usually play Rah Rules... and most of our games end up being single session. As much as we would like to continue games, it becomes very difficult as Ras pointed out. It's just tough to get the same people on line to play again. And in many situations, there is a "clear" leader in a session, and most people just want to start a fresh game in hopes of doing better.

[SlowwHand]

Originally posted by derek
When Civ 3 comes out, I look forward to kicking Ming and AH's asses.

What does a typical Civ2 MP setup consist of?

Do you guys play in 4 hours chunks once a week, then pick up where the game left off the next week? What do you do if a player can't make it? Let the computer run his civ?

What a trip you are, dude.
You're going to kick people's ass, and in same post ask how does one go about playing.
Slippery grip on reality that you have there.

[cavebear]

Derek - Don't assume that all games are one-session only. It takes some effort, but I think they are the only kind worth playing. First, see if there is a time you can reliably play each week (or twice a week or whatever). Then try to find some other players with the same availability. ICQ is one way to find them, the "setting up games" thread is another. Depending on your schedule, it may even be that players in another country match your availability best.

It also matters a lot what kind of game you prefer to play. 1x1x games are very different from 2x2x games, some players prefer a low level of warfare and some are out to kill from the start, and some are very fast or very deliberate players. Decide for yourself what game you prefer (though by all means don't limit yourself to only that) and make some offers on the board. You will probably find some people who match up quite well.

If you get into a game with players who suit your schedule, stick with the game even if you are losing. Winning *isn't* everything, and someone who defends their civ with determination and honest play will gain respect and be welcomed into future games.

As far as the set-up goes, most players prefer the "default" settings. A normal sized map, a medium age and climate, some middle ground for barbarians, etc. As you play MP games, you can decide if you prefer the more extreme settings and find others like that. In other words, start from the center and move in the direction you enjoy most. Also, most players seem to prefer Deity or King settings. Deity is the greater challenge; King is more playable for fun.

That you have the stated desire to beat Ming or AH is laudable. They are both experienced players and good at their game. When you lose against them, don't take it too hard. Unless you are very very good, you are going to find some surprises when you play against humans of any skill level. We are much trickier than the computer and will do (legal and honorable) things that you have not experienced before. Win a few games against good players, and you can trash-talk with more credibility.

[reds4ever]

if you want to practise play on the zone, there are some grade 'a' a**holes on there but you soon suss who is up for a long, fair game, until you can win consistantly on the zone you still need more practise.

odeo, i think the zone is getting a more european feel to it these days as unlimited internet access becomes avaliable, when i started playing MP about 18 months ago it used to cost me 1p a minute which doesn't sound like much but 1 month my phone bill was more than my gas, electric and water combined, now i pay a flat rate of 15 pounds a month, plus the fact no decent games used to start until 1 am GMT, so i'd be up till 6 or 7 am tired and usually drunk!

[Ted Striker]

Originally posted by SlowwHand


What a trip you are, dude.
You're going to kick people's ass, and in same post ask how does one go about playing.
Slippery grip on reality that you have there.

Yeah well you're next cowboy!

Thanks again for the info everybody.

[SlowwHand]

Cowboy.

[cavebear]

Derek - I wonder why an "MP newbie" is also an "Emperor" posting status. It just seems odd. Have you been living in the Off-Topic forum or something? Where do you normally post?

[Chris 62]

Yep, Derek is an OT kind of guy.