Random events / Plotline?

[zulu9812]

Does anyone think that it would be cool if Civ3 had random events programmed into the skirmish game (but not scenarios). Not all the events would happen in every game, nor would they happen in the same order. It's just something to liven up proceedings. The idea came about after playing Imperium Galactica 2, although in that game the storyline made the game too linear. I know people enjoy the laid-back, leisurely pace of TBS games (I know I do). As I say, it's just something to liven up proceedings.

Possible events could be -

1. Rebellion, not of cities, but of military units. Perhaps more likely to happen if your military is especially large - nothing like your best general wanting a promotion!

2. One civ (either your's, or an AI's) being singled out and half the world goes to war in a big alliance. The civ in question could ally with some other countries. Makes world wars more, well, like world wars - 1 big faction against another.

3. Traders stopping by offer to techs (which may or may not be bogus), world maps, luxuries, etc..

4. Barbarians formng new civs, never more than a few cities (say 10 at most).

I realise that the game kinda features random events at the moment - barbarian uprisings and ...um...well, that's it. Still, it'd be nice to have a bit more of a narrative, just so long as it doesn't overwhelm the game.

Anyone have any thought?

[Jon Shafer]

YES! Civ needs more than UUs and civ-specific abilities to make each game more interesting...

[Lucilla]

Great idea!

But rather than your suggestions 1 and 2, I would prefer events like

- vulcanic erruptions
- flood catastrophies
- earth quakes (which would change the terrain permanently)
- visits from extraterrestrial species (which could give you some techs or luxury for free, similar to your 3rd point)
- mutations (could be positive or negative: giving some of your units special strength, increasing food production in some area, increasing illness in some area, etc.)
- epidemics

Babarians forming new civs would be nice as well. Maybe when they take over cities (like they did in Civ2), they could found a new civ.

[Velociryx]

Amen! And the events need not be along a particular plot line, but instead, could be tied to certain techs, forms of government, or even units...for example, once you make the switch to monarchy, switching out to some other form of government could give you an x% chance (probably low.....5% or so) of triggering one of a hundred or more events related to that very thing (nobles demanding payment to compensate for their sudden loss of power, nobles rebelling and causing a civil war in your empire, the church, fearing a loss of power in this brave new world, withdraws their support temporarily (temples no longer provide culture or happiness effect for x turns), and those were just ideas off the top of my head relating to one very specific point in the game.

-=Vel=-

[Bella Hella]

absolutely. i'd like to see natural disasters like in simcity, too. and global warming should be much more serious - ONE plains tile on my continent turning to desert? give me a break. how about starting off by having a whole patch of grassland turn to plains??? other ideas:

- sea levels rising/sinking like in SMAC
- alien life forms come down and START THEIR OWN CIV!!!
- DROUGHT! that would rock.
- FLOODING!
- wandering entertainers! like bands of gypsies, or the circus. increase the happiness in the city for a period of time

i'm sure i'll think of others later. you guys have some great idas for this, too!

[*Clart*]

theses ideas would be awesome. i would like barbarians to go back to the way they were in civ 2, except when they capture a city, they can build modern units from it. also, the word war thing would be cool. i know some people dont like war that much, but lets face it, war was a huge part in history and it should be a huge part in the game.

[tishco]

i voted for 'Yeah - but it can't be too dominant' but after reading the ideas i love it!
it would have to avoid some of smacs problems with it tho, more visiual, not just: 'an earthquake happens. -1 to fluff, +1 to blah'

[ACooper]

I like the idea of random events, but more in line with the Civ I model, i.e. volcanoes, pirates in coastal cities, etc. My biggest fear is that it would become too linear or like SMAC (I hate 'factions')

[Capt Dizle]

LMAO at the thought that Civ3 could be made more linear than it already is.

[zulu9812]

Random weather events is certainly a good idea - good thinking Lucilla...

[Velociryx]

I think the linear/predictable nature of events could be easily undone by making them: A) Uncommon (at best) and B) having a great many of them.

Those kinds of things are easy to code in, cos the effects are (or can be) localized and impermanant. Since they don't have any long-lasting effect on the game (and many could be simply immediately resolved), they don't have to tie in well with all the subsystems the game has.

So, you could make literally HUNDREDS of them pretty easily.

If you saw 2-3 in a game, it'd take upwards of a thousand full games of Civ before you started seeing lots of duplications.

That's a lotta replay.

-=Vel=-

[Captain]

yes, but optional and random.
the story script plotlines should be saved for scenarios,
or introduced in general terms if certain conditions are met,
like the events editor in civ 2 did.

[FrantzX]

Culture flipping you can do something about. But if I lose a city or more do to pure chance, you can bet that I'll always turn them off.

[zulu9812]

Rather than these events happening by pure chance, the random chance of it happening is triggered by one of your actions, perhaps when you change governments, or have an especially large military.

[player1]

Aliens in Civ3?

To much CHEESY.

Maybe in sceanrios.

[Mr. President]

Random events? You mean like in Alpha Centauri when a meteor comes and wipes out your best base, or when you lose all your research one turn away from a breakthrough?

[notyoueither]

The key would be that the effect could not be too dramatic.

Capital wiped out? No. Plague effects population, OK.

All research wiped? No. Lose a few turns, OK.

10 cities go in a military coup? No. A small percentage of your expeditionary force in enemy territory 'changes flags', OK.

Of course, these should be accompanied by some fortunate events as well.

[Jon Shafer]

3500 BC: Your prophets have suddenly come across an alien script. *Proceeds to modern era*