my e-mail is fromage67 at gmail dot com, Timezone is GMT + 0.

I would like to join on the 4/6 player basic map as draconians or if draconians aren't possible, frostlings or goblins.
My E-Mail is lordduckk at gmail dot com and time zone is GMT+1

[This message has been edited by LordDuck (edited 05-06-2008 @ 06:15 AM).]

Please change my email address to:

albaron dot aow at googlemail dot com

or

albaron at onlinehome dot de


If you need a player for the non-elite 4 player game, you can count on me as well, but only if you miss one. No preferences for this then.

I'll take Goblins in game 2, if that's ok.

Hi, I would like to play Orcs in the basic player pool. Email is already noted.

I am hoping more for a larger, epic, map but anywhere you need me! Whatever helps getting that XL - map!

Hey GM, thanks for doing all this. I am always better at ideas than actually doing anything about them. I'll take orcs in game 3. email is: jamieede AT yorku DOT ca

unless there is an influx of people wanting to join in, and willing to play in more then 1 game, the rosters are just about set. Looks like we are missing someone to play dwarves in game 3.

I anticiapte being ready to start the beta games (at least the 4 player games) in a week or 2, since I want to play thru myself a few times to work on balance and bugs.

The 6 player version may be ready for launch at the same time, but will more likely be delayed to let the 4 player games play out a bit... we'll see.

Thanks to everyone for signing up. Now excuse me, while I go fire up the editor!

Could you please use my gmail because I check it daily constantly, and so I can do the turns instantly!

swolte at gmail dot com

Also, what is that avatar, GM? I always thought of you as cookie monster painted green!!

[This message has been edited by Swolte (edited 05-07-2008 @ 01:47 AM).]

Yes Greenmonster, elf is my favourite race!

Quoted from swolte:

Also, what is that avatar, GM? I always thought of you as cookie monster painted green!!

heh, that's along the lines of what I always thought. Then I met him in person, right before the playoffs, or world series or whatever it was....and he waswearing a boston red sox sweatshirt!!!

....suddenly it all became clear....

btw...GM is a top class fellow in person as in "character"

Quoted from Swolte:

Also, what is that avatar, GM? I always thought of you as cookie monster painted green!!

LOL! I almost used a green cookie monster!
Over the past 6-7 years or so here, its amused me to read people's thoughts on my nickname, and their theories about where it came from. I like the ambiguity, so I picked an avatar that noone has yet associated with my nickname - Its from an Absinthe ad

I was thinking that I would change the avatar every so often with a pic that would have a new take on my nickname, just for shits & giggles.

Quoted from KD:

and he was wearing a boston red sox sweatshirt!!!

Yep, KD wins the cupie doll. That is indeed the origin, although I did in part choose it because it is so flexible.

For those who do not know, the Red Sox play in Fenway Park (the oldest park in the majors), and their park has a unique feature; a 37' tall green wall in left field, that starts at only 310' away from home plate, QUITE short for a ballpark. This wall is named the greenmonster.

Quoted from KD:

btw...GM is a top class fellow in person as in "character"

Oh, stop trying to get a favorable starting posistion!
Everyone knows I'm a monster!

I'd like to fill that position on Game 3.
Please use my Gmail address as well: unnapu at gmail dot com.

Thank you.

[This message has been edited by Unnapu (edited 05-07-2008 @ 09:45 AM).]

Quoted from greenmonster:

Oh, stop trying to get a favorable starting posistion!

Ah well, it never hurts to try. Just to clear things up, greenmonster is a scum-sucking bottom feeder

sorry Unnapu, but having you in a beginner level game is really going to throw off the testing.

I'll save you a slot in the mixed level games if they happen though, or perhaps someone in an expert game will relinquish a spot (although I would prefer that if they are participating in both expert level games to REMAIN in both expert level games. I need some people who play both to help me compare the different versions).

The games will not launch for a while, so there is still more time to get more people involved.

Quoted from KD -in jest:

Just to clear things up, greenmonster is a scum-sucking bottom feeder

That's where I uncovered KD, and we've been friends since.

[This message has been edited by greenmonster (edited 05-07-2008 @ 09:06 PM).]

No problem

I'll offer my hand to help anyway I can. Races, number of games, etc not important, just stick me anywhere you need another reliable player.

mjschuck at fidnet dot com

hey everyone, I just wanted to remind you that when you sign up, please give me a bit more info then "interested, here's my email". I don't want to stick an expert in with a beginner, and ruin the results of the testing.



from the top post:

(* with high enough demand, I may also do a set for 'tweaners; medium level/mixed level players)

************************************************************ **********************
sign up below with your list of race preferences, how good you feel you are on a scale of 1 to 10, and if you want to be in a 4 player, 6 player, or both. Leave your email addresses, 'cause I'm not hunting them down!
GMT, and time you usually play your turns will also be quite helpful in helping the games move along quickly.
************************************************************ **********************

Players who wish to participate in the 4 AND 6 player versions will take priority, and I will fill the other slots as I choose. Even if you initially see your name signed up for a game, you may later be bumped.

I'm a bit late, has been very busy over here. But I always like to test new ideas, so chalk me up in the medium/mixed pool.

lordtheron at gmail dot com

Okay, to be more precise, although it is not easy to rate myself, I would rate me 4 to 5 on a 10 scale level. Maybe some other players, who have played with me, are willing to confirm this.

GM, feel free to sort me in the games. I can play two as well. If it's possible to play one game with the dwarf, everything else is fine by me.

*updates*

the games-

There WILL be a mixed level set of games, since there looks to be great enough demand.
There are only a few spots left open in each grouping, so if you want in, sign up quickly!

if you see a game is full, please do not let it stop you from joining the waiting list, as players are still getting bumped and/or shifted from one set of games to another.


the map-

Work has gone a bit slower then anticipated, so expect delays.
I have decided to work up the underground alot, making it as important for the 4 player game as the 6 player game. This, of course, takes time.

I'm trying to not get so wrapped up in details and eye candy for the underground to get the beta maps out quicker, but it is part of my process, and alot of ideas spring up when I do the detail work. For example, I've reworked a large portion of the simple underground I had already, just because I liked how some of the tiles looked. Using 'fancier' tiles made me rethink the history and culture of the dwarves on my map. They were no longer poor, backwater hicks, but an isolated set of smaller clans who have lived here for a long time. And the dwarf wizard may or may not be the recognized leader of these clans now.

Also, I'm working out in my mind exactly what I'll need to change from the 4 player to the six player, in order to make that process as seemless as possible. If I know what the 6 player needs to do, then I can design for it, as I'm making the 4 player map...
which is why the underground is becoming so much more important for the 4 player version (which, IMO, is a very good thing). At some point, the development of these maps will need to diverge though, and any corrections I later make will need to be done twice basically, so I'm trying to make these maps as finished as possible.

in summary, stick with me on this. Your patience will be rewarded with a much more polished, playable and enjoyable map that will rival or surpass alot of 'finished' maps out there.

Unnapu (?-? interested ?-?)

Yes, please, but only for one game is that is possible.
No race preference.
Thank you.

I'll get in both games 5 n 6 as dwarves (not if someone else has picked 'em first)

Email: nguyen dot huyhai at gmail dot com
GMT +1

I'll take Frostlings in Game 5 if they are still available

I'll take the last spots in game 1 and 2.

frallaow at gmail dot com
gmt +2

only 1 position left...

PLEASE SEND COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS TO: gmmod (at) NYCAP (dot) rr (dot) com

ESPECIALLY if they involve any 'spoilers', since all of these games are being played blind.

comments I will be looking for are:
- anything involving balance concerns
- misspellings (spelling is NOT my forte, but I've made a conscious effort to try and look up words I thought I might be misspelling)
- script bugs
- how enjoyable the map is (or isn't)
- questions on why I did something this way, or how it was done, etc...
- Does the map feel too cluttered or too closterphobic?
- Are there too many units guarding places, &/or are they too difficult, etc...
- Anything you specifically like, or do not like (this was creative, this area looks great, I died too easily, this didnt make sense to me, etc...)
- Is the map condusive to good, open-ended role-playing, or did I force you down certain paths? Are the wizards or heroes too restrictive in this sense? How about the flow of the map (do you feel too forced to do certain stuff, or to do things in a certain way)?
- Should the heroes have background stories, or is it better for your own creative experience to have a blank slate in front of you?
- Asking where you can send $ to show your gratitude



*what's finished?*

- the surface is completely done, down to the last blade of grass.
- all artifacts were made from scratch, and are finished.
- all heroes were created from scratch, and are finished. (One more hero will be added, named after whomever fills the last open posistion)
- all 4 wizards are finished, and the last 2 are planned out pretty well (waiting on the 4p version to be finished)
- There are alot of carefully written, highly organized scripts to add extra depth to gameplay. More will be added as the other wizards are added, or as they come to me.


***what needs to be done for the 4p version***

1 *** - the underground is about 70% finished.
2 - scripts need to be tested.
3 - a game or 2 needs to be played to get an idea on what changes & tweeks need to be made to balance the map.
4 - any balance issues will be corrected.
5 - step 3&4 will be probably be repeated 2 or 3 times. Final balancing will be done after the test games however.*

***what needs to be done for the 6p version***

1 - the 4p version needs to be finished

2 - the remaining 2 wizards need to be created and placed, although I have strong ideas of what needs to be done here. 1 map will feature elves and goblins, the other archons and goblins, but changes will be minimal in for this experiment.
*** the starting areas for the extra 2 wizards is almost complete, so step 2 should take minimal time.

3 - scripts from the 4p version need to be revisited, to include the 2 new wizards.
*** this could be difficult, since I keep adding scripts. and more scripts

4 - a game or 2 needs to be played to get an idea on what changes & tweeks need to be made to balance the map.

5 - any balance issues will be corrected.*

6 - step 4&5 will be repeated as needed. Final balancing will be done after the test games however. I expect the balancing to be pretty much ready to go if the 4p version works out well, since I'm designing the 4p version as if it were the 6p version.



* at this point, I'm thinking about making the map a little imbalanced on purpose. Alot of creatures are spawned randomly from a huge pool of units, and this could really skew each individual game (although the random factor does tend to balance itself out on the whole). Why have I decided to go this route? because I feel that it will add alot of replayability, and because I think that an imbalanced map may actually make the role playing aspect better. This is not meant to be a tournament map. Don't let that last sentance scare you though. I'll make sure that the map will not play TOO strongly in any 1 wizard's favor, although you may find that temporarily teaming up with another wizard for a bit could be beneficial.

[This message has been edited by greenmonster (edited 06-20-2008 @ 04:06 PM).]

Question: when will it be ready?

yes put me in the mixed category. If you need a frostling great. I'm open to whatever. thx

UPDATE:

ok, things are going well.
I am currently playtesting right now, for the 2nd time (although the first was cut short by some bad script bugs... apparently a spawn event set to happen "once" on the independants turn will keep spawning units every day for some odd reason! ).

As predicted, there are still some script bugs that I'm still trying to work out, BUT, on day 10, all 4 wizards are still ranked at average, meaning that the balance is pretty good so far. on day 11, 1 wizard was eliminated by another however, and I forsee 1 wizard starting to become a powerhouse, so some tweaking is still needed. Of course, with a couple random events going 1 way instead of another, and a wizard doing this instead of that, balance may actually be close to spot on (to what was intended)

after the bugs are pretty much squished, and some slight balance tweaks are made, the 4p beta will start, and the 6p beta will probably follow it in... we'll conservitivly say, 2 weeks after.




I will say that so far, turns are very quick, and not very 'involved', so the games will REALLY benefit when they are full of people who play their turns quickly. I expect turns to really start getting heated around day 15 or so though.

*UPDATE*

ok, we are just about there...
I've got to start 1 last test game, thru 15 turns or so.

I believe all script bugs are now fixed (there are alot of scripts, and getting these to all work properly took a long time), but if any bugs do linger, I'll just cut the script out (or ignore it), and send the games out anyway, and then work on them again b4 the map goes public.

I've played 5 games until at least turn 40.

• in 4 of the games, at least 1 wizard (different each time) was eliminated by day 15 or so, almost always due to independants.
  
• in each game, wizards would take turns dominating the map, but none could hold domination for long
  
• there will be alot of turns where you do very little; if the turns keep moving, its no problem. Just keep in mind that it is an empire building game.
  
• there is alot of suspense in the turns. things really pick up around day 30. Most likely there will be some major conflicts around this time, and then another period of rebuilding armies.
  
• SCOUT! You are playing blind, and you have no wizard tower. While you should be safe on your first couple turns, all bets are off after day 3. Keep your wizard well protected.
  
• While I playtest very thouroughly, what I can not predict is what effects diplomacy will have. The map was designed keeping in mind the request 'players should roleplay the races like the races/alignment really would'. There are no 'artificial rules' I'm imposing though, so enjoy whatever chaos ensues!
  
• There is alot of randomness to increase replayability and unpredictability. Depending on how the 'dice land', you may find yourself very powerful early on, or under considerable duress.
  
• If you play smart, you can overcome your limited and quickly dwindling resources WITHOUT having to disband troops. In fact, if you do disband troops, you may find that you get 'stuck' without enough troops to help you claim resources. Or worse, you may find your enemies are really close, and you won't be able to fend them off.
  
• Its a SMALL map. That means its very dangerous. Play cautious, or gamble big - that's up to you, BUT, if you do gamble, be prepared to go down in flames. On the other hand, a well-timed gamble when another wizard has their guard down could pay off HUGE.
  
• I'm confident enough in the map's balance that I can recommend it for wizard ladder games. If all players agree right away about making it a ladder game, go ahead and register them.
  
  
• lastly, there is a GAME bug I found which pops up semi-often on this map due to unique scripting. It may cause too many units to occupy the same hex, and when it does, you will not be able to move anyone. IT IS NOT A GAME BREAKER, and is an easy fix. Simply save your game, exit out, and reload where you left off. The units will still occupy the same same hex, but you will be able to move them now. It does not cause a restart.
  

The 6 player games should follow about 2 weeks after the 4p games start, hopefully sooner.
Very little has to be done for the conversion, because I was very aware of what the map would become while I was making it, but I'll still need to playtest a couple times to see just what the starting forces for each wizard should be, etc...

[This message has been edited by greenmonster (edited 06-11-2008 @ 04:27 PM).]

Hey Greenmonster,

as i remember, you said the wiz descriptions would be left blank. does that mean we should send you a description if we have one?

also, my GMT is -5

thanks again for this,

james.

^^ nope, no need. Wiz & Hero descriptions are almost all blank, so players can come up with whatever story they like in game, although it will help players to look at the wizard skills and spheres and whatnot to come up with good stories for their own turn logs.

Now, as a little 'thank you' to everyone for signing up, and for being so patient with me when I made it sound like it would be done 'any day now', everyone that is signed up has a hero named after them... people in 2 games have a second hero (using backwards spelling of their name). For the most part, your hero will be of the race you signed up for, although there are some deviations due to some shuffling of the sign ups and some balance concearns.

If you would like to submit a story for your own heroes, after seeing their skillset of course, then I will include the stories for the full release.





***IMPORTANT***

there is a small movie file used in this map (from AoW2), which you can download from
HERE if you do not have AoW2. This file should be placed into the AoW:SM "movies" folder. It is not essential to do this, but you may experience a 15 second black screen where you can do nothing. The game is NOT locking up, and nothing bad is happening to your computer. The game is just trying to locate or play a file that isn't there. Everything is back to normal after 15 seconds or so.

This will be a more common problem for the 6p version.

[This message has been edited by greenmonster (edited 06-13-2008 @ 07:05 AM).]

Quoted from Greenmonster:

everyone that is signed up has a hero named after them... people in 2 games have a second hero (using backwards spelling of their name)

It should be fun when people see my username spelled backwards

[This message has been edited by naecO (edited 06-13-2008 @ 10:59 AM).]

Beware the Egamorf!

3 games started.

The Golden Ring : beta game X

see first post in this thread for gamelog links.

Why is game 4 not started, I'm hot to begin -

I'm still working on the 6p versions. Going as fast as I can

fixed alot of bad bug problems I had in the 6p game, due to adding 2 wizards to a 4p map (took me a while to figure out that when you do that, the conditions with 'target player' leave the new wizards unticked).

Things are finally looking really good... definitly on track for starting the 6p games by the end of next week, if not, much sooner.

Hi Greenmonster. I have a question. I am currently playing the Orcs on your map. Although we are only at turn 2 I must say the map looks great so far. One question though. After a certain mission a messenger arrives. He first joins, and then gets removed. This is noted in the wizard book of great deeds affecting the moral and popularity. Not sure if both effects cancel eachother out but I alwasy thought bad stuff has more effect then good deeds. Perhaps you should keep the hero apart from the wizard? Just some thoughts, correct me if I am wrong