carriers and subs for everyone

[bvanevery]

I find it completely ridiculous that in SMAC, these are implemented as late game techs.  I've moved them to Doctrine:Initiative, part of my ongoing "Realism" mod.  I think the general problem is, Firaxis did "Civ II in space", and didn't want to mess with the Civ II style unit progressions too much.  So you have to earn things like carriers, submarines, missiles.  But from a realism standpoint this is all bollocks.

I'm happy if people kill each other sooner, or if single players kill the AIs sooner.  The game takes way too long as it is.  Shouldn't have to wait around forever to get minor benefits.

[Ximenaz]

What is the most important content within these websites? Are there more guidelines?

[PvtHudson]

+1. I moved carriers (together with Undersea Trunkline) to a new tech Advanced Naval Algorithms, between Doc: Init and Homo Superior. Also hovertanks are undeservedly delayed. Monopole magnets are much better place for them.

[bvanevery]

Website content... it's somewhat a matter of what you're most focused on.  I think connecting with other people who still play SMAC is really important, so lately I've gravitated to the subforums that have the most traffic.  Regardless of which subforums those are.  I'm also attempting to increase traffic by surveying everything vaguely important to me and posting regularly about something.  Dead subforums tend to repel traffic.  Sometimes I find that necroing threads increases traffic, but I only do it if I actually think the thread is worthy of comment in the present day.

Hovertanks, I agree, ridiculously late in stock SMAC.  I did something similar-ish to your idea.  I made Monopole Magnets very early, only requiring Superconductor.  Why shouldn't future societies be building rails as soon as they can?  We aren't discovering the steam engine; Tesla's working on this stuff right now.  Also I consider rails to be a primary means of conquest and I'd just as soon get on with the game.

Anyways Monopole Magnets + Advanced Subatomic Theory --> Nanominiaturization (Hovertanks).  We already have nano machines today, even if they don't do things quite as "magical" as implied by the game.  I actually think Hovertanks have nothing to do with Nanominiatrization, but I needed to put them somewhere and it's sorta hand-wavy related to Maglev stuff.  Not what I'd call a hardcore realism decision.

[Buster's Uncle]

Website content... it's somewhat a matter of what you're most focused on.  I think connecting with other people who still play SMAC is really important, so lately I've gravitated to the subforums that have the most traffic.  Regardless of which subforums those are.  I'm also attempting to increase traffic by surveying everything vaguely important to me and posting regularly about something.  Dead subforums tend to repel traffic.  Sometimes I find that necroing threads increases traffic, but I only do it if I actually think the thread is worthy of comment in the present day.

BTW?  Fifty thumbs-up post for identifying a need and taking initiative doing something about it.  -This is how healthy communities happen, and I could use ten members like you that way...

                       

                       

                       

                       

                       

                       

                       


 

[bvanevery]

Well I continue to "fish for spillage" in other places.  I'm having trouble thinking of anywhere to "organically" participate in other than Reddit though.

[Buster's Uncle]

What you're doing at CFC, holding up your end of an ongoing chat with me about how the Angels might work as a society, is serving more than one purpose in our mutual goal to draw bright people to talk to...

As long as we stay relevant to the GotM in some obvious way, we can change topics again, too...

[bvanevery]

Yeah that's pretty much my gameplan.  Like when I build a Biology Lab, its primary purpose is to get a constant +2 improvement in research, regardless of base size.  Good for small bases.  But it also gives a +1 lifecycle advantage if I want it, and I'm not opposed to getting a lifecycle advantage as part of the ride.

[Buster's Uncle]

Among my goals at CFC is to kick enough life back into their AC to get it self-sustaining.

I've tried before more than once, but never kept it up more than a few months at a time, when I estimate it needs a sustained effort of about a year - that's the only other place I know of on the nets that I wouldn't deem it a full-time sort of job; there's plenty of people already there who like SMACX and would participate if only there was a little regular activity and other people checking by to talk to - just needs time to get enough of them back in the habit.  -Then we shamelessly (but discretely via PM) headhunt the cream of the newbs they attract...  Established CFC people are hard to retain, but not so with newbs...

[bvanevery]

Interesting concept.  I haven't known / liked anyone else enough to PM anyone much of anywhere.  I would have probably thought of that years ago, when my gamedesign-l was stronger, but it's an almost dead thing now.  It's also invisible to the internet behind a Yahoo! Groups barrier.  Didn't used to be, something changed a large number of years ago.  I just keep looking around for some other game design watering hole.

Reddit isn't sufficient.  Too much of a mix of high vs. low level stuff, and too many posts, so not so much concentration or community glue around the posts.  I try to participate, and I inevitably feel like I'm just talking to "random people" on the internet, whose thoughts aren't focused enough on the issues I care about.

Since I talk about 4X TBS a lot, it's actually more productive to talk to people self-identifying as 4X TBS game players, than "game designers" writ large.

I do need to see if I can find anyone on the internet talking about "parameterized hypertext" though, if that's even a term people use.  I've realized that the SMAC tech tree and narrative delivery mechanism, is pretty much that.  They just didn't go far enough with it.  They shoved small sentences into dialog boxes and called it good.

My reshuffling of the tech tree, I've realized is an attempt to change the narrative of the game.  For instance, Homo Superior becomes the tech that gives you the Telepathic Matrix.  It depends on Centauri Psi, but does not depend on anything "cyborg" to get there.  Eudaimonia precedes it, and all of the "advanced societies" come earlier, so that factions can actually make meaningful use of them before the game ends.  Turning humans into machines is a different narrative path, and AI stuff is a different path yet again.  Secrets of the Human Brain also comes much later, and it's how you get The Empath Guild, not Hypnotic Trance.  It's a humanistic path, no cyborgs, AIs, or mindworms.  Whereas Fundamentalism is immediate, you only need Social Psych.  What Would the Inquisition Do?

[Buster's Uncle]

You'd like to attract DrazharLn's attention, I think - he's more a pure computer tech guy, working on a PhD, but a 4x TBS gamer with an abiding interest.

At WPC, Dale's an actual past pro who would probably talk to you, and of course you'd be interested in Darsnan, who along with Maniac, is as good a tech-end SMACX modder as there is in the community.

Maniac's a member here, as is Draz, and I'd love to see both or either active here again - good friends.  The other two ought to be pretty cooperative at WPC, though best not mention me...

Some PMs to draw their notice might do wonders, though don't get your hopes too high, especially Maniac...