WP-PF-Diplo [PF-Independents]: Re: OOC: Region Crises in TV
Date:Sat, 09 Apr 2011 22:25:07 +0000

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Hey Barry - 

You asked:  "What the hell is going on with the TV universe? Am I damned for all time, or just incredibly, stupendously unlucky, or is there a bug in the code?"

I regret to say, none of the above!  I think you're suffering from a case of selective perception!

While my flight home from a work trip was delayed yesterday, I ran the stats.

The Duke has lost a total of 7 regions to crises.  Red Claw has lost 6, and in addition suffered a broken link to an Independent (which in my estimation is almost as bad as losing a region).  Anachronism has lost 6 regions to crises and 5 more broken links to independents.

That seems like statistical parity, especially considering that you were larger sooner and have thus been more exposed.  Since Anachronism reached region parity with you, he's lost 5 regions, Red Claw has lost 6, and you've lost only 3.  (Note also that somewhere in there I reduced the rate at which crises occur...)  Since Red Claw reached region parity with you, he's lost 3 regions, Anachronism has lost 3, and you've lost 2.  So I don't think you're being picked on by the random number generator.  (But due remember, "random" is not "fair and balanced"... as the floods in Australia and the earthquakes in Japan have reminded us in real life.  It's just more fair and balanced than, say, Western intervention in Libya...)

I think the other two have adopted a strategy of "not sulking", and are finding ways to expand faster than the crises occur.  (Remember, the larger you are, and the more external connections you have, the more opportunities you have to grow. The crises provide some friction which makes it more challenging for the big to get bigger (as do the limits on number of moves, for the very largest nations), but they don't stop growth altogether.

The code does have a region threshold in it, such that nations below that threshold won't experience any crises.  You're welcome to find that limit, but in my experience (have we been playing this game for 10 years!?!?!!) it's not as exciting a way to go... which I thing you'd agree with.

You wrote:  "Overall, not fun at all, with salt rubbed in the wounds by seeing others no so similar afflicted (here I was, waiting for turn after turn to revel in Anach's regional crises like my own, only to be denied even that schadenfreude pleasure).  I'm left to forever twiddle my thumbs, accumulate troops and build production slowly, never daring to do anything out of the square. Yawn."


I think that's a selective perception!  I recommend dialing up the power to the schadenfreude receptors!  And then do something risky and daring and see what happens.  It's only a game!

Finally, you wrote:  "As to this Universe, I've no complaints. Yes I'm taking a double pounding and have had my universe badly fragmented by poorly timed/located internal link breaks, but overall, it's been fun! Whereas my battles against the regional crisis God in TV has not..."

This comment (together with my perception of the selective perception issue) got me thinking.  The game's mathematics require a certain amount of link breaking to maintain an upper limit on average links/region, in order to prevent superhubs from accumulating.  The game math also requires a certain amount of region consolidation to prevent the Universe from becoming so large that the maps and movement controls cease to work effectively.  However, over the years I think a lot of players (no, it's not just you, Barry!) have truly despised the region crises, even though they are random, even though in the real world similar things happen (New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina, for instance) and even though many of the veteran players find that the dynamic network adds a lot of strategic  opportunity and excitement to the game.  So, maybe there's a way to get the mathematical balance, without the random destruction.  I have an idea for ways that the consolidation doesn't have to be as violent as it is, and it could even be made voluntary if production were not destroyed in a region consolidation.  (Better to have the same production and links in fewer regions, for greater mobility!)  I will look at implementing some changes!

Gotta run, the kids are after me to play with them before we go out for dinner.  I'll restart the "edgeofpower.com" development site and see what I can come up with over the next few weeks...