I was very impressed by Martok's Birth of the Federation AAR ("Ex Astris, Scientia": a Birth of the Federation AAR http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=7030.msg170826#msg170826). So much so that I decided to do my own.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F005.jpg&hash=cd3a370bd25b260c8006d2abdbf49f3eaa8bb4b9)
While he did the Balance of Power mod, which I'm honestly not familiar with as I've not played it extensively, I am doing the "All the Ages" mod, which more closely resembles the 'true' Star Trek experience, from the NX-01 Enterprise era to the Nemesis-era Enterprise-E.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F006-1.jpg&hash=9e96c6cbc8a5e1441075931eaae4890b69c11379)
I will play the Federation in this one. I never liked playing the others as much, even though I've done all of them. I'd like to think that the Federation's rosy, hippy-fueled outlook of exploring for its own sake is the best reason to undertake a journey to the stars, rather than exploiting resources or trade routes (the Ferengi), or being a conquering neandrathal (everyone else, pretty much). You could certainly play the Federation as a conquering force, but their population of weed-smoking liberals will not tolerate that for more than a planet or two before they go into some serious levels of rebellion.
I'm going to write this as I play it, so if it implodes partway through, you'll know why. I mainly do this to keep it fresh in my head, rather than play through a hundred turns and decide then if I have something good or not. If something amusing or interesting comes to mind, it will do so while I'm in the moment, and not days down the road.
One last note before I begin: I don't claim to be an expert at this game, nor am I going to make all the right choices. The only thing I hope to have here is (a) a good time, and being able to (b) write something that you guys enjoy. This means I'll probably not take myself terribly seriously while running through this, so expect some humor/humour. Or attempts thereof.
Now, on with the show...
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F007-2.jpg&hash=5ff7c7b83b91d1766f7a2fce09c122125da3834e)
After years of crawling through the ruins of a nuked-out landscape, humanity has barely crawled its way back to pertinence. Thanks to a philosophy of 'learning from your mistakes,' humanity has decided that fighting is a very bad thing and results in lots of ashen cities and ashen citizens. Humanity has, in general, risen above petty arguments and conflicts and is on the path to greater arguments and greater conflicts, especially once they run into one of the other major players in this game.
Until then, humanity has mastered some of the technologies of the past and have forged new ones based on their new brand of enlightened thinking, and have managed to not only exceed their previous society's levels of science and knowledge, but they've begun a philosophy that encompasses no less than the pursuit of science and knowledge for the sheer sake of learning and discovering. Truly a novel concept, considering mankind's history.
Once Zephram Cochrane was able to discover the secret of warp technology, entire sectors of space were suddenly open to us. (Sure, okay, Zephram is supposed to be from Alpha Centauri and have two thumbs on each hand. I'm going by what First Contact taught us: that Zephram ain't no dirty alien, he's a 'Muric...err, I mean, human. 'Muman?) Rudimentary warp probes were launched into the void, and soon after that, ships were built to launch bodies into the void (without an inkling as to what awaited them).
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F011-1.jpg&hash=36da506957595f7ce9d8272f8036b0ec985e3a13)
The USS Seadragon, named apparently for some vague Asiatic/Americas pan-Pacific involvement in its construction (and making me wonder if we're in the Firefly 'verse), is the first true exploratory vessel built to go "where no man has gone before." And yes, I said "man," not "person" or some other PC bullcrap. There's women on these ships. I mean, if there weren't, how would the sandwiches get made or the ships stop to ask for directions?
We've also constructed the world's first colony ship, capable of carrying thousands of passengers in relative comfort (akin probably in size and comfort to the train cars of Auschwitz, as this is not yet a perfect science), which we plan on sending after the NX-01 Seadragon makes discoveries. Hopefully, we'll find something out there.
Before we do, though, as the player of this game and therefore the despot/autocratic lord of the Federation (e.g., a Democratic President), I get to also choose what technologies our scientists will pursue. There are six tracks to choose from, displayed here.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F009.jpg&hash=ce64e9cd90c26cc17e30ff025fc3888d147117ef)
The voices in my head say it's better to put all of your research eggs into one track instead of spreading them all out. This means faster advancement, and in this case I'm choosing Construction. The next tech level means we'll have a working knowledge of 'integrity fields,' which my scientists need to explain to me as I begin to get cold sweats and shakes, thinking this field is going to bring actual honesty and truthfulness to the Presidential offices. Imagine my relief to learn it's for actual reinforcement of actual buildings and ships and such things. That was a close one.
Our warp probes have discovered two star systems in neighboring sectors. Both have a blue sun, which means something awfully scientific. My researchers had a whole PowerPoint presentation they gave that they were really proud of with lots of graphs, but I yawned through most of it and played with the model of the Seadragon that the newly-founded 'Starfleet' had given me to mark the occasion of, yadda yadda, something about the ship going off into space.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F007a.jpg&hash=ebbacf9bbbd229625cc81b6a872bc3d79baa06a8)
I suddenly had a moment of inspiration, looking at the map of known space. I decided to send the Seadragon to one star, and the colony ship to the other. The scientists looked at each other and seemed to get really uncomfortable at the notion of sending thousands of colonists off in a city-sized, unarmed transport boxcar with warp engines welded on. But nay, I said. This would save us precious time, and there's no such thing as aliens. They didn't laugh at my joke. I made a note to get funnier scientists to advise me.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F013.jpg&hash=eb62d74a9d2a23e68f15d528c54344862325c4c5)
Well gee whiz, look at what happened. Nothing! Our colony ship arrived safe and sound into the star system to our Galactic East, which was named Tohvun. They couldn't tell me why they named it Tohvun, so I tried my little Google computer, but the only thing that came up were these weird sci-fi websites from before the global war. Bunch of no-life having nerds talking about places that didn't really exist! Imagine that. Anyway, Tohvun it is. And to our Galactic West, we found Altair, which at least was a name that sounded somewhat familiar, even to me.
It's a bit more fortunate that the colony ship went where it did, because the Tohvun system has the potential for a population cap of 265, whereas Altair (where the Seadragon is) only has potential for 165. I congratulated the crew of the...of the...well I forget the name of their ship, but I congratulated them anyway at arriving safely and ushering in a new dawn of peace and prosperity and inexhaustible supplies of ore and raw materials. Wait, strike that last part, it wouldn't do to let the people hear me say that out loud.
Next: ALIENS?
ha, i remember Martoks, looking forward to more
OK, I gotta ask... why aren't we running this on the front page?!
LOL. Good so far, BC! Looking forward to further adventures. :)
Quote from: bayonetbrant on January 18, 2014, 04:52:55 PM
OK, I gotta ask... why aren't we running this on the front page?!
I dunno, BB. Up to you of course. 8)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F014a.jpg&hash=30c809c35bcf3822af4fd56eefe901e82da16709)
Fortunately there are no alien life forms in the Tohvun system. While this is a sad little system with tiny little planets (two Barren, one Desert, one Jungle, and one Arctic), the Jungle planet has a food bonus for its fertile soil, and the Desert planet has some great angles or something to it so it catches lots of rays for solar energy absorption. Or something. It's pretty scientific, you probably wouldn't even understand.
Those brave colonists immediately began to terraform the planets in the Tohvun system. Meanwhile, I took a look at how things were here in the Sol system. That's where Earth is, don'cha know.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F016-1.jpg&hash=c10fa50f09e771ee144dfafff0dcfd978f296ad9)
We've managed to terraform Mars, but not Venus, Mercury, or Pluto. Right now we have room for about another 80 population, but if we terraformed those three planets we'd have a shot at really growing our britches off.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F017.jpg&hash=b8a30068c3880fd82cf5a47678975a5a4a99bda3)
We have quite an infrastructure already in place, with tons of buildings not even being used yet. That's okay, because as I said, we're going to be fornicatin' like bunnies to churn out lots of little humans to throw recklessly through the void. Although upon closer inspection, I realize that there's no population manning either the Databanks or the Universities. The Databanks, I can understand; that churns out Intelligence, which is used to protect us from big aliens (pshaw), so it's not needed right now. Research, though...yeah, I kinda wasted a turn there by not assigning any scientists last turn. I order "off with their heads," but they tell me I can't do that. These people, I swear. If only there was a race in the universe somewhere that appreciated a good old fashioned off-with-their-heads mentality...hmm.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F018-1.jpg&hash=9caee793f5230fb06331bf82110a0abdd13037b7)
Well, since this is about spreading our human seeds throughout the known universe, I've ordered the construction of another colony ship. The lottery selection process is in place and already has begun, even though it'll be a while before the ship is built. After that, I've asked for another NX-01 craft to be built. Then, we'll get a Troop Transport built, which will be used to expand our horizons and the range of our ships.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F008-1.jpg&hash=c4436e15cb8ba7627f96d406106f64a8161b0e6e)
From the looks of things, we'll need a LOT of Troop Transports.
Next: ALIENS?!?!?!?
Wait...hello, nurse!
I'm using HyperSnap, and for some reason, the suns aren't appearing in the screenshots. Nor are the dilithium displays. So, I've downloaded Fraps to capture these things, so let's see if it's done right.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F022-1.jpg&hash=7f0d3756ddca722242cec9e6713c51ba6c36baaa)
Looks like it.
So, the Seadragon moves into the Sarona star system and finds not only lots of big planets with energy and food bonuses...but dilithium as well! This is huge news, because dilithium is what makes starships move, and starships moving means the Federation becoming big and powerful, which means we're safer when we run into ali-err, I mean, IF we run into aliens, of course.
The unfortunate thing about Sarona is, you'll note that it's outside of the range of our Colony Ships. That green box around Sol in the last screenshot is their range, which means only Tohvun and Altair can be reached right now. That Troop Transport has suddenly become much more important, so I will fast track it to first.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F023-1.jpg&hash=a41916d4fe10fe869820e02b68c39f8711ad539d)
Huh. I'll lose 62 industry if I stop the Colony Ship. I don't see why they can't just...build around it or something. It's not like they've spent a lot of time constructing it. But once the engineers come into my office with their PowerPoint and their lectures on 'frame stress' and 'worker's strike,' I kind of doze off and let them go to do whatever they think is right. And that means, leaving the Colony Ship as is for now. But, I will strike the Science Vessel (the next NX-01) and put a Troop Transport in there, then allow the NX-01 to be constructed.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F024.jpg&hash=35c8ca0a63641119350aba367e501757049e9a37)
I'm sure the unions are just going to love me being in charge.
While the terraforming goes well on Tohvun or Tenpin or whatever it's called, the NX-01 Seadragon continues its clockwise path around its outer range.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F025.jpg&hash=01a0ebd7e3b7a39d97eb280b916380ddeef709a0)
We come across the star system that the Department of Galactic Naming calls Hurada. Note to assistant: mandatory drug tests for the Department of Galactic Naming. What they're coming up with sounds like what my bowels did last night after that plate of ripe Ga'hk.
Hurada looks like a decent enough system, with an Oceanic planet that has a food bonus. That'll be on the list of future colonies, to be sure; at least for now it falls behind Sarona.
Finally, those slackers on the first Colony Ship finish the work of terraforming the planets of the Tohvun system. I might have been off by a few pop points, but this system can handle 270. Since every 10 pop points equals one slot in the production queue, that's 27 potential workers for the Federation's glory. Not too bad. Could be better, but definitely could be worse. And if I were playing the vanilla version of Birth of the Federation, it likely WOULD be a lot worse.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F026.jpg&hash=af7dd4ff9c7411f9b1351195e2d062a1fb8fe7b8)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F028-1.jpg&hash=d1fe78531c86532e42bcfca5d7460253a27f091f)
On new systems, I like to balance the construction of farms and replicators. Inevitably this will not work down the road as the population's randy habits outpace the growth of actual food to feed their snot-nosed offsprings (excuse me, The Future of the Federation
TM). For now though, this will serve as a good foundation that won't need to be acted on for some time.
I've also managed to uncover (as I am taking personal credit for all the hard work of those little e-crewmembers out there) two more star systems: Suvin and Boreth. Both are okay. Boreth is loaded with energy opportunities, which is probably good.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F027.jpg&hash=804b7bd0348966ac82ed06e6b822801800848965)
A breakthrough in science! SCIENCE, I SAY!
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F029-1.jpg&hash=8f7dcd189c5ae07a1b962d84ff3cd117cedb6b7a)
QuoteStructural Integrity Fields: Structural integrity fields allow large structures (such as starships) to be made from heavy materials without suffering the stress caused by the mass of such materials. As a result, stronger alloys may be used in all forms of construction, including the fabrication of starships.
Allows: Type 2 Mass Replicator
So this means I...that is, we...are on the road to building bigger, better starships. Wonderful. I decide to start the eggheads on looking at ways to make farms more efficient, so I put all efforts into Biotech now. As the population of Sol starts to go up (as well as on other planets), making my food-production structures more efficient means more population that can go do other things besides sit around and grow dope. I mean corn. Of course, I meant corn.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F031.jpg&hash=6d39d55fd29df5b3b433edb3f511cf632c70f9b9)
Meanwhile, the latest Colony Ship has been constructed. I immediately put it to work on terraforming the remaining planets of the Sol system. This comes none too soon, as working on Biotech and having better farms will help make Sol a hub of production. Not to mention the new Rome of the Empire! And by "empire" I of course mean "all-inclusive Federation."
Looks like my Troop Transport finally got built! Now we're starting to really stretch our star-legs, as it were...
Next: Manifest Destiny Begins...!
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 19, 2014, 11:20:59 AM
So this means I...that is, we...are on the road to building bigger, better starships. Wonderful. I decide to start the eggheads on looking at ways to make farms more efficient, so I put all efforts into Biotech now. As the population of Sol starts to go up (as well as on other planets), making my food-production structures more efficient means more population that can go do other things besides sit around and grow dope. I mean corn. Of course, I meant corn.
LOL! I do love the narrator's droll humor and general irreverence. :D
Congrats on the Sarona system! Stumbling upon a star system like that -- one with lots of big, juicy planets -- always makes me excited. (And yes, exactly in the way you think.)
Glad you guys are enjoying it. I only hope I can keep it interesting throughout. I DID choose to play the "Large" map for All The Ages, so this might take a while...
I don't want to describe each and every thing I do as that would get boring really fast, especially on this huge of a map.
It's a magical world, Banzai ol' buddy. Go exploring! :D
While that Troop Transport makes its way to the Sarona system, where my bounty of Dilithium awaits exploitation, I've moved my Colony ship to the neighboring Altair system. Altair is not on my short-term plans to colonize, but while I'm waiting on the Troop Transport to arrive and build an outpost, I can go ahead and terraform the planets in this system so it will be ready later.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F032-1.jpg&hash=29cb38963de8242e0c359c9a6f0ef3f6d1d72cb2)
Meanwhile back in the Sol system, my next NX-01 peak of technological exploration, my spearpoint of...uh, exploration...is nearing completion. I've gone ahead and queued a couple more Troop Transports so I can send them to the Galactic North and East of Sol to help expand the borders that way.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F033.jpg&hash=54764270a79365d35f2e01f60caf258dd016e564)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F034.jpg&hash=7b00de78986fb3c1e12913e433a45c99f7d180a8)
Oh hey, the scientists came knocking at my palatial office doors to tell me about this breakthrough in Biotech!
QuoteBIONICS: Bionics are synthetic tissues which replace organics. Bionic tissues can be used to repair injuries, strengthen fragile tissues, and aid in surgical procedures.
Allows: Aquaculture Center, Type 2 Automated Farm.
Everyone's awfully pleased with themselves, but they don't quite know how to answer when I ask, "So, how is it our food supply becomes more ample...from creating "tissue?" Sounds awfully The Hills Have Eyes to me."
They didn't have a rational explanation other than some long-winded stuff about synthetically growing synthe-meat, which sounds gross. But be that as it may, somehow it's found its way into our farming system. I'm hesitant to order an upgrade, fearing I will turn the population of Earth into a bunch of degenerate, flesh-eating monsters.
Oh...wait. Yeah. Nevermind.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F035-1.jpg&hash=100ad7782e909e970e8f41d59edc633d8732adf7)
I'm going to pour our next efforts into Propulsion. Hopefully this will help our short-legged ships get out further. We got a LOT of galaxy to explore!
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F036.jpg&hash=e940a1cc050d2ae59e056c011c17d3a7d5030601)
Uh-oh. Reports come in that there's starvation ahoy here in Sol. I guess my slowness to embrace synthe-guts to put on our citizen's tables might have made a few of them die from being hungry.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F037.jpg&hash=5ded465154bb2bbe0434a9a1e11b94359391154e)
This is one of the conundrums that Birth of the Federation will give you. Namely, your systems with a huge pop cap will grow pretty damned fast, especially if they have a world that has a food bonus (see the little corn stalk above the Earth in this last screenshot?). That will give you tons of labor, but also will mean a LOT of mouths to feed, and that's the straight I find myself in now. Since Sol had starvation, we lost 6 pop points, down from 600 to 594. Note our food surplus is +1 now.
I wonder, "What's the problem? We have a surplus now that those pesky starving people are gone."
Soylent Green, perhaps? I make a note. My scientists turn pale. I make another note to get funnier and less squeamish scientists on staff.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1175.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fr624%2FMichaelE6%2F038.jpg&hash=c885aedf0996ea97559f70f5f34a12ded4245b77)
I have to make some quick adjustments to the queue. Since we technically have a surplus right now (albeit a tiny one), we're not in danger of starvation again. The Troop Transport I'm building in the queue right now is almost done, so I'm loathe to cancel it. I go ahead and put an order in to upgrade our Automated Farms to the Type 2 we've just unlocked through research. I have visions of cannibalistic hillbilly shacks loading "foodstuffs" into delivery vehicles for distribution everywhere, but a little Romulan Ale fixes that right up.
Wait, we don't know what Romulans are yet. Strike that last part.
Looks like this AAR is going to go to the front page, gents. I've submitted six parts to the Grog overlords, and I've posted five of them here in the forum. As soon as there's a link up I'll post it here in the forum.
Here's hoping it stays fun and interesting.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 20, 2014, 09:21:29 PM
Looks like this AAR is going to go to the front page, gents. I've submitted six parts to the Grog overlords, and I've posted five of them here in the forum. As soon as there's a link up I'll post it here in the forum.
Here's hoping it stays fun and interesting.
Congrats! Keep it up.
Very cool B_C and congrats!
Awesome! Congrats BC. :D
Question: how does one upgrade the resolution beyond 8x6?
(I've got the All Ages mod, and everything is installed, but it starts at 8x6 and there doesn't seem to be any in-game ability to upscale. None of the ini files seem to offer the option to mod the resolution either.)
Are you meaning map size?
8x6 squares is smaller than the 'Small' map size - I just fired my regular All the Ages mod up and this is how they pan out:
Small: 10 x 13
Medium: 16 x 12
Large: 25 x 18
The one I'm running is called "Large All The Ages Mod."
I believe you have to install everything in a certain order in order to take advantage of the mods. There's a multi-installer on the website at http://www.armadafleetcommand.com somewhere. I can't recall which one I used nor where the mod came from, but I know I downloaded everything I needed from this site.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 21, 2014, 07:21:45 PM
Are you meaning map size?
8x6 squares is smaller than the 'Small' map size - I just fired my regular All the Ages mod up and this is how they pan out:
Small: 10 x 13
Medium: 16 x 12
Large: 25 x 18
The one I'm running is called "Large All The Ages Mod."
I believe you have to install everything in a certain order in order to take advantage of the mods. There's a multi-installer on the website at http://www.armadafleetcommand.com somewhere. I can't recall which one I used nor where the mod came from, but I know I downloaded everything I needed from this site.
I think jp means screen resolution
Ah. Well, that I'm afraid I don't know.
Mine auto-changes the screen res. Normally mine is 1920x1080, but BotF comes on at a much lower res.
Yep, I meant screen res. I saw mention of it over at alliance when I picked up the mod, but couldn't quite suss out whether the res mod was included in the ISO and/or the ATA mod.
I'm playing on a large galaxy, and while I'm not where I can check 25x18 seems right (based on what I recall seeing when I pulled up the larger map view). I didn't think I dl'd something called "Large All The Ages", but maybe I did. ???
I'm not sure of the exact size of the Large All The Ages map, but I think it's 52-53 sectors wide, so it's just a bit more than twice the size of a 'regular' Large galaxy map.
More like 6-1/8 times as large!
Well dang, then I had better look into that pronto! :D (I haven't really 'started' my first turn yet, so I'm not losing anything.)
Quote from: JasonPratt on January 21, 2014, 06:08:35 PM
Question: how does one upgrade the resolution beyond 8x6?
(I've got the All Ages mod, and everything is installed, but it starts at 8x6 and there doesn't seem to be any in-game ability to upscale. None of the ini files seem to offer the option to mod the resolution either.)
Unfortunately, BOTF is locked in at 800x600 resolution. :( In terms of visuals, it's probably the game's single biggest/worst limitation.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 22, 2014, 10:11:48 AM
I'm not sure of the exact size of the Large All The Ages map, but I think it's 52-53 sectors wide, so it's just a bit more than twice the size of a 'regular' Large galaxy map.
With most mods that have a "large map" version (note that not every mod has one), the largest map size is 52x39 sectors. In contrast, the largest map size for vanilla BOTF (and mods without a large map version) is 25x18 sectors.
Doing the math, that works out to the super-large maps being approximately 4 1/2 times the size of "regular" large maps. 8)
I'm bad at math, which is why I was an English major. I was thinking the width was twice the 'normal' BotF, which is where I got my reasoning from.
Y'all know what y'all kin do wit your fancy mathing, right?
Excellent story...when the next part?
Hi Anguille...it's actually been moved to the front page now. Thanks for the compliment!
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on March 04, 2014, 12:28:14 PM
Hi Anguille...it's actually been moved to the front page now. Thanks for the compliment!
Thanks!
Banzai, this is really enjoyable. Thanks for putting all the work into it.
Does not seem like you have named the President yet. Might one suggest that a nearly perfect match would be President Rufus T. Firefly of the Republic of Freedonia? Along with his inimitable, and vicarious, aide, Captain Spaulding.
It would be Duckky.
You're getting into some pretty silly territory there, besilarius.
Which is right up my alley, of course. Let's see where this ride takes us. :)
I personally wouldn't mind if someone posted a notice here whenever an entry was released to the frontpage... :)
Quote from: JasonPratt on March 06, 2014, 03:08:07 PM
I personally wouldn't mind if someone posted a notice here whenever an entry was released to the frontpage... :)
new one went up this week :)
Quote from: JasonPratt on March 06, 2014, 03:08:07 PM
I personally wouldn't mind if someone posted a notice here whenever an entry was released to the frontpage... :)
or you could check the front page on a daily basis... ;)
QuoteI'm sure the unions are just going to love me being in charge.
LOL! Very droll. :D
I'm really enjoying this AAR Banzai Cat - Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice! 8)
Bwahahahaha!! Loved the rip on the Department of Galactic Naming. ;D
episode 6 this week
I'll work on some more parts this weekend. Also, review. :uglystupid2:
QuoteSomeone, somewhere, thinks they're funny. I will find this person and...make them my vice-president.
LOL!! If that's not Cool and Unusual Punishment (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CoolAndUnusualPunishment), then I don't know what is. >:D
Brant, it looks like there's a screenshot missing from Part 6. Just before the little line about child molestation and a dirty city in Ohio, there's supposed to be an image of the Sandusky, I believe. Let me know if you need that image again, I should still have it.
Martok: I gotta make those uptight hippies pay for their hipsterness, somehow.
I see that Part 7 is up (http://grogheads.com/?p=5923), incidentally. LOL at the Federation Bikini Team. :2funny:
The amount of time in between my playthroughs and me writing the articles makes my re-reading of these somewhat ??? at times. I'm thinking, "Really? I wrote that?" Lol...
new episode up today
Thanks.
Are you running out of BOTF articles? Let me know when I need to get back to it and churn out some more. :)
Weird - no alien encounters yet? Any way to, you know, take a cheat peek to see if they are out there at all? Or is this just a vast empty space where you will build an empire that nobody can ever, ever leave?
Good question, airboy.
I think I kind of screwed myself by choosing to do the large map; every time I fire this up to write some more of the AAR, I regret not having done that, though not enough to pull the plug on this and start over (kind of hard to do that as it's on the front page...were this just in the forums I wouldn't hesitate, LOL).
I've probably not explored 20% of the 'tiles' on this map, yet. I'll try to start the next installment with a full Galactic Map so you guys can see.
I also think the game started me in the lower corner of a Spiral-type galaxy (I chose the spiral galaxy, but the game of course chose where to drop Sol in that mess). As I'm in the lower right corner, I'm pretty sure most of the real estate to my Galactic East is empty space.
The longer it takes me to meet the others, the more powerful they become. I usually play BotF with as few ships as possible to build up some major bank, so once I do come into contact with hostiles I can churn out ships and kick butt. As the Feds, though, my kick-butt options are more limited to defensive wars. I think the Feds are hardest to play out of all five factions because of their peacenik-BS hippy ways. :)
I'm REALLY surprised I haven't met any minor races yet - I believe I set that to "Many" in the game options screen. I would have expected to run into at least one by now. This worries me a lot, since if the other four factions are running into them, they might be recruiting them. My best bet is my large bank account, which I could use to bribe any of these away.
We shall see. Hopefully I run into someone soon because this is getting difficult to keep interesting. As long as you guys are enjoying it though I'll keep it up. I imagine it'll get much better once I run into aliens.
EDIT: To answer your question about cheating, (a) I don't know if there is a way to cheat-reveal the map, (b) I'm sure there IS a way to cheat-reveal the map, and (c) I don't want to do that as it would spoil the game for me and would cause me to artificially change my strategy based on what it reveals. I'd rather avoid that. If I get caught flat-footed it might make for much more interesting gaming.
Bill, the cat, wholeheartedly agrees.
Quote from: airboy on February 19, 2015, 09:56:26 PM
Weird - no alien encounters yet?
On these super-large maps, it can take a very long time to meet the other major powers. In my own experience, it typically takes 150-200 turns before I meet even one of them, let alone more than one. Given that the last screenshot in
BC's most recent entry showed turn 155, I'm guessing it's going to be 1-2 more sessions before he runs into anyone.
Quote from: airboy on February 19, 2015, 09:56:26 PM
Any way to, you know, take a cheat peek to see if they are out there at all?
Yes, there is a cheat to reveal the entire map. I pretty much never use it, however, as there are two drawbacks to it:
1.) Once the cheat is used, you can't "un-reveal" the map; it remains revealed for the rest of the game.
2.) Once the entire map is revealed, you also automatically have diplomatic contact with every major and minor race in the game, which tends to significantly alter how you play your campaign (of course, knowing where everything is obviously does that as well!).
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 20, 2015, 07:35:02 AM
I think I kind of screwed myself by choosing to do the large map; every time I fire this up to write some more of the AAR, I regret not having done that, though not enough to pull the plug on this and start over (kind of hard to do that as it's on the front page...were this just in the forums I wouldn't hesitate, LOL).
Yeah, if I do another BOTF AAR here, I definitely plan to go with the medium-sized map (assuming I'm playing one of the mods -- the "medium" map in the vanilla game is laughably small for my tastes). Still large enough to feel epic, but it won't take nearly so bloody long to meet the other major factions.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 20, 2015, 07:35:02 AM
I also think the game started me in the lower corner of a Spiral-type galaxy (I chose the spiral galaxy, but the game of course chose where to drop Sol in that mess). As I'm in the lower right corner, I'm pretty sure most of the real estate to my Galactic East is empty space.
A tip: Try playing in an Elliptical or Irregular galaxy. They tend to have less empty/boring space, especially the latter. Spiral galaxies are too predictable in my experience.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 20, 2015, 07:35:02 AM
I'm REALLY surprised I haven't met any minor races yet - I believe I set that to "Many" in the game options screen. I would have expected to run into at least one by now. This worries me a lot, since if the other four factions are running into them, they might be recruiting them. My best bet is my large bank account, which I could use to bribe any of these away.
On these super-large maps, there is a known bug (which the modders can't fix because they don't have access to the hard-coded stuff) that sometimes causes minor races to be mostly "seeded" onto either the eastern or western half of the galaxy.
Of course, it's too early to say if that's the scenario here. You may just be a victim of very bad luck; I've seen it before (remember there's only thirty minors to distribute over the entire map). It *is* a possibility, however. :-\
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 20, 2015, 07:35:02 AM
We shall see. Hopefully I run into someone soon because this is getting difficult to keep interesting. As long as you guys are enjoying it though I'll keep it up. I imagine it'll get much better once I run into aliens.
We're still entertained, so keep it coming. 8)
Back after a hiatus... and back on the MYTHICAL FRONT PAGE™, where it'll need it's own expedition to be discovered...
<Finds the MYTHICAL FRONT PAGE™> Huzzah!
I must admit, you are indeed more OCD about building outposts than I am
BC. Or rather, I'm OCD about them in a different way: I refuse to build outposts/starbases in empty sectors.
Instead, I generally only build them in star systems that I deem important enough to be worth defending, *and* are near enough to the limits of my ship range that constructing an outpost/starbase there will expand my ship range to a reasonable degree. I don't like building them willy-nilly all over the place (which is probably not the most effective strategy, but there you go :-\ ).
Oh, and in response to this:
Quote
Two things I'd REALLY like to see in a BotF mod (and if these are a thing, please let me know):
Being able to zoom out with the mouse wheel. The two levels of zoom are a giant pain in the tribble's butt.
An indicator that shows whether a ship icon is moving or stationary. I hate having to click on every single icon JUST to be sure I'm not ignoring my ships.
Rest assured, the BOTF community in general would like to see these as well. ;) Unfortunately, neither is currently possible given the current limits of the game engine/knowledge of the modders.
new one today!
I'm VERY OCD about building outposts, though they do make nice fat targets. I'm always worried the AI will outflank me and start destroying outposts, messing up my starships' range. I've never played on the Large Map before...at least not for this long.
go read more! the front page beckons!
new one today!
Two minor races at practically the same time! (And one of them's the Edo!) Nice.
Interesting to see the Xindi replace the Pakleds. And that they're *not* inherently hostile towards Terrans...
Welcome back, Martok!
And yeah, those insects are right bastards, but they're strangely nice. A few thousand credits and they'll be willing cannon fodder allies of the Federation. MUWAHAHAHAHAHA
new episode today!
Ah yes, the Echo Papa combat drone. Annoying little bastard. :knuppel2: I don't know that you'll need a large fleet to take it out (depends on your definition of "large"), but you probably will want a full task force of 9 cruisers and/or battleships to eliminate it with no/minimal losses.
Amusing that the Xindi are your affiliates already. The irony is delicious. ;D