DOOM

[W8taminute]

Ooh a war between Jotunheim and Pythium.  Seeing that Jotunheim killed me guess who I'm rooting for?   ;)

[Haerdalas]

And seeing as Jotunheim has cast not one but two Global spells which attack other players indiscriminately, guess who -every other player in the entire game- is rooting for.

Seriously Jotun, Casting those kind of spells at this stage of the game is just a really really bad idea.

[alastair]

I actually think its a pretty good idea.  This is likely to be the war that really matters at this point, and they give him an edge- and prevent casual raiding.

[parone]

if it remains a 1 vs 1, you are right. 

if others jump in to snuff the globals, not so much.

only time will tell...

[parone]

and who knows?  some people like to be public enemy #1...

now that I think about it, that'd be kind of a fun thing to do in a game-get off by yourself and cast lots of nasty globals.

of course, my idea of fun isn't always the most popular one.

[Haerdalas]

Yeah, well. Pretty certain that now Jotun is tied up fighting Pythium, others will join in. I would do so myself had I a border with Jotun, these damn spells keep killing my priests, and those guys are expensive, dammit.

Talking of which, the majority of my income right now is going to the upkeep of those mages, anyone else in that position?

[Wingedflamez]

I blame jotun for that too. Blasted cold weather. Making my people sick and poor. Not to mention 2 magic sites that enhance death in my province.

[Haerdalas]

Sickness I can deal with, I have healers after all. Its the packs of wolves the keep tearing them apart, or mysterious electrical discharges from clear, cloud-free skies that keep getting them. Lightning resistance did not come as standard with my model of Mage-Priest I am afraid...

Talking about sickness, something in my sea province seems to be making all my men diseased. Any idea which site that could be? According to the wiki, none of the sites that spread disease can appear in water... I am confused.

[parone]

no doubt, those globals are a pain.  but are they a pain enough for someone to hit Jotun?  perhaps not.  maybe Phobos' gamble will pay off.

the beauty of dominions, to me, is that there are so many different ways to play, risks to take.  Phobos' play style is a pain.  but it's also different.

I like different :)

[Phobos]

Want me to call the whaambulance?

A number of players colluded to take down Pangaea.  My globals did not go up until that happened.  I was in the position of either joining in on the gangbang like a cowardly little conformist, or starting an orgy of destruction of my very own.

Those were my choices.  I could collude with the majority and end up with 2 strong neighbours, that I would still be forced to deal with at some point in time.  I could do nothing, and then have stronger neighbours while my nation stagnated.  Or I could cast a couple of spells that would weaken everyone, then make a grab for power.

There are no victims here, just choices.  Inaction is a choice.  The majority of the players in this game have allowed Shinuyama and Pythium to expand aggressively.  Allowing them to conquer Jotunheim will just make them bigger, but it might buy the rest of you craven fools a few turns.

I made the choice to attack now, rather than wait for the tag team to turn on me.  By cheering this tag team on, you are actually supporting your own future conquerors.  Have a little foresight an imagine what the map will look like in 15 or 25 turns.  Make a choice.  Play aggressively and deal with future, as well as present threats, or sit in the corner and wait for those threats to grow beyond your ability to control.

FFS.  Bring the motherfucking ruckus. 

[Wingedflamez]

I'm not whining. I was actually joking sorry if it didn't come across that way. I will say I'm not sure if I would have done exactly what you did. But you had the power and you used it. Can't fault you on that.

The reason I wouldn't have done exactly what you did though is this, you threw up multiple globals that damage everyone, not just pythium and myself. Which means that what fight Pangaea had to fend off everyone is damaged. Now that isn't a big problem.since you just separated pan and pythium.  And now or course most people want your globals.down, you are killing their priests, randomly destroying provinces and dropping their income and supplies. And 2 turns ago you were also randomly destroying troops by the dozen without blinking an eye, no chance to miss, and no additional cost past the initial, which I know was great but still.

Also I take offense. I did not expand aggressively. I have only taken like 9 provinces by force, and all of them were targets of opportunity, and 5 of them I warned the target I was coming.  How many did you take conquering Vanheim?

But again you had the power and you used it. I probably would have done the same. No hard feelings, and if you win I salute you. Just as I will do if anyone wins.  Just don't expect me to not be like
Dammit you killed my priest.

I would like to ask though. After the game is over anyone who has the files saved, I would like to sort of piece together what happened through the course of the game.

Parone, do you know if there is a way to do that from the server? I know you can roll a turn back,, but how far will it go?

Rant done.

[Haerdalas]

I am pretty much in agreement with the above post. I can sort of see why you did it, just don't expect to cast spells killing my priests and not have me want those spells stopped.

Incidentally, there is now peace between me and Pangaea, as attempting to take most of their provinces would leave me hopelessly overstretched.

It is true that Shinu and Pythium have both grown very large, and of course, in the fullness of time, something must be done about it (though due to Shinu's low research, I think they are going to be less of a potential game-ender).  I just think you made your move a bit too early. Then again, I have relatively little knowledge of your true strength right now. Given your level of research is beyond even mine, it is entirely possible that you may well be able to take Pythium on, despite the difference in size. If you can, kudos to you, and thanks for dealing with what is shaping up to be the biggest future problem. It will make things more interesting for my spies, anyway.

But I still hope your Global spell mages die.


EDIT: I dont have the files saved as such, but I have all the new turn Emails lying around, so if someone wants them after the game, sure. It would certainly be interesting to see what exactly other people were doing while my secluded little nation has been fiddling with the nature of reality.

[parone]

are you implying, phobos, that shinu and pythium are allied?  that would be interesting...

[Phobos]

I am attempting to be emphatic, not come across as angry.

My point is that there are no friends in (sic. this version of) Dominions.  Only current and deferred targets.  Targeting everyone else is simply more efficient than targeting a select few.  There are no real victims to indiscriminate strikes, as opposed to colluding with other nations, which is an active and conscious choice to victimise someone.

I would rather make a bold move and lose quickly, than be paralysed with inaction and bury my head in the sand.  Ignoring the current alliance between the two largest nations might have bought me a slow death, but it would not present any opportunities for me to win.

I have no sympathy or remorse, for any collateral damage to nations I share no borders with.  They are at fault for the current balance of power, as much as those nations that are actively working together.  I would potentially be attacking these nations at some point anyway, so why make the pretence of playing nice?  If they wish to go through Pythium, Shinuyama or Pangaea in order to strike at Jotunheim directly, I say bring it.  It they want to huddle in the corner and wait for death, then I hope it is slow, tedious and painful.

I will either lose this game quickly, which is preferable to losing slowly, or force a shift in the current balance of power, which may present me with an opportunity to win.  As the current tag-team champions have moved a significant chunk of their forces to Jotunheims border, their flanks are now as exposed as they are ever going to get.  If you wish to maintain the pretence of playing to win, now is the time to strike.

[parone]

winger-I know of no way to review a game post mortem through a server.  while I am not terribly knowledgeable, I think I would have heard of that in my travels, so my guess is, it's a no go.

incidentally phobos, if you are right and those major powers are in fact allied, don't you think a counter alliance of other nations would be more effective than randomly striking at everyone?  diplo is very important in dominions.  blaming everyone for perceived short sighted play, then insulting them about it, is not likely to win any friends.

you are right, thinking ahead is a good idea.  but I assure you, being condescending to potential allies is not a game winning strat either...