[SPOILERS]- Crazy Keelyn is trippin’ Balz: Bobchillingworth of the Balseraphs

[Bobchillingworth]

Today was lair exploration day!


First up, some ruins. Surrounded the lair after bludgeoning the occupants, per standard operating procedure:





I had two warriors who could explore. The first got... nothing, besides the token 1 exp. I didn't even get any result text.


The second:





Welp, he's a goner. Going to suicide at the Standing Stones barb city, most likely. Shame to lose a shock warrior like that, but so it goes.


Ruins are still there btw, so I'll ave' another go at it next turn.



Perhaps I'd have better luck at sea. I manoeuvred a workboat unto the ship wreck to my west, clicked the button, and:





Hell yeah! And so the path to Sorcery gets a bit shorter First adept finishes in two turns, but I don't think it's worth it to change either of my two nodes to one of the Elementalism types (fire, water, air, earth). Still, glad to have it.




Oh, and Serdoa built a monument in that city of his I was thinking of ambushing. Downside- I can't flip it now, and Loki needs to head back home. Upside- not potentially leaving Dave with a war on his hands while I'm away =)

[Hesmyrr]

So the dungeon you had besieged completely had ended with disaster, while the shipwreck you single-handedly explored end up in technology. Karma much?

Well, can't say I would not have done the same either.

[Bobchillingworth]

I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's turn- I'll have a couple more cracks at that lair =)


(I think the guys setting up FFH PBEM VIII are kind of nuts for wanting to switch lairs off- they're one of the things which never fail to brighten [or ruin] a turn... when people write about having "trembling fingers" before clicking the "explore" button, sometimes they really mean it)

[darrelljs]

(I think the guys setting up FFH PBEM VIII are kind of nuts for wanting to switch lairs off

They are great for flavor but awful for balance.

Darrell

[Bobchillingworth]

Haha, "balance". In FFH? Sure, if you're willing to ban Stasis and Flauros and strictly limit the placement of water and who knows what else. I think it's folly to try, and misses much of the point of the mod.

[Hesmyrr]

Well, wasn't there attempt for an balanced FFH II mod? I'm sure I read about it somewhere on the forums. Maybe if that gets finalized the 'Remove Lair' option could make much sense... though I myself can't see how balancing can be done without butchering the flavour.

Edit: I didn't see the planning thread yet, so I am guessing they are selecting 'no huts' option too right? Otherwise 'No lair' option makes little sense, especially since you could just make a rule forbidding lair exploration til Turn XX.

[Bobchillingworth]

Yeah, Sareln is working on a balance mod, but PBEM VIII won't be using it (the mod isn't finished yet). Hence why I think it does not make sense to try to balance the game using the base version of FFH. But even after Sareln completes it, FFH still won't be actually entirely *balanced*- there will just be more strategically viable options (plus some random clean-up).

[Bobchillingworth]

Sigh. looks like I'm not getting a turn from Sareln today. I was hoping that I'd be able to mark up the map with signs for Dave, but it's not to be. Oh well. I'm only going to be gone for like six days anyway.


Dave, you have the freedom to play the turns as you see fit for serving the Balseraph nation. So if a unit needs orders or a situation occurs which I haven't provided any contingency info for, then just do whatever you think is best.


That said, I do have a basic plan-


Cities


Hexam: Finish the Mage Guild, then build an adept. After he completes, start another Adept. The plains tile 1E of the city center only needs a turn or two of worker action to finish a cottage; after you complete it, start working it (fire a specialist or someone working an unimproved tile). There's a second plains river square which could use a cottage as well.


Nininsnal: Upon growing to size 2, work the gold + bananas. Then the fish tile, once the city is size 3 and the fish netted. Then the river mined grassland hill. Speaking of which, the worker(s) near the city should mine said hill (currently forested). After they finish, farm the grassland river tile formerly occupied by the lizardman lair.


Guell: Finish the market, then start an elder council. Work a grassland mine located at 9 , 6 of the city once it grows to size 7 (you'll need to build the mine first)


Jubilee: Finish the adept, then start another. After that, a settler. If the town grows, either work the cottage plains tile or run a non-artist specialist of your choice.


Gaudium: Warriors until you can build a trireme. Then start building a trireme. I want one to colonize the islands. Unless you're able to raze the barb city at the standing stones. In that case, settling the stones is the priory, and I won't need a trireme as quickly. A worker is a good build in that case, or a galley for scouting. Your call. If the city grows, either build a cottage for it on one of the non-forested unimproved tiles, or just run a specialist.


Argenteria: Finish the market, then start on a workboat. If the city grows, starting working the new cottage I have signposted.


Coombe: Finish the Mage Guild, then go Adept -> Adept.




Units-


Surround the lizardman ruins and explore them again, until they disappear. Try to minimize wasted worker turns when you use workers to help surround it, but I'm more interested in blowing up that lair and freeing up the units around it than I care about completing a couple improvements a few turns earlier.


After the lair is gone, either fortify the bulk of the surviving warriors in or near Hexam (Ninin-whatever will need one guy back for garrison duty), or march on & destroy the barb city at the Stones if it's garrison is small. The warriors Gaudium should build can help as throw-away troops for the assault. An adept could rust any warriors there, but might not be worth losing a few turns of inspirations.


Speaking of adepts, I prefer that they be used to get as many inspirations going as possible. So Mind I as the first spell. Entropy I for any adepts in Hexam, I don't care as much what second promo other adepts get. If one in Jubilee or wherever can take Spell Extension to keep two or three inspirations going at once via puppets, then that's a good idea.


The workboat at Guadium should build a fishing net for Ninin. The other workboat, in the west, should explore the island it's bordering- if you can't go further for whatever reason, turn around and net the fish (for a future city).



Techs-



Finish War of the Wicked. Then research Sailing. After that, start Writing.


Iskender is apparently focusing on the Leaves, so I might have a shot at Deception after all. But perhaps going OO after bulbing Sorcery and then using the Grimoire for the Hemah tech makes more sense? I'm undecided- hard to say which is the most efficient way of getting the best use out of a heroic archmage. Gibbon might be better for taking out the Sheaim ASAP, but the Overlords path gives me more useful technologies sooner. If you think that going to Deception is the better plan, then feel free to switch the scientist Jubilee is currently running to a priest.


Check the turn log, demographics, and opponent city count #'s if you have the time to see if anything dramatically changes. Don't worry if you're rushed and aren't able to get around to it, though.


Oh yeah, and when Way of the Wicked comes in, you'll have the option to adopt slavery. I wasn't planning on adopting it yet (cities are working decent enough tiles that I find it difficult to justify whipping them), but go for it if you think it's worthwhile.
I think that's everything. I've already told Mist that you'll be taking over, so you should receive the turn via the tracker. If you don't, just request it from Square Leg (his email is in the tech thread). You pass the turn on to Sareln (email also in the tech thread, first page).



Thanks much for helping out while I'm gone!

[DaveV]

Nice summary Bob. Could you also give me a quick rundown of the diplo situation (i.e., NAPs or other treaties, expiration dates)?

Edit: and I did recieve an authorization email from the tracker. I replied, so I should be in the rotation now.

[Ranamar]

Yeah, Sareln is working on a balance mod, but PBEM VIII won't be using it (the mod isn't finished yet). Hence why I think it does not make sense to try to balance the game using the base version of FFH. But even after Sareln completes it, FFH still won't be actually entirely *balanced*- there will just be more strategically viable options (plus some random clean-up).

catching up on stuff...

Yeah, it mostly focuses on "X is underpowered; boost it and see if it's better now," or "X is random and just gets in the way; remove it."

I do think it's making things more balanced. On the other hand, some people are confusing "balance" with "more affected by skill than chance". Lairs and huts can make chance more important than skill. Complaining about them in terms of balance is arguably obscuring the issue.