PBEM 49 Tech Thread

[Boldly Going Nowhere]

We don't have to play on at all costs, I'm fine with calling it. The turns are mostly fun but also an obligation.

If you guys are still having fun, I'll play on. Hopefully someone will take me up on my offer for a very friendly takeover. Seriously, as in, I'll be a friend for life if you take this veneer of a Well-Played-Civ off my hands. Maybe I'll rename my civ WPC...

Or recruit over there for a replacement. Wouldn't that be nifty?

[Ichabod]

I'm fine with whatever you guys decide. My turns are easy to play and I can't say I'll have any influence in the outcome of the game.

[zakalwe]

I don't insist on playing on. Lately I've been enjoying the turns, but they do take some time, and I also empathize with the toll it can take on you. It might be nice to play on a bit further to get a better idea of where I stand, but I imagine the same could be said for a long time, still. So maybe we should quit while we're ahead. It's been a fun and challenging game, and I don't think we need to burn out any more players just for the principle of playing on to the end.

[Boldly Going Nowhere]

If no one feels strongly about continuing, then I'm good calling it game.

As to who would ultimately come out on top, that would be still very much in doubt, but I think I have an idea of who the most likely winner would be, though it would take a long, hard slog to get there. Legitimate spoiler for this game, do not click if you want to continue...

Not me. Zak just got Liberalism is in the best shape right now, and has the most to gain in the next 10-15 turns from my limited knowledge. Meanwhile I'm about to slug out another round of naval warfare, accomplishing nothing, against novice, except to put us both even more hammers, and then techs after whipping, behind the real game leader, who has stronger traits the further into the game we go, and who can continue nibbling at Ichabod, who is playing the survival game from what I can tell. Zak is also on the cusp of decisively eliminating one of my three best cities in a critical place that will, by eliminating my best way to attack him, for all intents and purposes eliminate me from being able to catch him. That will leave Zak a freer hand to eat Ichabod, while novice and I are fated to duke it out, both seemingly lacking a good way to profitably get at Zak without fatally weakening our mutual border. I'd probably finish this game third, novice second, and Zak first. Ichabod gets the community spirit award for continuing on with a bad job with good cheer.

Thanks to everyone for a very well played game.

[Dhalphir]

my recommendation would be to call it unless two people still feel that they each have a strong chance to win. subbing in for PBEM46 taught me that if a game is at the point of subbing, it's better to let it die a graceful death.

[zakalwe]

I haven't looked at any spoilers yet, but I do think I have a chance to win. I would imagine Novice thinks he has too, and I don't know about Boldly but it sounds like his main issue is that he isn't motivated to pursue it. And I certainly think Ichabod does have the ability to influence the outcome (obviously not by throwing the game to anyone, but just by playing well). The question is more how big does the chance have to be, and the bigger issue (at least for me) is that I have no way to accurately assess my position since there is so much I don't know about what is going on elsewhere in the world. So really, we should probably just end it when people aren't having fun, and not base it so much on our relative victory chances.

To put it another way; even if it should turn out that I'm actually doomed to lose, or that the situation is still just fundamentally undecided, that doesn't make me less willing to end the game. I had fun either way. It's been a great game.

[novice]

I haven't looked at any spoilers yet either, but yeah, let's call it, and we can discuss afterwards who the likely winner would have been.

My guess based on what I know now is

Zakalwe

[zakalwe]

Alright, GG everybody!

Thanks a bunch to Commodore for making a very interesting and challenging map. Some very minor nitpicks about the map: the stone/marble wasn't technically repeated/mirrored, which was interesting but ultimately not what we asked for, and the iron locations were too exposed. (I ended up denying iron to Dazed/Ichabod until he popped a new one.) I loved the overall geography of the map, though.

Edit: On the topic of popping metals, there probably should be gold on the map, so it isn't unbalanced if anyone pops it. I don't know if that happened, though. The map certainly had plenty of happiness resources, though.

Also, to keep things more even we should probably have asked for circumnavigation to be unattainable. Though I don't feel too bad about grabbing it since I was both last in turn order and non-creative, missing out on the T13 border pop.

On another note, I made out like a bandit in the snake pick.

Ichabod, if you want to shift-enter and send it to me, I'd be interested in taking a final look at the game when it's my own turn.

[SevenSpirits]

GG guys. I had standing draw offers from Novice and Boldly, and if Zakalwe had sent something I definitely would have asked Dazed/Ichabod if they were wanting a draw too. (I never officially got one from them but it sure seemed like Dazed would be in favor.)

I am both disappointed that the game ended when there was still so much left to play out, and surprised that it didn't end sooner given the turn pace.

[Mardoc]

So I can stop debating if I have the time to take over Boldly's spot?