Imperium 37 - Declaration of Independence

[RefSteel]

Sponsor: RefSteel
Opening Date: Monday, May 20, 2013
Duration: Four Weeks
Patch: OPTIONAL! (Official version 1.3 OR kyrub's patch 1.40M)

Gentle vs. Extreme Imperium 37: So I decided to try something different this time. Instead of setting up an entirely separate map, I'm giving everyone an in-game choice of whether to play the same game as an Extreme or Gentle Imperium. Although the game is set to Impossible difficulty, any player who feels unequal to playing as Mrrshans on Impossible will have the option to make the game much, much easier while still getting a sense for the rate at which an Impossible AI expands and builds up and uses its military. The option in question is this one:



The variant for the Extreme game is simple: No use of the planetary reserve for any reason. The option to make the game a (relatively) Gentle one is even simpler: Ignore this variant rule, thereby allowing you to (in addition to playing a less restricted game later on) double the production of your homeworld (and, if you so choose, your first new colony) for a large portion of the critical early game. This will speed up your growth curve enormously - giving you a faster start than even Average Klackons while the reserves last. It's not going to make the game easy - not against Impossible AIs - but if you're new to this difficulty (or tried the extreme game and got crushed so early that you want to try again and get revenge) it should give you a major boost against the AIs.

Details on the map, along with the save file, are posted below. For more information on the Imperia, including the rules for how we play, see the following pages:

Intro
Rules

Note that exceptions to the rules can be made for each individual Imperium, as in this case when we're allowing kyrub's 1.40M patch to be used instead of 1.3 by anyone who so wishes.

Also please avoid the tactics banned in our exploits list (a list of ways we've found of taking advantage of bugs or massive and obvious holes in the AI which we've agreed not to use since they're not in keeping with the spirit or fun of the game).

On closing day (and please, please not before!) you can post your report as a new thread in the Reports and Discussion forum. If you finish early and won't be able to post then, however, you can send your report to me by PM or e-mail.

[RefSteel]

Race: Mrrshans
Difficulty: Impossible
Galaxy Size: Medium
Opponents: Five
Color: Red
Map Generation: Random (Unedited except to delay events and modify the player's reserve)
Events: Limited (The Plague and Nova events will never occur, and no events will occur before 2425)




Scenario: The feline love of independence is virtually a cliche, and it certainly extends to the Mrrshans. When the people of the Fierian continent of Eurropurr first colonized North Amrrsha, the Amrrshans and Eurropurrans declared independence from each other simultaneously, the colonists declaring they would never pay taxes to their parent countries even as, unbeknownst to them, those very countries were declaring they would never provide support to the new colonies. Emigration continued of course, as new colonists, seeking new opportunities or driven by feline curiosity, crossed the seas to become colonists themselves, but each separate colony was left to fend for itself ... and the Mrrshans liked it that way! In time, the Information Age united all the people of Fierias in a single society, but now that the Interstellar Age is upon them, with a shiny new ship ready to build by far the most distant colony the Mrrshans have ever known, most analysts have a sneaking suspicion that history is about to repeat itself.

Will the Mrrshan colonies declare their independence of collective rule as well, or will all Mrrshans declare themselves independent of their instincts and history? Time will surely tell.

Variant rules: In order to qualify as an Extreme participant, the player must never spend any resources from the planetary reserve.

In addition, this game has a scoring system intended to reward players whose colonies are most successful at building themselves up and sustaining and defending themselves, without relying (directly at least) upon distant industrial bases and diplomatic corps. (If those diplomats send over the plans for useful new technologies or those industrial bases build ships or launch transports whose pilots fly over to join them - thereby becoming citizens, permanent or temporary, of the colony - that's an entirely different story.)

Scoring: This event has custom scoring. SCORING IS OPTIONAL. You are not required to track your scoring if you prefer not to do so. If you do wish your game to be scored, you will need to indicate whether you played the Gentle or Extreme game, and record the number of times you lose a planet to alien invasion or bombardment, the number of threats you issue to AI races, and the number of votes you can cast at the 2425 election (or the nearest election to that date). Scores will be computed as follows, and listed separately for players of the Extreme and Gentle games:

Playing the game and posting a report: +50

Achieving any victory: +50

Each vote you can cast in the 2425 election: +1 (Count the votes you can cast in the election closest to 2425 if for some reason one does not occur on that date. If no election ever occurs, you get no points in this category.)

Each time you threaten to attack any AI leader: -10

Each time you lose one of your colonies: -10 (Note that each planet may count multiple times for this penalty if it is destroyed or conquered back and forth repeatedly. A rebellion does not count as "losing" the planet in question, but destruction of the colony by a space monster or comet does.)

Tiebreakers: Conquest, Domination, and Extermination victories all win ties with Diplomatic victories, which in turn win ties with both resignations and defeats.
If any victorious games are still tied, earlier (by game date) victories win ties with later victories.
Ties are broken among resignations and defeats in favor of those that lasted longest (by game date).
If necessary, the total number of votes received in the decisive election can be used as a final tie-breaker.

Closing Date: Monday, June 17, 2013. Reports due by the end of Tuesday, June 18, your local time.

The starting save is attached to this post!

[RefSteel]

Just a note on the game: Not only is the map randomly generated, I still don't know all the details of what it looks like, having not yet completed my own shadow game, nor used any in- or out-of-game tools to examine it; I have played out enough of it to make sure it's playable though; I rolled and rejected several other maps first, including this one, which looked promising until my scouts came back with this report:

[IMG]["HOSTILEGAME" IMAGE TO BE REPLACED][/IMG]

Cats on Impossible, especially with a variant, is Extreme ... but THAT is RIDICULOUS.

Have fun with this one! (And yes, I still have the save file for the rejected map above. Of course I do.)

[Cyneheard]

Should be interesting. Yes, I still need to post my I36 reports. Tonight or tomorrow.

Had a crazier Impossible Mrrshan start the other day (Small): only one world at 3 or 4 parsecs...and no Range 5 or 6 tech in the tree.

[toddestan]

Sounds interesting. I've never won with the Mrrshans on Impossible, though I've used them effectively to crush the competition on Hard mode.

I am slightly confused here though, and I'd like to get it right this time . Are we just forbidden from reserve spending on our planets, or can we also not use the planetary reserves to bribe/tribute the other races?

[RefSteel]

I am slightly confused here though, and I'd like to get it right this time . Are we just forbidden from reserve spending on our planets, or can we also not use the planetary reserves to bribe/tribute the other races?

Good question. The rule is that you may not use the reserve in any way or for any reason, including diplomatic "tribute" (you can still pay tech tribute of course). This also means you have to reject AI counter-offers if they say, "We would agree if you would also throw in [whatever number of] BC."

In effect, we are playing as though our interplanetary reserves don't exist at all: No planets ever contribute to the Imperial reserve, so no amount is in it even though (the game's Planet screen says differently and) AIs who don't understand the concept of independence suppose that we must naturally have collective resources to give them.

(On the other hand, if you're playing the Gentle version of the game, you can use reserves for whatever you want.)

[Nad]

This could become a nice one - challenge accepted! I know that the Kittycats are difficult to play, but somehow do like them. I just played (and won) three Imperia training games on impossible with the weakest races (Bears, Birds and Cats), let's see whether I have learned from those lessons.

BTW, I drew up a comparably depressing start with the Birds which I originally turned down, but would like to offer. Of course, both Ocean worlds are poor:

   

Birdies and Kitties are bond together. The save is attached...

[bjg]

I rolled and rejected several other maps first, including this one, which looked promising until my scouts came back with this report:



Cats on Impossible, especially with a variant, is Extreme ... but THAT is RIDICULOUS.

Have fun with this one! (And yes, I still have the save file for the rejected map above. Of course I do.)

This actually looks promising, specially if there is no Silicoids around. Could you give us this map?

[MaxPower]

The kitties on impossible, against the brains and no reserve spending. Wow, that will be interesting. Wish me luck.

[RefSteel]

This actually looks promising, specially if there is no Silicoids around. Could you give us this map?

Heheh. I was kinda hoping someone would say that. Save is attached.

No Silicoids in that one (although there are Psilons). Note however that the map I showed above didn't display mineral richness/poorness, and (since you'll find out soon enough anyway if you play it) that the two habitable stars within 6 parsecs of the first and second star ... are not within 5 parsecs. I also don't know if Range 6 OR Toxic OR Radiated are in the tree. But if you want to play with it, feel free! (Just don't get so caught up in it that you miss reporting on the actual Imperium, okay?)

The kitties on impossible, against the brains and no reserve spending. Wow, that will be interesting. Wish me luck.

Good luck! Don't take anything for granted in this one - here's hoping, win or lose, that it's a thrilling game!