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GalCiv 1.11 Stuff

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GalCiv 1.11 Stuff

from Stardock Forums

We finally got our server transferred over from Atlanta to California.  But we're having problems with Stardock Central synchronizing files with remote files.

What that means in a nutshell is if we upated GalCiv right now, it would think that you'd need to download every file because it woudl think every file was updated (stupid Windows time stamp issue! Grr).

So what is in 1.11? Well, I think there will be quite a bit of reaction about this and we may need to do some tweaks about here's what's in 1.11:

+ The 1ip bug is fixed

+ Minor races, depending on intelligence, will now expand a bit into the galaxy.

+ Aliens will now resist trade deals that have them paying significant amoutns of money per turn or when they are in deficit spending.

+ Aliens will now "quick talk" to you when you put in trade items. Before, you would just see that a seemingly good deal isn't being accepted. Now, we're moving towards the aliens actually saying why they won't go for that specifically.

+ A general code cleanup to improve performance

+ Destabilizating has diminishing returns after a point so it isn't so overwhelmingly.

+ Here's the controveral ones: Starbases now must be greater than 3 parsecs (spaces) away from one another for navigational reasons with the exception of starbases on resources (you can build a starbase on a resource at all times).

That has a lot of benefits. First, it visually looks nicer. Two, it limits the # of starbases in a sector without having some arbitrary limit (i.e. it makes sense that you would require a distance betweeen starbase for hyperspace navigational reasons to a degree). It cleans up path finding which will make late game turns faster.

+ AI difficulty DECREASED. Because of all these changes, the AI should be much harder to beat in theory so the AI difficulty has been tweaked. Particularly, Genius level is now somewhat easier.  The highest one is still super nasty though (forgot what it's called).

So we'll definitely see some gameplay changes here. We may do a 1.11A late next week based on feedback.

Now, I realize that the starbase distancing may make it more difficult but hopefully people can seperate their desire for higher metaverse scores from more fun game play.

That said, we also upped the scoring so that now the AI's intelligence is now squared (it was to the 1.9th power before). So scores should be substantially higher.

4,051 views 81 replies
Reply #51 from Stardock Forums Top
You can create one if you use the program created by Hawaii5-0 and you could post it in the Library for anyone to download.
Reply #52 from Stardock Forums Top
You can create one if you use the program created by Hawaii5-0 and you could post it in the Library for anyone to download.
End of quote


Actually, as far as I know, you can't. A starbase inherits it's stats from the constructor it was built by, even though there is a seperate SHIP entry for it. That would seem to imply that even if you gave a starbase movement, the game would override it.

You can create a ship that looks like a stabase, but it wouldn't do any starbasish things.

~SDC~
Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #53 from Stardock Forums Top
I experimented with one in the older version 1.05 and it worked for me, but my game was all messed up, so I have to delete it and reinstall the whole game. it is not worth it.
Reply #54 from Stardock Forums Top
Okay, I'd like a quote for the Metaverse Review, Brad...

When do you expect ver. 1.11 to be released? I know you're still having some server trouble, but is there maybe a ballpark date you could give?

Thanks!
Reply #55 from Stardock Forums Top
Well, this is not exactly a 1.11 thing since the initial build seems to be done even if it is not released yet. But for the future, I would like to see scoring reform involving a steady increase of score by difficulty that does away with a huge maso spike and changing the end game modifier by victory condition. Everyone goes for the military win because it gets full value and the other three ways get less. The game fully supports awarding points by category already (social, military, tech, so forth), so instead of modifying the end score based upon the outcome of the last turn, it would be more feasable in my opinion to just to score based off the category sub totals earned during the game without monkeying with the end total based upon the exact victory type. Then it could be a design decision whether to make the categories mean more in regard to one or another. If, for example, the designers want to encourage military victory, make the points in the military category more attractive so that players will build more ships and fight more. Right now, players are being compensated very handsomely for ending the game a certain way and the emphasis should be on HOW it was played all along. Being a true culture flipper isn't exactly easy when "everyone" turns off culture victory and wins by flips anyway and parades it in military colors. It is giving them an outright end game bonus for doing the same thing in a cheesier manner.
Reply #56 from Stardock Forums Top
changing the end game modifier by victory condition
End of quote


It also discourages people using less aggressive means. I'd like to see an economic victory as well....

Alex


~SDC~
Reply #58 from Stardock Forums Top
Economy and trade should be only ways to get a victory, not a goal in itself. IIRC trade victory was actually removed before the game was released because it was unfair.
Reply #59 from Stardock Forums Top
1.11 will be able to run with 1.1 games I believe.

~SDC~
Reply #60 from Stardock Forums Top
Right now, players are being compensated very handsomely for ending the game a certain way and the emphasis should be on HOW it was played all along.
End of quote


couldn't agree more gerakken - i'd like to see the AI respond to player choices for victory conditions - eg alliance tech is not attainable if alliance is switched off or, the AI, with the knowledge that it's military victory only, treats alliances with the same 'respect' as the player...

:)
Reply #61 from Stardock Forums Top
the AI, with the knowledge that it's military victory only, treats alliances with the same 'respect' as the player...
End of quote


This one I agree with. I don't think there should be any more adjustments to the metaverse scoring, though. If you like alliance victory, go for it. You'll get less points but more fun.
Reply #62 from Stardock Forums Top
Thanks Frogboy.
Reply #63 from Stardock Forums Top
Any news on the 1.11???? I think that it is hidding from us, but The Force is tracking it down, it will be very soon ours forever. ;)
Reply #64 from Stardock Forums Top
I think it went walkabout....

Though it has me religiously checking to see if its up yet :D

~SDC~
Reply #65 from Stardock Forums Top
Tomrorow th eIT guys are going to work with me to get it up there. It could be a bit scary my friends. The download size should be small but the server may flag a lot of files to be redownloaded this one time because of the move.
Reply #66 from Stardock Forums Top
how about cuttin' straight to the patch? h'actually that'd probably just delay the inevitable...
Reply #67 from Stardock Forums Top
Looks good to me :)

Could you fix the scoring on fewer opponents? The game seems to have the ridiculous idea that fewer (strong) opponents are easier to beat! One big empire is MUCH worse than two equal ones.

Is there any prospect of being able to choose the motion before the UP meeting (2/3 options to choose from woul dmake a great difference)? At the moment there is a good chance that you won't even care about having influence at that point so trading it all away is often a good move (especially when you can get a tech for it!). It would also be nice to have the option of abstaining.

Waypoints. I feel you could learn something from the Warlords handling of Waypoints (though I'm not quie sure how ;))

Finally the Cultural Victory should be dependent on the influence you have in the galaxy not the points youhave accumulated -on my first attempt at this I controlled the whole galaxy for over a year before I gave up and went military -then I got the message that I was going to get the cultural victory in 12 months! (the options screen had been showing 12mts for some time)

Thanks,
Timlagor

Great game btw :)

~SDC~
Reply #68 from Stardock Forums Top
1.11 will be able to run with 1.1 games I believe.
End of quote


How is it going to handle any "new starbase rule" violations?

Bill

~SDC~
Reply #69 from Stardock Forums Top
As said previously, the starbase limit rule only applies to starbase building. You cannot build a starbase too close to other starbases but you can have starbases as close as you want.
Reply #70 from Stardock Forums Top
You cannot build a starbase too close to other starbases but you can have starbases as close as you want.
End of quote


???
Reply #72 from Stardock Forums Top
Well then I guess you need to trade the majors for them to get them closer than 3 parsecs.
Reply #73 from Stardock Forums Top
1.11 is up as of this afternoon on SDC...
Reply #74 from Stardock Forums Top
So you can still have a whole bunch of starbases in a sector, you just need to make them terror stars and move them in. That will cost a lot more constructors though, and they move so slow too.

A good step in the right direction.
Reply #75 from Stardock Forums Top
+ Here's the controveral ones: Starbases now must be greater than 3 parsecs (spaces) away from one another for navigational reasons with the exception of starbases on resources (you can build a starbase on a resource at all times). That has a lot of benefits.
End of quote


There's one point that Brad and the people crying for even greater distance between Starbases seem to be missing and that's the fact that not everyone plays the game with large galaxy sizes.

I've never been a fan of the strategy of packing as many starbases as possible into a sector and I agree that there should be some limit on the usage of starbases but given that Brad has described each sector on the map as parsecs...that's an incredibly vast area of space. Room for an effectively infinite number of starbases.

I like to be able to finish a game of GalCiv in an easy evening of playing so I tend to gravitate to the Tiny or Small galaxy sizes. In a tiny galaxy I'm now effectively limited to one starbase and perhaps not even that.

If the AI races manage to build a starbase or two before I can then I'm effectively blocked from building one.

Please do some more thinking on this Brad.