ATLANTISv2 atl-design-digest #49 From: csd@microplex.com (Christian Daudt) Date: Tue, 26 Sep 1995 00:00:00 +0000 Errors to csd@microplex.com Now there should be a digest whenever (a) there are 10 emails or (b) whenever there is an email waiting for more than 48 hours for a digest to be completed. So don't get worried if the digest has only 1 or 2 emails, that just means the list has been slow. (I hope it works) If you want previous versions, they are available via WWW at http://www.microplex.com/~csd/atlantisv2/ ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 11:17:12 -0400 From: roy@acasun.eckerd.edu (Jonathan Roy) Subject: Re: Limited players - It depends. It is possible for people to think "hey, Atlantis is only 50 - cents. It must suck compared to Olympia." A low price can drive away - players just as much as a high one. Also, with a high price you may attract - more dedicated players. A2 has a lot of churn just because it's free. That might be true of a PBM game, but this is PBeM on the Internet. :) You make the rules, example turn sheets, and example orders, as well as the Times, all freely available. You say "WOw, that's cheap. I wonder if it's any good" and look it up, and after looking over the rules and turnsheets, you are rightly in awe and send Geoff a check for a lifetime of turns. :) - Right. But more than 5x the headaches will also generate more than 5x the - headaches. Also, for me it's not so much the price as it is payment methods - offered. If I wasn't clear about the $26/year, I was seeing it as a single yearly payment. You can set up the games to automatically charge the turn cost against your balance each turn (watch out for running two games at once and not locking the file :), use gdbm). This means the player and Geoff each only need to mess with a single check a year. Nicer than a check every month for both sides. :) ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 19:29:31 -0500 (CDT) From: GFT_JON@gsbvxb.uchicago.edu Subject: New ships for Atl 3.0 I have an idea to make ships more useful and fun than they currnetly are in Atlantis 3.0. Below is a chart of the new ships. WC CAP SAIL MVS ADDS skiff 10 50 2 4 -1/0 longboat 30 200 5 3 -1/0 barge 50 900 10 3 -2/-2 clipper 80 500 10 5 -1/0 galleon 120 900 15 4 0/0 wc= wood cost cap= capacity(weight) sail= sailors needed mvs= moves adds= (lbo/xbo)/com adds The big changes in these new ships are decreased costs, different moves and adds to both XBO/LBO and COM skills. There are also 2 new ship types included. As things stand now in atlantis, ships are not used much and when they are used itUs mainly for combat. The 2 new types will benefit other factions. The skiff has a low enough cost that even newbie faction can build them quickly and head out to explore new areas. The barge will help trade factions move large quantities of products to markets. The old costs for ships was much too high for the capacity they carried. In the current game 50 wood can build 50 wagons or 1 longboat. 50 wagons can carry 2500 weight the longboat 100. While not all the wood in a boat is for carry weight, this huge amount needed seems way out of proportion and out of reach of lots of smaller factions The varying movement rate will encourage diversity in ship building. Trade factions can go will slow,easily built barges or can use faster clippers to run blockades and avoid pirates. War factions can go with clippers for faster movement or use galleons for more combat ability. The skiff can be used by wandering wizards and explorers equally well. Longboats are cheap to make and have ok capacity but are donUt move really fast. The adds for combat are to mainly to prevent barges being used as huge, floating fortresses. With -2 to bow and com skills, carrying troops becomes risky. The can be used to move large amounts of units to invade other islands but being packed in like sardines in a cargo hold makes them vulnerable to battle on the high seas. The -1 to bow skill on other ships is for the instabilty of the ships on the ocean. The galleon has no penalties because of its massive construction and itUs primary design as a fighting ship. These com adds will also encourage diversity as well. Any comments.. ? John gft_jon@gsbvxb,uchicago.edu ps. can someone tell me how to get on the design mailing list? Also, has there been a list of changes for Atlantis 3.0 yet? I have a few other ideas but donUt know whats already been proposed. ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 19:43:56 -0500 (CDT) From: GFT_JON@gsbvxb.uchicago.edu Subject: SOme other suggestions for Atl 3.0 Like I said in the previous message, I don't know what already been proposed for Atl 3.0 but I thought I throw out a few ideas. 1) Battle reports need to be changed. As it is right now any in the hex that a battle take place sees all the units involved and what skills they have. This seems unfair. Is there any way to change it so watching faction merely see only some of the battle? Maybe even dont show the skills to anyone, including those involved. Right now a faction can send a 1 man unit into battle and see the whole make-up of the opposing forces. 2) Lose or change the portal spell. I know mages are supposed to have some advantages but this portal spell is way too strong. It gives factions instant airlift capabilties greater than the 82nd airborne. Right now the PCP is portaling to gateway cities with enough power to take it the next turn. Fun for them sure, but not for the 30 or so factions who walked from A.C. and now have to either kowtow to the PCP or be destroyed. If I was paying $2.50 a turn for the game and this happened I would feel ripped off as well. 3) strengthen trade factions. been suggested before I know but has anything been decided yet? Perhaps making tax/pillage month long orders(are the peasants Fed-Exing there silver or what? how is it collected instantaneously? :-)) thats about it.. some small changes might be to have # of peasants in a city reduced only the initial time a unit works, not every time. Also please include in the rules that demand in a city will decrease as products are sold in the market. Some poor slob might invested all his silver making wagons in Jaca, only to see that demand has evaporated. ;-) John ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1995 13:37:18 +0100 From: kjoelby@hum.auc.dk (niels k.l) Subject: Please remove me from this list Please remove me from this list, 'cause I am no longer playing it. Thank you for a great time ;) Up