FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Games that are not ArmA2 or Flight Sims

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Madtoaster
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FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Madtoaster »

Greetings comrades! I bring great news from the Ministry of Tractor Development! The first Interplanetary tractor has been developed, allowing for us, the loyal Party members, to bring the ideal of the socialist agrarian society to the stars! Now all we need to do is figure out this "Astronavigation" and "Fuel Management" malarkey, and figure out why everyone keeps demanding we "Start producing actual metal and not bits of scrap we find in people's sheds".

For those of you who aren't aware,Aurora is a s̶i̶m̶u̶l̶a̶t̶o̶r̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶s̶t̶ ̶U̶I̶ ̶i̶m̶a̶g̶i̶n̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ space-based 4x (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate) game with added Microsoft Excel and a hearty dose of inaccessibility. Regardless of these admirable traits, it is can be somewhat hard for people to figure out, which is a shame for one of the most in depth space strategy games available. As such, I have put myself forward as sacrifice to manage a cooperative roleplaying/strategy game set in the game, where people can take control of the Party's fledgling space empire and conquer the stars!

It will proceed as follows: Firstly, People willing to take part in the game can reply to this post with a request for either a Civilian or Military leader position. I will also post a short series of questions for what kind of game people would be interested in (development level, Sol system start or another random system, etc). After a few days time I will formalize this and write a couple of State of the Party posts, where I detail our current position in the game and explain a couple of the key points. I'll be managing most of the numbers so you'll not have to worry about such things, but I'll do my best to explain everything. From then on the leaders will propose some plans and I will continue the game until most of those plans have been accomplished.

For those wondering if this would be up their alley, there's an existing LP on the SomethingAwful forums that has been going on for a while with some examples of the game and also possibly the most detailed tutorial of it in existence http://forums.somethingawful.com/showth ... id=3474164

Anyway, if you're interested (And don't worry if you are unsure, if you desire to drop out at any time I can deal with it, as long as you let me know via PM or on this thread), please respond below with

1 - Your choice of a Military or Civilian leader [Mil/Civ]
2 - Starting a "Conventional" start (ie no sci-fi technology, slower to start but possibly the easier to explain) [Yes/No]
3 - Rival Empire from the get-go (Share homeworld with a Madtoaster controlled race that will provide friendly competition and if need be target practice) [Yes/No]
4 - Sol / Random System (Sol system is guaranteed to be "ok/good" in terms of mineral wealth and semi-habitable planets, random is a bit more unfair but I'll try to sort it out so it's not ruinous) [Sol/Random]

Anyway chaps, I hope you'd be interested in this, and if so, please respond!
Please.
I get so lonely.
:dance:

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Ralian
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Ralian »

I had a bit of a look at it, it looks great. I'll do some research on it. I'm thinking I could help manage the military, if that's what you'd need? Would enjoy a game with all you comrades. :hist101:

I like space stuff.
There are only three things I hate in this world: Ranting, Lists, and Irony.

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Mabbott
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Mabbott »

Civ could be fun

Sci-fi tech is a go, want my warp/hyperdrives and lazers

No rival power (are you insinuating the Party cannot control their own planet? :cop: )

Sol sounds good, if only for the familiarity.
"Full sails!" - Kefirz
"Don't engage, wait for them to pass the [*rocket launched with wooooosh sound*] bridge... [*boom - rocket hitting the tank*]" -Me, leading an ambush.
For the empire :hist101:

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Ferrard Carson
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Ferrard Carson »

So, I've a few questions before I reach any hasty and completely ill-informed opinions!

Will there be cake?
There better be cake if I'm doing all this reading...

Where on the scale of Soft-to-Hard Sci-Fi does the Trans-Newtonian Start fall? Where does the end-game tech fall on that same scale?
I'm presuming this game is much closer to reality than Star Trek's "Wagon Train to the Stars" or Star Wars "Fantasy Epic... IN SPACE!" I mean, Aurora appears to have realistic scales and Meson Accelerators, so it seems to have some real hard-sci-fi cred, but it's also got the old interpretation of Meson Accelerators (they're somewhat discredited as weapons nowadays) and "Trans-Newtonian" is one heck of a handwave.

Corollary to the above: How quickly does a Conventional start catch up with a Trans-Newtonian start, assuming average research progression?
On the one hand, I see a lot of value in a very grounded start that introduces the hand-wavey stuff gradually. On the other hand, I don't want you to get mired down in "Balkanized Earth Simulator 2015" when there's so much universe out there to conquer explore!

What are the main avenues of advancing towards a win condition?
I notice that the game doesn't seem to list a "win" condition anywhere, but are the basic methods of doing better as a race (culture bombs, money bombs, science bombs or bomb... bombs) much the same as other 4X games, or does everything pretty much boil down to putting X amount of GRASERs into your enemies with everything else in the game determining what "X" will be? Put another way: is this Crusader Kings or is this Hearts of Iron?

What's the funny / epic balance you're hoping for?
Pretty much what it says above - is this a tongue-in-cheek "Our spaceship shall be pulled by tractors into our glorious future!" LP, or are we really and earnestly trying to make a mark on the galaxy?

Now that those questions are out of the way...

Sign me up!
  • Make me a civvy administrator, preferably with a lot of skill in Logistics or Wealth Creation!
  • I feel partial to a conventional start, but if that's going to take a long time to get to anywhere really fun, go with Trans-Newtonian.
  • I like the idea of a rival power that we can either befriend or conquer (or both!), especially if it means you can make otherwise boring opening moves a bit more interesting.
  • Sol all the way. Home is where The Party is.
:clint: ~ Ferrard
"Take a boat in the air you don't love, she'll shake you off just as sure as the turnin' of the worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells you she's hurtin' before she keels... makes her home."

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Madtoaster
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Madtoaster »

Will there be cake?
Unfortunately, capitalists have stolen all the cake.
Where on the scale of Soft-to-Hard Sci-Fi does the Trans-Newtonian Start fall? Where does the end-game tech fall on that same scale?
At the start it's mostly hardish, ships can't travel faster than light apart from through jumpgates, most of the weapons are reasonable (IR lasers, railguns and missiles, some more abstract but plausible weapons like plasma throwers and meson cannons). Trans-Newtonian is basically "Spaceships can move like naval ships in space". Somewhat silly but you can overlook it and pretend they're regular rocket ships like I do :D.
Corollary to the above: How quickly does a Conventional start catch up with a Trans-Newtonian start, assuming average research progression?
You can get Trans-Newtonian tech in the first year of a conventional start. It takes a little longer to develop space tech but in around 10 in game years you'd probably be closeish to the TN start.
What are the main avenues of advancing towards a win condition?
Aurora is a totally sandbox game. I however will be introducing a rival faction in the game (controlled by me to stop the AI from doing ridiculous things) about mid-way through the game. If people desire it's entirely possible it could continue past that after they have been wiped out / befriended / mass drivered into the stone age
What's the funny / epic balance you're hoping for?
30% funny, 70% epic? I don't mind a bit of silliness.

Hope this answers your questions! Thanks guys for volunteering for the FA Space Brigade! I'll end initial volunteering at around Thursday at ~7pm BST, but people can still join anytime after that, you'd just have to wait for the game to get off the ground

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Eagle_Eye
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Eagle_Eye »

Sign me up for the least dangerous military position available. Like cook...

Sounds like it will be fun. I am all for a military position with a conventional start in a sol system with a rival utopia with which to bash our heads against.

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Sparks
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Sparks »

Eagle_Eye wrote:Sign me up for the least dangerous military position available. Like cook...
Er.

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Kefirz
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Kefirz »

So only you ''play'' the game and we just say stuff on forums or can we connect to you and play in some kind of a multiplayer?

Basically, how does this exactly would play out?
''I am not going against tanks'' - Tryteyker, MAT gunner.
''Downboated so much, it's an u-boat now.'' - Boberro.
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Madtoaster
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Madtoaster »

Kefirz wrote:So only you ''play'' the game and we just say stuff on forums or can we connect to you and play in some kind of a multiplayer?
The former, for an example on how this will play the SA thread is a good guide, although we'll have less players than that in all likelihood. Basically each player give suggestions / argue for courses of action, and I'd play them out until the course of action is complete or a new issue rises. I'd then report back with a bit of creative flair as to what has happened.

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Ralian
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Re: FA Goes to Space! : An Aurora-based Forum Game :D

Post by Ralian »

Eagle_Eye wrote:Sign me up for the least dangerous military position available. Like cook...

Sounds like it will be fun. I am all for a military position with a conventional start in a sol system with a rival utopia with which to bash our heads against.
Enlist today to receive your complimentary shiny, red chef uniform!

Down to business though, I vote:
1. I shall keep our asses defended as a military leader, I think. Unless someone else wants to do that.
2. No reason to skip ahead imho, I vote conventional.
3. It wouldn't be the same without a rival.
4. Sol, but keep pluto as a planet or no deal 8-)
There are only three things I hate in this world: Ranting, Lists, and Irony.

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