Forum for First Steps (#1)

[Posting] Host definately not stuck? :/
Thread opener, Player 2 (The Lizards)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 06:54 GMT, edited Fri, 2013-03-15 06:55 GMT

Or did it end?

Very interested to find out how we will know when it has ended. Do we get an automated server message?

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

That way, we can at least still send our regards to the victors. (of coure we can also do that here, but still)

[Posting] Re: Host stuck?
Thread opener, Player 2 (The Lizards)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 06:55 GMT

Or did it end?

Very interested to find out how we will know when it has ended. Do we get an automated server message?

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

That way, we can at least still send our regards to the victors. (of coure we can also do that here, but still)

Eh wait. Next host is sunday. I am confusing two games.... My bad..

Well the question still stands :)

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Player 8 (The Evil Empire)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 13:36 GMT

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

I believe the random option was chosen explicitly to prevent players from simply maximizing their PTScore in the last turn, making irrational decisions that will have no bad influence on their future prospering only because there is no future.

In order to prevent players from doing this, it is important to not let them know when the last turn will happen.

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Player 7 (The Crystal People)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 19:00 GMT

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

As Wormflush said, this would defeat the purpose of the "random end turn".

However, it looks like we're still too lucky for my taste; if the host server still decides to continue the game this weekend I'll add a log message that it reports what number it rolled on its die. Maybe it's rolling zeroes all the time by mistake :)

--Stefan

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Thread opener, Player 2 (The Lizards)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 19:16 GMT

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

As Wormflush said, this would defeat the purpose of the "random end turn".

However, it looks like we're still too lucky for my taste; if the host server still decides to continue the game this weekend I'll add a log message that it reports what number it rolled on its die. Maybe it's rolling zeroes all the time by mistake :)

--Stefan

That's not just because I started blowing up yours ships is it stefan?

>:-)

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Player 7 (The Crystal People)
Posted Fri, 2013-03-15 23:22 GMT

Btw, wouldn't it be nice to let the host run once more after the dice falls to stop? With a message to the players: This is your last turn, make it a good one!

As Wormflush said, this would defeat the purpose of the "random end turn".

However, it looks like we're still too lucky for my taste; if the host server still decides to continue the game this weekend I'll add a log message that it reports what number it rolled on its die. Maybe it's rolling zeroes all the time by mistake :)

--Stefan

That's not just because I started blowing up yours ships is it stefan?

>:-)

I wasn't particularily attached to those, they were stolen and had no fuel anyway :-)

--Stefan

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Thread opener, Player 2 (The Lizards)
Posted Sat, 2013-03-16 21:08 GMT

That's not just because I started blowing up yours ships is it stefan? >:-)

I wasn't particularily attached to those, they were stolen and had no fuel anyway :-) --Stefan

Good, so you won't mind the next turn either then :P

Btw, is it an idea to have the diceroll be send to all players over an in game message.

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Player 5 (The Privateers)
Posted Sat, 2013-03-16 21:24 GMT

The title of the ending criterion is just misleading. It should read "Around turn 85", since this is the maximum propability. We are still in the region that every turn has around 1/4 chance of being the last, which is not much. Maybe the propability should grow a bit faster, ending the game within the next, say, 10 turns instead of 27, as it is now.

[Posting] Re: Host definately not stuck? :/
Player 7 (The Crystal People)
Posted Sat, 2013-03-16 22:22 GMT

The title of the ending criterion is just misleading. It should read "Around turn 85", since this is the maximum propability. We are still in the region that every turn has around 1/4 chance of being the last, which is not much. Maybe the propability should grow a bit faster, ending the game within the next, say, 10 turns instead of 27, as it is now.

I evaluated a few parameters, and I chose this particular distribution because it looks nice on the plot (i.e. not entirely flat, but not a stupid narrow bump like a Normal distribution), and is easy to implement (doesn't need memory, for example by rolling a dice in turn 80 and determining the end condition).

The "5%" is actually a parameter to the end condition and can be changed.

You're right that "around turn 80" is misleading, but "after turn 80" probably is a better name than "around turn 85" (to say explicitly until what turn the game is guaranteed to last).

Sending the dice roll to players is actually a good idea. I already found that the host engine is missing a means to include explanatory text with result mails; I'd have needed that for the Just a Second rehost a few weeks ago.

--Stefan

This is a testing version.
It may be incomplete, and have more bugs (or features) than the public live version at planetscentral.com.