They took it upon themselves to cast offensive ops on the top 4 fams, as well as raid a 5th family within the first 72 hours of the round. I was in one of the affected fams, and from my understanding the only way to stop harrassment like this is to find out what started it and then proceed to resolve it.
In this case, the resolving was done by limiting their ability to produce enough agents and wizards to stop them from casting Octarine Hurricane and Plant Nukes on my fam members while at the same time adding op defense ourselves.
I’ve asked 3-4 times for them to stop and if they’re really sure they want their round to be over, i.e. be behind so much because of them every little bit of eco they had going into agents/wizards that it would be a massive undertaking to even end up 14th place.
They didn’t stop, because they were “balancing the galaxy” and “our fam had grown too large and was a danger to other, smaller families”:
Hello, we are the self appointed balancers of the galaxy. Your family has grown too big and is a danger to the other, smaller, families. With the use of OPS we keep things balanced and fair for everyone.
T-69
Rawrr of Suvarius (#famnumber)
Why are you oh ing my banker? Are you trying to get your fam killed off?
@I_like_pie players have been screaming out for ‘making the game simpler changes’ for literal years. Why are you so far behind the game.
Yes requesting aid is bullshit, I like your idea, or just ectroverse it and allow every one (rogue exempt) to dip their finger in the family pie.
Passing planets to fam members could also be simplified to a request/send button.
Get all the useful tools built ingame.
I also like your idea of allowing players to have a more interactive experience with other fams in the galaxy but this one needs some thought. Like sending aid packages/troops to other fams would be good but make it cost time depending on the size of the donation.
There’s a million things that can be done to make this game less mundane, glad you played a round finally to experience it.
Yes @OrBit I know players have been screaming for some of these changes for years; I was one of them. Did you forget that I was also once a player asking the mods and Stefan for a better game?
I’ve been here making changes specifically to make IC less mundane. The NAP Overhaul comes to mind, or the Inactive Handling Updates, or the family council. Mass explos, etc, etc. I could go on; I’m not as out of touch as you’d like to think.
I’m not.
These are not new thoughts, I am just writing them down in diary form as I play a round. Some of these ideas I’ve posted about before as individual topics, but I am grouping them together here so that they stay top of mind.
This isn’t my first time playing a round you know. It’s just my first in a long time. These aren’t exactly epiphanies, more a refreshed perspective.
Maybe instead of asking me why I’m behind the game, you should pay attention to the game’s changes and catch up a bit yourself.
Good point on intergalactic aid not being instant. That would be a nice take on the feature.
Your response to their actions makes sense, but I still think it would be a better experience if they had more means to recruit others. Had I know their intent and the game supported it, I might have been inclined to join them.
If we have players willing to sacrifice their round in a futile attempt to balance the game, it’s worth questioning why they feel so compelled to do so.
Sure, they should face consequences of risky decisions but why shouldn’t they also have means to recruit others for their cause? If they did, it might have made for a more interesting conflict for all involved.
More people playing for longer would be a good thing.
You did what you should have done in that situation, but I don’t think it reflects well on the game’s design.
I tell you one thing. It is absolutely hilarious how some people never fail to out themselves as having a strange agenda and temper against other players.
73 decided to be so polite as to ask us, 77 (Curry) for 15 planets in exchange for a pnap… because they’d had a war last a few hours and they had all those fleets but nothing to do with them! I can imagine how big that made them feel for once in a long time.
So, naturally we said no… if you want to gain planets then you better bite the bullet and actually fight someone your own size for once in your lives eh!
Now, the leader of this family has a particularly nasty temper; which is a shame because I am sure they’re a lovely person IRL, so upon receiving the disappointing news that we wouldn’t be complying with their demands - their dummy was well and truly spat out! Can you imagine? Send in the nukes
Now you know, fair enough this game is called imperial CONFLICT and fighting is the aim of the game, that’s cool. But I’ve had to report one person already this round for vile in-game messages and have received more from someone else as a result of the end game of the round - possibly not quite the threshold of submitting a report but as close as you can be.
I came to play this game because of lockdown and covid. I’m sure a lot of people did the same and use it as a bit of an escape from real life for a few minutes every so often as you login to do certain things. So to have your experience ruined by the practices of individuals who appear unable to hold back their childish, immature insults and game practices then this game appears to have reached a point of no return from which it maybe cannot be saved. While I know this stuff happens now, it’s genuinely not worth my time or effort to entertain these people with my presence playing. Maybe these people want an ever diminishing base so the ‘pond’ they’re having an influence on feels that little bit bigger for a while.
It’s genuinely a shame, @I_like_pie referenced in a previous post somewhere that ‘the game doesn’t need any more toxicity’; yet when you look at the feuds between various (if not all) players in different cliques (and certainly the replies I will receive to the particular ‘if-the-shoe-fits’ individuals); this extra 15-minute alternate reality we escape to occasionally isn’t so appealing anymore.
Ironically as Pie also discussed - this round has been fun for him because he’s has new challenges and different things to do in a round near the bottom - we felt the same; we were having fun in perpetual fighting with 79… it presented its challenges and almost made us briefly forget about the nasty nature of some players that has seemingly become the accepted norm nowadays.
I guess my overarching message here is: why you so mad? Why do you see everything as an opportunity to kick off, be nasty and verbally attack someone over an online game… things you certainly wouldn’t say to someone’s face if in person? I’m certainly not perfect and have been everything I’ve described in the past I accept that, but it’s sometimes important to look at yourself and understand why you were like that. Perhaps, rather than becoming so nasty and abhorrent, think to the reasons why you’re playing a game online and also take into account the situations of others also playing the game, because believe me - some situations for people are not great and IC is an escape for them. Remember that.
Id love to help contribute to a less hostile environment to play in but i know
I’ll get ridicule from the back of this but hey; it is a round diary after all so I can express my thoughts here
@Funeral having seen the messages you have received this round firstly relating to having intercourse with a family member and secondly referring to you as a ‘mancy excrement’ I don’t blame you for logging out and never playing this game again.
@I_like_pie this toxic behaviour has become too personal.
But unnecessary. The initial threat was ‘tell us the names of everyone in your fam or we will use the fleet on you’ which in an anonymous round is inappropriate.
To play devil’s advocate, player identities could be considered intel within the framework of the game, which would make that kind of extortion/threat a valid tactic, even if a bit mean spirited.
It reminds me of people knowingly breaking NAPs which is kind of a dick move, but valid nonetheless if the player wishes to utilize deceit.
I think the main consideration would be in whether or not the communication violates our community guidelines.
On a different note for the diary, my family is seeing some more action!
Friends with Foes
My family has been involved in a few skirmishes that definitely set us back but also opened up some interesting opportunities for diplomacy.
Earlier in the round we were victim to a handful of attacks by #7686 and booted out of several systems. It’s been awhile since I’ve felt that familiar “ah shit… dammit” feeling of checking HQ and fam news and seeing progress impeded by an enemy family.
I talked w my fam and considered our reaction.
Upon further investigation I realized that we were actually the aggressors imposing pretty deeply into 86’s core. This wasn’t intentional: a little before that I had noticed a different family (#7682) exploring in our core and also saw them just south of us as well. In my haste I mistook that for their core, and explored in the area for mutual deterrence, without realizing I was actually intruding into 86’s space.
So, realizing the optics of my mistake, I contacted 86’s leader and let them know that we understood their move and would be fine calling peace if they didn’t attack us further but would be willing to fight if necessary:
You’ve removed us from your core which is reasonable. I have no interest in a skirmish, there are still planets out there to explore.
I sent a NAP request, feel free to accept. We can prepare to fight but I think we’d both gain more from a pact.
86’s leader SugarDaddy was gracious given the perceived aggression and acknowledged that if we are out of their core then they have no further beef with us. They even mentioned a willingness to work with us if it made sense.
We talked some more, discussed challenges with other families, and eventually met up on Discord for an informal collaboration that would eventually become an alliance. Our family “Just Chillin” thus joined their family “Sugar Tales” and I named our partnership “Chilled Sugar”.
Not a bad turnout for what initially felt like being targeted.
We talked explo strat, econ growth plans, and potential targets. However, before long we would find out that they had a NAP cancelled on them.
My family would need to decide our response as allies, while we still struggled with our own growth.
Not too long ago, #7687 cancelled their NAP with our new allies, #7686. At the time we were hitting a good stride, but were now having to decide whether to sit things out on the sidelines or to jump in from the get go.
I figured an alliance is pointless if we don’t actually help each other, so I decided that we’d go ahead and join in the action. Although we didn’t have much for shares, ops seemed like a viable option so we planned a basic agent jump so I could drop some nukes. I recall nukes being used somewhat conservatively during wartime, but I figure with us being the little guy what else can we really do?
Dev Damnation
In the midst of this prep, I get OH’d by Dogecoin of #7680 because I’m the developer and in their words they think OH is overpowered and wanted to give me an “immersive” experience and demonstration. Kind of a dick move IMO, sure it’s a war game but targeting me because I’m the dev is poor form. I can brush it off for myself, but my family members should not be indirectly punished because I decided to play again.
Besides, the point is lost on me anyway: I’m already so small compared to them that any ops would easily hurt me. I can’t perceive OH being overpowered if everything against me is relatively overpowered. A better test would be if a small player OH’d a big player, which is closer to what I understand the problem to actually be.
If they were trying to make a point about op balance, they failed. On the upside, I do have a better understanding of why players prefer anonymity.
Anyway, I can’t focus on that too long because we’re getting ready to jump in to help our allies.
Nukes of hazard
Sure enough, after cancellation my ally started getting attacked so I started lettin the nukes fly. I got a message from 87 asking why, and I told them nothing personal was just defending our friends. To their credit, they didn’t get nasty in messages or anything and we hashed it out on the battlefield.
What followed was several days of op exchanges primarily between myself and Ames. They returned my nukes with several rounds of OH. I kept refreshing my agent jumps which was expensive but fairly effective. I don’t know how much damage I ultimately did, but knowing that we were involved felt right.
During this, I got propositioned by a larger family to help them with nuking somebody, but I told them I was already in conflict. They offered to help, but I declined on account of it being imbalanced:
That’s ok, they’re closer to our size so it would be imbalanced if you guys joined.
Thanks for the offer though!
My family kept me funded and we all kinda scrapped around while enjoying the ride.
Despite the frustration, this felt like a good example of what makes IC so fun. Everything between the messages, the ops, the attacks, and above all for me the anticipation of certain actions really does hold up strongly.
Then, things took a surprising turn: our ally signed a peace agreement, without involving us! Ouch!
Leadership Lessons
I won’t lie: I was kind of annoyed by this turn of events. We got involved to support our ally and were left hanging after their peace deal. Without them being in the mix, we lost any diplomatic leverage against 76. If they wanted peace, it should have been peace all around.
Now, 87 who is still much bigger than us can keep hitting us without 76 being there for backup. Not a great situation, and ultimately it would mean that we provided our services and in return took a loss. We were also talking about planning an EoR jump, which now became much less viable.
76 acknowledged the mistake and apologized, and we moved on. It was a good reminder for me to be more proactive as a leader: I should have been more clear about expectations from our allies before involving my family.
Still, it was nothing personal and I’ve still got love for our ally and will remember this round fondly.
Negotiations
I eventually contacted 87 to inquire about peace, and they seemed insistent on “a fair amount of retribution” for my nukes. That’s a fair response, and was part of the risk we took. However, I did let them know that I declined an offer for help against them for the sake of fairness and good sportsmanship. I figured that’s a reasonable factor in the situation as well.
They dismissed the value of my gesture and offered peace in exchange for 1 full system in our core. I counter-offered to give them more planets than their initial offer but spread in 2 systems so that my family could maintain presence in our own core. With the round nearly over, this is mostly a symbolic request.
My offer was declined and I was told that they could just take the planets by force anyway. While true, I told them that if they were to do so then I’d just keep nuking. I told them the offer was still on the table but if they prefer to take by force then we’ll keep on fighting.
Sure enough, I lost more planets and in return I landed more nukes.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Mining facility supply of Ames.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Research center supply of Ames.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Laser supply of Ames.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Tax office supply of Ames.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Tax office supply of Ames.
EO T-630 Nukes placed by FoohonPie detonated, devastating the Mining facility supply of Ames.
This might not have moved the needle very much, and we took a hit for it, but I’m glad to have made good on my promise. If I do keep playing, I plan to resurrect my reputation as a leader and attacker who won’t back down against larger empires.
Our battle with 87 continues as I type this, and with less than a day left I can’t imagine peace even matters anymore, but it’s been a fun experience.
A wild #7673 appears!
Surprisingly, after all of this #7673 starts hitting us. Gunnar in my family starts fighting back and it seems we’re in a fresh skirmish right near the stretch. Now this is IC!
I do my best to assess what’s happening and soon enough they declare war on us too. I take a look and see that they’re #1 in NW and size and can’t help but roll my eyes a little bit. I return the war declaration and send them a message:
I get a fairly friendly response back, given the circumstances. I assure them that it’s all good and it’s part of the game, even if I don’t like the situation with regards to our size difference.
We have a decently nice exchange and wish each other luck in the next round.
That’s it for now! I’ll write a closing entry after the round ends with some final thoughts as a player, as well as what it means for me as the dev.
Thank you to all who I saw on the battlefield this round, friend and foe alike! May we all have another great round in andromeda-51!
Hi @I_like_pie this has been a good read, firstly I hope you draw on this experience and use it to fuel some much needed changes.
While it’s good to see your perspective of this round, I still feel confused as to why 10/15 families never really got going. I’m looking at you in the ranks as well as many other seasoned players and scratching my head and wondering, why are you a week 1 size at week 4.
It’s nice that you have had your little individual battles but in the grand scheme of the round you have done nothing of note but prove the games imbalance.
And while this is going on, I’m fighting the same people round in round out thinking, do I need to give the galaxy a 2 week head start to make it more enjoyable. And I’m sure other players share my opinion.
I think of all the takeaways you have from this round Pie, this has to be the biggest question you need to find an answer to. How do you balance a game so that people with less time/experience can still be competitive. Because we want all families to have lots planets, we want to have lots of targets. It makes things more entertaining. The only fun I had this round was when 82 cancelled on us. They were a nobody family who competed and it’s great.
I hope the next diary of yours I read is about how you are fighting for top 5, not playing dollies with swagga.
@OrBit if you think that’s all I’ve done of note, then you’re missing the entire point of this player’s diary.
Calling back to my original post here: I think I’ve pretty decently proven that the game is still worth playing even if you join a bottom family that people think is dead from the start. Our “little individual battles” might seem insignificant to you, but to us they were what drove the latter half of our round.
As for why I’m so small at week 4: it’s at least in part because I spent the first half the round in a family by myself. All things considered I think we did pretty well. You are correct in this regard though: there is much to assess here about what this and other imbalances mean, and how to improve them.
Like I said earlier: the power disparity is a key problem and to your point, the game desperately needs to be more competitive. Still, I hope that people don’t only focus on the imbalance; there is another equally important lesson here about having a reason to play.
That’s why I joined in the first place, and found value in the experience when other players didn’t think it was worth it. The imbalance isn’t the only thing I’ve proven here.
I was in the same fam as Ames this round. I just wanted to say Ames basically played the round solo. He barely got any help from me. I did a few attacks and retakes when we first went to war, then I got busy irl and it was difficult to find time to send fleets.
Idea: wish it were easier to send multiple fleets to attack somehow… like if there were a preset of how many of each unit you want to send.
Pie, your nukes definitely hurt a bit, but what was really killing me were the OH and storms. I am not complaining that the spells are overpowered though. It actually forced me to make tough decisions with my gc (which I think is a great thing in a strategy game!). I would need to choose if I wanted to get info with ops, do I risk sending my fleet without info, do I jump agents, wiz, ground, or air?
Idea: In terms of OH, I can see it being very crippling if the enemy was extremely active and kept it on someone 100% of the time. (Thankfully there were times when OH were dropped off of me) Maybe if you could limit the amount of OH used, for example if someone can only be OHed 4 times every 12 hrs or something.
i brought the idea up a few years ago for preset fleet Presets for attacking but nothing came out of it. We do have a Fleet Sender which you can set your values to send to a list of planets.
BlockquoteIdea: In terms of OH, I can see it being very crippling if the enemy was extremely active and kept it on someone 100% of the time. (Thankfully there were times when OH were dropped off of me) Maybe if you could limit the amount of OH used, for example if someone can only be OHed 4 times every 12 hrs or something.
There is a limit to how many Octane Hurricanes one can be under in a set period of time, 12 ticks would double that limitation but its a idea.
Hey great minds think alike! I know we dont have a lot of development power so too bad we didnt get presets. I’ll try out the fleet sender next round and see if that helps. Thanks!
It’s just my first in a long time. These aren’t exactly epiphanies, more a refreshed perspective.
Ouch!