Shared, Persistent Campaign Universe

Looks awesome.

So lots of minigames for a macro-game map?  Cool.

Is there going to be any sort of reward for the places an empire already rules?  For instance, if your empire has control of most of the macro-map but only a small portion of an individual game's mico-map, you would still be getting a massive influx of resources from your other territories.

Also, is thing going to be TEC vs Advent vs Vasari (with subdivisions in each) or Team1 vs Team2 vs Team3?

I like this idea; kind of reminds me of what DS lore talked about doing, though I didn't really know about it until after Rebellion was in beta.

Posting here due to interest.

Each system on the map is a "planet cluster".

You  have a "strategic turn" which is essentially turn-based.  During it, you calculate your credits available from planet clusters owned. With the credits and resources earned, you can:

• Offer other factions (players) you are adjacent to diplomatic bribes
• Buy/Trade/Sell resources to or  from other players
• Allocate credits and resources for ship production in each planet cluster
• Buy/Trade/Sell planet cluster systems with other players.
• Pay logistics expenses for ships already owned
• Maintain or upgrade your research capability
• Place fleet movement orders on the cluster map

When enemy contact is made on the cluster map, you then go to the in-game phase (tactical turn)--fighting with the fleets you purchased.  If you own the system, you will have a small supply to produce with as well.

I also am working on "mini missions" with set ship numbers and maps to rank your " fleet commander".  So as you finish them or win actual combat games, you gain rank and the ability to command greater numbers of ships.

So groups of players could work out there own schedules on when to play, etc.  You could have several separate groups playing a campaign.

Looking forward to how this will turn out.

looks similar to the world of tanks concept that works so well.  would be happy to help you conceptually if you need some ideas.

The big thing is having a game-within-a-game.  The outside Sins game has to have balance and flow all it's own.

I would hope one day a future version of Sins might include a Wing Commander: Armada style system with a strategic map    that leads to pvp engagements resolved by the core game.

There also will be a mod involved with this to set some planet and production limits.  Much of this game will be played with fleets you build outside the game and then commit strategically--resolving combat in the game after.

I'll post up the starting position for all factions when I get a chance to do the image map:  that will include cluster names and values and the like.

Diplomacy will be by bid--factions will secretly place bids and the high bid wins if it meets the minimum presented by the offering player.  This makes diplomatic offers a potential cash cow for a player. If five factions bid for an alliance, that's a lot of cash for the player taking offers--even though only one will receive the reward.

I may ask people to consider creating unique maps in a bit but I have to flesh out the details of the clusters a little more first.  Each area of the strategic map is designed to offer a specific value.

One of the starting maps will be a rabbit hunt where all players pursue one.  The victor gets the rank which will give unique commands--similar to Goafan's 4x mod concept.

On the strategic map, capturing certain systems will allow access to special campaign missions with particular rewards...sort of like gaining an artifact in the game.

Thanks for the interest.  Finishing up a small mod now for release tonight (I hope).

BTW--my big personal goal is to find a way to incorporate a stock market into the campaign with each player being able to front it's own unique corporation and offer stock. This is going to take some thought though.

One thing I just thought of: If you want to keep the amounts of resources the same in the exterior game as well as in Sins, the following might work, but it would also be extremely (maybe even prohibitively) repetitive:

As long as factions are not facing off against themselves, you could use the galaxyScenarioDef file to start with the resources for each battle (or have some people help you with this), and have people report their ending resources (or send in a recording) and just keep it updated.

I love this idea, very interested.

Interest here

Thanks all.

You basically budget your ships before the battle.  When you go to Sins to slug it out, you'll start with the budget you set.

The modded worlds will not have logistics slots inherently--the GalaxyScenarioDef templates will provide construction structures at the HW--if they are lost, you have no more construction capability.

Incomes and resources in-game will be limited to none or a trickle--depending on the scenario.

This will force players on a strategic scale to be more realistic rather than burning through ships like tissue paper and rebuilding new ones to quickly replace them--more like real life.

So in-game, when a fleet is committed, a lot will be at stake--the cluster will be won or lost with the fleet and if the fleet is lost there is little to replace it.

I made the modded planet templates and ran them in Rebellion but apprently I am missing something.  The game doesn't crash or dump but the new planets are not loading--something in the GSD.  I'll need some time to debug it around my work schedule.

What happens when you have to do things in a hurry on the fly.

The map files themselves also allow for easily changed templates to change fleets and resources from battle, to battle.

Color me intrigued.

Sounds Sinperium'ish. Will be interested to see how this goes.

Yes. This is the missing "empire" part for the Sins universe. A massive empire can fund larger fleets--but also will have more territory to defend.

All six factions will be at odds with one another--each ultimately wanting it's own, secure, autonomous empire. Diplomacy is temporary and defaults back to hostility if not constantly renewed.

I am thinking of changing movement to match the original board game the map is based on.  Some tweaking to do yet.

As players, your team will be your faction.

Me is interested.

Working on it tonight.  Kids are away and wife and dog went to be early.

Below is a sample of some of the general rules.

PLAYER MEGACORPORATIONS

Like it or not--economies drive societies and their efforts. No matter how idealistic or centrally controlled, mercantilism and trade lead everything and isolated economies will not thrive in the face of diverse, external competition. To grow they must in some way competitively interact with other economies.

Enter player megacorporations.

Within the Sinperium, the primary political factions form the organizations, unions and conglomerations that comprise the governments of empire…the factions. Within each of these factions, individual player megacorporations form the parts with which the whole of government and economy is assembled. These megacorporations provide various commodities and services throughout their empires.

Each player will serve--in addition to their military roles--as a director or CEO of one of these ventures. Any profits they make through them can be added to their military budgets at will and are not assets that must be shared.

Following are the details of each such industry maintained by a player megacorporation.

ORBITAL CONSTRUCTION

After the combat phase is completed, each player may declare what structures will be built at planets owned by them at combat’s end within a cluster. The owning player must then purchase these structures from his own budget. Structures already owned may be retained.

At the beginning of the following and each successive strategic phase, players will gain a return of 10% of the cost of each such structure. Structures already purchased may be deconstructed for salvage worth and new structures built as desired.

Additionally, orders for particular structures may be received from other players within the same faction and the order may be refused or a price can be mutually settled between them.

CRYSTAL & METAL MINING

Resource asteroids held at the end of combat provide raw materials for the owning player’s use during the strategic phase--building ships or structures, investing in research, etc., etc.

They are owned by the owning player and may be traded, used or sold as they desire with any same-faction and/or allied players with which a direct route of travel can be established.

PLANETARY DEVELOPMENT

During the strategic phase, planetary upgrades may be purchased just as during the game. If already purchased, they may be maintained at 1/10th the normal cost, per level. Failure to maintain a development level means it is lost. Orbital facilities and planetary development levels at the start of a combat phase are determined by their state in the preceding strategic phase.

Investing in the Civilian Infrastructure of planets gains the player the same benefits present within the game and determines available construction limits.

Investing in the Military Infrastructure of planets gains the player the same benefits present within the game and determines available construction limits.

Investing in Planet Exploration reduces the chance of losing artifacts found during game play. At one level, one artifact will cease functioning due to lack of study and research. At two levels of exploration, all artifacts will remain operational.

Investing in Emergency Facilities prevents economic loss resulting from unexpected disasters. Planetary allegiance drops by 15% for each level not maintained.

SHIP PRODUCTION AND MAINTENANCE

For each construction factory present, current fleet logistics costs are reduced by 5%.

Any existing ship types for which there are no existing factories must be scrapped for salvage and no other ships of that type may be built until an appropriate factory is acquired.

This penalty may be avoided by leasing a ship factory from a connected, same-faction player. The lease rate will be mutually determined as desired. An owning player leasing out a ship factory may not use it or gain a benefit from it while leased. The leasee player does gain these benefits so long as it is leased.

GLOBAL AND CAPITAL FLEET SUPPLY

Fleets are taxed and maintained at the same rates as within the game. Fleet supply levels and Capital Ship Crews are maintained each strategic phase by expending 10% of their game cost, per level. Any level not maintained is lost. Ship and crew numbers exceeding the allowed levels must be scrapped and salvaged to bring them down to allowable levels.

Without going all RP on your asses, this looks pretty fun.

I'm an old school wargamer by background.  The intent here isn't to run an RP campaign--but there is nothing stopping people from RPing within it...or running their own campaign for RP.

The idea is to provide the structure and let people choose how they want to play it within that structure.  I posted the player megacorporation things first to sort of suggest that.

Trading, selling and the like can be handled in any way the players want.  It isn't just a rule that forces them into it--it's their choice  how they handle it.