[This is a translation of the posting 'Der Kaiser ist tot - es lebe der Kaiser... (Wichtig!)' by Wolfen]
Well boys,
Now, I am setting it up for discussion again:
Very soon, we will elect our first emperor and should think about whether we switch over from the past concept of the endless game to a game concept, which runs as long until the next emperor will crowned.
How is the current situation of Tamar and what leads me to this thesis:
At present we have 2-3 large blocks on Tamar. The Tafelrunde, Lucksi and the Order. Many of these players are quite active, they are however not involved into wars and they are no big danger. None of them wants to enjoy his status and they do not do any harm to the others, because everyone has the concern he could lose.
Then we have many medium sized realms, which are partly quite active and are partly quite inactive. For the some of them there is not much to get on Tamar, the others don't have many ideas to set up unrest. All in all these lords build up quietly their realms and try to catch some more acres here and there.
And last but not least we have many small lords, who try not to do anything wrong and to get to know their realm in the first place. Usually they sit somewhere between the large lords and wait for an inheritance or the retirement of another lord to get more towns. Currently, it could take up to 40-100 rounds until they become larger.
Generally I am still having the opinion that there is not enough happening on Tamar. Action is only there where certain players do mischief. Many players fall into lethargy and let their game just run.
An example. Nobody of you has ever really tried to become emperor or stop the current emperor. A game, especially a strategy game lives however on the competition among each other. If this competition is not there, the game will fail. I consult my famous game of chess in this case again: Imagine you are playing chess and everybode is only keen on keeping his own figures and not to set the opponent's king check mate. Nobody would be interested in such a game.
A further example: Action on Tamar is always there where new players are starting. Nonakesh has to be seen as an exception here, since all players could expand unhindered to the south. An mistake of the game leadership, namely me, from which I learned. Then however we have there still the examples such as Anorien, Exevor, the island of Torkan or now again Dan Damar.
Always there where new players began there suddenly have been no scruples to attack an opponent from time to time or to act a bit tougher.
Tamar lives on the conflicts like any other strategy game does. Risk, Diplomacie, Civilisation etc. are games that only live on war. With Tamar however we have many more possibilities of action. Only that they become uninteresting if there is no competition & conflicts among the players. Nobody will be really haggle over goods if it is not for his own life. Nobody will break contracts when he needs the grain suddenly for other purposes. Nobody will attack somebody else, if he knows that there are enormous realms behind his opponent which will help this small realm immediately meaning that the attacker will become the victim himself.
The consequence? Stagnation. Frustration. Surely, we are always giving hints how one can imporve this and that but in the end it will still remain the same old song.
Small realm calls large realm and asks for assistance. Large realm comes, defends small realm and has a further vassal. The result is usually more land for the large realm and following stable structures for the new area. No war, no more conflicts.
What is still happening on Exevor these days? What is going on Anorien? Look at Nonakesh. In one month of 2 entries of general nature.
The solution?
R E S E T
Puhhh. The evil word has been said. To reset the world. Everytime a player has become emperor, the game ends and a new one will be started.
The current game already lasts for 4 years and if one is honest nearly nobody is thinking nowadays that there still may be large changes on Tamar. Surely, someone like Lucksi, could retreat and distribute his country. But finally there will still remain the same structures and alliances as before.
In the following I will try to make the reset palatable to for you and ask for a relevant and informative discussion. It shall be written about negative consequences of a reset like it shall be written about positive consequences.
Well. Which DISADVANTAGES offers the Reset:
----------------------------------------
- one loses its realm to which one got accustomed for many years
- one loses allies, which one knows for a long time.
- one loses all achievements which one gained in the realm. Among other things also Story and possible chronicle etc..
- one loses the feeling that Tamar an infinite world, which is ever beeing continued
- possibly some players will not begin again, since they would lose too much and don't want to do it all again
And which ADVANTAGES does the reset offer:
--------------------------------------
- an all in all more balanced game
new game new luck
- substantially higher activity of the players,
because hopefully everybody wants to become emperor and
thus resulting from it:
- much more wars on Tamar
- many more intrigues on Tamar
- many more alliances on Tamar which are also beeing claimed
- much more trade, because wars result in active trading
- no more scruples only because one knows that one will throw the other player out of the gane
- more piracy (capture and plunder), since all the players are unknown
- more fight for vassals.
- more fight for the higher places as a feudal lord
- more competition among barons, counts, dukes etc..
With a short-lived game (1-4 real years and longer if there are even more players) also the feeling would go away that one must keep his realm under any circumstances and that it is someting irreplaceable, which one loses then.
I personally mourn a bit for the basic idea, which Tamar was about. But an interesting game is far more important to me. And I think everyone will agree with me when I say that ToT is not interesting if each player will be as often as possible obliged just to distribute grain and watch the world.
It is not that. The struggle for power is the interesting at this game. Not the distributing grain or trading.
Even with the luxury goods I did not get the small lords to wage wars. I have only let them earn big amounts of gold.
And also with the future things, which will yet appear on Tamar, the current game will not change in its kind anymore. Stagnation. Frustration and boredom. Beeing game leadership, my obligation is to be keep a game interesting and for this reason I am writing these lines.
Now it's on you. Tell me what you think of it.
_________________
Regards
Wolfen
game leadership
Translated by
The emperor is dead - long live the emperor... (Important!)
Moderator: Moderatoren Team
@Dietrich
Thank you for the translation.
@Wolfen
I can see the immediate attraction of a reset, but I'm not sure if it won't create more problems than it solves.
The current problem is stagnation. There is too little happening and that's because the major powers are happy not to make war on each other, which removes the only way to make anything happen in Tamar.
A reset would get rid of that, but,,,
After a reset, people's chances of becoming Emperor will become apparent within the first 30 turns or so. If you end up as one of the many with no chance, specially if it's because you were not lucky in your starting position, why carry on playing?
People would no longer be motivated in taking liege lords. After all, there will only ever be ONE Emperor, and anyone taking a liege lord is unlikely to ever achieve that. The only reason for allegiance will not be loyalty or reward, but ending the game as quickly as possible so a new one may be started where they might have a chance.
It would not remove RL (Real Life (tm)) alliances. We already know that some people are unable to separate RL friendships or dislikes from those of their characters.
You would have to remove all "second characters". Each human player would have to be limited to one game character, whether they test or not.
Anyone unlucky enough to be away for the first week or two of a game might as well not bother coming back. They will be out of the running anyway.
Co-ordinates would have to go. Players who already have each other's addresses would just use them to tell each other where they are. You'd end up with the same alliances game after game. (You help me become Emperor in this game and I'll help you in the next one etc).
There are any number of other reasons why I don't think a reset would solve the Tamar problems.
That's not to say I know what the solution would be, but I don't think a reset would necessarily be it.
Just my opinion, of course.
Thank you for the translation.
@Wolfen
I can see the immediate attraction of a reset, but I'm not sure if it won't create more problems than it solves.
The current problem is stagnation. There is too little happening and that's because the major powers are happy not to make war on each other, which removes the only way to make anything happen in Tamar.
A reset would get rid of that, but,,,
After a reset, people's chances of becoming Emperor will become apparent within the first 30 turns or so. If you end up as one of the many with no chance, specially if it's because you were not lucky in your starting position, why carry on playing?
People would no longer be motivated in taking liege lords. After all, there will only ever be ONE Emperor, and anyone taking a liege lord is unlikely to ever achieve that. The only reason for allegiance will not be loyalty or reward, but ending the game as quickly as possible so a new one may be started where they might have a chance.
It would not remove RL (Real Life (tm)) alliances. We already know that some people are unable to separate RL friendships or dislikes from those of their characters.
You would have to remove all "second characters". Each human player would have to be limited to one game character, whether they test or not.
Anyone unlucky enough to be away for the first week or two of a game might as well not bother coming back. They will be out of the running anyway.
Co-ordinates would have to go. Players who already have each other's addresses would just use them to tell each other where they are. You'd end up with the same alliances game after game. (You help me become Emperor in this game and I'll help you in the next one etc).
There are any number of other reasons why I don't think a reset would solve the Tamar problems.
That's not to say I know what the solution would be, but I don't think a reset would necessarily be it.
Just my opinion, of course.
Captain Garibaldi of Babylon
