03-22-2011, 01:39 PM
ENTRY THREE
I have one day left, before the next turn orders are due in to the grandmaster of processing. My empire built a ship, last turn. Now, what to do with it?
Do I need to load it with anything? What am I missing, here? I really must make time to read that game manual, someday. I've browsed over it. I've glanced at it. I've even revisited it. But, I'm missing something. I'm missing a lot, actually.
Why? Because I don't even know how to move that ship of mine. The damned thing is capable of faster than light (FTL) travel between star systems, and I don't even know how to turn the ignition over on the thing. This new-fangled technology, I'm telling ya.
Manual, manual, manual. Now, where's that manual, again. I found it, last turn. Now, it's time for me to find it, again. Pah. Such unnecessary complications make galactic conquest far more difficult than it has to be. I hope like Hell that I don't have to read a star chart. It's not a language that I speak.
Well, I found the game manual, all right. Big help that was!! Oh, my God! I still have no clue what I should do. I need to colonize something. The only question is - what??? What? What?? What???
There are multiple planets in my home star system. Should I colonize those other planets, before launching towards the stars, in the hope of finding the right chunk of rock? Or, can I even colonize those other planets in my home system? If I can't, then what use are they in the game? Clearly, I am missing something.
I have found the section in the game manual on starting a colony. Apparently, I need Colonist Units (CU), Colonial Mining Units (IU), and Colonial Manufacturing Units (AU). That's all fine and dandy, but it's not really what I'm looking for. The game manual is 86 pages. Suffice it to say that I think that the game manual could be improved upon - a lot! It's probably fine for people who already understand what they need to do. It's not very good, in my considered opinion, at getting the new guy up and running quickly. It comes as no surprise to me that one player "had to drop out," before turn # 1. I can sympathize.
I understand why the Far Horizons website has an example of turn results on it. It lets other people - other potential players - get a basic idea of what they might see each turn, if they join and play the game. But, it is of zero use to the new guy who's faced with the uphill climb to sort this whole ball of wax out. Example turn orders, that's what they need. Example turn orders. Can you say example turn orders? Neither can the game's moderator, apparently.
Why does the new guy to the game need such? Because, he hasn't a clue as to what in the Hell he is supposed to do, in order to accomplish something that he thinks that he wants to do. At least, if he's anything like me, that's probably the case. That's the case with me, right now.
I simply want to move the ship that I built, and colonize a new planet. Sounds relatively uncomplicated, right? Wrong! Oh, baby, you got that one big time wrong! Big time!!
You know, I could get my turn orders in much quicker, if I only understood what I needed to do. Because the game has the benefit of being automated, that translates into us human creatures having to be exact with how we issue our orders for our respective empires. Screw it up, and you will receive error messages or what you want to do simply won't get done - and then you will begin to fall behind. Now, you tell me - if you're civilization might just end up on some alien space race's menu of destruction, then would you want your people to fall behind? Now, you begin to see my point, huh?
Damned game moderator!
I am going to take a break, and let my nerves calm down. This dilemma of trying to establish a colony has got me all on edge. I need a Marlboro - and I don't even smoke!!
I have one day left, before the next turn orders are due in to the grandmaster of processing. My empire built a ship, last turn. Now, what to do with it?
Do I need to load it with anything? What am I missing, here? I really must make time to read that game manual, someday. I've browsed over it. I've glanced at it. I've even revisited it. But, I'm missing something. I'm missing a lot, actually.
Why? Because I don't even know how to move that ship of mine. The damned thing is capable of faster than light (FTL) travel between star systems, and I don't even know how to turn the ignition over on the thing. This new-fangled technology, I'm telling ya.
Manual, manual, manual. Now, where's that manual, again. I found it, last turn. Now, it's time for me to find it, again. Pah. Such unnecessary complications make galactic conquest far more difficult than it has to be. I hope like Hell that I don't have to read a star chart. It's not a language that I speak.
Well, I found the game manual, all right. Big help that was!! Oh, my God! I still have no clue what I should do. I need to colonize something. The only question is - what??? What? What?? What???
There are multiple planets in my home star system. Should I colonize those other planets, before launching towards the stars, in the hope of finding the right chunk of rock? Or, can I even colonize those other planets in my home system? If I can't, then what use are they in the game? Clearly, I am missing something.
I have found the section in the game manual on starting a colony. Apparently, I need Colonist Units (CU), Colonial Mining Units (IU), and Colonial Manufacturing Units (AU). That's all fine and dandy, but it's not really what I'm looking for. The game manual is 86 pages. Suffice it to say that I think that the game manual could be improved upon - a lot! It's probably fine for people who already understand what they need to do. It's not very good, in my considered opinion, at getting the new guy up and running quickly. It comes as no surprise to me that one player "had to drop out," before turn # 1. I can sympathize.
I understand why the Far Horizons website has an example of turn results on it. It lets other people - other potential players - get a basic idea of what they might see each turn, if they join and play the game. But, it is of zero use to the new guy who's faced with the uphill climb to sort this whole ball of wax out. Example turn orders, that's what they need. Example turn orders. Can you say example turn orders? Neither can the game's moderator, apparently.
Why does the new guy to the game need such? Because, he hasn't a clue as to what in the Hell he is supposed to do, in order to accomplish something that he thinks that he wants to do. At least, if he's anything like me, that's probably the case. That's the case with me, right now.
I simply want to move the ship that I built, and colonize a new planet. Sounds relatively uncomplicated, right? Wrong! Oh, baby, you got that one big time wrong! Big time!!
You know, I could get my turn orders in much quicker, if I only understood what I needed to do. Because the game has the benefit of being automated, that translates into us human creatures having to be exact with how we issue our orders for our respective empires. Screw it up, and you will receive error messages or what you want to do simply won't get done - and then you will begin to fall behind. Now, you tell me - if you're civilization might just end up on some alien space race's menu of destruction, then would you want your people to fall behind? Now, you begin to see my point, huh?
Damned game moderator!
I am going to take a break, and let my nerves calm down. This dilemma of trying to establish a colony has got me all on edge. I need a Marlboro - and I don't even smoke!!