Events versus Random Events

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UesugiKenshin
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Events versus Random Events

Beitrag von UesugiKenshin »

An event trigger fires in specific circumstances and fire full screen messages.
http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... itle=Event

A random event is a game setting selectable option.
http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... ndom_Event

In terms of storytelling, the best places to add a series of occurances within the game would be the later as they are accessible via the stringtable. You could have a a large variety of events that occur where a random event could happen based upon a planet being either subjugated or within your membership and so some change occurs that sets in motion a chain of other events. I bet we could come up with hundreds of them if the programming change is small which limits how many random events can occur (currently set to 8 random events), then writers could supply a new list for the string table.

That greatly personalizes the galaxy and adds spice and flavor in the single player general game, and especially so in a sandbox game where all the other empires are turned off.

These new events don't have to actually change anything, but can just be text messages.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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Re: Events versus Random Events

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https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero%27s_journey
Almost all of serialized drama, whether books or television or film, is about the hero's journey. A character is created to resonnate with the audience and they live vicariously through the struggles and conflicts on that character. The character has personal setbacks, acts seflessly for others or empires. They fall in love and experience loss and grief. They experience the gamut of emotions that we all do, and so people watch or read these.

And events and random events are opportunities for these stories.

What isn't entertaining is the way the random events are currently set up. It's like a slot machine at Vegas. There is a slim chance of finding an alien artifact and so rising faster, or billions dead or eliminated by demographic calculation errors. Or an especially valuable outpost gets a hull virus and can't be repair so is scrapped. Yikes.

This would be like turning to a page, and complete loss is what the writer has on the page. It's annoying and unbalanced.

Loss within a mythos happens for a reason, and generally because characters die struggling because our real friends and family die of illness like cancer. Or they die in wartime. Or they risked everything and then sacrificed themseves because there was something noble in their souls.

But just to annihilate billions on a whim is not helpful to adding to the popularity of a game. Instead, a mission happens because failure means millions or billions could die, so the crew races against the clock, loses nonessential characters, or even beloved ones to prevent that from happening.

This resonnates with the players, and so they enjoy the vicarious journey because they played a role, even if passive, but especially if actively guiding the characters.

We can write better events and based on things like encountering aliens, and their attitude towards a major race, especially the human player, then directed text messages as events they allow a positive life affirming story to be displayed and acted upon. And that means risk versus reward, and modifiers change to help or hinder the player.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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Re: Events versus Random Events

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To.make the world come alive, these events also happen to the AI players so the galaxy is dynamic no matter the player does. Things progress as stories that affect the crew and empire that change them. They are not just obstacles to overcome and control. Otherwise they are the faceless enemy and one dimensional. Then the AI empires will seem too similar.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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Re: Events versus Random Events

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If there were settings so the incidence rate of the death of billions was rather small, as that is hardly a common occurance, random events would be okay.

But way more triggers like every time the diplomacy raises for a major or minor race compared to another major race, then [diplomacy would be extremely valuable for story telling[/b].

Then gifts and terraforming and trade occurring is meaningful and some random attribute gets better. And the text would vary based on the six major aliens and 150 minor aliens. I would happily write the dialogue as BotE would have a story driven plot. There is cause and effect and diplomacy matters.

There would be random unrest as the minor alien's homesector would have some citizens upset at improved diplomatic relations.

Some text messags would fire that have no attribute change, just be descriptive. That would have a large appeal.

Based on membership (so locale morale) of alien races then you would have descriptions as minor alien species end up attending military academies and become scientists and educators and join the infantry and gain command positions and serve on ship crews.

You also would have bitterness at the interlopers, fear, bigotry, religious issues, courtship and intermarriage, etc.

All of which makes the game very rich but may not always have an effect.

Soldiers stationed in regions are rowdy and cause bar fights, they get in minor mischief, they have irritated fathers of local daughters upset. But they also would make some alien members feel safer, trade on the planet grows, maybe the illegal businesses run by local organized crime grows, etc.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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Re: Events versus Random Events

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Imagine you are a colonist on a new growing planet of the empire along a frontier. You know, some of the colonists would be ordinary people, but many would be troublemakers who had to "Get out of Dodge City", as they were in trouble with the law. They were unemployed or constantly being fired. Some split as maybe they got their girlfriend pregnant. Some had acrimonious marriages and divorces. Young couples whose parents don't approve of their relationship might elope and run off to a colony. Maybe a single mom runs away from an abusive marriage. Maybe someone was homeless and destitute and so they got a shot at life on a new world and it's that or join the military.

So all of that is in the morale score for that colony. And bored hard working colonists as factory workers and miners and research scientists and leaders and farmes and utility workers drink too much as they get homesick, and may get in fights and gamble away their credits.

All of which are random events on colonies as storytelling. It just makes the galaxy come alive. You don't even have to do it for the ai players, but every human player would like it.

A lot of troubling messages may alert the intelligence agencies on that sector and so they report internal security messages just as descriptions. They would indicate a sharp lowering of colonial morale was taking place on that planet and maybe a new intel building is needed with a proper adjustment on the manager tab.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=chOPGE71ces
Outland (1981) has a local law enforcement officer who is bored and not great at his job, then has a real growing crisis as illegal drugs are being taken by bored colonists. He then has to find out what is going on and protect the citizens.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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Re: Events versus Random Events

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Events fire images and so if more artists create them, and coders can come up with more, than this really conveys and illustrates that the galaxy is full of trillions of people living dynamic lives.
Minor Race Database http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... r_(Minors)
Minor Race Ships http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... nen_Völker
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