Not to throw off the recent theme of Irish world domination, but how are people liking the CoX Invention system? Is it affecting the builds you make and/or the progression of your alts?
January 28, 2008
Chapter 0: Here Come the Irish (Clap, Clap, Clap Clap Clap)
Posted by Grinning Ghoul under Europa Universalis IINo Comments
Once upon a time, on January 1, 1419, there was a verdant isle which its inhabitants called Éire, but which I’m going to call Ireland because that’s the American way. Since the 12th century Ireland had existed as a nominal subject of the English crown, but as a practical matter the Gaelic Irish governed themselves in most parts of the country under local chieftains. Over the years, direct English authority had shrunk to the city of Dublin and several surrounding counties, a region known as The Pale.
And here, using the EU2 political map, we see the five provinces of Ireland and the four that Ireland actually controls. (That’s something I’ll have to fix.) Ulster is my capital, as denoted by the circle icon. All of the Irish provinces are marked with my national symbol, signifying them as my “core provinces”. Owning a core province of another nation, as England now does, causes sour relations between the two countries. It also means that I have a perpetual right to declare war (in game terms, a “Casus Belli”) against England for as long as this situation lasts.
Okay, now let’s zoom out and check out the state of Europe in January 1419:
As you can see, a lot of the national borders that we generally associate with Europe aren’t, uh, quite established yet. For instance, you might be asking, “Where the hell is France?” At this moment in history, French government is highly decentralized, so French territory is a patchwork of independent but allied duchies. The blue territories are France proper; some of the other colors represent the vassal realms of Bourbonnais, Orléans, Provence, and Auvergne. Over time, France tends to absorb these smaller duchies and become more centralized.
The other factor in play is the Hundred Years War, that long period of intermittent warfare between England and France, now in its 82nd year. England presently has the upper hand thanks to their devastating victory at Agincourt in 1415. They are in control of some French provinces, and are also in alliance with Brittany (the tan kingdom in northwest France) and Burgundy (dark red, central and northern France). Against the English alliance stands the rest of France, who are in alliance with each other, plus Scotland.
Ireland is neutral in all this, but it should be obvious that we’re no fan of the English on our little island, and anything that keeps them occupied makes me happy. Ireland starts as the smallest and weakest country in the British Isles, and if I want to drive those English bastards back where they came from, I’ll need to make my move while they’re embroiled in wars of their own.
Now, if I may direct your attention to the top of the map, you’ll see the main game status bar floating up there.
On the left side we have the number of traders, colonists, diplomats, and missionaries available to me. They’ll tend to increase as time passes (to a maximum of 6 apiece).
Over on the right, it’s time to introduce one of the most crucial metrics in the game. Ladies and gentlemen of the EU2-reading public, say hello to your new best friend and mine, Stability. Stability is a measure of the internal cohesiveness of a nation, and it can range from -3 to +3. It influences darn near every aspect of a country, from income to trader replenishment to the chance of rebellions. We’ll want to keep it high, and when it gets dangerously low, bringing it up will become our #1 priority. The larger and more populous a nation, the longer it takes to recover from Stability hits. Big sprawling empires can take years just to go up a single point. For Ireland of 1419, which is quite tiny, it takes only a month or two.
Finally, we have the Manpower rating (which measures the current drafting limits of my army), and the other really important figure, my bank account.
Gooooooooooals!
Here’s what I want to accomplish in the next 400 years toward making Ireland into a world power. These goals pretty much speak for themselves:
• Drive the English out of Ireland for good!
• Absorb England and Scotland, peacefully or otherwise, unifying the British Isles under an Irish crown.
• Own a foothold in continental Europe.
• Colonize the New World as much as possible. (Particularly the gold- and potato-rich territories of the Inca Empire.)
Also, just to be different, and to give myself a challenge:
• When the opportunity arises (after the Reformation happens), go Protestant and try to get all of the Irish provinces converted to Protestantism by game’s end.
That should be enough to keep me busy a while. One more thing: player-controlled nations can take on optional “missions” to earn extra victory points. I won’t be doing any of these, so that my VP total will be a more accurate measure of how Ireland is performing against the other nations of the world.
Coming next: the first 20 years! Watch Ireland establish itself as a nation, build its strength, and engage in a pointless and extraneous war – just like the big empires do!
January 12, 2008
The Start of a New, I Mean Old, Era
Posted by Grinning Ghoul under Europa Universalis II[3] Comments
Hey, what happened to Infamy Unlimited?
Don’t worry, everyone’s most loathed City of Villains super-criminal group is still around. But as they haven’t gotten up to much worth writing about lately, I’ve decided to push their exploits to the side for now, and lend this blogspace to gaming tales of a different nature.
Specifically, I’ll be chronicling my progress through a full game of Europa Universalis II. And you get to watch!
Released in 2001 by Swedish publisher Paradox Interactive, EU2 is a strategy game spanning four centuries of world colonial expansion. And you can play as any nation during that period, from Austria to the Zulu. The Grand Campaign, which I’ll be playing, covers the full scope, from 1419 A.D. (the midst of the Hundred Years War) to 1819 A.D. (the end of the Napoleonic era). During this time, technology will advance from the age of pikes to cannons and rifles, wars will be fought, lands will be colonized, religions will splinter and spread, and the political map of the world will be redrawn in various amusing ways.
EU2 has a gigantic map, hundreds of playable nations, and is enormously complex, so I’m not going to try and explain the whole deal up front. Instead, I’ll cover the relevant game dynamics as they come up during my recaps. For now, it’s enough to mention that the game uses a victory point system, and while I will be keeping track of those, I’m going to hold myself to a less quantitative standard of success. Broadly, my goal is to grow my chosen nation from a small-time player into a major power – not merely in Europe, but also in vast colonial holdings across the globe. My nation will be the core of an empire upon which the sun will never set.
And what nation is that? It’s that friendly little emerald isle called:
IRELAND.
Since the game covers 400 years, my plan is to provide a 20-part recap, each chapter spanning 20 years of alternate Irish history. Let’s all hold hands and pray that I can succeed in holding to a weekly posting schedule.
For now, stay tuned as we take a peek at the state of Europe in 1419 A.D., and the tough row Ireland has to hoe in the centuries ahead.
June 14, 2007
So it’s been announced that in Issue 10, the Rikti will return for a second invasion.
Hmm. Alts? What do you think about all this?
(Clickety-click for full sized goodness!)
May 30, 2007
So what’s the lowdown on Bill Gates’ newest baby and CoX? I’m looking to get a new laptop soon and want to make sure the OS will permit the dramatic return of Jimmy Holden and company.
February 13, 2007
January 26, 2007
Paragon City, Steel Canyon, Silver City Apartment Building, 7: 23 pm
In a well-furnished and comfortably disarrayed living room, a pair of scaly green feet lounged on a black leather ottoman. Nate Conrad, the Leapin’ Lizard, slumped indolently in his big chair as he watched Friday night sitcoms. Between a hard week of crimefighting and lab work, the semi-reptilian hero was already geared up for a quiet weekend. One long-fingered hand was already buried in a bowl of kettle corn; the other was lifting a glass of Diet Rite to his mouth. The good life.
At that precise moment, the Lizard’s TV — and that of everyone in the WPGN viewing area — cut off into static, interrupting the laugh track. “Aw, nuts,” muttered the Lizard, as he set down his popcorn to grab the remote, but within seconds the picture had returned.
But not the sitcom.
Instead, a blue-hooded figure seated behind a table. A figure wearing a grotesque, grinning green mask.
In the Leapin’ Lizard’s apartment, a glass of soda crashed forgotten to the floor.
———
“Evening, Paragon TV viewers!” came the evil, mocking voice from the mask. “I know you’re all anxious to get back to your program, and find out whether Stan and Annette get together, so I won’t keep you long.
“As you all know, I’m your good friend the Grinning Ghoul. No need to reintroduce myself — you’ve probably met either me, or my associates in Infamy Unlimited, during one of our many really fun trips to your city. Oh, we’ve had a lot of laughs. Mostly at your expense, of course, but anyway.”
He snickered a moment, then lowered his voice and leaned toward the camera. “But although you know us here at Infamy Unlimited, it has come to my attention that you do not fear us yet. Not enough. Well, we’re going to have to fix that, aren’t we, Paragon? And we will fix that … starting tonight.
“As of tonight, the Grinning Ghoul and Infamy Unlimited declare war against the people of Paragon City! At my command are the most powerful super-criminals this world has ever seen, and you shall learn to fear them like never before as they lay waste to your homes, your shops, to any place you once imagined yourself secure and safe. You’ll soon learn how pathetically you’ve been kidding yourselves.
“And with each blow we strike upon your city, you will also learn of the effectiveness of Paragon City’s so-called heroes. No matter how many of your protectors come leaping to the rescue, they will always prove themselves too weak, too slow, too pathetic to stop us. Infamy Unlimited is superior! Ha ha ha ha!”
Here, in the midst of his manic outburst, the Ghoul held up for the camera a small black handheld device like a remote control. “But talk is cheap. So here’s a free demonstration for you to chew on. No extra charge.” His armored thumb pressed a large red button on the control, producing a very faint beep.
“Well, I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of each other,” continued the Ghoul, “so I’ll wrap things up for now. People of Paragon City, I now return you to your spineless, mediocre, TV-watching lives. Enjoy them … for as long as they last.”
The Ghoul chuckled, slowly and evilly, as the camera zoomed to fill the screen with his twisted visage. Then the screen turned to static, and local programming resumed. Except the sitcom had been replaced by a “LIVE BREAKING NEWS” infographic, with an urgent voiceover describing the grim situation now being shown from the WPGN helicopter:
“… panic and devastation at the Mashu Bridge, where a massive explosion just moments ago has collapsed one of the bridge supports … smoke and debris are making it hard to see, but the middle section of the bridge appears to be completely collapsed. At least one car can be seen teetering on the edge … And now, less then one minute after the explosion, heroes are already beginning to arrive at the site. I’m being told that Whizkid has just run up and is helping motorists from their cars, and that streak of blue light in the sky is reportedly Dr. Ray, now appearing on the scene …”
———
In the control room of Infamy Central, the Grinning Ghoul stood watching the lovely havoc on the news feeds. After enjoying the show for a minute, he switched off the monitors and turned away. Mind-Grinder, who had been standing patiently in the back, spoke up.
“For someone who spends so much time invisible, you have a surprising weakness for the theatrical,” commented the psychic in clipped, disdainful tones.
“It’s television, Mind-Grinder,” the Ghoul answered jovially. “The public expects a little razzle-dazzle with their nighttime viewing.” A chuckle escaped from behind his eternally smiling mask. “Now we’ll let the heroes clean up the mess, as they always do. They’re good at that.”
“In that case, you’ve wasted all this expense on a mere a publicity stunt.”
“Mind-Grinder, for all I care they can repair the bridge overnight and have people driving on it to Saturday brunch. Our goal here is fear. Paragon will remember that Infamy Unlimited can strike them anywhere, anytime — and their pathetic heroes can do litttle more than pick up the pieces. After tonight’s broadcast, they’ll credit us with everything that goes wrong for days. Every robbery, every unexplained disappearance, every power outage … their first thought will be to remember my face on their television screen.
“Tonight may be only a stunt; but one day, Mind-Grinder, all of Paragon City will be under our control. In order for that to happen, they must fear us. Don’t you agree?”
Mind-Grinder considered this. “Actually, I wouldn’t see the point of ruling anyone who didn’t.”
“That’s the spirit!” laughed the Ghoul. “After all, old friend, the first word in our name is ‘infamy.’ Which is something I take very seriously. As for the ‘unlimited’ part” — and here his voice took a wild, unhinged pitch — “oh, it will be unlimited. I have a plan for that, too. And soon the very cosmos will quiver at it. Hahahahahaha!”
To be … continued?
January 25, 2007
Anandtech.com put up an article back in September taking a second look at the PhysX performance advantages in City of Heroes and City of Villains. The results are pretty interesting. Take a look here.
January 16, 2007
Now playing in the Training Room: an overhaul of base rent!
In the glorious world of the very near future, rent will be calculated solely on base size, with the basic (smallest) headquarters paying zilch, nada, zippo:
Tiny Hidden Spot 8×8 0
Small Hidden Spot 8×12 20000
Hidden Spot 12×12 43000
Small Secret Location 12×16 65000
Secret Location 16×16 105000
Large Secret Location 16×20 145000
Small Hidden Complex 20×20 200000
Hidden Complex 20×24 280000
Large Hidden Complex 24×24 350000
Massive Hidden Complex 24×28 610000
Small Secure Location 12×16 200000
Secure Location 16×16 420000
Large Secure Location 16×20 750000
Small Secure Complex 20×20 1300000
Secure Complex 20×24 2100000
Large Secure Complex 24×24 3200000
Massive Secure Complex 24×28 5000000
Both Infamy Unlimited and the Guardsmen live in a Tiny Hidden Spot-sized base. (Not the same base, thankfully.) Although it’ll still take a lot of Prestige to upgrade to the next larger lot, it’s nice to know there won’t be a constant rent drain in the meantime.
January 2, 2007
…just wait until he hits puberty.
But that’s not our problem anymore. We made it to 2007 and gave Snaptooth a kick in the pants to boot, and that’s all that matters.
That, and the badges.
Happy New Year!
