To all the New Players Concerning Mega Events

or How I learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Mega Events

from GalCiv2 Forums
Many players, both young and old, have complained lately about the Mega events, and their unbalancing or "game killing" effect.

When the idea for them first came out, the Devs asked us (the players) if we would want these events to be there to totally unbalance the game. The vast majority said yes, but out of consideration for those who might not like them, we asked that they be optional. The Devs listened. The discussion can be found here
: WWW Link

So after many of us discussed, debated and accepted the idea, to have people come in and start complaining about it is somewhat annoying, especially when lesser random events happen regardless of if it is turned on or off. Further, since this is a feature that most of us were in favor of because of its unbalancing effect, we don't want to see them nerfed because new players don't yet understand the game and its history.

We asked for it, we got it, and we don't want to give it up. If all the devs read are people complaining about it, then they might change it. So, we want to make sure that what we asked for remains intact. So, we have been somewhat brutal in our responses to those who are knocking it. Imagine you got a nice cute puppy for Christmas, then someone came up and started kicking it, you would be upset as well.

Of particular note lately has been the issue of the Pirate event. If you will note in the Journal about events, Draginol specifically mentioned this event in the initial suggestion. It was something we knew about, and in order for it to be truly game changing, it MUST be overpowered.

I hope that this doesn't sour you completely to the game. Understand that when we were promised this, many of us had been playing for eight months or more, and were ready for something new. I hope that as you get more game time in that you will either grow to appreciate them, or simply play without them.
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Reply #1 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I couldn't agree more. It's really very simple, if you're a new player you should turn mega events off. They're not for you, they're for those of us that keep finding ourselves at the end of the game with a stagnant, dull galaxy that needs a good hard kick in the butt. The pirate event is fantastic for this. The Dread Lords event badly needs to be tweaked up to make it much, much worse rather than simply providing a free planet to the first civ to get a transport there. Mega events are good, the more mega the better. The fact that they can be turned off means they can be made as wholly unbalancing as desired, and that's a truly great thing.

I suspect, however, that it might help simply to turn them off in the default settings for the game. Put something next to it that says "advanced" in the window or something, to indicate it's not for beginners. Under no circumstances should these things be neutered, as some newer players have suggested. If anything, several of them aren't nearly mega enough.
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
My ONLY beef are the pirates, they're more powerful than the Dreadlords (and have in some cases, save me from their transports).
Star Control: Origins
Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Good post. I totally agree. The pirate and peacekeeper ships are exactly what a game-changing event needs: not lots of cheap ineffective ships that you can cut through like a hot knife through butter, but ships that are as good as or better than the best stuff the major civs have.
Maybe the Dread Lords could start with a few ships when they they pop-up. Give 'em a few 300 attack 150 defense frigates and they'd be a real threat until endgame.

...and make the AI research the plague cure!

If you don't like, turn it off!

Or maybe there could be an event slider that goes from "minor events" (nothing really changes) to MEGA events (totally unbalancing) - if you've got it all the way to minor, the pirates come out with weak ships, if it's pegged all the way to MEGA they come out even more overpowered than they are now.
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
i remember my initial response to the pirates and dread lords was...."awww crap." mostly because i hadn't done the beta and had no idea what to expect. my first game the dread lords did nothing at all to me and i never even noticed they were there at all. the pirates screwed me over but i learned from it after a few times. what really annoyed me was the taking of some of my planets by the jagged blade (at least if i recall that's that name). but then i realized they are actually an amazing way to get some planets AND techs if you can take them out fast enough. i'm all for the mega events and wouldn't mind seeing a few more.
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
do mega events happen in Dread Lords? that's the only one I have
Reply #6 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
do mega events happen in Dread Lords? that's the only one I have


Not the kind we are talking about. You will get galactic events, such as the galactic recession, speed increases, assasinations, etc. However, the Mega events operate on a much bigger scale.
Reply #7 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Excellent OP. Couldn't agree more.

Maybe there should be a tooltip on the Mega Event option that says "Intentionally Unbalancing." And yes, they should be off by default.
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Great post Feud. We did indeed ask for them and thank the devs for including them.    


Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
To the loud minority, rtfm!! (Read the frickin manual)

Page 12 of the GalCiv 2 manual (Dark Avatar)
Mega Events (Dark Avatar): When enabled, mega events are allowed. These are events that are intentially designed to destabilize the game.


These mega events were designed to make the game more difficult and more interesting by 'destabilizing' the game. Stop and think... Would the option of having Mega events exist if they were a walk in a park? No, of course not. They are difficult enough that, you would want the option of not having them. By selecting the option of having them, you forfeit the right to complain if your ass gets pwned.

To the devs: Don't let a loud minority ruin the game for us players who asked for a little fun. They might be loud, but don't think that they are the players that really enjoy the Mega events.

________________
I apolagize to anyone that I may of offended, especially the new players. I merely wanted to make a point to the new players that "these are not for you... yet".
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
all i am/was trying to say is there needs to be a minimum number of turns between events and some kind of warning that you have a huge recession on your hands


now i guess you GOOD players can chew me out for that too
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Great post! Exactly how many mega-events are there?
Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

all i am/was trying to say is there needs to be a minimum number of turns between events and some kind of warning that you have a huge recession on your hands


now i guess you GOOD players can chew me out for that too



Daniel, I really hope nobody's trying to chew you out. If they are, shame on them. They're just worried that the game might change because the devs here are so good at listening to peoples' opinions. I think the strategy of turning the mega's off for a while might be a good idea if you're playing DA. At the very least you'll learn how to play one race very well and will be able to move up in difficulty. At some point you'll come to the realization that mega events can be really cool when the galaxy is becoming boring. You'll have to fight to save your a$$.

And those games, my friend, I've found to be the most interesting.
Reply #13 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

all i am/was trying to say is there needs to be a minimum number of turns between events and some kind of warning that you have a huge recession on your hands

now i guess you GOOD players can chew me out for that too


First of all, the point of this thread isn't to try segregate the two groups into the "good" and "bad" players. The point of it is to try to explain to those who do not seem to have a full understanding of what the Mega events are intended for why they are how they are.

Nor am I trying to say that we (those in favor of the system as it is) are better then anyone, and thus everyone should be ignored but us. All I'm trying to say is that some of us have more experiance with the game then others, and the Mega Events are something that we specifically asked for, and they are built to provide the game experiance that we wanted.

Nobody is trying to force anyone to play them. But, the devs provided exactly what they originally offered. Some of us have been waiting five months for these events, and when we have invested time and feedback into the process, we don't want to see it taken away from us.

If the events are too strong for a select group to handle without getting mad and asking for nerfing, perhaps those people aren't ready for the experiance that the events were designed to provide, and should turn them off.

For me, personally, the randomness of the turns is part of the fun.
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
some kind of warning that you have a huge recession on your hands


danielost, if you require a warning saying your economy is headed down the toilet, then you should really be turning the Mega Events off and maybe kicking yourself down to normal difficulty or lower.

You would be better off getting your head around the easier aspects of the game before jumping in to something that you are ill equipped to deal with, and then trashing the features of the game you can't understand or play with. These features are here for the advanced users and i hope here to stay.

Keep in mind no-one is attacking you or your ability to play, everyone moves at their own pace, but it seems you are willing to trash harder aspects of the game that you can't as yet play against instead of slowing yourself down and taking a bit of time before moving up to these harder features.

I'm in no way trying to insult you at all so consider this example,

I play at challenging and tough with a little dabble at painful. Above that i get my ass handed to me. So would it be right if i posted calling for the aboltion of all levels above painful because i can't play and win at these harder levels. Of course not! Especially when i can simply select not to play at those difficulties. Much as you can simply turn off Mega Events.

What everyone is saying is Stardock are good listners, if enough people post that they hate the power of the new Mega Events, the devs may well nerf them.

Take your time and you will be able to deal with them in time.
Reply #15 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
This thread needs to be stickied.
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I remember when these were first offered to us, it was something we craved, and gave an overwhelming "yes" to! And Feud is right, we WATNED them to be as random and as un-balancing as possible.

Personally I love/hate The Jagged Knife event. Yes, they become a whole new major force, yes they always take my BEST planets, and yes, it always "re-balances" the game. Its the same with the other events, they work exactly as I had spent months of waiting, hoped for. Except for the Dread Lord event, that could be tweaked up... too easy right now, maybe just spawn the planet with a generic set of buildings plus some ships?

Devs, please, please, PLEASE, don't be fooled be the vocal minority! If you are in any way, shape, or form considering a nerf, please ask us, let there be a poll or something!
Reply #17 from Stardock Forums Top
I agree that the Mega Events should be left alone. If anything ,a few are too weak.

I also agree that by default they need to be turned off.

And when turned on, you should get a Warning Box saying "Are you sure, they are meant to be very Unbalancing and are not meant for inexperienced players. Use at you own risk."

And I second the motion that this thread be stickied.

Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
you see the problem with the recession problem is even if you dump all of your ships and your still losing 6000 credits per turn is that without the warning you don't know it is temp.

and don't tell me that this isn't about good players and bad players in your answer to my post you put it that way maybe not in those words but it is there


and what is wrong with a warning about a recession how does that change the game
Reply #19 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I had the recession event, but I was earning 300+bc / week, had $10000 bc in my treasury and my economy only went into a deficit for about five turns.

I later got a "Korx discover Arnion (sp?) artifact. They will eventually become godlike." They were very weak (still are...even weaker...they are likely going to be swallowed up by the Terrans in a few years). Later I thought I could have left that alone, but I reloaded from autosave.

Later I got the "Jagged Knife" event, which ticked me off too much, so I also reloaded.

Call me a cheater, but I want to *enjoy* the game.
Reply #20 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Call me a cheater, but I want to *enjoy* the game.


Ahhh yes, it all comes down to 'enjoyment of the game', something the Empire of Standards clearly 'stands' for!
Place shameless plug for empire in blank space above...

Reply #21 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The recession event that hit me did nothing. I noticed no change in the amounts of cash I was bringing in a week.


I like the mega events in general. However the only thing I really dislike is when you get events such as the Jagged Edge occur within the first year- year and a half. When your tech isn't high, and there is a decent chance (depending on play style) that you have no military, or have no planetary assualt ships. You hardly get a chance to start and BAM. But this has also only happened once.

All-in-all I love the Mega Events. I think they really added a new dimension to the game.
Reply #22 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
danielost, I've had the recession event several times, but I have never had the problems you're having. It could just be that you are not completely familiar with the economy model GalCiv2 uses. Don't worry, it is a little confusing at first, but there are some great threads involving how to manipulate your economy.

I would second the idea of having the mega-events defaulted to off. As players get more comfortable with the game they will eventually begin poking around with the settings. Again, please let me re-iterate how much I love the mega events in their current fomr and would feel awful if they were ever nerfed!
Reply #23 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

and what is wrong with a warning about a recession how does that change the game


I thought that it did give you the standard warning, as it does at the start of all Mega events. It has always given me warnings when it started.
Reply #24 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
no in the one case i got hit by jagged knife and the recession at the same time

got the jagged knife warning

my econimy went from 20,000+ to -6,000+ with an income of 500+ to one of -6,000+ a turn

i even tried dumping ships which had no effect


if i had known it was a temp recession i would have held out but there was no warning

on top of that i even dropped my spending to 0 to no effect


if you can't build ships you can't take back planets in that game i lost 30+ planets to the jagged knife event and i already had all techs as did a few of the other races

but what i don't understand is that they get the tech but i didn't know that they got the abilities of all the races too
Reply #25 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
if i had known it was a temp recession i would have held out but there was no warning

on top of that i even dropped my spending to 0 to no effect


So, you didn't stick things out? Part of the game is rolling with the punches, and playing to win regardless of how the outcome looks. You havn't lost the game until your last world falls, and if you quit before that time, then it is your own fault. IF you stuck it out, then your economy would have probably recovered, but even if it hadn't, you still could have won.

Did you consider trading for ships from other races? If you can't build your own, then buy them from someone.

In short, if you stuck it out then it doesn't matter. The recession is temporary, and you will eventually recover. But if you got mad and quit then don't come on the forums complaining about it. Part of the game is NOT knowing what will happen, or when bad/good times will end, otherwise it wouldn't be worth playing.