How do I make it so planetary warps are on a timer like ship warps on? It does not seem fair to those who are not a high level scripter.

Also, is there a way to prevent CIM from being accessed over and over? This seems like it gives an advantage to high level scripters. Maybe some way to allow access every 30 minutes of real time or so?

And seriously, I know I am just talking about default settings, but why must you hate the Gunstar so? Give her some holds love, or if that is truly unreasonable give the Dreadnought a twarp (at the expense of the photon if you must!)

1) Nope, unfortunately not. You can join me in waiting with bated breath for TW v4, which should include a ton of changes designed to remove the scripting advantage.

2) No, though even if this were possible it wouldn't deter the scripters. All info you can get in CIM is also obtainable through the computer using standard commands. CIM is just there to facilitate helpers.

3) Your problem isn't really with the Gunstar specifically, just that there aren't many ships with transwarp capability. Default settings only give twarp to the Gunstar, CFS, and ISS. The Gunstar is fairly well balanced given its 3TPW and the fact it's the only ship with a transwarp drive that doesn't have special requirements (CEO or commish) to fly. I highly doubt that will be changed in the defaults, nor would I feel it to be very balanced if it were. If you'd like a ship with more transwarp range for non-CEO reds, a 4TPW ship with comparable holds to the Ferrengi Dreadnought (~100) and a transwarp (but no photon, of course) could be balanced pretty well with the stock ships.

1.) There are extremely few high lvl scripters in TW. And I would guess if you run a server and are asking the above question (not saying that there is anything wrong with asking), they don't play on your server. You may have people who run scripts on your server. Solution A.) Tell players scripts aren't allowed. But you need to make it 100%, not "no type X or type Y " script. This does mean swath, twx, attac, etc. All use scripts. Solution B.) Encourage your players to learn to get around scripts.

2.) If need be I could access all that through the computer, it would take more time, but if I really needed the info I could.

3.) Simple enough, make edits to how you want them.

As to Xentropy's statement. I have yet to hear anything solid on how TWv4 is going to remove the scripting advantage. There have been many statements as to that nature, but I know part of it was a hope that ping rate would also not be a factor. To my knowledge there have been no updates or such in almost a year.

I have several-year-old info on plans for v4 and have no idea what, if any, of it is still planned, but from what I've gathered, Mr. Pritchett still has the same goals for v4 as he had then, so I would assume what I heard, plus or minus a few points, will be there.

To share a key point or two, fighter reports will be delayed so you can't warp a planet on top of someone, and the importance of extern will be eliminated by processing the events extern currently processes in real-time, with % chances each tick that amount to the same chance per day as always (e.g. planetary collisions will occur throughout the day, with a small chance of occuring each tick rather than a larger chance once per day, Fedships will actively patrol Fedspace and the lanes to clear them in realtime, and so on). The overall result is intended to be a game more focused on strategy and less on fast tactical response and sitting online 24/7.

I am not disputing any of those points you have listed. Simply that there has been a long gap of any updates from the dev.

Last time I talked to John regarding TWv4 (a few weeks ago), he told me that it was basically about 90% done, but he had other things come up that distracted him from it. He feels somewhat discouraged in regards to completing it because he got a fairly negative reaction a year ago when it was discussed here in the forums. So basically, his motivation for completing it isn't that high. If you want it done, you should email him and let him know

xeno if you are getting hit with planet drops then you simply are hitting the figs way too slow.. noone in real games even uses pdrops because they know most people know how to use a grid script or a macro that hits a fig real quick.. its very easy

I disagree with the above statement, I use pdrops for a variety of things, normally because people are trying to dodge torps.

jh play me in a game and see if u ever hit me with a pdrop.. nuff said.. yess adjacent pdrops but straight pdrops only hit newbs or people who miskey so you would have to basically run it 24/7

Adjacent pdrops are the problem, Stockton. And a one-minute delay of remote fighter reports fix those just as well as direct pdrops. As long as you're not stupid enough to hang around after hitting a fig, anyway. There are plenty of ways to abuse the fact planetary warps are instantaneous and ship movements are not. Turning ship delay off is a workaround, but requiring every server to always have that setting turned off in order to balance pdrops is a perfect proof that pdrops are overpowered.

quote:Last time I talked to John regarding TWv4 (a few weeks ago), he told me that it was basically about 90% done, but he had other things come up that distracted him from it. He feels somewhat discouraged in regards to completing it because he got a fairly negative reaction a year ago when it was discussed here in the forums. So basically, his motivation for completing it isn't that high. If you want it done, you should email him and let him know

As to the above, I am disappointed that that is the way he feels. It doesn't surprise me, though. The majority of the active and vocal population of this forum is very heavily into scriping and playing TradeWars as a twitch reaction style game instead of the thinking game it was in its single-player BBS roots. That style of player will be heavily discouraged by the new engine. There are plenty of players like me around, however. Most of us just aren't very vocal on these forums because playing on the "popular" servers is an exercise in futility unless you have a 5ms ping and scripts that aren't made publically available, so most of them play for nostalgic reasons for two weeks then quit. A game like v4 would develop an entirely new (and separate, I agree; there would be some, but little, overlap) community around it.

I'll email John right away and see what can be done. Hell, I'll start a full-blown petition if that's what it takes to motivate him.

I think its amusing the discussion has been quickly framed from the viewpoint of high level scripters. While you may be the hardcore players who post the most and run the websites, you are not the vast majority of the playerbase, nor is raising the level of scripting required to compete going to grow the player base.

The thing is I think there trying to tell you there is no way to stop script or macro use and that scripts and macros have been used to play the game for a very long time. I remember using q-modem back in the early 90’s with basic macros and I used to use TWHelp aren’t the functions built in to that helper kinda like using a script?

so I press /pxxxx to ppt instead of $slscriptname.ts it all seems the same to me.

Speed Demon,

I am in full agreement, there is no 100% way to stop automation of repetitive tasks or databasing of the universe. There are reasonable methods to neutralize noninteractive, automated kills scrips and their ilk. I hope that makes sense, and that is why I am using the term "high level" scripters to differentiate. These are not the people who shell out 25 bucks to simply automate haggling.

quote:Originally posted by Xentropy

As to the above, I am disappointed that that is the way he feels. It doesn't surprise me, though. The majority of the active and vocal population of this forum is very heavily into scriping and playing TradeWars as a twitch reaction style game instead of the thinking game it was in its single-player BBS roots. That style of player will be heavily discouraged by the new engine. There are plenty of players like me around, however. Most of us just aren't very vocal on these forums because playing on the "popular" servers is an exercise in futility


I'm just curious, where are you nostalgic single-player bbs people when a single node 250 turn game is advertised? The last one I saw had 4 people actively play, none of them the people you are talking about. So if you aren't vocal and don't show up to servers that anyone else plays at, how do you expect people to take you seriously? I'm just trying to give you some food for thought here. If you guys are the majority or even a significant portion of the player base, one of you needs to step up and get you guys organized

It's a bit of a chicken and egg problem. If we publically advertise our servers, all it takes is ONE scripter showing up to ruin the game for the rest of us, because we prefer to use settings like ship delays which BREAKS v3 because pdrop scripts become the be-all end-all of play.

Once v4 exists, we'll have the opportunity to play in games without fear of public advertising. If v4 will never exist specifically because we're not out in the open, it's a shame, but I understand. I'm not going to start posting in the bang forum here and just dooming the games we enjoy just to prove a point. I've seen enough games ruined as it is.