[net.games.emp] Old Empire Bug, cleared up

john@polyof.UUCP ( John Buck ) (11/19/85)

> Someone reported that they could get all the resources they wanted by
> using exchange sectors.  Now this one I'm really interested in.  Anyone
> out there know how to do this??  So far the report is lacking details,
> but I'm eagerly awaiting those details so we can get it fixed.
> 

Yes, this bug is as old as the hills.  It is especially useful with exchange
sectors, since exchanges allow teleporting stuff from one side of the world
to the other.  The bug will work with any type sector, if it is Checkpointed.
(Or a highway).

Simply have your friend move the stuff out of his exchange while you are buying
it from him.  IE. you enter the 'trade' command, and it prints all the
lots available.  After it asks you which lot, simply have the guy who owns
the sector (exchange) move the stuff out that he had for sale.  He gets
the stuff, and you do too.  You can do this over and over again, duplicating
stuff.  Kind of like cloning all the resources you need.  (Like the
containerization bug that allows you to increase your population by orders
of magnitude over night!)

Note this works with the 'load' command too.  Have someone move the stuff you
are loading out of the (checkpointed) harbor while you are sitting at
the load prompts; one item at a time.

I have fixed all these bugs in my version.  There are lots of other
ones too (along the same lines) that have been fixed.

(So many, that I could not list them all here.) How about creating anti-sectors
for example?? IE get negative military and civilians in a sector, then
grant these sectors to your enemies.  It brings their population/power
down.  IE you can theoretically cancel out all their people with anti-people,
and there is not way for them to get rid of the anti-people, since they do
noot exist (you cant move them, since the code checks for count <= 0)
Real neat.

PS I do not advocate the practices listed above.  This is not playing
Empire, this is hacking, which is a different game.  True Empire die-hards
will not use these bugs against their friends, as it is unethical.

PSS if you want to get my latest/greatest version, read old news for the
instructions, or send me email, ill send you instructions on how to get it.

John Buck
Polytechnic Inst. of NY
Route 110
Farmingdale, NY 11735
516-454-5191
decvax!mcnc!{philabs!ron1,rti-sel}!polyof!john