steve@sri-unix (07/27/82)
All of this pertains to the release of June 26, 1982.
On July 5, I brought up empire on our system (dadla-a) for the first
time. None of us in this area have any experience with the game, but we
are learning fast. Right now we are running an experimental game, with
intention of trashing the world and starting over in a couple of months.
As a result we are trying some unusual things. I have some questions that
have come up, and would appreciate any help. As with all such things,
please send answers to me, and I will summarize for the net.
1. What is 'happiness' for? We have found out a lot about how to create the
stuff, but nowhere that we can find mentions what effect it has on the game.
2. How do you figure out who your neighbors are? The only way we have found
is to attack them, then look at the news. Is there any way less inflammatory?
Neither radar nor espionage seems to help.
3. When a sector has both a contract and a route for the same item, how
much goes to each?
4. We have had some weird happenings here. There were several bulletins
received by everyone that contained absolute garbage. Also, one player
saw the wilderness around him as ' instead of -.
Anyone else having such experiences? Any idea what is causing it?
5. What does it take to get the editors of the newspaper excited? One
of my neighbors and I have been waging an war of increasing intensity
for a week now, but every day the newspaper dutifully reports
"relative calm prevails" just before reporting the latest losses and
attacks by both sides.
6. Two days ago I got a sector of "d" (i.e. gun manufacture) up to 100%.
There are ample supplies of LCM, HCM and oil in the sector. There are
in excess of 200 workers there. My country has plenty of money.
My technology level is 0. No guns have been produced to date. What does
it take to build a gun that I am missing? (I am having a similiar experience
with "i" - shell industry.)
I would appreciate any help from more experienced players with this
stuff.
I am also trying to learn how to use the 'fixup' command as deity, and
a later installment will feature questions about it - it is not documented
anywhere.
By the way, does the imminent move of Peter Langston to Lucasfilms mean
there will be no further updates to empire? Looks like I got in just in time!
Steve Den Beste
Tektronix
{decvax|ucbvax|chico}!teklabs!tekmdp!dadla-b!dadla-a!steve