We have had to change how sectors are automatically named due to a player exploit.

It is now completely impossible to figure out sector order, if the sector is new or if it is part of an SG group based upon the last four characters in the sector name. The last five characters are now a series of random numbers and letters. The first two characters of the automatically generated sector name still designate the spiral arm and the number of planets the sector supports.

This change has been made to all sections of the game that create new sectors, creating a new game, sector genesis and the expanding universe.

Lol...It really wasn't an exploit, and TH's little friends used it for two years without anyone condemning them. TH *thinks* that I am using that to find him, and suddenly it is an exploit. Please man, grow the hell up. You've made a half dozen changes to how things work after getting the short straw from me, on things that have been WIDELY USED for years. It was no secret how sectors were named, hell, I told a dozen or more people myself, and it was no secret that the top attackers had used this information to assist them. Big, AK5, Moon, etc. Don't tell me they didn't. The difference is, if there is a TRUE exploit, I have always been very honest and told TH right away. Unlike AK5 (One of TH's best friends) who used an exploit for MONTHS until I broke it open, and well, told TH. Then TH, seeing that I had found it, fixed it. Can't let Max have any advantage, even if its one that AK5's had for half a year.

The funniest thing about AAT is the hypocrisy in the upper levels. Mainly, TH and his core friends. TH claims he didn't know about some "exploits" that his crew used time and again, yet suddenly he sees someone doing something, and knows exactly what they are doing to get the result (Gee, you couldn't see it when your friends did the same?) and it is suddenly labeled "EXPLOIT" and he tries to crucify the player who used it who wasn't on his team.

The funny thing was, his change made no sense when it was first implemented, and if it wasn't for ME (Again, why is it always me who points out the stuff...) pointing out how much MORE easily abusable the change was, it would be even worse than it is now. The *original* change was going to just affect SG sectors, not starting sectors and EU sectors. Meaning that all you have to do is fly along and if you see a sector ending with like, 3-9 or something (Or a letter) you would know immediately that it was an SG. The old way was much preferable, where new SGs blended with EU sectors. When a sector was created, the last four of the sector was the reverse hex value of the sector order it was created in. Say, if there was 10,000 sectors, the hex value is 2710, so the last sector would end in XXX0172. If two SG sectors were created after that, they would be XXX1172 and XXX2172. If another five EU sectors were created, it would be XXX3172, XXX4172, XXX5172, XXX6172, XXX7172. As you can see, if you flew into a sector, and saw a sector ending with 172, it could either be an EU sector, or an SG sector. With Tarnus' original "fix", you have XXX0172 as an EU sector, then you have XXXFCA7 as an SG, and then XXX2172 as another EU sector. Go figure. I actauuly had to argue with him about how that made it easier to find SGs. Finally he took my advice, and decided to go with some random naming on ALL sectors. Do I get any credit, or thanks for pointing this out? No. Just like he never thanked me for pointing out the exploit AK5 was using last round with the "Galaxy" command. Never any thanks, but always accusations of using exploits. After much accusations, I finally got screen shots of my MAP page, and I explained to him in very great detail how I had managed to find so many SGs, after putting several WEEKS into searching. So, now I do not have a "secret" search method, which was the best search method I could come up with, and better than 99.9% of anyone else's. Yet, I've never seen an explanation from him or his crew on exactly how they are doing things. Would kind of be nice to know how they do things, but no, you get bullied around and accused of things until you finally have to just sit down and explain everything, and then TH and his crew do something that looks "magical" and never bother to explain, even though it looks like an exploit so much. They know "Magic" numbers that aren't known by any other players in the game, the one number I was able to finally get, after arguing for an hour. Other times TH just "goes to make dinner" or goes AFK without explaining. Maybe he isn't a confrontational player like I am, and he doesn't like arguments, but give us answers and then we won't have to argue? I mean, is it too much to ask to know a hidden number that only the game dev and his friends know? You'd think hiding those would be some type of cheating, if it changed how the dev played (Oddly, TH never has too little SD when he has a huge SG. He has the magic number or better. Yet you still see players out there, good players even, who still don't know the numbers. I've done my part to try and make sure a lot of people know what I do. I've taken n00bs under my wing, and helped tutor them, I've helped experienced players learn new things and new play styles. All I ever see TH doing is playing with his core group, teaching nothing, talking smack on the shoutbox, and crying foul any time his "all-star" team takes a hit. Hell, I'd be fucking ashamed of myself, when a guy like Valience, who's played less than a year, but has been a solid performer, goes out and tries to help new players by writing an "attacking guide" (Even if it was crude and misguided in some spots) and a game dev won't share anything he knows.

DISCLAIMER:

Tarnus has, rarely, shared information with me, that he doesn't share with players outside his core group. Usually, this is after a long argument or something, but he has shared a few things. Anything he has shared though, I share with any AAT player who happens to come onto MSN. Things that deal with the game mechanics (READ: Magic Numbers) are things everyone should know. Some things I do not share myself, because it is just a style of doing something that can be accomplished without that method.

Definitions:

Magic Number - A hard number coded into the game that governs certain things. You cannot get around this number. IE, Assuming a player with 300 Engines, 300 FBs, and 300 Armor is trying to A&R a sector. The sector has 350 SD Sensors. Say the sector has 35m fighters. The attacker will take minor armor damage, but the damage is not enough to cause tech damage. Now, the sector moves to 40m fighters. The attacker will be podded if he attempts to A&R. Magic Number? 40m. Anything less, and the armor damage is not enough to damage the techs of a Voyager or Excelsior, provided an adequate ship armor tech (Sorry, 200 Armor tech you'll get podded regardless)

Secret Method - A method a player has devised to do certain activities. A secret method can be the best way to do something, but is not the only way. Thus, it is not the same as a Magic Number. Consider it like this: In the NFL, every team knows the rules, there is no "Reggie Wayne took two steps after catching the ball, then bounced to the outside, and now it is illegal to try and tackle him" Magic Number/rule. The rules are the same for everyone, and although there are certain numbers, every team knows every one of them. Now, consider the playbook to be the Secret Method. Every team has a playbook, some are better than others. Every one can work, but some work better more often.

Sigh.... believe what you want... I play just like everyone one else.... if you dont want me to play...say the word, and I am done.

I agree completely with the whole "game mechancis should be shared with everyone" thing, but you don't need to make such a big deal about losing the thing. This was something I never even heard of It makes me wonder how much more I have to learn. But anyway, look on the bright side. If TH's "crew" really has been abusing this, and then they take it away when you use it, at least they can't use it anymore either...

Hush!

Using logic causes Max massive head pain.

Dealing with morons (READ: Panama Jack) gives me headaches.

I am so happy that I dont think very much...... I just play.....

Kind of funny really; you guys knew about this when you changed it from the original number system and I cracked the code forcing you to make it longer. Just another aspect of the change I told you about.

I also agree. And if possible due to board wipes and whatnot, one can go back and look at my posts over the years urging for more transparency between game mechanics and the interface. And this can be just little things...

For example:
@ Why doesn't the planetary interface show the percentages needed to maintain your SD with energy, your population with organics, your planet with armor (goods and ore)...

@ What is the max population for a planet?

@ Why can't people get some kind of heads up about a battle they are about to walk into with SD. IE, "The Magic Number"... 'Your ship has a 22% chance of sucessfully completeing this Attack and Run'.


So, many things are withheld from users that it makes this game very very tough on novices and even pretty dern hard on younger veterans. Ultimately, only a key few know the information and because of this they rise to the top.

Documentation of this type of disclosure isn't good enough. A game that will retain and educate new folks needs to show it to them.

Well as you have read in the forums this has changed... SD is dependent on energy on your planets and it no longer takes energy to hold up energy is expended from attacks. So it takes 2.5 units of energy per fighter 10,000 fighters take 25,000 units of energy on the planet. If you have 100,000 units of energy on that planet it can sustain 4 attack and runs before it is drained and those fighters deplete. This information is readily available from the settings and in in the forum. Now yes we have talked about making some changes to the planet screen, and we have asked for suggestions, we could even use some help. Don't forget this is a hobby for us and we don't make nay money doing this so there will always be stuff that we will miss.



Another item that is readily available from the settings. And yes it would be nice to have it on the planet screen, but same as what I say applies above.

In the main game
=================
Coll base limit is 1 bill
colonist_tech_add 50,000,000 per avg tech
A level 100 planet can hold 1 bill + 50mill * 100 = 6,000,000,000

This is not Rocket Science



Despite what some think, any magic numbers I know are through playing the freakin game. All I know is through trial and error that I learn with each A&R I try.

People need to be treated like they can learn, I do not believe in babying players.. If your playing a FPS, do they tell you where the hidden weapons are, or how powerful an enemy is, No, you have to play the game and learn, coddling players and putting everything out there doesn't make the game any better it makes it worse, you have to be enabled to let your brain work and giving up that ability will only make us all walking zombies.




{quote]
So, many things are withheld from users that it makes this game very very tough on novices and even pretty dern hard on younger veterans. Ultimately, only a key few know the information and because of this they rise to the top.

Documentation of this type of disclosure isn't good enough. A game that will retain and educate new folks needs to show it to them.[/quote]

Hmmm seems I have mentioned the biggest thing about a game is users helping users. When was the last time you sent a PM to a new struggling player and helped them out, or showed them something, I am not talking about a blog, I'm talking in game help. Step up and be a mentor, that is the most valuable tool you can give a novice in any game. Most of the good veteran players do this... if you don't know how to do something ask. If something looks funny ask. The only way any new player is going to learn regardless of information in the game is to step up and ask or do it through trial and error.

Yes I am cranky... I get so tired of people making accusations that I know something they didn't... the code is freaking GPL, you can download it and install it on your own machine and play it, you can go through the code and decipher how things are working... I much prefer trial and error, use the tools that are put in front of you and think outside the box. Thinking outside the box is what makes a great player, I don't know everything and I do learn from other players myself... they have been many times someone has showed me something that I said...wow, I would never have thought of doing that.

Now I return you back to your regularly schedules program.

Thing with helping people in the game is many do not want to be helped, they just want a load of cash up front. Before the 3 man team tourney I was offering help up to a month beforehand, showing the few that wanted to learn how to start right and all. Would be nice to make a newb game that wouldn't allow attacking until you reached a score of 1-2 million or so. Would teach the basics of building and trading, and then when your ready, how to attack. And if anyone says trading and buildind are boring, refer to how you have to build up your base in games like starcraft, rise of civilization etc.

Tarnus -

Look at what you typed.

You have dozens of lines of text to describe how to figure out what the formulas are so that people can figure it out themselves.

Informative? Yes.
Been posted before? Yes.
User friendly? No. That is a newbie killer. Posting formulas so people can figure things out is not how successful web based games grow a user base now-a-days.

How much effort would it be to take a release and just focus on making the game more informative?

Post right in the sector that it takes X amount of energy to support this many fighters per attack run.
Label max population, organic levels, ore/goods levels to raise armor right on the planet info screen.

I bet the effort would result in a 10 fold of retentioned players.

To look at your analogy of a FPS game; In WoW (one of the most played software titles right now) when you click on yourself you are given information about your armor, your abilities and whatnot. You aren't just given some generic information about your character and sent on your way into the wide world. You are told that this big red level dragon will likely kick your butt, but you are NOT told that it will likely do so through a combination of clawstrike, fire breath, tail stomp to do it. One is information and the other is babysitting.

Information transparency (in the sense of moving from memorization of formulas to find out info) in a game isn't babysitting. It is presenting key data to your players so that they can keep a game, well, a game... and not a math quiz. No one likes math.

That's not true! I do agree with KZ for the most part, though I also acknowledge that Tarnus has a point. On one hand, the learning process, and actually using math, is just like the kinda stuff a real future military commander or captain would use. There really are formulas out there that simulate battles and all. So should it be an easy, though probably much more popular, game, or should it be more of a simulation of possible future wars, still entertaining, but in the opinions of fewer people?

And I do want to add - I understand that this is a hobby.
I am not asking you guys to stop development of the 1.00 product in order to implement user friendly changes... but certainly put it on the plan... perhaps AAT 1.10. =)

I don't completely disagree with you on informative info on your planets. In fact its a good idea. I kind of reacted to the post about people thinking I know some sort of magic number for A&R, I really don't, I read the same info on A&R that everyone else does, I don't sit down with a calculator or spead sheet, I take a good look at the data in front of me, I look at my ship levels and I send in probes to give me a little better look at things, then depending on what I see I may try a test A&R and see what results happen... There really inst any guide or anything here, its all about attack experience.


But maybe with good suggestions we can get some of these things added.