Successors 3d PBEM. Time to sheeet or de-pot....

Ok, we've been kicking around a(nother) F:AT Successors 3rd ed. for months now. LJ#### just asked again in the Hannibal thread.

Time to play folks. I'm in, LJ is in... need 2 more.

Tom? Pete? First come, first serve!

The current VASSAL module is 2.2, you can find it here:
www.gmtgames.com/vassal/SuccessorsIII2_2.zip

(Please be sure to use that link to download, not the one on the game page as it's out of date. This module is really unforgiving with logfiles from mismatched versions.)

If you don't have an ACTS account, please sign up for one and post the player name (which isn't necessarily your login) and/or email address you use for ACTS here and I'll get the game set up.

Let's go kids!

I want in. Let's do this thing.

I would be interested, but I need time to read the rules.

Schweig! wrote:

I would be interested, but I need time to read the rules.

They're short and fairly to the point, though the various "paths to victory" can be a little obscure at first. Think you can get 'em read by the end of the week? I'm off on my annual trek to Atlanta for a 2-show Widespread Panic run at the Philips. I'll be back to DC on Friday and can kick it off at that point. We will be playing this via email rather than live online, so, if you've not done this previously, feel free to ask questions on process.

All: D/l the Vassal module and screw around with it as it's very full featured. We'll use ACTS for cards and dice. Some cards, however, will also need to be played in the Vassal module for the recordkeeping to stay updated--marriages and deaths are the two that come right to mind. (You'll play the cards in ACTS, then just riffle through the deck in VASSAL to find the card and then play it during your turn so it's logged.)

SWEET!

on ACTS as John Culp (joculp at Gmail.com)

Dogmatix wrote:

Think you can get 'em read by the end of the week?

Until Friday? Yeah, I think I can.

I'm simply "Simon" on ACTS.

Schweig! wrote:

Dogmatix wrote:

Think you can get 'em read by the end of the week?

Until Friday? Yeah, I think I can.

I'm simply "Simon" on ACTS.

Excellent! What I'll do then is get the game set-up in ACTS and probably do the pre-game crap (die rolls for generals, distribute those cards, identify the Usurper, set-up the board, etc.) before I split on Tuesday and distribute that file so folks know who their generals are and can get a look at their cards and board to start strategizing. I'll be back late Friday evening and we can kick the game off at/after that point (we won't know who has the first play until generals are assigned and lowest VP-holder sets the turn order for the round).


To everyone: There's some minor additional errata/clarifications from Simonitch floating around (don't remember if it's on GMT's site or if I pulled it off CSW); I'll dig those up and circulate them to make sure everyone is reading off the same page as it were. The other thing I'd recommend is that you keep the "glossary" from the rulebook handy as there are a few cards that specify locations--"Asia"/"Europe"/"Exuene"/etc.--that aren't necessarily intuitive from just looking at the map.

If you haven't played this one before (or haven't done much turn-based PBEM), there are a handful of interrupts in the game, as well as interception possibilities--while not nearly the number in something like Here I Stand, there are a few more than one encounters in, say, Hannibal:RvC. Since folks tend to work out their full move to keep the game moving along, there will be a bit of "rewinding" that might be required here and there through the course of the game. Please don't think that just because someone completed their move before you had a chance to interrupt that you've been precluded from playing that card/intercepting/whatever.... (Y'all may already know all this, but I've been surprised in some games by folks saying "I didn't realize I could do xxxxx...." or "But he didn't give me a chance to...." As such, I like to include that disclaimer whenever possible.) Also, don't hesitate to ask rules questions or call out if you think there's been a misplay so someone can correct it.

Finally, there were a couple of cards that had somewhat goofy text in the ACTS module (typos that made it a bit unclear as to how the event worked). I think Dave Rubin, the module creator, fixed all of them over the course of the couple of games we played together, but if you have any questions about card text in ACTS, don't hesitate to flip through the deck in VASSAL to doublecheck the text.


To the rest of the F:AT crew: If there are 3 other people interested in a game, I can certainly step in as a 4th to round out a 2nd game and/or moderate one if need be.

I might be in for it some time - all this unemployed-looking-for-a-job-shit has been taking a lot of my time reading IT manuals and doing CBT training so haven't been reading many new rulebooks recently.(plus I've only played one CDWG once - We the People - so am not the most experienced at the genre)

I'll keep an eye on whether anyone else posts here.

Two informational points:

1) The final rulebook and errata are here: talk.consimworld.com/WebX?50@104.G0qZaJZTBrR.7@.1dd172be

2) I wanted to bring up the one optional rule that I'd recommend using for a first/learning game (it has impact on set-up, so it's one of those things to be decided early): I'd really recommend playing this first game with Optional Rule 23.5 in effect. The other optional rules are interesting but not a big deal either way (though worth it for future games if folks want a significant increase in challenges players face). However, having Seleucus and Eumenes in the Tyche Deck can really swing fortunes in a big way if someone draws them (or, in the case of 1 game I had--draws them both). In addition, losing a Major General can leave a player well and truly fucked. This Optional Rule gives someone who is cursed by bad dice (the Usurper often suffers from this since he's most likely to get pounded on early in the game) a chance to recover.

Text of the Rule is:

23.5 Seleucus and Eumenes
Seleucus and Eumenes are not shuffled into the Tyche Deck. Instead
they are placed to the side. Any player who has had a Major General
killed may purchase one of the generals (his choice) at the cost of
discarding one 4-OPs Tyche card during his Tyche Segment. The
general (along with any troops indicated on his card) are either placed
on the map as a reinforcement with all the restrictions thereof (5.3)
or in any space in the general’s optional starting location that does
not contain an enemy CU or an Independent Army. The space may
contain an Enemy control marker.

DESIGNERS NOTE: This rule is recommended for players wishing to play a more balanced game.

Any objections/comments either way?

no problem your call.

I say yes to that rule

Fine by me.

Schweig - for some reason ACTS isn't sending e-mails to you. we've got two e-mails for kingput, and none going to you

lj1983 wrote:

Schweig - for some reason ACTS isn't sending e-mails to you. we've got two e-mails for kingput, and none going to you

The 2-emails thing just happens with some users. E.g., I get it in every game I play against Will/Bulwyf

However, the Schweig thing is a bigger problem, so to that point, check your PMs Simon (since I know some are loathe to post an email address in the forum for fear of scraping and spamming). I'd like sort it out before I split tomorrow, but if it has to wait until I get back, no biggie.

The set-up file, though, is ready to go (an update with play order corrected will go out as soon as I get Simon's email and that's the one I'll use to send out my initial logs).

BTW, check the Successors III file section at Der Geek; one user posted a great 2-page condensed rules overview (it doesn't have anything that's printed right on the map, but otherwise quite handy); in addition, my local gaming buddy Randy Monk has posted one of his insane rules flowcharts in the files section. (He flowcharts the entire rulebook--his Here I Stand chart looks like a freakin' Talmud when he unfurls it at the table; I swear the guy dreams in Microsoft Visio). Both are incredibly handy depending on whether you want an "at a glance" reference or a complete step-by-step walk-through of any process.

I can access the ACTS game however.

I also have one other e-mail address which I regularly check. Should we try that one?