Tournament 3 - Season 1 2009

[thunderchero]

Tournament brackets have been updated.

and just a reminder
round 3 of main tournament ends thursday (unlees extention is requested)
round 1 of second chance bracket ends thursday too (unlees extention is requested)

thunderchero

[QuakeDevil]

i quit my game with flocke, he took out my fleet, and i had no defense. gg flocke

[Flocke]

Well, what shall I say, without being that slow, I wouldn't play that good, but I asked you in beginning if you want a timer and you didn't mind. It's in the rules that you could have demanded a 5min timer!

The constant battle crash sucked me as well, has been of the worst I've ever experienced. Might have been due to my decision continuing auto.sav instead of loading last.sav after sync error on first day. I'm very sorry for that cause I really hate such crashes, but it happened and we had to deal with it.

I didn't want to give up, athough you did hit me pretty hard with conquering 4 colonies and afterwards even sol and I've done some bad faults as well as I've seen you doing some. I had to think much about my moves, but don't want to justify myself on that. If you're angry about that again, you should have demanded the timer cause you knew about that from last tournament.
Additionally it hasn't always being you waiting on me, although it has been mostly that way.

I can understand you being angry about some faults and game taking so long, as I'm angry about me for example having lost half or more of my upgraded colonyships to a damn calamarian gas nebula alien entity only cause of a dumb shit fault of my own, and if I have wanted to cheat, I would have just crashed the battle and next time only getting one in battle, and you couldn't have noticed cause of being far away at that time. Then you would have never been able to get that far into my territory.
But I hate cheating and appreciate that you didn't accuse me for it in public.
There are many ways to cheat, too many, so many that we've just to trust each other if we want to have fun. But it wouldn't make sense for such a small community destroying fun by cheating.

With match being no fun anymore, looking like you're loosing again, taking you that much time with having only few cause of family and job, having to wait on me so often, I can understand you having quit.
In my opinion long turn time is just one of these bad disadvantages of the botf game itself.

I hope you're not angry about me as much as it seems you are.
You've really played well and I've to express my respect. You did surprise me several times. For me it has been a great match and you still may have had a chance. I will make a match report tomorrow.

I dunno how to please you, we're just playing the game different. I concentrate on the strategic part, adjust and think about each single thing and possibility that comes to my mind, that's what makes me love botf and why I'm preferring botf over real time games so much. You prefer it fast and simple in my view.

I've always told that this tournament shall be fun and if it's not for you, you may better not play or work on new rules for next one.

I'm out of words now and hope I didn't make it worse by this statement but got you at least pleased a bit. BotF is just a game, so please take it easy.
As opponent you got my respect for sure cause with this match, you showed again knowing the game and being capable of beating me.
I couldn't say I'm a better botf player than you, even if I win again.
Especially in aspect of time...

I felt as if I've to express myself like I felt last tournament with you. Tomorrow I'll make the match report illustrated with some screens, but I've already to say, with all these changes, you conquering sol, and above 150 turns on small map, klingon and romulan still alife, this is one of the greatest games I've ever played and it's pity not having been near as enjoyable for you as it has been for me, if so. The only thing really made me sad has been all the crashes and having played so late all the time, but that's part of botf, mp and timezone.

Over and out.

[Flocke]

So, now I want to report about this great match!

I begun as federation in the bottom left edge, surrounded by some good systems to colonize and near yridia, a real great system I soon began investing in. Two sectors above yridia was Cardassia and I met them soon. Luckily they didn't began sabotaging me! Above Cardassia the Romulan has been expanding and I met him early as well and to the right of me, I found the Klingon, or he did found me. It has been before turn 20 and I felt surrounded and in middle of galaxy, between romulan and klingon has been just empty space. So I hoped RSE_QuakeDevil, as ferengi didn't have better luck with minors and concentrated on yridia.
I began building ships early cause I had to protect me and yridia.
The cardassians soon declared war on the yridians and sent an invasion, that I've been able to stop. I expanded to the right and colonized next to the klingon that soon declared war on me, coming in with an invasion of 3 destroyers, 3 scouts and a troop transport. But my fleet already included a light cruiser and as soon as they saw my fleet, they went back to their space again, these cowards!
I continued colonizing and terraforming my systems, made peace with cardassian and romulan and researched alot to get subatomic simulators.
Saw QuakeDevil scouting and fighting the klingon but I tried to hide some time and waited on yridia upgrading.
Then, turn 44 I believe, yridia finally upgraded and two turns after I got them joined. This system had 325 ppl, alot of type5 fabricators and laboratories, boosting up my prodution and research!
I think it has been turn 50 when I got my subatomic simulators and immediately begun building them everywhere, to research destroyer2.
Meanwhile I met QuakeDevil and sent my fleet to klingon space. I didn't want him to conquer the klingon but with his tt's type one he failed anyway, even on a colony of the klingon. Then game became cat and mouse with switching roles and nearly equal fleets with ferengi being a little better. We both tried gaining experience and improving moral by destroying klingon ships.
After I upgraded my destroyers, around turn 70, I caught some ferengi light raiders type 1 and a few klingon ships somewhere in klingon space, this has been first bigger fight with me and QuakeDevil.


He tried to escape but I got most of his ships.
Afterwards QuakeDevil had to stop fighting the klingon and did hide.
I did build many tts to upgrade them, scrap some and conquer cardassia, the only cardassian system. They never managed to expand cause of me and the romulan fighting him from time to time till he got surrounded. I dunno why, but the dumb cardassian declared war on me.
In meanwhile I continued colonizing around Klingon space and explored unknown space to the right top with my yridian scouts, hoping to find another minor.
With my yridian scouts I saw QuakeDevil building colony ships and managed to destroy one.
I really feared him getting a second minor and wanted it myself so much, but with romulan above me, and so much empty space in the middle my chances seemed to be really worse. Ferengi would have had access much more easily. But with my last colony, directly above klingon space, I finally managed to get range on the last possible systems and there it was, talar, I found it!
And I've been really positively surprised them being in war with the ferengi!
Yeah, that has been great luck!

I upgraded my tts, scraped most of them, sending presents to talar and some turns later they joined me as well. They didn't have as much population as the yridians, but had tech5 fabricators and laboratories as well and additionally five cruisers! I dunno what turn it was, but ferengi still didn't declare war on me but seemed to build colony ships to upgrade and scrap them, so I did the same but explored a little in his space with my yridian scouts, destroying another colony ship somewhere.
At that time I've felt sure to win that match.
I wanted to conquer cardassia as I've already told, but cardassia was next to a blackhole and I couldn't see anything, but saw him having build eight orbitals. Somehow, the romulan decided to make an affilation with me, maybe cause they feared my fleet or just cause they did hate the cardassian so much.
The talarian cruisers had a long way to cardassia and I decided to collect my fleet next to cardassia. I decided to build, upgrade and scrap colonyships, needing just a single technology research after having upgraded my tts and knowing the ferengi was doing the same.

A calamarian gas nebula alien showed up in my space above galador, next to sol and begun to nerve me. I feared fighting it, cause I knew I would at least loose many ships, but with knowing it's visiting only star systems I decided to keep away and to wait till it disappears.
It must have been around turn 100, I had my fleet next to cardassia, upgraded my colony ships and began scrapping them. The calamarian has been away some turns, but I still had negative scanning on cardassia. It came back to galador, so I feared loosing the remaining colony ships. I dunno why I didn't scrap them all at once, maybe so QuakeDevil couldn't see in the statistics. I moved all remaining, I think 15, to Tarchannen, wanting to scrap them there in feel they would be safe over there.
But i got wrong, the calamarian disappeared again and must have hidden on cardassia. Normally it keeps several turns on a system but this time it immediately went over to Tarchannen and destroyed all but one colony ship.
This has been the turning point, cause it has been over 20k credits and above 10k I already spent bribing the ullians, the only minor race of QuakeDevil. They've already been devoted to me, but without of the colony ships I lost all my money!
QuakeDevil didn't detect me bribing them but I always cared about mine not loosing loyality. I didn't want to scrap the rest of my fleet and decided to wait on my scouts being near upgrade as well. But this has been a fault.
With some additional scouts, I got scanning range on cardassia, and as I already feared, the calamarian has been there protecting the system. It has been in Tarchannen just a single turn but now stayed on cardassia endless. I upgraded my 20 scouts, I've builded, wanted to scrap them finally bribing the ullians but now QuakeDevil declared war and the ullians lost half their loyality.
I doubt that he did notice me bribing them.
I got even more angry about the calamarian, saw QuakeDevils fleet, reaching my outer colonies and just told myself, get cardassia now or never! So after having waited like 20 turns for the calamarian moving away, I just moved in fighting it hoping to not loose too many ships and benefit alot from the moral boost of eleminating the cardassians.
I lost like nine light ships, including a few destroyers but none cruisers.
QuakeDevil conquered my most outer colony but his fleet did seem to be defeatable. Eliminating cardassia, the only cardassian system, didn't gave me as much moral as I hoped and it's moral has been something rebellious - not much of a use.
Now after having been very confident in my success just a few turns before, it turned into panic with seeing more and more war cruisers reaching my space!
I got out of ideas and again it was late in the night making me very tired.
When we continued, my decision has been made, I had no choise, fighting his fleet would have been suicide! So I tried to play for time, partially scrapping my buildings on colonies but partially have been too late cause I lost scanning range. I began to play with his fleet, moving with mine around him, hoping he wouldn't catch me. Flying through him when he moved to Tarchannen, which has been my 2nd best colony. With that move, I've suddenly been behind him and cause I had eight tts within my fleet as well, he feared about the colonies he just invaded, cause they gave him the range for his fleet!
Now it became funny again.
I feared him destroying the romulan outpost that gave me range, but I think the trade income he got by the romulan has been just too important.
I accepted peace with the klingon, cause I couldn't fight him anyway and couldn't prevent the ferengi from fighting him as well, but, my space has been much more interesting for QuakeDevil I guess.
So, now both of us made a big fault again.
QuakeDevil did split his fleet. He just wanted to scare me by his fleet to make me leave his conquered colony, and moved back to Tarchannen with his light raiders and troop transports. He may have had no scanning range, but I moved my fleet in a position, two sectors apart from Tarchannen.
Next turn - dunno, maybe turn 130? - he stayed and tried to invade Tarchannen, but I moved in with my destroyers and scouts.
Now it has been 20 light raiders2, 9troop transports2 of the ferengi and 20 dest2 and 20scouts2 on my side, or something the like.

Of course I set mine ramming but have curious him not retreating but instead evading. He didn't stay a chance, but I should have destroyed his troop transports first! Big faults on both sides.



We had to replay that fight several times, cause it always crashed. After having checked the saves with UE now, I know all of them are corrupt somehow, although we finally managed to finish the fights and continue the game. Maybe this is really the reason, so to everyone, better load last.sav instead of auto.sav after a sync error. All our crash troubles began after the sync error on first day.
QuakeDevil lost all his light raiders and I lost just a few, getting my hope back. But in same turn, he caught all my middle range cruisers with four of my eight troop transports and destroyed two of eight cruisers and two troop transports, luckily not that much of a damage. With my short range cruisers I couldn't move to the Secarus colony I wanted to free two turns before.
Now he moved to Tarchannen with his cruisers protecting the tts and I didn't mind cause I already scrapped everything a few turns before, expecting him to conquer the system.
He doubled my cruisers and I still believed in loosing a final fight.


After he conquered Tarchannen, he continued conquering Kostalain and I tried to collect my fleet again with some additional new attack cruisers.
Now I expected him to leave and retreat and began conquering my colonies back, but QuakeDevil moved forward in direction of sol.
I didn't understand, I must have been too tired, he just sent some tts and his remaining scout one sector ahead to a nebula building an outpost and my fleet has been two sectors behind him. I belived he would loose range with loosing the colony but that he could build an outpost in the nebula in c10 just didn't came to my mind.
So, he got that outpost, getting range on sol and I coudln't stop him conquering sol anymore, although I got all my colonies back and stopped his backup. He tried to stop me conquering back the colonies and destroyed some of the talarian cruisers I did use to protect my troops, but he didn't manage to stop me and on one system just forgot to enable the orbitals.
QuakeDevil must have thought I would try to defend sol with my destroyers and scouts, but I knew it would be just too many cruisers, so I attacked his outpost instead that he tried to protect with 5 of his 20 war cruisers. Cause of having no shields in the nebula, I lost two light cruisers2 and a few light ships but managed to destroy his fve cruisers easily as well as the outpost.
Sol, got lost and my moral reached somewhat near bottom.
Ok, not as bad as I feared, most systems just were apathetic.
I feared this fault did cost me the victory but with my two great minor systems, better fleet and his fleet being cought I didn't want to give up.
He couldn't move at all I thought, although I saw him having build another outpost, but again I got wrong cause he already researched propulsion 6 and I forgot that it gives three sectors in diagonal.
But I knew he didn't have range back home, so I just followed him, always one sector behind, directed troop transports in direction of sol to get it back, and sent 5 destroyers ahead to destroy his new outpost in the nebula in d6.



Finally we met above Tarchannen, him having 15 war cruisers and me 4 command cruisers, 4 attack cruisers, a talarian cruiser, 9 normal experienced dest2, 9 scout2 or something.
I won, but crashing has been worse again, causing different results in fight although we made same moves. Cause first one crashed early, I can't state the original result, but I think I would have won with more or less ships surviving anyway. In terms of power my fleet has been definately better.



The third attempt it didn't crash and most my light ships survived as well as a command cruiser and an attack cruiser.
A turn after I conquered Sol back.
In statistic we became equal again.
But Sol has been completely devasted.

I began moving to ferengi space and concentrated my research on heavy destroyers that have been near. With having researched propulsion 6 I thought QuakeDevil could already build raiders, but never saw one.
I found QuakeDevil in klingon space, trying to conquer a colony. He believed in me still having no access due to peace with klingon, but he missed, that while we were fighting in my space, the klingon got affiliated with me. The klingon really loved me cause I did fight the ferengi, the klingon's main enemy. =)
So I sent in my nine veteran destroyers, and nine scouts and destroyed his remaining fleet, consisting of an attack cruiser, a war cruiser, three light raiders2 and a scout2.

Now RSE_QuakeDevil did quit and gave up.
With having explored the game by UE and -Mudd afterwards, I can tell he wouldn't have had a chance anymore, at least without of me having very bad luck with random events again.
He just did have three single light raiders and a troop transport left.
His moral hasn't been better than mine, his better income I would have raided soon with my veteran destroyers, his industy has been much more worse than mine and he researched construction technology instead of energy tech that has been missed for raiders. He did have less systems and with cardassia my intel would have been better than his soon again.
With raiding I could have continued bribing ullia again, the only good system of QuakeDevil. Even Cardassia and my best colony did already have as much industry as ferengina.
My troop transports and cruisers have been on the way.
Just a few turns before with him having conquered sol, I believed in my loss.
Cool game, thx QuakeDevil!


The statistic is funny, isn't it?

Edit: changed links cause of a strange bug

[Flocke]

Yesterday I got a request from wesley and jbl to expand round 3 for main bracket for almost one week. That's a long time but with having talked to both I've accepted to expand it to wednesday the 18th.
As for 2nd chance bracket, I didn' hear from verbal nor severenth yet, but talked to kimino/enterprise and will phone CptFisH again. Seems as if I'll have to give them expansion as well.

[stardust]

A very scintillating game you had there Flocke, very well played.

To be fair on JBL, at the start of the week he was meant to have been playing in the plate tourney until RSE Chris pulled out of the main tourney.

[Flocke]

Thx stardust, and right, they deserve extension and that's what they get and by rules I could give them even more cause jbl jumped in for Chris ^^

Talked with CptFisH and kimino/enterprise again, giving them extension for sunday the 15th.

[KrazeeXXL]

Flocke, almost everything is quiet in here after your big posting from this great game against RSE_Quakedevil.

Just a great comeback you had! As I told you in warzone that day and JBL told me before as I fought opening ports, you just kept the faith and finally won. What a game!! and the best report of a game I ever read as yet! I really liked the screenshots, too.

As you know, I have to wait most of the time for my next match (maybe it will be cancelled again maybe not... have another week to wait) and therefor your post really gained some "Tournament-Feelings" into me thx a lot

now I'm interested in the game Kingy and ruthlessferengi are playing at the moment.
Kingy told me that he has first choice and wanted to pick Ferengi. maybe a good tactic, maybe not.

I wish them both lesser crashes in their game, than you and QD had Flocke.

I can understand if someone gives up in fact of this. I hate it, too, to plan a surprise attack, doing it - almost winning and then the game is crashing. then it wasn't the last time a surprise attack. so the tactical possibilties are really limited and kill the fun. (maybe some ppl use this as well to cheat...)

[ruthlessferengi]

well, kingy has done it again - amassed massive ferengi empire, conqured cardies and kept klings at bay....

i chose feds and got entangled in bitter wars with roms... i got 2 minors but i got them early - tech 3 and 4.... then off i went to get romulan... Should have stopped at romulus, but no- had to eradicate them all - i paid heavy price in morale - as i made final mistake of liberating ktarians (instead of just taking them off roms), i realized they had a relationship with ferengi - that set off unprecedented morale drop among my fellow feds -half of my romulan conquest rebelled and declaired independence, 2 of my human colonies declared independence (!), and - to add insult to injury - i could not even see ktarians on diplomacy screen:)!! bug?? at any rate, the writing was on the wall.... my morale so low - i was registering solid dark bar of rebelion among majority of my pop...

so I just gave it up to ferengi, who by then upgraded their tts, had 3 squadrons of LR2, and were ready to pop out some warcruisers... Plus he intelled me a bit...

very well played game, must say - i should have chosen klings and squashed this brilliant fella in the early game with DD rush... the ultimate underdog of the year goes on to the next round - i tell you! all well deserving - never met a guy who practiced this game with more passion:) great game, Kingy

cheers to Kingy here, and Flocke - beware:)))

[kingy]

Well round 4,
a wired kind of game,
this hard for me to say from my point, as I still not 100% on what happened with ruthless

Was fegengi, sorry ruthless they just cant be turned down on t3 med map
By what RL said he yes feds and had roms to fight, leavening me with
Klingy and cardies , and from my point of view it got a bit touch on go if
one of us was going to win by the other getting taken over by the a-I
as the klingons had a go on my home world,
but I had just built a few orbs in time,
ended up getting LR2 very early as I need the fire power and speed to start pushing back the a-I,
which means I was straped for money as I need every ship at the time, so I turn to raid the cardies first, making 3000-4000 a turn,
which let me get my minors on track, I had 5 by the end, and they all had type 7 rep’s,
so had loads of ship yards rdy for the next upgrade in the list,
so I got 4 fleets of 9 tt, and 3 fleets of scout 1 rdy for the upgrade,
which would give me LOT OF MONEY, and the means to take over the klingons,
by which time the news of ruthless prob with the roms, and his own people, after the Katrina massacre

the ultimate underdog, hell i like the sound of that

Thanks for the teaching games ruthless and for the high prasie,
But again lady luck was looking down on me,


2 pt klingon 1pt romulan 1pt ferengi, odd mix

[ruthlessferengi]

this was a fun tournament, must say. Every tourney i learn something new. Last one i got into T4 - that was fun. I never really appreciated T3 level until i started playing it - which is this tourney:) so thanks to Flocke for bringing it up:) - a good idea - it takes a bit of getting used to but it is very fun...

my major problem in this game was --- i want to say Kingy - )) and ultimately it was - he got into the spirit of the ferengi right off the start, and played the race consistently. I must say, i first played Kingy last year - and then they were a few games - I've never seen anybody make this much progress before... he may babble about lady luck and other such serendipitous happenstance - he is just being modest and humble - all I know he a solid player and that's why he won today (and, come to think of it - yesterday and so forth)

I played feds more like a kling or cardie - conquest - and paid for that dearly. On hard/impossible level that is a no-no - while getting the real estate price was drop in morale - and that is probably the most important variable in the game - productivity swings 50% with morale variation, and mine was at the low end of the spectrum... I should have stopped at Romulus, got peace, and then got upgrades but it was getting a bit late to compete with Kingy's economy.

with retrospectroscope, i see i had a better chance with kling - build lots of DD and BC and rush him early as he was in the neigbourhood but this is just 20:20 insights looking back

I've had some disappointing losses before, but this one was none of the kind - can't begrudge an excellent player for a game played well. No luck there on his part. Many more good games to come, dude:)

[kingy]

[quote="ruthlessferengi"]this was a fun tournament, must say. Every tourney i learn something new. Last one i got into T4 - that was fun. I never really appreciated T3 level until i started playing it - which is this tourney:) so thanks to Flocke for bringing it up:) - a good idea - it takes a bit of getting used to but it is very fun...[/quote]

aye i have to go with you on that, t3-t4 had make me openen my eyes up to a few new ways of playing

[quote="ruthlessferengi"]with retrospectroscope, i see i had a better chance with kling - build lots of DD and BC and rush him early as he was in the neigbourhood but this is just 20:20 insights looking back[/quote]

thats what i hate about hind sight, but i used hind sight, i would have lost my first game with jaruler, coz with hind sight i would have picked roms

[quote="ruthlessferengi"]Many more good games to come, dude:)[/quote]

well just one more for now, then i need a hoilday on risa,

[jaruler]

kingy and ruthless, why did you chose those 2 races on that tech?

[ruthlessferengi]

because ferengi kick *ss on that level. Feds are well balanced to play against them on that map. Ferengi get upgrade to LR2 at 2 techs - so you can have 3 squadrons of LR2 - most powerful destroyer until klingon destroyer upgrades but that ain't any time soon - free to raid and take over oribitals (before they convert to level 4 energy)...

Feds get diplomacy advantage and their ships are fairly soon upgradeable to allow investment that pays off early.

the plan for T3- take build fleet, member minor, upgrade fleet, take over ai, build TT and colony fleet, upgrade it, repeat above.

[kingy]

i hate saiding this this,
but i only picked fereg's so ruthless did not,
as all of the above by ruthles it true,
but only if u have space and time,
which i got, so why i say luck again
as it could have been the other way around,