Well, dont know if a question about strategy belongs in "questions", or "strategy", so here goes. My first 2 games , I started in corner locations, and noticed the advantage. Any advantage to the center location? Any tips? Other than "develop enhanced paranoia"?
dsul

Located in a corner with fewer borders does not necessary is a good thing. If your neighbour is skilled, you would actually be trapped in that corner with no expansion option.

Last Edited : Saturday, 19 April 2003 - 08:29

well, i started a game in the center and immediately thought that it was a bad position to be in. but then i saw that my land was surrounded by mountains and woods etc and it wasn't so bad. in fact, the very center white location is totally free of anybody and i have been able to by-pass some bandits and pillage the piles of resources there also, since half of the players have already become inactive or quit, the chances of getting to nearby left-over resources first is also pretty good.

so i'm not at all concerned about being in the middle now

in another game i started near the corner. i soon made a NAP with another player near the same corner and prepared to attack the corner player he became inactive before i could get to him, but it just shows that what might look good at the start can turn out to be a problem. a sought after location perhaps

on the whole it looks pretty balanced and even if you get lucky in one game, another game might turn out to be equally unlucky

cheers
street gang

I'll trade a corner position any day for a center starting position. True, as you say, a player can be trapped in the corner(I've killed a couple players that way), but I believe that was the result of their own mistake in retreating versus my personal skillz. Just means your options to expand is somewhat limited...so nap one guy and go conquer the other.

dsul, as always diplomacy plays a role in your success. The advantage of having multiple inactives/quitters(as street gang describes) will not be common in higher ranked games. It CAN be very difficult to guard against 4 or more possible invaders. Best advice is to obtain a limited nap with a couple of the bordering kingdoms which will allow you to focus your major forces in one direction for expansion.....just don't forget to have scouts/border guards in place on ALL your borders. Even if I have a nap in place..I'm gonna keep the guy honest by watching him.

Last Edited : Saturday, 19 April 2003 - 08:52

hehe could it be that you suffer from the paranoia that dsul describes sugar?

Don't think so street gang......being realistic, as I stated having a bunch of inactives/quitters isn't something I've seen for a long time....nor will I leave my borders unguarded, blindly trusting someone until I know his character.

If you want to win, you're have to use your diplomatic powers and not count on luck. As to suffering from paranoia...any one that's played against/with me will tell you, I don't hang around in my castle worrying about what the other guy's gonna do, my troops will be moving out to give him something to do.

Last Edited : Saturday, 19 April 2003 - 09:26

ahhh target practice. very handy

Unfortunately, Sugar is right here

Fighting skill will not usually win you a higher game. Because, sadly, virtually everyone has that, and even more so with the advent of the Strategy forum.

The truth is, if you want to win high up - or even survive - you'll need to know everything that'll happen far in advance, everyone's habit's, and how to exploit them

Now corner positions make things simpler, but they don't always help
I spent Game 13 right in the dead centre of a 40 player map
That meant having to pit two strong alliances against each other....

But in a corner....being 5 on 1-ed is much harder

Simply put, your starting position should quickly indicate how you need to play the game, strategically and diplomatically.

The size of the map and number of players is significant as well. In game 13 as CTD mentioned, he was in the very center of the world. Not a ideal spot considering the extremely skilled players in the game. There were only a few of us new players trying out the game.

Being a member of the smaller of the two main alliances, we simply had more imporant players to deal with then against CTD who simply played the role as the diplomat to ensure that neither side had a reason to attack him or feel he was a threat. Just like any good politician would do

another thing to consider is who your opponents are. If you have clan members in a game, it is very likely they will simply be allied... If other players have other friends in the game from the beginning.. You need to ensure that you get as many friends to match the enemy Whether it is right or wrong, some players will always help others for any advantage you can get to ensure their own success and survival. War has no rules

You can win a game from any starting position, but there are simply a myriad of variables to consider. Ideal starting position is that which puts you next to your buddy

Last Edited : Saturday, 19 April 2003 - 18:53

I don't mind starting center at all. Nothing more fun than annoying as many neighbhors as you can then watching them squabble over victory rights in your kingdom

Seriously, I actually prefer side positions - has a mix of the two - little more open, but a little easier to defend. And usually at least one of your neighbors will be friendly enough that you can turn them into an ally to watch your back while you engage one of the others.

As for paranoia, there is no reason to be paranoid if you keep an eye out on your neighbors activities - game news becomes a critical piece to watch so you know who is at war, and who is simply amassing armies. For someone who is at war turn after turn you can keep your border security a lot lighter on that side.

Yea, I too prefer the side positions. The guy in the middle dont want to make you mad and you got somebody traped in the corner for early snacks.

Really? i always thought that the corner positions were exellent! i love starting in the corners, when in the corner attacks only come from one direction!!!

You dont have to watch your flanks or rear. Cuz they cant approach from that direction. Defense is much more focused and you dont have to worry about much

While the attack only comes from one direction, it also means your expansion route out has only 1 direction. As long as that route is block off you are trapped in that little corner with minimum resources while your neighbour can go and search elsewhere for more resources. With no resources, you then are unable to produce more troops and thus unable to break that blockage.

That assumes you allow a blockage in the first place

i agree with big amigo, sides are my favorite. many more options, room for expansion, can isolate the corner guy. of course i've been on the side and still got pummeled, but advantages are there on the sides.

Only if your neighbours are passive