NerdHammer - Age of Darkness

[cn3wton]

Ok! Just a heads up please send movement plans by private message. This will keep things secret and interesting!

[Myrik]

Myrik decides it is time to attempt to make an ally in this strange new world.  Taking one of the Citymasters Myrik makes his way to the camp of who he believed to be Kingsmen.  Arriving at the gate he calls out “My name is Myrik I would like a meeting with your leader to discuss a possible Alliance."

Gwaine looks around at the camp they pulled together and realizes everyone else is still out on scouting missions for intel. She steps up, eyes the man in front of her warily, and responds, "I guess that would be me. What, exactly, do you propose?"

Seeing as you are human, you are a human and not a Dragon correct? And speak English and are dressed in the fashion of a British Gentlemen I assumed you and your compatriots are the fabled Kingsmen.  I am proposing an alliance, we both want to save our homes and your camp is the closest to mine only makes sense to work together.

You would be correct. We are the Kingsman - although given how we are a Secret Service it concerns me that you know of us.  I don't know if I can trust you but it seems to be a fair agreement for now. 

In my world nothing secret is kept secret for long.  Just like the fact that your leader, at least in my universe is a Mighty Western Dragon that goes by Myrddin.  For now let us shake on the agreement and I will return to my camp.  As a gesture of goodwill I will leave this Rifle, should help against some of the other foes you will meet. 

 

This is myself and @Asa Pond official notice of alliance.

[cn3wton]

I have added sloth and dark raider to the world map. I believe raider is on vacation and sloth has been preparing for a big race, so I don't want them to miss out!

 

I see a strong alliance growing in the east. Awesome! I just want to post some quick guidelines to forming alliances.

- Alliances of more than 3 are not allowed

- You cannot be in multiple alliances

- secret alliances are forbidden. All alliances must be posted publicly in the thread. 

-alliances cannot be broken malicously. So you can't agree to an alliance, then attack that person. Until you post that the alliance has ended I will not allow you to attack a former ally.

- like risk alliances don't have a winning condition for all involved. What ever single player controls the most land at the end of the 6 weeks is the "winner".

-however there are benefits to an alliance. Your troops can move through their territory like it is their own. And all losses in battle will be spread evenly among the alliance.

 

I am still considering map options for future games. Will bring those up to the group eventually.

[cn3wton]

Magnus waited excitedly outside the obelisk. He looked over his new body. His power's where charged by the warp. Feeling strength he could not even imagine in his limbs. No longer did he feel old and frail. 

 

But it was not only his powers that where enhanced, but his body as well. He floated to the ground, standing tall. His body surged with primal strength that demanded the respect of his troops. His glowing eye sockets now filled with cybernetic's just like his masters. He outstretched his hand and from the warp summoned his weapon. A deadly long spear. It seemed to move about effortlessly.

 

His master had given him much. He would make him proud.

 

The great gates of the obelisk swung wide, his twisted valkyries and hirde flanked the doorway, and Magnus turned his attention to them fully. The Dark Animus had been working tirelessly to prepare his troops. Out first walked his personal guard. Veteran troops chosen through trials of combat among his troops. Dark black armor was now fused with their skin. They carried cruel looking axes over their shoulders. Dark fur lined cloaks floating behind them. They where magnificent.

 

Behind them came the chosen few among them. On the backs of dark steeds rode the death dealers. Ferocious warriors without fear. 

 

Behind them walked his ranged troops. It had taken his men some time to learn the use of firearms, but when they saw their destructive power it did not take them long. The bolts these guns fired would explode with chaotic energy on impact. Fixed to the end of these weapons was a gruesome bayonet.

 

Then finally, he heard his war machines. They moved slowly. But their power was like nothing else. Pulled by great beasts of war this machine would rain destruction from the sky. Loaded with rounds that would explode just before impact the devastation of these weapons was feared even among his own troops. The recent demonstration on the local's had proven it's might.

 

The rest of his army began to form up at the back of the line. And he moved to join them.

 

This would be interesting.

[cn3wton]

To help everyone out on this first round I have updated the map with areas of no contest. Your influence has spread and in some areas, it's great enough to exert control over them. The white areas show parts of the map that are in contest. Remember this first round you can only move 1 out from your base (not through the areas of no conquest) I just want to help everyone see where they should focus their troops if they want to fight. To help with this, areas that are inaccessible this turn have been grayed out.

 

Please recruit troops and move them now. Remember newly recruited troops start on the space with your name. 

 

Example. I recruited 100 infantry AND 100 ranged this week. I am moving 20 of each to G6 and 80 of each to G5.

 

If I do not get your movement pm by Sunday morning I will position your troops defensively and they will not conquer anything this turn.

 

Please feel free to message me with any questions! From mechanics to strategy and tips!

 

Also @Asa Pond and @Myrik please let me know how you will be distrubiting the land between the two of your bases. Only one of you can control them. I have marked them with ?. My suggestion is 2 of them go to Myrik. Because myrik started with no areas out of contest.

[Rhovaniel]

Sorry - not had a lot of time to write and edit this. 

 

“Avorniel, the last of the scouting parties are back.” Elladan told her as he came into her tent with a slight bow.

“You know I don’t like you bowing all the time.”

“I do it to remind you – and more importantly, remind the others – who our leader is.”

“Meaning?” Avorniel tilted her chin to look up at him. Seated cross legged on the ground, she was surrounded by parchments and hastily made writing utensils, and seemed to be in the process of drawing out a map of the world they now found themselves in. From the discarded notes around her, it seemed to be coming along nicely, if hard work.

“Meaning it would have been better if I, or any one of the other lieutenants had led the scouting party towards the source of the malice we feel, not you...”

“It was the most dangerous task, Elladan. How do you expect me to lead the Dúnedain if they don’t see that I am just as willing to risk my life as they? That I won’t skulk behind the lines in safety whilst they fight for Middle-Earth’s survival?”

“I meant no offence,” Elladan said gently, and she sighed.

“I know. I apologise. It’s just this… war. We’ve never –” She shook her head and got to her feet. “It doesn’t matter. Send the lieutenants in. Make sure those leading the scouting parties are here. We need to build up a picture of what we’re up against and what we’re going to do about it.”

“I’ll let them know,” Elladan nodded, bowing once more, just to annoy her, as he left in search of the others.

 

 

“This host of – whatever they are – to the south-west that you speak of, how dangerous are they?”

“It’s hard to know from looking at them, but they moved quickly. We knew there was an army towards the south, but then this army turned up. I do not think they are wholly among the living.” The scout said quietly, and everyone shuddered as they considered the implications of that.

“Doesn’t necessarily mean they’re evil. Moving on,” Avorniel cleared her throat. “What’s the situation elsewhere?”

“To the south is a pack of – well, I’d call them warg, but they’re not. Wolves, definitely, but they have technology that marks them as from somewhere very different from Middle Earth.” Another voice spoke this time, a tall, sandy haired man who was seasoned enough to have served under her father before her.

“Did anyone see any armies that looked – akin – to us? Or that use similar weapons at any rate?”

“I did, my Lady,” a scout towards the back of the tent spoke quietly, and Avorniel beckoned him closer. He stood uneasily in front of her, his eye wandering unconsciously to Avorniel’s forearms, where the white tree of Gondor stood proudly against the black leather background of her bracers.

“You sent me to scout towards the east and north east, as I’m sure you recall. There’s an alliance formed between two of the armies. I overheard a little of the conversation. Kingsmen and Shadowrunners.”

“I am not overly familiar with those terms,” Avorniel said thoughtfully. “But that can’t be why you are so ill at ease? We can find out more about them later.”

“No, my Lady. My discomfort stems from what I found in the North-East. We are not the only host to come to this place from Middle Earth. The forces of evil from our own world seem to have followed us here.”

 The tent fell silent at his words. Not a single ranger among them had counted on meeting a threat so familiar to them.

“Then thank Elbereth they’re on the other side of that tower,” Avorniel grimaced. “Now, here’s what I think we need to do.”

 As the other rangers gathered in closer, she caught Elladan’s eye. He gave a slight, almost impercepable nod. Keep it up, the nod said. You’re doing well. 

[WhiteGhost]

This is awesome you guys.  I am loving the storylines and eagerly waiting to see what happens next!

[Rhovaniel]

The sun was setting and the camp was readying itself for sleep, except for those on sentry duty. Avorniel stood in the entrance to her tent and stared out into the distance. She couldn’t see it, but she knew that almost directly ahead of them lay the Tower, the place of malice and fear she had scouted that morning. She shuddered. It wasn’t just the Tower that gave her an uneasy feeling, or the vicious looking, foul armies she had seen preparing for battle with glee. The strange figure she’d seen high up on the balcony haunted her vision. There was dark magic at work here, fouler than even Sauron had wielded.

“My Lady?” She looked up as Elladan approached, and summoned a tired smile.

“Lost in thought,” she told him. “You should get some sleep.”

“I was. But you should know that the portal is activating. Reinforcements – our own rangers – are coming through.”

“What? How is this possible? If the portal is open, can we not –” She felt her voice start to rise and checked herself. “How many?”

“So far only one, Ranion, is through. But others are coming. He says they felt a call, a summons much like with us. They all got a – feeling – inside them that they were needed, no, that they were being called to us. He’s in my tent at the moment.”

“I will go and speak with him. Go back to the portal, welcome the rest through. Find beds for them and I’ll join you shortly.”

“Of course.” With another infuriating bow, Elladan left her side. Throwing her green cloak around her shoulders to ward off the growing chill in the air, she set off towards Elladan’s tent, her mind practically tripping up on itself with the thousand questions clamouring for her attention, when a breathless young scout ran up to her.

“There’s a – vehicle – of some kind coming towards the camp, my Lady!”

“Show me!” They set off towards the edge of the camp, Avorniel impatient but not allowing her brisk stride to break into a run. As they approached, she heard the low rumble of an engine growing louder. Straightening her spine, she dismissed the sentry back to his post, stood at the edge of the camp’s boundaries and waited.

 The silver truck was unlike anything she’d ever seen before, but then, that was starting to become a common occurrence. She waited, the rumble now a roar, until it was a few metres away. Without warning, it stopped and before their eyes started to change. In moments, the transformation was complete, and an armoured figure on two legs stood in its place.

“Greetings, Dúnedain. I am Grill Guard. My company have a camp to the North, not far from you.”

“We are aware,” Avorniel told him, and resisted the urge to cross her arms. “Why do you come here?”

“To propose an Alliance. Who is in charge of your army here?”

“You’re speaking to her. I am Avorniel, Leader of the Dúnedain.”

“Your reputation precedes you.”

“Despite our position, we are not wholly unaware of other worlds to our own. I know of your kind. You are an autobot, are you not?”

“I am indeed.”

Avorniel wasn’t sure, but thought his metallic chest may have puffed up slightly at hearing her name his people.

“Most of the armies drawn through the portal are more advanced than you, I’m sure you’ve noticed that. Weapons and technology far beyond what is seen in Middle Earth seems to abound here –”

“Let any who doubt us face us in battle.” Avorniel matched the autobot’s gaze.

“We do not doubt you, that’s why I’m here. Do you not think an Alliance would serve you as much as us?”

 Avorniel hesitated. There was truth in what the autobot said, and as she heard footsteps approaching behind her, she realised she needed to make a decision quickly.

“Lady Avorniel?” Elladan came up to them, curiosity written in his grey eyes. “I heard we had a visitor.”

“This is Grill Guard,” she told him. “Our new Ally in the North.”

 

Giving notice here that @Tanktimus the Encourager and I have formed an Alliance  

 

[Sloth the Enduring]

 

Sorry, I haven't been paying attention to this.

 

 

For the new week do we wipe out the old workout and start fresh or add on?

I'm not a writer either, but here's a brief on what's been going on in the Sloth camp.

 

The orcs look around bewildered. "Where the heck are we?" Someone grumbles.

 

The grizzled sergeant bellows, "I don't know know where the heck the great and glorious Sloth has sent us now, but we're not going to be overrun by whatever is out here. Dig in men! We'll figure out who to kill when the Nazgul get here."

[cn3wton]

I will be releasingan updated tracking page for you guys to use. Things will reset on Sundays from now on. So until then please just keep track of your stuff on paper and upload it to the new sheet.

 

This week the tension us on a cliffhanger! Through luck no large scale batles took place. Surely next week will be quite the melee!

 

I want opinions for this next step, keeping thE idea of ease of understanding in place. 

 

Should I have you guys deploy your troops among your territories like risk? Then it would display on your world map. Then recruited troops can be deployed on any territory you control but only move 1?

 

Or should I not bother with that and just let you guys re deploy and re maneuver your troops at the end of the week? This would mean it would be much harder to guess where others where moving troops. But allow you to move troops anywhere without restriction.

 

I'm leading more towards the risk approach. But want your opinions and ideas!

[Myrik]

I think the risk approach could make for a more enjoyable game and that is my vote.

[DarK_RaideR]

I meant to comment about being on vacation, but I see @cn3wtonhas me covered. Leaving things to the AI this round, will catch up asap.

[tourennatrix]

Naja narrowed her eyes. The mechanical beast had crossed near her discreet camp not long ago, and she had gathered a few rangers to track the creature. She watched from a distance as the large automaton and the leader of the Hume group forged a pact. Curses. She gripped her Morgenstern firmly at her hip and stepped out of the shadows. 

 

"Greetings, adventurers!" she announced with a toothy grin. "Beautiful evening for some conspiracy, wouldn't you say?" The two leaders exchanged uneasy glances but said nothing to the wily Mithra. 

 

"Of course, we have all been brought to this strange, new place and it can be hard to know who to trust. From the looks of things, you both seem to be on the side of good. Or at least, against the side of evil? What say you pledge your armies to the ranks of Salaheem's Sentinels, in the name of the mighty Al Zahbi in the beautiful land of Aht Urhgan?"

 

The large automaton took a menacing step forward.

 

"Okay okay! Tall order I'm sure. However, I have seen mighty alliances formed in my tenure, unifying beyond race and profession. Perhaps merely an alliance amongst the three of our armies against the force that has brought us to this place, and those which would support it?"

 

The others deliberated for a moment, then nodded affirmative. Naja's expression softened, though she kept her grip fierce upon her Morgenstern.

 

Publicly announcing that the alliance of @Tanktimus the Encourager and @Rhovaniel has grown to include a 3rd party member, @tourennatrix :3

[cn3wton]

I have uploaded the updated tracking sheet for everyone to use. I think you will find it quite self explanatory, but I wanted to cover a few different things in it.

 

You will need to delete your old sheet, but before you do please make sure you write down the troops you have recruited this past week so you can enter them into week 1 on the new sheet. Also points DO NOT ROLL OVER. If you have remaining resources use them to purchase troops!

 

More specific info about the sheet in the spoiler tag below.

Spoiler

 

As you can see I have expanded the sheet to make it a bit simpler. If you do not know by now, clicking a cell with a black triangle in the top right hand corner will reveal a note. These usually reveal more info for you to look at. I have added the following distinct areas.

 

The workout box is not its own thing. The workout reward is intended to be an equalizer. If you are working out but dont have much time to do extra stuff you can use the workouts to try to stay with the pack. You are still limited to 5 (with a 500 cap in everything) but I feel that the workouts are a way for non crazy people to have a chance to participate.

 

All of the exercise cells are now fully automated. By clicking the title of each cell (cardio, lifting exercise, etc) you can see some ideas about what you can claim in each table. Just enter the name of the exercise, the appropriate tracking data for it (meters, reps, or minutes) and the sheet will calculate everything for you.

The top right of the sheet tracks your resources earned and spent for you.

 

You may notice the new addition of the lifting table. This is for workouts where you have added some difficulty through the use of weights. The old way considered air squats and weighted squats to be equivalent. That has now changed.

 

The 500 cap for each exercise still remains in affect, as well as not being able to repeat an exercise in the same table. (Can't claim running twice). However there is a new one. You cannot claim more than the spaces you have available in the table. This should not prove to be an issue for anyone, as there are currently 40 different ways for you to gain resources! But as we move forward I may start decreasing this. This is not set in stone yet of course. Let me know your thoughts on this. One part of me says "if someone wants to do hundreds of extra exercises and track it all why limit them?" but the other is like "what if people can't do that. Is it fair to them?"

 

 

I have decided to add a new mechanic to the game. Mercenaries. What does this mean? Well I want this game to be as approachable as it can be. And while challenging, not punishing. So for instance the current condition is that when your main base is overrun you lose. I like that mechanic. But I don't want someone to get kicked out early and get discouraged, or if someone misses out and doesnt join early enough, or if someone is hesitant because they dont know much about these kinds of games. So I have come up with the merc system. More info detailed below.

Spoiler

 

The merc system allows you to recruit friends, or defeated factions, to bolster your armies. These players may earn resources just like the main factions in the game. However these resources are given to the main faction for use in their campaign however they see fit. So what are the benefits of this?

 

If you are unsure on how this all works, but really like the concepts and the RP, reach out to someone and see if you can be a part of their army for this round. Use this time to enjoy yourself and learn about the game, without having to worry about troop choices and claiming territory.

 

If you are eliminated early this allows you to stay in the game and possibly be on the winning side! Keeping you going and pushing yourself throughout the challenge.

 

DIdnt hear about NerdHammer until it was too late? Don't worry, reach out to a faction and see if they will let you join them!

 

What are the restrictions? Currently I am not restricting resource gain (you can use the same tracking sheet as anyone else) however each faction will currently be limited to having only 1 mercenary force attached to them. 

 

So go forth and recruit your friends! 

 

 

I have deployed my troops on the map to demonstrate how it is done. I have added an in depth guide in the spoiler below.

 

Spoiler

 

To station troops in the territory you control you need to do two things. First, if there are no troops in the current cell you will need to add them in a note. Right click the cell and add note. Enter the name and number of each troop type you have placed in the cell. Then add up the resource cost of the troops in that cell, and enter it as you normally would into the cell. This gives a numerical value to the strength of the forces in that cell, as well as a more detailed inspection of whats there when clicking.

 

 

As always if you have any questions about any of this please let me know! You have until wednesday to deploy troops, if you do not I will deploy them for you in preparation for this weekends battles!

[Rhovaniel]

Hi, quick question about gathering resources:

 

1. How would we measure something like planks? Thinking of adding planks to my daily routine, with a target total throughout the week. (not sure what I'm capable of here, so the target may be 10 or 15, to be decided tonight)

2. Workout box is not it's own thing - does that mean that when I do my lifting workouts I ought to put the various exercises in the lifting table but stuff like yoga in the workout box?

 

Thanks  

[cn3wton]

14 minutes ago, Rhovaniel said:

Hi, quick question about gathering resources:

 

1. How would we measure something like planks? Thinking of adding planks to my daily routine, with a target total throughout the week. (not sure what I'm capable of here, so the target may be 10 or 15, to be decided tonight)

2. Workout box is not it's own thing - does that mean that when I do my lifting workouts I ought to put the various exercises in the lifting table but stuff like yoga in the workout box?

 

Thanks  

 

First off the planks can now go under the timed exercise table. You get 10 points for every minute you hold the plank. Yoga will also go under this category.

 

The workout box is for people who do something like crossfit, or a strength training program. You may only do 20 or so reps, but your super tired aftwerwards and pushed yourself. That is considered a workout that nets you 100 points. It's basically a judgement call based on the points you where going to gain.

 

For instance lets say a crossfit workout is 12-9-5 push ups and box jumps or something. You have worked your butt off to finish it, but you have only completed around 50 reps. Which nets you only around 50 points. This lets you get some extra points a few times a week.

 

For not it will remain how it is for that. Just determine if breaking the workout into reps or just calling it a workout will net you more points. I may need to increase the workout reward in the future. Or it may not be needed anymore thanks to the diversity of the new table. 

[tourennatrix]

At the roll-over for each week, after we have purchased our troops, to we clear all the workout/rep/etc tables and start over (but, obviously, leaving the troops to accumulate)?

[Grumble]

1 hour ago, cn3wton said:

Or it may not be needed anymore thanks to the diversity of the new table.

 

Doing away with that would destroy anyone's resource gains using a powerlifting program. 

 

[cn3wton]

3 minutes ago, Grumble said:

 

Doing away with that would destroy anyone's resource gains using a powerlifting program. 

 

 

Weightlifting exercises now reward 5 resources per rep. However this may not be enough for certain routines as you say. I will not be removing anything until I am absolutely sure it is not needed.

[cn3wton]

1 hour ago, tourennatrix said:

At the roll-over for each week, after we have purchased our troops, to we clear all the workout/rep/etc tables and start over (but, obviously, leaving the troops to accumulate)?

 

Yes you clear out all tables. The new updated tracking table has a place to record the troops you had recruited, and lost, from previous weeks.

 

[Myrik]

What about Farmer Carries?  Not something easily quantified for Any of the categories.  would it just be easier to exclude them?

[cn3wton]

20 minutes ago, Myrik said:

What about Farmer Carries?  Not something easily quantified for Any of the categories.  would it just be easier to exclude them?

 

I measured those in distance when I tracked mine.

[Myrik]

1 hour ago, cn3wton said:

 

I measured those in distance when I tracked mine.

And placed it under Cardio correct?

 

[cn3wton]

29 minutes ago, Myrik said:

And placed it under Cardio correct?

 

 

Yes

[Elennare]

This looks awesome.  I would like to join for the next go-round!