Contest 2007 Smalltalk

  • This replaces the "dreaming for 2007"

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • I just looked at my 2007 calendar and it seemed as if I had nothing planned at alll, so I guess I have lots of time for Patrician. I think I'm up for the 2007 Contest. I know you've probably got the map locked in, but could Naestved be a city? I'm fond of that corner of the map.

  • I'm glad you dropped in. Right now we are not yet at the map design. But, it looks like the starting save will have only 12 towns. Emphasis of this contest wil be on supply/satisfaction level without any regard to company value.
    Currently I am pleading to just have a minimum population level each year, based on the lower mid-field from prior years, so nothing you could'nt cope with.
    With up to 14 towns to found, I'm sure you will be able to get Neavsted. :D
    The map design, followed by a vote, will start in earnest once the objectives and the point system has been established.


    [OT]When do you think you have the 6 towns completed? I anticipate sometimes in 1311/12 and in realtim by then end of the year[/OT]

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • So, how are we doing?


    Are there only three players here? Baltic Trader, Bizpro, and me?


    Are there really 14 possible towns? I thought there was a limit of ten. That will be interesting.


    How are the German language players doing?

  • Steersman:
    I saw Taian sneek through the forum a few days back and Westcoast Trader might give it a run too.
    There are no reports from the German players. I guess everybody is still in the party mode ;)
    There are always up to 26 towns if you start with less than that. Of course, you can go with more starting towns but then there will be no new production towns. In the contest2005 there were 16 starting towns and we could found 10 new towns. I guess time will tell if we get to make it 14 this time.
    In my game I'm doing mostly preliminaries, such as finding Med trading towns and the pirate nests. I found two additional ones; they're in the hint thread.
    All I can tell is that it will be quite an eye-opener to have to satisfy all the people rather than just to provide for the working class and slam down the buildings. Also, the low number of citizens makes it difficult to fund a fast expansion strategy without additional finance help.

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

    Dieser Beitrag wurde bereits 1 Mal editiert, zuletzt von bizpro ()

  • I'll be trying to give it a shot. Last year, school took up far too much of my time to be able to finish the contest...hoping that doesn't happen this year :p


    I've just been playing around with the start for now. Tried not going for the captain up in Edinburgh and rather upgrading the snaikka to level 2 right away. A little later on the 10th of May, usually a 4500 or so loan becomes available and can be used to upgrade the snaikka and buy up to 11 cutlasses by the time the boat is done. Then, sail on to Hamburg for the escort mission and try to capture a crayer. I did it, but the crayer was shot to kindling. However, I did manage to use it to land an 84 health crayer shortly thereafter. I think all of that took until about May 27 or 28. I'll probably play around with some other openings as well to see which I like more :p Didn't have any captains at that point.


    Play will definitely be slow for the next 4 months though while I finish up my last semester.


    EDIT: Mis-type up there...should have looked back at my game before posting. The crayer that I shot up was the one from the Hamburg mission to Brugge (not the Bremen mission). The 84 health one was from the Bremen to London mission.

  • Wellcome back Taian.
    This year's contest does not require as much effort (time-wise) since you only have to play until the end of 1302 to make the standings.
    I believe the captain in Ladoga hangs around fo ra while.

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • I don't much like to shoot up the ships; so, for the mission in Bremen, and in Danzig, I did a modified Cascade. I boarded with one snaikka, and lost; on the next screen I had a second snaikka waiting, engaged, boarded, and won.


    Took a while to set up properly though, and cutlasses being still scarce had to divide them between the ships. You still get paid off for delivering the escort, even though your ship was boarded and looted.

  • That was how I got the 84 health crayer too. Lost with the shot up crayer and then boarded on the next screen with the snaikka. I didn't want to shoot up the first one, but I haven't figured out yet how to get another snaikka before the escort mission diappears in Bremen without turning pirate.

  • Hi Steersman,


    at least one German player is doing fine, me! Since, at the moment, I can only find time to play at weekends, I haven't got very far by now.


    Charlotte

    "Wir sind verletzt, aber wir stehen wieder auf."


    Berlin - Breitscheidplatz, zum 19. Dezember 2016.


    P2 1.1/P4 2.0.4

  • Charlotte:


    wellcome to the forum. Hosping is probably glad to see that his team got another member.


    Now, I shall mull it over if I play for baden wuerttemberg (where I grew up) hessen, where I was born or NewWorld, where I live. If another two promise to make an effort to reach at least the end of 1302 I shall remain true to my residence. ;)


    In other news: I got to the end of June. A pesky 2-crayer convoy thought they could help themselves to IG earmarked for Bergen since all I have is a lone snaikka crusing the North Sea. Well, one ended up feeding the fish and the other one is in London for repairs. The snaikka sailed for Hamburg to fill the empty crew slots and do some minor repairs (97%). Once repaired it will go into service against cogs. All tavern missions ended up being @#$%^ holks, which were sunk, since a snaikka can never dream to catch one intact by itself and I don't have enough ships for cascades, they are needed for trading.

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • Just approaching the end of June.


    Currently have 5 crayers and 2 snaikkas in varying states of health (68-93). No trading offices started yet but I do have permissions in all towns. 4 captains on the ships, all on crayers and actively pursuing escort/fugitive/pirate hunter missions.


    35K cash on hand and a CV of 153,000. Things should start to pick up as I begin to dedicate some ships to trading. I plan on playing clean and no arbitrage. Promotions should start at the end of June.

  • Taian:


    You have a long way ahead of you. I know of several players who liked a little boost in their fleet before they put their shirts to the drycleaners.

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • @ Taian: Crime pays. This contest has no clean category. Maybe there should have been a few hundred bonus points, like a golf handicap or something, but there isn't. My avatar is in red, means no mercy.


    So: in late June I had taken only eight ships of the competition. I have run arbitrage, but not for CV since it doesn't count either. But that is unfortunately about the limit, I think. More, your reputation takes a hit, and you won't get to be a patrician. If I loot any cities, yeah, I get cash and goods, but I will just have to rebuild the towers. Sucker bet. Now, let me see. I have trade offices under construction in every city, sixteen businesses, twenty three ships, and a quarter million in cool cash. CV? Over a million. That's on the 27th. And I am not pushing it, friend.


    So, we love you, yes, you are as pure as the driven snow, but it's only a game. Take a short walk on the wild side of the street. Go back, take a few ships, do a little thieving, sneak a few extra thalers or whatever the currency is by arbitrage, and get a move on. You will be months behind the pack.


    Maybe next year we can set up a clean contest, at patrician level of trading. Do a different game then. But for now, the blood will flow.

  • Zitat

    Originally posted by Steersman
    So: in late June I had taken only eight ships of the competition. I have run arbitrage, but not for CV since it doesn't count either. But that is unfortunately about the limit, I think. More, your reputation takes a hit, and you won't get to be a patrician. If I loot any cities, yeah, I get cash and goods, but I will just have to rebuild the towers. Sucker bet. Now, let me see. I have trade offices under construction in every city, sixteen businesses, twenty three ships, and a quarter million in cool cash. CV? Over a million. That's on the 27th. And I am not pushing it, friend.


    Where did you find the remaining 13 ships? Since I only had upgraded snaikkas at that time, the prime objectvie was destruction. Who cares if it took 4 runs at Beneke with his 2 crayers and one cog? The main thing was that he was out of business and left my ships alone. The smoking cog would have been put into service in early fall.
    This is past tense, since I had to restart due to lack of funds. :giggle: I did raid towns and used almost all of that cash to grant loans. Impounding brings goods and ships when it's needed most. I think it should be possible to lend to 120 people by the end of July and that should help with supply of scarce goods plus net about 20 ships. Of course, with my luck all owing more than 20,000 will have the money so I will not get any ships.
    Just looking at the progress of some German players it seems that quite a few will make the LM elections in Reval. I was seen by everybody as the future LM by June 10 but, for my new game, am mulling over the actual benefit. Ulnless I can get about 30 brickworks going in Ladoga by the end of July there are not enough bricks around to build 3 walls there and be in time to move to a supply-cruicial town to build the protecting walls there. Leaving it to the town will not work since, even if it's not raided, it will not have enough funds and the process is rather slow. ( I know of the wall building dates etc.)

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • @ bizpro:


    Regarding German advances, I promise not to advance faster than the continental drift. :)


    Thank you for your welcome.


    It is funny that you mentioned both Baden-Wuerttemberg and NewWorld: First was my exile for about eleven years. I'm a survivor. Second: I was supposed to be born in Canada, but Mom only made it to Berlin, Germany.


    I had to learn pesky irregular verbs in French, English, and German nonetheless.


    Contest 2007: I really marvel at those who proceed very fast; my kudos to all of them. My approach will, as it seems, be hard: I'll start my game as a very peaceful trader; hope this won't bore you to death.


    This has nothing to do with ethics; I just can't seize ships. I played the tutorial for the umpteenth time - no way. I hate making a fool of myself, so I abandoned this idea. Part of my problem was an, ahem, ancient mouse. I got a new one by now, always ready to learn, especially from pirates! Probably they never learned that ships can also be BUILT, though. So far, I got enough dough to do so easily.


    Busy making plans, I am


    Charlotte :D

    "Wir sind verletzt, aber wir stehen wieder auf."


    Berlin - Breitscheidplatz, zum 19. Dezember 2016.


    P2 1.1/P4 2.0.4

  • Now, Bizpro, what the heck kind of question is "Where did you get the ships?" ?(


    Oh, all right, I will humor you. From your other posts I read, you are no spring chicken, or so I assume. ;)


    I picked up the first crayers from the escort missions in Hamburg and Danzig, and the next one from Bremen. I nailed the competition snaikkas first, and bought every cutlass I could lay my hands on. I took the escort on board the first ship, and only just barely left port. That means I put the X just outside the town. I gave that captain only five cutlasses for his 20 sailors, and I had a second snaikka with a captain, eleven cutlasses, and a crew of 20. The first few tries, a holk kept showing up. No go. I had saved before sailing, waited some more, and after a few reloads finally was attacked by a crayer. I fought him, lost the battle, but now he had fewer sailors on board. I got him with the second ship. Across the Baltic, I did the same with the Danzig mission, but sailed up the river so it could only be a crayer that attacked. I had a ship downriver, lost with the first and got a level three crayer for my pains. That left me plenty of cutlasses, and some 84 health crayers at level two, plus a 70 health level three. There are always a couple of escort missions waiting somewhere, and one brother who needs avenging. They regenerate after your escort leaves the ship, or when you nail the pirate who killed the brother. I just scouted around until I found one, reloaded, and sent a crayer with 28 crew and a captain who was a 3 or 4 in fighting. The next one was in Bremen right away, I sailed up the Rhine for another crayer pickup, and restocked crew then in Brugge. I haven't got any 5 fighter captain yet. I spent ten days picking up crayers, it gets faster when you have four of them, and one lousy holk I had to shoot the crap out of, I was getting bored with all the reloading. Oh, yeah, I caught a pirate convoy of crayers outside of Koenigsberg too.


    I moved into arbitrage, and I am building some crayers now. The 220 cargo ships are okay for a few, to upgrade for exploring or for outriggers, or as leader of a convoy. I prefer most of my ships to be full cargo ships, not expanded for weapons.


    So, that is where I got the ships. :klug: :pirate:


    I ain't sure why anyone is bothering with Reval, either. I know you have to move and move back to make the London election, but I won't have enough bricks to do anything by that date. 8)

  • Steersman:
    I ain't no chicken, rather a retired turkey (vulture):D
    The symbol besides your avtar means that you play as a lily white trader; that's why I asked where you got the ships from.
    I admit to my conviction: piracy. It's just soemthing I have to do. Mind you, I don't wipe out the white fleet in the beginning months. They are far too important to help with the supply. I am even lagging in the raiding; I won't get to more than 3 raids in June, which is less than half my normal yield. And those were done primarily to prevent the priates from carting away the loot. It does not matter to the towns if Beneke or an unknow pirate aka John bizpro Le Blund takes the coffers. At least I reinvest in the community through new businesses and loans.
    This year, more than ever before, we will need additional supplies, and ships, which are kindly provided by impounding on shaky loans. The reputation earned with the goods far outweighs the loss of repuation for impounding. I am short of my goal for June but, with any luck, should surpass the 200 mark in mid August. Counting on 10% ships frome those would provide a nice influx of 20 ships early in the next year. Since I did not get a desirabel bride, I passed and am now waiting for one that comes with a two-ship dowry.
    From the German forum I see that players are pondering on white strategies but it seems that most cannot resist the chance to raid a few ships. Armed with 4 cutlasses, the starting snaikka will yield 5 ships before the need to add crew arises. There are enough waiting in Gothenburg to relieve the whites of another 3 or 4 ships, which is a good starting point. Londond has enough weapons to arm two upgraded snaikkas and a short stop in Brugge will leave each with around 10; enough to take over a crayer from escort missions.
    There are two revenge missions which yield level 2 snaikkas in reasonable shape. By the end of June none of the pirate convoy will survive. And, as posted earlier, I don't care if I get a holk or cog; the safety of the seas is the paramount task.
    I believe the rush to make LM in Reval is to have access to the AM missions. What's the difference between destroying priates with or without mission? There are simply not enough bricks to start a new production town in 1300, at least not I my "slow" game. And, if you start the production town January 01 or May 01 really doesn't matter. It's not merely placing the brickyards, they have to be populated as well. And trying it the fast way requires more goods than there are available so you must concentrate on one or two towns to bring them up fast.
    According to my simple spreadsheet the following goods will be in surplus for 24,000 citizens once the plants have been fully staffed:
    beer, fish, grain, timber, meat, pitch, wool, pig iron and whale oil.
    However, with merely 29 brickyards there is simply not enough to go around and any further expansion will require more bfg goods. I have a contract to import 705 cloth @ 220, which is nice for starters. It will allow further building activites and the advacne of at least 3 more yards. At the momen I have London at 3 lanterns and Stettin & Hamburg at 2. I am not pushing Edinburgh until I have some cogs to take on better pirate ships.


    @ Charlotte:
    I haven't used a mouse in eons; it's trackballs for me. First, you dont have to move your arm for miles and secondly, my thumb is stronger than my index finger. :P
    Pirates know how to build ships, they even start sooner than others since they have the funds by selling the zero-cost goods. A prize with 9 skins and some timber equals a new ship. You just have to get the scarce cloth and pitch.

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • Baltic Trader:


    After reading your impressive starting stats I wonder if the callus on your index finger is from brandishing scalpels or playing P III ;)


    We just have to make a believer in loans out of you and you'll do just fine :giggle:

    Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new
    Wer niemals einen Fehler gemacht hat, hat noch nie etwas neues probiert Albert Einstein

  • Thanks. :giggle:


    I play on a laptop, touchscreen. Middle and index finger fatigue. :(


    As you can probably guess, the captain from Edinburgh was the one I used. I bought some Ig and grain in London, and sailed to Edinburgh. I daytraded everything, anything I could make a profit on, like beer at 1 per barrel; stayed until I had enough pitch, cloth, to build a second ship, and sailed to Brugge carrying pig iron, too. Sailing time was more important, had to adjust the cargo until it took only three days.


    I told you earlier the trading part is much easier than our contests were at these settings.


    Side effects are that everyone in Brugge and Edinburgh see me as Lord Mayor.


    Shipping is of course the major problem. I agree, the loans for ships gambit is probably best. The marriage option I will explore too, a fast check shows a 17 year old unknown with a snaikka. But overall in this game, it may be that the white option is best. Bricks are so few I don't see much advantage in a rapid trade office buildup. It may be better to grow in stages. 8)