HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: maboyiny@ccvax.as.edu.tw (Bo-Yin Yang)
Subject: Re: Marsh/Plains
Summary: I dunno, they seem to work fine.
Originator: boyiny@kovalevskaya
Keywords: titan, triple, recruiting
Reply-To: maboyiny@ccvax.as.edu.tw (Bo-Yin Yang)
Organization: The Cosmic Titan
Date: Sun, 13 Sep 92 23:21:33 GMT

[Tim Worseley]
>	The three ogre/centaur line is generally a long shot.  It's worth going
>sometimes if you have split-out tower creatures, but it's not really a
>good plan for your main stacks.  You need to build strength fast in
>those stacks, and carrying arround tower cretures in the hopes of
>getting into the woods/hills is very risky.  If you get attacked before
>you get there, you'll have tower peices against your opponet's trolls,
>and you know how that ends up.

This must be a really different group of gamers that you have there.  At
the MIT "Warroom" some 1/3 of the opening moves involves a tripling of
Ogres or Centaurs.  You got to remember that Centaurs aren't that much
worse than Lions.... On a 1 a lot of people that I know will go for a
triple, especially if a THREE on the next move is bad otherwise.

Certainly playing 2- and 3-handed games there is a LONG time before stacks
intermingle, and with more hands people are NOT eager at all to attack with
Trolls, and you will get your reprieve.




Lineater-fodder



Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: ristad@beam.Princeton.EDU (Eric Sven Ristad)
Subject: simple two-player adversarial game
Originator: news@nimaster
Organization: Princeton University
Distribution: unlimited
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 01:50:07 GMT

Can you please recommend a very simple two-player adversarial game, 
that would be easy to program a next-move generator for?
I'd like to experiment with some minimax search procedures.
Thanks,
Eric
 
ristad@princeton.edu
From: maboyiny@ccvax.as.edu.tw (Bo-Yin Yang)
Subject: Re: Marsh/Plains
Summary: I see nothing wrong...
Originator: boyiny@kovalevskaya
Keywords: titan, minotaur, warbear, fighting.
Reply-To: maboyiny@ccvax.as.edu.tw (Bo-Yin Yang)
Organization: The Cosmic Titan
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 92 10:06:37 GMT

[David desJardins responding to me on the Warbear vs. Minotaur thread.]
>>Also, a Warbear is often useless if you are trying to preserve it in a
>>superior attack (it becomes a liability) while a Minotaur can rangestrike
>>from behind a "death-hole" or a bog, not to mention take two Cyclops-rounds
>>and survive (a majority of the time).
>
>This last comment is a bit biased because of the "rock-scissors-paper"
>aspect of Titan: fours are best against twos, twos against threes, and
>threes against fours.  The warbear has a much smaller chance than the
>minotaur of being killed by two rounds of centaur or gargoyle attacks.

I acknowledge that fact, but would like to point out that no less than half
of the second- and first- level creatures are in fact skill two's....  Not
to mention the fact that the Cyclops is the only fellow among the
lower-level critters who is sturdy enough to have realistic hopes of
surviving in a death hole for one round under normal circumstances, which
was the topic at hand.

I should also say en passant that the reason that people pick up a third
Minotaur and not a third Warbear in the local expansion set game is
precisely because of the fact that people feel a Warbear is a weaker piece
and hence hasten to get something higher instead of tripling.

Let's put this to a rest sometime soon as the net is probably  tired of
From: v122jr52@ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu (Thomas H Dunning)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: Tyranno Ex?
Keywords: Review Wanted
Date: 15 Sep 92 00:10:00 GMT
Organization: University at Buffalo
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41

In article <1992Sep14.213312.1624@cbnewsm.cb.att.com>, beowulf@cbnewsm.cb.att.com (john.a.foley) writes...
>What's the good word on Avalon Hill's Tyranno Ex
>(the so-called game of evolution)?  Physically
>it looks super.  How does it play?  Is it just
>for family, is it good for B & P, or even more?
>Thanks!
_______________________________________________________________________________

I haven't actually played the game but it looks to be an update of an 
earlier game named QUIRKS put out by EON years ago...
Any comments on similarities between the two games anyone?

					td
Newsgroups: rec.games.board,rec.games.frp.misc
From: staats@athena.mit.edu (Dick)
Subject: Re: Clay O'Rama
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1992 21:23:36 GMT

What is this famed Clay O'Rama?  (Am I <shudder-shudder> the only person in the
world yet not to play this game?)  :-0

Thank you in advance,

Rich

P.S. Could anyone give a synopsis of rules, price, etc.?  ;-)  RCS
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: bstrassm@nyx.cs.du.edu (Brian Strassman)
Subject: Re: BTECH-RiflemanVarient
Organization: University of Denver, Dept. of Math & Comp. Sci.
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 92 20:35:13 GMT

kgnome@cs.concordia.ca (MATIS stephane) writes:


>From: bstrassm@nyx.cs.du.edu (Brian Strassman)

>  > I like the idea.  This 'Mech would be a good thing to have on Solari

>  > VII, using the new 'Mech duelling rules from that boxed set.  As I 
>  > quite tragically found out during the Gunslinger tournament at
>  > GenCon/Origins '92, an LB-10X autocannon, aimed for the punch damage
>  > location table (the rules in Solaris VII let you do that), can kill 
>  > a pilot in short order due to the amount of head hits.  And, if you
>  > have two of them, and since the delay on an LB-10X is only 1, you ca

>  > put the autocannons on separate TICs and fire one of them while the
>  > other one is cycling.  This way, you can keep up a volume of fire th
t
>  > will put a 'Mech down in short order. 
>  
>I guess Brian that the UK boys played their famous trick on you. Yes, I
>heard that Annahilators were a mean party!

>                                        > Brian M. Strassman
>                                        > strassbm@cnsvax.uwec.edu

>Roll!       ___      +--------------------------------------------------
+
>Over!   __ ( . )      From        : Stephane I. Matis
>      _/__\(___)      Internet    : kgnome@cs.concordia.ca
>    / /\\[==]//\ \    Working for : Monenco Systems Group 
>   /_/  |THOR|  \_\   Working  at : Newfoundland Offshore Contractors 
>  [00] _//==\\_ [00]  Writing for : Mecha*Press and FASA's BattleTech
>      / _/--\_ \      		    Dream Pod 9
>     |__|    |__|     "It Just Works... " - Steve Paul Jobs, CEO NeXT
>     (__]    [__)     "Clam Warships are landing on Toycod !" - Anonymou

>    [_=_]    [_=_]   +--------------------------------------------------
+
Tell me about it... :-(  Of course, the problem could have been compounded
by the fact that I stupidly piloted a Black Knight into the duel.  Next
year at GenCon, I'm going to pilot something with a few more projectile
weapons... :-)
  Which brings me to a related Solaris VII rules question...how exactly do
heat sinks dissipate heat under the duelling rules?  There's an example
given in the book, which I found somewhat confusing.  (The nice gentleman I
duelled against from MechForce UK was kind enough to explain it to me 
before he blew my Black Knight to hell with his Annihilator, but I don't
remember what he said...)
 
                                 Brian M. Strassman
                                 strassbm@cnsvax.uwec.edu
From: cjs@phy.duke.edu (Carl Schnurr)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Summary of Conquest Replies
Date: 11 Sep 92 15:43:23 GMT
Organization: Duke University Physics Dept.; Durham, N.C.

A few people have already posted fairly complete descriptions of 
the game "Conquest".  For those of you who might be interested in
second opinions, here's a summary of the email responses I received.  
Thanks for all the replies!  I probably won't be purchasing it as
I'm not that into chess-like games, but perhaps a few people who are
will go out and give Conquest a try.  Thanks again,

-Carl

*****

I have a copy of this game, but it's been some time since I looked
at it.

Conquest is not a real wargame as such. It is more like chess. I have the
four player version and we never really liked it much. Each player gets 
a set number of movement points for his entire army to be split any way he
wants. Thus he can move a horse ten or two infantry five each, etc. After
one player has made all his moves the next goes. Combat is merely taking
pieces during movement, like in chess.

The pieces are neat, but the game was not very interesting.

Rich Edwards

*****

I played it once, many years ago.  The neat part about the movement rules
were that each player got a certain number of movement points which could
be used to move as many of his pieces as desired.  For instance, one unit
could move 10 spaces, or two units could each move 5 spaces, etc.  There
were soldiers, elephants, and boats.  The humans could ride the elephants,
and they could also ride the boats (with or without the elephant).  
I don't recall the combat, but I think it was kinda chesslike (no randomness).

Martin Snow
 
*****

    I have played this game.  Actually my roomate has three copies of it
and at one time was writting a computer version.  Unfortuanately, the guy
who came up with the game showed absolutely no interest in a computer
version, so my roommate stopped working on.

    The game is setup up on two islands and the object is to capture the
other guys island.  Each type of peice has a different movement allowance. 
Men can be placed on elephants and chariots.  It is pretty cool but I am no
good at it.

Hope this meager message helps.

Nick Witchey

*****
-- 
	Carl J. Schnurr					1-919-684-8256
	Duke University Dept. of Physics        	cjs@phy.duke.edu
	Durham, N.C.      27706			
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: jerry@planck (Gerald Siek)
Subject: Re: Speed Circuit
Reply-To: jerry@uni-paderborn.de
Organization: University of Paderborn, Germany
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL4
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 07:46:26 GMT

alr@cbnewsh.cb.att.com (andrew.l.reibman) writes:
: What is the car's speed when it travels through the curve
: (for determining wear) - is it the written speed or the distance
: traveled.

The German rules clearly state that the written speed is used.  Thus,
using the slipstream bonus in curves is even better than in any other
positions.


: Do cars begin the game at their start speed (which is
: also there maximum allowable speed at the start of the game)
: or at 0? 

They begin at their start speed.

Regards,

	Jerry
--
  Gerald Siek  -  jerry@uni-paderborn.de  -  University of Paderborn, Germany
From: taia_a@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: BTECH - MG mechs: Carwars better vehicles :)
Date: 16 Sep 92 13:24:46 NZST
Organization: Welligton City Council, Public Access.
NNTP-Posting-Host: kosmos.wcc.govt.nz

In article <1992Sep15.123011.952@ccsvax.sfasu.edu>, z_copeab@ccsvax.sfasu.edu writes:
> In article <1992Sep15.124705.516@HQ.Ileaf.COM>, hal@HQ.Ileaf.COM (Hal Wadleigh) writes:

>> It's enough to drive you back to Car Wars.

> 	Except that CW has a better vehicle combat system :-)
> Brandon Cope

 Agreed!!! LOL!!!! :)

FINAL POINT: People lets remember that others lack our fine tastes in Btech.
 So lets remember to put in those BTECH: etc in the headers :)

This has been....
 Tony Taia
  TAIA_A@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz, tai-shu@kauri.vuw.ac.nz
3068: The surrender of the Clans to the Draconis League :)
From: Bruce_Harper@mindlink.bc.ca (Bruce Harper)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: Hostility in Gamers toward Certain Games
Date: 9 Sep 92 15:46:42 GMT
Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada

I'm having a very hard time figuring out what all this is about, but I thought
the posting which referred to "rule-playing games" was very perceptive - there
are such games (and such players).
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: pad@probitas.cs.utas.edu.au (Paul A Daniels)
Subject: Battletroops/Clantroops
Organization: University of Tasmania, Australia.
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 21:57:25 GMT

	It looks as if I have got enough money for another battletech purchase 
:) , What are peoples opinions on clantroops or battle troops?

	Could someone give a brief outline of what thes sets are like?
Oh and do you need battletroops before you can use clantroops?

	Any info will be greatly appreciated

		Paul.
-
pad@probitas.cs.utas.edu.au

Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: rbr@well.sf.ca.us (Bob Rossney)
Subject: Re: Stock market mechanisms
Organization: Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link
Distribution: rec
Date: Sat, 12 Sep 1992 02:01:24 GMT

In <JBA.92Sep11150317@kix.ai.mit.edu> jba@ai.mit.edu (Jonathan Amsterdam) writes:

>I'm curious about the mechanisms used to simulate stock markets in various
>games.  I already know about Supremacy's (losing) method, but I don't know
>how, e.g., AH's Stock Market or Stocks and Bonds games work.  I saw them in
>a store today and was tempted to buy them just to satisfy my curiosity, but
>then I realized that this is a much cheaper way to do it!  Will someone
>familiar with these games please tell me how they do it?  Thanks.

>	Jonathan Amsterdam

Stocks and Bonds is very simpleminded.  Each turn you draw a card telling
you whether it is a bull or a bear market.  This tells you which of two
charts to use.  You roll a pair of dice, which identifies a table in the
column containing price increases and decreases for each stock.

It's been a long time since I played The Stock Market Game, but I believe
the mechanism used depends on the number of players who are buying in a turn
and the number who are selling.

You should look at the 1829/1830/1835/1853 games for an interesting approach
to a stock market.  The fortunes of the stocks on the market depend on two
variables:  whether or not the company payed a dividend during the operating
round (the price goes up if it did), and whether or not people are buying
or selling the stock in question.  (Actually, it's even more complicated.)

I tend to dislike pure stock market games.  Out here in what it pleases us
to call the real world, most people who enter the stock market do so with an
appreciation for the fact that the fate of the stocks that they're buying is
tied, in some way, to the fortunes of the company that is selling it.  The
two games you mentioned treat stocks as though they were abstract
commodities having nothing at all to do with the outside world, like
paintings or rare furniture.  What makes the 18xx games great is the
potential for interaction between the players who are investing in companies
and the players who are controlling their operations--who are often the same
people, heh heh.

Bob Rossney
rbr@well.sf.ca.us
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: msteeves@cs.ulowell.edu (darkelf)
Subject: Re: Kingmaker question
Organization: University of Massachusetts at Lowell Computer Science
Distribution: rec
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 11:46:38 GMT

Also on the subject of Kingmaker, in the General there appeared a variant for
"Shakespearean" type of play, and influencing lords and nobles and other
such.  Out of curiosity, is this variant worth giving at least one try?

Thanks,

darkelf

-- 
send all replies to	    |"You're gonna pay, or 
msteeves@cs.ulowell.edu or  | Pizza will send out for YOU!!!!!"
steevesm@woods.ulowell.edu  |			-SPACEBALLS
+++++++++Go Nordiques+++++++|++++++++++++++The Wizard for MVP++++++++++++++++++
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: BTECH: Crossbow XBW-1K
From: phygod72@nic.gac.edu (Phil )
Date: 10 Sep 92 14:43:06 -0600

} Arrow IV System           15         8RA/7RT    15.0
} Ammo (Arrow) 20            4         2RT/2RL     4.0
} Large Pulse Laser          2           2RA       7.0
} Arrow IV System           15         8LA/7LT    15.0
} Ammo (Arrow) 20            4         2LT/2LL     4.0
} Large Pulse Laser          2           2LA       7.0
} TAG                        1           1H        1.0
} Electronics                2           2CT       1.5
}                          ----                  ------
}                           51                   100.0


Well, there is a minor difficulty with mechs that have this configuration -  
they are horrid in a tight battle...not to mention the fact that you  
essentially screw yourself as far as field of fire goes...you can't have arm  
actuators if you combine the torsos with the arms, which screws you if you were  
to ever get into close combat.  Granted, one does not expect to get into close  
combat with a mech of this configuration, but it happens relatively often (one  
battle in three).

}  The Large Pulse Lasers were a matter of contention between the testpilots
} and the designers. Since the Crossbow would rarely engage the enemy in
} close range, long range weapons were asked for by the pilots. Since the
} upgrades of the Panther, Lord's Light PPCs were in plentiful supply. This
} lead to pilots demanding their installation. Since the mech lacked the
} "honor and glory of its' station". But due to the extremely low ton:size
} ratios of the Arrows this was not possible and the Large Pulse Lasers
} were installed instead.

Well, since you already have a death long-range system from hell, perhaps a  
close-range weapons package would be preferable...for those close encounters.
One can theorize that no one will get close enough for it to matter, but that  
will only hold true if it is only a one-on-one battle.  Though, if I were going  
to chose a system between LPLs and PPCs, I guarantee that the LPLs would win  
out - better damage:heat, plus the -2 to hit, added to the fact that I have  
long-range already...

My strategy against a mech like this would be to utilize speed and  
manuverability to avoid being hit and take it out as quick as possible.  My  
opponent would more than likely divert his firepower resources against the  
threat to his big guns, allowing me to get my heavy and assult mechs in an  
advantageous position.

All in all, this mech looks like it would be included in a TR - lots of room  
for improvement, but not exceptional on its own.

Phil aka just my $.02, which is meaning less and less as time goes on...
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: jdarnold@HQ.Ileaf.COM (Jonathan Arnold)
Subject: Re: Civil War Strategic games
Organization: Interleaf, Inc.
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 92 12:14:40 GMT

In article <STONE.92Sep8090434@gershwin.cs.unc.edu> stone@gershwin.cs.unc.edu (Donald Stone) writes:
>
>In article <8SEP199210203026@vxcrna.cern.ch> casper@vxcrna.cern.ch (CASPER,DAVI./PPE) writes:
>   The VG game "The Civil War" is managable and fairly complete.  The physical
>   quality is good, as usual for Victory Games.  It contains all the necessary
>   military, leadership, and naval elements.  I recommend it as the best game
>   I have seen on the Civil War.
>   There is also GDW's A House Divided, which is much simpler, yet still somewhat
>   historical and a very challenging game.
>There is a new game out from Clash of Arms:  War for the Union (???)
>Anybody played this one yet?  Impressions?

I have it but haven't played it yet.  The map is beautiful, if a
little busy.  The counters are pretty good, but not up to the usual
standards for CoA games, I don't think.  The text on the back of the
box couldn't be any worse or more amateurish.  There are typos, bad
grammar, and other problems (the Westward expansion was done by
colonists who were "headless" of Indian attacks????).  There are two
sets of rules, one basic and one advanced.  One nice touch is that
both are completely seperate, so there's no "Refer back to the basic
rules for this rule" stuff.  However, in just a brief reading of the
basic rules there was some confusion, especially for some rules which
mentioned something like "Do it like the previous paragraph", when I
don't really see the connection.  Of course, the previous paragraph
had an example, but this one didn't.  And some Basic Rules confusions
were cleared up by looking at the Advanced Rules.

I'll let you know more once I give it a test run.

+=================================+================================+
| Jonathan Arnold                 |  Interleaf, Inc.               |
| jdarnold@ileaf.com              |  Prospect Place                |
| Home: (617)335-5457             |  9 Hilside Avenue              |
| Bus: (617)290-4990 x5489        |  Waltham, MA 02154             |
+=================================+================================+

Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: peters@physics.ubc.ca (Dan Peters)
Subject: Re: REPUBLIC OF ROME question
Organization: University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1992 00:11:07 GMT

Dominik Zemmler writes:

>A question about Republic of Rome:
>What happens with a non-victorious Dictator?
>Can he become a Proconsul and continue the battle next year?
>What happens with his Master of Horse in that case?
>Or do they have to return to Rome and be reappointed before
>continuing the war (thus gaining additional influence)?

A Dictator becomes a Proconsul exactly the same way that a Consul does.
What happens to the MH in this case seems to be neglected in the rulebook - 
I've always assumed that the MH goes back to Rome during the Revolution Phase.

Drin
--
-----------------
Gutted - Flame NA
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: hal@HQ.Ileaf.COM (Hal Wadleigh)
Subject: BTECH - machine gun mechs
Summary: Rules violation
Keywords: mechs BattleTech machine guns rules
Reply-To: hal@HQ.Ileaf.COM (Hal Wadleigh)
Organization: Interleaf, Inc.
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 92 15:36:22 GMT

Check all those massive machine gun 'mechs for legality.  A magazine can feed
no more than two weapons and must be at least 1/2 ton minimum.  I doubt that
those munchkin machine gun purcupines follow this rule.  Also remember that a
'mech can jump no farther than it can walk.

These are the most frequently-ignored rules.  It's great fun in a game against
a munchkinner to let him put his 'mech on the board, then restrict it to the
rules.  Jumping farther than a walk results in an uncontrolled fall of the
number of levels of the jump.  The number of WORKING machine guns is limited to
four times the number of tons of M.G.Ammo (and must be chosen at the time of
first firing).

Newsgroups: rec.games.board