Triangular tile laying mechanism needed.

The triangles are all designed to touch the other, in order to form a universe of hexagons(parsecs). Each triangular tile would represent a sector of a parsec in the game.

180 is a LOT of tiles, but it only equates to 30 hexagons in size. So, it's not really a HUGE amount of space we are dealing with here. The reason for so many tiles, is to diversify the game 'universe', so to speak. So, that each and every game played will be unique, and therefore present a new challenge.

I've tried a few things, such as.....

Drawing each tile from a bag randomly and just laying them down one by one until a game universe is created. That took way too much time.

I've tried shuffling the tiles and distributing them evenly amongst the players so that they could create the game universe themselves. They never enjoyed that.

The other mechanic I was thinking of implementing was to again distribute the tiles evenly amongst the players, and allowing them to place them on board face down, but revealing the actual attributes of the tile to others as they got within range to explore it. I am leaning towards implementing this mechanic to the game, if I receive no better alternatives.

I hope that answers your questions.

Further comments, questions, ideas would be appreciated. :)

-Karl

IngredientX Posted:

Instead, you can have about 15 or so "starter hexes," shaped and arranged like those in Settlers of Catan. Players can then draw 1-5 triangular tiles on their turn, and place them adjacent to a starter hex or another triangular tile.

This might be the best compromise; and a combinations of rules and strategy can determine how many tiles a player draws, and where he may place them.

Hmmmm, the problem I would have if I implemented this, would be the same as the problem I have now. Only it would take half the amount of time to set-up the first 15 hexes on the board.

I'm looking for a faster, more efficient way of creating the game universe. The universe doesn't necessarily have to be created before the game begins, so a few starting hexes would be a good idea. 15 is probably too many though. 7 is more likely.

I do like your idea of a player being able to draw the tiles, and placing them on the board as he see fits. This could be a good way to introduce strategy into the game, by allowing players to create 'natural' defenses (with asteroids) and easier passages to other parsecs (via worm holes), etc. Although this would detract from any hint of 'realism' I was hoping to give the game.

Thanks for your suggestions, IngredientX. :)

Are there any other mechanics I could use to place these tiles? Anyone?

jwarrend Posted

But, do they have to be 180 individual tiles? What if instead you "bundled" them into larger tiles (of whatever shape you want), each of which has several triangles printed on it. A good example of this is the large tiles in Attika, each of which has 8 hexes printed on it. You'll lose a little bit of randomness, but since the orientation and relative location of these large tiles can change from game to game you should still have just as much replay value.

The only way I could imagine bundling the tiles up, would be into bundles of 2 or 3. This creates a dilemma for me though, because I am not particularly fond of having super powered tiles (eg, 2 or 3 planets on them, 2 or 3 asteroids, etc.), that everyone (other than the owner of that tile) will complain about.

sedjtroll Posted:

The game is intended to be based upon space exploration, colonisation, trading and technology. It will feel similar to Twilight Imperium & Stellar Conquest in game play, although not as militaristic.

I like the idea of drawing tiles from a face up pile, and replacing it with another as you suggested. The tile could then either be held onto or played immediately. Having an handsize for tiles would be good also. Handsize could be increased by a technology of some form in another part of this game. I'm liking this idea very much! Thanks. :)

Now that I'm getting a better idea of the mechanics I would like to see in this game for laying tiles, I think that it will be something that people do every turn, depending on whether or not they have moved into a position to explore, and their technology advances in space exploration.

The main reason that I want to create this with triangular tiles, is because I have them already (240 of them to be precise). So, I feel compelled to make the game with these.

Thanks for your comments and suggestions. They have been very helpful. :)

More comments, suggestions, etc are welcomed.

-Karl.

Nazhuret Posted:

the 'characters' (players) are not gods (unless, of course, theyARE...) when playing these game.. they are folks out in their tin cans going where no man has gone before. if they knew / could choose what was there before they even went there well.. that seems more like a god-like construction game and less like a space exploration game.

so anyway, ONE stack, FACE DOWN and NO CHOICES before a ship actually, physically goes there and reports on what they have found. (of course if a society has technology sufficient to carry them between the stars you'd think they could make a telescope or somthing to tell them what was there before they even fired up the rocket... )
Ok. I take onboard your comments there.

I feel as though I can create a game mechanic, that allows for players to choose the type of sector in space (from the tiles in their hand) and place them as they see fit, with the ideas that have previously been suggested in this thread.

To keep the 'exploration' theme in the game though, all a player would need to do is place his tile face down on the game board, until he intends to settle upon it, use it a worm hole, etc.

In order for other players to then know what that particular sector represented, all they would have to do, is to be in a position with either a ship or via technology to reveal the tile to them. So, only the player who placed the tile, would actually know if the tile was an asteroid, planet, worm hole or space, until the other players had explored that sector themselves, or the player who had placed the tile voluntarily made it's value known to others.

what i'm trying to say is, perhaps have a seperate "search" roll for finding wormholes in ANY space you HAVE explored / have a ship. mark that you've searched and found nothing and mark that you've searched and found something... if you go through randomize the terminus and place a "found" marker there (have corresponding nomenclature of course... ie: A, B, C X2 each...) maybe have a modifier for more advanced ships / more ships per sector.
Currently the worm holes have names, A1 & A2, B1 &2, C1 & C2 and so on. You would only be allowed to travel through worm holes that have the same name (Eg, Enter A1, exit A2 or vice-versa). Travelling through them though could come at a cost. It will probably be a random die roll to see if they make the journey safely or not. The die roll could be modified to increase the chances of a safe journey by a technology advance.

I think some form of teleportation technology could make that possible instead.

Thanks for your comments. :)

-Karl.

IngredientX Posted:

I agree. Giving the players a choice of positions to place a tile will be something I strive to implement in this game. However, the choice they receive will be mainly dependant on how the players position themselves on the game board.

For instance: A player may send an explorer to a parsec on the gameboard that has 2 or more unexplored tiles, this would give the player the option to place his tile in the sector he deems appropriate for strategical/tactical purposes. Should the player send his explorer to a parsec that has only one unexplored tile though, then the choice of positioning would be taken away. The player may however have several unexplored sectors available to place his tile(s), therefore giving him a whole range of positions to place them.

To keep the 'exploration' theme in the game though, all a player would need to do is place his tile face down on the game board, until he intends to settle upon it, use it a worm hole, etc.

In order for other players to then know what that particular sector represented, all they would have to do, is to be in a position with either a ship or via technology to reveal the tile to them. So, only the player who placed the tile, would actually know if the tile was an asteroid, planet, worm hole or space, until the other players had explored that sector themselves, or the player who had placed the tile voluntarily made it's value known to others.

That sounds quite reasonable. There might be some gamers turned off by the face-down tiles, though, because that turns it into a memory game.
There would be no memory element to the game at all where that was concerned. Once a tile has been turned face up(settled upon, utilised by that tiles' placer or explored by everyone) then the tile would stay face up for the remainder of the game.

Thanks again for your comments. Keep them coming! :)

-Karl.