Empire Deluxe Enhanced Edition

Game Setup Interface

Quick Links:

• Game Setup Overview
• Game Setup Menus
• Game Configurations
• Game Setup Tabs
  • General Info Tab
  • Rules Options
  • Victory Conditions Tab
  • Map Info Tab
  • Units Tab
  • Players Tab
  • Connections Tab
  • Advertise Tab
• Game Setup Errors
• Restarting Games
• PBM Play

Other Detail Links

• The Manual
• Game Rules And Concepts

Game Setup Overview

Setting up game of Empire Deluxe can be as simple or as complex as you want it. In the simplest of games, you only need to press "Begin Play" to start. In more complex games, you have a variety of options that you can save as configurations for future reference.

Limits in the Game

The philosophy behind some of the setup design is to try to avoid setting hard coded limits on values when possible. What this means is you can set up a game with 1000 AI opponents if you wish, or one million buy points, or a map measuring 20,000 by 35,000 squares. (They are limited to 65K sides until the 64 bit operating system and machines come out).

All of this means that you are quite capable of crashing the program at anytime, and possibly 'wedging' your machine if you set parameters well beyond your computer's capacity memory-wise. It has been left up to you to determine what these limits are.

It is also possible to set up a game where the AI is unable to function properly, or performance becomes poor. Again, since there is a wide array of current machine types in existence,  and who knows what the future will bring, that it is up to you to decide what your computer can handle.

And as a disclaimer, Killer Bee Software is not responsible for situations you cause by not taking care that the parameters you set are within your machines capabilities.

Configuration Name

This holds the name of the current loaded configuration. You may also enter the name of a configuration if you are going to want to save it for future use.

Begin Play Button

Press this to start a game.

The information contained within the Game Setup Display is a combination of Menus and Tabs.

Game Setup Menus
 

• Maps/Scenarios Options - For choosing or loading maps and scenarios.
  • Use a Random Map - Select this option and the game you are setting up will use a random map. Check out the "Random Map Info" Tab for configuring the map.
  • Load a Map File - This option will load a previously created map file (extension *.emp). You can still configure the cities for the map. Check the "Map File Info" tab for more details.
  • Use a Scenario File - This option will load a previously created scenario file for the game. The "Map/Scenario Info" tab will have some details on the scenario.

   

• Opponent Options - Here you can select network, email or solitaire play for your game.
  • Solitaire Play - It will be only you and some computer players. Check the "Players" tab for details.
  • Email Play - It will be you and at least another human in an email battle. Check the "PBEM Players" tab for details.
  • Network Play - You want to play h2h over a network or the Internet. Check the "Network Players" tab to set the players, the "Connections" tab for configuring the connectivity of the game, and the "Advertise" tab if you wish to send an open invitation to the game over the Internet.

   

• Game Configurations - Under these options you can save the current configuration, load a previously saved one, and set the default configuration for future setups.
  • Load Configuration - Loads a previously saved configuration file. (extension *.ecf).
  • Save Configuration - Save this configuration for future reference/use.
  • Choose Default Configuration - Select a configuration file that will be loaded by default on game setup.

Game Setup Tabs

Many game setup options are displayed as tabs to help you sort through the choices you have. Some of the tabs, such as the Map and Players tabs, are dynamic depending on the options you have selected from the menu.

The Tabs Available are:

• General Tab
• Rules Options
• Victory Conditions Tab
• Map Info Tab
• Units Tab
• Players Tab
• Connections Tab
• Advertise Tab

General Info Tab

Game Summary Display

This shows all the options configured for this game.

 

Rules Options Tab

Rules Tree

This contains various rules and options for playing the game. Brief explanations of the rules are provided below. Further information may be provided in the game concepts section.

• Exploration Mode (Details)
  • Nothing Visible - The map starts out blank. You must explore it.
  • Terrain Visible - You can see the terrain on the map, but have no idea where cities and other units are. (Note: the Standard AI is currently not able to play games of this type).
  • Terrain and City-types Visible (As Neutrals) - The terrain can be seen, and any city units will be initially displayed as neutrals.
  • Terrain and All units visible - You will see everything, terrain and all units.

   

• Sighting Information (Details)
  • No Names In Sightings - No units will have a name when spotted.
  • Only City Type Names In Sightings - Cities will be named, but not other sighted units.
  • All Unit Names In Sightings - Every sighting will have its true unit name.

   

• Initial City Selection (Details)
  • Totally Random - Your city locations will be determined randomly.
  • Spiral Selection - Your first city location will be determined randomly. The subsequent locations will be the closest available city to the first locations.
  • Select On Map - You will chose your city's location.

   

• Initial Buy Points (Details)
  • No Buy Points Allowed - Even if setup in the "Player" tab, players will not get to use buy points in this game.
  • Placed in Cities - Units purchased with buy points must be placed in a city.
  • Placed anywhere on Map - Units purchased with buy points can be placed anywhere on the map.

   

• Production Rules (Details)
  • Allow Continuing Production - Producers get a bonus for producing the second and subsequent unit of a type.
  • Allow Production Specialties - Producers may have production specialties, allowing them to build a certain unit type faster, and other types slower.
  • Allow Production Efficiencies - Producers will have a production efficiency rating which will indicate how quickly they can produce units.
  • Allow Resource Drain - Players will suffer a production time penalty if they start production with too many units already in their force.
  • Allow Production Supply - Players can take advantage of special units that can help offset production drain or speed up an individual unit's production time.

   

• Mines and Roads
  • Allow Roads - Roads can be built and used in the game to assist the movement of ground units.
  • Allow Mines - Players may place mines to try and thwart enemy maneuvers.

   

• Resources - Specifies how resources will be used in the game.
  • No Resources Allowed - Resources will not play a part in the game.
  • Limited Resources - Special units can be built at resource locations to reduce the production drain, but each resource location can only be exploited for a limited number of turns.
  • Unlimited Resources - Special units can be built at resource locations to reduce the production drain and they can always be exploited.

   

• Nuclear Weapons - Specifies if nuclear weapons can have terrain-altering effects.
  • Change Nuked Terrain To Wasteland - The location at which a nuclear attack occurred will change into wasteland for the remainder for the game.

   

• Movement Rules
  • Allow Crippled Effects - Units that are "Crippled" will suffer movement penalties.

   

• Combat
  • Allow Digging In - Ground units may dig in and receive a defensive advantage when attacked.
  • Allow Unit Efficiencies - Units will tire with each combat and must rest to regain effectiveness.
  • Allow Unit Experience - Units may gain higher maximum efficiency levels after successful combat.
  • Allow Defensive Fire - Range units may fire defensively during an opponent's turn.
  • Allow Repairs - Damaged units can be repaired.
  • Allow Crippled Effects - "Crippled" units will suffer a penalty when attacking.

   

• Player Gifts
  • Allow Player Gifts - Players may give away units to the neutral player or another player.

   

• Alliances (Details)
  • Explore Treaties - Players may agree to share visible terrain information.
  • Spotting Treaties - Players may agree to share sighting information.
  • Shared Supply Treaties - Players may agree to link their supply capabilities.
  • Stacking Treaties - Players may agree to allow their units to pass through each other without combat.
  • Reveal Treaties - Players may agree to show their unit positions to each other.
  • Team Treaties - Players can work as teams and share a combined score.
  • Treaties can be broken - Players can dissolve treaties if desired.

   

Recording

Record Game - Games may be recorded and played back after a game has been finished. It is recommended that this option not be used in Play-By-Email Games.

Game Clocks 

A game clock can be used to place time pressure on players in the game. If the clock expires, that person's turn has ended.

• Use Clocks - Check this to use timing clocks with the game
• Secs Per Player Option - Specified number of seconds player will be allotted each turn.
• Secs Per Units Option - Specified number of seconds per unit owned that will be allotted each turn.
• Turn 1 - Extra number of seconds available on turn 1.
• Notify - This is the value in seconds that the clock will tick down by.
• Carry Over Unused Time - Time not used will be saved for the next turn.

Weather Rules
 

Weather can be added to the game to affect movement and spotting. There are three weather settings:

• None - No weather will be in the game. Always sunny.
• Global - Weather will have a global effect on the map.
• Systems - There will be weather systems roaming the map.

For "Systems", the following data can be specified:

• Frequency - The influence on how often the weather changes.
• Max System Sizes - Maximum diameter in map squares of a weather system.

Victory Conditions Tab

Player Victory and Defeat is separated into three different areas. These are:

• Friendly Victory Options
• Enemy Defeat Options
• Other Victory Options

Friendly Victory Options

These are condition under which you can win a game.

• Annihilation Victory -Win if all enemy units are destroyed.
• Controlled Cities - Win if a specified percentage of the total cites on the map are captured and controlled for the specified number of turns.
• Average Production Efficiency - Win if player maintains an average production efficiency value for a specified number of turns.
• Total Production Efficiency - Win if player has at least the specified cumulative value of production efficiency for the specified number of turns.
• Important Cities - Win if player controls a specified percentage of cities marked as "important" for the specified number of turns.
• Unit Damage Strength - Win if the player maintains a cumulative damage strength of units for the specified number of turns.
• Number Of Units - Win if a player maintains a specified number of units for the specified number of turns.

Enemy Defeat Options

These are conditions under which you can lose a game.

• Annihilation Loss - Lose if a player has no more units.
• No City Kill Capability - Lose if a player controls no cities and cannot take a city unit.
• Capital Killed - Lose if a player loses his capital.
• Capital Bombing - Lose if a player's capital has a production efficiency at or below the specified value for the specified number of turns.
• Regicide Defeat - Lose if a player does not have any units of the specified regicide type.
  • Initial Number of units - Number of units of the specified regicide type that are awarded to a player at the beginning of the game.
• Reduced Average Production Efficiency - Lose if a player's average production efficiency is at or below the specified value for the specified number of turns.

Other Victory Options

These are special options for playing Empire in a different way.

• Capture The Flag - Capture-The-Flag rules are used.
  • # Spawn Points - Number of pawn points to be used in the game.
  • Points Per Capture - Number of points awarded to a player for a capture.
• King of The Hill - Use the King of the Hill Rules.
  • Points/Turn - Number of points per turn awarded for controlling "the hill".
  • Region Size - Number of squares that make up "the hill". Locations are not required to be contiguous.
• End Game By Turns - The game will end after the specified turn.
• Victory By Scoring - A player or team will win if the specified score is reached.

Map Tab (Random Map Info,  Map File Info, or Map/Scenario Info)

The map style chosen from the Maps/Scenario menu option will determine how much data can be changed in regards to the map. (For example, you cannot change the map size on a predefined map, but you can redo the cities if desired).

Basic Mapping

Basic Map Settings

• Width - Specified width in squares length of a map.
• Random (Width) - Check this to make the width random, and enter the low and high range of the width.
• Wrap East-West - Map will wrap around the East and West (no East or West edge).
• Height - The specified height in squares of the map.
• Random (Height) - Check this to make the height random, and enter the low and high range of the height.
• Wrap North-South - Map will wrap around the North and South (no North or South edge).

Basic City Type Settings

• Cities: Specify the number of cities.
• % Special - The percentage of cities that should have production specializations.
• Base Efficiency - The median production efficiency for the cities.
• %Var - The variance from the base.
• Random - Check this to randomize the number of cities, and enter the low and high range.
• Keep City Ratio - Convenient for maintaining the specified number of cites per the number of squares specified on the map. Use this when you want to change the map size, but keep the same ratio of cities. For example, a value of 50 means one city per 50 map squares. So a 80 x 80 map would have 128 cities.

World Settings

The World Settings are settings used to define the world to be created. They are also passed to the World Building DLL if applicable. All of these can be randomized by selecting the checkbox with the "?" in the middle of the slider.

• Land to Water: Ratio of land to water on the map.
• Dry To Wet: Ratio of barren terrain versus wet and foliaged terrain.
• Flat to Mountainous: Ratio of lowlands to hills, mountains and peaks.
• Continents to Islands: Ratio of a few large land masses to many small ones.
• Cold To Hot - Ratio of size of temperate and cold areas on the map.
• Poor to Rich - Ratio of low to high value resource locations.

Advanced Settings

These are used to load external world building DLLs and set the terrain databases. This is not recommended for first time users. See topics regarding World Building and the Terrain database for more details.

Units Tab

Here a player may set the unit set database, as well as cherry pick the units he desires to be used in the game.

To the left is a listing of all of the available units for the game. A checked box indicates that unit will be useable in the game.

To change the database, select the "Change DB" button, and find the appropriate Unit Database File to load.

Players Tab
 

The Players Tab lists the players currently configured to play the game. Here players can be changed and swapped.

• Add Player - Add a new player, calls the Player Editor.
• Edit Player - Edit selected player, calls the Player Editor.
• Delete Player - Remove selected player.

Player Editor

The player editor allows you to add or edit player information.

• Position - player position for this player.
• Type - type of player. Could be one of the following:
  • Human Local - player will play on this computer.
  • Human via Network - player will play remotely.
  • Human via Email - player is a PBEM opponents.
  • No Player - this is an empty position.
  • StandardAI - player will be the Standard AI compute player.
  • ScriptedAI - player will be the Scripted AI computer player.
  • Other additional AI players may be displayed here as well if you have loaded them. For more information, check the AI Registry Topic.
• File Required - Click on the button when selecting this player to choose a script. This button will only be displayed if a script is required.
• Player Name - Edit the name if it is for the local player.
• Password - Enter the password if it is for the local player.
• Primary Color - Primary color for the player. Click on the color to set it with the color chooser.
• Secondary Color - Secondary color for the player. Click on the color to set it with the color chooser.
• Handicaps - handicaps help even the playing field between players. The base handicap value is 100. Values higher than this make it harder for the player. Values less than this to 1 make it easier. Available Handicaps are:
  • Production Handicap - player's production handicap, determines how fast he can build and what the effects of the resource drain will be.
  • Combat Handicap - player's combat handicap, will contribute to the odds calculation of a battle.
  • Neutral Handicap - player's combat handicap versus neutral units.
• Buy Points - Buy points allotted to this player. In order for this to be used, a buy points condition must have been selected from the Rules Tree in the Rules Tab.
• Starting Cities - Number of starting cities allotted to the player.
• Allowable Builds - Check the unit types this player will be able to construct or produce in the game.

Connections Tab (Network Games Only)

Server Connections

In this area the server's connection information will be specified, as well as the list of players that have connected. More information may be available in the Network Games topic.

• Server Port - Port that the server will listen to for accepting connection.
• GPwd - Game Password others use to connect to this server.
• # To Allow - The total number of simultaneous connections this server will allow.
• Start Accepting Button  - Click on this to allow others to connect to your game.

Connection Table

This table on the right lists the player name and assigned position of the player. Selecting a connection here will enable you to invoke actions on it from the "Player Assignments" section.

Player Assignments

In this area the server controller can set up the positions for players.

• Set Position - Select the game position you wish to set.
• Assign - Assign selected player to the selected position.
• Kick - Kick the selected player from the server.

Advertise Tab (Network Games Only)
This tab will enable you to advertise your game on a connection service. See the network notes for further details.

• Title - The title of the game.
• Description - Your description of the game.
• Server List - This is the list of available servers to advertise your game with. If there are more than one listed, you must choose one an only one to advertise on.
• Start Advertising - Pressing this button will begin advertising your game at 30-second intervals. You must press it again to stop the advertising.

Game Setup Errors:

After you press "Begin Play", there may be some configurations are conditions in the setup that must be met before play can begin (setting up a player, for example). If all of the conditions to start a game have not been met, one or more errors will be displayed. These must be adjusted before the game can begin.

A brief description of each error follows:
 

• "File Not Found" - A file cannot be found.
• "Data Directory Not in Registry" - The game most likely has not be installed properly.
• "A Game Is Active" - A game is already going. How did you do that?
• "No Players In Game" - No players in the game. Need one at least.
• "One Local Player Only" - Only one local player can be used.
• "No Victory Conditions" - No victory conditions set.
• "Not Enough Map Space" - Not enough memory.
• "Scenario does not have capitals" - No capitals in scenario.
• "Scenario does not have CTF Spawn Locs" - No spawn locations in scenario.
• "Scenario does not have Important Cities" - No important cities in scenario.
• "Scenario does not have KOTH Region" - No KOTH regions in scenario.
• "This DLL does not support capitals" - DLL will not place capital units.
• "This DLL does not support CTF" - DLL will not set CTF spawn locations.
• "This DLL does not support Important Cities" - DLL will not set important cities.
• "This DLL does not support KOTH" - DLL will not set KOTH regions.
• "Map load error" - Error loading the map.
• "Scenario load error" - Error loading the scenario
• "Cannot stack Regicide unit in capitals" - Regicide units do not stack in the capital city.
• "AI DLL not validated" - An AI DLL does not have the required interfaces.
• "Cannot initialize World Build DLL" - DLL for world building is having trouble starting.
• "Cannot initialize unit placement DLL" - DLL for placing units is having trouble starting.
• "No active players set in game" - Need at least one active player.
• "Cannot setup AI player" - Trouble setting AI player.
• "PBEM needs a password" - As it says.
• "City Selection Requires Full Visibility" - This selection style requires the map to be fully visible.
• "Buy Points Placement Requires Full Visibility" - This placement style (anywhere) requires the map to be fully visible.
• "Not enough cities to play" - Not enough cities to start game.
• "Low City value not enough to play" - Not enough cities to start game.
• "Too many cities for this size map" - Not enough room on the map.
• "Switch players to computer first." - Cannot do this unless extra human players are changed to computer.
• "City random values incorrect" - Fix it.
• "Map random height range incorrect" - Fix it.
• "Map random width range incorrect" - Fix it.
• "Map height too low" - Height is too low for a map.
• "Map width too low" - Width is too low for a map.
• "No city types available" - There are no city types available in the database.
• "Socket Error" - Networking error.
• "Bind Error" - Networking error.
• "Listen Error" - Networking error.
• "Send Error" - Networking error.
• "No Networked Players" - There are no network players configured.
• "Need to assign a player" - A player has not been assigned.
• "Too many/few players connected to begin" - everyone must be connected to start a new game.
• "No Connections" - No one is connected. Everyone must be connected to start a new game.
• "Game has email opponents" - This game still has players configured for email play. If you want to go to solitaire, switch them first.
• "Players are still connected" - Someone unassigned is still connected.
• "Game has network opponents" - This game still has players configured for network play. If you want to go to solitaire, switch them first.
• "Database does not have a flag unit" - The flag unit cannot be found in the database.
• World Builder does not Support Terrain DB - the Terrain Database specified cannot be used by the selected World Builder DLL (or the internal one)
• World Builder does not Support Unit DB - The Unit Database specified cannot be used by the selected World Builder DLL (or the internal one)
• World Builder does not Support Either DB - The Terrain and Unit Databases specified cannot be used by the selected World Builder DLL (or the internal one)

Restarting Games

Restarting a game is very similar to setting up a game, except that you have fewer options to deal with. The only changes you may possibly make are in regard to configuring the player types, and facilitating the reconnection of players for network play.

When restarting a game, players cannot have their types changed to Local Player unless you know the password for that player. In solitaire games, computer players should have an empty password.

Play By Mail Games

Play by mail games are setup as regular games, but the following procedure is followed to start a game:

1. The game is set up with PBEM players. It should be set up by the person who will play the lowest numbered human player position.
2. When Begin Play is pressed, the first human player position will be prompted to enter a user name and password, which will be used for the game.
3. After entering this information, the game will be saved and the player prompted to send the game file to the next player.
4. If MAPI is enabled and functioning, a mail client should appear with the game attached and ready to be sent.
5. When the next player receives the game, he will set his player name and password, and pass the game along.
6. Eventually the game will make its way back to the originating player. The game will then be started as a normal game.
7. The first player may be able to play several turns, but eventually, he will be prompted to save the game and pass it along.

In the early stages of PBM, players will play several turns at once. This is called rapid turn sequencing.  During this period of time, Treaties are not allowed to be made or broken, and Gifts are not allowed.