W3C - Game News March 20

War
It is now possible to win a war without painting part of the enemy country. This will make it easier to fight a war from a mobile device.

It is probably easier to win if you send in your army units and conquer parts of the enemy country but also possible without it.

New Notifications
Simcountry will now notify you if a country is almost expired or expired. You can now choose to receive a notification if a war is lost.

To receive the notifications, you need to have the Simcountry app on your phone/mobile device. The App can be downloaded free of charge from both the Apple store and the Google game store.

Further Reduction in the Cost of War
All types of ammunition, both defensive and Offensive are now further reduced in price. The corporations producing these products are maintaining their profitability. Also the cost of maintenance for the army is further reduced.

These changes are intended to make war more affordable and are part of more upcoming changes in the war game.

Diversification of Product Use
Reacting to a suggestion by players we are looking at the use of some products in Simcountry that are used in a very limited way. We have added trucks as a required product in the production process of more industries and also added rubber as a raw material in more types of corporations.

These changes require a soft introduction to protect the corporations that will use these products. They will now start purchasing small quantities but will not use them. The next upgrade will start increasing the use of these products.

We will look into more products with a very small market.

Andy,

I was going to suggest that country/enterprise/account expiration should be added to the Notification system, but you guys beat me to it haha.
Also I've been using the notification system, it works really well. Honestly, atm it's the best part of the SimCountry app. It really helps you know when there is something that needs your attention.
As an economically focused player, I like that tweaks to the economy and consumption of goods aren't being forgot in the, "race to the war game".
Great well thought out changes, keep up the awesome work guys.

Signed President of DanNation LU

Thanks so much for the updates! its nice to see a GM that has the time and wants to improve the game!

Thank you guys.

We will keep improving the App.
we needed to update the war game and decided to add a war competition world.

but the economy is all but forgotten.
we have recently increased the profitability of corporations and countries in general.
I was working on the addition of some products and I will probably add more.
I have taken care of some markets that were so small, anyone could take hold of them and less than 10 corporations produced these products.

We have now improved the workings of C3 countries, repairing their economies by use of the automation system and making them do the right things which will probably improve the markets. We need to let them run for a while before it becomes visible.

we will do more.

These changes and others, reduce the need for economic players to start wars against C3 countries for money.

you can increasingly make more money in countries and enterprises.

Andy,

Don't worry we support what you guys are doing we know that you can't fix everything overnight and you guys have been making some very significant strides in both the econ and War game. We also understand that you have to balance the needs of the website and the app so as long as you continue to communicate in the way you and the other game Masters have been I think you'll continue to find the game to be very supportive and very willing to bring for suggestions.

I've been here 10 years and this is probably one of the most unified and collaborative environment I've seen in a long time.

Andy,

Question do C3 build or close Space shuttle corporations. Please check LU. If you look at all the shuttle corps they are suffering from massively wild changes. Shuttles should be a profitable business, but on LU their not. We have seen constant surpluses and in the last 2 days we have seen 30 corps close then 30 reopen. Shuttle components saw 150 corps close in 4 game months.

I'm just wondering what causing this. If its player changes that's one thing, but if its C3 I think the GM should open the conversation to allowing C3 to build space corps. Personally I don't think C3 should be allowed to build any strategic or space corps. Those should entirely be player driven markets.

Andy,

I'm inclined to agree with SuperSoldierRCP's idea. Space industries and Strategic Weapon Industries are an important part of the role play of developing an advanced National Security/Science Sector. Having the most basic C3's building such corps would really cheapen that. Additionally, it reduces the value of attaining the higher game levels/opening an Enterprise, to enable you to produce such products.

Also on a balance point, I think the required level for Factory Maintenance Corps should be reduced. They are an incredibly critical item, with virtually every Corp in the game needing them to function. With their current level 5 requirement, the vast majority of players can't build them, that makes the markets far more likely to suffer extreme shortages of Factory Maintenance. Forcing the GM's to intervene to save the economy.

Signed President of DanNation on LU

C3 corporations where not able to produce strategic weapons.
They are however able to build anything else.
C3 countries build corporations for products that are in very severe shortages.
They must do so because players do not react to severe shortages and as a result, the game master had to intervene from time to time to prevent a market meltdown.

Cargo shuttles are now easier to produce than before.
The price of the shuttles and the raw materials all went down.

However, at low quality, they are making large losses and c3s and new players may loos them in the initial period.

Cargo shuttles are needed in larger numbers.

The problem, if there is one with C3 cargo shuttles, will be resolved when players who know how to handle these corporations, will build some (very profitable if upgraded).
The shortages will decline a bit, and C3 countries will not build them.

What C3 countries produce, or not produce, is in your hands.
React to the market and C3s will keep their hands off.

We have introduced some measures to improve the economy of C3 countries and they are catching up. This will be over fairly quickly.

Andy,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to our suggestions. Any thoughts on lowering the required Game Level to build Factory Maintenance Corps? Having a level five requirement for such a vital Corp restricts Player's ability to respond to shortages. If you're worried about reducing the value of higher game levels, other High Tech Corps could have their level requirements increased to compensate.

Signed President of DanNation on LU

Could we possibly have security corps introduced to combat rebels and guard corporations or combat crime? Thanks

I would like to keep some corporations at game level 5.
We do not want to trivialize the entire corporate building and required levels.

I think you need to be able to build such corporations and make the effort to get to game level 5.

as to adding more types of corporations:
Adding a product is not a big deal
but what you are asking smokey, makes sense but it is not a corporation you need.
you need new game functions.

we are however limited in what we can do.
hope for more contributing players to get more time on our hands.

we want to introduce the war competition world and are working on additional functionality in the Simcountry App.

Thanks Andy, how about a crime index? I saw a post about Riot Police being added, is that still on the list?

Im seeing that cargo shuttle corps are being build much more often than other types by proportion. Seems almost intentionally. I agree that it should be player driven and not trivialized by allowing C3s to build them. There is no shortage of shuttles now as it is.

Andy,

Thats the comment I was trying to early, Khome just did it better.

I don't think anyone wants to trivialize production. However, Strategic weapons and Space corps should be 100% player driven sectors and C3 should not be allowed to participate. If there's an astronomical shortage of Shuttle fuselages, then the GM nor C3 should intervene because it should be truly player driven. As it stands now Cargo shuttles used to be massively profitable. How they are not worth the cost of production.

I placed a lot of effort and investment into building a shuttle fleet. It was an example of long term investment, I did not make quick profits out of them . Sometimes putting in the work and investment is a better reflection of a space program. Not a quick buck.

The need for shuttles increased.
They are used in a maintenance product and its use is increasing.

I do not see a reason to lock out products and prevent C3s from building them.

The exception is nukes because we do not want a new free player start with a country that produces nukes.

The priorities for new corporations are computed by computing the shortage against the production by a corporation.
we then know how many are needed.
The most needed ones are getting the highest priorities.
It seems that cargo shuttle corporations are needed in very large numbers. we do not make the choices, The system does.

I do not think these C3s can handle them and I am afraid they will close.
so we might need to do something about it although nothing is lost in the process.

The real questions/problem is:
Why don't you build many of them.

I tried once in a country and sustained 12 of these corporations.
they are by far, the most profitable in Simcountry if upgraded.
The profit can be 3 times higher than the profit of the best high tech corporation.

They are so profitable, everyone should build them and C3s will not get the opportunity.

If players would react to market opportunities, we would not have this conversation. You decide in fact what C3s build.
Close a 1000 services corporations and C3s will do only services.

I do produce shuttles, I have been for years.

Andy,

I have 10 shuttles corps in one country, in fact I have a history of building space corps. What I think maybe your mis-interpreting is we want to make sure C3's don't flood a market that should be considered the "Land of Milk and Honey". We are trying to make a point that certain markets should be player ran.

Lets stay everyone built's space corps, What then? The market floods, corps close, and those persistent players will eventually will win out when the market hits equilibrium. Shuttles are dependent on Assets maintenance so its not like we can go crazy, we are bound by the demand of these corps. Strategic weapons are the same as they need Strategic Maintenance.

You have always said you don't want to trivialize sections of the game. Allowing a C3 nation which is like a third world country to produce space craft seems trivial. If the GM wants to allow C3 to produce shuttle boosters and shuttle components I think that's fine as it produces the basis for the corporations.

The only way a player should have access to space/nuclear corps is game leveling, grinding, and hard work.

Exactly. Only a nation with a lot of effort should hold responsibility and fruits of their labor.

<!-Quote-!>Quote:

The real questions/problem is:
Why don't you build many of them.<!-/Quote-!>

Andy my boi much love, but i cant help but to note i read this before you have wrote that making more of corperations should make them more profitable, but the question is; why should we put all our eggs in 1 basket??? so if something changes we are charged major and so happens the product fails us because of some other reason things needed to change. Not really the most solid advice but good to know they are profitable corporations!! isent that what the maintenance corporations were for??

I lean more toward super and khome here, as they are more correct as to note that space was actually meant to be more of development, and encouragement for leveling up, now its just simple immediate order some shuttles on the world market. Getting a massive fleet easy, back then was actually a work, and again andy, such claims to put are eggs into the basket, yet look at the basket those such as khome put there eggs in: long term production based on investment in shuttle industry, all out done by one change by the bois. Any one who produces shuttles could not keep up with buying on the market.

I enjoy these changes and updates, but just careful what your turning the corperations into; everything in this game is not made to make-a-buck-off-of some are serious corporations like space which the cargo shuttle was a king pin for all the other space corporations pretty much it was star and its planets. They revolve around cargo shuttles, so just turning cargo shuttle into such an easy product is like easy making plutonium for nuclear weapons. Making it market sold just infact defeats a major purpose it originally once bestowed. We need to just stick to other things like industy, mining, and high tect for good profits, we dont need no sales men trying to sell use high powered cheapbuilt rockets for a "good price" to profit there luxorys, space shuttles are an essentially heavily utilized equipment. Not just a population good.

Andy,

Your points on how the markets in Simcounty work are important and valid. The improvements to the C3's are welcome. We understand that Players often fail to react to shortages and surpluses in the markets. As such the C3's are an important part of keeping Simcountry balanced.

The point Players are attempting to make here is really about a different matter. The players don't see Space Programs and Strategic Weapons as a market for the simple profit of SC$. Rather, they are seen as major national projects, on par with building a military, or developing the welfare of your nation. Building our own Space and Strategic Weapons programs is an important end game goal to many players. To have C3's provide such products, cheapens the very foundations of these programs, not in terms of money, but in terms of their deeper meaning.

When Players go into Space, or take part in a Nuclear War, this means something more to them than just the use of an expensive product. This is something players have build, developing entire Empires to make possible. To have such a process automated by a C3, really degrades the intrinsic value of such progress.

Signed President of DanNation on LU

Thanks for your responses.
I understand exactly what you are saying.
I just looked into it and there are maybe 5 or 6 such new corporations in each world. Less than 10% growth.
I am not sure all are C3 country based.
were is the panic coming from?

I would like to see the first 10 cargo shuttle corporations in C3 countries.
If this is too sophisticated for them, they will fail
What I have seen was failing. Many presidents fail in doing so too.

Let's wait and see.
I do not believe anything will change.

Guess we'll see