help please

Hi,

Thinking of joining the game full time- having watched for a few weeks but i'm quite daunted by how it even works.

I gather some of you guys have been playing for quite a while so i was wondering if any of you had some old turns saved that you wouldnt mind sharing with me so i have an idea of how to put them together. how much depth is usually required to get things done whilst not spending 4 hours typing for a menial task to only be half done!?

Obviously not something too current or even in g10, not trying to gather any upper hand or anything, its just utterly daunting for newbies

oldharry wrote:Hi,

Thinking of joining the game full time- having watched for a few weeks but i'm quite daunted by how it even works.

I gather some of you guys have been playing for quite a while so i was wondering if any of you had some old turns saved that you wouldnt mind sharing with me so i have an idea of how to put them together. how much depth is usually required to get things done whilst not spending 4 hours typing for a menial task to only be half done!?

Obviously not something too current or even in g10, not trying to gather any upper hand or anything, its just utterly daunting for newbies

Hi,

Which type of game were you thinking of joining Glori? Scrabble for Empire or Rome is Burning?

Sadly I have been playing so long I no longer have a starting set of orders saved.

However if you start a position in Glori you will start with a) A Treasury hopefully with lots of money in it b) A number of recruits and c) Some Army units and sometimes (depending on the position) some Navy Units d) If the position has been played before you may also have some Ministers, NPCs, Envoys, and Road and Canal upgrades already in place.  e) Most positions also start with historic family members and sometimes a starting problem........if you want to dive in at the deep end you can ask Richard for a very "active" position and probably get something like the King of Poland  G10 and a starting problem of - just been invaded by the Russians/Swedes.  Too much of a challenge?

If that is too much you might want to do is say to Richard that you are interested in position X and ask to have a look at it first or ask him to select one which fits your interests - like Military, Naval-Colonial etc, etc.  Its probably worth while asking for a couple of back issues of the paper at the same time so you can pick up a rough idea about what is going on and who is active.  So in G7 for instance you might notice that France is at War with the Hapsburgs (Spain & Austria) so you might or might not like something in the middle like Bavaria or Lorraine.  Or note a position is available but is on the Honour table which is a give away that its been played before and probably quite well.

Having got your position you will note it has a honour score (higher the better, if very low you need to do something about this) and a Economic Health Score (If below 5 you should look to do something about this).  

However assuming your position has no starting problems, is not heading towards bankrupcy, famine or revolution because everyone hates you and no urgent action is needed think on your starting turn you should consider:-

a) Government - If not already in place appoint a Treasury Minister, Army Minister, Navy Minister, Head of Church and probably an Inspector General in charge of fortresses, roads, canals etc and perhaps some Army and Navy Commanders.  Plus some Governors if you have colonies.

You can then ask these minister (Agema) for help, advise and recommendations.

b) Diplomacy - Send some Embassies and letters of introduction to neighbours and active powers in the game.    

Most players apart from some playing a historic foe of your position start off fairly friendly and happy to fill in background details.  You may even move onto swapping missions, treaties and even Royal Weddings.  Some players totally ignore the "Dynastic" aspect of the game which is a pity since it was so important in the C18.

c) Army/Navy - If they are doing nothing else you might as well order the blighters to drill or patrol roads/frontiers (light troops and dragoons only).  Also many players write some standing orders for troops.  For example do you want your Infantry to just shot......like the English, Dutch, Prussians?  Or give them a single volley and then charge home with cold steel?  If the first you probably want troops to deploy in 3 or even 2 ranks if the later perhaps 4 or even 5 or 6 ranks deep.

Normally its best to find out historic tactics/weapons for your position and stick fairly close to this perhaps with some minor amendments.

d) Finally the key and largest area are you going to spend any money/recruits this turn?  (note various ways to borrow money in game) which basically split into following options

i) Invest money in trade - so you have more money in future.  Try to do this early in year and you might want to send some trade missions at some stage to key area's.

ii) Invest money in roads, canals and other inferstructure projects which in theory should help your economic health and tax revenue.  Note do not spend a fortune on canals before you get some dredgers.......they silt up.

iii) Invest in acadamies and then order them to research various things.  This can help your economy, army, navy or medical situation.  They can also train recruits into specialist farmers, magistrates, clerics etc.  Think at min you should have farming academy, military, naval and perhaps a trade one if your position is historically good a certain types of trade or produces a specialist product.

iv) Spend money on trying to increase your honour?  Like a nice ball for the nobility or perhaps a Cathedral?

v) Spend money/recruits on new Army, Navy units or fortresses?  Generally most starting positions seem a bit light on artillery.

e) AOB - this could involve placement of agents, propaganda and writing press for the paper.  Its actually possible to talk up both your honour and economic health (business confidence).......Jason 2 is a great expert at this.  Insulting your religious and historic foes is a good way to increase your honour score and if all they do is reply in kind this also helps your honour score.  But make sure you are picking on the correct target and one who understands that when your Doge of Venice declares himself the "Hammer of the Turks" its not actually a declaration of war, or accidents can happen.

Doesn't need to be an opening turn, just any one in general I guess

Glory I'll be playing

Hi oldharry,

Stuart's given a comprehensive reply, which I agree with but don't let the scale of it put you off as the game's very flexible and you set your own goals as leader of your nation. Richard's very friendly for new (and existing) players so he does guide where something isn't quite right. That's also where the ministers come in that Stuart refers to ask you can ask them for advice. I'll often ask them to do something on my behalf so they can react if something comes up or there's a problem with the orders.

Writing to other players can also give you ideas of what may work or not. Just beware everyone's got their own point of view and motivations whether PC or NPC. For example Russia's not gone into Poland in G10 yet and he's not the King of Poland, he's a very naughty boy!

My orders tend to be a bullet point list of what I want done with costings as part of the order, in the order to do them which works fairly well. You might find this forum thread of interest for other perspectives https://agema.darkbb.com/t928-game-order-turn-examples-from-rozwi-in-game-10

My turn report is about 39 pages as I went overboard in breaking down some armies into individual regiments and includes many letters and treaties from other nations but you can just lump the same type of units together to reduce space taken up. Other nations I've previously played had 3-5 pages for turn report (detailing results of orders if not better put in the asset list) and asset list (detailing your characters, towns inc. buildings other assets like any grain stored, treasury page, letters from other nations and treaties etc).

Richard's been running the game for many years and it's evolved but the core message for this post is as Richard puts in the rulebook:

"Please don’t be overawed by the apparent complexity of the game. These rules are very comprehensive but cover a
multitude of sins. You can begin playing with relatively little knowledge or even understanding of the rules! This
book is more a reference work for players rather than anything else and tries to cover most eventualities. Even so,
not everything could be covered, nor is this desirable, as part of the strength of this game is encouraging players to
use their imagination to gain an advantage.

You do not play in isolation - your ministers and the like have personalities and motives of their own, which develop during play. This gives the game its stunning depth, which has won it accolades and awards for several years
now. We are also fortunate in having an excellent player base who are usually willing to offer advice, help and
guidance to newcomers. Naturally their views will be tainted to favour their own in-game position, but they – like
the rules - encourage in-period play, so if you carry out dastardly deeds it pays to hide the fact!"

It is daunting but needn't be

Here are some orders in "my style "

Have the academies research whatever they think is necessary for us.
Have the minister of defence arrange the army as he sees fit.
Have the minister of trade invest £20,000 and 1000 recruits ,if necessary ,where he sees fit .
Ask foreign secretary who owns what in France.
Build a stockade in the most commanding position in ( insert place )

Then I take a little more interest in each little bit as time goes on.

Michael0 seems to place a lot more faith and trust in Agema NPC's Ministers than I do. Fairly sure that many of mine should not be given that amount of trust as their was some very odd idea's floating round in the C18.

Should also be noted that the other two main games run by Agema are a little bit easier ref orders:

Scrabble for Empire has advantage of a lot of set character types like General, Admiral, Engineer, Agent, etc and sets of orders the various types of characters can be given. Even if not playing in game might be worth while getting a copy of rules just for the sample orders which can also be used in other games, perhaps with some amendment.

As rule of thumb I want by Engineers to build something like railways or network of schools with cricket pitches. Use my politician to calm down any problems and then see if anyone is asking for a good smack for having caused said problems.

Rome is Burning:-

- Try and influence someone to join my faction.

- Try and recruit an agent

- Build something or hold games/chariot race etc to the greater glory of Trajan

- See if I need to calm down any problems or give someone a smack for causing said problems. Though it should be noted that Trajan is a really nice chap and most players already have enough problems of their own without making extra for Trajan and risking the revenge of the Chief Priest of Rome. Pity same can not be said about the HEIC or G7 Spain.

Firstly OldHarry I hope you enjoy the games, they are fun

Below is an order from when I was Scotland in Glory Game 10 from about 2 years back so no need to sorry about any advantage from them. It's very much as I sent to Richard/Agema so hopefully might give you some insights. It's a mix of bog standard orders and some more complex ones.


Military Orders
• 150 Fortress Cannon (£30,000; 1,500 recruits; 4 months) to be raised at Stirling, when raised 100 to be deployed at Stirling Castle, 50 on fortifications
• Crews, SL1, of 2 corvettes (carronades, Lion, Unicorn) of Tofo Garrison to Rest and Recuperate
• 25 Fortress Cannon (£5,000; 250 recruits; 4 months) to be raised at NewPort Glasgow
• Cameronian Regiment and Atholl Highlanders of The Southern Column at Glasgow to form new army, to be known as The Eastern Column

Movement
• The Royal Brigade to march from Amsterdam to Numar, travel as much as possible in Dutch territory and when crossing into Flanders take a direct route but to avoid settlements. If challenged en-route in Flanders, Major-General Hamilton to say “Laddie, we’re on our way to garrison Numar and ye know the laws and treaties allow that. Ye look a smart one, and not be so an eejit to pick a fight with the men of a friend of the King of France, ye ken?” Upon arrival at Numar, to march in with flags flying and bagpipes playing. Hamilton to walk up to the first French officer he sees and say “Look here laddie, what you doing here? This ain’t your fortress, it belongs to our King and you’re being ory. If you’re here for a square go then me and these armed bastards behind me are up for it cause you being here is a mon then ya wee eejit. It’ll be nae danger to kick ye back to Paris, ye ken?” (English translation available on request). Hamilton to then send messages to Ruben van der Berg and General Ulbrecht de Bonnieres inviting them to meet to sort this out over a good bottle of whisky or two (imagine Hamilton speaking in an Scotty from the original Star Trek accent)

Expenditure
• £20,000, and 500 recruits, to be spent establishing Fishing Industry in Baltic
• £100,000 to be invested in Baltic Trade
• £10,000, from Personal Wealth, to be spent on banquet (see diplomatic orders)
• £10,000, from Personal Wealth, to be spent on gifts (see diplomatic orders)

Diplomatic Orders
• NEW CHARACTER: Wiliam Jardine, former MP and merchant who has spent time in the Far East. To be appointed ambassador to Kwantung Province, Chinese Empire. To travel, with the above mentioned Carronade Mission, to Canton, upon arrival to make themselves known to authorities in Canton. Both ambassador and mission to rest and recover from any sickness at Capetown, Scottish outpost of Tofo, and Batavia (Dutch East Indies) on journey.
• Lord Melville to host banquet at the Scottish embassy in London on the evening of first Monday in January (4th January in 1706) to mark Handsel Monday. Once again entertainments (including bagpipes and displays of Scottish dancing) and food to be distinctly Scottish. Guests to include King William, Lord Godolphin, the English court, government and military commanders, and foreign ambassadors in London, and their wives. During the banquet Lord Melville to meet with both King William and Lord Godolphin and present them each with jewel-encrusted Claymore Swords, to explain it is a tradition among the Scots to present gifts to friends on Handsel Monday as a sign of good luck for the year ahead. To also say to them he has had enough of others taking advantage of Scotland’s willingness to be a friend to and support others when those others then undertake actions that harm Scotland; he sees it too happening to the Dutch and English, it is time for a united stand! During the banquet, Lord Melville to give one of his usual speeches to his guests, with whisky in hand, “Ahh, my good friends, it is a delight to see so many of you again and so soon! It is a habit of we Scots that we do not mark Christmas and the birth of Christ with parties and celebrations but we make up for it in the New Year! Today, the first Monday of January, we know as Handsel Monday when we gather and party with our friends. So it is a delight to spend this night with Scotland’s good friends, her English brothers and Dutch cousins. My dear guests you might recall when you were last here I spoke of the strength of our three nations, there is an irony in that as I spoke those words it seems some decided to test the stone walls of the Dutch. To show I believe in actions and not only words, those Claymores I spoke of are being sent to lend the stone walls a hand. I am sure it will be only a misunderstanding and they had a map the wrong way up but just in case someone is feeling foolish, a few thousand annoyed Scots will ensure they see the error of their ways!” Lord Melville to sip on his whisky, “Aye I am sure our English brothers will feel the same and if there’s one thing we Scots learnt the hard way,” he chuckles slightly at this point, “is that an annoyed Englishman is nearly as bad as an annoyed Scot...and there’s a lot more Englishmen than there are Scots! But I’m keeping you my friends from the food and drink so join me in this toast-God save William of Orange, God Preserve the Williamite Nations!”

oldharry wrote:Hi,

Thinking of joining the game full time- having watched for a few weeks but i'm quite daunted by how it even works.

I gather some of you guys have been playing for quite a while so i was wondering if any of you had some old turns saved that you wouldn't mind sharing with me so i have an idea of how to put them together. how much depth is usually required to get things done whilst not spending 4 hours typing for a menial task to only be half done!?

Obviously not something too current or even in g10, not trying to gather any upper hand or anything, its just utterly daunting for newbies

As previous players have suggested, Richard is kind to new players who struggle to get to grips with game concepts and rules.

Because LGDR is a human moderated game (not a computer game), the style of orders is deliberately flexible.  Some people just use short bullet points; others are more descriptive.

It is normally a good idea to separate military orders from other orders (e.g. diplomatic, economic), under separate headings, simply because it makes it easier to read.  I place military orders first because usually (in positions I play) if I don't order the units to do something they may be in danger.  

In terms of more general advice, it is your country and you can play it any way you wish.  We all have our own individual styles and quirks.  You set your own objectives for your country, nobody else; and if you try something and it doesn't work, then 'ask advisors' why - it is unlikely that the cause is the 'wording' (if you try to raise a unit or build something but mistype the amount it costs then Richard usually corrects this).  If you are struggling with particular game concepts then that is harder (logistics when at war can be hard even for experienced players).  But if something is going really wrong then the earlier you spot it and 'ask advisors' the more likely it is that Richard will help you (even if initially that help is simply drawing your attention to a particular section of the rules).  And if you are still really stuck then there are plenty of people on this forum who should be able to help.  The best way to learn the game is to play it.

oldharry wrote:Hi,

Thinking of joining the game full time- having watched for a few weeks but i'm quite daunted by how it even works.

I gather some of you guys have been playing for quite a while so i was wondering if any of you had some old turns saved that you wouldnt mind sharing with me so i have an idea of how to put them together. how much depth is usually required to get things done whilst not spending 4 hours typing for a menial task to only be half done!?

Obviously not something too current or even in g10, not trying to gather any upper hand or anything, its just utterly daunting for newbies

Hi Oldharry,

Apologies for the late response, I’m no more often on this forum.

Lot have been said upon how to effectively write orders. I think my contribution will reduce itself to a couple of points.

1) Feel free to express your wishes and decision in th simplest way you want. Take time, be wrong, make guess, be wronger, improve. Make it your way.

2) The game is not about correct execution of orders or the quality of a set of commands. It’s about having fun in the process.