[BSE] YOU DON'T FOOL ME RARI-BOT!

[Huitzil]

For one, I think Luna's underpowered. The other ponies were using their abilities pretty often, but Luna only ended up using hers once, and her OPG was unimpressive. I think the static is overcosted, since stopping Cylon activation is less useful than guaranteeing jump prep, I'd knock it down to one card. And instead of "activate a location twice", maybe her OPG could be more simply "after you do an action, do it again"?

[Aurora]

I honestly don't know what to say. I kind of got really lost by the end because of stuff happening with me personally but I was having fun for the most part.

[Kraps]

Yeah well, the last 2-3 pages kinda confused me with all the suiciding and picking new characters, I didn't know that was possible.

Can't really think of anything else right now. It was my first forum game ever and while I felt like an idiot trying to figure out stuff sometimes, it was very fun The various flavor text people came up with was brilliant, special mention goes to Artificer for this:

:ohboy: : Cutie Mark Crusaders Emergency Comedy Protocol P.O.N.Y. GO!

:
Look, here are three little ponies
Ready to jump this fleeeeeeeet
Listen up, 'cause here's our story
I'm gonna lay down

:
some phat beaaaaaaaaaaaaats!

:
When you're a younger pony
And it feels like nopony caaares
Feels like Kobol will neeeeever come
When your coordinates aren't all theeeeeeere

So the three of us will fight the fight
There is no ponylon, that we feeeeeeeeeeear
We'll have to figure out what buttons we'll push
:
Since there's no time to shed a teeaar! : I miss you sis!

We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders
On a fleet that is very booold
And we will never have 0/10 morale
Not until we have our Kobol!

:
They all say that you'll get your mark
When the time is really right
And you know just what you're supposed to do
And the dirty toaster traitors come to light

But it's not as easy as it sounds
And all that nuking! What to dooo?
So we test our talents everywhere

:
Until our face is blue : (Celestia, I hate it when we have to spacewalk to fix something. I hope these suits don't have punctures.)

We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders
On a quest to find out where we are
And we will never stop the journey
Not until we have our cutie marks

We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders
Let the firing of the jump engines recommence
Since we'll never stop pushing buttons
Not until we have our BLOODY VENGEANCE!

(Here, Scootaloo trips and faceplants on to the jump coordinate panel, while Sweetie Belle manually holds all the jump computer wires together, and Apple Bloom's loopdy hooping someone doubles as a gyroscope.)

[Glaed]

I enjoyed it. Messing with people (and watching them be completely wrong on my agenda) was hilarious! I must be cylon leader again!
The flavor was fun and interesting and different, and I enjoyed every step. Thanks Huitzil. 10/10 would play again.
EDIT: As for your GM'ing abilities Huitzil, you managed to keep the game flowing, didn't screw up majorly (minor mistakes do not count against you in my book) kept it interesting, etc.

[ToastGhostThe smuggest damn horse.]

I enjoyed it. Messing with people (and watching them be completely wrong on my agenda) was hilarious! I must be cylon leader again!
The flavor was fun and interesting and different, and I enjoyed every step. Thanks Huitzil. 10/10 would play again.

You are a horrible person and we were so close and ahhhhhh

It was a fun game that went amazingly, but Nightmare Moon was a bit overpowered. Than and my once per game was in all honesty not that great. Not only did I miss with my attack (I should have fired that last nuke at the basestar. I could have saved us the game ffffuuuuccckkk), but compare it to Applejack's once per game: with one CS Applejack could easily move to a location and activate it three times, or with two CS's she could activate a location a whopping four times. Luna's once per turn ability was good, it was just underutilized in this game. A variable draw might've done me a world of good, maybe 1 TAC/POL or something of the like, but then again I don't actually know anything about balancing this game.

Other than that, the game was AWESOME. It was tense throughout, we had a lot of climactic events, the flavor was absolutely FANTASTIC, and it was seriously right down to the very end. Amazing job Huitzil!

[Glaed]

I would agree that NMM was op.

[Bremen]

Opps, posted in the wrong thread.

I chatted a bit with Glaed about the game and knew what his agenda was, so I had a good laugh when everyone was sure it involved being XO'd. Well played. Can't really comment on balance since I've never played with Cylon leaders before.

[Huitzil]

I would agree that NMM was op.

You mean, if you had used her OPG, or just for her Movement ability? 'Cause her movement ability is identical to Leoben Conoy's from normal Pegasus, and nobody really considers that broken. But if you're worried about her OPG, maybe we could tone it down (maybe it doesn't skip the entire turn, just everything after they draw cards?)

Luna's draw was supposed to mirror Celestia's, and the two of them have the same draws as Saul Tigh and William Adama in the base game; but we could add a variable draw anyway, if she isn't good enough. How does making "After you perform an action, repeat it" for her OPG sound? That could be quorum or skill cards or launching nukes, is that good enough?

Also, Applejack's static is worse than I thought it would be, because as Support she has to move around to get to where damage is, so she won't get a chance to use it often. That needs to be made mroe attractive.

[Glaed]

Her Eclipse ability just seemed so useful, constantly, every turn.

[Kraps]

Seconding that Huitzil ran a great game and put up with all my freaking questions

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

I guess it's only fitting, since the last game I played in I won on the final dice roll.

Damn if it doesn't suck being on the other end of it though. Good job Pony-lons!

[Huitzil]

It ended up that all of the Ponylon players hang out on IRC and asked me questions about stuff, whereas all the human/pony players came into IRC either never or not very often. Which was kind of weird, but at least I didn't have to worry about forgetting who was who and letting something slip they shouldn't have known. But I ended up giving out a lot of tips or new player advice to the Cylons!

Also, when I had to take NMM's turn back because I screwed something up I can't tell you about? It was that her Agenda said "2 locations" instead of "2 Galactica locations," like it should, and Glaed thought he had to keep the Pegasus repaired too. And if I said "I screwed up the Agendas and it changes what Glaed wants to do this turn" then it would be really easy to figure out what his Agenda was.

[W.T. FitsSpoilers, you say? Well, in that case, I suppose I should avert my eyes.]

Pretty impressive game there. I admit I know almost nothing about BSG (aside from what I looked up on Wikipedia), but this was pretty entertaining to watch.

I wouldn't mind signing up for this if someone decides to run another one.

[Huitzil]

Pretty impressive game there. I admit I know almost nothing about BSG (aside from what I looked up on Wikipedia), but this was pretty entertaining to watch.

I wouldn't mind signing up for this if someone decides to run another one.

I will run another one in a week or two, most likely. I need to take enough time off so that I won't automatically try to come up with flavor for the new game that matches the old one, because that would make me go insane.

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

Your quick updates make me look bad, Huitzil. And only 1 major mistake per game? What kind of crazy perfectionist record is THIS?!

[Huitzil]

Your quick updates make me look bad, Huitzil. And only 1 major mistake per game? What kind of crazy perfectionist record is THIS?!

I also have nothing to do all day, while you're a productive member of society at a job with irregular hours!

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

Nah, my job has regular hours, I just volunteer the rest of my free time away.

[ArtificerGoes well with All Natural Milk Naturally Flavored with Natural Flavors.]

I have to say that I'm disappointed at the last minute loss , but it was a great game, nevertheless.

Is there usually supposed to be 3 hostile entities versus 3 ponies on a 1-1 basis?

[Huitzil]

I have to say that I'm disappointed at the last minute loss , but it was a great game, nevertheless.

Is there usually supposed to be 3 hostile entities versus 3 ponies on a 1-1 basis?

Not "usually" -- with a Cylon leader with a sympathetic agenda, there was a 3 in 9 chance it would be "Cylons win" (Salvage their Equipment, Crushing Betrayal, The Illusion Of Hope), and a 6 in 9 chance it would be "humans win" (Guide Them To Destiny, Live On In Infamy, Atone For Your Sins, Prove Their Worth, Sow Chaos, Mend A Broken Heart).

NMM happened to get the agenda that, in my opinion, required her to do the least to help the human side, since they weren't doing a lot of damage to Galactica. That was kind of balanced out by the fact that there were no Cylons to start out with, both Applejack and Pinkie turned in the sleeper phase. Still wondering if "Salvage Their Equipment" requires too little help from the CL, though -- most games are won by a resource hitting 0, so an objective that said "You win if the Cylons win by destroying Galactica" might actually require more helpful behavior from the CL. Or just take it out and replace it with the "Surgical Strike" agenda, where you win with the Cylons, but only if 2 or more resources are in the green. Anyone else have an opinion?

[Bremen]

Just that I know Cylon Leaders (and their predecessor, sympathizers) aren't terribly popular with the SA thread for pretty much that reason. Having an equal balance of cylons and humans (or ponylons and ponies) can really skew balance in favor of the Cylons.

Personally, I'd kind of prefer either the alternate rule (reduces some starting resources, IIRC) or a 7 player game with 4 ponies 3 ponylons. But that's entirely up to the host.

[ArtificerGoes well with All Natural Milk Naturally Flavored with Natural Flavors.]

I was also wondering if some vets of the game could give us maybe a post-game analysis? What we did right, what we did wrong? What horribly screwed us over and what did the cylons do right/wrong, etc?

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

Here's a post game analysis:

I'm not surprised there wasn't any toasters in the early rounds (except for Glaed) as there was almost a disgusting level of humanity being displayed. I wanted to figure out if someone was slow playing things, so I was trying to stir the pot and get whoever it was to reveal. Then sleeper hit and they got revealed too well.

I think my biggest mistake was while Princess choosing the -1 Fuel crisis decision - my reasoning being that we had plenty of fuel and shouldn't need any more.

Other than that, the toasters did their best with what they had (I think they missed a Cylon Fleet activation once or twice that could have wasted more vipers / civilians) and ponies did our darnedest to succeed with gimmicky trick plays and lots of XOs, which is an important part of that game that everyone should be doing.

[Huitzil]

Here's a post game analysis:

I'm not surprised there wasn't any toasters in the early rounds (except for Glaed) as there was almost a disgusting level of humanity being displayed. I wanted to figure out if someone was slow playing things, so I was trying to stir the pot and get whoever it was to reveal. Then sleeper hit and they got revealed too well.

I think my biggest mistake was while Princess choosing the -1 Fuel crisis decision - my reasoning being that we had plenty of fuel and shouldn't need any more.

Other than that, the toasters did their best with what they had (I think they missed a Cylon Fleet activation once or twice that could have wasted more vipers / civilians) and ponies did our darnedest to succeed with gimmicky trick plays and lots of XOs, which is an important part of that game that everyone should be doing.

I thought the toasters were using Human Fleet a whole shitload, and getting a lot of skill cards they weren't using. And then the humans were way, way, way too overconfident on a couple of skill checks where you were like "oh, we can pass this" and each of you plays, like, one 2 or 3-point card when you know the Cylons are all putting in one card as well. But maybe that's just an impression I got because I could see all the cards.

[Bremen]

I think my biggest mistake was while Princess choosing the -1 Fuel crisis decision - my reasoning being that we had plenty of fuel and shouldn't need any more.

This is, incidentally, why I agonized over the current crisis in the other BSE game

[ArtificerGoes well with All Natural Milk Naturally Flavored with Natural Flavors.]

Hey huitzel. I have some friends who are interested in going over flutter valleys last gleaming. I was wondering if you could put back which cards were played on which turn for fun post game analysis, especially on the crisis skill checks? I'd really like that. Also phone posting so please forgive me my grammar errors.

[Huitzil]

Hey huitzel. I have some friends who are interested in going over flutter valleys last gleaming. I was wondering if you could put back which cards were played on which turn for fun post game analysis, especially on the crisis skill checks? I'd really like that. Also phone posting so please forgive me my grammar errors.

Uh, I went back and deleted most of the specific card results from the skill checks, and deleted some of the PMs with card plays, and it would be a huge hassle, so "maybe".

[Huitzil]

Yeah, there's no way I could put together the skill checks like that, it's just too much work and I don't have all the info. Sorry.

It's almost been a week, and running the game was a lot of fun, so I think I will start "There Are Many Copies, And They Have A Plot" tomorrow, changing Luna to:

Luna - (LEA 2 - TAC 3) - Setup: Command
Ruler of the Night -- On your turn, before the Crisis step, you may discard a Skill Card to skip the Activate Cylon Ships step this turn.
The Fun has been Doubled! -- Once per game, after you perform an action, you may perform it again, choosing new targets as necessary. If the action required a die roll or skill check, duplicate the result of the roll or total of the skill check.
Justifiably Feared -- You may not voluntarily move to a location already occupied by another character.


and making NMM's OPG ability into:

The Night Will Last Forever -- Action: Once per game, choose another player. That player's next turn ends immediately after the Receive Skills step.


Any other changes people would like to see? And would you prefer another 6-player game with a Cylon Leader, or a standard 5-player game with no CL?

[Bremen]

Yeah, there's no way I could put together the skill checks like that, it's just too much work and I don't have all the info. Sorry.

It's almost been a week, and running the game was a lot of fun, so I think I will start "There Are Many Copies, And They Have A Plot" tomorrow, changing Luna to:

Luna - (LEA 2 - TAC 3) - Setup: Command
Ruler of the Night -- On your turn, before the Crisis step, you may discard a Skill Card to skip the Activate Cylon Ships step this turn.
The Fun has been Doubled! -- Once per game, after you perform an action, you may perform it again, choosing new targets as necessary. If the action required a die roll or skill check, duplicate the result of the roll or total of the skill check.
Justifiably Feared -- You may not voluntarily move to a location already occupied by another character.


and making NMM's OPG ability into:

The Night Will Last Forever -- Action: Once per game, choose another player. That player's next turn ends immediately after the Receive Skills step.


Any other changes people would like to see? And would you prefer another 6-player game with a Cylon Leader, or a standard 5-player game with no CL?

Personally, I'd prefer the 5 player game; but I'm sure there are players that want to be a CL.

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

I think I might offer my services next game as a new player consultant.

So sign up nuggets fillies!

[Huitzil]

"There are many copies, and they have a Plot" is now open for recruiting! Hooray!

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

I will edit it into the OP when I get home.

Nothing going on today but a little exercising (I hope).

[ArtificerGoes well with All Natural Milk Naturally Flavored with Natural Flavors.]

Heh. If Rainbow Dash ever turns out to be a ponylon, I think a suitable name for her would be Rainbow Six.

[Huitzil]

Heh. If Rainbow Dash ever turns out to be a ponylon, I think a suitable name for her would be Rainbow Six.

It would! In fact, I think wacky Cylon names are SO important, I was considering making everyone pick a Cylon name at the beginning, for if they turn out to be a toaster. Then I get to pass the blame onto someone else if I can't think of a better name than "Twilight Cylon". Not everything can be as good as "The Great And Cybernetic Trixie".

[W.T. FitsSpoilers, you say? Well, in that case, I suppose I should avert my eyes.]

I've already got Cylon names for the CMC picked out if I get to be them.

Apple Borg, Scootalon, and Sweetie Bot (obligatory)

[Huitzil]

Have you ever wanted to see the perfect Platonic ideal of the clusterfuck? Even if you haven't, you should probably check this game out anyway.

If there was any advice to give to new players, it would be "Don't let any of that happen!"

[W.T. FitsSpoilers, you say? Well, in that case, I suppose I should avert my eyes.]

Have you ever wanted to see the perfect Platonic ideal of the clusterfuck? Even if you haven't, you should probably check this game out anyway.

If there was any advice to give to new players, it would be "Don't let any of that happen!"

Seconding this. I haven't seen very many BSG games yet, and I've only just started playing my first, but... Christ, this game...

[ToastGhostThe smuggest damn horse.]

I'm entertained by the idea of not one, but TWO elections being held while Cylons occupy a significant portion of the Battlestar. But yeah, don't play like that.

I actually had a question I wanted to ask about Discord's character, specifically regarding his drawback. When it says the "losing team" guesses the player's agenda, does it mean that each player gets a guess, or do they have to come up with one guess for their whole team? I imagine it would be the latter, since successfully winning with a cylon-aligned agenda would cause for the three human players to be able to guess the three possible cylon agendas, thus screwing Discord out of winning.

On a related note, playing Discord is FUN.

[Huitzil]

I'm entertained by the idea of not one, but TWO elections being held while Cylons occupy a significant portion of the Battlestar. But yeah, don't play like that.

I actually had a question I wanted to ask about Discord's character, specifically regarding his drawback. When it says the "losing team" guesses the player's agenda, does it mean that each player gets a guess, or do they have to come up with one guess for their whole team? I imagine it would be the latter, since successfully winning with a cylon-aligned agenda would cause for the three human players to be able to guess the three possible cylon agendas, thus screwing Discord out of winning.

On a related note, playing Discord is FUN.

One guess for the whole team, correct. I wanted there to be some reason that players would want/have to guess the agenda of a Discord that won with them, but I couldn't think of one that wasn't either totally pointless or like six paragraphs long and impossible to understand.

[Bremen]

One guess for the whole team, correct. I wanted there to be some reason that players would want/have to guess the agenda of a Discord that won with them, but I couldn't think of one that wasn't either totally pointless or like six paragraphs long and impossible to understand.

Having given it some thought, there really needs to be one. The reason is if their only motivation is spite, they don't have to pick the most likely one; they just have to pick the one that succeeded. If they're wrong, Discord loses, if they're right, discord loses.

[Val HelmetheadDamn it, fire hose doesn't work that way!]

Seconding this. I haven't seen very many BSG games yet, and I've only just started playing my first, but... Christ, this game...

I was reading that game too. Was debating posting it here. Pretty much the worst possible human play at all times forever.