On reviving the Fan Council

[The Eagle]

I'd be okay with the Republic break-down scenario.  Sounds fun!

[Foxx Ital]

I would be down to be a independent/neutral meker. I always enjoyed meking more than rping. Plus with my schedule i don't know how much time i can invest.
 

[Generalstoner]

I am down for whatever the group wants.  I still think a Klondike setting is ideal because it allows for faction management as well as expansion even past the ending of Klondike.

[ScrapYardArmory]

Hi all,

I love the idea of a grand strategic game for BattleTech.  I currently help to run the online Succession Wars game.  In addition, I have played a few games of ACS and have thoroughly reviewed the ISW rules from IO.

I'd like to throw my hat in the ring as a technical resource for this game if it ever gets going.  I have experience in Java as well as online based systems using PHP/MySQL.

[Stinger]

Again, I highly recommend that if this were to take off the ground, head over to mordel.net.

I talked to the admin, and he is even willing to set up a private board just for this project if you guys want.  Definitely check it out.

[The Eagle]

So this was a hot topic there for a bit. . . did anything ever come of our enthusiasm?  I looked at mordel.net and didn't see anything specific to this conversation.

[monbvol]

To be a bit blunt I am not really surprised.

[Iron Mongoose]

I might even go so far as to say this is what I expected (even if a part of me hoped to be shown wrong).

There's only a handful of us left from the old days (for some of us, fifteen years; I was closer to the age my kids are now, than the age I am now) and while many of us miss it, we all miss different things, and we all remember the bad right along with the good.

I think if a chorus of new voices were to come out and say "FGC, what is that?" then there would have been a chance, if only an outside one.  But I remember the start up for the big 63 hurrah, I didn't get my chosen Clan, because each of the 16 available Clans already had three or more players assigned (I want to say it may have been five per, hinting at 80 players at least expressing interest) so I ended up a Mandrill (and I'm better off for it, I think).  Just a dozen old timers who only sort of miss a rose colored version of the old days isn't I think going to move the needle.

[SteveRestless]

Especially when some of us are wearing shades that are tinted a far less pleasing color, as pertains to the topic at hand.

[Arkansas Warrior]

I think the concept is doomed if it isn't run on the official forums.  There just won't be enough visibility to maintain an adequate player base anywhere else, and since its banned here, it's DOA.

[ScrapYardArmory]

I think the concept is doomed if it isn't run on the official forums.  There just won't be enough visibility to maintain an adequate player base anywhere else, and since its banned here, it's DOA.

Is that an official word?  Fan Councils are not allowed on the forums here?

[Iron Mongoose]

Following the most recent iteration, the decision was made that any future versions of this needed to be done elsewhere, and not on the official forums. Suffice to say, that wasn't a fun conclusion to reach, but was one that needed to happen for a number of reasons.

I wholeheartedly hope that a new one can come around- particularly one based in the post-Jihad era, because there's no shortage of interesting things going on in there. But it's not an option here at this point.

Does seem that way, yes.

[monbvol]

Following the most recent iteration, the decision was made that any future versions of this needed to be done elsewhere, and not on the official forums. Suffice to say, that wasn't a fun conclusion to reach, but was one that needed to happen for a number of reasons.

I wholeheartedly hope that a new one can come around- particularly one based in the post-Jihad era, because there's no shortage of interesting things going on in there. But it's not an option here at this point.

Seems a rather definitive no on them making a come back on these forums.

[worktroll]

You have no idea how much **** went on in the latter days of the 3063 FGC.  #P

[ANS Kamas P81]

Which was the turn where Niops and one other group both got the super-awesome research bonus thing and unintentionally parked the bonus on each other?  I thought that was near the end of the game, but from where I was standing it was like "...well that was unexpected, and boy the rules interaction went all to hell"

[worktroll]

Abuse of the letter of the rules was one thing, and IIRC the Niops 'science hack' was carefully planned.

I'm more talking about metagaming, personal dishonesty, abuse of privilege, falsification of results, and 'helicopter crashes'. Those who were there may remember their own perspectives on some of these events, but I think I'll draw the line there.

[Iron Mongoose]

Well, if you really want to go full on rose glasses, you could think that at least folks going out and cheating means at least they were invested and wanted to do well.  I don't actually think that for the cases I know we're actually talking about, of course, but compared to the deafening silence the horrifying "metagaming, personal dishonesty, abuse of privilege, falsification of results, and 'helicopter crashes' " don't seem so bad as they did.

And then you think back and remember that while there were some absolute gems, folks who I quite miss the company of and would be willing to endure all that crap just to be able to work with, there were some real problem cases who created some real problems, and it's not really that shocking that the folks who run the boards and would be left to clean up any ridiculous messes don't want to endure it again.

[Sharkapult]

If everyone is serious, you should look up the NetBattleTech guys, they have been developing an automation backed to link up with Battle tech videogames for the last several years. Rules for planetary battles/research/etc.
I played in several NBT Classic leagues using Megamek a number of years ago, it was a fun experience

[monbvol]

To be blunt that is one of the issues that has doomed Fan Councils in the past, an over-reliance on MegaMek which leads me to suspect what too many people really want is basically where MekHQ is roughly at in terms of capabilities now.

[Sharkapult]

Which is ok, but the automation can just as easily keep track of troops/planets/research/etc without actually using any of the BT computer programs. Folks were complaining of spreadsheets and tracking movements and whatnot.
Looks like NBT is (still) not updated so my idea was basically DoA anyways.

[ANS Kamas P81]

I'll certainly say this for the FGCs.  I miss Albie.

[The Eagle]

I'll certainly say this for the FGCs.  I miss Albie.

 :'(

[Ghost0402]

I might even go so far as to say this is what I expected (even if a part of me hoped to be shown wrong).

There's only a handful of us left from the old days (for some of us, fifteen years; I was closer to the age my kids are now, than the age I am now) and while many of us miss it, we all miss different things, and we all remember the bad right along with the good.

I think if a chorus of new voices were to come out and say "FGC, what is that?" then there would have been a chance, if only an outside one.  But I remember the start up for the big 63 hurrah, I didn't get my chosen Clan, because each of the 16 available Clans already had three or more players assigned (I want to say it may have been five per, hinting at 80 players at least expressing interest) so I ended up a Mandrill (and I'm better off for it, I think).  Just a dozen old timers who only sort of miss a rose colored version of the old days isn't I think going to move the needle.

More than anything was the time required to deal with it all.  As much as i would love to secede Andurien again, I barely have enough time to keep up with the stuff i need to much less the extra time this would take.

[Arkansas Warrior]

I'll certainly say this for the FGCs.  I miss Albie.

Hear hear!  I don't think I've ever learned so much in a MegaMek match as the time he handed me my ass on Rasalhague (his wolves vs my bears) despite my larger force, then had the grace to grant Hegira (though with a pledge from Ragnar that the Bears leave Rasalhague alone for five years).

[SteveRestless]

I'll certainly say this for the FGCs.  I miss Albie.

Seyla.

[Foxx Ital]

Hear hear!  I don't think I've ever learned so much in a MegaMek match as the time he handed me my ass on Rasalhague (his wolves vs my bears) despite my larger force, then had the grace to grant Hegira (though with a pledge from Ragnar that the Bears leave Rasalhague alone for five years).

Kek i remember that, the bid i remember forcing you to do was down right dezgra. Then he goes off and does some protomech voodoo. We joked about that a lot together afterwards ^_^.
 Random fun fact, his khan in that game ended up successfully participating in a clawing ritual.

[Iron Mongoose]

Good old Albi. For years after, I'd say things like "I know a guy..." and forget he wasn't around any longer.  And for all that we didn't always get along in the game, there was never a moment it got personal.  Sadly, our FWL never had a civil war enough to cross swards in MM (though he won an election over me at least once)

[ANS Kamas P81]

Then he goes off and does some protomech voodoo.

He did that to me a few times introducing the things.

Anyway...the FGCs were fun for a time, but they ARE a lot of work and a consistent commitment. You can't just decide 'take a weekend off' for example, and there's always plots brewing and battles to deal with and a ton of paperwork and resource management.  Frankly, it really IS a large-scale empire simulator, and no empire since before the Akkadians works without paperwork in some form or another.

[Foxx Ital]

Aff to that, i unabashedly chucked the record keeping on dave baughman so i could focus on recking in MM. Was a great arrangement!
 Think my fav personal memory was winning with zell a star of elementals vs a elite lobo with perks.. In a raging forest fire that engulfed most of the map. I only won cause his ams ran out of ammo. To this day its the reason i love Altenmarkt. Best compliment was when kit said he couldn't duplicate the results after 5 battles.

Fav moment that i wasnt part of? Watching GbScientist use Bjorn to pimp slap the taste out of victors mouth before security could interven.

[Generalstoner]

I miss Dan too.  We would talk for hours on MSN instant messenger.

But I have to agree, I just don't see this working off the main CBT boards.  There is way less traffic here than the previous boards and taking it off site would reduce traffic even more.