Talk:Stellar Conquest
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The article notes: "One common, recurrent flaw on the part of most Stellar Conquest players is to under estimate the value of the Escort (ESC). Why is still a mystery to me, though I have come to attribute it to two basic oversights. I think players become too anxious for rapid military buildup and perhaps neglect fine detail in trying to be farsighted in looking ahead to future production years. In the case of the latter, it is good to try and be farsighted in a society level game such as SC, yet SC is also a game of much detail. Failure to recognize this has cost many a player his position in the game, myself included." The article notes: "Stellar Conquest (hereafter referred to as SC) and Starforce (SF) both approach the idea of a far flung stellar society from quite different view points. The differences lie not only in game mechanics but in the underlying philosophical assumptions without which the games would be nothing more than pieces of cardboard to move lifelessly about a flat playing surface." The article notes: "Although running a war cheaply is seldom a factor in real life, it is very important in Stellar Conquest. You must use the smallest fleet and least defenses, but still win the battles you have to win. After all, SC is a game of economics. The main goal of war is simple Industrial Unit (IU) attrition." The review notes: "Like almost every wargame, these are at the center of Stellar Conquest. It is appropriate that competition and conflict change in the game as technology advances. Again as on Terra, technology makes them deadlier as well. Stellar Conquest is about power reduced to its basic elements. Under the only moderately complex system is a subtle and elegant portrayal of power and how it can be fostered, and wielded, very few strictly historical games can make a claim to do it as well as Stellar Conquest." The article notes: "In Stellar Conquest, because there is no verbal communication permitted, diplomacy can be an awesome weapon if implemented correctly. ... Limited intelligence, a main feature in Stellar Conquest, requires players to ferret out knowledge blindly, by themselves. Gaining more knowledge than the next player is essential to a winning strategy — and to effective diplomacy." The book notes: "Often touted as the first 4X game (explore, exploit, expand, exterminate), and one of the first space-empire-style games on the market, Stellar Conquest (1975) warrants a closer inspection here. Clearly rooted in notions of spatial domination, expansion, and colonization, Stellar Conquest's debt to wargames is apparent. It uses the hex-and-counter wargame genre standard of a game board depicting a map—which in this case covers a small part of the Milky Way galaxy—divided into a grid of hexagonal spaces. Stellar Conquest includes four hundred counters that the players use to represent their units on the map. Battle is resolved by rolling six-sided dice and looking to a fire effects table for the result." The article notes: "Effective synchronization of the ship movement systems in Stellar Conquest may possibly be the most intellectually demanding, exuberant, and disquieting phase of player decision to be found in any wargame." The review notes: "Stellar Conquest is a game of exploration, colonization, industrialization, technological research, and conquest. Two to four science fiction fans or gamers direct complete interstellar societies as they compete for dominance of a star cluster. The game design emphasizes integration of multi-factor societies into a balanced, playable format. Stellar Conquest was our first design and it's already something of a popular classic. If games, science fiction, space or Star Trek appeal to you you'll surely regret missing this." The article notes: "This complex but fascinating game combines exploration with colonization and the growth of population, industry and technology. The combat system is very simple but important. The most interesting feature of Stellar Conquest is that players secretly choose how their races will develop as the game goes on. Different research expenditures will result in faster or stronger starships, stronger planetary defenses, automated industry, or a number of other improvements. You never know what your opponents are developing until they use it against you. The game requires extensive record-keeping and will last an entire evening or longer." The review notes: "Stellar Conquest is filled with nice touches. The components are top-notch, with a colorful map-board that displays the galaxy, the tables needed for play, and a place to hold the planet cards. ... And besides being a rich game. Stellar Conquest is very playable. If one person is familiar with the seven pages of rules, play can begin in a very short time. Though rated by The Avalon Hill Game Company to be of medium solitaire suitability, Stellar Conquest is really a terrific game for four people on a Friday night, good multi-player SF games are rare, and Stellar Conquest is one of the best." References |
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commie bastards are killing the wikipedia.. what's with the this page lacks notability crap? someone wants to know about where rts games were born at, and you say well, stellar conquest was the first game like that that I played... and so you look it up in wiki and it is demolished because someone decided to go through the wiki wiping many many articles based on minor problems concerning the rules of posting.. there seems to be a faction that is intent on using the rules of the wiki to tear it's very usefulness apart. In fact, I seriously doubt if this criticism will last 1 day before the person who wants to wipe the article out reverts back and wipes my comments. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.242.147.164 (talk) 06:23, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
- People who refuse to play by the rules (or even learn the rules, as you yourself have essentially admitted) shouldn't play the game. Don't blame those who are trying to create an encyclopedia when it is you yourself who is "killing the wikipedia" [sic] by pretending that it is your own personal Wikia page. Frankly, with your demonstrated inability to use proper capitalization and punctuation, we'd be better off without you. 12.233.146.130 (talk) 03:50, 14 January 2013 (UTC)
Preface to 3rd printing[edit]
We use the preface to the 3rd printing as a reference. Since that preface is quite short, I thought I'd type it in here. (It's only ¼ of a page in a 14-page text, not counting the covers, so fair use applies.) I've translated the ALL CAPS stuff to bold or italics. Cheers, CWC 05:15, 13 May 2012 (UTC)
- Preface To The Third Printing
- Stellar Conquest has become a minor classic since its introduction in 1974. It was among the very first science fiction simulation games. It was the first simulation at the society level., It is one of the few simulation games still widely played four years after introduction. Stellar Conquest has become the standard by which other society level games are measured.
- The popularity of Stellar Conquest with gamers is gratifying. It is particulary gratifying knowing that the Avalon Hill company rejected Stellar Conquest in 1973. Stellar Conquest was the start of Metagaming, then known as Metagaming Concepts. It led to the The Space Gamer, our own science fiction & fantasy game magazine. It paved the way for the innovation of Microgames. Stellar Conquest proved "amateurs" could compete with the established companies.
- In preparing Stellar Conquest for a third printing I've been surprised. The rules and design hold up well compared to current games. The decision not to revise the game seems justified. You don't alter a classic. It stands as a testament and example of its time.
June 1978
Sorry, that's not a valid citation. Without some means of identifying the actual text beyond your "say-so", it's OR. "Referencing" it multiple times doesn't change the fact that the article is in fact unreferenced. See the citation policy to learn how to properly cite a source. Copy-pasting here means nothing; the citation source has to exist in the real world and be verifiable. 12.233.146.130 (talk) 03:45, 14 January 2013 (UTC)