Agents Of Empire/Turns/Instructions

Where do we put my action details?

Put your action on the page for the turn coming up -- the first turn of the game is turn 1, so you'd put your first turn there. Later, I'll edit that page with the results of your actions (or we may go back and forth a couple times).

How long is a turn in game time?

Roughly two weeks (so your taxes are due at the end of turn 12.

How much does stuff cost? / What can we buy? / How do we raise the money?

See the economics page. The easiest way to raise money is to mine resources, refine them in a factory, and ship them back to the empire in your cargo ship to sell them, but there are other ways to do it too -- you could try to find the money via exploration, try to reduce your taxes by political maneuvering in the senate, or think of something else. Remember that you can use character actions to modify prices when buying/building/selling things as well -- someone with a high Survival would be a good choice to help build explorer units, while someone with a high Socializing could help negotiate a better price when selling some goods back at the Empire.

What actions can we take on a given turn?

Your House can take as many actions as you want to and are able (see the mechanics page). Characters can take one action on a given turn, but this is intentionally a little vague (given the aforementioned two game-weeks per turn thing); basically investigation shouldn't cost you any time, but once you start "doing something", that is probably your action for the turn. Ask if you're not sure and are worried about it, and I'll step in if it seems like you're doing too much or not enough in a single turn.

Can a character substitute for an explorer unit?

A character action can be used to explore; the character acts for the turn as though they were a rank-N explorer unit, where N is based on their Survival skill, or their Investigation or Vehicles skill at one rank lower. Great skill translates to a rank-3 explorer, Good to a rank-2 explorer, and Average to a rank-1 explorer. Remember that exploration can be risky!

How big is a hex?

Somewhere between 10 and 100 miles. It's pretty hand-wavy at the moment (this may firm up later).

Can we leave the edge of the map?

There is no in-game justification for it, but no, please don't walk off the edge of the map yet.

Are the game mechanics and particularly prices still in beta and so should we expect things to possibly change as the game continues?

Yes.

When is the first turn due?

Turn due dates will be on the main turns page. The first turn is due roughly EOD on Saturday, 6/11. In the future, turns will be faster. Also, note that this is when I'll want to resolve the turn; if you're doing something complicated (in particular, if your character is doing some kind of multi-part action), you should get it up sooner so we have time to go back and forth and iron it all out.

What does a sample turn look like?

What you do on a turn will (of course) depend on your individual situation, but here is what a typical turn might look like a half-dozen turns into the game:

House Turn

• In the shipping phase, we send 3 units of resource X and the character Waldo to the empire.
• In the exploration phase, our explorer unit in K12 moves to K13, K14, and then K15; our explorer in H3 moves to H4.
• In the production phase, we produce 1 unit of resource X and 2 units of resource Y.
• In the processing phase, we turn 1 unit of resource X and 2 units of resource Y into 1 unit of resource Z.
• In the trading phase, our ship lands and sells 3 units of resource X -- Waldo attempts to negotiate a better price (see below). Also, we spend 3 mega-credits to finish building a research institution at the main colony, and spend 3 mega-credits to build a novice military unit (also at the main colony).

Character Turns

• Waldo: Flies to the empire, then tries to find someone willing to buy resource X at a higher price in exchange for a long-term contract.
• Jeed: Investigates the problem the mine in G9 is having and looks for signs of saboteurs.
• Pica: Enters the ruins at M17 looking for loot or information about the progenitors.