Trade Wars: How to Win

In non-tourney games, the kind you are playing, where one can get killed on Monday, be reincarnated on Tuesday, winning means reaching a point where it is too expensive to kill you. If you’ve been playing according to the tips I’ve given, by the End Game you have four different ‘home’ sectors, each with a shielded mountainous or two, Volcanic planets with nearly maxed Q cannon potential standing in the doorway Sector. To invade any of your Sectors is going to be an extremely expensive and foolhardy operation. It will take a large number of ships destroyed to deplete the fuel on the doorway planet before entering your sector.

Considering the number of ships the Invader Must Lose and the fact this is a low turn game, (and that an Invasion must be accomplished within those turns), the sheer expense is prohibitive, save to the fool, who loses by attempt. Unless you are involved in a ship to ship battle and are killed and have no other lives, low turn games do not usually have one clear winner, but two or so players who are equally powerful and neither is willing to lose by attacking the other. In the usual ’script’ games, it is program against program and the winner is usually the one who got on first and didn’t make costly mistakes.

The reason why I emphasise low turn games is that scripts are useless, and one has to use their turns wisely. The Evil Player will not have the advantages inherent in unlimited turn games and Good players who play smart games wind up with virtually impenetrable defenses. Usually, a game gets down to the point that those who could invade, won’t, and the Sysop will rebang the Universe. ‘Stalemates’ are the most enjoyable games. You are playing against someone who is as good as you are, who is as intelligent, and who makes you play at your best level.