Subject: MN: Year 3 Week 8 Proposals

From: dunx@l... (Duncan Ellis (Dunx))
Date: Tue, 01 Jun 1999 23:06:44 GMT

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MORNINGTON NOMIC

Proposals for Voting on in Week Eight
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Proposal 767 - Not at All Good for the Environment [Action]

New
Rule 1.7.x - Not at All Good for the Environment

A Player may perform a Pre-Move Action of "[Taxiplane to <Station>]",
where <Station> is defined as an Airport Interchange, provided e is
at an Airport Interchange.

When a Player performs the Action "[Taxiplane to <Station>]", eir LV is
set to zero, and a Special Move to <Station> is allowed.

{ Speaker's Comment: what goes round comes round - the Proposer may be
interested, and perhaps even amused, to peruse Proposal 017 from Year 1,
Week 2. }

New
Rule 1.7.x - Power-crazed Egotistical Entrepreneur

A Player may perform a Pre-Move Action of "[Bransoning]", provided e is
at an Airport Interchange.

When a Player performs the Action "[Bransoning]", eir LV is
set to zero, e must roll a 295-sided die, look up the rolled number
in the Venbacker Table, and Move to the Station indicated by the roll.
This Special Move is always allowed.

Insert in Action Table
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Taxiplane to <Station>] Pre 1.7.x -4 Gr -1 Bk
[Bransoning] Pre 1.7.x -2 Go -4 Gr -1 Bk

{Comment:
This obviously works best if there are two Airport Interchanges.
We have both Heathrows on LU, and London Airport in Finsbury.

Bransoning could be a way of winning (just roll 164), but it is quite
expensive - and should be so.

}

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Proposal 768 - Game States rewrite [Multiple]

-New Rule:
Rule 1.8.0: A Game may be in one or more Game States. These should be
listed in a section on the Game State Document: if there is not room to
enter a Game State into the relevant area, enough Game States should be
deleted from the start of the line to make room for it.
{Comment: The main effect of this is because I believe Game States
should be considered different from Disruptions. Disruptions generally
affect one Station or Line, and that Station or Line needs to be
mentioned: Game States affect the whole Game - hence Circle Line states
are becoming a Disruption as they affect only one Line.}
-Amend Rule 1.2.0, the third paragraph to read:
The GSD shall also include the following information, each in an
appropriate format:
Game Day and Time
Wild Stations
Game States
Disrupted Services
Station Contents
Courier Calls.

- Amend Rule 1.2.2 to remove "Game States" from the list of
Disruptions if it has been put there: Game States should now have a box
of their own, similar in format to the Disrputions box.

- Amend Rule 1.8.2:
While a Parks and Greens Cascade is active, this is indicated in the
Game States box as "P&G Cascade".

- Amend Rule 1.8.3:
While the Bridges are Up, this is indicated in the Game States box as
"Bridges Up".

- Amend Rule 1.8.4:
While the game is in Knip, this is indicated in the Game States box
as "Knip".

- Renumber Rule 1.8.5 into Section 9, and amend it so that its
first paragraph reads:
The Circle Line may be in any of four states: Normal, Clockwise,
Anticlockwise and Electrified. While the Circle Line is in a condition
other than Normal, this should be indicated in the Disruptions box:
"Circle:-->" for Clockwise, "Circle: <--" for Anticlockwise, and
"Circle:***" for Electrified.

-Amend Rule 1.8.7:
While the Gap is being Minded, this should be indicated in the Game
States box as "Gap".

-Amend the "Mindbocklingly" rule:
While the game is in a state of Bock, this should be indicated in the
Game States box as "Bock:<xx>" where <xx> is the two-letter description
of the type of Token involved.

- Renumber the Charge Spiral Rule into Section 1.8. Also, add the
following, so that its final paragraph reads:

While a Charge Spiral is in effect, this is indicated in the Game
States box as "Charge In" or "Charge Out" for Inwards or Outwards
spirals respectively.

- Renumber Rules 1.7.36 and 1.7.37, combining into a single Rule
and placing in Section 1.8.

- Amend all "Token Cascade" references in the Ruleset text to
"Token Shower"
{Comment: To differentiate from the Parks and Greens Cascade.}

- Add the following text to the renumbered and renamed Token Shower
rule:
If a Token Shower is in play, this should be noted in the Game States
box as "Token Shower:<Player>" where <Player> is the focal Player.

- Rename Section 1.9, both in its normal title and in the index, to
"Blocks, Impediments and Disruptions".
{Comment: Gaps are now a Game State, and other disruptions have since
been added.}

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Proposal 769 - Token Stacking [Amendment]
- Remove, if it exists, the bullet point in Rule 4.1.19 which
states that "all Tokens for a particular action must be placed on the
same Stack."
- Add the following bullet point to Rule 1.4.19:
* All Tokens spent on any particular Action must be placed on
different Stacks. If there are not enough eligible Stacks available, the
excess Tokens are destroyed.

- Amend the final paragraph of Rule 1.14.3 to read as follows:
There may be no more than three Stacks in each Quadrant, and no Token
Stack may contain more than six Tokens: if a Token is dropped on a Stack
containing six tokens, the bottom Token of that Stack is destroyed to
make room for it.
If a Station contains another entity which is listed in the Token
Stack table (Suspect Packages, Flags, the Podume of Infinite Darkness
etc.) then no Tokens may be placed there at all. However, this other
item does not count against the number of Stacks that may coexist.

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Proposal 770 - Loop the Loop [Multiple]

- Repeal Rules 1.8.1 and 1.8.6.

- New Rule 1.8.1 (Loop the Loop):

The Game may be in a "Loop" State, which should be detailed in the
Game States section as "Loop:<loop>" where <loop> is the type of Loop.
Only one Loop State may exist at once: if the game is placed into more
than one Loop, then the most recent Loop continues, and all other Loops
are ended.

For each Loop, the following must be defined:

* A Loop Type: either "Automatic" or "Invoked".

* One or more Trap Stations: moving to one of these may start the
Loop automatically (in the case of an Automatic Loop) or if the moving
Player plays the [<loop> Loop] Action (in the case of an Invoked Loop).
If there is more than one Trap Station, they may be Sequential (the
stations must be played in a pre-set order) or Unordered (the Player may
move to any of the Trap Stations of that particular Loop, with the
provision that e may only stay at the same Station if e plays a move of
Pass.)

* A [<loop> Loop] Action to begin Invoked Loops, together with the
cost and conditions of that Action.

* A [<loop> Escape] Action to allow the Player of this Action to
end the "Loop" Game State, together with the cost and conditions of that
Action.

* (Optional) A [<loop> Sidestep] Action to allow the Player of this
Action to ignore the Loop while leaving the "Loop" Game State still in
force for other Players. Also, the cost and conditions of that Action.

* (Optional) Any other special features pertaining to that Loop.

When a Game is in a Loop State, the Player whose Turn it is *must* do
one of the following things:

* Move eir Piece directly to the Trap station (or one of them: the
next in sequence, should the loop be Sequential.) This move is
considered Special in that no intervening Stations are considered to be
passed through: but may not be prevented by any restriction which
prevents Special Moves, nor is the Player's LV set to zero except upon
moving into the Trap Station from a non-Trap Station.

* Play a [<loop> Sidestep] Action. E may then move as normal for
eir Turn, but the Loop State remains for future players. If three
consecutive players (discounting Passes) play Sidestep Actions, the Loop
State is ended.

* Play a [<loop> Escape] Action. The Loop State is ended, and e may
move eir Piece as normal.

* Pass or Timeout: eir Piece is immediately moved to a Loop Trap
station (chosen at random by the next Player in the case of a
multiple-Trap Loop, ignoring the Sequential/Unordered status), or
remains in position if e is already at one.

The following types of Loop are recognised:

(1) Standard Holding Loop. (Invoked, Single Trap)
Trap station: As chosen by the [Looping] Actioning Player.
Entry Action: [Loop the Loop] - cost=2 Blue.
Sidestep Action: [Loop Sidestep] Cost=2 Black
Escape Action: [Loop Escape] Cost=1 Blue if at the Trap Station, 2
Blue otherwise.

(2) Dollis Hill Loop (Automatic, Single Trap)
Trap Station: Dollis Hill
Entry Action: Any move which leaves the moving Player at Dollis
Hill at the end of eir Turn.
Sidestep Action: none.
Escape Action: [Dollis Escape] Cost:1 Silver unless the Actioning
Player has an LV of 10 or greater.
Special: If Game Time is after 2200 hours, a Player at Dollis Hill
may play the [Ongar Denial] Action. This destroys all Knid, Spoon and
Narg Clamps in play, removes the game from Knip if it is in Knip, and
ends the "Dollis Hill Loop" Game State. Ongar becomes a valid Special
Move destination for that Player, and may not be prevented by any means.

(3) Amersham-Aldwych Loop (Invoked, Unordered Multiple Trap)
Trap Stations: Amersham, Aldwych.
Entry Action: [A-A Loop] - cost 1 Red, 1 Blue Tokens
Sidestep Action: [A-A Sidestep] - cost 1 Green, 1 Blue Token.
Escape Action: [A-A Escape] - cost 1 Green, 1 Blue if performed at
Amersham or Aldwych *and* LV is 10 or greater, 2 Green and 2 Blue
otherwise.
Special: Each Player enters the Loop at either Station, but on any
future Looped turns must either move to the other Station or play a
Pass. Also, note that Aldwych is a Ghost Station, and may only be
entered with the [Ghosting] Special Move Action. If this is not
possible, a Player at Amersham must Pass.

(4) Morden Paradox (Invoked, Single Trap)
Entry Action: [Using the Morden Paradox Gambit]. This starts the
loop automatically.
Sidestep Action: [Paradox Sidestep], cost 3 Black
Escape Action: [Paradox Escape], cost 3 Black if performed at
Morden, 6 Black otherwise.

- Delete the Pimlico Loop rule if it has passed.

- Delete the [Dollis Escape] and [Dollis Sidestep] Actions from the
Action Table, and replace with the following:
[<loop> Loop] Post-Move, cost varies.
[<loop> Sidestep] Pre-Move, cost varies.
[<loop> Escape] Pre-Move, cost varies.

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Proposal 771 - Game into Boris... [Enactment]
Rule 1.8.x
The Game shall have a State known as "Boris", which it is either In
or Out of: at the start of the game it is Out of Boris, which is
considered the default. If the game is In Boris, this should be noted in
the GSD Game States section as "Boris".

A Player may play the [Into Boris] or [Out of Boris] Action on eir
Turn, changing the Boris state accordingly.

When a Game is in Boris, the following conditions apply:

* The bonus in Table 1.4.20 of 1 Black Token for remaining on the
same Line does not apply: instead, a bonus of 1 Black Token is given for
any Standard Move which does *not* remain on the same Line.

* The [Line Change] action has a cost of zero: instead, any move
which does not involve this Action incurs a penalty of 1 Black Token.

* LV is limited to four less than the usual maximum (i.e. normally
6), and may only be adjusted by up to two points each turn.

* No Player may perform any Post-Move Action which changes the
location of eir Piece.

* No Player may make a move of "Pass". If there exist any conditions
which enforce a move of "Pass", the Player must instead make a Special
Move (which cannot be prevented by any means) to Dollis Hill instead.
Similarly, Timeouted Players are moved automatically to Dollis Hill. A
Dollis Hill Loop state is begun in either case.

New Actions for the Action Table:
[Into Boris] Neutral, 1.8.x, cost 2 Re 2 Bu
[Out of Boris] Neutral, 1.8.x, cost 2 Gr 2 Bl.

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Proposal 772 - Ladders Up and Down. [Multiple]

Delete the text of the "Venbacker Ladder" Rule and replace with the
following:

A Player may perform the Action of [Venbacker Ladder: <x>] where <x>
is either Up or Down, to bring the Game into a State of Venbacker
Ladder - this is noted in the Game States section as "Ladder Up" or
"Ladder Down".

While a Venbacker Ladder is in effect, the following applies:
(1) If the ladder is Up at the start of a Player's Turn, then a
Standard Move to a Station with a Venbacker Number lower than eir
previous location is Invalid.
(2) If the ladder is Down at the start of a Player's Turn, then a
Standard Move to a Station with a Venbacker Number higher than eir
previous location is Invalid.

A Player may perform the Action of [Ladder Sidestep] to ignore the
Ladder for one Turn: it remains in effect for other Players.

A Player may perform the Action of [Ladder Reverse] to reverse the
Ladder, from Up to Down or from Down to Up.

A Player may perform the Action of [Terminating Ladder] to end a
Venbacker Ladder Game State, provided e is situated at a Station with a
Venbacker Number below 21 or above 275.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Venbacker Ladder Up/Down] Post 1.8.x -2 Bu
[Ladder Sidestep] Pre 1.8.x -3 Bk
[Ladder Reverse] Neut 1.8.x -1 Bu -1 Bk
[Terminating Ladder] Post 1.8.x

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Proposal 773 - Humpty Dumpty Loop [Enactment]

Proposal for a new
Rule 1.8.x - Humpty Dumpty Loop

A Humpty Dumpty Loop has the Trap Stations Kingsbury, Queensway,
Prince Regent, Earl's Court, Barons Court, Knightsbridge. The
Sidestep Action [Humpty Sidestep] costs 1 Silver to perform and the
Escape Action [Dumpty Escape] can only be performed when the Player
has an LV equal to eir Charge.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Humpty Sidestep] Pre 1.8.2 -1 Si
[Dumpty Escape] Post 1.8.2 -2 Gr  

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Proposal 774 - A Whiter Shade of Pale... [Multiple]

Amend
Rule 1.4.1 - Token Gesture

In the Game of Mornington Crescent, there exist a number of differently
coloured Tokens, which can be carried by Players and piled in Stacks on
Stations. Tokens are created and lost as the Game progresses, and all
are listed on the Game State Document.

There are eight colours of Token - three Metallic (Gold, Silver and
Bronze) and five Plastic (Black, Blue, Green, Red and White).

Tokens may be awarded for certain Moves and Actions within the game,
and must be expended to perform particular Actions.

The Token Cost of any Action shall, where applicable, reflect the
nature of the Action and the extent of its effect. The nature of
the Action shall be reflected in the colour of Token required and
the extent shall be reflected in the number of Tokens required. The
type of Actions the different Token Colours should apply to shall
be as follows:

* Black : Move Actions (those which only affect the position or
movement of the Actioning Player's Piece)

* Blue : Indirectly Aggressive Actions (those which may indirectly
affect the movement or status of another Player's Piece)

* Green : Neutral Actions (those which have no immediate effect on
any Piece's position, such as declarations)

* Red : Aggressive Actions (those which directly affect the
position, status or ability to Move of another Player)

* White : Generous Actions (those which help the game, possibly even
hurting the Actioning Player)

* Bronze : 'Purchasing' Actions (those relating to the acquisition of
Gold Tokens and Possessions)

* Silver / Gold : Special Actions (ones which should only be allowed to be
used infrequently, thus cost more)

New
Rule 1.4.x - With or Without Sulfo

If a Token is Shunted (or moved by similar means) to Angel, the Token
turns White.
If a White Token is Shunted (or moved by similar means) to Blackfriars,
the Token turns Black.

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Proposal 775 - Return of the Son of the Revenge of the Clever Bear [Amendment]

Append the following to Rule 0.9.4 - Fish and Fowl:

Who's a Clever Bear? Award

A player who feels that e has just performed a particularly clever or stylish
sequence of Actions may perform the Action [Taking a Bow] immediatly
afterwards. Similarly, a Player who feels that another Player has justmade
such a move may perform the Action [Applauding <Player>]. Clairifying
comments may be added in the Comments section of the GSD, if desired, and the
play in question is considered Nominated.

At the week's end, the Speaker will consider all moves so Nominated during
the previous week, and award the Who's a Clever Bear? trophy to the Player
whose move e deems to be the cleverest of the lot. (The Speaker may decline
to award the Trophy if the only candidate is self-Nominated, and the Speaker
feels the move in question to be unworthy.)

The Speaker may give this Award to emself, provided that e was Nominated by
another Player, and that there are no other Nominations that week.

The Player who receives the Award shall gain an additional +3 Kudos.

Insert in Action Table
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Taking a Bow] Neut 0.9.4 none
[Applauding <Player>] Neut 0.9.4 none

{Comments: I always liked the idea of the Clever Bear award - Players
_should_ gain recognition for pulling off a particularly clever or cheeky
move. However, it was, I imagine, quite a nuisance for the Speaker to keep
track of, hence its banishment. Thus, a clear method for Players to
nominate each other (and themselves), giving the Speaker a defined list of
candidates to choose from, instead of having to think back to all the moves
played in all the games in the past week...}

{ Speaker's Comment: the Proposer is very perceptive. }

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Proposal 776 - Hatcheries [Action]

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Hatching <Line> from
<Station 1> to <Station 2>] Post 1.8.x -1 Si -z Bu*
[Cross-Hatching <Line> from
<Station 1> to <Station 2>] Post 1.8.x -1 Go -z Bu*
[Un-Hatching <Line> from
<Station 1> to <Station 2>] Post 1.8.x -1 Go -z Bu*

*) 1 Blue Token per Station in the LIne Segment

Rule 1.8.x - Hatcheries

A Line Segment may be Hatched by playing the Post-Move Action "[Hatching
<Line> from <Station 1> to <Station 2>]", where <Station 1> &
<Station 2> are Stations and <Line> is a Line upon which both Stations
rest and via which there is a continuous route between the Stations that
requires no changes in direction. The order of Stations in the Action is
not significant.

In order to Hatch a Line Segment, the Actioning Player must have Moved
via the Line Segment in the same Turn.

Hatching a Line Segment causes all Stations in that Line Segment not to
be considered part of the Line in question for a period of one Round.
For the purpose of counting Lines at an Interchange, the Hatched Line
Segment is considered absent.

A Hatched Line Segment is indicated in Disruptions by the suffix
"(Hatch)" appended to the affected Line Segment, the Line Segment being
described by its end Stations and the affected Line Code.
eg Angel to Bank (NT) (Hatch)

A Hatched Line Segment may be Cross-Hatched by playing the Post-Move
Action "[Cross-Hatching <Line> from <Station 1> to <Station 2>]", where
<Station 1>, <Station 2> and <Line> are defined as mentioned above,
provided the Actioning Player is at a Station in the Line Segment
to be Cross-Hatched.

Cross-Hatching a Line Segment causes all Stations in that Line Segment
not to be considered part of the Line in question until Un-Hatched.

Similar to Hatching, a Cross-Hatched Line Segment is indicated in
Disruptions by the suffix "(Cross-Hatch)".
eg Angel to Bank (NT) (Cross-Hatch)

A Cross-Hatched Line Segment may be Un-Hatched by playing the Post-Move
Action "[Un-Hatching <Line> from <Station 1> to <Station 2>]", where
<Station 1>, <Station 2> and <Line> are defined as mentioned above,
provided the Actioning Player is at a Station in the Line Segment
to be Un-Hatched.

Un-Hatching a Line Segment causes all Stations in that Line Segment tobe
considered part of the Line in question again.

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Proposal 777 - Lyttleton Announcement [Action]

Rule 1.7.x - Lyttleton Announcement

A Player may perform the Neutral Action of "[Lyttleton Announcement]".
When a Lyttleton Announcement has been made, all Players lose eir Home
Stations. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action ('#' if Singular) Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Lyttleton Announcement] Neut 1.7.x 50 -1 Go

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Proposal 778 - Fair Warning [Enactment]

As close as possible to thirty-six hours before the votes are due in a Week,
the Speaker will send out an email to all Active Players who have voted on
less than half of the current Proposals. This message will have the subject
line "MN: Reminder to Vote" and notify the Player in question that the bulk
of their votes are still uncast.

{Comments: I hate to lumber the Speaker with this, but it'd certainly help
me to remember that I haven't cast all my votes in this Week. And I think
that if we can get everyone to vote things will be a little more even in the
voting scheme. But that's just me.}

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Proposal 779 - New, Clear Bomb [Amendment]

In Rule 1.7.30, replace the first paragraph with:-

Any Player who is fewer than five stations away from a Suspect Package
may perform the neutral Action of "[Detonating <Station> Package]" to 
Detonate that Package, where "<Station>" is the Station it rests at.

{ A simply radio-detonator range, sort of thing, rather than making it LV
based; such was merely another bonus for Going Very Quickly, and one that
didn't seem to fit terribly well. (Arguably a Doppler effect, but not if
you're speeding away from the Package.) }

And replace the last paragraph with:-

A Player may perform the Action of [Defusing Package] provided that e is
situated at the same location as a Suspect Package, and that e did not
place the Package there emself. Upon performing this Action, that Package
is removed from play and the Actioning Player gains a Silver Token.

{ Vague tweaking; you should be rewarded for defusing someone else's Suspect
Package, even if you dropped a different one of your own last Turn. }

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Proposal 780 - Muzzling [Amendment]

Replace the third paragraph of Rule 1.8.4 (Knip) with:-

When a Game is in Knip, no Players may perform Actions which include
Token expenditure (with the exception of "[Out of Knip]" and "[Line
Change]").

{ Knip was forged in the early days when there weren't many Actions of
great impact, and when Tokens were scarce; the current Knip effect
of sacrificing a Token at the end of each Turn just seems a bit weak
(a Bronze or Black per Turn isn't too tricky) and easy to overlook
(more often than not we forget about the Token loss when we're in
Knip). In these enlightened times, particularly with MC requiring an
Action to Open, I suspect that the mere denial of non-free Actions is
probably crippling enough. }

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Proposal 781 - A Chip Off The Old Bock [Multiple]

{ Rewording Bock a bit (there's no need to waffle about checking whether
Actions have been performed since other Actions now we've got the
Disruptions Box; such is a mere Gapminding hangover), and altering
things so that free Actions remain free, and so that Line Changing and
Token Exchange Actions aren't touched.

Oh, and making the thing reasonably expensive; three Blues instead of
a mere one. }

Reword Rule 1.8.8 (Mindbocklingly...) to:-

Players may perform the Post-Move Action "[<Token Colour> Bock]", the
Post-Move Action "[Un-Bock <Token Colour>]" and the Post-Move Action
"[Un-Bock]", where <Token Colour> is a permissible Token colour.

When a Player performs a "[<Token Colour> Bock]" Action, the Game is
put into "<Token Colour> Bock"; this is detailed in the Disruptions Box
of the GSD. When a Player performs a "[Un-Bock <Token Colour>]" Action,
the relevant Bock is removed from the Disruptions Box. When a Player
performs the "[Un-Bock]" Action, all Bocks are removed.

For each Bock State that the Game is in, the cost of all Actions is
increased by one Token of the Bock colour, unless one of the following
conditions is true for that Action:-

* The Actioning Player is situated at a Station of the Bock colour,
which for the purpose of this rule is defined as a Station with
the colour string in its name (e.g. "Goldhawk Road" for Gold Bock).

* The Token cost of the Action already includes one or more <Token
Colour> Tokens, or is a Token Exchange Action, or is free.

* The Action is "[Un-Bock <Token Colour>]", "[Un-Bock]" or "[Line
Change]".

Adjust the cost of "[<Token Colour> Bock]" to "-3 Bu, -1 <Token Colour>".

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Proposal 782 - A Poor Second To Belgium [Action]

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action Phase Rule Dur Cost Gain
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Double Helsinki] Neut 1.7.x -6 Bu
[Single Helsinki] Neut 1.7.x -3 Bu
[Triple Helsinki] Neut 1.7.x -9 Bu
------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Player may perform a Single, Double or Triple Helsinki to "sink" all
of the Game's Token Stacks into the Map.

Upon performing a Single Helsinki, the bottom Token of all Token Stacks
is destroyed. A Double Helsinki destroys the bottom two, a Triple the
bottom three. A Player may not perform more than one Helsinki Action per
Turn.

{ Implementation of a classic piece of Crescent terminology, and a
reasonable foil to the businesses of "free" Tithing and scattering
Tokens for imminent collection, amongst other things. }

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Proposal 783 - Fighting For Our Wealth [Enactment: Section 2.4]

In addition to Tokens received at the start of the Game, each Player
receives one Gold Token.

{ To encourage the attacking of other Players in a Ruttsborough Game, and
to possibly swiften the Game up - both fast and furious. }

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dunx
--
Ceci n'est pas un .sig

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From: kevan@d...
Date: Wed, 02 Jun 1999 14:00:31 -0000

> Proposal 767 - Not at All Good for the Environment [Action]

Still as dodgy as the original, I suspect; spending five Tokens to take
a flight from one Heathrow to the other seems ridiculous, and even in a
Finsbury Option game, it seems too obscure to be useful. (Why not just
Wild?)

>Rule 1.7.x - Power-crazed Egotistical Entrepreneur

This is an excellent idea, which I've only a couple of misgivings about.
Firstly the cost - although the Golds mean that it's a fair enough route
to victory (making it free would just render it annoying were someone to
pull off a second-Turn Win), they make it quite pointless to use
otherwise - aside from victory, I really can't imagine any circumstance
where you'd want to use this (particularly when you can Wild to a
specific destination, or at least Charge Tunnel if you need a path to
somewhere distant). Two Golds on the off-chance you'll get where you
might need to be? Unappealing.

The idea of rolling dice mid-Move is quite suspect, also; what happens
if you change your mind about your Move before submitting it, but after
you've rolled the die? Such is indistinguishable from rolling the die,
seeing what you get, then changing your mind if it's bad.

Plus, actually (and this remains a problem with the existing dice
implementation), you can cheerfully replace any Turns which involve bad
die rolls, continually doing so until you get a number you like. A Bad
Thing.

A random Move does sound like an entertaining thing, though; I'd welcome
a more watertight reproposal of this one.

>Proposal 768 - Game States rewrite [Multiple]

Nicely tidying. The bit about "enough Game States should be deleted from
the start of the line to make room for it" is a bit scary, but I suppose
shouldn't ever really become an issue.

>Proposal 769 - Token Stacking [Amendment]

A necessary amendment, I think. But...

>excess Tokens are destroyed.

Hmm. This means that you can't create new Stacks with expended Tokens...
There's probably a little too much ambiguity apropos of the difference
between "a Token Stack" and "the Tokens, if any, resting at a Station".

>item does not count against the number of Stacks that may coexist.

I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not, really, since it's not
exhaustive - you can still drop a Flag on a Stack, Shunt the Podume
onto a Stack, and so forth.

>Proposal 770 - Loop the Loop [Multiple]

Quite a poor words-to-improvement ratio, as I read it. The return of
the dangerously fuzzy "Move eir Piece directly" unsettles me (is this
a replacement of the normal Move, or not?), the Invocation Actions
strike as superfluous (moving to a uniquely identified Station is
enough, I think), the DH loop is weakened (you can Escape for the
price of a Sidestep, without having to be at DH), the Morden Paradox
lacks a Trap Station and there's a casual and abusable "chosen at
random by the next Player".

On the plus side, this does clarify what happens if one Loop starts in
the middle of another, it fixes the Dollis Escape (at present you can
never get an LV of 10, because each Special Move to Dollis Hill zeroes
your LV), and makes Passing less of a free Sidestep, but this isn't
enough to save it, for me.

>Proposal 771 - Game into Boris... [Enactment]

This doesn't really fit the Morningtonia definition (perhaps we should
have a link to the Encyclopaedia from our Web page, actually?), but
seems fairly interesting nevertheless. I'm a bit hazy as to what happens
if I don't change Line but don't have any Black Tokens, and the denied
Passing leaves a bad taste, but otherwise it seems alright.

>Proposal 772 - Ladders Up and Down. [Multiple]

Reversing the direction and loosening the boundaries at either end is
nice, but I'm not sure why the rest of the rule has been so dramatically
reworded; making it dependent on one's last Move rather than the
previous Player's Move takes away much of the beauty of the thing.

>Proposal 774 - A Whiter Shade of Pale... [Multiple]

Even though this now gives us the five mana colours from Magic, which is
slightly amusing, I don't think it's a terribly worthwhile addition, at
least without some suggested White Actions, and a way to actually get
the things aside from Passing and Token Generating.

>Proposal 775 - Return of the Son of the Revenge of the Clever Bear [Amendment]

Very gentlemanly and "proper Crescent", I must say. Bravo.

>Proposal 776 - Hatcheries [Action]

A fine implementation of Hatching, and perhaps suitably expensive
(particularly in that you have to Hatch and *then* Cross-Hatch a Line,
to get it Cross-Hatched). I'm not quite sure what should happen to
someone who's caught at a Hatched Station, though... It's not part of
the Line any more, but are they able to Move to other Hatched Stations
on that Line? Puzzling.

>Proposal 777 - Lyttleton Announcement [Action]

Curious. Perhaps a little cheap, in that it forces every Player to make
their next Move a good distance from the Crescent (and is thus a very
strong Win-denial), and can make a mockery of Capture the Flag games,
but interestingly appealing all the same.

It could probably use amendment so that Home Stations are lost at the
end of the Turn, though, so that the Actioning Player can't "[Home:]"
immediately and get the best place.

>Proposal 778 - Fair Warning [Enactment]

Rather odd to give the Speaker more work, because some people are
forgetting to vote. This seems a rather convoluted way of doing it, too
- the Speaker of Thring just used to send out an automated "thirty-six
hours left, everyone" message to the list each week, which did the job
neatly enough. How easy would that be for you to implement, automated
or otherwise, Dunx?

Kevan

--
kevan@d...
http://members.xoom.com/asabove