Diplo rank exploit?
Printed From: Illyriad
Category: Strategies, Guides & Help
Forum Name: General Questions
Forum Description: If your gameplay question isn't answered in the help files, please post it here.
URL: http://forum.illyriad.co.uk/forum_posts.asp?TID=3666
Printed Date: 17 Apr 2022 at 07:01
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.03 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Diplo rank exploit?
Posted By: Albatross
Subject: Diplo rank exploit?
Date Posted: 12 Jun 2012 at 23:32
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I just saw a Diplo score creep up slowly, changing every 2-5 seconds-ish. I can only think of two possible reasons for this: 1. Any score is not added in one go, but is interpolated on a timer (I've never observed this). 2. That player is using an exploit, e.g. sending a single T2 thief against a town with just a T1 thief in it (repeatedly and quickly), resulting in success and no losses because of rounding. This happened too long and too often to be a batch of diplo quests. I can write a petition, with specifics, but rankings seem a petty thing to concentrate on.
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Replies:
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2012 at 00:27
| Could be also the opposite effect: Player A defends with 100 thieves and a ward of destruction. Player B forgot that an ordinary ward of destruction has only 250 charges, and sends 400 T1 mineurs (= T1 thieves on solo missions) good enough to take out a ward of intentions. Almost all T1 thieves from 251 to 400 won't make it, and player A gets a better diplo score over some minutes. |
Posted By: J Pizzle
Date Posted: 13 Oct 2012 at 23:56
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I don't think there's any way that could be an exploit. Near as I can tell, rankings are based on the # of units overcome (or killed, for that matter, by defending thieves). I think it's more likely that the player knows what they're doing when it comes to thieving an undefended town. |
Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 00:05
| JP, it's an exploit because they're diploing themselves, or occasionally an inactive with known theft defense. The increase in score is caused by essentially meaningless activity. In April the devs outlined plans to have a portion (or all) of defending diplos die, which would successfully address this problem. Obviously implementation of this idea has been significantly delayed. |
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 01:00
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Diploing inactives with diplo defense is no exploit, notably after 400 solo T1 thieves died to cancel the ward. If there is a diplo defense there's also a failure chance: Lots of T2 thieves returning without goods, lots of T2 thieves returning not at all, and of course also no score. |
Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 01:28
| sending 400 t1 thieves solo seems like rather a waste of time. Why not just send enough to clear a rune then some to test the defenses? |
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 01:43
| 400 charges can be depleted by 400 dead thieves sent individually. Sent as a "horde" they'd also die, but 399 charges remain. Diplo specialists could just send, say, 5K T2, and train 400 new T2. I can't afford that, upkeep, saddles, extra building, and most of the time no interesting targets within 200 squares. |
Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 02:08
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Each charge represents one dead diplo. So if you send 400 individual thieves, that depletes 400 charges. If you send 400 thieves in one pack, that depletes 400 charges. It is true that it makes more sense to send t1 than t2 to deplete the runes, but I don't get what you're saying about sending them individually.
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Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 02:24
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No, each charge in its initial state kills up to 400 thieves. If you send 400 missions with 400 thieves you end up with a depleted ward of intentions and 16K dead thieves. It's slightly more complex with a Runemasters' Grounding: For, say, level 16, you'd get 720 charges at the time when you cast the ward of intentions, and each charge kills up to 720 thieves. If you later upgrade or demolish the Runemasters' Grounding the number of unused charges stays as is, but the number of killed thieves is determined by the current level. You can build level 20 for 800 charges, cast the ward, and then completely demolish the building, back to 400 dead thieves per charge. It's listed in the http://arcanum-illyria.com/wiki/Runes#Tips" rel="nofollow - wiki , but apparently inactive players rarely bothered to get more than 400 charges.
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Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 02:40
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In the parlance of runes, 1 "Charge" = 1 Dead Unit. Every time. No matter whether the units are sent all in one mission or in many missions. "Charge" does NOT equal number of times the rune can be used. |
Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 02:51
| Or for example you could send two missions of 300 thieves each. First mission, 300 thieves would be killed by the rune. Second mission, 100 thieves would be killed by the rune, 200 thieves would steal your stuff (if not caught by defending thieves). |
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 02:55
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The text for 500 charges (example) is slightly confusing: <quote> The power provided by your Runemasters Groundings adds +100% to this Rune's initial effectiveness. Your Charges Left number may be less than the total charges when you cast this Rune, if it has subsequently been activated by inbound hostiles. </quote> Up to 250 plus 100% = 500 dead per charge. Each of the 500 charges kills 1..500 foes. One T1 thief can trigger a charge, that's the minimal number of dead thieves to get rid of a single charge at all. |
Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 03:01
| I promise, it works the way I've described it -- and I have plenty of experience being diplo'd, plus a little experience sending my own. |
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 03:03
You send two to me, or I send two to you. If your theory holds that reduces the number of charges by two. 
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Posted By: Rill
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 03:18
| It's not a theory dunnoob, it is a fact proven repeatedly by my experience. You can prove it to yourself by sending 2 thieves from one of your cities to another. |
Posted By: dunnoob
Date Posted: 14 Oct 2012 at 03:30
Two T1 thieves from Grapevine die at http://forum.illyriad.co.uk/fight-for-your-right_topic4188.html" rel="nofollow - fight for your right 0520Z. There are 250 charges left. I'll update this post with the outcome. All my consulates are seriously worried, if the result is 248 instead of 249 heads will roll again as in spring, when the last case of "inactive" turned out to be "not very active". 
Update, results: Ward of Destruction triggered at fight for your right, 248 charges remain.The heads of consulates in six towns were found guilty of high treason: Estimated 10K missions instead of 25, at an average cost of 12 seconds per mission (click + type 1 + click) over mobile or poor bandwidth, for a total damage of 120K seconds in a serious war game, where player time is the most valuable resource.  |