Bingbing
Level: Goblin
Rank Points: 22
Registered: 04-28-2007
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King's Cross. Nuff' said.

Where is everyone?

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I don't know what to put here.

Briareos
Level: Smitemaster

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Bingbing wrote:
Where is everyone?

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"I'm not anti-anything, I'm anti-everything, it fits better." - Sole
R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

Dex Stewart
Level: Smiter
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Gotcha there mate! All these modern environmental issues led to a modification in the rules, which allows me to bend the Sixth Law and nullify your train advantage by going to Green Park!

Rheb
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Why would you want to do that? Sure, it puts Bingbing in a bad position, but it leaves the rails to Mornington Crescent completely open for me!

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Voligner is my very own DROD-like game. Please check it out!

stigant
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I'm a bit of a neophyte at this game (having just learned of it this morning), but I think I have the general gist. One thing, though, in my readings on strategy, I keep hearing that opening with Monument is generally considered a beginner's mistake, but I can't seem to be able to flesh out the actual blunder of it. Would someone care to show me the error of my ways?

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Progress Quest Progress

krammer
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Certainly. I think the appeal to the beginner is the immediate flexibility - it gives you at most 2-turn control of almost all of Zones 1 and 2 due to the possibility of a Bank transfer.

Unfortunately it also makes you a target for everyone else, but more importantly, it effectively stops you ever being able to use the parallel double-switch, which is an essential move at all play levels - you just can't ever get the momentum for that without putting yourself in Knid for a long time, by which time you'll probably be miles behind.

There are some variations where Monument is a perfectly good opening move, although I can't think of one where I'd choose it myself.

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+++ Divide by Cucumber Error +++ Please Reinstall Universe and Reboot +++

"Oook!"

stigant
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Right, I agree that control of Zones 1 and 2 via the Bank transfer is a longer term goal once other objectives have been achieved. But by placing a token at Embankment and then declaring either London Bridge or Elephant & Castle as home, haven't you also gained enough control of the south side of the Thames to compensate for the minimal lack of early momentum?

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Progress Quest Progress

calamarain
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 933
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Sorry, I'm not clear on the above argument. Are we assuming that the Marchment addendum (which can be applied to almost any set of rules, except Northern sets) is valid, or are we leaving it out for simplicity?

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My Holds

Bingbing
Level: Goblin
Rank Points: 22
Registered: 04-28-2007
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Bump. King's Cross. Need to type in complete sentences.

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I don't know what to put here.

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1300
Registered: 06-14-2005
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Okay, I think that this game is awesome enough to start again. Therefore, I will start with Putney bridge. By the way, standard rules are in effect. (No oil slicks, there is a Dollis hill loop, etc.)

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[Last edited by Someone Else at 02-09-2008 05:07 AM]

coppro
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In that case, I'll use the departure rule and take advantage of a slingshot through the station I most recently visited - Parson's Green.

I now control all of Southern District. A good opener, wouldn't you agree?

hartleyhair
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I sacrifice Seven Sisters.

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I'm currently working on Jerrik's Dungeon, an oldschool Hold for TCB.

Dischorran
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coppro wrote:
In that case, I'll use the departure rule and take advantage of a slingshot through the station I most recently visited - Parson's Green.

I now control all of Southern District. A good opener, wouldn't you agree?

Always a solid opening, if somewhat staid in manner. Chesterton v. Oberheim 1967 provides a very interesting counter to this opening, however, which I am not above using to my own purposes. I open with Dagenham Heathway.

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Someone Else
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I can easily cut that off with West Ham.

Beef Row
Level: Smiter
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Someone Else wrote:
I can easily cut that off with West Ham.

I'm going to attempt an Eastern consolidation into a -ham trifecta with a move back up the line toward Dagenham East, which as it is not handicapped accessible also prevents a move to Dollis Hill, sparing us the annoyance of the loop, at least for now. The only risk is if someone can pull of a clever East-East station movement ala the famous Thomas v. Thomas "squabbling couple" match of 1983.

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"Now I will repeatedly apply the happy-face rule"

coppro
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Hmm... but I can consolidate my hold over the south-west with a move to Heathrow Terminals 1,2,3. With any luck, I'll be able to create a fortress around Hammersmith, and only multiple suicide runs could dislodge me (I would retreat to the Central line, incidentally).

Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster

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Ugh. I really should have seen that coming. Alright, I'm going to consolidate my position with a transverse shuffle over to Hackney Wick.

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calamarain
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You guys are playing... very defensively. This game's going to be hard fought, I can tell. Few openings, and those that are open probably don't lead far.

South Kensington to block.

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My Holds

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

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Okay, I'm going to see if playing a Brandy block in Bond street will open things up a bit more. Incidentally, it leads towards a Dollis Hill loop, which I will be forced to throw myself into if someone doesn't break their position.

coppro
Level: Smitemaster
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I can use rail-line lock-in as a defense against a loop though, with Hammersmith.

Dischorran
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That really opened up a lot of moves! Unfortunately, none of them are accessible from my position. I'm moving to Canary Wharf; the dimensional breach there could give me a somewhat unorthodox way around this.

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coppro
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Hmm... can't let you do that. I'll have to cause an anti-breach with a cross-linear jump to Dollis Hill (regrettably causing a warp in the space-time continuum that will result in a little too much Dollis Hill in the future, but you do what must be done.)

Someone Else
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Curses. Dollis Hill

Sillyman
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And thus the loop is broken by two people moving to Dollis Hill in a row (By Homestar Runner's Law), allowing me to move to King's Cross!

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Who, me?
FNORD

coppro
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Unfortunately, you forgot the Heisenburg Amendment, forcing me to move simultaneously to Dollis Hill and Earl's Court... and the next move will cause one of these alternate realities to collapse.

Sillyman
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I force the split open wider with a universe-flip to Queen's Parallel Lines.

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Who, me?
FNORD

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

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I think I can repair it with a move to Edgware

Sillyman
Level: Smiter

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I'm still stuck in the parallel world, though. Guess all I can do is move to Eveningville Gibbous and wait for a way to universe-flip again.

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Who, me?
FNORD

coppro
Level: Smitemaster
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Like a move to Waterloo?

Someone Else
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See if you can guess what I'm doing. Mill Hill East.