The same happens a lot with the 32p circular maps at the moment. Your ability to expand early game on a circular is essentially a roll of the dice and whether or not you have a low lvl hyper route to the middle.
So many people go afk early game because they have very limited opportunity to expand. Not a fun map to play imo.
Yeah the circular maps are strange. On the surface they seem like they’d be fun, but then their absolutely not even a little bit. The amount of 8 player circulars ive joined and then quit a day later.
If the centre is largely populated with stars is dense and even enough all round the yeah its a circle map cool, but yeah its rarely the case and some have easy expansion and others none whatsoever
VinegarStrokes. It was VinegarStrokes, Slice. I’m surprised you don’t remember given the amount of stars I took from you.
aye VinegarStrokes! Back to play again?
HOLY FUCKING SHIT wassup bro. The man that helped me to my first 64 win… and then NEVEREVER let me forget it. Youre a gem of relevance mate because you’re the first player I had real conflict with and then we aligned later. Youre what Hallos and Kaine will end up being months from now when we find ourselves in the same alliance.
Join a fucking game man
ahah Vinegar and I played a game not that long ago where I met a player that made me rq for about a month. I thought since he didnt join either, he also rq. Guess hes finally returning back. How you doing my man?
Came back about 6 weeks ago for the first time in a few years. First game back, I was the one who received the photoshopped chatlog which was one hell of a comeback. Still sorry about that Boss.
Playing a game at the moment but have run into Kaine and Hallos also Ramjet and Octobos and Darrow, all seem like cracking players. They’d make a solid 64 player game.
My two cents is that these 32 player games seem to favour the early leaders. 64 player games didn’t. In fact first to 100 stars rarely won. Because it was bigger, you’d end up making deals with mutliple smaller alliances and sometimes old enemies would become friends for the greater good of catching a leader. Doesnt seem to happen in these games. Also, your logistics at the end game had to be spot on. Carriers were travelling days so you needed a proper set up.
Agree with you Vinegar. there was a lot more going on in the 64 player games.
Old timer here. Imho most of the gameplay changes Jay has made over the years have been to beef up and “complexify” the various techs. Often in spite of his intent. Especially in Proteus. In most cases they have served to reinforce the momentum of the leading players, which in turn tends to increase the AFK rate.
I know there are many fans of the very large games, and more power to them, but they are not my cup of tea. They tend to resolve quickly into mega alliances, and these alliances naturally are formed among players who know each other. If you are on the outs, especially as a newb, you are doomed.
From the beginning Jay intended this game to be “Diplomacy in Space”. Some great dialog can be found if you search that term here. The reality is that most players are deeply uncomfortable breaking an alliance late game and shanking the leader, which only reinforces that momentum.
So in the sense that the game has become “more technical”, and that in my experience the newer players are more technically gifted than yours truly (which is not saying much) the game has become “easier”
But there are lots of formats that can accommodate various game play styles, so that’s why this old dude keeps coming back.
@Golden_Ace Nice to see you here! Can’t really remember that far, but I’m sure I kicked some or got some… 
I know we Europeans are sometimes too straight forward, but for the duration of my absense everything has been more or less not ok. Having some health issues and that’s also the reason I have been absent. But I’m still here and absolutely love the game and community! No need to feel bad for me though, just wanted that out of my chest! ;D I hope all is good for you.
@HULK my man! Nice to see you still here.
The tournament seems great and well refined format. Too bad it’s full already, but maybe next one. Need some warmup’s anyways.
Don’t worry, I’ll warm you up. 
I’m guessing not the first time you’ve been tricked by photoshop, and didn’t realise it until it was too late?
Im guessing you are a friend of Meatloaf or Daniel Mawbey (which i think is his TA). Don’t think a person would randomnly join this forum for no reason just to defend his actions. Someone from your chat room probably contacted you about it. Although I really don’t want to get into another argument with this again, I will say this one last time.
I think I can speak for most of the veterans here that photoshopping and creating a FAKE discussion post is a condemnable act. Especially since the fake post shows me insulting my old friends in vulgar ways that immediately ruined my relationship with them.
I think spreading fake discussion posts can definitely fall under “impersonating another player” for they are technically using my name and spreading false rumors and actions.
I strongly urge you to warn the player to not do the act again. If the action is repeated I would report it to Jay. But photoshopped discussion posts are definitely NOT okay on this game and ruins the point of diplomacy.
Must have been a lot of work, too. Definitely belongs in the category of #GetALife
No. I know VinegarStrokes IRL.
I was paying him out.
Great to see so many weighing in on the topic. Had nothing more to say a few weeks ago. But now at this point I’ve decided to stop playing Neptune’s pride for the foreseeable future. Its positive that so many other veterans share my view that the loss of 64 matches has significantly impacted both how enjoyable playing this game is, and how far less skill and cooperation is required to pull of a big match win.
I made my girlfriend an account in an attempt to provide myself with an ally i can trust not to be turned against me by others. We ended up placing too far away to align, and as the fates would have it i placed near some high resource stars, two AFK players and a complete noob that i tricked into going in the opposite direction until i decided to sweep through them two cycles later. Only days after i had acquired a significant stat lead and was avoiding and abandoning stars to stay 2nd so the AI didnt turn on me. Did I then reach scanning with Aurora. She had Roger ramjet and the last hero for an alliance, I had chancho and tangibletaco, so we opted for war. Though i made it clear that based on all the 32 player matches ive played thus far, i have already won the match. Then accusations of having a fake account started coming in and Roger and Last hero aligned with a solitary player that was competing with my star count but had no allies. So she sent me her income for a couple cycles and then quit. Shortly after Roger and Hero did too along with some line about how their going to make a game called “cheesertos” where all the players are one person…
Now Im sitting at 210 stars with my ally chancho at 130. And Im just doing nothing. Because i dont want to be able to win a big match so easily, without the turmoil and skill Vinegar worded so well. And I dont want a 32 match victory badge to be mixed in with my 6 64 matches that were amazing and epic and i still remember so well years later.
If you dont even want to win a game anymore, you should probably stop playing that game.
Im allied with Vinegar in my other match, and ive decided to honour my first 64 win that he supported me too and came 2nd, by supporting him to a win this time round. Then im out of here for good. I looked at auroras inbox and saw actual camaraderie and proper alliance cooperation with Roger and Hero. The like of which i haven’t received in years. Im an excellent player yes, but this game cant be won without a loyal alliance (a fact others like to overlook when judging me, my 64 badges are irrefutable evidence of my ability to cooperate, but logic and neptunes pride dont have much to do with eachother anymore)
Maybe its my trolling thats at fault, maybe i throw a little to much salt at the wounded. Thats fine, i wont deny thats become the case as ive become more and more frustrated at those like Hallos and Kaine that allow envy and misunderstandings to affect their cooperation with others (i leave early in most 32s because i understand the game enough to know when someone has already won, they dont understand that, and so throw noob salt at me).
But i still like to actually play the game… A game that cant be played without a dedicated alliance. Its almost as if players no longer understand their are THREE top positions at the end that each provide rank, and just glance at my badges to see just how many ive gifted too great allies and competent enemies. (Though i am the reason toxics were removed, I gifted Mantis 7 toxics in a single match and he returned the favour, we both destroyed our stats over a border dispute)
Ill likely glance at this forum from time to time, but once ive helped Vinegar to victory, and decided whether to take the 32 win or give it to chancho. I am completely done. GG guys
PS. I will return if the 64 matches do!
Would you add your vote to the petition ?
Gents I’m done…my name has offended the powers that be…so good luck all.