Math Games
Overview
This thread will contain a series of mathy/game theory-y mini-games.
Each game will have its own set of rules, to be posted at the start of the game. (Some games will require that there be no communication after rules are posted, until the game ends.)
Each player will be awarded 100 points the first time they /in. Each game played will usually add or subtract to this total. The points are carried over from each game to the next.
There most likely will not be a well-defined "end". At some point I may decide I don't have enough time to keep running this, or maybe I'll die or something.
Generally, you are playing to have as many points as possible. This is different from playing to have more points than any other player. (Think of it like every point you have is worth $1.)
General Rules
Players may /in at any time. If there is a game in progress, you may be added to the next round of the game, if possible; or else you will be added to the next game.
Players may also /out at any time; however, they are strongly encouraged, if possible, to finish whatever game they are currently playing. If a player /ins after having previously /outed, they will come back with however many points they had when they left. As a courtesy, please do not /out before playing a game you think you will do badly at, just to avoid taking a points loss. If you need to /out for a single game and then /in again, that's fine, but don't abuse this rule. (Generally speaking you should gain points on average from most games anyway.)
Players may argue with the mod via PM, if they believe the rules or scoring of a game are unfair. I reserve the right to change rules and/or scoring for a game in the middle of the game, but it's unlikely that I will act on this right unless a convincing argument is made. I also reserve the right to ignore completely legitimate arguments made in this regard.
Please be sure to respect the no communications rule present in some games. Communicating with other players about the game via PM, thread, or any other means is strictly forbidden for these games. I will try to make it extremely obvious if a game has a no communications rule.
If the mod posts "Thread Locked" (usually in big bold letters), there is to be no posting in the thread until the mod posts "Thread Unlocked", even if the thread is not actually locked. If the mod posts something indicating that there is to be no communication, please do not post in thread, even if no "Thread Locked" post is made.
If you have questions about the rules, you may ask via PM to the mod, or, if communication is allowed for the game, you may ask in thread. If communication is not allowed for the game, and your question is important and relevant, I may post the answer to the question in thread to make sure everyone is on the same page (without saying who asked the question).
The title of the thread is "Math Games", but for the most part, knowledge of math is not a requirement to play. Many of these games are original creations of the mod, and others are inspired by game theory or other math problems. They are generally designed to be simple, but also to encourage some mathematical thinking, without being easily "solvable". If you're not sure whether these games would be well-suited for you, the sample game (the first game that will be played) below should give you a good sense of what the games will generally be like. A small percentage of games will require some high school-level math to understand exactly what is happening in them, and certainly higher-level math can be used to reason about the games, but anyone with enough knowledge to play Dominion should be able to at least play all of the games.
If you have an idea for a game that you think should be played, please PM me (regardless of whether you're currently playing; if having thought of the game might give you an unfair advantage, I can try to work out a fair solution, probably involving you sitting out for that game). If I end up using your game, I will give you credit when it is played.
Likewise, if you like one of the games that has already been played and think it should be played again (possibly with new parameters or variants), let me know. If there's enough demand for a particular game, I might rerun it.
Most of the games are designed for a variable number of players. Many games work best (or only work) when played in smaller groups, or pairs, so I may split the player list into small groups as necessary. The process by which players are divided up may be random, or may be based on how many points each player has, as appropriate for the current situation.
Play time for games will vary, but I will try to avoid having any single game last more than two weeks. Players will generally be expected to check in about once every 24 hours (and I will try to keep up with that same time frame). When I say to "check in" every 24 hours, what I mean is really this: any time a game requires you to make a decision, you are expected to make that decision within 24 hours of acquiring all information relevant to that decision. (You don't need to post if there's no decision to be made.) If you're reasonably close outside of that time frame that's fine. If you know you won't be able to keep up with that, please /out (or PM the mod for special permission) until you can keep up with that.
I reserve the right to kick players out based on level of activity, or other reasons (repeatedly deliberately playing against their win condition, breaking rules, being rude to other players, etc.). I also reserve the right to change the 24 hours in the paragraph above to 36 or 48 hours (I don't know if I can keep up with 24 hours as a mod; the help of a co-mod might make it more do-able); or also to take long breaks or do away with activity rules altogether if I can't keep up.
Please understand that a lot of games will involve some random chance. The games are generally meant to be enjoyed by being played optimally; the outcome itself should not be what makes the games fun.
Because of the flexible rules about /inning and /outing, there will be no spectator thread. Spectators generally should only post in thread about games that have finished, and NEVER post when the thread is locked or when communication among players is prohibited.
As stated above, you should play each game as though each point is worth $1. In other words, you should generally play as if you don't care how many points other players have. (There is no ultimate "winner", just a list of who has how many points, and you don't care about your position on that list, just the number next to your name.)
You can only get integer amounts of points. (Usually if something might cause fractional amounts of points, a rounding scheme will be specified.) Points can go negative.
Please do not edit your posts (or other players' posts).
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Topic: Math Games (Read 60098 times)