This guide is designed to help players who may be new to Ironclad Online (ICO) and want to successfully host their own games and get other players to join them. It is also for veteran Sins players interested in developing a more uniform system to naming and hosting games through ICO.
Prior to Rebellion, most games hosted on ICO fell into one of two categories: either fastest speed 5v5s, or private games where friends played against AI ("comp stomps"). Rebellion has brought us into a glorious new age of multiplayer Sins gaming, with hundreds more players logging into ICO at any given time. This is great for the community because it increases our options to help us find the most desirable match. When hosting and joining games, we can streamline this process by following a few simple conventions.
NAMING YOUR GAME
When hosting a game on ICO, you want to use a game name that succinctly informs potential joining players. Sure, they could click on your game and read the details for it, but using these tips can really make your game name stick out in a good way, and get it picked by joining players before other games. Remember, the default game name is "[Your name] - New" and many rookies will settle for this. If you are setting up a game for just you and you friends, this should work fine. But if you are looking to pull in other players from around the community, you may find yourself waiting in the lobby longer than you'd like. The following designations will help other players see what they want and join right away.
Implied Settings: Most games on ICO have Quick Start and Allied Victory on and Pirates off. Hosts that use these settings need not list them in the game name.
Team Designations (AI, FFA, 2v2/2s, 3v3/3s, etc.): Begin your game title with the team designation so other players can instantly see what type of team they will be playing on or if they will be fighting solo. AI means your game is designed to include computer players. This usually implies a "comp stomp" where humans will team up to defeat the AI. FFA means free-for-all: no alliances between human players. 2v2 or simply 2s shows that you're building teams of two. The same tradition goes for 3s, 4s, 5s, and any multi-team games such as 2v2v2.
Game Speed (Slow, Normal, Fast, etc.): As mentioned in the introduction, the most common type of PvP match on ICO is 5v5 with all speeds set to faster. As such, this gametype usually does not need Faster in the title because it is implied as the default. However, for games that use other speeds for most or all of their game settings, the appropriate speed should be mentioned in the title. For instance, if I host a game where ship speeds are set to fast but all other speeds are set to normal, I would include Normal in the game name.
Map (Multi, PM): Many games on ICO (including the vast majority of PvP matches) are played on the random-type maps of various sizes.If you wish to create a game on a random-type single-star map, there is no need to include a map designation. However, if you wish to create a game on a random-type multi-star map, you should include Multi in the title so that other players know your game will probably last longer than a single-star map. If you wish to play one of the maps that is not random (meaning the planet types and locations are preset) you should include PM in the title to show that your game uses a pre-made map.
Victory Conditions (FV, CV, etc.): Rebellion introduced several new victory conditions that can be included when hosting a game. As mentioned above, Allied Victory is almost always on and does not need to be noted. Other, more rare conditions like Flagship Victory or Capital Victory can be noted in the title with FV or CV respectively. Other conditions follow the same directive.
Special Balance Rules (NoVas): As the early versions of Rebellion go through balancing changes, some hosts may wish to take matters into their own hands by banning overpowered game elements. For instance, hosts who wish to disallow the Vasari races may include NoVas in the game title. Another solution to this problem is to only allow 1 or 2 players per team to play as the Vasari. Such rules should be made clear in lobby chat prior to the start of the game with the acknowledgement of all players if not specifically noted in the title.
ADVERTISING YOUR GAME
Now you've started your first 2v2 match with all your settings just the way you like and two people, impressed with your well-named game, join up right away. Then the three of you wait in your games lobby for five minutes. Uh-oh, it seems like no one else will join. Try using the chat channel button to switch to Lobby 1. Then post, "Looking for 1 more for my match '2s Multi,'" Lots of players float around in this lobby between games and you can usually find enough to finish an almost-complete roster. Don't forget to switch your chat channel back to set up your teams!
ORGANIZING YOUR TEAMS
There are a couple ways to organize your teams once the roster is filled out. Games that include friends or clanmates will often have teams naturally fall into place. If your game does not have obvious teams, the best thing to do is have everyone switch to team 10 (T10) until teams are chosen. Top vs. bottom, or TVB is one way to randomly split the teams. Alternating down the roster or 1212 is another way. If neither of those options seems to yield even teams, try having the two players with the best records be team captains or caps. T1 captain picks first, then T2 captain gets two picks, then T1 gets two picks, etc. Once the teams are decided, all players should click their ready-check button so that the host may start the game, or green and go.
JOINING A GAME
When joining another player's game, do everything you can to expedite the launch of the game. This means:
Choose the right match for you: Look at the game titles."5v5 NoVas" is going to be a very fast-paced game. You will likely find a lot of veteran players here - newbies beware. "3s Normal Multi" is going to be a much longer, more strategic game. Make sure you have the time to invest before joining.
Only join games you intend to play in: This sounds like a no-brainer but I have hosted several games where players joined only to troll other players in my lobby, demand that I start another game with room for their friends, demand that I change game settings to their preferences, etc. If you absolutely must trash talk - I get that - just do it in Lobby 1 immediately after a match.
Do not gripe about settings: Sending a private message or politely asking the host to change the game settings in some minor way is totally acceptable. Lambasting the host about how lame his game settings are in his own lobby is not.
Cooperate in team selection: Watch the chat box to learn what team you're on and switch to it promptly. Make sure your race is selected and hit your ready-check ASAP.
Do not go AFK: If you're in a lobby, you need to be ready to play. If you must leave your keyboard for more than 30 seconds, let the host know so that you can be booted from the lobby if your absence is holding everyone else up.
By following these basic tips, you can streamline the process of hosting and joining games in ICO. This means you'll spend more time on the intergalactic conquest you love and less time staring at the emblem selection screen - "Hmm, do I want to be the orange Gryphon or the purple cross... decisions decisions. Good thing I have half-an-hour in this lobby to figure it out."
ICO Veterans: feel free to post naming conventions or lingo that I left out and I will add it in.
