Ride 'em, Caballero Scenario

[Captain Carrrghter]

Has anyone tried this in recent memory? Great fun, especially with random events on "are you  loco, presidente?"

A couple months back, I gave it a go, and survived only because the uprising that started in the late 1960s was still being resolved over a decade later, at the end of the game.  

Tried again, and went bankrupt trying to go tourism straight away.

Thought the third time might be the charm, but decided to cut my losses when the coup and uprising threats BOTH went off the charts, with no $$$ to do anything to improve happiness.

Giving it a fourth go-round now, and watched my whole island get leveled by an F5 hurricane three years in. Looks like I could be in for a REAL challenge this time. At least I got to build a new dock where it should have been all along.  

So what kinds of strategies have been employed to beat this sucker? Tourism? Rum? Democracy? Military opression?

[belbincolne]

Well I completed it at my 6th attempt some time ago but I've no idea how now so can't give any advise!

[Captain Carrrghter]

Yeah, I survived it again, when an uprising that started in 1975 didn't quite resolve by 1980. I think I had one or two surviving supporters, and my palace was about 85% damaged when the game ended.  

I'm just going to keep going back at it until I discover the magic formula.

[Heyesey]

*IS* there a magic formula? I haven't tried this one yet: partly because, from looking at the information on it, you're not *supposed* to be able to "succeed" .. you measure success by how long you survived before being unceremoniously dumped off the island. If you made it to the end in one piece - or even in half a piece - that might be as good as it gets 

[Sticker]

yea, I would guess that the whole thing exists for you not to beat it.  It looks like the designers just pulled out all the stops.

I also think that there is a formula within the programming that you automaticaly get an uprising or something regardless of happiness, because i used every cheat known to man and i still got booted.

[Captain Carrrghter]

Thanks for the bump....

Now I'm going to try to beat that sucker but good. 

[belbincolne]

Well you certainly don't need to use cheat codes to win because I never do. I imagine I found a profitable line (Gold mine?) and used all the cash from it to build armouries and watch-towers and buy in educated. I certainly did this to win one of the Rebels scenarios but whether it was this one or another I can't remember.

[Captain Carrrghter]

There are a couple small gold deposits you could mine, I guess--might try that next time.

I beat it with a whole bunch of farms, and an immigration office permanently set to "love it or leave it". Spent the last 15 game years with the treasury hovering between -$10k and -$20k, following a 1-2 punch from a maritime strike and a category 5 hurricane that arrived before the first freighter.    (yes, random events were on "are you loco?", and yes, I am.  )

No military, two elections (both rigged), had to cancel the third election in the mid 1970s, but my population was a good six months away from starting an uprising, so this time I finally beat it fair and square.

[Sticker]

Well you certainly don't need to use cheat codes to win because I never do.

I meant that it wasn't designed to be beaten.  I think that we have alot more time on our hands to find a flaw in the scenario and exploit it (like gold deposits) that it is for Tropico designers who are on a timetable.

[artemais]

How is exploiting the gold deposits a "flaw" in the scenario?  The designers could have just given no gold if they didn't want people to use it...

I also am quite certain that there is no need to play with random events at "are you loco" because the scenarios script has it embedded to not give you a choice.  Check the "setup.evt" event and you will see the line "generaleffect setto setrandomevents 5".

For what its worth, I found the food for the people edict awfully handy--kept the people happy enough not to revolt even though I allowed no elections and had no army whatsoever...yep, you heard right, none whatsoever--one of the biggest things keeping people unhappy on that island was the liberty rating, so I cut that out from the beginning.  Somehow, the people didn't seem to care too much when I didn't hold any elections....

[Coconut Kid]

I suspect that Sticker is speaking to his experience with other games. In them, the scenarios made by the game publisher are intended not to be "BEAT", whatever that may mean. The players consider the publisher's scenario writers to be overworked slaves in the sub-basement, but they are good. So good in fact that only because they screw-up and over-look some element, can the scenario be "BEATEN."

Of course that is not the case with Tropico. Every Tropico scenario can be played through to the "balcony scene" trailer. Well, I suppose some fiendish user scenario writer may have done one where the "rowboat scene" is actually the "winning" scene (escape with the money on your schedule - if you can get to shore somewhere safe). However as artemais suggests, trying to identify "flaws" in scenarios which allow one to "win" against all-knowing scenario writers is mental gymnastics without a gym.

BTW, I believe there is a post in this thread,

http://www.the-nextlevel.com/tropico/cafe/index.php?topic=9134.0

which speaks to this particular scenario and explains how user scenario writers may & can set "Random Events" (and for that matter, other difficulty levels) with their scripts.

Again, it's not a flaw that allows access to the "balcony scene," it's just smart play.

 

[Heyesey]

You may be right - but that's awfully boring on behalf of the Tropico scenario writers.  Most people would like to have a scenario where the objective is not to "win", but to see how long you can survive before losing.  ("Hey, I reached 1975 .. anybody ever got into the '80s yet?")

From the blurb you see when browsing scenarios, "Ride em Caballero" *sounds* as though that's what it was meant to be. Kinda disappointing to find out otherwise.

[Coconut Kid]

You may be right - but that's awfully boring on behalf of the Tropico scenario writers.  Most people would like to have a scenario where the objective is not to "win", but to see how long you can survive before losing.  ("Hey, I reached 1975 .. anybody ever got into the '80s yet?")
From the blurb you see when browsing scenarios, "Ride em Caballero" *sounds* as though that's what it was meant to be. Kinda disappointing to find out otherwise.

To whom are you replying? Me or artemais?

And in any case, how did you find out "otherwise?" The game has a fixed length built in. Yes, you can go for thousands of years beyond that, but ...

I'm sorry I don't know what length "Caballero" is set to, but folks can compete for "how long did you last" up to that point. At a maximum of 70 years, every scenario has to come to the "balcony scene" if the losing triggers have not been tripped. The range of this competition over "how long did you last before you lost" has a limit.

So - even if the scenario(s) go to certain loss, that has to be by the main program 1950 + 70 years.

That is to say the limitation is not the fault of the scenario writers; it is part of the main program.

Those folks who play games that extend into the 30th century have to go past one balcony scene (or hit the excape key in order not to see it) to continue the game.

Perhaps you wish an even harder scenario. Perhaps Brf could accomodate you all.

 

[artemais]

So - even if the scenario(s) go to certain loss, that has to be by the main program 1950 + 70 years.

Not necessarily....setting up the scenario all one has to do is choose "open ended" and it takes away all time constraints.

[Brf]

Actually, once you create a scenerio.... I am not sure what does it, either the Gamewon event, or the Score Event.... one or the other disables the Game-end.... so it can continue as long as your events allow it.

[Sticker]

I am mistaken, I concede to CK.

 

[Coconut Kid]

I am mistaken, I concede to CK.

That is kind of you, but not required.

You have at least two allies who say - indirectly - that I am wrong.

Not necessarily....setting up the scenario all one has to do is choose "open ended" and it takes away all time constraints.

So if one wishes to play "in the sandbox," you do not come to an ending. That is, you may not either win or lose. This is in reference, I believe, to setting the parameters in the random game set-up.

Actually, once you create a scenerio.... I am not sure what does it, either the Gamewon event, or the Score Event.... one or the other disables the Game-end.... so it can continue as long as your events allow it.

I believe this is the "Master Script Writer" speaking. I believe his point is that a scripted scenario is not subject to the standard program constraints of 50 or 70 years for game length. The events provided by the scriptor determine the end of the game - if any.

@ Sticker,
Please take note. I am often, but not always, wrong.   

[Sticker]

@ Sticker,

Please take note. I am often, but not always, wrong.

Welcome to my signature.

[TeamStar]

Actually, once you create a scenerio.... I am not sure what does it, either the Gamewon event, or the Score Event.... one or the other disables the Game-end.... so it can continue as long as your events allow it.

That explains some suspicions I had about time constrains!

[Captain Carrrghter]

I also am quite certain that there is no need to play with random events at "are you loco" because the scenarios script has it embedded to not give you a choice.  Check the "setup.evt" event and you will see the line "generaleffect setto setrandomevents 5".

Ay, caramba! You are bursting my bubble, senor!

It's only right, I suppose, that random events are maxed out on this one.

[belbincolne]

Thought I'd retry this to see how to win it. Although I made several mistakes with my initial money (like building an extra guard station) I still lasted 27 years (out of 30 - why are people querying how long the scenario lasts?). I did nothing to look after my miserable peons. Paid them badly as well except for soldiers and essential money producers. Bought in a couple of generals and built an Immigration Office set to skilled workers with initial money. Also never held an election.

My biggest money spinner was cattle ranches with smoke added and after 17 years when foot & mouth hit my income was wiped out at a time when I'd no cash to restock and that was that - although I did survive another ten years. Bauxite mines also do fairly well and sugar plantations although all farms tended to hit by hurricanes.

The daft thing is that Random Events are set at Nil but are obviously very high in fact. Strange.

[Brf]

The daft thing is that Random Events are set at Nil but are obviously very high in fact. Strange.

The Setup.evt for this scenerio contains the line:

GeneralEffect SetTo SetRandomEvents 5

[belbincolne]

Yes - so why does it say Zero when you first go into the Scenario?

[Brf]

Tropico lets you set your own preference for random events whenever you go into any scenerio.... This particular scenerio resets random events to 5 when it starts.

[belbincolne]

Well that interesting because in most scenarios with random events the start-up info shows 3, 5 or whatever.

Obviously winning this scenario must depend quite considerably on your luck with the random events.