TWGS Settings Explained - The Cabal's Secret Hideout

Most of the TWGS settings are pretty self-explanatory. But some of them are kind of cryptic. In this article, I'm going to try to explain how to use some of those settings, as well as give some general recommendations on settings that I think every TWGS should have. Feel free to disagree.

Big-Bang Settings:

Option R:

Random Seed. You ALWAYS want to randomize the random seed every big-bang. Otherwise, you will likely end up with the exact same sector map you had on your last bang.

Option A:

Number of sectors. If you want more than 1000, you have to enable Gold settings Option J (which means you have to buy the Gold version. See below)

Option B:

Max Course Length. This sets the maximum distance between two sectors on your map. Default is 45, but it can be set from 20 to 255. Longer routes make your map more star shaped, shorter routes make it more round. You can have fun with this setting. See below for details.

Option C:

Maximum Ports. This is equal to a percentage of the total number of sectors. Default is 40%, and the range is 10% to 80%. I personally think 40% is too low, and recommend 50% to 60%. However, the more ports you have in your bang, the easier it is to CIM hunt and Port Loss Track. Set it too low and you run the risk of one corp locking up the game early by destroying all the XXB ports.

Option D:

Initial ports. This is the percentage of initial ports built. It works off the total ports built. Default is 95%, but it ranges from 10% to 100%. I recommend you don't change this value, and use option C to control the number of ports.

Option E:

Maximum number of Planets. It's equal to a percentage of the total number of sectors. I recommend that you set this to max, 40%. This makes the planet denial option more difficult. Default is 20%, and the range is 2% to 40%

Option F:

Total number of two way warps. A two way warp is one that goes from sector A to B and B to A. Default is 30% of the total sectors in your universe. 10% is the minimum, and 200% is the max. The lower the setting, the more star shaped your universe will be, while a high setting makes it more round. I recommend the default.

Option G:

Total number of one way warps. Default is 3%, and the range is 1% to 100%. I recommend you raise this to about 5%. This will allow you more flexibility in modifying your map. The increased number of one-ways allows you the option of adding new links if needed, without subtracting warps. Addition of warps is always better than subtraction of warps.

Option H:

Max number of players. Default is 200, and the range is 10 to 500. You usually don't need to modify this setting.

Option I:

Max number of ships. Default is 4 times the number of players, up to a limit of 2000. I used to recommend that this be set to 2000, but this is no longer as necessary under versions .47+, but it's still a good idea. The logistics of running a ship denial game become much harder when you more than double the total # available.

Option J:

Enable Gold Settings. Otherwise you can't have more than 1000 sectors. Also lets you modify ships, planets and create custom aliens. Set it to yes if you can.

Option P:

Turns on MBBS compatibility mode. Turn it on if you like reds :)

Option K:

Turns on Bubbles. Under version .55, there are problems with ports created in bubbles. I don't recommend you turn this setting on until this bug gets resolved. Options L, N, T, O, M , S and U all pertain to bubble creation and are pretty self-explanatory. If you want big Bubbles in your universe, tweak options B, F and G instead.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!!!! This section is gonna be long, and I need to get back to my life...expect an update here soon.

Post Big-Bang Editor Settings:

G: General Editor One:

<A> Turns per day: 1 to unlimited.
Initial fighters:
<C> Initial credits:
<D> Initial holds:
<E> Days until an inactive user is deleted: 30
<G> Ferrengi regeneration percentage : 20% of max of 1,100 = 220
<H> Terran Colonist Reproduction Rate : 750 colonists per day
Daily log Limit in lines : 800 lines.
<J> StarShip Intrepid Location : Sect 7
<K> StarShip Valiant Location : Sect 3148
<L> StarShip Lexington Location : Sect 3959
<M> Maximum num of planets in a sector: 5
<N> Maximum num of Traders on a Corp : 5
<O> Underground Password Phrase : BEWARE OF KAL DURAK
Age of Game in days : 22
<R> Tournament Mode : Off
<S> # Days to allow entry: Unlimited
<T> Maximum times blown up: Unlimited

H: General Editor Two:

<A> TriCron Champion : No one
TriCron Jackpot : 0
<C> TriCron HiScore : 0
<D> Ferrengi HomeBase
<E> Stardock Sector
<F> Rylos Sector
<G> Alpha Centauri Sector
<H> Ferrengi moveCh : 1 in 20
Aliens moveCh : 1 in 20
<J> Gfiles ScoresDir : None Used
<K> Sysop Sec Level : 32000
<L> Allow Aliases? : Yes
<M> Display Stardock?: Yes
<O> FedSpaceShipLimit: 5
Photon Wave Dur. : 1 seconds.
<R> DESQview pacing : 20
<T> Local Display On : Yes
Cloaking FailRate: 3%
<V> NavHaz Dispersion: 100%
<W> NewPlayer Planets: No
<Y> Ship Delay Mode : None
<S> Max Command/Cycle: Unlimited
<1> Processing Interval : 1 Sec
<2> Inactivity Timeout : 14400 Sec
<3> Steal from Buy Port? : Yes
<4> Planetary Trade Offers : 100% Normal
<5> Online Verification At : 300 Sec
<6> Clear Busts Every : 1 Days
<7> Port Regeneration Rate : 1% / Day
<8> Max Regen Per Visit : 100%
<9> Local Beeper On : Yes
<0> Intnl Alien Processing : Disabled
<N> Intnl Ferr Processing : Disabled
<Z> Alien Srvr Offline Mode: Active
<X> Gold Editor Expert Mode: Disabled
<[> Closed Game : No
<]> Password : No
<\> GLOBAL TEDIT Password : No
<$> LOCAL TEDIT Password : No
<;> Ether Probe Move Delay : None
<:> Maximum Course Length : 45
</> Daily Game Time : Unlimited
<|> Output segmentation : None
<#> Invincible Ferrengal : No

I: General Editor Three:

<A> Transport Unit : $12,500
Transport Upgrade : $6,250
<C> Tavern Announcement : $100
<D> Limpet Removal : $1,250
<E> Reregister Ship : $5,000
<F> Genesis Torp : $80,000
<G> Armid Mine : $4,000
<H> Limpet Mine : $40,000
Beacon : $100
<J> Type I TWarp : $12,500
<K> Type II TWarp : $20,000
<L> TWarp Upgrade : $9,000
<M> Psychic Probe : $2,500
<N> Planet Scanner : $7,500
<O> Atomic Detonator : $60,000
Corbomite : $1,000
<R> Ether Probe : $12,000
<S> Photon Missile : $160,000
<T> Cloaking Device : $6,250
Mine Disruptor : $1,500
<V> Holographic Scanner : $6,250
<W> Density Scanner : $500
<X> Radiation lifetime : 1 days
<Y> Rob Factor (% Std) : 50%
<Z> Steal Factor (% Std) : 70%
<1> Max Terra Colonists : 100,000
<2> Combat Penalty Mode : MBBS
<3> Max Port Production : 32760
<4> Rob/Steal Delay : No
<5> Secure Local Access : No
<6> Fighter Lock Decay : 1440 Min
<7> Death Delay : Yes
<8> Multiple Photon Fire : No
<9> Show Who's Online : Yes
<0> FedSpace Photons : No

Sector Edits:

To be documented

Port Edits:

To be documented

Planet Edits:

To be documented

Ship Edits:

To be documented