Thanks for Everything

“Thanks for everything”

by ChefSmitty
(Long Time Major Command Risk Game Player and Valued Contributor)

 

“Thanks For Everything” is a message that was posted in the Private Support section of our Forums. ChefSmitty has graciously allowed us to share it with you.Originally posted in the forum on September 4, 2014
Howdy Sheriff,

I guess with the new regime taking over I feel the need to express my story to you guys, Sheriff or whoever might follow up on this.

I work in the food service industry. and I’m sure most of you have experienced this work yourselves, or at least know someone who has. It’s long, late hours. Staff usually consist of young “kids” needing a place to earn quick cash to well, party with. I used to be one of these kids. I did my time as the young and dumb and to be honest, I let it get the best of me. Long story short, I woke up one morning and realized that I was an alcoholic. It was a rude awakening that has seen many jobs lost, and a divorce that really sent my addiction into a tailspin. Anyway, October 12th will be 4 years of sobriety for me. Since then I begged my way into an opportunity to be Executive Chef/General Manager of a quite successful restaurant in my city. My girlfriend (who stood by me through all of this) have since bought a house and have a beautiful son Jackson who just turned 3. Yeah do the math, I can’t help think somebody was rewarding me for getting shit together. The hardest part of sobriety was not giving up the booze, it was finding something to do with the time I spent at the bars. It was finding an escape from a hectic and stressful job. Then came Major Command. I stumbled across the site by just wanting to play RISK online. It was a God-sent. I’m sure this sounds nuts to some of you, but it was the stress relief, the killing time, the thing that occupied me to keep me from temptation. I tell you guys this because though its just a game, and its just for fun, I just thought you should know that this little site has made a huge difference in someone’s life. You should be proud of it, as I’m sure in some way you may have helped someone else through tough times. Like I said; this might just sound crazy to you, but with everything I’ve have, I thank you. You have helped turn my life around.

So, I have had an issue with my payment before and brought it to Bado’s attention, as I feel I owe anything you ask from me to you. Believe me, I cant pay you enough for what this site has meant to me for the last 3 years. I’m just worried about games I’m currently in, or am awaiting, as I don’t want to be limited by them. Some are team games that would not be fair to the other players.

I’m sure you’re shaking your head wondering why this long ramble. I just thought the new regime should know that you’re doing good things for people…. and it is much appreciated!

Thanks for everything.
by ChefSmitty.

My Experiences From Years of Gaming

Years Of Gaming – My Doubles Experiences

by legionbuck
(Major Command Risk Game Player and Blog Contributor)

After all these years of gaming I have a regular doubles partner here on Major Command, and we both migrated here from another site. Edsdad and I fought about 4 games against each other on the old site, then joined forces. That was on July 10, 2008… and we have been doubles partners for all these years of gaming. Playing with a partner for that long can get more involved than just playing tactics and styles.

I live in the Pacific NW, and Edsdad lives in Ottawa, Canada. We have never met face to face, and yet his family and mine have become intertwined. Through those years we have celebrated Canada Day and the Fourth of July via e-cards and video calls, have exchanged photos of stuff we do, discussed family events ( good and bad ), and have conversations on a weekly basis.

When you play on sites like this you might be surprised at who you play with that might become a part of your family. The members here are a friendly bunch ( one or two bad apples IMHO ), so when you are doing team games you might be surprised at the camaraderie that is possible from players you have no idea can become your friends.

Hey, It’s Only a Game

“Hey, It’s Only a Game”… or is it?

by Redstorm
(Major Command Risk Game Player and Blog Contributor)

family playing only a game

Only a game… Many of us fondly remember those long hours spent playing those wonderful board games as a child. Sure, there were moments when we went savage about who gets what color or marker and most assuredly someone always probably cheated somehow. But we learned things as we played like cooperation, sharing, and sportsmanship. We also felt the thrill of winning and the crush of defeat. Most likely it was then that we first heard someone, probably Dad, say “hey, it’s only a game“.

Who doesn’t remember those young adult years spent chasing wine, women and song while really anticipating the next 27-hour board game marathon where the levels of testosterone were matched only by the mountainous pile of empty beer cans? All the while we were learning about comradery, establishing friendships, often for a lifetime, as we mostly stumbled our way to responsible adulthood. Meh, pass me a cold one since ‘hey, it’s only a game“.

As jobs became careers, girlfriends became wives and children followed seemingly too soon, we often lacked any spare time and struggled to keep the boat steady and on the course. Somehow we and the kids managed to play a few games even as the board games morphed into an ever-changing digital mystery to us. Did we give enough of ourselves? Sadly, after too many excuses, we all heard “it’s ok, Daddy”, “hey, it’s only a game”.

computer game

Comes to the worldwide networks gushing an explosion of connected and online goodness. For the aging gamer, it appears as manna from heaven. Once again discovering the games of our youth while meeting people from all over the Earth on sites like the awesome MAJORCOMMAND.COM all while sitting in our most comfy chair. Total bliss? hmmm. My adorable grandson asked me just the other day, “Papa, why you yelling at your ‘puter?”. Slightly embarrassed, I realized that after all these years I could still learn about myself and my dealings with those around me. Laughing in the way young children do, I can just imagine him saying “Papa”, “hey, it’s only a game“.

500 Games at Major Command Risk

“500 Games”

by Redstorm
(Major Command Risk Game Player and Blog Contributor)

500 games risk online

Approaching my 500th game on MAJORCOMMAND.COM there are a few things I would like to share. First would be “WOW, what a great site to play live or at least semi-live risk like games with new friends from the world over who, as a whole, enjoy the games and site as much as I do. I find myself hopelessly addicted and actually will check for my turns throughout the day. I’m quite sure I’m not the only one. The maps are the first rate, game options are plentiful and varied, several different options exist for the number of game players, etc.

As a newer player, I find the most difficult thing for me is to learn, mostly the hard way, the myriad of strategies to be successful in these games. No one strategy will work across the board with all the different options and maps. I’ve found the best way to get the knowledge is through team games such as doubles and to simply ask the more experienced players. I’ve yet to encounter one who didn’t eagerly pass along their experiences and opinions. Even more difficult than learning the strategies is to internalize them and remember to use them in the heat of battle. I still am guilty of attacking too aggressively only to find myself eliminated because I didn’t secure my gains properly.

dice rolling risk online games

Oh, those damn dice! I’ve read all the discussions and wiki notes but like a lot of players, I think there is something imbalanced about the random dice. Maybe it’s just human nature but too many times I have been doing quite well rolling once in assault mode then try to finish it with the blitz mode only to lose heavily. Meh, the bottom line is that we all have to deal with the dice so it evens out I suppose in the long run.

Real-time (RT) versus casual games. RT games are a whole different environment and too often I think newer players start there and get discouraged then leave the site. I’ve heard it referred to as “the wild west” but I think it is more like a shark pit. This is where you can find some of the less honorable players preying on the unsuspecting player. A favorite tactic is to open a 4 player game with one or two players then when the unsuspecting ‘victim’ joins the game another shark will enter to close the game. Usually one goes AWOL and the other two attack the newer player. It’s never a fair game from the beginning. My best advice to newer players is to always check the profiles of all the players in any game you want to join. The honor and diplomatic rating is a dead giveaway with very few exceptions. Thankfully the fair and honorable players far outnumber these few brigands. The good news is that you will never hardly see that happening in casual games so I would recommend those for the newer player.

by Redstorm

Medals To Risk Players – October, 2014 Upgrade (Milestone 3)

More Medals To Risk Players

Nukes Medals To Risk Players

Risk players get more medals for a win. The medals can be won by playing the classic Risk game against a single or multiplayer computer opponents. This October’s update will resolve the long issue of the medals not being attributed to all Risk players. This fix was described in our previous Blog post: We are getting medals back, where you can find descriptions of all gameplay medals and how to earn them. The October’s upgrade will also resolve a number of other issues. Some of these issues are listed below:

 

Website Upgrades and Improvements

MAJ-63 Upgrade WordPress
MAJ-92 Create medals for the “The Forgotten Kingdom” map
MAJ-93 Add the missing map medals (Conflict: Africa, Australia, Middle East, Philippines, Duck and Cover, Sea of Japan and Balkan Peninsula)
MAJ-97 Upgrade the wiki
MAJ-98 Scoreboard changes
MAJ-101 Track the highest score for each user

Server and Performance improvements

MAJ-00 Install Nginx resource load balancer Executed
MAJ-00 Install Munin system monitoring tools Executed

Bug Fixes and Infrastructure improvements

MAJ-60 The medals are not being attributed
MAJ-87 Integrate performance monitoring tools

As you can see, we now have over 100 issues that have been resolved (or soon to be resolved) and we are adding new ones every day. Some of these improvements will not be noticed by the user, but will help create a solid foundation for a better site in the future. There’s a lot more to come!

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