Suggestions for vacations w/o internet access

[JB5]

What is the recommended approach to use when going on vacation (without internet access)?

I haven't noticed a vacation mode (I'm a new player so maybe it's there?), but I noticed that I have 4 remaining 'Time Jokers'. I'm not sure how the time jokers work?

Is there a way to go into vacation mode (or use the time jokers) right as my vacation begins (1 week vacation) so that my 'remaining time' is bumped up (for example giving me like 8 days remaining)?

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Otherwise the only approach I can think of is to make sure all my games would conclude well enough in advance of the vacation, and then start up
new games once I'm back. But that would probably mean a few weeks of not doing many games - not a killer but seems unnecessary.

[Caffe Latte]

So you find it ok for other players hang in these games for a few weeks? Does not seem unnecessary?

[JB5]

In my opinion, extending a slow turn based game (by a week or so) is a good solution when the player has no choice (will have no internet access).

It has happened to me at other sites (opponents going on vacation), and I did not mind it. Why? Because I had multiple other games going on at the time (and I had the option of getting into additional games if I wanted). And I suspected that at some point I'd need to use the vacation feature as well.

The fact that there are 'time jokers' implies BGA sees the benefit of this (imo).

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many times when I"m on vacation I'm still able to make moves, but sometimes that's not the case (no access). Suspect it's like that for others also.

[Jest Phulin]

As far as I know, the time jokers will add 4 days to your thinking time. I do not know if multiple jokers can be used back-to-back, or if one joker must run out before initiating the next. IE, I don't know if you can simply click the button twice to have 8 days of added time. This is the feature that was added for people who know they will be without internet/unable to make moves for a little while.

The best course of action is to make sure that your games are finished in advance of your vacation.


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As to the side comments about it being fair for the other players: Depends on the players, depends on the game, and depends on the time frame of the game. In a 4-player game with 1 move every 2 days, a person may make their move, be gone for a week, and still have a day left to make a move if the other players take their 2 days, so nobody will notice. In a 2-player 1 move per day game, it will be obvious.

Just a reminder, all players must explicitly commit to playing in a timely manner when joining each table or suffer the penalties.

My recommended course of action if you want to start games that may run into your vacation time: 1) When the table starts, explicitly state that your vacation is coming up, let people know when it is, and offer to abandon the game immediately. 2) Post reminders as the vacation approaches. 3) On your last move before vacation, if you think your time will run out, offer to abandon the game again. 4) Don't whine in the forums when somebody kicks you from the game for running out of time. (Yeah, it probably will still happen...) 5) Don't whine about the system-generated penalty for running out of time.

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As to the comment about having no choice... You are choosing to go on vacation. If that means that you have to have fewer games before vacation to make sure they're finished, that's one of the costs of the vacation. You can choose not to go on vacation and be able to game.

[CB Droege]

afaik, the Time Jokers cannot add time past the max thinking time for the table, which is five days for most turn-based tables. So, if you go away for 8 days, you need to go onto the site half-way through the vacation, and use the jokers to get back to 5 days.

[RicardoRix]

Would be good if you could use a calendar to set the date of your joker(s).

Since by definition it's highly likely you won't have access to the internet.

[Caffe Latte]

Actually this is returning hope vacations without internet access exist. Imagine, without internet. Without gadgets. Without even a minute to log in boardgamearena..... What a strength of will you must possess!

[Paddles]

afaik, the Time Jokers cannot add time past the max thinking time for the table, which is five days for most turn-based tables. So, if you go away for 8 days, you need to go onto the site half-way through the vacation, and use the jokers to get back to 5 days.

When I last used a joker, it did extend the time past the normal max time, and I've seen the same on a couple of other players. So for example in a game with max 5 days, the max time for a player who just used a joker would show as 9 days.

If it's a game that has a relatively short duration and relatively fast moves, then I think it's only polite to not sign up (and/or offer to forfeit) if you know you're going to be away. But if it's a longer game - say one that will take a couple of months to play out, a delay of a few days is not something to worry about. If I had a game in progress and one of the other players was taking a break, I'd rather pause it for a week or two than gain ELO through forfeit - after all, playing and enjoying games (not seeing my ELO rise) is my primary goal here.

[JB5]

Thanks for all prior responses!

In case a particular game doesn't finish before the vacation, assuming its a 2 player game, would some opponents take exception to a player (player A) conceding the game before it finishes?

Or like suggested above, when the game starts, how would mentioning this as an option help? For example, at the start of the game if an opponent knows that the game might be conceded if it runs longer than expected, can the opponent decide to bow out early on (if they wouldn't like that)? (not sure how that works and if its possible to do without the opponent getting bad results)

[Jest Phulin]

My previous suggestions were based on multiplayer games, not two player games. But the principles apply.

First, there are several threads about conceding a game, and if people take offense to it. I'll not dwell too much on it, other than note that some people will take offense to anything.

As far as the "mention the vacation at the first move, and offer to abandon then" suggestion: If I've invested several days/moves into a game, and then someone stops playing for a while, I'd be pretty upset and red-thumb them. But, if the only effort I've invested in the game is joining the table, it's not a big issue to abandon it and find a different table. If I stay at the table, it is a choice made with the knowledge that there will be a pause in the game.

And, re-reading your question, it looks like you may not be familiar with the difference between conceding and abandoning a game. Conceding is when one player in a 2-player game decides to take a loss rather than have the game continue. The system treats it as a full game, with the player who did not concede getting full credit for a victory. Abandoning a game requires all participants to agree, and the system treats it as if the game never happened.