Credit System Design
This guide explains the rationale behind the credit and slot cost system defaults. Understanding these principles will help you decide whether to keep the defaults or customize them for your era.
The Core Philosophy
The credit system is designed to:
- Reward sustained activity - Regular participants naturally accumulate credits over time
- Create natural rotation - Top slots become accessible to different players each cycle
- Self-balance - Players who claim top slots return to low credits, making room for others
- Be fair - Active players earn the right to claim prestigious MGE slots
MGE Slot Costs
Medal Values
MGE (Mightiest Governor Event) awards hero medals based on final placement:
| Slots | Hero Medals |
|---|---|
| 1 | 100 |
| 2 | 80 |
| 3 | 60 |
| 4 | 40 |
| 5 | 30 |
| 6-7 | 20 |
| 8-10 | 15 |
| 11-15 | 12 |
| 16-25 | 10 |
| 26-50 | 5 |
Default Slot Costs (5x Medal Value)
Slot costs are calculated as medal value × multiplier, rounded up to a whole number. The multiplier can be set in half-step increments (1, 1.5, 2, ... up to 20). The default is 5x:
| Slots | Medals | Credit Cost (5x) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100 | 500 |
| 2 | 80 | 400 |
| 3 | 60 | 300 |
| 4 | 40 | 200 |
| 5 | 30 | 150 |
| 6-7 | 20 | 100 |
| 8-10 | 15 | 75 |
| 11-15 | 12 | 60 |
| 16-25 | 10 | 50 |
| 26-50 | 5 | 25 |
At half-step multipliers, the 6-7 position (15 medals) produces a fractional cost that gets rounded up (e.g., 15 × 1.5 = 22.5 → 23 credits). All other positions produce whole numbers at every multiplier.
Why 5x?
With ~250 credits earnable per MGE season (see below), the 5x multiplier means:
- 1st place (500 cr) requires exactly 2 full seasons of perfect attendance
- Top-3 slots (300–500 cr) take ~1.2–2 seasons of saving — and because one season's earnings (250) fall just short of the cheapest top-3 (slot 3 = 300), a player who claims a top-3 cannot repeat it in the next MGE season
- Slots 8-10 (75 cr) are accessible after ~2 MGEs of regular activity
- Slots 26-50 (25 cr) are reachable within the first couple of weeks for new players
- Mid slots 4-5 (150–200 cr) require roughly half a season to a full season
This creates a tiered accessibility where:
- New active players can claim slots in the 26-50 range almost immediately
- Slots 8-25 reward a month or two of consistent play
- Top slots (1-5) are reserved for veterans with long-term commitment
- Players who spend on a top slot need time to rebuild credits
Credit Earning
Season Structure
Activities run on a stellar season of 6 weeks — 5 weeks each with a headline primary activity, plus 1 off week. Two stellar seasons make up one MGE season (12 weeks ≈ 6 biweekly MGEs), during which the same unique hero is available. Players decide whether to spend on the current hero or bank credits for the next one.
Each active week, leaders activate:
- One primary activity — the week's headline event (KvK, GEE, Desolate Desert, etc.)
- The recurring weekly activities — smaller events claimable every active week (Wonder/Battle of Dawn, etc.)
Default Credit Awards
Awards are weighted by role. Opening a season seeds these defaults, adjustable per activity with /season set-credits:
| Role | Default | Typical activities |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | 15 | KvK, GEE, Desolate Desert — the week's headline event |
| Weekly | 5 | Wonder / Battle of Dawn — recurring small events |
Leaders can also award discretionary bonuses on top for exceptional contributions.
Season Earning Potential
With perfect attendance across one MGE season (2 stellar seasons):
| Source | Calculation | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | 10 × 15 (5 weeks × 2 stellar) | 150 |
| Weekly | 20 × 5 (2 weeklies × 5 weeks × 2) | 100 |
| Total | 250 |
(plus any discretionary leader bonuses on top)
This 250-credit ceiling is deliberate: it sits just under the cheapest top-3 slot (300), so reaching a top-3 placement takes more than one season of saving — and claiming one resets a player below the threshold, preventing back-to-back top-3 finishes.
The Self-Balancing Mechanism
The system naturally prevents any single player from dominating top slots:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ THE CREDIT CYCLE │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ Player A accumulates 500 credits over ~2 seasons │
│ ↓ │
│ Player A claims 1st place slot (spends 500 credits) │
│ ↓ │
│ Player A now has ~0 credits │
│ ↓ │
│ Player B (who was saving) now has highest credits │
│ ↓ │
│ Player B claims 1st place next cycle │
│ ↓ │
│ Player A begins rebuilding credits │
│ ↓ │
│ Cycle continues, naturally rotating top slots │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
This ensures:
- No permanent "slot owners"
- Active participation is always rewarded
- Everyone eventually gets a turn at top slots
Starting Credits
New players receive 25 credits by default when registering.
Why 25?
| Consideration | Reasoning |
|---|---|
| Below lowest slot (50) | Can't immediately claim any slot alone |
| Meaningful head start | Combined with 1-2 activities, can reach slot 8-10 |
| Scales with era size | 200 players × 25 = 5,000 credits (not enough to monopolize all slots) |
| Encourages participation | Players need to participate to claim anything |
Configuring Starting Credits
Leaders can adjust this in /era config. Consider:
- Lower (0-20) for stricter "earn everything" approach
- Higher (30-50) to help new members contribute immediately
- Changes only affect future registrations (not retroactive)
The Warm-Up Period
When first adopting the credit system, we recommend tracking credits for 3-4 MGE cycles before enabling slot reservations. This allows credits to naturally accumulate and differentiate active players from casual participants.
Why a Warm-Up Period?
Day 1 Problem:
- Everyone starts at 25 credits (or 0 if set lower)
- No one can afford any slots yet
- MGE still happens and needs to be filled
After 3-4 MGEs (~6-8 weeks):
- Active players have 100-200+ credits
- Clear differentiation between participation levels
- Natural hierarchy based on activity has formed
- System can now meaningfully allocate slots
How to Run the Warm-Up
- Enable credit tracking - Configure your season's activities with
/season config - Run activities normally - Players earn credits for participation
- Fill MGE slots manually - Leaders assign slots as before (no reservations)
- Communicate - Tell players they're building credits for future reservations
- After 3-4 MGEs - Announce that reservations are now active
What Players Do During Warm-Up
- Participate in activities to earn credits
- Watch their balance grow with
/credits - Understand the system before it fully activates
- Build toward their first slot reservation
Choosing the Right Multiplier for Your Era
The default 5x multiplier is balanced for ~117 registered players. Smaller eras should lower it; large or multi-alliance eras (200-300+ players) should raise it well above 5x. See the Quick Reference table below, then use /mge costs to set it.
How Era Size Affects the Credit Economy
For the credit economy to stay healthy, the total credits earned by all players each season must be enough to fill all 50 MGE slots across all 6 MGEs. With 680 total medals across all 50 slots, the credits consumed per season are:
Credits consumed per season = 680 × multiplier × 6 MGEs
The default 5x multiplier requires ~82 fully active players to maintain a balanced credit flow. "Fully active" means perfect attendance across all activities and earning available bonuses — which is unlikely for most players. Not everyone will receive discretionary bonuses every season, and even dedicated players will miss the occasional activity. This means a realistic per-player earning rate is closer to 70-80% of the theoretical 250, so you'd want ~117 registered players to sustain 5x comfortably.
With each fully active player earning ~250 credits per season, the minimum number of fully active registered players needed to sustain each whole multiplier is:
| Multiplier | 1st Place Cost | Total credits consumed/season | Fully active players needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1x | 100 | 4,080 | ~16 |
| 2x | 200 | 8,160 | ~33 |
| 3x | 300 | 12,240 | ~49 |
| 4x | 400 | 16,320 | ~65 |
| 5x | 500 | 20,400 | ~82 |
Quick Reference: Multiplier by Era Size
The following table assumes 70% average activity and the default credit awards for all activities and bonuses. Use this to pick the right multiplier based on how many players are registered with the bot:
| Registered Players | Recommended Multiplier | 1st Place Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 23-34 | 1x | 100 |
| 35-46 | 1.5x | 150 |
| 47-57 | 2x | 200 |
| 58-69 | 2.5x | 250 |
| 70-81 | 3x | 300 |
| 82-92 | 3.5x | 350 |
| 93-104 | 4x | 400 |
| 105-116 | 4.5x | 450 |
| 117-139 | 5x | 500 |
| 140-162 | 6x | 600 |
| 163-186 | 7x | 700 |
| 187-209 | 8x | 800 |
| 210-232 | 9x | 900 |
| 233-255 | 10x | 1,000 |
| 256-279 | 11x | 1,100 |
| 280-302 | 12x | 1,200 |
| 303+ | 13x | 1,300 |
Above 5x the table steps in whole numbers for brevity; half-steps (e.g. 12.5x) interpolate between rows and can be set with /mge costs.
A 300-player era split into two 150-player alliances that alternate MGE turns still balances at ~12.5x. The alternation doesn't change the math: all players earn into the shared credit pool, and all 50 slots are filled every MGE regardless of which alliance's turn it is — so you balance total earnings against 6 MGEs of slot costs either way. At this scale top slots become a multi-season goal (1st place ≈ 1,250 cr ≈ 5 seasons of saving), which is the intended effect when 150 players compete for 50 slots each turn.
Use /mge costs to set or change the multiplier for your era. You can enter whole numbers or half-steps (e.g. 3, 4.5).
This table relies on the default credit awards for activities described above. If you adjust activity credit values with /season set-credits, these recommendations no longer apply — you'll need to recalculate based on your custom earning rate.
Interactive Cost Calculator
| Slots | Range | Medals | Cost at 5x |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Slot 1 | 100 | 500 |
| 2 | Slot 2 | 80 | 400 |
| 3 | Slot 3 | 60 | 300 |
| 4 | Slot 4 | 40 | 200 |
| 5 | Slot 5 | 30 | 150 |
| 6-7 | Slots 6-7 | 20 | 100 |
| 8-10 | Slots 8-10 | 15 | 75 |
| 11-15 | Slots 11-15 | 12 | 60 |
| 16-25 | Slots 16-25 | 10 | 50 |
| 26-50 | Slots 26-50 | 5 | 25 |
When to Increase Costs
Consider higher multipliers (6x-13x) if:
- You have a large or multi-alliance player base (~140+ registered players)
- You want longer intervals between top slot claims
- Top slots feel "too easy" to achieve
When to Decrease Costs
Consider lower multipliers (3x-4x) if:
- Your era has fewer than 40 active players
- Players are discouraged by unattainable costs
- Lower participation means fewer credits earned
- You want more turnover in top slots
Adjusting Activity Credits
Use /season set-credits to tune credit awards:
- Increase for activities you want to emphasize
- Decrease for less important activities
- Remember: higher credits = faster slot access
Summary
| Setting | Default | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Slot costs | 5x medal value | ~2 seasons for 1st place |
| Starting credits | 25 | Below minimum slot, encourages participation |
| Season earning | ~250 | Balanced against slot costs |
| Warm-up period | 3-4 MGEs | Build credit economy before reservations |
The defaults are designed for typical era activity patterns. Monitor your players' credit accumulation and adjust as needed to maintain a healthy, competitive system.
Next: See Command Reference for detailed syntax on all credit and MGE commands.