Age End Timer

[Obviously]

Quick and straight to the point:

Currently the game timer shows when the age will end exactly: Era 7 will end in 2 weeks, 6 days, 16 hours, 51 minutes and 40 seconds

That is great of course, but it is allowing scenarios where some alliances are being warred, and they all sell up to the main, then go into vacation mode. As we can all agree, this defeats the purpose of a war game and is an abuse of the vacation feature.

Perhaps it should only show the timer when let's say only 1 week is left (as the way KoC always has been).

That way people can't just estimate the vacationing of the account based on that to just run away from the damage making wars less fun for everyone involved.

I think it's a quick and easy fix to just hide it.

I would love to know what you think about that.

Cheers

[Sagas]

That way people can't just estimate the vacationing of the account based on that to just run away from the damage making wars less fun for everyone involved.

Well, not sure for everyone involved haha. It's as unfun for someone to get perma sabbed and raided as it is for you to not have a target to look forward to. But that's perhaps a different topic.


Overall I agree with the idea in general. As someone who wasn't played much in recent eras, my questions are:

1. Since you say this is a war game (seems there are also some people who view it more as a ranking game, like all those who left alliances during war), what will incentivize alliances to war without a timer? Don't most who declare war do so with an eye on the clock? Or is this based on the time since the beginning of the era so they have time to get full techs etc?

2. How would you feel about a 1 week war just before the end of the era if nothing happens before then?

3. What if I'm on actual vacation, go vacation mode, and just miss the end of the era where everything is nuts? Not that I'll plan my holidays around it but it's pretty unfortunate if you put in a full era's work and it ends like that.

4. Would keeping the timer but not allowing vacation mode for X amount of time before the end of the era work. Say the last month or so.

[Obviously]

1. Since you say this is a war game (seems there are also some people who view it more as a ranking game, like all those who left alliances during war), what will incentivize alliances to war without a timer? Don't most who declare war do so with an eye on the clock? Or is this based on the time since the beginning of the era so they have time to get full techs etc?

Alliances have always warred without the timer before. Why would that change anything? Idk if you remember the old ages when the timer suddenly gets dropped on our heads.
Some wars were definitely started because some alliances want to get an edge, but most wars start due to some events that cause tension.In the
end, with or without a timer, wars will happen even if the reason is to stop an alliance from winning.

2. How would you feel about a 1 week war just before the end of the era if nothing happens before then?

I feel I answered this in my response to your first point. Wars will happen.

3. What if I'm on actual vacation, go vacation mode, and just miss the end of the era where everything is nuts? Not that I'll plan my holidays around it but it's pretty unfortunate if you put in a full era's work and it ends like that.

I thought about this earlier. I was thinking that maybe we can have a timer without the specific day at first. SO let's say an Era is 3 months long.
Month 1: Era will end in 3 months
Month 2: Era will end in 2 months
Month 3, Week 1: Era will end in 4 weeks
Month 3, Week 2: Era will end in 3 weeks
Month 3, Week 3: Era will end in 2 weeks
Month 3, Week 4: Era will end in x days and y hours

Considering that not all months have exactly 4 weeks in them, the last week of Month 3 will not be exactly 7 days, meaning players can't accurately predict the last day of the age even when the timer changes from "will end in 3 weeks" to "will end in 2 weeks"

In case you think 1 week is too little of a heads up, it can be adjusted of course. Like this for example:

Month 3, Week 3: Era will end in 2 weeks and x days
Month 3, Week 4: Era will end in x days and y hours

4. Would keeping the timer but not allowing vacation mode for X amount of time before the end of the era work. Say the last month or so.

If I understand you correctly, you want to limit the amount of VAC time you can place an account for?
So like it is limited to 2 weeks max for example?
I think that could be another viable solution for this too.
Especially that after you return, you are forced to stay in-game for the entire length of the VAC you took.
I like that approach.