Zezo forum:

Post by zezo | 2017-10-05 | 20:50:34

59 Comments

Post by YourMomSA | 2017-10-05 | 21:10:52

Looks like the max wind we'll see is going to be something like 9.8 kts. Even if we assume some variance in forecast over time, we're unlikely to get more than 12 or 13 kts. Might be able to save some credits by not buying heavy sails.

Has it been confirmed that foils don't help until we have at least 15 kts? If so, then that's another thing people could save on.

A little risky though... For all we know, VR might toss a micro-burst in just to make people regret not having heavy sails and foils.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-05 | 22:20:48

"twaMerge" : 10,
"twaMin" : 80,
"twsMin" : 16,
"twaMax" : 160,
"speedRatio" : 1.04,
"twsMerge" : 5,
"twsMax" : 35

So far it looks like the foils start kicking in at 11 knots and work 100% at the twsMin speed. Same for the angles - the merge ranges are _outside_ of the min-max limits

But looking at the current forecast I'd agree that this leg will be spent mostly below TWA 50 and/or 10 knots, so we may never see TWA 70 + 11 kts wind.

Post by mcmgj | 2017-10-13 | 19:05:26

Hello everyone,
it would appear that the arrival and departure points were reversed on the VOR.
Thank you.

Post by NOR7034 | 2017-10-05 | 21:52:24

Do we know for sure VR will stick to the weather from NOAA? Thinking about what happened in Mini Transat two days ago, - has anybody seen an explanation from VR? Did they do it on purpose?

Don't know if I am willing to spend so much time again if VR feels free to change the weather at will.......

Post by zezo | 2017-10-05 | 22:29:10

Sticking with NOAA weather is the only way to avoid the accusations of favoring certain players and all kinds of conspiracy theories.

Post by Toppen | 2017-10-05 | 22:51:02

And give an honest answer to every identified bug including how it was handeled and what they did to prevent it in the future. Of course none of this ever happens... When i "demand" VR to answer for example regarding the "favouring of the south by using the wrong weather" is because i want to make sure they not only fix the problem but the root cause... if they don't it will happen again and again... and frankly i don't think they care (or think it's that important...)

Post by zezo | 2017-10-05 | 23:05:37

You have a point - in theory they could have favored the south to show that the help cards are not entirely useless. But I personally prefer to stick with the Hanlon's razor: "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity"

What drives me mad is that we - as a community - can get around those problems. We can monitor the data. We can find the quirks and the shortcuts. It may be encrypted and hidden and obfuscated, but there is a saying in computer security - what man maketh a man can undo.

In the end the people who suffer the most are the ordinary players they are trying to attract.

Post by Alexandria | 2017-10-06 | 04:20:48

Now you are probably asking too much of VR, Toppen. :D

Post by WitteDeWith | 2017-10-11 | 14:12:57

the weather in VR VOR is definately not the real weatherdata from NOAA !!!!

I have a difference of more than 1 kt and 5 to 10 degrees compared to the data I download from NOAA

Post by Toppen | 2017-10-05 | 23:33:21

And speaking about the weather... this is how it is described on the VOR web site:

"As a player, your boat sails 24 hours a day / seven days a week for each leg, just like in the Volvo Ocean Race. It is up to you to choose the best sail configuration and course to get to the finish line first, taking into account the real-life weather conditions."

They should add the 4 knots minimum wind speed invented by VR

Post by Alexandria | 2017-10-06 | 04:08:09

That minimum wind limit is already changing the approach to Las Palmas...

Post by YourMomSA | 2017-10-06 | 00:25:49

Interesting... The clock on my free card barrel is now 7 hours instead of 5.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-06 | 00:29:35

It's not only you. The barrel just got ... what's the proper English word ... tighter?

Post by YourMomSA | 2017-10-06 | 00:41:30

I guess they determined it wasn't going to be profitable enough with that barrel frequency. I don't think it's going to work, though. I think they were probably going to make more money all along without the card system, and without start and finish bonuses. Just charge an entry fee and a fee per starting upgrades, offer unlimited forecasts, scheduling, and waypoints, and give nothing back. Then it's similar to VRO2 and probably more profitable than this card game. But... I also think they're committed to the card game and not interested in our opinions. They'll do what they think appeals to the most people, not the top players.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-06 | 01:18:06

Yes, you can pay the entrance fee for full extras, which is actually less than the previous "full options" fee and then never spend a dime on cards, just rely on the barrel and accumulated points from previous races.

The price is inflating over the time. There were times where the price for the entire VOR was EUR20, then it was 10/leg for certain Clipper race and then 20 for a 3-day race in the past year. My gut feeling tells me that simply lowering the bar could increase the sales to the point where the total is bigger, but obviously the VR marketing thinks otherwise (and they might be right) or they got to the same idea ad now look for ways to refine it.

But I can't paint my boat yellow for all the money in the world and it makes me sad.

Post by YourMomSA | 2017-10-06 | 01:22:25

The boat customization give you an option to upgrade your paint scheme... One option involves a stack of gold bars. Maybe that would do? For Mini, they wanted 9999 for it. For VOR Prologue, they're "only" asking 2999.

Does anyone know... if you pay to customize the color of your boat... Does it remember that for the next race that uses the same type of boat? Or is the paint just for the one race? I'm surprised anyone is paying for paint. I might consider it if it lasts from race to race, but no way for a single race.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-06 | 01:29:19

But it's not yellow ;)

BTW the paint is in the "full extras" panel and the checkbox is ticked, but is not covered by my real money.

Post by pmangino | 2017-10-06 | 03:52:29

Agree 100%.
They want to attract the 80/20 rule.
Top players will not eat the bite...
Princess Marina

Post by karriv | 2017-10-06 | 14:08:54

Cvetan, what polars is VR using for VOR? Can you tell if they're close to the polars from the last edition or maybe the Imoca?

Post by zezo | 2017-10-06 | 14:13:56

Definitely faster than Imoca and close to the last edition, sans the (possibly defunct) foils. You can compare them yourself:

http://zezo.org/vor2014/polars.html
http://zezo.org/vor/polars.html
http://zezo.org/clipper/polars.html

Post by karriv | 2017-10-06 | 14:18:47

Thanks for the quick response. The polars do seem very different indeed.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-06 | 14:25:10

The basic polars are mostly the same between 2014 and 2017, with maybe 5% more speed this year.

What differs more is the pro sail/foil bonus.

Post by mpako | 2017-10-08 | 12:19:45

Hi Cvetan,
long time I was not sailing...
but VOR is VOR.
New interface, new rules, new credits.
What is 6% speed increase in your tool?
thanks

Post by zezo | 2017-10-08 | 12:43:17

Just what it says. Some players observed that in certain race the boat is faster than the polars. So if you check the box the speed is multiplied by 1.06.

I don't think there was a fixed multiplier, but people wanted it. And it can be useful as a modifier to the forecast when checking route stability.

Post by LJadra | 2017-10-08 | 13:21:10

Hi,
I can not sign in/or change my VR account?? I use my home comp and my comp at work and sometimes my phone, but if I cant sign in on my home comp its not possible to play.
It seems that @ character does not work from my computers when typing e-mail address. But only to VR app, everywhere else works normally. Even if I want to copy/pase it. I tryed to write to VR support, but they said its my set up of comp and/or keyboard??
Do you have any idea?
Thanks,
Ziga

Post by Toppen | 2017-10-08 | 13:25:56

To test if this is the problem, ask someone you trust to login with your account/pwd on their computer... at least you'll find out if it's your computer or not... sounds pretty strange to me though but... who knows with VR...

Post by LJadra | 2017-10-08 | 19:08:32

Thnx Toppen.
It looks is not possible to change accounts. Once I have signed in on any device the VR system dont allow me to change to other account. It seems with every new version came more and more bugs:(
Can you change account normally?

Post by karriv | 2017-10-08 | 19:28:26

I had the same problem. Clear in cookies and/or browser cache helped.

Post by smaugh | 2017-10-10 | 08:31:30

same happened to me.
couldn't type @, but I could copy-paste the whole email address in

Post by toxcct | 2017-10-08 | 16:40:16

are you using the same polars as in the Clipper ?
I cannot find which type of boat that race is upon (on VR)...

Post by zezo | 2017-10-08 | 16:41:32

The boat is Volvo Open 65. Faster than Imoca 60.

Post by meteo79niort | 2017-10-08 | 19:07:02

Did you test the foils ? is it different from Clipper ? I have no options on this race

Post by zezo | 2017-10-08 | 20:12:07

There won't be chance to check the foils during the prologue. Polars start kicking in at TWS > 11 AND TWA > 70.

Post by LJadra | 2017-10-08 | 20:06:25

What about the weather? Wind in VR seems to be slightly different than in Zezo.
I read in tutorial that is possible to get a wind gust (more than predicted) and if you have Autosail ON it could change your sail and in this case without penalty?? Realy caonfusing. Are penalties the same like before? 1 min in 10 min cycle for tacking, gybing and sail change?

Post by zezo | 2017-10-08 | 20:13:38

The penalty is supposed to be 1/2 performance for 5 minutes without pro sails and 1/2 performance for 75 seconds with pro winches.

Post by LJadra | 2017-10-08 | 20:30:34

Tnx. But where can we get pro winches?

Post by zezo | 2017-10-08 | 20:36:52

In the shop, along with the different sails, hull polish and so on. Also included in the full pack. The shop is not available after the start.

Post by mpako | 2017-10-10 | 00:24:37

idiotic card game!
I need auto sail but I got weather and stealth.
these I do not need. ;)

Post by zezo | 2017-10-10 | 00:35:15

I have 10 or so. Guess I spent the free credits provided on two 10-card packs and got somehow lucky. But am short on programmings - spent 6 last night to get some sleep.

That's the moment you reach for your credit card, spend some money, buy all the navigation packs in the shop and get only waypoints.

Post by mpako | 2017-10-10 | 01:28:08

I got again stealth mode.... I do not care about stealth. averyone can follow me :)
I need a bit different cards.
will think about this game

Post by mpako | 2017-10-10 | 01:37:35

no.
I'am not goimg to play this f. game
first program 1 card, second two, ...
is it funny? or fair price?
it's not,
even my heart is with VOR i'm leaving
tears in in my eyes,
shit,
marketing and money

Post by zezo | 2017-10-10 | 01:42:27

Yep. This is total nonsense - 6 cards for 3 turns and 10 cards for 4. Kinda makes the game pay-to-win. Imagine sitting somewhere at the top, at the end of 20-day leg, sleep deprived, beard grown and dark circles under your eyes, and the damn thing refuses to sell you single programmed turn card.

Post by wonder1 | 2017-10-10 | 05:31:56

That's right - they've turned it into a "pay to win". And still no chat discussion rooms for the country teams. Not very friendly at all, in my opinion! It is too bad, because I look forward to the VORG all year.
~MissA

Post by wonder1 | 2017-10-10 | 05:36:12

Also, has it reset our friends list?

Post by Phorgeron62 | 2017-10-10 | 15:04:59

Absolutely agree! Please use VR's Facebook page for these remarks. VR will have to act on it if we all dislike the card-game.

Post by smaugh | 2017-10-10 | 08:35:21

So, I choose the angle and select to follow the TWA... But, when I check several minutes later, my boat is sailing on another TWA (+/- 1-2 deg).
This happened several times during game.
Anyone else?

Post by zezo | 2017-10-10 | 13:44:03

Happens all the time. Looks like rounding error somewhere, but I haven't verified if it's only the display.

Another possibility is that it's done on purpose at certain angles to avoid sail changeover points, but that's just a guess.

Post by karriv | 2017-10-10 | 09:14:08

I've seen that in the previous platform, and an one-degree offset also in this one.

I'm strongly of the opinion that the client software is total and utter crap. Very unstable, behavior is erratic (sometimes it throws you back to the home screen), consumes a huge amount of resources, etc. I have a feeling that VR is short on good developer resources, on top of lack of vision on game functionality (I'm not complaining about the business logic, I think they're going to make more money with this approach).

Post by zezo | 2017-10-10 | 13:41:07

It's not about development resources - what I've seen is quite competent. It's about somebody's vision.

What's currently draining the resources is the animated winds display and the waves splashing at the shoreline. If you could remove those effects the CPU usage would fall close to zero. AND you could see clearly when the boat will go aground.

Post by smaugh | 2017-10-10 | 16:06:26

True that!
choosing the lowest quality graphic in game settings minimizes the waves.

Post by karriv | 2017-10-10 | 16:52:57

Ah, ok. IMHO, the fact that the situation is a result of choice makes it even worse.

Post by Thistle1678 | 2017-10-10 | 20:33:29

Anyone have sites where you can download the polars anymore? vrtoutoulz used to make that easy!

Post by belharra | 2017-10-10 | 20:48:26

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1Ntvhh9XCUHd0VRNzVEVFVrT00

sorry this one is better

Post by Thistle1678 | 2017-10-11 | 17:25:01

Link didn't post right, I think...

Post by NOR7034 | 2017-10-10 | 21:18:06

Is it just me or isn't it possible to make my boat transparent anymore? Every time I get close to shore my own big black blob of a boat or this warning triangle hides the shoreline.

Post by NOR7034 | 2017-10-10 | 21:20:19

Is it just me or isn't it possible to make my boat transparent anymore? Every time I get close to shore my own big black blob of a boat or this warning triangle hides the shoreline, - or is that what You pay for in the option for boat color?

Post by LJadra | 2017-10-10 | 22:13:03

No its not possible. I tried to set waypoint close to shore and I could not set it closer than aprox. 20 nm away?? Almost half way to Madrid. And I also have isues with programmer. This game is so full of bugs.

Post by zezo | 2017-10-11 | 15:30:33

@WitteDeWith The weather can be derived from NOAA, but it's not straightforward. At what time/place did you see the difference and how strong was the wind?

Post by Fodimar | 2017-10-13 | 17:08:51

I just arrived to destination, but after i restarted connection my boat was 100 km away from goal and hit the rocks.

looks like simulation (what you see) and boat real position is not the same.

another strange behaviour.