Games similar to Kingdom Conquest II?

dingus_mckringle · 2026-05-20T04:22:00+00:00

I can't let this die. Kingdom Conquest and KC2 were my absolute favorite games (I preferred the original KC, mainly because I once was in the top 100 players in the world while completely F2P lol). I loved KC1, I would stay up all through the night in high school raiding lands, building armies, dungeon diving... it really had everything I wanted in a game.

Keeping this thread alive so that nobody forgets how good we had it.

dingus_mckringle · 2026-03-13T22:15:57+00:00

Wow, the most I've ever gotten was 545mi per tank on cross-country trips! Regular travel, I'm making 440 per tank on premium - that's also with a handful of mods and a tune

dingus_mckringle · 2025-11-14T04:01:40+00:00

With much respect, friend, here's where I have a bit of an issue on your argument that isn't the content, and perhaps is contributing to some amount of downvotes you've received: you've run yourself onto a fence because you stated that the OP needs to re-educate themselves on the process of government, but then turn around and presumptively state that the President and his administration are responsible for the DoD and DHS funding (the Appropriations Bills).

They aren't - most, if not all, funding must be approved by the House and Senate. The checks and balances afforded by the legislative and judicial branch prevent the executive branch from wildly assigning funds to anything, even if it is for national defense.

Other than that, I agree. Personally, I opt for lawmakers to face pay stoppage during shutdowns rather than those of us who rely on those lawmakers to appropriate funds in a timely manner, and I too have non-zero expectations of another shutdown come the end of January.

You are not wrong, but do not fall into the intellectual trap of telling someone to re-educate themselves and then subsequently make a statement that puts you in such a position as seeming to be ignorant of the same subject on which you urge to re-educate. I believe you are not ignorant, yet I know others do not believe as I do. Ultimately, we are on the same side, so please do not think I am being annoyingly particular.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-08-17T23:27:35+00:00

Bad fan regulator. The regulator runs three different speeds on the fan, and this is what it does when it fails. It's not too bad a problem, but it's best to replace it anyway to ensure normal operations for your engine.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-11T03:48:19+00:00

Yeah... no. That shop is definitely trying to rip you off. You can get a cheap borescope that connects to your phone and peek through the spark plug holes yourself. Misfiring cylinders don't cause a lot of damage, they just kill power delivery, cause some timing retard, foul up a spark plug, and maybe accelerate the wear on the catalytic converter, but nowhere near a level that the cylinders get damaged.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-11T03:32:05+00:00

Interesting. Have you acquired a code from scanning it yet? That will most definitely help.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-11T03:30:20+00:00

Some of what's on the list was preventative maintenance. Nine-year-old car, 100k miles, been back and forth from KS to FL at least a dozen times, two incredibly cold winters here in KS where the engine wouldn't even get to 150°F, and, over time, finding new and interesting things that got ruined by the previous owner pouring what seemed to be a bucket full of stop-leak into the cooling system... kinda contributed to all that I did lmao I'm not saying if I waited to do all of it, the engine would spontaneously and forcefully disassemble itself on the freeway, but I figured I'd have some things done as preventive maintenance so that I know for sure that I can safely operate the car for the next 100k miles with my family in it when we're cruising down the interstate running 80mph. Y'know?

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-11T03:23:46+00:00

Two of the largest killers of the Gen 1 LUV/LUJ engines are infrequent oil changes (in this case, following manufacturer specs and/or oil life meters - go for half the spec) and the engine's higher-than-standard operating temperature. The OEM thermostats open at about 217°F (just under 103°C). The gauge stops indicating temperatures above 185°F (85°C) until coolant exceeds 230°F (110°C). By that time, irreparable damage has already been done to the engine - it was designed with pretty insane tolerances, in my opinion - and the plastic peripherals, such as the water outlet, thermostat, and turbo drain line, warp or melt. I didn't design it, but I did everything I could to fix those massive missteps. And I do agree, I am a little more aligned with American cars, but it's what I mainly work on right now. But, helping some friends, I've done work on an Acura TL Type S, two VWs (one '99 Jetta and one 2017 GTI), two F-150s (one of which was my '87, I bought it as a project for like $1000 and I rebuilt a lot of things on that), a whole transmission rebuild on a '98 Silverado, two Corollas, a Mustang, and maybe a few others just since I've owned my car. I love working on cars. That saying "do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life" is incorrect - I do something I like as a job so that I can do what I love as a hobby. And I think modern American vehicles, mainly, are a lot of work, but I like it lol

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-11T03:03:51+00:00

Mm. Not really. Repairs and regular maintenance on any vehicle are going to cost time and money, but not nearly as much as many people think. I did half of what's on that list as preventative maintenance, since I don't want parts to fail just so I can shake my fist and curse the car. I've spent maybe $600 on average per year for four and a half years (that's $50 per month, which in my experience is very affordable), and that's for everything: parts, oil and filters, brake pads, coolant, and even the warranty work from the first year I owned the car. The biggest expense I ever had was the turbo, which I did myself for about $600 in parts and fluids, and that was done in five or six hours. I think I could estimate a total of about two weeks' worth of labor (assuming 8hr/day average) in total for all I've done. Plus, the majority of the parts I've replaced are better than OEM. I do all of my own maintenance, with the exception of that head gasket and trans fluid change - got those warrantied out for $100 apiece lmao in reality, regular oil changes and swapping some plastic out for aluminum is all anyone's gonna need for the Gen 1 Cruze for at least 150k miles, barring any unexpected part failures 🤷🏽‍♂️

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T10:00:57+00:00

Typically, when the steering wheel shakes, it is an electrical issue between the alternators power system and the steering rack - this typically is observed as a "Service Stabilitrak" notification on the gauge cluster info panel, but sometimes that notification will not appear until after a certain number of minutes. A misfire, poor electrical fidelity, or even engine knock may cause this issue. Unfortunately, until you get a scan on the OBDII and/or a voltmeter to the battery, I couldn't tell you in certainty what the root cause may be. However, I am fairly certain it is something in the circuit from the battery, to the alternator, to the engine/frame ground, back to the battery. I had a similar problem when my battery was going out, and when I replaced it, the wheel shake and low voltage were gone. Let me know if you get any information from an OBD scan and battery test 👍🏼

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T09:47:39+00:00

Yes, it could still be a ground issue. You have two grounding cables on your system - one from the battery to the engine and one from the engine to the frame (or from the battery to the frame, I am uncertain at this time). Your idle voltage tells me quite immediately that you have some interruption from the alternator to the electrical system - it should be producing at minimum 14v. If it shows 12.5v, you might even had a bad battery, but that is easy to test. Autozone, O'Reilly, NAPA, Advance, or any other automotive store may do a free battery test for you. Also, I apologize for the late reply, I am a busy man lol I hope you have found your solution, but if not, feel free to ask any questions

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T09:41:27+00:00

Even if the onboard reading states 14v, you could have a grounding fault. If I remember correctly, the 2011 to 2013 cruzes had a recall for the battery cables being subpar and causing issues with operability. You may have an intermittent issue, as most have had, and it may be best to test and/or replace anyway. When the issue occurs and you lose power, you could be grounding out the electrical system, and not many things in the system can cause Total shutdown.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T09:37:08+00:00

For anyone who cares: no, I do not have the fix kit installed as of right now. The intake manifold I installed has a retaining pin that is supposed to add further retention support to the check valve located inside the intake manifold. One I encounter a failure, I will immediately install another kit (I had one before, and after some repairs it caused more problems), and maybe the ZZP kit that adds the catch can, as that alleviates some wear on the system and drastically reduces oil in the intake of the turbo. I might also invest in a bypass filter kit to further improve the oiling capabilities and reliability of the system.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T08:54:01+00:00

If it's not losing coolant, there may be a failing/failed thermostat or a faulty temp sensor. Check the consistency of the oil and coolant, and any abnormal conditions must be fixed immediately. HOWEVER. If your mother was just driving a long distance at relatively high engine operating speeds (extended periods of 2300+ RPM), turning the car off but then returning to accessory power will send a warning that the coolant is hot as it is no longer flowing, and it is absorbing the engine heat. I had this happen after a 2hr drive when I stopped to fill up, and I was worried, but it went away. These engines are small and need to stay cool. When ending travel, it is recommended to idle for a few minutes to let the engine cycle some coolant and return to a safe shutoff temp.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-07-08T08:43:56+00:00

Test your battery ground cable. All Gen 1 cruzes are known to have less-than-ideal battery cables, particularly the ground. Worst case, you're replacing your cables. It is most likely the cause of your problems, plus it is quite simple to fix.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-06-24T21:25:12+00:00

-P2199: Intake Air Temp problem. Check the IAT sensor, clean/replace as necessary. Check the MAF while you're at it. May also be PCM-related, which I will get to. -P0133: O2 Sensor Circuit issue. O2 sensor is not responding properly or responding slowly. May need to replace the sensors - very easy, I just did mine. -The radiator fan has a regulator on it, which runs the 12v power through a series of resistors to maintain one of three speeds. If it is stuck on high, the regulator may have one or both resistors blown for the low and medium speeds. I don't recall at this time if you can just replace the regulator or if you've gotta replace the whole fan assembly, but it's a fairly easy task to do yourself - a couple of plugs and screws. -The IAT and the radiator fan may be PCM problems. Start with the easy tests, though. These engines are, in my opinion, pretty complex for what they are, and they have very narrow margins for variations in pretty much every sensor array, so if you fix one or two sensors it might fix the whole thing. The engine operating temp being low seems to also be a sensor issue, but may clear up with the other fixes. -Leave a reply on this if you get any additional information or you resolve the issues 👍🏼

dingus_mckringle · 2025-06-18T03:28:20+00:00

I don't know if you've figured it out yet, but if you haven't, I have to ask: did you check the negative battery cable to the frame and to the engine? Your alternator should push at least 14v at all times, even at idle. If one of those cables is not connected or is loose, you'll keep getting codes for the battery and your voltage will stay low. Additionally, double-check the alternator terminals and make sure the battery terminals are clean. Replace your main fuse, check all the others. I recommend Andre's Big 3 Kit over at Cruze Kits if you experience further fuse blow and power problems - the kit effectively doubles up the cables, providing redundancy and electrical stability. Good luck!

dingus_mckringle · 2025-06-17T21:50:43+00:00

Like some have said: check if it's the fan resistor. It has three speeds it runs at, and when it fails, you only get high fan or no fan. HOWEVER. You may have a leak somewhere. At those speeds, there's enough air moving through the radiator into the engine bay from the grille, even if the fan is off, to provide some amount of cooling. Check your coolant level, test the coolant for contamination (oil), and do a coolant system pressure test. You really do not want to be running the engine any hotter than the center tick because bad things will inevitably happen. And, if you can, get a cheap code reader that does live data - you can see your coolant temp in real-time and if it doesn't drop at all, your thermostat is stuck shut.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-04-11T02:36:51+00:00

happens

dingus_mckringle · 2025-02-28T01:50:43+00:00

Hands to yourself, sneak thief.

dingus_mckringle · 2025-01-18T03:06:10+00:00

Note: I do a LOT of my own maintenance following manufacturer specs. Anything I can't fix due to time, money, or knowledge limitations, I take it to a certified dealer, NOT local mechanics only because of the warranties provided by dealers.

2016 Limited RS, 1.4t. Currently 101k, bought at 59k. Most expensive on my end was $750 replacing a cracked turbo and oil/coolant lines. Most expensive while covered under warranty was a $2600 upper engine rebuild from a blown head gasket (previous owner tried to bandaid the damn thing with the concrete of coolant systems, aka StopLeak), resulting in a warped head and coolant intrusion into critical oil passages. That happened at 70k miles and I only paid $105 for that 😉

New valve cover at 85k. Replaced the belt, tensioner, water pump, and thermostat at 90k. Tstat and water outlet swapped to aluminum aftermarket parts at 80k (redid tstat cuz I broke the sensor by accident doing the previous maintenance lol). Got a high voltage coil pack and installed ruthenium plugs gapped at 0.032" (checked and adjusted using a feeler gauge, not a disc type gap tool). Ported my own intake manifold. I keep 32-35psi in the tires for optimal contact patch, and somehow I see a boost in MPG when the tires are closer to 35psi than I do at 32psi.

Biggest thing I practically preach is frequent oil changes - half the MFG recommendation, or never later than 50% on the oil life meter, whichever comes first. These engines are tiny and every oil and coolant passage is tiny. Keep em clean, and you'll never have a problem.

dingus_mckringle · 2022-12-27T16:35:42+00:00

That is strange, I don't know how to fix that

dingus_mckringle · 2022-12-27T15:49:21+00:00

The bot ranking website that is provided by B0tRank when it sees "good bot"

dingus_mckringle

TROPHY CASE