Conquest! on irc

After a brief 10-year (give or take!) hiatus, Conquest! has returned to IRC. Sort of.
Yesterday I thought it would be fun to build a bot that forwards chat and selected world events between the game server and an IRC channel. Since Conquest! began life on IRC in 1993—first on EFnet, then later on Undernet—it felt like an appropriate homage, even if IRC isn't quite as popular as it once was (and, if we're being honest, neither is Conquest!).
I started work yesterday afternoon and within a few hours had the basic framework in place. Then, late last night, a breakthrough: bi-directional communication was established. Huzzah!
Today was spent polishing and hardening the bridge bot. At one point I considered moving everything directly into the game server, creating an all-in-one solution. In the end, though, I decided against it. The server already handles enough responsibilities, and keeping the bridge as a separate process has some advantages. If I ever decide to pull the plug, I can simply stop the bot without affecting the game server itself.
If you're feeling nostalgic—or just curious how Conquest! got its start back in 1993—feel free to stop by and say hello. While the game itself no longer runs through IRC, the channel once again serves as a gathering place for the community.

Server: irc.libera.chat
Channel: #ConquestGame

​Until next time!