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Author Topic:   Mineral Bonus Bug?

wjt posted 02-15-99 01:44 AM ET
I notice that when building a mine on a rocky terrain square and then selecting the base to see the resources generated, only 2 minerals are produced. The manual states that that a mine built on a rocky square should produce 3 minerals. If a road is added to this same square, minerals should increase to 4. Yet I only see 2. Can anyone explain?
Jeffrey Morris FIRAXIS posted 02-15-99 01:12 PM ET
You don't have the tech to reap more that 2 minerals yet (I forget which one..check the datalinks).
jkm
firaxis games
wjt posted 02-15-99 04:24 PM ET
Jeff
Thanks for your reply -- I'm still trying to find that tech advance which will give me more than 2 minerals per square.
However, pages 154-155 of the game manual never mentions this, and the help info under "Construct Mines" states the following:
Prerequisite: NONE
A mine increases the mineral output of a square:
Flat squares: +1 minerals
Rolling squares: +1 minerals
Rocky squares: +2 minerals (+3 if road)
This is misleading -- don't you think that the additional tech requirements should be included here?
Someone wish to jump in here and tell me which tech I need?

Primus posted 02-15-99 05:01 PM ET
Ecological Engineering, which is Explore 4. This tech lifts the 2 max cap on minerals. The concurrent tech for lifting the nutrient cap is Gene Splicing, Build 3.
Note that bonus mineral or nutrient squares will put you over that limit before you get the requisite techs. In my current game, I was lucky enough to start off next to *two* bonus mineral squares. Got me off to a rocking start.
The starting restrictions are listed on page 36 of the manual, under "Resources":
"Your ability to exploit territory is limited by your technology. When you first arrive on Planet, you are generally unable to recover more than 2 of any resource per turn...As you acquire more technologies, your production capacity expands until you are fully able to exploit the resource potential of every square in a base's production radius."
wjt posted 02-15-99 05:02 PM ET
OK - I found it!
(bottom of page 37 in the game manual)
"The amount of minerals any given square can produce is limited until the discovery of Ecological Engineering"
A very important concept that's buried within the game manual and not even mentioned in the game help files. Jeff, I think you guys at Firaxis should add this to the "Contruct Mines" help file.
wjt posted 02-15-99 05:19 PM ET
Thanks Primus for clearing this up (your post was just ahead of mine). I should have read the Resources section more carefully (tail between his legs).
Thanks also for the detailed post and pointing out the nutrient restrictions as well. This changes the way I play the game.
I still think that these restrictions need to be re-stated within the mineral and nutrient help files.
Primus posted 02-16-99 11:36 AM ET
I missed one. Environmental Economics, Build 5, is needed to lift the energy production cap. I thought I had left something out.
ViVicdi posted 02-16-99 09:23 PM ET
I agree that the importance of Gene Splicing / Ecological Engineering / Environmental Economics is VASTLY understated in the online help.
I almost deleted the demo the first time I played AC because I hit the restriction, figured there was some tech that would lift the restriction, and COULD NOT FIND IT DOCUMENTED in the online help.
In fact, it doesn't get documented online until you actually DISCOVER it. (I think someone told me you could find it under "Advanced Concepts" somewhere.)
This is a great game, but the resource restrictions are a major influence on the early game and they are way under-documented.
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Author	Topic: Mineral Bonus Bug?
wjt	posted 02-15-99 01:44 AM ET I notice that when building a mine on a rocky terrain square and then selecting the base to see the resources generated, only 2 minerals are produced. The manual states that that a mine built on a rocky square should produce 3 minerals. If a road is added to this same square, minerals should increase to 4. Yet I only see 2. Can anyone explain?
Jeffrey Morris FIRAXIS	posted 02-15-99 01:12 PM ET You don't have the tech to reap more that 2 minerals yet (I forget which one..check the datalinks). jkm firaxis games
wjt	posted 02-15-99 04:24 PM ET Jeff Thanks for your reply -- I'm still trying to find that tech advance which will give me more than 2 minerals per square. However, pages 154-155 of the game manual never mentions this, and the help info under "Construct Mines" states the following: Prerequisite: NONE A mine increases the mineral output of a square: Flat squares: +1 minerals Rolling squares: +1 minerals Rocky squares: +2 minerals (+3 if road) This is misleading -- don't you think that the additional tech requirements should be included here? Someone wish to jump in here and tell me which tech I need?
Primus	posted 02-15-99 05:01 PM ET Ecological Engineering, which is Explore 4. This tech lifts the 2 max cap on minerals. The concurrent tech for lifting the nutrient cap is Gene Splicing, Build 3. Note that bonus mineral or nutrient squares will put you over that limit before you get the requisite techs. In my current game, I was lucky enough to start off next to two bonus mineral squares. Got me off to a rocking start. The starting restrictions are listed on page 36 of the manual, under "Resources": "Your ability to exploit territory is limited by your technology. When you first arrive on Planet, you are generally unable to recover more than 2 of any resource per turn...As you acquire more technologies, your production capacity expands until you are fully able to exploit the resource potential of every square in a base's production radius."
wjt	posted 02-15-99 05:02 PM ET OK - I found it! (bottom of page 37 in the game manual) "The amount of minerals any given square can produce is limited until the discovery of Ecological Engineering" A very important concept that's buried within the game manual and not even mentioned in the game help files. Jeff, I think you guys at Firaxis should add this to the "Contruct Mines" help file.
wjt	posted 02-15-99 05:19 PM ET Thanks Primus for clearing this up (your post was just ahead of mine). I should have read the Resources section more carefully (tail between his legs). Thanks also for the detailed post and pointing out the nutrient restrictions as well. This changes the way I play the game. I still think that these restrictions need to be re-stated within the mineral and nutrient help files.
Primus	posted 02-16-99 11:36 AM ET I missed one. Environmental Economics, Build 5, is needed to lift the energy production cap. I thought I had left something out.
ViVicdi	posted 02-16-99 09:23 PM ET I agree that the importance of Gene Splicing / Ecological Engineering / Environmental Economics is VASTLY understated in the online help. I almost deleted the demo the first time I played AC because I hit the restriction, figured there was some tech that would lift the restriction, and COULD NOT FIND IT DOCUMENTED in the online help. In fact, it doesn't get documented online until you actually DISCOVER it. (I think someone told me you could find it under "Advanced Concepts" somewhere.) This is a great game, but the resource restrictions are a major influence on the early game and they are way under-documented.