Terraforming Costs - Alpha Centauri Forums

  Alpha Centauri Forums
  Strategies and Tactics
  Terraforming Costs

profile | register | prefs | faq | search

Author Topic:   Terraforming Costs

Urban Ranger posted 05-05-99 04:55 AM ET
Is there any reason why terraforming near your cities costs far less than when you are trying to do it in the boonies?
eladamirS posted 05-05-99 06:34 AM ET
Yes. It doesn't ;-)
Unless I'm wrong of course.
HMFIC posted 05-05-99 09:42 AM ET
I believe Urban Ranger is wanting to know why it costs more the raise/lower land the further away from a city you get. That is the only cost associated with terraforming. I dont have a solid answer to the question tho, other than it does affect game play and keeps you from building land bridges all over the place from the start due to cost. Can you imagine the potential in the early game if you had the Weather SP and could bridge to your hearts content?
Urban Ranger posted 05-05-99 10:54 AM ET
That's an interesting way of looking at it.
My thinking is, though, even with Weather Paradigm, it takes a looong time to do any raising or lowering, the formers move slow, and you would only have a handful of them.
HMFIC posted 05-05-99 01:38 PM ET
I contend that you only have a handfull of them if that is all you care to build. I have found myself with a pisspot full of em in many of my roams thru SMAC-dom. Stack the little buggers and get the terraforming done in 1/2 or 1/4 the time. Get enuff of em on the same job and you can get land raised in one turn...you can have bridges to everywhere if you want to open your borders up to the likes of Yang and his ilk...it will cost you, so you got to WANT it!
GaryD posted 05-05-99 02:05 PM ET
Urban: Oh it doesn't take that long as Miriam is presently finding out on my present game.
Stack enough terraformers and up it comes same turn. Want a road ? Tube ? Yep same turn too.
The aircraft she sends fails to achieve collateral damage for some reason, and if she's daft enough to try out her helicopter on two formers she doesn't survive the second one (good defence !).
And that ship pounding me. Isn't it a bit near the coast ? Oh, what ship's that then ?
The only thing is that you have to take the losses but when her infantry can't get to you, and your cities can create replacements fairly fast anyway, who cares ?
The only pain I've found so far is that when I have a stack of units she manages to attack one of the formers, and avoids my AAA units who are waiting for her. But when I try the same trick of an opponents stack, no soft target for me ! Oh I've managed to find the AAA unit again have I !!!!
A related problem, when I try to hit a stack that just happens to have a single air unit in it, how come the infantry are magically protected ? I wasn't planning on hitting the air unit anyway ! Huh get the sods next time with my new SAMAAA units. Not putting up with that !
Plato90s posted 05-05-99 11:14 PM ET
Actually, raising and lowering ios always more expensive than other terraforming. In addition, the cost multiplies if you try to raise/lower terrain outside the boundaries of your empire. It costs even more if you try to do it in someone else's territory.
GaryD posted 05-06-99 05:46 AM ET
It seems to change depending on the former too.
I noticed this just after I'd spend a wad of energy hurrying a SP, so when my former was instructed to raise an area of land I couldn't quite afford it that turn.
I took this as being true and adjusted my movement/activity accordingly.
For some reason I'm not sure of, near the end of the turn I asked an upgraded former to raise the same square (what could I be thinking of ?). It was able to do so at a cheaper cost ???
If I'd have known that I'd not have 'ended turn' for all the other formers on the square !
To close this thread, click here (moderator or admin only).


Hop to:

Contact Us | Alpha Centauri Home

Powered by: Ultimate Bulletin Board, Version 5.18
© Madrona Park, Inc., 1998.

Author	Topic: Terraforming Costs
Urban Ranger	posted 05-05-99 04:55 AM ET Is there any reason why terraforming near your cities costs far less than when you are trying to do it in the boonies?
eladamirS	posted 05-05-99 06:34 AM ET Yes. It doesn't ;-) Unless I'm wrong of course.
HMFIC	posted 05-05-99 09:42 AM ET I believe Urban Ranger is wanting to know why it costs more the raise/lower land the further away from a city you get. That is the only cost associated with terraforming. I dont have a solid answer to the question tho, other than it does affect game play and keeps you from building land bridges all over the place from the start due to cost. Can you imagine the potential in the early game if you had the Weather SP and could bridge to your hearts content?
Urban Ranger	posted 05-05-99 10:54 AM ET That's an interesting way of looking at it. My thinking is, though, even with Weather Paradigm, it takes a looong time to do any raising or lowering, the formers move slow, and you would only have a handful of them.
HMFIC	posted 05-05-99 01:38 PM ET I contend that you only have a handfull of them if that is all you care to build. I have found myself with a pisspot full of em in many of my roams thru SMAC-dom. Stack the little buggers and get the terraforming done in 1/2 or 1/4 the time. Get enuff of em on the same job and you can get land raised in one turn...you can have bridges to everywhere if you want to open your borders up to the likes of Yang and his ilk...it will cost you, so you got to WANT it!
GaryD	posted 05-05-99 02:05 PM ET Urban: Oh it doesn't take that long as Miriam is presently finding out on my present game. Stack enough terraformers and up it comes same turn. Want a road ? Tube ? Yep same turn too. The aircraft she sends fails to achieve collateral damage for some reason, and if she's daft enough to try out her helicopter on two formers she doesn't survive the second one (good defence !). And that ship pounding me. Isn't it a bit near the coast ? Oh, what ship's that then ? The only thing is that you have to take the losses but when her infantry can't get to you, and your cities can create replacements fairly fast anyway, who cares ? The only pain I've found so far is that when I have a stack of units she manages to attack one of the formers, and avoids my AAA units who are waiting for her. But when I try the same trick of an opponents stack, no soft target for me ! Oh I've managed to find the AAA unit again have I !!!! A related problem, when I try to hit a stack that just happens to have a single air unit in it, how come the infantry are magically protected ? I wasn't planning on hitting the air unit anyway ! Huh get the sods next time with my new SAMAAA units. Not putting up with that !
Plato90s	posted 05-05-99 11:14 PM ET Actually, raising and lowering ios always more expensive than other terraforming. In addition, the cost multiplies if you try to raise/lower terrain outside the boundaries of your empire. It costs even more if you try to do it in someone else's territory.
GaryD	posted 05-06-99 05:46 AM ET It seems to change depending on the former too. I noticed this just after I'd spend a wad of energy hurrying a SP, so when my former was instructed to raise an area of land I couldn't quite afford it that turn. I took this as being true and adjusted my movement/activity accordingly. For some reason I'm not sure of, near the end of the turn I asked an upgraded former to raise the same square (what could I be thinking of ?). It was able to do so at a cheaper cost ??? If I'd have known that I'd not have 'ended turn' for all the other formers on the square !