Anyone actually use terraform up/down?

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Author Topic:   Anyone actually use terraform up/down?

Dave Milford posted 03-11-99 11:22 PM ET
I was just wondering if anyone actually terraformed up/down/level.
uncleroggy posted 03-11-99 11:28 PM ET
Dave,
I had a game where within 60 turns the A/I told me that the oceans were going to rise 60meters because of Hive boy. I was on an island and I had to terraform up my whole coastline or lose 7 bases. As it was, Hive boy did nothing and lost 3. BTW, it's great for building and destroying land bridges. Note, if you're in a similar situation the game will show you which squares are endangered. It shows up in red. Don't dawdle as it takes a lot of time.

uncleroggy out
ViVicdi posted 03-12-99 12:15 AM ET
Higher altitude yields more energy, so ...
I use "up" all the time to build "energy plateaus" for my supply crawlers. Also if you tap an aquifer on top of a mountain it's easier to predict where it will flow.
Of course I just recently discovered that Echelon Mirrors are cumulative, so that might warrant re-thinking my constant abuse of "terraform up".
By "doping" my bases I can either put them into a "Golden Age" or keep them from rioting on a 10% Psych budget and still keep 50% for Research. And, of course, there's that other 90% going into energy & research.
Lots of people have commented on their use of the Energy Satellites. They're truly wonderful, but energy plateaus are available far sooner. Put "clean reactors" on your formers, though. And build The Weather Paradigm.
TheClockKing posted 03-12-99 12:20 AM ET
I have used it to sink enemy bases and also to cut myself off. One game the beleivers and I were connected by a small piece of land so I sunk it. I usually try to isolate myself to an island and then send out lots of clean formers to sink everyone elses land. The computer doesn't seem to build effectively in the sea as on land. As for your cities being endangered build pressure domes. They give the benifits of Rec. Tanks and you don't have to worry about rouge factions flooding the planet.
absimiliard posted 03-12-99 12:43 AM ET
Hey,
ViVicdi: I also am a huge fan of terraforming "up" to increase the energy my supply crawlers get on a mass of solar farms supported by echelon mirrors. Just don't let the cumulative nature of echelon mirrors discourage you from terraforming up. Remember even if 8 echelon mirrors surround your solar farm you can still increase its energy production by 'moving up'!
ClockKing: I also use terraform 'down' to eliminate enemy cities. Note: if you don't use at least 2-3 sea-formers the enemy WILL succeed in building that damn pressure dome before you drop them into oblivion. Conversely, while I know the AI handles amphibious invasions extremely poorly I do not tend to sink the land-bridges into the sea. Instead, I invade offensively and take my enemy's bases.
-absimiliard
Frank Moore posted 03-12-99 07:27 AM ET
Absolutely I use terraform up/down. One game i started on a very small island, just a little bigger than Mt. Planet which mostly was the island. I could onlt fit 4 cities on it w/out overlapping cities too much. I built The Weather Paradigm and started to raise land until I had a pretty good sized continent on which to expand.
I also use the raise option to make a land bridge to another continent to attack my enemies.
I have used the lower terrain to sink enemy cities, but this is usually pretty expensive, so I usually stick raising my own terrain.
Rune posted 03-12-99 08:26 AM ET
I, too, use terraform up/down. Mostly to keep my bases from sinking. But also to expand the land area around my starting position (I usually play with max. water coverage). That way you have total control over your land area/size. You can build sea bases, of course, but I really don't like that (I'm not a fish).
Also, raising a giant mountain can really reduce an enemy factions food production, which I personally find amusing.
StargazerBC posted 03-12-99 08:30 AM ET
"The Path to Enlightment is Up" --Menicus?
Pragmatist posted 03-12-99 12:16 PM ET
My favorite use of terraform up/down is to try to sink the whole planet! In combination with planting fungus you can really confuse the AI. Play as Gaians sometime and try this, it's a lot of fun. Particularly when Yang's cities start to go glug. He says such funny things to you!
CaptComal posted 03-13-99 01:29 AM ET
I have used terraform DOWN to sink cities ... and used terraform UP to connect my continent to an empty continent so I could easily walk over my Colony Pods and Terraformers.
Best Regards,
CaptComal
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Author	Topic: Anyone actually use terraform up/down?
Dave Milford	posted 03-11-99 11:22 PM ET I was just wondering if anyone actually terraformed up/down/level.
uncleroggy	posted 03-11-99 11:28 PM ET Dave, I had a game where within 60 turns the A/I told me that the oceans were going to rise 60meters because of Hive boy. I was on an island and I had to terraform up my whole coastline or lose 7 bases. As it was, Hive boy did nothing and lost 3. BTW, it's great for building and destroying land bridges. Note, if you're in a similar situation the game will show you which squares are endangered. It shows up in red. Don't dawdle as it takes a lot of time. uncleroggy out
ViVicdi	posted 03-12-99 12:15 AM ET Higher altitude yields more energy, so ... I use "up" all the time to build "energy plateaus" for my supply crawlers. Also if you tap an aquifer on top of a mountain it's easier to predict where it will flow. Of course I just recently discovered that Echelon Mirrors are cumulative, so that might warrant re-thinking my constant abuse of "terraform up". By "doping" my bases I can either put them into a "Golden Age" or keep them from rioting on a 10% Psych budget and still keep 50% for Research. And, of course, there's that other 90% going into energy & research. Lots of people have commented on their use of the Energy Satellites. They're truly wonderful, but energy plateaus are available far sooner. Put "clean reactors" on your formers, though. And build The Weather Paradigm.
TheClockKing	posted 03-12-99 12:20 AM ET I have used it to sink enemy bases and also to cut myself off. One game the beleivers and I were connected by a small piece of land so I sunk it. I usually try to isolate myself to an island and then send out lots of clean formers to sink everyone elses land. The computer doesn't seem to build effectively in the sea as on land. As for your cities being endangered build pressure domes. They give the benifits of Rec. Tanks and you don't have to worry about rouge factions flooding the planet.
absimiliard	posted 03-12-99 12:43 AM ET Hey, ViVicdi: I also am a huge fan of terraforming "up" to increase the energy my supply crawlers get on a mass of solar farms supported by echelon mirrors. Just don't let the cumulative nature of echelon mirrors discourage you from terraforming up. Remember even if 8 echelon mirrors surround your solar farm you can still increase its energy production by 'moving up'! ClockKing: I also use terraform 'down' to eliminate enemy cities. Note: if you don't use at least 2-3 sea-formers the enemy WILL succeed in building that damn pressure dome before you drop them into oblivion. Conversely, while I know the AI handles amphibious invasions extremely poorly I do not tend to sink the land-bridges into the sea. Instead, I invade offensively and take my enemy's bases. -absimiliard
Frank Moore	posted 03-12-99 07:27 AM ET Absolutely I use terraform up/down. One game i started on a very small island, just a little bigger than Mt. Planet which mostly was the island. I could onlt fit 4 cities on it w/out overlapping cities too much. I built The Weather Paradigm and started to raise land until I had a pretty good sized continent on which to expand. I also use the raise option to make a land bridge to another continent to attack my enemies. I have used the lower terrain to sink enemy cities, but this is usually pretty expensive, so I usually stick raising my own terrain.
Rune	posted 03-12-99 08:26 AM ET I, too, use terraform up/down. Mostly to keep my bases from sinking. But also to expand the land area around my starting position (I usually play with max. water coverage). That way you have total control over your land area/size. You can build sea bases, of course, but I really don't like that (I'm not a fish). Also, raising a giant mountain can really reduce an enemy factions food production, which I personally find amusing.
StargazerBC	posted 03-12-99 08:30 AM ET "The Path to Enlightment is Up" --Menicus?
Pragmatist	posted 03-12-99 12:16 PM ET My favorite use of terraform up/down is to try to sink the whole planet! In combination with planting fungus you can really confuse the AI. Play as Gaians sometime and try this, it's a lot of fun. Particularly when Yang's cities start to go glug. He says such funny things to you!
CaptComal	posted 03-13-99 01:29 AM ET I have used terraform DOWN to sink cities ... and used terraform UP to connect my continent to an empty continent so I could easily walk over my Colony Pods and Terraformers. Best Regards, CaptComal