How to play Morgan well - Q and A - Alpha Centauri Forums

  Alpha Centauri Forums
  Strategies and Tactics
  How to play Morgan well - Q and A

profile | register | prefs | faq | search

Author Topic:   How to play Morgan well - Q and A

Ambro2000 posted 06-05-99 04:40 PM ET
I've seen threads about The Hive, UoP and Gaians so I thiught that I should start one about Morgan.
I've never played them my self because I find the low support and slow growth to be quite bad. So I was wondering what your tactics are to be succesfull playing Morgan?? How to use his advanteges etc etc....????

swimjakes posted 06-05-99 07:33 PM ET
To play the Morganites. Build as fast as you can early in the game. This lets you build up wealth and commerce. The other factions will still be friendly for a while. Try to locate the UoP, and build bases close to them. Make sure you get the H-S secret project, just to keep it from the UoP. Once you build up your military and tech,( from other factions), start being ruthless. Take out the UoP with probes and make them surrender. This gives you someone to do research for you, and if you leave some large bases, lots of commerce.
Basically, be good and build fast early on. (Your bases will catch up, despite slow growth). Then be utterly ruthless as the game progresses.
Natguy posted 06-05-99 10:56 PM ET
Yes, I would also like to hear Morganite strategies because although I've tried them a few times, I always fail pitifully.
It's been a while simce I've played them, though. I'd probably be better now.
P.S. : If I see one more preview for "The General's Daughter" may God have mercy on John Travolta's soul.
Plato90s posted 06-06-99 12:32 AM ET
Given the absurdly low base limit, you have to compensate by having lots of bases. So expand like crazy early on and don't worry too much about research. You'll buy them from other factions until you get probe team, after which you can start stealng them.
Krushala posted 06-06-99 10:28 AM ET
If you aren't at war and your units are in your territory always stick with FM. Build trance defenders to deal with mind worms. And perhaps a few empath rovers to get money from killing mindworms. Always build a good road network to help defend against planet.
Smeagol posted 06-06-99 03:11 PM ET
Forget war in the early game. Get to Free Market and use it as early as you can... it's your only real advantage at this point. Having +1 energy/square is an amazing boost, and though this is documented incorrectly, +3 economy also gives you +2 energy/base, which is really valuable early on (but nearly insignificant later). Stick with FM as long as you can, only using wealth if there are no battles at all to fend off. Pay your enemies off to avoid war, and give them whatever they want except critical techs.
You should research as fast as you can to Tree Farms and Hybrid Forests, while expanding those small bases as far as you possibly can. Once you get to these, of course forest everywhere and put in a few boreholes. With this no computer opponent should be able to match your ridiculously fast research. Research to get clean reactors and punishment spheres. Then build that sphere in one base, along with command and bioenhancement centers, and build your entire army there. Make sure you are not using wealth at this stage, as it will cripple your morale. In fact, Knowledge is the better choice anyway, as it will give you better research and efficiency. I left this unstated so far but of course you should be using Democracy as your choice of government.
You can also probe like mad when you want, but I usually reserve this for later as I don't want to upset my enemies yet. With your accumulated wealth, you should be able to buy half an empire or more.
So many more strategies that are important for Morgan-- make sure you equip defenders with Hypno trance to offset your planet penalty from FME, and Empath Song on a few offensive units to attack the worms outright. Use rovers so that you can kill the whole stack in one shot.
Later in the game, consider leaving FME for Wealth, as (on Transcend, at least) the mad mindworm rush will inevitably come your way. Consider using Demo/Green/Wealth here, as it will help avoid/fight off mindworms and improve your efficiency at the same time.
Hope this helps... I'm sure I have a few more ideas in my mind but that's all I can come up with right now.
Ambro2000 posted 06-06-99 05:36 PM ET
Thanks for all the advices. I sure will go and try them out.
jimmytrick posted 06-06-99 11:03 PM ET
The best way to play Morgan? Play the Hive instead! Free Market eco is a sure, no doubt, loser in multiplay! Hah!
Smeagol posted 06-06-99 11:14 PM ET
jimmytrick-- Tell us something we don't know. Keep in mind that many of the discussions here concern single player transcend (or below) games. There is an implicit understanding that everything changes in multiplayer games. Even so, I agree with your misplaced advice-- nobody beats the Hive, on any level and in single OR multiplayer games.
Captain Action posted 06-06-99 11:14 PM ET
As an victor at transcend ironman with morgan I have developed this plan for world domination.
It REALLY helps to play with blind reasearch off, as the tech you research in the beginning has a HUGE effect on how you do later on. Also be very careful when hurrying production. I only do when I have 1 row left (10 minerals). Later on when you have 10k a turn you can get sloppy. Set your lab/pysch/energy at 50/0/50.
First tech you need is terraformmers. Build 1 at every base (usually 2 at this point). Try to have colony pods do being built the turn the city gets to population 2. As on transcend the 2 person is almost always a drone. Have the formers plant 2 squares of forest and then road to the nearest city and return for more forests. If there are rivers, or non-rocky mineral bonus or energy bonus squares then forest them FIRST, as the game allows more than 2 resource units from a speical even without the speical tech.
The next tech you need are freemarket and supply crawlers. Switch to freemarket the nanosecond you get it! The reason for this for the +3 energy per base! (should have 3 or 4 by now and be generating 9+ energy credits a turn). Sometimes the game will screw you on what techs you can research, If that happens then get wealth to as that adds another 1 energy per base. When not building colonypods build supply crawlers to 2/3 and buy that last 1/3! Then put that crawler on a +2 mineral square. Continue build crawlers and placing them on simullar squares. There is too a reason for this. With a pop of 1 you can only expect for 3 to 4 mineral a turn, with 1 crawler it becomes 5, 2 for 7, 3 for 9, and 4 for a 11+! While the computer crawl along at 7 or worse!(Except that SOB that lands in the garland crater!)
Keep on expanding until you have at least 8 pop 1 or 2 cities(32 energy credit a turn at least!) and build the planetary transit system. Use crawlers to build it ASAP! When it is done ALL of your cities will become pop 3! (as of enhancement 3 this works!) Now switch your labs/pysch/energy to 30/20/30. Some of your cites should go into golden age.
Now try to get the follow SPs in this order: weather pair of dimes, Command next us, Hooter seeker al gore rythum, plant net airy date a links, xeno empty dome, marrige time center, and very last merchant exchange. If unlucky you'll miss about 2 of the early SPs. Since all the computer research the same way the planetary datalinks will allow you to build the secert projects that couldn't other wise.
Here are some do's and don't's
Do give all of your build tech to get trade or pacts with the other factions.
Don't givem air power no matter what!
Do probe your enimes often.
Don't walk on the fungus when all your of military consits of supply crawlers.
Do build armored probe teams to advoid that support cost!
HolyWarrior posted 06-07-99 03:12 AM ET
FM is fine in peacetime, but whatcha gonna do when the warmongers come for you? You can't fight your way out of a paper bag with FM.
Punishment spheres? Pah, I have better things to build. And if you want to support a heavy military, you have to have more than one, which will cripple your research.
I have nothing against Morgan, but I think the game is very unbalanced, with FM being a gamebreaker.
Smeagol posted 06-07-99 02:58 PM ET
Holywarrior-- One Punishment sphere is all you need. With a few boreholes you can build an entire army in no times at all (using clean reactors of course). I agree with you that this game is unbalanced, but not for the reason you say, exactly. And it is only unbalanced in MP games-- builders can only really beat conquerors in single player, unless playing on huge, mostly ocean-covered maps.
Zozo posted 06-07-99 06:37 PM ET
Thanks for all the great tip. I havent' tried Morgan before since I can't think of a way to get it to work. However, these tips makes sense, especially in conjunction with clean reactor, if the game lasts that long ! Somehow, in all of my games, wars start very early so by the time clean reactor comes along the result of the game has already been pretty much determined.
I have a question related to loading a single base with boreholes to build units. If I have units standing around doing nothing on every single square of that base area (with clean reactor, of course) can planet still send angry mobs from outside the base area to harass me or are they muffled because there's no room (in the base radius) for them to pop up ?
In other words, if base A has ecodamage of a zillion and base B has no ecodamage, can mindworms/locusts pop up in base B just to be able to attack the units standing all around base A radius ?
But, maybe a better strategy would be leaving one or two empty squares so that I can earn some extra energy popping those worms.
Captain Action posted 06-07-99 08:02 PM ET
HolyWarrior said -
FM is fine in peacetime, but whatcha gonna do when the warmongers come for you? You can't fight your way out of a paper bag with FM.Punishment spheres? Pah, I have better things to build. And if you want to support a heavy military, you have to have more than one,which will cripple your research.I have nothing against Morgan, but I think the game is very unbalanced, with FM being a gamebreaker.

Reread my post carefully, If my strat is followed you will be building 4+ supply crawlers a city. That gives at least a "suffient" military rating which causes the warmongers to leave you alone. With the exception of that bitch miriamn. If are unlucky to start next to her you're screwed and have to start over.
Provost Harrison posted 06-12-99 02:40 PM ET
Morgan, Morgan, Morgan...utilise his +1 economy. It can give you an opportunity to avoid FM later in the game (just wealth necessary). You can become green and fight an aggressive game with native life. Democracy tricky to begin with (total -3 support). I ride it for the growth + efficiency. Build Ascetic Virtues. 4 limit becomes 6. Get Hab Complexes (not too difficult). Build like hell. And expand like hell, too. But use the energy you have to pile out the research.
Oleg Leschoff posted 06-12-99 04:08 PM ET
FM is the terrible thing because of the ugly police rating. In addition, green economy is very effective: once, I've started on a little island, and all neighbour islands were colonized by other factions. So, I travelled on a distant continent and started to develop there. Can you imagine how much ineffeeciency was there???
That colony developed well, and its main problem was, of cause, ineffeciency -- sometimes more than half of energy were wasted. And in such cases the effeciency rating is the solution -- raising this rating you raise the incomes dramatically.
The Morgan's advantage is that he can avoid using the FM! So, using it, you, in fact, wasting his only advantage. Does it makes any sense?
I am usually using Demo/Green/Wealth(/some FS if available, especially when Cloning Vats or Network Backbone is built) combo, and, later, Demo/Green/Knowledge/Eud. Of cause, morale is usually the main Morgan's problem.
Of cause, in early game, when you don't have wealth, FM is the only choise.
Sometimes (with compact colony, for example) the FM seems good, but if you will try to go with green/wealth and look what benefits of normal Police are, you probably will change your mind...
Penny Foh Yu Thot posted 06-13-99 03:14 PM ET
One question ?
How come Morgan have so much problem with drones ?
I mean I am a UoP player on Transcend and last time I played I only started to have drone problems after I got to base 3 or 4... (By that time I already had the Genome anyway ;-) )
But with Morgan U go to size 2 and Bam !
I once managed to have a single Drone in my Base ... (Size 1 and 1 is the drone!!)
Oh and Captain Action I hate to play with Blind Research off I find it feels like cheating !
So you're strategy don't do nothing for me since I never get the supply transport to support those size 1 Bases...
Any comments and mostly Tips will be appreciated !
My 2 cents worth
Oleg Leschoff posted 06-13-99 04:54 PM ET
Penny:
there's two ways about drones:
buy rec.commons (or network node if you have VW and enough money);
switch to green/wealth and use police. However, you have to buy it, too...
The reason is simple -- ineffeciency. So, using green, you raising it, and drones reduces.
Penny Foh Yu Thot posted 06-13-99 06:22 PM ET
So if I get you right, drone appears cuz of efficiency ?
Then how come Morgan gets them so early ?
And how the hell do you use police ?
I have stationned military in my Base and it didn't modified nothing...
Thanx for the tips tho
Just my 2 cents worth
Krushala posted 06-13-99 06:32 PM ET
Drones will appear because if inneffiency after a certain number of bases. A pop up will warn you when you are about to exceed that number.
Police are used automatically. You may not notice it at first. Click on the PYSCH bar in the base operations screen and you will see the effect of you military units. But if your POLICE is -2 or below you cannot use military units as police. like in a free market economy for instance.
This is why rec. Commens and Virtual World w/ networks nodes are very important for Morgan. He can't use police units like Yang can.
Penny Foh Yu Thot posted 06-13-99 08:01 PM ET
Ok I understand that and it's true that I do get that message. But why does Morgan get those Drone at the 2nd citizen ?
And how do you avoid it since you obviously don't have the tech to prevent it ...
The problem if you overbuild too early is that your bases wont have any building power to take those early SP.
Anyway I guess I'll have to change my approach
Thanx guys !
Just my 2 cents worth
Krushala posted 06-13-99 08:09 PM ET
since you're playing transcend, your second citizen with uop should be a drone too. I've only played transcend a few times. I prefer thinker level. Less drone management
Koshko posted 06-13-99 09:59 PM ET
Truthfully, I find that Virtual World isn't absolutely necessary with Morgan. Instead build Human Genome. Even when your second dude is a Drone, the Talent will counter it.
After you Build a city, Set up in a Template 1)Former, 2)Recycling Tanks, 3)Rec Commons. Build the Rec Common before population 3. This will save a riot. Then mass-produce Colony Pods. Have your highest Mineral producers building Secret Projects.
By the time I get around to making Hab Complexes, I usually have enough income coming in where I can drop in 20% to Psyche.
Provost Harrison posted 06-14-99 12:28 PM ET
Actually, I find Morgan the least problematic with drones. A 20% luxury rate with his economy output, you can throw most reasonably equipped cities into Golden Age. With more manageability in the earlier game (smaller bases), city management should be a doddle, even on Transcend.
Igor posted 06-15-99 09:52 PM ET
How to play Morgan: warmonger approach.
Important!!! BLIND RESEARCH OFF!!!!
Three major goals: D:Loyalty, Centauri Empathy, Nonliniar Math.
Combo Police/Green.
Next goal - Power. Combo Fundy/Green/Power.
Secret projects: Command Nexus, maybe Genome.
Priorities: Expansion and War.
Build: pods, tanks, command centers (if was unlucky in CN building), formers and rec commons. Everything else only for war. Only offencive units.
HURRY PRODUCTION!!!!
I don't worry about pop limit and last time got Industrial Automation after getting Orbital Spaceflight (traded it). Growth is slow anyway, and Green is a great choice. Industry is not so important coz I buy everything, and Power with industry penalty is better than Police State with -2 effic. The higher efficiency the less drones. Bureaucracy is a nightmare with all this amount of bases, but number of units which you can support...
Yeah, overlapping is a great strat for Morgan, better than for anyone else. It's impossible to build bases one near other, but move little further . Each base has at least 3 working squares. With 4 pop limit..
It is possible to use Green/Police combo very early to build more bases and supply crawlers, and switch to other SE later. Such combo allows to build up to 20-40 bases before 2150-60, and stock of formers. Moreover, nobody demands anything (how I hate when Santiago says 'You're now weak and fat...' )
In such situation any AI asks for truce or peace, and Morgan's commerce bonus works for him. If Living Refinery is build, combo Demo/Green/Power => mooooorrrrrreeee bases.
Any objections?
P.S. I talked about Transcend and Thinker. I prefer Thinker, but it works vs. AI anywhere.
Krushala posted 07-03-99 02:36 PM ET
Bringing this one back up.
My favourite to faction to play. A little more difficult than the others though. Although I'm starting to see the advantage the peacekeepers have in energy production if they use population booms.
Wank posted 07-05-99 03:26 PM ET
Ok, I have a question.
I have seen a number of opposing views on Morgan. Half the people say:
"BUILD 50 CITIES IN THE FIRST 10 TURNS! OVERLAP THE CITIES!"
And the other half go:
"NONONO! BUILD ONLY 5-10 CITIES THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE GAME!"
Ok, so which is the most effective?
Wank
Wank posted 07-05-99 03:26 PM ET
Ok, I have a question.
I have seen a number of opposing views on Morgan. Half the people say:
"BUILD 50 CITIES IN THE FIRST 10 TURNS! OVERLAP THE CITIES!"
And the other half go:
"NONONO! BUILD ONLY 5-10 CITIES THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE GAME!"
Ok, so which is the most effective?
Wank
Krushala posted 07-05-99 03:52 PM ET
Building 20 cities with slight overlap is probably your best bet. I can't see how 8 to 10 cities would benefit morgan. I have seen people do that with the peacekeepers because they can pop boom and have no hab limits like morgan. Keep them close to reduce inneficiency and for better defense.
Series II posted 07-19-99 12:39 PM ET
I just had a GREAT Morgan game. I was building access to Transcend while the other factions were just starting their fusion planet busters.
I am not sure if it was just a lucky game, but I really out researched everyone else. I did have to kill off the UOP very early. It sort of pissed me off though. I had just destroyed all their units and they had one unguarded city left and that SUNSPOTS. Tehy could not surrender to me. I guess I could have waited for 20 turns, but that seemed to tedious.
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: How to play Morgan well - Q and A
Ambro2000	posted 06-05-99 04:40 PM ET I've seen threads about The Hive, UoP and Gaians so I thiught that I should start one about Morgan. I've never played them my self because I find the low support and slow growth to be quite bad. So I was wondering what your tactics are to be succesfull playing Morgan?? How to use his advanteges etc etc....????
swimjakes	posted 06-05-99 07:33 PM ET To play the Morganites. Build as fast as you can early in the game. This lets you build up wealth and commerce. The other factions will still be friendly for a while. Try to locate the UoP, and build bases close to them. Make sure you get the H-S secret project, just to keep it from the UoP. Once you build up your military and tech,( from other factions), start being ruthless. Take out the UoP with probes and make them surrender. This gives you someone to do research for you, and if you leave some large bases, lots of commerce. Basically, be good and build fast early on. (Your bases will catch up, despite slow growth). Then be utterly ruthless as the game progresses.
Natguy	posted 06-05-99 10:56 PM ET Yes, I would also like to hear Morganite strategies because although I've tried them a few times, I always fail pitifully. It's been a while simce I've played them, though. I'd probably be better now. P.S. : If I see one more preview for "The General's Daughter" may God have mercy on John Travolta's soul.
Plato90s	posted 06-06-99 12:32 AM ET Given the absurdly low base limit, you have to compensate by having lots of bases. So expand like crazy early on and don't worry too much about research. You'll buy them from other factions until you get probe team, after which you can start stealng them.
Krushala	posted 06-06-99 10:28 AM ET If you aren't at war and your units are in your territory always stick with FM. Build trance defenders to deal with mind worms. And perhaps a few empath rovers to get money from killing mindworms. Always build a good road network to help defend against planet.
Smeagol	posted 06-06-99 03:11 PM ET Forget war in the early game. Get to Free Market and use it as early as you can... it's your only real advantage at this point. Having +1 energy/square is an amazing boost, and though this is documented incorrectly, +3 economy also gives you +2 energy/base, which is really valuable early on (but nearly insignificant later). Stick with FM as long as you can, only using wealth if there are no battles at all to fend off. Pay your enemies off to avoid war, and give them whatever they want except critical techs. You should research as fast as you can to Tree Farms and Hybrid Forests, while expanding those small bases as far as you possibly can. Once you get to these, of course forest everywhere and put in a few boreholes. With this no computer opponent should be able to match your ridiculously fast research. Research to get clean reactors and punishment spheres. Then build that sphere in one base, along with command and bioenhancement centers, and build your entire army there. Make sure you are not using wealth at this stage, as it will cripple your morale. In fact, Knowledge is the better choice anyway, as it will give you better research and efficiency. I left this unstated so far but of course you should be using Democracy as your choice of government. You can also probe like mad when you want, but I usually reserve this for later as I don't want to upset my enemies yet. With your accumulated wealth, you should be able to buy half an empire or more. So many more strategies that are important for Morgan-- make sure you equip defenders with Hypno trance to offset your planet penalty from FME, and Empath Song on a few offensive units to attack the worms outright. Use rovers so that you can kill the whole stack in one shot. Later in the game, consider leaving FME for Wealth, as (on Transcend, at least) the mad mindworm rush will inevitably come your way. Consider using Demo/Green/Wealth here, as it will help avoid/fight off mindworms and improve your efficiency at the same time. Hope this helps... I'm sure I have a few more ideas in my mind but that's all I can come up with right now.
Ambro2000	posted 06-06-99 05:36 PM ET Thanks for all the advices. I sure will go and try them out.
jimmytrick	posted 06-06-99 11:03 PM ET The best way to play Morgan? Play the Hive instead! Free Market eco is a sure, no doubt, loser in multiplay! Hah!
Smeagol	posted 06-06-99 11:14 PM ET jimmytrick-- Tell us something we don't know. Keep in mind that many of the discussions here concern single player transcend (or below) games. There is an implicit understanding that everything changes in multiplayer games. Even so, I agree with your misplaced advice-- nobody beats the Hive, on any level and in single OR multiplayer games.
Captain Action	posted 06-06-99 11:14 PM ET As an victor at transcend ironman with morgan I have developed this plan for world domination. It REALLY helps to play with blind reasearch off, as the tech you research in the beginning has a HUGE effect on how you do later on. Also be very careful when hurrying production. I only do when I have 1 row left (10 minerals). Later on when you have 10k a turn you can get sloppy. Set your lab/pysch/energy at 50/0/50. First tech you need is terraformmers. Build 1 at every base (usually 2 at this point). Try to have colony pods do being built the turn the city gets to population 2. As on transcend the 2 person is almost always a drone. Have the formers plant 2 squares of forest and then road to the nearest city and return for more forests. If there are rivers, or non-rocky mineral bonus or energy bonus squares then forest them FIRST, as the game allows more than 2 resource units from a speical even without the speical tech. The next tech you need are freemarket and supply crawlers. Switch to freemarket the nanosecond you get it! The reason for this for the +3 energy per base! (should have 3 or 4 by now and be generating 9+ energy credits a turn). Sometimes the game will screw you on what techs you can research, If that happens then get wealth to as that adds another 1 energy per base. When not building colonypods build supply crawlers to 2/3 and buy that last 1/3! Then put that crawler on a +2 mineral square. Continue build crawlers and placing them on simullar squares. There is too a reason for this. With a pop of 1 you can only expect for 3 to 4 mineral a turn, with 1 crawler it becomes 5, 2 for 7, 3 for 9, and 4 for a 11+! While the computer crawl along at 7 or worse!(Except that SOB that lands in the garland crater!) Keep on expanding until you have at least 8 pop 1 or 2 cities(32 energy credit a turn at least!) and build the planetary transit system. Use crawlers to build it ASAP! When it is done ALL of your cities will become pop 3! (as of enhancement 3 this works!) Now switch your labs/pysch/energy to 30/20/30. Some of your cites should go into golden age. Now try to get the follow SPs in this order: weather pair of dimes, Command next us, Hooter seeker al gore rythum, plant net airy date a links, xeno empty dome, marrige time center, and very last merchant exchange. If unlucky you'll miss about 2 of the early SPs. Since all the computer research the same way the planetary datalinks will allow you to build the secert projects that couldn't other wise. Here are some do's and don't's Do give all of your build tech to get trade or pacts with the other factions. Don't givem air power no matter what! Do probe your enimes often. Don't walk on the fungus when all your of military consits of supply crawlers. Do build armored probe teams to advoid that support cost!
HolyWarrior	posted 06-07-99 03:12 AM ET FM is fine in peacetime, but whatcha gonna do when the warmongers come for you? You can't fight your way out of a paper bag with FM. Punishment spheres? Pah, I have better things to build. And if you want to support a heavy military, you have to have more than one, which will cripple your research. I have nothing against Morgan, but I think the game is very unbalanced, with FM being a gamebreaker.
Smeagol	posted 06-07-99 02:58 PM ET Holywarrior-- One Punishment sphere is all you need. With a few boreholes you can build an entire army in no times at all (using clean reactors of course). I agree with you that this game is unbalanced, but not for the reason you say, exactly. And it is only unbalanced in MP games-- builders can only really beat conquerors in single player, unless playing on huge, mostly ocean-covered maps.
Zozo	posted 06-07-99 06:37 PM ET Thanks for all the great tip. I havent' tried Morgan before since I can't think of a way to get it to work. However, these tips makes sense, especially in conjunction with clean reactor, if the game lasts that long ! Somehow, in all of my games, wars start very early so by the time clean reactor comes along the result of the game has already been pretty much determined. I have a question related to loading a single base with boreholes to build units. If I have units standing around doing nothing on every single square of that base area (with clean reactor, of course) can planet still send angry mobs from outside the base area to harass me or are they muffled because there's no room (in the base radius) for them to pop up ? In other words, if base A has ecodamage of a zillion and base B has no ecodamage, can mindworms/locusts pop up in base B just to be able to attack the units standing all around base A radius ? But, maybe a better strategy would be leaving one or two empty squares so that I can earn some extra energy popping those worms.
Captain Action	posted 06-07-99 08:02 PM ET HolyWarrior said - FM is fine in peacetime, but whatcha gonna do when the warmongers come for you? You can't fight your way out of a paper bag with FM.Punishment spheres? Pah, I have better things to build. And if you want to support a heavy military, you have to have more than one,which will cripple your research.I have nothing against Morgan, but I think the game is very unbalanced, with FM being a gamebreaker. Reread my post carefully, If my strat is followed you will be building 4+ supply crawlers a city. That gives at least a "suffient" military rating which causes the warmongers to leave you alone. With the exception of that bitch miriamn. If are unlucky to start next to her you're screwed and have to start over.
Provost Harrison	posted 06-12-99 02:40 PM ET Morgan, Morgan, Morgan...utilise his +1 economy. It can give you an opportunity to avoid FM later in the game (just wealth necessary). You can become green and fight an aggressive game with native life. Democracy tricky to begin with (total -3 support). I ride it for the growth + efficiency. Build Ascetic Virtues. 4 limit becomes 6. Get Hab Complexes (not too difficult). Build like hell. And expand like hell, too. But use the energy you have to pile out the research.
Oleg Leschoff	posted 06-12-99 04:08 PM ET FM is the terrible thing because of the ugly police rating. In addition, green economy is very effective: once, I've started on a little island, and all neighbour islands were colonized by other factions. So, I travelled on a distant continent and started to develop there. Can you imagine how much ineffeeciency was there??? That colony developed well, and its main problem was, of cause, ineffeciency -- sometimes more than half of energy were wasted. And in such cases the effeciency rating is the solution -- raising this rating you raise the incomes dramatically. The Morgan's advantage is that he can avoid using the FM! So, using it, you, in fact, wasting his only advantage. Does it makes any sense? I am usually using Demo/Green/Wealth(/some FS if available, especially when Cloning Vats or Network Backbone is built) combo, and, later, Demo/Green/Knowledge/Eud. Of cause, morale is usually the main Morgan's problem. Of cause, in early game, when you don't have wealth, FM is the only choise. Sometimes (with compact colony, for example) the FM seems good, but if you will try to go with green/wealth and look what benefits of normal Police are, you probably will change your mind...
Penny Foh Yu Thot	posted 06-13-99 03:14 PM ET One question ? How come Morgan have so much problem with drones ? I mean I am a UoP player on Transcend and last time I played I only started to have drone problems after I got to base 3 or 4... (By that time I already had the Genome anyway ;-) ) But with Morgan U go to size 2 and Bam ! I once managed to have a single Drone in my Base ... (Size 1 and 1 is the drone!!) Oh and Captain Action I hate to play with Blind Research off I find it feels like cheating ! So you're strategy don't do nothing for me since I never get the supply transport to support those size 1 Bases... Any comments and mostly Tips will be appreciated ! My 2 cents worth
Oleg Leschoff	posted 06-13-99 04:54 PM ET Penny: there's two ways about drones: buy rec.commons (or network node if you have VW and enough money); switch to green/wealth and use police. However, you have to buy it, too... The reason is simple -- ineffeciency. So, using green, you raising it, and drones reduces.
Penny Foh Yu Thot	posted 06-13-99 06:22 PM ET So if I get you right, drone appears cuz of efficiency ? Then how come Morgan gets them so early ? And how the hell do you use police ? I have stationned military in my Base and it didn't modified nothing... Thanx for the tips tho Just my 2 cents worth
Krushala	posted 06-13-99 06:32 PM ET Drones will appear because if inneffiency after a certain number of bases. A pop up will warn you when you are about to exceed that number. Police are used automatically. You may not notice it at first. Click on the PYSCH bar in the base operations screen and you will see the effect of you military units. But if your POLICE is -2 or below you cannot use military units as police. like in a free market economy for instance. This is why rec. Commens and Virtual World w/ networks nodes are very important for Morgan. He can't use police units like Yang can.
Penny Foh Yu Thot	posted 06-13-99 08:01 PM ET Ok I understand that and it's true that I do get that message. But why does Morgan get those Drone at the 2nd citizen ? And how do you avoid it since you obviously don't have the tech to prevent it ... The problem if you overbuild too early is that your bases wont have any building power to take those early SP. Anyway I guess I'll have to change my approach Thanx guys ! Just my 2 cents worth
Krushala	posted 06-13-99 08:09 PM ET since you're playing transcend, your second citizen with uop should be a drone too. I've only played transcend a few times. I prefer thinker level. Less drone management
Koshko	posted 06-13-99 09:59 PM ET Truthfully, I find that Virtual World isn't absolutely necessary with Morgan. Instead build Human Genome. Even when your second dude is a Drone, the Talent will counter it. After you Build a city, Set up in a Template 1)Former, 2)Recycling Tanks, 3)Rec Commons. Build the Rec Common before population 3. This will save a riot. Then mass-produce Colony Pods. Have your highest Mineral producers building Secret Projects. By the time I get around to making Hab Complexes, I usually have enough income coming in where I can drop in 20% to Psyche.
Provost Harrison	posted 06-14-99 12:28 PM ET Actually, I find Morgan the least problematic with drones. A 20% luxury rate with his economy output, you can throw most reasonably equipped cities into Golden Age. With more manageability in the earlier game (smaller bases), city management should be a doddle, even on Transcend.
Igor	posted 06-15-99 09:52 PM ET How to play Morgan: warmonger approach. Important!!! BLIND RESEARCH OFF!!!! Three major goals: D:Loyalty, Centauri Empathy, Nonliniar Math. Combo Police/Green. Next goal - Power. Combo Fundy/Green/Power. Secret projects: Command Nexus, maybe Genome. Priorities: Expansion and War. Build: pods, tanks, command centers (if was unlucky in CN building), formers and rec commons. Everything else only for war. Only offencive units. HURRY PRODUCTION!!!! I don't worry about pop limit and last time got Industrial Automation after getting Orbital Spaceflight (traded it). Growth is slow anyway, and Green is a great choice. Industry is not so important coz I buy everything, and Power with industry penalty is better than Police State with -2 effic. The higher efficiency the less drones. Bureaucracy is a nightmare with all this amount of bases, but number of units which you can support... Yeah, overlapping is a great strat for Morgan, better than for anyone else. It's impossible to build bases one near other, but move little further . Each base has at least 3 working squares. With 4 pop limit.. It is possible to use Green/Police combo very early to build more bases and supply crawlers, and switch to other SE later. Such combo allows to build up to 20-40 bases before 2150-60, and stock of formers. Moreover, nobody demands anything (how I hate when Santiago says 'You're now weak and fat...' ) In such situation any AI asks for truce or peace, and Morgan's commerce bonus works for him. If Living Refinery is build, combo Demo/Green/Power => mooooorrrrrreeee bases. Any objections? P.S. I talked about Transcend and Thinker. I prefer Thinker, but it works vs. AI anywhere.
Krushala	posted 07-03-99 02:36 PM ET Bringing this one back up. My favourite to faction to play. A little more difficult than the others though. Although I'm starting to see the advantage the peacekeepers have in energy production if they use population booms.
Wank	posted 07-05-99 03:26 PM ET Ok, I have a question. I have seen a number of opposing views on Morgan. Half the people say: "BUILD 50 CITIES IN THE FIRST 10 TURNS! OVERLAP THE CITIES!" And the other half go: "NONONO! BUILD ONLY 5-10 CITIES THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE GAME!" Ok, so which is the most effective? Wank
Wank	posted 07-05-99 03:26 PM ET Ok, I have a question. I have seen a number of opposing views on Morgan. Half the people say: "BUILD 50 CITIES IN THE FIRST 10 TURNS! OVERLAP THE CITIES!" And the other half go: "NONONO! BUILD ONLY 5-10 CITIES THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE GAME!" Ok, so which is the most effective? Wank
Krushala	posted 07-05-99 03:52 PM ET Building 20 cities with slight overlap is probably your best bet. I can't see how 8 to 10 cities would benefit morgan. I have seen people do that with the peacekeepers because they can pop boom and have no hab limits like morgan. Keep them close to reduce inneficiency and for better defense.
Series II	posted 07-19-99 12:39 PM ET I just had a GREAT Morgan game. I was building access to Transcend while the other factions were just starting their fusion planet busters. I am not sure if it was just a lucky game, but I really out researched everyone else. I did have to kill off the UOP very early. It sort of pissed me off though. I had just destroyed all their units and they had one unguarded city left and that SUNSPOTS. Tehy could not surrender to me. I guess I could have waited for 20 turns, but that seemed to tedious.