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Author Topic:   Forests

Sethito posted 06-16-99 06:40 PM ET
Are forests really good? Should i make them more than farms? Please enlighten me.

Koshko posted 06-16-99 08:47 PM ET
Forest Square + Tree Farm + Hybrid Forest = 3 food, 2 minerals, 2 energy. Farm on Rainy Square = 3 food, 0 or 1 minerals, 1+ energy. Forests always give better minerals, will eventually give equal food, and usually gives at least equal enrgy.
I build forest on every square except rocky with a mineral deposit and Rolling/Wet square w/ a high elevation.
Koshko posted 06-16-99 08:48 PM ET
I mean Farm/Solar on Rainy square.
Sethito posted 06-16-99 09:27 PM ET
So make a lot of forests then, right?
Kefaed posted 06-17-99 12:41 AM ET
If you do, try to pick up Enviromental and Planetary economics to get the tree farm and hybrid forest facilities. If you play Gaians, go for fungus, since they get a +1 nutrient in fungus squares.
Rackam posted 06-17-99 10:21 AM ET
Sethito - Be carefull with fungus if you've researched all techs, fungus will give 3-3-3 and if all the base's squares are fungus, the minerals output is around 180 (after base facility modifiers [210 with Genejack]). This will generate a lot of worms, but if you survive them, they become less frequent until none will appear.
icosahedron posted 06-17-99 02:19 PM ET
Be careful of planting only forests in the early game, before you get Tree Farms. You may not have enough nutrients to grow.
- icosahedron
DilithiumDad posted 06-17-99 02:57 PM ET
I used to go overboard with forests. Now I do road, forest, move, farm, solar, road...The road comes first because putting a road through the forest takes an extra turn. I try to have at least one and usually two farm/solar tile per base early on to help it grow, if there are rainy and rolling tiles available. Otherwise, it's all forests.
Another thing to watch is after the Planetary Transit System. Your base starts at 3, and if you only have forest, you will have starvation on your hands until your base shrinks to 2.
TheMadStork posted 06-18-99 03:01 AM ET
Forests rule. They take advantage of bonus resources, they impede mind worm (and other enemy) movement, they slow eco-damage, and they spread spontaneously.
Beware, as was mentioned, of early base development. Always put in a farm on a rainy square for nutrients (always terraform rolling/rainy with a farm and solar collector.) Anything arid should be forested, however. Then the one or two boreholes per base don't send the plauge of demon boils your way.
I go now.
master k posted 06-21-99 07:29 AM ET
remembering the smac-dictionary:
forest and forget
master k
MoSe posted 06-21-99 07:58 AM ET
Issue widely debated sometimes ago.
you repeated many good points here.
Remember, I'm also a supporter of the early growth issue, that was overlooked by many in the debate at the time, but to take advantage of a farm on a rainy tile you need Gene Splicing, thus not in the very early game, nevertheless before Tree Farms.
If you're short on rainy tiles in a base, you'll have anyway to pick some rolling moist square and farm it to ensure the growth (possibly with river, or above 1000m and solar it too).
A relevant feature of forests is that if you subsequently build an improvement on the tile, you get 5 minerals back for harvesting the forest (not true for the contrary).
Forest and Forget, or better Johnny Appleseed strategy, i.e send out formers early to plant single forest tiles in zones where you prospect to build your bases in the future.
MoSe posted 06-21-99 08:04 AM ET
Of course a flat arid tile is the ideal setting for a forest, you're anot wasting any tile resource.
But with a nutrient bonus it's mostly a must: even if the tile already is rolling moist (3.1.0) with only 4 normal former turns (FT) you get a 3.2.1 tile.
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Author	Topic: Forests
Sethito	posted 06-16-99 06:40 PM ET Are forests really good? Should i make them more than farms? Please enlighten me.
Koshko	posted 06-16-99 08:47 PM ET Forest Square + Tree Farm + Hybrid Forest = 3 food, 2 minerals, 2 energy. Farm on Rainy Square = 3 food, 0 or 1 minerals, 1+ energy. Forests always give better minerals, will eventually give equal food, and usually gives at least equal enrgy. I build forest on every square except rocky with a mineral deposit and Rolling/Wet square w/ a high elevation.
Koshko	posted 06-16-99 08:48 PM ET I mean Farm/Solar on Rainy square.
Sethito	posted 06-16-99 09:27 PM ET So make a lot of forests then, right?
Kefaed	posted 06-17-99 12:41 AM ET If you do, try to pick up Enviromental and Planetary economics to get the tree farm and hybrid forest facilities. If you play Gaians, go for fungus, since they get a +1 nutrient in fungus squares.
Rackam	posted 06-17-99 10:21 AM ET Sethito - Be carefull with fungus if you've researched all techs, fungus will give 3-3-3 and if all the base's squares are fungus, the minerals output is around 180 (after base facility modifiers [210 with Genejack]). This will generate a lot of worms, but if you survive them, they become less frequent until none will appear.
icosahedron	posted 06-17-99 02:19 PM ET Be careful of planting only forests in the early game, before you get Tree Farms. You may not have enough nutrients to grow. - icosahedron
DilithiumDad	posted 06-17-99 02:57 PM ET I used to go overboard with forests. Now I do road, forest, move, farm, solar, road...The road comes first because putting a road through the forest takes an extra turn. I try to have at least one and usually two farm/solar tile per base early on to help it grow, if there are rainy and rolling tiles available. Otherwise, it's all forests. Another thing to watch is after the Planetary Transit System. Your base starts at 3, and if you only have forest, you will have starvation on your hands until your base shrinks to 2.
TheMadStork	posted 06-18-99 03:01 AM ET Forests rule. They take advantage of bonus resources, they impede mind worm (and other enemy) movement, they slow eco-damage, and they spread spontaneously. Beware, as was mentioned, of early base development. Always put in a farm on a rainy square for nutrients (always terraform rolling/rainy with a farm and solar collector.) Anything arid should be forested, however. Then the one or two boreholes per base don't send the plauge of demon boils your way. I go now.
master k	posted 06-21-99 07:29 AM ET remembering the smac-dictionary: forest and forget master k
MoSe	posted 06-21-99 07:58 AM ET Issue widely debated sometimes ago. you repeated many good points here. Remember, I'm also a supporter of the early growth issue, that was overlooked by many in the debate at the time, but to take advantage of a farm on a rainy tile you need Gene Splicing, thus not in the very early game, nevertheless before Tree Farms. If you're short on rainy tiles in a base, you'll have anyway to pick some rolling moist square and farm it to ensure the growth (possibly with river, or above 1000m and solar it too). A relevant feature of forests is that if you subsequently build an improvement on the tile, you get 5 minerals back for harvesting the forest (not true for the contrary). Forest and Forget, or better Johnny Appleseed strategy, i.e send out formers early to plant single forest tiles in zones where you prospect to build your bases in the future.
MoSe	posted 06-21-99 08:04 AM ET Of course a flat arid tile is the ideal setting for a forest, you're anot wasting any tile resource. But with a nutrient bonus it's mostly a must: even if the tile already is rolling moist (3.1.0) with only 4 normal former turns (FT) you get a 3.2.1 tile.