Post by: bvanevery on December 26, 2018, 11:32:46 PM
This will be a "cheap" AAR. Probably a lot more text than screenshots, and I'm going to try to stick to talking only about factories, instead of other things going on. It's not really intended to be some big deal, widely circulated AAR. Rather, it's a test of my upcoming 1.27 release of SMACX AI Growth mod (http://alphacentauri2.info/index.php?topic=20959.0). The main features of 1.27 are longer range ships and aircraft, missiles with unlimited flight time, earlier orbital insertion combat, and earlier hab domes. Copters are also removed from the game, except for the Unity Chopper which is made into a supply unit and unable to attack anything. I might change some rules midgame, depending on what I find.
Huge map, 30%..50% land, otherwise average settings, Transcend. I will take random opponents and a random faction, provided it's "acceptable" for Free Market and building factories. I draw the Hive, which is definitely an acceptable Free Market Wealth faction in my mod.
6:30 PM. I begin the game.
I colonize an ominous 10 meter flat river site, next to a 1 square inland lake. A foreshadowing?? It's not quick to get the Weather Paradigm in my mod, and raising land isn't available until Advanced Ecological Engineering, later still.
As I am not trying to test how the AI experiences the Hive, but rather what it's like to build factories quickly and do eco-damage, I switch from the default research focus of {Explore, Conquer} to {Explore}. Police State is awarded with E3 Intellectual Integrity, and of course since I have Impunity to its use, I want that. I suppose this is a 1st lesson, that choosing a non-Build faction is probably going to slow down my acquisition of factories.
Post by: bvanevery on December 27, 2018, 12:24:00 AM
I gain the commlink frequency for the Pirates from a pod. They sell me the frequency for the Consciousness for 5 credits. We sign a Treaty, but he declines an alliance. I exchange my map for Doctrine: Flexibility. I pay 100 for Doctrine: Mobility. He doesn't sell me anything else.
The Consciousness trades me High Energy Chemistry for my Progenitor Psych. We also trade maps and sign a Treaty. She won't ally. She doesn't know where the other 2 human factions are.
Both factions are a substantial distance to the east, and I seriously doubt there's any ocean connecting me to the Pirates in that direction. They are not neighbors.
MY 2122. I contact Svensgaard looking for tech, before I research a new one next year. He signs a Pact, making my beliefs about the ocean topology more likely. He sells me Social Psych for 100 credits. I contact Aki Zeta5 but she's getting snippy. We don't trade anything. I begin a Command Center in my capitol because I have such a large mineral supply there, and not much food.
MY 2127. I acquire the comm frequency for the Caretakers from the Pirates. The Pirates also trade me Field Modulation. I buy the comm frequency of the Usurpers from the Caretakers. I don't get anything else out of them before they sign off. They turn out to be my neighbors, immediately to the west, and I can see their green border. However there is at least some fungus between us.
The Usurpers sign a Treaty with me, but I don't get anything else out of them.
I've acquired 2 'Slow' Transports from pods. I forgot that version 1.27 of my mod increases the speed of the Foil chassis, so 'Slow' means they have movement 3.
Post by: bvanevery on December 27, 2018, 01:12:14 AM
The Border Ruins |
MY 2129. The Ruins are on our border. I might like to have this myself, but my colonization rate is whatever it is. I'm realizing that since my plan is to go Free Market and build factories, the Caretakers will inevitably go to war with me, because their fixation is Planned economy.
MY 2131. I trade with the Cyborgs and gain Planetary Networks. We sign a Pact. They are occupying the Garland Crater.
MY 2134. The Cyborgs have gone to war with the Caretakers. We are still in a Truce. I'm working on a Synthmetal armor prototype. Prototypes are expensive in my mod, a real difficulty to get done. So it is not in my interest to make waves right now.
MY 2141. The Usurpers have declared war on the Pirates. I decline to back Svensgaard up on this. We do trade tech, I gain Centauri Empathy. I'd have to talk to Marr to get the war to stop, and I'm not willing to do that yet. Better to see what happens with the Caretakers.
MY 2143. I have researched Synthmetal Armor. I also seem to have finished a Speeder chassis somehow, not sure how. Did the Probe Team give me that? Whatever. Oh wait, I know what it was! It was the Rover Former predefined unit. Well, ok, I got the prototype by doing a lot of trading. I don't think that's illegitimate.
Post by: bvanevery on December 27, 2018, 02:11:20 AM
sorry tusk face |
MY 2147. I encounter the Caretakers at sea. They threaten me, and as I always do, I refuse them.
pusilanimous wimp |
Surprisingly, they back off. Maybe my Synthmetal armor is something they don't have yet. I get them to end their war with the Consciousness, because that will give me more time to build up an empire before going to war with them. I also seriously doubt that the Consciousness can make a substantial military contribution this early, so no point being dragged into their problems.
Just in time to contact the Cyborgs for a tech trade. I trade for Industrial Base. I loan them money. I also gain Domai's commlink frequency. I accidentally pay 10 credits for it because I thought I was giving it to them! Habits from my last game.
Domai tries to extort me. I refuse, and he declares war. What a jerk!
MY 2151. I run into the Pirates at sea. He wants war with Marr again. I refuse. I ask him to knock it off, and for some reason, this time he can and does so. Whatever.
MY 2160. I trade techs with the Pirates. They're at war with the Caretakers, but I refuse to get involved. They give me the commlink to the Gaians. I trade a lot of tech with them, and now I've got the prereqs for Intellectual Integrity. I'm realizing just how long it takes to get to these Tier 3 techs, it's not easy. I wonder if it's a mistake to delay government choices this long. For factions whose power is supposed to rely on a government choice, it puts them at a disadvantage. The Cult of Planet has +2 PLANET, so they have an immediate advantage at the beginning of the game. The Hive gets a Perimeter Defense, that's about it.
I've been resisting building any Recreation Commons, thinking I'll get Police State any time now. Police State now also comes with Non-Lethal Methods at the same time, which feels a bit weird.
MY 2166. I gain Synthetic Fossil Fuels from the Pirates, and sign a Pact with the Gaians.
MY 2167. Svensgaard is elected Governor. He gets tired of my unwillingness to fight the Caretakers and renounces our Pact. I contact Domai, who is also fighting the Caretakers. He is Seething, but he signs a Truce.
Post by: bvanevery on December 27, 2018, 04:44:11 AM
Post by: bvanevery on December 29, 2018, 02:11:20 AM
9 PM. I start again with the Hive against random opponents. The Caretakers, Usurpers, Gaians, Peacekeepers, Cult of Planet, and University of Planet are in the game. War between the Peacekeepers, the Cult, and myself is certain as we are all Political factions with completely different orientations. The Caretakers and Gaians can be expected to war over Economics. The University and the Usurpers will war over Values.
I'm on an inland chunk with Mt. Planet and a nice river network. Looks like I have extensive ocean to the west. I might be geographically isolated from everybody. I'm remembering my game plan is to go Free Market, make factories, and cause eco-damage to see how bad it all is.
I start over when I realize I don't want Rover Formers available with E2 Monopole Magnets. Although it's possible for the player to design this unit at this point, making it a predefined unit gives away the Speeder chassis rather quickly. Similarly, I realize a new X Rover unit with C2 Biogenetics is not a good idea. I make these changes and find myself too tired to continue with a game today. Not quite 10 PM.
Post by: bvanevery on December 29, 2018, 04:27:31 PM
likely ally |
MY 2152. I meet Lal to the north. He turns out to be my neighbor and is sitting on the Monsoon Jungle. He wants an alliance to fight the Spartans, but I decline. We'll probably be fighting ourselves soon enough! We trade techs, then maps. He's Solicitous, so I sign a Pact with him anyways. No promise to fight the Spartans though. I don't see any Spartans on the map, so I'm wondering how they got into a war. Commlink frequency from a pod?
good deal tusk face |
MY 2154. I meet the Usurpers in the east. We sign a Treaty and I buy 2 techs from them. Then...
you churlish [progeny of unmarried parents] |
...an AI bug manifests. Well at least it'll give me something to do. I still don't have Police State, despite making it available earlier with C2 Planetary Networks. I do have Lasers and Recon Rovers though. Working on a prototype.
MY 2165. The Peacekeepers lose a base to the Spartans, proving that they are somewhat nearby. Looks like they're going to lose another base soon too. Perhaps making Applied Physics a C1 tech is a bad idea after all. The Peacekeepers have no defense against a Recon Rover rush. Yeah, I'm not happy with this. Making Synthmetal Armor a C1 tech was a good idea, as it lets everyone establish a defense and slows down any trivial overruns. Making Lasers a C1 tech isn't, so I'm going to fix this and start over. 1 PM.
Post by: bvanevery on December 29, 2018, 07:19:16 PM
drunken deadbeats |
MY 2116. I saw the Pirates marching a Scout around, so I went up to meet them. They threatened me and of course I declined. So we are at war. There's nothing they can do to me, as nobody's going to get a weapon until C3.
pirates are lazy |
MY 2151. For whatever reason, the Pirates call it off. I haven't met anyone else.
MY 2161. The Pirates are only Obstinate now, so I contact them to see if they want to sign a Treaty. They want war with the Spartans. We sign a Pact. The Pirates have met a lot of people so I get comm frequencies for the Morganites and the Believers. The Morganites sign a Pact as well. They give me the comm frequency for the Peacekeepers, who sign a Treaty. The Believers threaten me and we go to war. Only the Angels are unaccounted for.
MY 2170. I have learned Doctrine: Loyalty, but I still haven't learned Planetary Networks, which is what I need for Police State. It is guarded by the Planetary Datalinks, which Santiago has been working on for a number of turns. I am realizing that if I want factions to be able to get Politics more quickly, I have done the wrong thing by putting a Secret Project on them as a barrier. Also that with so many techs pushed into Tier 2 and Tier 1 now, it is not easy to research any specific Tier 2 tech. So, I'm quitting this game and editing the tech tree yet again. 3:30 PM.
I originally started making it harder to get government choices, because Free Market was too powerful giving +2 ECONOMY. Well, the problem is really with Free Market! I used to have Democratic making some money, but it made the Morganites way too powerful. If I reduce Free Market to +1 ECONOMY, and make Democratic +1 ECONOMY, then the total number of bonuses stays the same and I've given factions a reason to choose Democratic. Right now it's pretty worthless until you decide that you need a pile of EFFICiency.
Post by: bvanevery on December 31, 2018, 03:02:57 AM
MY 2111. I realize that my new fuel-less Unity Supply Chopper is a complete screw-up. I could explore the entire map with this thing! Also I wonder why it moves 10 squares, as the base chassis movement rate is 8. Back to the drawing board. I had a good start with a lot of nice forest that got spawned, but testing is for fixing things like this.
Post by: bvanevery on December 31, 2018, 03:52:52 AM
MY 2140. Marr is my neighbor and at war with me, but there has been no actual violence yet. Probably he can't get a weapon any easier than the rest of us. The Consciousness wandered onto my lands without settling. I had them sign a Treaty and they were helpless for a long time. When they started wandering a Scout near some of my supply pods, I made her withdraw her forces to "somewhere". I sit atop Mt. Planet. I have more food in my cities than I know what to do with, lots of rainy land and nutrient resources. The Borehole Cluster is to the west. There's a huge fungal patch to the east, which caused me to turn southeast. There I discovered the Monsoon Jungle. I'm about to settle my 1st city down there.
MY 2154. The Spartans have been settling the Monsoon Jungle. I'm only 1 city in myself. They threaten me, and of course I tell them to shove it. They declare war on me. Ergo I've stopped Colony Pod production, changing all of those to Formers. I have 2 Command Centers working on military units. The big limitation of my empire is I have not discovered Social Psych yet, no has my ally the Cyborgs. No Police State but I have learned Fundamentalist. I have not wanted to use it because it will slow down the rate at which I get the 2 techs I really need. For now, since I did design this mod to be a defense only game at the beginning, I'll see what Sparta is actually capable of. My prediction is nothing whatsoever.
MY 2157. I have researched C3 Applied Physics in advance of learning Police State or Social Psych. This is an unexpected result, especially since my research focus is the default Explore, Conquer. Social Psych is a strictly Explore tech. I suppose it stems from trading with the Cyborgs, thereby acquiring a prereq for Applied Physics. I am back to having Lasers be strength 3 in my mod, so once I get a prototype done, I should be able to do some damage against the Spartans.
Post by: bvanevery on December 31, 2018, 05:13:25 AM
my soothing voiceover |
MY 2159. The Cyborgs research E2 Biogenetics. I pay them 100 credits for it, since my Lasers are C3 and I don't want them getting traded to just anybody. I had forgotten that this is where I put Police State. I'm actually given Chairman Yang's voiceover for this tech, so I had no idea how accidentally appropriate my choice was. The other major feature of this tech is nerve gas, a pretty Chairman-y thing to do.
I activate the Police State and the battle is on! I'd say making Politics available through trade, is working. I still haven't gotten Police State as fast as I might like, but it has gotten done, and faster than other versions of 1.27 I've implemented.
I am puzzled though. How do the Cyborgs have Biogenetics if neither one of us has Progenitor Psych? Hmm, we can't talk to the 2 Aliens, but they possibly can talk to us. Also she could be trading with Santiago, as she only has a Truce. All the more reason not to give the Lasers to my ally. She's no longer at war with anyone anyways.
MY 2160. The Spartans attack my walled city in the Monsoon Jungle with a Scout. I barely live, the enemy dies. I walk into a freshly colonized Spartan base that has no defender. I use the victory as an excuse to sign a Truce with the Spartans. I am much better off consolidating my Police State and getting my Laser prototype completed. We actually show almost equal power on the graph. I wasn't kidding when I said I was up to my neck in food!
I am able to talk to the Caretakers, indicating that they know Social Psych. We sign a Truce.
MY 2163. I belatedly realize that having achieved the Police State, I could shift my research to Build. However I am not at peace with my neighbors, and the default of Explore, Conquer seems more reasonable right now.
MY 2168. I meet Lal and we sign a Treaty. He sells me Domai's commlink and we also sign a Treaty. Everyone in the game is now accounted for.
Post by: bvanevery on December 31, 2018, 06:22:23 AM
newfangled economics |
MY 2174. I buy Industrial Base from Domai and go Free Market. I decided that +2 ECONOMY was overpowered, so now it gives +2 EFFICiency instead. Democracy gives +1 ECONOMY as well, so one can sacrifice POLICE to make more money. You can't see the new Democracy in the screenshot because the Hive is not allowed to use it. Rejoice, for I have begun my descent into planetary pollution! Strictly speaking perhaps I don't need factories to pull off the eco-damage. Perhaps I can do it with bigger and bigger cities, until I acquire the needed techs by other means.
The Spartans aren't making much of a rumble, but I'm still at war with the Usurpers. I don't think we've fought even once, so it's an honorary war.
MY 2186. The Truce lasted awhile, but the Spartans have now declared war on me. I have not built any new or offensive troops, I've been doing entirely infrastructure. I have since acquired Probe Team capability but haven't built any. I'm a bit slack on the warmongering! Well I sprawled out so far at the beginning, there was a lot to consolidate. Nobody's been building any Secret Projects either. The Cyborgs and I recently acquired the ability to build the Citizens' Defense Force, but I don't need it.
Post by: bvanevery on December 31, 2018, 07:16:48 AM
too fast |
MY 2189. I fish a Unity Supply Plane out of the water, and am instantly made to realize I've dialed up the speed of the thing too much. I need it a little faster to get over a Huge map, not a mammoth amount. It wasn't my best idea. Saving the game, dialing it down. Also Supply seems to make these things go faster. I think I'll put a Transport on it to make it go slower. The problem with even a Non-combat plane early, is they can cover ground units and completely prevent them from being attacked. This is an exploit that the human player knows how to use, but the AI doesn't. The Chopper didn't have this problem because it could be attacked on the ground.
MY 2214. It's a stalemate in the Monsoon Jungle. I garrison 1 city heavily, Sparta suicides some troops against my walls occasionally. Neither of us has a heavier weapon to end the standoff. I just keep working on my infrastructure and get bored. At 4:10 AM I quit, figuring I've tested something, and that it'll be a long time until I get to any kind of eco-damage.
Post by: bvanevery on January 03, 2019, 11:36:40 PM
6:20 PM. I start again with the Hive. 6:35 PM. I realize I'm way too tired from staying up late last night, so I save the game for later and take a nap. 10:20 PM. I resume.
MY 2218. Police State gives me +2 SUPPORT, +3 POLICE in total, -2 JUSTICE, and -1 ECONOMY. Socialism gives me +2 JUSTICE, +3 GROWTH in total, and -1 ECONOMY. I grow ok, although I've only got size 7 cities on big food deposits. With my 2x police I only need Recreation Commons for the size 7 cities. I have not discovered Habitation Domes or Non-Lethal Methods yet. I have kept the default Explore, Conquer focus to see how long it takes to gain all of the Hive's preferred tools. Since my +1 POLICE is not tied to using Police State, I could have gone Fundamentalist, but I didn't want to take the -2 RESEARCH penalty. Research feels like it's crawling along very slowly as is, despite having Biology Labs and Network Nodes in every city.
I am the Governor. That cost me a lot of bribe money to accomplish and I don't know that I can sustain it. I'm now at war with the Spartans, my feeble next door neighbor. The biggest weapon is the strength 3 Laser, and the biggest armor is strength 3 Plasma. Only very recently did I learn Probe Teams and I haven't been on a mission yet.
2:15 AM. Had enough for the night.
Post by: bvanevery on January 05, 2019, 12:48:27 AM
Secret Projects going by |
MY 2227. I just stole the tech for the Virtual World, and I'm rushing it to completion. My Foil Probe Teams have had to cross long distances to obtain stolen techs. Despite a full complement of labs, my own research hasn't been particularly fast. Many Secret Projects have already gone by me, although at least that's mostly been the work of the University, who should have a research advantage over everyone else. I am particularly annoyed that I have not gotten the Ascetic Virtues, although strictly speaking I don't need it, due to my +1 POLICE bonus. I have also not obtained Hab Complexes and that's becoming annoying. There are just a lot of Explore techs in the tree now, and despite my Explore, Conquer focus I haven't gotten to it.
The Spartans are starting to attack. I barely killed one of the 1st units they sent at me. I could have chosen to rush the Command Nexus but I think the Virtual World is more valuable. That said, Hologram Theaters are quite a bit cheaper and cost less to maintain in my mod, so it's not as amazing a project as it used to be. I already have plenty of Command Centers and no Hologram Theaters.
MY 2230. I see that Santiago has acquired Probe Team technology and is starting to make both land and sea versions. Zhakarov has Nonlinear Mathematics but I haven't managed to steal it yet. He's also working on the Hunter-Seeker Algorithm, which I made only a Tier 4 tech in this version.
MY 2234. I still don't have Hab Complexes. I think it's taking way too long to get stuff. There's so much breadth in Explore techs now, that I think some things need to be moved to Tier 2. I need to bang on my tech tree again. I think the new Police State basically works. I also think the Hive is not a good way to reach the original goal of testing whether factories are overpowered. I should try the Morganites.
9 PM. Quitting to work on the tech tree.
Post by: bvanevery on January 05, 2019, 08:46:55 PM
I had a ratty start, bad land, fungus everywhere, so I walked my colony pods in opposite directions until I settled on some rivers without fungus next to my cities. I contacted Zhakarov and Miriam. I've blown pretty much all of my money buying techs from Zhakarov.
violent Miriam |
MY 2125. I don't like taking guff from anyone. Miriam had a Battle Ogre on my land that she wasn't withdrawing. I walked my Scout onto her land, figuring I'd provoke her ire. Then when she bugged me about it, I'd tell her to withdraw her own troops too. Well, she just declared war on me instead. Ogre guns aren't as strong as in the stock game, but they're still strength 3 and I've got Scouts. The graph says I'm nominally more powerful than her, but this is likely to go very badly for me.
If I can stall out the Ogre I might be ok though. In this version I made C2 Monopole Magnets a prereq for both strength 3 Lasers and strength 3 Plasma armor. I put the Planetary Transit System on it because I didn't have anywhere else to put it. This is probably going to make it more difficult for anyone to trade Laser technology. Plasma technology is already blocked by the Citizens' Defense Force. I will switch to Conquer and see if I can fight Miriam off.
In the version I'm testing, Miriam has no RESEARCH penalties, no compulsion to go Fundamentalist, and no Fanatic attack bonus. However I did give her +1 MORALE and I've made her Aggressive. We're about to see whether that was a good idea on my part. Fighting Conqueror Marr would be worse, due to his ability to direct his research.
poor Christian decision making |
MY 2126. Surprisingly, Miriam does not attack with her Ogre, even though she could totally blow my Scout to bits. I will take that behavior for as long as I can! With only 2 cities I need all the help I can get. I looked at the unit's AI "plan" just to make sure I didn't do something dumb with it. I set it to "-1 Autocalculate" a long time ago. The stock value is "0 Offensive". Well the main armament isn't all that tough and the armor isn't invulnerable to stuff, especially not mindworms, so I don't know how the AI ultimately feels about Battle Ogres.
I went for the new version of Democratic already, to make more money. It's +1 ECONOMY +1 JUSTICE -2 POLICE, so I've had to adjust my budget to 30-30-40 to keep people happy.
MY 2129. The Ogre is still sitting there doing nothing. I wonder if it somehow fixated on arriving at the Monolith, where a Supply Pod used to be. It is now in danger of being attacked by a half-wounded mindworm larva over a stretch of fungus.
Meanwhile in the excitement, I completely forgot to switch to a Conquer focus. Now I've done so. It will be 22 years before my next tech though. I think that's a consequence of all the early trading I did with Zhakarov.
Christians can't steer Ogres |
MY 2133. The original larva wandered off, but the Ogre has somehow now taken a wound. I believe it's trying to explore unknown territory to the north, and it thinks my Scout is a barrier for some reason. Could it be that when Miriam declared Vendetta, the treatment of enemy units didn't get reset? The Ogre probably just tried to move east into the fungus, and got a face full of mindworm for its trouble. Maybe the Ogre will soon be on the move, but I'll take a half dead Ogre over a full strength one.
Christian settlement concepts |
MY 2136. The Ogre is finally moving. It seems to be trying to link up with a Colony Pod. Now we'll see how smart or dumb the AI is. I've positioned a Scout on Rocky river ground with a nice defense bonus. If the AI is very dumb, it'll shoot at that. If it has half a brain, it'll shoot at my other Scout.
tales of foolish Christian movement |
MY 2141. The colonist kept going, then stopped. So I sent my other Scout 'round back to come up to kill it. Miriam bothered me as I approached, wanted me to pay money to her. Since I know she's stupid about moving her troops, I refused. She could have easily destroyed my city by now if she had any brains at all, but lucky for me, she does not! If she doesn't move off next turn, that colonist is dead. Meanwhile I've completed a Command Center and am starting to produce better trained Scouts.
Christian city siting |
MY 2143. An approaching wounded mindworm forced me to move away from my nice defensive position. I hope I can get the Ogre to take that little bit of wound in the face. I've cut off the colonist, it will surely die. I don't know how Miriam's doing overall, but locally, I'm clearly outpacing Miriam on getting cities together and spawning units. This Ogre problem will be over pretty soon.
MY 2145. I research Industrial Base and go Capitalist, which gives me +1 ECONOMY +1 INDUSTRY -2 PLANET. I get a map of Miriam's territory from Zhakarov. She's only got 2 cities. Zhakarov won't trade me anything for Industrial Base, because he's working on the Planetary Datalinks. I made Secrets of the Human Brain a D2 tech and put the Datalinks on it, figuring that project is best to have early, and not terribly harmful to game balance in any event. I did get a number of techs from Zhakarov initially. I'm inclined to think that slowing down the tech trading economy, due to his desire to build the Datalinks, is a good thing.
I do believe I got the Ogre to eat a little mindworm, but I don't think it got much wounded for doing that. The colonist is still alive because it hid in some fungus. It has enough defensive advantage on the fungus that 1 Scout can't kill it. I'm bringing a 2nd. We shall see if the Ogre moves to attack my city now. It's fairly wounded so I'm not that worried.
MY 2149. I've killed the colonist, at the cost of 1 Scout. The Ogre has ceased its forward motion because I have it blocked by a Scout on Rocky terrain.
MY 2154. I see an approaching mindworm larva and run away, leaving the Ogre to step forward and take it full in the face. It's 70% wounded now. I call it a non-threat that's tying up 1 Scout to hold it at bay.
Post by: bvanevery on January 05, 2019, 11:21:26 PM
MY 2171. I find High Energy Chemistry in a supply pod, giving me Synthmetal. I have already researched Monopole Magnets. I think I will quit worrying about Conquer techs and just turtle up now. Miriam can't do anything to me. The most she's sent my way is a Scout Rover. I put a Scout on some rocks and she begged off. As I'm less interested in how the AI sees things, and more interested in polluting the planet to the detriment of us all, I switch to a pure Build focus.
MY 2175. Crap! A -2 PLANET penalty means that when I attack a pre-Boil mindworm with a Hardened Scout, my Scout can die. I save scum the turn, because a Former just happens to complete the moment I lose the combat, leaving me with nothing to protect the city. My attack odds were merely 6 to 5.
providence on the battlefield |
MY 2177. The Ogre got hit by another mindworm from somewhere. As it was 90% wounded, I finally finish it off with my Scout. I am starting to make Synthmetal Sentinels now. Perhaps if I gather up all my Scouts, I can whack Miriam and force her surrender.
who wants mindworm soup |
MY 2178. I just realized the Manifold Nexus is directly south of us. I'm going to grab it.
Post by: bvanevery on January 06, 2019, 02:26:16 AM
pink whippersnapper |
I meet Cha Dawn at sea. 95 credits to talk to the Cyborgs is not exactly a bargain, but I am rich, and he is Ambivalent. Better get it while I can. Cha Dawn has the virtue of being much more willing to trade than Zhakarov is, not having all these advanced technologies and Secret Projects to work on. We trade a lot of techs and we sign a Treaty. He hates my Democracy of course, so instead of our ending relationship being Magnanimous, it's Noncommittal. He knows the comm frequencies of Deirdre and Santiago, but I didn't have the cash to buy them.
The Cyborgs turn out to be a bit of a pill. They sign a Treaty but don't trust me enough to sell me commlink frequencies. I sell their frequency to Zhakarov and he obtains a map. They are northeast of me, separated by water, although there may be a continuous land link far to the east.
The Spartans are up there as well. They are as runty as the Believers. I'm not sure why they both had so much trouble. It's the Believers' fault that they declared war on me, and even having done that, they had plenty of land to expand into. The AI just didn't do it. Maybe the Spartans got put on the backside of the Cyborgs with no room? I'll see eventually.
MY 2208. I learn Industrial Economics. I begin the Merchant Exchange in my capitol and Energy Banks everywhere else.
I get Cha Dawn talking again. He is Seething and wants a massive 105 credits for Deirdre's commlink. The latter will probably declare war on me, but I go for it anyways. Yeah, predictable. Cold dead fingers. But all I need now is the Spartans and it could be an election. Do I have the votes though?
I trade the Gaian comm frequency to Zhakarov. He obtains a map. They are far to the north. The Cult is on the same continent, running in a band along the Gaians' southern border. So that's how the world looks. Geographically I'm pretty isolated, and only have to worry about my ally Zhakarov when I finally turn to Wealth.
MY 2211. Against my better judgment, I loan Zhakarov money.
MY 2212. I now have a complete rail network in my home territory. I'm still working on connecting my 3 cities around the Manifold Nexus.
MY 2215. The Cyborgs loosen up, sell me Santiago's frequency, and trade a lot of tech. From the Spartans I acquire Applied Physics. Now I have the tools to completely destroy Miriam... just as soon as the Merchant Exchange gets done. Which will be a bit yet.
I contact Deirdre, trying to position myself for a successful election. We sign a Truce. Deirdre is Democratic, which surely rubs their neighbor the Cult of Planet the wrong way.
who de man |
My analysis is correct. Other factions hate me less than Deirde and abstain. I am Governor!
Post by: bvanevery on January 06, 2019, 04:27:20 AM
MY 2231. The Gaians start the Weather Paradigm, so I switch my Secret Projects back and rush it with cash.
toxic |
MY 2238. I can get some serious eco-damage going now! Yet of all the stupid things I don't know how to do, I haven't learned E2 Adaptive Economics that gives Hab Complex. Zhakarov has had it since forever, but he stopped trading techs eons ago.
who is the best builder |
MY 2246. The Secret Project races have finally calmed down. I've done better than the rest, but I didn't dominate. I'm at war with everyone except my ally Zhakarov, and he's getting sick of my Wealth. He still won't sell me any techs. What a jerk!
arch sniveller |
MY 2259. Zhakarov raises snivelling to a high art form. Unfortunately I am not his patron. So now our Pact is over. Soon there will be war, because I'm not giving up my Wealth, and I wouldn't mind having the Secret Projects he built. Meanwhile the campaign against Miriam proceeds. I've got Tree Farms and Genejack Factories in every city, so I'm not actually doing any eco-damage.
MY 2260. I destroy one of Miriam's unwalled cities. She isn't ready to surrender so it'll take much more bloodshed. I'm building Defensive Probe Teams in case Zhakarov tries to pull anything funny.
why not chemicals |
MY 2261. I try to repeal the U.N. Charter, but the majority aren't interested. Only Zhakarov was bribeable and he wanted way too much money. So I will plod along with a conventional campaign against the Believers.
MY 2270. The Believers finally surrender to my overwhelming force.
I find myself too tired and bored to continue the game! I don't like the lack of tech trading in the beginning. It's not supposed to be difficult to get Tier 2 techs, yet here I am midgame, still don't have Hab Complexes.
I'm thinking that Soporific Gas Pods undo my careful balance of weapons vs. armor. The AI doesn't ever make Gas units, so it becomes an exploit for the human player. I think it's time to remove that from the game.
I don't think I'm going to generate any global flooding. If I build Tree Farms before Genejack Factories, I do very little eco-damage even when I've got -3 PLANET.
I haven't tested the new Cruiser speed, nor the new Needlejet speed, nor the new Locusts on a Copter chassis, nor the new missiles, nor the earlier orbital drop warfare, nor the earlier Gravships. That's an awful lot of stuff. I'm not sure how I'm going to find the testing time to get there.
3:30 AM. Calling it quits on this AAR. I know I didn't intend for it to be any good, but this is slipshod even by that standard.