Thinker mod March 26 development test

[bvanevery]

MY 2223.  Three of my allies want the Believers dead.  War is coming.  Will I be ready?  Meaning, will I be on a good offensive footing.  Defensively, the Believers can't do a darned thing to me.

Just remembered that Wealth will tick off the Spartans too.  I can live with that.

MY 2225.  I change my budget to 50-10-40 to deal with Bureaucracy induced drone riots.

Details Peacekeepers my ass bet he started it

Peacekeepers my ass bet he started it

MY 2226.  Lal drags me into the war.  His piss poor timing gets my Sea Former killed.  At least now I can resume buying techs from my allies, as I don't have to worry about ducking them anymore.

MY 2227.  I produce the 1st air unit on Planet!  Probably because in my mod, a Needlejet chassis ain't cheap.  I'm smart enough to make a Gun Jet for my prototype.  It earns its pay by killing a stack of 14 Believer probe teams.

My mindworms on the front line with the Spartans didn't do so well.  I could have had the city with the Citizens' Defense Force last year, but something weird happened with the interface where I couldn't see what was in the city.  My 3 mindworms in the field were killed by a counterattack.  I don't expect to be friends with Santiago for all that longer anyways, as she can be pretty snitty about Wealth.  I abandon her front and go try to pop some pods to the east.

My biggest ambition in life is to make Tree Farms.  Like I said, the Believers can't do anything to me, and other factions are starting to take their cities.  A lot of my Aquifers just completed.

Details linkup with an ally

linkup with an ally

MY 2228.  The Data Angels give me Advanced Ecological Engineering.  They also raise a land bridge between us, anticipating what I intended to do.  Maybe they'll give me some good ground units?

[bvanevery]

Details sea extension

sea extension

MY 2231.  Most of my Isles were acquired in the northern ocean, and it has no link to the southern ocean.  Consequently, I had a pretty strong navy up there.  I didn't intend to take these bases, I only meant to train my Isles and weaken the bases, so that my allies would take them.  But it came to a point of "Eh" and might as well get my units healed for free.  I didn't really want to have to worry about defending them from Believer probe teams, but maybe the Data Angels and the Peacekeepers will have those problems first, since their bases are closer to the enemy.

MY 2234.  The Data Angels have bestowed upon me quite an air force, which I am using to terrorize the Believers.

[bvanevery]

MY 2237.  I complete the Pholus Mutagen.

Details the meltdown of diplomacy

the meltdown of diplomacy

Some of my allies are at war with each other.  I don't plan to keep Zhakarov happy because he doesn't like my Wealth anyways.  Whereas, I'm clearly doing much better just having Roze give me techs, than worrying about trying to discover them myself.  I get Zhakarov to call off his war with her, but not with the Spartans.

Details Roze subverted the sea base he took from the Believers

Roze subverted the sea base he took from the Believers

Lal's grievance is legitimate, but Roze is far more useful as an ally.  For instance, Lal doesn't give me techs and planes!  I get Lal to call off his war with Roze.

[bvanevery]

MY 2238.  Roze gives me Fusion Power.  See how useful?

Details I like brainwashing

I like brainwashing

MY 2242.  Roze makes a huge mistake and gives me Homo Superior.  It enables the Empath Guild, which hasn't been built yet.  I instantly rush it, mostly using a city that's been making a copy of something else since the stone ages.

So, either the AI is still dumb as rocks... or the AI thinks I'm dumb as rocks and must be pitied.  This almost feels like one of those "Medicare coverage gap" style problems.  If you can't be rich enough to beat the competition, it's better to be poorer than them, so that they'll give you free stuff!

[bvanevery]

MY 2244.  I learn Eudaimonia, which gives the Longevity Vaccine.  It isn't completed yet so I rush it.  I have to switch to Eudaimonic to get it done.  Next turn I'll switch to Socialist and trigger a pop boom!

Details my love for you always dies

my love for you always dies

MY 2245.  Santiago needs me to tell her she's just a plaything.  Surprisingly she does not break our Pact.  I tell her to knock off the war with Zhakarov, even though I really don't care.  I bug Zhakarov to see if I can get cheap tech out of him, but he won't sell me anything.  I don't talk to Roze because now I'm starting a pop boom with Eudaimonic and Socialist.

1:30 AM.  Quitting for the night.

[bvanevery]

Details satellite of a greater power

satellite of a greater power

MY 2249.  Roze continues to feed me free units.  I think this must be what it's like to be a wartime ally of the USA.  Now she's started giving drop units.  They're flimsy, but the Believers are so beaten down from 5 of us dog piling them I figure eh, why not use the troops?  In principle the Believers could subvert a city I take over.  In practice I bet they're poor as dirt by now.  Checking credit reserves, they've only got 161.

Details my troops are cheap

my troops are cheap

MY 2250.  I didn't even hire this help!  Easy come easy go.  Well the Believers are going to get overwhelmingly trashed regardless.  It's not like I need their cities.

Details strange bedfellows

strange bedfellows

This is confusing.  I guess when you subvert a city, you only get the units of the owner of the city, and not any other factions in it.

Details I am so hurt

I am so hurt

They haven't sold me any techs since forever.  Screw them.

[bvanevery]

MY 2251.  I think if the Data Angels and others hadn't given me free military units, and I had to wait to build such things myself, I'd be bored silly right about now.  I'd be watching the other factions whomp on the Believers and gaining a little ground here and there, while I just work on my pop boom.  Mostly this is all I'm actually doing right now anyways, plus air harassment of the Believers, and dropping into an empty city when someone else leaves it weak enough for me to do that.  From where I sit it's a low intensity war, just waiting for an enemy to gradually collapse.

My real objective is to complete my pop boom and change to Thought Control before the Data Angels cut me off.  In my mod, Thought Control is their social compulsion.  I have a vision of a Datajack Roze who let the hacking power go to her head!

MY 2253.  I just pretty much throw away the troops I'm given in full frontal assaults.  My MORALE is terrible and who wants to SUPPORT all this stuff?  It's getting the job done, the Believers continue to lose cities.  I didn't pay for any of it so who cares.

Details the big island

the big island

MY 2255.  I make my first Isle of the Deep, to do battle with the various AAA ships that the Believers still have.  With a Biology Lab, Centauri Preserve, Xenoempathy Dome, and Pholus Mutagen they come out of the vats pretty fierce, a Great Boil.  Landlocked cities are going to make Locusts of Chiron to go trash the Cyborg infrastructure.

This is basically my first manufactured military unit.  It says a lot about how long it takes me to get stuff done, vs. other AI buffed factions.

I just lost some not terribly worthwhile planes attacking a wounded non-AAA Plasma unit in a city without a wall, that nevertheless had an Aerospace Complex.  I haven't had many games where I've had to deal with that.  Oh well, not like I don't have ground troops, or particularly needed those old planes.  Full frontal assault mode still active.

[bvanevery]

MY 2256.  My Isle survives a straight hit from a Believer ship, taking 60% damage.   Pretty much works as advertized, but it does prevent me from walking into the empty sea base I wanted to take.  I suppose I'll fly an air escort and keep floating forwards.

Details a mindworm in every pot!

a mindworm in every pot!

I've got more votes than anyone now.  I get myself elected Governor!

[bvanevery]

MY 2258.  With one probe team, the Believers subverted a lot of my Hovertanks, like maybe 4.  I have to wonder, where did they get the money?  Am I that cheap to subvert?  Fortunately, I pretty much have spam Hovertanks thanks to the Data Angels.

Details Roze is a generous jerk

Roze is a generous jerk

MY 2260.  Roze subverted one of Lal's sea bases again.  I calm the waters and buy 3 old techs from him that I forgot he had.

Santiago finally blows off our Pact.

Details take a bath

take a bath

I have wiped the Believers off the land.  They only have 5 sea bases left, but still talk about executing me.

Details ingratiating myself to Roze

ingratiating myself to Roze

All of my core cities have reached their maximum size for the food they have available.  Most are size 16.  Now I switch to Thought Control to keep Roze happy.  She's Magnanimous, let the begging begin!    

Details all you need is a hole in the head

all you need is a hole in the head

Yes, Roze, yes!  We love the probe drilled into the cerebellum.  Tell us how we might win this game!  Industrial Automation for 150 credits?  Sure thing Roze, next turn.  I guess I'm not getting free tech, but that's ok, because it means I'll be able to buy a lot more tech next turn.

But what's this?  What's this??!

Details HYPOCRISY

HYPOCRISY

Traitor!  CURSE YOU, THINKER MOD, for breaking the rules of the game yet again!!  Now that it counts, in this final hour of desperate pop booming and research, she is unrestrained.  I am the victim here.  She can't even remember how to hack.

[bvanevery]

Details compulsive infiltration

compulsive infiltration

MY 2260.  Lal infiltrated me 4 times this turn, and he already infiltrated me awhile back.

Details creepy loss of time

creepy loss of time

Wait, what?  Why does my turn counter say MY 2260?  Previous screenshot shows that's the year I wiped the Believers off the continent.  A turn has clearly passed, as the armored Hovertank that wiped out the last Believer city, now has 3 moves available again.

[bvanevery]

MY 2260 in the Twilight Zone.  I go Green to jack my Isles back up to maximum offensive strength.  As a byproduct I end the Socialist ECONOMY penalty.  I'm now at +2 ECONOMY and my income nearly doubles to 449 credits/turn.  And here's something curious...

Details not much of a bean counter

not much of a bean counter

I never learned Industrial Economics.  I have not built a single Energy Bank this entire game!  It's a little odd that some of my allies never learned it either.  Ok, I guess Lal and Santiago just suck.  Not like Santiago is my ally anymore anyways.  Could be an enemy soon for all I know.

In other news of the weird, I think I'm missing a Locust.  I could swear I had one heading south to bother the Cyborgs.  Now I don't.

[bvanevery]

Details scumbags

scumbags

MY 2261.  I was wondering who my next victims might be.  It'll be Lal if he keeps it up.  I end our Pact.  And if Roze jacks him again, I'm not going to stop her.

Details look I already got brain probes

look I already got brain probes

I sign a Truce with Aki Zeta5.  We haven't scrapped over anything in a long time, and I'm not friends with the Spartans anymore.  Aki gives me a piece of her enlightened Cyborg mind about my Thought Control.

Roze isn't selling me techs because she's working on the Network Backbone.  I need silly things like Industrial Economics and Secrets of the Human Brain.

[bvanevery]

Details ship with no radar costs 36

ship with no radar costs 36

I've noticed a weird glitch where Deep Radar is actually costing me something on a ship.  It shouldn't.  The appropriate lines in my alphax.txt:

Code: [Select]

; Flags  =
;          010000000000 = Cost increased for land units
;
Deep Radar,             0, DocInit,   ,          010000111111, Sees 2 spaces


Details ship with Deep Radar costs 45

ship with Deep Radar costs 45

[bvanevery]

Details back into the game

back into the game

MY 2262.  I'm surprised I got this before anyone else.  I'm building the Cloudbase Academy!

Details why

why

I'm making Sealurks... because I can?  Because I never do?  Because I have no idea why I should prefer them to Isles of the Deep?  Because it's an obscure aspect of the game, like Drilling to Aquifer?  And what about Naomi?

Details University invents the crack pipe

University invents the crack pipe

MY 2265.  I'm soooo scared.  I send the Data Angels to war against them.  I'm building Flechette Defense Systems in all my major cities, just in case someone gets creative with Conventional Missiles.

I complete the Cloudbase Academy.

[bvanevery]

Details cheating Trance probe team

cheating Trance probe team

MY 2267.  Thinker mod's unit designer blows off my mod's rules about probe teams.  I don't allow them to have Trance.  Mindworms are supposed to be my answer to the armored probe team problem.