JarlWolf's Custom Factions

[Geo]

Here's the assassin file for you to look at Geo:

My original thanks moved to the graphics thread, so I'll take the opportunity for a +1 and thank you again. 

[ete]

Is it possible you could upload the Crimson Comrade's graphics for me Ete? I am unfamiliar with editing wikis and this is all new to me.

I can, but it'd be much quicker overall if I could bulk crop and bulk upload factions in significant chunks than one by one, since automated cropping can do as many as are needed in only slightly more time than it takes me to do one.

I did the basic faction graphics upload for now though. For future reference, to upload files use this page http://alphacentauri2.info/wiki/Special:Upload (it's linked in the left hand bar on every wiki page). Upload the main graphic to <textname>.png after converting it to PNG and the logo to <textname>_logo.png. In this example, textname is crimson.

Also, I do plan to improve how faction graphics are displayed at some point, most likely a gallery of autocropped bases, logos, leaderheads, etc.

[JarlWolf]

Thanks. Thought more on the clone idea and I think I am going to run with it, but I am modifying the original idea to make it more serious. I won't reveal anything on it yet but I think you guys will like it.

[JarlWolf]

New faction coming soon: Won't tell you crap about it. You can probably guess.

[JarlWolf]

Right, a new faction will be in replacement for the benevolents. I am still working on both this one and the secret one, and please note this is NOT the secret faction. (the one meant for the poll.)



I present to you, at least in concept, I know what I am doing for artwork and such,

The Wanderer's of Chiron.

Agenda: Peaceful Anarchist Enlightenment

Ideal: Knowledge
Anti Ideal: Police State

1+ Planet: Weathered nomads who are accustomed to the wastes and wilds of Chiron, they know how to live off the land.
4+ Efficiency:  The Wanderer's are used to being on the move, and thus have become very efficient at traveling in caravans and small bands and using whatever resources they can encounter to the maximum amount of benefit. They are also very creative when it comes to making makeshift tools and solutions to problems out in the wastes of Chiron.
3- Industry: Nomadic tendencies means the Wanderer's do not establish very large permanent settlements, and they do not typically produce large amounts of machinery.
2- Growth: The Wanderer's life of nomadic existence does not help with child mortality rates, and the trading outposts are typically small, as people come and go.
3- Police: The Wanderer's resent strong authority, and do not want to have anyone dictating their decisions. They also do not respect authoritative measures, or aggression.
+20% Defence: The Wanderer's are very resilient guerrilla fighters who are fiercely opposed to invaders who wish to impose their will upon them. By traveling constantly and living off the land the Wanderer's become quite accustomed with surviving out in the wilds, as well as knowing the layout of the terrain of which they can optimize in battle.
Extra talent per base (1): The Wanderer's pursuit of individual enlightenment leads to very learned and wise individuals, as well as quite self sufficient people. Traveling the world and experiencing it has its benefits.

They start off with Industrial Automation: The Wanderer's are nomads who are used to taking their supplies and junk with them, (supply crawlers) and from scavenging they often obtain broken down machinery of which they jury rig to suit their needs.

Lore: After the destruction of many factions, multitudes of people gave up on most of the factions and their ideals and distrusted or wanted no part in the new arising factions. Disgruntled by all forms of authority and wanting to live out their lives how they individually chose, with no faction deciding for them, the Wanderer's formed primarily out of refugees.

The strongest voice of this movement was a former Usurper known by the name of Jatar. Jatar, after his factions destruction saw folly in the aggressive, and tyrannical methods of his fellow brethren had used in their quest for enlightenment and godhood. Still in faith of the ideal of finding one's true enlightenment and eventually, transcendence, Jatar rallied the disparate tribes and scattered peoples of Chiron, whether they be Progenitor or Human, and gathered them all under the identity of the Wanderer's of Chiron, those not bound by the chains of authority. Jatar's faction is anarchist, but the great many of bands and settlements that have arisen within the Wanderer's range greatly respect him and his ideals and many have followed suit in the quest, or "The Path" for enlightenment. Most of the Wanderer's adhere to his philosophy of "Walking The Path" both literally and philosophically: the vast majority of the Wanderer's are semi nomadic and live off the land, often salvaging materials from the wastes and trading them.

Jatar looks to the future, and he wishes to achieve transcendence and the individual enlightenment of all, but he wishes to do so peacefully where as his former leader Marr, sought to instill it through force (and only for the Progenitor race), of which failed.


This is a collaboration, concept wise, between me, Ete and Green1. Thank you both for your help.

[Green1]

No problem, man.

Ete is a great librarian of knowledge on this game. I value his opinion greatly.

[ete]

I like the faction quite a lot, aside from it maybe having a few too many bonuses for my tastes, but that's hard to avoid when you've got multiple people giving their input and wanting to shape a faction. There's a lot going on and a lot of big bonuses/penalties, so it'll need some play to see how it works.

One thing we did not discuss is the ideology/anti-ideology, which is actually pretty important here. With PS as unusable they can't patch up their police rating unless/until they get the Ascetic Virtues, even if they are willing to sacrifice some of their effic. Maybe that's good and fitting, but if it proves to be too annoying it could be dropped in favour of a penalty to PS, or just dropped entirely. And less importantly, their ideology will cause them to be more warlike with factions going for wealth/power, is that something we want?

[Geo]

I'd put in an artificial block to larger bases. The need to built a hab dome after size 3-4.
-2 Industry instead of -3.
Instead of a defense modifier, an attack modifier. AFAIK, guerilla fighters are most dangerous on the sudden/unexpected attack. Once located, they're usually destroyed pretty easily by a more tech-savvy opponent.
And a free supply crawler to start. 

[JarlWolf]

Not modifying it further probably, I've done some tests with a non graphics version of the faction.

I'd put in an artificial block to larger bases. The need to built a hab dome after size 3-4.
-2 Industry instead of -3.
Instead of a defense modifier, an attack modifier. AFAIK, guerilla fighters are most dangerous on the sudden/unexpected attack. Once located, they're usually destroyed pretty easily by a more tech-savvy opponent.
And a free supply crawler to start. 

This was brought up before, and I disagreed to that then and here's the reasoning: They get lower growth because of their lifestyle and conditions relating to that, not so much because the people themselves are more needy/they need more support then regular folks, like how Morgan's people like luxuries and such so they need more to satisfy them. The general idea of settlements in this faction is that they are trading towns/boom towns that develop by people passing through and such, and if they are more busy and remain that way, there is no gov't to really speak of that sets up "living quarters" for people. People provide their own housing, even if thats some junky shack in the settlement. The graphics of this faction will be almost like the buildings from a Fallout game: scrap metal filled, rusty junkyard towns that have a reminiscence to gold rush camps.

And while I am aware Guerrilla's are good on the offencive, having dealt with them, the logic here is that these people lure the enemy into ambushes or utilize traps/and other such things to bring an opponent into their line of fire and ambushes, rather then sneakily infiltrating and sabotaging, or doing total hit and run attacks. They are more of draw in an ambush then sneak up and attack. And gamewise speaking I am encouraging them to be rather passive, but if someone invades them they will turn their entire territory to an Afghanistan on steroids. Hard to fight in and brutal locals who know how to fight in their own lands.

I like the faction quite a lot, aside from it maybe having a few too many bonuses for my tastes, but that's hard to avoid when you've got multiple people giving their input and wanting to shape a faction. There's a lot going on and a lot of big bonuses/penalties, so it'll need some play to see how it works.

One thing we did not discuss is the ideology/anti-ideology, which is actually pretty important here. With PS as unusable they can't patch up their police rating unless/until they get the Ascetic Virtues, even if they are willing to sacrifice some of their effic. Maybe that's good and fitting, but if it proves to be too annoying it could be dropped in favour of a penalty to PS, or just dropped entirely. And less importantly, their ideology will cause them to be more warlike with factions going for wealth/power, is that something we want?

I do want them to be focused on knowledge, as they aren't going to care what people do economically, and they certainly don't want the most authoritarian style of gov't (besides thought control) - Police State- To be enforced on them. Their entire existence was founded against that.

Add in the fact that Knowledge, or the individual self enlightenment is their main philosophy in an anarchist, free society, knowledge is the appropriate choice. It also gives them appropriate enemies: More authoritarian factions or militaristic/expansionistic ones are going to target them, while the more democratic/pacifist factions are going to like them more.

So yes, it is intended.

[Green1]

It is like my philosophy of gaming I used to tell my gaming group.

Balance is almost mandatory if you are talking tournaments or any MP competitions. That is, unless it is a historical scenario where one side is supposed to be at disadvantage ie: Panzer General's Battle of Berlin. No surviving that one. But, when it comes to SP or campaign, story trumps balance. Not saying that gives you the excuse to make them BU's Scotsnoobs .

Personally, what you got goes with story. Also is not very unbalanced.

[JarlWolf]

Mhm, and when I create these factions I have three aims:


1. I want to make a different experience for players, a heightened one by giving them factions that are truly crazy. Factions that aren't overpowered, but tougher then their original counterparts. Factions that provide new and interesting challenges or new playstyles for the player to experience.
2. While I do like balance, the only thing that matters is that these factions are balanced enough for each other. You can of course use the original factions with them but they are purposefully meant to be stronger then the original: This makes sense story wise and gameplay wise as their very purpose of creation was to be powerful successors to the originals.
3.They were aimed to be canon friendly: These factions are aimed to fit in the SMAC universe and have history in it. They are supposed to feel like SMAC factions and feel like real ideals, something people would actually join up and form and be inspired to be in.
And the spirit of gritty warfare and ideological differences while settling a cruel, hostile untamed world with a mind of it's own is what I wanted to capture.

[Green1]

Mhm, and when I create these factions I have three aims:


1. I want to make a different experience for players, a heightened one by giving them factions that are truly crazy. Factions that aren't overpowered, but tougher then their original counterparts. Factions that provide new and interesting challenges or new playstyles for the player to experience.
2. While I do like balance, the only thing that matters is that these factions are balanced enough for each other. You can of course use the original factions with them but they are purposefully meant to be stronger then the original: This makes sense story wise and gameplay wise as their very purpose of creation was to be powerful successors to the originals.
3.They were aimed to be canon friendly: These factions are aimed to fit in the SMAC universe and have history in it. They are supposed to feel like SMAC factions and feel like real ideals, something people would actually join up and form and be inspired to be in.
And the spirit of gritty warfare and ideological differences while settling a cruel, hostile untamed world with a mind of it's own is what I wanted to capture.

Well put.

Although some of the original factions do seem to hold their own against these from playing. These factions are not too OP at all.

[Green1]

Of course I love Ete and Yitzi, too. They like to whip out the sliderules and scientific calculators. Their opinions will differ than mine Not to say that is bad.

[JarlWolf]

Of course. That's why I included Ete in the discussions to get yours and Ete's two very differing opinions to help form the faction.


Speaking of factions... the secret one is almost ready for release!

[JarlWolf]

Notes: The story is being worked on and polished out still, but I got the base idea of it down. I am still trying to figure out what happened to all of the original factions (Mainly just  and the others. My AAR is a different "timeline" because the Betrayed and the Planet Cult under Jezebel are not part of my faction packs.)

Also a note: I am open for suggestions on this one, story or stats wise. But be advised I am not changing certain things about them,so don't be offended if I don't implement an idea, though I will consider it before I accept or reject it.
This is still somewhat a work in progress too so some things may be a bit imbalanced.

And here it is!



Ideal: Thought Control
Anti Ideal: Fundamentalism
Agenda: Plutocratic Dictatorship


5+ Growth: Mass produced clones and very liberalistic views on sex.
2- Effic: Clones often have defects or deformities, either inherited or developed.
Cloning Facilities: Free Genejack Facilities
Underwater Metropolis: Free Pressure Domes
Thermal Vent Communities: Free Thermocline Transducer
Illiterate Clones: Penalty to Democracy
Industrialist Motives: Penalty to Green


"All Faction leaders claim a utopia for their followers on this world. I just claim that I want to live a life of luxury. Any are welcome to join me but I expect they are fine seeing their replica work hard."
- Portia Ponthieux, Clones and Caviar.

Lore: Portia was originally the Unity Geneticist, and one of the brightest intellectuals on the ship, save perhaps only for  . Growing up in France in a rather lavish household, she grew up in a wealthy family and was accustomed to the world of business: Both the luxuries it brought and the dark power struggles associated with it. Showing incredible aptitude to sciences she became an established scientist that pioneered the field of genome therapy, and she gathered the Unity projects attention when she pinpointed very effective methods for preservation of human tissue, and humans in general, via cloning technology. And she was the one who originally invented the Longevity Vaccine: which essentially kept the body from deteriorating by making the body have sustained, repairative growth. Her tremendous contribution to science got her a spot on the Unity, but when the crisis hit she originally went with Zak, as her interest in Science was still great and she wished to continue humanity's progress. However, the University was eventually rooted out both by extreme aggression by the Believers, monstrous experiments from within and the final nail in the coffin was when the Machine Mandate began the "Great Upheaval" and caused many machines to malfunction and revolt reduced the University to a ruined state. Many of the faction members including Portia left the faction and Portia at this point was only interested in a life of comfort and luxury. She figured that humanity's future would be better off progressing naturally and decided that personal happiness was the key to any society to function and she focused her society around that. Using technology she acquired from the University, she set out into the sea's to found a society undisturbed by the outer meddling of the other factions, the Pirates no longer a threat. She founded the Sons of Oceanus, who were founded simply on the pursuit of happiness, and a society with no gods or kings. She ruled as dictator but did not bother intervening in her citizens personal lives, and unlike the Imperium she allowed unrestrained scientific research and she cared more for luxury then for strength. To power her society's demand for labour she decided to use her scientific skills to utilize the use of mass produced clones to serve her and the "prime citizens." Clones were based off the citizens themselves but were purposefully genetically inferior and less intelligent then their original counterparts, bioengineered and bred for labour.

However her faction's complete lack of empathy and respect to the clones left them very embittered and the lack of regulation in her society for sex and other related practices led the populations of clones growing more severely inbred. Eventually her society evolved into an extreme caste society and she decided the best way to happiness for her personally, and to keep her followers content was to control them via luxury, entertainment or through genetic/chemical manipulation.