Considering playing... have a few questions

[ali-t-akua]

One question I did not see answered is:

2) Ok, now I have questions about research and saved setup points. First off, each player/empire has 25 research centers. That means that I am "generating" 25 points each turn that can be devoted to developing new technologies, right? So, if I do not use 25 setup points when creating my race, that is the equivalent of 1 turns worth of research????

 

Can a player have more than 25 research centers in his/her entire empire? Or is that the maximum? And is that where research bonuses come into play. Theoretically, with enough research bonuses, I could generate 26 (or more) points per turn out of the 25 research centers alloted? Is that true?

 

If someone did answer this question already I apologize in advance.

 

Research also has an efficiency to it. The more research centers you put onto a topic the quicker you will get it but at the cost of efficiency. The common wisdom is the rate at which research points are accumulated is equal to the square root of the number of RCs times the research bonus. Therefore if you put all 25 RCs on 20cm Gauss you will geet 5 Research points times the racial bonus. Breakthroughs (from your scientists) and Exploration bonuses (from finding specials) add additional points. Hope this addresses your question.

[hobknob]

An average human would not be a brain blob since it would have no research bonus. A brain blob is a lifefor that has taken a max research approach and also taken reductions in other areas to also give it plenty of SRP's to spend. This type of lifeform is relatively useless as a colonizer and especially useless at ground combat.

 

Now that you hve decided to play you may want to move some of your design questions off line. Feel free to utilize PM's and emails for that.

 

[Prospective]

Locklyn,

 

I followed your link and saw the spreadsheet of the different techs... WOW is all I can say.... Which ones do we start with? Which ones are techs that require research points invested in order to acquire? I don't see a column that indicates starting technology.

 

One thing I don't get about the techs listed. There are items like club, spear, sword, battleaxe, etc. If you don't get the club, spear, sword, battleaxe as starting tech (and to get them need to spend RP's), then how can you research a carbine or recoilless rifle (no prerequsites shown)? AND, if you don't have to research a spear, sword, etc to acquire "higher tech" items like the carbine, then what is the point of ever researching a sword or club? I don't get it.

 

Kurassier,

 

According to what I understand, you are saying if I put 2 RC's devoted to researching a carbine, in reality 2 research points will not be generated? More like 1.2 or 1.3? So, in an extreme case, IF I were all hot and heavy to get carbines and slammed all 25 RC's into it, perhaps the net points researched would amount to MAYBE 5 or 6 total points???? Wow, what a waste!!! Why would anyone ever put more than 1 RC per tech subject then? That, in my unexperienced opinion, makes the saved points even more valuable...

 

EternusIV,

 

Thanks for the advice and offer. In previous games, I do have a tendency to be a "colonizer" type. What would I need (racial setupwise) to achieve a high degree of "colonizer" without sacrificing alot elsewhere? I assume that the fastest reproduction rate is important, as is longevity. Is that a good assumption? Or are there better ways that you'd be able to share?

 

 

T'Lariss,

 

I get your point about being defender friendly... 9x for groundbases, 3x for orbital defenses. How can anyone ever get nasty with those kind of odds? Seems like your opinion of one alliance would be needed to remove a single empire.... It kind of seems that having an enhanced ground combat race isn't going to get to use that advantage if the defender is adequate. I also get your point about 2000 points being ineffective, due to the time involved to spend them. However, relatively speaking, how much does it take to go from a tech 0 starting point, to tech 1, 2, 3, etc? Is it a linear rate? Or does the amount of research points spent go up exponentially? Do all tech "trees" increase at a similar rate, or is each level 1 to level 2 increase unique?

 

Also, lets say I start with 2000 saved rp's. If on turn 1, I research engines mk 1, I should know how many points it cost since my balance of SRP's will decrease appropriately, right? Same for 2 and 3 etc. The only point where it could become muddy is if you have 0rp's and you use more than 1RC per item researched (wow, it almost sounds like I know what I'm talking about, huh?)

 

 

Lostworlds,

 

So, you don't recommend ANY SRP's? I do appreciate the advice on setting up my RC's, but from my uneducated viewpoint, having a number of them available for use seems highly beneficial. Maybe not the full 2000, but at least in the hundreds. For your race, did you use all the setup points on traits? Just curious.

 

Thanks again, all. I think very soon I'll make a stab at generating a race and get into the fray.

[EternusIV]

Pro-

 

Locklyn gave some good tips on colonizers, too.

 

I'd add the following:

 

1) Racially: Max out everything that will give you colonization bonuses and throw in Natural Chemical Exchange and high Regeneration for some CC bonuses....you might be sacrificing Strength, Agility etc to pull this off. Think about incerasing your tolerances to worlds as it will open up all KINDS of options (having lots of people with lots of "Ideal" worlds to go to really opens up your industrial base without having to worry about ICE)

 

2) Engines - Engines and more Engines. Movign around your people will cost you TONS in engines....the higher AP the more effectively uo can colonize. I can't stress this enough as this was a Pitfall of mine...lots of people! But even with gobs and gobs of colony berthings (which are also expensive), it takes time to move em outside my home system with crappy engines. Something I had to overcome...don't recommend trying to get by with just Mk I Fusion's either....in fact, I'm pushing towards Mk IIIs and eventually Antimatter they are that important.

 

3) Industrial Base.....screw Improved Stripmines because you will be using Yields on all those ideal worlds at a much higher efficiency. Focus on increasing your Improved Industrial Complexes and on Indy Sciences. High pop + strong indy base + maxed out colonies = MEGA PRODUCTION But in order to do that...you need GAZILLIONS AND BOATLOADS of Construction Materials and Improved Construction Materials.

 

4) Find a neighbor to protect your colony routes in exchange for some of your production....the longer you stay alive, the more deadly you will be down the line. The key is to avoid the early wipe out from some warmonger in the area.

 

5) There are a couple of tech paths that increase your pop growth (Imperial Med Centers which require Improved Pharmaceuticals and I think 3rd Life/Med Science) and another tech path that leads to transporting matter more efficiently than using Colonial Berthings (Mk I Matter Transporter + ?? opens up this line...some of us should find out soon) the path to Mk I Matter Transporter is not that bad....and might be a decent investment for a colonizer as well.

 

Out of ideas! Plus - I have to run.

 

Again, PM me anytime if you need certain tech paths or whatever. The odds of you using any tech against those that might gift it to you are pretty slim (at least for a few years anyway LOL..and by then, all of our 'secrets' won't be a big deal anyway)

[Clan Elder 'Keen]

"Why would anyone ever put more than 1 RC per tech subject then?"

 

For the vast majority of your research, 1 RC is the way to go. Eventually there will be a point where you don't want to wait 50 turns for the next generation of item to complete though. Then you might want to think about double/triple/etc up on some vital techs like a weapon, armor, force shield, engine, etc.

[Prospective]

Clan Elder Keen,

 

Good point. If somehow I'm left with any SRP's, perhaps it would be best to hold them in reserve for the higher advances and let my RC's do the work for the lower tech items....

 

How long are SRP's "good" for? Do I have to spend them every turn, or can I "bank" them for higher tech?

 

Thanks all!!

[Clan Elder 'Keen]

Everytime you issue a SRP order, it makes a check to apply srps to slot #1. If slot #1 is too advanced for srps, it goes down the list till it finds one. If you don't issue a SRP order, your srps just sit there until you do.

 

 

Typically you can only get 3 deep in a tech tree with srps. So a common approach is to get the those 3 items, then put the 4th item in regular research.

[Kurassier]

According to what I understand, you are saying if I put 2 RC's devoted to researching a carbine, in reality 2 research points will not be generated? More like 1.2 or 1.3? So, in an extreme case, IF I were all hot and heavy to get carbines and slammed all 25 RC's into it, perhaps the net points researched would amount to MAYBE 5 or 6 total points???? Wow, what a waste!!! Why would anyone ever put more than 1 RC per tech subject then? That, in my unexperienced opinion, makes the saved points even more valuable...

 

Yep, I personally put one RC per item, and so far have not had more than one RC per tech. The only time I can foresee changing that would be if I am at war. Let's say I'm at war with "X", after a battle or two, I discover that X has invested heavily in Sonic type weapons. I may have only the basic Sonic defenses, say only Type A, so I may put multiple RC's on Type B, etc. to speed up the research as it is something I will need very soon.

[Prospective]

I definitely agree. If an emergency rises, then all bets are off, but until then...

 

Ok, kind of a shift in topics. Maybe I should post a new email, but hopefully everyone is reading this one.

 

I have questions about encountering NPC's.

 

First off, how common are NPC's? Do you encounter one per system (speaking averages of course). Or are they fairly rare? I assume there will be different levels of NPC too, from cave dwellers to starfaring worlds.

 

What about abandoned player positions? Do they behave as though they were an NPC?

 

Next off, how important is diplomacy when dealing with NPC's? Have most people used diplomatic solutions to get the NPC to ally/join with their empire? Or, do most people drop troops and take the planet?

 

The reason I ask is because this relates to the startup traits. Should I try to increase the diplomatic bonuses? If diplomacy is not effective when dealing with NPC's, why put points there when they are better allocated elsewhere?

 

Sorry for this turn of topics, but again, my focus is getting inputs as to where to put the setup points (or not as the case may be).

 

Thanks all!

[Locklyn]

On Neutrals:

 

First come to the realisation that the whole section on Diplomacy in the rulebook, the parts above how different neutrals will react if you invade contra diplomatic overtures and the various states they can be in is just vapor for now. Hopefully it'll be coded in the future but it isn't now.

 

Neutrals/NPC worlds are for the majority just placeholders with items. Ie

 

1) They have an alien population that will not grow or very slowly since their size usually is very small

 

2) You cannot add to those pop since they are not of your empires race

 

3) They will sometimes have military forces to defend their colony world from invasion. You will NOT get control of any military forces they have when you do a diplomatic peaceful takeover of them. They just seem to disappear into thin air.

 

4) They have totally random items in their stockpiles. The more advanced the neutral is (You will get a message when you do a PMAP on a world which contains a neutral that will look like this:

 

Pop Group # 27151: 279 population units, governed by Advanced Neutral #9010 (Swords And Starburst)

 

Some can be quite large and contain diddlypoo others have high tech items that you can use in your ships. These can also be ANZed if you have a science installation built or existing on that colony.

 

5) Sometimes they will have Installations, they are usually damaged after the big war which means you can do nothing with them untill Pete decides whether to allow them to be repaired or dismantle. Sometimes you get lucky they have working installations which then can be INSTed and used. Like the Planetary Shield Generator I found

 

To find a neutral you have to go through each of the worlds in the system doing a PMAP. If there is a neutral it will show there. Then you can do an ORB to get more details:

 

27151 279 Advanced Neutral #9010 (Swords And Starburst)

> 1 Annihilated Field Fortress, 1 Coal Fired Power Plant, 1 Collapsed Iron Mine, 1 Demolished Light Metals Mine,

> 1 Imperial Intelligence Service Complex, 1 Hydroelectric Power Plant, 2 Industrial Complex(s),

> 1 Irradiated Imperial Science Center, 1 Imperial Secret Police Facility, 1 Remnants of a Deep Core Heatsink,

> 1 Seared Field Fortification, 1 Shattered Orbital Crystal Refinery, 1 Smashed Mineral Fertilizer Tanks,> 1 Annihilated Imperial Navy Training Base, 1 Blistered Weather Control Station,

> 1 Contaminated Imperial Medical Center, 2 Planetary Shield Generator, 1 Scorched Top Gun School,

> 1 Subterranean City, 1 Vestiges of an Imperial Courthouse,

> 1 Wrecked Imperial Guard Boot Camp,

> 1 Smashed Science Outpost, 1 Subterranean City, 1 Torched Gas Refinery, 1 Vestiges of an Imperial Palace,

> 1 Wrecked Cloning Center, 1 Wrecked Imperial Army Quadrant Base

 

 

Then you have two choices. Either conquer the neutral with troops or DIP/XDIP it with ships. Add diplomats and gifts and it'll mayhap go quicker.

 

The neutral then joins your empire as if it was a colony of yours but with another race.

 

 

/Locklyn

[Gary Carpenter]

yes, tech tree, is the 10 20 30 example. However, some tec like industries, is not as direct,. having 1st gen industries, does not mean you can research second gen. there are other techs you must have aslo.

 

Phoenix Arisen, or the PA, a dastardly evil bunch of people, at least according to thsoe not in the alliance willl send you small sample of the tech tree, at no obligation on your part, all you have to do is send me an email address..

[Locklyn]

Not all of the Phoenix Alliance are a dastardly evil power hungry mad mob There are some damn fine players in there worthy of respect as well as some real good people who just happen to be on the "Dark Side" The real big bad they've done in many aliens eyeglobs so far is to ally themselves with the Eyre and MMBs other personalities...but apparently the bait he used was too good to let go...

 

Look at the Phoenix Alliance as you would any other, they have a collection of individuals, and those are always tricky Rick is a cool guy and some of the nicer people I've met in the game actually were PAs so that goes to tell. I'd guess if you want to play a more aggressive Empire with a lot of territorial ambitions you'd join with them. Otherwise go with one of the other groupings. Anyways, don't decide right off the bat, while being in an alliance will help you information wise you can gain most of that info and aid from players on the boards without commitment.

 

Wait untill you've built up your empire and decided what kind of play you wish, then search around for your sort of Alliance.

 

Untill then, you are always welcome with questions.

 

 

/Locklyn

[Prospective]

Locklyn,

 

So, are neutrals plentiful? Or are they relatively rare?

 

I remember in SN2, I found a neutral with like 5000 industries. If I remember correctly, starting positions had 8000 Ind, so this was an awesome addition to the empire. I don't recall how I got them into the empire, whether through ground combat or through diplomacy (I think).

 

Gary,

 

So, what you are saying is that the tech tree is relatively linear?

 

Is the 10, 20, 30 a good estimate then? Or will it vary depending on what line of advances (say 5,10,15)?

 

Thanks for the offer. Email is hawk1061@yahoo.com I also edited my account with the email address, so you can PM me to make it easier.

[Locklyn]

Neutrals seem to be totally random, I've found systems with three in the same and then tons and tons of systems without. Most neutrals are small and primitive but there are exceptions.

 

Oh and never post your email on the boards, spambots suck those up like treats

PM then or include (removethispart)@yahoo.com

 

 

/Locklyn

[Lostworlds]

"So, you don't recommend ANY SRP's? I do appreciate the advice on setting up my RC's, but from my uneducated viewpoint, having a number of them available for use seems highly beneficial. Maybe not the full 2000, but at least in the hundreds. For your race, did you use all the setup points on traits? Just curious."

 

My empire does not recommend any SRP's. I spent 2000 setup points on my race. A person with saved SRP's will gain 1 more tech than my empire per turn. However, I have bonuses in colonization and combat. This can't be beaten easily by a few tech gains.

 

For example, an empire with 2000 points would suffer on his colonization bonuses. The highest tech installation I use is the Domed City. I do not believe that the person who gets to generation eight or beyond is the most powerful. After they spend all their SRP's they will be moving at the same speed as the rest of us. Then we will see if those who focused in combat, colonization, mental powers etc. and doing 1 Slot per tech will be better. I have watched empires use more than 1 slot per tech to race for certain techs and it cost efficiency.

 

When the SRP's have vanished, we will have the complaining starting again. Can I have more research centers. We are recieving tech too slowly. Can we have turns every week... I am slowly gaining techs on the tech tree. I know 95 tech gains is a small number since I started but I am doing a fair job against the brain blobs and SRP giants.

 

I have seen to many races for certain techs and to what end. Did you get the new Mk V whatshamacallit. Every week there is something new. Important discoveries usually cannot be rushed after unless you use SRP's and if you do not understand the tech tree you could be going after an inferior version of that item.

 

Can you imagine one day if the prerequisite for the most power defense system in the game comes from the electric fence?

 

Rich

 

Lostworlds

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