Game Discussion, Turn 2121 - 2140

[Maniac]

Originally posted by Googlie
Next turn (2123)

Thanks for the orders.

Originally posted by Primus Pilus
i would REALLY like to plop a Sea Base around the forest sqs next to Hive. Primus is new to this game format, but to me early game expansion is paramount, especially at 'hostile' borders. While i will submit that crater bases (etal) are needed, let's not restrict ourselves to 'Home' Island. Push the envelope and be SPARTAN !!!

A problem is that a sea colony pod costs 77 minerals. At our current production rate, it would take several decades to build one. However you gave me an idea. How about, once Gythium Harbour has grown to size 2 and when we can pop a unity pod, we temporarily switch GH production to a sea colony pod in the hopes of a materials pod?

Btw, just for the record, sea bases don't get land borders, meaning we wouldn't be able to work those forests near Yang.


***

On another note, is it ok if the next/first production item in Sparta Command, Sector Cratersouth (new base) and Olympus Academy (new) is a former? I've been playing ahead a bit with the fully updated SMAX simulator, and if we don't get some more formers soon, our empire will still be largely unterraformed and unroaded when the next colony pod wave hits. And after base 6 we'll start getting on average 2 bureaucracy drones per base built, so we'll have to be able to move police forces fast all over the place.

[Maniac]

Battle Report MY 2123

• SC1 built CP. Production set to former.
• SC1 CP moves north.
• Rolling Thunder moves E and N. Nutrient resource discovered in the sea => a good site for a future eastern port base?
• Shinsengumi en route to SC3.
• Tomcat-1starts cultivating farm NE of SC3.
• Chiron Knights and R-112 move to the suggested square near the unity pod.
• SCC Invincible moves further down the Hive coast, and ends the turn next to a unity pod.

[Maniac]

I had a look at our labs production.
Currently our tech cost is 75, and the # of accumulated labs towards Applied Physics is 62. At 30-10-60 our yearly labs production is 11 labs. This currently means next year our accumulated labs would number 73. We will probably pop 2 unity pods, bringing our accumulated labs to 75 (one labs per pod popped).

IIRC the way the game checks for if a tech is researched, is first adding the labs production of a base, and then doing the check. If the # of labs equals or exceeds the # of required labs, the tech is researched. However the labs exceeding the required number are lost and not carried over to the next tech. This means that MY 2125 all labs of SC1 (our first base) will be lost, as we'll already have the required 75 labs at the start of the turn.

To prevent that, I'd like to request to change energy allocations for the next two turns to 50-0-50 instead of 30-10-60. This will bring total labs production to 9 instead of 11, and SC1 labs production to 2 instead of 3. This nicely adds up to 75, meaning no waste.

Is this ok? Also, in case I'd still be the turnplayer when we research our next tech, would I then also be allowed to change the energy allocations if necessary for this purpose?

[Zeiter]

Sounds great. Way to pay attention to all of the little details.

Do we need new orders for any of the units? We are planning on popping that pod next turn with Chiron Knights, correct? I believe everything else has been decided.

BTW, what are our current EC reserves?

[Googlie]

If it's going to be 2 turns to Applied Physics, why not run this turn and next at 60/0/40 (for an extra 2 ec's per turn?)

Originallly posted by Maniac

(Also, in case I'd still be the turnplayer when we research our next tech, would I then also be allowed to change the energy allocations if necessary for this purpose?

You have my vote

(btw - Yang will sell us Applied Physics for 100 ec's)

I presume orders are:

Rolling Thunder

northwest then north (if land) or northwest again (unless if fungus, in which case northwest again, if clear)

Change Gythium Harbour production to a Pressure Dome, then have the injured Chiron Knights pop that pod to its southwest, with R-112 hovering to provide mindworm control if needed.

(if a monolith, CK will heal - and upgrade? Which of our 4 rovers has had a morale boost? If R-112 hasn't, and CK pops a monolith, then I vote we visait it in R-112.

Otherwise, R-112 south then west to head for that remaining pod at 49:33

SCC Invincible

pops pod adjacent to it, and if mindworm, make battlefield decision whther to engage or withdraw.

If no facilities completion at Haebour, then revert production to SCC Invincible class foil

[Maniac]

Originally posted by Zeiter
Do we need new orders for any of the units? We are planning on popping that pod next turn with Chiron Knights, correct? I believe everything else has been decided.

I think so too, with Googlie's orders. Hopefully we'll be contacted by another human faction soon, so we'll have some other action.

BTW, what are our current EC reserves?

8 credits, with currently 6 extra per year (due to running 60-0-40).

Meaning it'll be a few more years before we have enough cash to attempt buying a commlink. But hopefully, if the nex Phalanx with your Hive story is published soon, perhaps another faction will buy our commlink and contact us. (Let's hope they don't ignore us for fear of a conquering faction )

Originally posted by Googlie
If it's going to be 2 turns to Applied Physics, why not run this turn and next at 60/0/40 (for an extra 2 ec's per turn?)

Okay, done.

(btw - Yang will sell us Applied Physics for 100 ec's)

Heh well, we can always hope that sea pod gives us 100c. One chance on a 100 or so I guess.

(if a monolith, CK will heal - and upgrade? Which of our 4 rovers has had a morale boost? If R-112 hasn't, and CK pops a monolith, then I vote we visait it in R-112.

IIRC all our rovers except the damaged Chiron Knights have had monolith upgrades.

[Googlie]

Originally posted by Maniac
On another note, is it ok if the next/first production item in Sparta Command, Sector Cratersouth (new base) and Olympus Academy (new) is a former?

I agree. In SP games, by now I make my first unit in all new bases a former (and rush it if i can afford it) - right up to when I stop getting that first free row of minerals.

If we do pop 50 or 75 ec's with the foil, do we want to re-open the debate re cashing in the Network Node for its 40 ec's - and buying Applied Physics from Yang (and thus getting Plan Nets the turn after as we switch) ................ and if so, then do it before popping the land pod with Chiron Knights where we change production at Harbour back to a NN (or a Pressure Dome?)

All this in case we pop a tech with the rover - or a facs completion

So the sequence would be:

• Switch production at Harbour to a Pressure Dome
• pop the seapod with the foil
• if a facs completion - great
• if 50 (or more) ec's, then cash in the Network Node
• Call Yang and buy Applied Physics for 100 ec's
• switch production at Harbour to a Pressure Dome
• pop the land pod with Chiron Knights
• if a monolith (heals and upgrades CK), commlink or tech, great, like wise OK if a facilities completion
• If not the latter, then change production back to an Invincible class foil, ready to switch to a foil probe the turn after

Sound like a plan?

[Zeiter]

Yeah, if we get 50 or 75 ECs, we can look into that again. Although, can we be sure that Yang's mood won't suddenly switch, and he suddenly won't want to trade applied physics? Because that would really suck.

And I agree about switching GH production to a pressure dome before popping future pods to the south.

[Dis]

sounds good.

can we change research with no penalty? This is something I never do in single player games, so I'm not sure.

[Zeiter]

Oh, wait, it just occured to me: maybe Morgan got the Hive commlink frequency from a popped pod?

Also, we might need to take a vote on cashing the node before we decide on it, because I know almost everyone didn't feel comfortable with the idea before.

can we change research with no penalty? This is something I never do in single player games, so I'm not sure.

If you acquire the tech you are currently researching through other means (trading, probing, etc.) then you can choose a different tech to research at no cost - all of the lab points carry forward.

[Googlie]

In looking at the 2123 map, the Hive must have a base at 51:41. The sea borders of a base only extend 1 tile (look at the profile of the base we've visited - identical to the set up where Invincible is now.

So after popping the seapod, visit the base (Yang will prolly call us, so that means won't get peeved at us dialling him)

[Zeiter]

Would sailing up to the base be necessary? Why would Yang get peeved at us for calling him up? Perhaps we could use that movement point to go in another direction, maybe we could head southward after popping the pod, following the coast?

No wonder the Hive is doing so well - they've got forested jungle all over the place! That land sure does look inviting. If only we could make it ours...

[Googlie]

OK - here's another approach:

try the podpopping etc etc, and if we can't scrape up enough ec's to buy Applied Physics from Yang, then we call him up and ask for a loan

he'll loan us 65 ec's, then ask "anything more?"

We have 1 chance to buy a commlink - Morgan or Angels, and he'll sell for 25 ec's. Plus, we'll have enough to rush the former at the new base the turn after (when it has completed that first row of minerals)

[Googlie]

Of course, if we desparately want Applied Physics this next turn (and Planetary Networks the turn after) then we amend the sequence to guarantee us getting it:

• Switch production at Harbour to a Pressure Dome
• pop the seapod with the foil
• if a facs completion - great
• if 50 (or more - but not 100) ec's, then call Yang and ask for that 65 ec loan (obviously, if we pop 100, we have enough to buy outright)
• then buy Applied Physics from him (he then hangs up)
• If no ec's in podpop, then sell the NN for 40 ec's and call Yang and ask for loan
• then buy Applied Physics for 100 ec's
• switch production at Harbour to a Pressure Dome
• pop the land pod with Chiron Knights
• if a monolith (heals and upgrades CK), commlink or tech, great, like wise OK if a facilities completion
• If not the latter, then change production back to an Invincible class foil, ready to switch to a foil probe the turn after (when we get Plan Nets)

What we can't scenario test is:

We get enough cash from podpopping or sale to buy Applied Physics outright

Does Yang then ask "anything else?"

If we say, "yes, give us a loan - and he does, then does he hang up or again does he ask "anything else?"

If the latter, we can then buy a commlink, whereupon he hangs up

So it all hinges on whether we pop ec's with the foil, and for how long Yang keeps that commlink open

[Zeiter]

Those terms aren't generous. He's asking 3 times as much in return! But still, asking for loans from the AI is a great deal, as you can use that money better than the AI can, and it ends up giving you more precious turn advantage. So, this is actually a good deal for us. I'd be for the loan anyway, tech or no tech.