Anyone use Punishment Sphere?

[justjake73]

It seems to me that this is more of a negative than positive. It may keep a city with a lot of Drones in check, but it makes the city dumb. Opinions?

[Lazerus]

If you're running free market then you simply build a size 1 base and use a punishment sphere and rehome all your airforce there.
You lose around 3 lab points and in return save yourself the hassle of having to deal with around 30-40 pacifist drones.

Also im just evil, if i conquer a size 16 base and it riots then they get taught a lesson.

[Flubber]

Re: Anyone use Punishment Sphere?

Originally posted by justjake73
It seems to me that this is more of a negative than positive. It may keep a city with a lot of Drones in check, but it makes the city dumb. Opinions?

its also great for a larger base where you have totally focused on minerals. Generally I will select a few bases that get NONE of the drone control or lab or energy enhancements but get all the morale enhancement facilities and a punishment sphere. yes the base is dumb but it produced almost no energy anyway.

Done right, specialization of bases can be VERY effective

[Barinthus]

I think I've used it once and felt guilty. I'm too much of a care bear .

When I'm ready to learn base specialization, I'd probably use it more often.

[Illuminatus]

Originally posted by DataAeolus
I think I've used it once and felt guilty. I'm too much of a care bear .

Weakling.

[Barinthus]

Yeah I have to keep on telling myself it's just a game but I just can't get Ender's Game out of my head.

[Adalbertus]

I never use punishment spheres. Without a great deal of organisation (i. e. select a base and have some min-crawlers there, rehome everything ...) it doesn't help too much. For attacking I usually wait until I have choppers, some 10 of which are sufficient. Having not more than one chopper per base isn't that difficult, and Ascetic Virtues also is around at that time which solves half of the problem.

[Guynemer]

Seems like they would be useful if you were playing a heavily probe-dependant game, say as Miriam or Roze or possibly Morgan. Using probes to get your research anyway, might as well use punishment spheres, go to FM, rack up the energy and send out hordes of armies...

[Frankychan]

Why don't you just be like me?

Elect yourself Planetary Governor, Repeal the U.N. Charter, then nerve staple all the way.

This might be the long way, but use specialists to control the Drones until I'm able to get that nasty paperwork out of there.

That, and using Sin Busters without consequences is always a plus.

[Skanky Burns]

I don't use them. I try to play as an "enlightened despot".
That or I don't like the research penalties.

[dworkin]

Only as Lal do I use punishment spheres

Yang uses Enlightenment spheres
Miriam uses Pentitent spheres
Zakarov has the Inspiration sphere
Santiago the Wimp's sphere

And Roze revokes your internet access.

[Fake Boris]

Originally posted by Lazerus
If you're running free market then you simply build a size 1 base and use a punishment sphere and rehome all your airforce there.
You lose around 3 lab points and in return save yourself the hassle of having to deal with around 30-40 pacifist drones.

Also im just evil, if i conquer a size 16 base and it riots then they get taught a lesson.

How do you get enough minerals to support your airforce in a size 1 base?

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Build clean units or crawler minerals to said base.

[Flubber]

Originally posted by Ogie Oglethorpe
Build clean units or crawler minerals to said base.

and if the small base has a PS it is relatively easy to have it crawl some nutrients as well and grow-- ALL the workers can work even more nutrient or mineral tiles-- basically it is a cheap and painless unit factory.

The only bases I keep at size one -- A base with a single specialist and a bunch of crawled minerals can support an army even when in FM. When you get the PS there the citizen can begin work and you can grow the base if you wish.