Best Landmark

[Commy]

For those of you who read my post on "Best Tech in Game" or something like that, this is very similiar.

I am again making another scenario. This time, each faction starts on a landmark. Any landmark (including Crossfire landmarks) can be used.

Conditions:

ONLY ONE LANDMARK per faction, so seven total landmarks.

The MAP IS TINY, so landmarks will practically cover the entire map.

USE ONLY ORIGINAL FACTIONS.

My personal opinions:

Gaians--Manifold nexus--Remind me, who likes to hug trees naked?

Hive--U.N.S. Unity wreckage--Hey, the Hive is based on power, so give the extra push of equipment

University--Uranium Flats--Energy helps research

Morgans--Mount Planet--Energy will help economy, and the extra minerals will help the industry as well

Spartans--Garland Crater--With the lack of industry, and the survivalist ideals, they could use the extra minerals

Believers--Monsoon Jungle--Give them nutrients, and they will come. The growth will cause the Believers (though really any faction) to become the dominate power

Peacekeepers--Pholus Ridge--Hey, someone's got to get it.

[Barinthus]

Let's list all landmarks first? Hmm let me see if I can get that information.

Ok this is what I have so far... feel free to correct me or add any that I might have missed. Does Nessus Canyon exist? I don't think I have ever seen it before.

Land
Garland Crater - +1 M per tile
Great Dunes - No bonus resources
Monsoon Jungle - +1 N per tile
Mount Planet - +1 M +1 E per tile
Pholus Range - +1 E per tile
Sunny Mesa - No resource bonuses but ideal for an energy park
The Ruins - A ring of monoliths
Uranium Flats - +1 E per tile
The Borehole Cluster - 3 boreholes
Unity Wreckage - Mining laser, scout chopper, a comm beacon showing starting locations of each human factions, the engine core (bonus energy)
The Manifold Nexus - +1 Planet

Sea
Freshwater Sea - +1 N per tile
Geothermal Shallows - +1 E per tile
New Sargasso - Large concentration of sea fungus
Fossil Ridge - +1 M per tile

[Jamski]

No argument will convince me that the Monsoon Jungle is not the best for any faction.

Pre-restiction lifting, simply forest every tile for quick and cheap 2-2-2 everywhere (= to a monolith on all tiles) which is the best you can get early game. The huge growth is painfully good.

-Jam

[Commy]

Originally posted by Jamski
No argument will convince me that the Monsoon Jungle is not the best for any faction.

Pre-restiction lifting, simply forest every tile for quick and cheap 2-2-2 everywhere (= to a monolith on all tiles) which is the best you can get early game. The huge growth is painfully good.

-Jam

Agree with you there, the best landmark is by far the Monsoon Jungle.

[Barinthus]

Originally posted by Jamski
No argument will convince me that the Monsoon Jungle is not the best for any faction.

Pre-restiction lifting, simply forest every tile for quick and cheap 2-2-2 everywhere (= to a monolith on all tiles) which is the best you can get early game. The huge growth is painfully good.

-Jam

Agreed. But let's say what if each faction can have only one landmark so that means one faction ends up being lucky with the Jungle (Hive perhaps? )

[Barinthus]

Here's an older thread on landmarks, might contain some points or whatever...

http://apolyton.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7540&highlight=hive+monsoon+jungle

I remember one thread someone was complaining that the Hive seems always to end up in Monsoon Jungle - I couldn't find it.

[Barinthus]

I found yet two more threads...

http://apolyton.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6970&highlight=monsoon+jungle

http://apolyton.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22714&highlight=monsoon+jungle

[Ouro_827]

Monsoon Jungle, of course, is great... Geothermal shallows as Pirates is real fun though!

[CEO Aaron]

If you give the Hive the Jungle, you might as well give them the game. My advice is to give the monsoon jungle to a gimp faction, Spartans or Cult spring to mind.

[GeoModder]

Does nobody here know about the Nessus Canyon?

It gives 1 extra mineral as well, and is a beautifull landmark to put between mountain ridges. A real gorge in the map. I usually let a river run through it so it is less then 100 m. Guess what disappears first with a sealevel rise then

[Santiago_Claus]

Monsoon Jungle, hands-down. The early forest strategy's only weakness, lack of food, is wiped out completely. It's like a free Tree Farm for every base. Condensers are just plain scary. Let forest grow over them and you'll see what I mean ...

Second ... Manifold Nexus is pretty sweet, both early, mid, and late-game; you can troll fungus and capture before "Green", your mid-game industry won't disrupt as much, and if you build the Manifold SP you'll get more production out of fungus. For Alien factions M.N. is #1 for the 20% research bonus.

Third is The Ruins. Your first 2 bases will be as productive as if they started in Monsoon Jungle, and any kind of "head start" in SMAC(X) is a crushing advantage.

Fourth: Uranium Flats give a decent boost to early research, possibly getting you to SotHB first. Pholus Ridge is its jagged cousin.

Honorable mentions:

Freshwater Sea if it's big enough and Mount Planet if it's rocky ... the big problem with these is they aren't useful at first. Also, Freshwater Sea is almost certain to be "poisoned" with salt water if there is any change in sea level.

Garland Crater's "bonus space" is so small -- the edges don't count -- that it isn't quite the boon it appears to be on paper. Borehole Cluster is better, but of course resource restrictions limit its early utility.

Geothermal is nice, but only after energy restrictions are ended.

Sargasso always has lots of pods; sometimes I get lucky. The humble kelp pod is particularly welcome here.

[Frankychan]

Hive-Monsoon Jungle followed by Borehole Cluster.

Extreme growth or Powerhouse Industrial Might.

Morgan-Sunny Mesa. Raking in the creds.

Spartans-The Ruins.

Gaians-Garland Crater. Helps with the minerals

Believers-The Dunes. Let 'em rot.

University-Mount Planet. (I'm thinking observatories)

PK's-Uranium Flats (that's what's left over)

[Barinthus]

Originally posted by Frankychan

Believers-The Dunes. Let 'em rot.

[Trithemius]

Originally posted by DataAeolus
Agreed. But let's say what if each faction can have only one landmark so that means one faction ends up being lucky with the Jungle (Hive perhaps? )

Give them all the Monsoon Jungle.
Just assume that Chiron has a huge monsoonal area.

[Lazerus]

I don't really rate the borehole cluster that good frankychan, by the time restriction lifting comes around i've normally built a few of my own (especially if i've got the WP) and even if i haven't in around 6 turns they'll be every 2 squares.
Personally i would prefer uranium flats/unity wreckage for early game energy/money+locations or later in the game the manifold nexus so planet doesnt whine as much about my boreholes and even if it does my rovers get a bonus raping its minions.