How do I ditch the Aliens?

[Marid Audran]

Hmmm? The short of it is that I own SMAX and love the enchancements, but I've quickly tired of those boorish, curmudgeony trolls who do nothing but cramp up a good, modified-rules builder game. So during a new game with random factions, how do I remove the chance of the Caretakers and the Usurpers showing up?

[Bella Hella]

you can go into terranx.txt and delete the usurpers and the caretakers from the factions (near the bottom of the file), or you can just pick the other factions yourself (wouldn't be random but you'd definitely avoid the aliens that way).

the terranx file should be in c:/program files/sid meier's alpha centauri

HTH!

[Marid Audran]

If you're referring to the #NewFactions list in the alphax.txt file, I did try deleting them, but it screws up the start of the game when the faction selection screen shows up (it locks up). Is there no other way? Or will I simply have to manually select them each time?

[Scipio Centaurus]

Did you replace the alien factions with 2 other factions [in alphax.txt]? Maybe copies of 2 factions already in the list or 2 brand new factions? I'm not sure if this will fix the problem, since the terranx.exe engine has a special routine to handle the insertion of the aliens during gameplay. It may get 'confused' if it can't find at least 1 of the alien factions.

Good luck.

- Scipio

[Bella Hella]

heh heh.... well, it looks like i don't know what i'm talking about.



i WAS referring to the newfactions list - sorry it didn't work. listen to scipio - sounds like he's knowledgable about this.

[Googlie]

OK - here's how to ditch the Alien factions:

Go to Rynn's Gallery:

http://googlie2.tripod.com/rynnsgallery/id7.html

and download the 2 non-pirate zip files and unzip them into your sid meier's alpha centauri folders. they are the faction files for two cloned factions - the Academy, a clone of the UoP, and the Workers, a Drone Clone

Now open up alphax.txt and right near the end is the #NEWFACTION list of the seven smax factions

delete

CARETAKE, CARETAKE
USURPER, USURPER

add:

WORKERS, WORKERS
ACADEMY, ACADEMY

Now when you choose "random all factions" on start up you'll get no aliens (i.e. hit the top right of the graphic where it will display "mix of original and new factions").

Note though that if you get pbems to play with the alien factions in them your graphics will bomb due to the "phantom faction' problem. To remedy this, before you open that PBEM turn add back into your alphax.txt, right below the #CUSTOMFACTIONS the two lines you have deleted (but delete them after the turn otherwise they will again become available for the game to choose when you randomize factions at the start).

If you have enough free space on your hard drive, you might want to completely copy to anither folder the whole smac/x directory, then you can label one terranx.exe the "no-alien" one and keep the other traditional.

Googlie

[RobN]

Just choose the factions yourself. Find a way to select them randomly, minus the Aliens of course.

[Marid Audran]

You were right Scopio, and you Googie, providing the details on the matter. Thanks a bunch for getting me out of the bind!

[Gaius Marius]

Originally posted by RobN
Just choose the factions yourself. Find a way to select them randomly, minus the Aliens of course.

This was my first reaction - some variation on names from a hat - but part of the fun of random factions is not knowing who you are facing. Unless you got someone else to choose, you'd know ahead of time (closing eyes and clicking randomly aside, but you might randomly click those damn aliens.)

[Ned]

Why don't you just start a game with random factions. If, after 10 moves you have yet to see the arrival of the aliens, then you have all human factions.

Otherwise, just restart and try again.

Ned

[Basilisk]

But that'd jsut take so long! Imagine if the Aliens were in the game say ten times in a row!

[Deimos]

You don't need to play 10 turns, or even 1 for that matter.

Start the game, and as soon as your turn begins hit F1 and click on the "Factions" button. That will tell you who is in the game.

Then if the Aliens are there, ctrl-shift-q and choose "Quick Start". That will start a new game with the same paramaters that your previous one had, but since you chose "Random" for the factions, they'll be randomly picked again for the new game.

[Yxklyx]

I tried those two new clone factions but when I select the Academy in the start up window the text has garbage. Should the two new factions be using pictures of the Morgan and Domai?