Cornering Energy Market

[Yxklyx]

I cornered the market for the first time with SMAX and I think I found a bug here. It only cost me a little over 4000 and that seems way too low - I reloaded a save from a few turns earlier and it wanted more, 8000 - but that was earlier. I thought the value was based on the amount needed to subvert all bases. I remember when playing SMAC that the value was usually in the tens of thousands. The total population in the game at the time was about 400.

[fluffy]

hmm, usually with SMAX I get quoted a figure in the 100s of thousands - how many enemy bases did you have in your game (the price is related to this)?

[Yxklyx]

I was playing Morgan and had only captured something like 7 enemy bases. Maybe the requirement was less because I was ahead in tech? When I tried to mind control a base around the same time it wanted 1000 just for that one base - I have no idea why the requirement was so low and it's odd that the price went DOWN over time. Maybe there were a ton of bases that had drone riots at the time? I did not have the HSA SP at the time. Is the value so high that it's rolling over?

[spartak]

Hard to say really. Its hard to differentiate between a design feature and bug sometimes.

[k.k.fly]

actually now i think cornering energy market is possible, espeically when you build lots and lots of +1 energy thingy

and evenutally you can just buy production for +1 energy thingy.

[Yxklyx]

What's a "+1 Energy Thingy"?

[Fitz]

He means having a +2 Economy rating, which gives you +1 energy per worked square.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Fitz it could be +2 econ or...


Maybe Merchant Exchange (but thats only one thingy)


or...

Since he refer to lots of +1 energy thingy's he is probably refering to one or both of the following:

Thermocline Transducers or Energy Sats.


Cheerfully,

Og's translation service

[Yxklyx]

None of this explains why it only cost me a mere 4000 to corner the energy martket. Transcend, normal size world. World pop of 400-500...

[Yxklyx]

I have a save, I am Morgan:

Year: 2366
Miriam 127 votes, 68 treasury - vendetta
Governor Sven 192 votes, 466 treasury - treaty
Zak 112 votes (with Empath Guild), unknown treasury - treaty
Dawn 20 votes, 20 treasury - submissive
Morgan 204 votes, 3896 treasury

Commerce Rating: 9; Demo/Free Market/Wealth

Transcend, Normal Size

5 Orbital Power Transmitters - 31 probe teams
Planetary Energy Grid
Planetary Transit System

Cost to mind control Dry Dock (pop 11) is 3570
Morgan has captured 3 Cult, 2 Pirate, 1 Believer Base

COST TO CORNER THE WORLD MARKET: 3952!

Maybe the Planetary Energy Grid (which is new with SMAX) has a large effect on the COST needed? Maybe the University's Hunter Seeker Algorithm is screwing things up?

I did some more testing, if I give away one of my pop 12 bases the COST increases by 20 or so. If I give the base to my submissive the COST does not go up. If I declare Vendetta against a faction the COST goes up by 500 to 1000.

[Fitz]

Have you been playing around with your txt files, you naughty boy? Seriously, I don't know if there is a swithc in the txt files, but if have been moding them, you should double check what you've done. That's the only thing that makes sense for me.

Thanks Ogie. I guess your translation service is gives far superior quality of service compared to mine.

[Yxklyx]

Nope, no mods; don't even know where to look for the files. How about the year? Is that earlier than normal - maybe there's a year modifier?

[Mongoose]

I believe your commerce rating has a large effect on the total cost. Had you discovered a 'commerce tech' between the first, more expensive, attempt and the second? That could explain the direction of change in cost.

After three years, I STILL don't know how the cost is actually determined.

[Vytae]

I only have SMAC and i used to corner the market all the time as Morgan a few things i have 'sorta' tested

-the more +Economy you have the cheaper it is
-the more built up bases there is the more exspensive it is (that includes other factions bases of course)
-the weaker the economic might of opposing factions the cheaper it is
-the amount of credits opposing factions have varies it (although since AI factions rarely have any this hardly comes into effect)
- fewer factions left alive have a large effect on the cheapness

The most i have ever seen an economic victory was 80k cost (i had 200k in treasury =D dont ask~) cheapest ive seen is 6k

Those arent hard boiled facts just things ive noticed,i havent come across any formula for ecnomic victory in any of the .txt's

[k.k.fly]

no, i meant by +1 thingy is the satellite thingy. haha sorry, sometimes i have no access to the game nor the manual when i write messages.