Actual effects of Bunkers

[Ned]

Originally posted by Rubin

Btw, didn't check the forest enhancement, since I play with a 1-1-0 forest production edit in my alpha.txt, which is the best thing that happened to my SMAC/X in the past years

Huh? What does this do and how does this help?

[Rubin]

Well Ned, it's just a simple edit in the alpha.txt making forest squares produce 1 nutrient, 1 mineral and NO energy (1-1-0). The default settings are 1-2-1.

Basically this makes forests less attractive, leaving room for more advanced terraforming - especially on arid worlds (=more fun IMHO).

... but I guess you already knew that! Sorry for being so unclear...

[Ned]

Rubin, This seems counter-intuitive. Most of us have been trying to figure out ways to get the AI to build forests. You, simply penalize them, forcing the human player elsewhere. Interesting.

[Googlie]

Ned:

Surely the reverse. If the AI won't build them, then make them less attractive for the human player to build - sorta levels the playing field - no?

G.

[Rubin]

Maybe I'm missing something, but:

1) I usually find myself planting forests everywhere (except on special resources and a few boreholes) ... building tree farms and hybrid forests. This makes terraforming a bit tedious, IMO. I feel that farms, solars and mines often comes in second compared to forests - and forests do not produce eco damage (I think).

2) The AI rarely plants forests in my games. So, I have to agree with Googlie. That is, to make forests less attractive to human players.

Now, if I could get the AI to plant forests and build those tree farms and hybrid forests, things would look different. But sadly I can't.

Ned, I believe you have a point that I'm completely missing ... maybe you could elaborate?!?

[Ned]

Originally posted by Rubin
Maybe I'm missing something, but:

1) I usually find myself planting forests everywhere (except on special resources and a few boreholes) ... building tree farms and hybrid forests. This makes terraforming a bit tedious, IMO. I feel that farms, solars and mines often comes in second compared to forests - and forests do not produce eco damage (I think).

2) The AI rarely plants forests in my games. So, I have to agree with Googlie. That is, to make forests less attractive to human players.

Now, if I could get the AI to plant forests and build those tree farms and hybrid forests, things would look different. But sadly I can't.

Ned, I believe you have a point that I'm completely missing ... maybe you could elaborate?!?

I actually have been fairly successful in getting the AI to build forests - try out some of the modification I have suggested heretofore. However, one normally has to do all the terraforming oneself simply because an automated former will not build forests. But, if one never builds forest, perhaps....

You know, the thing they really have to fix, both in SMACx and CIVIII is the automated former. It would be great if you could set rules for the former other than the ones they now provide, such as whether or not to plant fungus. As far as I can tell, no automated former of mine has ever build a single forest or borehole. Both, though , are the most desired type of terraforming.