Base location and special resources

[Viriato]

Some people say that bases should be placed on top of a special resource. Others say that it wouldn't be as efficient as placing bases next to the special resources and using workers and crawlers to collect them.
What do you think of this?

[Vi Vicdi]

Early-game restrictions do not apply to bases or special resources; consequently to get both advantages you should not build bases directly on special resource sites.

Furthermore land-based nutrient resources are best exploited via condenser at any point in the game.

None of what I said seems to apply to sea-based nutrient specials -- you'll have Gene Splicing before you start building sea colonies -- so I guess I wouldn't have any problem theoretically with building on those.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Vi,

Excellent points on specials. To further clarify, the restrictions are lifted for particular special only. Therefore if you have an energy special it will allow energy to be recovered from the square in question above the 2 limit prior to tree farm. However for the same square, it will not allow minerals or nutrients to be recovered in excess of 2 prior to restrictions being lifted. So for example if you decided to borehole that energy special, the square would net you a 2 mineral(until mineral restrictions lifted then 6) and 8 energy resources.

Nutrient specials in ocean squares do work the same way and if kelp farm is planted will net 5 nutrients (3 for kelp and 2 for special) prior to gene splice (nutrient lifted). Actually 6 nutrients if you bother to build aquafarms. Vi perhaps you ran into the problem where the nutrient was amidst fungus and as a result didn't notice the effect.

[zsozso]

I would add, that it also depends on other properties of the given tile. E.g.

1. I will go for farming/condensering a nut special on a rainy or at least moist square. But if the square is arid, then I put a base on top.

2. I borehole mineral or energy specials on low altitude wherever it is allowed.

3. Mineral special on slope gets mine+road if rocky, base if flat. If rolling, it depends on other factors (e.g. city arrangement around)

4. Energy special on slope gets base on low altitude solar collector on high altitude.

Of course, there are always exceptions and special circumstances, but these are my rules of thumb.

[David Byron]

Building a base on a nutrient special early on allows you to build a high production (12 or 14) center for early SPs. Otherwise don't bother.

[Viriato]

Thanks for the replies .

[Lord Maxwell]

If you play with tech stagnation, and you got the WP I'd say that you could go through quite some pains to be able to borehole every single mineral and energy special.
With the special you get 8 of that resource out of a borehole. (As specials allows you to get the full amount out of a square even with restrictions still enforced.)
So, if you play with tech stagnation, or you are yang/miriam then raise/lower terrain to get that all important borehole in place.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Zsozso,

re: arid Nutrient specials. Why do you build a base on it? My usual preference in this situation would be to work it after I have forested it. Is it b/c you normally like to make a science city by removing workers from the field and making them all specialists hence the need for less crawlers bringing in food?

Just curious.

[zsozso]

Ogie,

If you forest it, it gives you 3 nuts and 2 mins and you must work it - locking down a worker, which only feeds half of another. If you put the base on it, that will feed a full extra worker, i.e. your base now produces 4 nuts feeding 2 workers who work on borehole or rocky/mine/road or feed 4 workers working on forests. Your net mineral and energy income is equivalent OR higher with the base on top:

Your forest solution: locks down a worker who can only feed an extra forest-worker, i.e. you get 4 mins from the 2 forests and no excess nuts.

Base on top solution: the base can feed 2 extra forests giving you the same 4 mins and same energy too, OR you can choose to work a borehole with the extra worker fed giving you 6 mins + 6 energy (unless it is also a mineral or energy special).

Zsozso

[DilithiumDad]

Depends on faction, too. For factions that can't pop boom (Yang and Morgan), building a base on top of a nutrient bonus may be the best way to expot the resource.

FOr mineral bonus on a rocky square, always build a mine (7 mineral) or a borehole.

------------------
Creator of the Ultimate Builder Map, based on the Huge Map of Planet

[ChrisShaffer]

Yang and Morgan can pop boom. It isn't as easy as it is for the others, but Democracy or Planned plus a high Psych rating will definitely do it.

[Buddha]

One of the recent versions allows both to pop boom- with Golden age.
Golden Age works only for bases size 4 or greater with at least half their population talents. Combine this with a creche and
Demo for Morgan or Planned for Yang
And your base will have total +6 growth, meaning pop boom. For the pop boom to actually enlarge your population you need +2 excess nutrients being produced at that base.

Turn 1.- base converts a few workers to doctors

Turn 2.- If all criteria are met, no drones, 4+ people, and half population talents then base displays "golden age begun" message

Turn 3.- If base has a creche and the factions SE is demo or planned and the base is still in a golden age AND it is making 2 extra food then population grows by 1 point.

I forest the nutrient resources, because with a Hybrid forest thats 5-2-2, a lot better than a condenser+ Farm would produce. If you space your cities closely together then you can share this extra food, a base can use it to leap to full size, then let another base use it. Or you can use crawlers.

I build a lot of crawlers taking in minerals early on, then once that base has heavy infrastructure I switch those crawlers to food and pop boom to maximum. Then switch crawlers back to minerals.

[Vi Vicdi]

Ogie:

I do understand the rules of the game. However, it is very rare to have sea bases before the discovery of Gene Splicing. This mitigates the rule "don't build on specials because of the restrictions" -- what are the odds you'll have sea bases before Gene Splicing? (Well, okay, there are the Pirates ...)

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Vi,

Humble apologies. Didn't mean to offend and I do realize you are an accomplished player. (vis-a-vis the Morgan challenge no less)

Sea nutrient squares however can be extremely useful inearly game for the coastal cities on your home continent. Send out a sea former and set down kelp ASAP.

[Vi Vicdi]

The yucky part is when so-called "pact brothers" steal your territory by building sea bases right off your coast.

You can demand the base be given to you, of course, or trade it for another, but any way you look at it it's a raw deal. The territorial rules just aren't tight enough.