The Planet Buster

[Sith123]

well here's what was goin on. Say I've just nuked one of yangs bases, and a base on the coast is turned into an island. It's got the usual things on the one said (like kelp farms, mining platforms, tidal harnesses, and what not), and these things are in the tile right next to the base. When I smoke the base with the nuke, the base is gone.....and other cities around it as well as units.....but the improvements are still there.

And ya...I'm willing to use PB's....it's great..I captured a base with a PB in it, deep in yangs territory (god I love orbital drop pods), and then nuked him again and again..turning lots of bases into ocean bases, that I then capture with my fleet (I've got cruisers, with probability sheath or armor or w/e, and the best guns etc...and yang's still using foils with some pretty low tech stuff, so it's no problem)

I think my PB count is now 13 with 23 cities nuked.
muwahahahahahahaha

[Silence]

I had a game I just got done with where I was the Lord Believers and due to me having the Gaians and the Morgans as my ***** states, I had had technology and money lead on everybody, but the Spartans were to heavly defend on their massaive landmass on the north for me to do anything.

The land was a landmas directly north of my large one, and a medium sized one wedge inbetween me and the spartans that housed yang, and a connector between the Spartans to the Morgan landmass, well needless to say after I was using Morgan as a springboard I got PB technology and had one of my meduim sized bases build one, I built it as soon as I got quatnum tech and I took out the spartan base that had most of their SP's in it screwing them over. Then I got the Singularty reactor and I built 3 of them destroying 8/10ths of the Spartan holdings and went in and mopping them up, then during the middile of this Santigo launches a PB one of my bases but I had a orbital defense pod which stoped it. While I am mopping up the Spartans Morgan pops a fusion one on Hive terriorty.

Next thing I know I am fighting hordes of Demon bole mindworms everywhere.

[Yxklyx]

Years ago when I started playing I remember many a game where planet busters flew all over the place. Either the game changed or my play style changed because I can usually now control the situation (i.e. atrocity vote).

[Sith123]

I find PB's useful in some cases.

Like for instance (this has happened twice now), one of my enemies had a HUGE airforce (like 30 fighters I think) and I had to watch them go to one base. BUT as soon as they landed, I threw a PB up their ass and voila...no more huge enemy air force.

(btw is there any way to avoid watching the computer's units moving??)
((and yes, I know holding down shift speeds it up...but still...ya know))

[Shai-Hulud]

I think my PB count is now 13 with 23 cities nuked.

Yeah, keep doing the good work (You need help!)

but the Spartans were to heavly defend on their massaive landmass on the north for me to do anything.

Nothing is enough well defended for the warriors of faith. I sweep the planet when playing Believers

one of my enemies had a HUGE airforce (like 30 fighters I think) and I had to watch them go to one base

Despite of AI having a huge air forces, they're pretty helpless since they don't seem to use them(!) I was once in war with my self made faction which had 50+ needlejets and they didn't even tried to make an offense....this brings back memories...I once intercepted a fleet of over 20 Gaian aicrafts en route to their base. Shot them all down of course

(btw is there any way to avoid watching the computer's units moving??)

Nooo!
I thought I had already forgotten CTP2 . After building that idiotic surveillance satellite project I had to watch AI move their units around for hours without any reason. They weren't even in war with anyone! Who programmed that crap...confess

[Yxklyx]

Can a Human faction use Planet Busters against an Alien faction without all other Human factions declaring Vendetta on them or does the Atrocity Ban have to be lifted first? Also, playing as an Alien I just dropped a Planet Buster on The Hive (he was building one himself) and all Human factions declared Vendetta against me. Does this always happen? What if the Atrocity Ban is lifted (though there's no way the Alien player can know if it has been lifted until after the bombs start falling)?

[Adalbertus]

I just happened to try this yesterday (after saving the game, didn't want to continue with a bustered poor Marr), and, yes, the other humans declare war if they still hadn't. It was an SP game transcend, random factions, except mine.

[optimus2861]

Originally posted by Shai-Hulud
After building that idiotic surveillance satellite project I had to watch AI move their units around for hours without any reason.

Have you tried the "Don't center map on units with orders" option? This one is the grand-daddy time-saver for the mid-game and beyond, when AI units start roaming all over the place. Simply position the map where there's few units before ending your turn, and you won't have to see any units moving except for those that fight your units.

Unfortunately I seem to be experiencing some crashes now, but I don't know if it's this option or something else I've done to my system . (Athlon 900MHz, 256MB, both recent upgrades)

[Earwicker]

Against the AI I always build at least two PB's but don't plan to use them. Deterrence seems very effective. Well, deterrence and a determined effort to prevent any hostile faction from building its own PB.

Generally, I will pass up OSF in favor of several other techs that are available around the same time (so I can get fusion, Supercollider, tachyon weapons/ TOE - then I go for orbitals). Especially if I don't have the HSA - seems to AI will automatically steal the tech you least want them to have.

[Clear Skies]

I tend to build one or maybe two at most - the AI seems to be a lot less ready to attack you if you have a PB handy. However, I've never actually used one since my very early games - I remember nuking Yang into a tiny pile of radioactive dust.
Mind you, even then I only ever used them when I had a big enemy whom I couldn't be bothered destroying base-by-base (usually Yang or Zak).

[Shai-Hulud]

Have you tried the "Don't center map on units with orders" option?

Well, thanks, never thought of that. Although the chances I'll get back to CTP2 are almost unexistent. Had some nice feature, and other ones just sucked. It...annoys me greatly to see potential spoiled.

...I had a big enemy whom I couldn't be bothered destroying base-by-base (usually Yang or Zak).

Does the University actually grow big? When, where? I don't remember that happening, ever. It just seems that some factions stay small no matter what. University being one of them.