A thing I never understood in SMAC

[Illuminatus]

I am a bit embarrased , but can anyone explain me the art of destroying enemy units with selfdistruct?
Whenever I selfdestruct chosen unit, it does not damage enemy units on nearby squares.
So how do you exactly then damage units on nearby squares?

[Barinthus]

IIRC there's a difference between using the key shortcut and menu command. One works and other doesn't in terms of blowing up things. Have you tried both?

[Illuminatus]

Obviously not. I only use key commands. Is that the matter?

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

First off you need to ensure you have a uit with minimally a weapon strength of 2 in order to cause any damage.

Secondly self destructed units will not harm units inside a base.

Thirdly, sometimes the graphics don't reset and the unit appears to still be there. If you run a unit by it the affected unit will be damaged or destroyed (dpending on the amount doled out to it).

4thly no transport or probe teams as they have no weapon strength.

Finally what DataAeolus said.

[Illuminatus]

So blowing up garrison outside base will have no effect then? I must try difference between key and menu commands.

[Dis]

never tried that.

Is it just weapon strenght or does reactor size also matter? Say like having a fusion over a fission reactor for instance.

[GeoModder]

reactor size should matter I think, the higher reactor rating, the more hitpoints. But if only the weapon strength is taken into account for damage, then not.

[Flubber]

IIRC the hitpoints of damage inflicted equals

weapon /2 multiplied by reactor strength

I believe the result is rounded down as destructing a scout inflicts no damage but I have not tested this

Of course any unit with a weapon of 20 will completely destroy any unit of equal or lesser reactor strength and a shard chopper with fusion decimates any fission unit in the game

[GeoModder]

Actually, then you could selfdestruct a Planet Buster near a stack of quantum units and have them more or less eradicated?

[Flubber]

Originally posted by GeoModder
Actually, then you could selfdestruct a Planet Buster near a stack of quantum units and have them more or less eradicated?

INteresting-- I have never tried to self-destruct a Planet Buster-- If it works it might get around ODP and flechetter defenses but of course, nothing inside a base would be harmed.

Its a cute idea but in the later game, I don't believe you see very many big stacks of ground units anyway

[Snowflake]

I remember reading the idea of self-destruct PB before. The idea is that PB must hit a unit to detonate, so a strategy against PBs is to empty the base and clear the area near the base. But then there's suggestion that one can self-destruct PB. But I also heard that this does not work. I have never tried it myself.

[GeoModder]

But if missiles can selfdestruct, why shouldn't PB's be able to do the same?

It does not detonate as a buster then, but only 'damaging' the units in open tiles around. Thus creating a lot of havoc with it's 99 attack weapon, without causing an atrocity.

[Trithemius]

Originally posted by GeoModder
But if missiles can selfdestruct, why shouldn't PB's be able to do the same?

It does not detonate as a buster then, but only 'damaging' the units in open tiles around. Thus creating a lot of havoc with it's 99 attack weapon, without causing an atrocity.

So would a self-destructing Singularity Planetbuster do 198 hitpoints of damage to adjacent units? Wow.

[GeoModder]

That's the idea, an my hope

That way it has two purposes, from which one wouldn't be an atrocity.

[Trithemius]

Originally posted by GeoModder
That's the idea, an my hope
That way it has two purposes, from which one wouldn't be an atrocity.

Does it damage units in bases? If not then it could be a horrible, if costly, "point-defence" for dealing with massed attackers with air-cover.