Renegade Sensors

[Method]

Originally posted by Googlie
Following your post I opened my test scenario again, and placed a sensor array in the ocean and built a base over it.

No effect on defense at all, either air, sea or against amphibious units. Interestingly even a land-based sensor confers no defensive bonuses on units in a sea base.

that's right sea sensors sensor platforms, sonar bouys or whatever do no add any bonus to defence in the base, BUT they do still give you that +2 sighting radius thing which i find really useful. of course sensors only work inside your territory. to bad cause in a recent game as a custom faction from networknode, i didn't have any territory marking line thingys and so no sensors worked . i had sea sensors enabled, but after i got SMAX i never bothered to change that alphax text again.

[Googlie]

Fitz:

Update. In placing the sensor through the SE, the game doesn't know whose it is, even if a base is built on top of it, hence the defense bonus swithcing depending who was attacking and who defending.

But when I ran the scenario five or six turns, and built a sensor, the game recognized ownership (the "friendly" part of the alpha.txt I guess) and only conferred the bonus on the one faction, when defending, and didn't chnange alliegance when i switched sides and attacked from under the sensor.

LOL - I can rest easier now.

G.

[Scipio Centaurus]

Sensors have some hidden uses too. When another faction builds a sea base near you coastline and you want to get into a fracas with them w/o taking a diplo hit, just send a couple of formers over next to their sea base and build 2 or 3 sensor arrays right next to the base. The AI'll go crazy if you watch it too closely!

- Scipio

[Googlie]

Devious, Scipio - I never thought of that.

It's really annoying when the AI does that - and Sven is an awful offender. Short of Vendetta and taking out the base there's not much one can do.

(And I'm constantly tinkering with my base squares to ensure that I'm blocking his using of any ones that I've developed - but then the mindworms land, you lose that square for a turn while you deal with that threat and voila, he's now got a worker on your developed square)

That's when I usually go to war, but of course any pactmates he has will usually join in. I'll try your tactic next time.

Googlie

[Clear Skies]

I hate hate HATE when other factions found seabases right next to your land. However, I have found quite a useful way of stopping them.

In one of my most recent SP games I found both Domai and Lal persistently founding seabases next to the Monsoon Jungle. My response was neither to ignore them nor to declare Vendetta and take the bases out.

Instead I kept a stock of three IoDs in each of my two closest bases. Whenever Lal or Domai founded their bases, they began at size 1, completely undefended. I simply moved an IoD over right next to the base and released it into the wild! Next turn, IoD attacks, base is destroyed and IoD disappears without a trace! Easy!

[Googlie]

Good one S-F. That hadn't occurred to me either (not been a big builder of IoD's but I may have to rethink that !!)

G.

[Earwicker]

I've used the IoD or mindworm release program as a method of keeping AI Pactmates in line. Too often they will roll colony pods into an area I'm planning on developing (land) or a seapod too close to my own shores (where they will steal my terraforming and starve out my bases). Threats to make them surrender the base to me don't always work (uppity schlubs!), so I frequently left with no other recourse.

If they build a seabase up against a landmass you desire, don't worry. Just drop a colony pod onto the landmass, build a base of your own, and watch their seabase's production collapse for want of minerals.

[Bella Hella]

i love the IoD idea. how do you "release it into the wild?" i've never done that before. is it an option when you right-click, or is there a trick to it?

brilliant idea! simply brilliant.

[Scipio Centaurus]

Originally posted by Earwicker
I've used the IoD or mindworm release program as a method of keeping AI Pactmates in line. Too often they will roll colony pods into an area I'm planning on developing (land) or a seapod too close to my own shores (where they will steal my terraforming and starve out my bases). Threats to make them surrender the base to me don't always work (uppity schlubs!), so I frequently left with no other recourse.

Do you release a MW/IoD by moving it into opposition territory and 'transfering control' from the Actions menu, like a regular unit transfer?

If they build a seabase up against a landmass you desire, don't worry. Just drop a colony pod onto the landmass, build a base of your own, and watch their seabase's production collapse for want of minerals.

Yep. Done that too. Only problem is the competition for resources cuts both ways, since i normally terraform the ocean shelf tiles near my coastal bases.

- Scipio

[Clear Skies]

Originally posted by Bella Hella
i love the IoD idea. how do you "release it into the wild?" i've never done that before. is it an option when you right-click, or is there a trick to it?

brilliant idea! simply brilliant.

Simply move the IoD to wherever you want to release it, hold down Ctrl and Shift and press U. When the dialogue box pops up, simply select the 'release mind worms into wild' option.

Don't know if it works on Vanilla SMAC, but I know for certain that it works on SMAX. I reckon I've 'destroyed' about seven bases per game with this tactic.