What is ICS and why is it so good?

[redazncommieDXP]

I've been playing SP SMACX forever, and I've never heard of this. I thought I was pretty good, too. Please enlighten me.

[fender]

It stands for ICS - Infinite City Strategy. (Found as many bases as possible, don't care too much for development)

There is a thred about it called What's your ICS priority? I have never used it so a can't really tell you it's good or bad points. It does seem to quite popular though.

[smacksim]

ICS is Infinite City Sprawl. A technique for indefinate expansion and population booming (usually). Do a search please. There are many threads devoted to ICS. You could bump one that seems really good or link back to it here when you have an answer. I don't mean to sound dictatorial or anything, but if the answer is out there, it's worth doing a search. ICS is definately out there in the huge history of discussion. -S

[Whoha]

Just look at skanky's screenshot in the ics thread, its as good a primer as anything else.

[Skanky Burns]

Do a search for "infinite city". As you can see from replies 1 and 2, the S part of ICS stands for quite a few different things, while ICS itself is too short of the search algorithm to use.

Here is ICS in all its hideous glory!


Please note that I'm not a good player, and ICSing like this should have me well ahead of where I am now. Sats are quite valuable in this type of strat.

[redazncommieDXP]

you have quite an ugly empire

[Chaos Theory]

ICS allows you to have more population than otherwise possible, and lets you take greater advantage of anything that grants a bonus to every base, including SPs, satellites, faction abilities, high economy, support per base, and the free production of the base tile.

Furthermore, it's easier to control two drones in each base with rec commons than it is to control ten drones in 1/5 as many bases. Keeping bases closer to your HQ cuts down on inefficiency. Keeping bases close to each other makes them harder to conquer, but easier to planet buster.

[binTravkin]

you have quite an ugly empire

Here, in our smac/x -er community a pic like this is considered pretty rather than ugly!

[Chaunk]

Nope that's ugly IMHO. I'd much rather see a smaller number of size 11-14 bases supporting a few specialists and a large mins + energy out put than that monstrosity.

[Whoha]

Originally posted by redazncommieDXP
you have quite an ugly empire

beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

[Snowflake]

It is ugly. Yes it is ugly.

Even if it might be effecient nobody can argue that it is anything but pretty.

ICS is very useful, especially for Yang and Dee. I love ICS too but I don't think I can live with this kind of ugliness.

[jtsisyoda]

Ugly, pretty, who cares?! Your aesthetics hinder your pursuit of complete domination!

As computer chess programs have taught us, sometimes the best move is not the prettiest.

I admit, though, I play chess and SMAX to "create" as much as to win.

[Dis]

ahh if I had a nickel every time someone asked that question.


well.... I'd have a few dollars by now

[Dis]

Originally posted by Skanky Burns
Do a search for "infinite city". As you can see from replies 1 and 2, the S part of ICS stands for quite a few different things, while ICS itself is too short of the search algorithm to use.

Here is ICS in all its hideous glory!


Please note that I'm not a good player, and ICSing like this should have me well ahead of where I am now. Sats are quite valuable in this type of strat.

That's the ugliest thing I have ever seen. It's such a mess, I don't think I could effectively manage it. I can't tell what's what.

[khslinky]

Originally posted by Chaunk
Nope that's ugly IMHO. I'd much rather see a smaller number of size 11-14 bases supporting a few specialists

What I don't understand is why more of those bases aren't supporting specialists. If each one has recycling tanks and crawls two condenser farms, that's enough nuts for a (specialist-allowing) population of five. Each base can have a worker on a borehole and four thinkers or engineers.