Announcement

**Illuminatus** · November 13, 2005, 04:04

Units with blink displacer ability and native lifeforms bypass base defences.

**zarya** · November 13, 2005, 04:50

Thanks for your reply Illuminatus. But please correct me if I'm wrong - isn't blink displacer used to bypass your opponent's defences? I wasn't aware you could use it to substitute for defensive shields at your own bases.

But I will try using mind worms in my bases, just to try to even things up a bit while I struggle. I'd forgotten how good they can be in defence - I usually use them in attack, to soften up the enemy on the cheap.

In the long run I need a fix to get my shields working again. It just bugs me to have to build so many units to stay at home. Thanks though for the hints - certainly got me studying unit capabilities again!

**Senethro** · November 13, 2005, 05:42

Not quite what Illuminatus meant, there are plenty of things which, on the attack, ignore base defenses. All Psi attacks, all aerial attacks and the blink displacer's special ability.

Sitting in your base and waiting for the enemy to walk right up to you is not a good tactic. Instead of wasting all your money on expensive defenders and defenses build cheap Clean/Non-lethal Methods Scouts in your bases. Use the production saved by doing this to build 5 or 6 impact (or better) rovers without armour. Make a good road and sensor network and attack anyone before they reach your bases. At the same technology level attack is always twice as good as defense. Rovers and roads give you the ability to attack them without them being able to hit back.

All it needs to work is a little more attention and planning.

**Verrucosus** · November 13, 2005, 06:12

Hi, zarya,

That's a weird problem. You are correct about blink displacement. I think Illuminatus just mentioned it to indicate that there are some attackers that your defenses are not meant to work against. Are you very successful in avoiding wars, so your bases are attacked by mindworms only? That might be an explanation.

The only other thing I can think of is that when you have a lots of defense bonuses not all of them might be displayed in the readout. However, that would not explain why your defenders are trashed so quickly unless there are other factors.

If it is a bug, I'm at a loss. Base defenses are such an important aspect of organizing your defenses that this is a major annoyance. I hope you can find a fix.

Good luck and welcome to the forum! It's a little quiet around here at the moment because of Civ4, but SMAC has a special attraction that keeps people coming back.

Edit: I'd missed Senethro's post. I agree that defense facilities are less important once clean reactors are available. That may take some time, though (particularly when using blind research).

**zarya** · November 13, 2005, 06:13

Ok I think I see what you're getting at. You're saying that defensive shields are largely a waste of time because they are useless against so many types of attacker, is that right? Therefore I need one or two low-cost units as police per base and everything else I build should be assault?

I should add that at current level (3) SP I never attack first (mostly because I worry what it will do to my reputation and also because I'm yellow) but I see the point of having a force ready to go.

So I should treat this as an opportunity to learn to play a good game, rather than a disaster! I hope I interpreted this right ...

But still, you know, the principle of the thing - a broken game - bleaagh.

Cheers everyone

**zarya** · November 13, 2005, 06:31

Hi Verrucosus

I missed your reply as I was just posting the above - well I've just read it - well you know, I have a feeling you're absolutely right about the 'avoiding war' thing. And I'm beginning to feel like a complete idiot ......

Until people here pointed it out I hadn't figured that shields don't work against mind worms. And though I'm not very skilled, I have worked up a good build-and-appease-till-I'm-ready sort of game at level 3. So there I am the other week, tachyons in place, loads of choppers and enormous mindworms just hoping for someone to give them an excuse .... and a little mindworm takes exception to my crawlers and takes a pop at a base. And the tachyon doesn't work. And then it doesn't work again. And I don't wait for Yang to push my luck, I quit the game and start a new one. And then I notice my perimeters don't work when the mindworms come and I think, oh no .... broken game.

Probably only noticed it recently because the AI has generally sent an aggressor after me quite early on in past games - so yes I must be getting the hang of this particular game style. How I missed the mindworm thing up till now, I don't know.

I'm going back to my current game now to see if Miriam's infantry face a working perimeter defence! I will post to let you know. Glad I posted anyway, notwithstanding the red face, cos I learned quite a few good things and found out my game's probably not broken!

Thanks everyone

**Lazerus** · November 13, 2005, 06:32

What would you rather be; weak and noble, or unsurpassed and wicked ?

**Senethro** · November 13, 2005, 06:58

Originally posted by Lazerus
What would you rather be; weak and noble, or unsurpassed and wicked ?

That all depends if you're the good Chairman or Lal

We really need some SMAC specific smilies like leader portraits...

**Verrucosus** · November 13, 2005, 07:43

There's lots of stuff to discover about the game as you keep playing. A number of intricacies are not mentioned in the manual (which is still great, especially by today's standards). I don't believe the fact that perimeters don't work against mindworms is made explicit in the documentation. (However, Lady Deidre leaves little doubt about it in her voiceover for the perimeter defense.)

**Lazerus** · November 13, 2005, 07:59

for Yang since its the coolest heh

for Lal

for Morgan

Miriam

Sven

Santi

Zak

Aki

Deirdre

Domai
Running out of ideas now ... lol

Cult

Roze

**BlackCat** · November 13, 2005, 08:03

Actually, Childrens Creeche is the only facility that improves defense against MV's.

**BlackCat** · November 13, 2005, 08:05

Hminee

Marr

Edit: Forgot when talking about both :

**binTravkin** · November 13, 2005, 08:07

= Roze

Miriam rules!

**binTravkin** · November 13, 2005, 08:15

Actually, Childrens Creeche is the only facility that improves defense against MV's.

And even that - indirectly, by improving defender's morale.

Announcement

Help please - perimeters/tachyon fields don't work

Help please - perimeters/tachyon fields don't work

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