Sparta the Builder

[Hydro]

The difference may be that I don't use directed research. One of the joys of random or semi-directed research is that you don't get exactly what you want when you want it. Plus, I like to shoot for the Empath Guild – so Centauri Empathy (which yields both Green SE and empath for foils) may not be at the top but it is near the top of my research priority list.

Moreover, if you link a bunch of artifacts you'll get lots of random techs. In the early game this is, I would argue, hugely valuable since tech rates haven’t matured and a few artifacts can shave decades off your research queue. Combine that with probing and tech trading and you can quickly get a position of dominance.

Also, artifacts that yield 50 mins toward a Project is also huge before crawlers are judiciously deployed and bases are big enough to have a large mineral production. Snagging a key SP can change your game. Later in the game it is much less important, of course, since 1 artifact may only net you 3 turns of mineral production. That is another reason why I hold off on popping sea pods – artifacts are so much better, even if they are rather rare.

Hydro

[McLaine]

As I hinted elsewhere in this forum, for me the way to victorious Spartans is based on the following things:

1) Exapnd as fast as you can, especially take to the sea using sea colony pods (yes, I know you don't like sea bases). Bribe AIs to stay ay peace if you must. Work the surrounding squares with formers to make up for your -1 on production.

2) Make Green/Science your priority. Green makes you friends with Deirdre who wil sometimes just give you a tech and allows you to capture mind worms. Science makes sure you get better weapons.

3) At some point war will be unavaoidable so start building an army once you have about double the nr of bases of your largest opponent. Aggressively hunt for pods around the globe especially at sea; if they don't give you tech, minerals or money then they are infested. All the better; attack and either you get money from the husk pearls or you'll capture the isale of the deep (with some mind worms on it) and you get a fre army.

4) Try to become elected... that gives you details on the enemy and extra money.

5) As soon as you have switched to science, build some probe teams as defense. Try to build a probe skimship - always fun to set factions up against each other later on in the game, it keeps them away from you. Also build the hunter-seeker as soon as you can.

6) Of course, always trade tech. Except with Myriam and Yang. This is especially important in the beginning of the game.

[Darrell01]

I remember one game in SMAniaC I played the Spartan builder. I ran Federal Police State/Federal Democracy, depending on how much tech I needed. I also ran a Private/Free Trade economy pretty much exclusively if I could. I also ran the Protectionist version first because I had to. I ran Junta so that I could have a buncha units in my base fending off worm attacks, hunting planet pearls and quelling good for almost nothing drones. At least they work... I also ran Green for less drone activity and more mindworms. Now, you might say, WOW! That's a -5 Industry! How did you manage to be a builder? Well Sparta already gets a -1 Industry. I just used it to my advantage. Once you hit -3... the rest do not matter. Also, to get the +Industry in SMAniaC, you have to take some very large hits elsewhere. I hate taking the moral hit. I like having +1 movement on most or all of my units. Can't do wealth anyway with Sparta. So I get the many units to police, explore, terraform boreholes, etc... So then instead of building rec commons, I could build (1-1-1 Non Lethal) when I needed them and not worry about the money cost of a rec commons. Less rows too... With that money, I could reinvest it into my own economy and build things like energy banks, tree farms, wonders... Also, having so many military tended to keep the AI off my back as I am a PvEnvironment player.

[Maniac]

Yeah I kinda consider that negative Industry limit a hidden bonus for the Spartans.

[Hydro]

Darrell01 - I applaud that you see advantage in SMAniaC SE. In some of my SMAniaC games (like my current PBEM) I feel trapped by old paradigms, with crippling results. In your place I would be horrified at -5 Industry.

My Morgan is running Unitary/Private-Protectionist (others aren't available)/Techno/Green. My empire is small (8 bases size 3-4 bases in 2206), industrial production crippled, and tech rate good - but what good is all the tech if you don't have the minerals to make use of it? I've failed to 'get' Morgan in SMAniaC and the Templar (the other PBEM player) own Chiron. **sigh**

I'd concede but I'll give MasterBuilder his due so he can crush me (that won't be hard). He saw advantage in the Templar when I dismissed them, and has used the SE of SMAniaC masterfully. He deserves the win.

Hydro

[Darrell01]

Hydro - When I play Morgan, much of the time I'll hit Police State for my expansion. Morganites do not like to get out of the hab facilities if they don't have to. Sometimes it takes the pointy end of a needler to get them to go and help out the new base. The support costs are too crippling in the beginning for me to not be police or power till I can get up a crawler farm of some sort. I'm PvEnvironment, so take my advice with a bit of salt.

[Hydro]

Darrell01,

The -2 Support of Morgan in SMAniaC is crippling - no 10 free mins when you establish a base. That really hurts in the beginning, as does having only 1 free unit with the rest taking away mins. If you go to Prot/FM you get additional support penalties so every unit requires support.

When you get crawlers or get bigger this is not an issue. The problem is how to keep from being so handicapped that your competitors eat you alive.

I'd considered with PS, but the -3 Research was a blow. Plus, it came after almost all of my expansion was done. Taking Protectionist/FM means I have -1Talent, so my size 1 bases immediately rioted when I established my 9th base - further crippling production (zero growth, no mineral production, and no free mins to rush build anything).

Junta with +2 Support is an option. Perhaps my best bet was PS/Protectionist-FM/Junta/Green?

It is academic now, though. In the PBEM my competitor just finished conquering the PKs, has the Republic as a vassal, crushed the Hive, and will be rolling into the Empaths (and getting the Jungle when the do) soon. The A-not-I is only building 1-1-1 so being a Momentum player is easy.

Anyway, this does show I need to be more flexible and bend my SE to the situation. Or I just need to be smarter in choosing my faction.

What is PvEnvironment?

Thx!
Hydro

[Darrell01]

PvP = Player vs Player
PvE = Player vs Environment

This is used to distinguish different games, especially where you can play versus other player, but you do not have to. Typically playing with strengths versus the environment is very different than playing against another human opponent.

Also, I cheat a lot. I like to build wonders at normal facility cost...
Yes... I am evil.

[vyeh]

Originally posted by Darrell01
so, I cheat a lot. I like to build wonders at normal facility cost...

I am aware of

(1) Upgrading crawlers into crawlers with extreme attributes (armor, special abilities) cheaply, then cashing in the crawlers for SP's;

(2) Changing industry by changing SE's to get SP's and facilities cheaply; and

(3) Changing alphax.txt to remove the penalty for switching productions;

but I'm not sure what you mean by building wonders and normal facility cost.

Do you modify the alphax.txt file to make them cheaper?

[Darrell01]

Vyeh- Well this is a little off topic for this thread, so I'll just link you this as a teaser of me mentioning the cheat and this thread of me talking about my favorite exploit. Its on page four. I am warning you, these exploits are not elsewhere as far as I can tell and if you use them, they will cripple your game cause you will get soft. Happy Spartan Builder.

On topic, I think I've used the Free Market Spartan economy when I needed to have air vs ground units. I'm not one for having a base with pop 1 (low) and homing every clean air unit there, but that's just me.