ACDG6: Intelligence

[vyeh]

This is the diplomatic and probe strategy thread for Alpha Centauri Democracy Game 6 ("ACDG6"). Demo players may post in this thread.

Please post comments and questions on the game organization thread.

We are currently have pacts with the Consciousness and the Angels.

We have a treaty with the Atlanteans.

We have a truce with the Ghosts, which we have infiltrated.

We have vendettas with the Cult and the Templars.

[vyeh]

We may be very close to Zero Point Energy. Applied Plasma Physics is already researched by Cycon and Ghosts. I would attempt to get this tech first by trade, then probing. The question is, whom we probe?

Cycon - having pact, we might go to Treay, Truce or Vendetta, while Aki is noncommittal, I'm not sure how it would actually end. We will loose Pacted benefits though.
Ghosts - probably for sure vendetta. Their land forces are not strong, and for now we do not compete on sea. But any landing of Ghosts on our coast may be dangerous.

...

And maybe other factions have it too, we need to infiltrate more, Atlanteans? Sometimes, there is a way to find it without infilration.

The problem is that applied plasma physics allows one to build the supercollider. Other factions are often reluctant to trade a tech that builds a secret project.

With probing, the tech we get is random. Both the Ghosts and Consciousness have 2 techs we don't have.

The Ghost only has one land base. A skimship probe costs 5 mineral rows and would take awhile to build.

If we went to vendetta with the Ghost, their sea forces could bombard improvements. And a resonance laser squad (6r-1-1) is only two rows. The Ghost land base could crank these out and force us to divert resources from development.

Infiltrating the Atlanteans would require a skimship probe, which is expensive.

[Mart]

We can also build cheap 6r artillery, infantry, and get maybe 2 6r rovers with a land transport to better deal with such issues. Not that expensive for us too.
But I agree, the risk is significant. Do we want to take it?

I would try this. I would prepare one land probe ready to probe a land base and build one foil probe in time before we get applied plasma physics researched, then try getting from Ghosts both techs.

We would need analysis though with new techs offered for both cases, we get APP first or second, quite possible, one of them will not give us Zero point energy offered.

Another option is to not anger Ghosts, we may very well still terraform tiles to better use our energy limit. But then again, maybe Ghosts meanwhile declare vendetta? Delan is seething. So having both probes ready to strike may be a good idea.

Any thoughts?

[vyeh]

If we acquire applied plasma physics without acquiring any other tech, our tech choices will be know-how: sea power, retroviral geneering, long range missiles and military doctrine.

Zero point energy will not be available as a choice unless we acquire one or two other techs before we make the next directed research tech choice.

[Mart]

It's actually better then, we can just probe all techs from Ghosts, even when they get a third one we do not have.

[Hydro]

Foil probes are very expensive before fusion. We have better uses for our very limited industrial resources.

[Mart]

Ghosts are researching Mechanical Resonance, due in 6 turns. If they do not trade it by then, and then switch to a tech we do not have, the possibility to get to Zero Point energy would be still there. There is a Ghost colony pod heading west towards Virtual Ocean, and it's on our territory. Chances are, Ghost may establish a second land base near Virtual Ocean, so then in case of conflict when Ghosts start vendetta, or our own choice, we might get both techs with our already existing probe team from both bases. Would be high chance of survival the first time I think. If not emergency probe team would be cheaper than probe foil.
Let us see how the situation develops.

[vyeh]

One of the most unfortunate pod pops (probably by a Consciousness explorer) was the earthquake pod that made Virtual Ocean a land base.

The Ghosts already have the population and energy advantages of an aquatic faction. One land base is a foothold. Hoping for a second land base so we can steal tech ignores the threat posed by the Ghost as the leader in military might and population.

If there is an election for planetary governor between the Atlanteans and the Ghost, I propose we vote for the Atlanteans. We have a treaty with the Atlanteans and we've had good tech trades with them.

The last time our probe team stole tech, the odds were 75% chance of survival. It will be higher because of its promotion.

If our finances were better, I'd be tempted to subvert the Ghost colony pod.

[Hydro]

Would a Cyborg-Ghost war be benefitial to us? It would give the Cyborgs something to do besides beat up the Angels, and put pressure on the Ghosts. A single base is hard to support and defend, espeically if the Cyborgs have resonance mech. This might even make them divert the SP production to war-related units. I don't know if we could make it worth their while even if they are willing, though.

Another consideration is that the Cyborgs won't trade tech with the Ghosts if they are at war. That is a good thing, even if tech is pretty even thanks to our fire sale.

[vyeh]

I don't think we want a Cyborg-Ghost war. The Cyborgs are already fighting the Cult and the Angels.

I think it is in our interest that the Cyborgs are holding the Cult back.

We are currently at peace with the Ghost. The longer we are at peace the more we can do toward development.

Question: Would we rather the Cyborg and Angels are wasting resources fighting each other or should we ask one of them to make peace with the other.

Once we go to private/protectionist and plutocrat in 5 turns or so, the pact income we are receiving from both will not be significant.

[Hydro]

Why do you say it won't be significant? My understanding is that trade income is based on your econ rating and energy production (I'd have to dig out the formula from my Prima manual). If our econ rating goes from -1 to 2 that has to give us a boost. After the full switch from Planned/Tech to Private-Prot/Pluto our efficiency will actually go from -2 to -1 (a net increase).

[vyeh]

You're right.

Currently, we have 17 credits in income and we're spending 9 in maintenance. Of the 17 credits, 6 comes from our pacts, 3 from the Angels and 3 from the Consciousness.

I did a trial shift. When we went to private/protectionist, we had 20 credits in income after we had to change the third workers to doctors in Genesis, Uracil, Mutatio and Purini. We still had 6 credits from our pacts, 3 from Angels and 3 from Consciousness.

When we went to plutocrat in addition to private/protectionist, we had 26 credits in income and we had to change the third worker in Cytosino to a doctor. We then had 7 credits from our pacts, 3 from Angels and 4 from Consciousness.

So the pact income is still significant. What I should have said is that the increase in our income from social engineering is larger than our pact income.

[vyeh]

We contacted Delan and Aki Zeta-5. We couldn't get a trade for applied plasma physics.

We were able to sell mechanical resonance to Delan and Roze.

We were also able mechanical resonance to Aki Zeta-5 for military doctrine and sell ecological engineering to Aki Zeta-5.

We were also able to trade mechanical resonance to Elevea for xenobiology.

We gained two techs and 75 credits.

[vyeh]

Why not sell the Templar's comm frequency to the Atlantians? They'll get it soon enough since they are so close. 20 credits is about what we get for a tech!

Okay.

I was hoping to avoid an election for governor until we had established 4 new bases and added 11 or 12 new citizens. We currently have 27 votes. The Ghosts and Atlanteans each have 36 votes.

However, the Ghost have just contacted the Templar. They signed a treaty of friendship, but now they are in a state of vendetta. Since the Ghost have all the comm frequencies, I'm sure they will call elections.

So we might as well sell the Templar's comm frequency to the Atlanteans (the Atlanteans will get the comm frequency when the planetary council is summoned).

In a contest between the Ghost and the Atlanteans, I plan to support the Atlanteans. We may be in a vendetta with the Ghost. I don't want them to gain the advantage of being planetary governor.

[vyeh]

We sold Silvera's comm frequency to Elevea for 20 credits.