Overthrow of the Hive scenario

[Blake]

2270 Update:
Built the Planetary Datalinks, more for denial. I have fusion power, and next tech is likely to be Orbital Spaceflight. Yang is still dreaming of Advanced Military Algorithms (I think he's researching Env.Eco now), and I have stopped gifting the other AI's tech along that path (but I have given them D:AP). I think they are refusing to co-operate with Yang anyway, since I've given several of them env.eco and Yang still hasn't got it.

The only way Yang could possibly turn the game around is by dropping a PB on University Base - but he has already fallen far too far behind in tech.

[Zeiter]

Wow, Blake, already stomping Yang?! It sounds like you're pulling ahead for good. That was a nice little tactic there, letting Yang take a base, and then probing it back along with the units and Perimeter. I think I'll have to try that sometime.

And on the difficult version too! Nice work!

[Blake]

2275 Update: (screenshot below)
The next tech WAS Orbital Spaceflight, and I immediately flicked 3 orbitals up (to give +2 food every base) and started my Planned pop-boom (I switched to demo a fair while ago). I traded Plan.Eco from Morgan after Yang built the AV.

I'm now about 5 turns into my pop-boom... about 400 income per turn, techs every 5 (should be down to 4 soon). Having finally got Env.Eco Yang is down to tech every 6. But he is losing money.

I still need a few more techs before I can go on a warpath, Magtubes and Shard weapons. Then I'll finally move the frontline forward (it's been static for the entire game).With those technologies Yang will be removed from the mainland... then because raise land is disabled I'll shockingly have to build some boats to finish him off.

[Zeiter]

Well, hopefully Yang will put up a decent fight. I see he's still way ahead in the powerchart, which means diddly squat for the AI since they don't know how to use that power effectively. But still Yang should be able to throw some pretty decent numbers at you, especially when you stage the assault on his core.

[Blake]

Unfortunately that wont be the case. Look what happened to power when I exceeded Yangs weapon technology (by getting the fusion laser). My economy is also positively humming along, after another 7 turns of pop-boom.

[Blake]

But not one to go down without a fight, next turn Yang did this

(Survivors of this sortie against my unarmored units: 0. My "birdwhacker" rovers are quite plentiful)

[Blake]

2300 Update:
Yang has largely caught up in raw military strength, totting tachyeon fusion units. However the University has gained the Cyborg Factory and Nano Factory SP's and all sorts of nice stuff like hovertanks, clean reactor, photon armor. With the triad of critical war techs finally in place (MMI, Magtubes, Adv.Spaceflight) it is atlast time for Yang to face his destiny.

[smacksim]

Take 'em Blake! I've never seen you on the offensive....

[Enigma_Nova]

Incoming PBs from Yang with love!
You should probably protect Morgan, too. Those other factions will make useful targets.

[Blake]

Morgan lost my favor when he declared our pact null and void over me running green. It was at the end of sunspots, so Morgan had many turns of pent up frustration... Dee is still a pactmate, she may be useful due to her location in the heartlands of Yang.

2304 Upate: (also suddenly 1AM ). Miriam and Lal get the gift of Fusion Power, and suddenly want to pact with me (Miriam, in spite of me running demo/knowledge). Ho-hum. Morgan remains content to be treatied. Sparta is vendetta'd.

My attack has been slicing open the Hive, soon the Hive will be eviscerated, with the violent & surgical removal of their SP bases, bringing the HGP, ME, WP, PEG, AV and MTCC under University Control - all those SPs are clustered in 4 Hive bases, imagine the hurt to Hive drone control and economy, the Hive will be totally crippled (altough loss of HQ may improve ineffeciency). The PTS is already captured. The Empath Guild, the Hive SP I would most like, is unfortunately far far away on the West coast of South America.

My magtube attack involves laying about 10 tiles of track per turn (captured bases means the progress per turn is more like 13 tiles), each tile is guarded by an AAA unit to protect the Formers and military. Units attack exclusvely from the tubes, wasting no moves. The tube is beelining to The Hive and all those nice SP's, hive bases on either side of the track are being left for later. Units are mostly Shard Infantry and Tanks, clean with gas upgrade to lower enemy morale. (counters the sensor bonus, pretty much). Defenders are simple 1-<5>-1's. There are also some SAM rovers and Empath rovers and Amphib tanks mixed in there.

The America situation is quite interesting, Miriam has a firm hold on Canada - and appears to be taking Hive bases - how - I have no idea. Her units are all obsolete... prehaps she mind controls the bases. Yang and Santiago are in a strong pact, and control the rest of America. I havn't decided how America will be invaded, mostly depends on what techs are available, I hope to be able to get the Space Elevator and drop troops into Miriams lands, sweeping down taking Hive and Spartan bases, installing psi gates when they become available and so on.

[Blake]

Another screenie, after I took the "Golden four" Hive bases. The elimination of the Hive HQ proved even more beneficial than I expected, the Hive finally getting some positive cash flow going - this despite the loss of the PEG! (the reason is, without a HQ, all bases are considered to be 16 tiles from the HQ - resulting in about 50% effic losses with no creche, or 25% with a creche)

But now the Hive is starting to cower with the other factions, down the bottom of the powerchart.

As you can possibly see, I lay the track to the Hives interior, secured the SP bases (with tacyeon defenses - for show), now I'm back-killing and consolidating, securing the southern coastline against Hive needlejets raids - which have been persistent and killed a good number of my units (few of any consequence though). I almost ran out of shard infantry due to hive raids (and the fact they spend every other turn healing) meaning my primary attackers have been shard tanks, with the infantry just going in to take out the first couple of defenders.

I also gained Planetary Govoner in 2306 - it was fairly close altough my 3 allies provided enough votes to offset the Hives empath guild.

[Blake]

2309 Update: Researched Secrets of AC, Secrets of the Manifolds and Biomachinery. With the conversion of my entire specialist population to Transcendi research took another jump. At 2 per turn at 100% labs, to 1 per turn at 0% labs.

Last turn I coerced Lal and Dee into attacking Yang (threatened to break pact, they folded like wet tissue), I gave them each some advanced prototypes of my high tech killing machines as well as some technology. Miriam, who I have given less aid, is driving Yang from North America, pushing him back to the Spartans. I've given her more tech (including Cybernetic) and a 1500 credit loan to keep her warmachine going, Santiago broke her pact with Yang (I think when Yang fell below me in Power - Santiago doesn't respect those without power) and now Yang is now Vendetta with everyone, enemies on every side

2312: Yang says Farewell to his homeland as the last Hive base on that continent was captured (it was, appropriately enough, Huddling of the People)

On the US. East Coast Great Clustering was captured by a naval taskforce (2 cruisers 12r,8r,6*2 and 1 transport with 4 Shard tanks and 4 8r infantry). A tacyheon defense immediately rushed. A small fleet of cruisers is sweeping down to australia, capturing the drivel of Hive sea bases in that area.

2313: A whole horde of techs come up, including the techs for Space Elevator, Singularity Reactor and Nessy mining platforms. I have nowhere near the cash needed for the new stuff to buy, so economy has been set to 100% (still an easy tech in 1)

2314: With the Hive so thoroughly crippled it is now an extermination campaign, two mighty Singularity Tectonic Missiles bridge the gap between Africa and America, drop tanks fall from the sky and rip into lightly defended Hive bases on islands. Ships streak through the waters to isolated Hive sea bases, Choppers howl through the skies, mounted with mighty loud speakers to make them... you know... sound scarier. Because those singularity reactors and anti-gravity repellors are pretty quiet.

2315: Yang is losing bases everywhere, his empire unravelling at a tremendous rate. I take the last two Hive bases in Mexico, Miriam had conquered all of USA, mostly with human waves of rovers and infantry combined with serious probe rape.

2316: The last of Yangs land bases are conquered, leaving him with 2 sea bases, 1 next to an island with some Amphib Tanks on it, the other in deep sea with a chopper nearby on standby and a cruiser within one turns travel.
Santiago had been at Vendetta with me for decades, so i take one of her bases. Cool and collected as always, Santiago immediately surrenders, avoiding needless bloodshed. I was most impressed.

2317: Yang calls for his yearly begathon, and atlast offers surrender. I politely decline, then squish him like a bug.

[Blake]

Winning was a mere formality. Economic was incredbly cheap (at 11000 credits) probably because all the other factions were pacted to me (I bullied Morgan into a pact). But instead (and to save 20 turns) I chose to make all the other factions submissive, Morgan, Dee and Lal all surrended at the first base taken, like Santiago.

But Miriam, possibly overconfident after kicking hive butt, wanted to play hardball. Unfortunately for Miriam, unlike Yang, I play hardball with 30!-12 units w/ antigrav strats. After being kicked around Canada for a few turns Miriam saw sense and chose surrender.

The end.
2321

[smacksim]

Ships streak through the waters to isolated Hive sea bases, Choppers howl through the skies, mounted with mighty loud speakers to make them... you know... sound scarier. Because those singularity reactors and anti-gravity repellors are pretty quiet.

Cheers all around. Well done Blake.

-S

[Zeiter]

Bravo! You really kicked some serious Hiverian @**!

Well, I guess I need to get back to the drawing board in designing an AI. The problem with this Hive AI seemed to be that Yang's difficulty was inconsistent. Ideally, the AI should be competitive throughout the game, like a human opponent - neither hopelessly overpowering or pathetically weak. Those tight games are by far the most enjoyable. I guess this Hive AI exhibited both - hopelessly overpowering in the beginning, pathetically weak after you turn the tide.

But how, HOW will I get the AI to put up a good game?!?

Satellites, maybe? Hmmm...I need to test this.

And again, way to go Blake! I hope you had fun blasting Yang away into oblivion.