faction: COWBOYS

[gwillybj]

Edit 06March2003: Originally posted with IMPUNITY, SUPPORT. That is wrong . It has to be IMMUNITY, SUPPORT.
IMMUNITY is used to avoid negative effects in the ten Social Engineering Categories (ECONOMY, EFFIC, SUPPORT, MORALE, POLICE, GROWTH, PLANET, PROBE, INDUSTRY, RESEARCH), as in this faction.
IMPUNITY is used to avoid the negative effects in the twelve Social Engineering Settings (3 in POLITICS, 3 in ECONOMICS, 3 in VALUES, and 3 in FUTURE).

#COWBOYS
Chiron Cowboys, The Free, Cowboys, M, 2, Billy, M, -1, 0, 0, 0, 1, TECH, Physic, IMMUNITY, SUPPORT, ROBUST, MORALE, SOCIAL, -POLICE, SOCIAL, --INDUSTRY, FACILITY, 2, UNIT, 2, FUNGNUTRIENT, 1
Politics, Democratic, GROWTH
Politics, Police State, nil
Cowboy, Cowboy
Miss Peggy, Beaker Harris, Alaska
Rancher, open-minded, air-headed, clean-living, loose-living,
Spaced-Out Airhead
live free on this new frontier
to live free on this new frontier
running this planet like some 20th century dude ranch
running this planet like some 20th century dude ranch
fill this planet with incessant midnight howling
running this planet like some 20th century dude ranch
running this planet like some 20th century dude ranch
incessant midnight howling
incessant midnight howling, M1
free-range initiatives, M2
air-headed initiatives, M2
ante, M1
maintaining freedom on this new frontier
the Cowboys
the freedom of the range

#BASES
Home on the Range
Alaska
Washington
Oregon
Idaho
California
Nevada
Montana
Wyoming
Utah
Arizona
Colorado
New Mexico
North Dakota
South Dakota
Nebraska
Kansas
Oklahoma
Texas
Minnesota
Iowa
Missouri
Arkansas
Louisiana
Wisconsin
Illinois
Mississippi
#END

#WATERBASES
Hawaii
Maui
Oahu
Kauai
Molokai
Lanai
Niihau
Kahoolawe
#END

#BLURB
A new planet, a new frontier. The freedom of a new range.
^
^ -- Rancher Billy Price,
^ "Home on the New Range"

#DATALINKS1
^LEADER: {Rancher Billy Price}
^BACKGROUND: {Plains States Livestock Cooperative}
^AGENDA: {Maintaining open borders and a free range}
^TECH: {Applied Physics}
^

#DATALINKS2
^Impunity SUPPORT: {Free-range methods require far-flung units}
^Robust MORALE: {Who wouldn't be happy on the open range?}
^-1 POLICE: {local Sheriff to keep the peace}
^-2 INDUSTRY: {keeping the range clear}
^+1 Nutrient in fungus: {able to find food in unlikely places}
^Free Children's Creche: {Cowboys always take good care of their young'ns}
^forever free: {May not use Police State Politics.}

#FACTIONTRUCE
#xs 440
#caption $CAPTION7
"This quarreling is wasting our time, $NAME1. Let's just go home and get back to work."
"Sounds good. I'll call back the posse."
"Yeah, right! The Dust Bowl will look like a litter box when I'm done with you!"

#FACTIONTREATY
#xs 440
#caption $CAPTION7
"I can't believe we all can't just get along, $TITLE0 $NAME1. Let's sign a Treaty of Friendship and get together with the rest."
"Absolutey, $TITLE4! Let's get it on!"
"I don't think so, $NAME3."

[gwillybj]

Just for fun No apologies for the pathetic dialogue

I have no idea if it is balanced or not. I am not an artist, so I would use Lal's pictures since no one else looks anything like an outdoors type. I think if I put them in a game I would replace the Gaians (sorry, GaiansGrant) so there wouldn't be two ecology-focused factions. Then again, I wonder if the two would Pact or Fight?

The Base names (after the HQ "Home on the Range") are simply 26 states listed from northwest to southeast. I stopped with 27 names because it seemed like the average number of presets. It wouldn't be too difficult to add the other 23 states. I say 23 because I used the Hawaiian islands as the Sea Bases; they are listed from largest to smallest, but it doesn't really matter since they are picked at random.

I gave them Applied Physics so they could set up "laser fences" when they need to corral their herds or "prod" their neighbors
[This message has been edited by gwillybj (edited April 10, 2001).]

[Longtooth]

this ain't bad maybe i'll through together some graphics for it. scan a picture in of the malboro man or something.

[Solver]

Hm. -2 Industry is a very huge penalty. However, SUPPORT IMP lets run Democracy no problems. Have to try this out to say something in specific.

[Cybergod]

I think that this faction would be perfectly balanced with the standard SMAC faction (Hive, Gaians, etc.)

[LoD]

I second Solver - -2 Industry is a big penalty, regardless of the support immunity. I'd give them a FREEPROTO, Rec Tanks, or an extra unit at start (either Formers or Scout Rover) to balance that.

[gwillybj]

I played part of a game with this faction. I put them in place of the Gaians, and I played Morgan. The Cowboys did pretty good, never #1, but never below #4, either.
They went Democratic (not a surprise, since it is in the profile) and Planned (to get the Industry to -1). With the resulting +4 Growth, their bases grew quickly enough to apparently overcome the negative Industry rating.
They didn't go with Wealth, which surprised me a little. Is the +1 Industry not worth the -1 Morale?
I didn't play long enough to see which Future Society they would go with.

[sleeperservice]

hmmm.It weak but not very weak.its strengh is about the same as the believers the weakest original smac faction .You give them a nutrient in fungus dont you ? And a starting base facility ..So its not as weak as it seems.I would boost morale by one +morale to make this perfectly balanced.

[gwillybj]

Thank you all for your input.

I'll try some of your ideas soon .

I forgot to identify the free facility as the Children's Creche, and have added a line to Datalinks2 for it. With its immediate Growth, Efficiency, and Morale benefits, the Creche seems to work as a balancer against the negatives.

I have written a few factions. I always try to keep them balanced, and have found myself making adjustments when the AI doesn't fare well (or is too powerful) with them.