Quick Question: Alternate Faction Set?

[Ironwood]

What I'm wondering about is if there has ever been an extended discussion about an alternate faction set that seeks to achieve the same rough balance of the original seven, but mixes around the aggression levels not only at a "game rules" level, but also at a conceptual level. For example, one could have the religious faction have a different set of bonuses and penalties that turns them into a pacifist builder faction, but is still thematically appropriate. The economist faction could be turned into an aggressive land grabber. I'm not sure what you could do with the internal security obsessives... which is why I'm posting this.

I don't feel the need to drag the forum into a rehashing of old ideas, so if this has been discussed before, can someone point me to an old thread? I'd search for it myself, but I have no idea what keywords to use. There are a zillion "new factions" threads, not necessarily along the lines of what I have in mind.

[vyeh]

You might look at Aldebaran 2. I think it was almost completed (there may be some cleanup in scriptx.txt, etc.

There are some pointers to the original Aldebaran that was designed for SMAC. By necessity, it would have been a complete overhaul of the original 7 factions, rather than an addition like SMAniaC.

You might also go to www.apolyton.net/smac and look at ShiNing1's Alpha Centauri v1.2 (by clicking files at the top and then Modpack). He made some adjustments to the original 7 factions, especially Hive, Morgan, Spartans and UoP.

If you're looking for a set of 7 factions using the original tech tree, etc., I don't think that has been done.

[gwillybj]

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/SMACFacPack/

A complete set of seven alternate factions. Written for SMAC, but fully playable in SMAX. The group has gone silent, but the files are still there.
I use only the faction txts, not the proposed graphics or suggested altered alpha.txt. Every one of the seven is playable solo and they seem well-balanced for multiplayer. Since finding this set, I find myself playing them much more often than the SMAC or SMAX factions.

[Buster Crabbe's Uncle]

[I wrote this reply as soon as this thread went up, but held off posting, because the title sounds enough like it’s another one of my threads that I didn’t want to step on you instantly by associating my handle with it. Somebody else please reply here, ASAP.]

I like the idea.

I've never seen anything like that browsing old threads. Hope somebody knows something.

For the Believers I think you're kind've describing the Amish without the costumes, or the Quakers.

I can really see Morgan as an aggressive territorialist. (Had a neighbor for years who was like that.)

I'd offer to pitch in if it was my area or there was a graphics need. If I have any ideas for re-focused personalities for the likes of Santi or Yang, I'll post.

...Y'know, you could make Yang the commie some take him for, and Santi a quasi-fascist instead of a quasi-anarchist. Lal would be really cool as an actual diplomat instead of the reunification-by-force guy he reveals himself to be.

I always come back to the Gaians being a bunch of hippies- perhaps an emphasis on hedonism? (My personal experience of hippies is that they’re much less ideological then you’d expect.)

Hmmm. With Zac, my impulse might be emphasis shifted to the “Academician” part. Professors fight so viciously among themselves over terribly petty things.

…But I’m sure you already thought of stuff for the latter three.

[Buster Crabbe's Uncle]

Ironwood, I see you're browsing Creation right now. Quick, post anything here or some people who don't check my threads might think it's another of mine and not have a look.

[Buster Crabbe's Uncle]

-Also, gwilly, I'd seen this group you linked before- you're saying it's worth signing up to have a look at the files?

[gwillybj]

-Also, gwilly, I'd seen this group you linked before- you're saying it's worth signing up to have a look at the files?

Yes

[Ironwood]

The general idea is to balance agressives with pacifists with erratics, while keeping the general themes intact and mixing them up. 2 aggressives, 2 pacifists, and 3 erratics. I propose the following scheme as the "themeset". The original factions are listed in them:

Mission Loyalty: Peacekeepers
Armed Independence: Spartans
Security: Hive
Religion: Believers
Economy: Morganites
Ecology: Gaians
Advance of Knowledge: University

The idea is that we mix around the aggressiveness levels so that all of them are different from before, and adjust themes and ideologies to match. However, this list feels clunky. Suggestions? (Interestingly enough, I'm considering go as far as to change the mission, to change the flavor of the "mission loyalty" faction.)

[Buster Crabbe's Uncle]

Hmmm. The Gaians as really activist leftists, then? Spartans, as so many gun nut claim to do, just want to feel safe and be left alone? Lal as a diplomat? University as (academic) knowelge conservers/science police?

[Ironwood]

Um... I was trying to represent the essential roles they already fill, so I can get a feel for what it is I'm changing around, what I'm trying to fill. So, for example, Lal is an erratic mission loyalist under the standard scenario. Under my alternate scenario, I'd be trying to design either a pacifist mission loyalist or an aggressive mission loyalist faction. And either an erratic or aggressive ecologist faction.

The open question is: is this an accurate representation of what's already there? Or do you guys see it a different way?

[vyeh]

PK: bureaucratic hierarchical "status quo"
Spartans: survivalist individualist
Hive: communal
Believers: traditionalist conservative
Morganites: developers exploiters
Gaians: recyclists
University: innovators

[Buster Crabbe's Uncle]

Lal as a diplomat isn't a background change suggestion, it's an alternate aproach to the same mission. Nobody likes Lal, as-is. His diplomacy dialogue could be re-written to emphasize a more stable, peaceful attitude. More agressive is hard to imagine.

Most of my other ideas are shifts in mission, so nevermind about them.