Game Analysis Feedback - Technology vs Industry, 2261

[Thaumasurge]

I'm presently playing in a multiplayer game with a friend, who is new to the game.  I have played the game very sparingly over the last 15 years only recently with GOG's addition of the Alien Crossfire expansion have I finally been able to play what new content is contained within it and even still, I don't know much. In fact, for the longest time, I played without any changes to Social Engineering polices. In this game, it is Mission Year 2261 and I am playing the University while he is playing the Hive. Among us left on Chiron are the Spartans, Caretakers, and Consciousness played by the AI. All players and the global game difficulty are on Specialist.  This is my first ever multiplayer game and here is a slight overview of the situation, without looking into the save file.

Details of the game - - - - -

Aki-Zeta-5 was in my friend's (Hive) way of expansion and so he decided to press war upon her on and off for most of the early game.  Of course, Yang's ability to churn out units is second to none and the Consciousness quickly became his submissive Pact Sister, giving him EIGHT techs he did not otherwise have until that point.  As I (University) could not allow a loss in Tech, I decided to sneak onto his continent and take out what I could of the Consciousness. With Specialist difficulty handicaps, she didn't have anything of note to defend (and still to this day does not) While I reduced her down to all but 3 bases, my friend intervened and has an ungodly number of Chaos Speeder (8-1-2) units to quickly blast anything I can muster.  So I did a few hit and run attacks on the other side of his continent, while much of his army was distracted in liberating what was once Aki-Zeta-5's.

I decided the only logical effort would be to push my researchers as hard as possible, trying to get something that could bring me a significant advantage in the war to come. I finished Doctrine: Air Power first and after building a few bases, I was able to launch aerial attacks to decimate what ground forces he had. Unfortunately, with a large amount of speeders, no defensive unit I could build to shield the base would stand against a Chaos Gun, much less with his morale boosts from The Command Nexus.  I was able to catch back up to his Technological Level, through repeated Probe Team attacks and as it stands, all 3 of us (Me, him, and Aki-Zeta-5) have all the same technology at the moment.

When we're done playing for the moment and have saved the game, I would load the game in multiplayer without him.  The game has simultaneous moves disabled, so the AI won't change anything without his knowledge, but often I would sit there with the TURN COMPLETE button flashing, looking over the Datalinks, Base Operations, Laboratories, and Energy Banks. All of this knowledge coming from the fact I have The Empath Guild, though he has similar access because he was elected Planetary Governor. I would try to look over everything and plan my next move, adjusting production orders, scrapping unnecessary base facilities, and all the while, trying to plan what I was going to do next. To be fair, I don't advance the turn and we save the game after I've made all of my moves, where all I would have left is to press Enter for TURN COMPLETE, and when we play again, that's all I do so that the game essentially begins on his turn.

After some careful planning, I decided to target one of his most important facilities, The Leader's Horde. This base was providing him the highest research output, energy output, housed all of his Secret Projects (Command Nexus, Merchant Exchange, and Planetary Transit System), but surprising was only defended by ONE lone Scout Patrol unit. I seized the opportunity with a Mind Worm on a transport and repeated air attacks.  I am presently debating on where to go from here, as well as the option to Obliterate the base. I don't see myself holding the base for long, but based on his present unit positions, he will not get the necessary forces to liberate it in time, and what forces he can get, should not be able to kill what's already at the base before my turn rolls around again.

We're both trying to figure out more of the game as we go along. Any feedback on what we should be doing to improve or any idea on how we should go about handling the present situation would be appreciated.

[ete]

Brief suggestions:

Take all your formers off auto. Auto-formers are inefficient and make silly choices. Get more forests with them, especially around bases with none/little currently. Then link up all your roads, then make more mines for crawlers.

Get some supply crawlers. LOTS of supply crawlers. Mines should be harvested by crawlers, not workers. It'll pay you back quickly, you'll have more production power, and if there's a race for a SP you can cash in the mins in the crawler for full value. A player who uses crawlers well has a massive advantage against one who does not, skipping them entirely is bad in a similar way to skipping formers entirely would be.

Obliterate the base. Quickly, you don't want it retaken. No way can you hold that against a foe with the kind of production the hive has. Denying him the Command Nexus will help you a great deal in the war. Taking that out is a huge win, nice job targeting it. And silly them for having such a vulnerable and high-value target exposed to you.

Try and get the Planetary Energy Grid. If you get the tech to switch to a better SP switch MCC production to a more useful secret project. MCC is not terrible, and your situation is not the worst to make use of it, but it's not as good as builder SPs like PEG. You can get the tech for PEG from the caretakers, either trade or probe them, high priority.

You've got VW and HGP, good job. Take advantage of this by making more bases. I'd put two more on the uranium flats, one on the big patch of forest, and possibly scatter a few more around. Build CPs from small bases if possible to be nutrient efficient.

A few more formers would be good. Don't be afraid to rush them (crawlers and formers are your top two rush priorities for almost the entire game), but don't rush anything ever until the first row of minerals is full or you're paying much more.

[Thaumasurge]

Thank you for the suggestions. I haven't had time yet to play with him again, but I did load the save file as a test simulator for my present plans in motion.  I set the AI controlling the Hive to Librarian (closest I could make him equal to a human player, no bonuses or handicaps) and oddly enough, his submissive Pact Sister betrayed him after 30 turns! @_@ I obliterated his base and gradually killed off what remained of his ground forces with Needlejets.  The Caretakers were not so cooperative in trying to avoid fighting me, so I ultimately researched the necessary tech to make PEG.

In our actual game, he seems to be trying to get AAA Tracking tech, but in other single-player games, a Chaos Penetrator (8-1-2) with sufficient health and morale is still capable of killing off garrison units with only Plasma Steel Armor despite AAA Tracking and Perimeter Defense.  So if he continues on that route, he A) will not be able to massively spend money to upgrade his defenses and units to shield against it and B) even with said tech, he will still lose his army and garrison forces a majority of the time, so long as I'm not careless with my aircraft fuel and health.

In the simulation run, the golden technology of MMI came into fruition, Copters slowly but surely destroyed what was left of his forces, Cloudbase Academy soon followed, and that's all she wrote. Provided that he actually plays how the AI does, he should fall.  Then again, the first thing the AI did was most likely change what he was researching and turn off Knowledge value, which I know my human player clearly will not. I also do not expect his Pact Sister to betray him within the first 30 turns of continuing either.

End result of your suggestions (should my simulation run by correct) - Aki-Zeta-5 betrays the Hive around M.Y. 2280, he loses nearly all of his research ability and economy, Aki-Zeta-5 and the Hive are eradicated by mass Needlejets and Copter power by M.Y. 2320, and by using his bases' insane mineral output, I go mass Stockpile Energy and win by Economic victory on M.Y. 2336.

[Thaumasurge]

On that note, from the other perspective (again, trying to get us both better at the game), what should the Hive be trying to do right now or their present outlook on the situation?

[ete]

Humans will play much better than AI, in general. The Hive in human hands will be tough to beat currently.

Hive should:

Make more bases, especially filling the Jungle. Make crawlers. Make way more forests, with extra formers. Their bases overall have poor mineral and energy production, and minimal facilities. It may not be the right time for facilities now, but earlier development would've put them in a much better position. Get some Police (non-lethal-methods) troopers for drone control, no more plain defensive units.

Stop making speeders/defensive units entirely. Switch to air units and probes (maybe foil probes, maybe a few sea units, but like 90% air units after a few crawlers/CPs/formers), they've got plenty of speeders for now. When they've built a good air force (and have probed your techs hard), they should push out with the air force and reclaim the sea bases, then just go for all-out air unit production and push you out of the game.

Make sure to probe MMI off you the moment you get it, and rush-build the SPs that come from it with crawlers.

Some Sea Formers would be nice, but they're a luxury.

Why on earth are they building Pressure Domes? That's wasting a LOT of resources, Rec Tanks are just as good until super late game and much cheaper.

You as the university need to defend all vulnerable bases with probe defenders (infantry+probe) once they catch on to probing you (or have enough air power to reliably kill off transports and probe foils, exploring all likely routes every turn).

[Nexii]

Hive is strong for sure especially one on one.  I'd say a bit weaker in Human MP (at least FFA) since pacts/commerce matter more and Hive doesn't benefit as much.  The AI doesn't like to pact as much.

Usually I also find in war, once you've lost a few bases or had your front broken it can be really hard to come back from that.  It doesn't sound like your friend is out just yet.  I'd do many sea probes to catch up on tech.  With default unit costs 95% copters and a few scout rovers (or air drop units) to capture is your best bet. 

Would also suggest to obliterate the base unless you're at enough of a tech level to air drop units in, which by the sounds of it you aren't just yet.  Waging war across sea is very difficult with base unit prices.  Heck I play with unit costs redone and sea is still expensive due to transport costs.  As well, they get picked off somewhat easily by air.  I think AAA may be available on sea transports though I'd have to re-check, I modded a lot of abilities for my own games.