Emperor of the Fading Suns

[SenniTreborius]

 This game is abandonware, I believe the company made a big mistake. Space Opera.

Emperor of the Fading Suns is a science fiction 4X game set in a EotFS paper RPG Universe. The Universe is like Warhammer 40000 or Dune. You choose a noble house to fight for the title of Emperor of the galaxy. During game creation you customize your noble and give him various positive or negative traits (like charismatic leadership, insanity, tyranny, etc.).
The game has a deep diplomacy. There is also a church fraction, that uses the Inquisition to burn labs that research banned tech. In space alien races, are attempting to destroy humanity. Meanwhile the various PC and NPC noble houses vie for supremacy. One can misuse Imperial appointments for one own ends if one gains the office, but at a risk. Move the Imperial garrison from Stigmata and the (always NPC) aliens may destroy humanity. Game Over.

This is not just a standard 4X game. It is truly epic. You have a two main views, the space map and planets map. http://fadingsuns.wikia.com/wiki/Complete_jumpweb_map Each planet is a small SMAC type world on which you can build different types of building and recruit various units. There are spies, biotechnology, genetics, hacking, etc. Better read the manual if you do not do it normally. The only downside of the game is the A.I.

Wikipedia sums it up well http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_of_the_Fading_Suns
It has influenced Civ see Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword. And many others.
It still has an active forum http://www.kborek.cz/forum/phpBB2/ , Steam group, and devoted modders https://sites.google.com/site/emperorwarsfadingsuns/home/emperor-of-the-fading-suns-emperor-wars---reality-mod---downlao
Check out the game play
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVbEj_fpPdY

One of the few really challenging games. Stands in a league with SMACX unless you like pertty games of course, where you don't have to think.


AND ITS FREE

[bvanevery]

As abandonware, I have played this many times and have never managed to complete a game of it.  It is too vast.  Something like 20 star systems, each with a modestly sized planet that could be fully terraformed if one so chose.

I also tried out mods of the game, but I can't remember what the benefits or liabilities of those were.  I do remember the default combat system being reductive, in that you might as well fight the whole war with cheap artillery pieces and AT guns.