SMACX AI Growth mod

[bvanevery]

Hmm, I usually think of the Morganites as an economic threat, not a military one, but who knows what Thinker Mod introduces on top of what I've done.  No question that economically they're a powerhouse in my mod.  If they sit back at a distance on the other side of the map, they're gonna grab techs and Secret Projects.

Details goofy space tricks

goofy space tricks

In my mod it's now possible to do orbital insertions without space flight!  This didn't used to be true.  In version 1.27 I made Orbital Spaceflight an explicit prereq.  Looks like I undid it somehow.  It's probably Chairman Yang's fault, adopting a bold tactic of simply throwing his minions off the top of the elevator.  If enough land, it's an invasion!

Well, maybe that's not completely crazy.  You wouldn't have to orbit to do orbital insertions, you'd just need a way to re-enter the atmosphere without burning up.  Glorified gliders.  Of course how you launched again, without physically traveling to the bottom of the Space Elevator, that's a bit of a hand wave.  Details details.

The real problem is I don't think there's a satisfying sequence in my tech tree that combines Conquer and Build for this.  I'm already using Advanced Spaceflight + Industrial Nanorobotics --> Nanometallurgy, which makes the Nessus Mining Station and the Living Refinery available.  That was lore driven.  The cutscene for the SP is of orbital asteroid mining, with a voiceover from Morgan about how all this space stuff is happening.  So I didn't want to give up that SP without space travel being established.

Perhaps we all just have to visualize the throwing of minions.  Their gentle descent.

[Rocky]

I'm not playing the Caretakers game with Thinker AI, but with the AI that's used in your Growth Mod. The Morganites have the strongest military right now, but that's most likely because of the Aggressive setting.


Somehow I can just picture Yang throwing his minions from the top of Space Elevator, yelling "For the Hive!"

I haven't gotten this far in the game yet, but I like there's an option for orbital insertions besides Orbital Spaceflight. With the specialized technology paths in your mod it's nice to have this choice.

[bvanevery]

I guess with enough nanobots, you can rule the world!  Need to work on a little biology for throwing people into space, and a little scaffolding.  Heck Yang probably tosses all Genejacks.

Interesting, an Aggressive Morgan.  I wouldn't see that outside of a "randomize faction personalities" game.  I don't consider that a test case for my mod, so I never play that nowadays.  I suppose if he got to Genejack Factories before others, he could be a real problem.  But nobody generally gets that far in my games.

I'm seeing that Lal is Aggressive too.  He's pounding on the 2 cities I took from him.  They're badly in need of reinforcement, which I'm not providing.  However I've started the Space Elevator, so the cavalry will come soon.  I don't think I need any more troops to wipe out Domai, especially now that I've remembered the probe teams.  I'll just keep building Super Hovertank Formers until I've got rails everywhere.

MY 2316.  I wiped out my first Free Drone city in his home territory.  I forgot that I could use probe teams first, since I haven't built a full rail yet.  I'll have to bring those up.

[Buster's Uncle]

Somehow I can just picture Yang throwing his minions from the top of Space Elevator, yelling "For the Hive!"

Yo, never yelling; Yang think he all Dark Carnival ConfuciusBuddha, and he be Spockin' out "Needs of the many", cold-like, and evolving the Group, sos's they ignores the pain of reentry.

[bvanevery]

Except for the large number of poorly trained minions who'd get it wrong of course.  The Elite, yes, they'd have the good graces to glide silently and selflessly.  Even the occasional self-immolation upon reentry would be ok.

This does make me wonder if a commercial title about the absurd death aesthetics of the Hive would be welcomed.  Strong overlap with the surrealist absurdist writings of Victor Pelevin in Omon Ra.  The Soviets never had a nuclear bomb.  They just got a lot of people to jump out of planes at once, each with their own pack of TNT to detonate on the way down.

Truthfully though, my plans are tending more towards a RPG at the moment, and more of a fantasy setting.  It's not finalized though.  I'm in a "concept" stage.

Dystopian 4X though.  Does have a ring to it.  A place like Alpha Centauri if the Hive won.

[Buster's Uncle]

Question; does Yang waste a spacesuit, or do they even live long enough to notice reentry?  Nobody's composing a haiku on Noble Sacrifice to The Needs of The Group mid-flight if they die too promptly...

[bvanevery]

The goal is a ground assault after orbital insertion.  It's not a human kamikaze bombing run.  So yes, the Hive would try to get a viable force back down on the ground intact.

That said, I have designed a kind of kamikaze unit for at least one of my demonstration games.  I called it a "Banzai Brigade".  It's basically a Marine Scout.  The purpose is for destroying coastal sea bases.  Let's say you've wiped out all the inhabitants of the base, using Marines standing on dry land.  But now the base is size 1 and it's still owned by the enemy.  The Banzai Brigade jumps off the cliff to finish it off!  It drowns, but the enemy is crushed.

I have wondered about doing something bizarre and suicidal with the Copter chassis, such as making it a "missile" that dies after being fired.  It's a pity not to have that unit artwork in the game, but I don't want a "fires umpteen times" contraption in the game.

I also think Locusts do a perfectly good job fulfilling the tactical role of Copters, as far as providing support in late midgame as an army moves forwards, or moving about in the field unaided.  Granted, you have to go in that tech direction, but I don't really have a problem with that.  I don't think everyone needs to get everything for having headed in the direction of Doctrine: Air Power.

Plus if you've got enough hovertanks you can rule Planet.  They come way earlier now.  I'm not seeing the need for another "clean 'em out" unit.  That said, ECM and 3-Pulse armor is effective against hovertanks, if the AI gets to it.  I'm doing so well lately, that the AI doesn't, but in the past they have.

[bvanevery]

Details last legs

last legs

MY 2320.  I'm about to lose the 2nd of the 2 bases I took from Lal.  Well it wasn't a bad run for nothing but scouting scraps!  I have still refrained from committing any atrocities against him.  His research seems to be nothing to write home about though, as he still hasn't learned Orbital Spaceflight.  I haven't bothered to learn it either.  I mostly just look for new Secret Projects to make.

I've all but built a rail to Free Drone Central.  I didn't build the last link because I'll have to take the city conventionally.  I'd rather wipe out all the other cities around it with chemicals before finally committing my forces to that.  That way, there's no possibility of realistic counterattack.  Domai has managed to kill a few units of mine, no big deal, but why waste them?  The southern half of his empire is on its last legs and will be gone in 2 or 3 more turns.

I've started building a rail towards Lal.  "Civilian" cities are building Supply Crawlers now, instead of Formers.  "Military" cities have been building Drop Trance garrison units, but they don't have anything to drop on yet.  I haven't completed the Space Elevator.  It costs 800 in my mod, it's expensive!  I'm also working on the Self-Aware Colony which is 600.

[bvanevery]

MY 2324.  Lal has achieved Orbital Spaceflight.  I am slowly dispatching Cruiser Probe Teams to steal it.  They have a long way to sail to get to a vulnerable port.  Lal is working on a Fusion Planet buster, but he has no minerals to do it with.  My fears of getting nuked may be partly justified, but he may not be able to ever threaten me in the real world.

I still haven't completed the Space Elevator, and I'm restarting the Self-Aware Colony.  I decided to complete the Empath Guild instead, because it's slightly cheaper and I can.  It doesn't actually benefit me.  I just don't want Lal to feel good about himself.     I am sure that my rail is going to make contact with Lal long before I've finished the Space Elevator.

Domai has only 1 major city remaining in the south, and it's about to be hit with a probe team.  He also has a base he just founded with nothing in it.  Otherwise it's a gradual operation of circling around his capitol, to reach other cities to lay waste to.  I hope to draw his units out as I circle, so that I don't have to deplete my forces to hold Free Drone Central.  Real productivity is going to go into a war against Lal.  What I've got already can clean up Domai just fine.

I'm sitting on a reserve of 12 Artifacts that I haven't bothered to cash.  I wanted to give Lal a chance to do my Orbital Spaceflight research for me.  I don't need more technology for anything.  Enemies die like flies.  I need Supply Crawlers to finish my Secret Projects.  By the time my current ones are done, I'll probably have researched another SP on my own.

[bvanevery]

Details critical error

critical error

MY 2327.  An example of why X Artillery is great!  I've previously reduced the city to size 1 with genetic plagues.  Domai was on his last ropes last turn here, but somehow he got a fully healed 3-Pulse unit in there, which could interfere with my X Tanks.  I shell it with X Artillery.  Not only did it wound the unit, but it triggered the AI to start producing a Laser Artillery as a defense.  Which cannot possibly stand up to my Fusion X Missile Artillery, it'll just die when it attacks.  And if it didn't attack, then I'd shell it with chemicals turned on.  That would wipe the city off the map!

Nowadays I am welcoming any artillery in cities.  They used to be such a PITA.

Actually I just ended up wiping that city out with an X Missile Tank anyways.  It even had a Sensor.  The unit was wounded badly enough that it couldn't hang.  Also I've got Fusion to his Fission.

Details waning defense

waning defense

I must be doing something right.  There used to be a lot more units stacked up inside Free Drone Central.

In 2 years I'll be in contact with Lal's empire.  Only the most far flung corner though, that I previously took with Scouts and mindworms.  He does march a lot of units down that way to deal with me though, so it'll be good for draining him out.  This time I'll have full reinforcement.

[bvanevery]

Details like cracking eggs

like cracking eggs

MY 2329.  The Cult of Planet seemed to do me the favor of getting rid of 3 of the defenders.  I only faced 2.  With such a meager defense I merely brought up my few Demon Boil mindworms, independent from the beginning of the game.  I lost 1 but who cares!  I'm made to realize that taking the city "intact" without chemical mass casualties, is a mistaken idea.  Because I'm fighting humans, the city is going to depopulate anyways.  I can probably afford to knock it down to size 3 or 2 before the final onslaught, assuming they have a Perimeter Defense.  A genetic plague is probably the right idea as it devastatingly weakens Domai.  He never had the tech to put up any kind of biological warfare defense.

Details before infection

before infection

Understanding this lesson, I bring most of my Hovertank Formers back from the front with Lal, and complete a rail to the newly conquered Free Drone Central.  I send a Probe Team up the rail to devastate the city containing the Planetary Energy Grid.  I save the game just in case this works out worse than expected.

Details like flies

like flies

City drops to size 2!  Look at the horrific wounds dealt to the defenders.  I couldn't do that kind of damage with any quantity of artillery, due to "minimum health" restrictions in a base from indirect fire.  And no damage to the infrastructure, yet.  We'll see if that holds up once I take over, but so far so good!

Details after conventional attacks

after conventional attacks

I lost a Children's Creche, a Recycling Tank, a Recreation Commons, a Perimeter Defense, a Hologram Theater, and an Energy Bank.  That's pretty typical of conquest.  Oh well, I don't think there's any way around that if you want to use the military.  I will gradually rebuild them.

I perform the same operation on Domai's last city.  The Weather Paradigm is mine, and Domai is no more!

However I didn't get a "monument" screen like I was expecting.  Maybe Aliens don't get one?  I also tried "Menu.. HQ.. View Monuments.." and nothing happened.  Oh well, just imagine them squirming in the Sphere.

I sell off my Energy Banks and complete the Dream Twister.  Just to be insulting, I bring the last conquering Hovertank all the way to Lal's front and blow away an artillery piece.  Then I put X Artillery that got healed from conquests right in front of his doorstep, under a Locust.  I expect he'll attack with his artillery next turn and will summarily die.  I still haven't committed an atrocity against him.  He still has No Minerals to build his Planet Buster with.

[bvanevery]

Details liberally interpreted liberation

liberally interpreted liberation

MY 2330.  I played nice with Lal because I thought I might be liberating my own cities.  But to my chagrin, they were still regarded as Captured Bases.  It's not a total loss because they still have the Punishment Spheres I managed to build in them.  I will take these 2 cities that I previously held, and use them as a foothold.  The rest, I'm going to start destroying.   He can't very well nuke me if his cities are vaporizing as fast as I went through Domai!

Maybe his Fusion defenders will annoy me.  But once I steal Orbital Spaceflight, I can jump 12 techs ahead.  Hmm, this makes me realize I could have stolen it at any time by land.  I'm wasting my time pushing the Cruiser Probe Teams around.

Ok, I'm spaceborne!  What 12 toys am I going to get on top of that?  Advanced Spaceflight, Silksteel Alloys, Photon/Wave Mechanics, Global Energy Theory, N-Space Compression, Quantum Power, Graviton Theory (don't need Space Elevator now), Super Tensile Solids, Secrets of Alpha Centauri (and I think I got cheated out of my free tech), Probability Mechanics, Nanometallurgy, and Matter Editation.  Well I think I can probably win the war now.

Taking the 2nd city, I lost the Punishment Sphere.  I've had enough of the guff.  Time to obliterate.

Details easy being green

easy being green

MY 2334.  I'm knocking on UN Headquarters.  I've been liquidating all the cities around it, like I did to the Free Drones.  Deidre can be my thrall now!

[bvanevery]

It's 5:40 AM.  Quitting time!  The Peacekeepers have been completely helpless in front of me.  I never even made any new units.  Quantum reactors, didn't need 'em.  Chaos weapons, didn't need 'em.  Biowarfare is so devastating that I wonder if I should put it later in the tech tree.  I didn't even make new probe teams.

Nah.  I looked at my tree.  Lore-wise it's in the progression it should be.  Retroviral Engineering is a C6 tech.  That's pretty late in the tech tree, even if there's a bunch of stuff that comes later still.  The game's just got twice as much stuff in it as it needs.

I declare myself the winner of the game, as clearly, it can't go any other way.  It just uses up hours of my time to finish off the last of the helpless cities.  My home cities are only making Secret Projects and Supply Crawlers.  A further lesson is I don't need much of what's in the game, to win the game.

I never picked any Politics this game, until the very end when I changed to Thought Control and Democratic.  I never tried to grow past size 7 cities for the most part.  Some did anyways, but this was a low population game by my usual standards.  I never spent more than 10% of my budget on Psych.  I'm realizing in hindsight that my Industrial Labs were a complete waste of time, because I could have popped the 12 Artifacts I had accumulated.

Chemicals are that good! 

Onwards to testing Synthmetal Police, and thinking about making Copters into some kind of suicide drone.

[bvanevery]

The AI will use a Synthmetal Police unit.  However as the game progresses, it abandons the design and does not come up with more Police unit designs.  I didn't get a sense of how many Synthmetal Police units the AI would make, as I stepped away from my laptop, left the AIs running for about 2 hours, and came back to some late midgame thing.  No Synthmetal anything at that point.  I will keep experimenting.

[Rocky]

I'm curious. How can you let the AI play against themselves?

After 40 years of constant border war against the University my army of native life forms is finally breaking through. I think Zakharov must at least have thrown somewhere between 20-30 Laser/Impact units against me. That was a struggle but yet so satisfying.

Morgan has been a thorn in my side, having taken over 2 sea bases with Probe foils. I'm about to take them back but he's not letting up. Lots of Laser/Impact foils along my shores. I was finally able to breed my own fleet of Isle of the Deeps. Got lucky with some Artifact sea pods which helped me get ahead in tech. Switched from Planetary Transit System to Neural Amplifier.

Zakharov has completed Hunter-Seeker Alogrithm. Hopefully I can snatch that project from him soon because I've had it up to here with Morgan's probe teams.

I'm having a lot of fun with this game.