Cybernetic Conquest - SMACX AI Growth mod version 1.42

[bvanevery]

Details soon I'll have rails

soon I'll have rails

MY 2193.  In my mod, you don't typically get a chance to complete all the early Secret Projects.  With the fairly strong differentiation of the tech tree, it's quite possible that the AIs will learn things that you don't, and complete things before you have any chance at them.  Although in my last game, I had an exceptionally easy start with the Free Drones.  I build most of the Secret Projects and conquered the few I wasn't able to build.

Details unexpected insight

unexpected insight

MY 2194.  I wasn't focused on Discover, so this is a bit weird.  I did buy D2 Information networks recently.  Whatever, I'll take it.  It's a Secret Project and I am in the middle of building lots of Network Nodes anyways.  Perhaps I'll never need to clear the fungus now?

Details I could have traded for this

I could have traded for this

What a lousy bonus tech.  It saves me all of 100 credits, that I was about to hand to Miriam.  First chance I had, since she stonewalled me until she finished the Ascetic Virtues.

Details more to kill

more to kill

I run into Santiago.  She's at war with the Believers.  Of course I don't switch sides.  So she declares war on me.  Whatever.  I wonder if she and Roze are allied?  I have no interest in capturing bases all the way up there, because they'll just be theft and mind control liabilities.  If I get a rail built and haven't learned the Hunter-Seeker Algorithm by then, I'll try to get atrocities legalized and just make scorched earth of them.  I didn't follow through on that last game, because I repealed the U.N. Charter too early, before it could possibly be useful.  The smart money is to wait until one actually good deliver the death blows.

MY 2198.  I get a message that Roze and Santiago have combined forces against either myself or the Believers, I forget which.  Anyways they're allied.

[bvanevery]

Details untrustworthy

untrustworthy

I figure he's about to declare war on me, but surprisingly, he offers a Treaty.  I don't care about him, I have 2 land enemies to deal with up north.  I buy the tech from him.  I ask him to stop warring with the Pirates, so that he won't be more and more poorly disposed towards me.  He complies.  It may not do much good since he hates my Politics, but there's a chance he might, especially if he gets busy warring against the Caretakers.  We do have that common enemy.

Details I sorta goofed

I sorta goofed

MY 2205.  Svensgaard catches me off-guard, offering a trade for the Human Genome Project, which hasn't been built yet.  I forget that I haven't finished the Virtual World yet either.  I will need to step up the pace and finish my SPs!  Time to cash some Artifacts.  He also signs a Pact with me.

Details walking off the boat

walking off the boat

I'm not sure if this is working only because we're allied, but I'm able to use an ordinary probe team from a Transport to infiltrate a sea base.

Details I want my MTV

I want my MTV

I spend 1 Artifact and a lot of money to rush the Virtual World.  I move 4 Artifacts towards the base that will complete the Human Genome Project.

[bvanevery]

Details my eugenics program

my eugenics program

MY 2208.  I spend 3 Artifacts and some money to rush the Human Genome Project.  I move my 1 remaining Artifact towards my capitol, which is building the Merchant Exchange.

[bvanevery]

Details the home fleet

the home fleet

MY 2212.  For some reason I had a large number of captured units homed to Iota Station.  With all the extra happiness at my disposal, I've wanted to choose Knowledge and forego the use of police.  However that didn't seem wise when I had so many units out to sea.  Now that problem is mostly solved, although I probably will get 1 unhappiness from 2 mindworms that are far afield.

Details I'm quite just

I'm quite just

I could now focus my budget any way I want, but the reality is, I don't have enough money to bother.

Details mostly home

mostly home

It turns out my mindworms weren't all exploring the southern continent.  I just happened to bring one home.  So, no unhappiness.

[bvanevery]

Details death to the data angels

death to the data angels

MY 2213.  This could be a good strategy for trashing the Data Angels.  For one thing, they're immune to probe teams.  But for now, I'm building Energy Banks.

Details rich woman

rich woman

I spend 1 Artifact and some money to rush the Merchant Exchange.  Miriam may be slightly annoyed by that.

[bvanevery]

Details false hope

false hope

MY 2216.  Someone called an election, I think Cha Dawn.  He won easily.  I'm surprised I was on the ballot instead of Svensgaard.  Usually the Pirates grow well.  I see 8 Sea Formers in his unit list, so I don't know what his problem is.  It's not like I have big cities.

[bvanevery]

Details I have the mindworms boy

I have the mindworms boy

MY 2217.  Cultists are so irrational!

Svensgaard, that git ally of mine, has Ecological Engineering.

[Buster's Uncle]

Details false hope

false hope

MY 2216.  Someone called an election, I think Cha Dawn.  He won easily.  I'm surprised I was on the ballot instead of Svensgaard.  Usually the Pirates grow well.  I see 8 Sea Formers in his unit list, so I don't know what his problem is.  It's not like I have big cities.

Subject to SE modifiers and whether you're Lal, your 50 votes and Sven's 37 should reflect your cumulative total populations.  You're surely on the ballot because 50 is the second highest population...

[bvanevery]

But my point is, it's unusual in my mod for Svensgaard to have such a low population by now.  My population is not awesome.  Actually come to think of it, I'm a little surprised that Cha Dawn's population is not much higher.  He's sitting on the Monsoon Jungle.

Details a strange resolution

a strange resolution

MY 2223.  So I spend all this time to try to get Ecological Engineering.  Then Svensgaard just ups and gives it to me?  The Weather Paradigm has not been built yet.  Heck, not even started yet.  Maybe he's deluding himself into thinking he'll build the Maritime Control Center, just like everyone else.

Details grr!

grr!

And of course I have to research it, right as I was about to steal it.

Details cyborg brainpower

cyborg brainpower

The game read my mind.  YES I'd like to change my research focus.  Enough of that other guff!  Time to get back to what Cyborgs are more supposed to do.  The moral of this story is it took 123 years to figure out Fungicidal Tanks, and I'm not the one who figured it out.  Just not worth the bother.  Better to accept that fungus will be a barrier for quite some time, all through the early game in my mod.  Whereas, building roads through fungus can be done fairly quickly, due to Centauri Empathy only being a Tier 2 tech.  There's a huge time lag between Tier 2 and Tier 3 in my mod.  And even Tier 2 has gotten pretty big over time.

Details wassup loser

wassup loser

Santiago ignored me, so I proceeded with my original plan to trash her sea base.  That was how I was going to steal the MCC, since I'm Borg like that.  Well, now that she's about to get trashed, she deigns to talk to me.  Is she going to say something ridiculous?  She and Roze aren't friends anymore, they're fighting.  Well that was weird, I didn't even get a chance to speak.  She just told me to take a good last look at my empire.  Ok Santiago!  Nobody likes you, and the only reason Svensgaard has a Treaty with you, is I'm too soft to ask him to trash you.  I'll just do it myself!

Details going down like a ton of bricks

going down like a ton of bricks

This reminds me, where the heck is the Mainfold Nexus?  I could use another PLANET bonus.

Details take that!

take that!

Oh good grief, my Isle died.  The odds said they were in my favor, usual cakewalk.  Hard to know what to believe.  This doesn't look promising, but I'm attacking because I'm mad.  And because I pay SUPPORT on that ship.

Ugh.  They died too, leaving the enemy barely alive.  Ok, the odds calculator is not to be trusted in such circumstances.  I wonder what the basic nature of the lie was?  My nearest Isle unfortunately tangled with a Cultist recently and needs to heal up.  There's no one else out this way to fight.  Not that I really needed to anyways.

I check everybody's tech, and nobody's got anything.  My original mission was to go infiltrate the Caretakers, but I diverted to steal the MCC.  And then I researched it myself anyways.  So now I send my transport with the probe team back home, to head the other direction.

Details pest

pest

And a Data Angel shows up to bother me.  I've got 2 Isles right there, how can I lose?  My cities are still all defended with Scouts.  Isolation and a reasonable navy has kept me safe so far.  I really am doing the Discover researcher fortress thing, even though I was pursuing Explore Build for so long.  My bases that are "done" now build mindworms.  I suppose to send them north to bother the Data Angels, for whatever fat good that will do.

Details ongoing secret project races

ongoing secret project races

So which is better, the Maritime Control Center or the Weather Paradigm?  I'm sitting in the middle of a huge body of water, so both are potentially useful.  Well, I don't have the resources to complete either right now, so I defer that decision until later.  I think I might rather have the MCC and go Marine stomping, but I have my doubts I'll finish it first.  I think most of these projects have been worked on for awhile.

[bvanevery]

Details well that answers that

well that answers that

MY 2223.  The Weather Paradigm it is.  At least my ally is getting the MCC.  I won't have to fight faster ships.

[bvanevery]

Details researchy

researchy

MY 2232.  This tech is a bit lame now as it doesn't give any permanent benefit, only the Secret Project.  But there aren't enough gewgaws related to pure research to spread them over the Discover tree.  I switch my less complete SP to the Universal Translator.  I don't rush it because Santiago has researched C4 Nonlinear Mathematics.  Need to steal it first.

Details what to build

what to build

By the end of my turn I have enough money to rush the Weather Paradigm.

[bvanevery]

Details stupid front line

stupid front line

MY 2234.  Well I clearly don't know what I'm doing with the few excess mindworms.  They're gonna get killed.  Now I have all my cities producing Clean  Formers, because driving rails to enemies actually works.  The Believers already have a partial rail system done.

Otherwise, I'm killing fungal towers with excess untrained Scouts.  It's a tradition.

[bvanevery]

Details know nuthin'

know nuthin'

MY 2337.  Svensgaard blows off our alliance.  I think only last year, I had to tell Miriam not to fight him.  Well, it will be different next time!

Details too ugly to hit that face

too ugly to hit that face

MY 2238.  The Caretakers see reason, talking to my mindworm as it tromps across the South Pole.

[bvanevery]

Details flog my researchers

flog my researchers

MY 2240.  Once again, I research something I was about to steal.  I wasn't focused on Conquer at all, and this is a pure Conquer tech.  It's not a prereq for the Hunter-Seeker Algorithm, so I really don't get why I learned this.  Whatever.

Details the last secret project

the last secret project

Nobody's got better tech than I do, so I rush the Universal Translator.

[bvanevery]

Details expected yield

expected yield

MY 2241.  I think I'm on the full Hunter-Seeker Algorithm cheating program.  If one researches Discover and not Conquer, one gets a 4X bonus weight towards prereqs of the HSA.

Details affirmative

affirmative

Odd, I don't remember researching a 2nd prereq.  Ah, right, D4 Intellectual Intergrity.  Otherwise fairly useless.