Reimagined Original Factions

[Nexii]

So recently I had the feeling that many of the original factions all play a bit too similarly. Yang and Gaia maybe being a little different since they can't reach +2 ECON easily. As well some of the original bonuses and penalties just didn't make sense... like Believers having -PLANET which isn't really expressed in any of the game lore. And their level of aggression often seemed off to me based on their flavor.

So anyways here's my faction set. Overall these factions are definitely stronger. 4-5 benefits and 1-2 downsides.

Mostly just looking for others take on the factions, benefits and penalties that you think they should get and why. More from a flavor/lore perspective than finding perfect balance.

Gaians - Pacifist - Green - Discover/Explore
^+1 PLANET: {Environmental safeguards; can capture mindworms}
^+1 EFFICIENCY: {Egalitarian ideals}
^-1 INDUSTRY: {Reluctant to pollute environment}
^Free TREE FARM at every base.
^{May not use Free Market Economics.}

University - Pacifist - Knowledge - Discover
^+2 RESEARCH: {Brilliant researchers and technicians}
^-1 EFFICIENCY: {Dubious ethics}
^+1 LABS at every base.
^Free NETWORK NODE at every base.
^{May not use Fundamentalist Politics.}

Peacekeepers - Pacifist, Democratic, Discover/Build/Explore
^Extra TALENT for every four citizens: {Humanitarian ideals create happiness}
^Receives DOUBLE votes in elections for Planetary Governor and Supreme Leader.
^Free CHILDREN'S CRECHE at every base.
^50% increased HURRY costs: {U.N. style bureaucracy}
^{May not use Police State Politics.}

Spartans - Aggressive - Power - Conquer
^+2 MORALE: {Well-armed survivalist movement}
^-1 SUPPORT: {Extravagant weapons are costly}
^Free High Morale ability on new units when prerequisite technology is discovered.
^Free COMMAND CENTER at every base.
^{May not use Wealth Values.}

Morgan - Pacifist - Free Market - Build
^+1 ECONOMY: {Industrial conglomerate}
^+1 COMMERCE bonus for treaties and pacts.
^Free ENERGY BANK at every base.
^Base population limits reduced by 2: {Followers have expensive tastes}
^{May not use Plsnned Economics.}

Hive - Erratic - Police State - Conquer/Discover/Explore
^+2 POLICE: {Extensive surveillance}
^-2 COMMERCE: {Isolationist trade policies}
^May exceed base POPULATION limits by 2: {Close living quarters}
^Free PERIMETER DEFENSE at every base.
^{May not use Democratic Politics.}

Believers - Erratic - Fundamentalist - Conquer/Build/Explore
^+2 GROWTH: {Genesis 1:28: 'Be fruitful and multiply'}
^-2 RESEARCH: {Suspicious of secular science}
^+25% Bonus when attacking enemies: {Strength of convictions}
^Free RECREATION COMMONS at every base.
^{May not use Knowledge Values.}

Free Drones - Erratic - Planned - Build/Explore
^+2 INDUSTRY: {Excellent craftsmen and skilled workers}
^-2 PLANET: {Heavy industry damages Planet's ecosystems}
^Begins with 100 extra energy credits: {Plunder from former rulers}
^Free SKUNKWORKS at every base.
^{May not use Police State Politics.}

Cybernetic Consciousness - Aggressive - AI Controlled - Conquer/Discover
^+2 EFFICIENCY: {Collective mind mitigates corruption}
^-1 GROWTH: {Prefer assimilation over reproduction}
^Can steal technology when capturing a base: {Technological assimilation}
^No DRONES at all bases: {Brainwashed followers do not feel emotion}
^{May not use Fundamentalist Politics.}

Cult of Planet - Aggressive - Green - Conquer/Explore
^+2 PLANET: {Devoted to promoting native growth}
^-2 ECONOMY: {Ascetic lifestyles}
^+1 to all resources in FUNGUS squares: {Attunement with Planet}
^Free BIOLOGY LAB at every base.
^{May not use Wealth Values.}

Pirates - Aggressive - Wealth - Conquer/Build
^+2 SUPPORT: {Military supported by plunder}
^-2 PROBE: {Susceptible to bounty offers}
^Free Amphibious Pods ability on new units when prerequisite technology is discovered.
^Free NAVAL YARD at every base.
^{All choices available in Social Engineering: Chaotic.}

Data Angels / Erratic - None - Discover/Build
^+2 PROBE: {Brilliant hackers and propagandists}
^-1 POLICE: {Anarchistic and decentralized}
^Free TECHNOLOGY discovered by 3 or more factions: {Wide-ranging covert activities}
^-50% reduced PROBE costs.
^{May not use Power Values.}

Atlantean Kingdom - Pacifist - Eudaimonic - Explore
^+2 GROWTH: {Utopian ideals, well-being of followers is top priority}
^-2 MORALE: {Strong pacifist tendencies}
^Halved cost to RAISE/LOWER terrain: {Inspired by mythology of island submersion}
^Free AQUAFARM at every base.
^{May not use Thought Control Future Society.}

Asimov's Adherents - Erratic - Thought Control - Conquer/Discover/Build
^+1 INDUSTRY: {Automated systems}
^+1 RESEARCH: {Interested in developing machine life}
^Free ROBOTIC ASSEMBLY PLANT at every base.
^Mandatory PUNISHMENT SPHERE at every base.
^{May not use Eudaimonic Future Society.}

[bvanevery]

Many of these things, I've done in 2 years of my mod development at some point.  So I have some testing insight.  Some of them, I still do.

My Gaians do have free Biology Labs.

+25% Psi combat bonus is way overpowered.  That's like a +2.5 PLANET rating.

+2 GROWTH is overpowered.  You're making pop booming trivial.

Free Children's Creche is overpowered.  Ditto.  And not just for the growth, but it gives defense and EFFIC bonuses as well.

Giving Talents to Zhakarov rather than Lal is a narratively interesting decision.  As a play mechanic though, I'm doubting this is going to work well in practice.  It turns Zhakarov into a population growth oriented faction rather than a research faction.  Sometimes we have to accept that the game doesn't model what we really have in mind, i.e. that Zhakarov should have better researchers available to him, not Talents.

Free Command Center is overpowered, Santiago already gets +2 MORALE.

+1 INDUSTRY for Morgan is overpowered.  I used to have Capitalist +1 ECON +1 INDUSTRY and Wealth +1 ECON +1 INDUSTRY in addition to various penalties.  After several iterations I decided to get rid of all INDUSTRY bonuses, except for the Free Drones which got to be the 1 faction where that's their schtick.  INDUSTRY bonuses are overpowered.  My last game in my mod with the Free Drones was also a cakewalk, I haven't played them in awhile.  Early spread was trivial for them.  I am wondering if I need to correct for their +1 INDUSTRY somehow.

I did also choose +1 POLICE for the Hive, and took such bonus away from anyone else, i.e. the Spartans.  POLICE should be the Hive's schtick.

Free Recycling Tanks is overpowered.  I removed them from the Aliens as well.

I may have tried free Rec Commons for the Believers but thought better of it.  You need to be careful with this "well I don't even have to try" stuff.  A narrative decision is not necessarily an appropriate game mechanical decision.

Did 2 fewer drones for the Free Drones.  It was overpowered.

+2 SUPPORT for any faction is overpowered.  -1 SUPPORT for Morgan in the standard game is pretty darned bad.  I'd expect -2 SUPPORT to be worse.

Don't really see why the Cyborgs should get Perimeter Defenses as compared to the Hive.  Not really any narrative there.

-2 INDUSTRY, +50 Psi combat, seriously?  You want captured mindworms to be death rays?  There's no balance here, you clearly haven't tested this.  It's freakin' Dream Twister from the start of the game.

My Cult can't choose Democratic politics either.

I made my Pirates unable to choose Thought Control, very exactly because they are chaotic and prefer to live free upon the waves.

Free Energy Bank, that's way too loopy an idea for me to have ever even considered playtesting it.

-50% probe cost, NOOOOOOOOOO.  You horrible modder you.  The uber cheapness of mind control of cities is ALREADY the worst thing about the stock game, bar none.  Nothing has more rage quits from me, than the trivial expenditures the AI has made to take things over.  In my mod, everyone's mind control costs DOUBLE.  Data Angels, Hive, and Cyborgs get a 25% discount on the doubling.

My conclusion is: you need to do a LOT of playtesting with what you've come up with.  You've got some serious imbalances. 

[Nexii]

Overpowered is a relative thing (faction against faction) not absolute.

Anyways as far as the flavor I agree about the Perimeters not suiting CyCon. If anyone I think they suit Sparta maybe a bit more than Hive..

Playing around with the idea of CyCon being more radical. A faction even more oppressive than Hive. They use Punishment Spheres to keep control. Cause let's face it they are barely used. TECHCOST, 50 offsets the Spheres to be neutral.

Edited Cybernetic Consciousness above - realized they need some negative POLICE to make it harder to sell off the spheres and just get 2x tech.

[bvanevery]

These factions are still going to be imbalanced even relatively speaking.  Playtest and watch.

I really don't buy the Cyborgs being more oppressive than the Hive.  And the Hive doesn't have to make everyone middle class, which is what a PS does.

Granted, my Data Angels believe in Thought Control, because that was an unused compulsion and I didn't see the need for more Democrats in the game.  They don't actually need it, because my Police State gives +1 PROBE.  So they can already have +3 PROBE, long before Thought Control becomes available.  I don't know if +5 PROBE actually gets you anything.  But my version of Roze is, all that hacking power went to her head.

PS is as cheap as a Rec Commons in my mod, and available early.  So I've tried it out in various circumstances, because it was easy to do.  It's useless in the early game.  It becomes useful when you're conquering distant bases.  PS is often my standard drill for that now.  Eventually I "reform" when it's not a Captured Base anymore.

[Bearu]

Gaians:
Pacifist
+1 PLANET
-1 MORALE
-2 ECONOMY
-1 PROBE
Gaian Psi + 25%
Fungus Nutrient Production + 1
ROBUST, Efficiency
Raise and lower terraform costs halved

Reasoning:
The AI produces significant numbers of mind worms, biology labs, centauri preserves, and temple of planets with the Negative Social Morale and Gaian Psi bonus. The negative Economy complements the Gaian's inability to run Free Market. The robust efficiency reflects Deidre's experience with life systems and allows her to run a police state. The probe penalty represents the weakness of empaths and Gaian citizens to external contacts like Planet. These modifiers work better with my version of the Social engineering table.

Morgan: Build, Pacifist perhaps discover
+1 Economy
-1 Talent
Drone, 4: 1 additional drone per 4 citizens
MORALE, -1
Interest, 2: 2% additional energy credits per turn
Interest, 0: +1 energy credit per base you control per turn
Hurry: 75% of the standard cost.
Commerce + 1
Energy Credit: 100 additional energy credits.

The AI focuses on the generation of energy under a combination of Economy and Efficiency. AI foci of energy involve a combination of discover and build emphasis. Morgan's AI runs more hurry production commands than other factions: (Vertical and horizontal integration of industry). This again works better with my changes on the social engineering table. The AI receives talent penalties for soft on ethics and the inherent reduced emphasis for the AI in my version of the social engineering table. The Morale penalty represents the decadence of Morgan's faction.

Lal: Pacifist, Explore, Discover
+1 TALENT
-1 INDUSTRY
-1 POLICE
Hurry Cost: 125% of standard
+1 Talent per three citizens
+1 Energy production in Fungus (Discussion of ecological balance)
1 Free technology
2X Votes in elections
Discover technology discovered by any other 3 factions

Lal attracts the intellectual elites and diplomats provide additional spies in the factions. Diplomatic experience provides two times the votes in elections. The AI receives additional hurry costs for Lal and Lal receives an industry reduction emphasis for the AI justified in Lal's conservation efforts. Lal abhors atrocities in violation of the UN charter.

Spartans: Aggressive, Conquer, Discover
+1 MORALE (Social)
+1 PROBE
-1 GROWTH
+1 Morale (Non Social)
Impunity, Police State
Free prototypes
1 Free Scout Patrol at the start
Reduced habitation complex limits by 2

This again works better with my changes in the social engineering for MORALE. The + Morale provides Santiago early access to Elite troops and the acquisition of additional military secret projects prevents the need for Power. The growth penalty matches the internal AI's reduced emphasis on Growth for the Spartan Discover and Conquer mandate AI. Santiago practices Eugenics. The Cloning Vat removes the need for Growth Social problems and habitation domes ignore Population problems.

[Bearu]

Believers: Aggressive, Explore, Conquer
+1 SUPPORT
+1 GROWTH
+25% on Attack
+1 Fungus Mineral Production: Believe Planet is promised land
May Exceed Population Limits by 2
Robust, Morale:
-2 RESEARCH
-2% interest on energy credits per year
Penalty, Cybernetic

The goal of Miriam remains population booms and +3 SUPPORT for a large zerg rush. She can also run Wealth with minimal morale penalties for an industrial boost. This version better fits the lore of Miriam in command of a flock of outcast workers. She abhors usury from Morgan. She receives penalties for running Cybernetic because of a suspicion for the moral implications of technology.

University: Erratic and Discover
+1 Research
+1 Efficiency
Free network node at each base
RESEARCH, 2: +2 Labs at each base for excellent research
Technology Cost reduced by 25%
1 Free technology at the start of the game
-1 SUPPORT

Support remains a severe penalty for a faction. I might add additional penalties. Zakharov remains the excellent research faction with fewer troops.

Hive:
+1 Industry
+1 Police
Immunity to Mind control and Subversion
Immunity to Efficiency negatives
Free perimeter defense at each base
MORALE, 0: The Hive ignores the negative effects of Negative Morale modifiers from Drone Riots and SOCIAL MORALE.
-1 Efficiency
-1 Planet
Technology Cost increased by 25%
-1 Commerce

Yang practices "mindcontrol experiments" and engineers the citizens. The planet penalty derives from Yang's bases existing inside the Planet and from the heavy industry of Yang's bases. Yang remained isolationist after the murder on the Unity. Yang smashes corruption and ignores efficiency.
The ignoring of negative morale modifiers allows Yang to run Wealth for better industry. Yang can run Knowledge with minimal problems because Mind control reduces the penalties of probe on knowledge. This works better on my changed social engineering table. 
The AI calculates the research allocation specially for tech cost with the Hive. The Industry bonus works better with my social engineering table.

[Nexii]

The interest gain/penalty make sense to me. What was reasoning for Believers to get Hab+2 and Spartans-2?

The rest seem fairly similar. I have wavered on whether PKs should be pacifist or not. Where I did 4 at each aggression type they'd have to swap with someone, maybe University

Yea the SMAX factions are hard to take too seriously when most have like one or two quotes at most. To me it was strange to have CyCon have techsteal and be pacifist. That's more an aggressive faction thing.

[Bearu]

The Spartans are survivalists on a foreign planet where you need a suit to live in the atmosphere. Military equipment takes space where more people could have lived. I imagined the survivalist mentality encouraged a minimalist attitude on space and meant more space for military equipment than living area.

Miriam's hab facility bonus works well with an eventual +3 Support, so the inclusion supported the goal of Miriam as a zerg rusher. I imagine Miriam in terms of the medieval monasteries from the 6th century Europe through the 15th century where people occupied minimal space in a form of factory work and ascetic lifestyle. Monasteries provided austere living quarters to smash people into the isolated compounds with the least amount of material.

[Bearu]

The rest seem fairly similar. I have wavered on whether PKs should be pacifist or not. Where I did 4 at each aggression type they'd have to swap with someone, maybe University

I discovered factions with a -1 fight setting oppose the repeal of the UN Charter more than factions with erratic and aggressive settings. I could not justify the Peacekeepers supporting the repeal of the UN charter more than Morgan or Deirdre.

[Nexii]

Yea or picking wars for that matter, erratic factions sometimes do. PKs at pacifist and University to erratic seems most sensible.

[bvanevery]

Hurry modding seems awfully likely to give the human player a huge exploit.

What is social vs. non-social MORALE?  I've never heard of that.

An early fungus mineral is way overpowered.  It's the land version of the Pirates' overpowered sea minerals.  Getting a fungus mineral bonus is also irrational for a faction that does not have a PLANET bonus.  Christians have special ways of coaxing fungus that Deidre doesn't know about?

[Bearu]

From the Alphax text file under bonus names:
;MORALE     = Morale modifier (if 0, indicates an
;                 exemption from negative modifiers from
;                 other sources).

The AI treats the MORALE almost identically to the morale bonuses from the Society table. The only difference between the two is a negative MORALE penalty allows the AI to design and build units with the High Morale ability and supplements any bonuses or penalties from the Social morale bonuses.

The ability remains weaker than an industry bonus and fits thematically with Morgan's interest in the usage of Energy Credits. The bonus also supplements the Morganite AI's special reduction in energy credit costs for Hurry commands. 

[Nexii]

Non-social MORALE I've been aware of... it's hard to place because its very similar to just giving -/+ MORALE

Fungus resources I had forgotten about. I think I'll try Cult with +1/+1/+1 in fungus and reduce their PSI bonus down to 25%. The idea is that they are like the 'red' ecological faction and Gaians are the 'green' ecological faction.

[bvanevery]

That other MORALE is redundant and weird.  Some kind of vestigial design that wasn't cleaned up.

[Nexii]

Did some edits, I think I had SUPPORT and INDUSTRY sort of confused flavor wise. I gave Sparta negative SUPPORT, their military should cost more due to it being elite. I don't think their INDUSTRY would be above or below average really. Same for Gaia, I gave them negative INDUSTRY instead of SUPPORT. Bonus wise this makes them more similar to Cult...but there's some big differences still. Gaia is pacifist and more build style, Cult is definitely more aggressive. This will probably mean me revising my SEs a bit too.

By playing Cult I learned that +2 ECON doesn't help fungus squares. I guess it kind of makes sense, I wonder if this was intended flavor or a bug. It's kind of funny to play a faction that doesn't really need to terraform all that much. Centauri Ecology is 2/1/1 on fungus squares. The next boost, Centauri Meditiation, is far off though and that's only 2/1/2. By that point Tree Farms are typically 2/2/1.

CyCon feels a bit strange to play. Losing a punishment Sphere is so bad. They are very swingy, theme wise it was a bit strange they could run Democratic (or really any Politics). But I don't think there's a way to void a whole category, as far as I can tell only one choice per SE tier can be made unavailable.

I gave Drones reduced hurry costs, I feel like it fits them flavor wise the most of all factions. They needed something to make them feel more unique than a cross between PKs and Believers benefits. Of all factions I agree PKs would get the worst hurry costs... from the bureaucratic aspect. Seems to make more sense than negative efficiency, I don't think the PKs would be all that corrupt

I can definitely see negative growth fitting Sparta theme wise btw. Kind of for the same reasons I had it on University, an elitist culture that tends into eugenics. I had it on University partly because PROBE alone didn't feel too notable. Because of how my SEs are set up they are one of the two who can't pop boom (the other being CyCon, they can hit +4 growth but a Golden Age is unrealistic). Extra drones always felt strange to me for University's downside. Negative support I guess kind of fits them, I'll have to think about it...