Hey, I finally saw an AI sky hydroponics lab.

Blake · June 8, 2002, 02:57

Well, even after playing SMACX for years, there is still a first time for a few things

I saw one launched at 2276 by "The Drones" which up until about 2200 was controlled by me (I had built up excellent terraforming, in fact I had raised land to create a large bay, filled the bay with kelp and the land with forest).
Anyway then I used the scenerio editor to switch control to the Cyborgs which had one size 4 base with no garrison, and it was in riots. The drones with my basic terraforming shot up on the charts to be about 3 times the height of the hive (next best). At the time of orbital launch my Cyborgs are about 4th in the power chart.

It may prove to be an interesting challenge, beating my creation of a century before.

I stronly reccomend the trading places challenge, that is play until your the strongest faction (and/or until a given year... 2150 for "easy' 2200 for "harder") then switch to the weakest faction. Once you've got that one at the top, switch to the new weakest faction. Repeat until the game is won and/or lost. As well as providing powerhouse AI's to fight it gives you plenty of oppurtunity to build a faction from the ground up, helping to avoid the tedium of staying at the top.

Sikander · June 8, 2002, 06:14

I've seen the AI build satelites a number of times. It isn't really common, but I don't get too surprised when it happens anymore. It seems more likely to happen on big maps, where they can grow in peace. I actually saw something amazing recently, which was the Gaians using a single energy crawler. It was on an energy special pretty far from any bases. My best guess is that I beat Dee to an SP and the crawler went into the wasteland looking for something to crawl.

Clear Skies · June 8, 2002, 07:26

I've seen it happen once or twice, except in one game where the Spartans built SHL after SHL. Really got on my wick, so I built hundreds of ODPs and blasted them out of the sky, shortly before blasting the Spartans out of existence. Damn Santiago...grr grr grr...

Impaler[WrG] · June 8, 2002, 15:00

Do you mean to say you cant attack enemy orbital facilites with your Defence Pods?? I though they were purely defencive, how do you launch these attacks?

I have also seen the AI build a few orbital improvments usaly Hydroponics Bays and ocassional a Power Transmiter but never a Nessus Mine.

Ofcorse I am oposed to the very Idea of Sky Hydroponics Bays as they are rediculously unrealistc, a giant space ship that provideds virtualy unlimited food units just aint going to happen. And it most especialy aint going to be the FIRST orbital improvment you invent. Also these things have no maintance at all another insane feature.

Clear Skies · June 8, 2002, 15:18

Yeah, it's perfectly possible to down enemy satellites with ODPs. First time I did it was a long time after the Hive launched its first SHL - I'd eliminated them about 20 years previously... You just press F6 (? i think) to bring up the orbital status window and then click 'attack'.

Tactical Marine · June 8, 2002, 15:44

The ODPs are really use less unless playing MP. I was able to use one in a regular game once tho... worked like a charm.

Googlie · June 8, 2002, 18:54

Some time ago I set up a small downloadable scenario for playtesting ODPs. You can get it (plus instructions) at:

http://googlie2.tripod.com/rynnsgallery/id9.html

And my experience in SP games is similar - on large and huge maps the AI is more likely to build them than on tiny, small or regular maps.

Googlie

Tactical Marine · June 8, 2002, 18:55

Hey thanx I'll check that out!

Phil_de_geezer · June 9, 2002, 07:23

Quote:

The ODPs are really use less unless playing MP. I was able to use one in a regular game once tho... worked like a charm.

I built 27 in one SP game! The Hive tried to Planet Buster me 4 times in one turn but they were all intercepted (with a lot of spare ODP's). I also had to destroy about 20 orbital improvements that the Hive had built.

Tactical Marine · June 9, 2002, 14:51

Wow. I don't get PBed very much so I don't use them for intercepting. It has a random % of intercepting correct?

Flubber · June 9, 2002, 17:38

Quote:

Originally posted by Tactical Marine
Wow. I don't get PBed very much so I don't use them for intercepting. It has a random % of intercepting correct?

No . . . each ODP has a 50% chance of interecepting a PB so even with 4 or 5 ODPs the chance of one getting through gets small-- The guy who had 27 ODPs made it really really unlikely

Mongoose · June 9, 2002, 18:22

Right up until the solar storm on Alpha Centauri Prime toasts them all! lol

Once upon a time, there was a story in the Fiction forum, maybe by Googlie, that told of such an event. Quite a good read, as I recall.

Phil_de_geezer · June 10, 2002, 06:19

In my last game i was playing with just one city and the Hive were able to build 12 Sky Hydroponics Bays, 5 Nessus Mining stations, 6 orbital power transmitters, 30 ODP's and about 15 Geosynchronous Survey Pods! Not bad!

Clear Skies · June 10, 2002, 10:05

Can you shoot down GSPs with ODPs too? I've never seen the AI build a GSP, so I don't know...

Googlie · June 10, 2002, 11:48

Yes you can

And what's neat is, if there is more than one, you also get to select which base's GSP to specifically target

G.

Clear Skies · June 10, 2002, 15:20

Very cool...
Now if I can just get the $"*^U* stupid AI to build some!

Sinapus · June 10, 2002, 18:47

Heh. I tend to build ODP's in huge numbers. (Think the Earth Defense Grid in either Macross Plus, or Babylon-5)

Fitz · June 10, 2002, 19:15

The AI will most defiantely build sats if it is strong compared to the player. I had one game where (as Miriam) I was fighting and losing a war of attrition against the drones. They were seriously handing me the smackdown, and suddenly I start getting 2-3 "satellite launched" messages a turn.

Of course, given that I was nowhere near sats the smackdown started increasing rapidly after that.

Clear Skies · June 11, 2002, 05:47

I'll have the try the 'build up then turn over' strategy - I like the idea of an AI playing with an empire that I've just spent a few hundred years building up

Obviously something to do next game...as soon as I finish squishing the damn aliens. It's quite amusing - with no other human factions left in the game, I can run the Planetary Council all by my ickle self...
"Hmmm, who shall I vote in as Governor? Candidates are...me. I think I'll vote for....me."
Me elected.
"Yay!"

Adalbertus · June 11, 2002, 13:42

I had AI sats every now and again, on a huge map, when the AI was not too far behind. It only took too long until I figured out how to shoot them when I arrived at ODPs

. But now I know

Marid Audran · June 11, 2002, 15:11

In a recently run auto-play game with the SMAX factions (plus 2 custom-made and my refitted alphax.txt rules) I did indeed see AI sats towards the endgame. Roze in particular had lauched 3 Sky Hydroponics Labs, 2 Orbital Power Transmitters, and 2 Nessus Mining Stations. Dawn managed to get one skyfarm up as well. Roze also had most of the SPs in-game as was working on her 22nd (!) Transcendent Thought the turn before she transcendened in 2363, but that's beside the point.

Condensers were quite common, and there were even a few boreholes peppering AI territories. Nearly every post-Hab Complex base on Chiron was crammed to the gills with facilities; those factories pushed forward in the tree really helped mineral output. The only problem was that Chiron was a boggy mess; too much eco-damage and melted ice caps.

Kataphraktoi · June 11, 2002, 18:32

Quote:

In my last game i was playing with just one city and the Hive were able to build 12 Sky Hydroponics Bays, 5 Nessus Mining stations, 6 orbital power transmitters, 30 ODP's and about 15 Geosynchronous Survey Pods! Not bad!

what do ''geosynchronous survey pods'' do?dont have the xpac obvously...

Patashu · June 12, 2002, 04:17

they increase base LOS radius to 3 and act as a sensor array.

aaglo · June 12, 2002, 04:35

Geosynchronous pod: only one pod/owned city. It can be destroyed via ODP and probe-team action...

Clear Skies · June 12, 2002, 12:22

Plus they have a really cool/spooky voiceover with them, done by Domai.

"The managers always talked about 'having the view from thirty thousand feet'. The only problem with having the view from thirty thousand feet, is that at that height, everyone looks like ants.
-Foreman Domai,
'Genejack and the Beanstalk' "

DilithiumDad · June 12, 2002, 12:24

I play SP only on huge maps, so I see 1-2 sky hydroponics from Lal and 1-2 energy satellites from Morgan. usually they are my allies and I have beefed them up by gifting bases to them.

Mongoose · June 12, 2002, 12:28

Who do you usually play in SP, DD? UoP?

Clear Skies · June 12, 2002, 12:41

Ack, abbreviation city

We need to make a list of SMAC abbreviations...

Kataphraktoi · June 19, 2002, 15:01

Quote:

they increase base LOS radius to 3 and act as a sensor array

Quote:

Geosynchronous pod: only one pod/owned city. It can be destroyed via ODP and probe-team action...

Quote:

Plus they have a really cool/spooky voiceover with them, done by Domai.

"The managers always talked about 'having the view from thirty thousand feet'. The only problem with having the view from thirty thousand feet, is that at that height, everyone looks like ants.
-Foreman Domai,
'Genejack and the Beanstalk' "

by the time i get satelite ability,i have all my bases heavily covered with multiple sensors.dosnt sound very useful....

Phil_de_geezer · June 19, 2002, 15:03

The 25% bonus is on top of the normal sensor bonus - so you get two!