minimal infractructure strategy

The diplomat · February 9, 2001, 18:43

When I first started playing SMAC, I assumed that it was a good idea to build all the facilities in all your bases, so that each base could take advantage of the facilities' benefits. But now that I am an experienced player, I think this is not such a great idea. The main reason is that infrastructure eats up energy through maintenance costs which means less energy for your labs, psych or economy.

To maximize your energy, you want to increase your energy input and decrease your energy output. This is simple budget 101. To this end, a player should terraform and increase population as much as possible to maximize the energy produced. It is important to have a good efficiency so as to minimize waste. Now, that your energy is maxed, a player needs to reduce the energy that is spent. I believe the best way to do this is to minimize your infrastructure. Build as few facilities as possible. For example, only build energy banks in the bases that are already producing lots of energy. Building banks in poor energy producing bases will not help as much as it will hurt. Only build commander centers in a few bases where you want to build an army.

By building the fewest number of facilities as possible, your maintenance costs will be the smallest possible, and you will maximize your energy surplus!

This strategy could be the most beneficial for factions such as Morgan and Zhakharov since they need lots of energy!

Any thoughts on this strategy?

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No permanent enemies, no permanent friends.

WhiteElephants · February 9, 2001, 19:56

I agree to some extent. I select certain cities bases on their locations and decide what facilities, in their future, are they going to require. I tend to build command centers at bases with a decent amount of mineral output to support combat units. Some of my smaller bases simply add to my armada of formers until they are large enough to contribute in some other way.

The reason I only agree to some extent is that it doesn't take a whole lot of energy production to capitalize on the benefits of net. nodes or energy banks. I generally only takes two or three population points to compensate for the upkeep of these facilities. If I understand correctly you would only need to produce 4 energy which is 2 labs and 2 e.c.'s. From that point either a node or a bank would be compensating for the upkeep by producing an extra lab or e.c. And considering you base square starts with (one or two?) energy your not far from 4 especially after a rec. tank which is pretty standard for any base.

Misotu · February 10, 2001, 15:41

Agreed WE - in fact, 2-2 energy (labs, econ) is the same as 1-1, because in each case you'd get 1 extra lab and 1 extra econ for the bank or node. So energy banks break even pretty much from day one (not that I'd recommend building them then!).

Tree farms break even at 6 econ (and that's leaving aside the food/psych benefit). Fusion labs also break even at 6 econ, plus delivering a lab benefit.

I wouldn't advocate a minimal infrastructure approach, but it is definitely worth assessing advantage vs cost. A slow research faction, esp on tech stag, can easily end up building facilities they can't support!

Gregurabi · February 12, 2001, 15:58

I'd also like to point out that the upkeep cost of a base facility is subtracted from your surplus econ income, not from your pre-multiplier energy income. If your whole faction is producing a grand total of 20 labs per turn and only 1 surplus energy credit; and you build a Rec Commons somewhere; then your faction is still producing 20 labs per turn (and no surplus econ).

On the other hand, if that Rec Commons allows you to put a worker back in the field instead of being a Doctor, then you're going to make a profit on it. If the worker goes onto a forest (even before Tree Farms), that's 1 extra nut, 2 extra minerals, and 1 extra energy you're bringing in. If the extra energy gets multiplied, or increases commerce income... then you may make way more than the 1 EC you're spending on that Rec Commons. And even if it's not multiplied, the 1 energy will pay for the Rec Commons's upkeep (assuming it isn't lost to inefficiency), leaving you a profit of 1nut/2min per turn.

DilithiumDad · February 12, 2001, 16:08

There are many momentum players who don't build facilities other than recycling tanks, but I don't think this is a wimming strategy. The Hive is faction that benefits most from going easy of facilities. Hive bases are small and usally closely packed, and produce little energy. In one game as the Hive I went overboard building Research Hospitals and Network Nodes in a crazed attempt to boost my research and ended up with negative income (not on the F3 screen but for real --credits available going down and facilities self-destructing left and right). From then on, I have always been careful about building too many Research Hospitals unless playing the University, where they are essential in every base over size 6 or so.

Skanderbeg · February 13, 2001, 05:35

You normally couldn't have "two much" energy, lab, and anti-drone facilities. If a base is big enough to build such an enhancement in an agreeable number of turns, it is easily able to pay the maintenance costs.

Other thing is military enhancing facilities, like
command centres, cyborg factories, shipyards, cov ops centres (except aerospace complexes, because of their use for satellites). These facilities are only for specialized military bases.

"Steelborn, Starborn"

cbn · February 14, 2001, 17:49

Generally I agree that most bases should get most facilities as outlined above. However I have had any number of occasions when it made sense for a base to be simply size 2 or three and have no excess nuts. Crawlers make it a productive industrial centre and any nuts or energy squares are crawlered to the best science city to be processed through the multiplicative effects there.

However ever the mineral city will get some facilities-ie Rec Commons or Tanks - they may get a particular morale enhancing facility and then be tasked to building that type of unit.

Method · February 17, 2001, 11:50

do facilities that you get from a SP like command nexus or cyborg factory cost anything?

RGE · February 19, 2001, 05:50

No. And you don't actually have those buildings either, you have the *effect* of those buildings. That's why you can't scrap them for credits, or have probe teams sabotage them.