I'm concerned...

[EternalSpark]

Hey guys, I'm playing Lal for the first time (which I must say, I'm enjoying it, you know, playing a "Base Line" faction) but I'm concerned about one thing -

Support.

As we all know, Dem has a -2 support. I'm one of those people that if something goes below -2 (or is at that number) I try to find something to counteract it. What do you peeps do, I'm just curious? I ask this cuz I'm worried the Gians will become annoying soon, and I want them gone, but the support costs are GAH.

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Eternal Spark - Mod leader and founder of
Deus Fortress - unqiue Team Fortress for Deus Ex

[Fitz]

Have you never used Democracy before or something? I'm in shock at the implications.

Here's what you do: Don't build bases while running Demo. Otherwise, ignore it. It's the diferance between one free and two free units. The real penalty is no free units when you plunk down a base. So run frontier when expanding, and Demo when your finished.

Either that or counteract with Living Refinery (once available), Power, or put up with the loss of free minerals.

[Skanderbeg]

Exactly with Lal running demo the support penalty is no big problem.
The only real penalty is the missing minerals when founding a new base. So send an escort with the colony pod as garrison.

The increased mineral support for units is no problem:
Remember, Lal get's an additional talent for every 4 of population, which means less drones, which means MORE workers. Let one of this workers work a forest or a mine, and You have easily equalized the mineral support penalty!

"Steelborn, Starborn"

[EternalSpark]

Before this time of playing, I've typically been a Hiver, so Demo is new to me

[Sikander]

Another way to expand your power is to use clean troops. Before clean becomes available, armored probe teams can act as a sort of poor man's clean force. For instance you can use them to guard border areas, or even as garrisons (remember not to stack them though). They defend as well as normal troops (unstacked) and sometimes even better than troops built while running wealth (probe team morale is not effected by Morale SE setting). Lal's extra talents should offset the loss of police if you wish to use armored probe team garrisons.