Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

I haven't taken hard data, but I think fighters in orbit (not in cargo) count as a ship in the sector. I have tried it and riots stopped in a coupla turns. Maybe this was from other factors though. It is an easier way to get "ships" in orbit.

Slick.

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

Also, are the attributes associated with the happiness type mod-able?

For instance, could someone make the Neutral happiness type equal to the Peaceful type?

thanks,

Alarik

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

Yes.
In GritEcon I made the happiness types more balanced, plus have a new happiness type called "Masochistic"

Enemy troops on the planet are the fastest way to make those guys jubilant http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Look in happiness.txt

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

So, you actually came up with a happiness type that is *worse* than standard neutral type? Impressive!

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Thanks for the info

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

Enemy troops on the planet? Do you mean during an invasion? So I assume you've also modded the ground combat so that it takes longer then the stock 1 turn to finish?

EDIT: Ooooo, if that's the case you could really have ground combat that went on for years. Since the planet isn't rioting they could keep pumping out more troops, and you could keep dropping reinforcments from space. Although, does that only work in turn-based? Will your troop ships drop troops on a planet that is in the middle of an invasion in simultaneous-mode?

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

If you don't own the planet, your troops invade the regular way during combat.
If you currently own the planet, you can drop cargo.


BTW, that's not the reason combat goes on for years in gritecon http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif
The main reason is the 1 round of combat per month, and the 1 attack/50 hp infantry.
Because of that ratio, it takes a while for your tanks to mop up militia and get the planet under control, but in the meantime you can be happy its not producing resources for the enemy.

PS:
Bombardment from space may be slower than a ground assault in this mod, since a planet full of infantry will have hundreds of thousands of hitpoints http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif.
Ships will run out of supplies pretty fast during a bombardment, while tanks just keep rolling and stomping.

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

I always figured they were meant to be the default happiness type for Neutral Races. It almost suits their attitude -- never leave their sector, allow no one else in, etc.

Problem is, that's a hopeless tactic in SE4. Anyone who's tried the neutral challange knows that to survive, you have to pick your friends carefully, not give everyone the cold shoulder.

If neutral happiness remains in SE5, maybe Malfador will tweek it a bit. Say maybe bases add happiness while ships outside the system deplete happiness, defending your planets adds happiness, destroying enemy planets decreases happiness etc.

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

Fighters should not count as being ships; that is the theory however, which can be annoyingly quite different from the Truth. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif (I will test it out later)

Alarikf, I think I stated in a first post that Non-intercourse treaties had no happiness effect, which was wrong. I think I wrote in a later post that they do give a happiness boost (+10% if you are interested by the numbers, equivalent to colonising ten planets with a peaceful race), but I cannot exactly recall what I posted.

So the clearer explanation is: Non-Intercourse and None treaties (breaking treaties in other words) give happiness boost for neutrals, like having friendly troops and an UPC. Time also puts them back on Indifferent faster than the other happiness types, though it does not work if your people are busy rioting. Everything else does nothing at best, or makes your people unhappy (including winning battles, colonising and capturing enemy planets).

Re: Race neutral happiness type
 

I've noticed the penalty for beating up on the AI only seems to apply in the system where the combat is occuring. At least it does to a greater degree there. The planets in the systems where no fighting is occuring don't seem to be so upset. Also the troops seem to be doing the trick, and that faster move back to indifferent is helping as well I'm sure. Most of the unhappy planets that I built troops on are already back to indiferent and the angry ones are just unhappy now. I did have one that got away from me and went to rioting. I should have a UPC Online in a few turns. If that doesn't calm them I'll just abandon it. It's only one little tiny planet. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif