quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Back to SEV after a year or what. A few quck questions:

- How can i destroy certain facilites on a planet ?
- Where is the button to build X units where X = one turn`s worth ?
- How can i save designs so i can load them in a new game instead of designing all basic ships once again ?
- Is there a PBW for SEV ?
- Are there any mods (major ones) besides the balance mod ?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Wow. Now that is a good measurement about how much ppl like SEV. lol.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

- scrap cargo. you can also jettison cargo. facilities are considered cargo.
- there is none
- save empire with designs
- yes
- I wish there were since so many people spent so much time (I won't say whining) asking for moddability.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

One turn's worth is not needed, since build points carry over between projects and turns. Just build as many as you need or want.
For example: a carrier capable of holding 30 fighters, plus 30 fighters, repeat build.

There are a number of mods in progress as well. Gritty Galaxy, for example. (Screenshot)

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

SJ, I would disagree. Frequently it is desirable to build just 1 turn's worth, whatever that may be, and then move on to building something else. Currently, you have to use trial and error to figure out what that number is.

Also for your example above, why wouldn't it just be easier to build 1 on repeat build instead of 30?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

In Se4, building one turn's worth at least allows you to quickly optimize your production rate. (Although building more usually results in 5 units in 4 turns, rather than one per turn for example)

In SE5, one turn's worth provides no such advantage.
One turn's worth means that you don't know how many you really want.


If you were to put one on repeat build, then you'd end up with 30 fighters and 30 carriers.

What you want in the example, is a bunch of carriers and 30 fighters to fill each of them.
Building 30 fighters (perhaps 10 bombers, 10 interceptors, and 10 dogfighters), then one carrier, and hitting repeat build, means that each time you finish a carrier, you have built exactly what you need (30 fighters) to fill it and send it into combat right away.

When you know what you want to end up with, one turn's worth is irrelevant. You get what you want as fast as it can be produced.
And if you are really stuck on it, you can do the "build 1, repeat" thing.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Ah, misunderstood your order; and agreed.

However, say I just colonized a planet near the front lines and I want to build 1 turn's worth of mines then move on to building facilities, I currently have to use trial and error to get the number of mines right and it is frustrating.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

As I said, one turn's worth means that you really don't know what you want.
You're asking for a semi-random number of mines?

Why not just queue up 100 mines (max deployable) and then your facilities, or some fraction of that depending on how dangerous you feel the territory is?

Or you could put 10 mines, then a mineral miner, repeat.
That way your colony's protection increases proportional to how developed it is.

Perhaps you want enough mines to blow up two of those planet-glassing scout ships the enemy has flitting around?

You just need to decide http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

That's just it. I do know what I want. In the example above, I want a spaceport built on the 4th turn as follows:

Turn 1: Build 1 turn's worth of mines.
Turn 2-4: Build spaceport (normally takes 3 turns to build).



I don't care if turn 1 generates 10 mines or 6, but either will stop the lone colonizer or pesky frigate until I can get established. What I do care about is that I have a spaceport in 4 turns, protected during construction by as many mines as I can make in that time. What I don't like is having to use trial and error to make that happen. Even once I figure out that number, and I might even make a saved queue for the mines (which will overwrite any existing queue when used, but that's another problem), as technology and cost of these units increases, the number changes. Then I need to make another saved queue (and can't delete the old obsolete saved queue, which is yet another problem). Of course these saved queues would only work with a minimally populated planet with no spaceyard; since 1 turn's worth on a planet with more population or a spaceyard could very well be capable of making more in 1 turn. Soon, the saved queue list will be filled with junk that can't be deleted. A definite PITA that would be solved with the "1 turn's worth" option, which CAN'T be that hard to implement. Although you provide valid examples of how the "spilling over" of construction points does minimize the impact of this problem, there are many more examples of having (or not having) construction items be complete on a given turn makes a huge difference.

Is there an easier way to do this that I'm not seeing?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

If you don't mind revisiting the queue, you could add as many mines as you want, and then move them to the bottom of the queue on turn two.

You don't lose the leftover points put into the last mines, and you can finish it later.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Ragnarok-X said:
"Wow. Now that is a good measurement about how much ppl like SEV. lol."

Actually, it is a very bad measurement. Most (all?) people in the Americas were sleeping. 4 AM for west coast, 7 AM on a Saturday for east coast...

"- Are there any mods (major ones) besides the balance mod ?"

The Wiki has quite a list going.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Quick one. Assuming i would like to create a facility that has the ability to scan the scan the system (i.e. get rid of the fog of war) for a range of X, how should the entry look ? I dont need the general things, but the ability entries.

Can it be modded so it requires a constant upkeep each turn ?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Use the same abilities as basic sensors. Maintenance is paid on all facilities.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

You can get rid of fog of war in Settings.txt, if you want it removed completely.

Base Sight Range Colony := 0

Set to 25 or so and you'll cover the whole system.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

No, i want to keep the fog of war, just want to get extra powerful fixed sensor stations.

LASTLY, about the upkeep. I realize their is maintenance, but would it be possible to add a negative radioactive generation ability so the facility dreains 1000 or what rads per turn ?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

I do that with my facilities in GGmod.

I set the maintenance to zero, but have things such as the:
Hydrocarbon Power Plant:
- Generates -2000 organics per month
- Generates 5000 rads per month

Mineral miners use up some organics for workers, and a good deal of rads to power the equipment.

etc.
I've also got sensor facilities. Pricey, but handy. Cheaper to deploy a network of satellites in the hexes around your planet, although sats are vulnerable to weapons fire.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

To Slick:

Personally, I use a pocket calculator. That way you don't have to guess, and can build more than a turn's worth of defenses, plus a spaceport, all still in 4 turns.

Of course, "Build one turn's worth" would be a great addition to the UI, even if still too simplistic.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

The irony is that there was originally a "one turn's worth" button before construction point spillover was added, but we requested it be changed to an actual type-able amount field. Muahahahaha!!



(I think the request was actually to have such a field added, but Aaron decided to replace one turn's worth button instead.)

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Guys, guys...

Just do the math. Each unit requires so much of each resource, and a space yard and/or colony has a fixed output. It took me all of 10 seconds to figure out that my dreadnought could build 3 troops in a single turn - and, by the way, this enables my ship to build while moving - and the spillover system has reconfigured my modus operandi for building. I recently applied all that in the rapid construction of a new fleet in the face of a new war against a scary computer empire. I just assembled the components on a gaggle of planets, and maybe 5 turns later, I kept an eye out for my final unit, and sort of tied it all together.

By the way...as far as questions go...where on the tech tree are halo planets, stellar spheres, and planetary gravity bombs (for planet making)?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Figured out the matter gravity spheres...but now I'm eating forkfull after forkfull of organic ships, and all I'm getting are these temporary, and useless, token hull construction levels.

What would I need to do to acquire organic technology through captured ships (or possibly espionage)?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

The organic trait, obviously ?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

No, no...I need to acquire it from enemy ships or intelligence.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Siirenias said:
"By the way...as far as questions go...where on the tech tree are halo planets, stellar spheres, and planetary gravity bombs (for planet making)?"

What's a "halo planet?" Some reference to a lame console game? There are ringworlds and sphereworlds, which come from Astrophysics 2 > Stellar Manipulation (along with all other stellar object creation/destruction techs).

Siirenias said:
"No, no...I need to acquire it from enemy ships or intelligence."

You cannot own any tech that has a racial requirement for which you do not possess the trait. Note that unique ruins techs work the same way; have to colonize the planet yourself.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Ringworlds. Yes, ringworlds. Forgot what they were called.

And thanks for the definitely beneficial definitions. Guess those dozen organic destroyers I have won't do me much good...

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

'Obviously' for SE grognards. Not so obviously for new players.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

Didnt mean to sound arrogant, narf :p

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

It actually sounded like you were missing the point. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Although, I have another question.

I've been pretty patient about this, especially since it is largely cosmetic.

But...how do you create new ship types? I mean, sure, Attack Ship, Defense Ship. What more could you want?

If you ask me, you could split those two designations into several different types, like Picket, Escort, Raider, Capital Ship, Flagship, Garrison...

So. Anyone know how to do this bit of magic?

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

The trouble with adding new design types is that strategies are largely dependent upon them; each strategy has separate behavior settings for each type. This is why Aaron did not add the ability to add arbitrary design types in-game. You can add new ones in the Data\DefaultDesignTypes.txt file, but I don't believe they will show up in an existing game.

Re: quick SEV gameplay questions
 

You know, I kinda wanted to see if I could do this game without too much modding (even though I'm now watching that Gritty Universe mod, or something, with interest), but messing with those sounds interesting, and right down my alley. I used to be a great modder in my time...working on Homeworld 2...
*reminisces about the good ol' days*