Tips for initial research points.
 

I have again returned to this question and I have been playing around with dumping all of my intital points into a new colonizing tech.

I am using the Proportions mod with a 3 planet start for players.

On turn 5 the number of planets I am able to colozines usually doubles (I select the tech based on how many planets) and I usually pick up at least 2 large or huge green planets.

Developing this planets seems to pay off in the long run of 5 turns behind in other tech areas.

Srooy that this is a bit incoherent. I am at work and wanted to get this up on the board for some feedback.

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

Your strategy can work if there are no aggressive neighbours around - however hard you try to make solony world productive, it will take time and if he/she invest in military stuff instead, you may be a history before your first megapolis is build http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

If it only takes you 5 turns to research a colonization tech in the proportions mod, then GO FOR IT.

In the standard game, using 3 starting planets, it would take you 3.3 YEARS (33 TURNS!!) to research another colonization tech. This would slowly decrease as you build more research centers, but it would still stifle you incredibly at the start of the game.

Normally, I'll just explore and trade (or conquer) for them when I find a civilization that has the techs I need.

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">There is a good catch here. In Proportions, the presence of a nice "green" planet near to homeworld may not mean much. To make it a thriving productive colony, you must invest a lot of materials (in the way of starliners maintenance), ship a lot of otherwise productive population, build a strong infrastructure and only hundred turns later rip the benefits of your hard labour ! In other words, you may be better off if you only have one good planet nearby then two http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/shock.gif Sometimes proportions is a very complicated game !

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

yes, but in standard game if you have a 255 system map, even if you have a lot of comps, it's still better to research the planet tech, it doubles the number of planets you can have. although i only have regular; the ai may be better in gold.

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

Well, AI's (even hostile ones) will gladly trade you colonization techs, although sometimes you have to "sweeten the deal" by throwing in 50000 resources or something piddly like that.

You can even offer a SHIP trade for one of his colonization ships, and trade him an empty cargo vessel or something. Then you analyze the ship for the tech, spread his population around on the appropriate atmosphere worlds, and you're set to go.

I don't think I've EVER actually gained colonization techs through research. (Although unchecking "allow tech trades" hampers this greatly--you have to steal or trade ships, then)

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

You can trade "systems" that you don't have any presence in against colony tech and they might agree to it!
The AI isn't very bright!

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

excuse me for jumping the thread, I wonder how people deal with the population in Proportions? The slow growth rate, and high weight takes alot of transports/starliners to move them around. And what is so special with the Starliners, I used regular transport.

Thank you in advance

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

Starliners tend to be able to carry more population for fewer tech levels.

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

i generally don't take advantage of the ai, so it affects my playing style; i know that if i don't have a challenge i'll get bored-one reason why i have trouble finishing games once i know i can win. and if it's to hard i'll get bored. the squirells will definitly bury my head.

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">The only advantage of straliners is they come earlier than medium/large transports. Otherwise, tarnsports are cheaper in maintanence and faster.

You really must have a whole fleet of population transports ! I usually have move transports than military ships http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif Repeat orders (load, drop polulation, repeat) reduce micromanagement dramaticaly.

[ April 02, 2003, 10:06: Message edited by: oleg ]

Re: Tips for initial research points.
 

A breathable world near to your homeworld is a huge bonus in proportions- pop transposrts are slow in proportions and reducing the distance they have to travel on each trip makes a huge difference to population growth. Therfore it might well be worth researching that extra tech if there is such a planet nearby.

That said I think it might be worth increasing the tech cost of the extra colonisation types if it can be done in just 5 turns.

Another slightly cheesy trading tactic against the AI is to send out loads of scouts and make first contact with as many races as possible, then sell your comm channels for ships (which may contain valuable tech, or just be useful for defence).

The AI seems to value comm channels highly and as long as they haven't made the contact themselves you can sell (for example) Phong comms to the Xi while selling Xi contact to the Phong at the same time. I find that even your worst enemies will usually accept a comm channel trade.

[ April 02, 2003, 10:34: Message edited by: dogscoff ]