[dmm]

What you REALLY want is a SaveGameFile Editor. This would allow you to do everything that the map editor does, PLUS edit ships, techs, pops, facilities -- in other words, everything.

You could make an enemy with low tech but a big empire. Or an enemy with high tech but a small empire. Or an enemy with sparsely-populated planets with horrible conditions (due to their recent civil war). Or a galactic invader with huge ships and no planet at all (to begin with).

And you could make your own scenarios, such as:
A galaxy-wide catastrophe (roll for it each turn); or
No warp points at first, then someone discovers them, then the knowledge gets transmitted every time first contact is made; or
Natural warp points gradually wink out; or
A race is taken over by its own robots; or
Your mega-empire has a civil war and splits into two.

AND you could merge SEIV with other games. For instance, if you want more hands-on control of space or ground combat, just use your favorite tactical or first-person combat game to determine the results of an SEIV combat. Then use the Editor to override the default SEIV results.

[This message has been edited by dmm (edited 02 May 2001).]