Integer Overflow caused by modding counter-intel

[Kamog]

I just discovered that if you mod the intelprojects.txt, it's not a good idea to set the Effect Amount of a counter-intelligence project too high. The game will crash with an integer overflow error when another empire uses an intel attack against the empire that is using the modded counter-intelligence project.

I wanted to create a race that is immune to intel attacks, so I made a racial trait that gives a new counter-intel project with Effect Amount = 3000. That doesn't work, and I had a difficult time figuring it out because the game doesn't crash until turn #100 or so when intel projects start being used. I kept thinking that I had too many planets or something, but that wasn't the cause. After wasting a lot of time unsuccessfully going back to saved games, then starting new games and having them also crash, and then re-installing SEIV, I finally figured it out. Once I set the effect amount to a smaller number, it no longer crashed.

It's strange that SEIV accepts really big numbers for the cost of intel projects but not for the effect amount.

[Captain Kwok]

What project was the effect amount for?

[Suicide Junkie]

Woah! 300x ?!?
That's total immunity for pennies a day!

One intel center would produce the same effect as topping off a level 1 counter-intel project EVERY month!

It's strange that SEIV accepts really big numbers for the cost of intel projects but not for the effect amount.

You have to multiply those two together...
300 x 500,000 = 150 000 000

PS:
Isn't intel defense already too easy?

[EaX]

isn't easier to disable intel?

[Ed Kolis]

He wants one particular race to be immune to it.

[spoon]

Kamog said:
I wanted to create a race that is immune to intel attacks, so I made a racial trait that gives a new counter-intel project with Effect Amount = 3000. That doesn't work,.... Once I set the effect amount to a smaller number, it no longer crashed.

Hey, that's a cool idea. What number did you finally settle on for the Effect Amount?

[Kamog]

The game doesn't crash when I set the Effect Amount = 300.

It's still super powerful with a value of 300 and easily stops everything. The trouble with having something like this is that a human player would not spend any intel points against an empire that has this trait, but the A.I. would still expend points on intel attacks that would be wasted.

What I really wanted to do was have races that are immune to puppet political parties and crew insurrection, because they shouldn't work against races with collective consciousness, hive minds, fanatic loyalty, energy-based beings etc. But the counter-intel will block everything, including spying and sabotages that these races shouldn't be immune against. So this idea doesn't work that well...

[Raging Deadstar]

Kamog said:What I really wanted to do was have races that are immune to puppet political parties and crew insurrection, because they shouldn't work against races with collective consciousness, hive minds, fanatic loyalty, energy-based beings etc. But the counter-intel will block everything, including spying and sabotages that these races shouldn't be immune against. So this idea doesn't work that well...

Well I'm not too sure about that. Puppet Political Parties and Crew Insurrection can be justified against Energy Beings or Fanatical Loyalty. Energy Beings are sentient, like other races although perhaps in other ways. If they sympathise with another empire they could be happy to gain control of a planet/ship for you. Fanatical Loyalty as well, it depends who they are fanatically loyal to.

Collective consciousness Or Hive Minds could be explained, Perhaps drugs that cut that connection and a Replacement brain of the collective was put in place, But it gets a bit confusing.

What I would like to see is a variable ammount of chance of success for different types of planets. Homeworlds should be difficult to convert, while backwater colonies not as such.

But it was a cool idea Kamog.