Resources and Monoliths

[lwmweb]

I did a search and did not find anyone discussing the pros and cons of using Monoliths over standard resource facilities.

I am not a math wiz so I did an analysis in Excel.

Using the assumption that:

The resource numbers for a huge planet are 100 100 20.
I want to recap my original investment in the facilities.
It takes 5 turns to build a monolith
It takes 2 turns to build a normal facility (these are the most likely until you have a planet with high population)
The monolith III mines 900 of each resource (modified by the %'s)
The regular facility III mines 1,000 resources per turn.

It will take 44 turns before the Monolith's have repaid their costs and have a positive resource flow.

If I increase the numbers to 150, 150 and 100 it still takes 35 turns to break even. At 150 150 150 it takes 28 turns. Of course after that it rocks but it would take a very long game (to me) to be able to research and colonize enough planets to make Monoliths usable.

On another note I believed and had read on this forum that 150 was the max modifier. In my current game The AI (long ago) placed a Value Improvement Plant III on a planet and the Atmospheric Modification Plant placed on the, by me, completed its work. I happened to look at the modifiers and the radioactive modifier was at 157. Is this normal or only in the difficult games?