Your favorite racial makeup

[DirectorTsaarx]

I always use temporal tech, take the "Scientists" trait, and max out research. I'll also use the propulsion bonus trait. I set Strength to 120% in this Last game, just for grins (besides, I LIKE ground combat - taking over my opponent's world is just as much fun as glassing it). I also usually increase construction speed. Really helps when you get those Temporal Space Yards .

I'm still working on a research strategy. I had one nearly disastrous game going where I didn't get PDC's early enough, and the Terrans really put a dent in my empire before I glassed 'em. Silly humans...

[Talenn]

Heh...well, looking at these and using my own intution I feel completely justified in my mod with preventing the lowering of many traits below 100. In our games the same things were being seen over and over again...completely reduce Strength and Cunning and crank up the others. IMO, this is a DEFINATE balance problem. There is no way a point of Strength should cost as much as Research or Mining or whatnot.

I've gone ahead and tweaked the hell out of that file and made many of the better items more expensive and the less important ones cheaper. IMO, its made for a much better game and one in which, once again, the AI is more competitive. If you look at the AI files, none of them does the kind of 'mini-maxxing' that players will do. IIRC, not one trait is below 100. So, IMO, I think player's should have to play on the same field.

Talenn

[Nyx]

Not all of the stats are worth the same. If you drop your stats too low you only get 10 points per point of decrease. Reproduction and construction both switch up to costing 100 per point at 110, while intelligence doesn't do that until 120.

These are from memory, so I might be a bit off, but I'm 90% sure this is the case. Still, they need to be much more differentiated. Physical strength is so utterly meaningless. When I capture a planet with 50% strength, I just send extra troops. The problem is that nomatter how you change it, this stat is just free points. It's so utterly meaningless to gameplay that there's no reason to not suck all you can out of it.

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[nweaver]

My current pattern

Scientists (+5 research)
120% research
80% trade
80% repair (I rely more on fighters, might shift this to 80% ground combat strength)

Organic Technology
Advanced Storage (Gotta love having +3 or +5 facilities on the starting homeworld).

Out of the box, I try to research Organic Engineering, Organic Weapons, Organic Tech, Construction, and fighters.

The initial strategy (along with expanding like a MoFo) is to build blockaders (Escorts/frigates with missiles/parasites set to a REAL max range strategy), which I immediately send to enemy worlds, blockading them and demanding their surrender.

Once I get fighters, I uprade to Lvl 3 in weapons, and start building small carrier forces to bomb those who refused to surrender.

Then, of course, real tech tree climbing while massively expanding etc etc etc.