Racial Trait Disadvantages

[Fyron]

I've always thought that SE4 could use many more advanced racial traits that are penalties rather than bonuses (you get points back for taking them). P&N, Adamant and a few other mods have some good ones, but not quite enough. What ideas do you have for good disadvantage traits that would not require everyone not taking the disadvantage trait to take a 0 point "advantage" trait that leaves them being normal in that area? For example, you could have a trait that makes space yards take 2x as long to build. This would give a SY with 20k minerals build cost. But, the problem is you still have the regular available, so it has to be taken away, made only allowable by a racial trait that normal races have to take. This would get needlessly complex if there are a lot of such traits.

[Narratio]

Must agree with you. In particular the areas of Temporal / Organic / Crystaline / Religious racial traits. For some minor character disadvantages you can get a huge line of special techs and still have access to the rest of the techs.

When I play with a race that I've taken the Organic Tech attribute on I try and not develop the physical stuff. But it's hard. As you say, there should be a way, if you select one of the 4 specials, of being unable to research other lines. Or at least having the costs of such research and deployment increase.

[ January 18, 2004, 10:25: Message edited by: Narratio ]

[Captain Kwok]

Instead of creating whole new lines of techs for each racial trait - focus on weapons and bonus facilities that match their trait and expect characteristics. For example, an Organic race might need to extract lots of organics, but instead of creating a whole new line of Organics Farms, create racial bonus facilities that greatly increase the output of the basic facilities.

Make normal weapons weaker than any racial trait weapon (i.e. leave them for neutral races etc) and you won't need to restrict them because most of them just won't be worth it unless a racial trait has a particular weakness etc.

[Cipher7071]

Fyron...might there be a way to handle the technical problem by slipping a boolean flag or two into the code somewhere?

(I understand this would probably have to wait for SEV)

[tesco samoa]

you know what i would like as well for racial traits...

The ability to select more than one atmosphere breathing type or even colony type from the get go....

[AMF]

I would like to see limits on what certain traits, like Organic, religious, etc... force upon you as part and parcel of getting their advantages.

So, when you select "organic" then the regular
physical stuff should be verboten. When you select religious, maybe you can't take advanced military science or the hard sciences, or something...

Originally posted by tesco samoa:
you know what i would like as well for racial traits...

The ability to select more than one atmosphere breathing type or even colony type from the get go....

[Fyron]

Sigh... you guys have missed the entire point. I am not looking to modify the other traits, but to add brand new ones that provide some sort of disadvantage to your empire, and give you back some points. Such as a Naturalists trait that gives you 60% the space on planets, and gives back 2000 to 3000 points.

But if you want physical stuff to be gone when you select organic, play Adamant Mod, as it does exactly that.

[ January 18, 2004, 18:59: Message edited by: Imperator Fyron ]

[tesco samoa]

inept travel... -1 on all ship movements

[tesco samoa]

Really ineficent species... Where the empire is very very ineficient so their units and ships are % smaller than regular ships...

ISO9001 and CMMlevel 3 empire....

Where it costs double to build anything due to the paperwork as well as to reseach stuff...

[Taz-in-Space]

How about

Big-boy race: Large WHALE size race - components are DOUBLE sized.

Aqua race: ships have -1 to movement due to having to have water based atmosphere.

Narco-leptic race: lose 25 percent to attack and defense due to falling asleep at controls.