Social Improvements.

from Sins Forums

Been enjoying the new DLC and 1.5 patch. Great work. In my last game, playing as TEC Loyalist, I was going for the Archeology achievement so I had built a huge 5 star map with only one AI. I conquered my system quickly and moved on and captured the other 3. During this time I only used a few planets with Social Improvements to spread my culture in these systems and focused more on industry and trade. The last system to conquer was the AI system but, like I mentioned, I was wanting a certian achievement and that meant focusing on the planets that had the Artifacts. So I prepped my fleets and struck at these planets first and used Social Improvements on all of them with 3 cultrual towers and having completed my achievement I got ready to attack the AI.

Except I didn't have to do much attacking. The 4 gravwells I had captured and upgraded and literally spread culture through the whole system. By the time I had the fourth planet with the last Artifact captured the AI had lost half of his remain planets to culture. I pressed on to the AIs capital planet and by the time I had that, had to go through two planets to get there, I had won the game as all the rest of the planets rebelled. Social Improvements make Culture a viable weapon, at least with the AI now. Love the new changes.

56,444 views 14 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top

I saw it myself and I thought it is a bug at first, see my "Culture being bugged" thread from Saturday. But now i think it is not, its supposed to work this way. 

I think its going to be viable for multiplayer on ICO as well, as i had hard time dealing with culture spread by AI myself. I had to dedicate literally entire planet to culture centers to stop losing allegiance on nearby planet and i can imagine if this culture planet of mine was one more jump away than it was, i would have had a problem.

What i am trying to say, as the planet specialization is irreversible process, you need to think twice now, which path to choose.  It may as well happen, that you choose industrial, while your enemy on neighbouring planet chooses social - and you wont be able to stop the culture spreading from there no matter what. Building just culture centers to push it back wont work anymore. That is at least my impression from a game i played on Saturday.

Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Timmaigh, reply 1
I think its going to be viable for multiplayer on ICO as well
End of Timmaigh's quote

 

well, there is your answer how to make culture actually useful :) Though still no changes in the 3 races, so even Vasari can use culture as a weapon efectively, not just Advent who should do it more often..

make Culture a viable weapon, at least with the AI now
End of quote

 

Sounds good, maybe I will use culture offensively from now on, and not for just, to, uhmm, have culture for the allegiance..

Elemental: Reforged
Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top

One question: Does the Auxiliary Government prevent you from losing the planet even against the culture? Or does it work only against orbital bombardment/Novaliths?

 

Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Timmaigh, reply 3
Does the Auxiliary Government prevent you from losing the planet even against the culture?
End of Timmaigh's quote

 

No, only protects against bombardment. I guess the logic is, even the starbase govenrment rebels against you :D but not losing the starbase and structures of course.

Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Timmaigh, reply 3

One question: Does the Auxiliary Government prevent you from losing the planet even against the culture? Or does it work only against orbital bombardment/Novaliths?

 
End of Timmaigh's quote

You can lose the planet, but oddly enough the Starbase will still prevent colonization by enemy forces even though the planet is neutral (assuming it still works this way which I doubt they changed).

 

Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting ZombiesRus5, reply 5


Quoting Timmaigh, reply 3
One question: Does the Auxiliary Government prevent you from losing the planet even against the culture? Or does it work only against orbital bombardment/Novaliths?

 

You can lose the planet, but oddly enough the Starbase will still prevent colonization by enemy forces even though the planet is neutral (assuming it still works this way which I doubt they changed).

 
End of ZombiesRus5's quote

Thanks, thats nice to know. 

One has to appreciate the depth of the game, even after all those years there are still these little questions that keep popping up.

Additionally, i only recently found out, if you queue 2 research subjects, while not having enough labs for the first one queued, it will start researching the second one and then pause it as soon as the lab required for the other tech is buit. At least i think this is what i saw to happen.

Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Timmaigh, reply 6
Thanks, thats nice to know.

One has to appreciate the depth of the game, even after all those years there are still these little questions that keep popping up.

Additionally, i only recently found out, if you queue 2 research subjects, while not having enough labs for the first one queued, it will start researching the second one and then pause it as soon as the lab required for the other tech is buit. At least i think this is what i saw to happen.
End of Timmaigh's quote

Glad I was able to spark something for you. And yes, the techs run like that. I que them all the time.

Reply #8 from Sins Forums Top

The thing that Auxilary Goverment does not protect against loss due to culture is one of the few reasons why the Deliverance Engine is useful now.

 

The only thing helping against Deliverance Engine fire is to build more than usual culture centers of you own. And that usually means the scuttling of several trade ports.

 

Now with the DLC both the Novalith and the Deliverance Engine received a buff.

 

A Novalith hitting a planet with huge population does significant damage now.

 

And the allegiance loss on it does naturally hurt more, too.

Reply #9 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting ARESIV, reply 8
A Novalith hitting a planet with huge population does significant damage now.
End of ARESIV's quote

 

Well, a novalith hitting a heavy trade world.. like a ferrous is just as big loss.. half trade income from your best trade world.. like -20 credits/sec for 30 minutes..

Reply #10 from Sins Forums Top

If you build the deliverance engine on a social improved planet, will the super weapons' spread rate be magnified by social improvements? Or has this not been tested yet? Just curious :D

Reply #11 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Luciela, reply 10

If you build the deliverance engine on a social improved planet, will the super weapons' spread rate be magnified by social improvements? Or has this not been tested yet? Just curious
End of Luciela's quote

It's probably the inverse... If you hit a planet with social improvements with the delierance engine will it spread at the increased rate.

Reply #12 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting ZombiesRus5, reply 11
It's probably the inverse... If you hit a planet with social improvements with the delierance engine will it spread at the increased rate.
End of ZombiesRus5's quote

 

Why? I dont understand why should it spread by a brutal amount like 400-500 on a socialized planet.. And those are your enemy's upgrades..

Reply #13 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting Turchany, reply 12


Quoting ZombiesRus5, reply 11It's probably the inverse... If you hit a planet with social improvements with the delierance engine will it spread at the increased rate.

 

Why? I dont understand why should it spread by a brutal amount like 400-500 on a socialized planet.. And those are your enemy's upgrades..
End of Turchany's quote

Because the superweapon doesn't generate the culture- the cannon shell does. The actual buff doesn't happen until the cannon shell hits the target planet.

Reply #14 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting ZombiesRus5, reply 13
Because the superweapon doesn't generate the culture- the cannon shell does. The actual buff doesn't happen until the cannon shell hits the target planet.
End of ZombiesRus5's quote

 

good to know