Tiger8

Reply to Is trade worth the effort? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Trade is good, but not for those looking for a pure conquest victory. I will usually only send out freighters after I known a certain civ is going to remain friendly with me and/or become my ally for the balance of the game. On Suicidal this is well after the other civs have sent out their freighters, and usually after at least one race has been eliminated. Trade with a friendly minor race is good. If tech trading is enabled, it gives the minor race more money to spend on techs f

Reply to how do you transfer population to an already settled planet? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Start pulling people off when it starts to impact approval or when the food limit is reached. There are pop bonuses at 75% and 100%. If approval drops below 40% (I think it is 40%) there is a penalty. If it is single digits people start to die off. The pop formula is an odd one vs. other games, so there are no arcane calculations. Just have at least 1 billion (it might even be 2 billion) to get full growth. Growth is capped by the food supply, but does not slow down until very

Reply to Approval rating in v.1.11 in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

The bonus is planet by planet. When the game starts lower the tax slider until approval is 100%. This will pay off big time later and only cost relatively few credits early. I suggest to try and keep it at 100% for 10 to 20 turns, depending on how much cash is found in anomalies. There are times during the mid-game where it is again useful to lower the production and tax slider to get population growth up. If a player is chronically short of money, trade via freighters, selling te

Reply to What is the goal of the AI players? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

The fact that there are players who can beat you doesn't mean you are not among the top 5%, the fact that you play in tourneys automatically makes you one of the better serious players. Besides People who are tops in 'tourneys' are within the top 1% to 0.01% probably. I can safely say you and them are not remotely considered normal players. The interesting thing

Reply to Fixing Neutrality Learning Centers in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

NLCs are powerful enough to unbalance the game. If there were a multiplayer, I believe it would be the only option choosen by the top players. The other bonuses are weak in comparison. In single player it doesn't need fixing, but it is unfortunate that the design team put it where it was. A modest tweak, making the tech costs more, and the buildings cost more, might be enough to balance it out (percentages would have to be tested in AI only games that force races into each alignment).

Reply to How to balance +Economy Buildings with +Population Buildings in Strategies GalCiv2 Forums

As I understand it farms do nothing until the population reaches the food limit. On the homeworld that is 10 billion, every other planet it is 5 billion. The basic farm supports 4 billion and goes up with better tech. I only build farms when population approaches the food limit. The rule of thumb is one entertainment building per farm. Most worlds do fine with one farm and 9 billion max pop. Only large money planets (class 8 or better, hopefully a lot better) will get multiple farms.

Reply to What is the goal of the AI players? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Let me deviate to an analogy with chess. Many players benefit from book openings. Same is true for 4x game players. Certain set moves for the first 5-10-20 turns are far superior to what most people are doing at the start of the game. It may take some of the fun out of the game if someone mimicks another human player. I could write out step-for-step what I do the first five turns. Players that mimick my moves would probably do a lot better. However, I don't even think what I do is close t

Reply to What is the goal of the AI players? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

From where I sit, the AI seems to prioritize defending its planets surviving and gaining influence. I do wish those victory options were open for the AI. The top 5% remark, I find hard to believe. There are a ton of experienced 4x game players out there that cut their teeth ten years ago. GC2 is not that different from those earlier games. Any of those veterans can wipe the floor at crippling and above. I am not one of the top players (in tourneys etc.) and I can beat suicidal th

Reply to Defensive Firing On Paper, works for me. in Warfare GalCiv2 Forums

The combat system is tilted towards offense, but it is a design decision made early and reinforced often. Release 1.2 will make defense maybe 20% more useful, but the strategic advantage of attacking remains. If nothing is done to the cost structure, an offensive player can still field 4 or 5 ships for every 3 that a defensive player can build. Guess who wins, all else being equal? A strategic defense has to waste space with the orbital fleet managers. If a player is down buildi

Reply to POLL: How would you improve tech trading? in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

An interesting checkbox would be limited tech trading. Limit it to one tech bought or sold each month (four game turns). Well, one each to buy, or sell, the difference would have to be in cash or influence points, no two for one deals. It would eliminate some of the wholesale trading and make each trade more of a strategic decision, because another trade could not be done for four more turns. As is, I like the game now better with tech trading off. It makes the game easier on the

Reply to The AI vs. Summer in GalCiv Journals GalCiv2 Forums

Thanks for all the fish. It has to be a labor of love. There will always be unforseen problems, unexpected consequences from any fix. There is no way to test the game on all map sizes, all difficulties, all the different options (tech trading on/off, lots of planets, few planets, lots of races, 5 races, 3 races. There are just too many permutations to look at and keep humans in the loop. Weird stuff, even really weird stuff will still show up with 1.2, but it is expected, not unexpected. S

Reply to how do you transfer population to an already settled planet? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Shuttling people around helps immensely. Try and get every colony to at least 1 billion pop as soon as possible. Just doing this much will improve most players games by 20% if they aren't doing this now. Doing this will increase the overall population and give a player a much larger tax base. The technique has already been outlined, use colony ships or transports, send them out full to get people off a planet, return them empty (1 person) to get another batch.

Reply to AI doesn't build factories on all planets in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

It happens on suicidal. Maybe it didn't happen in prior releases, but it sure happens with 1.1. My suspicion is that it is the result of the programmers getting too fancy and trying to fix problems such as the AI ignoring farms and embassies. If anyone of the development team is reading, keep it simple. One easy way out is to use hardcoded queue lists for smaller planets (size 7 and under). Example: factory, starport, factory, lab, entertainment, market, farm, embassy. Have a cou

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

If Ai started to use its planet to capacity any level above tough may become impossible. With 1.2 they will close off the first strike route, many human players are using, so what's left is planet colony management, diplomacy and tech trading tricks. The human player can refrain from the later, but the former is all up to the AI.... >>> I disagree. There are players good enough. Maybe not me, but in other games I have played, I have found players mu

Reply to Universal Translater in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Waiting to get the translator will delay the enemy attack but not prevent it. What it does prevent is tribute requests. Tribute requests denied will lead to war sooner. A change I would like to see, is for some civs to attack before declaring war, before even asking for tribute. Not in every game, but maybe 50% of games. It would add some element of unpredictability and add to the flavor of the game. A human player might ask: is this a game when the Yor will attack unprovoked?

Reply to Dread Lord: Apocalypse mission help needed! in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Forget defense. Like you said, one shot will kill any of your ships no matter how high the defense. They just don't have enough hitpoints. Instead build cheap attack ships on huge hulls. Pack about three hyperwarp engines, the rest cheap weapons. Find the cheapest weapons for each point of damage (not the biggest weapon). Flog these ships out of the production line enmasse and overwhelm the enemy with fleets of these huge ships. Upgrade any non-useful buildings such as embassi

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Here's a better solution to the translator "problem." I have already suggested it in other threads. Have certain races have a chance to go to war no matter what. Instead of asking for tribute, just attack and then let the chips fall. Tribute is more a Korx thing. The Drengin, the Yor would be much more likely just to attack. Don't have them do it every game, but say have a 50% chance that they get a game timer in turns dependant on map size/difficulty level, and when the timer goes off the

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

LOL! So...the AI has more planets than you, a 100% research bonus AND a 100% economy bonus to pay for it and yet not one of them outresearched you? You are either extremely lucky or so incredibly good at the game the AI will never, ever be able to touch you. >>> Um, no my ships had atk 2, when they had atk 6. However, usually by this time in the game, I have to upgrade the fleets and research new tech in order to continue to fight. Tech trading off, meant the pacifist AI

Reply to AI Balance Issues in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Yes. Certain races seem to almost always do better than others. It may have to do with map settings though. It is very tough to balance them all, on all map sizes, all difficulties, so I do see it as a difficult task. Having the AIs play without a human is a tool Stardock uses and more of it could be done to insure better balance.

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Depends on the map. The reason I get nowhere on suicidal, gigantic, no tech trading is because I get utterly destroyed in the colony rush by the AI production and economy bonuses. In any case, colony ships cost less than 150BC. That's absolute peanuts in the long run compared to the benefit you get from colonising even a low class planet. >>> What game are you playing? It cost 900+ credits to rush a colony ship. Again, what I am looking for is some semblance of balance.

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Let me add that the delay in getting translator tech comes with a cost. The biggest cost is that a player can not get the first morale tech without the translator tech. To me that is a trade off, more so than an exploit. The second big cost is the inability to speak with the other players, to see how many planets they have (very valuable intelligence for my style of play), and see what techs they have (again very valuable). A person could could argue this is more of a trade off than an explo

Reply to Economics Struggle? in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

Keep taxes low early, maybe 10 to 20 turns, so approval stays at 100%. Buy at least two buildings and a colony ship early. Keep about 2000 of the initial 5000 as operating budget to fund any deficit. Get planetary improvement tech as soon as possible. It gives +10 bonus to all. There is also a tech for +10 economy. After getting that tech consider raising your taxes to about 49%. After every colony (or almost) has a factory get the +10 social tech with the next level f

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

I have had civs declare war before I get the translator tech. The only hole in the picture is that the AIs don't demand anything. So mea culpa, if that is an exploit. So how early or late is getting the tech not an exploit? Someone clearly draw the line. Turn one? Turn 20? Like I said, I usually get it after the first war is over, or about turn 35 or so. It is extremely useful for seeing how many planets and what techs the AI has. Is this use an exploit? Or is it in the spirit of the g

Reply to "the game is too easy", they say in Game Talk GalCiv2 Forums

do agree though that if you can consistently win at sucidal medium 9 opponents, you probably are doing something cheesy.... >>> To put it bluntly, bull. I am doing nothing cheesy. I even avoid some thing such as Xeno Ethics and Neutrality centers because that makes it too easy. I have a plan, and act on it. Most of the time it works, sometimes it doesn't. Tech trading off would probably make the early game a bit easier, because I avoid the Translater Tech until after

Reply to Is there a way to make the AI more agressive, or "how do you avoid getting bored"? in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

I attack early and often right out of the gate. It is the only way I have found to survive on the highest level, when the AI is building multiple embasssies on every planet and has Invention Matrix by the time I build my first military transports.