Darvin3

Reply to Making Cap abilities viable in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

[b]Sova[/b] Personally I think its missile platforms need a buff. They cost too much antimatter currently. I think embargo is fine, but the buff you've proposed looks good to me. The Sova has to stay in the gravity well for the duration of the ability anyways. [b]Akkan[/b] Totally agree with you on colonize. I don't think ion bolt needs to be buffed (it's awesome for killing retreating caps currently). I also think you go too far with the

Reply to The Best Capital Ships in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]Skirantra is not a good choice. It heals shit by up to 30HP/sec for 10 seconds for 100AM and that's all the use it has. Microphasing Aura = MEH. Scramble bombers = shit. Replicate forces = shit.[/quote] 30 HP/sec for 10 seconds isn't bad at all. That's like a repair bay operating on your entire army for ten seconds. Yeah, shield restore totally outclasses it, but SR is one of the game's very best abilities. Microphasing aura is serously underestimat

Reply to Never any casual gamers in Sins Multiplayer Sins Forums

[quote]Oh, heck no! You misunderstand, I make us fight an equal number of Unfair AI's....or maybe have them outnumber us if I have a 2nd skilled. 5 Unfair AI vs myself and 4 noobs has proven quite entertaining before.[/quote] Okay, I was thinking 2 unfairs against 1 newbie and 1 vet. Yeah, keeping them alive against an onslaught of five unfairs would be a challenge indeed. On the other hand, you probably wouldn't have time to give them all serious advice becaus

Reply to Never any casual gamers in Sins Multiplayer Sins Forums

[quote]I've done this before, it is actually kind of fun if you look at it as a challenge to keep the noobs alive while not being overrun yourself.[/quote] lol, but it's still only an unfair AI. One level 6 Marza can toast its fleet repeatedly. [quote]The most annoying is after building up, the other guy quits just before you attack when he realizes he can't win. So...45 minutes of build up for nothing.[/quote] Ugh, now THAT is the worst. Quitters in gener

Reply to Never any casual gamers in Sins Multiplayer Sins Forums

[quote]vets should take newbs on vs. unfair AI comp stomps[/quote] Honestly, if I'm going to play against an AI, I'll just play singleplayer. That way I don't have to wait to find a game and I can use galaxyforge maps.

Reply to Annoying, but at the same time, fun. in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]I don't remember if the tech to jump to other solar systems needs the labs alive or not[/quote] No it doesn't. Fleeing to another location is a great idea when you're going to lose your empire, but it only works in team games or FFA scenarios. If it's a 1v1 you're screwed. By the time you actually get a new economy up and running in your new home, your enemy will be bearing down on you with a fleet of certain doom.

Reply to Question in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]I try to create an account, but when I try to 'accept' it tells me that I have the wrong version of Ironclad online.[/quote] It means you need to patch. Patching is now handled by impulse. Download impulse (the "downloads" button at the top of this very page will link you to it) and it will automatically update you to the latest version, allowing you to log into ICO.

Reply to Never any casual gamers in Sins Multiplayer Sins Forums

Admittedly for an experienced player, it's no fun to be matched with an inexperienced player. If he's your ally, you feel disadvantaged, if he's your enemy it's no challenge. A second factor is simply a form of natural selection. When players lose a match, they tend to learn from it, becoming more experienced and better players. Eventually, anyone who plays with skilled players will become a skilled player, which is why I tend to consider it experience rather than skil

Reply to attacking the enemy home world in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]hen the enemy comes to defend the colony I dispatch 6 or so seige ships, with an equal number of fighter transports for cover, to destroy the homeworld.[/quote] If you're using more than 4 siege frigates, just buy a siege capital ship (Marza or Vulkoras for TEC and Vasari. Advent are out of luck in this regard). The siege frigates are so fragile that it's worth pitching in a little extra cash for something that's hard to kill. Remember that if there

Reply to Victory Conditions in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

There are two ways you can achieve victory: your opponents no longer control any planets, or your opponents surrender. There's always the possibility that an opponent controls a planet you don't know about (or haven't scouted recently), but otherwise this is straightforward and logical. Surrender is a bit erratic, particularly for the AI.

Reply to attacking the enemy home world in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]but whenever i attack the enemy world, the enemy fleet which was currently not in the area, in very large numbers and with numerous capital ships, jumps into the gravwell and joins the fight against me.[/quote] Like anything, you need up-to-date intel to know where the enemy is at all times so you know when they will be joining a battle. There are a couple of good options you have here. One is to split your fleet into two groups (unless you're Advent, which get

Reply to Stardock & Ironclad make IGN's Top 5 Strategy games in the past 5 years list in PC Gaming Sins Forums

Honestly the only game I've played that I'd consider putting on that list (of the past 5 years) would be Supreme Commander. Never played WiC or DoW so I can't comment on those. Honestly, though, I've found Sins was a holy grail after half a decade of drought since Warcraft III.

Reply to Map Balance in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]Do TEC and advent have any map conditions that favour then? Espesially 1v1?[/quote] Not as strongly as the Vasari's dependence on neutrals. As someone has already mentioned, the Sova rush becomes very powerful on small map scenarios, giving TEC a powerful economic lead over their opponents. However, "point blank" style maps are unpopular, so we can effectively ignore them. While short distances (~3 jumps) can occur in randomly generated scenarios, you've usual

Reply to capital ships in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

[quote]one, you can only have 16 capital ships[/quote] You [I]only[/i] have sixteen. That would be a travesty if 16 wasn't already more than enough. Yes, it in theory does prevent massing of capital ships, but in practice that's more than you would ever conceivably need. [quote]but in the battle you described, i see no reason why the cap ship shouldnt win. one battleship should beat two frigates, thats the way war works.[/quote] My ex

Reply to My single player wishlist in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

[quote]I agree the long games are getting kind of boring as I know I will win - that is why I felt the need to vent in my original post. I can't even remember losing a planet to the AI in recent times. But I want long hard struggles, with lots of setbacks, to dominate the universe - otherwise whats the point![/quote] I don't know how IC is going to fix this, because even small AI quirks get magnified over the course of several hours. [quote]As to resources being used by AI&nbs

Reply to capital ships in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

The problem with big units is the decisiveness factor, something that invariably means that in any well designed game lots of small units beat a few big units of equal value. Take for example a case where there is one unit with 4 hp and 2 damage attacks, fighting two units with 2 hp each and 1 damage attacks. On the first shot, the big unit deals 2 damage, instantly killing one of the small units, while taking 2 damage itself. On the next shot, the big unit kills the secon

Reply to Map Balance in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]My position to all this balancing stuff may come from the fact that I don't play online, only onlan and I've of course played games where very different starting conditions had an effect on the early game but I've not detected a rule that this always leads to defeat.[/quote] Of course skill differences between players can overcome map layout differences. However, there comes a point where the player skill difference needs to be [i]significant[/i] simply to overcome the ma

Reply to Better Audio Cues and Status Updates in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

Gotta agree on "starbase building at our planet" prompt. Definitely would be useful!

Reply to My single player wishlist in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

[quote]With regard to starbases I guess we are talking two different approaches to playing single player - I like a long game on a large map with multiple systems and am not into rushing the AIs - I don't know if such an approach would work on a huge maps with four hard AI's - I can't rush them all at once.[/quote] Everything depends on the map layout. In the case of massive maps, you can swap out "hobbling its fleet" with "hobbling its economic expansion". The end result

Reply to Question in Strategy Sins Forums

Trade ports are in the 4th level of the imperial tree, refineries are at the 3rd level. Both are near the top of the imperial tech page.

Reply to My single player wishlist in Sins of a Solar Empire Sins Forums

[quote]Above all else the AI should build them at non-planet grav wells.[/quote] Above all else it needs to stop wasting its cash on starbases; I can't tell you the number of AI's I've steamrolled because they spent all their cash on one big expensive starbase and don't have a fleet, so I steamroll them with ease. This makes the AI unfun to play, because I've got to break through a big huge starbase to win, but aside from that it offers no real resistance because it hobbled its

Reply to Advent Repair Platform and Antimatter Recharger in Strategy Sins Forums

The antimatter recharger is too high up the tech tree, IMO, to merit investing in it. For most intents and purposes you're better off putting money into passive antimatter regeneration.

Reply to Refineries: Worthless or Critical? in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]If anything, the advent ability on the tradeport is the worst of the three for getting additional resources.[/quote] I'd agree with you... up until the very late game. The thing is, the other refineries only stack up to 3 (4 on uncolonizable gravity wells), whereas Advent ones can stack indefinitely. Ever seen induced reverence, allure, and culture (+50% loyalty) on a 4-rock ice with 6 resource focus refineries? Absolutely awesome, but you won't even consider

Reply to Map Balance in Strategy Sins Forums

[quote]I my opinion this kind of map balance issues like Darvin3 describes will be neutralized by the law of large numbers. sure in one game your opponent has the advantage but in the next it's probably on your side. and over thousands of games it will just be spread evenly.[/quote] I'd have to disagree; having 300 games that favour you, 300 games that favour your opponent, and 400 even games is [i]NOT[/i] good game balance. The games that favour you don't "neutralize" the games

Reply to counter to tec scout rush in Strategy Sins Forums

Flaks also work wonders. As Advent, you can also use your own scouts to fight back. Vasari will get beaten in a scout vs scout battle, but Advent are on equal footing with TEC in this regard.