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[Jelle]

I'm kind of okay with specialists as they stand, because in my experience tile yields tend to be pretty low (with a few exceptions), so I spam farms pretty much everywhere I can and then let cities grow big.

I don't know, tile yields seem pretty good to me. Your standard grassland plains and forest yield 2, tundra desert and marsh all yield only 1 but have a building upgrade to give them 1 more. Hills only yield 1 but allow an improvement of 2 production (though I flipped those 2 numbers). The only exception is flood plains, yielding 3 (+ the river yield ofcourse) right from the start but not getting the vivarium upgrade. Only snow yields nothing.
Meanwhile tiles can get improvements and specialists yield only 2 and require a specialist building to be constructed. Unless you're not improving any tiles and made a city near no resources, specialists almost always yield less.

Also also, does anyone know a compiled list of quests (particularly from constructed buildings; why the hell are these things called "quests" anyway?) and their rewards? In my last game there was one that prevents aliens from attacking trade units - which was a total no-brainer compared to other option - but I forget where it came from.

Edit: Some here and building quests here. Ultrasonic fence is what I was thinking of.

This should should be a complete list.

I agree that terrascape needs some love. I think I might completely rework it.

[LordBaal]

I'm just playing a game, arid world, huge, higher difficulty, marathon. Turn +300 and have 3 strong cities, good soldiers and explored more than half the world (2 explorers set on auto after the first one got in a fight with a Kraken, I made him go to land only to touch shore besides an alien nest).

I'm having a blast, however also reckon the game is bland and dull, lacks variation and somethings are really unbalanced. I'm planing finish this game and don't touch the game for like a year, when good mods and expansions have arrived.

[Jelle]

Hmm what I could do is turn terrascape into a feature giving +1 culture on which normal improvements could be built. I could hijack the code for scrapped terraforming to let workers construct those. Don't know if it should have maintenance or be balanced by having a long construction time or somesuch.

[Levi]

Geez, I was playing with my roommate on the second hardest difficulty, and AI Elodie managed to pull off a contact victory by like turn 190.  We didn't have a clue because it didn't warn when she was getting close and her score was near the bottom of the list.  Oh well.

[GentlemanRaptor]

Hmm what I could do is turn terrascape into a feature giving +1 culture on which normal improvements could be built. I could hijack the code for scrapped terraforming to let workers construct those. Don't know if it should have maintenance or be balanced by having a long construction time or somesuch.

Well the reason I never built very many terrascapes was due to the energy maintenance. If you made a longer build time (maybe made faster with Purity affinity points/techs) then that might work.

[Shadowlord]

Or maybe EA, the guys who hold the AC license

Wait what?
That seems like a poor decision to let happen.

Bear in mind, this was a long time ago. I'm not sure how much of a reputation EA had by that point, and certainly Firaxis wasn't in a position to make demands about IP rights at the time.

How long ago? I haven't forgiven them for killing Origin and Westwood (and ensuring that Ultima IX would be absolutely terrible).

[Retropunch]

I'm having a blast, however also reckon the game is bland and dull, lacks variation and somethings are really unbalanced. I'm planing finish this game and don't touch the game for like a year, when good mods and expansions have arrived.

That sounds a bit contradictory, why are you enjoying it if it's bland and dull? (honest question!)

[Sartain]

I'm having a blast, however also reckon the game is bland and dull, lacks variation and somethings are really unbalanced. I'm planing finish this game and don't touch the game for like a year, when good mods and expansions have arrived.

That sounds a bit contradictory, why are you enjoying it if it's bland and dull? (honest question!)

Because one more turn syndrome is its own reward?`

[LordBaal]

I'm having a blast, however also reckon the game is bland and dull, lacks variation and somethings are really unbalanced. I'm planing finish this game and don't touch the game for like a year, when good mods and expansions have arrived.

That sounds a bit contradictory, why are you enjoying it if it's bland and dull? (honest question!)

Because those where precise my expectations for the game based on the reviews. Sadly most game companies today are like this, halfarsing their way to maximum profit.

I'm just happy to play "SMAC" again in a updated format and watching the potential the game has. Besides, a game could be bland and dull but is still fun to play (at least for the first couple of times).

Now, playing a bland game over and over it's where it becomes truly dull. The game by itself is not that bad (neither is excessively good and is far less than brilliant) but on this state has little replay value, hence why I'm having a blast just this once, if I were to play it again on this state I will probably be bored fast.

So, it's my advice to anyone to wait for the inevitable expansions, but only those that truly add new content, no those pity and worthless factions/units dlcs, and of course the mods. In example, the guys from the Dune mod of Civ IV already said they are going to ignore Civ V and go straight to BE to the next version of the mod. I'm pretty confident this game will become brilliant with a couple of good expansions and mods, especially mods.

[Wiles]

Geez, I was playing with my roommate on the second hardest difficulty, and AI Elodie managed to pull off a contact victory by like turn 190.  We didn't have a clue because it didn't warn when she was getting close and her score was near the bottom of the list.  Oh well.

I think there are at least two warnings for the contact victory. They are easy to miss though because it looks just like the message that comes up when another player builds a wonder.

[Puzzlemaker]

So I played the purity versus tons of aliens map idea, and it wasn't as fun as I thought it would be.  It's kinda a crapshoot, since aliens aren't really a thread once you get to level 6 affinity.  It was fun getting all sorts of science from their nests though, that definitely gave me a boost.  I may not finish that game, we will have to see.

Now I am thinking of trying harmony again, but this time focus on satellites.  Specifically, the miasma-creating satellites.  Along with a rocktopus, which I -believe- gives you satellite coverage, meaning I could put a sat anywhere, I plan on covering the entire map in miasma.  Sort of like the zerg.

[10ebbor10]

If you upgrade the rocktopus, it itself becomes a miasma generating sat.

[MaximumZero]

-snip-

That's a terrible let down :/

Agreed, and to think Steam are asking $89.99 {Aussie dollars}.  Definitely waiting for this to hit the bargain bin.

Given the very close exchange rate between US and AUS dollars ($1US = $1.14AUS), y'all are getting ripped off for vidja games.

[Niveras]

What benefit is there to spreading miasma everywhere, besides causing the enemy a little bit of harm per turn (and helping to heal your units)? Heck, if the enemy is harmony too, or they have alien hybridization, it may even help an invading army.

Mostly it seems to me just a very slight inconvenience in the mid game, to the extent that I can pretty much ignore it unless I have a unit healing up in the field. Certainly not anything to actually spend resources actively trying to do anything about it (whether adding or removing it).

Might make a little more sense in MP games where a smaller advantage can make a bigger difference, but so far in single player...?

.

Also getting really, really annoyed with stations popping up right in the area that I planned to place my first outpost. I wish there was a "We don't have time for frivolous ventures, put them to work in our colony" option to the quest events asking which station to back.

[LordBaal]

Now I am thinking of trying harmony again, but this time focus on satellites.  Specifically, the miasma-creating satellites.  Along with a rocktopus, which I -believe- gives you satellite coverage, meaning I could put a sat anywhere, I plan on covering the entire map in miasma.  Sort of like the zerg.

The harmony what?!
Yeah go ahead you tree hugger.

Purity all the way!