(fyi) - when I CAPITALIZE a word, I'm not "yelling"... simply trying to focus attention on said word... don't like bolding everything : ) fyi


Good morning,

It is my understanding that the tech tree is supposed to be flexible in that it gives the user "the choice to go any direction" one wants to go from the starting of the game until the end....

I am confused why it is SO difficult to research to the point of being able to make a 'Fertility Clinic'.... if I decide I want to be able to build a F.C. in the beginning of the game (to sustain) my first planet expansion, then it takes me what... close to 40-50 turns er so...

I don't understand how this is "free choice" if the game is basically making the user SUFFER for going for a tech 'way down' on the tech tree in the early part of the game.

I'm still playing on the 2nd level (Dunce I think), I had 2 races in a small galaxy last night: I went hard for that F.C. tech so I could get my population going on my first planet expansion, OTHERWISE, it takes bloody forever for the Population to catch up to the stock 6Bill. BUT, because I decided to go way down the techtree at such an early stage in the game, I felt VERY penalized when I came to find out (around turn 50ish when I got the F.C. tech researched and was able to use it) that the other races in the game had ALL kinds of military techs/etc...

AND - on TOP of all that, by that time (around turn 50ish er so) I wanted to catch up militarily, but the techs for military/etc had gone up a decent amount... instead of being 1-5 weeks for some of the "early techs" like they were at the first turn of the game.. they had turned into 10-20+ weeks...

Is it simply the way the game is supposed to be played? If a player decides to go for an advanced tech early in the game, should he/she expect to have to spend MORE time on the "novice" techs because of this? I'm confused at how that works..

Back to my original point about the tech tree not really feeling "free": it feels restrictive because if the game is going to make me go for "early/easy" techs simply because it's the beginning of the game, then where is the real strat... it seems to me at this point that one is basically limited to going for "early" techs no matter what... unless the player is willing to give up being able to spend a mere week to research "militarization" for instance. It seems restrictive to me unless there's something I'm not understanding about the tech mechanics.

And last on my (rants: ) I was under the impression that the 'minor' races were so "dumb - AI wise, power wise/etc" that they could do only the most basic functions yet in the game I played last night... they armed up, made ships capable of combat and were trading with multiple races in the galaxy AND they attacked me out of nowhere!!! Don't get me wrong:it well excited me that they attacked me because it completely took me off guard and gave me all kinds of satisfaction for the game to surprise me like that... BUT, at the same time, I thought there weren't supposed to be able to do much.


Sorry to hit you guys with a story, but I really appreciate ANY and all help you can muster in my direction. This game is BADASS!!!



p.s. I was Fry's yesterday buying this game for my friend (he couldn't afford it right now, and there was no way I was going to simply [let him install it using my cds], so I got it for him, he owes me though : ) and I came across Masters of Orion 3 for $10... was so tempted..

I feel like I'm overwhelmed with GalCivII tbh, but shit.. it's so tempting for me to get $10 when they look fun... case in point, I picked up Icewind Dale II for $10 at Fry's last night and OH what a good buy that was.

anyhoot