Luck and Creativity - worthwhile?

from GalCiv2 Forums
Playing as Altarians in my first game and comparing to my second game as Yor, I see no indications that the Luck and Creativity abilities had any effects.
Have you see their effects and do you think that they are worthwhile?
20,806 views 32 replies
Reply #1 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I have been playing a game as Altarians now and I feel I had more random events when I played a custom race with no luck bonuses - I played through with my custom race several times and it was luckier each time than the Altarians have been in this game.
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Let me preface this with these are assumptions. I believe them to be correct, but if not I would certainly like an explaination as well.

Creativity: The manual indicates you have the chance of discovering a free tech from time to time. I have never seen this happen. On the traits section(in game race creation), it indicates creativity increases the chance of developing technology traditionally unavailable. I read this as meaning better anomaly hunting. Choosing creativity might make the difference between getting a 500bc prize, or a 2500 royal escort prize. Or between a "lucky penny" and a boost to your soldiering skill. The +1 to soldiering would be something "not traditionally available". It might just be coincidence, but I have noticed better overall anomaly results when I have made this selection.

Luck: I am more hazy on this, but my assumption is you get more planetary events when colonizing and on invasions you end up with more "good dice rolls" blinking past than if you don't make that selection. It might affect other areas also, but those two would be what I would consider the major points.

all imo
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Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I always play with added luck + Universalists.... I find a lot of Lucky Rangers, especially if my military seems to be lacking. My favourite find was on the Drath Legion's homeworld..... you would have thought that after EVOLVING on the planet they might have noticed a giant precursor starship just lying around Their loss
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
its a saturation efect, 1 lucky race Vs 4 normal races Vs 1-2 lucky races out of the max number of races, its less noticable because of all the other races getting lucky naturaly
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I always play with added luck + Universalists.... I find a lot of Lucky Rangers, especially if my military seems to be lacking. My favourite find was on the Drath Legion's homeworld..... you would have thought that after EVOLVING on the planet they might have noticed a giant precursor starship just lying around Their loss


Maybe they put up a huge temple around it and worshipped it as a monument made by their god(s)?

Reply #6 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
When I started playing I played with luck, creativity, and universilist party. I found a junkload of lucky rangers. But this was also on Normal, so I dunno.
Reply #7 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
haven't found any difference with creative, but luck always gives me free ranger ships. when i was fighting the terran i was given a ranger almost every few turns. they really saved my butt. those rangers can take a beating and could destroy most contemorary ships with one shot
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Creativity is amazing, honestly. This is how it usually works. I just finish researching Laser 1, and presto! Laser 2 is finished. Graviton Driver 2 is completed, and eureka, there's Graviton Driver 3. That's how I've found it mostly works. I know it sounds crazy, but that's about the extent that I've found creativity to work.

I always like it

Or maybe the above happens because my race has CRAZY research rate (20% Military, 20% Social, and 60% Research )

Or maybe it happens in conjunction? The more money you put into research, the more it increases your chances of creativity.

Actually, that kind of makes sense...
Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Creativity is amazing, honestly. This is how it usually works. I just finish researching Laser 1, and presto! Laser 2 is finished. Graviton Driver 2 is completed, and eureka, there's Graviton Driver 3.

I believe that this has nothing to do with Creativity. If your research rate is high, the game will give you 2 techs per turn, and I've had this happen quite a lot w/ precisely the techs you mention ('cause they're cheep to research)
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
My favourite find was on the Drath Legion's homeworld..... you would have thought that after EVOLVING on the planet they might have noticed a giant precursor starship just lying around


Well, since the Drath didn't evolve on Dratha, your argument is kinda moot.
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Luck's insanely powerful, so much so I've stopped choosing it. Floods of precursor ships = easy win.
Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
It seems that luck is working, I was just unlucky and got random events that hurts good races like Altarians and no rangers. Playing more as Yor I now see less random events.
Maybe luck should be changed so lucky good races should get less random events, while lucky evil races gets more?

It seems that none has observed any effects from creativity.
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'd rather put points in Morale than Luck or Creativity any day. It's so easy to tech up more powerful ships than the AI.
Reply #15 from Stardock Forums Top
Creativity isn't worth the point, IMO, I've only had a random advance or two in at least 3 long games. Luck is too powerful at times.

I find that you're better off with +25 luck, either through party or racial bonus, and upgrading the random ships you find.

I go for Courage rather than Creativity anymore. And I've researched 2 things in a row, but that was due to how many RP I was producing.
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
i got a free tech last night. you probably didn't notice because of a bug. it gives you the tech, but doesn't inform you until later. it tries to do stuff while the ai is taking it's turn.
Reply #17 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Luck's insanely powerful, so much so I've stopped choosing it. Floods of precursor ships = easy win.


Really? I've found four "lucky ranger" ships so far...but I've found them pretty useless. Sure the weapons and shields are good, but the speed and range are nonexistent. They just sit at home protecting planets at the moment. Really I should have just junked them immediately to avoid the maintenance but can't quite bring myself to do so.

Maybe it's the map I'm playing on? Playing my first non-campaign game on a gigantic map with 9 opponents. I had it on random for all selections and there don't seem to be all that many planets (I have 8, Drengin are highest with 9). So lots of distance between things. Although now I come to think of it, I have an out of the way economy resource starbase which seems to be attracting attention from everybody I'm at war with (pretty much everybody...I have no idea why I'm so hated) so maybe I should put them into a single fleet and put them on guard duty.
Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I've never used Creativity... but my primary custom civ uses Luck... I've never noticed myself having any great advantage in random events over anyone else, but then again, I havn't played on any difficulty besides beginner. Does Luck favor the unfortunate, or am I just an unlucky-lucky guy?

All the other civs are finding more rangers and corvettes than they literally know what to do with (like I said, its on beginner...)
Reply #19 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
In my opinion, luck is the best trait of the game. It increases the amount of colonization events you get and the number of bonus tiles on your planets. You can also get those lucky rangers, and I believe that it increases the chance you'll get one of the better results from anomalies.

As for creativity, the is a slim chance in my mind that it makes it more likely that the anomalies that would give you research bonus do, rather than "What a waste of time!". But I generally believe that it's broken like the social production was before the X patch.
I even modded a 50% creativity pick in, and got nothing after playing for about an hour.

I never play without the luck pick, and I would recommend everybody else do the same.
Reply #21 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
So, is creativity broken? It seems noone is sure about this.
Reply #22 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
no, i once got a kick arse weapon. it was a rial gun, gave 8 damage (at a stage where the best weapons about were 2-3). But it cost a bomb to ad on to ships and sent maintanace sky high, i think it cost about 120. but its the only time i've ver seen it
Reply #23 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Let me tell you my story about Creativity. I selected Creativity in a custom race that I made. About half way into the game I got attacked by the Iconians, they were easily ten times more powerful than me. Their fleets had insane levels of logistics and their total beam weapon attack values were hitting 170, while my fleet projectile was around 40. So I started doing heavy research in projectile weapons. Later in the game I decided to see if I could upgrade my interceptors to something with more firepower. To my surprise, there is this "Nano-Driver" weapon in my projectile weapons list. This weapon had an attack of 8! My best weapon was a 3. Unfortunately it cost over 100BC to equip, but it turned the tide of the war. I also didn't get any notice that I had discovered this weapon, so I wonder how long I had it. Also, this weapon tech isn't even listed on my tech tree, it just says that I have it when I go to build ships.
Reply #24 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
no, i once got a kick arse weapon. it was a rial gun, gave 8 damage (at a stage where the best weapons about were 2-3). But it cost a bomb to ad on to ships and sent maintanace sky high, i think it cost about 120. but its the only time i've ver seen it


thats the nano ripper... and its there everytime

nothing to do with luck
Reply #25 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Yeah, you can obtain the nano ripper by researching singularity weapon IV which is in the mass driver tree. Way overpowered IMO.