Beta 3 Tech Tree

Thanks.

We wanted to make navigating the new tech trees easier, and with so many new improvements and components and technologies, it can be difficult to figure out what does what.

When you right-click on a tech in the tech tree screen (and also in the trade screen) you will get a window that shows you what the tech reveals and information about each of those things.

For example, from the tech tree screen (playing as the terrans), I can see that the Integrity Grid technology gives me a new component and an HP bonus.  The Integrity Grid sounds cool, but what does it do?  If I right click on the tech, it opens the Tech Details screen which reveals that the Integrity Grid is a ship component, costs 80, and gives 8 hp to the ship.  The screen also indicates that the tech gives a 10% increase to the Hit Points ability.

There is a brief description of the tech, and (for techs that I have researched) it shows the full description text that I see when the "New Technology" screen appears.

It's a very useful tool, and if you haven't tried it, try it out.  I think you'll like it.

Would be very nice if research beakers required to get each tech was added in the info + size of wepaons not just cost and damage.

Very cool, love it.

A tech tree suggestion: Need a way to better determine the "racial" techs, in particular in the diplomacy screen. Even just an * at the beginning of the tech name or maybe in a slightly different color. That way I can ignore them as I so choose when trading.

Also in the tech details for the racial techs, I would like to see something that
1) shows that it is a racial tech. Perhaps in small text in () under the name of the tech. Example: (Torian racial tech)
2) Tell me what this racial tech does for *me*. So if I trade to get the Torian Healing Pools, does this do anything for my race? Do I get the benefits (such as +5 research) but can't build the buildings? Things like that. This will go a long way to helping people navigate all these tech changes.

It's great to have that right-click info on the fullscreen tech tree view. Two things still bug me though...

1) Right-clicking still *selects* the tech for current research (assuming it's available), instead of just giving you the info. Why can't we have left-click for select, and right-click for info, the way it works in the diplomacy trading window? It's too easy to accidentally change your current research project when you're just trying to find out what something does.

2) Agreeing with bonscott here that it's too hard to ID the unique racial techs, both in the tree views and the diplomacy trade window. There is a tiny icon at the left of unique techs if you search hard enough for it, but it's very hard to see. Those little icons are too small, too dark, and easily covered by the white text name when the text stretches horizontally. It shouldn't be so hard to see which techs are special and unique to a race. How about a different color for the border of unique racial techs? Or a different shape like an oval instead of a square?

I will also agree about the selection and racial IDing. Also, why does right clicking the tech in the sorted window not bring up the same popup? Lastly, techs still need to display time until researched in the tech tree view. Implement that and I will never use anything but full view ever again.

That said, I am LOVING the new tech data window. It is hundreds of times more useful than the old popup was.

One more thing, just reinforcing what was said earlier.... I'm playing a new beta 3 game as Iconians, and just made my first contact with a minor race. I'm hot to sell off techs for cash at this point in the game, but why do I see my racial techs that I can't sell, like "Precursor Legacy" on my side of the trade screen?

I've also made recent contact with the Torians, and they're happy to sell me "Inherited Technology -- the sad history of the Torian species" for 100 bc. If I buy it, it gives me an isolated Torian tech block on the tree that doesn't link to anything else. What's up with that? Does that hook up with something later, if you trade enough, or take over a Torian planet? Or is this just a bug? When you first hit these screens as a new player (which I am, with this beta), it just doesn't make much sense.

The new, differentiated racial techs are VERY NICE! I'm loving them when playing as one of the races, but it's very hard to figure out how all that plugs into the tech trade screens, invasions, etc. This really need to be made very, very explicit for the player.

As it's actually a unique racial tech and not one that replaces something else, that's the only way it can be displayed, really. Though really that particular tech shouldn't actually be tradeable at all.

That has been added in the next beta. 

I think there are a few technologies like this which should clearly not be trade able but seem to be at the moment. Maybe a review of them is in order.

Am I right that a non-tradeable technology should not be available to steal or gain when taking over a planet either?

Playing the Terrans I traded for it by accident 2 games ago (beta 2b). I hated it because then all the Torian buildings available with that tech appeared in my build list all game.

My last game (beta 3) I can still trade for it. I have yet to run up against a racial tech that I can't try to trade for. Maybe that's why I've been confused by the posts of "you can't trade that tech" while it seems I can.

Also, went taking over a Torian planet their unique buildings do not get destroyed like when taking over a Yor planet. Sure I can replace the Schools and such but things like the Central Mine can't be demolished or built over.

I wouldn't mind being able to trade some racial techs if you could keep the buildings from being built. That way, you could still trade people for any bonuses. I think of that as picking up a few new ideas about how to do things, without changing your culture or biology to allow the new buildings. This is especially beneficial for Drengin or Korath, who have abysmal manufacturing structures which might be helped by learning a few 5% bonuses.

Techs have two separate fields in their xml file that control whether they can be traded or stolen.  One is called "CanBeTraded" while the other (oddly enough) is called "CanBeStolen".  Usually, when we set one of them to 0, we do so with the other as well, though not always.

You'll probably notice that certain techs that you'd think shouldn't be available for trading (such as a race-specific history tech), are in-fact available for trading in the current beta.  This was an oversight and we are hoping to catch most of them before we put out the next beta.  When you find some however, go ahead and post about it, so we can make sure we fix it.

Thanks,

Charles