Roxlimn

Mascrinthus: In that case, you've probably already won before the first shot is even fired! Such was exactly the charge being leveled at people who said that defenses mattered - that it wouldn't have made a difference anyway. I contend that it's the reverse. Attack-only ships are only effective when you're so positioned that you're guaranteed to win anyway, whereas defensive ships pull you out of unexpected and difficult situations. Your experience shows exact

I never encountered a Jagged Knife Event I didn't like. In fact, for some time I thought that they were a pro-player Mega Event, until I heard that none of the MegaEvents were supposed to be pro-player! I always stockpile a bunch of Transports at the ready when I've stabilized my economy. They're useful for when someone declares war unexpectedly, or for transporting restive populations to border planets that need them. When my Starfleet is up and I've nothing more to do, I'm forced s

In all fairness, the AI has problems dealing with ALL the MegaEvents, not just Pirates.

The 1 hp feature may very well be overbalancing the game in favor of the Hyperion Dreadnaught, but it's the fleet feature and longer and numerically mightier Weapon Tech Tree that really makes the game slightly biased for offense. It's a relative misnomer that defense is half as effective as offense because it's only effective against one type of offense, whereas offense is only effective against two kinds of defense. In the first place, you can usually only afford to invest in

ToS Iceman: Thanks. I was aiming for the trend of discussion here to focus on things people would find more interesting rather than on the specific lineages of specific posters, you and I included. Makes for more interesting reading and a more populated boards. Re: Starbases I may be mistaken about several of the DS spacestations, but the Traveller's space station and its mate, the space station of the Traveller's lifetime partner, are definitely deep space st

ToS Iceman: That's a matter of opinion really. For example, in my opinion, GC2 is good (that was never in dispute), but it's not great. Too many "details" prevent it from reaching such status. I'm not saying other games in the genre are better or have no flaws, nope. But that's not the point. I think that it's largely a matter of taste at this point. You mentioned this also: With starshi

Existing balance is always a balance of sorts, even if it isn't always the desireable point. Right now, defense and offense is kind of strange, but it's not incredibly so, IMO. Making all attack ships work only works if you have the best attack ship and are correctly placed on the tech tree. Manipulating the AI to hamper its ships by placing defense on them haphazardly points to the weakness of the AI, not to the weakness of defense per se, and this is only one of the ways in which it

hiddenranbir: In terms of mass, the galaxy is much more empty than the game portrays it to be. Of course, the game also portrays starships the size of planets, so I suppose we aren't talking about the same thing. More galactic terrain would be nice, as we'd already agreed upon. Asteroids are, IMO, essential to the new balance of the game. On the one hand, you might want to make colony ships, but maxxing out your asteroids first also is a viable option. Reassigning As

I would have to chime in here on the increased value of defense in the new patch. Defense never had it so well. The added cost might seem prohibitive, but even when you use hyper-expensive Dynamic Shields or Subspace Rebounders, or Superior Duranthium and Arnorian Battle Armor, the defense pays for itself easily. You don't need Huge hulls to make defense pay off. You just need a threshold Logistics score matched by a like Logistics from the enemy. The secret to defense is that

I think the problem would be easier to remedy if planetary defenses are tougher than they are now. Offense/Defense relationships are heavily geared towards offense in the game. You CAN take out multiple planets in one turn all at once, with a couple fleets. It would involve basic changes in game balancing, but I think that allowing orbital ships to act as a potential 8-ship fleet at all times, regardless of logistics, would go a long way towards strengthening the AIs position, without

I'd like to take the time to comment on a few points which have been raised, referring to no one in particular. 1. Carriers are a dead issue. They add very little to game play other than complexity. If you want, you can use Kryo's Hull System Mod, create a graphic of a carrier with a few fighters and then use that. It works. It does everything you want, other than add complexity. 2. United Planets. Even the United Nations only occasionally acts on things which their compon

Yes, they must also have the Alliance tech

It is possible never to go to war in a game, and it's even highly likely if you're successful in a peace-focused victory. The way to create peace is to prepare for war. I can almost guarantee you that no one will pick a fight with you if you have the baddest military in the galaxy. Additionally, if you're supporting this military spending with the most extensive trade network bar none - well then no one is going to fight you. This is one of the main problems I've been having

I also second the suggestions here. Everyone takes an econ hit during wartime, but it is possible to minimize it. I usually try to plan my wars right down to the new influence borders I expect to use. Extensive spying on the planets you intend to take not only reveals planetary defenders, but also planetary spending. New planetary spendings should never come as a surprise to your economy. The Aphrodesiac Trade Good also helps immensely, allowing you to regrow your tax base quickly a

There are, of course, the classic RTS expansions - The Frozen Throne for Warcraft III and Brood Wars for Starcraft. I still think that Brood Wars takes the cake for most imfluential and best expansion pack. It practically singlehandedly remakes Starcraft into another game. In fact, both sandbox and MP Starcraft play differently depending on whether or not you use BW.

The other building management can be readily explained as well. There are several advantages to making say, an Entertainment Center on a +700% Manufacturing Tile. Early in the game, your economy cannot sustain that kind of usage. Putting a factory on that thing could easily ruin your development on every other planet. You need to mismatch the structures first. Getting a structure on the tile at all is advantageous because you can then upgrade the building and get the bonus with only a nomin