OSG 26 - The Bearperor Returns

[RefSteel]

Got it! Comments to follow when I have the chance....

[Ianus]

Sounds great so far! I think that the top priority now (I might have done it before now) is to turn on Planetology research and bang out IT+10. This has multiple benefits: one it gives us more pop, and two it shows us whether Controlled Dead is available, which I think is a crucial tech for both our expansion and to deal with the rocks.
I would personally emphasize grabbing Talas, as anything which slows down the Silicoids is a plus in my book. Once they get ahold of the hostile planets in a region I find it to be difficult to dislodge them.
As for the Alkari it sounds like they are expanding to the south, unless they are sneaking up into the northeast corner where we can't see. I would say that if we can cut off the Silicoids before they get into our space the plan is to expand down to the Alkari and then swallow them up. Easier said than done I know, but that should be the plan.
Go get em Ref!!!

[RefSteel]

Preflight Analysis: Looks like we've got a great young empire here! We won't be stopping Silicoid colony ships for much longer with our nonexistant starfleet, but given the shape of our neighborhood, I think that was mostly the right call - anyway, at this point colships, scouts, and research are far more important than popguns. We'll see how that evolves during my turns though....

On research: Looks like Hydrogen is being stubborn, but there's plenty we can do without it anyway, and Talas isn't yet threatened. (If it weren't for nearly-complete Hydrogen though, I'd want LR Lemons out there to make sure the Silis couldn't sweep across Primodius, Talas, and our south with just a single fighter and infinitely-recreated AI colships....) I wouldn't have opened the other fields as soon as we did (I start research only when I actually want to start a project or when knowing what's in that tree will have an impact on my strategy) but the biggest thing I want to correct is our lack of Planetology. We need IER and Controlled Something Environment ASAP, and Terra+10 is nice (and cheap ... and in the way of the others for now) as well, but we haven't even invested in it yet. With careful investment, early IER actually gets the first colship out FASTER than delaying it for factories -> Colship directly!

So yeah, expect me to pour a lot of production into Plantetology research starting from the inherited turn. Construction will likely follow if the opportunity arises, but we'll see.

(Another tip: It's often useful to send transports back to the homeworld from the first colony when the homeworld starts to fill up and the colony is above half its population, just to speed up that first colship as much as possible.)

Ianus: Good point about Talas, as I mentioned above, but that's kind of up to the Propulsion pRNG. If Maniac were here, he'd probably be warning us (correctly) that we need a fleet of fighters yesterday - I'll try to get something together when I can.

[Psillycyber]

Ah yes, if there is one thing I would change going back, it would be to get started on terraforming +10 and improved eco restoration earlier. I forgot that planetology tech cheapens colony ships.

[Ianus]

So Ref, is your thought that IT+10 was the wrong tech to choose in Planetology? My thinking was that it is so cheap and gets us in range of Dead tech the fastest, or if that's not available we can hold for IER as needed. I admit that I don't understand the mechanics of miniaturization very well.
I don't open tech that early either but I wanted to know about Planetology and Propulsion and for the cost of a single factory I thought that I would see all fields, even though We were nowhere near ready to start researching.

[RefSteel]

So Ref, is your thought that IT+10 was the wrong tech to choose in Planetology? My thinking was that it is so cheap and gets us in range of Dead tech the fastest, or if that's not available we can hold for IER as needed. I admit that I don't understand the mechanics of miniaturization very well.
I don't open tech that early either but I wanted to know about Planetology and Propulsion and for the cost of a single factory I thought that I would see all fields, even though We were nowhere near ready to start researching.

IT+10 is pretty great actually! I think IER is better, especially with the large size of our early worlds (which makes the fractional bonus of +10 a bit smaller) and with no special worlds to boost, but IT+10 is still very good. The key thing is to actually spend the early BCs necessary to research the chosen tech though; even though it initially delays factory construction, if you make a small investment early (say 40 BC) and then trickle research in just enough to keep your investment multiplying, you can end up speeding up your colony ships - even the first one - relative to just building factories. IER in particular provides good miniaturization for the colbase, a ~16% increase in the productivity of each factory, and a small bonus to production per pop unit. IT+10 provides a little miniaturization, a tiny boost to per-pop production, faster pop growth and a higher ceiling for pop and factories for a small investment, and is dirt cheap.

I probably like IER too much, and you're definitely right that Controlled Dead looks critical to our success here, but we're not guaranteed to have it, and choosing IT+10 only gets there faster if we actually research the tech!

So, no, I don't think IT+10 was the wrong tech to choose, even though I'd have chosen differently. When I said it was "in the way," I just meant I couldn't tech IER or Controlled-Dead-if-present without getting IT+10 first, which is fine, since it's a good tech and a cheap one as well as necessary.

If you want to see wrong decisions, you'll have to look at my turns when I'm done! (Nothing egregious I hope, but I'm looking forward to seeing what you think of my choices when I finish playing and reporting them!)

[Ianus]

Good to know! My usual course of action is to get BOTH IT+10 and Improved Eco when available. I do see your point that adding 10 to 100 and 125 is much less important than adding it to 30 or 50. I didn't really think about that. It was more just wanting to jump up the tech ladder fast and not wanting to wait for the 1000RP cost of Improved Eco. When would you start trickling research? As early as I opened the fields or sometime over Psilly's turns?

[RefSteel]

Good to know! My usual course of action is to get BOTH IT+10 and Improved Eco when available. I do see your point that adding 10 to 100 and 125 is much less important than adding it to 30 or 50. I didn't really think about that. It was more just wanting to jump up the tech ladder fast and not wanting to wait for the 1000RP cost of Improved Eco. When would you start trickling research? As early as I opened the fields or sometime over Psilly's turns?

Absolutely makes sense. I would definitely have started research as soon as Planetology was opened in this situation, and it's usually a good idea to start it early. Basically, you want IER finished before you complete your colship (and it doesn't hurt for it to come in sooner). IT+10 is a bit more variable, but I'd probably want it in by the time I maxed factories.

[vmxa]

Lurker:

Going to try to remember to pop in and follow the game, good luck.

[RefSteel]

Lurker:

Going to try to remember to pop in and follow the game, good luck.

Thanks, vmxa! We ... may need it!

(Report incoming.)