OSG 32-A: Two games with one bird

[Dark Savant]

This is team A's thread for Orion Succession Game #32 at Realms Beyond.

Team B shouldn't be looking here, since we're playing from the same start.

Our roster for this game is:

Dark Savant (me)
TheArchduke
Ianus
shallow_thought

I'll play the first 20 turns; the order after that is TBD.

Turns to be played per turn: I'll play 20 to begin; next player will play 15; all subsequent turns 10.  I've always played by the rule that you don't have to play exactly that many, if a good wrapping-up point is a turn off, or if you simply don't have time to adequately play and report on a turn; if people object to that, let me know.

Game settings:
Unofficial v1.40m patch
Medium galaxy (most difficult size)
Hard difficulty (second-hardest)
Alkari (3rd/4th-weakest of 10 races)
5 opponents (maximum): Bulrathi, Klackon, Mrrshan, Sakkra, Silicoid

Our start position:


I also have my local copy of Master of Orion I configured to play enhanced MIDI music.  This is what it sounds like, if you haven't done so:

Main Menu
Alkari Friendly Music

[Dark Savant]

Thoughts without making a move:

We've got 3 yellow stars within easy reach of Altair (one of them is 4 parsecs distant).  That should get us off to a roaring start.  I also don't think we'll need to research anything right off the bat, so I'll delay starting research in favor of factory construction.

There is a natural frontier off to the west of Altair.  Our side of it is the line of stars going out at 8 o'clock.

The yellow star 9 parsecs out at 2 o'clock very probably has an AI homeworld.  The stars between us closer to that star are likely to have hostile environments; I hope that's not Cryslon.

There can't be an AI anywhere to our south; aside from not having yellow stars, no AI is likely to contest that area quickly.  That's even if Cryslon is that close yellow star, because the Silicoids probably won't have the range to reach those stars even from the purple and blue stars between us.

The Mrrshan are out there.  Expect the usual blood feud.

The Silicoids are present, but not the Humans, so we don't have to worry about the dangerous early votes that can happen with both of those rivals present.

[Dark Savant]

Year 2300

Since we're more likely to confront an AI to our east, I send our colony ship, and a scout with it, to the yellow 3 parsecs to our east.  The other scout heads to the star 3 parsecs to our west.

Year 2303

The yellow star to our west is Volantis, desert size 45.



The yellow star our colony ship went to is Rigel ... terran size 100! 



I start trickling population to Rigel.  I'm not sure what other people's threshold for not dropping their homeworld below is, but I don't like to drop it below 40.

I order the scouts to the yellow star barely within reach of Altair to its northwest, and the purple star near the AI's likely homeworld.  I also order up production of 4 more scouts.

Year 2304

I make sure to include that blue star as one of the destinations of our new scouts.

Year 2307

The eastern advance scout reaches that purple star, which has no planets.

[Dark Savant]

Year 2308

Our western advance scout encounters a Bulrathi scout.



After it retreats, we find that yellow star is Zhardan, a barren 35.



Also scouted this turn: that closer yellow star is Denubius, terran 100. 



To our south is Dunatis, fertile 125. 



That's a lot of choice planets at range 4.  We're going to want that sooner rather than later.

I put 1 RP into Construction, Planetology, and Propulsion, so we'll know next turn what's available there.

Year 2309

Our only choice in Construction is Improved Industrial Tech 9.



Our choices in Planetology are Controlled Barren and Improved Eco Restoration.  I select the latter since while we've already found a Barren 35, it will be some time before we have the range to reach it.



Our only choice in Propulsion is Range 4. Wow, only 180 research for Hydrogen Fuel Cells, that's cheap!



I put 36 BC into Range 4 research this turn.  This is also the last turn I'm trickling colonists to Rigel; it's now got 24 pop with 9 pop en route.

A scout reaches Beta Ceti, a toxic 40.

[Dark Savant]

Year 2310

I cut research on Hydrogen Fuel Cells to the trickle level.

Year 2311

The blue star near the probable AI to our east is Crypto, a toxic 15.



Off at around 7 o'clock is Mu Delphi, a dead 25.



It's looking like we've got a core of lush planets surrounded by a bunch of anti-lush ones.

Year 2312

Hostile planets galore continue as we scout Gion, a radiated 60.



Year 2314

We drive away a Klackon colony ship at Crypto.  So that yellow star to our east has the Klackons.  Sorry, forgot to grab a screenshot there.

We scout Herculis, a poor arid 65.

[Dark Savant]

Year 2316

We scout the last of the planets we can reach with no additional investment: Phyco, a desert 50.



I order up another scout so it's ready to scout deny additional systems when Range 4 comes in.

Year 2317

Range 4 hits percentages, so I start seeding our next tech, which I decide should be Improved Eco Restoration.

Year 2319

Range 4 is at 33%, so I'm passing the save off with that imminent and no technologies actually discovered.

Altair is currently sitting at 70 pop and 101 factories.  Rigel is at 61/32.

The scouts at Zhardan and Crypto are performing scout denial against the Bulrathi and Klackons, respectively.  Three scouts are orbiting or will shortly be arriving at Denubius to scout some 7 parsec systems once Range 4 comes in.  Another scout at Mu Delphi is also waiting to scout a 7 parsec system.

We will soon expand to a small core of awesome planets, surrounded by much more dubious ones.  But our planets aren't quite that awesome; we know of exactly zero Rich, Ultra Rich, or Artifacts planets.

The Mrrshan aren't close to us, at least. 

Save is attached.  Please let me know if it's fine; I haven't sent around MOO1 save files before.


  SAVE2.GAM (Size: 57.65 KB / Downloads: 2)

[Dark Savant]

Scattered thoughts:

I usually leave the last turn without hitting End Turn; I set up things so that I would do so myself, but I do want to give the next player a chance to veto decisions.

I'm not sure what order you all want to play in.  If you want to arrange things by time zones, I'm in California and I'm very much a night person.

I don't think we should wait until Altair finishes all its factories to start constructing our first colony ship.  I think we should plant our flag on Denubius as our third system.  That is likely to be the front line against whomever awaits us at the top of the map, and we want to develop that planet ASAP if that happens to be the Mrrshan.

I'm not sure where the Klackons can even expand.

[shallow_thought]

Nice turns. That is some mighty fine living room you've found us. Going to be  slightly interesting trying to grab it all. As Alkari it's usually easier than other races to hold with a thin screen of fighters while building up the homeworld and then pumping the colships, but with the kitties out there...

FWIW normal SG rules of thumb are 24 hrs to post a "got it", 48hrs after that to play. I can't easily play for a couple more days, so I'm happy to let TheArchduke or Ianus pick it up next.

[TheArchduke]

Will do it tomorrow, if Ianus can´t do it today.

[Ianus]

I'll be able to play in about ten hours from now so just post a "got it" if you can play before that.