by Brandon Van Every, long term SMAC addict

Details cybernetic consciousness cybernetic consciousness

Details planetfall planetfall

Details near nutrients near nutrients

In my last game I played a similarly large map as the Pirates. I was trying to give the AI lots of room to spread out and be effective. But, freakish world generation caused all other factions to start on small islands. I started next to one of 2 giant continents and played an un-Pirate-like game, mostly on land. This game, I fiddled with the world generation into ensure "proper" continental land masses. I changed:. These settings generate large land masses while still leaving vast oceans. If a Pirate ends up in the game, he'll be happy.Hopefully with some squinting you can see the large continental shapes of this world. Even with these settings, it still took me 3 restarts to get a proper starting position. On my 1st start, I was given a degenerate 3 square island in open ocean! I've got a good start now, and I hope everyone else does, or this will be an awfully short writeup. I've seen plenty of games where factions were stillborn / DOA, the telltale sign being their bar on the faction histogram is completely flat. One time I was given a 1 square island with no boat! Can't even give me a boat?? I tried to play anyways but, uh, that didn't work out.This is a non-terrible start, on some ok land near some good nutrients. That spot of water might lead to open ocean, although it could also just be a tiny lake. I don't think I will prioritize settling it now. I'll just head for the nutrients.Last game, I found the Pirates were slow to get started, due to the extra overheads of getting a life at sea up and running. Even heading for land as quickly as I did, it was a slow affair. It put me behind and many early Secret Projects went right by me. I'm endeavoring not to have that happen to me this game.Her main concern is getting the minerals to build them. Some games I have bad luck and there are simply no minerals to be had, but nutrients + forests do count as minerals in my book. I'm seeing no problem here.Those nutrients are going to help my -1 Growth penalty quite a bit. That can really bite the Consciousness. For instance, they cannot afford to go Green Police State early on, as -3 Growth is strategically deadly. You have to wait until you're already huge or have The Cloning Vats, both of which are late game concerns.I've played the Consciousness a lot in recent months, so I do not expect to make any faction specific mistakes. I know them well, and I think they may be the best overall human faction to play with. It's either her or Chairman Yang. The latter is a great Builder faction but suffers from a lack of Efficiency. Not Aki Zeta-5's problem, she's got Efficiency in spades. She's flexible about what she can do, unlike Yang who is a one trick pony. Being flexible tends to make would-be allies declare war on you though.Note that this map hason it. They are a crutch. I guarantee that if they were in the game, I would win easily. Because I know how to "Pac-Man" the supply pods and the AI doesn't. So, no Artifacts to goose this along.I have also opted forthis game. 2 Energy Market Crashes last game cost me thousands of credits and that gets old. I'm disappointed that I won't ever get sunspots, as amusing things can be done during those, but the game is a lot better without the negative random events. I've learned, the hard way, that you'd better like how a long game is treating you, or you're gonna lose motivation to play it!So yes, the Consciousness is gonna treat me nice. Prepare the slaughter!