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Completed Let's Multiplay Alpha Centauri - Binary Dawn - Game 4
- Thread starter Kalin
- Start date
Keep that juicy content coming, I need it to finish my popcorn bucket.
TROYTRON
Learned
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2020
- Messages
- 42
Joined the website just to follow these games. Very entertaining, the level of strategic maneuvering involved is almost as impressive as the lavishly-produced propaganda.
Shame I wasn't able to participate in this one, but hey, there's always next game.
Shame I wasn't able to participate in this one, but hey, there's always next game.
Kalin
Unwanted
Murder-monger Lal rejects University peace offer
In a fresh bout of callous arrogance, deranged dictator Pravin Lal - intoxicated by his success in finally repealing the U.N. Charter which he based his entire career on upholding - has now crudely rejected a most sound and logical plea to end hostilities and cooperate for the common good. "As you all know, I always wanted to get along with the Peacekeepers, but this little fellow and his disproportionately bloated ego simply cannot abide in the shadow of my excellence", Provost Zakharov explained in his emergency address to the Faculty.
"The obstinate and hypocritical refusal to make peace – the stated goal of his entire Peacekeeping faction – is as regrettable as it is indicative of Pravin Lal's savage nature", Zakharov continued, noting many peculiarities in Lal's hostile rebuttal such as inane philosophical-religious prattle of "karma" and Zakharov's imminent "reincarnation as a fruit fly" as punishment for past crimes. The Commander further postulated that the zealotry, bloodlust and megalomania on display could well be genetically induced, citing Lal's "advanced age" and "regressive biological type" as likely factors.
"Clearly, little Pravin is both utterly demented and fully devoted to attacking our University with the full range of recently legalized atrocities", Zakharov said, resigning himself to bloody conflict and termination of all contact with the extremist faction as "any attempt to apply reason to the "U.N." simply produces unreason." In order to counter imminent "U.N." invasions of University territory, Gagarin Cosmodrome has been evacuated whereas University Base and Severnaya Bunker have both received ample reinforcements of state-of-the-art force-field defense bots, courtesy of the compromised PDI weapons program.
Vendetta between Yang and Santiago?
An apparent sneak attack by Hive forces upon the Spartoid terror thugs has been registered by USEC intelligence following sudden pact cancellation and the emergence of a forward Hiveling base. Faculty and staff are urged to curb their enthusiasm, however, as the Technocratic Council has reserved comment on the development pending conclusive evidence of any actual Spartoid or Hiveling losses. "At this point it is too early to tell whether we are dealing with a genuine attempt by Yang to annex the failed Spartoid thug state - which we would of course welcome - or a simple ruse to obscure some new military expedition against Faculty holdings", a Council spokesperson informed the public.
Provost Zakharov reveals new top-secret project
In related news and right in the midst of our total and apparently perpetual war against the "U.N." who by refusing peace have signed their own death warrants, Provost Zakharov has announced the rapid emergency completion of a third University mass-project: The Weather Paradigm! Assembled in a single mission year utilizing liberated Spartoid technology and recently returned Serv-Bot 2.0 former fleets from the Great Push Eastwards, this new faction-wide effort is set to revolutionize civil and military terraforming on Chiron. A strikingly similar long-running attempt by the Spartoid Terrorist Federation was estimated to be completed in five mission years hence but is now expected to now fall flat on its face in most pitiful failure. "Feel the impact!", Zakharov reiterated before delivering a passionate and most illuminating thirty-minute lecture on the foolishness of Santiago for betraying the trust and goodwill of the University.
Project successfully stolen! Grimgravy took forever in building it. I think they had some PDI buddy buddy deal where the others pledged not to pursue it - yeah well hey, he didn't bet on Neanderthal. Got all my formers back in time thanks to having to switch to Power given Hellraiser's aggressive fleet movements near my coast, pretty damn sure his ships are chock-full of those elite 6-2-1 Pele Peacekeepers. Disbanded a lot of units but it's always worth it for Paradigm as past games sure proved. Unless Hellraiser takes my project base using some extremely advanced strategifics the Weather Paradigm is MINE!
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Hellraiser
Arcane
Jesus, Grimgravy's project being stolen should be part of a codexian smac pbem drinking game. It seems 70-80% of all projects he starts building get snatched away from him by some cheeky goy.
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Human Hive influencer's true image exposed as Netizens were duped by Morgan Holographics Software
“You are just a girl who wants to make her photos a little more beautiful … just like everyone else. What are you doing wrong?” One Gaian-affiliated user added that people should celebrate and admire different body types before the Hive Cyber Police quickly scrubbed the post.
Photo-editing applications such as Morgan's MyFace have become hugely popular among millennial influencers in Hive and around the Planet The apps allow users to remove blemishes, whiten teeth and give selfies an overall airbrushed look. The Chinese beauty standards have long equated being thin, fair and flawless as being attractive. This has given rise to severe body image issues among Chinese women – and these apps are likely an enticing temporary solution to a broader social problem.
“You are just a girl who wants to make her photos a little more beautiful … just like everyone else. What are you doing wrong?” One Gaian-affiliated user added that people should celebrate and admire different body types before the Hive Cyber Police quickly scrubbed the post.
Photo-editing applications such as Morgan's MyFace have become hugely popular among millennial influencers in Hive and around the Planet The apps allow users to remove blemishes, whiten teeth and give selfies an overall airbrushed look. The Chinese beauty standards have long equated being thin, fair and flawless as being attractive. This has given rise to severe body image issues among Chinese women – and these apps are likely an enticing temporary solution to a broader social problem.
'STEVE!'
'Yea boss?'
'I just checked your FB chat logs with the customer... why did you warn her that there is no bolster case included in the set?'
'Uh... I did offer her to buy the additional bolster cases for $16 each.'
'WHY LAH! Stupid! Why warn customers against buying something? That's so stupid! People want to buy, YOU WARN THEM? THINK LEH?'
'Sorry, boss I just wanna help the customer a bit.'
'Help me sell the goods! That's your job! Fuck the customers.'
--- Morgan's Bed and Bath, prior to Transaction Log Reference No. 223-OSFLEBNHI $185.00 (bolster case included) ---
'Yea boss?'
'I just checked your FB chat logs with the customer... why did you warn her that there is no bolster case included in the set?'
'Uh... I did offer her to buy the additional bolster cases for $16 each.'
'WHY LAH! Stupid! Why warn customers against buying something? That's so stupid! People want to buy, YOU WARN THEM? THINK LEH?'
'Sorry, boss I just wanna help the customer a bit.'
'Help me sell the goods! That's your job! Fuck the customers.'
--- Morgan's Bed and Bath, prior to Transaction Log Reference No. 223-OSFLEBNHI $185.00 (bolster case included) ---
? He seems a real piece of work.
Hellraiser
Arcane
Pathetic, last game my Morganites worked from the offices 24/7 even as hive hoverprobes delivered deadly neocoronavirus to my the glorious morganican bases they were in.
Demo.Graph
Liturgist
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2018
- Messages
- 1,008
Hellraiser
Arcane
It's ok
"Is it safe?" Lal asked over the phone.
"The trial ran for thirteen years," Vihn told him. "The only observable effect of long term exposure seems to be a build-up of tolerance to composition nine."
"First of all, I must do no harm, deputy undersecretary."
"There are more urgent needs at stake here, sir. Consider this a sort of social anaesthetic, not unlike sedating a violent and unstable patient. One cannot heal society if society is actively fighting against the administration of the cure."
Lal was torn. There was truth in it, but then again on some fundamental level it felt wrong. Was it really as necessary as sedating someone to save his life? Or was this just something meant to make him feel better about tarnishing the right to dissent? Is it a right to be angry? Is the mere existence of anger the problem or the actions that sometimes are or are not taken under the influence of anger? Where does society draw the line between individual liberty and the collective need of civilization? It was a fine line Lal had to walk was Secretary General. One wrong step threatened to cast all he had fought for into the deep pits of tyranny. Zakharov already called him a dictator, despite Lal winning through fair and transparent elections ever since provisional rule was superseded with the creation of the Colonial General Assembly. Then again Zakharov was a nutcase and sociopath, his mind and moral compass twisted into something utterly alien and distant from the mainstream philosophies of Earth.
"The children of today's children will know if this was the right choice," Lal replied. "Do it so that we can build a better world."
Drugging large parts of the population seemed extreme, but was it really in the context of history and warfare? Dresden, Hiroshima and Mecca were all orders of magnitude more evil considering the deaths and injuries. No one would really suffer or feel pain from composition nine, but part of them and their humanity would be taken away from them by composition nine. Temporarily, sure, but without their consent. The ethics of this action would keep haunting him, but so would the consequences if he chose not to do it. In the days to come the population would be rendered docile, but they would gain new freedoms in return. Maybe it would balance each other out, Lal hoped.
"The trial ran for thirteen years," Vihn told him. "The only observable effect of long term exposure seems to be a build-up of tolerance to composition nine."
"First of all, I must do no harm, deputy undersecretary."
"There are more urgent needs at stake here, sir. Consider this a sort of social anaesthetic, not unlike sedating a violent and unstable patient. One cannot heal society if society is actively fighting against the administration of the cure."
Lal was torn. There was truth in it, but then again on some fundamental level it felt wrong. Was it really as necessary as sedating someone to save his life? Or was this just something meant to make him feel better about tarnishing the right to dissent? Is it a right to be angry? Is the mere existence of anger the problem or the actions that sometimes are or are not taken under the influence of anger? Where does society draw the line between individual liberty and the collective need of civilization? It was a fine line Lal had to walk was Secretary General. One wrong step threatened to cast all he had fought for into the deep pits of tyranny. Zakharov already called him a dictator, despite Lal winning through fair and transparent elections ever since provisional rule was superseded with the creation of the Colonial General Assembly. Then again Zakharov was a nutcase and sociopath, his mind and moral compass twisted into something utterly alien and distant from the mainstream philosophies of Earth.
"The children of today's children will know if this was the right choice," Lal replied. "Do it so that we can build a better world."
Drugging large parts of the population seemed extreme, but was it really in the context of history and warfare? Dresden, Hiroshima and Mecca were all orders of magnitude more evil considering the deaths and injuries. No one would really suffer or feel pain from composition nine, but part of them and their humanity would be taken away from them by composition nine. Temporarily, sure, but without their consent. The ethics of this action would keep haunting him, but so would the consequences if he chose not to do it. In the days to come the population would be rendered docile, but they would gain new freedoms in return. Maybe it would balance each other out, Lal hoped.
The turn is 97, I finished pop booming, stapled my bases and went free market for the credits. Kalin is busy making his bases obnoxiously stacked up on defenders. ITZ Fortress and that other base were razed by him, seeing that they served their purpose I guess. Not much happening since then except for the paradigm theft.
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"Why are you NOT STREET SMART enough to filter the age group of your ads?????? Do you think TEENAGERS below 25 years old interested to buy bed sheets? Do you think old aunties above 55 years older than your mother still surfing internet to find bed sheets? PLS FILTER AGE GROUP OF YOUR ADS to be effective n not waste money."
"But boss, we have two newly registered customers today who placed an order. They are 18 and 58 years old."
"THOSE ARE OUTLIERS LAH!"
----- Morgan's Bed and Bath Transaction Logs : The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly -----
"But boss, we have two newly registered customers today who placed an order. They are 18 and 58 years old."
"THOSE ARE OUTLIERS LAH!"
----- Morgan's Bed and Bath Transaction Logs : The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly -----
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'You know it's strange. I am expecting BIG sales this weekend. Therefore I have TRIPLED the ad budget on social media on Friday night. Why is there no results, Steve? Can you tell me why?'
'Ah. Um... because it's 10 am on Saturday morning?'
'No. No. I believe... there's a tapering effect once a budget goes past a certain point. Tripling the budget does not necessarily mean TRIPLING the sales or number of orders. You follow?'
'OK.'
---- Morgan's Bed & Bath - The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly ----
'Ah. Um... because it's 10 am on Saturday morning?'
'No. No. I believe... there's a tapering effect once a budget goes past a certain point. Tripling the budget does not necessarily mean TRIPLING the sales or number of orders. You follow?'
'OK.'
---- Morgan's Bed & Bath - The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly ----
Kalin
Unwanted
Alright we hit year 2200 so time for some stats, shitty budget map I know, but hey, no one posted anything more snazzy!
Not pictured: Spartoid naval base south-west of "U.N." conquered from Junior's now-genocided Gaia.
Faction stats:
"U.N." Warmongers (72 pop) "Democracy", Free Market, Power, Planetary Governorship, top Wealth
Subhumanoid Hive (71 pop) Police State, Planned, Knowledge
Spartoid Federation (58 pop) Police State, Green, Power, Strongest Military
Morgan Industries (43 pop) Democracy, Free Market, Knowledge
University of Planet (42 pop) Police State, Green, Power
Secret projects:
Diplomatic relations:
Tech:
Grimgravy and Hellraiser are close to finishing Mechanical Resonance (Deep Radar, Air Superiority, AAA Tracking, The Planetary Energy Grid)
Agentorange and Absinthe research Static Energy Storage (Skunkworks, Wealth social engineering choice)
Yours truly is close to finishing Psionics (PSI Defense, Non-Lethal Methods, The Empath Guild)
All factions enjoy tech parity for now.
So, Peter, what's happening:
Not much! I offered peace to everyone and everyone rejected so there's that. In the east Grimgravy and I traded blows on the high seas until he sunk/captured most of my ships, now he's mostly chilling at home building energy banks (and that means he won't go for the Energy Grid I reckon, probably already promised it to Hellraiser). Agent mostly sits in his corner growing cyber shekels, he's in better shape than I am in terms of infrastructure but I have a bigger army. Hive? No clue, only faction I haven't infiltrated. Has all the right projects for Golden Age boom so that's what I'd do.
At home Hellraiser and I play the positioning game, or at least I think we do because I don't even have visual confirmation of his troop transports. He *could* be on the other side of the map for all I know, not gonna count on it though. I expect some sicko stunt every turn but keep loading it up and seeing nuthin but a gud time. Shouldn't complain, I survived for a century, gonna try to survive for another - and kill some sickos to boot!
Yeah it's quite stupid. Especially considering you can see what secret project a faction is working on before even encountering said faction. Would like a mod to eliminate that.
I have weird imagery of hentai in mind where the naked heroine Kalin is repositioning herself constantly in bed to avoid her orifices being penetrated by Hellraiser's hyper weapon.
Demo.Graph
Liturgist
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2018
- Messages
- 1,008
Yeah, Uni looks like it had won some battles but lost a war. I have almost a Crimean war vibe out of it - "undefeated, but on decline".
dat Hive, though...
Hellraiser
Arcane
Progress is made
CBC Planet News broadcast 11th of June, M.Y. 2204
The Indra initiative announces a major success as record breaking power output has been achieved due to their efforts. Utilizing the advances in electrical ultraconduction, also known as room-temperature superconducting, and combining them with the resonance engineering techniques developed two years earlier, the Indra Ultraconducting Resonance Grid brings a previous unimaginable annual bounty of energy valued at over 250 billion energy credits.
Constructed in a record breaking single mission year, this faction-wide marvel of engineering is bound to bring unparralled prosperity to mankind, uplifting those impoverished by University crimes to a quality of life that even on earth was considered just an optimistic dream.
The achievement has already led to increased public support of Secretary General Lal and his Humanitas party, which was already at a high level following a campaign of market reforms and enviroment control system refurbishments.
Some still criticise the cabinet blaming it for the discoordination of the Chiron Security Council research effort resulting in redundant R&D, and failure to transfer technologies in time before sunspot activity increased to unseeen levels.
However we here at the CBC Planet News have to say that we are thankful for the strong and caring stewardship of Pravin Lal and his cabinet.
This has been John Tilter for CBC Planet News.
***
"Hmmm," Avaserala pondered before coming to a choice, "while I do not have the good general's fucking excellent strategic sense and experience. I believe this one is best given the intel."
"I don't like the civilian casualty projections," Lal said.
"With all respect, Sir," Avaserala replied, "the eggheads didn't give a shit when they burned down the original XBRI and PEB."
"Not everyone is guilty, the innocent should not suffer."
"How many innocent shall suffer if the war drags on?"
"Ethics is not something one can tackle with calculus or other mathematics. A life is a life, I swore an oath to do no harm."
"You swore as a doctor, you are leader now, Sir," Brighton interrupted them. "Your duty is to protect our people."
"I would take rectal cancer surgery over this any day, even as a patient," Lal sighed. "At least cancer surgery doesn't lead to more debate on dubious ethics."
His cabinet was particularly hawkish and bloodthirsty this day, but he could see why. There were multiple reports commissioned over the years regarding an assault on University Base, now the closest enemy outpost. Each report was longer than the last one, each new one double the previous one's size, with gigabytes of supplemental videos and other media files to support the bloodshed.
They all had to be shredded as Zakharov had his faction did various stunts over the years that made another attack too costly or impossible. And now, suddenly, an opportunity appeared.
The University decided to abandon their first city, troops were moved to Otkrieta Lab where the critical projects were located, a city which they renamed and now called Based University in internal university communication.
The HQ and the faculty were in the process of being moved, the whole thing was rushed, but for a few more months critical offices and staff would stay at what they now called University Debased. Facilities would still exist with machinery that was waiting for the move.
“Seize the PA system, use it to tell them that you will meltdown the reactor and destroy the life support grid at a given time and that all should leave before it happens. At least show them we don’t want to kill them, we only came to end the war and dismantle the evil government and its criminal war machine.”
Lal wished he could just pull the plug on this madness. Every decision had a price in blood, whether it was a child from one of the Kraken Gulf metropolis who could lose his parents on the front line, or a lowly university maintenance drone who merely scrubbed the air filters at a war factory that was targeted by Pele missile artillery. His hands were red, his burden was great. Would his wife still want him, after all he had done, if she had still lived? Did he change or was he always like this, willing to rubber-stamp death and destruction for a supposedly greater good.
While Lal was busy with ethical gymnastics to please his conscience, which has resulted in a fairly long silence, Deputy Undersecretary Avaserala was studying a file sent by Director Black from Black Ops.
Avaserala begun reading aloud, “target is prone to drunkenness, lewd behaviour towards young women and gambling, particularly on the outcome of matches in the protein folding predictors league at pre-Baccalaureate level.”
“So what is the problem?” Brighton asked. “He has his vices, just find him indulging in them and kill him then.”
“It is not so easy Mr. Undersecretary, not according to the operatives. Take a look at this list I just shared.”
Known implants:
Cardiostarter
Neurotoxin neutralizer
General artificial muscle replacements
Ocular replacement
Possible implants:
Quantum entanglement comms package integrated with sensors
Biomonitor chip
Oxygen repository
Respiratory lockdown valves
Penile hydraulics
Envirosensors
“Is he even human anymore?” Brighton asked.
“He likes to talk about his dick to sorority girls on campus, after he gets completely shitfaced on half a bottle of Universitetskaya. That is about as human as top university researchers get,” Avaserala told him. “Anyway the problem is he has so many fucking toys inside of him he can’t be killed stealthily before campus cops or Spetsnaz shows up with some medics to revive him. ”
“So why are you even showing us this, Deputy Undersecretary?” Lal asked her.
“Director Black has a complicated and bold plan. All he needs is the 7th engineering and some boat rides from Vincze.”
“Will it work?”
“There’s a way too damn long report by Black on why it will. I fell asleep around the seventeenth page. Before I did that and started dreaming about getting some fucking shorter reports for a change, I saw him mention that this is the last chance we’ll get because it seems they have almost cracked the psionics problem. Kill him and wipe their data now or never, and who knows what evil the egghead empaths will be able of doing if we don't succeed. Possibly influencing people telepathically over long distances.”
“Do it,” Lal sighed, "the last thing I need in my mind is more voices sowing doubt on this war effort. Let's just end it quickly and build prosperity, like we always wanted to."
CBC Planet News broadcast 11th of June, M.Y. 2204
The Indra initiative announces a major success as record breaking power output has been achieved due to their efforts. Utilizing the advances in electrical ultraconduction, also known as room-temperature superconducting, and combining them with the resonance engineering techniques developed two years earlier, the Indra Ultraconducting Resonance Grid brings a previous unimaginable annual bounty of energy valued at over 250 billion energy credits.
Constructed in a record breaking single mission year, this faction-wide marvel of engineering is bound to bring unparralled prosperity to mankind, uplifting those impoverished by University crimes to a quality of life that even on earth was considered just an optimistic dream.
The achievement has already led to increased public support of Secretary General Lal and his Humanitas party, which was already at a high level following a campaign of market reforms and enviroment control system refurbishments.
Some still criticise the cabinet blaming it for the discoordination of the Chiron Security Council research effort resulting in redundant R&D, and failure to transfer technologies in time before sunspot activity increased to unseeen levels.
However we here at the CBC Planet News have to say that we are thankful for the strong and caring stewardship of Pravin Lal and his cabinet.
This has been John Tilter for CBC Planet News.
***
"Hmmm," Avaserala pondered before coming to a choice, "while I do not have the good general's fucking excellent strategic sense and experience. I believe this one is best given the intel."
"I don't like the civilian casualty projections," Lal said.
"With all respect, Sir," Avaserala replied, "the eggheads didn't give a shit when they burned down the original XBRI and PEB."
"Not everyone is guilty, the innocent should not suffer."
"How many innocent shall suffer if the war drags on?"
"Ethics is not something one can tackle with calculus or other mathematics. A life is a life, I swore an oath to do no harm."
"You swore as a doctor, you are leader now, Sir," Brighton interrupted them. "Your duty is to protect our people."
"I would take rectal cancer surgery over this any day, even as a patient," Lal sighed. "At least cancer surgery doesn't lead to more debate on dubious ethics."
His cabinet was particularly hawkish and bloodthirsty this day, but he could see why. There were multiple reports commissioned over the years regarding an assault on University Base, now the closest enemy outpost. Each report was longer than the last one, each new one double the previous one's size, with gigabytes of supplemental videos and other media files to support the bloodshed.
They all had to be shredded as Zakharov had his faction did various stunts over the years that made another attack too costly or impossible. And now, suddenly, an opportunity appeared.
The University decided to abandon their first city, troops were moved to Otkrieta Lab where the critical projects were located, a city which they renamed and now called Based University in internal university communication.
The HQ and the faculty were in the process of being moved, the whole thing was rushed, but for a few more months critical offices and staff would stay at what they now called University Debased. Facilities would still exist with machinery that was waiting for the move.
“Seize the PA system, use it to tell them that you will meltdown the reactor and destroy the life support grid at a given time and that all should leave before it happens. At least show them we don’t want to kill them, we only came to end the war and dismantle the evil government and its criminal war machine.”
Lal wished he could just pull the plug on this madness. Every decision had a price in blood, whether it was a child from one of the Kraken Gulf metropolis who could lose his parents on the front line, or a lowly university maintenance drone who merely scrubbed the air filters at a war factory that was targeted by Pele missile artillery. His hands were red, his burden was great. Would his wife still want him, after all he had done, if she had still lived? Did he change or was he always like this, willing to rubber-stamp death and destruction for a supposedly greater good.
While Lal was busy with ethical gymnastics to please his conscience, which has resulted in a fairly long silence, Deputy Undersecretary Avaserala was studying a file sent by Director Black from Black Ops.
Avaserala begun reading aloud, “target is prone to drunkenness, lewd behaviour towards young women and gambling, particularly on the outcome of matches in the protein folding predictors league at pre-Baccalaureate level.”
“So what is the problem?” Brighton asked. “He has his vices, just find him indulging in them and kill him then.”
“It is not so easy Mr. Undersecretary, not according to the operatives. Take a look at this list I just shared.”
Known implants:
Cardiostarter
Neurotoxin neutralizer
General artificial muscle replacements
Ocular replacement
Possible implants:
Quantum entanglement comms package integrated with sensors
Biomonitor chip
Oxygen repository
Respiratory lockdown valves
Penile hydraulics
Envirosensors
“Is he even human anymore?” Brighton asked.
“He likes to talk about his dick to sorority girls on campus, after he gets completely shitfaced on half a bottle of Universitetskaya. That is about as human as top university researchers get,” Avaserala told him. “Anyway the problem is he has so many fucking toys inside of him he can’t be killed stealthily before campus cops or Spetsnaz shows up with some medics to revive him. ”
“So why are you even showing us this, Deputy Undersecretary?” Lal asked her.
“Director Black has a complicated and bold plan. All he needs is the 7th engineering and some boat rides from Vincze.”
“Will it work?”
“There’s a way too damn long report by Black on why it will. I fell asleep around the seventeenth page. Before I did that and started dreaming about getting some fucking shorter reports for a change, I saw him mention that this is the last chance we’ll get because it seems they have almost cracked the psionics problem. Kill him and wipe their data now or never, and who knows what evil the egghead empaths will be able of doing if we don't succeed. Possibly influencing people telepathically over long distances.”
“Do it,” Lal sighed, "the last thing I need in my mind is more voices sowing doubt on this war effort. Let's just end it quickly and build prosperity, like we always wanted to."
The turn was 104, two turns earlier I got this:
The Planetary Energy grid, free energy bank at every base. My first project this game, as the egghead aggression meant I had to build other shit instead of the projects I wanted. One of the better projects in the game, and the only useful one from the SMAX expansion besides the ridiculously OP cloudbase academy. The Cloudbase Academy is either removed or moved so fucking far in this mod you can transcend before it ever gets built, which is for the best.
Rushed the PEG on the same turn as I got mechanical resonance tech (don’t even know what tech it was in unmodded smax, resonance theory?) necessary to build it, it was one of the reasons I was stockpiling money for about 5 turns. Now thanks to it I am making ridiculous amount of energy at 100% econ and green and using it to buy snazzy stuff I need.
Anyway for a long time I have wanted to probe University Base and hopefully raze it, making the marine dream of desk poo come true. But because of janior unwillingness to support charter repeal in the first two votes and the brutal tech raid from ITZ Fortress, Kalin had enough time to bunker up to a point where a frontal assault requires a ridiculous superiority in numbers.
But then I load up TURN 104 and I see this:
The name has changed and University Base is empty! I checked his bases through snazzy planetary governor infiltration and what do I see? All the crap that was in University Base is at a base formerly known as Otkrieta Lab:
Makes sense since this is the project base and the positioning and composition of my forces visible to Kalin through infiltration, not to mention a lack of a strike despite being able to do it ever since charter got repealed, suggested I might have a cunning plan to kill it or seize it. The base has all 3 University projects making it a very juicy target.
I also saw Kalin is rushing a HQ there which explains the name changes. Rushing it one turn before he can get the tech for a new project on the same turn as the HQ move finishes. Why move the HQ? The base with the HQ cannot be mindcontrolled with probes, a very real threat to the University which always has -2 probe (anything below -2 doesn’t carry more penalties BTW). Also my money hoarding meant I might have wanted to do that, since mind control takes cash.
Anyway University Base is empty and has no probes, seems his forces are far from its location so a trap is unlikely. Furthermore the recent land raising made the base difficult to assault in one turn from the sea but not impossible. So I used my snazzy transports and first I made this:
ITZ one of those things I learned from merc/usury/elegy, you can use an elite colony pod to land on enemy shore, make a base and then move a transport ship with units inside so that they are closer to an enemy target in one turn. This is how he killed Monitoring Station back when he played Sparta and I played University 3 PBEM games ago.
As bases provide vision in 2 squares I already knew there was nothing between the antechamber and the target. So I sent my probe team first. Now why send a probe team?
This is one of those probe team actions that can only be done at an HQ and for a good reason.
Tech progress went down to almost 0. No Empath’s Guild rush at Otkrieta/Based University next TURN. I don’t remember if anyone else ever assassinated researchers in codexian PBEM, which probably explains why Kalin made this mistake. It is a very obscure probe action.
Next I got one of my elite rovers to use its 3 moves to live the marine dream:
Base got renamed to Sarita’s Memorial automatically, I guess ITZ because Kalin killed my manufactured worm boil all those TURNS ago, back when I chased him back from my turf with my first boils.
After that I renamed it back, forgetting about the capital D in Debased, and did an action requiring some mental gymnastics to explain in my UN LARP:
We, uh, let them all leave first and just demolished the infrastructure and equipment, totally humanitarian! Just look into the reformed Charter!
With both the assassination and the razing of the HQ a success, this is what egghead psionics research looked like:
Ouch. Also energy income went down the UNCN toilet *canned laughter* since without the HQ all bases are treated as being at some arbitrary far distance from the HQ for the purpose of efficiency energy loss calculation, lowering energy income.
In hindsight should have brought more probes and also stole his energy, he stockpiled a bunch, I think I stole 53 when I took the base, didn’t screenshot it so I don’t know the exact amount. Didn’t notice how much he had, guess he wanted to use it to rush the guild, otherwise the number of units he would need to do it was quite significant considering he is now Planet’s least populous faction (Morgan golden age pop-boomed a while ago).
The other thing I was hoping for a bucnh of turns earlier was to steal psionics from Kalin and rush the Empath Guild myself for denial purposes if possible (and not too costly), wanted to do it on the same turn as I rushed the Empath Guild (our research would finish on the same turn). Had the mathemajicks all figured out for it, but Kalin slowed down his research, most likely anticipating a theft attempt. He was kind of spent after rushing the Weather Paradigm, so he needed to git more crap to make sure nobody tries to snatch the guild from him.
In other news we (The Chiron Security Council of Un-Hive-Sparta) had a nice plan to combo tech and get copters, tree farms or nerve gas depending on what the RNG allowed us to pick. Both me and grimgravy were researching resonance and I was on course to finish it 2 turns before gravy, and send it to him so that he can get one of those snazzy techs. Research progres is retained and transferred to a new tech if the tech currently being researched is obtained via trade or other means.
He got a node breakthrough event fire for him either on Absinthe’s turn or Kalin’s turn which were after my turn (random events work like that), so he got it first without me knowing I need to slow down research first. As he didn’t send the tech to me (possibly it would be too late anyway, depends what pop-ups first) and we missed out on that double tech. Worst of all copters were a research choice for both of us. Really wanted those.
Oh and we did not manage to trade the techs a turn later because sunspots came up on gravy’s turn, r00fles. At least the pact deal went through as it seems sunspots fired after the deal pop-up. I accidentally revoked pact on my turn due to a finger slip
The Planetary Energy grid, free energy bank at every base. My first project this game, as the egghead aggression meant I had to build other shit instead of the projects I wanted. One of the better projects in the game, and the only useful one from the SMAX expansion besides the ridiculously OP cloudbase academy. The Cloudbase Academy is either removed or moved so fucking far in this mod you can transcend before it ever gets built, which is for the best.
Rushed the PEG on the same turn as I got mechanical resonance tech (don’t even know what tech it was in unmodded smax, resonance theory?) necessary to build it, it was one of the reasons I was stockpiling money for about 5 turns. Now thanks to it I am making ridiculous amount of energy at 100% econ and green and using it to buy snazzy stuff I need.
Anyway for a long time I have wanted to probe University Base and hopefully raze it, making the marine dream of desk poo come true. But because of janior unwillingness to support charter repeal in the first two votes and the brutal tech raid from ITZ Fortress, Kalin had enough time to bunker up to a point where a frontal assault requires a ridiculous superiority in numbers.
But then I load up TURN 104 and I see this:
The name has changed and University Base is empty! I checked his bases through snazzy planetary governor infiltration and what do I see? All the crap that was in University Base is at a base formerly known as Otkrieta Lab:
Makes sense since this is the project base and the positioning and composition of my forces visible to Kalin through infiltration, not to mention a lack of a strike despite being able to do it ever since charter got repealed, suggested I might have a cunning plan to kill it or seize it. The base has all 3 University projects making it a very juicy target.
I also saw Kalin is rushing a HQ there which explains the name changes. Rushing it one turn before he can get the tech for a new project on the same turn as the HQ move finishes. Why move the HQ? The base with the HQ cannot be mindcontrolled with probes, a very real threat to the University which always has -2 probe (anything below -2 doesn’t carry more penalties BTW). Also my money hoarding meant I might have wanted to do that, since mind control takes cash.
Anyway University Base is empty and has no probes, seems his forces are far from its location so a trap is unlikely. Furthermore the recent land raising made the base difficult to assault in one turn from the sea but not impossible. So I used my snazzy transports and first I made this:
ITZ one of those things I learned from merc/usury/elegy, you can use an elite colony pod to land on enemy shore, make a base and then move a transport ship with units inside so that they are closer to an enemy target in one turn. This is how he killed Monitoring Station back when he played Sparta and I played University 3 PBEM games ago.
As bases provide vision in 2 squares I already knew there was nothing between the antechamber and the target. So I sent my probe team first. Now why send a probe team?
This is one of those probe team actions that can only be done at an HQ and for a good reason.
Tech progress went down to almost 0. No Empath’s Guild rush at Otkrieta/Based University next TURN. I don’t remember if anyone else ever assassinated researchers in codexian PBEM, which probably explains why Kalin made this mistake. It is a very obscure probe action.
Next I got one of my elite rovers to use its 3 moves to live the marine dream:
Base got renamed to Sarita’s Memorial automatically, I guess ITZ because Kalin killed my manufactured worm boil all those TURNS ago, back when I chased him back from my turf with my first boils.
After that I renamed it back, forgetting about the capital D in Debased, and did an action requiring some mental gymnastics to explain in my UN LARP:
We, uh, let them all leave first and just demolished the infrastructure and equipment, totally humanitarian! Just look into the reformed Charter!
With both the assassination and the razing of the HQ a success, this is what egghead psionics research looked like:
Ouch. Also energy income went down the UNCN toilet *canned laughter* since without the HQ all bases are treated as being at some arbitrary far distance from the HQ for the purpose of efficiency energy loss calculation, lowering energy income.
In hindsight should have brought more probes and also stole his energy, he stockpiled a bunch, I think I stole 53 when I took the base, didn’t screenshot it so I don’t know the exact amount. Didn’t notice how much he had, guess he wanted to use it to rush the guild, otherwise the number of units he would need to do it was quite significant considering he is now Planet’s least populous faction (Morgan golden age pop-boomed a while ago).
The other thing I was hoping for a bucnh of turns earlier was to steal psionics from Kalin and rush the Empath Guild myself for denial purposes if possible (and not too costly), wanted to do it on the same turn as I rushed the Empath Guild (our research would finish on the same turn). Had the mathemajicks all figured out for it, but Kalin slowed down his research, most likely anticipating a theft attempt. He was kind of spent after rushing the Weather Paradigm, so he needed to git more crap to make sure nobody tries to snatch the guild from him.
In other news we (The Chiron Security Council of Un-Hive-Sparta) had a nice plan to combo tech and get copters, tree farms or nerve gas depending on what the RNG allowed us to pick. Both me and grimgravy were researching resonance and I was on course to finish it 2 turns before gravy, and send it to him so that he can get one of those snazzy techs. Research progres is retained and transferred to a new tech if the tech currently being researched is obtained via trade or other means.
He got a node breakthrough event fire for him either on Absinthe’s turn or Kalin’s turn which were after my turn (random events work like that), so he got it first without me knowing I need to slow down research first. As he didn’t send the tech to me (possibly it would be too late anyway, depends what pop-ups first) and we missed out on that double tech. Worst of all copters were a research choice for both of us. Really wanted those.
Oh and we did not manage to trade the techs a turn later because sunspots came up on gravy’s turn, r00fles. At least the pact deal went through as it seems sunspots fired after the deal pop-up. I accidentally revoked pact on my turn due to a finger slip
Last edited:
Kalin
Unwanted
Meanwhile in Cognito Elite HQ:
Beautiful write-up and a most excellent stunt, I think it is indeed the first assassination in any SMAC game we've had and the timing was perfect to boot. Funny thing is I planned to burn University Debased with the last defender but for some dumb reason I opted out of it. Not sure whether Universitetskaya or brain fog is to blame, not the first mistake this game and probably not the last but definitely one of the biggest.
I really wanted the tech and not so much for the project (at this point it would only give me intel on Hive) but rather for non-lethal methods to manage the frothing drones and PSI armour which is the single best defense against murder-monger gas raiders when you have instant elites and the Manifold Nexus on your side. The tech would also allow me to pursue my true goal: punishment spheres! For the cheap cost of negating the nodes I'd get complete drone control, it was a long shot in the first place, now it is... Well, extremely unlikely.
Funny thing is I offered Hellraiser my full surrender a good 15 turns ago. Mental gymnastics of refusing it in favour of continuing to work with Hive/Sparta police state axis outweighs them all, my only guess is he wants to kill everyone himself except maybe Morgan by doing some Kurgan 2.0 - can't blame him but I would've loved a piece of the action. If there's anything positive from this disaster it is the fact I retained a big chunk of cash and all those formers allowing for some radical emergency measures.
I really wanted the tech and not so much for the project (at this point it would only give me intel on Hive) but rather for non-lethal methods to manage the frothing drones and PSI armour which is the single best defense against murder-monger gas raiders when you have instant elites and the Manifold Nexus on your side. The tech would also allow me to pursue my true goal: punishment spheres! For the cheap cost of negating the nodes I'd get complete drone control, it was a long shot in the first place, now it is... Well, extremely unlikely.
Funny thing is I offered Hellraiser my full surrender a good 15 turns ago. Mental gymnastics of refusing it in favour of continuing to work with Hive/Sparta police state axis outweighs them all, my only guess is he wants to kill everyone himself except maybe Morgan by doing some Kurgan 2.0 - can't blame him but I would've loved a piece of the action. If there's anything positive from this disaster it is the fact I retained a big chunk of cash and all those formers allowing for some radical emergency measures.
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The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly
The Centaurian Sleep Monopoly
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