I sux at Moo1

Yolky · December 26, 2002, 16:33

I use to find Moo1 so easy on impossible level. Now I that I started to play again I find it so hard. I was playing my last game as the Darlocks and wasn't doing to bad. Just before I retired for the night I used the galaxy cheat to see how the rest of the aliens were progressing and saw the Klaxons had half the galaxy already.

I only had like 3 planets, guess its time to go back to normal then hard again.

Davor

ps I use to find the easier levels boring after a while since all I had to do was make like 200 missle bases and they would never attack.

vmxa1 · December 26, 2002, 18:10

Well, it is normal to need to fresh your skills if you have not played it for a long time.
I have seen that when I get nopstalgic for those huge numbers of ships attacking, I try it at a lower level. I then find, I need to change how I play. I still do see those ships, I think it is due to knowing how to play better now.
Anyway I never make more than 20's for MB. Pk, I have on a rare occastion. I want them to keep attacking so they never get those huge fleets.
I would not say that impossible is easy, just different, but beatable. I mean assuming no cheats or editors. Then it would be easy.

Urban Ranger · December 26, 2002, 22:40

I have never built 200 missile bases for a planet. For regular (and below) I build 20, rich and artifact 40, ultra-rich 60.

granid · December 27, 2002, 01:54

I built over a 1000 once, because I forgot that the planet was making them. I figured out something was wrong when I saw 20% of my income going to support missile bases

vmxa1 · December 27, 2002, 03:45

Yes it is easy to let a planet keep cranking, but I never over looked one longer than about 150. This because I check on the planet list and look for that sort of thing once in a while to provide a chance to catch it.
Normally I would stay under 15 until a planet shows it needs a few ore, but rarely over 20-22. If I do have to jack it up, I will sell them off soon, as they will not have a fleet to send anytime soon after that attack.

Yolky · December 27, 2002, 11:16

For some reason my strategy suxs, since it's easier to build 200 mb than ships. My ships get demolished sometimes and I need those mb to help. What ever makes you win I guess eh?

Davor

vmxa1 · December 27, 2002, 13:43

Well yes and no. I say that as money put into 200 mb is not going to get your moving in the direction you need to win, it will protect your planet.
If your ships are ineffective, it can be for two reasons. One is the ai has better tech and designs than you. Two its traits aid it in fleet combat and you are not far back in tech/ship.
So what is the race you are using. Does it have a handicap in weapons research or construction? That would hurt your ship building.
What game setting are we talking about?
I will address hard and you can adjust either way if that is not the correct level.
Since they will have a large boost compared to you in research, you must have more planets than them to off set or steal tech to get caught up.
I offset their handicap but not spending resources on MB or ships that I do not need at the start. I will not make any scouts or any warships in the begining, only colony ships. I will grab as many planets as I can until I get to the point where the AI starts to landing ships and troops on newly founded ones.

vmxa1 · December 27, 2002, 13:54

At that point or better yet just before that point I will either stop colonizing new planets (those at risk) or make a large ship with as many beams as I can fit with my best armor/shield/battle computer.
This is often enough to hold the planet as they will be sending a few medium ships or one large one. In a rare case I may have to make more than one ship.
As soon as my new planets build all the infrastructure, I set them to a slow build of MB, up to about 10. Faster builds if they are in harms way and especially if at war.
Later in the game, when I have built up to 15 or so range and have a shield of some type, I will make my dither ship for any planet that is at the front lines.
It will have a 5 shot missile up merc, no stingers. Max armour, the double level if I can fit it. Then my best engine and move points. If more room add in jammers and shields. Its job is to 1) drive ships back while the MB shoot down ships, 2) its presence invites ships to stay and try to destroy it while the MB take them out.
This prcess helps me keep their fleet in check and from getting too large (yes some times they still get too large).

vmxa1 · December 27, 2002, 14:06

If I get a shot at grabbing another planet here I will, but I like toset my strongest planet to making a large ship with only beams, no bombs. This is the phase that I use the fleet if I get the chance to wreck theirs or find a planet that I can land on and hold.
The next phase is to start making a real fleet to conquer planets. This is the same ship as before, but will now have a bomb.
A key play here is that I do not make more than 4-6 of a given design until I get to this point. Here I will mak up 10 or so, not more. The reason is I want to switch to a new design as often as I get the tech to make it worth while. If you make 20 or 40 or some large number, it will be a big loss to scrap all of those at once.
The game situation often lends itself to my using a second or even a third planet to make ships at the expansion stage. Note I am not pushing these planet to the wall to build the ships as I want to keep my research going. I want to take the lead on science ASAP.
I like to play in a small map, so this means that 2 or 3 races will be stunted. They will only have one planet and even though it looks formidable with 20-30 MB, is is very weak as they have no tech. I will now take them out one at a time gaininig a HW. At this point I have won and it is a question of do you want to play it out or not.
Many times I could be voted in earlier as 2 races will vote for me as they are at war with the other guy, I never vote for myself here.

Urban Ranger · December 28, 2002, 00:06

You really don't need that many missile bases - what you want are a few ships that "bait" the enemy into staying. I generally like to slap torpedoes (any) and repulsor beam on the "baits." Unless the enemy ships got heavy beams or missiles, they can't touch you. Just park the ships in front of the planet and it is pretty well protected. Meanwhile, your missiles are eating up his ships.

vmxa1 · December 28, 2002, 04:03

Repulsors are going to require large ships, where missile only need medium.
You will need several designs, to be effective if they show up with 4 or more types of ships. That will make it hard to do any other types of shipping.
Once I used repulsors, the AI will come with heavy mounts and often do before then.

Urban Ranger · December 28, 2002, 11:30

Yup, I figure that you don't want a bunch of medium ships anyway, they are just too fragile. Missiles require only medium ship true, but you have only a few shots.

vmxa1 · December 28, 2002, 15:17

I almost never have more than two designs for missile ships at any point in time. I have gone to three in a real pinch.
Their purpose is to drive back ships to allow my missile bases more time to destroy the attackers.
To this end they are only going to have 1 slot used with a single 5 shot missile. If I can not get the job done in that amount of rounds, I am toast.
It could allow for 12 rounds if the attackers have slow moving ships.
Once the attackers have move 3 or better the missile boats are going to retreat on their turn and not fire at all. In fact I may redesign them to use a single shot missle to further reduce their cost as they are usually going to get killed.
I am willing to give up a med ship to smash some of theirs.

Yolky · December 28, 2002, 23:17

I was playing impossible setting as the darloks.

its not that they have better tech is that they out number me 1000 to 1 sometimes so my mb help out alot.

I swear I never had this much trouble before hehe.

Time for a new strategy at an easier level.

Davor

vmxa1 · December 29, 2002, 01:03

Darloks are not so easy to play at imposible level. I forget was it a small map or not?
Can you get others blames for the stealing and start a war between them?

Urban Ranger · January 2, 2003, 02:09

Darloks are quite tough to play because others can out-spend and out-tech ya, rendering your spy bonuses useless.