The Four Musketeers: Armada 2526 Supernova (PBEM) AAR

[Martok]

All right!  It's time to get this party started.  8) 



As some of you are already aware, four of us Armada players -- OJsDad (who just started playing the game), Shelldrake, W8taminute, and myself -- have begun a new PBEM campaign.  We're playing co-op style, and will be banding together to survive in a hostile galaxy against a total of 8 other (AI-controlled) factions. 

And since I apparently possess a masochistic streak, I'm going to be posting my bumbling moves here for your entertainment.  The other three may be posting here as well (depending on how masochistic *they're* feeling).  :P 


Anyway, the game parameters and settings are as follows: 

1.)  Very Large map (so all 12 factions should have at least a little space in which to expand before running into each other), star density set to Normal, and a dense center

2.)  Normal difficulty setting (this is where the AI plays its best game without cheating)

3.)  Bureaucracy set to Normal

4.)  Everyone starts with Normal homeworlds

5.)  Scalable research (which on a Very Large map means techs will take a good while to research, but not forever)

6.)  The game is set to last 500 turns


Faction-wise, W8taminute is playing as the Human Union.  In-game, they're pretty middle-of-the-road:  They suffer from slightly higher unrest (due to being a little "disorderly"), as well as modest penalties in Hyperspace and Psychic research.  However, they do get a general bonus to all other research levels.  Ideal planets are their favorite places to colonize, with Habitable & Aquatic worlds also being preferable. 

Shelldrake is playing as the Cryokon Federation.  As their name might suggest, they prefer cold arctic planets, which means they tend to not have to fight other races as much for territory.  They also receive an income boost from mining facilities, and are immune to biological warfare.  Their main drawback is their lower growth rate, which suffers even further when they colonize Ideal/Habitable/Aquatic planets -- they're too warm for the Cryos to live on comfortably. 

OJsDad is playing as the Ancient Race of Machines (or AROM for short).  Like the Humans, they're "disorderly" and therefore suffer from higher unrest, they have a slightly lower-than-average growth rate, have a small penalty to most research fields, and are vulnerable to nano-tech attacks.  However, they're also immune to biological & psychic attacks/weapons, and receive a boost to both Construction research and Skunkworks facilities.  Also like the Humans, they favor Ideal planets -- and to a lesser extent, Habitable/Aquatic planets -- for colonization. 

As for myself, I'm playing as the Volmar Union, a race of silicon-based lifeforms that prefer hot, volcanic planets (Irradiated & Venusian planets in-game), which -- similar to the Cryokons -- cuts down on conflicts with other races over living space.  They have a high growth rate, receive a natural bonus when defending against invasion, and are immune to both pollution & biological attacks.  However, they're crappy spies, cannot export their culture (which cuts down on trade/tourism dollars with other races), and suffer stiff penalties in Hyperspace, Information, and especially Biotech research.  Also, like the Cryos, the Volmar don't care much for Ideal/Habitable/Aquatic worlds -- they *can* colonize them, but are unlikely to do so capriciously, as they're too frickin' cold for comfort! 


As I said, we'll be playing co-op in this game...which is good, because we're probably going to need each other!  I did my best to fill out the ranks of the AI players with factions that are "evil", warlike, expansionist, and/or (in the case of the Teyes) just plain annoying.  In other words, you wouldn't want to root for the AI factions we're playing against.  ;) 




Okay, enough rambling!  Here we go.... 

[OJsDad]

For the purpose of writing for this AAR, how long is a turn, 1 day, week, month, year, other?

[Martok]

I usually go with 10 turns = 1 year.  No time scale is perfect, though, so I'd say just go with whatever you're comfortable with and/or used to.  :) 

[W8taminute]

Human Union
Emperor of Mankind W8taminute
Turn 4 Status Update


The Human kind finds itself alone in the upper left quadrant of the known galaxy.  Several of our ark ships have colonized decent planets with compliance being achieved in short order. 

Technological research is slow going at the moment.  Our scientists have recently graduated from top universities and will take some time establishing themselves.  Our priority now, however, is exploration.  We must determine the makeup of our galactic neighborhood before venturing out further.  Our ships are small and fragile and do not possess impressive firepower, but so far we seem to be alone in this galaxy. 

[Martok]

Year 0.1



First off, just so you can get a look at what my race (the Volmar) are like: 








My neck of the woods looks like it should be pretty quiet.  Starting in/near a corner like tends to be a double-edged sword -- it's easier to defend, but also limits my avenues for expansion.  Still, I'll take it for now! 

 




I start out with only minimal infrastructure: a single Basic (level 1) Lab and a Colonists Workshop (the equivalent of a level 1 factory). 

As my first order of business, I queue up a mine (only one allowed per system), the basic sensor installation, and Light Industry (level 2 factory).  This last one is particularly important, as upgrading to Light Industry will allow me to build more shipyards, labs, and basic defenses (such as light missile batteries). 





Ship-wise, I'm queuing up five Scouts for exploration.  The intrepid crews of these small vessels will seek out new worlds for the Volmar to colonize and exploit! 





Since the Volmar don't suffer any sort of happiness/popularity penalty for pollution, I intend to build & upgrade as many mines on my worlds as I can.  Towards that end, the first tech I'm going to research is Advanced Mining. 





Happily, there are no less than three star systems within range of my homeworld that are perfectly suited to colonization by my people.  The one to our galactic "west" appears to be particularly nice, as it also contains Natural Wonders; with the proper facilities, this planet could be a major tourist destination for all Volmar! 


1st colony location:   




2nd colony location: 




3rd colony location: 






Our first colony is founded.  Huzzah!  (Ironically enough, it's actually the Venusian planet to our "east" that is settled first, due to its closer proximity to the capital.) 


 



The other two colonies will be established in the next couple months, and scout ships are already scouring the nearby sectors for more worlds to claim.  We're on our way! 

[Shelldrake]

The Cryokon Federation
Prime Minister Shelldrake
Turn 5 status update



The peace-loving peoples of the Cryokon Federation continue to explore nearby star systems and establish colonies on suitable worlds. At this time the flag of the Cryokon Federation flies over 3 colony worlds located a short distance from the homeworld, Cryos. At Archangelsk our colonists discovered a derelict alien space station, confirming our suspicions that the Cryokon are not alone in the universe. Cryokon scientists are beginning to uncover the alien structure's secrets, which are expected to lead to significant breakthroughs in weapons research. It would be foolish indeed to assume that alien civilizations will be as peaceable as the Cryokon Federation so we must prepare for the worst!



Mines are being constructed on the remaining 2 colonies to provide raw materials for Cryokon factories and shipyards. Recent communications from our scouts have provided the coordinates of 2 ice worlds that are ripe for colonization. Even now colonization arks are being constructed to take advantage of this windfall!

Unfortunately, the evolutionary process that adapted the Cryokon for life at sub-zero temperatures also slowed our population growth. This trait will be a major barrier to Cryokon colonization efforts; however, Cryokon scientists have theorized that limited terraforming and weather control may stimulate reproduction. Time will be our judge.

[W8taminute]

Human Union
Emperor of Mankind W8taminute
Turn 5 Status Update

Emperor W8taminute stares at his datapad to read reports of the time period known as Turn 5.  No intelligent life has been encountered so far as the Human exploration vessels continue to probe the galaxy. 

Economic reports show that the home world is thriving, but just barely.  There have been debates in the council on whether to raise taxes or not.  As the discussions rage on, nothing was done to adjust tax settings this time.

Below is an overview of activity in our sector:

[OJsDad]

We are known as The Ancient Race of Machines.  Once, many millennium ago, we were a pure organic species.  Like all such species, we were weak and frail and susceptible to disease.  Over time, we developed technology to replace our fragile organic bodies with strong, resilient machines.

Since that time, we have been content to live our long lives our on our home planet, Origin.  While there is nothing special about the Origin system, it was home, and it was all we needed.  That all changed a couple of decades ago, when, first some, then many, and finally all, began to have dreams that told us it was time to grow beyond Origin.  We don't know why for sure, but we know that there are other races out there that are growing.  And while we do not have desire to take their planets, they do not have reciprocating feelings.  Just as we know that there are many such races, we also know that there are a few races that will be friendly to us, even be willing to stand with us to ward off the evil that is growing in our galaxy.
A couple of months ago, we started to move out from our home system.  The first colony that we have taken was only a month from Origin, to the galactic east.  Like Origin, there is nothing really special about Pergamum, except that they both have Oort Clouds.  Once colonized, we began moving more our or people to this system. 

We have also build a couple of more scout ships to join the one we already had.  They are moving out to the east, west and north.  Being that we are in the bottom right of the galactic map, we want to move first to the east, so that we can secure both our southern and eastern borders with the nothingness of space.  However at the same time, we feel drawn to the west and northwest.  We can feel the presence of other, friendly races, in those directions. 

We have also colonized Roma to our northwest, and will be moving more people there soon.  Our efforts to find a suitable colony to the east has not worked in our favor so far.  While there is one system there that we could colonize, we will wait to see what else our scouts find.  The system to our east has an erratic orbit, and the habitability of the is constantly changing.  If there is no better place to colonize in that direction, then we will commit the resources  there so that we can move further east.

[TheCommandTent]

Not to butt in on your AAR but this is a great read keep it up guys!

[OJsDad]

Not to butt in on your AAR but this is a great read keep it up guys!

As far as I'm concerned, your more than welcomed to jump in with questions or comments anytime you wish.

[OJsDad]

Two of our scouts have now arrived at two new systems.  Things are not looking good for our expansion prospects.  Neither of the new systems have planets that we can colonize.  The only systems that are left to us, that have been explored, or either non-colonizable, poor, or erratic orbits.

Our home system of Origin did upgrade our industries to Light.  We have also started construction on another General Research lab. 

Another group of colonists are now embarking for Roma, aboard five transports.  These should give a good boost to Roma's  economy. 



LB EDIT: I'm seeing if a different URL will work for posting images.

[OJsDad]

A scout reached the Red Giant system of Mirach.  We had not planned on anything of value being there, but were very surprised to discover a rich planet with a biodiversity.   While not the best planet for us, it is on the edge of our western boarders and will allow more exploration in that direction.  We will colonize this new system in four months.

Next month two more scouts will reach other systems, and we are very hopeful that we will find more planets to colonize.

[Martok]

Year 0.7



The lone rocky planet in the Alpha Scorpio system is on a long, eccentric orbit, and the climate would be miserable for any Volmar living there.  Moreover, we do not currently possess the technology necessary to settle such a world.  The planet does contain a goodly amount of rare minerals, which could be useful in the future, but it's not a priority at this time. 

Thus, it appears expansion to our west/northwest has hit a dead end...at least for the time being.  Unless the scout ship on en route to the Gamma Cygni star system finds a worthwhile planet when it reaches its destination next month, we will have little choice but to redouble our exploration & expansion efforts to the galactic north & east.  This doesn't come as a surprise, but it will make things a little more challenging for us! 

[Martok]

It appears we may have been a little too hasty/pessimistic in our assessment of the western sector's expansion prospects (not that we're complaining!): 





The lone volmarial planet in the Gamma Sygni system isn't *quite* perfect in terms of climate, but it would still be comfortable enough for any of our people who settle there.  Better yet, the planet's specific properties are such that any terraforming projects/facilities located here would perform better than average, which would further increase growth rate and quality of life.  After only a short debate, the Council of Elders authorized construction of another Ark ship for settling this new world. 

[W8taminute]

Human Union
Emperor of Mankind W8taminute
Turn 7 Status Update

No major developments this turn.  Senate debates over increasing taxes continues but still at a deadlock.  Factories continue to churn out goods, materials, and munitions.  In contrast Human research is abysmal.  Emperor W8taminute is clearly disgusted with the lack of artifice in his people.  He retreats to his private quarters located within the senate to work on his plan for improving science output.