Glad to help out. Planets is a great game, especially once you get past the early learning curve.
I notice that you're in a game as the Colonies. They're an excellent choice when starting out. I hope you don't mind if I offer a bit of advice that might help you have a strong game.
Build most of your Virgos with only X-Ray beams and Warp 5 engines until the ship limit is hit. The fighters onboard will provide all the offensive power and all the minesweeping you'll need (except against Crystals). They'll cost about 1/3 the amount than if you build them with Warp 9 engines. It's far better to have 3 times as many of them, even if they're slower, because they can be towed by Warp 9 Cobols or Geminis. After the ship limit you can switch to building Warp 9 versions.
Build a lot of Warp 9 Cobols. I'd recommend X-Ray beams again because they're cheap and are perfect for capturing enemy freighters and small ships. And mainly equip them with Mark 4 torp tubes. Mark 4s are inexpensive, are efficient with respect to firepower versus cost, and can be used for laying minefields in a pinch. After the ship limit maybe switch to Mark 7 tubes for more serious minelaying. Try not to use them in fights where they might be captured by an enemy though. They're highly prized especially early when they can be cloned.
Instead of building Warp 9 Large Deep Space Freighters like most races will be doing, consider building Super Transport Freighters with Warp 1 or Warp 5 engines and towing them everywhere with a Cobol. You'll be able to move more than twice the cargo and will have a lot of fuel available as well.
Lastly, Humanoid planets are ideal for building Warp 5 Virgos, Super Transports and Merlins, while Ghipsoidal planets are ideal for building Warp 9 Cobols and Geminis. If you come across either of them, particularly before the ship limit, try to get a base on them asap and start building ships. Much of Planets is how fast you can get ships out before the ship limit is reached.
Well that's a lot to read I realize, but hopefully that'll help you have a solid start in your Colonial game and make it a good deal of fun. |
Show Media Item - Frustrated noob here! In a practise (learning) game...
