The Complete Interview - SpaceSquad

Here is the complete interview (as seen in the Planets Newsletter), this month we talked to SpaceSquad - Enjoy!

PN: Tell us a little about yourself.

S: IT-Project Manager,35, married, 2 sons.

PN: When did you first start playing?

S: I started  94 or 95 with some friends in school. Can´t remember the exact year, but we played on floppy disks. The host gave us the trn file in the morning and we returned it by bicycle in the afternoon at a fixed time. The next turn was hosted and we rushed home to play it and returned it in school next morning. That was our version of a fast start. I still have my folder full of Donovans Race Guide print outs.

PN: What's your favorite race and why?

S: I prefer the torp races over the fighter races in general  or do I need to say Crystals now? I get my motivation by trying something new, find another approach, and as I usually play aggressive and at high risk I choose the Crystallines when I started at .NU. Every guide at Donovans still tells you that Crystalline have to play patient, you are a spider wait in your web and get everything that falls of the table.  That felt so wrong to me so I enjoyed surprising others with a unconventional aggressive Crystall gameplay. And of course it´s a lot of fun to move the captured fleet right back where it came from.

PN: What do you build on first three turns with them (or your general opening strategy)?

S: Mark 7 Emerald in turn 1! LDSF and then a Ruby. The more warships you build the more LDSF you can capture from your neighbor. A torp race should always start with a mark 7  ship at first turn.

No matter if it is a Nebula, LCC, Resolute or Coldpain it will help you expand and will never get useless. It´s not too expensive, it will allow you to capture mc on your newborn planet.

PN: How many games do you play at the same time?

S: When I started with .NU I had 4-5 games at the same time. I guess I was a bit too enthusiastic. Now 1 or 2 games will do for me as I just don´t have the time for more. Currently I am having a break to have more time for the new baby, but before winter I will start a Die Hard game hopefully.

PN: What types of games do you like playing most?

S: Classic games are my games of choice, Die Hard format if possible. From time to time I need a giant melee as I like the instant action. 

PN: What's your most memorable game, and what made it so interesting? (link or id number)

S: Scorpius (http://planets.nu/#/sector/23864 )no doubt. I put a lot of tears, sweat  and blood in it. Map analysis, enemy ship calculation was really intense and diplomacy was a horror. Before the game started I played a Team game with Halion and Thin Lizzy. Two friends that now become tough competitors. I knew Thin Lizzy since I was 6, a lot of our planets skills evolved together in endless discussions. The more you talk about planets the better you get. And now we could not talk at all about the decisions we had to made. When we met at a party we annoyed all our friend with our planets stories. We could not share details, so we said things like:” Hehe, soon something will happen to your T-Rex or Diamond out there.”  It was a some kind of offline planets propaganda for 1,5 years. After I won the game, I teased him every time  I called by starting the call with : Hey Lizard, here is your Emperor speaking…..” I guess he still hates me for that.  What I love about planets is that you do not just play a game, you spent hours and hours preparing, thinking and reviewing your turn. You do not even need a PC to enjoy planets, you can spent a whole weekend talking about a 20 year old game. The PlantsCon is a unique experience and I can only urge people to join.

PN: Name a memorable friend and/or a memorable foe, and what made them stand out.

PN: Give an example of excellent tactics you've used or seen (w/ details so readers can view it, if possible).

S: ....

PN: What do you think is the most important skill for a Planets player to succeed?

S: Situation awareness. You need to know when to hit and when to run. When to start a diplomatic approach and when to better ignore the message and continue with your plan.

PN: Describe the process you use to make a turn.

S: Check combats, check map for Alien ships, read messages. Manage the planets, move the ships and the then build ships on the Starbases. I still miss the sort function by shipname as it was in Winplan. I used to name the ships in Squads and each Squad had a special task or front to guard.  

What is your favorite thing about Panets Nu?

S: It´s THE modern and comfortable platform of a great game. It´s a living community, I would even say a family. If you see the time some of us spent with planets, it´s more than a hobby, it´s love, and the .NU team made it possible. A big thank you to Tim, Joshua, the .NU team, and all active players.

Thank you to SpaceSquad!