Extreme Difficulty Universe After Action Report

[Icemania]

All:

In this Extreme Difficulty Distant Worlds Universe After Action Report I'll provide strategy descriptions intended to help other players. Due to real life getting in the way this After Action Report will take a little while to complete so please comment or ask questions in between batches. Feel free to challenge my methodology as I would like to improve my Strategies as well!

The settings are:

• Normal Empire Age of Shadows
• Irregular, 1400 Stars, 10 x 10 Sectors
• Pre Warp Expansion, Extreme Difficulty, Difficulty Scales Near Victory
• Unstable Aggression
• Very Many Strong Pirates, Nearby Distance, No Respawn allowed
• Many Space Creatures
• Expensive Research
• Normal Colonies and Normal Independent Life
• 2 Sector Colonisation Range Limit
• Quameno Technocracy
• Excellent Homeworld, Starting, Pre-Warp, Normal Corruption, Centre
• 19 Empires, Excellent Homeworld, Pre-Warp
• Victory Threshold 80%, conditions increased to 50% for Territory, Population and Economy

[Icemania]

The following Weapon Research Order was set: Improved Assault Tactics, Armour Plating, Improved Ground Assault and then a Torpedo focus. The intent is to support a ground army for future invasions and then focus on one weapon type.

The following Energy Research Order was set: Energy Collector, Space Construction, Enhanced Construction. Energy Collectors are fast to research and provide fuel when stationary while getting to Size 300 is a priority early as it allows vastly stronger military ships, high range exploration ships and improved private economy ships.

The following HighTech Research Order was set: Enhanced Resource Exploration, Transport Systems, Medical Systems, Advanced Medicine, Biological Workshops (enabling Advanced Medicomplex). The goal here is to support Exploration by improving sensors, ensuring Troop Transports can be built for future invasions, then a focus on Medical research to optimise population growth as priority.

A custom Starting Ship and Base Designs file was loaded and other designs made obsolete. The Design files are important as I don't particularly enjoy micromanaging ship designs in every single game but the benefits of custom designs are massive.

A very small Energy Research Lab is built first. Only 4 Energy labs to get research going quickly and any scientists will be transferred. Next will upgrade to 12 Energy Labs and then upgrade again to 16 Energy, 4 High Tech and 4Weapons (or whatever is needed to ensure all research potential is needed).

Tax was increased until happiness was +2 to maximise cash flow.

Disbanded any existing troops as at this stage they are just a drain on very limited resources.

It's always useful to orbit a gas giant as a start can be made mining Caslon quickly i.e. since Pre-warp travel speeds are low. An early source of Steel is also very useful.

[Icemania]

Pirates show up and I immediately pay them off. There is no way to defend against them at this point. As soon as they leave my home system, I cancel the protection agreement, as it's very expensive to maintain at this stage of the game.

If you allow technology selling, an investment in Empire Contacts through Pirates can be high value early game. Unfortunately, these Pirates are not aware of any other empires.

[Icemania]

After building a custom small Medium Spaceport and 2 Super Speedy Explorers (16 Ion Thrusters for 53 Speed) exploration of my home system commences. Construction Ship building commences. Energy Collectors are now available and 33% through Space Construction to provide increased ship sizes.

[Icemania]

Space Construction (Size 230 ships) completes. A custom Size 230 Ship and Base Designs file is loaded and other designs are made obsolete (includes Energy Collectors). The existing Research Station and Spaceport is upgraded.

A Construction Ship is on the way to build a custom Gas Mining Station (3 Extractors and extra Cargo Bays and Docking Bays) as a priority. Extra fuel early is key to optimising expansion.

[Icemania]

Recovered the nearby derelict frigate and set to retire. The Gas Giant has a really good +29% Energy Research Bonus. I'll hold on building a Research Station for the moment.

[Icemania]

Investigated the Warp Field Precursor ruins. Warp Field Precursors, Hyperdrive, Fusion Ignition and Accelerated Construction added to Energy Research Build Order. Enhanced Construction at 35%.

Once my third Construction ship is complete I'll upgrade to a custom Large Spaceport with additional Construction Yard and Docking Bays to help with future expansion plans.

I only build Mining Stations very nearby as it's faster to wait for Warp Field and upgrade than build in the distant parts of my home system.

[Icemania]

Enhanced Construction (Size 300) completes. A custom Size 300 Ship Designs file is loaded ready for Warp Drive once available and other designs are made obsolete. Enhanced Resource Exploration almost completes which vastly increases sensor range of Exploration Ships.

Started to build two Size 300 Military Ships (to defend against the Giant Kaltors which arrive when Warp Field is researched) and six Size 300 Exploration Ships. The existing two Exploration Ships are set to retrofit.

[Icemania]

Large Spaceport complete. Various ships are waiting for Warp Drive, but built a bit too early at only 25% through Warp Field Precursor Research! Armour Plating and Improved Ground Assault are complete (partly due to the retired derelict Frigate that was recovered).

[towerbooks3192]

Nice AAR. We need a lot of them these days and hopefully people from CK2 and EUIV who writes AARs back in paradox would do the same when they get distant worlds.

I have a question. Would you mind sharing the pre-set designs you have loaded up? I always have trouble knowing when it is alright to build a ship in shadows start as I try to get the basic classic parts (gerax, standard fuel cell,shield, armour, engines, etc.) before I even dare building one. Hope you will continue with this and give some tips along the way

[&o]

[Icemania]

Thanks towerbooks. Yes I plan to continue and add as many useful notes as I can as we go.

Very happy to discuss ship and base designs (apologies I'm a little "precious" about sharing the full design files). At this point those designs are very basic. They have no shields, no armour, and everything else is Tier 1 technology. I place a higher priority on getting Exploration going much faster even if it means quite a few of those extremely weak ships are lost.

[Icemania]

Transport Systems is complete so loaded my Size 300 Designs for Passenger and Troop Ships ready for Warp Field to be installed when available.

The same Pirates turned up again so I paid them off and cancelled again when they left.

Otherwise it is quiet waiting for Warp Field which is at 65% complete.

[towerbooks3192]

ORIGINAL: Icemania

Thanks towerbooks. Yes I plan to continue and add as many useful notes as I can as we go.

Very happy to discuss ship and base designs (apologies I'm a little "precious" about sharing the full design files). At this point those designs are very basic. They have no shields, no armour, and everything else is Tier 1 technology. I place a higher priority on getting Exploration going much faster even if it means quite a few of those extremely weak ships are lost.

Ok I respect that you would not share your designs. I want to learn basic functional and optimal designs especially for early stage ships and I also don't have any experience with advance components other than the ships I find on graveyards.I hope to learn the basics and optimal designs from this AAR. I will be using this AAR to learn more about the game and I am more of a reading person than a video person so I prefer this over LPs

[Icemania]

Warp Field is now complete, all ships designs upgraded and orders to retrofit with Warp Drive are given. After those retrofits, exploration of the 10 nearest systems starts and Construction Ships are sent to build other Mining Stations around my home system.

There was a new Scientist event but as he was a Foreign Spy (which helps other empires steal research) he was immediately dismissed. Better Scientists will spawn in time.

My only fleet, with 2 ships, takes out the Giant Kaltors.

[Icemania]

Encountered some new Pirates and purchased an Empire Contact.

[Icemania]

With that Empire Contact I sold Armour Plating for 62k credits which to say the least is extremely useful at this stage of the game. Most experienced players don't play with Technology Selling for exactly this reason but I would prefer the pricing was reduced (at least on higher difficulty) in a patch.

[Icemania]

In a stroke of luck the initial wave of 10 Explorers finds two abandoned colony ships in the first system explored!

One colony ship will be retired. New colonies consume significant resources in a Shadows Age game (e.g. Pirate Protection) and take a long time to develop so a higher priority is placed on technology improvements.

However, the other is a Gizurean colony ship which allows Volcanic Planets to be colonised, which normally cannot be done until later in the game. I'll keep this in reserve to colonise a Super Luxury Planet as soon as possible.

Exploration is being done using "move to" and moving again once resources are known as this is much faster than "Explore" and massively faster than the Explorer AI. At this stage I ensure all resources in all systems are known to help plan future mining stations.

[Icemania]

Hyperdrive Technology is now available as a result of a technology boost from the retired colony ship. All Ship Designs upgraded and another 10 Exploration Ships are underway.

My Energy Research Station is upgraded to 12 Energy Labs, 12 HighTech Labs and 8 Weapons Labs to rebalance research distribution.

Fusion Ignition is the next Energy Research Target. This is a Quameno Special Technology that provides the efficient NovaCore Reactor but which also uses Hydrogen rather than Caslon. The use of two fuels assists with the minimisation of resource shortages when expanding quickly.

[Icemania]

As there is very little Steel in my home system this resource will be a top priority for Construction Ships but had to destroy some more Giant Kaltors first. This ship only just made it out alive!

The next 10 Exploration ships with Gerax hyperdrive starts exploring. Most of the first 10 are being retrofitted. Another batch of 10 Explorers starts construction.

[Icemania]

Encountered some new Pirates and purchased two more Empire Contacts and then sold those Empires technology for 180k in profit. Those funds were then used to crash current research (3x speed) in all three fields. And to help fund 30 Explorers with more to follow ...