Nembie question on cost over runs

[ool]

Just started playing and did really well on the normal difficulty setting. Now on the hard setting I am constantly running out of money.
Obviously I am over doing the building of various items but is there a thread that covers how to budget properly to avoid running out of money? Have searched but not found anything that covers financial planning for a game.
Thanks in advance for any responses.

[Bingeling]

A likely problem can be over expanding in the early game. If you need to defend lots of colonies that provide no income, it gets expensive fast.

A screenshot of your economy and ships and bases screens (and a colony count) would help in giving advice.

[ool]

Yes I go after the independent colonies rather hard. Can you, or anyone else, suggest a prudent rate of expansion to avoid the perils of economic collapse? How much defense at a colony is too much? Planetary defense installations are they really worth while when the enemy arrives will 500K plus troops at a shot?

[Bingeling]

I would go hard after a high quality independent that is somewhat close. High is 90%+ or maybe a bit lower.

Apart from that I would check what kind of finances I have. A newly conquered independent is likely to be a pirate hotspot, and it will need a defense force. Can I afford that?

The above do of course depend on what kind of pirate settings you run, and if you bribe them or not. And later in the game I have probably destroyed any nearby pirates, so this is not so important.

For defense, pay attention to which colonies are really valuable. You see that in the colony screen by the revenue column. Defend those. It helps to know that the AI usually attacks one of the closest targets, so the colony of no particular high value in the middle of your area is not likely to be attacked unless the war has been going wrong for a long time.

To defend against a proper AI attack, I would (with my fleet micro management in play) have:

- Some troops on the ground. Maybe 8-10 units to defeat a single troop transport that slips through.
- Preferably a large spaceport, but you can't have those everywhere. Substitute with a defensive base on top of the colony if you don't want the spaceport.
- Several defensive bases. Maybe an extra or two if there is no large spaceport.
- A fleet of considerable power on top of the colony.

When the attack arrives, I manually target 2-3 fleet members on troop transports spotted.

That is about what it takes to stop a proper attack. Only the most valuable colonies can be protected that way without going bankrupt. And which colony really needs a powerful fleet in defense depends on which enemy you fight (and where they attack from). By having some sort of information of attacks (deep cover spy, long range scanners) it is possible to be "there" in time with a fleet covering a sector or so. And for all but the richest colonies a defensive base and the defensive fleet should manage.

For the rest maybe a troop or two in defense, and a sector defense fleet of not too much power. Mainly to defend against weak pirates and maybe enemy strike fleets. The "somewhat rich" deserves maybe a defensive base if they got no spaceport.

You are not likely to have more than a few really valuable colonies that is not in "safe area", and those will easily be able to support their defense force and then some. The rich colonies fund your empire, after all. I like to have a fleet of power in each "region" anyways, and where to park it when idle, apart from on top of the most valuable colony?

[ool]

Thanks for your reply. I have been way overdoing the ground pounders on my planets.

[Cauldyth]

Yeah, ground troop maintenance adds up quickly.

[ool]

Don't I know it! You can build up all the defenses above a planet you want. However they will fall to a big enough force. So somebody has to defend your turf. Various troops, interceptors, fortified bunkers and a planetary shield cost a lot but they do give you a decent chance to repel invaders. At least that is my operational belief. I have yet to get to the really high end tech in this game to see how that stands up to the top of the line invaders. Time will tell. But hey that's the addictive quality of this game that I have found in my short time playing it.

[Cauldyth]

As with Bingeling, if possible, I try to set up deep space monitoring stations along the obvious attack vectors from my nastier neighbours, preferably as close to their turf as possible to get as much warning as possible. If I'm lucky, that gives me the time I need to move a defensive fleet into place, as well as unload my troop transports onto the planet.

Of course that's a one-shot defense, since it usually takes too long to pick the troops up again to respond to the enemy switching to another target colony. But that's what warp interdictors are for... the enemy won't get a chance to pick another colony...

Nothing warms my heart like blowing up transports and imagining all those deadly enemy troops floating harmlessly away into space...

[ool]

You bring a smile to my face with that imagery. You must be part Klingon![:D][:D][:D]