Mixed-species colonization

[WCG]

I'm confused about how mixed-species empires work, specifically when it comes to colonization. Could someone please help me out here?

1. My empire is human. I found a colony ship of Gizureans - insectoids who can naturally colonize volcanic worlds. However, I have yet to find a volcanic world with a quality of greater than 25% (and most are much lower than that). Does the "quality" of a world depend on my starting species, then? If I colonize that world with Gizureans, will they act as though the quality were much higher than that? Or should I just forget about using that colony ship, since a very low-quality planet won't be a benefit to my empire?

2. Also, Gizureans aren't supposed to get along with other species - especially non-insectoid species. But does that apply if they're my colonists? I know that they'll be unhappy if I go to war with other Gizureans, but other than that, will I have problems (assuming that there's any reason for me to use this ship at all)?

3. I did colonize an independent colony of humans and Naxillians, mixed (mostly humans). When it grows a bit, and I build a colony ship there, will it be filled with humans, Naxillians, or some of both? (And will that matter at all, anyway?)

4. I have a similar situation on another colony, which I started from scratch (with human settlers, of course). It's in my territory (in my starting solar system, in fact), but there's a nearby Wekkarus empire, and I'm getting so many migrants from them that the colony now has far more Wekkarus than human settlers.

If I build a colony ship there, will it be filled with Wekkarus settlers, then, since they're the majority species on that planet? And if it is, will that let me colonize an independent planet with an existing Wekkarus population? Will they welcome my colony ship filled with Wekkarus, where they apparently won't if my colony ship is filled with humans? Or doesn't that make any difference?


Thanks. I've played this game off and on for several years, but there's still a lot I don't know about it.

[Bingeling]

1: Quality is not dependent on anything (apart form bombardment damage and some disasters). That you have only found poor ones means just that, you have only found poor ones. Continentals and marches are a bit different since they don't have very low quality, but they are quite a bit less common than deserts and volcanics too.

2: It does not matter at all if you have gizureans, the main race of the empire should count. You gain bonuses from different races (racials), you may discover that some races dislike "being at war with their own species". I do not think gizureans do, so not wanting them should be a pure case of role playing. They grow fast too, a nice thing when it comes to filling your colonies.

3: Good question. I guess it will be of the majority faction. But: If you got enough (100?300? million) of a species, they can colonize for you. That means that the humans can colonize continentals (even if you can not), and the naxx can colonize ice planets. I would guess that you could book a colony ship for an ice world using the naxx even if it is a (large enough) minimum population on the colony. As far as I know, the colony ship will have only "one species".

4: It should not really matter. As said above, it could "bite you" if you go to the war with the Wekkarus, though. Pay attention to colony happiness and adjust taxes if you do.

Dunno about that colony ship of Wekkarus. I prefer to just invade, anyways. Quicker, cheaper, and there are usually enough pirates to kill to make the reputation penalty a minor thing.

[Retreat1970]

1. As human why would you want Gizureans? They add nothing to a human empire (-35 ship maintenance, but only if at 20% empire pop). Even their troop strength is worse than human. I would save the ship though in case you find a Zentabia Fluid planet to colonize.

2. They will always hate being a part of your empire (negative happiness bonus).

3. Bingeling is correct. Whatever the majority race is will be in the colony ship.

4. Yes. Again whatever the highest population. I would check and see what the independent says (Hostile), but I'm pretty sure Wekkarus will not want to be a part of the Humans regardless of what race is on the colony ship.

[WCG]

Thanks, guys. That helps.

You disagree about this, though?
"They will always hate being a part of your empire (negative happiness bonus)."

I wanted Gizureans (and the Wekkarus) mostly for role-playing purposes, I guess. I've got four colonies and four different species, so far (including the Gizureans on the colony ship).*

But also, I wanted to use the colony ship. It takes a long time to build one, and I've got tons of potential colony locations already, just with continental planets. I can't space the Gizureans and refill the ship with humans, right? [:D]

Anyway, I didn't want the Gizureans in particular. That was just the colony ship I found. But I do like the idea of a multispecies empire. I suppose I'll save the colony ship, just in case I find a good volcanic planet sometime.

Thanks again!

*PS. That's mostly why I don't invade independent worlds, too. I'm a peaceful, tolerant kind of guy. [:)] Although,... I'm playing with 'few' pirates in this one, and that's making the game too easy, so far. I was hoping it would let other empires grow more quickly, but so far, it only seems to be helping me.

[Retreat1970]

The Gizureans will hate being a part of your empire as long as they are the majority pop on a planet. With migration you could potentially have a new majority with Humans. By all means if you want to use the colony ship do it. There are ways to bypass any negatives, and it might be fun.

[Bingeling]

I must admit that I have not played humans in this game since forever (or more). What usually happens is that some races may rebel at being under rule of some other race. Some races may take offense at your government too.

What happens if they take offense? You get a negative happiness modifier. Which can be seen in the colony screen. Which means that if you try to tax to for instance +11 happiness, you can tax them a bit less because they have a negative happiness modifier due to not really being fond of your empire.

What you could do (possibly with some micro management) is to wait using it until you find a cozy little volcanic for them, then colonize that. Then put "other guys" on "do not accept" on all your colonies, and they won't relocate there. Which you need to do anyways, if you start somewhat near the gizurean because they reproduce fast, and need to migrate somewhere. Where they will again reproduce fast.

[WCG]

I just discovered a volcanic planet with a 9% quality rating. Yes, 9%. However, it also gives an empire-wide happiness bonus of 10% to any empire that colonizes it.

10% happiness would nicely offset my leader's 10% happiness penalty. (He also has a 10% colony ship production penalty. However, compared to my previous two leaders, both of whom I fired just as quickly as I could, he doesn't seem that bad.)

On the other hand, I'm probably expanding too quickly already, since my expenses are increasing a lot faster than my income. I've already got four other species in my empire, in addition to the Gizureans still sleeping on their colony ship, and they've been no problem, so far. But the Gizureans would quickly fill up that 9% planet, I'm sure, and then spread elsewhere. (I can't prevent them from emigrating, without preventing the spread of the other aliens in my empire, right? And I don't want to do that.)

I've never actually settled a low-quality planet - certainly not a planet as low at 9% quality! Right now, I think I should skip it, despite the happiness bonus. But what do you guys think?

PS. This planet is not currently inside my empire's territory, but it's between two pieces of my territory. So it's possible that it would link my territory together, to help keep another empire from expanding there. However, I suspect that a 9% quality planet wouldn't have much of an influence circle, right? (I don't need it for that reason right now, anyway, but I might later on.)

[Bingeling]

Over expanding is nasty. But that 10% happiness is really nice, and apart from defense need it should not be much of a burden. Would a colony there bring other nice systems under your control?

The population controls are from my memory "our race family" and "others". So blocking insects will also block fishies. That is what I remember it as, at least, it is quick enough to verify if you got the game open.

[WCG]

FYI, I saved my game, then settled a 95% quality volcanic planet that was also in a good position strategically. (I was hoping that it would help block a couple of other species from flanking one of my most important colonies.) That's far and away the best quality volcanic planet I've found.

But you guys are right. The Gizureans hated being part of the human empire, plus they had a 30% growth rate. 30%!

Maybe the happiness hit would have been manageable, but my current leader has a 20% happiness penalty. I haven't fired him, because I didn't want to get an even worse leader. All of my previous leaders, except for the very first, have given my empire a happiness penalty, and three of them - whom I did fire - were also demoralizing. (One of my two colony governors also has a happiness penalty, and two of my three scientists are foreign spies,... but I'm digressing.)

Anyway, that just wasn't going to work for me. I'm hoping I can dismantle the ship without unloading the Gizureans. If not, they're going to be lost in an accident in space. [:)]

[Hattori Hanzo]

in my opinion it would be interesting to make a safe "save point" before to dismantle or destroy the ship.

a save point from where you can make a day some "experiments" with that Gizureans and learn more on their general behaviour when associated with other species.

[Retreat1970]

I'm hoping I can dismantle the ship without unloading the Gizureans

Yep. Retire at spaceport and get a free tech (or part of one). I still might have saved that ship just in case you found a zentabia fluid planet.

[NephilimNexus]

The trick is to have Gizuran colony ship settle one planet, preferably volcanic, and set it to "Assimilate" the Gizurans. Then tell all of your other planets to "Resettle" them. Eventually you will get a planet that is 100% Gizuran instead of having them spread all over the place. Their xenophobia penalty isn't as bad if they don't have share the same planets as you.