N00B feeling stoopid, trying to colonize asteroids

[snigolnikwef]

I was playing around with Free orion (v0.42), and came across the asteroid ships. Have thought the idea a hoot in hard science fiction and back in the days of Wing Commander. Problem, I can research the tech but seem to have to research how to colonize asteroids seperately, not easy with 3 computer AI's. So I'm gonna spend the next day, playing with no AI, to get familiar with the tech tree.

Sounds familiar to other posters. So maybe a thread to list out a tech quickie guide, cause while I will be self documenting as we speak, the thought of cruising the whole tech tree for what I am missing , ala wild goose chase, is zero enjoyment. So I float this thread with the aforementioned bolded idea.

Though it is possible the tech doesn't function.. so secondly anyone with a bit of insight as to why I can't colonize asteroids, and what I have to do to "Make it so"?

[BraveSirKevin]

I was playing around with Free orion (v0.42), and came across the asteroid ships. Have thought the idea a hoot in hard science fiction and back in the days of Wing Commander. Problem, I can research the tech but seem to have to research how to colonize asteroids seperately, not easy with 3 computer AI's. So I'm gonna spend the next day, playing with no AI, to get familiar with the tech tree.

Sounds familiar to other posters. So maybe a thread to list out a tech quickie guide, cause while I will be self documenting as we speak, the thought of cruising the whole tech tree for what I am missing , ala wild goose chase, is zero enjoyment. So I float this thread with the aforementioned bolded idea.

Though it is possible the tech doesn't function.. so secondly anyone with a bit of insight as to why I can't colonize asteroids, and what I have to do to "Make it so"?

None of the default races can colonise asteroids, but they all can place outposts on them once they have researched Environmental Encapsulation. Later in the game you can convert an asteroid belt outpost into a habitable Tiny Barren planet with the Artificial Planet tech and then colonise that.

If you want to have an actual colony on actual asteroids though, you need to research Exobots and build an Exobot Colony Origin. The exobot colony ship can colonise asteroids, though it's a Poor environment for them and can't be terraformed.

[pheonixstorm]

It does give you the option though even though it won't work. Late game i think exobot asteroid colonies can get up to pop 21 I believe.

[Dilvish]

Just to clarify, you don't need to actually put a colony on an asteroid to build asteroid ships. So long as you have some other shipyarded colony in the same system as the asteroids, then merely placing an outpost on the asteroids and building the asteroid processor there will allow the shipyarded colony to build asteroid ships. The outposting tech is Environmental Encapsulation and only costs like 6 RP or so. I just clarified the description of the Asteroid Processor building to state that it may be built at an outpost.