The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

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Ophiuchus
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The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#1 Post by Ophiuchus »

Biology:
The Fulvers' appearance resembles that of large nervous ants. They possess quantum computing brains which effectively allows them to predict all possible near futures making them hard to surprise in combat.

Name:
The precognition ability is also unique to the Fulvers species on the Fulver homeworld. As such a "Fulver" is "One who can see" your possible reactions.

Personality:
Fulver prefer to concentrate on their strength and prefer to live from day to day. Fulver often favor the tools and decisions which allows for the highest number of future choices. Having a bad memory and no capability for long term future prediction they are bad at long term commitments like science and building up defensive structures. Feeling locked in by the limited number of choices they are restless and unsatisfied and constantly try to overcome their situation.

Reason for Leaving:
The endless possibilites that space promises helped the Fulvers to concentrate and finally develop space-faring technology. Finally they are out going to the frontier and beyond not caring much for what they leave behind.

Social Structure:
The focus on the near future prevents the Fulver from building long-lasting structures. Knowing each others possible choices and reacting to these leads to a society which could be best described as an informal anarchy.


Game related:
  • narrow tundra dwellers
  • Precognitive and change-oriented: GOOD_WEAPONS,_STOCKPILE,_ATTACKTROOPS,TELEPATHIC
  • Edit: Changed GOOD_ATTACKTROOPS to +2 maximum fuel (GREAT_FUEL)
  • bad at preserving knowledge or society: BAD_RESEARCH,_DEFENSE_TROOPS
  • Never satisfied: BAD_HAPPINESS (effect doesnt exist yet)
Idea was to create a non-stealthy species which maybe can leverage stockpile for risky attack. Initially i thought about bad_industry instead but after thinking up the fulver they became bad_research instead.

Maybe such a species would be using the stockpile to help expansion, building ships in front of supply or in enemy territory to get a timing edge. Or being able to take greater risks as its able to use a disconnected planet. Not sure if good_stockpile actually is enough for that (As comparison: laenfa has also good population from the start).

PR-2086
Last edited by Ophiuchus on Wed Jun 06, 2018 12:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Any code or patches in anything posted here is released under the CC and GPL licences in use for the FO project.

Look, ma... four combat bouts!

Ophiuchus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#2 Post by Ophiuchus »

Playtesting notes. Game with Fulver, but GREAT_STOCKPILE.

Had lucky start. A big good planet with a growth special and a medium good one, one derthrean colony.

With good attack troops taking over others seems easy/cheap with the medium hulls. Next turn (43) i will take over the first homeworld (another fulver).

Stockpile is at 13 while industry is at 32. This already helped in speeding up my attack (saving PP in the stockpile while waiting for the closer shipyard is getting built).
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Dilvish
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#3 Post by Dilvish »

I notice this adds another Good_Weapons species into the Terran/Desert/Tundra group that currently seems to hold all of our 'regular' superior firepower species (i.e. other than xeno species Missoria), which doesn't seem great.

Making new species seems to be a popular pastime, which is great in general, but I rather suspect we should come up with some sort of framework to help provide guidance on what sorts of species would get serious consideration for being added into master.

Normally we'd also look to MatGB to do a balance review for something like this, although he seems to be on a break from FO (but I don't see any post/message from him about that), I'll cross my fingers he gets active again soon.

I'll tag Voker on the PR to hopefully get some multiplayer viewpoint feedback also.
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Ophiuchus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#4 Post by Ophiuchus »

Dilvish wrote:I notice this adds another Good_Weapons species into the Terran/Desert/Tundra group that currently seems to hold all of our 'regular' superior firepower species (i.e. other than xeno species Missoria), which doesn't seem great.
The tundra dwelling is the least important detail about the Fulver. Note that I chose tundra exactly because of the hoohh were in that niche. I am really no fan of that "uniform distribution" approach. I still hate the Replicon for filling the radiated planets which before were reserved for exobots or the rare natives.
I rather suspect we should come up with some sort of framework to help provide guidance on what sorts of species would get serious consideration for being added into master.
There was the excel sheet. And as the imperial stockpile is designed to be useless for most species it makes sense to add species which can use it :(
I was also thinking of making the etty good_stockpile, but they are also stealthy like the Laenfa (or Sly).
Normally we'd also look to MatGB to do a balance review for something like this, although he seems to be on a break from FO (but I don't see any post/message from him about that), I'll cross my fingers he gets active again soon.
Any code or patches in anything posted here is released under the CC and GPL licences in use for the FO project.

Look, ma... four combat bouts!

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Dilvish
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#5 Post by Dilvish »

Ophiuchus wrote:The tundra dwelling is the least important detail about the Fulver.
Of course-- I wasn't suggesting that the whole idea had to be thrown out just because they were initially proposed to prefer that environment, but it seems like a point that should be discussed a bit.

Code: Select all

I am really no fan of that "uniform distribution" approach.
And restricting all the good+ weapons species to a narrow environment range could be a valid way to somewhat restrict/slow their distribution across an empire (though advanced growth tech would currently overcome that). Hmm, I have an idea related to that I'll toss up in its own thread.
I rather suspect we should come up with some sort of framework to help provide guidance on what sorts of species would get serious consideration for being added into master.
There was the excel sheet.
I'm not recalling that, could you provide a link?
And as the imperial stockpile is designed to be useless for most species
I think that "useless for most" is far too harsh-- I see it as "only modestly useful for most...."
it makes sense to add species which can use it :(
We do already have Laenfa and Sly for playable species, so I don't see much need to add more just for the sake of adding more, but nor are we yet at risk of a glut. It could also be a way to help give a minor boost to an otherwise weak species.
I was also thinking of making the etty good_stockpile, but they are also stealthy like the Laenfa (or Sly).
Flavor-wise it makes plenty of sense to couple stealth and stockpiling, I think it's the balance question that would matter more.
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Oberlus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#6 Post by Oberlus »

What about Swamp for Fulver's preferred enfironment?
There is only one playable species for Swamp, and it's average pilots. The other environmentally-close species with better than avg. pilots are Misiorla, toxic.
There is also just one playable species in Barren (Cray), but it's next to Tundra (Hhhoh), then Desert (Etty and Muursh), then Terran (Eaxaw).

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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#7 Post by AndrewW »

Oberlus wrote:What about Swamp for Fulver's preferred enfironment?
There is only one playable species for Swamp, and it's average pilots.
Gysache prefer swamp and are bad pilots.

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Oberlus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#8 Post by Oberlus »

AndrewW wrote:
Oberlus wrote:What about Swamp for Fulver's preferred enfironment?
There is only one playable species for Swamp, and it's average pilots.
Gysache prefer swamp and are bad pilots.
Oh, right, I looked at the wrong line of the table.
To say it all together: there is only one playable species for Swamp (Gysache), and are bad pilots.

Ophiuchus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#9 Post by Ophiuchus »

Dilvish wrote:
Ophiuchus wrote:
I was also thinking of making the etty good_stockpile, but they are also stealthy like the Laenfa (or Sly).
Flavor-wise it makes plenty of sense to couple stealth and stockpiling, I think it's the balance question that would matter more.
Of course balance matters most. But also playing style.

The Fulver are designed to explore stockpile use for vabanque attack; they should play fast, aggressive, risky and visible.

Maybe they should get a fuel bonus instead of the good attack troops.
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Ophiuchus
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Re: The Fulver, Precognitive Unsatisfied Ants.

#10 Post by Ophiuchus »

I changed the GOOD_OFFENSE_TROOPS to +2 fuel.

This in effect gives them from the start more reach than GREAT_SUPPLY, but makes their supply network more brittle in comparison, which they compensate with their stockpile. If manage to acquire a GREAT_SUPPLY species later, they have a great reach. If they dont intend to come back (deep exploration/colonization/attack), GREAT_FUEL is better than GREAT_SUPPLY.

So gamewise compared to existing playable species, they are most similar to george but with only average industry, much narrowed environment but good stockpile and weapons instead.
Or like etty, but non-stealthy, narrowed environment, only bad research but with stockpile, normal vision, and average industry.
Any code or patches in anything posted here is released under the CC and GPL licences in use for the FO project.

Look, ma... four combat bouts!

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