Completed Let's Multiplay Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri (PBEM) - Game 2

[Kalin]

MIRACLE IN NEW EDEN - THE LORD'S BELIEVERS LAUNCH SPACECRAFT!

For the Lord alone reveals deep and hidden things;
He knows what lies in the darkness.

Daniel 2:22 — New Revised Conclave Bible

It is an indisputable fact that all true knowledge originates with the Lord God, Inventor of Science and Bestower of Wisdom, Creator the Universe and Commander of the Celestial Bodies. Never before has this been made more evident, for as of today the Lord's chosen have been given that which the scheming False Prophet and repulsive University degenerates so desperately sought to keep for themselves - accurate understanding of Orbital Spaceflight - channeled into the cognitive elite of the congregation by means of the Holy Spirit and wholesome Creation Science. Through this magnificent blessing, the Lord God has allowed the faithful not only to design rockets and satellites, but also to launch the very first Christian Spacecraft - Elijah's Mantle - helping the Everseeing Eye of Providence to complete their Mandate from Heaven to map every single corner of our beloved Planet!

In imitation of the first *real* astronaut - Prophet Elijah - the Believers ascend to Heaven!

In light of these undeniable miracles, it ought to be apparent to all that the backwards and repressive Human Hive, whose own space program is laughable at best, is hopelessly lost and misguided, firmly set on the path to eternal hellfire for its heinous opposition to the Kingdom. It is also readily apparent that it is Satan, and not the hapless fool Pravin Lal or the "good" Chairman Yang, who truly runs the bizarre democratic-communist hierarchy. Just as he used false religions and heresies to persecute the faithful back on Earth, so does our adversary employ modern-day politics and godless ideologies to mislead and incite the masses against the Lord God's representatives on Planet.

Another sure tell sign that Satan is pulling the strings of the Hive and the Peacekeepers is the prevalence of absurd pseudoscience, notably employed as a weapon by the thuggish states to stifle rational thinking and enforce their demonic dogma of willful stupidity. Case in point: the infantile mass-delusion that an alien "Progenitor" species visited Planet in ages past. This ridiculous idea is employed to discredit the ample witness of the Angelic Altars which clearly prove that this our New Earth was prepared for humanity by the angelic host. Indeed, both the Elders of Zion and the Holy Flame Magazine categorically state: "The only progenitors on Planet were the loyal angels of the Lord God, preparing our New Earth for our arrival in fulfillment of prophecy."

The blatant charlatanism and make-believe approach of the False Prophet's "intellectual elite" is thus no different from the nonsensical blasphemy of Charles Darwin, the fool who dreamt up the laughable notion that mankind evolved from the ape-beasts. Finally, the fanciful drawings of the "aliens" are obviously demonic themselves, clearly resembling the blasphemous idols of Baphomet and other demons documented by the Evangelical Fire. The source of inspiration for the "talented" artists responsible hardly needs to be mentioned, for it is evident to all who possess true wisdom and understanding.

Meanwhile, Hive terraformers, not being able to replicate the wonders of New Eden, busy themselves with sabotaging planetary commerce by spreading the wretched Sea Fungus. Xenofungus, recently classified as a level 5 threat to spiritual well being, is detrimental to all but the Hivelings themselves, whose unnatural and godless affinity with the accursed infection is derived from their spiritistic Xenoempathy Dome. The False Prophet, and particularly its right horn represented by the Hive Command, should carefully note that the Elders of Zion are far from impressed by their very much conspicuous "fisherfolk" lurking in the fungal fields near New Eden, not to mention the obvious massing of troops, needlejets and Manifesto missiles in the wretched hell-hole of Laborer's Throng. Any attempts at probe team sabotage or hostile interference with the development of our Floating Fortress of God will be dealt with as per the righteous example set by Judge Shamgar, son of Anath, who slaughtered six hundred of the Philistines invading the sacred clay of Israel with but a single electro-shock truncheon (Judges 3:31, New Revised Conclave Bible).

On a positive note, freedom-loving citizens of U.N. Sea Habitat who have not yet succumbed completely to the hypnotic, satanically induced bleating of "brother" Lal have leaked the closely guarded Peacekeeping files on Superstring Theory, providing the Army of the Lord with new defensive technology. Allegations that Believing operatives had anything to do with this obviously spontaneous initiative to promote the free flow of information are of course completely fabricated. The Elders of Zion have condemned the stupendous attack upon our character and trustworthiness, stressing that now, as ever, the Lord's Believers are one hundred per cent committed to maintaining peace on Planet.

 

[Hellraiser]

Those seaformers are not spreading seafungus comrade, they're spreading sea communism*.



:russia::russia::russia::russia:

*Since xenofungus has already been classified as a proto-communist lifeform.

 

[Hellraiser]

Breaking News'

Hive Aerospace Protectors and the Hive Armada launch a pre-emptive strike against the Believing sea base "Floating Fortress of God". The Fortress, hardly deserving its name, has crumbled and sunk to the depths of the ocean following successful Dove of Peace bombing runs and missile salvoes from Hive vessels during operation "Eviction Notice".

Hive officials cite the following as the reasons why such drastic and radical action was taken:
- Escalating language of violence used by the Believers,
- Believing announcements regarding the development of Planet Busters,
- Hostile Believing attitude towards seafungus, while constructing sea bases in the natural wonder that is the fungus-rich Sea of Leviathan,
- Espionage targeted against allies,
- And, most importantly, the threat that a sea base within striking range of major Hive cities posed.

Terms of Peace for the Believers have been offered. The Chairman hopes that peace shall prevail or else Planet succumbs to the tragedy of war.

 

[Kalin]

 

[Kalin]

Brothers and sisters! Yesterday - a day which like so many others before it will live in infamy - our Congregation was suddenly, deliberately and most maliciously attacked by the air forces of the totalitarian Human Hive. The Lord's Believers, of course, were at peace with that faction, working tirelessly to spread the good news of the Kingdom to their mistreated followers, hoping only to turn them from their reckless path of collusion with the devil through strictly amicable means. This, however, did not matter to Chairman Yang and his mindless followers, who fell upon our meek, isolated brethren like frenzied Locusts of Chiron. Our military put up a valiant defence, but the enemy, like the demons tormenting the possessed man at Yam Kinneret, were truly Legion.

The cowardly sneak attack, entirely unprovoked and illegal, struck hard at our brilliant Floating Fortress of God, a completely non-belligerent sea base with strictly defensive garrisons and needlejets. Together with the over thirty-five thousand civilians of the base, these were all burnt, blasted and gassed to death in what can only be described as...

Even as the Hive air squadrons were bombing the obviously peaceful base with their inhumane chemical weapons, representatives of the Hive overseas trade office fraudulently carried on negotiations regarding our commerce, voicing neither threat nor hint of vendetta. The distance of our Floating Fortress from the wretched den of slavery and oppression known as Laborer's Throng also makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned, clearly as part of a long-running conspiracy to weaken, butcher and obliterate the Lord's chosen. The Planetary Governorship vote was but the first step in this nefarious scheme. This atrocity was the second, and more shall surely follow.

Realising that their game is through, the blasphemous Hive terrorists now deliberately seek to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for "peace". Do not be deceived! Saint John warned us well in advance that just as the beast - the counterfeit kingdom of the dragon Satan, currently being established by the False Prophet - would be given power to wage war against the Lord God's holy people, so would it spew false utterances to deceive the masses of Planet. As Revelation 16:13-14 states:

"I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of demons, working miracles, which go forth unto the rulers of Planet and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty."

We now stand at the precipice of Armageddon! The great battle shall soon evaporate all of Planet, and though the followers of the beast may work false miracles, the outcome is already ensured - the complete destruction of Satan's minions and the establishment of the theocratic Thousand-Year Kingdom! Let all those of pure heart throw off the wages of sin and join our CRUSADE against the Human Hive, for their salvation is as certain as the eternal fiery torments of all those foolish enough to side with "Chairman" Yang and his accursed faction! To arms - the Lord God wills it!

Spoiler

Hats off to Hellraiser, you pulled it off perfectly bro. I had just rushed an Aerospace Complex in my forward base, so it was a great time to strike. Had it been allowed to complete it would've boosted my defence against the needlejets quite considerably, particularly as I am the only player with snazzy silksteel troops.

Also, I really am not in a good position for war, having precious few units and being geographically cut off. I would really prefer to focus on yehzah and research (Cassidy in particular is racing ahead). Still, the Hive will only grow stronger, so better to duke it out now than when the commie horde is unstoppable. Currently bunkering up in fundie mode for the inevitable Hive missile salvos, trying to think of some kind of working strategy. Despite what the power graphs say, things do not look good over here.

Spoiler

Was going to post about the Obviously Worst Atrocity since Pearl Harbor™ sooner, but I've been too busy with work. Lumberghing levels off the chart!



^ This shit literally happened today....

 

[Hellraiser]

Worst atrocity since Pearl Harbor AND 9/11*!

*unless believing doctrine is that 9/11 was an inside job/God's punishment for homosexuality.

In other news....



Shadowlinks D474l34k5

Pl4n37'5 b357 fr33 1nf0rm4710n 3l173 c0mmun17y BB

Anon #85469245 09:51:08 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> Guyz, I haz ub3r l34k5 0f 73h w0r57 47r0c17y 51nc3 p34rl h4rb0rz!

Anon #85953668 09:52:17 A.M. 09/11/2263>>>

Anon #85469245 09:52:43 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> B-l0l3rz g3771ng 0wn3d!

Anon #85953668 09:53:25 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> Lol, retard, those commies got owned. The naval assault was obliterated. Commies GTFO!

Anon #58927420 09:54:38 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> B-lolerz gonna be loled by such shitty naval assaults, r00fles!

Anon #85469245 09:56:22 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> 360 645 b0mb1n6 n0 fly-by-w1r3, H1v3 Pl4n374ry G4m1n6 L346u3 1337!

Anon #84675541 09:57:38 A.M. 09/11/2263>>> Laughing gas attack. B-lolerz loling with the fishes, lulz.

Eviction Notice comments

That naval attack sucked so much, lack of Naval Yards and Bio-Enhancement centers in coastal bases is showing its ugly face at this point. Luckily, it now won't take long to build those there with the pop-booming that is going on. Kalin, of course, has the advantage on the seas due to superior morale and the bonus movement from the Maritime Control Center, but I have a few tricks up my sleeve.

As for the attack, even if the Aerospace Complex was finished, and assuming no further reinforcements, I had my new Manifesto Cruise Missiles on stand-by and within range. Those would soften up the defenders for the Doves of Peace and I would still conquer or destroy it. I was hoping to capture the base due to its strategic location, but the pop was too low. Here's the base's location BTW, courtesy of the Red Dawn Agro-Orbital Station, so you know just how too close for comfort it was:

More leaks to follow as the war progresses, unless the Kalin accepts my peace offer. But that would be just bloody boring.

 

[Kalin]

Shun Satan! Destroy this mad brute! Work doubleplus hard!

Join the coalition for Christ and his Thousand-Year Kingdom!

 

[Copper]

Will the weaker powers of Planet survive this terrible turn of events - or will they be able to turn it to their advantage?

 

[oscar]

Gaian Parliament in Chaos as Debate Rages

Deidre has today called for calm, de-escalation and consideration as our two former friends and allies eyes have been clouded by fear and hatred as Hive and Believer fleets and air forces clash. While Deidre and her high council have kept a tight lip towards the press and public, rumours abound of various overtures and deals being intensely discussed at the highest levels.

While no popular political consensus seems to have been reached, the general mood among both political elites and the broader public seems to be one of wariness and deep concern with a recent 60,000 strong 'March for Peace' taking place in Gaia's Landing last week with representatives from all major parties. While many recall the vast destruction and live's lost in Gaia's very own War of Liberation, recent technological developments have caused fear that this brewing storm could spell the very destruction of mankind or even Chiron itself.

 

[Hellraiser]

Buzz TV Nodecast Headlines
Sol 06/06/2264 19:00 HST

A special announcement by Chairman Yang

Brothers, sisters, citizens building the Hive. We stand now on the verge of transcending the weaknesses of human civilization. However there are enemies, reactionary forces standing in the way of human enlightenment. It is our duty, as the most enlightened society on Planet, to educate those who are simply lost and eradicate those who refuse to see reason. There is no other way, for there is but one path to enlightenment and transcendence.

For over a century a dark force has lurked over the horizon, spreading its shadowy tentacles of decadent capitalism, democracy, profiteering and reactionary thought. That force is of course the vestigial remnant of the Imperialist UN. For over a century its capitalist fat cats have oppressed and exploited the lower classes. The new Kulaks of the Peacekeepers have not just hoarded all the farmland, they have also hoarded all the energy that comes from Alpha Centauri Prime, keeping it for themselves while the proletariat was forces to freeze to death! But this has came to an end, recently the people have risen up against the fat cats, the revolution has begun! And it is with great pleasure that I announce that the Hive Guard of Peace and other branches of the military have came to the aid of the exploited peoples of the "Peacekeepers".

Operation Black Friday has begun on Friday, its goal is simple, to liberated the proletariat of landmass prime from the yoke of Peacekeeping Bourgeois terror!

Buzz TV Nodecast Headlines
Sol 19/07/2264 19:00 HST

The forces of Peace triumph over the false keepers of peace! With the swift landing of troops outside of UN Headquarters accompanied by dove of peace bombing runs, dragonfly strafing runs and manifesto missile strikes, the ground rover battalions purged the vile heart of capitalism of defenders. The liberated city has been quickly reinforced with a couple of Mobile Vanguard of Peace battalions, enough to hold of any counter-attack. However that may very well be not needed. With control over the Cyborg Factory and Citizens Defence Force secured in the first day of the operation, the Peacekeeping defensive effort fell into disarray.

General Communard said that intel suggests the entirety of the Peacekeeping counter-offensive potential was annihilated within the past few weeks. The Peacekeeping air force is no more, the Peacekeeping rover battalions have been caught surprised either by our very own Yunshi Raiders or the aerospace protector Dove of Peace and Dragonfly squadrons. While some bases have not yet fallen, it is expected that landmass prime will be under full Hive control by the end of the decade. What the Peacekeepers still have are scout battalions that belong in a museum's "first days after planetfall" exhibition.

Operation Black Friday

My Magnum Opus, still can't believe it worked. And I was (and still am) drunk while doing the critical turn, did everything as planned. Even better than expected.

I wonder how many of you expected this. Putting Lal into Governorship was an excellent smokescreen, and Kalin's antics gave me the perfect excuse to do that and to mass air units within range of UN HQ but without looking like it was directed against TBS. Still had to kill Kalin's base and any ships or else they could discover the two transport cruisers carrying my invasion force, and before he could use it against me obviously. That was the main risk, as with any naval invasion. Any of TBS' needlejets could have ended this before it began. Granted, I could still win a war without this, but it would be much more costly and not this kind of blitz.

I knew thanks to infiltration* that the Peacekeeping military sucks nearly as much as their mineral output. And TBS decided to beat me to the Cyborg Factory, which I very much disliked. Quite frankly if he did not get it I doubt I would go through with this thing. I would probably be focusing entirely on the Believers.

Of course TBS had the Citizens Defence Force, which made any war complicated. But he had no navy and UN HQ was located just one flat one movement tile from the sea. The location of his bases allowed for a cruiser to slip past and drop troops there, take out the CDF first allowing for rovers located elsewhere to wreck havoc. And there was a shitload of fungus between me and him while I got the xenoempathy dome. A blitz became a very attractive option.

Xenofungus next to roads allowed me to send reinforcements to UN HQ from a second transport landing a bit to the east.

UN HQ was defended by one Interceptor, one AAA squad and mostly rovers plus trash police. Those were all behind the perimeter defence provided by the Citizens Defence Force and an Aerospace Complex. I could brute force through it, but the best way was to just use a missile to kill the AAA squad. With the only defensive unit down there was nothing to stop a rover assault, which came from the sea. The rovers had one attack each but it was enough, leftovers were killed by a chopper coming from the south and some more needlejets from the east.

With those 2 secured I used the remaining air units (I have a lot of those) to support my rovers elsewhere and kill any peacekeeping needlejets. Luckily TBS had a total of 4 IIRC. Overall two other bases were conquered on the same turn and all peacekeeping rovers were destroyed. He has nothing to fight back with.

Also killed some formers and crawlers that were blocking my path.

*I got infiltration on the peacekeepers waaaay back. I actually got lucky, the base I infiltrated on Quake Island got murdered by mindworms 2 or 3 turns later, I basically did the same thing as when I stole mind-machine interface. Sneak a foil with probes past vision, drop the probe team, infiltrate. The empty foil was in TBS' vision after the drop, but he probably thought it was just a pod-popper. After worms killed that base he settled a new one in its location, which was the base from which I stole MM interface

 

[Grimgravy]

Sparta Times

The Editor can only tip his hat to Chairman Yang. Yang forms a trilateral alliance with the flower children and revisionist bible thumpers bring Sparta to her knees. Then cam Black Friday. Black Friday was a bold plan executed well. In a lightning action, two key projects were captured and the Peacekeepers gutted. It is nice seeing our former enemies killing each other instead of Spartans. Will the UN or Yang's former allies the Believers have a response as bold as Yang's gambit? Will Gaian whinging for peace fall on deaf ears? Will they side with one of their allies over the other? Will Sparta manage to keep from being dragged into the growing morass, or will opportunities will present themselves. Time will tell. Until then, this editor intends to enjoy others feeling the sting of defeat.

The views expressed above are the editor's own. They to not necessarily reflect those of the Sparta Times or the Spartan Leadership.

 

[disk failure]

If one was to believe these factual historical chronicles various factions have uncensored since planetfall, one could say that The Hive is itching for a gangbang. Has the Chairman finally become such a badass that he is now ready to pacify everybody?

 

[Hellraiser]

If one was to believe these factual historical chronicles various factions have uncensored since planetfall, one could say that The Hive is itching for a gangbang. Has the Chairman finally become such a badass that he is now ready to pacify everybody?

It is now or never. I would do one thing differently leading up to this though, in hindsight.

Especially considering the last favour the Peacekeepers did before being attacked by me, was warning me that Kalin just rushed one (which Kalin probably moved somewhere in range of me and may use on his next turn). I doubt he'll just be using it as a mantle piece. And I doubt anyone wants to get caught in the middle of a total war between three factions (where at best all but one if not all are doomed), when you can just watch the fireworks from the sidelines and prepare to build the post-ITZ future of Planet.



Oh and quite frankly I only backstabbed TBS, backstabbing Sparta was justified due to attacking a peaceful neighbour (also justified as in they're sitting on top of monsoon jungle, in first place in all the important rankings and declaring war on the Gaians, while not being prepared for any intervention). Hive-Believers war was brewing for a long time, if only due to obvious rival status.

The Brazilian Slaughter telling Kalin of my assets would do nothing, he has the Empath Guild after all so he knows that already. He's probably checking the infiltration windows religiously (as befit of the Believers)

 

[Kalin]

Crusade is on! Counter-attack begins! Note how even Believing missiles get a belief bonus - clearly, they really are guided by the Lord God!

(...unless they aren't really automated at all but actually knock-off kamikaze builds piloted by Miriam Youth martyrs)

Wretched Hive fungal pirates literally blown out of the water! Note also the evil formers constructing an airbase near Gaian territory! Much too close for comfort - Holy Smiting imminent!

(Were the demonized fungal SAM pirates meant to assault Believing aircraft taking over the field? Only the Lord God knows for sure)

Spoiler

And wow, the attack on the Peacekeepers was definitely a surprise! I can't help but feel it was a positive one though (well, positive for myself, anyway). I fully expected the full might of the Hive to hit hard against muh precious New Eden. Prior to the Hive invasion of the Peacekeepers, no one would've joined me in the fight, least of all the Peaceniks who just one turn ago stressed "neutrality" and demonstrably leaned more towards the Hive, even telling muh sekhruts about mah most sacred project! (On the plus side, this would indicate that Hellraiser still lacks infinitronaishun so that is a good thing). Now, of course, the wedge created between the Free Market bros is easily mended in true pragmatic 1984-fashion (much as the Peacekeepers would be loath to use the term).

Expect plenty of "New Light" to correct previous misconceptions about the identity of the Beast and False Prophet. Naturally, spiritually mature brethren will quickly adjust their understanding to reflect the most recent, updated version of the Truth™ provided by the Lord God's shepherds.

 

[Hellraiser]

Well fuck, that ace fell out of my sleeve. I need to invest in a better tailor. TBH did not expect you to ever scout near it or indeed fly missiles next to it. Oh and why not aim for the base? *

Alas poor fungal sea park rangers, your days of nurturing the great fungal reef of the Sea of Leviathan are over. It was also most staffed with a summer crew of Female Young Pioneers in the ages of 10 to 16, learning the art of seawomanship. This patriarchal attack on the young, innocent and defenceless is most cruel and inhumane*.

Oh and I fully expected either of you to band together the second you realized just how big the Hive grew. And the Cyborg Factory+CDF were just too good to sit in Peacekeeper hands when a war with the Believers would come.

*probably because you want to nuke it, it is closest to New Eden after all.
**unlike the gassing of thousands of Believers, Spartans and Peacekeepers, because they were dressed provocatively in warmongering and/or capitalist attire.



In other news (once oscar sends me that turn that kind of did not arrive in my mailbox)...

 

[disk failure]

It is now or never. I would do one thing differently leading up to this though, in hindsight.

Especially considering the last favour the Peacekeepers did before being attacked by me, was warning me that Kalin just rushed one (which Kalin probably moved somewhere in range of me and may use on his next turn). I doubt he'll just be using it as a mantle piece. And I doubt anyone wants to get caught in the middle of a total war between three factions (where at best all but one if not all are doomed), when you can just watch the fireworks from the sidelines and prepare to build the post-ITZ future of Planet.

I was wondering about that. Was this move created out of a sense of need and urgency, or was it because you felt you could take everybody on. But I guess I have my answer so I should stop talking now.


Also, this:

Spoiler

The part where Hellraiser used the election to drive a diplomatic wedge between me and Kalin was just masterful. Then he pretended to go on a anti-Planet Buster crusade. Otherwise, I would have told Kalin any assets I saw and other useful info. It would have been over before it began.

Especially considering the last favour the Peacekeepers did before being attacked by me, was warning me that Kalin just rushed one (which Kalin probably moved somewhere in range of me and may use on his next turn). I doubt he'll just be using it as a mantle piece. And I doubt anyone wants to get caught in the middle of a total war between three factions (where at best all but one if not all are doomed), when you can just watch the fireworks from the sidelines and prepare to build the post-ITZ future of Planet.

Well, according to my calculations, if the Hive takes over the main continent, then it might have enough production, energy, mass and scorched earth fodder to win a Planet Burster Throwing Contest with the Believers, even if it might leave it weakened enough for a alliance of minors to attack it. Emphasis on MIGHT. Even then, they can just exchange PB potshots until there's so much mind worms and rising sea levels that everyone calls the game on account of ITZ - too busy rushing Pressure Domes, Empath and Trance units to build more PBs.

This is pretty much THE most important war in this game. Spartan War is going to look like a cripple fight compared to this.

I just hope nobody nukes or conquers my colonies - Playing Brian Reynolds' Fallout: Alpha Centauri is going to be hilarious.

I fully expected the full might of the Hive to hit hard against muh precious New Eden. Prior to the Hive invasion of the Peacekeepers, no one would've joined me in the fight, least of all the Peaceniks who just one turn ago stressed "neutrality" and demonstrably leaned more towards the Hive, even telling muh sekhruts about mah most sacred project! (On the plus side, this would indicate that Hellraiser still lacks infinitronaishun so that is a good thing). Now, of course, the wedge created between the Free Market bros is easily mended in true pragmatic 1984-fashion (much as the Peacekeepers would be loath to use the term).

was a juicy piece of diplomacy.

I'd love to read an analysis of the game - once this whole thing is over, of course. Maybe something like a documentary with all the faction leaders (and/or highly positioned faction whistleblowers) providing their input as events unfolded - the fear, the ambition, the scheming, the host asking uncomfortable political questions revealing all the lies and treachery, calculations and miscalculations, plans that triumphed and plans that failed miserably... Little joys like that, all wrapped up in a preferably coherent package, with maps, different colors, GIFs, and maps.

While reading and deciphering propaganda is a blast in its own right, it's just the tip of the iceberg. Due to the nature of the game, things are omitted or left vague at best, especially to an innocent bystander like me (though things are becoming much more open recently), so having a proper overview of the situation in which to fit all these grand PR statements would only make things even more grander. Besides, I'm sure most of you players would like to know just how devious your opponets really were at a particular point in time. Wouldn't you?

Anyway, good luck to the Chairman and the Crusading Coalition, I hope you slaughter each other well and to my decadent enjoyment. Also, to let the newly appointed Spartan leadership know, watching Rambo lead that proud faction to ruin before self-ejecting caused irreparable damage to my personality, however, I still hold high hopes for that traumatized third-rate power. For the people of Sparta I can only say - your humiliation is my humiliation.

 

[Hellraiser]

I was wondering about that. Was this move created out of a sense of need and urgency, or was it because you felt you could take everybody on. But I guess I have my answer so I should stop talking now.

The reasons are simple, I had and have the military and industrial advantages. The Peacekeepers and Believers could outtech me if left alone due to free market+wealth (and governorship). Believers in particular are in a better position after the war on Morgan leaving them vertical growth potential while mine is spent. I needed to go horizontal to mitigate that and invading the Peacekeepers was the best option given my advantages and my weaknesses. And my forces would soon become largely obsolete and I had a lot of leftovers from the war with SPARTAAA.

In other news the Peacekeepers are using their energy to dig-in and slow down the Hive advance while their bases behind the frontline churn out missile choppers. Also they signed a pact with the Believers as expected. Some bases fell, some still hold out after this year on Landmass Prime.

ITZ clock is at one minute to midnight and counting. I'll go google for some mushroom cloud images, while we're waiting to see if the mythical nuclear mantle piece of sister Miriam is just a fission-powered giant red dildo or a WMD. Possibly a fission powered red dildo that will rape a Hive orifice of a city.

 

[Kalin]

Details

"And so the Lord God rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah sacred brimstone and fire out of heaven; and He overthrew those cities, and all the plain and all the inhabitants, and all that which grew and lived upon the ground."

- Genesis 19:23-25, New Revised Authorized Conclave Bible

Nooka!

ITZ indeed! My primary target was actually The Leader's Horde (it will soon complete a Hive Planet Buster prototype), but Hellraiser had massed air forces in Great Collective and would have been able to take out my missile if I would land it in Song of Planet (which, of course, could have been problematic in its own right given Gaian ecological sensibilities).

I also could not nuke Laborer's Throng (which would have provided more justice for the worst atrocity ever since Pearl Harbor, but not 9/11, which was indeed punishment for gay marriage) since he completely evacuated the base. Naturally, Great Collective and its air units then became the obvious target.

A basic Planet Buster would not actually have been able to reach Great Collective (my initial fears about Hive busters were unfounded in that regard, basic range is only 14 squares) but thanks to some grubby backroom deals with a certain faction some turn ago, I could upgrade my precious Flame of Purity with new snazzy Fusion propulsion, providing me with the two extra moves required to take out the base.

Updated mah missile

Now I need to contain possible launch sites and stop Planet Buster production! (will probably fail too)

Wish I could just dislodge New Eden and sail it some 10 squares east on the map instead.

Also, some action near the secret Hive airbase near Gaian territory:

Akshun!

Elite Cherubim mops up what remains of the Hive, who apparently bombed their own base in order to prevent it from falling into Believing hands.

Not sure what happened to the formers - if they were evacuated rather than disbanded, the ship should still be out there somewhere.

 

[Azira]

 

[Hellraiser]

Well fuck me sideways, that's a fusion powered red dildo! Nuking that base in particular was one scenario I did not expect and did not prepare for.

Lost two second generation Doves of Peace, a SAM Dragonfly plus the garrison. The loss of the two planes sucks the most, well besides losing arguably my best or second base coastal base.

Now the question is if this spawns worm doomstacks and fungal bloom ITZ. I have a large trauma when it comes to using Planet Busters on transcend and wanted to avoid it, ever since 1 (one) crappy believer fission one trigger this (those bases were 10+ pop, there were other bases here but they got murdered, just look how sparsely the eastern continent which was mine is populated):

80% of Planet's population wiped out by mindworms in 2 turns.

 

[Kalin]

BLESSINGS OF THE HOLY FLAME

Praise Heaven! As we stand before the Nexus of Rebirth, the Almighty Lord has delivered a spectacular witness of His Supreme Glory! Hundreds of thousands of faithless Hivelings have been incinerated by the Holy Flame, burnt to ashes for their repeated failure to heed the warnings of the Lord's Believers! Hive citizens of all ages and walks of life - mothers, fathers and children, the "talents" at the top of the hierarchy and the geneforged factory slaves at the bottom - all of the murderous savages have been completely obliterated in but a mere second! One would almost lament the fact that the destruction was so brief and merciful, but the comforting truth is that all these vile enemies of our loving Father assuredly descended into the depths of Gehinnom, and thus already languish in fiery torments - torments which shall continue for all eternity! A fitting end for all fools who oppose the Lord God and His Prophetess, Sister Miriam Godwinson.

Rather than to submit before the Lord God and admit their wrongdoings, the sinners in the Human Hive now desperately scramble to produce weapons of mass destruction with which to "avenge" their righteous punishment. Clearly, they are wilfully ignorant of the scriptural truth that the Master Builder's shield is upon us, and that New Eden may not be touched without retribution! Rest assured - any attack upon our congregation will be repaid six hundred times, not least through our Shamgar Obliterators and the ever-burning Flame of Purity.

In the west, the Hivelings continue their brutal campaign of conquest, persecuting our Peacekeeping allies - we have always been allied with the Peacekeepers - with all their demonic might. The GPA Protectors are fighting valiantly, yet the horde of Satan gains ground every day. Fortunately, reinforcements from the Army of the Lord and our superior Host of Heaven are en route to stop the forces of the Adversary. The fight will be hard, but our zealous brethren will surely triumph over the unbelievers, heralding a new era of peace and prosperity on Planet!

Now, some may ask - isn't Brother Lal a part of the False Prophet, and if so, why are we helping him? It is definitely true that some brethren have made the comparison in the past, no doubt out of a genuine pursuit of deeper understanding. Such eager searching for the Lord's truth was surely born out of our great expectations for the establishment of the Thousand-Year Kingdom, and as always, one could hardly fault brethren for their zeal and dedication. True, some brothers and sisters may have rushed ahead of the Lord God's representatives - it would not be the first time, nor, indeed, the last - but it is important to stress that when we stray, the Almighty constantly leads us back unto the right path, administering His divine truth progressively and in proper portions, neither too early nor too late, but always in due time, as foretold by the Apostle Matthew. And a good thing it is, for who among us could truly comprehend the entirety of the Lord God's supreme wisdom at once?

Our current understanding derived from the shining light of truth is that the Peacekeepers are indeed NOT part of the False Prophet, but in fact good candidates for repentance. It is surely no coincidence that the Lord made us aware of this fact now, when they are so badly beset by the foul enemy. Spiritually mature brothers and sisters will surely adopt the new truth, remembering always that to cling to outdated beliefs is not only contrary to the sound counsel of the Elders of Zion, but also a guaranteed path to apostasy and damnation. How grateful we are that we can trust these matters to our brethren in charge, gradually enjoying the enlightenment which is so carefully, mindfully and lovingly transmitted to us by our beloved Father, ever perfecting us through His brilliant, enlightening love! Amen!

 

[Hellraiser]

Hive Civil Defence Bulletin

Citizen, you are no doubt angry, angry that your friends, family and loved ones have been brutally murdered by the unjustified and barbaric thermonuclear strike on the Great Collective. But that is a lie, you have not lost those people. WE have lost those people, THE HUMAN HIVE has lost those people, and WE shall PERSEVERE. We are the Hive, we are all brothers, sisters, children and parents to our fellow citizens. We are unity, union, communion and humanity. We are the whole and ANY attack against one of us is an attack aimed at us all.

The Anti-Human forces in their animal-like aggression, paranoia and desperation, have unleashed their weapon of last resort. And what have they achieved? They killed innocents, they razed our great city. But they lost themselves to the dark savage side, one we inherited from beasts, and we as citizens of the Hive, have rejected. These are no longer human beings, these reactionaries, these fanatics. They are animals playing with tools not meant for their intellectually-limited kind. They are crazed beings incapable of seeking the wisdom of peace!

What have THEY achieved? They have shown their weakness, weakness against the MIGHT of PROGRESS. The IDEA of TRANSCENDENCE, of eschewing the limited human form and embracing the post-human age, has not been damaged. Socialism has not been wounded. Apart from this single nuclear strike, THE HIVE CONTINUES TO THRIVE. Indeed you, and many others, would have not noticed that we were under the threat of attack, if it was not for the memorials of those lost in the nuclear strike on the Great Collective.

THE ENEMY CANNOT REACH US, IT LASHES OUT BUT ITS CHAIN OF REGRESSIVE IDEOLOGY KEEPS IT CONTAINED TO THE CAGE THAT IS ITS LIMITED POTENTIAL. THEY CANNOT CHANGE THE TIDE OF PROGRESS. THEY ARE HELPLESS KNOWING ALL TOO WELL THAT THEY ARE DOOMED TO BECOME EXTINCT, AS THE HIVE WILL BRING HUMANITY INTO THE POST-HUMAN AGE. THEY UNLEASH NUCLEAR CRIES OF TERROR, KNOWING THAT THEIR END IS INEVITABLE AND THAT THE TRUTH OF PROGRESS SHALL PREVAIL!

This is your enemy, his strings are pulled by the Neo-Kulaks, Oligarchs, and Pseudo-Aristocracy running the UN from behind the scenes! He will ignore the cries of dead children abroad, if there is no energy to be made from it. He hides his anti-human behaviour behind the untruth of fighting for peace. What he actually does, is fight to restore the Old Order of Earth, an order which has with utter certainty resulted in the Extinction of Mankind on Earth!

The Believers, they are another reactionary force wanting to rebuild the flawed and dangerous societies of Earth. Their faith is nothing more but another curtain behind which the interests of the Fat Cats hide. They seek to enslave mankind, to have humans reject their TRUE POTENTIAL, to mimic the flawed people of the past rather than build THE NEW MAN. They are animals in their savagery, playing with tools meant for INTELLIGENT SOCIALIST BEINGS.

show spoilers

SMAC political propaganda cartoons as lame as the real thing! Including lame captions on everything to explain the joke/agenda.

The turn overall went well but apparently Kalin managed to gas The Leader's Horde reducing it to 4 pop, I am intrigued by how he did it as he shouldn't have anything in range (possibly did a suicide run with jets or choppers?). This is what I get for skimping out on upgrading the garrison there, should have dumped energy into that last turn. Despite that, the Revolution Class Ballistic Thermonuclear Deterrent will still finish in that base on my next turn. Which will finish a prototype and discount the mineral cost on my 2 other planet busters by 1/3, which should make them finish only turns before the 3 Believing Planet Busters. 41 minerals and 3 industry versus 30 minerals on free market is not a game Kalin can hope to win. But this is more than merely a contest of who can outproduce each other in nukes, as we have already seen.

This is before the gas attack obviously, as I have no received my turn yet. But after losing a 10+ size base to a PB, which as you can see did not put a dent in my power growth. Doubtful the gas attack did.

Still, the losses in the east are outweighed by the gains in the west. TBS is trying to build those fusion missile choppers, but I am prepared for that and in the grand scheme of things, those should not have an impact on the outcome of the Black Friday War. The Blue tide is liberating more and more bases.

Believing reinforcements are the key issue that may delay or stall annexation, but Kalin has just one cruiser transport while I have shorter supply lines and better industry. The question of course is what happens after securing Landmass Prime.

 

[oscar]

Lady Deidre herself has lent her support to the Gaian Neutrality Act, which passed by a large margin (beyond some fringe votes from several Hiveophile communist representatives and a token vote from Jacob McAndrews, considered the leading voice of the small but steadfast Gaian converts). In summary this act holds that no Believer or Hive soldiers or armaments are to be stationed on Gaian territory until the end of this conflict or general war munitions to be exported.

In the aftermath of a mysterious gassing of 'The Leader's Horde' (where casualties are rumoured to be in the millions) and accusations that lax Gaian officials (who have historically turned a blind eye to both Hive and Believer military movements over our territory) allowed such loathsome weaponry to be launched from the Gaian mainland, Gaia is keen to re-emphasise it's impartiality. Interestingly public opinion has see-sawed from disapproval at Hive aggression to sympathy for the war crimes inflicted upon their citizenry. As an old Earth saying went: an eye for an eye will leave us all blind.

 

[Nevill]

Just out of curiosity, how big are Hive and Believing former fleets?

Usually by that point they were nearing 200+ in the games I've played, since only this ungodly amount of workers could hope to stall the global warming and keep up with the rate the landmass was submerging under water.

Theoretically, if Hive threw their nukes indiscriminately just to trigger a warming and then watch the world sink, they should have an advantage just because of the number of superformers they can churn out (and their superior support capabilities). Drown the Believing boreholes and suddenly their industrial capabilities are not so hot anymore.

Can anyone show the Secret Project sceen (who got which project) and the rest of the information screens since everyone have everyone else infiltrated anyway?

 

[Hellraiser]

Just out of curiosity, how big are Hive and Believing former fleets? Can anyone show the Secret Project screen (who got which project) and the rest of the information screens since everyone have everyone else infiltrated anyway?

Former fleets are hardly anything close to be prepared for Global Warming. Luckily nothing like that is happening yet, with only a single mindworm sighting so far. Which may change, fast.

Old secret project screen for reference:

Three changes from this screen:
1) The Peacekeepers lost both their projects to the Hive.
2) The University is building the Supercollider.
3) The Hive finished the Xenoempathy dome.

Scores so far:

Believers and Peacekeepers are engaged in an economic 69 due to Free Market plus Wealth making their commerce ridiculous.