pndrev pndrev

Year Zero Club

▼

Year Zero Club

...when simply winning is not enough!

from GalCiv2 Forums

First off, I couldn't have done this without the inspiration of the Metaverse League and Wyndstar in particular. Kudos to the master!

Now to the matter at hand.

I finally did it. A year zero win! Granted, it was only against 1 AI and on challenging (my current level) but I'm certain that 'tough' wouldn't have been much harder. On the other hand, it was my first attempt at an 'all-labs' and 'lease instead of buy' approach, so I consider myself proud that I could do it at all.

Here is the link to the character, as a proof: http://metaverse.galciv2.com/index.aspx?g=player&id=14517

For all of you, who like me thought that year zero wins are nigh impossible: Try it! Read the posts about it! It is difficult, requires constant micromanagement, but I found it incredibly rewarding to see that victory screen after 25 - 30 turns. Not the way I'd like to play constantly, but as a change of pace, it's a incredible challenge.

And of course, once you've accomplished your first 'Year Zero', post here and rejoice!


As an edit, I now include the current top score.


Attention new players!
Do not be frightened by these scores! Playing a ZYW is actually really easy, and getting a score close to 30000 points takes just a few tries. These games are usually finished in less than 20 minutes, so have at it. Try the tiny ZYWs first, I find them easier and you might get the unique chance to beat players like neilo or Wyndstar.


Current ZYW record holders:

'expert' ZYW - Gigantic


1) 198450 points - MottiKhan

2) 119000 points - Kzinti Patriarch

3) 109500 points - neilo


'classic' ZYW - Tiny

1) 56700points - MottiKhan

2) 40600 points - Kzinti Patriarch / Magnumaniac

3) 38850 points - Wyndstar

 

1,556,012 views 924 replies
Reply #101 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I will update to 1.80g as soon as possible, now that I know it exists - just not whilst I have ongoing games. Been there before and know not to change versions in the middle of a game intended for MV submission.

Never use fleets much, anyway, and 1.80e has been pretty stable for me so far apart from the ever-present OOM following multiple invasions. I guess they'll never fix that one and it will always be a case of save / reload every 25-30 planets invaded.
+2 Loading…
Reply #102 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The single ship fleet bug is present in all iterations of DL and DA. Probably in TA as well, since it was never taken seriously by the Devs. Its use had been very limited until DA 1.80e.


I stand, or sit, corrected then  :) and the sarcasm earlier was obviously inappropriate, and not as obvious as I had hoped!

I agree therefore that there is a potential exploit in v1.80e that could be used to provide some benefit to the score in a ZYW (if you got enough 25% tech bonus anomalies to get a few free techs on turn 1, that would be the biggest advantage).
Fences - Organize your desktop icons today!
Reply #103 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'll keep trying for a better score, although it will be very difficult to compete with Wyndstar and Magnumaniac. It was fun to be the champ for about ummm....14 hours. ;)

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #104 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I've been making some progress, but only at the lower end of my score range. Last 7/10 games above 30k, but no higher scores on the upper end.

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #105 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Obviously I'm not going to give away all the secrets of success, but may be able to give you a few pointers...

Home star system - work out which one is best suited to the particular demands of this type of game. I tried many games with the most obvious candidates, Thalis & Orca, before settling on using another one which has powered the higher scores.

Most games I do not need to build / rush buy any ships at all!

If you, or the minor races you have met, have any money left at the end of the game, you've either been very lucky on anomalies or you've not pushed the research output hard enough.
Reply #106 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Thanks for the hints Magnumaniac. :) Yep, I always suck all the minors dry of cash. For homestar I've been using either Oxor or Iconis. Oxor because of the class 8 secondary, and Iconis because of the higher PQ for more tiles & possible bonus tiles, and the morale bonus. When I use Iconis I can upgrade both ships to Spore ships and have them at the enemy homeworld when I research Spore, although sometimes range can be a problem. In that case I either research life support or build a starbase. Also, sometimes they do manage to colonize 1 more world so I need a third spore ship. I'll do some more tinkering...

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #107 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Iconis.... hm. So far I've only used Oxor because of the secondary.
Reply #108 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
the high PQ morale bonus is stronger than most people think, because it is a flat percentage. It can really save you, and allow for higher taxes. In most cases, a secondary is only going to drag you down because you can't get the population high enough to even pay off the maintenance costs.

Another idea, especially if you aren't going for the MCC, is to research Xeno Ethics but stick with the Good Alignment to drop those maintenance costs. Every little bit helps.
Reply #109 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Iconis.... hm. So far I've only used Oxor because of the secondary.


Oxor was of course what I meant when I inexplicably typed Orca. Doh!

But yes, Iconis is the location of choice now, and I do colonise the little PQ3 on turn 1 if possible (with 1 colonist only) to get the extra early research boost. Forget about it after turn 3.

I have a couple of different spore ship designs saved - one with speed 4 & no range boost, the other speed 3 and a couple of life supports that can reach anywhere in a tiny galaxy. Both have the same tech requirements, so are always available at the same time.

Researching Xeno Ethics does not seem to be productive in my experience. I find Star Democracy & Star Federation much more beneficial to the economy, and usually have at least the former by 1st March. A political capital on the homeworld removes any concerns about morale and 80%+ taxes (I don't really care that the 20 people on world 2 are only 1% happy) :D 

KP - care to share your research order beyond turn 2 (I assume everyone is getting to the Tech Capital in the first 2 turns).
Reply #110 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
very interesting Mag...I would never have thought of using the Pol. Capital, but yeah, since you're really only using one world (or only one that actually matters) that makes a lot of sense. Though, if I did have the money, I'd probably still grab Ethics, even if its for the Good alignments free maintenance.
Reply #111 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Here's what I posted in my Kzinti Empire thread a few minutes ago, for one of my members:

turn 1 - lease buy lab on a bonus tile, research Xeno Research
turn 2 - lease buy 2nd lab, research Advanded Computing & 1st Minitiarization tech
turn 3 - lease buy Tech Capital, research Impulse Drive
turn 4 - upgrade lab, research Space Militarization
turn 5 - upgrade 2nd lab, research Spore
turn 6 - start buying economic structures, finish Spore
turn 7 until end of game - more economic structures, buy first spore ship, and start whacking the enemy, research diplomatic techs and sell tech to minor civs to stay out of the red economically, get Interstellar Republic, Star Democracy, Xeno Entertainment, etc, to up morale, taxes, and therefore economy score


Yeah I stopped getting Xeno Ethics after realizing it wasnt doing anything for me. I always build the Econ capital, and almost always the Political capital, on my homeworld.

No more hints please...I want to figure the rest out on my own. :)

I did get a score yesterday equal to my personal record, but not any higher yet...

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #112 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
No more hints please...I want to figure the rest out on my own.


Of course - that's the fun part! I will just say that looks very similar to what I was doing when scoring 33-35K, and it's changed a bit since.

@Silverbeacher - if I've timed things right, and my maths is good enough, I don't need the free maintenance, and when you are talking about a weekly spend of 700-800bc on leases and research output, the maintenance costs are negligible.

I now only research tech that is a) required to achieve the winning conditions in time (e.g. Spore), or b) has a direct impact (either by bonuses given, or enabling buildings) on one of the scoring conditions. As the economic score is purely based on income, reducing expenses does not improve it. Therefore Trade (eco cap) or Banking (+5% economy) are more attractive research options from a scoring perspective.

Lets be honest - this is all done to achieve a win with maximum possible score on 8th April. The empire it leaves behind is not sustainable in any way, shape or form, often for even one more turn. It would make Zimbabwe's economy look good in comparison.

Reply #113 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Ahh, Zimbabwe...

Always screwing me out of 3 extras armies per turn when I dont own it. Stupid island.
Reply #114 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
LOL, you mean Madagascar? And besides, I always hate those damn Brazilians or Europeans thinking they can march in and take my continent away any time they want.
Reply #115 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Very interesting tips there Mag. I have not yet built the Political Cap in any of my ZYW's. So will try that. I have been using Oxor for the extra tiles but i had been suspecting lately that, with alot of talk about morale and such at the ToE site, that iconis might be the better choice.

I do build the tech cap as soon as i get it, turn 2 normally and the econ cap once it is available too.

Back to the drawing board....
Reply #116 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I just scored 35,000 with a ZYW. Havent submitted it yet, because the game had a great setup and I'm going to replay to try to get more. :D

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...

Reply #117 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I always hate those damn Brazilians or Europeans thinking they can march in and take my continent away any time they want.


Hey, us Europeans were always very good at taking them away, just not very good at keeping them - you live on one of those continents   :HOT: 

Reply #118 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
My latest effort:

Photobucket

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #119 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Was this done with a better econ KP?
Reply #120 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I've been keeping detailed stats on my games, recording the scores for the four categories, but I dont have it here at work. Military is always 0, I think econ and social are usually between 300-500 each, and tech anywhere from high 600s to just below 1000.

I have a new personal ZYW high score of 35,700. :D

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #121 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
if you get a chance, try building at least one attack vessel (so not a cargo hull/specialized ship); i seem to recall being able to get some kind of military score before; I musta had an attack ship of some kind.
Reply #122 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
if you get a chance, try building at least one attack vessel (so not a cargo hull/specialized ship); i seem to recall being able to get some kind of military score before; I musta had an attack ship of some kind.


Yes, your opponents scout ships should be upgradeable to a 1 attack tiny hull. I don't think it makes any real difference that late on, but it certainly doesn't make the score go down.

Alternatively, if you are flush with cash from anomalies you can rush-buy a couple of smalls / tiny's as soon as you research weapon techs.

Reply #124 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Congrats Ragnar! I was just looking at your games to see if you had done one, and noticed you had. Great job!  :CONGRAT: 

Kzinti empire2.JPG Sentient species taste better...
Reply #125 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Hm. I tried several more today, but I can't seem to get the time down like before. I'm ending sometime in July instead of April. On the bright side, I get a decent military running, so the score didn't drop as much as I feared.