Atmospheric Dust Level

[ExChairman (OP)]

I recently invaded a planet with a combined ground combat force of 4500, my 16 divisions needed some fire support and my navy responded with all its mighty laser cannons, pressure around .7 so they did kill a lot of enemy formations during the half hour bombardment. My liberation force now conquered them easy. BUT now I have a "small" problem...
The Atmospheric Dust Level is up to 8747... and it killing the population... strange...
How loooong will it take for the dust to settle? Comparing to studies on Earth on nuclear wars it might take years if not decades. Is there a way to speed it up?

[TMaekler]

If I recall correctly, within 360 days 100 points of that score is reduced - so 87.4 years for you to go. I don't know about any process to speed that up other than change the value in SpaceMaster-Mode.

[ExChairman (OP)]

Then I need to increase my colony fleet to save as many as possible.

[Steve Walmsley]

Dust is reduced by 250 points per year.

One of the downsides of glassing the planet

[ExChairman (OP)]

Aha, only some 35 years then... 

[Michael Sandy]

Why should laser or meson or other precision weapon bombardment cause a huge dust problem?  Other than to make conquest difficult and less profitable?

I get you want the main factor to be how many troops the attacker can transport in as to whether they can get a clean conquest, but there should be some factor for having control of the orbitals in ground combat that doesn't mess up the planet for decades.

[TheDeadlyShoe]

I assure you, there is a middle ground between saturation bombardment and skywriting 'surrender please ' 

[Detros]

I assure you, there is a middle ground between saturation bombardment and skywriting 'surrender please '

In other words, only when skywriting 'surrender please' doesn't do the job, start earthwriting it.

[ExChairman (OP)]

I assure you, there is a middle ground between saturation bombardment and skywriting 'surrender please '

 

I would sat that it would be very spectacular when 20 inch laserbeam heats something up very fast, might even resemble a small nuke I presume. Not to mention the 100s of laser beans stabbing down and superheating air, probably disturbing  wind patterns, at least in small areas.

[83athom]

In other words, only when skywriting 'surrender please' doesn't do the job, start earthwriting it.

That wouldn't work, you already shot down anything that could see it from above you silly goose .

[MarcAFK]

Basically this, the amount of power unleashed by these lasers is basically the same as an atomic bomb. Just without the radioactive fallout.