Posted by: Vandermeer
« on: November 23, 2015, 01:20:28 AM »I'm afraid you won't get many reasonable answers for that particular topic, because very few people (if any) have tried something like that. In fact, the only person I can recall doing something like this is Vandermeer, but I don't know how far he has come with his campaign.I randomly found this topic when doing a search in the forum. It's really late, but I comment:
OT about this swarm game:
Off-Topic: show
..For salvage: A salvage based game is totally doable, and since I tested that with the Swarm game there, I have switched to play all my Aurora games in a mixture from now on, where I allow myself to research to a certain tech level, and must then salvage the rest to proceed. I think that makes the game more exciting, as otherwise salvage is just a tiny bonus compared to your powerful research, and the only thing really giving you something sometimes is conquering an NPR. ...But even that is just a boost, while when you have this as your only way to advance, you are really looking forward to conquest.
You need some crucial starting techs though, which is mostly some power factor (minimum x2 researched I think), because only then will your TL1 missiles be able to catch most enemies, and it will still be an extreme chase.(and you better have overwhelming mass domination, or else..)
Of course, before TL1 is just impossible. You have no weapons, your missile engines can't even catch civilian ships... nonsense. Otherwise, you can work it out, unless going up against a certain invader, but those are too rare to strategize for until it happens.
The last game I started also has a limit for TL3 for engines, so that is Ion, but I am free to research all fusion tech once I get access to a working Stellerator somehow. Then the same with the first antimatter plant should I get there, which I will have to salvage or loot. Most other leveled techs can go 2 levels above current engine tech, and things like power factor, stealth techs, jump engine miniaturization and weapon caliber are not limited at all.
I freely change these limits from game to game though, and had magneto plasma or magnetic fusion in games before.