Pirates overpowered?

Published on December 18, 2006 By _G-Force_ In Beta Reports

In a recent game I got the event that creates the pirates! (note to dev: their name appears to include the '!')

So ok, I thought what's a couple of pirate ships right? How hard can it be??? WRONG, these pirates where everywhere with more ships and more powerfull than anything I had. As a result in the entire galaxy every none-pirate ship was destroyed along with all the starbases.

It's not a bad mega-event (if it is one) but it was just way off scale. As all the AI's militairy drops to nothing, the ships am making (and keeping from the pirates) are giving me the most powerfull militairy rating. As I eventually cleared my territory of the pirates it was clear that the AI could not. Even though they had superior weapons to me when the event started.

It's also a possible exploit, if I were to make fast transports with sensors to see & keep out of range of the pirates, I could conquer every enemy as they have no militairy ship. It could even be possible to declare war on them and get them to surrender without having to do anything as they have no militairy.

And on a side not, who thought that losing 1 morale starbase would give me a 40% drop in approval rating!!

G-Force

Comments (Page 1)

Evil Stormbringer

on Dec 18, 2006

So ok, I thought what's a couple of pirate ships right? How hard can it be??? WRONG, these pirates where everywhere with more ships and more powerfull than anything I had. As a result in the entire galaxy every none-pirate ship was destroyed along with all the starbases.

Finally! This is more like it.

Wheeloffire

on Dec 18, 2006

If the AI learns to fight the pirates as well, this doesn't sound so bad. I think fighting pirates should be a diplomatic treaty option. A level of alliance to fight crime. If you destroy pirates in the territory of a treaty partner, your relationship gets better.

JonSarik

on Dec 18, 2006

The same event happened to me, and at a most fortuitous time. The Arceans and Yor declared war, and a couple turns later I had the Pirates! mega-event. Needless to say, as a human player, I knew to avoid the pirates and every enemy planet was susceptible to invasion.

Devs: if it's possible to code, you should make the Pirates have ships that are somehow proportional to existing AI and player ship strengths/access to weapons technology. For example, if the event happens early in the game like mine, pirates should be relatively underpowered so that they're not the only game in town. Late game, match our strengths. After all, you want mega-events to be just that: attention-grabbing, not game-ending, events.

Wheeloffire

on Dec 18, 2006

Make the starbases the fortresses that they are everywhere in science fiction and the pirates won't be taking them out.

Real security is in economics. The overwhelming reason that the United States was not a victim of terrorism (as understood by Europeans) is because of the financial markets. All the terrorist groups (and pirates) hold their money here. Forget 9/11 and the utterly moronic jihadists, this financial security is still true today.

I think a nice addition to the pirate event would be to have their resources grow in relation to the empire economy that they occupy. Pirates aren't going to destroy economy bases in any time or dimensions. Economy bases have something almost as important as money. They have wenches.

JonSarik

on Dec 18, 2006

That's a good point. After all, pirates are in it to make money from easy marks/targets, not destroy. I'm all for them wanting to destroy resource bases for their OWN TAKING, but what would be the point unless they are a minor race with planets of their own. Nonetheless, in their current incarnation I think their relative power needs to be scaled so that players have a fighting chance.

Supreme Shogun

on Dec 18, 2006

While I must say that finally pirates have some teeth and are something to be feared/dealt with, it does seem exploitative that one could send transports to planets after pirates messed with your neighbors.

I'm sure the Devs will get that cleared up.

Jacob Marley

on Dec 18, 2006

I also had the pirates! mega-event. In this case, I was eventually able to build ships that could take out the pirates, giving me the only navy in the game. I also had Galactic Priviteer, which meant that I had the only trade routes in the game. This allowed me to form alliances with all but one other civ despite the fact that I was neutral and they were all evil.

Mystikmind

on Dec 18, 2006

having so many powerful pirate ships is strange.... more believable if it was a random invasion from some unknown race or the dreadlords

MarshallONeil

on Dec 19, 2006

I wish you could talk to them in the diplomatic screen.

I don't mean like "AAAAarrrrr, matey!"

but to make deals with them. The strength of the event is more like an invasion than a pirate infestation; I'd like to be able to give them a planet or two in exchange for a peace treaty, for instance.

taters101

on Dec 19, 2006

yea pirates are way overpowered. pirates should have the same ship strength as the strongest player when they arrive. as it is now its a game ender for me.

Mystikmind

on Dec 19, 2006

yea pirates are way overpowered. pirates should have the same ship strength as the strongest player when they arrive. as it is now its a game ender for me.

I agree. Perhaps the invasion should have a condition that a certain level of technology is reached before it can take place?

Cikomyr

on Dec 19, 2006

I would like to see that kind of mega invasion, on that scale, but with Dread Lord ships + many invasion troopers. That way, DL would be a real terror for everybody..

Shamgar

on Dec 19, 2006

I agree that the event as it now stands can be a "game ender." Perhaps I was just having a "Lemony Snicket" day, but after the pirates destroyed every single ship in the galaxy, and every starbase but one of mine, I finally built up my tech to get some ships that could at least begin to go up against them. Then I got the plague event. Discovered the cure. Then I got the economic event that inflicted a 25% tax income reduction. Then I got the disease event. Then, for some reason, my logistics went from 15 to zero. I don't know if that's a bug, or related to one of the events, but now I could not even combine my ships against the pirates. End of game, for sure.

Mystikmind

on Dec 19, 2006

The morol of the story boys and girls... when thing get tough, the tough get screwed tighter and tighter till its all over.

Hehehehe i don't think there is a single wise saying in existance that dousnt get crushed beneath the cruel reality of life.

Moosetek13

on Dec 19, 2006

Well, every morol deserves at least one good moral.

Doesn't it?

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