MOO Strategy Guide v. 1.0, Section 3

3.0 Tables and Formulas

Go to section 1: Clever Tricks

Go to section 2: Strategies


3.0 Tables

3.1 Technology

3.1.1) Cost of Tech in RPs for races average at making tech
                Simple    Easy  Average  Hard   Impossible
                ------    ----  -------  ----   ----------
Tech level  1 =    20      25      30      35      40
Tech level  2 =    80     100     120     140     160
Tech level  3 =   180     225     270     315     360
Tech level  4 =   320     400     480     560     640
Tech level  5 =   500     625     750     875    1000
Tech level  6 =   720     900    1080    1260    1440
Tech level  7 =   980    1225    1470    1715    1960
Tech level  8 =  1280    1600    1920    2240    2560
Tech level  9 =  1620    2025    2430    2835    3240
Tech level 10 =  2000    2500    3000    3500    4000
Tech level 11 =  2420    3025    3630    4235    4840
Tech level 12 =  2880    3600    4320    5040    5760
Tech level 13 =  3380    4225    5070    5915    6760
Tech level 14 =  3920    4900    5880    6860    7840
Tech level 15 =  4500    5625    6750    7875    9000
Tech level 16 =  5120    6400    7680    8960   10240
Tech level 17 =  5780    7225    8670   10115   11560
Tech level 18 =  6480    8100    9720   11340   12960
Tech level 19 =  7220    9025   10830   12635   14440
Tech level 20 =  8000   10000   12000   14000   16000
Tech level 21 =  8820   11025   13230   15435   17640
Tech level 22 =  9680   12100   14520   16940   19360
Tech level 23 = 10580   13225   15870   18515   21160
Tech level 24 = 11520   14400   17280   20160   23040
Tech level 25 = 12500   15625   18750   21875   25000
Tech level 26 = 13520   16900   20280   23660   27040
Tech level 27 = 14580   18225   21870   25515   29160
Tech level 28 = 15680   19600   23520   27440   31360
Tech level 29 = 16820   21025   25230   29435   33640
Tech level 30 = 18000   22500   27000   31500   36000
Tech level 31 = 19220   24025   28830   33635   38440
Tech level 32 = 20480   25600   30720   35840   40960
Tech level 33 = 21780   27225   32670   38115   43560
Tech level 34 = 23120   28900   34680   40460   46240
Tech level 35 = 24500   30625   36750   42875   49000
Tech level 36 = 25920   32400   38880   45360   51840
Tech level 37 = 27380   34225   41070   47915   54760
Tech level 38 = 28880   36100   43320   50540   57760
Tech level 39 = 30420   38025   45630   53235   60840
Tech level 40 = 32000   40000   48000   56000   64000
Tech level 41 = 33620   42025   50430   58835   67240
Tech level 42 = 35280   44100   52920   61740   70560
Tech level 43 = 36980   46225   55470   64715   73960
Tech level 44 = 38720   48400   58080   67760   77440
Tech level 45 = 40500   50625   60750   70875   81000
Tech level 46 = 42320   52900   63480   74060   84640
Tech level 47 = 44180   55225   66270   77315   88360
Tech level 48 = 46080   57600   69120   80640   92160
Tech level 49 = 48020   60025   72030   84035   96040
Tech level 50 = 50000   62500   75000   87500   100000
3.1.2) Formula for research
OK, so has anyone figured out the _real_ formula for research in MOO? I tried to implement it as written, and it certainly doesn't work. The interesting things I found is that once past the Base Cost, your breakthrough chance seems to increase by 1% for every 4% of the Base Cost you invest, at least under some circumstances...

I found this by researching Improved Industrial Tech 9 (tech level 3) at average level - the cost is 270 RP's. This is fine, and I should note I had no other new technologies in Construction. By investing 270 RP's each turn, I found that you reach the base cost the first turn (no surprise), then the next 270 gives you only a 25% chance of discovering the technology - not only is there a 4% to 1% conversion, but there isn't any 15% interest on the first year's 270 investment. The next 270 RP's gave a 58% chance. So there is eventually interest earned (without interest it would just be a 50% chance), but there is some kind of delay built in. I figured out vaguely how this worked, and the code below computes it. It does seem to work for constant invested amounts, getting very similar results to MOO (+-1%; roundoff error near as I can tell).

However, this code does not work for various cases. For example, if you first invested 270 RP's (and so met the base cost) and then do 27% a turn, you get a return of:

270     - meet base cost
27 more - 3% (fine so far)
27 more - 10%
27 more - 17%
27 more - 25%
27 more - 32%
There's a 7-8% gain each time, which (using the 4 to 1 rule) translates into about 76-86 RP gain each later turn for only 27 RPs in - you seem to earn a lot more RPs than your small investment would warrant. Even with the full 15% of the previous years' investments you can't get from 3% to 10%. So maybe there is a 2 to 1 conversion at low levels of investment after all. Anyway, I've gone as far as I'd like with this puzzle - if anyone else makes any headway, let us know!

BTW, the mean time for completing a project given a fixed percentage is simply 100/percentage years, e.g. if you have an 8% breakthrough level and then fund it at 1 RP a year to keep up the research (and so add minimal new investment), you will complete the project in 12.5 years on the average. Given the odd compounding behavior I saw with the 27 RP investments, it does look like a slow trickle does get you a lot of bang for your buck (as the rules say), but it's not at all clear to me how this algorithm works.

/*======== moo_rps.c ==========*/
/* Compute technology advances given the base cost and a per year investment.
 * By prefixing with the "+" sign, e.g. "+27" (or whatever), the investment
 * is used for this year only and a new one can be entered.
 * Seems to work for constant investments, but doesn't work for cases like
 * target: 270   invest: +270 27
 */

#include < stdio.h> 
#include < math.h> 
#include < string.h> 

#define BUFSIZE 256
char    Buffer[BUFSIZE] ;

#define round(a)        floor((a)+0.5)

main(argc,argv)
int argc;  char *argv[];
{
int     val ;
float   target, invest, investsum, musthave, interest, lost_int ;
float   chance, not_accumchance, origsum, old_interest, avg_year ;
int     doit, year, cont_flag ;
float   bc_per_rp = 4.0 ;       /* not 2.0, as the docs say */


    TargetInput:
    printf( "target technology (in RPs): " ) ;
    gets( Buffer ) ;
    if ( sscanf( Buffer, "%d", & val ) != 1 ) goto TargetInput ;
    if ( val < = 0 ) goto TargetInput ;
    target = val ;


    /* Compute investments */

    /* at this level, investment must be done */
    musthave = round(target * (1.0 + bc_per_rp)) ;
    investsum = 0.0 ;
    not_accumchance = 1.0 ;
    old_interest = 0.0 ;
    avg_year = 0.0 ;
    cont_flag = 1 ;


    year = 1 ;
    while ( investsum <  musthave ) {
        if ( cont_flag ) {
            InvestInput:
            printf(
                "investment (in RPs/year) [do `+93' for continued input]: " ) ;
            gets( Buffer ) ;
            if ( sscanf( Buffer, "%d", & val ) != 1 ) goto InvestInput ;
            if ( val < = 0 ) goto InvestInput ;
            cont_flag = strchr( Buffer, '+' ) ? 1 : 0 ;
            invest = val ;
        }

        if ( year == 1 ) {
            printf(
                "\nTo reach technology of cost %f, investing %f per year\n\n",
                target, invest ) ;
            printf(
                "year    investment    to min    chance    accum  chance\n") ;
        }

        origsum = investsum ;

        /* get interest for next year */
        interest = round( investsum * 0.15 ) ;

        if ( interest >  old_interest ) interest = old_interest ;

        if ( interest >  invest ) {
            lost_int = interest - invest ;
            interest = invest ;
        } else {
            lost_int = 0.0 ;
        }

        investsum += invest + interest ;

        /* check if we've reached breakthrough stage */
        if ( investsum < = target ) {
            printf( "%3d %14.0f %8.1f%%                      ",
                year, investsum, 100.0 * investsum / target ) ;
        } else {
            /* note that additional research goes 4 RP to 1% increase */
            chance = ( investsum - target ) / target / bc_per_rp ;
            if ( chance >  1.0 ) chance = 1.0 ;
            avg_year += not_accumchance * chance * (float)year ;
            not_accumchance *= ( 1.0 - chance ) ;
            printf( "%3d %14.0f %8.1f%% %9.0f%% %9.0f%%",
                year, investsum, 100.0, (float)round( chance * 100.0 ),
                (float)round((1.0 - not_accumchance) * 100.0) ) ;
        }
        if ( lost_int >  0.0 ) {
            printf( "    > > >  Lost interest %g RPs\n", lost_int ) ;
        } else {
            printf( "\n" ) ;
        }

        old_interest = round( investsum * 0.15 ) ;

        if ( old_interest >  origsum ) {
            old_interest = origsum ;
        }
/*printf( "old interest %g, origsum %g\n", old_interest, origsum ) ;*/
        year++ ;
    }


    printf( "\nAverage year of completion: %.2f\n", avg_year ) ;
}
Contributed by: Eric Haines

3.2 Weapons Comparison Charts

3.2.1) Estimated Damage for each Hit against different shields
The following two charts show estimated damage for each turn for each weapon against each shield level:

    Beam Weapons:                                                 Shields
name        tech  dmg(shots)  sz/pow(bon) rng   0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laser          1   1- 4(x1)    10/ 25(+0)  1   2.5  1.5  0.7  0.2  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Laser      1   1- 7(x1)    30/ 75(+0)  2   4.0  3.0  2.1  1.4  0.9  0.4  0.1  --   --   --   --   -- 
Gat Laser      5   1- 4(x4)    20/ 70(+0)  1  10.0  6.0  3.0  1.0  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
^Neut. Pellet  7   2- 5(x1)    15/ 25(+0)  1   3.5  2.5  2.5  1.5  1.5  0.7  0.7  0.2  --   --   --   -- 
Ion Cannon    10   3- 8(x1)    15/ 35(+0)  1   5.5  4.5  3.5  2.5  1.7  1.0  0.5  0.2  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10   3-15(x1)    45/105(+0)  2   9.0  8.0  7.0  6.0  5.1  4.2  3.5  2.8  1.6  0.8  0.2  -- 
^Mass Driver  13   5- 8(x1)    55/ 50(+0)  1   6.5  5.5  5.5  4.5  4.5  3.5  3.5  2.5  1.5  0.7  0.2  -- 
Neutron Blst  15   3-12(x1)    20/ 60(+0)  1   7.5  6.5  5.5  4.5  3.6  2.8  2.1  1.5  0.6  0.1  --   -- 
Hvy Blast     15   3-24(x1)    60/180(+0)  2  13.5 12.5 11.5 10.5  9.5  8.6  7.8  7.0  5.5  4.1  3.0  2.0
~Graviton     17   1-15(x1)    30/ 60(+0)  1   8.0  7.0  6.1  5.2  4.4  3.7  3.0  2.4  1.4  0.7  0.2  -- 
^Hard Beam    19   8-12(x1)    50/100(+0)  1  10.0  9.0  9.0  8.0  8.0  7.0  7.0  6.0  5.0  4.0  3.0  2.0
Fusion Beam   20   4-16(x1)    20/ 75(+0)  1  10.0  9.0  8.0  7.0  6.0  5.1  4.2  3.5  2.2  1.2  0.5  0.1
Hvy Fusion    20   4-30(x1)    60/225(+0)  2  17.0 16.0 15.0 14.0 13.0 12.0 11.1 10.2  8.6  7.0  5.7  4.4
Megabolt      25   2-20(x1)    30/ 65(+3)  1  11.0 10.0  9.0  8.1  7.2  6.3  5.5  4.8  3.5  2.4  1.5  0.8
Phasor        26   5-20(x1)    20/ 90(+0)  1  12.5 11.5 10.5  9.5  8.5  7.5  6.6  5.7  4.1  2.8  1.7  0.9
Hvy Phasor    26   5-40(x1)    60/270(+0)  2  22.5 21.5 20.5 19.5 18.5 17.5 16.5 15.6 13.8 12.1 10.5  9.0
Auto Blastor  28   4-16(x3)    30/ 90(+0)  1  30.0 27.0 24.0 21.0 18.0 15.2 12.7 10.4  6.5  3.5  1.4  0.2
~Tachyon Beam 30   1-25(x1)    30/ 80(+0)  1  13.0 12.0 11.0 10.1  9.2  8.4  7.6  6.8  5.4  4.2  3.1  2.2
^Gauss Auto   32   7-10(x4)   105/105(+0)  1  34.0 30.0 30.0 26.0 26.0 22.0 22.0 18.0 14.0 10.0  6.0  3.0
^Particle     33  10-20(x1)    90/ 75(+0)  2  15.0 14.0 14.0 13.0 13.0 12.0 12.0 11.0 10.0  9.0  8.0  7.0
Plasma Canon  35   6-30(x1)    30/110(+0)  1  18.0 17.0 16.0 15.0 14.0 13.0 12.0 11.0  9.2  7.6  6.1  4.8
Death Ray     36 200-1000(x1) 2000/2000(+0)3  600. 599. 598. 597. 596. 595. 594. 593. 591. 589. 587. 585.
Disruptor     37  10-40(x1)    70/160(+0)  2  25.0 24.0 23.0 22.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 18.0 16.0 14.0 12.2 10.5
Pulse Phasor  38   5-20(x3)    40/120(+0)  1  37.5 34.5 31.5 28.5 25.5 22.5 19.7 17.1 12.4  8.4  5.2  2.8
Tri-focus Pl  45  20-50(x1)    70/180(+0)  1  35.0 34.0 33.0 32.0 31.0 30.0 29.0 28.0 26.0 24.0 22.0 20.0
Stellar Conv  46  10-35(x4)   200/300(+0)  3  90.0 86.0 82.0 78.0 74.0 70.0 66.0 62.0 54.0 46.2 38.9 32.3
Mauler Dev    48  20-100(x1)  150/300(+0)  1  60.0 59.0 58.0 57.0 56.0 55.0 54.0 53.0 51.0 49.0 47.0 45.0

~:  These are streaming weapons, so damage carries over from one target to another
^:  These are penetrating weapons, that halve the effects of shields.


    Missiles and Torpedoes:                                       Shields
name        tech  dmg(shots)  sz/pow(bon) spd   0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear        1     4(x1)     50/ 20(+0) 2.0    4    3    2    1    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -
Hyper-V        4     6(x1)     70/ 20(+0) 2.5    6    5    4    3    2    1    -    -    -    -    -    -
Hyper-X        7     8(x1)    100/ 20(+1) 2.5    8    7    6    5    4    3    2    1    -    -    -    -
Scatter V     11     6(x5)    115/ 50(+0) 2.5   30   25   20   15   10    5    -    -    -    -    -    -
Merculite     14    10(x1)    105/ 20(+2) 3.0   10    9    8    7    6    5    4    3    1    -    -    -
Stinger       18    15(x1)    155/ 30(+3) 3.5   15   14   13   12   11    10    9    8    6    4    2    -
Anti-Mat Trp  23    30(x1)     75/300(+4) 4.0   30   29   28   27   26    25   24   23   21   19   17   15
Scatter VII   27    10(x7)    230/ 50(+2) 3.0   70   63   56   49   42    35   28   21    7    -    -    -
Pulson        29    20(x1)    160/ 40(+4) 4.0   20   19   18   17   16    15   14   13   11    9    7    5
Hercular      34    25(x1)    220/ 40(+5) 4.5   25   24   23   22   21    20   19   18   16   14   12   10
Hellfire Trp  40    25(x4)    150/350(+6) 5.0  100   96   92   88   84    80   76   72   64   56   48   40
Zeon          41    30(x1)    250/ 50(+6) 5.0   30   29   28   27   26    25   24   23   21   19   17   15
Proton Torp   43    60(x1)    100/400(+6) 8.0   60   59   58   57   56    55   54   53   51   49   47   45
Scatter X     44    15(x10)   250/ 50(+3) 3.5  150  140  130  120  110    100   90   80   60   40   20    -
Plasma Torp   50   135(x1)    150/450(+7) 6.0  135  134  133  132  131    130  129  128  126  124  122  120

Note: Plasma Torpedo stats assume that torpedo fired at adjacent stack.
3.2.2) Shield Protection
Planet shield level where weapons cease to affect:
2: Laser, Gatling Laser
4: Heavy Laser, Ion Cannon, Nuclear Missile

Planetary Shield V:
5: Neutron Pellet Gun
6: Neutron Blaster, Hyper V Rockets, Scatter Pack Vs
7: Mass Driver, Heavy Laser
8: Heavy Ion Cannon, Graviton Beam, Fusion Beam, Auto Blaster, Hyper X Missiles

Planetary Shield X:
10: Megabolt Cannon, Phasor, Pulse Phasor, Gauss Autocannon, Merculite Missiles, Scatter Pack VIIs
12: Nuclear Bomb, Hard Beam, Heavy Blast Cannon
13: Tachyon Beam, Hellfire Torps
15: Heavy Fusion Beam, Plasma Cannon, Stinger Missiles, Scatter Pack Xs, Anti-Matter Torps

Planetary Shield XV:
18: Stellar Converter
20: Heavy Phasor, Disruptor, Fusion Bomb, Pulson Missile

Planetary Shield XX:
25: Tri-Focus Plasma, Hercular Missiles
31: Zeon Missiles, Proton Torpedoes

Weapons beyond max defense: Mauler Device, Death Ray, Anti-Matter Bomb, Omega-V Bomb, Neutronium Bomb, Plasma Torps. (35 is maximum Planet Defense)

Ship shield level where weapons cease to affect:
4: Laser, Gatling Laser, Nuclear Missile
6: Hyper V Rockets, Scatter Pack Vs
7: Heavy Laser
9: Neutron Pellet Gun, Ion Cannon, Hyper X Missiles
11: Merculite Missiles, Scatter Pack VIIs
13: Neutron Blaster
15: Heavy Ion Cannon, Fusion Beam, Auto Blastor, Graviton Beam, Mass Driver, Stinger Missiles, Scatter Pack Xs

Following weapons beyond max defense:

Megabolt Cannon, Phasor, Pulse Phasor, Gauss Autocannon, Hard Beam, Heavy Blast Cannon, Tachyon Beam, Hellfire Torps, Heavy Fusion Beam, Plasma Cannon, Anti-Matter Torps, Stellar Converter, Heavy Phasor, Disruptor, Pulson Missile, Tri-Focus Plasma, Hercular Missiles, Zeon Missiles, Proton Torpedoes, Mauler Device, Death Ray, Plasma Torps.

3.2.3) Damage per unit of space:
I have noted that if you are using current technology, the space that a weapon takes up is pretty well denoted by the following equation.

(current size + power * (1 - current tech level/100)
at least through tech level 60.

The following tables then, show the total damage per turn (assuming all shots hit) for each unit of space used. This is a handy means of comparing weapons of different tech levels:

Weapon comparison for tech level 10 :  Assumption: Space = size + power * .9

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laser          1   2/ 28(+0)  1  .089 .054 .027 .009  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Laser      1   5/ 84(+0)  2  .048 .036 .026 .017 .010 .005 .002  --   --   --   --   -- 
Gat Laser      5   7/ 77(+0)  1  .130 .078 .039 .013  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
^Neut. Pellet  7   3/ 35(+0)  1  .100 .071 .071 .043 .043 .021 .021 .007  --   --   --   -- 
Ion Cannon    10   4/ 47(+0)  1  .117 .096 .074 .053 .035 .021 .011 .004  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10  11/140(+0)  2  .064 .057 .050 .043 .036 .030 .025 .020  .012 .005 .002  -- 

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear       1  27/ 45(+0)  2.0 .089 .067 .044 .022  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-V       4  46/ 64(+0)  2.5 .094 .078 .062 .047 .031 .016  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-X       7  81/ 99(+1)  2.5 .081 .071 .061 .051 .040 .030 .020 .010  --   --   --   -- 


Weapon comparison for tech level 20 : Assumption: Space = size + power * .8

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laser          1   1/ 23(+0)  1  .109 .065 .033 .011  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Laser      1   3/ 68(+0)  2  .059 .044 .032 .021 .013 .006 .002  --   --   --   --   -- 
Gat Laser      5   4/ 63(+0)  1  .159 .095 .048 .016  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
^Neut. Pellet  7   2/ 26(+0)  1  .135 .096 .096 .058 .058 .029 .029 .010  --   --   --   -- 
Ion Cannon    10   3/ 36(+0)  1  .153 .125 .097 .069 .046 .028 .014 .005  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10   6/107(+0)  2  .084 .075 .065 .056 .047 .040 .032 .026  .015 .007 .002  -- 
^Mass Driver  13   6/ 74(+0)  1  .088 .074 .074 .061 .061 .047 .047 .034  .020 .010 .003  -- 
Neutron Blst  15   5/ 62(+0)  1  .121 .105 .089 .073 .058 .045 .034 .024  .010 .002  --   -- 
Hvy Blast     15  13/186(+0)  2  .073 .067 .062 .056 .051 .046 .042 .037  .029 .022 .016 .011
~Graviton     17   5/ 72(+0)  1  .111 .097 .084 .072 .061 .051 .042 .033  .019 .009 .003  -- 
^Hard Beam    19  12/127(+0)  1  .079 .071 .071 .063 .063 .055 .055 .047  .039 .031 .024 .016
Fusion Beam   20   7/ 80(+0)  1  .125 .113 .100 .087 .075 .063 .053 .043  .027 .014 .006 .001
Hvy Fusion    20  21/240(+0)  2  .071 .067 .062 .058 .054 .050 .046 .043  .036 .029 .024 .019

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear       1  13/ 29(+0)  2.0 .138 .103 .069 .034  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-V       4  23/ 39(+0)  2.5 .154 .128 .103 .077 .051 .026  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-X       7  41/ 57(+1)  2.5 .140 .123 .105 .088 .070 .053 .035 .018  --   --   --   -- 
Scatter V    11  62/102(+0)  2.5 .294 .245 .196 .147 .098 .049  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Merculite    14  69/ 85(+2)  3.0 .118 .106 .094 .082 .071 .059 .047 .035  .012  --   --   -- 
Stinger      18 135/159(+3)  3.5 .094 .088 .082 .075 .069 .063 .057 .050  .038 .025 .013  -- 


Weapon comparison for tech level 30 : Assumption: Space = size + power * .7

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laser          1   1/ 19(+0)  1  .132 .079 .039 .013  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Laser      1   2/ 57(+0)  2  .070 .053 .038 .025 .015 .008 .003  --   --   --   --   -- 
Gat Laser      5   2/ 53(+0)  1  .189 .113 .057 .019  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
^Neut. Pellet  7   1/ 21(+0)  1  .167 .119 .119 .071 .071 .036 .036 .012  --   --   --   -- 
Ion Cannon    10   2/ 29(+0)  1  .190 .155 .121 .086 .057 .034 .017 .006  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10   3/ 85(+0)  2  .106 .094 .082 .071 .060 .050 .041 .033  .019 .009 .003  -- 
^Mass Driver  13   3/ 52(+0)  1  .125 .106 .106 .087 .087 .067 .067 .048  .029 .014 .005  -- 
Neutron Blst  15   3/ 49(+0)  1  .153 .133 .112 .092 .073 .057 .043 .031  .012 .002  --   -- 
Hvy Blast     15   7/147(+0)  2  .092 .085 .078 .071 .065 .059 .053 .047  .037 .028 .020 .014
~Graviton     17   3/ 54(+0)  1  .148 .130 .112 .096 .081 .068 .056 .044  .026 .012 .004  -- 
^Hard Beam    19   6/ 93(+0)  1  .108 .097 .097 .086 .086 .075 .075 .065  .054 .043 .032 .022
Fusion Beam   20   4/ 63(+0)  1  .159 .143 .127 .111 .095 .081 .067 .055  .034 .018 .007 .001
Hvy Fusion    20  11/188(+0)  2  .090 .085 .080 .074 .069 .064 .059 .054  .046 .037 .030 .024
Megabolt      25   6/ 67(+3)  1  .164 .149 .134 .120 .107 .094 .082 .071  .052 .035 .022 .012
Phasor        26   7/ 78(+0)  1  .160 .147 .135 .122 .109 .096 .084 .073  .053 .036 .022 .012
Hvy Phasor    26  20/234(+0)  2  .096 .092 .088 .083 .079 .075 .071 .067  .059 .052 .045 .039
Auto Blastor  28  13/ 89(+0)  1  .337 .303 .270 .236 .202 .171 .143 .117  .073 .039 .016 .003
~Tachyon Beam 30   9/ 86(+0)  1  .151 .140 .128 .118 .107 .098 .088 .080  .063 .049 .036 .026

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear       1   7/ 21(+0)  2.0 .190 .143 .095 .048  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-V       4  12/ 26(+0)  2.5 .231 .192 .154 .115 .077 .038  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-X       7  20/ 34(+1)  2.5 .235 .206 .176 .147 .118 .088 .059 .029  --   --   --   -- 
Scatter V    11  31/ 66(+0)  2.5 .455 .379 .303 .227 .152 .076  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Merculite    14  35/ 49(+2)  3.0 .204 .184 .163 .143 .122 .102 .082 .061  .020  --   --   -- 
Stinger      18  67/ 88(+3)  3.5 .170 .159 .148 .136 .125 .114 .102 .091  .068 .045 .023  -- 
Anti-Mat Trp 23  46/256(+4)  4.0 .117 .113 .109 .105 .102 .098 .094 .090  .082 .074 .066 .059
Scatter VII  27 187/222(+2)  3.0 .315 .284 .252 .221 .189 .158 .126 .095  .032  --   --   -- 
Pulson       29 149/177(+4)  4.0 .113 .107 .102 .096 .090 .085 .079 .073  .062 .051 .040 .028


Weapon comparison for tech level 40 : Assumption: Space = size + power *  .6

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laser          1   1/ 16(+0)  1  .156 .094 .047 .016  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Laser      1   1/ 47(+0)  2  .085 .064 .046 .030 .018 .009 .003  --   --   --   --   -- 
Gat Laser      5   1/ 44(+0)  1  .227 .136 .068 .023  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
^Neut. Pellet  7   1/ 17(+0)  1  .206 .147 .147 .088 .088 .044 .044 .015  --   --   --   -- 
Ion Cannon    10   1/ 23(+0)  1  .239 .196 .152 .109 .072 .043 .022 .007  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10   2/ 69(+0)  2  .130 .116 .101 .087 .074 .061 .050 .040  .023 .011 .003  -- 
^Mass Driver  13   2/ 38(+0)  1  .171 .145 .145 .118 .118 .092 .092 .066  .039 .020 .007  -- 
Neutron Blst  15   2/ 40(+0)  1  .187 .163 .138 .113 .090 .070 .052 .037  .015 .003  --   -- 
Hvy Blast     15   4/119(+0)  2  .113 .105 .097 .088 .080 .073 .065 .058  .046 .035 .025 .017
~Graviton     17   2/ 42(+0)  1  .190 .167 .144 .124 .105 .087 .071 .057  .033 .016 .005  -- 
^Hard Beam    19   3/ 72(+0)  1  .139 .125 .125 .111 .111 .097 .097 .083  .069 .056 .042 .028
Fusion Beam   20   2/ 50(+0)  1  .200 .180 .160 .140 .120 .102 .085 .069  .043 .023 .009 .002
Hvy Fusion    20   6/150(+0)  2  .113 .107 .100 .093 .087 .080 .074 .068  .057 .047 .038 .030
Megabolt      25   3/ 50(+3)  1  .220 .200 .180 .161 .143 .126 .111 .096  .069 .047 .029 .016
Phasor        26   4/ 62(+0)  1  .202 .185 .169 .153 .137 .121 .106 .092  .067 .045 .028 .015
Hvy Phasor    26  10/185(+0)  2  .122 .116 .111 .105 .100 .095 .089 .084  .074 .065 .057 .049
Auto Blastor  28   7/ 67(+0)  1  .448 .403 .358 .313 .269 .227 .189 .155  .096 .052 .021 .003
~Tachyon Beam 30   5/ 63(+0)  1  .206 .190 .175 .161 .147 .133 .121 .109  .086 .067 .050 .035
^Gauss Auto   32  17/123(+0)  1  .276 .244 .244 .211 .211 .179 .179 .146  .114 .081 .049 .024
^Particle     33  10/100(+0)  2  .150 .140 .140 .130 .130 .120 .120 .110  .100 .090 .080 .070
Plasma Canon  35   9/ 87(+0)  1  .207 .195 .184 .172 .161 .149 .138 .127  .106 .087 .070 .055
Death Ray     36 228/2716(+0) 3  .221 .221 .220 .220 .219 .219 .219 .218  .218 .217 .216 .215
Disruptor     37  18/153(+0)  2  .163 .157 .150 .144 .137 .131 .124 .118  .105 .092 .080 .069
Pulse Phasor  38  22/107(+0)  1  .350 .322 .294 .266 .238 .210 .184 .159  .116 .079 .049 .026

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear       1   3/ 15(+0)  2.0 .267 .200 .133 .067  --   --   --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-V       4   6/ 18(+0)  2.5 .333 .278 .222 .167 .111 .056  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Hyper-X       7  10/ 22(+1)  2.5 .364 .318 .273 .227 .182 .136 .091 .045  --   --   --   -- 
Scatter V    11  15/ 45(+0)  2.5 .667 .556 .444 .333 .222 .111  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Merculite    14  17/ 29(+2)  3.0 .345 .310 .276 .241 .207 .172 .138 .103  .034  --   --   -- 
Stinger      18  34/ 52(+3)  3.5 .288 .269 .250 .231 .212 .192 .173 .154  .115 .077 .038  -- 
Anti-Mat Trp 23  23/203(+4)  4.0 .148 .143 .138 .133 .128 .123 .118 .113  .103 .094 .084 .074
Scatter VII  27  93/123(+2)  3.0 .569 .512 .455 .398 .341 .285 .228 .171  .057  --   --   -- 
Pulson       29  75/ 99(+4)  4.0 .202 .192 .182 .172 .162 .152 .141 .131  .111 .091 .071 .051
Hercular     34 145/169(+5)  4.5 .148 .142 .136 .130 .124 .118 .112 .107  .095 .083 .071 .059
Hellfire Trp 40 150/360(+6)  5.0 .278 .267 .256 .244 .233 .222 .211 .200  .178 .156 .133 .111


Weapon comparison for tech level 50 : Assumption: Space = size + power *  .5

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ion Cannon    10   1/ 19(+0)  1  .289 .237 .184 .132 .088 .053 .026 .009  --   --   --   -- 
Hvy Ion       10   1/ 56(+0)  2  .161 .143 .125 .107 .091 .076 .062 .049 .029 .014 .004  -- 
^Mass Driver  13   1/ 29(+0)  1  .224 .190 .190 .155 .155 .121 .121 .086 .052 .026 .009  -- 
Neutron Blst  15   1/ 32(+0)  1  .234 .203 .172 .141 .113 .087 .066 .047 .019 .003  --   -- 
Hvy Blast     15   2/ 95(+0)  2  .142 .132 .121 .111 .100 .091 .082 .073 .057 .044 .032 .022
~Graviton     17   1/ 33(+0)  1  .242 .212 .184 .158 .133 .111 .091 .073 .042 .020 .006  -- 
^Hard Beam    19   2/ 56(+0)  1  .179 .161 .161 .143 .143 .125 .125 .107 .089 .071 .054 .036
Fusion Beam   20   1/ 41(+0)  1  .244 .220 .195 .171 .146 .124 .103 .084 .053 .028 .011 .002
Hvy Fusion    20   3/121(+0)  2  .140 .132 .124 .116 .107 .099 .092 .084 .071 .058 .047 .037
Megabolt      25   2/ 38(+3)  1  .289 .263 .237 .212 .188 .166 .145 .126 .091 .062 .039 .021
Phasor        26   2/ 49(+0)  1  .255 .235 .214 .194 .173 .153 .134 .116 .084 .057 .036 .019
Hvy Phasor    26   5/146(+0)  2  .154 .147 .140 .134 .127 .120 .113 .107 .094 .083 .072 .062
Auto Blastor  28   4/ 52(+0)  1  .577 .519 .462 .404 .346 .293 .244 .200 .124 .067 .027 .004
~Tachyon Beam 30   3/ 48(+0)  1  .271 .250 .230 .211 .193 .175 .158 .142 .113 .087 .065 .046
^Gauss Auto   32   9/ 83(+0)  1  .410 .361 .361 .313 .313 .265 .265 .217 .169 .120 .072 .036
^Particle     33   5/ 66(+0)  2  .227 .212 .212 .197 .197 .182 .182 .167 .152 .136 .121 .106
Plasma Canon  35   5/ 66(+0)  1  .273 .258 .242 .227 .212 .197 .182 .167 .140 .115 .093 .073
Death Ray     36 114/1758(+0) 3  .341 .341 .340 .340 .339 .338 .338 .337 .336 .335 .334 .333
Disruptor     37   9/108(+0)  2  .231 .222 .213 .204 .194 .185 .176 .167 .148 .130 .113 .097
Pulse Phasor  38  11/ 77(+0)  1  .487 .448 .409 .370 .331 .292 .256 .222 .161 .110 .068 .037
Tri-focus Pl  45  18/139(+0)  1  .252 .245 .237 .230 .223 .216 .209 .201 .187 .173 .158 .144
Stellar Conv  46  38/302(+0)  3  .298 .285 .272 .258 .245 .232 .219 .205 .179 .153 .129 .107
Mauler Dev    48  48/281(+0)  1  .214 .210 .206 .203 .199 .196 .192 .189 .181 .174 .167 .160

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scatter V    11   8/ 33(+0)  2.5 .909 .758 .606 .455 .303 .152  --   --   --   --   --   -- 
Merculite    14   9/ 19(+2)  3.0 .526 .474 .421 .368 .316 .263 .211 .158 .053  --   --   -- 
Stinger      18  17/ 32(+3)  3.5 .469 .437 .406 .375 .344 .312 .281 .250 .187 .125 .062  -- 
Anti-Mat Trp 23  12/162(+4)  4.0 .185 .179 .173 .167 .160 .154 .148 .142 .130 .117 .105 .093
Scatter VII  27  47/ 72(+2)  3.0 .972 .875 .778 .681 .583 .486 .389 .292 .097  --   --   -- 
Pulson       29  37/ 57(+4)  4.0 .351 .333 .316 .298 .281 .263 .246 .228 .193 .158 .123 .088
Hercular     34  73/ 93(+5)  4.5 .269 .258 .247 .237 .226 .215 .204 .194 .172 .151 .129 .108
Hellfire Trp 40  75/250(+6)  5.0 .400 .384 .368 .352 .336 .320 .304 .288 .256 .224 .192 .160
Zeon         41 134/159(+6)  5.0 .189 .182 .176 .170 .164 .157 .151 .145 .132 .119 .107 .094
Proton Torp  43  62/262(+6)  8.0 .229 .225 .221 .218 .214 .210 .206 .202 .195 .187 .179 .172
Scatter X    44 165/190(+3)  3.5 .789 .737 .684 .632 .579 .526 .474 .421 .316 .211 .105  -- 
Plasma Torp  50 150/375(+7)  6.0 .360 .357 .355 .352 .349 .347 .344 .341 .336 .331 .325 .320


Weapon comparison for tech level 60 : Assumption: Space = size + power * .4

    Beam Weapons:                               Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) rng  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fusion Beam   20   1/ 31(+0)  1  .323 .290 .258 .226 .194 .164 .136 .112 .069 .037 .015 .002
Hvy Fusion    20   2/ 94(+0)  2  .181 .170 .160 .149 .138 .128 .118 .109 .091 .075 .060 .047
Megabolt      25   1/ 29(+3)  1  .379 .345 .310 .278 .247 .218 .191 .165 .120 .082 .051 .027
Phasor        26   1/ 38(+0)  1  .329 .303 .276 .250 .224 .197 .173 .150 .109 .074 .046 .025
Hvy Phasor    26   3/114(+0)  2  .197 .189 .180 .171 .162 .154 .145 .137 .121 .106 .092 .079
Auto Blastor  28   2/ 39(+0)  1  .769 .692 .615 .538 .462 .391 .325 .266 .166 .089 .036 .006
~Tachyon Beam 30   2/ 36(+0)  1  .361 .333 .307 .281 .257 .233 .211 .190 .151 .117 .087 .061
^Gauss Auto   32   5/ 57(+0)  1  .596 .526 .526 .456 .456 .386 .386 .316 .246 .175 .105 .053
^Particle     33   3/ 44(+0)  2  .341 .318 .318 .295 .295 .273 .273 .250 .227 .205 .182 .159
Plasma Canon  35   3/ 49(+0)  1  .367 .347 .327 .306 .286 .265 .245 .225 .189 .155 .125 .098
Death Ray     36  57/1179(+0) 3  .509 .508 .507 .506 .506 .505 .504 .503 .501 .500 .498 .496
Disruptor     37   5/ 78(+0)  2  .321 .308 .295 .282 .269 .256 .244 .231 .205 .180 .156 .134
Pulse Phasor  38   6/ 57(+0)  1  .658 .605 .553 .500 .447 .395 .345 .299 .217 .148 .092 .049
Tri-focus Pl  45   9/ 97(+0)  1  .361 .351 .340 .330 .320 .309 .299 .289 .268 .247 .227 .206
Stellar Conv  46  19/196(+0)  3  .459 .439 .418 .398 .378 .357 .337 .316 .276 .235 .199 .165
Mauler Dev    48  24/185(+0)  1  .324 .319 .314 .308 .303 .297 .292 .286 .276 .265 .254 .243

    Missiles and Torpedoes:                     Shields
name       tech cost/spc(bon) spd  0    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anti-Mat Trp 23   6/126(+4)  4.0 .238 .230 .222 .214 .206 .198 .190 .183 .167 .151 .135 .119
Scatter VII  27  23/ 43(+2)  3.0 1.62 1.46 1.30 1.14 .977 .814 .651 .488 .163  --   --   -- 
Pulson       29  19/ 35(+4)  4.0 .571 .543 .514 .486 .457 .429 .400 .371 .314 .257 .200 .143
Hercular     34  36/ 52(+5)  4.5 .481 .462 .442 .423 .404 .385 .365 .346 .308 .269 .231 .192
Hellfire Trp 40  38/178(+6)  5.0 .562 .539 .517 .494 .472 .449 .427 .404 .360 .315 .270 .225
Zeon         41  67/ 87(+6)  5.0 .345 .333 .322 .310 .299 .287 .276 .264 .241 .218 .195 .172
Proton Torp  43  31/191(+6)  8.0 .314 .309 .304 .298 .293 .288 .283 .277 .267 .257 .246 .236
Scatter X    44  82/102(+3)  3.5 1.471 1.373 1.275 1.176 1.078 .980 .882 .784 .588 .392 .196  -- 
Plasma Torp  50  75/255(+7)  6.0 .529 .525 .522 .518 .514 .510 .506 .502 .494 .486 .478 .471
Contributed by Jim Cox (cox@unx.sas.com)

3.3) Ground Combat Odds

Following is a guide for how ground combat is determined:
GROUND ROLL = d100 + Personal Shield + MAX(Personal Armor, Ship Armor)
                   + Personal Weapon + Race Bonus
(d100 stands for a die roll uniformly distributed between 1 and 100).

Both sides do a ground role, highest wins and lives, the other is eliminated.

Personal Shields (from force field technology):

None(1)                         - 0
Personal Deflector Shield(8)    - +10
Personal Absorption Shield(21)  - +20
Personal Barrier Shield(38)     - +30

Personal Armor (from Construction technology):
None(1)                         - 0
Battle Suits(11)                - +10
Armored Exoskeleton(24)         - +20
Powered Armor(40)               - +30

Ship Armor (from Construction technology):
Titanium Armor(1)               - 0
Duralloy Armor(10)              - +5
Zortrium Armor(17)              - +10
Andrium Armor(26)               - +15
Tritanium Armor(34)             - +20
Adamantium Armor(42)            - +25
Neutronium Armor(50)            - +30

Weapons: (from Weapons technology)
None(1)                         - 0
Hand Lasers(2)                  - +5
Ion Rifle(12)                   - +10
Fusion Rifle(24)                - +20
Hand Phasor(31)                 - +25
Plasma Rifle(42)                - +30

Racial Bonus is +20 if Bulrathi, otherwise 0

To figure out ratio that is needed, add your highest bonuses in each category together, subtract the highest bonuses for your opponent, and consult the following formula or table for expected losses:

P(Losing) = .5 * (100-Diff)*(99-Diff)
            _________________________
                     (100)^2

P(Tie) = (100-Diff)
         ----------
          (100)^2

So Expected lost =        Chance you lose
                   --------------------------------- * Opponents # of troops
                   (1-Chance you lose-Chance you tie)

This leads to the following table:
Differential      Expected Loss as Percentage of Opponent's forces
------------      ------------------------------------------------
0                 100%
+5                 82%
+10                68%
+15                56%
+20                47%
+25                39%
+30                32%
+40                22%
+50                14%
+60                 8%
+70                 5%
+80                 2%
+90               <  1%    (maximum differential if not Bulrathis)

For example, you are the Bulrathis. You have discovered: hand lasers, ion rifle, Armored Exoskeleton, Adamantium Armor. Your opponents have made no ship armor advances, but have Personal Deflector Shields, also Armored Exoskeleton, and Hand Lasers.

Their bonus would be 10 (for shield) + 20 (Armored Exoskeleton) + 5 (Hand Lasers). Yours would be 0 (for shield) + 25 (Adamantium Armor) + 10 (ion rifle) + 20 (racial bonus).

Your differential would be +20. You want to send colonists from two colonies to take a world of the opponents with 100 pop. If you send a total of 100 pop, you should expect approximately 53 to survive the battle.

Contributed by Jim Cox and Dave Chaloux

3.4) Guardian Cheat Sheet

Okay....I wasn't gonna post my Guardian cheat sheet, but I will anyway.
                         Simple   Easy   Average   Hard   Impossible
Scatter Pack X's (5c)     5       25       45      65       85
Stellar Converters        5       15       25      35       45
Plasma Torpedos           6        9       12      15       18
Beam/Missile Defense      1        3        5       7        9
Shield Level              5        6        7       8        9
Hit Points (x1000)        2        4        6       8       10
Standard Features:

Specials:

Contributed by: psifire@netcom.com (Mathew Yee)

Go to section 1: Clever Tricks

Go to section 2: Strategies