Part 99: Episode IX: 2450 - 2475
Episode IX: 2450-2475
'At least we lasted longer than the vile Mrrshan' isn't much of a rallying cry. We are dead last among the remaining races in every single category, with no likely path to changing that. I don't even know where Orion is, so it must be on the opposite side of the galaxy. Not that I could make a play for it if I could with only four systems. There are only the most remote of chances for the Sakkra now. I am the mercy of how the rising Psilon and the sizable Human/Alkari interact -- who the Bulrathi side with may prove important. We are an insignficant speck beneath their notice.
** Psilons(13) -- Once they get things sorted out, it's just a matter of who they want to kill first.
** Alkari(10) -- Finally grabbed those upper-right systems.
** Human(8) -- Could be on the decline if their diplomatic skill doesn't save them.
** Bulrathi(6)
** Sakkra(4)
We do at least have a few more things getting close. Looks like Atmospheric Terraforming will be first. That'll basically give us another 20M(I think) on Ryoun, our only hostile world.
I watch the diplomatic situation pretty closely, and basically everybody stays friendly. Nobody wants another war right away. That whole idea of the genocide making the Psilons unpopular doesn't materialize in this case.
2458. Next we'll go for +50M Terraforming, which will be a much bigger benefit: 40M everywhere. We also get the wealthy merchant event, a donation 1.5k. The only thing I can do with it though is get a research boost for a while.
The atmos terraforming didn't even improve Ryoun's max at all -- just the growth rate. So that was pretty much useless. Getting Zortium Armor in will improve our ground troops, and now it'll be on to cheaper factories.
Stinger missiles arrive a few years later, upgrading our defensive capabilities. While the Ion Stream Projector is cheaper, I think we will need all the ground combat help we can get. Fusion Rifle.
2469. Class V Deflectors are in. I think it's time to go back for the Repulsor Beam, just in case we need it. Meanwhile there have been a couple of GNN reminders that we suck -- nothing I can't see in Status at this point anytime I want to. The galactic love-in remarkably continues. We get a NAP with the Alkaris, and ...
The more of this we can do, the better our(poor) chances of gaining territory whenever war does break out again.
ECM V or Battle Computer Mk VI are the next choices. We need an ECM upgrade just in case, and it's the cheaper alternative anyway.
Showing the vote in detail this time since I didn't do anything but research a bunch of stuff. Humans vs. Alkari again; either the Psilon planets really suck(most likely) or they have some other sort of weird problem going on. I can think of no other rational explanation why they wouldn't be a nominee again by now.
I noted here that if everyone else sides with the Humans, they will just make it this time. 9 for the Alkaris plus presumably still 3 for us is 12 -- exactly one-third, leaving Bladrov II just enough. IF he has everyone else on his side ... but the probably will. Bulrathi are the wild-cards.
Third in planets, yet the most populous race. They really picked the spots this time.
This probably seals it.
A long-standing alliance between these two. 24 votes. It's over.
Another sub-200 year game ... but this one didn't go the way I would have preferred. Notable here is that I've never seen the Psilons with this many planets(about 30% of the galaxy), yet playing second fiddle to the winners. The last nearly 30 years of 'Pax Humana' is pretty unprecedented too. Usually everyone gets antsy and somebody, even if it's the erratic Bulrathi, starts something. Nope. Total peace everywhere, leading to Bladrov II's triumph.
Ultimately that clash between us and the Mrrshan at the beginning hurt our growth too much. Additionally, the early Bulrathi alliance allowed them to reach planets that would have been ours, we didn't get Radiated tech despite being galactic Planetology experts(two more systems there), and late in the colonization game we 'lost the tie' in getting to Guradas. One more year sooner and that would have been ours. Then the diplomatic problems, as we had to give away the store and even that wasn't enough for peace, leading to the loss of Thrax. If the Bulrathi hadn't taken that, we'd have had the extra vote needed to prolong things in the Council, even with nothing else.
I don't think this was an unwinnable game, it was just that too many things went against us and a couple of fairly minor mistakes assisted that. Give us those two radiated systems even, or something else going our way earlier, and we had a chance.
Now I slip to 5-4 overall. I've only found victory at first try with the Psilons and Humans, suffering a defeat with the Klackons, Silicoids, Meklar, and Sakkra. Let's see if we can maintain the perfect record of bouncing back with victory in the next attempt.