So I've seen a couple videos of this game, but things keep changing. What kind of infrastructure are you guys building to get started?
Based on my Company of Heroes days, I know that getting started properly is key to an RTS game, and it seems to be key here too. What build orders are out there? Is there any universally accepted things?
I'm using my first engineer to capture and build a factory, or sometimes an extractor, while capturing. But I haven't been able to get a second capture done. Whatever, that's fine. So I need to build a factory and get some units out, so I build a factory and then I build brutes which are capable of taking on small groups of neutrals, and then I add an archer to 3 brutes usually and it becomes a better fighting force, and then I go forward with that ratio. Then I forget to build a quantum relay because I usually forget quantum abilities anyway. I've started trying to get a obstructor or denier or whatever the thing is that stops orbital abilities, because the AI attacked me with them once and it was just horrible.
Anyway, how many factories do I build at first, or do I wait? I can see an advantage to waiting until I can build a forward factory.
I've had better success allowing the factory to build units on repeat rather than using the army recruit feature - but that makes it feel like other games again, and I rather liked the recruit feature... but it doesn't balance the armies I'm recruiting to, and one gets them all.
Anyway, I'm having fun against the Easy AI and I got a win against Intermediate AI on a Tiny map (fringe) which was nice, but it'd be nice to play with or against people about that skill.
I'm sure others have better advice, but for me, it's:
It should be noted, as the PHC, there's very little reason to let your economy stay in the green, and any Metal or Radioactives you produce while at full capacity are completely wasted. This should be avoided whenever possible, so keep producing units, Quantum Archives and Defensive Buildings. Basically, you should be aiming to produce a hair over 100% of your economic limit at all times.
I've been building a factory to start, and then building further factories as my metals production increases to above the line. I try to get an assembly right after factory+rads so that I can get a Zeus out, as it mows through the neutrals - and usually whatever enemy I run into first.
I can beat the intermediate AI on default. I think I set it to Random once and it was bad for me as it rushed with orbital abilities that I wasn't able to handle yet.
I have been building 3 engineers to start. One for deposits, one for quantum, and one for whatever is left. Usually it builds some defenses somewhere forward and then swings around to the side of the map the first engineer is neglecting.
In my last couple 1v1s I've had a lot of success capturing the middle point and then staging from there through the rest of the game. So my second and third factories went down there.
Video of me vs. Intermediate AI
Oh, and thanks!
I would go with metal first. As you can see in that video your are metal starved a lot early on, this can be avoided with a metal start. A few versions back I would agree with getting rads first, but at least for the PHC metal now rules for that initial expansion. Don't know if it is the best way to go but I go for two T1 factories at the beginning so I can spread fast (T1 are beefier than they used to be), then I'll build an Armoury.
Good point with the metal starvation. I'm finding that frigates can do a lot more than I gave them credit for, so long as there is enough of them and they don't run into any Zeuses without Athena backup.
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