(ONLY PHOST!)

Plist tips

Some fundamental tips for PLIST, based on the suggested PLIST pconfig.src settings.

General

Engines

Beams

Tubes

For tubes of PLIST2.32b or older the following is true:

From PLIST2.4 onwards:

The beginning

In PLIST it is tougher, but important nonetheless, to ship colonists away from the home world to good (money) planets. Unfortunately big freighters need a lot of engines. A Hansa with Improbs still costs 1700 MC! That is: with 15000 MC starting capital you don't build a lot of them. Still you need the capacity of about 4 to 6 Hansas (= 6000 to 9000 KT) in order to colonise successfully.

The Foundation Freighter is nice, but has a relatively small cargo bay. So its better to build Talarians, Hansas and Ferengies. A resource saving trick is to move a Hansa or Ferengi hull with a two engine tow ship (Foundation, Dead Parrot, Constitution, B-Rel, C7 Qapla, Buccaneer ...) with Improbs/Bistromatics. To do this you could quickly build a second star base next to your home base to make freighter hulls. In PLIST the Rebels have a freighter - Sirius or Corellian depending on the exact list - that can hyper jump.

Keep your budget tight in the beginning. Only increase the tube and beam tech if you can exactly predict when enough money will come to the home world!

For defensive measures almost every race can build a cheap fighter ship (no good engines are needed). This can help against the glorious Empire tactic of sending a Draklor (=SSD in the original list, Imperial Assault capable) early in the direction of another home world. To stop it from doing harm it just needs to be damaged.

Merlins are light weight and can move on their own with Enerpsi drives. Build at least two Merlins during the building phase, as PLIST ships are very expensive in minerals and up to 50 percent of the needed minerals must be converted from supplies!

You usually don't need to build a Miraculix (Neutronic Refinery) in the beginning.

Do build your top ships as a flag ship plus star base will destroy almost all attacking flag ships.

Logistics are essential. You need to plan your freighter routes far in advance. Maybe skip ship building for a turn. Two mediocre ships are mostly not worth as much as a top of the bill battle ship. In extra rich universes a good player that isn't disturbed usually builds 12 well outfitted Mon Calamaries!

Race specific PLIST tips

(apart from the usual Phost/Thost strategies)

Feds

Gorn/Lizards

Romulan/Birds

Klingon

Orion/Privateers

Borg

Crystals

Empire

Robots

Rebels

Colonial

Borg and Galactic Empire have to be attacked from the beginning. If they get too big then it becomes very hard for a single race to stop them. Simulate how many top of the bill Mon Calamaries are needed to stop a Death Star!

The Fed should also not be allowed to live in peace. You need to force him to refit his battle ships when still in the building phase.

Don't forget to simulate battles beforehand. A ship going BOOOM because of lack of munition hurts even more in PLIST!

Degi (translation: Maurits van Rees)


  Last Modified: 10-Jul-2005
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