As AI War is technically impossible to mod by human (only on AI was reported to be able to mod it: Red.Queen), this is not actually a mod. It's a set of rules that players should enforce themselves; the cheat command "ilostit" is used as a way to give units to players as a reward for freewill objectives. This "fake expansion" is designed as a regular AI War expansion: a thematic set of optional rules (like minor factions) adding content in the emergent AI War gameplay.
Techno-Thief
Theme: stealing AI technology
Dire Hijacking
We learned to add some remote control devices to a busted golem in order to use its firepower. Hijacking a Dire Guardian is the same principle; we just need to bust it ourselves first. -- a dauntless engineer.
Prerequisite: Dire Guardian Lairs enabled.
Challenge: the player(s) must destroy a Dire Guardian Lair while the AI Orbital Command Station on the same planet is still there and destroy the three Dire Guardians (the challenge is completed upon the death of the last of the three Dire Guardians).
Reward: each time the challenge is completed, the player must choose a kind of Dire Guardian that was spawn by the Lair's death (if there were identical Guardians, the choice is limited) then use the ilostit command to spawn one on the Lair's planet, under his control. If the player's Dire Guardian is destroyed, it can't be recovered. A player may have multiple Dire Guardians if he achieve the challenge on several Lairs.
Guard Salvaging
Each Guard Post has some special core reactor; this is how the AI build such big turrets. How interesting it would be to study one of them. Unfortunately, most guard post reactors are too fragile and end up wreaked. -- a xenotech scientific.
Prerequisite: at least one AI has "brutal" type.
Challenge: the player(s ) must destroy a Brutal Guard Post on a non-home planet.
Reward: each time the challenge is completed, the player must choose a kind of Guard Post among Missile, MLRS, Needler and Laser, then use the ilostit command to spawn one MkIII, under his control, on a planet he already own (multiple attempts while game is paused are allowed in order to precisely place it). If the Guard Post is destroyed, it can't be recovered. A player may have multiple Guard Posts if he achieve the challenge on several Lairs.
Xenoship Downloading
The AI has developed some weird starships to fight us, but it doesn't seem to store these designs in regular backups. If only I could discover where it conceal them... -- a hacker counter-Intel team member.
Prerequisite: none.
Challenge: the player must complete a Covert Knowledge Extraction hack (and gain all the 3,000 K) on a Planetary Subcommander station.
Reward: each time the challenge is completed, the player gain the right of cheating a design of a guardian, which type depends on the type of the Planetary Subcommander. On a planet he owns, he can "build" (and rebuild) these guardians with the ilostit command (he can't have more than two of each mark simultaneously) and simulate the metal cost by scrapping a starship (flagship, leech, plasma, heavy bomber) of the same mark.
Here is the list of the design stored by each subcommander type (the type of a subcommander may be displayed with the F3 key) :
- Bunkerer : Shield Guardian
- Lobber : Sniper Guardian
- Obstructionist : Tractor Guardian
- Rude Gesture : Zombie Guardian
- Knife Fighter : Vampire Guardian
- Paranoid : Neinzul Carrier Guardian