General Advice for my first 7/7

[Confirmation_Bias]

I have all the expansions, am average at RTSs, and the tutorials were really easy.

What map/settings/AI/expansions should I play with?

What should I do?

[Mánagarmr]

This is a common question. I think there are some beginner scripts in the lobby you can use. Vanilla AI-types should be sufficient and the least amounts of plots and addons possible. Unless you feel like experimenting, but it might get slightly overwhelming at first.

As for map types, I'd go for Simple or Clusters.

[Confirmation_Bias]

Ok, I just fired up a 60 - planet clusters map, with two diff 7 vanilla AIs, no minor factions or plots, normal role. Laser gatling bonus.

Now what in heck am I supposed to do?

[zoutzakje]

welcome to the forums =)
tutorials were indeed quite easy, but a normal 7/7 game can still be very challenging for a first campaign. You might die a couple of times before you actually win a game.
playing with easy AI types is a must, since AI types actually affect the difficulty of a game more than the difficulty itself. Vanilla and The Tank for example are a good first time choice.
As for the map type, keep it simple. literally. There are some pretty tough and chaotic map types out there, like the crosshatch. Something you really don't want to play with for a first game.
Any of the settings you might play with, don't put their scaling higher than 4/10. I suggest Resistance fighters, dyson sphere, traders, golems easy, botnet easy and spirecraft easy. Put them on easy the first time so you can get used a bit as to what they do. Maybe turn fallen spire on as well. These are pretty much the options that can give you an advantage, instead of causing more chaos in the galaxy. Leave the AI plots alone for now. You don't want to mess with those.
I do suggest playing with complex ship types right from the start though. That way you can get familiar with all the different ships right away.

If you get stuck in your game, feel free to ask any of us for help =)
good luck ^^

[keith.lamothe]

Welcome to the forums and to the game

Ok, I just fired up a 60 - planet clusters map, with two diff 7 vanilla AIs, no minor factions or plots, normal role. Laser gatling bonus.

Sounds like a good start.

Now what in heck am I supposed to do?

For a general list of objectives click on the STATS button near the bottom-left of the screen and then go to the Objectives tab of the window that brings up.

But since you're asking, here's an outline:

1) Do as much scouting as you can and make sure your position is reasonably secure against enemy attack.  Build your mobile attack force.

2) Take out the Core Shield Generators.  You'll need to kill 4 of the 5 CSG-A generators, and one each of the CSG-B, CSG-C, CSG-D, and CSG-E generators.  To kill a generator you need to kill the AI command station on that planet, and start your own station there, and then have your fleet shoot the generator.
- Naturally, you need to find them first, hence the scouting in the first step.  Keep scouting through all this unless you've already got intel on all the planets.

3) Take out the AI Homeworlds.  You may need to to take more planets to get enough knowledge to get a strong enough force to pull it off.  The scout reports on the AI HWs are critical for figuring out how to take them down, as they vary in which "brutal" guard-post (or guard-post-like) structures they get.  If you like you can experiment your way through that fight (savescumming probably necessary) or you can ask here once you find out what's on the two AI HWs

And in general there's plenty of advice to be had here for the asking.  But the game gives you the info you need, albeit it tends to still kill you until you've seen it in action enough before.

[zoutzakje]

Ok, I just fired up a 60 - planet clusters map, with two diff 7 vanilla AIs, no minor factions or plots, normal role. Laser gatling bonus.

Now what in heck am I supposed to do?

start scouting the neighbouring worlds, while building a few ships and basic defenses. Look for any good target. Since you don't have any minor factions enabled, I consider good targets things like Zenith power Generators, Advanced Research Stations, Advanced Factories, Fabricators. Maybe worlds with high resources on them if you are having trouble with your economy. Build a fleet and attack. I can't give you to much details right away, because you learn the most from experiencing yourself. Just be careful of the high mark enemy worlds. When you put them on alert, they can cause some serious pain. Keeping enemy numbers low on every AI world that borders one of yours can be really important.

and of course I got ninja'd by keith

[Mánagarmr]

Keith's guide was actually quite well put. I always felt it was way more complicated than that...but I tend to overcomplicate things a lot too.

[zoutzakje]

well, this game is really complex after all. The only more complex game i know of is DF, which I played for a while (ASCII graphics didn't scare me off), but I realized I liked complex space strategy more.

Confirmation, be prepared to lose at first. A lot. But when you finally do get that first 7/7 victory, it will be really satisfying. If you get stuck or die to much, check out the After Action Reports on this forum. Reading those can provide you with lots of useful tactics.

[Wanderer]

It seems a lot of people get overwhelmed by the thousands of options available to them and the general scope of the game.  The easiest way to think of this is you're a campaign commander.  What you'd usually do over 10-15 missions in an RTS of abusing Emporer Mengsk until you storm his castle you plot from start to finish here.

You have only one objective to 'win'.  Kill two AI HW Command Centers.  Everything else is what you do to get there.

The CSG network is immediately in your way of that goal, they need to be destroyed.  Core shield generators are scattered through the galaxy.  The majority of them are on planets you want anyway (Advanced Research Centers get the A's, the Fact IVs get the B's) so you have enough firepower to tackle the home and core worlds.

The only thing in your way of destroying those centers is the AI's defensive forces.  So, you need research and economy to handle the galactic defenses to kill the CSGs to kill the Core Guard Posts to kill the HW Cmd Center.

From there, do what looks like fun. 

[RikazeMA]

Something not a lot of people here to seem to mention that's helped me a lot:

When you take a system that's next to 2+ MarkIV worlds, or there's just lots of really bad stuff around it in general, Warp Jammer OCS' take them off alert once they're built and prevent any waves from directly warping into that system unless they manage to put up and hold a Counter Post on your system.  You can use the WJOCS to help reduce the likelihood of a certain flank being attacked, and make your chokes/whipping boys more effective at what they do.  You still wanna keep it defended, but not in a "Will hold with little outside influence," type of way, just long enough to hold until you can get a detachment from your fleet, or the whole fleet, there to mop up.

Basically, it allows you to more readily focus on what matters, strategically, within your game.  Gives you just that little extra piece of mind that you're not gonna get bull-rushed from some isolated, difficult to defend flank.

As for setting, I learned the hard way...  Don't play with Zenith Miner in your first serious game...  That sucker's brutal, even if it doesn't attack you.

[Winge]

As for setting, I learned the hard way...  Don't play with Zenith Miner in your first serious game...  That sucker's brutal, even if it doesn't attack you.

I would go so far as to recommend against most Minor Factions (Resistance or Golems/Botnet/Spirecraft Easy being possible exceptions) for your first few games.  The base game is complex enough for a few times.  I actually started at 5/5 and worked my way up (largely due to eyes), and I am not unfamiliar with RTS games.

[Kahuna]

Here you go:
http://www.arcengames.com/forums/index.php/topic,11837.msg125730.html#msg125730
http://www.arcengames.com/forums/index.php/topic,11937.msg128188.html#msg128188

[Confirmation_Bias]

Thanks everyone. I have my first 7/7 win now. Woot!

This game is really fun.

[Hearteater]

Congratz!

[keith.lamothe]

Congratulations   Glad you're enjoying the game.