COW Design - Races
Base Type
- Crystalline : e.g. silicoids, very hardy, prefer hot dense environments. Slow to reproduce. Tend to form a single gestalt covering the entire planet.
- Humanoid : Can exist (albeit with difficulty) in a wide variety of habitats.
- Reptilian : High population growth. Cannot handle cold environments.
- Aquatic : Require liquid environments, so a limited choice of planets. Very high populations on those planets, though.
- Arthropoid : Insectoid/Arachnid etc.
- Etherian : Gaseous beings - live in gas giants, so massive populations.
- Photonic : Energy beings - live in stars.
- Cybernetic : Can exist in a wide variety of environments. Naturally antipathetic to most other forms of life.
Preferred Environments
Crystalline : Greenhouse, Reductive, Molten
Humanoid : Terran, Desert and Oceanic
Reptilian : Terran, Desert and Oceanic
Aquatic : Terran, Oceanic
Arthropoid : Terran and Desert
Etherian : Gas Giants and Supergiants
Photonic : Stars
Cybernetic : Any solid environment
Notes:
Need a new name for Etherians, as this is the same as in Moo3.
Not sure about Photonic, could mess up game balance - possibly relegate to space monster?
Possibly group reptilian and humanoid together?
All species can maintain protected colonies on worlds of other types, but this is expensive and results in minimal population expansion.
| Type | Molten | Reductive | Greenhouse | Oceanic | Terran | Desert | Tundra | Barren | Asteroid | Gas Giant | SuperGiant | Protostellar | Stellar
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| Crystalline | 100% | 100% | 100% | 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% | - | - | - | -
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| Humanoid | 5% | 10% | 25% | 50% | 100% | 50% | 25% | 10% | 10% | 10% | - | - | -
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| Reptilian | - | 5% | 10% | 100% | 100% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 5% | 5% | - | - | -
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| Aquatic | - | 5% | 10% | 100% | 50% | 10% | 25% | 10% | 10% | 25% | 10% | - | -
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| Arthropoid | 5% | 10% | 10% | 25% | 100% | 100% | 25% | 10% | 10% | 10% | - | - | -
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| Etherian | - | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 100% | 100% | 25% | -
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| Photonic | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 10% | 25% | 75% | 100%
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| Cybernetic | 25% | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 10% | 10% | - | -
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|---|
Racial Characteristics
Intelligence
Higher intelligence means that each unit population will generate more research.
HOWEVER, this also means that fewer population can be happy when performing menial jobs, such as farming and mining.
If too high a percentage of a system is devoted to these tasks, unrest on the system will increase. Being hive-minded tends to mitigate this effect, however.
Physical Strength
Higher physical strength results in better mining, production, and ground troops.
HOWEVER, the race will also consume more food per unit of population.
Individualism
Ranges from independent (1.0) to hive-mind (0.0)
Independent races tend to be more creative.
Hive-minded races tend to be more productive.
Independent races will not tolerate oppression very well (increases unrest)
Hive-minded races do not mind oppression (no unrest generated)
Individualists unrest levels tend to increase linearly with negative stimulus.
This is because some people are made unhappy by an event, but others do not mind and continue to be happy.
Hive-minds unrest levels tend to remain near zero, until a threshold is crossed, when all of a sudden LARGE numbers of population become unhappy.
This is due to the damping 'peer pressure' effect of the hive mind. But once things become too bad, a mob mentality will take over.
Adaptability/Specialisation
Basically, how adaptable each individual of the species is.
High Adaptability = Low Specialisation
High Specialisation = Low Adaptability
A high level of adaptability (-> 1.0) means that each individual is capable of fulfilling every role equally well (specialisation -> 0.0).
The extreme of this is that any individual can be 'retrained' very quickly.
Thus the role of a planetary population can change quickly from, say, research to production, without any adverse effects.
In addition, races with high adaptability can adapt to new technologies quicker, thus new production techniques will come online more quickly.
However, there is a price to pay : individuals are not as specialised for their roles, thus each individual is less effective in any given role than their couterpart in an unadaptive race.
A low level of adaptability (-> 0.0) means that each individual is more specialised (-> 1.0).
The extreme of this (at 1.0 specialisation) is a biological caste system, where an individual *cannot* fulfil any role other than the one it was born for.
This means that each individual is better suited to its role, resulting in higher preformance in that role. Thus a boost is received in all roles.
However, it also means that adjusting a planets job balance takes a VERY long time (generations, in fact) with the interim changeover period being chaotic and prone to unrest.
For the record, humans would be about a 0.5 on this scale.
i.e. Most individuals can be trained from birth to fulfil any role
And on average, individuals can be retrained, but it is time consuming and expensive.
Aggressiveness
Can range from Warlike (1.0) to Pacifist (0.0)
More aggressive races tend to be happy when you are at war with at least one other race.
They will be unhappy when at peace with all of your neighbours, especially those they dislike.
Threatening or declaring war will decrease unrest.
Signing peace accords will increase unrest.
These actions on behalf of other races will also affect your population's perception of them.
e.g. if race A threatens race B, your people will like race A more.
if race B begs race A for peace, then your people will dislike race B more.
Pacifist races are happy when at peace.
Being at war with enemy races will make your population unhappy, especially if they like that race.
Signing peace accords will decrease unrest.
Threatening or declaring war will increase unrest.
These actions on behalf of other races will also affect your population's perception of them.
Physical Repulsiveness
Each race has a physical repulsiveness factor w.r.t. every other race in the game.
This is effectively random at default (0.5)
Points can be spent to decrease the average level of repulsiveness to other races (down to 0.0)
Points can be regained to increase the average level of repulsiveness to other races (up to 1.0)
Open-Mindedness / Empathy
The counterpart of repulsiveness. i.e. how well your race tolerates the physical repulsiveness of other races.
If your race's open mindedness is 1.0, then another race's repulsiveness effectively becomes zero.
If your race's open mindedness is 0.0, then all other races will tend to be repulsive to your race.
Less empathic races will not mind other races being treated poorly, as slaves/raw materials/vermin.
More empathic races will mind this and will increase unrest.
Racial Unity
The higher this value, the more empathy your race will have with members of its own species.
Races with high levels of racial unity will:
- Generate unrest if parts of the population are conquered during war.
- Generate unrest if conquered.
- Provide casus beli for going to war to reclaim conquered populations.
- Dislike other races that treat conquered populations of your own race badly.
- Tend to dislike other races more in general.
Low levels of racial unity:
- Be indifferent to the fate of your own populations once they are no longer a part of your empire.
- Tend to like other races equally to your own.
Population Contentment
The unrest level of your population will increase or decrease based on several factors.
...
Racial Status
Initially your empire will only contain your own race. However it is possible to aquire citizens of other empires.
Each race can be set to a certain status within your empire which will determine how they are treated.
Priority for food, imperial grants, favourable habitats etc always goes to races with the highest status on the list. Thus
Elite
The chosen race becomes is the ruling class, lording it over the other races.
In order to pick this, at least 50% (66%?) of the empire population must be of other races
Only one species can be elite... although you do not have to have one.
If you have an Elite race, the maximum that other races can achieve is:
For one race only : Trusted Associate.
For all other races : Subjects
- decreased productivity (75%)
- increased research (150%)
- unrest virtually eliminated
- totally resistant to enemy spying/subversion
Other races of Full Citizen status will have to be demoted, and will experience large amounts of unrest for an extended period.
Reduced military presence required for elite race (50%)
Increased military presence required for other races (150%)
Full Citizens
This is the default status for your own race.
- Full migration rights
- Normal production, research etc (100%)
- highly resistant to enemy spying/subversion
No extra military presence required in normal circumstances (100%)
Associates
Very close to full citizenship, but still have a slightly lower priority for food, migration etc.
- Full migration rights
- Normal production, research etc (100%)
- Slightly reduced population growth (80%)
- Can be used in military, but not as garrison units
- Can be used as defensive spies only
- fairly resistant to enemy spying/subversion
Minimal military presence required (110%)
Subjects
Normal stable state for conquered races.
- Can only migrate between player designated systems
- Slightly reduced population growth (75%)
- Slightly reduced productivity (75%)
- Lowered Research (50%)
- Can be used in military, but not as garrison units
- Cannot be used as spies
- Susceptible to enemy spying/subversion
Low military presence required (125%)
Subjugates
A safe state for hostile conquered races
- Cannot migrate automatically, must be moved by player.
- Lowered production (50%)
- Very low research (10%)
- Cannot be used as spies, or in the military
- Reduced population growth (50%)
- Very susceptible to enemy subversion
Requires a moderate military presence (150%).
Slaves
Or 'Forced Labour Units' (whatever the fuck that is supposed to be).
- fairly good worker productivity (75%)
- reduced food consumption (50%)
- No research (0%)
- Cannot be used as spies, or in the military
- Very high unrest
- Zero population growth (may even go -ve)
- Very susceptible to enemy subversion
Requires a high military presence (200%).
Raw Materials
Basically, the population is treated as livestock, to be consumed.
- Provide Extra food (for biological races)
- Provide Extra minerals (for mineral based races)
- Provide Extra production (for energy beings)
- Varied population growth (depending on ratio of raw materials pop to others in empire)
Giving a race this status is repugnant to many other races (possibly including your own).
May increase unrest throughout empire.
May decrease friendliness of other empires.
Requires a very high military presence (300%).
Vermin
Race is stamped out systematically - genocide
- Food is kept away from the race, only that available by scavenging is available (20%)
- Zero production, research (0%)
- Very low population growth, depending on ratio of military to remaining population.
Giving a race this status is repugnant to some races, sometimes depending on their own racial preferences
Requires a very high military presence (300%).