GameSpot's Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri Game Guide

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appendices

Appendix A: Modifying Alpha Centauri Rules

Appendix B: Creating Custom Functions

Appendix C: Creating Maps and Scenarios

Social Outlook and Special Rules, continued
* TALENT (number): Gives the faction extra talent at each base per this number of citizens. Increasing this number will make base management a bit easier for the faction.

* TECH (technology advance): This determines which technology the faction begins the game with. Keep the tech tree in mind when providing a free technology; you don't want to provide extremely powerful items to one faction at the start.

* TECHCOST (number): This value is a percentage modifier for the technology research rate. For example, if this number is 150, each discovery costs 150 percent of the usual research value.

* TERRAFORM: Halves the cost of raising or lowering terrain with your terraforming units.

* UNIT (number): Provides a free unit at the start. The value is gathered from the units list inside alpha.txt. This is one of the most powerful ways to differentiate your factions. A military faction, for instance, could begin the game with a few military units, but no scouting or terraforming units.

* VOTES (number): Determines the faction's number of election votes.

WARNING
You shouldn't change the names given to these variables (such as TECH and MINDCONTROL) because you can't change what they actually do. You should only alter the values that modify the variable.

The next section in the faction's text file determines its social outlook. There are two lines for this, letting you choose two default elements for your faction. Let's look at the Gaians again:

Economics, Green, PLANET None, None, nil

Here you see the social element followed by the belief and a modifier. The first line indicates the faction's preferred social model. The Gaians' preferred social model is the green economic model, which, as you see here, modifies the PLANET social effect. The next line indicates a social model the faction can't use. Adding the "nil" at the end removes the social model from the faction's attributes. For example, if you wanted the Gaians to be prohibited from using police state politics, you could add the following for your second line:

Politics, Police, nil

Because the second line actually eliminates that model from the faction's choices, use it with extreme care. Eliminate social models using logic; for instance, don't eliminate power values from a combative faction. Because the next line is filled with "None" and a "nil," the Gaians have no other modification to their default social outlook.

NOTE
There are numerous special rules that alter the way the faction behaves. Don't feel like you must modify every one to construct your custom faction. Too much isn't necessarily a good thing.