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Part 2: Advanced Tactics

Chapter 7: The Art of War
You try to be nice but sometimes that isn't enough. As the saying goes, nice guys do finish last, and Alpha Centauri brings that point home with style. Military weakness is akin to a red carpet inviting your enemies over for a little invasion. Just because you may want to present yourself as a pacifist doesn't mean you must act like one. Having a strong and powerful army at your disposal needn't be used to prove its worth. Sometimes, like having a nuclear bomb in your back pocket, size and strength is deterrent enough to sway your enemies from attacking you.

The Delicate Balance of Military Might
Using the real world as an example, we effectively have two superpowers: the United States and Russia. Each is a military powerhouse, easily capable of wiping the other out with the press of a button. However, how these two superpowers came to be are completely different stories, each pointing directly to the philosophies that sustain them. With the US, a delicate balance between economic growth and prosperity was mixed with a sizable military expansion. In the case of Russia, more weight and funds were thrown at the military at the risk of a faulty infrastructure and the economic prosperity of their land. Ultimately, the US came out ahead, while Russia was forced to disembark from the Cold War ship and repair the damage from decades of societal neglect.

The point of this historical perspective is to illustrate cause and effect. While the desire to quickly build an overwhelming army may be great, it does come at the expense of other things. For every military unit you build, you're not building something that benefits your people, increases resources, or heightens your economy. On the other hand, you will stay ahead of the technological curve in all things war related, again coming at the expense of researching peaceful projects. Ultimately, you must find the right balance for your situation.

There is no way to predict what your situation will be in any given game, but there are a few givens. Sooner or later, you will be attacked. Sooner or later, push will come to shove. Will you be ready for it?

Next: The Art of Unit Design
 
 

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