THE TERMINATOR
Hints for playing the TERMINATOR Character
As expansion of the
Second Empire replaced the dark night of the Interregnum a mystery
unfolded. What happened to the race or races of the Old Empire?
To this day, no one can be exactly certain how such a powerful
interstellar culture could have been so completely stamped out.
But when the first explorers stumbled across a World of killer
robots a clue to this enigma may have been uncovered. The Terminator
Robots, as they have become commonly known, may be even older
than the fallen Empire, their terrible conception lost in the
impenetrable mists of time. Are they a leftover malevolent intelligence
dedicated to the destruction of life, an ultimate weapon, built
in desperation by some beings losing a war? Or, are they just:
a machine intelligence that somehow made a wrong computation?
Slipped a cog? Dropped a byte? No one knows and no one may ever
know, but the Terminator's Prime Directive has been made abundantly
clear - Destroy Intelligent Life. As long as the ultimate outcome
of negotiating with living beings is eventual death Terminators
can be bargained with. But eventually the Prime Directive must
be followed...
- excerpt Encyclopaedia Galactica
TERMINATOR SCORING:
Each Turn:
- 1 point for each Robot, built and functioning per turn, including
on worlds that are given away.
- 2 points for each normal Population unit killed.
- 35 points for each World Robotized
- Each Robot world creates 2 extra Imperial Credits, deposited
at Robot world.
- 350 points plus Population killed points for each World destroyed
by Gravitronic Disruptor
- 1 Terminator Robot on a World with Population immediately
kills 5 Population (rounded down)
- 1 Terminator Robot equals 5 Population in converting Raw Materials
to Imperial Credits
- Robot Worlds do not Rebel and are not affected by Siege.
Gems:CRYSTALS
Relics:
- The Silicon Chip (Also Baron)
- The Tram-x-Krang (Also Warlord)
- The Philosopher's Stone (Also Philosopher)
- The Book of the Dead Gods (Also Philosopher)
TERMINATOR ADVANTAGES:
Besides the fact that Robot populations are not
intimidated by siege nor will they rebel, they are the only mobile
population in IWars. Terminators can buy and sell Robots on any
world. Of course the biggest Terminator advantage is the use of
the Gravitronic Disruptor. While anyone can use one, the Terminator
gets great points and satisfaction in blowing up worlds.
TERMINATOR STRATEGIES:The Terminator is easily the most misunderstood character in the
game. Other Starlords look at the Terminator character description
and see only a mad robot. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Yes, Terminators need to kill populations, even minions to get
points but that’s not because you hate them. Robots can’t
hate. Yes, you want to blow up worlds but that’s just the
child in you and of course the big points. Starlords aren’t
your enemy, Populations are!
Resources, resources, resources; you just can’t
get enough of ‘em. You need lots of Imperial Credits to
feed the need for ships, particularly scouts. You turn them into
robots to attack worlds and into charges for your Gravitronic
Disruptor ray, for missiles… Those needful scout ships are
so important so you don’t want to waste them in battle if
you can help it. This really makes you a pussycat, at least in
the beginning of the game. Your robots are superior to human populations
– they can’t be intimidated, a wandering Philosopher
won’t convert them. They are altogether efficient, 1 of
them working as hard as 5 human population. And they are nice
and shiny with a million-mile warranty.
You have one really major problem besides, of
course, the fear you seem to strike in people despite these truths.
You badly need an Imperial World. In fact, your very future in
the game demands it. Only here can you acquire the deadliest weapon
of the old empire, the Gravitronic Disruptor. Attached to your
fleets it can turn even the dirtiest, germ, fungus and human parasite
infested planet into a lovely galactic firework, and make the
big points for you.
THE TRADER
Traders are very open-minded and will work with
anybody, even robots bent on destroying living creatures. You
desperately need anything that will maximize your production as
quickly as possible. Find a Trader and put him to work. It would
be good if he would be willing to give you fleets, quid pro quo,
so that you can do a bit of robotizing in his empire. Traders
are very likely to know where an Imperial World is.
THE HOURI
Treat the Houri like any of the other characters,
depending upon which the Houri is emulating. Of course, that is
assuming that you know. You are not natively enemy or ally to
this character but it is always wise to err on the side of discretion.
THE RAIDER
You have in common that too many people consider
you outcasts. However you can make a very profitable relationship
with a Raider. But don’t ever show weakness to a Raider.
He has worlds that can be robotized while they are still being
ravaged, won’t hurt them a bit for either of you and they’re
not producing anything anyway. You have worlds without much value
that you’re going to just blow up later anyway. Sounds like
a deal made in hell, don’t it. Just imagine how other players
would respond to a Raider-Terminator alliance at worlds where
both your fleets show up…
THE PHILOSOPHER
Every Philosopher needs a Terminator to clean
up after them. It’s all well and good to go around converting
populations to minions because they work hard and even can produce
the odd extra Imperial Credit for the world owner, however, they
can be annoying when they actually take over a world for their
leader. You can attack minions, get martyr points for the Philosopher,
make the world owner happy, and change how people feel about you
by performing a useful function.
THE BARON
You must convince the Baron that you are harmless,
and you really can be. He has so many resources and you need them.
Killing minions for him is an easy task that you are especially
well suited for. In fact, your robotic worlds will work for him
just as well as for you when you give them to him. Should he just
let you robotize them for him, he will have wonderfully productive
worlds that do not require protection from a siege by an enemy
fleet. And he’s bound to have some crummy worlds that he
can let you blow up. He sees a lot of worlds and may have an Imperial
World in one of his neighborhoods.
THE WARLORD
This is your hardest challenge. Outside of some
worlds that you could let this mercenary conquer you don’t
have much to offer. On the other hand, you offer very little danger
to the Warlord, so maybe he’d rather work with you rather
than any of the others because you have no motivation to cross
him. That in itself can be enough to make neighbors more than
just acquaintances. But don’t show him weakness because
he’ll roll right through your empire like corn through a
goose.
TERMINATOR HINTS FROM THE GALACTIC EFFECTUATOR: The Terminator is one of the more interesting Character Types.
He actually works well with all of the other Characters, especially
the Philosopher, Warlord, and Trader. The Terminator is more interested
in low or zero Population Worlds that can be easily robotized
than highly Populated ones. Characters that do not need Population
greatly can work well with the Terminator. He may prefer that
a Raider Raid his Worlds which have high population until he has
time to Build enough Robots to Attack the population. The Terminator
should be happy to trade high production Worlds to a Baron in
return for low population Worlds which he can Robot Attack, own,
and later, destroy with a Gravitronic Disrupter. The Terminator
is always faced with the tough choice of using the available Imperial
Credits for Ships or for Robots or Gravitronic Disrupter Charges.
He always has enough Production and Credits, his Robots work hard,
but spending his resources is also the only way he can make points.
Useless wars are especially uncomfortable for they waste valuable
resources getting no points.
The Terminator must not be discouraged by
the early low point totals. The end of the game is where the Terminator
shines. Expansion and efficient production are very important
early goals. Try to avoid conflict, intimidate as much as you
want but when it comes down to it, find someone else to fight
your battles. Be strong as you can at the beginning and get stronger.
Produce fleets and get those factories and robots to work. Find
that Imperial World and keep a few credits on all of your traveling
fleets so you will be ready to buy your main instrument, the deadly
Gravitronic Disruptor. Try to make friends with everybody, try
to communicate with everybody so that you might hear a rumor of
where one of those elusive worlds might be. Deal for trash worlds
near the end of the game. If you play it right, instead of being
offended, many people will want to just come and watch you blow
up a world for the event it represents. On the other hand, at
the end of the game is where you also can get revenge if it is
needed. Bide your time, mechanical mind….
Fully robotized Worlds, Given to another Player
will continue to produce Imperial Credits and the Terminator Robots
left behind will work quite happily for the new owner. The Terminator
continues to get points for these Robots unless they are destroyed. |