The Importance of Organics

[ckotchey]

I've only played a few solo games so far, but I'm curious about the seeming lack of importance on Organics. Almost never have I been short on this resource, or found the need to build more than a minimal amount of Organics Extraction facilities. Is there any point in a game where this resource becomes more of an issue than I'm seeing? I have the same question to a lesser degree with the Radioactives.
What makes me curious is how the game Stars! manages the resources. In general, of the 3 basic building materials, each one becomes critical to certain components (Boranium for beams & bombs, Ironium for missiles & armor, etc, Germanium for factory construction). I was wondering if the same sort of material needs arises in SE4.

[kalthalior]

Organics are not usually utilized much unless you pick the Organic Technology as a racial trait. Radioactives aren't utilized as much as Minerals, but their use picks up (some) with higher level technologies. Minerals are really the focal resource in the game. I believe some mods try to address this to some extent.

[dogscoff]

Later in the game radioactives become far more important for things like stellar maniuplation. Organics are important for organics races, and for a few of the more obscure components and facilities.
But basically, yeah. In the standard game, M rules and O&R are only good for trading with the AIs. (Or for feeding into your resource converter.)

Once you start playing with mods, however, O&R come into their own. Proportions, Devnull and P&N all have more balanced resource costs, and probably other mods as well.

[Suicide Junkie]

In the PBW P&N game I'm playing now, the exchange rate I trade at is:
70 Minerals = 130 Organics = 120 Radioactives.
My engine tech is picking up now, so I expect radioactives will soon become even more valuable.

[Mylon]

How do you use resource converters anyway? Is it automatic based on empire surplus, or is there some special way to activate it?

[tesco samoa]

build it on a planet... and when you click on that planet the icon will highlight at the top and you select it..

Then on the left is resources... on the right you select what you want to convert them to..

Click on the left for how much...

[Tezzezar]

Is it worthwhile converting Organics to Mineral or radiaocative?

Seems redundant when you can just build the facilites to produce them. Unless you're in a poor sector of the galaxy.

G-

[Baron Grazic]

Try retro-fitting a 50 ship Attack Fleet plus their Supply Ships to the latest Engines, Weapons and Shields, and as your Mineral Supplies drop you will quickly see the benifit of the Resource Converter.

In a PBW Game, retro-fitting my ships used ALL my Minerals, Organic & Radioactives that I had stored - 1.5M Resources in total. With the Help of the Resource Converter, I had just enough Minerals to complete the Retro-fit and the ships will be soon heading back to the front.

[Gryphin]

ckotchey,
You may try creating a race with
%80 Organics
%80 Radio actives
That is: Subtract 20 pts from each.
In addition,
Check which of your Home Worlds has the lowest Organic production.
Remove it and replace with a more useful facility. This may put you into negative production.
When you need more Organics find a planet with higher Organic production and build a few there.
Do the same for Radio actives.
When you can afford to, do the same for Minerals.
Since you can only build one facility at a time, only scrap one at a time per planet. This makes for micromanagement but it works.
Edit:
Afterthought:
You could place an order for manure at the Cantinna to help with Organic production.
There are also a few Rad patrons.

[ September 12, 2002, 13:03: Message edited by: Gryphin ]

[tesco samoa]

The Monolith is a good example of why you would want a converter...