PATCH CENTRAL Version 1.25 [Windows] (5.3MB) Installation Check [Windows] (28KB) Version 1.25 [Macintosh] (5.0MB) SHOPPING CENTRE MoO3 @ Chips&Bits ($29.95) MoO3 @ EB ames ($39.99) MoO3 Strategy Guide @ EBGames ($19.99) MOO3 PREVIEW PART 6: LET'S CALL IT A DAY PART 5: NOT ALL QUIET ON THE GALACTIC FRONT PART 4: SOMETHING TO BE SAID FOR TALK PART 3: THE JOURNEY BEGINS PART 2: FOR CUSTOMIZATION'S SAKE PART 1: LET'S MEET THE PLAYERS

MoOving In: A Detailed Preview of Master of Orion III
PART 6: LET'S CALL IT A DAY (Page 2)
By Daniel Quick | Apolyton CS Co-Owner/Administrator

In the case at hand, more than half my annual expenses are going towards 'Grants to Planets'. This lays out the financial consequence of my supplemental funding of planetary development within my empire. See Part 3's description and related image for more on this. Coming in second by taking roughly a quarter of my cycle-to-cycle revenue are 'Military Grants'. At first glance, this surprised me. 'Military Maintenance', a scant 2.2% of my budget, seems to correlate nicely with the quantity and quality of my fleet. In Part 5 I relayed the story of the tragic lose of one of my scout ships in the Taben system. It was one of only two I had in service.

Previously, I alluded to the size of my military when comparing it to the heavily fortified homeworld of the New Orions (see Part 4). During Turn 36 I am valiantly – OK, more like insanely – defending the Apolytonian people with a single offensive unit. It is equipped with modest armaments at that. All of my other units, ranging in number from three to seven being active at any one time, are colony task force and settler ships. They carry minimal defenses even when compared to my scout ships. So, when I saw that almost a quarter of my expenses per annum were tied up in 'Military Grants', I began to wonder what this money was being spent on… guaranteed life insurance plus for my soldiers, perhaps?

Witticisms aside, I discover after some investigating that I not only opened the door but encouraged this level of spending. The three-tier approach I was employing as the 'Military Grants' figure exhibits is as follows. First, my standing 'Colonization' policy (see Part 3) is to permit MoO3's artificial intelligence to colonize planets within systems at least partially under my control as available resources dictated. The second component is a direct result of the first: additional pollution caused by this increased spending ( MoO3 Manual | Pages 48, 63 ). Third and most important is the setting on my 'Military Budget' slider within the 'Imperial Economic Adjustments' box on the 'Ledger' screen's cousin, 'Budget'. As show in the related screenshot in Part 3, proportionally the 'Military Budget' has been granted almost 27% of the total adjustments spent. The correlation I was seeking was hereby confirmed.

Finally, the total 'Additional Research' monies – 11% of my expense budget in Turn 36 – is also validated by the 'Additional Research Spending' slider I first introduced in Part 3 also. The percentage of additional funding allocated to it back in my game's first turn, which I never modified, was also 11%. Conjecture be damned.

HOW TO BECOME AND LOVE BEING CHOPPED LIVER
No offense is intended to those who enjoy a liver meal, but one may not be able to help but feel like this food chopped up and served on a platter when a 'Leader' surfaces within your race's High Council. Brush your ego aside. At the end of the day, you should feel most flattered. As your game progresses, skilled members from other races across the known galaxy may immigrate to your worlds and take out citizenship of your race in place of their existing one. Even there mere presence can have positive implications of significance let alone if and when they act on something. However, as high-ranking bureaucrats they will invariably become the target of enemy spies – especially those dispatched by the native race of your leader(s). When the first such individual is appointed, waste no time in getting your 'Espionage' force into formation so that these very important people can be adequately protected. Similarly, your own agents can be used to target 'Leaders' of other races. Remember these points as 'Espionage' is discussed later in this installment.

Only four leaders may be appointed at any given time to the High Council. If there are no vacancies, no other potential candidates will come forward: they will not attempt to displace an existing council member. From the 'Leaders' screen under the Personnel tab you have the ability to dismiss any leader you wish with a click of the so-named button. Personally, I do not see an advantage in dismissing a 'Leader' if there is still at least one vacancy open on the Council. That said, dismissing leaders as soon as the council square is complete is not always a desirable strategy either. This is a balance that you will have to work out for yourself by getting a feel for it through trial and error. Suffice to say that when dismissing a 'Leader', or simply when reviewing their standing, take a look at the icons that detail the effects they have on your empire first and foremost.

Take for instance Apolyton's sole leader that began his tenure in Turn 30: Sulauthk Tafa, a Sakkra. As I mentioned in Part 5 during my overview of the 'Foreign Matrix', the Apolytonians have a Trade Agreement with this race and have enjoyed active communication channels since early gameplay.