Unexplained culture loss

from Stardock Forums

I've just finished a game against an unfair AI. The AI was down to five planets when I jumped into the home planet for the final battle. With that won I colonised the planet, but immediately started losing culture. Two 'dead end' planets either side had four broadcast centres each, which I destroyed - too late to save the colonised planet though, I 'lost contact'.

I recolonised, wiped out the next planet, leaving one left. My culture was still going down at -0.05. The last planet had one broadcast centre which I destroyed. Bearing in mind my culture was right up to this last planet, my newly colonised planet had four broadcast centres, and the planet I jumped in from had six, my culture on the newly colonised planet was still going down at -0.05...

I destroyed the last planet, so the game was over, but why was the culture still negative? It should have switched to positive culture long before.

14,427 views 9 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top

It's likely that the enemy culture hasn't been fully neutralized. Check the phase lanes colours; if the line connecting to your planet was the enemy's colour, then it's still under enemy culture. I'd expect that your culture lanes haven't reached the planet, while the enemy culture was only starting to be neutralized.

Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top

Normally I'd expect the colour on the phase lanes to start drawing back. Once all the broadcast centres were gone, mine were built, plus a free route for my own culture, I'd expect this particular planet to turn positive.

DeskScapes - Bring your desktop background to life.
Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top

Hostile culture will retreat, but that doesn't mean the planet they originated from will immediately be relieved of its influence.

Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top

And it takes a bit for your newly built brodacast center to start pushing out culture. I dont know how long the delay is but I know there is one.

Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top

Two 'dead end' planets either side had four broadcast centres each
End of quote

Dead end planet spread their culture most effectively.  It is all going in one direction.  It isn't split in halfs, thirds, etc as it spreads to adjoining planets, depending upon the number of phase lanes there.

Here's a strategy I've used on a dead end planet for crushing culture spread.  Sneak an Advent Star Base onto to a dead end planet behind their Home World with the Culture Ability upgrade.

Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top

No starbases - this is version 1.05...

I've found an autosave just before I lost the planet for the first time. Only the asteroid is left, with one broadcast centre, the ice planet (shown as enemy (green)) has already been taken over by my culture.

 

Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top

It looks like the Media Centers on your homeworld haven't been built yet.  Altho they are qued up to be build, the constructor ship hasn't completed its other tasks yet (also a whole bunch of unbuilt turrets too), or gotten there yet.

Does the opponent have Media Centers on that green dead end plantet (a terran)?  Altho you may have liberated that planet, I believe his Media Centers will continue to broadcast culture despite the planet being dead. 

Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top

They weren't built the first time, just queued, but second time they were built.

At the stage shown above the as yet not visited asteroid had one, all others had been destroyed. But right up to when I whacked the asteroid itself those green lanes never wavered. My second colonisation got down to almost the same point when the game was over.

Reply #9 from Sins Forums Top

It's a slim possibility, but if you lost your homeworld, then you'd be losing culture at that rate. Check to make sure you have a homeworld on that map. Probably isn't the problem, but worth a look.\

Neeeevermind. Just checked the image. You have one.