I have had a lot of success doing the following with Emirates in Round 1: Keep the scientist on your planet with 1 production at the start, wait for trade III to be used, build 3 refineries and 2 space docks in your HS turn one. Only requires waiting for trade to be played and being able to get 2 trade agreements worth 2 (or some trade goods from distant suns if possible). Then second round you got 3 SD (all using Sarween Tools) and 6 production in your HS. Gives a very good starting base (and sometimes a victory point for all three SD's on the board).
Emirates 1st Round Tactic
Chirisophus said:
I have had a lot of success doing the following with Emirates in Round 1: Keep the scientist on your planet with 1 production at the start, wait for trade III to be used, build 3 refineries and 2 space docks in your HS turn one. Only requires waiting for trade to be played and being able to get 2 trade agreements worth 2 (or some trade goods from distant suns if possible). Then second round you got 3 SD (all using Sarween Tools) and 6 production in your HS. Gives a very good starting base (and sometimes a victory point for all three SD's on the board).
Sorry to poop the party but it's against the rules to build any refineries (facilities) in your home system-- probably for this very reason. Building two space docks in one system in one round is going to cost you six resources since only one planet can get the scientist bonus.
Building two SDs in your home system is a great idea, but I would worry about building all three in the same system. At minimum, it's begging for a blockade and unless you also build up PDS/GF support on all three planets pronto, it's begging for worse.
Hugesinker said:
Building ONE SD in your home system is a great idea, but I would worry about HAVING all three in the same system. At minimum, it's begging for a blockade and unless you also build up PDS/GF support on all three planets pronto, it's begging for worse.
--Fixed it.
You might want to reread the rules pertaining to refineries and colonies.
Seems like I'm late - Hugesinker beat me to it.
Thanks for the replies. I certainly missed that little tidbit and my group has played maybe 10-15 times since the first expansion came out. That will make some minor changes to future games (and turf this little tactic).
I don't really see much issue with putting three SD in one system (makes it easy to build up a fighter swarm), you can always scuttle when you need to build elsewhere, and with this tactic in play (which will no longer happen) you had adequate resources to defend since a single activation gave 6 free fighters (3 sarween resources). As a side note it isn't difficult to get the three extra resouces needed for building 2 space docks since trade III gives immediate results.
Chirisophus said:
Thanks for the replies. I certainly missed that little tidbit and my group has played maybe 10-15 times since the first expansion came out. That will make some minor changes to future games (and turf this little tactic).
I don't really see much issue with putting three SD in one system (makes it easy to build up a fighter swarm), you can always scuttle when you need to build elsewhere, and with this tactic in play (which will no longer happen) you had adequate resources to defend since a single activation gave 6 free fighters (3 sarween resources). As a side note it isn't difficult to get the three extra resouces needed for building 2 space docks since trade III gives immediate results.
That is pretty much the standard tactic of any remotely competitive Hacan player. I rarely, if ever, see games where a Hacan player doesn't do this. It's simply a very viable and great tactic. You don't need 3 space docks in the 1st round though; chances are you'll be unable to take proper advantage of three docks due to a fledgeling economy. In the long term you're better off building one dock in 1st round with the Scentist's reduction, and then repeating it in the round afterwards.