Okay I'm finally looking to put PA through its paces and I'm relatively newbie at RTS games like this. I have played Sup Com but I was never sure about my skills managing the economy. I'm just not sure what I should be building right away. How many metal extractors is too much or energy producers? Do I want to destroy old ones and replace them with Tier 2 buildings if I can get the chance? Do I want metal extractors or do I want energy right off the bat? How do I know when to transition from my first few economy buildings to gearing up to fight Tier 1? I'm only familiar with T1 and T2 concepts because of lurking here. --- Another thing I was wondering is this game rock paper scissor balanced? Does every unit have a hard counter? or is it all kind of soft? Other than the obvious stuff like aa vehicles what units counter which? Any other newbie advice or opening builds is appreciated. Thanks.
I like doing this for my starting build: Mex, mex, pgen, mex, pgen, pgen factory, a whole bunch of pgens alongside other stuff. (mex = metal extractor, pgen = power generator)
Mex pgen Mex Mex Factory Pgens are a common starting build. The pgen can be the second or third structure, it doesn't matter too much.
Keep in mind that the entire balance of the game is about to change and everything you learn right now could be wrong in as little as a day.
I wouldn't recommend destroying your own stuff t2 metal extractors are able to be built on top of t1 extractors and your can just build your t2 power in a new part of your base as you expand
Check out this tutorial on the opening build: More tutorials can be found on PA Matches Balance changes are ongoing. There's no single link that can be provided because changes are frequent and drastic. Anything that's in the game today could be completely different tomorrow.
Technically it's already here in the form of the PTE (public test environment) build. But yes, a huge change is on its way. Looking a at the thread in general discussion called "Fire! PTE! Balance! Oh my will give you a fair idea of what's coming down the pipeline, you can also check out the live playtest change notes on the forum for a more in depth explanation. However, here are some general tips that will never become outdated: 1. Expand like a virus: there's absolutely no such thing as too much metal or energy, the more metal you control, the less your opponent has 2. Scout your enemies constantly: the game has several powerful weapons like nukes that can turn the tide of battle in a heartbeat, knowing where they are and how to get to and destroy them is extremely important. 3. Never neglect orbital: even in single planet games, orbital units have several advantages that can be used to aid you, and of course, turning a friendly moon into an asteroid is hella fun. Also, as ikickass pointed out, watching replays is a great way to learn, but to add onto that, also review games you lose. Figure out what mistakes and weaknesses your opponent took advantage of and use that knowledge to improve your play.
