Planetary Engines

I'd say planets, moons and asteroids. Turn your base into a mobile troop transport fleet! Of course such a tactic should be balanced by being a huge dedication in resources to make happen. Meaning people wouldn't just use them as a disposable mega bombardment.

I really like the idea of smashing planets into other planets using engines, but I think it would affect game play too much and play test poorly. If my enemy has a stronghold on a planet somewhere where I am not, I would not have to attack the stronghold. I would just drop some boosters on the back side and destroy the planet. Also, if I am not a fan of expanding to other planets and dont want to have to deal with my opponent expanding I can just destroy all the planets I dont want to have to deal with in late game.

On paper, it sounds like a hellava lot of fun, but I dont think it would make the experience enjoyable in playing.

I'm all for the idea of sending planets into each other or even into the sun, I would like the idea of both being a option, I think that would be neat. not only the collision of two planets, but also the planets being reduced to nothing by a sun as well.

Edit: Considering how many it requires to actually move a planet, and defending those from attacks, or the speed at which each engine moves a planet, or for that matter if your own engines could counter act theirs if they are on the same planet. I don't think it would be absolutely game breaking to build them on enemy planets.

I'm not entirely sure this is coherent.....

How would it affect gameplay and what makes those effects bad? And how does something playtest poorly?

But what's stopping him from destroying the boosters with his own units? If you have nothing on the planet, you'll have to heavily invest in your own units/defenses to keep the boosters alive, not to mention it's possible the Engines would have a large drain on your Economy, potentially making you weaker elsewhere or requiring you to build extra Eco in addition to the Engines themselves.....

Again, I highly, highly doubt it'd be that easy.

Mike

What would happen if you placed 6 engines, each on different sides of a planet or asteroid?


Using planets etc as transports could be a be argument for and balancing method for Super units.

The dev response I read once and don't have a quote for, was that you can in theory (cuz it likely hasn't been implemented yet) place engines on anything, but since mass (i.e. volume) is a function of r^3 and surface area is a function of r^2, you get diminishing returns on fully covered planetoids as they get bigger. Hence, no limitations but physics helps create balance (i.e. go ahead and try to move your planet, it'll just take you all day to move while I pound it with 5 asteroids)

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Mavor's idea for the movement of celestial objects was more of a point and click. Like in the kickstarter trailer, you simply build the engines, click on the asteroid/whatever, then click where you want it to go. If you have enough thrust, it will go there and give you an eta. If not, then you miss.