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[Bouchart]

Deadlock: Planetary Conquest is a Windows 95-era turn based strategy game that's similar to Civilization or Master of Orion, but a bit more oriented towards building and base management than combat. Seven races vie for control of planet Gallius IV.

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Here is one of the startup screens.  I'll play with the full 7 players, on a medium sized map with medium difficulty.

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Here I'll choose the insectoid race, ChCh't.  In general terms:

ChCh't have faster population growth;
Cyth have a static amount of happiness for their populations;
Humans produce more money;
Maug research things more quickly;
Re'lu have better scouts, visibility of the world and ability to mind control enemy units under certain circumstances;
Tarth has a stronger military and food production;
Uva Mosk has better natural resource production (but not as good food production as the Tarth).

It's a bit more nuanced than that but the above is a good summary.

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Here we can select our initial territory.  I'll select the territory in the top left corner.

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Finally we get to the actual gameplay.  This is one of the two main screens we'll be seeing.  The territory I chose is at the top of the screen, called ChCh't Landing.  Notice we have a little dude there with a 4 next to it, and a vehicle.  The vehicle is called a Colonizer.  More on that in a moment.

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Here is a zoomed in view of ChCh't Landing.  The territory is represented by a 6x6 grid.  In that 6x6 grid is a 1x1 building called a Housing, and a 2x2 building called a City Center.  Next to the City Center there are 4 little dudes.  Note in the top right of the screen, the population is given as 400/1000.  400 is the current population, and 1000 is the maximum.  The maximum can be increased by building more Housing or upgrading existing Housing.  Each of those little dudes represent 100 people.   Those people are currently assigned to work at the City Center:

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And are currently producing 12 Trade (money) per turn and 3 Culture (a happiness modifier) per turn.  That's not what I want to do.  I want to Add a Unit to the production queue and allocate all work towards a Colonizer.

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But I'm not done here.  I want to build a farm to produce food, on one of those Grain resources in the 6x6 grid.

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I could assign one of the four workers I have to work on building the farm, but I'll keep them working at the City Center for the time being.  The farm will be complete in 7 turns even without any people assigned to it.  I can always assign more later.

Remember that colonizer from before?  I'll move it to Hu Foodplace, and order it to build a settlement.  It'll be a new 6x6 grid where I can build on.

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The two victory conditions are defeating all enemies in combat, or building 5 (the default) City Centers.

Thus concludes Turn 1.  It's a lot to explain all at once so feel free to ask questions.  I'll be going over more details as necessary.  I don't have a lot of experience with the game but I know how to play it.

[Bouchart]

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So here are things at the start of Turn 2.  We have control of the Hu Foodplace, and a new Colonizer was built at ChCh't Landing.  Note the population there fell from 4 to 3 to build the Colonizer.

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Here is Hu Foodplace.  It only starts with a Housing and 100 people.  Only the first territory comes with a free City Center.  We're going to need a power plant and a university so let's get started with them.

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Here is the build screen.  It shows everything you can currently build along with their resource requirements.  I haven't spoken much about resources so far.  They're in the black box to the lower right of the screen.  Credits are in the top left of the screen in the toolbar area.  The font makes it a little hard to read.

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Each individual tile in the 6x6 grid produces a certain mix of resources.  The 1x1 building is the nuclear plant, which is on a good tile for energy production.  Energy is stockpiled like other resources.  The 2x2 building is the university.  Universities produce research points or electronic goods and don't depend on the underlying terrain.  Electronics to be researched before you can build them.

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I'll build an extra Colonizer at ChCh't Landing and move our existing Colonizer to Honey Mountains to build a settlement.

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This is the research screen.  I'm not currently producing research points, but I want to show this anyway.  For now I'll start on Nuclear Fusion.  That can let me replace nuclear plants with fusion plants, and leads to new weapons technology.

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And here is the finances screen.  Here we adjust the general tax rate.  Individual territories can be given more specific taxation.  Tax levels affect credit production each turn and have a morale bonus/penalty per turn.  I'll keep the defaults.

End of Turn 2.

[Bouchart]

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Here are things at the beginning of Turn 3.  We have control of the Honey Mountains, and a new Colonizer ready.  I wanted to send that new Colonizer to Swamp ThTh-P, but that has already been claimed, so I'll move it to the Quicksand Fen, east of the Honey Mountains.

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The Honey Mountains would be a great place for a mine, but I don't have enough credits.  Mines produce iron, and with research they can produce a substance called Endurium.

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Back at ChCh't Landing, we're done building units.  I'll move out population to build the farm, which will be done next turn.  On the City Center, I'll convert all production to Trade.  Note that there are no laborers assigned to it, but it still has a token amount of production.  Pretty much all buildings work like that.

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One last feature I'd like to show is the Black Market.  You can buy and sell resources, buy technology, buy units, or scout an area for a fee.  Using the Black Market has the risk of causing a scandal that lowers your peoples' morale for a number of turns, so it generally isn't a good idea to use it unless you're in a bind.

Next turn, Hu Foodplace will finish the nuclear plant, and then we'll start working on the university to start researching things.  After that, we'll need a mine and a factory to start military unit production.

[Bouchart]

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Here is the start of Turn 4.  The farm is complete and so is the nuclear plant.

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Quicksand Fen can produce a lot of energy, but that's about it.  It might be a good place to build factories and the like.  I don't have enough credits to do any more construction anywhere.

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Here is the farm we just built.  Farms can produce food and wood.  Each 100 people require 1 food per turn, or they suffer a severe morale penalty.  Food is transported from territory to territory as needed.  Wood is used to build Colonizers, mines, and one or two other things.  It's a fairly low priority resource, and this farm can't produce a lot of it anyway.  I'll concentrate on food here.

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The nuclear plant is done, but I'll move this guy from the plant to work on building the university.  We start the game with 100 energy and won't need any until the university is done anyway.

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And here is the morale screen.  Each territory has its own morale, based on several factors.  Unhappy citizens don't work.  A territory with 500 people and a morale of 80% means that only 400 people (4 icons) will work.

End of Turn 4.

[Elephant Parade]

Posting to watch. Also, consider spoilering updates.

[Bouchart]

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Nothing interesting happened Turn 5, but I want to show you one of the Housings.  They can be upgraded to Apartment Housing and Luxury Housing over time, which increases the maximum population in a territory.

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Finally on Turn 7 the university is completed.  I'll assign both workers to it.  On the right side of a screen there's a meter that shows your research progress.  The amount in yellow is the amount of research points that will be produced next turn.  Anything in green is the amount of research points already produced.  With the Electronics technology, another slider will appear on the university and we can use the university to research or build electronic components.  Electronic components are needed for a number of units.

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On Turn 8 we have enough credits to build that mine we wanted.

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On Turn 10 I decided to build another Colonizer, to settle the Mixed Grass Steppe all the way to the east.

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On Turn 12 our mine is complete.

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On Turn 13 we finally build a settlement on the Mixed Grass Steppe.  And we have a random event!  Fusion Cannon will let us build some good units.

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We also finish our Nuclear Fusion research.  This lets us build Fusion Plants, or lets us upgrade Nuclear Plants to Fusion Plants.  Next up will be Electronics.

[Bouchart]

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Turn 14, I've begun constructing a factory.  It's needed for military units.  It can also produce income through Trade, or convert iron into steel when you have Metallurgy technology.  One unit of steel is equivalent to five units of iron, so a building that needs 50 iron to build can use 10 steel instead.

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Turn 16, the factory is built.  I'll start construction on a Fusion Cannon, which is an artillery unit.  It has an attack of 8, and a defense of 20.  Defense is basically the hit point stat.  Each territory can only hold 4 infantry, 2 artillery, 3 planes, 3 ships, and 4 missile warheads, so quality is generally more important than quantity.  I'll also start upgrading the nuclear plant to a fusion plant.  Fusion plants produce more energy and require fewer laborers.

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Turn 18, Electronics technology is complete.  I'll set the university to produce electronics for one turn, then switch it all back to research.  The next research will be Rocketry, which will let me build missile bases.

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Turn 19, I set the university production back to technology.  I'll use one of those electronic components to build a Scout at the City Center.  Scouts are bad combat units, but they can spy on enemy territory and steal technology.  Scouts of some races have other special abilities.  A ChCh't Scout can steal resources from enemies.

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Turn 20, the Scout is complete.  I'll send it to Swamp ThTh-P and order it to steal resources.  The above is the unit order screen, the same screen I used to order the Colonizers to build settlements.  I'll also build a farm in the Mixed Grass Steppe since the one at ChCh't Landing is at full capacity and we aren't producing a surplus of food.

A note about resources.  They are moved from one territory at another automatically, but at a cost.  Moving them through allied territory costs 2 credits per resource, but that amount can be lowered with certain technologies.  Moving through neutral territory costs 3 credits per resource, and 5 per resource through hostile territory.  This is a reason why you might want to convert iron into steel, or put farms in different territories rather than have them all in the same territory.

[Bouchart]

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Turn 21, our Scout stole some food!  We'll try to steal technology next.  Also, ChCh't Landing hit the population limit of 2000.  We won't build anymore housing there for the time being, but we will build an extra university in Hu Foodplace.  Turn 22, Mixed Grass Steppe completes the farm, Hu Foodplace completes the university, and the nuclear plant was updated to a fusion plant.  The new university will build some electronic components for a while and then switch to research.

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Turn 23, we attempt to steal technology but they have nothing of interest.  I'll move the spy to another faction and attempt to steal from them.

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And on Turn 24, we steal Synthetic Fertilizer.  That lets us upgrade our farms.  We also finish Rocketry research.  I'll research Starflare Bombs next, which lets us build some aircraft.

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Back in ChCh't Landing, I'll build a Command Corps.  They improve the combat skills of other units in the area.  They also have special abilities for certain races, but not for the ChCh't.  I'll also build a farm in Hu Foodplace.

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Our Scout was caught and killed.  We also finished building a Fusion Cannon.  On Turn 28 I'll start building another one.  Turn 29 I start building an airport in Quicksand Fen.  Airports can build bombers, or produce trade income.  Every turn planes must be within a certain range of an airport, fuel depot or carrier.

At this point in the game the big problem seems to be money.  My next buildings will probably be a Seaport (which we might also need for naval units at some point) and another factory.

[Bouchart]

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Started building a Shipyard on Turn 32.  As you might guess, they can only be built in territories next to water.  Because maps are randomly generated at the start of the game, a map might only have a little water, or it might have a lot, so a game may or may not see a lot of naval combat.  I've also started upgrading some farms to hydroponic farms.

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Turn 33, a hydroponic farm is now finished.  It produces more food and wood, and requires fewer laborers.  The fewer laborers part isn't as big of a deal with a fast growing race like the ChCh't, though.  Our second fusion cannon is also done so the factory is now back to producing Trade.

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The airport is also done and is now producing trade too.  Now we are using more energy than we are producing, so we'll have to build another fusion plant soon.  Probably on that energy resource right there.  Turn 35, we've finished a hydroponic farm and the shipyard at Hu Foodplace.  We're out of cash again, and it'll take a few turns to be back in the black.  Turn 38, we've finished a fusion plant in Quicksand Fen and upgraded the farm in ChCh't Landing.  Money isn't much of a problem now, but we're going to need more iron for more military units.  Another mine would be handy, but we need 50 wood to build one, and none of our farms are on land that produces a lot of it, so it'll take a while.

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Turn 39, we finish Stareflare Bombs research.  This will let us build a powerful aircraft unit.  Anti-Matter Confinement is next up.  That will lead to Anti-Matter Rifles, which enables building the Battle Trooper infantry unit.

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Also, Honey Mountains is the first territory complaining about overpopulation.  Overpopulation affects morale more quickly in territories with a lot of mountains or swampland, than in territories with a lot of plains or forests, for the same level of population.  The way morale works is a bit screwy.  The territory will get increasingly unhappy until nobody at all is happy, unless you produce culture, or lower taxes, or have the military suppress the population.

[Bouchart]

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I've lowered the tax rate in Honey Mountains to slow the loss of morale.  It might be a good territory to build our next Colony Center, since they can produce culture.  I'll need a lot more iron to do that, though.  Also I'm building an extra farm in ChCh't Landing.  I also bought 29 units of wood from the Black Market in order to build a new mine.

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Turn 42, our first bomber is done.  Finally, on Turn 45 we start building a City Center.  This will be the second one, and building five wins the game.  Each City Center costs more than the last one built.  Also in Quicksand Fen I'll build a farm in order to produce wood.

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The next turn, Anti-Matter Containment is finished.  This lets power plants produce anti-matter, which is used to build some advanced military units.  It also lets fusion plants upgrade to anti-matter plants, which I'll do right away since we have a bit of a surplus of energy.  It's necessary for Battle Troopers. The next research is Anti-Matter Rifles.  Turn 49, the anti-matter power plants are complete.  The amount of anti-matter they produce doesn't depend on their terrain, so I'll dedicate the one on the tile without the Energy bonus to make anti-matter exclusively.

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On Turn 50, the City Center is done.  Three more to go to win.  I'll also build two more Starflare Bombers.  Quicksand Fen is overpopulated and has a morale problem so I'll build a cultural center there, along with another university to research things faster.

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Turn 52 I built a missile base in Hu Foodplace and started building 4 warheads.  As you might expect they are one use attack units.  Good to start an invasion with.  Turn 53, a notice pops up that the Re'lu have finished building a City Center, so they need only 3 more to win.

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Turn 55, the humans are wiped out.  Also I'm building a mine on some Endurium, though I can't make use of it yet.

[Bouchart]

The version I'm running is the Windows 95 version.  It runs fine on XP but I don't know about newer operating systems.  As far as I know it's not commercially sold anywhere, though.

[Bouchart]

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Turn 58, we have ourselves Anti Matter Rifles technology, so we can now build some Battle Troopers.  Next up is Endurium Mining research.  Also I'll build a fourth university.

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The Cyth can use spies to poison land and reduce food production.  Also I'll build a second factory.  We finish Endurium mining and Metallurgy, so I'll research Automation to improve our factories.  I'll build a second missile base too.

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Turn 65, Automation research is done, and those factories need to get upgraded ASAP.  And they are much, much better as automated factories.  They also take up 1x1 spaces instead of 2x2.  Turn 68, there's news that Uva Mosk built a City Center.

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Now it's Turn 72.  We have 3 Battle Troopers, 2 Fusion Cannons, a Command Corps, 3 Starflare Bombers, and 8 Warheads.  I've also updated the Surface Mines to Mantle Drills.  We'll prepare to strike the Cyth at Swamp ThTh-P.

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We start by launching all of our warheads at it.  Battles consist of short little videos with no interactivity.  This missile strike knocks out their laser defenses.  There's no real diplomacy in this game, so everyone is basically at a state of war with everyone else.  Sneak attack all you want!

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Then we attack.  It's an overwhelming success, and we gain the territory without losing anyone.  Units will automatically start repairing themselves after battle if they've taken damage.  Units gain experience, and have three levels: Green, Veteran, and Elite, which increase their combat effectiveness.  When you attack a territory, enemy civilians fight back along with any military units in the area.  Civilians have simple laser pistols, and aren't much of a problem if you have upgraded units.  They are a problem early on if you have only a few low-tech units.  It's why I skipped building Laser Squads and Laser Cannons.

Conquered territories have zero population, so you have to move your civilians there yourself.  You can move civilians from one territory to another at the cost of 25 credits per civilian.  Buildings are damaged and need to be rebuilt.

[Bouchart]

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Turn 75, we have a plague random event.  Not a big deal; we can take people off of farming and move them elsewhere because we have plenty of food anyway.

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Turn 77, I fired 4 missiles into Cyth Landing.  Not very effective.  I'll send in my now fully healed troops to attack it next turn.

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The attack is successful, but in the process I lost two Battle Troopers and all three Starflare Bombers.  It'll take some time to rebuild them.  My remaining troops were promoted to Veteran status.  Right now the major problem I have is lack of credits and electronic parts, so I decide to sell off 1,000 food, since it sitting in surplus isn't going to do any good.  Also I'm building an extra airport and shipyard for more trade.

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We finish Disruptor Beams technology, and start on Artificial Intelligence, which will let us upgrade our factories again.  Disruptor Beams let us build Disruptor Cannons, which are better than Fusion Cannons.  In Swamp ThTh-P, I'll start work on a third City Center.  The Uva Mosk (green) report that they have finished their third, so I'll need to attack them very soon.  But I want to wipe out the Cyth first, so I'll send in eight missiles.

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Boom!  We then invade the territory but lose 3 Battle Troopers in the process.  Fortunately we have some Robotic Factories coming on line, and they can churn out a Battle Trooper in one turn.  The Cyth are wiped out.

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Turn 93, I'll start work on the fourth City Center, in Hu Foodplace.  And it looks like with some extra money, I can start work on the fifth.  I'll have to sell off some extra energy at the Black Market to pull it off.  Five turns until they are done!

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To win, you have to have built five City Centers and hold them all for one turn.  So six turns later, on Turn 98, after a little base micromanagement, we win!  A bit anticlimactic, really.  We weren't even attacked the whole game.  This was on the medium difficulty, "Fair Fight".  Note that in the game settings, you can set it so that need from 2 to 10 City Centers to win.  Five is the medium setting.  Also the map size can be made larger than what I played at.  This was my first playthrough, and the medium settings were a bit too easy.

Finally, I plan on doing another LP soon (but not an LP of Deadlock) so if anyone has any advice or criticism, please let me know.

[EuchreJack]

Congrats, and nice LP!

Deadlock is one of those games that always looks interesting, but for some reason I can't get into.

[CognitiveDissonance]

Aaaand down memory lane we go. I spent so many hours on Deadlock and I miss it; I will be following the LP closely