The not-so-official Hints and Tips topic

[Georg]

So, I decided to make a topic regarding small tips that some people might not now right now. Feel free to post everything that you think might be helpful to other CW3 players.

I will start: If you plan a invasion, build some PCs/sprayers in safe terrain and move them in creeper-covered terrain. Works too when you just nullified a emitter and want to clear the other terrain of leftover creeper. Just move the PC/sprayer on the PZ. When using this tactic keep in mind that you need to have/build a connection.

[Nephthys]

So, I decided to make a topic regarding small tips that some people might not now know right now. Feel free to post everything that you think might be helpful to other CW3 players.

I will start: If you plan a invasion, build some PCs/sprayers in safe terrain and move them in creeper-covered terrain. Works too when you just nullified a emitter and want to clear the other terrain of leftover creeper. Just move the PC/sprayer on the PZ. When using this tactic keep in mind that you need to have/build a connection.

Very good tip for new players about the Power Zones. I am trying to remember where we learned to use them and I am coming up blank (no surprise there), but I am pretty sure it isn't mentioned during initial game-play dialogue. I am sure someone can let us know for certain. (Also, I am not at all familiar with what might already be posted in Wiki info for CW3).

My contribution:
Click a unit again once it is placed. If you play for a fast time, be sure to Pause first. Many units have options that you wouldn't know about until/unless you click it again to move, destroy or check its status. Even then, you might not notice the options in the Control Panel. For example, Sprayers can also be used to collect Anti-Creeper that you've moved past. I find this especially helpful when using Bombers to move forward while only have access to, say, a single ore mine on a large map. Keep in mind that the Sprayer will load & hold 50 units of AC before it starts sending excess back to the Orbital for reprocessing.

[Lost in Nowhere]

If there are more enemies near a structure you just nullified, place a nullifier on the power zone.

[Grauniad]

Very good tip for new players about the Power Zones. I am trying to remember where we learned to use them and I am coming up blank (no surprise there), but I am pretty sure it isn't mentioned during initial game-play dialogue.

It's mentioned in Telos  - 3rd world in Arc Eternal Missions.

[Lost in Nowhere]

Strafers are very good at cutting off strands of digitalis

[J]

Bertha's on power zones are 6 times as efficient as normal bertha's

I will start: If you plan a invasion, build some PCs/sprayers in safe terrain and move them in creeper-covered terrain. Works too when you just nullified a emitter and want to clear the other terrain of leftover creeper. Just move the PC/sprayer on the PZ. When using this tactic keep in mind that you need to have/build a connection.

I usually use a PZ mortar to clear leftover creeper. It just doesn't make sure the creeper under the mortar is cleared fast enough to keep it alive but it can shoot over ridges to clear all near creeper =J

[JonneeG]

on maps with limited totems/energy, you can disarm the forge until you have enough aether to buy energy upgrades

[Clean0nion]

on maps with limited totems/energy, you can disarm the forge until you have enough aether to buy energy upgrades

You can charge totems without building a forge by clicking them and selecting "Charge without Forge"

[Randomgold]

When faced with many spores the start firing early, spread your forces out into many bases, even if one or two are in dangerous positions.  It will cause the spores to be distributed between them until you can get a solid spore defense on one or two.

[Wheatmidge]

Do not build weapons until you need them. Spend all your energy at the beginning on collectors and reactors.

[Ringo]

Keep in mind that the Sprayer will load & hold 50 units of AC before it starts sending excess back to the Orbital for reprocessing.

What version of the game are you using? I have never saw this and have made maps that only have an anti emitter on them and put sprayers to collect the AC and once they got full (100 AC ammo) they didn't sent AC to the orbital?

[Flabort]

Do not build weapons until you need them. Spend all your energy at the beginning on collectors and reactors.

But don't forget to build them when you do need them.
...stupid spores that I can't remember to deal with.

[JonneeG]

on maps with limited totems/energy, you can disarm the forge until you have enough aether to buy energy upgrades

You can charge totems without building a forge by clicking them and selecting "Charge without Forge"

I was talking about once you have a forge and a totem, but not enough aether to buy energy efficiency level 1.

Also

on maps with multiple CN's but limited space, sometimes it is worth it to use all of them to build your economy and then send one of them back to orbit to make room for other structures

[Grayzzur]

Keep in mind that the Sprayer will load & hold 50 units of AC before it starts sending excess back to the Orbital for reprocessing.

What version of the game are you using? I have never saw this and have made maps that only have an anti emitter on them and put sprayers to collect the AC and once they got full (100 AC ammo) they didn't sent AC to the orbital?

1.50, Colonial Space beta. It's been available since the start, I believe. Do you have the "Dispatch Excess AC" checkbox on Sprayer units? That makes it send back everything over half to the command nodes. It does have to be connected to the network for that to work, however.

If it's in a location that can't be connected directly, you can use an Ore Guppy - but you must build the Ore Guppy in the remote location where the ore is being collected by the Sprayer (or remote mine), then send it to a location on the command node's network. That can be done by sending a regular Guppy to the remote location to build the Ore Guppy (and remote mine if there's ore). You will also need to build a collector or relay so the Sprayer can connect to the Ore Guppy.

[Relli]

Keep in mind that the Sprayer will load & hold 50 units of AC before it starts sending excess back to the Orbital for reprocessing.

What version of the game are you using? I have never saw this and have made maps that only have an anti emitter on them and put sprayers to collect the AC and once they got full (100 AC ammo) they didn't sent AC to the orbital?

If you have a Command Node charge a sprayer, it will not charge it more than 50 ammo. To get 100, you need to go the rest of the way by sucking up Anti-Creeper, like for instance from an Anti-Emitter, like what you did. Then to get it to send Anti-Creeper over 50 back as Ore into a Command Node, there's the option Grayzzur mentioned. "Dispatch Excess AC". This is very useful for charging sprayers far away from your Anti-Emitter, rather than having to send every single sprayer back to the AC pool to collect more each time.