Crystals too scarce?

from Sins Forums
I've been playing Sins on and off since Beta 3, and I love it, but there is one complaint I have.  In pretty much every game I've ever played, I have a pretty constant supply of money and metal, but am never enough crystal.  It basically comes down to crystal being the only resource I need to think about.  The only need I have for more of the other resources is to sell them on the black market to get more crystal.  It seems to me that it makes more sense to have the metal and crystal be of equal scarcity, so that you have to think more carefully about which resources are at each planet that you consider taking.   But as much as I've noticed this issue in my own playing, I haven't seen any other posts on the forum about it.  So I'm wondering, do other people have this problem, or am I just crazy?  Or maybe other people like it better this way?  If so, why?
9,769 views 12 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top
Crystal is the de facto limiting resoruce of Sins. It is supposed to be scarce.
Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top
But wouldn't it be more interesting to have both metal and crystal be limiting resources? Maybe you'd need more metal for ship construction and more crystal for research. It seems like that is the way it is meant to be, since they treat both resources the same way in the black market and such. Why do you have the option to buy metal on the black market if you never need to use it?
Star Control: Origins
Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top
You want to have both resources as scarce? I'm not sure I see the advantage, other than to really slow down the game, since you'd be sitting around a lot waiting for both resources to build up enough to research/build.

You really wouldn't have to sit and think about colonizing a world based on what resource is available in that scenario: you'd take everything you can find and turn any extra into cash to buy what you don't have. Same as now, but as I said above, it would only serve to slow things down even more.

BTW, I played a game recently on a medium map where I had to buy metal a couple times. I had enough crystal, but was short of metal to build out my fleet. Doesn't happen often, no, but it did happen to me twice or thrice in that particular game.
Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top
Crystal is the de facto limiting resoruce of Sins. It is supposed to be scarce.
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I actually prefer it this way.

But wouldn't it be more interesting to have both metal and crystal be limiting resources? Maybe you'd need more metal for ship construction and more crystal for research. It seems like that is the way it is meant to be, since they treat both resources the same way in the black market and such. Why do you have the option to buy metal on the black market if you never need to use it?
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Random systems don't always end up being this way. I've had several where metal was scarce. Admittedly I don't play very many scenarios so in that field I wouldn't really know...



Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top
I don't know what it is about my gameplay style, but metal is always my main problem. I play the unity race, I don't know if that makes a difference or not. Actually, come to think of it, when I played one game as TEC I did have a crystal shortage rather quickly.
Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top
A lot of it depends on your strategy. If you spam fleets and do a lot of aggressive military work with light frigates, you're going to hurt for metal. If you're resource spamming and jumping to the higher value ships, then crystal will be your limiting factor.

One thing that can help is to prioritize ice planets in your empire's expansion path, and then refinery them.

-- Retro
Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top
I've played on maps where metal becomes more scarce than crystal, its all in the dynamics of the races and what you are trying to do. I.E. Research and planet improvments need different levels of both metal and crystal and some items are more metal heavy than they are crystal and vise versa. It just forces you to think instead of makning mineral gathering a non issue like in Star Craft.

And Star Craft is an game awesome but minearls are hardly used in stratgey other than you need it to build stuff.
Reply #8 from Sins Forums Top
I've played many different games, and I've haven't noticed one resource being the limiting one most of the time. I've had all three individually be the limiting resource in different games. I don't think there should be any change, I like it the way it is.
Reply #9 from Sins Forums Top
I too have seen it go both ways, with one resource being more scarce than others. There are good ways to get around this issue:

1. Play TEC and research all the crystal-production techs. Build refineries.
2. Upgrade civ infrastructure on your planets and use trade stations to build credit income and refineries to boost resource harvesting. Also sell off excess metal. Then purchase crystal to make up for insufficient supply.
3. Colonize more, especially crystal-producing planets.

4. Deal with it. Limited resources are a game-design feature. Without limits on resource-gathering there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to produce and research infinitely at the beginning of the game. If there weren't limits on resource gathering then SoaSE would be a game of who can click the fastest to build units and structures and get them produced faster than your opponent.
Reply #10 from Sins Forums Top
I think the resources are a bit too random for one to be declared too scarce.

One game I played had too much metal.
The next, too much crystal.

I find it isn't really an issue though, mostly because of the black market. It is a bit annoying to repeatedly go and sell crystal, buy metal, though. But it's part of economic management.
Reply #11 from Sins Forums Top
I think the resources are a bit too random for one to be declared too scarce.One game I played had too much metal.The next, too much crystal.I find it isn't really an issue though, mostly because of the black market. It is a bit annoying to repeatedly go and sell crystal, buy metal, though. But it's part of economic management.
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Feature of the latest patch. But overall in 90% of my games, I'm selling metal to buy crystal.
Reply #12 from Sins Forums Top
I too have seen it go both ways, with one resource being more scarce than others. There are good ways to get around this issue:1. Play TEC and research all the crystal-production techs. Build refineries.2. Upgrade civ infrastructure on your planets and use trade stations to build credit income and refineries to boost resource harvesting. Also sell off excess metal. Then purchase crystal to make up for insufficient supply.3. Colonize more, especially crystal-producing planets.4. Deal with it. Limited resources are a game-design feature. Without limits on resource-gathering there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to produce and research infinitely at the beginning of the game. If there weren't limits on resource gathering then SoaSE would be a game of who can click the fastest to build units and structures and get them produced faster than your opponent.
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I am only playing TEC and the above sums it up fairly well for the TEC. Now I am not playing on the hardest level yet I admit, and only single player. But I find now as I learn more that if I watch what I am doing and buy / sell either credits or minerals on the black market I can balance out what I need.

Cheers MarkL