Newbie Questions

[GiveMeHam]

Greetings All,

Just picked up Distant Worlds and am patched to version 1.0.6.0. I have not purchased the RotS expansion yet. I had a few "getting started" questions that I haven't been able to figure out on my own yet so hopefully I can gain some insight/help here.

1. Next to planetary resources, what do the % numbers represent? I think I figured out several things they're not, but not what they actually are.

2. I've only played a few years into my game (2 years, six months) as I'm moving very slowly trying to get a handle on what's what. My Tech seems to be moving VERY slowly (slider setting on normal). I have a few tech bases under construction but with only my starting station, I've seen only a 1 or 2 K tech gain in a couple of the bars. Is that normal? Do I need to be doing something here that I'm not?

3. Is there a story-line for the non-RotS game? Do I need to be paying attention to the information I've found at various ruins or is it just "flavor?"

[Data]

1) they are the resource's natural mining extraction rate which combined with the rate of your extractors gives you the speed with which you mine the resource...for colonies, this is combined with the colony's extraction rate
 
2) It's pretty much expected in the begining with that setting, just make sure your actual research matches your empire potential so that you go full speed
 
3) there is and it's not just flavor....no spoilers beyond that, have fun with it [:)]

[GiveMeHam]

Thanks Data!

So regarding Tech, the VERY slow growth I'm seeing so far is normal? I'm at work and don't have the game in front of me but I believe my actual was equal to my potential. If I'm not mistaken my medium base provided 7K in each category, plus racial modifiers, had me at 35k. Is "rushing" techs early a good idea, or should I just let things go along at their slow pace and wait for my new research bases to be constructed?

Thanks for not spoiling the storyline! I haven't enjoyed (at least in the early stages) a 4x game DW in awhile and the fact that there's "something out there" beyond just the 4x aspect is very cool.

[new_bee]

1. Next to planetary resources, what do the % numbers represent? I think I figured out several things they're not, but not what they actually are.

tm.asp?m=2691780

[Data]

i totally agree on the cool factor
about rushing techs it depends on what you want, i don't do it....plus, it's much more difficult to do it in this game as your research potential depends on your strategic value (i think it's strategic value / 6) and that depends on population and development and they both take some time to buid up

there is a way to increase it rapidly but this would be a spoiler also [:)]
you already have hints on this on the way reasearch works as i outlined it here [;)]

[new_bee]

1) they are the resource's natural mining extraction rate which

just made another test - indeed it mine faster with higher %, but to ensure that you will not deplete your deposit it grow faster as well.