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Four games, four losses playing as Imperium. My usual warmongering ways aren't working. Must learn to be a bit more diplomatic (shudders). Maybe I'll turn off scientific victory . Good game! Nukes, orbital bombardment, black hole generators, oh my! Having fun!

Into my sixth or seventh game without a victory. Perhaps I play to fast and should slow down some. In my current game I'm playing with beta version 1.10. Things are going well at the moment. About to wipe out Xi and the other factions have left me alone other than one short war by that religion gal.

Update: lost, again. Those black hole 'bombs' are devastating.

Finally a victory! Playing Noxium with v1.1.2 (easy mode) I won an economic victory. A couple of keys to victory were that I maintained a strong military so the other factions avoided war with me. Second, in v1.1.2 the indigious life forms seemed to be much more numerous. When they went aggessive I was in near constant battle with them. This may have hindered the other factions expansion rate.

Second victory and a military one at that! My grasp of this game is getting better. Finally got to use a black hole generator 'bomb' on another faction. Launched a blitzkrieg offensive on Noxium: EMP bursts, nukes and black hole bombs. : - )

Currently playing beta v1.1.6 (easy mode). Victories coming easier. May be time to up the difficulty level. Basic flow of my games: expand slowly, battle bugs (indigenous life forms) and locate and conquer nearest faction.

I think the aggressiveness of the bugs is hampering the AI factions as I believe one or two are being wiped out by them and the others are struggling to expand just as I am.

I've pretty well got the hang of this game now. Currently playing with 1.1.8 beta and get mostly victories at this point.

My gameflow (I always prepare for battle: military victory for glory!):

1) Expand slowly and get set for the "Bug" Battle. At some point the bugs will turn aggressive. Wiping out a hive and building cities will make them more aggressive. You probably won't have time to build more than 2-3 cities before this happens. Be prepared!

2) Kill that first "bug" so you gain the "bug" capturing device. It needs to be a bug with legs not wings. (Xenomorph Pheropod).

3) Capture some "bugs" especially a couple of spitters if possible.

3) Research hellfire as quickly as possible followed soon by the tank unit.

4) Capture some of those big bad powerful "bugs" to help carry the battle to the hives. You may have to sacrifice some small captured "bugs" or even some of your own units to accomplish this. Spitters are good at weakening those big bad "bugs" so they are more easily captured.

5. Keep an eye on other factions. Try to keep relations good until ready for war. Absolutely do not get far behind militarily. Weakness invites aggression.

6. Unless you are super prepared and the other factions are weak, when you declare war (or they on you) let the enemy come to you. After you have withstood their attacks and weakened their army, then carry the war to them. This assumes you are inflicting heavy losses on the enemy.

This gameflow is working pretty well for me. About the only time I lose is if the "bug" battle doesn't go well and I can't expand my cities quickly enough to stay competitive.

Update 10/10/14: since I originally wrote this post the Messari, Nashira and a spy unit have been added to the game. This can complicate things but I still generally follow this game flow. The Messari can be tough to deal with but certainly can be defeated. The Nashira aren't much of a threat. The spy unit you will have to guard against or they will rob you blind.

Now playing v1.20 beta. My game flow still working. I've noticed on a single large continent map the factions have trouble holding back the 'bug' attacks. Usually one or two of them get wiped out. This doesn't seem to be the case when the map consists of multiple islands. The factions generally hold their own and the more aggressive factions begin attacking its nearby neighbors.

@ webizen You should put "spoiler" when you give tactics and ways you win in your posts other people may like the challenge of finding out themselves and not just your way.

In my current game I built two cities before the bugs turned aggressive. Since then it's been a continuous battle with the bugs. In the face of this constant bug battle I've constructed two more cities. I've been fairly successful in capturing bugs, especially the more powerful ones. With a few kills under their belts, they can almost double in strength (8 to 15). With the bug battle under control I then sent some of them out on hive search and destroy missions. One of these hive destruction groups discovered another faction. With some tank reinforcements this group attacked and wiped out this faction, capturing it's three cities. Even while conducting this operation I had to take time and resources to beat back some bugs.

Re other factions: I believe the bugs wiped out one. I'm aware of one other via the diplomacy screen and it's very weak.

Future plans: 1) resume hive search and destroy mission. 2) research and build aircraft. 3) locate other faction(s) and conquer.

Tip: usually the first thing I build in my cities, after I have researched it, is defensive fortifications. I try not to let the bugs attack my cities but it's not always possible to prevent it. If I've got the gold I'll purchase this improvement.

I'm returning to playing this fun game. It certainly has evolved since it's initial release. First we get 'The Return of the Messari" and now the add-on "Eclipse of the Nashira." Fun! The AI is again kicking my butt. The Messari are tough to deal with when they get after you. Now there are a host of diplomatic options and a new faction, the Ambassadors. Did I say I was having fun? Yes I did! Sleep deprivation ahead...

Well, in my last game after finally defeating the Messari, my military was left decimated and I was behind in research. The end came not long after when the black hole bombs started taking out my cities. My overly war like ways got me in trouble.

I started another game and made an effort not to be overly aggressive and play nice with most other factions. I also hoped this would increase the chance the Messari, when they arrived, would pick on someone else. Nevertheless I intended to be better prepared for their eventual arrival. Well, they duly arrived and began attacking me. After two mother ships and four portals destroyed, I finally defeated this deadly menace. The cost in lost units was significant but I survived in relatively good shape. Two other fractions we fighting each other and I entered the fray on the side of the faction friendly with me. By this time I had nukes and used them on the massive troop formations of Xi. Some turns later Xi was neutered as a threat. The situation is secure for eventual victory.

Note:I learned that repeatedly, turn after turn, using your spies on a faction will eventually make them angry or furious with you, even if they never get caught.

Any observations on the expansion, if you are running it? I'm not too crazy about diplomatic gaming and seems like some people on Steam have had odd experiences with "spys", which doesn't really turn me on.

I do have the base game, and need to get to it, though!

I am using the Nashira expansion. I like the additional diplomatic options it provides. Can't say I'm a fan of the spy unit but it's not a deal breaker. For only $6.99 who can afford not to get it? I'm a warmonger type myself and prefer military victory. So in this game I'm always working for it. You just can't afford to make all the factions angry/furious with you, especially early. So far the biggest challenge is defeating the Messari without taking a severe beating.

P.S. You might like to checkout Advanced Tactics Gold (WW2 era). It is my all time favorite IGOUGO hex based wargame. In my opinion it has the best random game creation engine of any game I know.

ORIGINAL: rosseau

Any observations on the expansion, if you are running it? I'm not too crazy about diplomatic gaming and seems like some people on Steam have had odd experiences with "spys", which doesn't really turn me on.

I do have the base game, and need to get to it, though!

When the first AT game out, I was chained to the editor for weeks. Too good to be true. Bought ATG on game day and thanks for your contributions to it over the years.

I'll stick with base Pandora. Need to make time for it.

Started another game and this time I'm the Ambassadors. Geesh, I'm supposed to be anti-war with this faction. Guess I didn't get the message as Xi found out. That faction is to warlike so preemptive action was taken to get rid of him. Now must prepare for the arrival of the Messari. Can't afford any more warlike behavior until they are dealt with. If they arrive soon and attack me I could be in trouble.

Not playing overly aggressive militarily has paid off as in the last couple of games the Messari have not made me the main target. Whew! I'd rather not have to deal with those buggars if I can avoid it. That said, if they do come my way I'm prepared. I know I'm very likely to have to burned through some of my units to bring them down. Of course, once they are gone, I resume my warlike ways.

Gonna have to up the difficulty level I suppose. Victories coming a little too easy at this point. Having fun nevertheless. Started another game and I'm the Ambassadors again. In this game each faction is on a small island. This map configuration makes it pretty easy to dispose of the alien creatures, by capture or destruction. It also makes it difficult for the AI factions to attack me as they usually get cut down at sea when they are the weakest. Admiral Heid was on a nearby island and furious with me. Despite the fact that I knew the Messari would soon arrive I declared war. It was a shoestring operation and I soon had to convince another faction to attack Heid. That tipped the balance and shortly thereafter I concluded a peace treaty just in time for the Messari arrival. Thankfully they landed not near me.

My latest game was somewhat of a nail biter. Playing as Lady Vermillion/Divine Ascension, a warlike faction, I knew I was going to be behind in research. Things started off pretty well on a single large continent. That said I also knew the bug war would be intense on this map type. First I discovered Noxium nearby and not far behind him was Imperium. Off in another direction I found the Ambassadors. Noxium became my first conquest. Not long after that Imperium declared war on me. Despite having to fend off the bugs and I also had to fight Imperium. They made me mad. Probably should have sought peace but I was determined to remove Admiral Heid from the planet. Eventually I did. Over time I captured some big bad bugs and stabilized the bug war. I discovered that the bugs had destroyed an Ambassador city and since parts of it were left behind I planted a colonizer in the middle of it. Dang large flying creature destroyed the city again. I replanted, creature destroyed again. Sometime time later I replanted a third time and was able to hold on to it. Sometime in the middle of all this I discovered the Terra Salvum. They were just beyond the former Imperium player and quite advanced. I kept good relations with them and established trading pacts despite the fact they were attempting to spam me with spies as were the Ambassadors. I decided to take out the Ambassadors. While taking out the Ambassadors, the Messari showed up, close to me of course. So had to take time to deal with them and eventually I wiped them out. Xi was discovered on the far southern end on the continent and he was quite advanced as well and with a large army. Togra University was down there too but only had a single city.

I wasn't going to win this one any other way than military conquest, my preferred style. Despite not having any significant advantage over Terra Salvum I went to war with them. Militarily they could not stand against me even with their tech advantage. Later Xi joined the war against them and soon Terra Salvum was defeated with my forces taking all their cities.

Now came a crucial time: Xi had developed nukes (at least 2 or 3 launching sites). He was more advanced than me and had a stronger army. Do I go to war and take my chances? If I don't I feared he would eventually get the blackhole bomb. I go to war and it is a brutal fight. Xi captures no cities but does destroy with nukes two of the cities I had captured from Terra Salvum and as well as some of my stronger combat units. I also inflict significant losses on his combat forces and where I could I sought to destroy his formers. Most of the war is fought on my territory where my units are stronger. Eventually Xi offers peace and I take it. By this time I have my own nukes under development. Several turns later Xi declares war on me, probably because I kept up a cyber war with my spies. Anyway, revenge is best served hot with a nuke and Xi feels the pain. It is a long war but I wear him down and slowly his cities begin to fall as his military forces have been beaten up. I also used my air force, and other units, to destroy his tile improvements. My spies steal and sabotage at will. Xi sues for peace but I drive the final nail in his coffin. Victory is mine!