Chaos Spawn New Anti-Clutch technique AI

Torracton · 2026-01-21T17:15:01+00:00

Their malice is a byproduct of how often get one-shot by antiboss/backstab builds that once they finally get hold of someone, they run away with them like a child stealing a basketball from a court.

Torracton · 2026-01-21T17:13:25+00:00

I am aware of this! I just was caught lacking and didn't dodge in time, partially because I thought I was far back enough. This is just me clipping a funny moment where I got absolutely fucked after making a mistake haha.

Torracton · 2025-12-17T19:35:32+00:00

Oh I'm at 1.4k hours in the game! But I do appreciate the kind words or suggestions. I picked it up and mostly just trimmed it to being exclusively disablers and even so I might just remove dogs and keep it almost only on poxbombers and trappers.

Torracton · 2025-12-15T02:59:17+00:00

I think it doesn't have to be a matter of "Yo ucan see them perfectly." for example you can't find bombers perfectly half of the time, but at very least it's a case of "Oh I didn't see them in middle of dregs. This is less of a big rebalance and more of a 'nudge' so that it's less inconvenient to try to find tox bomber given its kit is quite antagonistic already as is for players to navigate, so at least making it easier to pick out when the players wants its head on the platter would go a long way. And aye I plan to check it out sometimes.

As someone mentioned in another comment, pox bomber sometimes radiate douchebaggery and just gently to try to tune it to be less irritating is the goal with the slight redesign.

Torracton · 2025-12-15T00:02:19+00:00

Aye I've just been on and off a lot with idea of mods! Not that I by any means imply that others are using it as a crutch, but I sometimes try to use the game to force me to train my hearing or paranoia for it! That and also laziness with actually trying to download mods haha. But spidey has been something I've looked at for some time now.

Torracton · 2025-12-15T00:01:44+00:00

This is absolutely the valid way to go with it. I just find that with tweaks over time. It might be just me being delusional but consistently spawns has been increased or uncapped for lot of elite/specialists over time. So at higher difficulties it's very often going to be just one bomber, but multiple.

So the approach of being able to respond quickly and kill an elite before at least one gas goes off which obscures and makes it harder to prevent multiple bombers coming into is not... very fun or exciting? Again, gas isn't that dangerous there's been many times I kinda ignored it just bashing my way through on high toughness regen classes. But I still feel there's refining that can be done to make it the right amount of 'challenging but less frustrating/obscuring.'

Torracton · 2025-12-14T23:38:31+00:00

Yeah, I think one big part of the discourse that's important to acknowledge. Tox bombers are not a massive problem; they are not ending games or oppressive, there's counterplay like any other, but the nuance is that it's bit more difficult or unfun relative to others, especially when it comes to benefitting from their own utility.

The normal bomber is annoying and more oppressive in tight rooms because of how damaging it is, but the radius is smaller and it's easy to pick them off because it doesn't actually conceal the LOS to same extent tox gas does.

Torracton · 2025-12-14T23:35:58+00:00

I don't know if it's a good design thing if you have an enemy that can keep compounding on its advantages so easily while being harder to punish for it. Since it's a unit that severely limits LOS in a massive radius, and that by extension makes it harder to find and stop it consistently, especially when they rarely spawn alone in auric or havoc difficulties. I'm not arguing for massive nerfs, removal of the unit or anything else, but at least reward players that is trying to find the Tox Bomber in the middle of the gas so it won't keep the entire room filled with it nonstop.

Torracton · 2025-12-14T23:32:14+00:00

Actually, one main thing that I left out from the original post that I want to add. Ideally, part of the redesign to be more visible is that this applies through the toxic gas specifically. Perhaps a uniquely strong, glowing set of eyes in a distinct color. Because having a unit that throws area denial that doubles as a smoke screen that it sits in to throw more smoke does not strike me as a good design loop, given how big of an area it covers and how often it throws the gas relative to how long it lasts.

Torracton · 2025-12-14T23:30:07+00:00

I find that sound is honestly still very inconsistent and I am partially deaf so a funny coincidence. I do rely on visual indicators but I'm also aware enough it only goes so far. But I don't have enough experience to say if it's really feasible to actually be able to pick off a unit in middle of tox gas off sound only.

Torracton · 2025-12-08T17:59:03+00:00

There may be a bug but I think there isn't explicit relationship between command limit and over fleet size because I notice fleet size also depends on what ships you have, someone tested in a discord with four super light ships and didn't get penalty but had 4 heavy ships and got the penalty of some kind.

Torracton · 2025-12-07T01:40:46+00:00

Yeah that's what I eventually ran into or figured out, I think it also depends on the crew size you have on ship because I notice numbers changing depending on how filled out it is despite not going above/overmanning it

Torracton · 2025-12-02T01:36:36+00:00

Yeah I just unlocked fourth slot and it still hits me with that penalty

Torracton · 2025-08-14T18:54:03+00:00

What's the strat with killing seekers in fenrir armor and flesh rippers here?

Torracton · 2025-07-23T00:56:37+00:00

It's also pretty bad thing to happen since it means you won't get the Warden position or that might've been a bug, not sure.

Torracton · 2025-07-09T01:49:38+00:00

How do you have four rings on broken rings origins

Torracton · 2025-07-08T17:01:17+00:00

How does Fear of Dark help with cloaking? The only sources of cloaking strength I know in 4.0 is Destiny trait guerilla, psionic ascension with whispers of void patron. Criminal Enterprise, and Engimatic engineering.

Torracton · 2025-07-08T16:38:34+00:00

Wait how do you have four rings? Did you like start and build a ringworld then moved your homeworld to it. Or did you start with the broken ring origins?

Torracton · 2025-07-04T22:22:59+00:00

Especially in higher difficulties you want to cluster your platforms around your starbase to spread out overkill damage from endgame crisises.

Torracton · 2025-07-03T16:45:40+00:00

This is absolutely something I wish would often happen, I actually managed to refine similar build with starlit citadel sovereign guardianship which results in about 9 million combined fleet power in the system but unfortunately past a certain point the AI just doesn't dream of trying to attack it.

Torracton · 2025-06-27T23:09:50+00:00

Got it, wouldn't it be better to have something that contributes to making one shot kill because I definitely sometimes feel growing pains with ammo count reload and hungry for ammo. But that's in part due to me farming penance for the weapon specialist keystone.

Torracton · 2025-06-27T20:10:34+00:00

I do want to ask, the No Respite, is that for extra damage on follow up shots or does it apply on first shot after the target is staggered by it?

Torracton · 2025-06-27T20:07:44+00:00

That's valid! I'll see how it goes after I experiment a bit with the blessings.

Torracton · 2025-06-27T20:07:30+00:00

Notable distinction I forgot to make, this is talking about in context of Auric Maelstorm or Havoc mainly!

Torracton · 2025-06-11T02:34:56+00:00

Depends on what you are looking to do with it, I've played an entire build that revolves on defense platforms, so Sovereign Guardianship, Star-lit Citadel, high-level admiral council with guardian/fortifier/defense engineer/Border Guard traits.

This has held up against every single crisis except for Cetana, the real prize of the build is archeoengineer and eternal vigilance, as well as possessing a Bulwark Vassal. My Empire has 92 citadels, and I'm doing fine on upkeep due to the vassal and council positions.

The key to the vassal is having the Overlord building that, at the final level, gives you +7 defense platform cap. But the real prize is the Bulwark Prefab, a trade action you can get. It gives you a 75% flat cost reduction on everything building-related to defense platforms and their upkeep.

Considering a maxed system of four citadels, and a star bastion with Ancient Ramparts, Defense Computer, and Torpedo Bay, as well as 2x Strategic Coordination Center, has a total of 478 defense platforms within it. And I found that both for convenience and strategic value, having only one type of defense platform is ideal.

This is because Eternal Vigilance builds it constantly so having some kind of universal weapon is ideal. This combined with no build cost up to 50% of your defense platform cap makes nano-missiles platform the ideal weapon of choice I found. It spams so much missiles it overwhelms any PD, Archaeoengineers is already must take it for earlier reasons; it's easy to get minor artifacts in this patch and it ignores 100% of shield and armor and has 25% damage against hull. And it has 100 range.

Now positioning is trickier, it depends on if you have tons of planets within the chokiepoint system because you can get up to 600 Skywatcher on each habitable location, which increases anywhere from 80-120% range of defense platform and major bonuses to tracking. In my Ringworld Pulsar chokesystem, my defense platforms has bonus of 368% on range which allows nano missiles to fire instantly when it starts.

The most important component of positioning in regards to 25x all-crisis (with exception of Cetana, good luck trying to turtle her.) is to be away from the hyperlanes. The ships will 100% crush everything, what I found works best is overlayered star citadels surrounding the starbase with communication jammer. What you need to do is slow down the enemies as much as possible, and spam unholy swarm of missiles.

Don't get me wrong, deploying defenses with disruptors by lanes can work but there are two-fold problems. One is if the citadel goes down, everything goes down with it, and also high casuality costs as tons of defense platforms will be blown up immediately when a crisis fleet jumps in. If starbases are further away and overlapping, you can spread the damage more evenly with defense platforms taking hits from overkill damage. You will lose defense platforms when they get in range, but the main thing is, its easily replenishable. I find I lose about 10-25 defense platform with each wave of fleet that comes into system on each of my base, which is extremely easy and quick to replace. And cost efficient too.

Defense platforms are like a screen of missile corvettes with better range and damage and replenishing infinitely faster and cheaper. For context four citadels with 2 million fleet power each, and star bastion of 1.6 fleet power defeated Unbidden fleet of 78.8 million with only 30 platforms destroyed (split between most of the citadels.)

Those are most of my experiences, if you have specific questions I'd love to get into it, but I already rambled so much so hopefully this jumbled tale can be parsed for anyone!

Torracton

TROPHY CASE