User Guide

ENERGY (ELEVATION)
A solar collector must be built in a square to harvest its energy from elevation.
Energy allows you to sustain your bases in working order. Even more impor-
tantly, though, it is the effective currency of the human factions of Planet.
The energy you collect is allocated to three different areas: Economy, Labs and
Psych. Energy allocated to Economy is used to maintain base facilities; any
excess is placed in the energy reserve. Your faction’s economic power is mea-
sured by its energy reserves. These reserves are saved in the form of “energy
credits,” and are used for maintaining base facilities, commerce and energy
payments between factions. Energy from the energy reserves may also be
invested in mineral production to hurry projects to completion (see Build
Orders, p. 67). Energy allocated to Labs speeds research into new technologies
(see Energy Allocation, p. 117). Energy allocated to Psych helps maintain
order in your bases (see Energy Allocation, p. 117).
Squares with solar collectors produce 1 energy per level of elevation. There are
four levels of elevation above sea level on the Planet—0 to 1,000 meters above
sea level, 1,000 to 2,000 meters, 2,000 to 3,000 meters, and above 3,000
meters. For example, a solar collector built in a square at 1025 m would produce
2 energy each turn. You can find the elevation of a square by checking it in the
Status View (p. 25). You can also see elevations and depressions on the map.
The amount of energy any given square can produce is limited until the dis-
covery of Environmental Economics.
CLIMATE AND ELEVATION
The rainfall of a given region is partly determined by the elevation of the sur-
rounding terrain. On Planet, the prevailing winds always blow from west to
east. This means that the westward exposure of a ridge or mountainside catch-
es more airborne moisture—the effective rainfall increases on that side.
However, little moisture reaches the eastward slope, so the rainfall decreases
on that side. A great mountain range may be lush and green on the western
side, but will be arid desert on the eastern side.
PLANET
CHAPTER 3
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