My take on what really happens in the SMAC world, based on tech/project/bldng quotes

Hey everyone. I've been thinking about this for the longest time and I finally wanted to get it out there. I'm not sure if someone has already done this, and believe me I've searched for it. But if you play SMAC enough to memorize all the quotes from techs, projects, and buildings, you start to see a "canon history" of what really happens on Planet. They don't tell you *everything* but one can make some educated guesses. Above is a map of planet, with my opinion as to the faction starting locations, and the location of the ascent to transcendence. A lot of this is just guesses, but much if it is based on the quotes. So, here's how it goes!

State of the factions:

GAIANS: Achieved victory. Began on the Pholus Ridge, as suggested by the Pholus Mutagen, and her closeness to the Ruins. Diedre apparently not as peaceful in canon as she is in the game. Apparently, Diedre was able to wield an inexplicably strong army of native lifeforms that all opponents were unable to overcome. Crowning conquest achievement was the defeat of the Spartans in M.Y. 2390. Was the creator of almost all nature-based secret projects. Used the Telepathic Matrix to great effect, calming any dissent from the people of the far-flung enemy faction cities were under Gaian conquest. Completed the Ascent to Transcendence within the Ruins. Enjoyed godhood as the dominant personality of Planet's consciousness.

HIVE: Destroyed. Began in the large continent in the North, near the Barren Wastes, as suggested by the graphics of his faction. Wantonly committed atrocities against his own people, expanded aggressively, and quickly became a hated enemy of all other factions. Used SMAC's first and only Planet Buster, with the target being a series of Miriam's bases in the Monsoon Jungle, all but eliminating that natural feature. Other factions respond by forming a coalition to eradicate the Hive, and launch a solar shade to offset the damage from the Planet Buster. Was able to establish a strong presence in the North, but was the first faction to taste total defeat, by Miriam, and an alliance of several other factions. Hive is destroyed and Yang is imprisoned by year 2300. Either died before the end of the human era, or remained in stasis forever.

UNIVERSITY: Survived. Began near the Uranium Flats and maintained a small empire. Maintained good relations with Morgan. Had indecisive disputes with Lal. Briefly went to war with Diedre, whom he greatly resented and considered a delusional imbecile, in the waters west of University Base, and was overwhelmed by native lifeforms under her control. Soundly defeated in 2400, becoming a grudgingly submissive pact member with Diedre for the rest of SMAC. Zak seemed to have a particular hatred for Mind Worms, suggesting either a huge natural infestation, or a war with Diedre that wasn't going so well. However, he was instrumental in later projects, particularly the Space Elevator and the Voice of Planet. It would seem as though the Voice of Planet was administered by Zak with some cooperation from Morgan, Lal, and Diedre. Ascended to join in godhood, realizing that the human era was at en end, but suffered for eternity, knowing that he is an insignificant component of Planet's consciousness, a mere satellite of his hated enemy, who became God.

MORGANS: Survived. Began on the northern island, as suggested by his seeming impunity from the ravages of faction versus faction wars. Did engage in some combat, defeating an invasion by a huge Believer naval force through the purchase of mercenaries and elite allied armies. Instrumental in the establishment of an economy of hard currency and industry. That, combined with his great wealth, afforded the Morgans excellent diplomatic relations, pulling in massive amounts of energy from commerce. Funded wars and remained neutral, but contributed massive materiel and weapons technology to the highest bidder. Transcended to become a minor component of Planet's consciousness, but become integral in the management of energy and entropy. Happy in his ultimate fate of safe, and rich... forever.

SPARTANS: Destroyed. Began on high ground east of Freshwater Sea. Established strong forward bases on the freshwater ithsmus and the sea's southern land. Enjoyed good relations with Morgan and the University. Took a survivalist, isolationist approach until M.Y. 2250, when the Peacekeepers began encroaching on Spartan territory, near the Straights of Prometheus and on the way to Mt. Planet. Repeatedly reprimanded by Lal and diplomatically isolated by his Plantery Governorship, and went to war. Outnumbered 2 to 1, but had infinitely better troops, tactics, and weapons. Easily defeated Lal and conquered all his southern holdings. Used air power to bomb his home cities, forcing him to surrender. Used her air power to great effect against Miriam, devastating Miriam's ground army. In M.Y. 2340, Suprise attacked by Diedre's bio-army while the main Spartan force was far to the east. Lost her main front base, Assassins Redoubt, to nightmarish Mind Worm attacks, presumably assisted by the Dream Twister. Unable to muster a force specific to Mind Worm defense, Sparta Command falls in M.Y. 2385. Disoriented, the rest of the Spartan Army falls in short order, and Santiago is imprisoned by the Gaians. Second faction to fall. Santiago either dies before the end of the human era or remains in stasis forever.

BELIEVERS: Destroyed. According to the quotes, lasted quite a while, though seemingly in constant retreat. New Jerusalem located west of the Dunes. Expanded extremely aggressively, even reaching across the waters, to the Gaian/Spartan continent, as well as the peacekeeper/university continent. Maintained a very large but technologically backwards military. Constantly at war with Yang, which was a stalemate until the Monsoon Jungles were planet busted, calling in all factions to eradicate the Hive. Miriam's rampant use of Probe teams and her stubbornness in the advancement of the species led to diplomatic isolation. Attacked by the Spartans, Gaians, Peacekeepers, and University. Her ground army was totally decimated by the Spartan air forces, as a coalition swept her bases, forcing Miriam and her most devoted followers into a constant state of retreat. Her faction was all but eliminated by M.Y. 2400, but she and a small, fanatical group of followers continued to cause trouble worldwide. In M.Y. 2450, down to her last stand, escaped through a psi gate to an isolated island in the Great Northern Ocean. Before they are tracked down and eradicated by enemy factions, Miriam and all remaining believers commit mass suicide in M.Y. 2455.

PEACEKEEPERS: Survived. Apparently not great at keeping peace. (Just like in the game.) Was Planetary Governor for a great deal of the SMAC era, and tended to use his diplomatic strength to sway the power balance against his enemies. Organized the coalitions that defeated both the Hive and the Believers. Was attacked and soundly defeated by the Spartans. All his outer holdings conquered by Santiago, and his home cities were destroyed by Santiago's air forces, to be "administered" by the University military in the name of maintaining order. Lal was allowed to live in exile, possibly with Diedre, or Morgan. Lived in obscurity, but transcended to be an insignificant part of Planet's consciousness.

Thoughts?

It was a nice read, but since I haven't played in the normal faction setup for a while, I can't really make an opinion of it. Moreover, have you been playing on the Map of Planet repetitively and then made your "canon history" of events?

This isn't based on any actual gameplay experiences, just the quotes. They reveal a lot of indisputable facts about the canon storyline, such as the Gaians conquering the Spartans with mind worms, the victory being achieved by Diedre via Transcendence, and the defeat/obscurity of Yang, Miriam, Lal, and Santiago, since Diedre, Morgan, Zak, and Planet have a monopoly on all the late game quotes, pretty much.

Don't forget Morgan's master plan of economic supremacy:

##Quantum Converter
#FAC21
And when at last it is time for the transition from megacorporation to
planetary government, from entrepreneur to emperor, it is then that the
true genius of our strategy shall become apparent, for energy is the
lifeblood of this society and when the chips are down he who controls
the energy supply controls Planet. In former times the energy monopoly
was called "The Power Company"; we intend to give this name an entirely
new meaning.
^
^ -- CEO Nwabudike Morgan,
^ "The Centauri Monopoly"

I don't see any indication that it worked (and it certainly wouldn't work in-game if you waited until the quantum era), but what I love about it is the implication that he started working on it very early, as in the "whoa hey, we can actually survive here" period of history:


##Industrial Economics
#TECH45
Our first challenge is to create an entire economic infrastructure, from
top to bottom, out of whole cloth. No gradual evolution from previous
economic systems is possible, because there IS no previous economic
system. Each interdependent piece must be materialized simultaneously
and in perfect working order; otherwise the system will crash out
before it ever gets off the ground.
^
^ -- CEO Nwabudike Morgan,
^ "The Centauri Monopoly"

Nwabudike Morgan: The man who, after landing on a planet, immediately hatched a hundreds-of-years-long plan to buy it. That's an enterpreneur with ambition.

Based on the first quote from the poster above, I think it's also reasonable to assume that Morgan had a stab at an economic victory at some point. I see two possible ways in which this could have happened, given the assumed storyline thus far:

1. Morgan tries pressing the big money-mind-control switch shortly after Miriam has dealt with Yang, while factions are still recovering economically and tensions are focused elsewhere. However, his grand scheme is distracted by the Believing naval invasion, launched as some sort of preventive response. After this has been brushed aside, the other factions (Gaians in particular) become too powerful and therefore expensive to deal with.

or

2. Morgan goes for gold shortly before the leap to transcendence, but his 20-year plan is rendered obsolete and unnecessary by everyone becoming energy-beings (or what-have-yous). His role as energy-entropy manager is a by-product of his failed attempt.

that is a really good article, I never really paid much attention to the story until my last few games. does each faction have its own sub story or is it just different names for the same characters?

MORGANS: Survived. Transcended to become a minor component of Planet's consciousness, but become integral in the management of energy and entropy. Happy in his ultimate fate of safe, and rich... forever.

Click to expand...

Seems humanity will always have a Plutocrat accountant somewhere at the helm...forever.

Wish there was a Timothy Leary or Grateful Dead faction.

The Morgans cosidered the southern minor continent with Mount Planet their territory, and had a land dispute with encroaching Peacekeeper ther, according to one of the secret project movies featuring Morgan Video. Theorectically it could have been a far flung conlony of theirs, but your setup shows 3 faction closer to it than the morgans, and other 3 close to equidistant.

That's a very good interpretation and write-up, harmonic. I agree with it all!

Edit: just realised this was posted 2 years ago and never got much love. That's a shame, it's one of the better write-ups I've seen on this site.

Ari Rahikkala said:

Nwabudike Morgan: The man who, after landing on a planet, immediately hatched a hundreds-of-years-long plan to buy it. That's an enterpreneur with ambition.

Click to expand...

Good effort on his part. Unfortunately that plan was doomed to failure (considering how self-sufficient everyone was).

Lefty Scaevola said:

The Morgans cosidered the southern minor continent with Mount Planet their territory, and had a land dispute with encroaching Peacekeeper ther, according to one of the secret project movies featuring Morgan Video. Theorectically it could have been a far flung conlony of theirs, but your setup shows 3 faction closer to it than the morgans, and other 3 close to equidistant.

Click to expand...

Maybe he purchased it for mining purposes.

He might have been forced there(mount planet) plus who's to say where they would have all landed. And the factions were separated by ideology not a rag on a pole so maybe a lot of mogans moved and set up bases at mount planet to spread their designs on planet elsewhere.

harmonic42 said:

Hey everyone. I've been thinking about this for the longest time and I finally wanted to get it out there. I'm not sure if someone has already done this, and believe me I've searched for it. But if you play SMAC enough to memorize all the quotes from techs, projects, and buildings, you start to see a "canon history" of what really happens on Planet. They don't tell you *everything* but one can make some educated guesses. Above is a map of planet, with my opinion as to the faction starting locations, and the location of the ascent to transcendence. A lot of this is just guesses, but much if it is based on the quotes. So, here's how it goes!

State of the factions:

Click to expand...

I'm curious, do you have thoughts as to how the Alien Crossfire factions "officially" affected Planet?

I don't believe there is sufficient evidence to conclude that Yang was defeated. He's certainly around for Retroviral Engineering and Monopole Magnets, and the Self-Aware Colony is at least likely to be HH tech, though on examination I'll agree that he doesn't get any late-game quotes.

I don't think the Uni were in a submissive pact to the Gaians - I think it was likely an equal partnership. Zak gets a LOT of late-game quotes, and if you recall Journey to Centauri, he and Deirdre worked together - while he may have considered her silly, they still trusted each other to a significant extent. The quote for "Temple of Planet" - which is, I believe, what you're basing your notion of hostility on - refers to an accident at a lab, probably one of Zakharov's own, and to religious Gaians, not necessarily to their government. (Remember also that the points for Transcendence distribute equally between Pact-mates.)

The Spartan-Gaian war was a hell of a lot longer than you make out. It lasted at least from Intellectual Integrity (image for the Citizens' Defense Force is clearly Spartans) to Quantum Machinery (the quote for Headquarters mentions that Deirdre was riding in a Quantum Tank - this is the name for a tank with a Quantum Laser). Santiago's behaviour on the Unity (in Journey to Centauri) certainly left its mark on Deirdre.

I don't believe there's any evidence for military action against or by Miriam. Remember that "what really happens" doesn't follow the rules of a 4X game - Miriam was certainly marginalised and lost her influence (due to both rationalism and the rival religion of Planet), but there's not even a hint of anything military in what she says. Again, from Journey to Centauri, Miriam is not the sort to do that - she's a caring pastor. She also gets quotes as late as The Bulk Matter Transmitter.

The Believers get the most direct military faction benefits and Miriam is the most aggressive AI - so it can be assumed that she was a warmonger. In the quote for building a psi gate it implies that she and her followers committed ritual suicide, which could either be a reaction to the diminishing relevance of her religion or a reaction to military defeat. Various quotes support the former.

Self-aware colony could be the property of any faction except Miriam.

attackfighter said:

The Believers get the most direct military faction benefits and Miriam is the most aggressive AI - so it can be assumed that she was a warmonger. In the quote for building a psi gate it implies that she and her followers committed ritual suicide, which could either be a reaction to the diminishing relevance of her religion or a reaction to military defeat. Various quotes support the former.

Self-aware colony could be the property of any faction except Miriam.

Click to expand...

Well, I've never built a Psi Gate, so I suppose there's the answer. Having since found the quote, it would indeed seem that there was a mass suicide involved - my personal though unsubstantiated guess would be that she wanted to die human rather than enter the Planetmind.

SAC could indeed be the property of any faction except Miriam, but it certainly seems to fit the Hive best.

Lal and Deirdre are too nice.
Santiago, by this point, has been mostly wiped out.
I suppose that leaves Morgan and Zak as possible candidates, but if anyone would do it, it's Yang.

Incidentally, have you read Journey to Centauri? Miriam's one of the "nice guys" by that story, more civil with Zakharov than he was with her, and one of the leaders loyal to Garland.

(Basically, the leaders are divided up thusly:

Idealists/Loyalists: Deirdre, Miriam, Lal
Pragmatists/Divisives: Zakharov, Yang, Morgan
Nutjob/Murderer: Santiago)

As such I find it highly unlikely that she would have declared war on anyone. Yang or Zak declaring war on her is more likely.

If you consider it canon, the novel Twilight of the Mind by Michael Ely portraits a war between Zakharov and Miriam.

Besides, the factions from Alien Crossfire might deserve a place to be.

Doing no research at all:

Drones: Some island away from the Hive as Yang would have otherwise destroyed them.
Angels: Near Morgan
Cult: Near the circle of monoliths thing (north of Gaia)
Pirates: Sulfur Ocean
Robots: Near Zak or across the water on that island
Aliens: No clue

I'd put the Cult south of the Gaians because they clearly had sustained conflicts with one of the Progenitor factions (most likely the Usurpers, whose ideology is clearly in direct conflict with the Cult) and eventually achieved victory over them. That suggests to me that the Cult and the Usurpers were both south/west of the Freshwater Sea and, while initially peaceful (the Planetary Energy Grid), eventually fought a long war in the area, ultimately culminating in a Cult victory.

One alternative is to place the Spartans in that area, the Cult on the neck leading to Mount Planet and the Usurpers on Mount Planet. This puts the Cult between the Spartans and Peacekeepers, though, which would prevent the Spartans and Peacekeepers from engaging in early game warfare. You could also put the Cult and the Usurpers around where the Gaians are placed currently, with the Gaians southwest of the Freshwater Sea--even though the Ascent to Transcendence took place at the Ruins, that's extremely late game, plenty of time for the Gaians to have settled/conquered the area even if it was in Cult hands through the early and mid game.

The Caretakers clearly lasted to the very late game (Hminee has all of the late-game Progenitor quotes) and ultimately built the Subspace Generator (but perhaps were preempted by the Gaians ascending near simultaneously). Since Hminee has the quote for the Manifold Harmonics, I'd put her in the east of the central continent, near the Manifold Nexus on the SMAX map.

The Pirates were somewhere near the Spartans, and the Geothermal Shallows make a lot of sense, so I'll put them there.

The Drones were near the Hive, and I'd bet Domai would have gotten support from Miriam for his rebellion, so I'd place him in the east of the eastern continent, with Domai and Miriam close allies to keep the more powerful Yang in check. They clearly survived Yang as they have a quote from one of the latest techs in the game (String Resonance). The quote for String Resonance also suggests that Domai may have been involved with/participated in Miriam's late attempt at ritual suicide, which also may have originally included trying to destroy all of Planet, perhaps in response to Hminee completing the Subspace Generator and Zakharov building the Voice of Planet. (Probably the most ominous quote in the game: "To understand a thing is to know the manner by which it might be destroyed. A fundamental understanding of the basic building-blocks of the Universe is essential, then, to the total destruction of everything.")

The Angels were an offshoot of the Morganites, but there's not enough room on the Isle of Deianira for them to have been there, too. I'd guess they were on the western peninsula of the eastern continent -- originally a Morganite colony, later independent as the Angels. They could also have been on Mount Planet, if the Morganites established a mining colony there. Probably the least solid evidence for an Angel location.

For the Consciousness, Aki was a Peacekeeper Talent before she died and was used by the University as a shell for the Zeta-5 program so is probably close to both. She also had early contact with the Progenitors (she and Cha Dawn have all of the Progenitor-related human quotes, and Aki's come earlier), so I'd put her east of Zakharov, stretching down to Garland Crater, thus bordering on Hminee's territory. This also makes sense with the fact that the Consciousness fought a war involving missiles with the Usurpers at one point (see Flechette Defense System) -- she was most likely allied with the Caretakers. They don't have to have been close by for the Usurpers to have tried to hurl a missile at the Consciousness.

Are we just ignoring the books? there is a three novel series that i think was Canon at some point... Santiago gets Planet busted with Sparta Command by Miriam, and i think Lal, Zak and Skye end up in the virtual world with their followers in a bunker beneath university Base while everyone else dies the Planet Dream Fungal Bloom.

I'm not what you got is bad. It's a) way more interesting than the books, and b) better thought out. I was just wondering if you knew about their existence.

Do Santiago and Miriam ever go to war in this scenario? I don't think i've ever played a game where they weren't vendetta-ing each other.