Star Trek Conquest Interview
Armchair General: How does the Real-Time Strategy system work?
Frank Arnot: Just to clarify, there is no real-time strategy. Conquest is a mixture of turn-based strategy and real-time arcade action.
ACG: Base-building or tactics-based?
FA: I’d say a mixture of both. The way you position and move your fleets around the map is important, but so is the fortification of captured systems and the decision to invest in mining for economic gain or research for upgrade technology.
ACG: What are the victory conditions?
FA: To win the overall campaign, the player must annihilate all the opposing races by destroying their fleet and taking over their Home Worlds.
{default}ACG: How many units can be controlled at a time?
FA: The player can control up to three fleets, with each fleet being composed of up to seven ships from the Scout, Cruiser, or Dreadnought class.
ACG: How does the Turn-Based system work?
FA: During the turn-based round, the player makes strategic-level decisions to: move fleets, construct new fleets, build new ships, build structures, or fortify any systems owned. The player can also decide on upgrade paths or to construct special weapons such as the Genesis Device. If during the turn the player moves his fleets into neutral or enemy systems, then a battle occurs to decide who will gain ownership of the system. The battle can either be resolved through arcade play or by simulating the battle. In both modes, the player can order their fleet into offensive, defensive, or neutral stances. These stances affect how the other ships in the fleet choose targets and attack the enemy. The player also has the option to retreat if the battle is not going his way. After the player is finished moving his fleets and/or conducting any base building, he can end his turn. It is now the AI’s turn to move, and the player may need to engage in further battles to defend his territory from marauding AI players.
ACG: Resources are limited, but is there a way to regain spent resources?
FA: No. Once a resource is spent it cannot be regained. For example, there is no selling of starships in order to raise funds.
ACG: Do units have the ability to make multiple moves in a single turn?
FA: Yes. There are three types of Admirals in the game: Attacking, Defensive, and Movement. The type of Admiral defines his/her strength, so an Attacking Admiral is stronger in attack than defense; and vice versa for the Defensive Admiral. The Movement Admiral has the advantage of being able to move twice per turn at the start of the game. Additionally, as Admirals take part in battles their experience is increased. As experience increases, the Admiral’s natural strength is increased. So, a Movement Admiral with maxed out experience can move halfway across the map in a single turn, which is very useful for long range attacks.
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