Which science is best?

[Lycanthrope]

Out of Physics, engineering and Society, which would you say is the best? I am aware each have their own individual benefits, i'm just curious on people's opinions.

[Beryll Argent]

You need all of them, as they are very much about different aspects all of which are necessary.

All the FTL- & sublight-drives, the sensors, energy-weapons and shields are in physics, kinetic & explosive weapons as well as armour are all in engineering and Society offers both technologies to improve your government as well as anything biological, like genetically modified armies.

[Galactic Origins]

all

Physics has power reactors
Society has a lot of things, Like Xeno Beasts and Beast Cavalry

I guess I would like Engineering the bast - slightly - for two reasons:
1. I love kinetic weapons. It is much easier to get the best kinetic than energy. Energy takes forever.
2. Engineering has many strategic resources.
also, Armor is cool

I tend to favor Physics when I build sci labs, however. This is manily because there are fewer Physics research stations to build. And that is because both Dark Matter and Neutronium give +10 Physics research as a lab special on a starbase. Also, Physics is pretty blue color :)

[Galactic Origins]

I should mention that when I play I try and keep all three at the same level. What I wrote is about how happy I am when I build the labs and such. I -really- like finding Physics locations on asteroids and such because it is more rare.

[Lycanthrope]

I specifically said, "I am aware each have their own individual benefits" And I was just curious which is peope's favourite

[Jewbacca]

Physics, and Engineer both. I usually make one preferred by edict. Depending on which one researching something, that makes my military more powerful. Society is great, but as a full warmonger i need fleet and power first.

[Zi]

In the long run Engineering branch needs overwhelmingly more attention and science points then other both. The cheaper one is the society, but it needed extremely fast rushed from the very start to get the best way of expansion. And the new worlds specialist heading it, then biology..

[chefcook90]

I vote for Society as the most important - those new worlds techs and genetic engineering projects are absolutely critical for effective expansion. The biggest advantage you can get over your enemies is having more planets with more usable tiles run by happy pops than they do..

Second most important is probably engineering, so you can get bigger space ports and bigger space ships, as well as torpedoes and bombers just in case you get stuck with the Unbidden as your crisis
- I actually got my best energy weapons by reverse-engineering tachyon lances from a neighboring fallen empire, so IMO physics isn't all that important except for researching better power plants. (you don't even need shields if you stack enough neutronium armor on your battleships)

[Zi]

Cheers chefcook! Same strategies.
Extremely aggressive :D

[chefcook90]

Originally posted by Zi:

Cheers chefcook! Same strategies.
Extremely aggressive :D

Yup, been playing as a pacifist empire during my current Ironman run and had 100 planets colonized by the time the endgame crisis showed up thanks to rushing colonization techs early on.

[Spookyfish]

Society also has larger fleets and lower upkeep. More leaders and larger borders are in society as well. Don't neglegt it.

[Zi]

Originally posted by chefcook90:

Yup, been playing as a pacifist empire during my current Ironman run and had 100 planets colonized by the time the endgame crisis showed up thanks to rushing colonization techs early on.

Well yeah, crisis cannot stand healthy 100 planet empire. And with such a strategy, no problem to aquire 100 planets in 120-150 years. 1k systems map?

[Exarch_Alpha]

They are all very needed, but I wouldn´t bother making a race with extra Society research as trait. Natural Engineers or Physicists are better traits - but just barely.

Society in critical in many areas, above all colonization, terraforming, influence and more food. Allowing more pops in labs and less on farms. Mid to late game all new colonies should get orbital hydroponics and frontier clinic, those will dramatically increase growth of any new colony.

[chefcook90]

Originally posted by Zi:

Originally posted by chefcook90:

Yup, been playing as a pacifist empire during my current Ironman run and had 100 planets colonized by the time the endgame crisis showed up thanks to rushing colonization techs early on.

Well yeah, crisis cannot stand healthy 100 planet empire. And with such a strategy, no problem to aquire 100 planets in 120-150 years. 1k systems map?

lol nope, just a medium-sized 600 systems map - but I had an extremely strong starting position with gobs of society research - for the first 75 years or so I had like 2.5x as much society research points as physics or engineering.

There was even a nearby isolationist Fallen Empire that everyone else was too chicken to expand towards, as well as a large swath infested with space amoebas and crystaline entities that for some reason the other empires weren't clearing out.

Thanks to my colonizing tech I managed to snowball my economy and naval capacity to the point where my fleet strength was superior to the Fallen Empire's, and I encroached further and further into thier territory by spamming colonies all around them (another huge benefit of society research are the border expansion techs)

[Zi]

Well yeah, nice start. Last game I had 2 25size planets just next to starting position. One even Gaia, another arid - home type. Oh, and I found what starting for arid biome is the best one, not actually counted, but it seems what percentage of arid planets and 80% to them always slightly better in whole galaxy generation scrips than any other even terrain type. Strange, but need to verify ;)

[avil]

Physics.
Only colonization is crucial from social.
Only space platforms are crucial from engineering.
But you must have high level of power-plants, shields, FLT, power-cells and LANCES. Without them you can't win.
Wih low fleetpower you're a target to any slighty smarter than stupid empire.