Tips for Paleolithic Overpopulation and Express Evolution?

[Thandius]

By now I have played through the three scenarios in normal mode and am currently playing through hardcore mode, so I roughly know what I am doing.

Recently I started thinking about the mentioned achievements:

Paleolithic Overpopulation
Get 100 people in your settlement in the Paleolithic era

Express Evolution
Research all techs in the tech tree in less than 5 hours of gameplay


Honestly I am having trouble imagining how to do either of those (The second one is probably best done playing the Ancient Warriors scenario I guess), so I thought I'd ask the community.

Any ideas?

[wcbarney]

I dunno; was going to ask the same question about "Express Evolution." Am currently attempting "Paleolithic Overpopulation," and am sorta optimistic about it. I am about 1.5 hours of game play into the scenario, have a pop of 40 with space for 10 more -- and about 70 knowledge points saved up. The biggest problem is food (no surprise there!) I organize hunters in gangs of 6-8, armed with bone & flint spears and slings; then I go on large hunts in the summer and fall, and even in the winter. Kill everything in sight, but break it off it some animal tries to lead them clear across the map.

[Thandius]

The need of skins for repairs must be horrendous.

[Helvegr]

You will be fine with skins because without hunting you won't be able to do the challenge as summer fruits decay too fast and fishing is not so good at sustaining 50+ people.

Tips:

1) Tools - keep track of knives, winter clothes and fishing tools.
2) Sticks are easiest to get, because of that you should be crafting wooden spears to sell for food or other supplies.
3) Buy bones from merchant, make spears, sell spears if you have enough. It's insane profit.
4) Have enough fishing tools, yea fishing isn't so good but trust me having several patches of 3+ fishing spots with 2 - 3 people makes huge difference.
5)RNG can ruin things for you, if you want to savescum, save before each spring to see if you get different animals spawn nearby or any near by at all..

6)Build tons of totems, it affects how often trader comes (didn't noticed difference at 250 * though) and how many new people join the village.
7)Manage inventory of your workers when you go for long hunt, first kill everything in sight and then make sure they all loot everything otherwise they will fill 1 slot and leave 2 empty and go home just to send other person to go get it.
8) Dogs are last resort food that can make difference between losing few villagers during terrible winter.
9) C / Z can change work area size, You should hunt manually but harvest should be max size and max people.
10) Seems like some people had success making proxy bases. Personally I build one and that was it, but if you decide to expand like that, I advice you to save your game before or you can suddenly lose half of the population that is trying to wander between village and one hut somewhere on Mars.

11) Make sure you put automatic crafting on some things like harpoons or knives. This was my largest screwup and thankfully I had save 3 winters back that saved my game.
12) Maps doesn't really matter as much as luck from spawns (ie one winter you can have 5 mammoths other winter 5 horses that you won't be catching)
13) I wouldn't care much about leather, you should make sure you got 100 - 130% skin clothes for winter.
14) Animals seems to not be lured as much to river as they were to lakes. Especially during the winter.
15) Start hunting in Autumn then winter and spring if it means starvation. Summer and Autumn should be sustained through foraging in both seasons.

If you don't get achievement after you reach 100 pop, save the game, exit it fully and then launch and press continue it should come right up

I did not used sling as I was worried there won't be enough skins and instead I build way more huts than was needed. I think my max population when I hit 100 people could been 130. So the upkeep isn't issue.

[Lantantan]

Overpopulation is quite doable. In addition to what Mori said, let me add you have to set foraging in a huge area and really micromange long distance hunting trips all year around.

[Captain Seasick]

I'm 5,000% convinced that Express Evolution is, again, 5,000% impossible to do. Personally, I wouldn't even bother with that unless you're keen on wasting 100+ hours on constantly repeated attempts at speedrun playthroughs. And the way I see it, if you're playing a game like this as a "speedrun game", you're playing it wrong. :P

[Thandius]

Originally posted by Captain Seasick:

I'm 5,000% convinced that Express Evolution is, again, 5,000% impossible to do. Personally, I wouldn't even bother with that unless you're keen on wasting 100+ hours on constantly repeated attempts at speedrun playthroughs. And the way I see it, if you're playing a game like this as a "speedrun game", you're playing it wrong. :P

Global steam achievement stats say differently (0.4%)

But you know, how it is, when there's only one achievement left. ;)

[Thandius]

Originally posted by Mori:

You will be fine with skins because without hunting you won't be able to do the challenge as summer fruits decay too fast and fishing is not so good at sustaining 50+ people.

Tips:

1) Tools - keep track of knives, winter clothes and fishing tools.
2) Sticks are easiest to get, because of that you should be crafting wooden spears to sell for food or other supplies.
3) Buy bones from merchant, make spears, sell spears if you have enough. It's insane profit.
4) Have enough fishing tools, yea fishing isn't so good but trust me having several patches of 3+ fishing spots with 2 - 3 people makes huge difference.
5)RNG can ruin things for you, if you want to savescum, save before each spring to see if you get different animals spawn nearby or any near by at all..

6)Build tons of totems, it affects how often trader comes (didn't noticed difference at 250 * though) and how many new people join the village.
7)Manage inventory of your workers when you go for long hunt, first kill everything in sight and then make sure they all loot everything otherwise they will fill 1 slot and leave 2 empty and go home just to send other person to go get it.
8) Dogs are last resort food that can make difference between losing few villagers during terrible winter.
9) C / Z can change work area size, You should hunt manually but harvest should be max size and max people.
10) Seems like some people had success making proxy bases. Personally I build one and that was it, but if you decide to expand like that, I advice you to save your game before or you can suddenly lose half of the population that is trying to wander between village and one hut somewhere on Mars.

11) Make sure you put automatic crafting on some things like harpoons or knives. This was my largest screwup and thankfully I had save 3 winters back that saved my game.
12) Maps doesn't really matter as much as luck from spawns (ie one winter you can have 5 mammoths other winter 5 horses that you won't be catching)
13) I wouldn't care much about leather, you should make sure you got 100 - 130% skin clothes for winter.
14) Animals seems to not be lured as much to river as they were to lakes. Especially during the winter.
15) Start hunting in Autumn then winter and spring if it means starvation. Summer and Autumn should be sustained through foraging in both seasons.

If you don't get achievement after you reach 100 pop, save the game, exit it fully and then launch and press continue it should come right up

I did not used sling as I was worried there won't be enough skins and instead I build way more huts than was needed. I think my max population when I hit 100 people could been 130. So the upkeep isn't issue.

6) Yes, I thought I'd at least try it, but was worried about the cost in skins.

7) Ouch, that is going to be painful as micromanagment goes.

11) Auto-crafting is alwaysmy friend. :)

13) I considered ditching leather clothes all togther, but was worried about the winter clothes then falling apart too quickly. I usually auto-craft all clothes at 125%.

[Captain Seasick]

Originally posted by Thandius:

Originally posted by Captain Seasick:

I'm 5,000% convinced that Express Evolution is, again, 5,000% impossible to do. Personally, I wouldn't even bother with that unless you're keen on wasting 100+ hours on constantly repeated attempts at speedrun playthroughs. And the way I see it, if you're playing a game like this as a "speedrun game", you're playing it wrong. :P

Global steam achievement stats say differently (0.4%)

But you know, how it is, when there's only one achievement left. ;)

Well, fine. I'll qualify my earlier statement: I'm 5,000% sure it's impossible without using some REALLY shady tactics or ♥♥♥♥, like using mods that boost knowledge gain.

[Nicolefou]

I just had it !

Here is the method I used:
I chose the map with big lakes in the south west.
I get first city to 15 people then i start new city between the starting lake and the other big one that is close by. In the middle between the lakes (no water problem... i found)
I destroy the first city when second has all commodities.
I had 5 meat dryers and 5 leather driers in new city.
I use a lot work zones, almost no manual hunt (except for vengeance sometimes), and one or two big hunts per year with a team of 15 hunters. Fish all around the 2 close lakes in the beginning and there are two others lakes a little further. Set gathering zones all around and hunting zones also (with 5 guys each)
Also don't neglect trade, build some totems to get more merchants when you can and always have some extra tools to sell.

Good luck everybody.

[Panterich]

Express Evolution doesn`t require you to research every available tech.

[Endymion]

Originally posted by Captain Seasick:

I'm 5,000% convinced that Express Evolution is, again, 5,000% impossible to do. Personally, I wouldn't even bother with that unless you're keen on wasting 100+ hours on constantly repeated attempts at speedrun playthroughs. And the way I see it, if you're playing a game like this as a "speedrun game", you're playing it wrong. :P

its easier than the overpopulation. done it in less than 3 hours, but i and other people dont get the achievement atm. so you are kinda right :)

[timc_456]

Originally posted by Panterich:

Express Evolution doesn`t require you to research every available tech.

Wait...... what?! I thought the achievement was that you get all techs in under 5hrs of gameplay?

[Thandius]

Originally posted by timc_456:

Originally posted by Panterich:

Express Evolution doesn`t require you to research every available tech.

Wait...... what?! I thought the achievement was that you get all techs in under 5hrs of gameplay?

Yeah, research all techs in the tech tree is what it says exactly. And while I'm sure buying counts, gettting that kind of money to buy every second tech is something I can't see.

[Panterich]

I got it while clicking the first tech of the last age.

[angryperson]

I don't understand it. I went back to the first scenario to try this and I even set a timer and I knocked this out in 4 hours (by buying about a third of the techs) but I'm not seeing the achievement. I even saved and exited and brought it back up and there's nothing. I played most of it on 8x but I don't think that should matter.

Maybe the achievement doesn't kick in until the end of the 5th hour??