Birth of the Empires

Possibly this is a bug or it might be a feature.

This is how I usually have the galaxy map displayed as it then is illustrated by using color codes and overlays to show white overlays that indicate two things:
1. Which systems show major races
2. Which systems show minor races This is very importants to set up trade routes and also know where to avoid flying through as entering that sector can be perceived as an invasion as all ships at this level have higher hull values, shields, and weapons. Some may be heavy transport vessels.

But if the hand shake icon is selected, I gather it means treaty agreements, then note the white overlay in what may be Cardassian space (or others...I cannot definitively deduce it with a high degree of certainty) well beyond any long range scans. It may be reflective of intelligence reports as well. It may be like early cartography where navigators in their "rutters" would not only draw what they actually saw but speculation or rumor that some people lived in this area of the map, or that something existed there as a phenomena...the stuff of legends like Atlantis or Lemuria.

It seems to be indicating that at certain sectors that there are planets under the control of the Cardassians. Sectors may be upgraded as they are populated or sectors may be within the sphere of influence and currently not colonized...yet as the empire in question may lack sufficient technology to terraform it so it may be colonized. I suspect at high levels many planets can be terraformed...including gas giants. It would add a lot to the mechanics of the game, so seems plausible.

A peculiar aspect is it seems to be a requirement that one type M planet must exist for colonization yet if an M class planet is populated, the very same other classes except gas giants can then be terraformed. That seems to be illogical but may be reflective of a philosophy that at this stage of technology, at least one M class planet is required.

Note that some aquatic races have water worlds which you can invade but not colonize on your own...at least yet. So even though it's well past 200+ turns, many primary sectors of your sphere of influence are unpopulated.

https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Rutter_(nautical)
A rutter is an obscure nautical navigational term as in those days being a pilot was nautical not aeronautical. The air force absorbed the term and the navies stopped using the term. Being a pilot was highly technical as one had to learn actual shipbuilding under a mentor,thus one had to show enormous aptitude to be chosen when an adolescent (as it took as long to become one as it does today to become a physician), then learn every possible skill as an officer,then move up the ranks, then become a navigator,then be the captain and pilot of the vessel. That person ran ship operations and was responsible foreveryone in the crew (and ultimately their families) and the investors were counting on the pilot/captain knowing what the heck he was doing as the world was a bizarre place beyond the sea where little was known.

That is the same milieu for galactic space travel. Not only that but a starship captain is also a diplomat, a military strategist and tactician, managing an economy, a motivator of people, a scientist, etc.

I suggest you read James Clavel's Shogun to understand how truly alone they were as they had so few peers l, and how few could understand their enormous responsibilities. It's a nine hour miniseries (but the dated soundtrack is a bit over the top).
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D_U1Gupe6iY

Or read Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6oyQGHHz8U8

I used the maximum settings with 40x40 and 100% and 33% were for minor races, 5% spatial anomalies, and no anomalous entities. With every empire, the map array is too small unless you have a campaign designer play as all empires and balance their controlled systems. This is self-evident from the attached galaxy map overview. They are all on top of each other and the Dominion got eliminated, I think.

Probably for strong empires you should have 3 major races and say 50% minor races and then they are trying to absorb those in some manner.

Likely Federation, Romulan, Klingon. Or a Dominion, Ferengi, Federation. The four quadrants of the Star Trek canon map don't fit. There should be just one empire given to subterfuge.

The reason a cheat command exists is to design the campaign with a reveal map being very helpful and a way to place say a colony ship so rapidly create empires versus trying to find appropriate planets. Then empires can be clearly defined and not compete too early. They should pick of the barbarians (minor races) to consolidate power. Or membership is offered.

The other empires (the AI) are not orderly and so cause logistical issues. So straight away the AI is hampered.

Created empires are more fun too as proper infrastructure exists so war can be waged at the appropriate time.

Having spent a huge amount of time configuring a mammoth Star Trek map in Civ2 where the maximum number was 254 systems with 21 planets per sector but three times that many uninhabited and useful as bases to stage attacks from, based on the plausible number of planets and total sectors in a maximized BotE map array, it looks like the maximum size is about equivalent to the Romulan and Klingon empires plus the Federation. It's a small map.

It's rare to have nine planets and not all are able to be terraformed until way later and with many systems uninhabitable as they lack class M central planets. The Milky Way is vast and not all of space is illustrated on a Star Trek map as it's open space.

To be accurate and generate way more ships would require way more planets to financially support the required ships and troops.

When a map array has a limit on how many planets can be colonized, yet the map is three times larger, then the AI has to travel across vast space just to attack. That is realistic and means it's less likely to send a sufficient armada to entirely displace other empires from 45+ sectors.

It also means there are pinchpoints and so strategic places to control to limit invasions. The military term is chokepoint.
https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Choke_point

This means a lot of effort is realistically taken on logistical strategy. You don't just send everything you got haphazardly.

Some maps have no borders, thus leaving westerly, then ends up on the far eastern side of the map, so a border is not protected. So leaving northerly ends up on the far south. Anyone can attack anyone and must always consider defensive tactics. It's a game changer.

If careless, you launch an armada, and a 3rd enemy attacks your defenseless empire! Yikes.

While space is mostly empty, on a Star Trek map it's quite full to show all the relevant sectors with many solar systems of planets.

But on the highest settings at 40x40 at 100% percent, it has far too much empty space. Space allows alternatvive routes to avoid entering a sector, but the sector is mostly comprised of space with some notable planets.

In game mechanics then you have to enter some sectors regardless if you want to so that means creating diplomatic relationships so it's allowed for you to be there. Some like the Cardassians and Dominion couldn't care less what some minor races think unless they are a minor race with heavily armored and shielded battleships and loaded for hunting bears. Like the Xiborg. Then systems and the relationships become very strategically controlled by trade, membership, alliances, and subjugation. "We are not your equals but your superiors and we are cutting through this sector because you do not actually control it! You populate some of it."

Major empires limit entrance into their systems and conflict must be resolved. A map designer would limit how much open space is shown.

Graphically an irregular 100% star map of the galaxy can still look like a spiral as a Star Trek map does not proportionally show empty space. People don't realize just the proportional size of stars versus planets as some are immense...even compared to Jupiter or even compared to the white dwarf Sol. Some stars may be 100s of times larger than Sol.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GoW8Tf7hTGA
So just because an irregular map looks full, it's actually mostly empty space. Thinking a system is a solar system is not correct in terms of astronomy as the distances between solar systems could not be proportionally and correctly depicted on a map.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i93Z7zljQ7I
Stars sizes fall on an immense scale along a continuum. A cosmic scale is of such monumental grandeur that it literally inspires awe at how small we are and how impossible it would be to draw a proportional map of the galaxy.

It creates it's own limitations on progression of the aspriations of empires to expand as to do so they must deal with the people of a system in their way. And that shapes the morals and ethics of major races from an egalitarian paradigm to a very Confucian paradigm of inferior versus superior relationships. See the Five Relationships.
http://wiki.sjs.org/wiki/index.php/Conf ... ationships

http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... tle=Sektor
This discusses sectors and how they are defined. What I don't think is defined is scale versus warp speed variances, but somewhere I think I read the best ships can travel up to four sectors per turn.

One could guesstimate the warp speed by rate of expansion and era in which it happened and warp speed if one knew how big a sector was in 4 dimensions (three axis in a Cartesian coordinate system plus time to determine stellar cartography).

Short, medium, and long range is quirky as tiny scoutships can traverse the long range when crusiers cannot. That defies logic unless somehow partially they are using ramjet technology to harvest fuel from the stars (or the particulars of dilithieum and warpcores of engines) and the issues of mass of the starship versus required versus supplies. Range is discussed here.
http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... Reichweite