Ecumenopolis and Arcology Project rework concept

[Armagodura]

I propose this all less as a "pls do it!" and more of a "food for thought" concept that I wanna hear y'alls thoughts on.

Some time ago I found out about the book "Arcology: the city on the image of man", and ever since I feel a little peeved on how Stellaris handles arcologies and ecumenopoli, assuming that book is what the entire concept is based on. Basically, an arcology (a super-efficient giant city-building) is meant to be a way to avoid forming an ecumenopolis (planet-wide city sprawl), whereas in Stellaris you must outright turn your planet into an ecumenopolis in order to build the super-efficient arcologies on it.

The idea I have is to make it so the list of districts can be scrolled in order to put so many more district options in it... and making the "Arcology Project" ascension perk unlock the arcology districts for every ordinary planet, but of course each costing a huge amount of resources and time to build to compensate not having to do the original Planetary Decision. High cost with hopefully high payout if more mechanics are added to make empty district slots beneficial (say, more environmentalism perks or something, and not just for those with the civic, although the civic could really amp that way up).

Alternatively, building arcologies could also require a special project to assemble the necessary infrastructure for them, but it doesn't necessarily turn the planet into an ecumenopolis.

 

[AUSTINZ]

I like the fact that ecumenopoleli don't allow you to build primary resource districts - it makes sense both from a gameplay perspective (what niche does the planet fit into) and from a lore perspective (if you wanted to farm or mine, why cover the planet with a city?).

What I don't like all that much is how they're only useful for making CGs and alloys. From a gameplay perspective this is great - it's a well-defined and useful role for them to play. From a lore/RP perspective...while there are certainly factory ecumenopolei in fiction (ask any 40k fan), there are also lots that are more trade oriented. You can build bureaucrat arcologies on ecumenopolei right now but there's little point; if you are setting up an ecumenopolis you want it for alloys and the opportunity cost is too high.

Tentatively, I'd replace the housing districts (which are largely useless) with commercial districts that provide multiple merchant and clerk jobs. Ecumenopolei are going to need a lot of trade in 4.0 to sustain all the resources they're importing, so there'll be an incentive for players to mix in at least a few. Ecumenopolis trade districts should also increase trade across the empire, like how resort worlds increase empire-wide amenities (and also trade, IIRC), to reflect their outsized economic importance. I'd also add an 'arsenal' district type to provide additional naval capacity from jobs, representing infrastructure to maintain a huge fleet.

I also think they should rename the ecumenopolis districts from 'arcology' back to 'district'. The idea should be that ecumenopolis districts can support more jobs and production because they can cover more of the planet's surface, which has been entirely urbanized. I would reuse the arcology concept for either a special district type on non-ecumenopolis worlds, or maybe a new type of building (perhaps its effect is to increase the number of districts you can build) for non-ecumenopolis worlds).

 

[Armagodura]

I like the fact that ecumenopoleli don't allow you to build primary resource districts - it makes sense both from a gameplay perspective (what niche does the planet fit into) and from a lore perspective (if you wanted to farm or mine, why cover the planet with a city?).

What I don't like all that much is how they're only useful for making CGs and alloys. From a gameplay perspective this is great - it's a well-defined and useful role for them to play. From a lore/RP perspective...while there are certainly factory ecumenopolei in fiction (ask any 40k fan), there are also lots that are more trade oriented. You can build bureaucrat arcologies on ecumenopolei right now but there's little point; if you are setting up an ecumenopolis you want it for alloys and the opportunity cost is too high.

Tentatively, I'd replace the housing districts (which are largely useless) with commercial districts that provide multiple merchant and clerk jobs. Ecumenopolei are going to need a lot of trade in 4.0 to sustain all the resources they're importing, so there'll be an incentive for players to mix in at least a few. Ecumenopolis trade districts should also increase trade across the empire, like how resort worlds increase empire-wide amenities (and also trade, IIRC), to reflect their outsized economic importance. I'd also add an 'arsenal' district type to provide additional naval capacity from jobs, representing infrastructure to maintain a huge fleet.

I also think they should rename the ecumenopolis districts from 'arcology' back to 'district'. The idea should be that ecumenopolis districts can support more jobs and production because they can cover more of the planet's surface, which has been entirely urbanized. I would reuse the arcology concept for either a special district type on non-ecumenopolis worlds, or maybe a new type of building (perhaps its effect is to increase the number of districts you can build) for non-ecumenopolis worlds).

Those are all good points and ideas!

Ecumenopoli certainly don't need to go, they can remain as a powerful kind of planet, at the cost of its nature. They should still be able to fulfill both the dystopian perspective (severed nature, naught but urban sprawl) and the utopian one (a world of vast abundance). I just don't want to have to go this far if I want those juicy arcologies, specially given their whole ecological idea and vibe, so any way to allow them to exist (aside habitats, also described as arcologies) is welcome from my part.

 

[HFY]

Yeah the word "Arcology" is a bit misused in the game right now.

I think someone saw the word "Arcology" next to a really big looking super-building and decided that it must mean really big building, rather than being about a low ecological impact for its very high population concentration.

It would honestly be better to have a different kind of mega-engineered "arcology project" for Environmentalists / Agrarian Idyll / Idyllic Bloom / etc. -- for people who want the benefits of urban development without the planetary impact of urban sprawl -- and then let Ecumenopolis be its own thing which used a different word (not "Arcology").

 

[Jappards]

I like the fact that ecumenopoleli don't allow you to build primary resource districts - it makes sense both from a gameplay perspective (what niche does the planet fit into) and from a lore perspective (if you wanted to farm or mine, why cover the planet with a city?).

What I don't like all that much is how they're only useful for making CGs and alloys. From a gameplay perspective this is great - it's a well-defined and useful role for them to play. From a lore/RP perspective...while there are certainly factory ecumenopolei in fiction (ask any 40k fan), there are also lots that are more trade oriented. You can build bureaucrat arcologies on ecumenopolei right now but there's little point; if you are setting up an ecumenopolis you want it for alloys and the opportunity cost is too high.

Tentatively, I'd replace the housing districts (which are largely useless) with commercial districts that provide multiple merchant and clerk jobs. Ecumenopolei are going to need a lot of trade in 4.0 to sustain all the resources they're importing, so there'll be an incentive for players to mix in at least a few. Ecumenopolis trade districts should also increase trade across the empire, like how resort worlds increase empire-wide amenities (and also trade, IIRC), to reflect their outsized economic importance. I'd also add an 'arsenal' district type to provide additional naval capacity from jobs, representing infrastructure to maintain a huge fleet.

I also think they should rename the ecumenopolis districts from 'arcology' back to 'district'. The idea should be that ecumenopolis districts can support more jobs and production because they can cover more of the planet's surface, which has been entirely urbanized. I would reuse the arcology concept for either a special district type on non-ecumenopolis worlds, or maybe a new type of building (perhaps its effect is to increase the number of districts you can build) for non-ecumenopolis worlds).

I agree that ecumonpolises fit their niche well. However, I think having "arsenal districts" doesn't fit well with the current trade and alloy focus. Fortress worlds may need their own "arcology project", with some kind of FTL inhibitor that prevents even jump drives, quantum catapults(meaning ships go missing when trying to jump to systems near it), gateways and hyper relays from working for the enemy(especially since the AI puts gateways and hyper relays everywhere). These should cost a lot of resources to maintain to prevent empires from having too many of them, but in turn have a lot of defensive bonuses as well as help defend the system in the initial assault against the starbase(This gives the defensive empire an edge or time to prepare, but won't turn wars into slogs). Of course they also need protections against planet cracking.