Space Monsters are not interesting, but they're like Pirates I cannot disable

No such thing? That you know of anyway.

I like them I just think they should be expanded on somehow. It seems the choice you get when they spawn doesn't actually do anything other than give you ideology points? I could be wrong, but if I'm not I think picking the malevolent option should make them quickly extinct and take them out of the game after you kill like 4-5 of them. Where Prag and Benevolent can options let them run wild. That would easily satisfy you yea?

I also think that unless they're being specifically attacked they shouldn't be as hyper aggressive as they are. Give them something else to do in the map like eat up dead 0 class planets removing those useless husks from the game. If they run out of food they can start trying to nest near abandoned stars and start attacking habitable worlds. And be a legit threat to the galaxy. With a more structured core hive you can attack to eliminate them.

Or maybe before they become hostile you have the chance to research a new tech branch that can learn how to tame them. Think how cool it'd be to have a unique weapon that doesn't need to be manufactured, it just breeds itself naturally? And can gobble up uninhabited planets at your whim? For a chance at them to uh... digest... it into a more useful resource that could range from just a new asteroid field to, a resource, or a relic that was hidden inside that planet all along.

Uhhh, no they don't exist.  That I know of or that you know of.  Which means that they should be somehow CONNECTED to the game or they shouldn't be there.  Just like pirates seem unconnected.  I can't talk to them, I can't negotiate with them, I can't make money with them (or off them), I can't join forces with them, and I can't eat them.  So why have them?  That goes for both pirates and Monsters, but at least I can shut off pirates.

Your ideas would be a great starting point for making them interesting (Monsters or Pirates, for that matter), which would possibly get me on board with having them.

If I could research them and eventually tame (Monsters) or pay (Pirates) to eat dead planets (monsters), terraform dead planets (monsters or pirates), find new solar systems (monsters or pirates), eat my enemies (Monsters, and THOSE battles would be AWESOME!), or school my admirals in three dimensional chess (Pirates), then yeah; that WOULD make it more interesting and I'd be more amenable to having them around.

Right now they (both) feel vestigial and unconnected with the game, and therefore they are a gameplay distraction that don't add gameplay value.  At least I can shut off Pirates.   

They are a means to force a military action, even from a civilization isolated and/or safe with other major races, whom does not have a standing army.

They do indeed exist, if you are playing this game.

 

I'm playing such a game right now, and they STILL haven't forced a "military action."  You see, my civ has been hitting the books and all of my ships are far, far faster than any Monsters.  I can outrun them quite easily, but only on "manual".  I basically get penalized for using the "survey" or "explore" commands to automate those boring parts of the game.

Once again, I'm not asking that they be removed.  I'm just asking for an "off switch" in the configuration settings.

Ok since this post is about monsters lets talk about them first. I think the weapons should be more like animals, like spitting, biting, spikes, ramming, stinging, and clawing. There might be others. These could be the same weapons and defences only with other names. I think different monsters would use different weapons, and defenses. Besides having the option to shut these off can we have an option to have these after the player research weapons, or enough weapons.

Eating class zero planets, not all monsters would do this exactly. Some monsters would shit out a habital planet after they eat the class zero planet. Other monsters would shit out an extreme planet,  or other type of planets. This could be a different orbit. One monster could shit a random type of planet while othermonsters would shit a specific type of planet. Some monsters would throw it up instead. Different monsters would have different ranges of classes on this.

Other monsters cpuld do things to increase or decrease the class of planets. If colonized with loss of some population, and chances of losing some building depending what is done. Some monsters might only eat up the resources on the planet, while others would deposit the resources on the planets. This could add a tile with the rsource, while other it could be added to an existing tile with the possibility od destroying a building, or changing the resource on that tile.

Now about pirates it would be nice to pay them to attack someine, or pay them money so as to ally, or not attack you.

Hahah, you can't fool me.  You just wanted to use the "S" word.   

But the opportunity for hilarity would be prime.  Here are some lame attempts:

• "Merde IX is pure pue."  - Gershon Dubois, Age 61
• "Perhaps Jenna Casey should come down for a visit and get a whiff how bad this stench is.  Hovno III may look good on paper, but when you're living on a giant orbiting ball of caca, there's never enough paper.  Or perfume." - Michael Amari, Age 38
• "Compost V is amazing!  Everything grows super fast, especially the produce.  But I don't recommend the potatoes.  Or peanuts.  Or carrots.  Or onions.  And the beaches still need some work." - Fang McGregor, Age 33
• "This planet is a bowel movement, and I mean that!  I despise it A LOT." - Katrina Amari, Age 42

Imagine the colonization ideology prompts!

OMG, I can't stop laughing...

 

Ok. I thought of this some more.

You would have five monster attitudes.

1. He is a carnivore he would attack ships, planets for population possible chance of knocking over an improvement loss of population possible loss of citizen if settled, and other herbivore monsters.

2. Cannibal the above with the inclusion of other carnivorous monsters.

3. Herbivore that eats planets and resources, but is afraid of other monsters and ships. Probably avoid habital worlds.

4. Herbivore that eats planets and resources, but will attack other monsters and ships.

5. omnivore

Diets of class zero worlds, planetary resources, and space resources, asteroids where stars have no habitol planets, stars that have no habitol planets. Could take multiple turns to eat. Then take multiple turns move around. Then shit. The shit is in different ways.

1. class zero planets.

2. Terran planet

3. Some random and some specitic extreme planet.

4. Some with random planet traits some with specific traits.

5. Some with random class some with specific class. 

6. Some with specific,or some with random colony resources. Some will use a new tile; while, others will use an existing tile possible replacing a resource, or destroying a building. Possible chance of losing population, and a citizen if already inhabited. 

7. Asteroid.

8. Anomoly

9. A space resource some random others specific.

Possibility of taming.

 

I'm still bored with "Space Monsters" and I still wish I could control their frequency in game setup.

As currently coded, they (and everything about them) is a colossal waste of game time, like picking up every teeny tiny banana or health trinket in other games.  Eventually, they spawn so much and cause so much trouble that I am forced to field a battle detail to go take care of the problem. 

But winning against them is akin to eating rice cakes.  Flavorless and with all the texture of Styrofoam peanuts.  Winning against them does nothing in terms of my overall outcome of the game.  If I'm gonna win, I'm gonna win anyway, and the Monsters are always a  non-factor, except that they frustrate and annoy me.  If I'm gonna lose, I'm gonna lose regardless of monsters, except that they frustrate and annoy me while fighting more important battles elsewhere on the map.

Again, they're boring to me and they detract from the game.  Still.  7 months from my original post, I feel the same way.  Still.  With the new AI logic, I feel the same way. 

Please allow me to eliminate them from the game, or at least give me the ability to befriend them, house them like giant intergalactic pitbulls.  It would be cool if I could train them into my own Dogs of War, field them for battle, and sic them on the Drengin homeworld and watch the fun begin as the capital city gets devoured, stone, steel, glass, and people all! 

THEN we'd be talking about an exciting game dynamic.