Factions/Unity

Unity produce wild resources — whatever everyone else most needs. They can run their economy on whatever everyone else sees as junk. Recommended for experienced players who can make challenging negotiations — trading quality for quantity means needing to trade at an apparent profit.

## Background

The Unity are less a civilization and more an expanding simulated ecology, or an unbounded universe of mathematics. Every possible computation is explored; every thing that could be sapient in some inconceivable reality lives somewhere within the Unity's computronium depths. The vast majority of them haven't even heard of the galaxy or its aliens, and most of those who have can't conceive of it being important. Most don't even realize that they can't take their physical planet and move it out of reality and into a simulated universe.

## The Confluence

A minority of Unity, mostly those who are concerned with the material workings of their machines, see both the potential and importance of the galactic society. These struggle to convince others of their kind to get involved, while simultaneously struggling to make themselves relevant in the growing society of aliens.

When asked for their name the Unity had none, as they didn't consider themselves to be one people. They found an ancient name in their oldest database: Unity. Why they had once called themselves that, they do not know.

## Gameplay Information

* Wild resources.
* Wild inputs.
* Use colonies of any climate.

### Flexible Input

Most Unity converters have wild inputs. These can be satisfied by any cubes of the matching size. Unity wild resources can be used in wild inputs, although this is rather wasteful.

### Flexible Output

Most Unity converters output wild resources, which are small and large gray cubes. Wild resources may be used as if they were any same-sized color of cube: large wilds may be spent as black, blue, or yellow cubes; small wilds may be spent as green, white, or brown cubes.

Wild resources are immune to Zeth stealing. Do not avoid running most of your economy to make yourself "protected" - buying protection from the Zeth is usually much cheaper.

Eni Et interest converters can't produce more wild resources, but they don't destroy them if they are used as input - instead they pass through the converter and stay wild.

### Flexible Colonization

Several Unity cards may be flipped or played by consuming a colony of any climate and spending some resources.

Unity can only support 1 colony. You can colonize a second, but you will need to trade or consume it. Otherwise, you'll have to discard it to the. bottom of the deck as you enter the Economy Phase.

### Computer Worlds

You have four computer world cards that start out of play. You can choose any computer world and put it into play by running the converter at the top of the card. These represent setting up vast servers on other worlds, and convincing new sections of the Unity population to get involved in the growing society.

## Advice

For everyone else, the Economy Phase is about becoming rich and the Trade Phase is for fixing the colors of resources. For you, your economy fixes the colors of resources, so you must use the Trade Phase to become rich. Always trade your resource (wild or not) at a profit, but the profit can be small. Trade a large for two small or a small for a large.

Your economy can run on anything. Make sure the other players know that you want their "junk". Don't worry about getting the correct mix of large and small cubes: you can play Computer Worlds to adapt to the resources you have. Aim to get about two Computer Worlds out in the first three turns, but don't worry about getting them all out.

Since you can ignore your own economy during the Trade Phase, you'll have attention to spare. Look for players who need a few cubes to run a converter or invent something, then offer those cubes before they even ask. If anyone has leftover resources or unused converters at the end of a Trade Phase, see if you can fix that. The other players often won't be able to pay you immediately: accept payment next turn with a 50% mark- up.