Version 1.0
Last Updated: 11 July 1996, 08:30 GMT
Written by: Todd M. Lewis
(Beowulf92@aol.com)
GROTESQUELY BORING LEGAL-SOUNDING STUFF
DISCLAIMER
The purpose of this FAQ is to aid the public regarding strategies for use
in
the game Afterlife, by LucasArts Entertainment Company. In no way
should this promote your killing yourself, killing others, or killing in
any
other fashion.
Todd Lewis claims NO responsibility regarding any illegal activity
concerning this FAQ, or indirectly related to this FAQ.
TRADEMARK INFORMATION
Afterlife is a trademark and is copyrighted, and is so acknowledged. Any
trademarks not mentioned here are still acknowledged.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
This article is Copyright 1996 by Todd Lewis. All rights reserved.
You are granted the following rights:
I. To make copies of this work in original form, so long as
(a) the copies are exact and complete;
(b) the copies include the copyright notice and these paragraphs in
their entirety;
(c) the copies give obvious credit to the author, Todd Lewis;
(d) the copies are in electronic form.
II. To distribute this work, or copies made under the provisions above, so
long as
(a) this is the original work and not a derivative form;
(b) you do not charge a fee for copying or for distribution;
(c) you ensure that the distributed form includes the copyright
notice,
this paragraph, the disclaimer of warranty in their entirety and credit to
the author;
(d) the distributed form is not in an electronic magazine or within
computer software without obtaining prior explicit permission must be
obtained from Todd Lewis
(e) the distributed form is the NEWEST version of the article to the
best of the knowledge of the distributor;
(f) the distributed form is electronic.
You may not distribute this work by any non-electronic media, including
but not limited to books, newsletters, magazines, manuals, catalogs, and
speech. You may not distribute this work in electronic magazines or
within computer software without prior written explicit permission. These
rights are temporary and revocable upon written, oral, or other notice by
Todd Lewis. This copyright notice shall be governed by international
copyright law.
If you would like additional rights beyond those granted above, write to
the author at "Beowulf92@aol.com" on the Internet. Thanks for suffering
through all that stuff. You're a swell person, and will make one Hell of
a
Demiurge.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Ring One: Introduction
[1-1] Foreword
[1-2] About the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ
[1-2-1] Is the FAQ related to the Afterlife Official Player's
Guide?
[1-3] Getting the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ
[1-3-1] Via Usenet
[1-3-2] Via Internet FTP
[1-3-3] Via WWW
[1-3-4] Via BBS
[1-4] Adding to the FAQ
[1-5] Acknowledgments
[1-5-1] More Acknowledgments
[1-6] Accurate Information
Ring Two: Game Fundamentals
[2-1] Beliefs
[2-2] Zoning
[2-2-1] In Heaven
[2-2-2] In Hell
[2-3] Balance
[2-4] Vibes
[2-5] Diversity
[2-6] Efficiency
Ring Three: Making Money
[3-1] The Basics
[3-2] Train your own Angels and Demons
[3-2-1] Riots
[3-3] Roads
[3-4] "X" Marks the Spot
[3-5] Lost SOULs
[3-6] Banks
[3-6-1] "Heavenly" Loans
[3-6-2] "Devilish" Investing
Ring Five: The Planet
[5-1] Beliefs
[5-2] Sins and Virtues
[5-3] Technology
Ring Six: Nothing Bad Ever Happens To Me (Yeah, Right)
[6-1] Birds of Paradise
[6-2] Bats Out of Hell
[6-3] Heaven Gets the Blues
[6-4] Hell Freezes Over
[6-5] Heaven Nose
[6-6] Hell in a Handbasket
[6-7] Paradise Pair of Dice
[6-8] Disco Inferno
Ring Seven: Strategies
[7-1] The Early Game
[7-2] The Mid Game
[7-3] The Late Game
[7-4] Player tips
[7-5] Cheats
[7-6] War Stories
Ring Eight: Miscellaneous
[8-1] Internet resources
[8-2] World Wide Web sites
[8-3] Other FAQs and texts
[8-4] Bugs
[8-5] Patches
[8-6] Errors in the Afterlife Instruction Brochure--er, Manual
[8-7] Conclusion
[8-8] Revision History
Ring Nine: There is no Ring Nine.
----------------------
Ring One: Introduction
----------------------
[1-1]: Foreword
===============
Afterlife is "the last word in sims," by LucasArts. In this game, you
must
develop two separate planes simultaneously. Quite some effort has gone
into describing the scenario: there is a planet that IS NOT EARTH, full of
EMBOs (Ethically Mature Biological Organisms). When they die, their
SOULs (Stuff Of Unending Life) have to go somewhere. That's where you
come in.
The mysterious Powers That Be have made you a Demiurge, responsible
for both Heaven and Hell. Your clients will be the incoming SOULs. If
they have been bad, they will be punished according to their sins in Hell.
Of course, we're talking about the seven biggies: Envy, Avarice
(otherwise known as Greed in a recent blockbuster), Gluttony, Sloth,
Lust, Wrath, and Pride. If those SOULs have been good, they will be
rewarded in Heaven for the seven corresponding virtues: Contentment,
Charity, Temperance, Diligence, Chastity, Peacefulness, and Humility.
This game is a "simulation," like Sim City and its cousins. You must zone
for structures, teach a workforce, provide living accomodations, recover
from disasters...but we'll get to all of this shorty.
[1-2] About the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ
=================================================
Welcome to v1.0 of the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ. I hope you find
it
both amusing and helpful. It became painfully obvious that the
documentation provided with the game didn't paint a complete picture.
Sure, there's enough to get you started, and there's also plenty of help
along the way, but there wasn't a lot of printed reference material.
Hopefully this FAQ will fit the bill. There's not much else to say at
this
point, as this is the first version. Don't rip it apart too badly.
"Unofficial" means that this FAQ is not supported by LucasArts.
Afterlife
is the name of the game. FAQs are (F)requently (A)sked (Q)uestions.
Revision classification works something like the following. If a new
version of the FAQ has only a small amount of information changed or
added, the version number is increased by 0.1, and is called a "minor
revision." If a new version of the FAQ has a substantial amount of new
information changed or added, the version number is increased by 0.5,
and is called a "standard revision." If a new version of the FAQ has a
huge amount of added or changed information, major parts of the FAQ are
rearranged, or major parts of the FAQ are rewritten, the version number
is increased by 1.0, and it is called a "major revision."
You may be wondering why chapter numbers are enclosed in either [ ]'s
or * *'s. The definition of these is as follows:
[ ] Chapters enclosed in square brackets mean that the information
contained in the chapter has not been updated since the previous FAQ.
Since this is the first version, all chapters will be enclosed in [ ].
** Chapters enclosed in asterisks mean that the information contained in
the chapter is new or has been updated for the current version of the FAQ
you are reading. Pretty simple, eh?
[1-2-1] Is the FAQ related to the Afterlife Official Player's Guide?
==============================================================
======
No, the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ is not related in any way with
the
Afterlife Official Player's Guide other than in topic. Nor is the
Unofficial
Afterlife Strategy FAQ meant to provide competition to the Afterlife
Official Player's Guide. Get it? I'm not making any money here, nor am I
trying to. My only reward is seeing my own name at the top of this thing.
So stop thinking about making my life Hell with some kind of lawsuit.
[1-3] Getting the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ
===================================================
[1-3-1] via Usenet
------------------
The Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ is posted on the following Usenet
groups:
(1) comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.strategic
The 'Subject:' line of the post will be "[Afterlife] Unofficial Strategy
FAQ
v?.?" where "?.?" is the version number of the FAQ.
[1-3-2] Via Internet FTP
------------------------
New releases of the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ can be found at the
following Internet FTP sites:
(Well, actually nowhere yet. But if someone would care to carry it and
let
me know I'll note it here. I'll even give you credit for it.)
The file name of the upload will be "alifes??.faq" where "??" is the
version number of the FAQ.
[1-3-3] Via WWW
---------------
New releases of the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ will be found on the
following World-wide Web sites:
(Again, nowhere yet. But if someone would like to post it on their page
and let me know, I'll make note it here. I'll even give you credit for
that,
too.)
HTML versions of the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ can be found on
the following World-wide Web sites:
(Seeing any similarities yet?)
[1-3-4] Via BBS
---------------
New releases of the Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ will be uploaded to
other BBSes as the opportunity arises. The file should be "alifes??.faq"
where "??" is the version number of the FAQ.
ATTENTION: ALL BBSes, CompuServe, America On-line, and all other
information services. PLEASE conform to the naming standard of the
Unofficial Afterlife Strategy FAQ when placing this file on your system.
The file name should be "alifes??.zip" where the "??" is the version
number of the FAQ or "alifes??.txt" if the FAQ is a text file instead of
PKZIPped.
[1-4] Adding to the FAQ
=======================
The words [blank] or [incomplete] indicates a section that needs filling
in.
I depend heavily on contributions from people like yourself to make this
FAQ whole. Want some recognition? Help me fill in the blanks.
If you have something to add to the FAQ, please send E-mail to
Beowulf92@aol.com, with the subject "Afterlife USG," and explain what
your addition is. It will be reviewed, and if accepted, added to the next
FAQ version. In the E-mail, please supply your name and E-mail address.
Please note that all submissions to the FAQ become property of the
author (Todd Lewis) and that they may or may not be included. By
submitting to the FAQ, you grant the author permission to use your
submission in any future publications of the FAQ in any media. The author
reserves the right to omit information from a submission or delete the
submission entirely.
[1-5] Acknowledgments
=====================
LucasArts for making this game.
My wife Jill, who has no idea her name is in here.
And a big thanks to everyone else who sent something my way, or posted
answers to questions in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.strategic. I gave credit
to all persons whose ideas I included in this FAQ. Forgive me if I miss
anyone. If for some reason I HAVE missed you, PLEASE send me E-mail
so I can give credit where credit is due.
[1-5-1] More Acknowledgments to Some Guys Who Don't Even Know Why
=================================================================
A huge "Thank you" and an "I'm sorry" to:
Hank Leukart (ap641@cleveland.freenet.edu),
author of the "Official" DOOM FAQ;
Edward Kenworthy (ekenworthy@cix.compulink.co.uk),
author of the Unofficial Civilization 2 Strategy Guide;
Both of whom I have shamelessly copied ideas and formats for organizing
this FAQ.
[1-6]: Accurate Information
===========================
An attempt has been made to make the information in this FAQ as
accurate as possible. However, if you discover that some little imp has
been successful at having a false tip included in this FAQ, please let me
know immediately.
---------------------------
Ring Two: Game Fundamentals
---------------------------
This Ring will cover some of the basic topics that you should try to keep
in
mind while playing. If you don't want to read this incessant rambling, go
ahead and skip over it. Go on. Go. You'll be back.
[2-1] Beliefs
=============
Okay, first you need to understand something about your future "clients."
Whether or not the SOULs even come to you for processing depends on
their beliefs. In Afterlife, there are two broad categories. NAAA: No
Afterlife At All, and AAAA: Absolutely Always An Afterlife. An NAAAist is
an EMBO who doesn't believe in an afterlife. So when he croaks, he won't
be comin' a knockin' on either one of your gates (Pearly or otherwise).
Therefore, all SOULs you will be dealing with are AAAAists.
Let's break it down further. Within AAAA, there are two subcategories.
HAHA: Heaven and Hell Await, and HOHO: Heaven Or Hell Only. In other
words, a HAHAist believes that she will first be punished in Hell for her
sins, then will go to Heaven to be rewarded for her virtures. A HOHOist
believes that he will only go to one realm or the other.
Remember when I said that there were two subcategories of AAAA? Well,
I lied. There are two more. OCRA: Only Cloud Realms Await, and OPRA:
Only Pit Realms Await. These believe that only one realm exists, period.
An OCRAist would only go to Heaven, regardless of her sins or virtues.
An OPRAist...well, you get the picture.
Hang in there, just a few more of these dull descriptions. Now that we've
determined where our SOUL believes it will be going, we would like to
know what it will be doing there. Two more categories. SUMA: SOULs
Undergo Multiple Afterlifes, and SUSA: SOULs Undergo Singular
Afterlifes. A SUMAist believes that he will be rewarded or punished for
every virtue or sin, while a SUSAist believes that she will be rewarded or
punished only for her most prominent virture or sin.
Almost done. There's the matter of reincarnation to deal with. You
guessed it, two more categories. ALF: Afterlife Lasts Forever, and RALF:
Reincarnation Always Loops Fate. An ALFist does not believe in
reincarnation. This makes him a _PERMANENT_ guest (he's there for
eternity). A RALFist believes in reincarnation. This makes her a
_TEMPORARY_ guest. These are important distinctions.
Lastly, all of these categories can be mixed. A HOHOSUSAALFist would
believe that upon his death, he would travel to either Heaven Or Hell
Only.
Once there, he would be rewarded or punished based upon his one
predominant virtue or sin, and that he would be there forever. As you can
see, a HOHOSUSAALfist is a pretty easy SOUL to handle.
[2-2] Zoning
============
Just as in Sim City, where you had to create "zones" for residential,
commercial, and industrial building, you must specify zones in both
Heaven and in Hell. The difference is that in Afterlife, your zones are
where your Fate Structures are built. Fate Structures are the buildings
where the SOULs actually go in Heaven or in Hell. Once a zone has been
defined, the Fate Structures will appear automatically as needed, until
the
zone is filled.
[2-2-1] In Heaven
-----------------
You must create zones for each of the seven virtues. Each virtue is
designated by its own color:
Green is Contentment
Yellow is Charity
Orange is Temperance
Brown is Diligence
Purple is Chastity
Red is Peacefulness
Blue is Humility
Multicolor is Generic Virtue
In Heaven, Fate Structures are called Rewards.
"Heaven needs to be compact, and easy to walk from point to point.
SUMAists expect to go to blue first, then work their way back to green.
Put blue closest to the gates, and work from there. Heaven likes small
zones of color next to each other." [jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu (Ron
Jarrell)]
"I just 'spider' roads out from the gate, one leg for each reward, with
plenty of space, training centers, and utopias in between blocks and
immediately around the main gate. This grows harder to do as the pop.
expands, but it's quite doable with a little monkeying." ["Kagetora" ]
[2-2-2] In Hell
---------------
You will be punishing bad SOULs according to their sins. There are seven
sins, and you must create zones so that your Demons may build the
corresponding Fate Structures.
Green is Envy (nice touch)
Yellow is Avarice
Orange is Gluttony
Brown is Sloth
Purple is Lust
Red is Wrath
Blue is Pride
Multicolor is Generic Sin
In Hell, Fate Structures are called Punishments.
"Hell is the opposite.. The damned expect to suffer, so long walks are
important, both between the gate/karma station and zones, and between
zones. It should take a while to walk from point a to point b. SUMAists
expect to go to GREEN tiles first, and work down to blue (Hell thinks the
sin importance is REVERSE from Heaven.) Which means green should be
FARTHEST from the gate. Hell hates zones of color next to each other,
and favors large single blocks of color." [jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu (Ron
Jarrell)]
[2-3] Balance
=============
Okay, remember reading about Permanent and Temporary SOULs? At
any given time, any Fate Structure will have a mix of the two. When a
Fate
Structure is well-balanced, it has been set so that it is providing the
proper mix of activity for its residents. In other words, if you had 100%
permanent souls, you would want to set the Fate Structure to "mental
activity," which is designed for permanent SOULs. You can adjust the
balance for each Fate Structure in the Microview window.
Balancing is another Herculean task. I think LucasArts threw it in there
so that we would have to click on individual structures, and while we're
at
it, why not appreciate the neat drawings and humorous biographies that
go along with them? Otherwise all of that detail would go unnoticed.
The easiest way I've found is to use the "Flatten Hell/Heaven" buttons,
then use the Microview to click on a square. Keep the Microview window
open to the Balance screen. Now just rip through and adjust the sliders
until you see white. Also, by turning on the Autoscroll function, you can
easily maneuver the Punishment/Reward zones so that you can select
individual squares without constantly having to move the Microview
Balance window.
Pressing the "A" key during game play will reduce the size of all of the
structures in the game. Topias, Gift Structures, Gates, etc. included.
Makes it much easier to "see around" those really tall buildings. Lastly,
you don't have to close that window for your changes to take effect. Just
click on the next box and be on your way. When you're finished, deselect
the "Flatten" buttons if you want to see all of those Fate Structures
packed together.
"Balance - If they gripe, I look at the map, click around, and make sure
that the most populated buildings are balanced. Fixing those is enough to
make things happy withought driving you crazy in micromanagement. "
[ooba@red-branch.MIT.EDU()]
"Unfortunately, that isn't enough. If each 3x3 zone has a 2x2 and several
1x1 buildings (the common growth pattern), and you only balance the big
ones, you will never grow 3x3 buildings...Therefore, I just don't do it by
hand (except for maybe the first two or three zones during the first
minute
or two). I consider the cost of using the macro manager to autobalance
all of Heaven or all of Hell (when they get really bad) simply a part of
the
cost of running the zones. Yes, in the mid stages of a game, I have paid
50M cents to balance a plane. It is worth it.
"It actually tends to pay itself back in growth, believe it not. But
manual
balancing: fooey!" [sjenkins@access.digex.net (Scott A. Jenkins)]
[2-4] Vibes
===========
"Vibes" are weakly described, at best. The first question is "Where do
these things come from?" The answer is from the buildings and
structures. All of them. Gates, Karma Stations, Topias, Fate
Structures...the works. Basically, vibes come in two flavors: pro-
evolutionary, and anti-evolutionary. Well, they're are actually described
as being good or bad, but those designations have polar effects in
Heaven and Hell. Let me explain.
Since Heaven is such a happy place, good vibes are pro-evolutionary,
while bad vibes are anti-evolutionary. I doubt that any Reward in Heaven
produces "bad vibes" that we would associate with hatred. Rather, I
prefer to think of it as "In this structure, the SOULs are only incredibly
blissful, as opposed to unfathomably ecstatic over there."
Now, in Hell, vibes work in exactly the opposite manner: bad vibes are
pro-evolutionary, while good vibes are anti-evolutionary. Once again, I
doubt that any Punishment in Hell that produces good vibes promotes
happiness. Rather, the SOULs there are only awfully miserable, as
opposed to the demonically tortured. You get my drift.
Back to the topic at hand. A structure that is operating under pro-
evolutionary vibes is more likely to be spontaneously upgraded (assuming
there's enough zone space around it, if needed) into a more fancy
version. Want some of those ultimate 3x3 Fate Structures shown in the
Technical Manual? Then you should have your zone subjected to pro-
evolutionary Vibes.
The Vibes that a particular Fate Structure emits will always be constant.
"The Perfect Spot Cosmic Backrub," a Reward for Chastity, will always
emit Very Bad Vibes. Vibes from Fate Structures appear to have a range
of one square. So if you're waiting for your "Perfect Evening" Reward
(which just happens to be immediately adjacent) to get upgraded to
"Cherubopolis," you may have to wait a while due to the Bad Vibes from
"Spot."
Once a zone has evolved to its highest form, I usually ignore Vibes. "The
Big Tease Shower Towers," a 3x3 Punishment for Lust, emits Very Good
Vibes. Who cares? The next XX0,000 lustful SOULs just found a home,
and I'm paying very few Demons to watch over them. Of course, anti-
evolutionary Vibes can be countered by placing Topias or Gift Structures.
"Use the vibe map - it helped me a lot. And those gift structures can
really make an area explode with growth if they're placed right. This is
a game about PLANNING, as far as I can tell."
[dleary@umabnet.ab.umd.edu (David Leary)]
"Gates and karma stations ALWAYS put out anti-vibes, i.e. vibes that are
WRONG for their plane. Keep them away from zones. Bigger structures
spread their vibes farther. A level one gate affects 3 squares, level 2
hits
four squares... Training centers and Topias always put out pro-vibes. I
like to put a training center between the gate and the first fate zone.
Provides the buffer I need, plus they tend to cancel out. Gift structures
put out major pro-vibes, and each counteracts 1 disaster with its area of
effect. (Typically 10-15 squares or so). Siphons put out toxic waste and
bad vibes. Which is what you want in Hell, so putting it in the middle of
things helps; and is bad for growth in Heaven." [jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu
(Ron Jarrell)]
[2-5] Diversity
===============
Diversity is a measure of the amount of variety to be found in Heaven and
in Hell. Not surprisingly, these two planes have opposite needs. In
Heaven, SOULs like to intermingle with each other, from all the different
colors. So diversity in Heaven contributes some amount of positive
influence that may contribute to efficiency. Hell is exactly the
opposite.
You want those SOULs to be bored out of their minds, so being undiverse
is desirable.
Here's the key to diversity: intelligent zoning. In Heaven, you want
blocks
of the various colored Virtues mixed together. In Hell, you want to have
blocks of the same color, separated from all the other colors by a good,
long walk.
"When computing for your adjaceny bounus (part of your efficiency score)
a tile will look at all the surrounding tiles to see what color they are.
It
gets a bonus point for each that's the same color, and three for each
that's the same color, and same type/species (Hell). Heaven it's +3 for
different color, +1 same color, different species. This then gets
averaged
out and folded into the efficiency score.
"So Hell does give you bonus for large monolithic blocks of the same color
vs. lots of seperate areas of a single color." [jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu
(Ron Jarrell)]
[2-6] Efficiency
================
Here is another one of those vague concepts. In Afterlife, "efficiency"
seems to be dependent upon balance, and your Angel or Demon
Quotients (in Heaven or Hell, respectively), over a period of time. A new
Fate Structure may not be that efficient. But higher Quotients, along
with
extremely well balanced Fate Structures will lead to better efficiency
grades. "So what?" I hear you ask. Well, the better your overall
efficiency, the faster your SOUL rate will climb. In other words, higher
efficiency equals better profits.
Allow me a small aside, and let's talk about _real_ efficiency. Not some
distorted concept that is described above. The real choice you have to
make is what type of efficiency is most important to you? The capacities
of Fate Structures increases over time. The highest population density
available on a "per square" basis is found in the highest 2x2 structure.
However, the highest demon (or angel) to SOUL efficiency is achieved by
using a 3x3 structure.
Here's an example from one of my games: "Ignorance Ain't Bliss" is the
top 2x2 punishment for Lust. It can currently hold 627,200 SOULs, and
requires 1,500 Demons. "Big Tease Shower Towers," the 3x3 punishment
for Lust, currently holds 800,000 SOULs, and requires 1,625 Demons.
Here's the math: 627,200 / 4 = 156,800 SOULs per square. 800,000 / 9 =
88,889 SOULs per square. That makes "Ignorance" 76% more efficient
than "Towers," on a SOUL per square basis.
627,200 / 1500 = 418 SOULs per demon. 800,000 / 1625 = 492 SOULs per
demon. That makes "Towers" 18% more efficient than "Ignorance," on a
SOUL per demon basis.
Now, since paying my Demons (and my Angels) is a major contributor to
my overhead, I'll stick with the 3x3 structures. Especially since I don't
seem to be running out of real estate in Heaven or Hell. If however, you
want to keep a Fate Structure at its current level of evolution, be sure
to "lock" it, and pay the per year cost in pennies. This would be a
particularly desirable option if you wanted to improve the pro-
evolutionary vibes for a particular zone. Using an advanced 2x2 structure
that gives off the appropriate vibes may be more important to you than
either type of efficiency described above.
------------------------
Ring Three: Making Money
------------------------
Now, this _is_ the $64,000 question. Let's see here, that would be
6,400,00 pennies. Do I have your attention yet?
[3-1] The Basics
================
Earn more than you spend. It's that easy, right? The number of SOULs
you have accomodated in both realms times your SOUL rate is your only
source of income. It should be pretty intuitive that the way to earn a
higher income is by raising the SOUL rate, or increasing the total number
of SOULs.
Conversely, you can increase your total profits by reducing your
"overhead," or the amount of money you must spend on upkeep.
[3-2] Train your own Angels and Demons
======================================
In the early game, this one item can turn your budget around more quickly
than any other. If done properly, training your own Angels and Demons
can increase the efficiency of your Fate Structures (which in turn raises
the SOUL rate), as well as reduces your overhead.
Lets assume for the moment that your zones in Heaven are all set, and
that SOULs are flowing in. There will be a finite amount of jobs for your
Angels. Initially, all of your Angels are imported. Through the use of a
Training Center, you can train "homegrown" Angels to replace the
imported ones. You are, in effect, "firing" the imported Angels. Since
the
number of working position remains fixed, you are replacing the
expensive imported Angels with homegrown ones. Reducing the amount
of imported workers is important, and is one of the earliest ways in which
you can reduce a portion of your overhead.
I recommend starting with the Seraphim State College and/or the
Hellward Bound Retreats. You should place these Training Centers near
your Gates, or any other highly trafficked areas. This placement will
make them more effective in recruiting. Note that lowering the admission
percentage does not mean that these TCenters produce workers at a
lower rate. A Community College of the Clouds can train up to 100 Angels
per year, while a Seraphim State College can train up to 250 Angels per
year. The number of SOULs currently being trained depends on how
many PERMANENT SOULs walk by that TCenter. If you have 1,250 or
more of these SOULs passing by, then an acceptance rate of 20% will still
produce the maximum number of Angels each year (250).
By lowering your acceptance percentage, you will raise your Angel
Quotient (AQ) or your Demon Quotient (DQ) over time. Higher quotients
will lead to higher Fate Structure Efficiency, which in turn results in
higher
SOUL Rates (see, there was a point to all of this after all).
[3-2-1] Riots
-------------
Be careful with those TCenters, though. When Jasper and/or Aria remind
yu that less than 10% of your Demons/Angels are imported, TURN THOSE
CENTERS OFF! Have you ever seen rioting Angels or Demons? Not
pretty. Especially if they start a chain reaction. In my first game, I
kept
the percentage of imported workers between 0 and 2%. Big mistake.
When the 3x3 Fate Structures finally appeared, many of those Angels
became unemployed. Idle Angels ran amok, and started destroying Fate
Structures in Hell, which put several Demons out of jobs. Now idle
Demons rioted in Heaven, which created more idle Angels. You get the
picture. Before too long, I was staring at a bunch of empty roads!
Kowabunga time.
[3-3] Roads
===========
After glancing at the Afterlife Official Player's Guide, I notice that the
formula used to calculate how much you are charged for the upkeep of a
road is some nasty logarithmic beastie. The bottom line is, the more
SOULs that walk on a road, the higher the upkeep.
Early in the game, you'll want to stick to fairly short roads. The upkeep
you spend on really long roads--especially in Hell--can quickly bury you.
In Hell, I try to use a long series of "S-curves," which is basically one
long
road that keeps twisting back and forth. If I need to create more room
for
zoning, I just "nuke" a corner, extend the road, and lay down a new
corner.
[3-4] "X" Marks the Spot
========================
Another way to reduce the number of imported workers is to "Nuke"
low-populated Fate Structures. Doing so will free up some of your
homegrown Demons or Angels to go displace imported ones elsewhere.
It will also cause your SOULs to really pack it in to the remaining
Rewards
or Punishments. Keeping your Fate Structures populated at high
percentages encourages their growth into higher capacity versions.
Notice that by redistributing your homegrown workers, you are in
essence "firing" the imported ones.
[3-5] Lost SOULs
================
Losing SOULs is the quickest way to early bankruptcy. You will be
charged one full penny for every SOUL lost, even if your SOUL rate is a
fraction of one cent. You will want to pay close attention to Jasper and
Aria, as well as your Graphview to see which zones may need a little extra
space. Also keep in mind that your Gates can (and will) reach their own
limits, as well as your Karma Stations and Ports.
[3-6] Banks
===========
When you start becoming a little desperate, you'll want to think about
building a bank (or two, or three). The banks on each plane work a little
differently.
[3-6-1] "Heavenly" Loans
------------------------
When you take out a loan from a Heavenly bank, you must make yearly
payments for 100 years, with interest. The interest rate for Heaven is:
Int(Heaven) = 1% * (the total number of loans you have outstanding from
Heavenly banks)
So if you've built three banks, your interest rate for the first loan will
only
be 1%. If you take out a second loan before you've finished paying off
the
first, your interest rate will be 2%. This gradual rise in interest rates
may
eventually bankrupt you if you don't start turning a profit soon.
[3-6-2] "Devilish" Investing
----------------------------
If you take out a loan from a bank in Hell, you won't have to make yearly
payments. You won't even be charged interest. The penalty is that you
put a whole bunch of SOULs at risk if you don't pay off the loan in the
next
100 years. This fact can be exploited:
"You need money, and it doesn't seem there's a way to get it without
always increasing your debt ? We have the perfect solution for you in
Hell,
let me explain...
"Build a bank (a small one or a big one, it depends on your needs), and
then build another one just like it. Let's call them bank A and bank B.
Now, since banks in Hell will NOT charge you interest, but just bet that
you can't pay them back (they will take souls after 100 years if you don't
pay them back), we'll use that fact at our advantage.
"Borrow from bank A (let's say 10M$). After 95 years (there's a 5 year
buffer zone to avoid problems) borrow the same amount from bank B.
Pay back bank A with the $$$ you just borrow from bank B. After 95
years, borrow 10M$ from bank A again. Pay bank B what you owe them
with that freshly borrowed money. Repeat this procedure until your cash
flow is high enough to pay the bank without having to get another loan.
There you go, 0% interest loan in Hell..."
[asthur@gmgate.gamemaster.qc.ca (Daniel Blanchard)]
-------------------------
Ring Four: The Structures
-------------------------
The following is a list of many of the Fate Structures. I don't have them
all
yet, so if you notice a few missing, drop me a line and let me know. They
are arranged in order from the lowest capacity to the highest.
[4-1] Rewards
=============
Remember here that Good Vibes are pro-evolutionary in Heaven, and are
therefore desirable. You may wish to "lock in" an advanced 2x2 Fate
Structure before it gets promoted to a 3x3 building, if the vibes are
better.
The last Reward listed in each category is the highest possible (this I
know from the Technical Manual).
[4-1-1] Contentment
-------------------
Vacation Slides Of The Gods - Very Bad Vibes
The Good Neighbor - Moderately Bad Vibes
Coffee Shops Of The Word - Moderately Bad Vibes
Karaoke Korners - Slightly Bad Vibes
The Choir Invincible - Slightly Good Vibes
Envy Aid - Moderately Good Vibes
Brahmatic Bovine Bliss Ranch - Very Good Vibes
[4-1-2] Charity
---------------
You Are Already A Winner - Slightly Good Vibes
Lost And Found - Moderately Good Vibes
The Good Space - Very Good Vibes
The Incredibly Lost Episodes - Moderately Good Vibes
The Final Piece Convention - Moderately Bad Vibes
Ascetic Mountains - No Vibes
[4-1-3] Temperance
------------------
The Perfect Party - Moderately Bad Vibes
Lands Of Milk And Honey - Slightly Bad Vibes
Deux Ex Diner - No Vibes
Hog Heaven - Slightly Good Vibes
Sickeningly Sweet Sugar Savannas - No Vibes
Party Town - Very Bad Vibes
[4-1-4] Diligence
-----------------
Your Home is Your Castle - Very Good Vibes
The Eternal Afternoon - Moderately Good Vibes
It's a Cat's Life - Moderately Good Vibes
Mom and Pop Shops - Slightly Good Vibes
Paradise University - Slightly Bad Vibes
Cloud Nine Labs - Moderately Bad Vibes
Towers-A-Go-Go - Moderately Bad Vibes
Divine Engines - Very Bad Vibes
The Final Frontier - Very Bad Vibes
[4-1-5] Chastity
----------------
Valentine Town - Slightly Bad Vibes
The Only Non-Sleazy Singles Bar In Creation - Moderately Bad Vibes
The Perfect Spot Cosmic Backrub - Very Bad Vibes
Palaces Of True Love - Moderately Bad Vibes
Wedding Day Redux - No Vibes
Castaways - Slightly Good Vibes
The Perfect Evening - Very Good Vibes
Cherubopolis - No Vibes
[4-1-6] Peacefulness
--------------------
Perfect Playgrounds - Moderately Good Vibes
Fishing Holes - Slightly Good Vibes
Heaven's Complaint Department - No Vibes
USDA Local #777 - Slightly Bad Vibes
Board Games - No Vibes
Fight The Power! - Slightly Good Vibes
The 19th Tee Links - Very Good Vibes
[4-1-7] Humility
----------------
Humble Pie - Slightly Good Vibes
Press Conference - Slightly Bad Vibes
You Oughta Be In Pictures - Moderately Good Vibes
Humble-mentary - Moderately Bad Vibes
Monuments To Humility - Very Good Vibes
DNA Park - Moderately Bad Vibes
Keys To The City - Moderately Good Vibes
Look To The Stars - No Vibes
[4-1-8] Generic Virtue
----------------------
Good Heavens Theme Park - Very Good Vibes
[4-2] Punishments
=================
Likewise, Bad Vibes are pro-evolutionary in Hell. Etcetera, etcetera.
[4-2-1] Envy
------------
Out Of The Frying Pan - Moderately Bad Vibes
Another Man's Shoes - Moderately Bad Vibes
Survey Of The Damned - Slightly Bad Vibes
Hell Octoplex 666 - Slightly Good Vibes
NoBody Burgs - Moderately Good Vibes
Escher Pits - Very Good Vibes
[4-2-2] Avarice
---------------
Jerky City - Slightly Good Vibes
The Collective - Moderately Good Vibes
Bingoslypertukaw! - Very Good Vibes
Booty Island - Moderately Good Vibes
Carousels Of Greed - Very Bad Vibes
DisCorp - No Vibes
[4-2-3] Gluttony
----------------
Taco Inferno - Moderately Bad Vibes
Sticky's - Slightly Bad Vibes
Pinhead Pizza - No Vibes
Bahb's All-U-Must-Eat - No Vibes
The Bowels Of Hell - Very Bad Vibes
[4-2-4] Sloth
-------------
The Itch - Very Good Vibes
Sweat Shops - Moderately Good Vibes
Bitter Harvest Fields - Moderately Good Vibes
Convention Of The Damned - Slightly Bad Vibes
The Enchanted Forest Of Cable - Moderately Bad Vibes
666 Pennants Over Perdition Theme Parks - Very Bad Vibes
[4-2-5] Lust
------------
Lust Freezers - Slightly Bad Vibes
Punishing Peep Show Pavillions - Moderately Bad Vibes
The Laundromat - Very Bad Vibes
Purple Passion Pulsing Plasma Pods - Moderately Bad Vibes
Screaming Subspace Voids - Moderately Good Vibes
Dates From Hell - Very Good Vibes
Roboto - Very Good Vibes
Ignorance Ain't Bliss -
The Big Tease Shower Towers - Very Good Vibes
[4-2-6] Wrath
-------------
Immortal Backalley Battle Warriors - Moderately Good Vibes
The Real Underworld - Slightly Good Vibes
The Post Office Game - No Vibes
Hellrose Place - Very Bad Vibes
Terrorville - Slightly Good Vibes
Illuminatiland - No Vibes
War! (What Is It Good For?) - Very Good Vibes
[4-2-7] Pride
-------------
The Age Of Aquarium - Slightly Good Vibes
Doll House - Slightly Bad Vibes
SOUL Farm - Moderately Good Vibes
The Zoo - Moderately Bad Vibes
[4-2-8] Generic Sin
-------------------
A World Of Pain - Very Bad Vibes
[4-3] Everything Else
=====================
Well, this section would include stuff like Gates, Topias, Training
Centers,
Siphons, Limbo Structures, Omnibogles & Love Domes, Karma Stations,
and Gift Structures. Since most of these buildings are explained
thoroughly in the manual and the game itself, I'm leaving them out. For
now. If some of you purists out there _really, really_ have to have that
info
in here, let me know. I'll get around to it. Sure I will.
---------------------
Ring Five: The Planet
---------------------
No, this isn't a singular movement by Holst. This Ring deals with that
annoying little ball floating in the middle of your screen. The one with
all
the EMBOs on it. You know, your clients living in a non-deceased mode.
[5-1] Beliefs
=============
So far I've encountered two reasons to mess with the EMBOs' beliefs,
besides the obvious "because I can:"
1. To encourage expansion/growth on either of the planes. Remember
waaay back at the beginning of this FAQ I was talking about a
HOHOSUSAALFist? No? Then go back and read section [2-1]: "Beliefs."
See, I told you that you'd go back. Anyway, if you want to influence the
incoming SOULs towards any particular belief system, now's your chance
to do it. Want more permanent SOULs (i.e., more permanent, revenue
generating ones)? Then pick a heavily populated square and influence
someone to believe in ALFism. Want to run a Heaven-only game? Then
OPRAists are the ones for you.
2. Because those pesky helpers told me to. Yes, just like everything
else
in this game, the planet can become "unbalanced," if you will. I got a
little
message from both Jasper and Aria saying that "The people on the planet
believe in an afterlife, they just don't believe in Hell (or Heaven,
respectively)." I had to open the Planetview, select Tenets, and
influence
some Joe (or Joan) to go spread the word.
"I find the planet thing very useful. Pouring enough money into the
planet
in one game resulted in a lot less traffic through my reincarnation
stations
- a BIG savings in money in the long run, since I didn't have to upgrade
to
the top-of-the-line, ever. Not sure if I came out ahead (tinkering with
the
planet's tenents was expensive) but it was interesting..."
[dleary@umabnet.ab.umd.edu (David Leary)]
[5-2] Sins and Virtues
======================
Want to make things a little more interesting on the planet? Then give
the
EMBOs a healthy nudge of some naughty vice. Maybe those EMBOs are
killing each other a little _too_ efficiently. Or perhaps you just don't
have
enough Cow Corkscrews (Brahmatic Bovine Bliss Ranches) for your
liking. Now it's time to add a dash of Virtue.
"Before starting time, go down the planet, select the highest population
area (or the most central; or you may only have one) and use the virtue
controls to inspire demonic lust with the maximum power you have. It's
relatively cheap now, and it'll turbo charge your population for millenia.
Check occaisonally to see if a booster innoculation is needed. Note this
will cause Hell to get a LOT more people than Heaven. You can balance
this, if you like, by inspiring Heavenly peace, which is good at
precenting
wars in later eras that have nuclear war (rampant nuclear war triggers
armageddon and ends the game). Or pick two virtues, and lean the
balance back towards Heaven." [jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu (Ron Jarrell)]
"One thing I noticed also is that if your "HATE" factor is pumped up
pretty
high (demonic or so), you keep getting the "Conquering Empire kills 40K
worth of your population" disaster. It gives you a quick boost in the
afterlife realm, but doesn't do much for your planet pop. Hiring a few
poets to do a little love promotion worked wonders."
[sragan@hsf.uab.edu (Stan Ragan)]
[5-3] Technology
================
Lastly, you can sHell out some sense--I mean, cents--to help the EMBOs
aquire technological advancements. Doing so can be beneficial, because
these discoveries will allow higher population densities (especially the
first two, Pottery and Irrigation), or make more of the planet habitable
(Boating, Navigation, Aviation). Just be sure that your world is pretty
peaceful when those cute little EMBOs discover Nuclear technology.
------------------------------------------------------
Ring Six: Nothing Bad Ever Happens To Me (Yeah, Right)
------------------------------------------------------
First of all, let me say that I'm not going to describe each and every one
of
these "disasters." All that info is contained in the Instruction
Brochure--
er, Manual. This Ring is devoted to the strategies you should use to
protect yourself against these undesirable events. Besides saving and
reloading the game, which would be cheating, now, wouldn't it.
So if any of you have some suggestions, e-mail them to me and I'll insert
them here.
[6-1] Birds of Paradise
[6-2] Bats Out of Hell
[6-3] Heaven Gets the Blues
[6-4] Hell Freezes Over
[6-5] Heaven Nose
[6-6] Hell in a Handbasket
[6-7] Paradise Pair of Dice
[6-8] Disco Inferno
---------------------
Ring Seven: Strategies
----------------------
[7-1] The Early Game
====================
"I build one 3x3 block of each color, one training center (lowest grade,
set
immediately to the most selective recruiting rate), one topia, one karma
station, and one gate. I interpose the topia and the training center
between the gate/karma station and the fate zones, to mitigate the bad
vibes they emit. I also start off tapping a couple of ad infinitum rocks
near
the gate/karma station, since these emit bad vibes."
[sjenkins@access.digex.net (Scott A. Jenkins)]
"When building cheaper gates in the beginning of the game, be aware that
the best gate needs a 4x4 square!" [Assasins@interramp.com (STaSiS
FieLDeR)]
[7-2] The Mid Game
==================
[7-3] The Late Game
===================
"Do you think you're hot??!! Then aim for 1 Billion SOULs per plane. At
this point, you can build Love Domes/Omnibolges. Once you build these
structures, you can nuke most of your fate structures and catch up on
your sleep since you bought this game ."
[Assasins@interramp.com (STaSiS FieLDeR)]
[7-4] Player tips
=================
Pressing the "A" key during game play will reduce the size of all of the
structures in the game. Topias, Gift Structures, Gates, etc. included.
Makes it much easier to "see around" those really tall buildings.
"What works for me, on medium, is to initially build only on one plane. I
usually start with Heaven, because it is less expensive (shorter roads).
The idea is that you are financing only one zone, until it is profitable.
At
this point, there will be enough SOULs to make the other zone profitable
almost immediately." [ sjenkins@access.digex.net (Scott A. Jenkins)]
"The key for me was getting the number of Imported Angels/Demons at
10%. If you have more than 10% you're paying way too much in pennies.
If you have less than 10% you run the risk of riots. So, I built 2
traning
centers (the top-of-the-line and the one below it) in both Heaven and Hell
at the very start. I make them recruit at maximum until the number of
Angels/Demons is about 50% imported, then I reduce the training center
acceptance rate a little in order to keep the AQ/DQ up. My AQ is
currently
at 116 (with 10% imported) but my DQ is 96 (with 26% imported). Those
Q's make for efficient buildings!" [scotts@bangate.compaq.com (Scott
Shaffer)]
A word about road upkeep: I think that the cost of roads is calculated by
how heavily trafficked they are. I found a cluster of Rocks in hell far
away
from my Punishments. I dropped Ad Infinitum Siphons on them,
connected the siphons with a road, and then ran the road down to the
river. Voila! Rivers conduct Ad Infinitum. By making sure at least one
road from my Fate Structures touched the river, I prohibited SOULs from
travelling on those roads used for Ad Infinitum--thus shaving a few
pennies.
"SOULs that are visiting more than one fate zone (SUMAists) will visit
them in the reverse order of importance. So in Heaven, blue needs to be
closest to the gate, but in Hell it has to be farthest away.
"If you want to reduce the reincarnation stats cheaply, make the karma
track long; SOULs forget their past lives during the trip [thus making
them
doubt reincarnation--Beowulf92], and that reduces the percentage."
[jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu (Ron Jarrell)]
[7-5] Cheats
============
First of all, let me state that I don't condone hex-editing games.
Perhaps
I'm too much of a purist, but if you have to cheat _that_ badly to win,
then
perhaps you shouldn't play. Just return the game, get your money back,
and claim you beat it anyway. Soapbox off.
"Money cheat: Gives you 10 million pennies. Type $@!
"Use it up to 5 times. The 6th time the deathstar will appear and start
blasting away at your afterlife. I'm not kidding...the dialog box that
warns
you is labeled "I have a bad feeling about this..." with the text "Look at
the
size of that thing!" and the button "Use the Force"...
"The Hidden monster is a Max the bunny. Type, in caps, three times
(ignore the fact that windows will start popping up because you're
triggering commands): SAMNMAX
"The diversity bonus is as such... (It's the real easter egg). Go to
hell.
Switch the view to north (up). Go off into some corner you aren't using.
Build a circular road that surrounds an empty 7x7 area. You don't *need*
the road, but it'll light up the tiles and make it easier to see their
colors;
otherwise they'll all be gray. Go into Divine Intervention.
"Starting in the north most corner, and working your way down to the
right, lay out one each of 1x1 zones of all colors, starting with green
and
down to blue. Then starting with the northern green do the same thing
down to the left. Now fill in the rest of the rows across, starting with
the
color that's there, and cylcing back around when you run out. So the
first
couple of rows would be
G Y O BR P R B
Y O BR P R B G
"etc. You'll get the entire multicolored glob. Start time. If you did
everything right, get a surprise building (that does nothing for you, but
is
cute). Read the text, it's the easter egg from the designer."
[jarrell@solaris.cc.vt.edu (Ron Jarrell)]
[7-6] War Stories
=================
Love to hear 'em!
-------------------------
Ring Eight: Miscellaneous
-------------------------
Okay, everything that didn't fit neatly into one of the earlier, neater
Rings
is being dumped here.
[8-1] Internet resources
========================
(This line intentionally left blank)
[8-2] World Wide Web sites
==========================
http://www.lucasarts.com
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/3805
"I know the page ain't much...I'm just learning this HTML stuff."
[briar@worldnet.att.net (linda hubbard)]
[8-3] Other FAQs and texts
==========================
Thou shalt have no other FAQs before mine. Well, at least let me believe
that this is the first one for Afterlife, okay?
[8-4] Bugs
==========
To the best of my knowledge, at the time of the writing of this FAQ, there
have been no reported bugs on the Net (aside from some folks who just
can't for the life of themselves get this game to work on their old
286's).
[8-5] Patches
=============
I just told you that there weren't any bugs discovered so far. So why
would this game need a patch? If it ain't broke, don't break it.
[8-6] Errors in the Afterlife Instruction Brochure--er, Manual
==============================================================
None that I'm aware of, besides being a little thin (and yup, I did just
waste about seven lines telling you so).
[8-7] Conclusion
================
"Abandon every hope, who set out to write a FAQ." - Dante (sort of)
That's it!!! This thing is finally finished. Unfortunately, I've been
thinking
SO much about Afterlife while writing this beast, that I don't even want
to
look at it for a while.
My best game so far earns about 400,000 pennies every year, at the
Medium difficulty level--without cheating, and still subjecting myself to
Bad Things. Using the Macromanager to Autobalance all of my structures
is S.O.P. Now it's time to fiddle more with the planet.
Hope this FAQ helped. Drop me a line, and let me know how your games
are going.
[8-8] Revision History
======================
Version 1.0 Initial Strategy Guide (You've been reading it).
Very respectfully,
Beowulf92
"If that fellow wants a fight, we won't disappoint him." Captain Isaac
Hull, U.S.S. Constitution, 1811.
