Flow Conduit

General

Flow Conduits extend the Novus power network created by Flow Generators, powering structures and enabling flow. Conduits are cloaked.

Method: Built by Constructor

Prerequisites: None

Cost: 175

Time: 00:10

Limit: 50

Upgrades

Power Efficiency - Transmission range increased by 75%. Gained from Flow Branch Suite 3.

Tactical Application

Since Flow Conduits build quickly and are cloaked, it is wise to build them very early. As soon as you have your first Flow Generator online, send a lone constructor to build a path of Flow Conduits most of the way towards the enemy's base. If you do this early enough, they'll be forced to either endure constant surprise attacks, or invest heavily in stealth detection instead of more direct, and more damaging technology. Alternately, build a path towards a large resource deposit and keep your Recycling Centers safe inside your base, behind heavy defenses.

Since you're likely to get in a rather dire situation if you lose your flow network, consider building 2 parallel unbroken lines of Flow Conduits to a point away from your base - and linking them to a secondary Flow Generator. This way, if your opponent destroys the generators in your base (a common target for Orlok's Artillery, Mass Drops, etc.) your base will remain mostly online, even if heavily damaged. This is especially helpful when playing with either a Novus or Masari ally. By placing a generator inside their base and then linking it back to yours, you can not only rapidly reinforce them should they need aid, but also you can be safe knowing that your allies can have your back by keeping your Flow Generator safe for you.

Alternatively, you might consider placing ALL your Flow Generators outside your base and powering it entirely with Flow Conduits. This has the benefit of forcing your opponent to choose between the Generators or the structures they're powering, since they can't easily hit both. The down side to this is you'll have to set up two separate lines of defense - one for your offsite Flow Generators, and one for the rest of your base. Since Redirection Turrets in particular are only really potent when massed together, this can cause problems.

No matter what tactic you use, remember that base buildings in Universe at War do not count towards your population cap, and instead use their own individual caps. The cap for Flow Conduits is 50, so build them liberally!