Claim Adjusters and Terraforming Other Players' Planets from Orbit

More about Terraforming

General Planet Topics

Races based on the Claim Adjuster trait can terraform other player's planets from orbit. This creates unique opportunities for diplomacy or war. If the owner is your Friend, you automatically perform positive terraforming (adjusting planetary conditions toward the inhabitants' optimal conditions). If the owner is your Enemy, you perform negative terraforming.

Terraforming from orbit requires a fleet outfitted with Orbital Adjusters. These are described in the Mining Robots section of the Technology Browser. Every race with the Claim Adjuster trait starts out with one ship outfitted with Orbital Adjusters.

Specify Friends and Enemies using the Player Relations dialog (press F7).

Terraforming from orbit is a great vehicle for diplomacy: in return for other technology, an alliance, or just a plain thank you, you can help your friends make their planets a better place to live. Only offer this assistance to friends who have lesser terraforming capabilities than yourself. Terraforming is not additive—you can't combine your orbital terraforming abilities with those of the inhabitants to super terraform the planet. The planet will only be terraformed to the limits of whoever possesses the superior technology. For example, if the inhabitants have 3% terraforming and you possess 5% terraforming, the planet can be improved up to 5% from its original conditions (not exceeding optimal conditions for the inhabitants).

Terraforming from orbit can also be used as a weapon: just orbit the planet and start to terraform it under your opponent's feet. This allows you to prepare more favorable conditions for a planetary invasion. You must destroy any existing starbase before you can launch this type of attack. Depending on your opponent's level of terraforming technology, using terraforming as an attack could turn into a shoving match if they begin terraforming operations of their own.

Terraforming from orbit happens automatically as soon as your fleet arrives. Just set the destination planet as the fleet waypoint. No waypoint task is necessary.

Retro Bomb
Claim Adjusters also can gain the Retro bomb, a type of terraforming weapon used to return the planet to it's original conditions.