Command Center (SMAC)

Command Center
Requires	Doctrine: Mobility
Cost	4 rows
Maintenance cost	1 multiplied by best reactor level usable by the owner faction
Effects	+2 land unit Morale

Back to list of base facilities

"Superior training and superior weaponry have, when taken together, a geometric effect on overall military strength. Well-trained, well-equipped troops can stand up to many more times their lesser brethren than linear arithmetic would seem to indicate."
– Unknown, "Spartan Battle Manual"

Command Center is a base facility in Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. They are available upon the discovery of Doctrine: Mobility. Land units created at a base that has a Command Center start off with +2 to morale. Damaged land units in a base that has a command center can be fully healed in a single turn, unless the base in question is under artillery bombardment.

A faction that controls the Command Nexus will have a Command Center at every base, maintenance-free.

Strategy

For a small cost you can make your units 25% better in combat. You can see how that might be useful in a prolonged war. There's a big "but..." implied here though, and that is whether or not the time and minerals needed to build Command Centers in every base are well spent.

Consider you intend to start an early war using Laser or Impact Rovers. The aim of an early war is to rush a nearby opponent before he or she can get their defenses ready. If you delay your war long enough to build Command Centers (say 4 turns in a size 3 base with Recycling Tanks working 3 forest tiles) your intended target has time to prepare.

So, what else could you do with 4 rows of minerals instead of building a Command Center?

You could build four 1-1-1 infantry units or two 1-1-2 rover units to upgrade into real attack troops. In this case, you'd better be playing a high-support faction. For a high-cash faction, it's much better to have smaller numbers of better troops.

Don't automatically build the Command Centers before building the troops. If you're planning on attacking Morgan or Zakharov, it's usually unnecessary to pump up your Morale. It's far better to attack these Builders early before they can get ahead in tech, and your 4-1-2 rovers find themselves attacking 1-3-1 ECM units behind Perimeter Defenses. If you want to take on Cha'Dawn or Deirdre, then that extra Morale may just save you while you fight the inevitable Mind Worms.

The catch: Command Centers will cost you 1 energy per turn each. If you're playing as Yang, with his -2 Economy, then this may be a bridge too far. Of course, Yang can run Wealth to counter his -1 energy per base, but this is not an option because it reverses the effect of the Command Centers. You gain 1 Energy, pay it to the Command Center, which gives you +2 Morale, which in turn is taken away by the Wealth. Sure, you get +1 Industry, but that will save 4 minerals from the cost of your rather expensive and pretty useless Command Centers.

The upkeep of your Command Centers starts at 1 and increases according to the best Reactor strength you have. For example, upon discovery of Fusion Power, Command Centers will cost 2 energy per turn to maintain.