Ethics

I usually go Neutral and only pick the evil choices when it presents an actual gain, but yes, I often do. I consider the extra fee you incur a "spiritual cleansing fee". That said, I mostly do that with races where it actually makes some sense (such as the Korx) to make such a trade. If I am actually playing a good race, the evil option is usually a no-no...

Thanks Highwater. Being raised up by besotted Trekkers, i dig Terran action and try to be all enlightened and good, yet i need ev advantage i can score. So i play fast and loose during the exploration/exploitation phase and then straighten up. Tho, I've been thinking a lot about Starship Troopers Federal style

Is there any real advantage to NOT going Evil?  Or, is it just a role-play thing?

If you go evil, the good civs tend to declare war in short order; likewise (but I think less so) the other way 'round.  So there can be strategic shortcomings to picking one or the other.  

And I'd never really thought of the develop-all-evil then pay-the-piper option; that's nasty.  

I'm so using it in my current game.  

I hate paying to add modules to starbases and boost invasions.  Also, I put off the good-neutral-evil choice until after the last colony rush so I can get the planet bonuses.  At that point, I rarely care who declares war on me!

Also, the AIs rarely go after the orbital transformer, so the planetary gain from one of the others can be mooted by that.  In fact, I turn off soil enhancement-habitat improvement - terraforming once I get a few done on my core worlds.

Personally I pretty much always go Neutral, the evil and good bonuses just don't do it for me.

However I've gotten to thinking there might be merit to simply not choosing any at all.

All the little bonus choices you get from planets simply disappear after you pick 1,2 or 3, so I'm thinking about playing a game where I simply don't.

See if it makes a difference or not.

Given the bonuses for being Eeeevil (increased military production, huge econ bonus, not paying for starbase modules, having Psionic weapons relatively early in the game, and others....) why would anyone want to play as anything else???

I cannot think of any bonuses that Neutral or Goody-Two-Shoes get that would offset such huge benefits for being evil (the starship armor and research buildings you get, for instance, are a joke, IMHO)

Do you mean the MCC? That one has been fixed and no longer grants a +100% econ bonus.

The MCC econ bonus is still there in DA.

Also, the planet bonuses do not go away after an Ethics choice, at least not in DA.

I'm sure he meant new 'ethical choices' that appear when you colonize new planets later and that pop up at random during gameplay.

Ah, I just don't research Ethics until I am about done colonizing.

Now I'm really evil I tend to end up neutral/goody-goody But here's the kicker! I dont research xeno ethics at all so I get to see the neutrals hit the evils,the evils hit the goodies and i wipe out anyone who attacks me!

I considered doing that, but the bonuses and other gains in Ethics make it worth the trouble for me.

For examples, there are diplo, morale, and mil production bonuses, and the chance to build the MCC and No Mercy Invasion buildings, also.

In DA, the MCC presents an unintended dilemma.  On one hand, you get a 100% econ bonus.  On the other hand, you'll never influence flip a planet again.  A couple years ago, I did an gamey tactic with the MCC.  As soon as I had several Major AI planets showing the unhappy symbol, I evacuated the MCC planet of all but one colonist, picked a Minor deep within my borders, and gifted that planet to them.

In a few turns, all the unhappy planets flipped to me, I bought/traded back the low-pop MCC planet, and repeated the process a dozen turns later, and so on.

Econ bonus or no, the benefits for being evil far outweigh what you get for choosing one of the other two alignments.

And yes, the planetary bonuses given when making an ethical decision during colonization remain....soooo nice when you get the 50% starship bonus for a planet containing manufacturing tile bonuses......

Only 1 main problem with going evil-everyone else paints a target on you so you'd better have the biggest military! - just saying.

By the same token, you'll generally have much better relations with other evil civs....

...and the benefits certainly will allow you to get the fast track on a strong military...especially quick access to Psionic weapons...