the hive : Yes they are great scavangers, not too good at actually "creating" tech. SOOO why not have them actively looking for new tech to steal. We are constantly doing missions where we are delivering schematics of top secret NEW tech, that's the kind of stuff that they should be scanning trade ships for, or even rare ores, prototypes, etc.

and if the hive gets them, then it will move toward the levi, and then you get a mission to stop the bot convoy, before it gets their, if it fails..the levi gets a new gun, and it starts as a small plasma gun...and ice flares, then better and better stuff, and all the normal bots get small pluses, and the queens get stuff, too. (everything
gives more exp if it has new stuff)

it'd make the hive really 'grow' if when someone carelessly loses a posi bus, then the hive takes it ,and suddenly is using posi! (note, it wont give the collectors a major jump..or the noobs will die quickly, just a small jump for noob ships, a huge one for the levi)

%top part shamlessly stolen from john.

the hive would need to be more fragmented than it is now for this to work. i mean just beacuse one collector found a neut 3 doesn't mean th hive as a whole can mass produce them.

eh, it said that the collector would make it's way to the nearest queen, whom would send a transport with a convoy, off to the levi.

I think that the hive getting weapons is far down the road. Before that happens, I'd like to see the hive become more involved, ie attacking and taking over stations.

Can the stations please grow tentacles and send out exploding humans?

Wait... wrong game... curses!!!

uh...yeah, I'd agree fooz, bur if they have that, weapons isn't so hard.