How early do you need to start w/ caravels to circumnavigate the world first? Is it worth it to beeline to that tech (is it optics? Can't remember now) to get that +1 movement for transporting your units around later?

well, the earlier the better, you can just go and produce one caravel and develop the navy later on (depending on the map though). on larger maps it would take much longer to circumnavigate the world, so on larger maps its probably more useful

Actually, it has nothing to do with actual ships. I think it has to do if you know terrain all the way around the world. I figured this out when I hadn't built a ship, but traded maps with the AI.

even map trading doesn't guarantee that you will get the circomnavigation bonus IMO.

I got it purely through map trading once, before I'd even built a single ship, which I thought was hilarious; the point is, yes, it is possible. Whichever player first gets a map of the world that links up all the way around (though not necessarily in a straight line), he/she/it gets the bonus.

I've found that the best way to earn the bonus is to go after Optics fairly early, build two Caravels each on opposite sides of your continent, and send them off in opposite directions, preferably close to the poles where they are less likely to find a wall of land in front of them to slow them down.

preferably close to the poles where they are less likely to find a wall of land in front of them to slow them down.

If you're on a terra map and reach land, head south, not north, to go around.

I frequently get this bonus without even trying, just by trading maps a lot after Paper becomes available. Personally I've never seen what the big deal is. +1 move is kind of cool, but hardly a make-or-break bonus. I'd rather improve my cities than build a bunch of caravels to send after this bonus. Or if I do build caravels it'll be because I want to know if there's any colonizable land out there so I can judge if it's worthwhile pushing hard for Astronomy.

I'd rather improve my cities than build a bunch of caravels to send after this bonus.

You don't need a bunch. Just 2. One heads west, the other heads east, and they meet in the middle.

Whether it's worth it for +1 movement I guess is debatable, but consider that it makes galleys 50% faster, caravels 33% faster, galleons 25% faster, and transports 20% faster. That seems fairly significant to me.

You can do your search for colonizable territory in 2/3 the turns. If it normally takes a transport 5 turns to get to the other continent, you can do it in only 4 (or 8 vs. 10 round trip). Those savings start to add up over time.

You don't need a bunch. Just 2. One heads west, the other heads east, and they meet in the middle.

Whether it's worth it for +1 movement I guess is debatable, but consider that it makes galleys 50% faster, caravels 33% faster, galleons 25% faster, and transports 20% faster. That seems fairly significant to me.

You can do your search for colonizable territory in 2/3 the turns. If it normally takes a transport 5 turns to get to the other continent, you can do it in only 4 (or 8 vs. 10 round trip). Those savings start to add up over time.
I'm agree. I use two carabels for circumnavigate. However, It is possible without Optics. You only need Paper and the rigth trade maps.:crazyeye:

I disagree. I don't think it's that significant. Big deal, so you shave a couple of turns off trying to find a colonisable island. Hardly gonna make the difference between winning and losing, is it?

I disagree. I don't think it's that significant. Big deal, so you shave a couple of turns off trying to find a colonisable island. Hardly gonna make the difference between winning and losing, is it?

If that was the only thing you gained from it, probably not, but it's just like chopping a settler in the early game in order to get the compounded gain of having a city earlier. If you can get your missionaries out sooner, that's more gold for you. If you can get your army there sooner, that's more time with a technological lead, less time for the enemy to build up a force to defend or counterattack. If your ships can outrace the other guy, that's less chance they can successfully land a raiding party before you sink the transport. If you explore 33% faster than everyone else, that's more money you can get from selling your maps.

Of course, you need to actually build a navy for any of this to matter. If you're someone who in a typical game builds 3 work boats and a galley, then circumnavigation isn't going to help you much. I generally have the largest navy on the planet. I use carriers to bombard and strafe units, destroyers and battleships to take down city defenses, and all ships to keep the enemy hemmed in and prevent raids on my homeland.

Do you skip the engineering and railroad technologies because you don't care about the extra land movement? Yeah, I didn't think so. So why would you do that on the sea?

If you're trying to colonise or send an army overseas you could be looking at multiple voyages and the difference adds up. You get to keep the caravels afterwards which are useful for exploring other civs' coastlines, transporting missionaries etc. It also helps you run away which can be useful too (or chase units that are trying to run away from you).
Back in the days of Civ 1 I often used to go for Magellans Voyage which was a one use wonder (+1 naval movement) and still found it useful.
You only get the bonus for being first to circumnavigate so can't rely on map-trading for that.

I have played an archepeleago map and curcumnavigated with a galley.

Two different times.


On my first attempt to do so, Only an Egyptian owned waterway existed in between me and curcumnavigation. And Hasephut closed her borders on me so I couldn't get the bonus. I eventually built a ship on the other side and got the bonus.

After I got the bonus, she reopened her borders like nothing had ever happened. She was thinking.

I disagree. I don't think it's that significant. Big deal, so you shave a couple of turns off trying to find a colonisable island. Hardly gonna make the difference between winning and losing, is it?
On an island map where half the map is unsettled until Astronomy, it's quite important. Every island map I play I find myself losing an island to opponent settlers by one to three turns.

If you really want an advantage, shoot for circumnavigation via workboats. I've found my way across the planet once this way, and it was around 200 ad.

If you really want an advantage, shoot for circumnavigation via workboats
a little off topic, but i miss the suicide galley from civIII remember circumnavigating the globe with a carraugh (carrack? i forget). they're my boats, i want to be able to risk sinking them if i want! especially since now there's an actual benefit to this. although maybe that's why they took it out...

Why is the bonus useful? Ready any treatise on military strategy, and you'll soon come across a basic idea that all strategists throughout history have agreed on: the need for speed. Being able to react and move faster than your opponent has been a key to military success for centuries. One of the reasons why Caesar is so legendary is how he trained and motivated his legions to march and move so quickly.

In Civ, I can think of several instances when that +1 ship movement would come in handy:


As was mentioned above, getting settlers to a new-found island/continent before your rivals.
Supplying units to those new colonies faster.
Exploring more of the world faster--meeting other civs for trading sooner.
Being able to attack an enemy on a distant continent faster, for example, while the units aboard the ships still contitute a tech advantage over your opponent.
Using transports to quickly move units--especially Marines/SEALS--from one target to another, rather than slowly moving them over land.
Being able to reach and sink an enemy armada with more of your coastal sentry ships.
Getting a Great Merchant to a distant port faster, so you can upgrade military units sooner.
Getting spies to a distant continent sooner.
Giving a weaker naval unit (transport, submarine, carrier) a better chance to evade or escape a potential attacker.

I play a lot of games on archipelego and continents maps and I always aim for doing this. Caravels are cheap and sending two of them off in different directions will get the job done. When you have the bonus it is much easier to find those awesome unsettled islands that are rich in resources and allow the projection of power in a completely different part of the map.

Remember: "Speed Kills." - Your opponent.

I disagree. I don't think it's that significant. Big deal, so you shave a couple of turns off trying to find a colonisable island. Hardly gonna make the difference between winning and losing, is it?
I participated in an Always War succession game on an Archipelago map. Having three move galleys is HUGE for those maps. It gives you faster transportation of your armies and gives you a large advantage in gaining position in naval combat. And early naval combat is all about getting that +10% defensive bonus via occupying choke points.

a little off topic, but i miss the suicide galley from civIII remember circumnavigating the globe with a carraugh (carrack? i forget). they're my boats, i want to be able to risk sinking them if i want! especially since now there's an actual benefit to this. although maybe that's why they took it out...
I think the problem with that mechanic was that the AI did not, and maybe couldn't be, programmed to use such tactics wisely. I imagine they'd either waste too many ships in their efforts, even when there wasn't any clear gain.

I just accidentally circumnavigated the world with a Great Merchant walking around on the other continent. Must be Marco Polo :p