Do you attach them to a single unit? Or attach them to a group and split the experience. Or do you just put them on your most productive military city.

Personally I take my first one and attach it to a unit such as a swords with city attack promotions to easily crush an enemy civilization. And use the rest of them as city specialists.

I use them to increase unit strenth in my military city. I'll have one general build his military academy, then after that every general goes there to become a professor. I build other buildings there as well to increase the training. When it's all said and done just a few units from this city can be devestating. Some people overlook this but if you keep putting them in that city the experience points will keep going up. I got tired of watching my generals die defending a stack or city to some lame unit attacking. It seems like anytime I'm really happy with a unit it loses to an inferior in the next few turns.

They always join as a military instructor until I can build a military academy

Attaching generals to a unit can lead to a +4 xp building (West Point) if you don't have a unit that is level 6 or above. So in that way, it could be worth more than the +2 xp settled great general since you get: a +4 xp bonus and an uber unit or two out of it.

As with everything, it depends on what you do and need. Many get settled for +2 xp. Some get attached. One might make a Mil.Akademy on occasion (like if you take a capital with 5 Settles MI's from a IMP-jerk AI, but your HE is already built...)

I attach it to my weakest unit maybe a warrior then i make it upto CR3 then i start upgrading the unit by assembly line i have

infantry with CR3 + 1star+ Gunpowder

Now thats a devastating unit when its attacking. If i am in the mode i give it an extra movement point point then the unit really becomes uber

I send my great generals fresh oracles, delivered daily!

the first ones i attach them to some stong offensive unit to get some super units in the later game... plan your promotions, cover or shock will get useless in modern warfare, city raiders on the other hand are always handy ;)

military academies and +2xp given by specialist are also useful if 1 military city is not enough... there is no rule, it depends of the situation of each game

I attach the first one to a single unit to unlock West Point, settle the two following in the WP city to get 11 xp units (3 promotions) right out the box and build a Military Academy with the fourth one.

That may vary according how long I'm planning to stay in Theocracy, if it's late enough to get the Pentagon, etc. Sometimes I'll settle only one instructor and build a second academy in a coastal city if needed.

I almost always spend my first one creating a "super-medic":

All the XP to one unit, usually someone strong enough not to get mauled alone, but weak enough to never see combat even when the stack is attacked. (This is important for his survivability)

Preferably one with 2 or more moves. (Chariot, and the following units to that.)

Upgrading as follows: Combat I, Medic I, Medic II, Medic III. After that free choice, but leadership (for more xp faster) and retreat/escape feats are nice as a safety-net.

(Getting a unit to this level of healing through combat is very difficult, and more often than not, he chokes on a 98% chance win (or something similar) before he's there.

That way, you will recover from attacking a city in 1-2 turns instead of 4-5 turns, and can march through an opposing empire that much faster.

If/when you get to units with the march-feat, you can just plow on straight away, heal on the move, and save another couple of turns between cities.

The faster you can move on, the fewer units your victim gets to produce, adding even more speed to your conquest.

The rest goes into the cities as instructors / academy.

First GG - Attach to unit, usually medic scout
Subsequent GGs - Settle until Military Academy becomes available with Military Science. Build MA in my two military cities.
Further GGs - Settle or attach to a strong attack unit.

I settle them in my military cities. To start usually 1 in my capital, 1 in my main military city, attach the next one for the MASH unit, then settle settle settle until academies.

I use the first one in much the same way as AStupidNick does: for a super-medic, usually a Chariot that has earned at least 6 XPs and has Combat I/Medic I. I give it Medic II and III and Morale for an extra movement point.

Rationale:

This unit won't be fighting except in extremely unusual circumstances. A Chariot is therefore preferred because it is relatively weak and not a defensive counter to any other unit. If I don't have horses, I'll use a Scout.
Rapid healing keeps your stack on the move, allowing you to finish wars faster so you can recover economically and end the war weariness sooner.
Sometimes I'll leave the unit in a captured city to heal some badly-damaged units while the bulk of the stack moves on. Once the left-behind units are healed, the extra move from Morale enables the super-medic to catch up.
Obviously, this unit enables both the Heroic Epic and West Point.The next two Great Generals become military instructors in my Heroic Epic city. This gives me the benefits of West Point many, many turns ahead of when it's available. It also means I can build West Point in a different production city, so that my best military city can keep producing units rather than building a super-barracks for several turns.

The following GGs are used in different ways. Since you can gather I have two military cities (one for HE, one for WP), I like to use one GG to build a Military Academy in the WP city.

However, if I'm warring a lot, especially with an Imperialistic leader (gotta love Rome's Praets :goodjob:), I'll get several GGs long before Military Science makes Military Academies a possibility. So I'll often attach an interim GG to my best city raider, give him Leadership, and watch him rack up promotions through the centuries. Attaching GGs to units in this way may not be the most optimal use of a GG, but it's definitely the most fun. :D

Once I have Military Science, I often find that captured cities contain Military Instructors, so I'll use GGs for Military Academies in those cities.

The first one will become a Medic. Chariot (or if Zulu, Impi) are fit for the job. Later ones will usually be used in my main military cities as Great Military Instructors and build Military Academies there.

I agree with AStupidNick and Sisiutil, the first GG usually attaches to a chariot to make a super medic , or as KMadCandy calls it, "an ambulance."

Attaching a GG to only one unit is fun. I use most of them for instructors, rarely do I build an academy with one.


In the Mod which I play, you can instead use your GG to build an armory. This gives units built in that city a "free upgrade promotion" so that archers can become longbowman who can become riflemen who can become infantry who can become mech infantry- as techs allow, all at no additional cost.

Yes, that's powerful if most of your army or all of your navy is built in one or two cities. It's an antidote to the mysterious AI "Overnight upgrade advantage" that sucks the fun out of the game sometimes.

The first one is always to promote a crappy unit (usually a warrior) to medic.
However Sisi's strategy with using a chariot sounds very appealing (the medic often lags behind).
After that I usually put them as instructors until I can build Academy.
In rare cases where I have multiple battlelines I might use even a second one for medic upgrade.

... or as KMadCandy calls it, "an ambulance."...


What ever happened to "Hello Kitty"?

I always use them on a group. Slim as the chance may be, that unit might go down, and then you've lost the benefit completley. I prefer to spread the joy around.

Do you attach them to a single unit? Or attach them to a group and split the experience. Or do you just put them on your most productive military city.

Personally I take my first one and attach it to a unit such as a swords with city attack promotions to easily crush an enemy civilization. And use the rest of them as city specialists.

I typically use GG's to build a military academy or as a city specialist. There are times when I'll attach to a unit, that's usually when I have an well experienced military unit in an aggressive game of domination.

I typically use GG's to build a military academy or as a city specialist. There are times when I'll attach to a unit, that's usually when I have an well experienced military unit in an aggressive game of domination.

About the only time I will spend a GG on a unit or group of units is at a very crucial stage in a war when it could go either way. ie/ all that extra experience might mean the difference between winning or losing a crucial battle against an enemy SOD, or capturing a key city before my advance runs out of puff. Settling/Academies are better in the long term, attaching is an immediate shot in the arm.

I usually settle them or attach them to a single unit. Very often, I attach one to a Caravel to give it big movement bonuses to ensure that I will win the circumnavigation race. Send that Caravel home ASAP after getting the additional +1 movement bonus and you can keep another advantage--a very strong navy and gives you a lvl6 unit for the Epic. Other than that, use them to build War Academies and settle them for the additional +2XP a unit. I've had some cities popping out 17+ XP units--they're a force to be reckoned with, especially when you get fast Blitz promotions.

However Sisi's strategy with using a chariot sounds very appealing (the medic often lags behind).

Another benefit of that (and of the Morale promotion) is the ability to get this extremely valuable unit far out of hot water if necessary. It doesn't happen often--the unit is usually on the same tile as a large, diversified stack--but it has proven handy on a couple of occasions. :hide:

What ever happened to "Hello Kitty"?



I don't know if she ever made the move to BTS. Last I saw her, she was still in the other sub-forums. Maybe she has a RL project to complete.


oh! I forgot to mention that a GG atatched to a privateer is the most fun I've ever had with one.

When my GG's (that are attached to units) grow too great in power, I find a way to get them killed so that they can't return home to the capital in power and effect a coup.

I'm rather paranoid about my position and find myself killing any of my population that grow to become threats.

Ah--you're a whipaholic.

settle settle settle. i cannot stress that enough!

with 10 or so GG's, barracks, west point, pentagon: 10*2 + 4 +2 +2 =28 exp points!! believe this is amazing for domination and conquest games!

settling a GG is BY FAR more efficient than using him on a single unit. a medic III is useful, but not THAT useful.

for me, the settled GG's makes imperialistic a very strong trait. most people hate it. if u like war, then you really should like imperialistic.

my 2 euro cents.

If you're running a SE, then settling your GG gets you +3 beakers each. A nice little bonus.

I like making a melee unit my super medic. You can then promote to Woodsman III as well as up the Medic line. The healing power of this guy is amazing.

Wodan

settle settle settle. i cannot stress that enough!

with 10 or so GG's, barracks, west point, pentagon: 10*2 + 4 +2 +2 =28 exp points!! believe this is amazing for domination and conquest games!

settling a GG is BY FAR more efficient than using him on a single unit. a medic III is useful, but not THAT useful.

for me, the settled GG's makes imperialistic a very strong trait. most people hate it. if u like war, then you really should like imperialistic.

my 2 euro cents.

It sounds like fun, but I don't know if it's optimal. I'd rather settle the GGs in a few different cities and be able to produce several Level 3 units rather than one city producing a few uber-units.

I would also argue that a medic III unit is hugely useful because of its biggest indirect effect: it speeds up the war because your units recover faster and are able to march on to the next target sooner. This will reduce the amount of war weariness you have to deal with and, thereby, will reduce the impact of the war on your economy and tech progress.

That being said, I still can't help thinking that producing Level 6 units out of the gate would inspire malevolent giggle fits in me every time one appeared. :mwaha: I'll attach a later GG to my best City Raider unit just for the fun of seeing him climbe to Level 10 and beyond. In my next Rome game, once I have my beloved Medic III unit, I may try your idea.

Well, one funny thing to do is to make a paratrooper a super-medic and drop him to the zone and heal everyone :).

Well, one funny thing to do is to make a paratrooper a super-medic and drop him to the zone and heal everyone :).

That would be awesome. And then cry as he gets shot down! :crazyeye:

On a side note, I wish paratroopers could at least attack non-combat units after a drop. I once saw an enemy Great General traveling behind the lines, dropped my paratrooper next to him on my "special-ops mission" and then lamented as I remembered paratroopers can only move one square, but not attack on that move. :blush:

I almost always settle em. I don't build academies nether because in my production city the production is so good I don't need that. Just keep piling on those points. You get level 5 guys instantly and if you combine heroic epic and west point you build an army FROM HELL!!

A lateish game GG (late game being fun due to BTS now) can be used to bolster military production in a 'secondary' military city...

...say you build Heroic Epic and Moi Statues in your first military city, settle some GG's, then later on build West Point and Red Cross in your second military city (probably some commerce city that had more hills than you first noticed), I find a GG can be used to bring the turn production time down quite a bit, hopefully more in line with the first military city.

Hmm. I usually settle all of my GGs. barracks + theocracy + vassalage + pentagon + WP = 13, + any GGs I get * 2. Combine with Charismatic. Laugh evily as 21 xp units come out with 5 free promos. combine with protective. Start Gunpowder units with 7 promotions. That is fun.

I still think attaching one general to a combat unit is a great way to increase your total XP and more generals that spawn. Also its a good way to get one super powerful unit to spearhead your troops. If your smart it should never die.

If your smart it should never die.

I dunno about that... I've lost battles where I've had over 90% chance of winning. I just hate it when my super-swordsman dies attacking a half-health archer in a battle with 90%+ odds. It rarely happens, but when it does, it's painful. That's why I usually use GGs for non-combat units (i.e. medic) or settle them.

I almost always spend my first one creating a "super-medic":

All the XP to one unit, usually someone strong enough not to get mauled alone, but weak enough to never see combat even when the stack is attacked. (This is important for his survivability)

Preferably one with 2 or more moves. (Chariot, and the following units to that.)

Upgrading as follows: Combat I, Medic I, Medic II, Medic III. After that free choice, but leadership (for more xp faster) and retreat/escape feats are nice as a safety-net.

(Getting a unit to this level of healing through combat is very difficult, and more often than not, he chokes on a 98% chance win (or something similar) before he's there.

That way, you will recover from attacking a city in 1-2 turns instead of 4-5 turns, and can march through an opposing empire that much faster.

If/when you get to units with the march-feat, you can just plow on straight away, heal on the move, and save another couple of turns between cities.

The faster you can move on, the fewer units your victim gets to produce, adding even more speed to your conquest.

The rest goes into the cities as instructors / academy.

I can create multiple super medics after settling a couple of GGs.

When my GG's (that are attached to units) grow too great in power, I find a way to get them killed so that they can't return home to the capital in power and effect a coup.

I'm rather paranoid about my position and find myself killing any of my population that grow to become threats.

:D


I know what you mean! If you keep trying you can find what is actually a suicide mission for him that appears to be better than 97.5% odds in his favor... But his pride and ambition will lead him straight into the trap!

I can create multiple super medics after settling a couple of GGs.

I believe, but could be wrong, that only certain promotions are available via attaching a general. I think medic 3 is only obtainable through GG attachment.

I believe, but could be wrong, that only certain promotions are available via attaching a general. I think medic 3 is only obtainable through GG attachment.


:agree:

WoodsmanIII is a possibillity.

Woodsman III / Medic II is the best you can do without a GG.

Which, by the way, is the biggest problem IMO with the scout/explorer medics. Without knocking off a few wounded units here and there, you simply don't get enough XP to get all the way to Woodsman III / Medic III.

Wodan

Woodsman III / Medic II is the best you can do without a GG.

Which, by the way, is the biggest problem IMO with the scout/explorer medics. Without knocking off a few wounded units here and there, you simply don't get enough XP to get all the way to Woodsman III / Medic III.

Wodan

If I'm correct, scouts/explorers can't even attack another unit so you'll have to wait for them to be attacked by inferior units.

But yes, the XP for this is hard to get. Without any bonuses, you'd need a level 8 unit (W III, Medic III, CI).

(might there be a hidden possibility for Monty here? Jaguars get CI and WI straight out of the box! )

Coolest game I ever had was I attached every one of them to the military city, I ended up with a stck of 10 paratroopers with 4 combat (strength) promotions, a gunpowder, and a medic promotion.

Bastards were unstoppable for quite a while.

I usually attach my first GG to an aggressive unit and give it the leadership promotion. This will bring me another GG in a jiffy. If combined with the Great Wall, even faster (than a jiffy...).
I think that's what Kranden was trying to say, but there you go :)

Woodsman III / Medic II is the best you can do without a GG.

Which, by the way, is the biggest problem IMO with the scout/explorer medics. Without knocking off a few wounded units here and there, you simply don't get enough XP to get all the way to Woodsman III / Medic III.

Wodan

I tried to make a woodyIII explorer once .....

I just checked my Civilopedia -

WoodsmanIII is only available to Melee and Gunpowder units.

So I usually stick to an axeman woodsman and a chariot ambulance.

I attach the first one to a single unit to unlock West Point, settle the two following in the WP city to get 11 xp units (3 promotions) right out the box and build a Military Academy with the fourth one.

That may vary according how long I'm planning to stay in Theocracy, if it's late enough to get the Pentagon, etc. Sometimes I'll settle only one instructor and build a second academy in a coastal city if needed.

this is basically what I do as well, except I do the super-medic promotion with a spearman. I use the free upgrades to advance him to a pike man, and then eventually a machine gun. I then use this unit as a defensive healing unit and camp him with all the units I attacked a city with. Later, advancing those units into the city I took, to get better defensive bonus along with the damaged units. Then, the medic unit follows the ones that rested until healed out of the city to back up the units that are bombarding the next city. and so on...

Make one of these:
http://forums.civfanatics.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=174505&stc=1&d=1208432801

Make one of these:
http://forums.civfanatics.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=174505&stc=1&d=1208432801

:eek: HOW DO YOU RENAME UNITS?!?! I've wanted to know this for a while, as I always did it on Civ 3. My first infantry division was first infantry division, first armored division, etc... Heh, you have a mech infantry that's good at defending against archers. Nice.

The super medic unit sounds like a good idea to me.

I usually attach them to my cities myself, unless I need the XP to make west point. I don't go over 10(If I have west point and a barracks that's 4 + 3). That's 7, so I base it that I need 3 more for level 3. I don't try to stack enough for level 4 promotions, I find that kinda ridiculous(but maybe it would be fun). After I get one city making level 3 units and making them fast I'll put the other one in another city(3 + 2) that will make level 2 units fairly fast. This way I can have one city that makes level 3 and a 3 other cities making level 2, rather than having one city that makes level 4(4+3+2+2+2+2+2). I guess it would be different if you had a charismatic leader, but the small circle of leaders I play with doesn't include a charismatic one.

If it's a naval-building city then I get drydocks and military academy(I think you can do this) and the +2. I had ships one time coming out at level 3 so I assume this is how I did it. I'd make the destroyers stronger and made some of them medics and the transports I'd upgrade faster to be able to keep up with the destroyers.

I think I'll try the super-medic in my next game... :king:

My good units die because the computer is stupid and constantly puts them into defensive combat. :(

I wish I could tell the computer to spread the fighting around the stack to give other units more experience as well. I also wish I could tell my tanks to attack the SAM units in the stack first (or at least give my tanks the ability to, with a certain percentage succeeding in doing so) so then I could bring my bombers and gunships in to support.

:eek: HOW DO YOU RENAME UNITS?!?!
Select the unit, over on the bottom left just click on the name.

I think I'll try the super-medic in my next game... :king:
It's pretty strong, especially with the woodsman III thrown in. The bonuses all multiply each other. It's pretty much full healing in just 1 turn, even in enemy territory.

Wodan

I typically use GG's to build a military academy or as a city specialist. There are times when I'll attach to a unit, that's usually when I have an well experienced military unit in an aggressive game of domination.


Yeah, I don't know why they aren't more powerful leading troops, when I first started playing I thought.. COOL, look at all the promotions I get. But they always seem to die within a turn or two. Remember how powerful Army's were in Civ III?

About the only time I attach them to a unit is if said unit is already at Medic II, with a GG he can get promoted to a Medic III, which, if I'm not mistaken is the only way you can get a medic III. Moving that unit with a large force and flankers on the left and right can be devistating.

Select the unit, over on the bottom left just click on the name.

So simple yet elegant. :wallbash: I've been trying (not to hard) to find this out for a while. I've clicked around everywhere. Finally I can name my infantry The 1st ID, my spies James Bond, and my Great Generals Chuck Norris. :lol:

Chuck Norris secretly sleeps with every woman on the planet once a month. They bleed for a week thereafter. It's a scientific fact. :king:

Select the unit, over on the bottom left just click on the name.

Ahh, thank you, I've been wanting to do this too.

Personally, I like making my ubermedics defensive units for stacks like pikemen rather than just a throwaway unit. It's a little risky, but if I keep the rest of my army up the only times they should only get taken down if I lose a tech advantage or if I get attacked by a very heavily promoted unit. Generally though, if I keep them well trained (this is pretty easy if you try to always send them in to finish off the last weakened unit in a defending army) and I keep stacks in forests or hills, they'll be able to kill two birds with one stone by defending and healing my army. I've tried putting it on scouts/explorers, but not being able to attack to promote is a bit of a problem.

After that, as far as GGs go, yeah, I settle em. Generally I put them all in one high production city to make a powerful soldier factory to produce offensive units and have the other cities churn out defenders or throwaway troops. I tend to end up fighting a lot of naval wars, so having a dozen or so very strong troops is easier to transport than a massive force of crappy units.

Today was a good day in the Persian Empire.

I have several cities pumping out 3 promo riflemen. (love Chm)

Thanks to Imp, I have GGs coming out very quick. Soon, I'll probably make an uber medic, because I'm running out of things to do with GGs. So experimenting will be the thing tommorow!

I use the first GG on a unit so I'll get a unit with enough XP's to enable me to build West Point later on. After that, a Military Academy and military instructors in my chief military city. In combination with the Heroic Epic and West Point, it can have stunning results.

The trick is, of course, to promote a really outdated unit so you get free upgrades for it. I had a mechanized Infangry once which had started life as a Warrior. Though of course mounted units are the best to use a GG on.

usually i put the 1st GG in as a super-specialist; i find that after that (during war times ofc) many other GG's are more apt to be born

usually i put the 1st GG in as a super-specialist; i find that after that (during war times ofc) many other GG's are more apt to be born
GGs aren't born like other Great People... Great Generals are a DIRECT result of winning in combat and have NOTHING to do with cumulative turns waiting for a great person to be born (like all other GPs).

In other words, settling a GG has NOTHING to do with getting you more GGs any faster (unless you consider the experience gained from a settled GG in a military producing city giving you more wins quicker).

um. That's what he said...."during war times [of course]".

A settled GG would mean some number of your units have more XP, thus might increase the general survivability of those units, and that (if a true correspondence) would increase the XP you get.

Wodan

Ahh, thank you, I've been wanting to do this too.


Aha! You can do this with cities, too. When you're in the city screen the name is at the top, you can just left click the name and rename cities to anything you want. So you can rename captured cities to "Rome's . .. .. .. .. ." or whatever.

Keep them around unattached and kill one off any time a unit loses a 95+% battle. While it doesn't do too much for the standards in my army, it makes me feel better... and that's what a game is all about.

Keep them around unattached and kill one off any time a unit loses a 95+% battle. While it doesn't do too much for the standards in my army, it makes me feel better... and that's what a game is all about.
It took me about 20 seconds. I totally didn't get this... and then I started to laugh. :lol:

Wodan

My last two spawned on isolated islands that produce nothing and only exist to pick up the seafood resources and produce gold. The only thing they do is spell out SOS on the beach with large rocks and seashells...

LM

You could have attached them to a trireme to get a nice outboard engine or use them to train a dreadly clam attack force, or whale-riders. Learn to think out of the box.

reading this I came up with a question:

if I recall correctly, in BTS the Great Wall doesn't give you the 100% Great General Emergence Bonus (or was it something else?) anymore, but gives you Great Spy something.

so I was wondering, what other options do I have to speed up the emergence of GGs in BTS, besides warring (obviously)?

cheers
-wannabewarlord (now more like wannabenoble ;-) )

reading this I came up with a question:

if I recall correctly, in BTS the Great Wall doesn't give you the 100% Great General Emergence Bonus (or was it something else?) anymore, but gives you Great Spy something.

so I was wondering, what other options do I have to speed up the emergence of GGs in BTS, besides warring (obviously)?

cheers
-wannabewarlord (now more like wannabenoble ;-) )

The Great Wall does give you the 100% Great General Emergence Bonus if you fight within your cultural borders.

Imp (Imperialistic) leaders also give you the 100% Great General Emergence Bonus.

Build Privateers, and sink everything you see. This gives you GG points without having to be at war.

edit: "sink everything you see within your borders."

i.e., wait for those caravels to come visit, said the spider to the fly.

Wodan

Make one of these:
http://forums.civfanatics.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=174505&stc=1&d=1208432801


Just upgraded this one.....

http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii6/djvandrake/Civ4ScreenShot0779-super-medic.jpg

Thanks for the advice!!! This is going to help me obliterate Catherine!

You forgot the Woodsman III. ;) Good luck regardless!

Wodan

You forgot the Woodsman III. ;) Good luck regardless!

Wodan

Yeah well, this one hasn't seen enough action yet. :goodjob:

in my last game i got 3 great generals before 500 BC and somehow there has been no good reason to attach them to a city yet since i fought all my wars with cats and ... archers. so i just parked them in my capitol.

a few turns later china invaded with axes, just a couple of turns before i was able to take another civs capitol to get bronze.
being able to churn out 3 +23 xp axes in just 3 turns saved my empire :D