I remember long ago I saw this technique explained on how to calculate the number of farms a city is going to need to reach a full population. It was something with calculating the excess food some tiles gave and others some minuses. I've been searching like crazy to find the complete explanation. I've tried myself but something doesn't feel right. Can anyone point me in the right direction? thanks!

Depends. Full population as in all tiles in the fat cross are workable (non-desert/mountain/ice). Means 20 population must be fed.

2 :food: per population point = 40:food:. So once you hit 40 :food:, you can sustain all 20 population points needed to work all the tiles in the fat cross (assuming no :yuck: and no unworkable tiles and no specialists besides free ones of course).

You figure this out by adding up the :food: you see in the city screen. For future planning, remember that biology gives an extra 1:food: boost to farmed tiles. Also, workshops take food away (when not in State Prop). So when planning that out, it helps to know what kind of improvements you want in your city.

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The first thing you need to do is count the number of extra food in your fat cross. Remember you get an extra +2F just from the city itself, so count that as well. Any tile that gives you more than 2 food, count as an extra +1F. A floodplain gives you +3F, so that's +1F. Various resources will also give you bonuses. Count the extra amount of food given over 2. Don't count bonuses given by creating a farm. This is just "as-is" bonuses.

Next you need to count the number of spots that have less than 2 food in them. Any Plains spots count as -1F. Deserts, Tundra and Mountains count as -2F. Jungles are a bit tricky, because they take away food bonuses. You should plan on chopping your jungle to make room for a cottage or mill, so count it as if it were normal grassland, hills or plains. (Note: If you are planning for a smaller city because of useless terrain, do not count the terrain you don't plan on improving in your calculations)

Then combine your two numbers. If your number is 0 or greater you are in great shape. If it's below zero, then you will know exactly how many farms you need to add to maximize your land.

Taken from Guide to City Specialization and Land Improvements (http://www.civfanatics.com/civ4/strategy/city_specialization.php) by Excl

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Taken from Guide to City Specialization and Land Improvements (http://www.civfanatics.com/civ4/strategy/city_specialization.php) by Excl


Yes! that's it! Thanks a million, been looking all over the place for this!