What are some good resources for the Indutrial age and the Modern age. I have added Silicon for some of the units in the modern age that rely on computers.. what other strategic resources do you use in your mods?

I don't think silicon is a very good resource, as it is very common. Most stones, for example, are silicon oxides.
You might add copper for electrical wireing.

Perhaps copper isn't that good industrial/modern resource, since copper is know for 7000 years... ;)

I would suggest Titanium; it's used in many steel alloys and in heavily strained components.

copper, platinum, nickel....basically just go down the periodic table and see whats missing :)

Long time ago :eek: (Civ3 was still a really new game) somone asked me in our German forums for a ressource named "DNA". He needed it for his SciFi mod but I think this could be a modern day ressource too. I.e. make some health-wonder needing this.

Here is how it looked.

Originally posted by aaglo
Perhaps copper isn't that good industrial/modern resource, since copper is know for 7000 years... ;)

I would suggest Titanium; it's used in many steel alloys and in heavily strained components. So you'd rather be without copper in your everyday life then? There's this new thing called electricity (personally I think it's just a fad) which uses copper quite exstensively. ;)

I know very well the use of copper these days.. ;)

But it just doesn't make any bit of sense to have copper resource only from the beginning of industrial era.

Originally posted by mrtn
I don't think silicon is a very good resource, as it is very common. Most stones, for example, are silicon oxides.
You might add copper for electrical wireing.

The top four most common elements are:

1.Oxygen(are we glad)
2.Silicon
3.Aluminum(hmm, where have I seen that before)
4.Iron(oh yeah, next to the iron)

So taking that into account, the programmers didnt consider abundance as a factor of what resources to put in the game. To me it goes like this. First you have to discover the element and then it takes years of reasearch, trial and error to perfect its extraction and use. Thats why iron is no longer required to build things like tanks, and battleships because by the time the industrial age rolls around it use is so well know they anyone and everyone can get it. So I figure silicon doesn't come in to you discover computers and then its required for most of the modern units. Titanium, and copper sounds good too.

I asked this same question a while back and heres is what i came up with:

silicon
titanium - advanced metal
aluminum lithium - even more advanced and expensive metal (should follow after discovery of titanium)

Sha-Feer, my reasoning goes like this.
The problem isn't to find silicon, it's to treat it so that it gets pure. To me that's a tech rather than a resource.
It's like fusion power: It's difficult to learn the tech, it's not difficult to obtain oxygen and hydrogen.

Oh, and most of the iron is in the earth's core.

hydrogen is actually the most common element, not just on earth, but in the universe

I am using these in a mod: tin, copper, stone, brick, clay, silver, and marble. I chose to make tin and copper a requirement to build barracks, to simulate bronze weapons. But copper is also a requirement for the hydro plant, so its usefulness extends through the ages. Once tin is bypassed in importance by iron and steel... well I guess you can make tin soldiers... ;)

Originally posted by mrtn
Sha-Feer, my reasoning goes like this.
The problem isn't to find silicon, it's to treat it so that it gets pure. To me that's a tech rather than a resource.
It's like fusion power: It's difficult to learn the tech, it's not difficult to obtain oxygen and hydrogen.

Oh, and most of the iron is in the earth's core.

Hee hee I didn't mean anything in a rude way, just so you know.

This is how I look at it...I am trying to have fun so I just want the game to be a little more fun so to speak. I don't try to factor in to much of the realism cause when you think about it how silly is it to have horses as a resource when they are domesticated and you should be able to "grow your own", silks aren't foud laying around they are harvested from silk worms, amd how can you build steal battleships with only oil..so its a matter of what just makes it fun. And iron ore itself has to be treated, so by your logic it wouldn't be a resource either..not trying to be rude again..i just think different than most people thats all :)

Originally posted by Xen
hydrogen is actually the most common element, not just on earth, but in the universe


What school book are you reading from..mine taught me oxygen was most common on earth and yeah hydrogen would be most of all in all the multiverses...for really I don't want to go around telling folks something that isn't true?

I think he meant to say "just not on earth"

Hydrogen is the most common in the universe, but rare on earth

Yep, most common substances in the universe are Hydrogen and Helium - stars consist mostly of these two elements.

Originally posted by Sha-Feer


Hee hee I didn't mean anything in a rude way, just so you know. No worries mate. :)

Originally posted by Sha-Feer
... amd how can you build steal battleships with only oil..so its a matter of what just makes it fun. And iron ore itself has to be treated, so by your logic it wouldn't be a resource either... In my personal mod you need iron to build battleships and ironclads and other ships.
Iron is rarely found on earth's surface, compared to silicon.
And, while talking iron, I hope none of you guys are having steel as a resource, as the difference between iron and steel is about 2% coal. :lol:

aaglo: so, if you sucked a star into your lungs you'd talk with a funny voice? ;)

Originally posted by mrtn

aaglo: so, if you sucked a star into your lungs you'd talk with a funny voice? ;)

I believe so, yes ;)


And, while talking iron, I hope none of you guys are having steel as a resource, as the difference between iron and steel is about 2% coal

I'm under the impression it's closer to 0.2% coal and 1% Manganese. Well, it propably varies quite a lot between steels. I think on cast iron the coal is about 2%, but I'm not sure ;) .

Originally posted by mrtn
No worries mate. :)

In my personal mod you need iron to build battleships and ironclads and other ships.
Iron is rarely found on earth's surface, compared to silicon.
And, while talking iron, I hope none of you guys are having steel as a resource, as the difference between iron and steel is about 2% coal. :lol:

aaglo: so, if you sucked a star into your lungs you'd talk with a funny voice? ;)


Yeah I did the same, just to see how it goes. And yeah I started to think to put steel as a resouce and then it hit me..you don't find steel just laying around.

I don't know much about iron ore extraction but I seen a program on TV the other day about the history of coal mining...Nowdays they just scrap it from on top the earth mostly instead off digging wholes. Thats because of our modern technology. So in CIV terms I guess they figure iron becomes to easy to get in the 20th century that it is no longer needed as a "strategic" resource.
And silicon does sound a bit silly, but I am using it now just as a filler.

Originally posted by Junzi Nicuzn
I think he meant to say "just not on earth"

Hydrogen is the most common in the universe, but rare on earth

Actually, hydrogen is one of the ingredients in bottled water. And not just that new "no-calorie lite bottled water" either. Come to think of it, all H2O contains hydrogen... :D

Quasar1011
Actually, hydrogen is one of the ingredients in bottled water. And not just that new "no-calorie lite bottled water" either. Come to think of it, all H2O contains hydrogen... :D

:eek: Oops! I meant Helium. Helium is common in the universe, but rare on earth (And I know that's right)
:hmm: But Xen said Hydrogen...I guess I really screwed up on that one.

How I said what i said ;) may have been a little confusing, but, Hydrogen is the most common element on earth, after all, just think about the massive amount of hydrogen it takes to make the oceans, ice caps,rain, and free roaming hydrogen molecules in the atmosphere

Does H2O mean, 2 hydrogens and 1 oxygen? Anyway the enyclopedia said that silicon was only second to oxygen for being the most on earth, so I would assume that means oxygen would be #1 but we all know what assume means..u make an a** out of me!

it all depends on the specics- such as how old is the enyclopedia, and did they take into account BOTH free roeming atoms of of said elements, and atoms of said elements which are currentlly bound into molecules.It can get very complicated when you get down to it, but is safe to say this- the less complex somthing is, the more of it you have around.