Hey folks.
So I've been reading some of the Sprawl and Wall / Sprawl and Maul / ICS strategies in the Empire Management article. They all sound really cool, particularly since they talk about tons of gold and science flowing in. I'd like to try some of them, but I need some recommendations first, and here's why: every time I try building more than about three or four cities, my happiness drops into the negative and never recovers. I can't figure out how people can have civs that have twenty or thirty cities, because I can't even manage five or six!
I frequently play Tall and Wall since I prefer a peaceful playstyle, but I'd like to go on the world conquest warpath once in a while -- or even be able to spread out over seven, eight, ten, twenty cities like I see the AI doing. What do I need to be doing to keep happiness under control? Use the "Avoid Growth" option to keep all cities below size 4 (or something) to keep happiness managed? Spend all my money on colosseums and theatres? Raze every single city I take from the AI (or sell them to another civ instead)? Spend all my spare cash on allying CSs that have luxuries I don't?
I do, of course, improve all luxuries I have near my cities. I try to found new cities on or near luxuries I don't already have, but that isn't always possible. I have the feeling I am trying to expand too fast, but I know that it must be possible to expand fast from the frequent discussion of the "4 cities before turn 50" strategy. I just can't fathom HOW.
I typically play on Prince difficulty, standard speed (although I've been experimenting some with Epic and Marathon speeds). I'll be happy to answer any questions about my play style if you folks can give me some tips on learning to sprawl out without dropping into ridiculous negative numbers on happiness.
(Another question I just thought of -- if you're playing a sprawling style, do you just have to accept that you'll only get a few social policies here and there since the cost of new policies keeps going up with every new city you found or annex? I know that puppetting cities you capture doesn't add to new policy costs, but even if I puppet cities I take via warfare, the happiness problem gets out of control and then we're back to my original problem. I can only handle it if I annex and rush buy courthouses, and that of course *does* increase policy costs).
Oh, one more thing -- I use the vanilla version of Civ. Not sure I want to jump into the G&K pool just yet as I can't even master difficulties above Prince with vanilla.
Thanks!
cheers,
Phil
So I've been reading some of the Sprawl and Wall / Sprawl and Maul / ICS strategies in the Empire Management article. They all sound really cool, particularly since they talk about tons of gold and science flowing in. I'd like to try some of them, but I need some recommendations first, and here's why: every time I try building more than about three or four cities, my happiness drops into the negative and never recovers. I can't figure out how people can have civs that have twenty or thirty cities, because I can't even manage five or six!
I frequently play Tall and Wall since I prefer a peaceful playstyle, but I'd like to go on the world conquest warpath once in a while -- or even be able to spread out over seven, eight, ten, twenty cities like I see the AI doing. What do I need to be doing to keep happiness under control? Use the "Avoid Growth" option to keep all cities below size 4 (or something) to keep happiness managed? Spend all my money on colosseums and theatres? Raze every single city I take from the AI (or sell them to another civ instead)? Spend all my spare cash on allying CSs that have luxuries I don't?
I do, of course, improve all luxuries I have near my cities. I try to found new cities on or near luxuries I don't already have, but that isn't always possible. I have the feeling I am trying to expand too fast, but I know that it must be possible to expand fast from the frequent discussion of the "4 cities before turn 50" strategy. I just can't fathom HOW.
I typically play on Prince difficulty, standard speed (although I've been experimenting some with Epic and Marathon speeds). I'll be happy to answer any questions about my play style if you folks can give me some tips on learning to sprawl out without dropping into ridiculous negative numbers on happiness.
(Another question I just thought of -- if you're playing a sprawling style, do you just have to accept that you'll only get a few social policies here and there since the cost of new policies keeps going up with every new city you found or annex? I know that puppetting cities you capture doesn't add to new policy costs, but even if I puppet cities I take via warfare, the happiness problem gets out of control and then we're back to my original problem. I can only handle it if I annex and rush buy courthouses, and that of course *does* increase policy costs).
Oh, one more thing -- I use the vanilla version of Civ. Not sure I want to jump into the G&K pool just yet as I can't even master difficulties above Prince with vanilla.
Thanks!
cheers,
Phil