Well revcrap, here are some suggestions to your problems:
1) Check combat strengths of the units next time, and be prepared to lose more units as you move up in the difficulty levels. Also realize it is just a game... it's not trying to be a super realistic game, so yes, sometimes your fighters can lose to archers.
2) Never experienced this myself so I dunno what happened there.
3) Never played the tutorial. However, you Would think that as you move up the difficulty levels the same strategy will no longer work because the AI becomes more difficult... You have to mix up your strategy. A lot of it depends on what civ you are, what the map is like, what the other civs are etc. You can't expect to beat the entire game using only one strategy, through all the difficulty levels... because there will always be instances where your strategy won't be effective
4) Again, never played tutorial, so no comment here.
5) Diplomacy can be used to trade techs, get the AI to declare war on one another, and you can demand things from the AI to keep peace, otherwise if they don't pay up you declare war.
6) You don't have to cheat to win, I'm not even sure if you can in this game. Never been one to cheat in games... However, the AI does get more aggressive, you just have to adjust. When I first picked up Civ Rev, I thought much the same as everyone else, but the more you play it, the more you will end up enjoying it. The AI's aggressiveness is fun because it provides more of a challenge.
7) Depends on how the game is going I think. I've had games where I did bad tech/economic wise, but went for culture. The AI didn't really seem to want to pick on me, because I didn't challenge them in the victory they were going for. The AI does declare war on each other, but not very often. Just another thing to get used to, I guess.
8) I think your talking about your cultural borders, and well, this is kind of easy to explain. The AI who played as China likely built temples/cathedrals/wonders to get culture. You likely were lacking in this area, so his borders were pushing your troops/men further back. It has nothing to do with the fact that the AI was Chinese. So you can't expect to all of a sudden play as the Chinese and have that same effect happen... if you build cultural buildings, then maybe you will notice this.
I think you just need to play more, and learn more about the game. If you can't win on a higher difficulty level, play on the difficulty level you can win on until you get really good. Then when you do move up in difficulty level expect:
a) The combat bonuses you received on chieftan and warlord disappear. To account for this, bring more armies when you go to war, and be smart about which promotions you choose for your armies.
b) The AI will tech faster, and pressure you more. You have to get good at specializing your cities, and make sure you are prepared for war. Make sure when you prepare for war, that you build a good mix of both offensive and defensive units.
c) Don't expect to get all the techs and wonders first. Try to develop a strategy early on in the game, and use the strategy to work towards a victory condition. If you know you wont be able to keep up in technology, then maybe put a little bit more focus on your economy, or on culture. Domination might be hard if the AI has more advanced units, but it can always be done.
d) Don't waste time building things in your cities you don't need. Not all your cities need barracks, libraries, markets etc. If a city is near the coast, it can be good for science or gold. But pick one, and only produce buildings that will increase its effect. Build markets and banks for gold, library and universities for tech.
e) Always hit "let me think about it" on your great people, and ANALYZE where they will have the greatest effect, and also realize that if your going for cultural victory, its probably better to settle the great person somewhere. If you just use them to get gold or a tech fast, they will not count towards the culture victory.
People who think it sucks and its childish should go and do something else rather than sit around and post complaints. I'd play it if I had the right hardware, I don't care if its percieved as "childish" to a few up tight PC users.
