Originally posted by Thunderfall
Does Civ2 allow airlifting of settlers? If yes, then I see no reason why we can't do that Civ3.
I don't think allowing airlifitng of settlers and workers would put the AI at a disadvantage because by the time you have airports, settlers are rarely built. Airlifting workers to clean pollution, build railroads, etc, is not something that can give human player a great advantage.
I agree settlers and workers units represent more people than a military unit, but it shouldn't be a problem because one turn in Civ3 is at least one year. You can transport lots of people in 1 year.
Ah, but ThunderFall, although I agree with you on one point (in a civ3 turn or one year, you COULD move a lot of Pop), airlifting settlers CAN be of advantage, and you might, could, want to build a lot of them. Why? Image you raze (thus avoiding culture flips) most of the enemies cities as you conquer them, and need lots of settlers shuttled over to the new continent to rebuild them. With corruption as it is in Civ3, you certainly are not going to be building those settlers on the new continent. So you got to build them in the heartland and move them over. The ai would never, I think, be able to figure this out. Of course, if your not conquering and burning the ai's citys to the groud, you don't need to do this, but, it IS one strategy that warmongers, in particular, could employ ... and having the airlift abiltiy for the settlers would help them greatly. Also, if you need the settlers for reconstruction, and workers to plant/chop down forest (for shields in corrupt cities), or to add to cities Pop, you would need to bring them over on boats (if airlifting wasn't allowed)- this strengthens/increases the need for, Navys. Thus, disallow it (airlifting workers/settlers).
I can't remember if you could or not airlift settlers in Two. I think you could. Still, this isn't Two and there are a lot of things that happen in Two that don't in Three. That doesn't, of itself, mean that one shouldn't be able to do so here, of course ...
I WOULD like to know how well the ai would use this, if it were allowed. IF the ai can use it reasonalby, then by all means, enable it.
I agree with you, joespaniel, that airlift of MA, MI, etc is poor. I reset those in the editor to be not eligble for that. I think that maybe Tanks, Panzers, and at least up throught Artillery should be, though. The Radar Arty is the only one I am unsure about, and I lean to NOT allowing them to airlift. It would be nice if we could only allow airlfit of these heavy units (still excluding MA and MI) after Advanced Flight, rather than after Airports (ie after regular Flight + construction of airports), but I don't think that that is possible. Oh well!
Civ on!