The Middle Ages Slope

[Lazani]

Hey fellow civers! I've just picked up Civ3 after having played Civ4 a long time. I'm doing alright, though I always struggle a lot when entering the Middle Ages. The first 5-6 techs take way to long to research. Do I go for Literature even though it's an optional tech and get libraries up asap? Maybe even pre-build them? Or is getting to Knights quickly just a drag anyways? I play on emperor, small pangaea.

[Cyc]

Are you changing governments to a Republic? The unit costs really cut back on available gold for research. Try disbanding some of your outdated units.

Maybe you could post a save....

[Lazani]

Yes, I do the normal Republic slingshot, then research either Literature or construction/currency, depending on what gives the best trade possibilities. When I then enter the MA it's like everything stops. Here's a save, played very sloppy. This is emperor, archipalego.

[Theov]

Originally Posted by Lazani

Yes, I do the normal Republic slingshot, then research either Literature or construction/currency, depending on what gives the best trade possibilities. When I then enter the MA it's like everything stops. Here's a save, played very sloppy. This is emperor, archipelago.

You don't have enough workers, you are also not making enough workers. Oh and the number of workers is too low.
The idea is to get all the income that the land has for you. You need people for that to work the land. So you will be needing food. For food you need irrigation and for irrigation you need workers.
Change some Beijing terrain into irrigation and make it a worker factory. So the population is replenished after you create a worker.
You're building a galley somewhere and a courthouse. Those cities should be building workers and armies. Canton is building an aqueduct, they also should not grow, but use the grain to restore the population after making a worker.
Or armies if at war.
Then lay some irrigation towards Macao, Tsingtao and Shanghai. "Mine green, irrigate brown" doesn't mean you should never irrigate a grassland.
You only have one source of fresh water, so the next plan is to get all the cities the water with an irrigation system.
Just build irrigation on irrigation throughout your empire. Cities will grow faster, income is bigger, science goes faster, nukes are available sooner.
1: have workers
2: irrigation
3: income
4: science
5: nukes
6: ?
7: victory!

[Lazani]

Thanks a lot, Theov! Will do as you say. I'm at war now because I have no iron and my neighbour have two sources, so I need to grab that. But what do you think of building libraries? Should I build them in every city or just in one or two?

[Theov]

Originally Posted by Lazani

Thanks a lot, Theov! Will do as you say. I'm at war now because I have no iron and my neighbour have two sources, so I need to grab that. But what do you think of building libraries? Should I build them in every city or just in one or two?

I think you're doing things right, but you're doing 3 things at the same time.
Are you building your empire? Ok. Do that. You will need an aqueduct and a courthouse. Want war?
Then go to war and make sure you are building enough armies for when your current guys fall.
Want to colonize that other island? Make settlers and workers.
.
Commerce = money + science.
So every coin that goes to science, is a coin that does not go to the treasure chest.
But if you have less spending or more income, you can have more science.
Libraries add 50% of your beakers in that city. They require 1 maintenance. So a city needs to make at least 4 beakers for it to make much sense to build a library.
Marketplaces do the same (only then for cash income) but they also make people happier when you have luxuries. So I build marketplaces first. Then libraries.
Remember, if you want more science, you can also increase income and adjust the slider towards science.
I build libraries normally when I have about 6 science beakers in a city and a granary, marketplace (temple, aqueduct) is built.

oh btw, do you have that 4000bc savegame somewhere? Look like a good map to play.
Thanks.

[Lazani]

Aha, I see. Well, thanks for pointing that out to me! Hmm... No, I don't have it anymore, the earliest save I've got on this map is 1300BC and Sumeria has already snagged both the iron and the horses. I'll just upload it anyways, in case you want to play.

[Quintillus]

Without having looked at the save, I'd say "yes" to researching Literature early, absolutely before the Middle Ages. The research boost of having all commerce-heavy cities have a library will be enormous and quickly make up for the cost of researching Literature.

Theov's point about workers is also important. I generally try to keep a road on every worked tile, to maximize commerce.

That said, those first medieval techs are fairly expensive...

[Jay600]

I have always a similar problem. Play the Republic slingshot go to Republic and then just get lost in the tech race. Now I tend to stay in Despot till communism and then change to communism. Sounds like this is unorthodox but I win or at least play a good game with this approach.

[MPK]

Originally Posted by Lazani

Hey fellow civers! I've just picked up Civ3 after having played Civ4 a long time. I'm doing alright, though I always struggle a lot when entering the Middle Ages. The first 5-6 techs take way to long to research. Do I go for Literature even though it's an optional tech and get libraries up asap? Maybe even pre-build them? Or is getting to Knights quickly just a drag anyways? I play on emperor, small pangaea.

Welcome to CIV3, you made a good decision. ,

I also played Civ4 for awhile and then Civ5 for an even shorter time span before finding CIV3 - both Civ4-5 were

Do you find CIV3 better than Civ4? - and why/why not??

As for advice on game play, I'll leave that to others,,, my way of playing is Monarchy/Communism/Join Me or Die /Kill Everyone-

[bigFRANK]

Originally Posted by Jay600

I have always a similar problem. Play the Republic slingshot go to Republic and then just get lost in the tech race. Now I tend to stay in Despot till communism and then change to communism. Sounds like this is unorthodox but I win or at least play a good game with this approach.

Despotism is bad staying in it until communism sounds crackers to me, that’s an age and a half of lost productivity, money, science etc. if you like the unit support of both the despot and communists then Monarchy or Feudalism offer an intermediate government.

[Theov]

Originally Posted by Jay600

I have always a similar problem. Play the Republic slingshot go to Republic and then just get lost in the tech race. Now I tend to stay in Despot till communism and then change to communism. Sounds like this is unorthodox but I win or at least play a good game with this approach.

Why don't you take Monarchy in between?
Or learn how to manage a republic?