Sisiutil
All Leader Challenger
Thank you very much for the guide Sisiutil.
I have a question about initial build orders. You seem to prefer Worker/Warrior/Settler. Hoever, the "Optimum Early Growth Strategy" by ohioastronomy favors Worker/Worker/Settler, and his arguments are quite good. Also I generally play without Barbarians.
What do you think about the Worker/Worker/Setter build order ?
As with everything else in this game, it depends.
My actual preferred initial build order in most games is either a Scout (if I start with Hunting) or a Warrior, then a Worker once the city grows to size 2. My thinking there is to explore as much territory as possible (so I know where strategic resources like copper, iron, or horses are located) and to get to as many tribal villages as I can as well. Scouts and Warriors tend to die at the hands (or, in many cases, paws) of barbarians, too, so it's usually good to have more than one. Warriors also let you nab Workers if an opportunity arises, which can really cripple a nearby opponent and make them more vulnerable to an early rush of some type.
However, if I start with Fishing and have a coastal start with seafood, I'll often build a Work Boat first. If I have a precious metal in the capital's BFC, I'll build a Worker first (while researching Mining, if needed) to get that extra commerce for research on-line ASAP.
I could see that Worker/Worker/Settler makes sense in many regards, but... well, it doesn't sound like much fun. You're only exploring with one unit and at 1 pop those builds will take a long time, even with chopping, so it sounds like for the first 100 turns or so you're just sitting there hitting the Enter key over and over again. Especially on the turns where your exploring Scout or Warrior is healing--which is frequent. Bo-ring. That's why I haven't managed to play a game at Marathon speed yet.
But if it works for you and you enjoy it, do it!