{BNW] Need some beginner help/clarification please

Hi there

Fairly new at Civ 5 so have a few questions that I hope someone can help me with.

1. I am often told by CS that I need to "connect x ressource to my trade network". To my very best knowledge that is often already the case - the actual tile is being worked and I have roads between my cities. Is the quest actually that the CS requesting this is not connected ? And will it help building a road to them (which often is a seperate quest)

2. In my current Prince game (winning, but a bit slow) I have a very peaceful game. I often get trade requests from other AI's where they offer something in return for my luxury ressources. Will the AI request ressources that is being used by myself (ie. if I only have 1 silver - will they request silver if it is being "used") ?

3. In connection to my question above I have sometimes accepted the trade (checking if the luxury ressource is available by removing it from the trade screen to make sure it becomes available on my side). If it is available I usually accept the trade instead so I get something for the vacant ressource. The problem is that more than a few times this has resulted in unhappiness by appr. 4 persons - and once I completed 3 trades in a single round with other AI's and ended up with -8 in happiness from positive. I find that strange since that should only happen if I give away ressources that is being used by my own people and I don't believe that is the case - but not sure ?

4. Playing as Babylonians I get a lot of free GP scientists. What is normally recommended - to use all for the improvement with the same city (so perhaps ending up with 5-8 with the same city) or using these for multiple cities ?

5. When using the GP scientist for the improvement do I get the science bonus immediately or will it only count when the tile is being worked ? I sometimes find it hard to decide if I should use the GP on the location that my advisor suggests ? Will any ressources go to waste if they are on the tile or will the improvement come on top of that ?

6. I have a hard time getting the AI to trade luxury ressources to me even though we are friendly and DOF. Usually they want a ridiculous amount of several strategic ressources and gold for a single luxury ressources - and at best offer gp/t for my luxuries. Any tips/tricks ?

7. I still find this game very peaceful compared to previous CIV installments. Should I persue war and conquering more ? It seems much easier simply going for a culture win in mid game rather than wiping out some AI's or taking some additional cities (still training on Prince).

8. How many cities do you guys aim for on a standard map, 8 AI, 16 CS when going Liberty ? How many at turn 100 and 150 ?

Thanks a lot for any help

therealmadbone said:

Hi there

Fairly new at Civ 5 so have a few questions that I hope someone can help me with.

1. I am often told by CS that I need to "connect x ressource to my trade network". To my very best knowledge that is often already the case - the actual tile is being worked and I have roads between my cities. Is the quest actually that the CS requesting this is not connected ? And will it help building a road to them (which often is a seperate quest)

Click to expand...

First, connecting resources to your trading network has nothing to do with roads or whether you are currently "working" that tile -- all that matters is that you have used a worker to improve a tile that has that resource (e.g., for an iron tile, a mine; for an ivory tile, a camp, etc.).

There are two screens you need to become facile with. The first is Citizen Management in the City View screen -- that tells you what tiles your city's citizens are "working", which determines what tiles you are receiving tile yields on. This is entirely separate from what tiles your worker units are improving. To connect a resource, you need to improve that tile with a worker. Separately, to obtain the tile yield (from an improved or unimproved tile), a citizen must be assigned to "work" that tile.

The other key screen is the resources screen (top left menu, which normally shows what tech you are researching, drops down to display other options, including a resource listing). If you get a "connect resource" CS quest, check the resources screen -- often you will find that you have traded away all of your copies of that resource (in which case the quest will be fulfilled when that trade expires and a copy of that resource returns to you) -- but you may also find that you haven't improved a tile with that resource (in which case, get your worker hopping) -- and sometimes you will find that you don't have any of those resource tiles in your empire, in which case your only options are to trade for that resource, ally with another CS that has an improved copy of that resource, or conquer a city that has an improved copy of that resource.

2. In my current Prince game (winning, but a bit slow) I have a very peaceful game. I often get trade requests from other AI's where they offer something in return for my luxury ressources. Will the AI request ressources that is being used by myself (ie. if I only have 1 silver - will they request silver if it is being "used") ?

Click to expand...

In general, unless you have happiness coming out of the ears, you don't want to trade away your last copy of a luxury, unless you are receiving a new luxury in the trade (so your happiness will be unchanged). Sometimes that can be a great way to trigger a We Love the King Day in one or more cities (+25% growth in those cities for 20 turns).

3. In connection to my question above I have sometimes accepted the trade (checking if the luxury ressource is available by removing it from the trade screen to make sure it becomes available on my side). If it is available I usually accept the trade instead so I get something for the vacant ressource. The problem is that more than a few times this has resulted in unhappiness by appr. 4 persons - and once I completed 3 trades in a single round with other AI's and ended up with -8 in happiness from positive. I find that strange since that should only happen if I give away ressources that is being used by my own people and I don't believe that is the case - but not sure ?

Click to expand...

Yeah, you don't want to trade away your last copy of a luxury (lose 4 happiness per unique luxury). Also, there is a long-standing display bug that mis-states the number of remaining copies of a luxury you have when a trade is initiated by the AI. Best course is to deny the trade and hop over to the Resources tab to confirm and then re-initiate the trade on your turn.

4. Playing as Babylonians I get a lot of free GP scientists. What is normally recommended - to use all for the improvement with the same city (so perhaps ending up with 5-8 with the same city) or using these for multiple cities ?

Click to expand...

First, you should only plant GSs to form academies in cities that have maximum science bonuses -- usually that is the city in which you built your National College (+50% science in that city). Even better with an observatory (another +50%). In terms of numbers, Babs will generate more GSs, so you can afford a few more academies, but in general, after the first one or two academies, you should generally save GSs until later in the game. A GS bulbed for science will generate beakers equal to your last 8 turns of beaker production, so it is best done at least 8 turns after you have in place the other science multipliers (research labs, observatories, various Ratoinalism policies). There is strategy about precisely how and when to bulb GSs, but that is the jist.

5. When using the GP scientist for the improvement do I get the science bonus immediately or will it only count when the tile is being worked ? I sometimes find it hard to decide if I should use the GP on the location that my advisor suggests ? Will any ressources go to waste if they are on the tile or will the improvement come on top of that ?

Click to expand...

You only receive yield from tiles that are worked by your citizens -- consult Citizen Management in the City View screen. Also, if you plant a Great person (any Great person, not just GSs) on a tile, any improvement that is already on that tile (farm, mine, pasture, camp, etc.) is eliminated and you receive that tiles base yield plus the Great Person tile improvement yield .

6. I have a hard time getting the AI to trade luxury ressources to me even though we are friendly and DOF. Usually they want a ridiculous amount of several strategic ressources and gold for a single luxury ressources - and at best offer gp/t for my luxuries. Any tips/tricks ?

Click to expand...

If you are aksing for the AI's last copy of a luxury, they will demand at least 3 luxuries from you, even if you are best buds (and even more if they like you less).

7. I still find this game very peaceful compared to previous CIV installments. Should I persue war and conquering more ? It seems much easier simply going for a culture win in mid game rather than wiping out some AI's or taking some additional cities (still training on Prince).

Click to expand...

War is always more fun (to me) than sitting around peacefully building buildings.

8. How many cities do you guys aim for on a standard map, 8 AI, 16 CS when going Liberty ? How many at turn 100 and 150 ?

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You will get many different views on this -- I usually end up with 3 - 6 founded cities (most frequently using Tradition) and then conquer more as I feel like it.

If you are aksing for the AI's last copy of a luxury, they will demand at least 3 luxuries from you, even if you are best buds (and even more if they like you less).

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There are exceptions, for example one India game I exchanged my last copy for one of America's last copies, but we were literally BFFs for life. Usually the AI will extort you for their last copy.

8. How many cities do you guys aim for on a standard map, 8 AI, 16 CS when going Liberty ? How many at turn 100 and 150 ?

Click to expand...

Founding more than 3,4 cities is very difficult in terms of managing global happiness for people who just started. By T100 you can have up to 8 cities if you've been going to war early, but only a few would be founded by you. The others come from conquering other cities

For No.4, I agree with Browd.
I've been testing this around and managed a city with 700+ science!
Sadly I lost the save due to corruption when installing BNW.

I believe I still have Tayland with 350+ science in which I'll show in a screenshot. (need to find it)