Roundman
Prince
There have been complaints about the late game for as long as Civ 3 has been around. I attribute much of the problem to the fact that the late game tech tree is under developed. The Industrial Age tech tree/ early Modern Age tech tree is poorly thought out. It seems that it goes by too quickly and doesn't adequately flesh out the possibilities of the age, especially in regards to Flight. The Modern age comes too quickly, and starts at a point that is too far advanced. The tree seemingly skips from about 1918 to about 1950-1955. Here are some thoughts about what can be done.
I would make serious changes to Flight . I think that current Flight advance should only give the player WW1 era prop planes and no air ports. A new advance (I'd call it Metal Airplanes for lack of a better name) would follow from the first flight advance and give what the current Flight advance gives (Fighter, Bomber, and Airport), along with Paratroopers. I'd replace Advanced Flight with Jet Engines and move it to the modern age. Jet Engines would be a beginning tech, and would be a pre-req for Stealth. It would give the Jet Fighter (a F-80 or a MiG-15) , which would be an upgrade to the current Fighter plane, as well as giving a new Jet Bomber (a B-57?)with greater range. I'll get back to my suggestions for the Modern Age tree later in the post.
I would make Radio a branch off of Atomic theory. Radio would lead to Mass Communication (representing 1920s Radio and Newspaper), which would lead to Television, which would be the final step in the Communications branch and a prerequisite to advance to the modern age. I would make Propaganda a dead end branch off of Mass Communication. Researching Propaganda would give Fascism (something I have roughly sketched out in my Fascism thread). This more accuately shows the evolution and importance of the media to modernity.
Another addition that I'd make to the Industrial Age concens the
Communism branch. Communism should be required research. From Communism there should be two more techs: Labor Union and Modern Philosophy. Modern Philosophy would branch solely off of Communism. Labor Union would be avaliable after Mass Production is researched and would reduce war weariness/ civil unrest to some degree. After both Modern Philosophy and Labor Union are researched, the final tech off this branch could be researched. I'd call it something like Welfare State or Keynsian Economics or something like that. It would represent the changes to the economic aspects of government and social philosophy of the 1930s, and would loosely reflect things like the New Deal and the TVA, Nazi Public Works Projects (like the Autobahn), and Stalinist crash industrialization. This step should make the "Wealth" advance more efficient, giving 1 gold per 3 shields instead of 1 gold per 4, or maybe give you 10% more shields. I know that this would make the tech tree look a bit messy, but it would flesh out social developments of the industrial age.
The following Techs would be the final required techs in my Industrial Tech tree: Welfare State, Metal Airplanes (both advances could use better names), Television, and Motorized Transportation. Amphibious Warfare would still be optional.
The Computer Advance compounds the problem of the brief Industrial Age. This advance gives you Modern Computers too soon, as well as gives you modern infantry too early. I'd simply give the Computer advance Research labs, and push Seti and Mech infantry on to different advances. I'd create an advance called Advanced Computers that would branch out from Miniturization. Advanced Computers (or Microchips) would be a central tech, as it would be the pre-req for most of the techs needed for the Space Shuttle. It would allow the construction of SETI, and would be a pre-req. for The Laser. I would also move Robotics up as branching from Advanced Computers. Furthermore, Genetics would branch from Advanced Computers.
I never was satisfied with Ecology coming immediately after the Industrial Age. I think that Ecology and Recycling would make more sense being a dead end branch branching from Nuclear Power. It would more accurately depict th 1960s rejection of nuclear power and the rise of the Green Philosophy. I would fill the void left at the beginning of the Age with a new advance: Plastics. Plastics would head a redesigned upper branch of the tech tree.
The upper tech tree would begin with Platics. After Plastics and Computers had been researched, I'd add a new military advance called either Combined Arms or Advanced Tactics. This Advance would give Helicopters and a Vietnam era Infantry. Plastics and Advanced Computers would give Synthtic Fibers, which would now give Mech Infantry along with everything else. Stealth would still be the final tech of this branch.
Satellites, Smart Weapons, and Integrated Defense would remain unchanged.
I've charted out my sugesstions, and they make sense. I feel that these changes would fill out the late game, make it more realistic, and make it more fun. Air warfare would be better developed. More techs would make a Space Shuttle victory more difficult.
Thank you for reading my long post. If you have any comments or suggestions, please post them.
I would make serious changes to Flight . I think that current Flight advance should only give the player WW1 era prop planes and no air ports. A new advance (I'd call it Metal Airplanes for lack of a better name) would follow from the first flight advance and give what the current Flight advance gives (Fighter, Bomber, and Airport), along with Paratroopers. I'd replace Advanced Flight with Jet Engines and move it to the modern age. Jet Engines would be a beginning tech, and would be a pre-req for Stealth. It would give the Jet Fighter (a F-80 or a MiG-15) , which would be an upgrade to the current Fighter plane, as well as giving a new Jet Bomber (a B-57?)with greater range. I'll get back to my suggestions for the Modern Age tree later in the post.
I would make Radio a branch off of Atomic theory. Radio would lead to Mass Communication (representing 1920s Radio and Newspaper), which would lead to Television, which would be the final step in the Communications branch and a prerequisite to advance to the modern age. I would make Propaganda a dead end branch off of Mass Communication. Researching Propaganda would give Fascism (something I have roughly sketched out in my Fascism thread). This more accuately shows the evolution and importance of the media to modernity.
Another addition that I'd make to the Industrial Age concens the
Communism branch. Communism should be required research. From Communism there should be two more techs: Labor Union and Modern Philosophy. Modern Philosophy would branch solely off of Communism. Labor Union would be avaliable after Mass Production is researched and would reduce war weariness/ civil unrest to some degree. After both Modern Philosophy and Labor Union are researched, the final tech off this branch could be researched. I'd call it something like Welfare State or Keynsian Economics or something like that. It would represent the changes to the economic aspects of government and social philosophy of the 1930s, and would loosely reflect things like the New Deal and the TVA, Nazi Public Works Projects (like the Autobahn), and Stalinist crash industrialization. This step should make the "Wealth" advance more efficient, giving 1 gold per 3 shields instead of 1 gold per 4, or maybe give you 10% more shields. I know that this would make the tech tree look a bit messy, but it would flesh out social developments of the industrial age.
The following Techs would be the final required techs in my Industrial Tech tree: Welfare State, Metal Airplanes (both advances could use better names), Television, and Motorized Transportation. Amphibious Warfare would still be optional.
The Computer Advance compounds the problem of the brief Industrial Age. This advance gives you Modern Computers too soon, as well as gives you modern infantry too early. I'd simply give the Computer advance Research labs, and push Seti and Mech infantry on to different advances. I'd create an advance called Advanced Computers that would branch out from Miniturization. Advanced Computers (or Microchips) would be a central tech, as it would be the pre-req for most of the techs needed for the Space Shuttle. It would allow the construction of SETI, and would be a pre-req. for The Laser. I would also move Robotics up as branching from Advanced Computers. Furthermore, Genetics would branch from Advanced Computers.
I never was satisfied with Ecology coming immediately after the Industrial Age. I think that Ecology and Recycling would make more sense being a dead end branch branching from Nuclear Power. It would more accurately depict th 1960s rejection of nuclear power and the rise of the Green Philosophy. I would fill the void left at the beginning of the Age with a new advance: Plastics. Plastics would head a redesigned upper branch of the tech tree.
The upper tech tree would begin with Platics. After Plastics and Computers had been researched, I'd add a new military advance called either Combined Arms or Advanced Tactics. This Advance would give Helicopters and a Vietnam era Infantry. Plastics and Advanced Computers would give Synthtic Fibers, which would now give Mech Infantry along with everything else. Stealth would still be the final tech of this branch.
Satellites, Smart Weapons, and Integrated Defense would remain unchanged.
I've charted out my sugesstions, and they make sense. I feel that these changes would fill out the late game, make it more realistic, and make it more fun. Air warfare would be better developed. More techs would make a Space Shuttle victory more difficult.
Thank you for reading my long post. If you have any comments or suggestions, please post them.
but I don't think it will make...
