Jwitti, I'll make you an Infantry. However, as I've played much farther than I've posted, you won't show up until part 14.
While Americans have been hawking wares and making money since time immemorial, business was limited by the dangers of failure. If a venture failed, its owners would be required to pay all debts incurred, which could easily bankrupt even a wealthy man. Most large business ventures were family affairs, such as the Farmers Insurance Company, descended from an old feudal landholding family. The corporation, which diffused these risks among many shareholders, made large ventures possible.
I can now found Corporations. My next technology will be Rifling, which Ive delayed researching for a long time.
Im going to found Creative Constructions. But before I do so, I need to choose a city. My first instinct is to do so in a big city, but a glance at the Domestic Advisor indicates that Denver is by far the most profitable city in America. This means that I will probably build Wall Street here, so it makes sense to concentrate as much wealth as possible in Denver.
Founded by the great engineer Henry Bessemer, Creative Constructions, Inc, became the preeminent architecture firm in America, responsible for constructing many notable public buildings, such as the Wall Street Financial Center in its home city of Denver. Creative Constructions contributed not only to the American economy, but to the development of the Modern American style of architecture.
While gunpowder had been known for centuries, muskets are notoriously inaccurate, which explains why longbows remained in use up until the 19th century. The development of rifling by American military engineers in 1802 changed this. Rifles soon became the basic weapon of the US military.
Now for Flight.
Founded in 1805, Winnipeg marked the end of the Great Northern Push.
I decided to found a final city near the lake and uranium mine in Canada.
Catherine has offered me a Defensive Pact. I accept.
For ages, men have dreamed of leaving their earthly chains and soaring among the clouds. In 1820, Orville and Wilbur Wright, two mechanics from Chicago, became the first humans to achieve powered flight. A new frontier had been opened, and soon aircraft were ferrying people and cargo across the nation, far faster than any landbound or waterbound craft could have.
I have achieved Flight, bringing me into the Modern Age. I next start on Assembly Line.
The Toronto Flu of 1831 killed nearly a million people. Only decisive government action prevented the virus from spreading further.
The assembly line, invented by Eli Whitney, revolutionized manufacturing. In a famous demonstration, Eli had the Presidential Council assemble a working rifle in minutes, showing that minimal training was needed to manufacture many items. As many joked, if politicians could do it, anyone could. Soon, factories sprung up in cities across America, employing millions.
I have developed the Assembly Line. I will now develop Fascism, in order to obtain a free Great General.
The Fascist Party is something of an anomaly in American politics. Fascists believed that the government should have absolute power, and that individual freedoms should be subordinate to the needs of the state. They gained some support among the industrialists and military leaders, but few votes.
I have a Great General. I consider keeping him in reserve, until I remember that with a unit of level 6, I can build West Point. I send him down to New Orleans, to upgrade William Clark and Tambien.
Unfortunately, it doesnt get Clark up to level 6. Oh, well.
Human beings are notoriously cautious when it comes to their own health. This, ironically, explains why it took so long for the scientific method to take hold with regards to medicine. But the understanding of contagion, bacteria, and the immune system greatly extended human longevity and vitality, keeping disease at bay.
I have researched medicine. Facing widespread unhealthiness, I switch to Environmentalism.
In 1853, the Persian military launched a surprise attack on the city of Sydney. Though they were defeated by the longbowmen commanded by Michael Jordan, the war did not end soon. Americas allies swiftly joined her, and for the first time in history, America found itself at war with a power beyond the sea.
Persia has declared war on us. This wont end well.
For them.
The attack on Sydney enraged the American populace. Very shortly thereafter, the American military dispatched the transport USS Borealis, carrying infantry units led by William Clark, Barry Bonds, and Edgar Martinez, and the Big Bertha artillery unit. Their orders: join the allied forces already invading the Persian Empire. Sheer distance meant that Americas ability to wage war on the Persian homeland was limited, but their technology would hopefully give the Persians a shock.
Time to show those Persians what happens to those who mess with the United States of America.
Clarks expeditionary force landed in northern China. Their objective was the old Chinese capital of Beijing, now a Persian city. The initial assault failed, but the Americans inflicted heavy casualties on the Persian defenders.
Well, I didnt take the city on the first go, but I did inflict heavy casualties, and all of my units survived.
Hatshepsut has asked for Physics. I refuse its a useful technology, and Im barely maintaining my technological edge.
Electricity is one of those things modern Americans take for granted, but it was only in the 1860s that America began to construct a national electric grid. While the myriad devices powered by electricity are too numerous to list here, one of the most remarkable was lighting. Where night had once meant darkness, only occasionally pierced by fire or gaslight, soon American cities glowed at dark, lit by innumerable electric lightbulbs.
There you have it. Electricity. Now for Industrialism. Because then I will have tanks, and then I will crush my enemies beneath my iron treads!
Again, the Americans assaulted Beijing. Persian flintlock rifles and black powder grenades proved inferior to American repeating rifles, and only sheer numbers prevented the city from falling. By now, most of the Persian troops had been annihilated. The Americans withdrew to their camp to lick their wounds, and prepared for what would almost certainly be the final assault
In 1871, American troops captured the city of Beijing. For the first time in history, a city belonging to a foreign power had been captured in war by the American military.
Beijing falls. I decide not to burn the city, planning to trade it to either Mongolia or China.
Another Great General has been born. Ill keep him around until I can find a good use for him.
(12 Sids Sushi Company)
Founded by Ferdinand Sid Magellan, Sids Sushi Company brought the Japanese national delicacy of sushi to America. While purists considered his variations an abomination, American sushi quickly caught on, becoming the national food of choice.
On the subject of Beijing, neither Qin Shi Huang nor Genghis Khan will offer me anything. But I can still trade it for favor. And Im in more need of Qins favor than Khans. So I trade it to China.
When the Secretary of War ordered a new headquarters built for the American military, he specified that it should not be another rectangular office building. The distinctive shape of the Pentagon did help to set it apart from other government buildings in New York, and by providing a central command center and administration, further improved the effectiveness of the entire American military.
Behold, the Pentagon! And now for West Point.
I see that Mining Inc. has been founded in England. Good for them.
By 1884, America had become an industrial society. Goods were no longer manufactured by master artisans in their shops. They came out of the great factories in Americas cities, where thousands of people labored at giant machines. This gave the United States a huge advantage in productivity over other nations. It also paved the way for industrialized warfare, and all the wonders and horrors that came with it.
Industrialism enables me to build Industrial Parks in my cities, and to create battleships, tanks, and Navy SEALs.
Elizabeth has offered me Artillery in exchange for Electricity and 2745 gold. Thats half my treasury. So no.
West Point Military Academy was founded in New York in 1889. The first dedicated military academy in the United States, it became known for training some of the best officers in the world.
I have founded West Point. From now on, I will try to train as much of my military as possible here. After I get an Industrial Park in the city, I think Ill start training Fighters to defend my cities, and probably a small tank force.
The Overwhelm Doctrine developed at West Point relied in part on Americas technological superiority over other nations. The idea was to hit the enemy so fast and so hard that they would be defeated before they could muster a proper response. While it did require a significant investment in the American military, it offered the chance to win wars quickly, without heavy casualties.
This mission has no deadline (well, except for someone else finishing it), and is something that sounds good. In particular, it fits with the amphibious assaults that will be critical to any war I wage outside of the Americas or Australia. I intend to complete it, but I will ensure that I build the Manhattan Project first to get the bonus.
The Persians have attacked the USS Endeavor off the coast. It didnt go well for them.
Refrigeration is the technology of cooling things. It is possibly the greatest advance in food storage technology since the invention of the granary, allowing food to stay fresh much longer than it would otherwise. For the first time, perishable foods could be transported across great distances. Access to fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat any time of the year regardless of where you lived had great benefits to peoples health.
Cooling technology has other applications. Many modern machines must operate at low temperatures. And while many people think of air conditioning as a convenience, imagine conditions in the great factories without it.
I have developed Refrigeration. This allows me to build Malls, the American unique structure. I wasnt able to come up with a neat little explanation of the mall in my description of Refrigeration, so Ill give it its own piece.
During the 20th Century, the advent of the automobile has created an urban and suburban landscape in which people live in one area but can shop, play, and work elsewhere often miles away from their homes. Nowhere is this more true than in the United States of America, whose citizens are noted for an almost fanatical devotion to their cars. This has had important social, environmental, and economic affects upon life in America, leading to (among other things) the creation of that most American of institution the shopping mall.
American shopping malls are surrounded by acres and acres of parking lots, and they may contain dozens (if not hundreds) of stores selling everything from clothing to jewelry to electronics to books to computers to videos. In some ways, American shopping malls are akin in spirit to the old Arabian markets (although Americans dont particularly enjoy haggling and prices are generally fixed).
This little piece isnt actually my writing its copied verbatim from the Civilopedia entry. Personally, I think its one of the best-written entries in the game and having been to Arabian-style markets in Jerusalem, I can attest to the similarities.
The Malls principle benefit is the same as the Supermarket, which it replaces it adds one Food. The Malls advantage is that it gives a happiness bonus from Hit Musicals, Hit Singles, and Hit Movies presumably because supermarkets dont generally sell entertainment products (or, at least, not a lot of them), while malls do.