A general strategy for India (BNW)

joncnunn said:

I would stop at self founding at 4 cities

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Fluphen Azine said:

I've been telling people for years that India is an amazing Civ to play once you understand how to play them.

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All that fine analysis about the UA -- all concluding that you have to play them 3/4 city Tradition. Just. Like. What. Works. For. Every. Other. Civ.

Like many folks, I underrated the UA, and I even I wrongly concluded that it was counterproductive. Still, is there a civ that is less interesting to play? Does any other civ lock the player into 4 city Tradition? The only UU base unit worse than lancer is the chariot archer. The effects from the UB are weak.

the only Scenario where india was REALLY helpful was a 500 turn Point challenge in HOF last year. happynes was limiting factor and india did counter that best - even when like 25 cities have been on map in end.

Apart that it misses the "WoW" factor of good civs.
Sure the unhappy Penalty is nice from mid to lategame - but the huge double penatly when taking cities and the quite hard start make it a kinda meh civ.

I had fun playing India. Just fish for happiness wherever you can find it, internal trade route a lot of food--and NOT primarily to your capital--and ally a lot of Maritimes. It's not so much tall vs. wide, but both. The key is to be big and populous. And in that regard, Temple of Artemis absolutely is very helpful.

The reason for not emphasizing food in your capital as much is that the happiness bonus from Monarchy is not as good. Population grows much more quickly if you grow the smaller cities. More population means more of everything, and at half the happiness penalty. At some point, this offsets the science/GP bonuses you would get from NC and NE. Also, if you ally all the Maritimes, the capital is already getting lots of food as it is.

just curious, has anyone here made Gandhi work with liberty? I'm imagining an FoY scenario here.

Sessy said:

just curious, has anyone here made Gandhi work with liberty? I'm imagining an FoY scenario here.

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In Vanilla at CD release it would have worked really well. After the vanilla balance patches, not so much.

Yes, either FOY or playing on Chieftain difficulty level for the happiness bonuses is what's needed for India to self found a lot of cities early.

Also note that India's ability would actually work really well for early rapid expansion if it were in BE.

India loves the food bonuses from Tradition. But if you want to try non-Tradition (like I did), I don't think Liberty is the answer. I went Honor, in anticipation of Autocracy. Mughals give you happiness.

Sessy said:

just curious, has anyone here made Gandhi work with liberty?

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I have been practicing with Liberty wide, and I was thinking that India might actually be excellent for such play. This article has disabused me of such ambitions.

I'm imagining an FoY scenario here.

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Sure, in that case, why not?

India is definitely a more challenging civ to play as, no doubt about it. The early game penalties are tough to overcome. I had similar problems with Brazil's jungle start bias: took longer to explore, longer to improve terrain, and was sorely lacking in production. If you use the War Elephant early, then it can be a big difference-maker for India. Definitely don't underestimate the value of the Honor opener as a 2nd or 3rd policy.

tetley said:

I completely disagree with avoiding Cathedrals if you intend to bulb artists for Golden ages. That's a great work of art OR ARTIFACT slot. I don't think Cathedrals are any more or less valuable just because you're India.

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This is a good point. However, that's a really late payoff. You're basically losing out on up to 3 yield (another culture, faith, and / or happiness) for the first half or 2/3 of the game. Granted, this does fit in with India being a late payoff civ, in general.

If Cathedrals are the only building available, then sure, go for them (if you want a culture victory). But if another building is available, then the other building is generally a better option.

megabearsfan said:

India is definitely a more challenging civ to play as, no doubt about it.

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With the benefit of your guide, I don’t think so! There is a speed bump until you get cities to size 6, but Tradition takes care of the capital, trade routes the 2 or 3 expos. Then it is smooth sailing and India is kind of OP.

My only complaint now it that they are so dull.

beetle - I dont think they are dull, the UU is pretty effective. But if they do seem dull, I think its because they are truly a second half civ, like America.

beetle said:

I have been practicing with Liberty wide, and I was thinking that India might actually be excellent for such play. This article has disabused me of such ambitions.



Sure, in that case, why not?

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Let me continue with the abuse. India.Is.The.Worse.Civ.For.Liberty.Wide.