So the Sid AI gets a huge start, production and research advantage but it is stupid. A number of variants like always war and defiant have been beaten. These allow you to expand as much as you can through war. How about 5CC with the goal of a space victory. The rule is never to have more than 5 cities at the end of your turn. I start as the Dutch on a standard continents map. I chose civ opponents so I would have an alphabet monopoly to help in early trading and getting the GL My third start gives me a costal river with cow. I take it.
Early: It turns out that I start on a medium size Island alone. This was not what I intended but I use it to my advantage to slow the AI down early. I send out curgahs and start war with everyone I meet picking up a few techs toward the end. The idea behind this, as Arathorn has shown, is to get the AIs building troops and choking off research and other production. Long story short I get 5 nice cities with only 1 tile overlap total and iron/horses and silks. I snag the GL and coast through to edu picking up to gunpowder. The key to this whole game is cash. I keep very few troops and stay very friendly with my nearest neighbor the Babs who plop down 4 cities on my Island. They are my friend and protector.
Middle: I accumulated cash during the GL period and did a 50 run on printing press. The general strategy was to steal techs from distant civs and use them in 2-fers/3-fers and to trade around for more cash. If I fail and start a war I sign in the Babs as my protector. I almost never go over my 15 troop limit in Republic @ max cash. No libraries/universities ever in the game. I get to the IA a bit behind the Mongols and Egyptians. The Babs get Med as their free tech and I steal Nationalism and trade for Med. I am going to Sanitation. Min research gets me to sanitation while picking up steam, indust elect corp. By the time Sci Meth is available I have a size 20 powerhouse with factory/coal plant. I can build the ToE straight up without sab. Do the ToE/Hoover gambit. Which also gets me tech lead over most people and lots of cash. Im keeping in the range of 15K cash and pulling 500gpt sucking the AIs dry of $$. I start wars here and there by failed steals or with demands to leave. I start these to keep a balance of power, culture and tech. A run away AI would be doom for me.
Modern: Steal and sell. The Japs become the tech leader and I steal everything they get. Its a great deal. I do all safe steals not because its more successful but because loss of spy is less likely and it can be difficult to get it replanted (3 turns between tries). Im hovering around 50K in the bank making 700-1000gpt. BTW a safe steal is 3.7K while a straight purchase of a 2nd level mod tech is only close for 50K + 1000gpt on Sid. Steal is quite a deal. The real problem is how to steal the last tech and beat the AI to the final part. Japan is the leader and has native aluminum and uranium. I prepare a force with some tactical nukes to disconnect their resource when I realize that their 1 uranium has jumped and they are now getting it from Egypt. Nice. When they are 1 tech away (superconductor) I start a dogpile against them. In the mean time my good friends the Babs get superconductor. I have 2 visible techs on them and can get superconductor for the 2 techs plus about 30K. Just happen to have 2 cities 1 turn form manufacturing plants that are converted to the last 2 parts which finish that turn and I win. Sorry I didnt bother to capture pics but a few saves are below. It was a lot of fun. Only game I ever played where I really used modern weapons and did not know whether I could win even at that late stage.
4000BC
Early: It turns out that I start on a medium size Island alone. This was not what I intended but I use it to my advantage to slow the AI down early. I send out curgahs and start war with everyone I meet picking up a few techs toward the end. The idea behind this, as Arathorn has shown, is to get the AIs building troops and choking off research and other production. Long story short I get 5 nice cities with only 1 tile overlap total and iron/horses and silks. I snag the GL and coast through to edu picking up to gunpowder. The key to this whole game is cash. I keep very few troops and stay very friendly with my nearest neighbor the Babs who plop down 4 cities on my Island. They are my friend and protector.
Middle: I accumulated cash during the GL period and did a 50 run on printing press. The general strategy was to steal techs from distant civs and use them in 2-fers/3-fers and to trade around for more cash. If I fail and start a war I sign in the Babs as my protector. I almost never go over my 15 troop limit in Republic @ max cash. No libraries/universities ever in the game. I get to the IA a bit behind the Mongols and Egyptians. The Babs get Med as their free tech and I steal Nationalism and trade for Med. I am going to Sanitation. Min research gets me to sanitation while picking up steam, indust elect corp. By the time Sci Meth is available I have a size 20 powerhouse with factory/coal plant. I can build the ToE straight up without sab. Do the ToE/Hoover gambit. Which also gets me tech lead over most people and lots of cash. Im keeping in the range of 15K cash and pulling 500gpt sucking the AIs dry of $$. I start wars here and there by failed steals or with demands to leave. I start these to keep a balance of power, culture and tech. A run away AI would be doom for me.
Modern: Steal and sell. The Japs become the tech leader and I steal everything they get. Its a great deal. I do all safe steals not because its more successful but because loss of spy is less likely and it can be difficult to get it replanted (3 turns between tries). Im hovering around 50K in the bank making 700-1000gpt. BTW a safe steal is 3.7K while a straight purchase of a 2nd level mod tech is only close for 50K + 1000gpt on Sid. Steal is quite a deal. The real problem is how to steal the last tech and beat the AI to the final part. Japan is the leader and has native aluminum and uranium. I prepare a force with some tactical nukes to disconnect their resource when I realize that their 1 uranium has jumped and they are now getting it from Egypt. Nice. When they are 1 tech away (superconductor) I start a dogpile against them. In the mean time my good friends the Babs get superconductor. I have 2 visible techs on them and can get superconductor for the 2 techs plus about 30K. Just happen to have 2 cities 1 turn form manufacturing plants that are converted to the last 2 parts which finish that turn and I win. Sorry I didnt bother to capture pics but a few saves are below. It was a lot of fun. Only game I ever played where I really used modern weapons and did not know whether I could win even at that late stage.
4000BC
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