Advanced Starts -- opinions.

What is your opinion on Advanced Starts.

  • 1 -- dislike very much

    Votes: 18 24.0%

  • 2 -- somewhat dislike

    Votes: 12 16.0%

  • 3 -- neutral

    Votes: 19 25.3%

  • 4 -- somewhat like

    Votes: 16 21.3%

  • 5 -- like very much

    Votes: 10 13.3%
  • Total voters
    75
M

MarcoPollo

Warlord
Joined
Feb 26, 2010
Messages
112
I never used to play advanced starts until I did a scenario with one built into the script. Then I found out how much I really liked it. I don't wind up wasting alot of time fog busting and can set up a tailored economy right from the start. It makes my games alot more enjoyable. But I do recognize it as a crutch that favors the more "long term" traits like ORG and SPI but also helps traits like CRE and PHI when setting up the REX.

What are peoples thoughts on Advanced starts.
 
I've never used them and I don't plan to. I'm very finicky with the way my cities and such are set up, so I never even gave them a chance. I might like it if I try it, but- meh- I'll probably never try it.
 
I could never figure out how I was supposed to buy technologies with those starting points. I said sayonara after one go.
 
G-Max said:
I could never figure out how I was supposed to buy technologies with those starting points. I said sayonara after one go.
Click to expand...

To buy a tech, select the science icon, the tech and then click the buy button.

I recently started using advance starts a bit with the BTS Earth maps. I set the points between 600 and a 1,000. It gives the game a more rapid start and by 2000BC I have several cities and military units. It's great getting a worker this way as you don't have to stop a city's growth early in the game to build one.
 
Yup you can "buy" a buddhism straight out the gate and start with a holy city. Or you can set up one city to grow people with farms and pigs while another city works a gold mine for the science.

It seems like a cheat until you realize that the other civs get to choose their start too. Then it balances out.

The scenario with "charlemange" in the BTS scenarios is done this way and a good place to learn the interface.
 
I don't like them.

I've tried them before and the computer seems pretty bad at them. Reason I say this is I did some limited testing and would just generate maps with advanced starts and let the computer automate my point spending for me. When I did that, the AI seemed to make really bad choices for me. So I'm guessing it makes the AI even weaker since the human can choose to spend their points towards a specific goal, thus giving them a head start on the AI who seems to randomly spend points without much thought.
 
Advanced start? Oh, you mean buy-4-Axemen-and-trash-the-AI start? I don't like it, as the AI doesn't utilize it correctly.
 
I've played 1 advanced start: an immortal OCC where I started in the renaissance with biology, for the NP. It was fun. But it was a scenario game- nothing more. Civ is starting at 4000BC, and that's that.
 
Tristan_C said:
I've played 1 advanced start: an immortal OCC where I started in the renaissance with biology, for the NP. It was fun. But it was a scenario game- nothing more. Civ is starting at 4000BC, and that's that.
Click to expand...

You can use the advanced start to start in 4000BC, (ancient start) but still give yourself gold to spend on an advanced start to purchase cities, units, techs, etc. Speeds the start up even though you are still in the ancient era and still starting at 4000 BC.

I just don't do it myself.
 
Well for those who like the challenge of a high level AI without all the beginning cheats that AI gets, then this will do just fine. The AI still gets the advantages but you have more of an opportunity to mitigate them early on in the set-up phase.
 
I liked it in Civ2, but in cIV it does seem too exploitative.
 
MarcoPollo said:
Well for those who like the challenge of a high level AI without all the beginning cheats that AI gets, then this will do just fine. The AI still gets the advantages but you have more of an opportunity to mitigate them early on in the set-up phase.
Click to expand...

I don't understand why people refer to AI advantages on difficult settings as "cheats." The game offers great berth in skill levels so that you can play an enjoyable game almost regardless of how "good" you are at it.

Just learning civ? Have no idea what a specialist does? Settler could be a very amusing and challenging play. Been locked in your parents' basement for the last 6 years civving for 17 hours a day? Deity might be what it takes to challenge you.

It might be superior if the AI actually got dumber or smarter depending on your difficulty setting, but that is not the case. The high level "cheats" such as extra settlers and techs at the beginning of the game are probably as, if not more, important to making the AI hard to beat on deity than the research bonuses and diplomacy modifiers.

:blush: Sorry MarcoPollo, this is not directed at you. /rant off
 
Skwink Caesar said:
It's there.

Advanced starts seem to much like cheating to me.
Click to expand...


Skwink - Any chance you'd describe where this 'buy' button is?

I've tried to find it multiple times and still can't figure out how to buy tech in advanced start. Cause I can't find the *&^%*%! button.

Maybe its a bug, and maybe (probably) I'm an idiot, but I think I've clicked enough screen real estate to give me RSI trying to find this button of which you speak.

Cheers - and feel free to insult my intellect and parentage, provided you describe the location of said button.
 
onomatopeia said:
Skwink - Any chance you'd describe where this 'buy' button is?

I've tried to find it multiple times and still can't figure out how to buy tech in advanced start. Cause I can't find the *&^%*%! button.

Maybe its a bug, and maybe (probably) I'm an idiot, but I think I've clicked enough screen real estate to give me RSI trying to find this button of which you speak.

Cheers - and feel free to insult my intellect and parentage, provided you describe the location of said button.
Click to expand...

I'm probably copying Sisiutil's answer in the newbie thread, but you have to plant one city before you can buy techs.

I sometimes enjoy advanced start. It's a nice change and if the advantage you get seems too much, you could increase the difficulty level. That said, it's usually more of a novelty than a consistent way to play.
 
I think the feature was mainly designed to jump-start multiplayer games. In single-player, it's a interesting diversion (one of the many little touches that keep Civ4 interesting even after a long time, there's always something new to discover), but, as Ataxerxes said, nothing that players usually choose consistently.
 
I used it consistently in civ2 :p

It's a bit of a hassle to do every time for cIV though.
 
i like advanced start because it lets me start developing my civ faster. my only complaint is that the ai has no clue how to use its points and ends up buying 5 mines which it can't work :rolleyes:
 
onomatopeia said:
Skwink - Any chance you'd describe where this 'buy' button is?

I've tried to find it multiple times and still can't figure out how to buy tech in advanced start. Cause I can't find the *&^%*%! button.

Maybe its a bug, and maybe (probably) I'm an idiot, but I think I've clicked enough screen real estate to give me RSI trying to find this button of which you speak.

Cheers - and feel free to insult my intellect and parentage, provided you describe the location of said button.
Click to expand...

after building at least one city, go to the "techs" tab, click the beaker, click a tech you want to buy and click the "add tech" button.





you big fat stupid head.
 
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