Looking to improve my game

[LOVE_Magiska]

Well, yesterday I decided to take a deep breath and plunge into the confusing darkness of Regent (from Warlord). I survived, but only just.
So, I'm looking for advice on how to improve my game, and what things I should be wary of when jumping to Regent.

This is how I play the opening turns:
Build capitol, choose science, set science slider to 100%
Crank out settlers from capitol, found new cities.
Crank out settlers from new cities, found new cities. Build the occasional spearman and temple.
Repeat until both me and the AI have well-defined borders.
Sit back, build buildings and a military defence force until I reach the modern age.
Kill closest AI with tanks. Repeat until everyone is dead.

This is pretty much how I play all my games. Not only has it proven to be less then effective on Regent, I also feel like I'm missing out on all the lovely medieval combat

Any opinions? Tips on how to improve? Helpful nudges and blows to the head?

[Sir Len Taft]

From what it sounds to me, your doing most things right, but you "need" to start fighting before. At least by the time of knight you "should" be ready to start some wars, often much earlier. You are losing out much fun just waiting for tanks.

I'm in the middle of my first emperor try, playing as the Celts. Didn't start well, but when I manage to snatch Philosophy and started cracking out Gallic Swordmen, it all turned around. Early wars are usually beneficial.

But then I'm not that experienced, you might find some better advice from the Sid-players...and from the Strategy Articles, have you read those? They're a great help.

[Gengis Khan]

The sig says it all.

[DJMGator13]

Definitely check out the GK Training Day Game. It can be found in the Succession Game forum or just click on the link in GK's sig. It is a lot of reading but well worth it.

Also have you been to the War Acamedy. There are a lot of very good articles there. One of the best for early game play can be found here Link .

Good luck

[Moonsinger]

Originally Posted by LOVE_Magiska

Build capitol, choose science, set science slider to 100%

Never set the sicence slider at 100% unless you are desperately in search of Pottery. Even when I play the Chieftain level (IMO, the toughest level in this game), I would never set the science slider at 100% at the early stage of the game.

Crank out settlers from capitol, found new cities.
Crank out settlers from new cities, found new cities. Build the occasional spearman and temple.
Repeat until both me and the AI have well-defined borders.

May want to check out article on how to set up settler and worker factory. Cranking out settlers like that is really going to slow down your expansion.

Sit back, build buildings and a military defence force until I reach the modern age.
Kill closest AI with tanks. Repeat until everyone is dead.

IMO, horseman, knight, and cavalry unit are much more powerful than tank! By the time you have tank, the AIs would usually have Modern units as well. On top of that, they are also gaining defensive bonus for big citysize among many other things.

[Evertonian]

@Moonsinger, I've read many of your posts and your advice has been really really valuable in helping me improve my game, although I've still got a long long way to go
However

when I play the Chieftain level (IMO, the toughest level in this game), I would never set the science slider at 100%

Now I respect your civ knowledge and abilities a lot, you are a great great player, but I was surprised to hear that you find Chieftan the hardest level. Could you explain why it is the most difficult? Thanks

[WarLust]

Originally Posted by LOVE_Magiska

Build capitol, choose science, set science slider to 100%
Sit back, build buildings and a military defence force until I reach the modern age.
Kill closest AI with tanks. Repeat until everyone is dead.

Everything else sounds fine except these listed. In most cases you do not have to set the slider to 100%. Even 90% will research in the same amout of time as 100% on first tier sciences. And when you are researching a second tier science, like Writing, because you already have Alphabet when you begin, you only need to set it at 10-20%, since you can never do better than 50 turns anyway. So, save the gpt for maintenance and units. At least that is how it is at my level, emperor. Don't sit back, hunker down, and play defense until tanks. The best part of the game for me and for many on here are with swordsmen/medieval infantry/knight/longbowmen/cavalry. Even early archers and spearmen are extremely effective if you know how to do it and have the numbers! If you want to play the harder levels, you won't have the luxury of "sitting back" and building up until the modern age. You will be aggressively bullied and attacked early, and will have to defend yourself.

[Moonsinger]

Originally Posted by Evertonian

Now I respect your civ knowledge and abilities a lot, you are a great great player, but I was surprised to hear that you find Chieftan the hardest level. Could you explain why it is the most difficult? Thanks

IMO, it's the Chieftain is the toughest level is because we have to do ALL the works ourselves.

1. Technology: The AIs won't help us much with research (except for those free techs when they entering the new age, of course). As for the rest of the techs, we have to research them ourselves.

2. Expansion: Not much road for us to use and not much cities for us to take! They usually have nothing but a few cities for us to assimulate. Even when we get a few of their cities, it would take forever to improve them.

3. Commence: If we want to trade with them, we must build a long road to each and everyone of them. Don't expect them to build a harbor before 500AD either. I probably die of old age before I can be able to trade any luxury with them.

In summary, we will be doing all the works at the Chieftain level. The AIs are almost totally useless to us. At higher level, the AIs are truely our friends and our teammates and they usually help us to achieve our goal much faster and easier.

[Gengis Khan]

Not to take the thread off-topic, but.......... You're kidding right?

[Moonsinger]

Originally Posted by Gengis Khan

Not to take the thread off-topic, but.......... You're kidding right?

When I said that the AIs are my friends, I do mean every words of it. They are the most reliable friends I ever have. For one thing, they are predictable and they would betray me only when I no longer need them. Sadly, I don't have any friends like that in the real world. The opposite is true in real life, when I need them the most, they are no where to be found.

[Gengis Khan]

Aww, I'll be your friend.

I was reffering to the Cheiftan being the hardest level part though, it's like you have AP but they don't.

[Moonsinger]

Originally Posted by Gengis Khan

Aww, I'll be your friend.
I was reffering to the Cheiftan being the hardest level part though, it's like you have AP but they don't.

What is AP? Anyway, being the toughest level doesn't mean being the toughest one to win. It's not really about winning or losing, but about how well can we acomplish the same task in various difficulty level base on skills and not luck.

[Gengis Khan]

That's why you're a goddess & I'm just a lowly ummm diety. Victory isn't guarenteed for me.

I agree with you in that respect I guess, if you're going for a Diplo or Space win it'll be much quicker & easier on Monarch then Cheiftan.

Accelerated Production.

[Tatran]

I disagree at some points.

First if you're a builder + perfectionist and focus on growth + commerce
chieftain level should be no problem.

Second to put the research slider at 100% can be profitable.
Techs like Mystism or Iron Working can be done faster than 50 turns.
Writing is the most expensive early tech,but can also be researched
faster if you're the English (most commerce in their city square),have
rivers in your territory and at the moment you build you're second city.
I don't know about Mathematics,because I prefer to research Writing
when I start with Alphabet + Masonry.When I got ivory spotted around
my capital I would go for Mathematics.