best Financial leader/ tech build

[David_e08]

Alright so im new been playing for around 2 months or something like that, and i read these forums daily. im playing on noble level and having some little problems, i win around 1/7 of my games, usually im really good or really crappy. and ive been losing some close space race/ diplomatic victories and i know if i were to tweak my game i will start to win those close games.

i have a few question which i think might help me win.
1) i hear that the financial trait is good newer players for commerce, but which other trait goes with it, like which leader has the best second trait after financial.
2)i also have trouble planning out my tech build, sometimes i just research anything because i do not know what to do next and i know that those decissions can lose close games for me, i would just like to know a general way which more experienced players go. also is there a good tech build which goes with the financial traits.

thnx in advance for the info.

 

[DarkSchneider]

The best second trait is either Philosophical, Charismatic or Organized.

With most leaders you should go for pottery early on.

 

[Maben]

1.) I prefer Elizabeth Fin/Phi and Huayna Capac Fin/Ind. You can get lots of great people with either, and with the Incans you can do a wicked early rush for land grab.

2.) I plan out what I need the most, and aim for the tech that is going to give that to me. I need to chop this wonder? Get Bronzeworking. I need lower maintenance? Get caste system for courthouses. Also, it's never bad to aim for the techs that give you free specialists or free techs, they can be a nice boost.

 

[Thedrin]

David_e08:
1) i hear that the financial trait is good newer players for commerce, but which other trait goes with it, like which leader has the best second trait after financial.

There was a recent thread in the strategy forum entitled 'Newbie Traits', if you are looking for traits that provide you with a large advantage without having to work to produce that advantage;

For this case, the two best traits are financial and creative. Both provide a large benefit without you having to do very much, beyond building cottages).

Organised, charismatic, aggressive would be next on my list.

Do not use spiritual, philosophical, protective, imperialistic, expansive, or industrious. You do have to plan carefully to get much out of these.

 

[Powerslave]

I would have to agree with Thedrin. While you can get small gains from randomly using any trait, you'll get major payoffs with a coherent strategy. It just so happens that Financial is probably the easiest trait to leverage -- something that a few people on the forum take to mean that Financial is a "newbie trait". I disagree; Financial is quite useful for players of any skill level.

First of all, cottages are not the end-all and be-all of Financial. You could make rather good use of Financial without building a single cottage. How? Consider all those coastal cities: you get a 50% improvement in commerce for all those water tiles. That's huge! Consider also that any riverside resource that increases commerce also gets the Financial bonus, and most resources already give enough of a commerce boost to not need this. So, building cottages is a good idea, but Financial doesn't require it.

As far as what techs to research, you probably want to research Bronze Working, Animal Husbandry, Pottery, Writing, Sailing, Iron Working, Mathematics, Code of Laws, and Currency, roughly in that order. Beyond that, get the prerequisites that you're missing (Mining, for example), whatever you need to work the land around your capital (Hereditary Rule for wine, Calendar for plantations, etc), and make your way towards Liberalism.

If you'd rather beeline Alphabet, you can become a power techbroker and harass your enemies with spies. You can pick up lots of wonders with this branch, if you go with Aesthetics and Literature. If you start with Mysticism and/or are Industrious, then this is often a lucrative path. The problem is that you often end up ignoring critical military techs so that you can get your favorite wonder(s).

Really, it depends on what you want to do. If you want to go to war, then get militaristic techs. If you want a cultural victory, beeline Music and Liberalism. If you want a space ship victory, then prioritize any tech that will give you a research or production bonus.

 

[King of Town]

If you want it easy I would go with hannibal, willem, or elizabeth. Easy experience, culture and GP's which are all really powerful. Willem is my fav because I hate building monuments, and his UB is awesome.

 

[Supr49er]

If you are getting sidetracked/confused in the technology tree, here's a tip.

Select your science advisor (the beaker in the upper right corner of your main screen). This shows the technologies and what they give you. You can click on Metal Casting for example, and you will automatically research all the prerequisite techs.

Always know what you are researching and why. Don't waste 20 precious early turns.

 

[gettingfat]

I think it largely depends on personal style and the overall strategy you prefer. Also I don't think you can single out the traits without considering the UB/UU.

In general, Darius is best for REX, Liz is super for liberalism race and then mid-game red-coat partying time, Hannibal allows all-rounded and balanced game, Wilem's creative trait gives you a strong start and his uber UB gives you a great finish. These four I personally think are the best.

However, the other fin leaders are also great to use. I just don't like Wang Kon too much after the nerfing of his UU, but it doesn't mean he's bad at all.

 

[TM Moot]

The leader I always turn to when I moved up a level is Huayna Capac, Inca.

I find the Fin/Ind combo really strong. I rarely have any cash flow problems and Ind helps grab those wonders (esp if you have marble/stone as well).

A decent UU and UB helps, as do the starting techs (should be able to grab a early religion).

 

[The Rook]

If you are confused with the tech tree, I think simply working the most improved tiles should be enough to win without any real plan below Monarch. I would recommend Willem for this strategy (creative for expanding borders, financial to fund early expansion). Settle as many cities you can, as quickly as possible without destroying your economy (peaceful expansion, by depriving the AI of all the best city spots). Perhaps most importantly, make sure that you have enough potential food available to work all the improved tiles (or at least as many as possible before biology). Before you settle anywhere, do the maths for how much food surplus there is available, remember each population requires 2 food (and you start with +2 when the city is settled). So each grassland counts as 0 surplus, a plains hill counts for -2, grassland cow +2 etc. If you find there is a food deficit, are there enough squares you can farm to attain parity? Any city with plenty of flatlands and food (without farming) is a good candidate for cottage spam. If there are an abundance of hills, you could have a strong production city. Build economic improvements in a cottage city, and concentrate hammers towards military in production cities. Seriously, if you work more tiles than the AI at Noble (and work them well), you should be able to tech blind and still win the Space Race with ease (with Willem you will tech like a madman!).

When I started playing CIV I had the advantage of numerous hours playing civII behind me. I didn't know anything about the CIV tech tree, but I understood the importance of working tiles, growth, expansion and maintaining a large enough military to avoid being picked on. This alone, was enough to beat Prince (in CIV vanilla anyway).

Anyway, I would recommend Willem for an easy to use leader with the financial trait.

 

[sabremookie]

I really like Financial Industrious so far with HC. I moved to Monarch and had trouble until I tried it. I really like it with HC, because I can build wonders fast while also having good cashflow. I am not saying it is the best, but it seems to be working well. I did not do very well with Darius and financial organized (not sure why).

I also find Elizabeth to be a great play with Financial Philosophical. Then you can work the specialists in some cities and cottages in others, and not worry about cash. I am not sure why, but I found that when I went from Noble to Prince, I always did well with Elizabeth.