I Hate This Game

[superslug]

I've been wanting to move on to Civ 5 or 6 for some time, but I just can't bring myself to retire from 3 until I have a Sid win of some kind.

I spent the pandemic lockdowns beating my head against Deity and Demigod trying to at least get better as a player, and I currently have a Demigod game that I can win, if I prevent the Aztecs from launching a spaceship.

It's been a long time since I had AI still posing a threat this late in the game, so maybe some of you can help refresh my memory on two things?
1) If they launch, I can interrupt the ship by taking over their capital?
2) When they start building SS parts, don't they show up as wonders in progress on the F7 screen?

Thanks in advance...

 

[Takeo]

1) I'm pretty sure if the AI launches, then they win. If I remember correctly, you have to capture/destroy the AI capital before they launch, and any parts they have built are then destroyed.

2) You should be able to see how many parts they have completed, but I don't know where this is located.

 

[superslug]

I have spies planted with each AI, so I do see the Aztecs have 6 parts in progress with none built. That's under the View Space Race button on the spaceship screen.

 

[Takeo]

I've been wanting to move on to Civ 5 or 6 for some time, but I just can't bring myself to retire from 3 until I have a Sid win of some kind.

Once I get a Sid win and improve my Histographic score (maybe both at once), then I will probably go back to modding Civ3.

 

[EMan]

I'm conflicted 'slug: I want you to get your Sid Win, of course!.........But, you abandoning the Civ 3 HOF is unthinkable. My hope is you can accommodate BOTH!!??

 

[superslug]

My retirement will be only as a player. I'll keep the lights on and check the submission queue a few times a week.

Also, at the rate I'm getting good enough to tackle Sid, we're talking about a 10-year plan here.

 

[CKS]

You can tackle Sid right now. Play archipelago with as little land mass as possible, to get islands that are widely separated. Play with the minimum number of opponents, in hopes of having your island to yourself and in hopes of your opponents having their own islands. In this way, they will drown in unit support costs before they can mount an invasion. Take advantage of this time to settle your island, get it defended, and zip along in the tech tree as much as possible. Then you can sell techs once the AI are able to go to war and reduce their unit support costs.

Culture, diplomatic, and space wins are feasible, I think, but culture is probably the easiest.

 

[Lanzelot]

Even without spies, you can see how many spaceship parts year nearest rival has, in the F8 overview.

 

[superslug]

I spent an ungodly amount of money on spies finding out what cities the Aztecs and then the Mongols were using to build SS parts, and then I spent quite a bit more sabotaging those parts to buy myself time.

I was going for 20K culture, and my city had 115 turns to go. The Aztecs hit my culture city with not one but two ICBMs, so I settled for a UN vote and diplo win instead.

 

[Takeo]

Good job on the win!

Any pics to show us?

 

[templar_x]

do the answers still matter?

so maybe some of you can help refresh my memory on two things?
1) If they launch, I can interrupt the ship by taking over their capital?
2) When they start building SS parts, don't they show up as wonders in progress on the F7 screen?

ad 1) no, as soon as one starts his ss, he wins the game.
ad 2) as Lanzelot said, the AI with the most parts ready is shown in F8. otherwise you have to resort to spies, as you did.

t_x

 

[superslug]

Good job on the win!

Any pics to show us?

You want pics of my twice nuked 20K city? C'mon man...

 

[Quintillus]

Did the AI fire first with the nukes? If so, I'm impressed, especially if they specifically targeted the 20K city. I've been playing a debug map where I give the AI plenty of nukes, but they never seem to fire them. I didn't think the AI would care that much about trying to stop you from getting a 20K victory.

Although if you fired first to slow down their spaceship progress, I suppose it's all par for the course.

Edit: On the original topic, IIRC it's Civ4 where the ship has to travel before the win, and also IIRC, if you skimp on engines in Civ4 it might not make it, requiring a whole new ship.

My only Sid win was in the WWII in the Pacific scenario, as Japan. Doesn't count as an epic game Sid win, but if you're okay with an asterisk, it's one of the easier options. Normally Emperor is my top level, so you are likely ready to take that one on.

 

[superslug]

I'm actually not sure who fired the first nukes, but it was certainly an AI. I had everyone fighting the Aztecs at the same time, and someone definitely hit their capital city before the Aztecs fired on me.

The Aztecs fired on another city before the 20K one. I may or may not have played an extra turn after the UN win to give them my entire nuclear inventory.

 

[superslug]

I finally summoned the courage to go back and look at the before and after pictures of my mighty city getting hit with two ICBMs on the same turn.

 

[superslug]

Refilling the city with settlers wouldn't have taken long. Cleaning up the pollution and improving the tiles again would have. I had scant few workers left on pollution duty across the continent.

The real pain was losing Temple/Library/Colosseum/Cathedral/University. Even if I rebuilt them, the doubling after 1000 years was gone, and this added many, many turns left to finish 20K.

Probably would have gotten nuked again anyway.

 

[superslug]

Play archipelago with as little land mass as possible, to get islands that are widely separated.

You know, I missed the part about as little land mass as possible.

After licking my wounds and tinkering around on Monarch, I decided to try 20K again on Demigod. I set it for archipelago, which is rare for me, but I was hoping for a nice quiet start.

Nope. I've got at least 5 AI on my island.

 

[CKS]

I think you missed the part about using the minimum number of AIs, too.

Finding an island of your own with fresh water is sometimes tricky, though.

On demigod, there is hope to survive with neighbors, though, and with five of them they can war among themselves while you survive until you have the techs/military to take them out.

 

[superslug]

I always play the minimum AI. Since I prefer huge maps, that's 8.

 

[CKS]

I guess you are just majorly unlucky, then. That is a pretty crowded island.