Quick Answers / 'Newbie' Questions

[6K Man]

If I should make a separate thread for this let me know, I was just starting here in case it was some singular step I was missing. Here's hoping it's not "git gud".
I used to play Civ4 a lot when I was younger. However it was always on Settler and it always followed the same pattern. I kicked everyone whatever continent I started on, rocketed past them on the tech tree, and proceeded to fly to other continents and nuked civs which still relied on longbowmen for their main defense. I recently started playing again, and figured a good first step to making the game more engaging was to up the difficulty. I cranked it all the way up to the terrifying (default) Noble (there are a lot of difficulty options, I don't want to know what horrors would await me on Deity), and got started. I knew I was in trouble when barbarians attacked and conquered one of my cities and I had exactly one archer each in my other two cities. I managed to fight them all off, found the single other civ on my continent (ha, unlucky AI started on it's own isolated peninsula, easy kill), and started cranking out knights. Then the unexpected happened, they declared war on me, and a score of Cuirassiers crossed over. I open up the score tab to talk to the other civs to try and figure out where on earth they got horses (early scouts said there were no horses on the continent that I did not control) and tried to figure out how they were so far ahead of me tech wise with half the number of cities that I had. That was when I discovered I was on the very bottom of the score list, by a lot. The top guys had ironclads and railroads.
I feel like I'm missing some key steps in order for me to have fallen so far behind. Watching the game replay shows that the AI's absolutely explode in city numbers, but with every city I build my economy goes in the toilet and I can't keep the research value up. I'm building courthouses and other financial buildings, connecting cities and resources, building hamlets, priority wealth production in all cities, and yet I just can't keep my economy up with the maintenance cost of building cities.
I started another game with the intent to actually pay attention and try to stay on top of research, but I quickly realized (before even meeting another civ) that I was so far behind every single world wonder was being built before I even reached the tech level to start construction.

Quick and dirty advice:

Build between 1 and 1.5 workers per city
Settle each city with a food resource in the first ring of tiles around the city square
Beeline Bronze Working, revolt to slavery. Whenever you have citizens working unimproved tiles, use them to rush improvements.
Chop your forests for granaries, workers, settlers.
Build granaries in every city, forges in almost every city. Build libraries in your capital and in 1-2 other high commerce cities. Build barracks in 1-2 of your high production cities that will build units. Don't build other improvements anywhere except in your capital (and not even there, in most cases).

 

[LGWolf]

Hi, I downloaded the huge 440x200 Earth map file (BTS) - and I want to play a custom game rather than a custom scenario. Where do I copy the map file to in the filesystem in order to play it as a custom game please?

 

[lymond]

Should be the Public Maps folder in the BTS root ..unless maybe playing a mod. If it is a .py file.

 

[LGWolf]

I tried that but it doesn't show up in Custom Game, only Custom Scenario... it's a .CivBeyondSwordWBSave

 

[lymond]

Yeah..that's cause it's a WB save. You need a PY file. Not sure where you found that map but I'd check to see if they have an actual map file for it. Or see if one can be created from a wb save...I'm not sure as I don't know how to create PY files.

Yeah..I saw the map over in C&C where you posted. I asked for PY file. However, the creator hasn't posted on the forum in about a year, so not sure if he's still around. Maybe some one else will answer.

Appears that "Pre-Made Maps" subforum contains mostly scenario maps, while the "Map Scripts" subforum contains PY files.

 

[LGWolf]

Okay thanks, but where do you copy the PY files to to play them?

 

[LGWolf]

Okay thanks, but where do you copy the PY files to to play them?

I found you need to save them to My Documents : My Games : beyond the sword : Public Maps / TransferredMaps

 

[LGWolf]

Yeah..that's cause it's a WB save. You need a PY file. Not sure where you found that map but I'd check to see if they have an actual map file for it. Or see if one can be created from a wb save...I'm not sure as I don't know how to create PY files.

Yeah..I saw the map over in C&C where you posted. I asked for PY file. However, the creator hasn't posted on the forum in about a year, so not sure if he's still around. Maybe some one else will answer.

Appears that "Pre-Made Maps" subforum contains mostly scenario maps, while the "Map Scripts" subforum contains PY files.

This thread claims the app notepad++ can directly convert it to .py:
https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/converting-a-worldbuilder-save-to-a-py-file.302546/

Update: Doesn't work: It just created a huge map with grass everywhere, no earth

 

[lymond]

Yeah..hopefully you can get someone over in c&c to help you convert to PY.

I found you need to save them to My Documents : My Games : beyond the sword : Public Maps / TransferredMaps

Never heard of that location. PY files go in BTS root > public maps

 

[Jerrymander]

Hi, I downloaded the huge 440x200 Earth map file (BTS) - and I want to play a custom game rather than a custom scenario. Where do I copy the map file to in the filesystem in order to play it as a custom game please?

You can't. You need a Map Script, not just a Map. The file you downloaded is only a custom scenario, because it is a single map file. A map script generates a map from Python code, hence the .py file type. Custom games use map scripts to generate map files.

If you want a map script that generates an Earth-like map then I suggest the Earth3 script: https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/map-script-earth3.253927/

Note that running the 440x200 map will be taxing on your CPU and prone to memory allocation issues, ie game crashing, once the game advances some time.

 

[ArchGhost]

Anyone know a mirror for that Earth3 script? Or am I just not seeing it? The DL link on that page leads to 404.

 

[6K Man]

@ArchGhost

I don't know where to get the Earth3 script, but as I posted in another thread recently, the SmartMap script includes an “Earth” maptype that you can customize the size of. (Caveat: The landforms are shaped like the continents on Earth, but the terrain is random.... but then again, Earth3 looks that way, too).

LoR includes the SmartMap script - I'm not sure about other mods, off the top of my head.

FYI, Maximum map size is 512x512 which my computer wouldn’t even generate. 280x200 gets pretty unstable (MAF every couple of turns) on my machine around the halfway mark.

 

[ArchGhost]

Ok, thank you I don't usually care much for mods other than quality of life stuff, but might check that out just for the scripts.

 

[earthy]

there's a lot of talk about specializing your cities, but is that a thing for the early game? I feel like the only way to get good production early on is through whipping, but a lot of the time you'll get your food resources in locations that are much better suited for commerce cities. like i'll often get cities with 2 food resources but very few hills. there's sufficient green tiles and river tiles that could be windmilled and workshopped when communism rolls around, but that's so far down the road that leaving those tiles unimproved feels wasteful. I guess i could use them as whipping stations until I can get communism, but after my first war I often find myself in a position where I have more units than I need for the time being and my economy is hurting. i end up wanting to cottage those tiles, but i'm conflicted because I'll also want a nice dedicated production site for my eventual next war. captured AI cities make this problem even worse for me, because they're almost always an awkward combination of production and commerce. I never know if I should cottage them or let them sit unimproved until I have the techs to make them into good production sites. for some context, i'm playing on prince atm but will probably move up soon. I have no problem sitting back and teching to a victory with infantry vs cuirs/knights or whatever, but i'm trying hard to war earlier and more often, so communism isn't something i want as a prerequisite to effective production.

 

[AcaMetis]

Specializing cities is less about making sure that every city is 100% focussed on the one thing they can do best, and more about making sure that cities aren't made to do something they're terrible at/could be done better by other cities. Basically, don't use the double plains cow city with seven hills as a GP farm if you've got a double wet corn city covered in rivers as well. The latter will likely lack the production to easily build National Epic early on, but whipping and overflow can be used to solve that problem. Likewise, don't try to hammer units out of a city with only two hills, build a granary and whip. But that double cow city is your city with the least food and highest production potential, so it whips only a few units with maximum overflow into the Heroic Epic, and from there let it hammer out the rest. That way, after the war is over, that production city it can sink it's full hammer output into failbuilds/wealth to help keep your economy afloat, since you'll likely have captured a few happy resources to compensate for the relatively minor whipping anger.

Also, yes, it's absolutely worthwhile to put down cottages until you reach Communism and transition into a watermill/workshop economy. The one thing you definitely don't want to do is work unimproved tiles, if that means putting down temporary farms or cottages than put down temporary farms or cottages.

 

[Fippy]

Adding to Acametis (very good) post, for large parts cities are best at doing what their tiles offer.
Even a future National Epic city could work some cottages early, being limited to running only 2 scientists (or using Caste, but often keeping Slavery is needed), there would be no gain in building more farms for now on rivers if we already have +10 food.

Same would be true for a (now or future) production place, no harm in adding that nice river cottage when you need commerce rather than spamming units. Ofc worker management plays an important part here, imo there are 2 ways:
having very good worker micro so you can squeeze in / change more tiles, or getting more workers while still improving on that part.

Most of my cities are doing mixed stuff, until i reach a key point where they switch to one main system.
For example working mostly food and whipping new key units, or all GP producing cities use max. specialist during golden ages,
or after reaching State Property workshops on most tiles.

It's not bad to think about what task you give to cities
But it's even better to look at your overall game state (tech pace, economy, GP generation and their use, war or peace plans), and then see what cities can do to help. Economy hurts? This nice food city could first whip a courthouse, then grow back on cottages. This one could use mines for some wealth or failgold, another could run specialists so i can bulb something for trading.

I guess the message i try forming can be: let them do what you need now, changes could be made again later.
Also think about sharing food, if one city has too much (for now), maybe you can place another one close. Or give one food tile to another, already existing city.

 

[Deathcrush]

Back to civ 4 after a long break.

Now i realised why i love and why i hate that game ! man... i hate that combat system! It can be so nerve wrecking!
Anyway.
Well i am here with no question just a complain about my last game. I played as Cathy cause i figured i am out of shape and what i need is a CRE leader. Pangea, no huts no events.
all good in the beginning and middle ages i was the tech leader i have a majestic research rate and all was perfect! i do a heavy horseman rush /that's what they are called for me , i use bat mod/ killed almost all of the rivals. I took no vassals. just killed them. So maybe that's the mistake... it took me too long and now with only 2 remaining civs i am missing 3% for Domination. wtf ? i cant attack the two of them cause one is peace vassal to the other. they love each other and they love me, but if I attack I have no chances... I was so close and now i have to throw this out of the window only cause of some stupid percent numbers.
I hate this game.

 

[earthy]

Thanks for the tips AcaMetis & Flippy. I think I was too much in the mindset of "each city should only be doing one thing" as opposed to "each city should do what it can do best". I also really need to look into incorporating failgold into my strategy book a little better. Right now I only really go for failgold when I can't think of anything else that would be immediately beneficial, but likely some of my early hammers on buildings could be better redirected towards failgold. I should really look into playing a shadow game or GOTM or something to try to get a feel for how others play.

I had another newbie question if you guys don't mind. I had a game the other day where I was blessed with a great choke point and a sizeable chunk of land that I wouldn't have to contest. I was ready to go into REX mode and get my economy roaring before I went after my neighbor, but before I had a chance he began plotting. He was stockpiling his troops at the city closest to my border, so I was sure I was the target and started whipping out defenders. To my dismay, I was not the target and he instead moved his entire stack away to attack someone else. I suppose my question is this: is it normal for an AI to assemble their troops at a location they aren't targetting? Does the location of the stack(while it's still within a city) actually tell you anything?

 

[AcaMetis]

is it normal for an AI to assemble their troops at a location they aren't targetting? Does the location of the stack(while it's still within a city) actually tell you anything?

That can happen, yes. AIs will also park their army on someone's border if they fear they might get attacked from that angle (read: they've got poor relationships with their neighbour) or if a city is facing considerable cultural pressure. In your case it's also possible that the AI was targeting you, but after you whipped defenders the AI noticed that you weren't the soft target s/he thought you were, and decided to go for a different target instead. AIs do check whether you're still a viable target before committing to the DoW, though I'm not sure exactly when they check. Regardless, if you whip defenders early enough it might lead AIs to reconsider their plans. I've seen it happen multiple times, personally. Of course that technique becomes less and less reliable the higher up you go in difficulty, since AIs will get increasingly larger armies that you eventually just cannot outproduce. Bribing AIs onto each other is a more reliable method of avoiding getting DoWed, since only Monty would consider throwing himself into a two-front war.

 

[Unionman]

Civilization IV: Quick Answers

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Hi everyone!

In this thread, feel free to ask basic questions about Civilization IV. This should make it easier for you guys to get answers quicker, and it should also separate discussion threads from more basic questions. With time, this will make it possible for us to put together an official Civilization IV FAQ article as well. If you aren't in a rush to post any questions, make sure to read through the available information, which is likely to answer a lot of questions itself.

Just post your questions here without worrying about if it's already covered somewhere else, and hopefully some of the experts will answer them.

I encourage everyone to participate here, answering questions they can. Thanks!

Hi this my first post so please excuse my ignorance. I have CivIV Beyond the Sword for AppleMac are there downloads specifically for AppleMacs?