In which year do you usually notice the other have teched faster than you? Germany usually doesn't need to colonise ... they have enough land to get an amazing cottage economy running, and if in doubt you can always use your massive production to build science.
A save would always be helpful of course
(for reference by the way, I'm use the RFC Dawn of Civilization Mod)
It seems to happen a century or two before the Renassiance, I'd say the 14th or 15th century? I start in 600 AD obviously, I have huge armies of Knights to defend my borders and I really only got dragged into a ten year war with France, which ended in 50 gold for peace from France. After that, it was quiet.
Maybe I'm not working my land correctly? I'm not sure. How can I get my save to you? It's the mid 1700's now, I have a colony near the East Indies, I'm ready to send another galleon to Africa and I'm prepping to send another to Africa. Of course, in the next turn I'm about to dragged into war with Portugal and Spain by my defensive pacts with Russia and England. Technically it's the English pact that screws me, Spain declares on England and thus Italy and I are dragged into war. Russia and the Netherlands come to my aid by way of Defensive Pact. I'm still at war with Japan and the Mongols. That war though was by mistake, I meant to click no when asked to declare.
My civics are:
Government-Monarchy,
Society-Capitalism (or Aristocracy, I can't remember right now),
Organization-Absolutism,
Economy-Mercantilism,
Religion-Secularism
Expansion-Resettlement
Currently Francfurt (originally Frankfurt before going independent and being seized by France) and Ragusa have flipped to me. I also gained Qandahar in a Congress in the early 18th century, I would've rather had Singapore, but hey, wasn't an option. My goal is to create a permanent, but small, empire in Africa and Asia to ensure continued trade with Khmer and China (currently independent).
Please advise, how I can get a save to you.