Tile improvements

[newn]

My cities usually are big, they go 5-7 tiles wide later in game. Do the improvements build further than 3 tiles away from the city have any effect on my civilization, or have I been wasting time building them?

 

[buchengshi]

If it's a luxury or strategic resource, you'll receive that resource. Otherwise, no.

 

[newn]

So what to do with the tiles that are further than 3 tiles away? Just build roads and leave them alone?

 

[TheMarshmallowBear]

So what to do with the tiles that are further than 3 tiles away? Just build roads and leave them alone?

Pretty much, makes Great Artist's ability kinda useless too.

 

[CoolLizy]

Unlike in earlier installments, in Civ V you don't want to slap a road down on every hex. You have to pay upkeep for those things each turn. As for those tiles outside your cities' reach, there's really nothing to be done with them unless there's a strategic or luxury resource (as buchengshi pointed out).

 

[newn]

Comment on the roads: it allows my army to walk a few times faster, otherwise a unit could take 10 turns to get to the enemy base when I want to engage it...

 

[Gucumatz]

A few things about tiles more than 3 tiles away. You could always build a fort or two in that area and station troops there. Since the tiles can't be worked to begin with you can use that piece of your land for your defense/chokehold.

 

[Rpger29]

Yeah ever since they removed the upkeep on forts, I actually do like building a few on those non-workable tiles.

 

[CoolLizy]

Comment on the roads: it allows my army to walk a few times faster, otherwise a unit could take 10 turns to get to the enemy base when I want to engage it...

Just don't put them in every tile, though; only where you absolutely need them to go for war and to connect your cities to the capital.

 

[Rpger29]

Building a conquest highway can be kinda nice, especially if you know you're going to puppet or annex. I wouldn't pre-build that until I was ready to mass units for invasion though.