Which civ combination is the best? I think that...

[Krimi]

First of all I think that Industrious is must for all players. I don't think that anyone could have an opposite opinion. So, for second attribute, I choose Religious, so I take Egypt.
I think militaristic sucks in the middle and to the end of the game cause units come out at veteran form (cause to barracks) so I don't think that I need it. So, I don't go for a war earle in the game so I don't need it.
Expansionist, I don't care. And so what that you begin with a scout? Not a big deal I think.
Commercial is good but I prefer relegious so I can change govenments whenever I want in just 1 turn and no anarcy!
What is your opinion to that???

Death surrounds us all...

 

[Black Fluffy Lion]

you left out scientific

I would say the best trait is religious and then industrious so I love Egypt but don't underestimate the militaristic trait...

 

[Jason Fox]

You didn't factor in the UUs, which can be a non-factor or make a huge difference.

I agree industrious civs have an edge, fast workers and an extra shield are particularly useful early on. And I love the religious civs too, temples cheap and available right away, one turn of anarchy. That would make Egypt my choice except I never build chariots. Egypt, IMHO, has the worst early UU in the game.

Persian Immortals, however, are probably the best UU in the game and scientific civs get free techs and cheap libraries/universities, also advantageous.

All things considered, the Persians are my favorite.

 

[napoleon526]

I have yet to earn a great leader while playing any civ that isn't militaristic.

 

[Black Fluffy Lion]

add in UUs and I would say that the best civ was the aztecs...those jaguar warriors are brilliant and good civ traits as well

 

[God]

IMO Egypt is the best civ. 2nd would be Iroqoius.
Egypt i ge hte great library ASAP and catch up on the techs and stuff, but with Iroqoius i usually can get the whole ancient era through goody huts.

 

[Rain]

Egypt and the French, but im not a warmonger.

 

[Mr Adeoye]

militaristic nad either industrous or scientific because those are the keys to conquest ,but if your a pacifist the religous is best.It all depends on you playing style.Expanionist is useless thou no matter what.

 

[Bamspeedy]

Industrious is very nice. Getting those roads built fast really helps in the early game. The shield bonus doesn't kick in until cities are over size 12 though (I may be wrong on this).

Expansionists are awesome on huge pangea maps. Even on other maps, they can be a great help to get you a head start on the AI. You just have to use the scouts wisely. Send out a bunch of scouts. You could get a free settler, or a bunch of free techs. If you get a free settler on your first couple of turns, then by properly expanding you will have almost double the area, had you not had two cities by 3900 B.C. If you get techs, hopefully you get iron working really early (Hint: don't research the techs you want the scouts to give you for free). You will find all the iron resources and plop a scout down on it, so the AI can't access it, without starting a war by killing your scout. You can usually even leave a scout in AI territory for long periods of time (they will politely ask you to move, but usually won't give you the ultimatum to leave or declare war). A civ with no iron is an easy target to wipe out after you have your own swordsman or knights built up. Also, having those scouts mapping out your territory so early helps greatly in planning where to put future cities, find your neighbors, to close off bottlenecks, etc. Scouts can also pillage.

Religious is good for the cheap temples and cathedrals, and if you switch governments often in the game. If a player stays in Republic or Monarchy the entire game then the 1turn anarchy is downplayed somewhat.

Militaristic is great for warmongers and those that need the cheap early barracks. The part I like about this attribute is usually I get my golden age after building Sun-Tzu's so this allows me to dominate the early middle ages and get a lead that hopefully I will never lose.

I've never seen much of a difference at all in commerce for the commercial civs.

If your going for space race or insist on having a tech lead, then scientific helps out greatly with the cheap libraries and universities. The free tech for every age is a nice little bonus, too.

I love the Aztecs, but I hate the fact of the UU triggering a golden age. You don't want your golden age that early in the game! Most of your tiles aren't developed, you're still in Despositism so many tiles you won't see the golden age bonus on them, you have few cities with few citizens, etc. I'll often have my jaguar warriors running around in circles (like they are defenseless scouts or something) trying to avoid a battle from an AI unit, so I won't trigger my golden age too early. The jaguar warriors are just as good as scouts in exploring land, but the goody huts aren't as generous to you. You usually still get some good stuff, but not as much as the expansionists.

Worst UU's: Babylon's Bowman, Egypt's War Chariot, America's F-15, French Musketeer.

 

[chiefpaco]

Originally posted by Jason Fox

I agree industrious civs have an edge, fast workers and an extra shield are particularly useful early on.

Bamspeedy is right. The extent of the bonus for industrial and commercial civs are 2 extra shields/commerce instead of 1 extra for size 13 cities (metropolis).

As for my favourite combination, theoretically, it would be Militaristic/Scientific. Ending up with more elites makes it easier to win battles & generate leaders. Scientific gives many cheap buildings that are good culture generators.

Once nice one in practice is expansionist/industrious. The combination of scouts & fast workers means you can plan, build & expand quickly early, which really helps compete with the rapid AI expansion.

 

[Jason Fox]

Originally posted by chiefpaco


Bamspeedy is right. The extent of the bonus for industrial and commercial civs are 2 extra shields/commerce instead of 1 extra for size 13 cities (metropolis).

I thought I was getting them from the beginning, but I've been wrong before. I apologize. It's my damn job that keeps me from spending as much quality time with my patient citizens as I'd like.

 

[Kill-O-Byte]

but if your a pacifist the religous is best

The religious trait does not make a civ pacifist (in the game or out of it). I personally find religious to be a strong civ3 trait. Your people are more loyal, you can change governments quickly, temples and such are cheaper, etc. A practical example of the benefit of this is when you are at peace you can be a democracy but when at war you can quickly switch to monarchy.

Which civ combo is best? Don’t know, but I prefer religious and anything but commercial.

I most like the Iroquois although I find the benefit of expansionist limited depending on the map size, type, and number of opponents. It can be great on large open maps but almost worthless on small crowded maps. The mounted warrior is great in its time period and helps make up for the weak expansionist trait on small crowded maps.

It’s too bad there isn’t a trait that keeps the weak AI units from killing my (supposedly) stronger units all the time… but that’s another topic.

 

[Lt. 'Killer' M.]

religious, scientific, militaristic, expansinoist

these are the top 4 for me, and any combination is good as long as one of the first 2 is in it.


I love the Iroqus, the Germans, the Babs...

Industrious comes too late, commercial is only good when you expand real fast (ROME!!!!!) and then militaristic comes into it`s own.......

 

[Daaraa]

Here are the traits.

Religious
Industrious
Commercial
Militaristic
Scientific
Expansionist

My thoughts on them

Religious - The no anarchy (basically) during government change is a real plus. But you can counteract that if you don't change governments often. I've played the whole game as either a despot or in a republic. I've done it both times as a warlord type ruler and a pacifist. So if you don't change government types often, it is not a big deal.
Also cheap temples and cathedrals. Thats nice but if you have a couple of wonders then you can take the time to build them. Not a big deal but nice.
Verdict - Religious is not that big of a deal for me but I like the cheap temples.

Industrious - Bonus sheild is nice. But you can micromanage and work the terrain to get the same type of benifit. No big deal here.
Faster workers. This is really not a big deal. Either capture more workers or build more of them. What they lack in work speed they make up for in numbers.
Personally I think this trait is the weakest of the traits. But that is my opinion and I know others will differ.
Verdict - Industrious is not a big deal period for me.

Commercial - Bonus trade as explained above is nice. But you can micromanage and build roads to compensate and not be effected by being non-commercial. No big deal.
Less corruption. Is this really true? Does it make that much of a big deal to use one of your traits for this? There is hardly any difference between democracy and republic. Corruption is here to stay.
Again in my opinion this is the second weakest trait. (I really didn't like playing the French civ)
Verdict - Commercial is not a big deal for me.

Militaristic - As stated above barracks build you a vetern. But they do not build elite. I have always had a hard time getting elite status unless I had the militaristic trait. GLs are also A LOT easier to get being militaristic. In my current game I was pulled into a war with the Egyptians and have taken over the Egyptians and fought off a combined attack by the Zulus and the Romans as the Americans. I have not had a GL yet and I have been trying. It is now the 1700s and no GL. (Maybe I can't get one until 1776 when the real US came into existence )
Cheap barracks and walls are not a big deal as I can get them with two wonders. I always aim for Sun Tzus anyways and walls are negated past size 6. Not a big deal.
Verdict - I like the militaristic trait because I can kick butt if I have to. BTW I never start the wars, I just end them So don't call me a war-monger.

Scientific - Fee tech and beginning of a new era. It is nice but not a big deal. If I am already in the tech lead it will only widen the gap. If I am behind I can catch up but that hardly ever happens. Besides, it seems to be assigned free techs (Monothiesm, Nationalism, and Rocketry) Not that big of a deal but nice.
Cheaper to build libraries and Universities and Research labs. Its nice to help with the tech race and culture. But this too can be compansated by churning out more trade. To get more trade would have to be commercial and I'd rather get a free tech than faster less corruption.
Verdict - an ok trait if used properly.

Expansionist - Nicer goody huts. Big deal. I havn't noticed a big diffrence in the goody huts from expansionist to non-expansionist.
Bamspeedy made some good points but I've always gotten around those things using other means.
Verdict - A really not big deal for me.

Overall verdict
Militaristic, Scientific and Religious are ok for me. The rest I can do without.
That means I'll be the Germans, the Babylonians, the Japanese, the Aztecs or the Perisans.
I like later UUs at least out of the ancient era so that narrows it down the the Japanese and the Germans.

As a disclaimer, I've liked playing most civs except the Egyptians and the French. I have yet to try the Zulus though.

 

[Rain]

Heheh you dont like to play my two favs. Too bad we couldnt go head to head and test it out

 

[Arrian]

If playing a peaceful builder type game, I love the Egyptians and the Babs. If, however, I'm playing a warmongering game (I call it warmongering builder), I cannot overstate the power of Japan.

Militaristic, for the builder, is garbage. For the warmonger, it rocks. My latest Japan game (Normal/Continents/8civs/Monarch) resulted in six great leaders in the ancient era/very begging of the middle ages. I destroyed 4 civilizations, build a forbidden palace to double my productivity, captured the pyramids, rushed the great library (unecessary, but I just like it), the Hanging Gardens (pure whim, I had captured Babylon, and just wanted it there) the Sistine, Leo's, and still had time to make an army. I built every other wonder besides the Oracle and Great Wall, both of which I later captured.

My warmonger games have blown away my builder games in terms of dominance (and score, of course). And the thing is... I still get to build to my heart's content. I don't actually have to invest shields in any early wonders, so I can build troops and improvements and not miss a beat.

Religious, in my opinion, is the best trait overall. Industrious is very nice to have, particularly if you are peaceful (I just have tons of slaves. Sure, they work slow, but if you have enough of 'em it doesn't matter). Scientific is nice, but not great. Commercial, imo, sucks. Militaristic is totally dependent on playstyle. Expansionist is dependent on map size/type.

-Arrian

 

[Rain]

Ive never played the Japanese, but i always keep them on my good side til industrial age. Those samurai give me the creeps. Plus the Japanese keep their word very well so they are good trading partners.

 

[baseballtwin86]

I personally love the Japanese. I originally started playing with the Russians, but they were extremely difficult. The samurai is awesome, especially with the movement of two spaces, and the good attack and defend. I love to go with early conquests. The religious feature also allows to easily change governments. Also, temples are easier to build allowing for a lasting peace as well. They are the best all around civ, allowing me to go for the early conquest, drawn out culture victories, or spaceship wins.

 

[MightMakesRight]

As is often the case with Civ 3 my favorite/best depends largely on how I am going to play and what the game settings are. I freqently play with a random civ to mix things up, but when I am choosing a civ...

Universally, I agree that the religious trait is most useful. Whether you are trying to develop a culturally significant civ or you are just trying to calm down your recently conquered cities, the cheap temples (you can pop rush after 1 turn for just 1 pop loss) and cathedrals are great. Regardless of play style every city is going to need a temple, and most large cities will require cathedrals, so you WILL realize the benefits from cheap religious structures. The no anarchy thing is a nice perk as well.

The rest is variable. Since I usually play deity level (or emperor) on a huge map with all 16 civs, my preferences are largely based upon interacting with other civs early and often. That said...

Expansionistic. With all those other civs out there, expansionistic doesn't provide much benefit. With or without this trait I am going to run into lots of civs fast, and I'm not going to get a whole lot of goodie huts.

Scientific. Since there is no way I can keep up with the AI civs in science, and I am using all my resources just to survive, I can't afford to build scientific improvements for a long time. I turn to science brokering with my rate at 10% (or less), making this trait almost worthelss.

Commercial. It sounds real nice, but the benefits you really see aren't that great.

Militaristic. With 16 civs on deity, this is a great trait to have. There WILL be a lot of wars, and those cheap barracks and fast promotions can significantly reduce the time it takes to steam roll a hostile civ.

Industrious. Fast workers are OUTSTANDING. Whether you need them to connect up resources, to build roads to get your troops to the front, or just improve the land to make your cities more productive, they are VERY handy.

So which civs?

Japan (milit/relig/samurai) is perfect for war mongering. Rush barracks and temple in each new city (maybe even units) and steamroll the competition.

Persia (sci/ind/immortal) has immortals... need I say more. Based on traits I wouldn't really pick them, because I don't benefit from science until late in the game, but immortals are a great UU.

Egypt (relig/ind/War chariot) This is the perfect combo for a balanced game. War chariot is an adequate UU, but nothing more.

Iroquois (Exp/Relig/Mounted Warrior) Like Persia, fair traits with a great UU that allows you to dominate early battlefields.

Babs (Relig/Sci/Bowman) are not what I usually like to play, but they are fun if you are trying to dominate culturally, and the bowman performs well as a well balanced early unit.

Based on my trait preferences, China and Aztec should be favs, but the Aztec is just like Japan except Jag War is of limited value and causes golden age too early. Honestly, I'm not sure why China isn't in my top, they just aren't.

When I'm not playing against so many civs, militaristic becomes of limited value and expansionistic becomes more useful.

On levels below emperor scientific is more useful because you've got a better chance at getting ahead technologically.

I've never played smaller maps, so I'm not sure how that might change my preferences, but I'm sure that it would.

That's my 2 cents on traits and my favorite civs...
:slay:

 

[God]

I would say the top 3 civs are the Egyptians, Iroquoius, and Japanese.
The Egyptians are the best for a long game on large map. The inudstrious trait comes to good use there.
The Iroquoius are good for anything but mainly to get a quick tech lead and then wipe out a few civs early on. Then sit down and build up.
The Japanese are good for a fast and furious fighting game. Get swordsmen and horsmen and you'll be able to make elites out of them and go kill a civ or two. Then upgrade your horsmen and kill some units with the Samurai. Gets you your golden age which will help getting Bachs, Sun Tzus, Leo's, Sistines and maybe even Copernicus.