A pop rushing stategy / exploit

[Samson]

I was thinking about pop rushing, and I thought of a way to get a load of units from an area that has high food and low production without ending up with loads of unhappyness. I am not sure if it would be doable in a real game, but if the right oportunity came up, it could be very powerful.

what I did, was make a ring of cities around my capital all distance 3 or more from it. I made sure there was never a gap of more than 2 between adjasent cities (see pic below). I made the capital a settler factory, and the others just built units until they were size 6 / 7. Then I started rushing units, until they were down to 1. I then abandoned them starting from one point of the ring and going round, so all the unhappyness ended up in one city (see second pic below). I then donated this city to the AI, declared war and then raised it. The unhappiness all went over to his empire, hopefully hitting a decent city.

I think you can be a bit more scientific about this by making sure the unhappiness goes to the correct city by working out how it travels. I assumed it goes the same way as forest chops, starting in the square N/NE and going clockwise, then perhaps the square N/NE/NE. This is a guess, and I did not analise it carefully.

This is definatly an exploit, but I think it is worth knowing about it. Any thoughts welcome.

 

[inudog]

Well, one flaw in your theory is that you cannot gift cities to the AI unless it is a part of a peace deal. Well, if yo uare using the most current patches that is. So, for this to work you would have to be at war, make peace and gift the city, then declare war again. Which I believe ruins your rep to declare war before 20 turns of peace is up. I suppose you could wait the 20 turns, but then the AI would have a city in your core for 20 turns.

 

[narmox]

Well, one flaw in your theory is that you cannot gift cities to the AI unless it is a part of a peace deal. Well, if yo uare using the most current patches that is.

that is not true. You can GIVE cities, you just can't get anything in return. Same for AI cities, you can get them from a peace treaty (it won't give them otherwise), as long as you're not giving anything in return.

 

[davidcrazy]

i always think the unhappiness caused by rushing will only affect the city that the rushing is imposed on. but from your theory, the unhappiness from rushing is contageous? it can spread to other cities?

 

[WackenOpenAir]

i always think the unhappiness caused by rushing will only affect the city that the rushing is imposed on. but from your theory, the unhappiness from rushing is contageous? it can spread to other cities?

When you raze a city, the unhappiness moves to another one.

 

[davidcrazy]

when u raze a city, u will suffer a reputation hit. but i don't think u will suffer much in terms of happiness (except for that caused by war weariness).

 

[general_kill]

when u raze a city, u will suffer a reputation hit. but i don't think u will suffer much in terms of happiness (except for that caused by war weariness).

A rep hit is caused by a broken deal, razing a city will not cause a rep hit.

 

[collin_stp]

A rep hit is caused by a broken deal, razing a city will not cause a rep hit.

no, razing cities won't cause rep hits, but it affects AI attitude ONLY if you raze one of their cities (or with their pop in it). Razing your own doesn't do anything except raze a city.

 

[Samson]

Well, one flaw in your theory is that you cannot gift cities to the AI unless it is a part of a peace deal. Well, if yo uare using the most current patches that is.

I am using 1.15, and you can in that. My plan was always to be able to extend this to war time anyway, and I thought about leaving the city at size 2 with no troops in it, near the AI and leting them take it. A little harder to do, and causes war weriness, but as you are in a non WW guvmunt it shouldnot matter too much.

 

[Rik Meleet]

I wouldn't consider using this tactic. If you are in a high food, low shields area; you get to build workers easily which can go and mine. High food = high population = many tiles = high commerce.

Another disadvantage is that you now have a lot of units, but no more cities to pay for the unit-cost. The balance is gone.

I realise your starting position is modded. Still you can get a very productive core by mining the cows.

This tactic is wasting the benefits you were given for small gains.

 

[Samson]

I wouldn't consider using this tactic. If you are in a high food, low shields area; you get to build workers easily which can go and mine. High food = high population = many tiles = high commerce.

Yes. I would imagine, if usefull at all this would be used if you need units in a hurry, as in a flood plain area you may have very low production. I think it could be usfull, but only under very specific circustances. All I really wanted to do was show a possible hole in the pop rushing system.

Another disadvantage is that you now have a lot of units, but no more cities to pay for the unit-cost. The balance is gone.

The plan was to have settlers ready at the city sites to make more cities that turn.

I realise your starting position is modded. Still you can get a very productive core by mining the cows.

I made this map with maximum food. I would have put flood plain wheat everywhere if I had realised that with the editor you could have flood plains without rivers next to them. I think I put the cows on bonus grassland, so they had 2 sheilds already and mining would not have made a difference.

This tactic is wasting the benefits you were given for small gains.

You could well be right. I was amazed how quickly I could get building units with these citys that were gowing at 2 turns without a granery.

Oh, and well done in going through last night, though that was never a penalty