A series of FAQ-like higher end Newbie questions

[fingle]

So I've been a member here for just a little while and have found some terrific information. This place is a treasure trove!

Anyway, I have recently been playing on emperor and doing pretty well. I've got a game with the Maya in which I've made it to the Middle Ages. I've taken over the continent I was on by defeating the Vikings and the Babylonians.

Things I did differently:

• Managed every single one of my workers. Mines on green, irrigation on brown.
• Expanded quickly as possible. Made my capitol into a settler farm. (I think. Further explanation on this would be awesome)
• Tried not to build everything I could in every city. (More on this later).
• Kept my science way down and tried to trade with the AI for other techs.

Here are my problems/questions:

1. While I was at war I built tons of military units, and went way over my allowed total. I think I was spending close to 40 gpt on my army (under monarchy). Once I was finished with war, my cities started building improvements. I've read on here that I have to be very careful with what I want to build. But. If there is nothing to build in a city but a Cathedral or a University, for example, or military units, what do I do? I don't want anymore armies because I already have plenty of guys. I don't want the extra upkeep on useless buildings. Should I put the city on wealth? And how do I know which improvements I should never build. Should I use the governor?
2. Workers. Okay so I've expanded across my continent, taken tons of slaves and now I have a bazillion workers. There aren't anymore mines to build, places to irrigate, or jungle/marsh to be cleared. Should I start having them join cities to boost population?
3. How do I make the other AI Civs like me? I've looked at some of the HoF saved games and everyone is always polite or gracious. All my guys are annoyed or cautious, no matter what I do.
4. How does trading techs with the AI work. I've read about keeping some for yourself, or "slingshotting" to Republic. I find it all kind of confusing. Further explanation on where one should be going for the best tech advantage would be great.
5. Is Monarchy worse than Republic in the beginning? That's kind of the gist I got from reading online, but I'm just making sure. I imagine it also has to do with whether you're going to be going to war or not.
6. When using MapFinder, what are some examples of great rule sets? I want to make an awesome settler farm that will have good production down the road.
7. Temples. A lot of people say that temples should rarely be built unless you're going for a culture victory. I generally use temples so a town will expand culturally and get more squares to add citizens to. I plan my cities placement so they get the best of everything possible. Should I be squishing cities closer together? I also build temples in the cities that are closest to enemy borders so their culture presses into the other civ and steals some land. Good idea?

I'm sure these questions have been answered before, but I've tried searching the forums and had difficultly finding answers. Also, if people want to keep asking questions in here, I'll add their questions to this first post so other people like me won't run into the same problems.

 

[Aabraxan]

So I've been a member here for just a little while and have found some terrific information. This place is a treasure trove!

Anyway, I have recently been playing on emperor and doing pretty well. I've got a game with the Maya in which I've made it to the Middle Ages. I've taken over the continent I was on by defeating the Vikings and the Babylonians.

Sounds like this one was a big improvement.

. . . .
Expanded quickly as possible. Made my capitol into a settler farm. (I think. Further explanation on this would be awesome)

Check out the War Academy. Two articles on this that I think will be a big help:

• Bamspeedy's Deity Settlers
• RFHolloway's Spotting Settler Factories

It seems like there's a third settler factory article, but I can't think of what it is.

. . . . While I was at war I built tons of military units, and went way over my allowed total. I think I was spending close to 40 gpt on my army (under monarchy).

40 gpt doesn't really tell us anything in a vacuum. 40 gpt at the beginning of the Middle Ages is lots. 40 gpt at the end of the industrial shouldn't be a problem.

Once I was finished with war, my cities started building improvements. I've read on here that I have to be very careful with what I want to build. But. If there is nothing to build in a city but a Cathedral or a University, for example, or military units, what do I do? I don't want anymore armies because I already have plenty of guys. I don't want the extra upkeep on useless buildings. Should I put the city on wealth? And how do I know which improvements I should never build. Should I use the governor?

No, don't use the governor. For the same reason that I wouldn't recommend automating your workers. Don't let the AI do your thinking.

What to build . . . It depends. What's your VC? What cities are we talking about? Here's what I do: My empire is usually divided into core, semi-core and specialist farms. The core will produce offensive units for virtually the entire game, with improvements being built on a rotating basis, so that only a handful of core cities build improvements at any one time. The semi core builds fewer improvements, some offensive units and a few defensive ones. The specialist farms build settlers, workers and artillery. I almost never build wealth. But remember that I typically play for conquest or domination with as early a victory as I can pull off. If you want one of the other VCs, you may need a different build pattern.

Workers. Okay so I've expanded across my continent, taken tons of slaves and now I have a bazillion workers. There aren't anymore mines to build, places to irrigate, or jungle/marsh to be cleared. Should I start having them join cities to boost population?

If you have enough slaves for railing, yes. Join your native workers back to cities. You pay for natives, so doing so will decrease your troop support costs. If it's late industrial, you can also build airfields out of them.

How do I make the other AI Civs like me? I've looked at some of the HoF saved games and everyone is always polite or gracious. All my guys are annoyed or cautious, no matter what I do.

I don't know. I guess you give 'em stuff, but they always hate me.

How does trading techs with the AI work. I've read about keeping some for yourself, or "slingshotting" to Republic. I find it all kind of confusing. Further explanation on where one should be going for the best tech advantage would be great.

In C3C, the first civ to get Philosophy gets a free tech. You can only get a freebie for which you have the prerequisites. When you hear someone refer to the Republic slingshot, they're talking about researching: Alphabet>Writing>Code of Laws>Philosophy. Then they take Republic as their free tech.

As a general rule, research left to right, rather than top to bottom. That increases your odds of getting monopoly techs, which make great trade bait. Besides, any time you're first to a tech, there's a chance of getting an SGL.

Is Monarchy worse than Republic in the beginning? That's kind of the gist I got from reading online, but I'm just making sure. I imagine it also has to do with whether you're going to be going to war or not.

The transition to Republic can sting a bit. You can ease that stinging by roading like there's no tomorrow, getting cities up to size 7, hooking up luxes and building markets. Republic is generally regarded as the best all-around government, with Monarchy being well suited for All-War games. Conquest is most certainly doable in Republic, but you usually wind up fighting oscillating wars & you've got to manage your losses more carefully.

When using MapFinder, what are some examples of great rule sets? I want to make an awesome settler farm that will have good production down the road.

I'm leaving this for someone who knows more about MapFinder than I do.

Temples. A lot of people say that temples should rarely be built unless you're going for a culture victory. I generally use temples so a town will expand culturally and get more squares to add citizens to. I plan my cities placement so they get the best of everything possible. Should I be squishing cities closer together? I also build temples in the cities that are closest to enemy borders so their culture presses into the other civ and steals some land. Good idea?

I think I addressed temples in your other thread, so I'll leave it at that. I usually have a very compact empire. Also, there are several fairly recent threads on city spacing and temples around here that might be worth a read, just to see the arguments for wider and tighter spacing laid out. If you want, I can try to dig up a couple of links.

 

[Turner]

Moderator Action: Thread closed. Using the Quick Answers / 'Newbie' Questions thread would be a better idea.