Advancing ages/tech too slowly

[flyerguy14]

I've played 5 or 6 games of Civ3 now, all on Chieftain level and all on Standard size maps and all with different civs (Americans, Russians, English, Egyptians are what I can remember at the moment), and I'm having a hell of a time advancing ages and techs quickly. I'm building my cities in good spots and improving the land with a good mix of commerce and food and shields. My cities grow quickly to 6, and once I get aqueducts they go to 12 quickly too for the most part. I build Libraries as soon as I can, I watch corruption as best I can, I expand quickly to many cities, etc....and I still seem to really take a long time to advance ages. It seems like I don't get to the modern age until about 1970 or 1980 or so and by then there's no time to work up to building the modern units or spaceship components or anything. I jack up the science spending to about 70%-80% when I have extra money in the treasury, too. I just can't figure out what else I should be doing. Any thoughts? The best I've ever done is to get one aircraft carrier and be able to launch 1 mission off of it before 2050. Thanks.

 

[Arvedui]

I have the same problem. But oddly enough, I discovered that the higher the difficulty level, the faster I advanced. In these leves the AI advanced more quickly and we traded techs so we both advanced more.

 

[nicuss]

yeah, keep an eye on the other civs and trade techs with them. pick the main chain of techs and keep at it, then trade the higher techs for some of the lower ones that your friends have doscovered.

also make sure you build a road to every single square that's used. it helps a lot (extra commerce). rivers help too.

 

[Cantankerous]

I have to agree. Trading technologies with the AI is as important as researching them yourself.

Assuming your not well ahead of the other civs in tech, once you get a new tech try trading it to multiple civs for other techs. But if you plan on trading it to multiple others, make sure you do it on the same turn. The AI LOVES to trade techs with other AI civs, so if you don't trade it to another, they will.

Just try to research something that no one else currently has. (Although if you're behind in tech, that could be a distinct problem. )

flyerguy14:

Just a question. In your previous games, was the AI ahead of you or even with you in tech development? Because since the AI likes to trade so much among themselves, I would be surprised that they too progressed in tech so slowly.

 

[Bamspeedy]

I haven't played on a standard maps, just Huge and I play Chieftain, but never have a problem advancing. Yes, roads help ALOT, I usually put my workers on 'automate' they always seem to put roads as a priority, then develop your city as they feel fit (although in my opinion, not always the smartest), this saves alot of frustration of micromanaging. You jack it up to 70 or 80% when you can? What do you have it set at for the majority of the game? I usually have mine around 40-60% depending on how much of a military I need to support. I usually build all improvements in all my cities (except the really corrupt ones, then those would actually be losing money!) Have you downloaded v1.16f? That helps some with corruption. Trading techs with other civs is a good idea if you are at about the same level as them (or behind if you have anything they skipped over). Some of the Great wonders really help. Making money off the AI helps (selling your map, or extra luxuries). Getting out of Despositsm government ASAP! I prefer Republic then Democracy later on.

 

[flyerguy14]

Well, to answer some of the questions:

* Yes, I'm using 1.16f
* I keep science at 50-60% most of the game unless my treasury allows for 70%+
* I'm not sure about the other civs techs compared to mine. All I can go by are the general hints my advisor gives me, and it's usually that the other civs are "impressed" with me. So I think I am staying ahead of the rest of them
* roads are the first thing that I improve on my cities

I finished another chieftain/standard map/americans last night and though I won, the best units I were able to achieve were calvalry and irodclads. And no one else had anything better. Weird, eh? I guess playing a bigger map might help, more room for cities should lead to faster science advancements, I'd imagine.

I haven't been great about trading with other civs, but I do it from time to time. I haven't yet been trying to turn around and trade it to all the other civs in the same turn, but I can't imagine that this is the problem since no one else is advancing faster than me. Weird.

 

[-proletarian-]

middle ages :

good-anything before 600ad

industrial age:

good-before, say, 1500ad

modern age:

good-before 1900

 

[Bamspeedy]

* I'm not sure about the other civs techs compared to mine. All I can go by are the general hints my advisor gives me, and it's usually that the other civs are "impressed" with me. So I think I am staying ahead of the rest of them

There is an easier and better way to compare. Hit shift-D and select who you want to contact. Then propose a deal, and then on your side or their side of the screen should be technology, click on that to see what you have that they don't, or vise versa, if nothing comes up, then you both are equals.

 

[enbee42]

Without doing the you of Civ this with the dust, the importance you go away the fact that technology is exchanged very with III is. I approximately put my scientific ratio to 10% usually. And, I bought the technology from other civilization simply, next was not the technology which sells to other civilization. You you obtain that or the computer must exchange that of the same revolution which is exchanged with rear of your back section

 

[vulture]

Originally posted by flyerguy14
I've played 5 or 6 games of Civ3 now, all on Chieftain level and all on Standard size maps and all with different civs (Americans, Russians, English, Egyptians are what I can remember at the moment), and I'm having a hell of a time advancing ages and techs quickly. I'm building my cities in good spots and improving the land with a good mix of commerce and food and shields. My cities grow quickly to 6, and once I get aqueducts they go to 12 quickly too for the most part. I build Libraries as soon as I can, I watch corruption as best I can, I expand quickly to many cities, etc....and I still seem to really take a long time to advance ages. It seems like I don't get to the modern age until about 1970 or 1980 or so and by then there's no time to work up to building the modern units or spaceship components or anything. I jack up the science spending to about 70%-80% when I have extra money in the treasury, too. I just can't figure out what else I should be doing. Any thoughts? The best I've ever done is to get one aircraft carrier and be able to launch 1 mission off of it before 2050. Thanks.

My gut feeling is you are not expanding fast enough. If you are spending to much in the early game building aquaducts and libraries you will fall behind in cities and population.

1. expand first develope later
2. not every city needs its full 21 tiles to be productive

If you can put 6 cities outside of the capital why not 8. In Civ2 it was all about the maximum number of cities. In Civ3 it has more to do with distance from your capital.

You want a few big land hogging cities for building wonders and big ticket military units but it is ok to have half of your cities with only 10-15 tiles to themselves. You will get much better produtivity with that free developed tile at the city center.

 

[NY Hoya]

To build on what vulture and bamspeedy said.....

You should be able to keep your science at a minimum of 70-80% at Chieftan level throughout the game. What you need to do is trade the techs you discover to other civs for gold per turn. This should enable you to pay the entire maintenance of your army + some extra with gold you receive from other civs.

Once i have "acquired" several excess luxuries and can trade them to other civs for tons of gold/turn i can keep my science at 90% + on chieftan.

Remember to check your income and science at the beginning of the game. Oftentimes there is no difference in research times between a science setting of 20% and a science setting of 100%, yet there is a difference in income. Build up your cash reserves early and use it to finance your science research later in the game.

Finally, government types have a huge effect on research times. I tend to make a beeline for republic and then democracy during the game. Getting these techs earlier will have an exponential effect on your science development as the game progresses.

 

[No.Dice]

You'll advance faster on higher difficulties as the AI tends to research techs (which you'll trade for) much faster. On Deity i've seen the AI enter the industrial age in 150 AD, though i'm not sure if this is common, since it was my first and only deity game. Also i crammed 16 civs onto a standard sized map, lots of fun.

Depending on how much war the game has seen, it isn't uncommon for me, on emperor, to be deep in the modern age in the 1600-1700s.

 

[Lt. 'Killer' M.]

Here`s what I do: no money for tech early on but pay whatever they demand for Ironworking, Horseback Riding. Place many cities very close together (2 normal density= = low corruption. Rush Temple, Barracks, build Horsemen, and your UU if available - then smother one or two neighbours.
Use the first leader for an army, build Heroic Epic.
Build Forbidden Palace next to your Capital. When you take a large enemy city with one or two good wonders, use a leader to rushbuild Palace there.....
Rushbuild Libraries.

When the others take heavy losses, make peace frequently - they`ll pay you handsomely if they feel you`ll wipe them out otherwise. Go at them again right away, repeat the process. Should give you all except the newest 2 techs. by now you should lead in strenght, culture and land control.

Switch to Republic - voilá -you outtech them all from now on! A 30-50% setting should give you end-of-middle-ages tech in 4 to 6 turns on a standard size map, Monarch level, 8 civs.

Have FUN!

 

[andrewj]

I went into the editor for the first time yesterday. Under the tab "worlds" you can set the default number of civs that appear on each map size etc also there's a box marked TECH RATE.

The tech rate is set to 60 for tiny worlds & 180 for huge.

I guess the tech rate is low on a tiny world as you'll meet civs early and therefore trade more quickly than a larger world. I'm assuming that on a higher tech rate (180) , for every 10% you advance the science slider, the greater the reduction of turns required to research the technology.

There is a civ3edit help file that allows you to question every possible change in the editor, youy could always try that.

I came accross your question while scanning the forum and thought I'd share this idea rather than state positively that this works.