Advice

[surfersjk]

Hi peeps. I am slowly getting to grips with this amazing game, but still need plenty of advice. I am playing as the Romans, and chose my only opposition as the Japanese. I have finally learnt to build cities as fast as possible, and have amassed a healthy amount, and have plenty of gold. The only problem is my military is a little sparse, say on average 3 to 4 units a city. I didn't think this a big problem as I had no threats up until this point. Now the Japanese are starting to appear around my coasts in Galleys, then disappearing again. I have spoke to them and they seem polite, with no problem towards me, but I do not know if I can trust them. Can I. And shall I keep on building cities with fairly small garrisons, or should I now start preparing bigger armies? The only problem with this is the loss of earnings, having to support the units.
Any help would be appreciated, as I do not believe in saving the game and then starting from the same point againif I am beaten.
Thanks a lot,
Kev.

 

[ainwood]

3-4 units per city is heaps, far too many even, assuming that technologically you are up-to-date (4 spearmen are no match for one or two cavalry).

The AI will investigate your coastline - don't worry about it.

I would tend to concentrate my forces near the likely point of attack (the coastlines). You can even leave interior cities undefended (the AI can't use your roads etc). Just make sure you have some manoeuverable forces (horsemen / cavalry etc) to intercept any AI that break through. It can sometimes be a good tactic, as the AI will beeline for undefended cities, and therefore not attack your defences, and your attacking units can mop his up.

Building up more forces may be useful for an attack of your own later on. If you're worried about money, ensure you have good infrastructure (roads, marketplaces, banks) and start selling a few techs and luxuries to the AI.

Suggest that you have a look through the war academy and the strategy and tips forum.

 

[surfersjk]

Thankyou for the reply, it was very informative. The only thing I am unsure about is the progression from spearmen e.t.c to cavalry. I thought this happened automatically as we changed through the ages. So we have to develop this improvement ourselves, then? Thanks again for the post,
Kev

 

[ainwood]

Some units can be upgraded when you research the required techs and have the required resources. The upgrades follow a certain line, and some can't be upgraded at all.

Eg. Horsemen can be upgraded to knights when you discover chivalry and have access to iron. You can then upgrade the knights to cavalry when you discover military tradition, and have access to saltpeter.

To upgrade, right click on the unit and choose "upgrade", or press "u" when the units is activated. Shift-U upgrades all units of that type. Note that upgrading costs gold, and the upgrade costs are halved if you have the Leonardo's workshop wonder.

Also: You can only upgrade a unit in a city that has a barracks (or a port for naval units).

 

[surfersjk]

Thanks again for the advice. It is very helpful indeed when someone has the patience to help a stumbling newcomer to the game.
Appreciated,
Kev

 

[Lt. 'Killer' M.]

be very carefull with advice from before 1.21! Now, the AI will come with 20+ attackers! So 4-5 defenders in border towns is way weak!!!!!