MorteEterna
Prince
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2008
- Messages
- 332
Well, how am I going to start talking about the megacity strategy? It is a really old strategy, used since the first months of the game, and Romans were the best at that. The trick was to build many cities, then choose a good spot for a gold city, and send settlers. All this was working before the patch. Now settlers instead of giving 1 population, they give 20 food.
Before I talk about the Megacity strategy with Americans, let's talk about the start, and when to use this strategy.
America
Start with Great Person
Ancient era bonus: 2% interest rate
Medieval era bonus: 1/2 price units
Industrial era bonus: +1 food from plains
Modern era bonus: x3 factory production
Then, as you know, they start with a Great Person, and my first advice is: don't settle great people at the start
-Great Artist: Explore while you build one or two warriors (you see how many you need, depending on gold. 32 gold is what you need after the first warrior). Choose Horseback riding while you explore, I would say that 75% of the times, you should get it for free from a hut. After you have explored enough, put it in your capital and use it to flip a good city. Remember, look at the flag, more it is big, more units are in that city to get for free (you get only one unit or army, but you kill others)
Great Leader: Like the great artist, explore while working on one or two warriors (two trees), and choose horseback if you get enough gold (and you are pretty sure about this). Then, if you want you can settle it before you build the horsemen to have it veteran. Later you could build a barracks and build elite units.
Great Humanitarian: Explore like the great artist. Use it later when you got enough cities for the +1 population (and this can be worthful for the megacity strategy, easier to build settlers)
Great Scientist: Explore like above. Use it to rush code of laws then use code of laws then expand.
Great Explorer: Rush two warriors while you work on horseback riding, you will get 2 villages in 3 turns usually (4000 BC first warrior, 3900 BC second warrior, then you get time to explore). If you want, use it to explore, then add 50 gold, this could work better, but it could be better with no risk, sometimes.
Great Builder: Maybe one of the best start: 1) Explore like above and use it later. 2) Rush a galley, switch production from galley to warriors, then rush for 0 gold, getting 3 warriors at 4000 BC. 3) Rush a galley for 0 gold, then explore with it. Use the militia to name tiles, get huts, or artifacts.
Obviously if you don't want to rush, don't rush but here is why you should rush for the megacity strategy. 1 capital means:
-1 capital (to make harder for others the domination victory)
-1 free city (the capital, that you could use to build settlers)
-Much more room to expand
-More gold to steal near that area.
Now, don't start the Megacity strategy before you could know you can do it. Expand to 15-20 cities if possible, after medieval era. Work on 1 grassland for 5 turns to have at least 10 food if you got 3 population and still no code of laws. Then instead of working on trees, work on gold, because you can use it everywhere and you also get 2% interest. After republic, just work for 2-3 turns on food then rush the settlers. Choose good spots with at least one two food tile, like grassland, fish, or plain next to river.
Your tech path should be something like this:
Horseback Riding
Bronze Working
Pottery
Masonry
Irrigation
Alphabet
Writing
Code of Laws (Switch to republic)
Or, if you got enough gold to expand to cities with special resources like fish (that are going to improve it):
Horseback Riding
Bronze Working
Pottery
Masonry
Alphabet
(Now start expanding in medieval era)
Irrigation
Writing
Code of laws
Irrigation is not needed, and don't choose it if you see others already got masonry too early (look at the tech tree, where you can't see the number one, it means they have already got that technology first).
These are 8 technologies. In medieval era a settler costs 20 gold, then you could follow 2 paths, depending on..
1) You got a good start, and your enemy is advanced, not like you, but is still doing well. You probrably fear something like knights plus fundamentalism or anything else. Then you should aim for a fast economic victory. Choose a good spot with at least two special resources like whales, dye, fish, and that should be your Megacity. Start rushing settlers after you got like 20 cities. Before you work on gold, you should follow this path:
Currency
Literacy (corthouse needed probrably)
Monarchy (free great person)
Feudalism (if you need to counter enemies, then build some knights armies)
Mathematics
Navigation
If you want, you can still expand to some islands to get more gold, or rush east india company if possible.
Don't work on science anymore, and if you got the literacy bonus you should have like 20 science per turn. Before you switch all cities to gold, choose invention, you should need like 330 beakers.
Rush settlers and add them to the Megacity, until you reach 15 population, the best in my opinion. Now, work on hanging gardens, and remove workers from gold if needed, or rush it if you got enough gold (this is better).
Start building bank, colossus if others are not too advanced, trade fair, east india company and corthouse. Then, later build an harbor if you want to grow more, but 23 population is enough and you should grow not hardly. If you get a great explorer settle it. After you could reach 23 population, switch all cities to science but the gold city, and switch to democracy (research it)
What you need later is gunpowder. You should build riflemen and defend this city, like your capital, in the best way. Surround the Megacity with units if possible, so that your enemies can't see that, and you can see them before they come. Militia, archers, riflemen, whatever you want. Build barracks, temple and walls if you want, you are going to get much from this. The victory shouldn't be hard to reach, then don't rush too many wonders, they cost maybe too much for you. Switch from gold to science when you got enough gold, like 10-15'000, and other technologies you need are industrialization, corporation and mass production, or combustion (to defend obviously). Now, switch to gold again only in your megacity, and if you don't need much gold, switch all cities to gold. After 20'000 gold, rush a factory, remove all workers from water tiles but the production tiles. Meanwhile switch to science and work on communism, use communism and you will produce at least 150 hammers with 4 trees and 30 population, that means world bank in 3 turns.
Before I talk about the Megacity strategy with Americans, let's talk about the start, and when to use this strategy.
America
Start with Great Person
Ancient era bonus: 2% interest rate
Medieval era bonus: 1/2 price units
Industrial era bonus: +1 food from plains
Modern era bonus: x3 factory production
Then, as you know, they start with a Great Person, and my first advice is: don't settle great people at the start
-Great Artist: Explore while you build one or two warriors (you see how many you need, depending on gold. 32 gold is what you need after the first warrior). Choose Horseback riding while you explore, I would say that 75% of the times, you should get it for free from a hut. After you have explored enough, put it in your capital and use it to flip a good city. Remember, look at the flag, more it is big, more units are in that city to get for free (you get only one unit or army, but you kill others)
Great Leader: Like the great artist, explore while working on one or two warriors (two trees), and choose horseback if you get enough gold (and you are pretty sure about this). Then, if you want you can settle it before you build the horsemen to have it veteran. Later you could build a barracks and build elite units.
Great Humanitarian: Explore like the great artist. Use it later when you got enough cities for the +1 population (and this can be worthful for the megacity strategy, easier to build settlers)
Great Scientist: Explore like above. Use it to rush code of laws then use code of laws then expand.
Great Explorer: Rush two warriors while you work on horseback riding, you will get 2 villages in 3 turns usually (4000 BC first warrior, 3900 BC second warrior, then you get time to explore). If you want, use it to explore, then add 50 gold, this could work better, but it could be better with no risk, sometimes.
Great Builder: Maybe one of the best start: 1) Explore like above and use it later. 2) Rush a galley, switch production from galley to warriors, then rush for 0 gold, getting 3 warriors at 4000 BC. 3) Rush a galley for 0 gold, then explore with it. Use the militia to name tiles, get huts, or artifacts.
Obviously if you don't want to rush, don't rush but here is why you should rush for the megacity strategy. 1 capital means:
-1 capital (to make harder for others the domination victory)
-1 free city (the capital, that you could use to build settlers)
-Much more room to expand
-More gold to steal near that area.
Now, don't start the Megacity strategy before you could know you can do it. Expand to 15-20 cities if possible, after medieval era. Work on 1 grassland for 5 turns to have at least 10 food if you got 3 population and still no code of laws. Then instead of working on trees, work on gold, because you can use it everywhere and you also get 2% interest. After republic, just work for 2-3 turns on food then rush the settlers. Choose good spots with at least one two food tile, like grassland, fish, or plain next to river.
Your tech path should be something like this:
Horseback Riding
Bronze Working
Pottery
Masonry
Irrigation
Alphabet
Writing
Code of Laws (Switch to republic)
Or, if you got enough gold to expand to cities with special resources like fish (that are going to improve it):
Horseback Riding
Bronze Working
Pottery
Masonry
Alphabet
(Now start expanding in medieval era)
Irrigation
Writing
Code of laws
Irrigation is not needed, and don't choose it if you see others already got masonry too early (look at the tech tree, where you can't see the number one, it means they have already got that technology first).
These are 8 technologies. In medieval era a settler costs 20 gold, then you could follow 2 paths, depending on..
1) You got a good start, and your enemy is advanced, not like you, but is still doing well. You probrably fear something like knights plus fundamentalism or anything else. Then you should aim for a fast economic victory. Choose a good spot with at least two special resources like whales, dye, fish, and that should be your Megacity. Start rushing settlers after you got like 20 cities. Before you work on gold, you should follow this path:
Currency
Literacy (corthouse needed probrably)
Monarchy (free great person)
Feudalism (if you need to counter enemies, then build some knights armies)
Mathematics
Navigation
If you want, you can still expand to some islands to get more gold, or rush east india company if possible.
Don't work on science anymore, and if you got the literacy bonus you should have like 20 science per turn. Before you switch all cities to gold, choose invention, you should need like 330 beakers.
Rush settlers and add them to the Megacity, until you reach 15 population, the best in my opinion. Now, work on hanging gardens, and remove workers from gold if needed, or rush it if you got enough gold (this is better).
Start building bank, colossus if others are not too advanced, trade fair, east india company and corthouse. Then, later build an harbor if you want to grow more, but 23 population is enough and you should grow not hardly. If you get a great explorer settle it. After you could reach 23 population, switch all cities to science but the gold city, and switch to democracy (research it)
What you need later is gunpowder. You should build riflemen and defend this city, like your capital, in the best way. Surround the Megacity with units if possible, so that your enemies can't see that, and you can see them before they come. Militia, archers, riflemen, whatever you want. Build barracks, temple and walls if you want, you are going to get much from this. The victory shouldn't be hard to reach, then don't rush too many wonders, they cost maybe too much for you. Switch from gold to science when you got enough gold, like 10-15'000, and other technologies you need are industrialization, corporation and mass production, or combustion (to defend obviously). Now, switch to gold again only in your megacity, and if you don't need much gold, switch all cities to gold. After 20'000 gold, rush a factory, remove all workers from water tiles but the production tiles. Meanwhile switch to science and work on communism, use communism and you will produce at least 150 hammers with 4 trees and 30 population, that means world bank in 3 turns.
