Anybody ever use explorers?

[DogBoy]

Explorers are supposed to be good because you can move more spaces and explore faster. The problem is, by the time you are able to get explorers, you have already explored the entire world either by yourself or thru map exchanges. Even if you have not already explored, all the land is taking up anyway be all the nations. At least, this has been my experience. Anybody ever effectively built and used explorers?

 

[God]

Never used them. I believe there are some mods in which you can make them available with Map Making because otherwise they're totally useless. By the time i get them the only areas not discovered are the ocean squares and i'm usually sending of some frigates to uncover them.

 

[kcwong]

Only built one Explorer in my first game to see what it's like. Never used them after that.

I agree with you, DogBoy! At least that's the case for human players... perhaps Explorer is useful only for AI at higher levels...

 

[praestare]

no use at all. they come too late.

 

[muppet]

Like everyone else, by the time they're available, I really don't have a use for them.

Someone, on another thread buried somewhere, has suggested using them as 'advanced scouts' outside your own territory.

According to that post, because they have a 0/0/3 ADM they are seen by the AI as non-threatening units. Meaning you station them in AI territory to be your advance warning scouts, letting you know if there is a possibility of an AI sneak attack.

I have never tried this myself.

 

[Hobbes]

Have never even built one, by the time they are available, they are of no use.

 

[eyrei]

Apparently, they can pillage. Find your nearest potential enemy's resources and station an explorer on each of them. If war breaks out, pillage, and then try to escape. This will at least provide a small advantage. Also, if you discover a resource before the AI has the requisite tech, station an explorer on that resource in the other civs territory, and leave it there. They will not be able to build a road to it, and so will not have access.

 

[Dralix]

What about on huge maps? Are they more useful then?

 

[Marzipan]

In my 'three new governments' mod I have tried to make them more useful by making them available with map making, and by giving them the ability to build cities like settlers. They still seem to be barely useful though, although they do get out to those outlying areas quick with their movement (in my mod) of 4 instead of two (but not 'all terrain as road'). Additional improvements that might help make them more useful are to give them their own attack/defense (1.2 for example) and maybe reduce the cost of map making. Since no military units can keep up with the explorer, in order to take advantage of their faster movement without undue risk they should have some defensive value. What the game designers apparently didn't take into account with these is that it takes at least a few turns to build them, then a few more to get them out to the frontier, then a few more for them to actually chart some uncharted territory, and the way the years fly by with each turn in the beginning, you have to be able to start building them around 100 AD in order to have them make worthwhile discoveries by the 12-13-1400's.

 

[Stella Artois]

Explorers are only useful if u r playing as an expansionist civ. They r available from the start meaning you can get to the bonus camps really quickly (Play on a large map and you can discover ~ 6 or 7 technologies for free). Playing as any other type of civ, explorers r pretty much useless.

 

[AnarchyIsGreat]

Stella, those are scouts not explorers.


I actually use exploreers quite a bit. Since i use almost exclusivly Huge maps, midway through the game i have usually explored the entire landmass i am on. However, on hug maps there are often large islands or whole other continents i havent even gotten to, even during the modern age. I use explorers to quitly scout out the islands (or continents), and look for any resources i need at the moment. then i send over a settler, plop him down on the shore, make a worker to get a colony on the resource. then i build a harbor and Viola!

 

[Jason Fox]

Was actually thinking about this just yesterday. What a timely thread.

I have never made one and, generally speaking, by the time they are available, it's pointless for me to do much exploring. If it's not settled yet there's going to be closer civs and it's barely worth the effort to reach/settle/connect/defend isolated cities unless it's for a key resource.

I did like the one suggestion of leaving them on rival civ's resources to pillage when war breaks out, but without a force to prevent them from rebuilding I don't see it influncing the outcome of the conflict in any real way. You could have a couple of them running around avoiding capture and pillaging stuff. Even that would probably be more fun than useful, though.

 

[donsig]

Never used 'em. They seem about as useful as colonies. The advance scout/pillage technique does seem useful. Might try that someday.

 

[shdwlord]

Originally posted by muppet
Like everyone else, by the time they're available, I really don't have a use for them.

Someone, on another thread buried somewhere, has suggested using them as 'advanced scouts' outside your own territory.

According to that post, because they have a 0/0/3 ADM they are seen by the AI as non-threatening units. Meaning you station them in AI territory to be your advance warning scouts, letting you know if there is a possibility of an AI sneak attack.

I have never tried this myself.

I have had workers kicked out of AI civs territory, so I am not sure that they care whether it is a non-threatening unit or not

 

[praestare]

Originally posted by shdwlord


I have had workers kicked out of AI civs territory, so I am not sure that they care whether it is a non-threatening unit or not

If you have only workers in AI's territory, AI won't think workers are a threat, and thus won't demand you remove them.

 

[Marzipan]

Originally posted by praestare


If you have only workers in AI's territory, AI won't think workers are a threat, and thus won't demand you remove them.

Sometimes they demand that you remove them as if they are military units.

 

[jimmytrick]

explorers are handy in a war

they will get 6 moves while your cav for example get only three

and you are only able to see two squares

so, you can use them to scout enemy troop positions and or pillage fairly deep into enemy territory

but they will get killed right away so consider them throwaways

 

[Zoke0]

Actually once I used them. They're pretty helpful in the right situation! Ok, I had found every one, but there was 2 other continents uninhabitated. Brought one Explorer to each and got some nice goodys from the huts of the same name (goody)! This was the only purpose I found though. I wasn't expansionist for your information. If I was, who knows what I could have got!!!

All in all, there ok.

 

[West German]

Explorers are awesome!!!! They can go in an another civilization's territory and not be asked to leave. I heard somewhere that they should be called Special Forces, because they pillage.

 

[andrewgprv]

ive used them very succesfully to pillage an enemies territory, they are so quick they can get in and out easily. And half the time the AI doesnt mind them being in their territory.