Anyone use forts?

I never see them. At all. Not from AI, not from other players-and certainly not from me. I never really used them in Civ4 either-except to allow sea passage.

I can't really see any use for them-unless maybe if they made their bonus apply to all units in a one tile range-like a stationary mini GG. Maybe I'm just not deploying them strategically?

 

I'll use them at chokepoints

 

Most players play at a level where an AI's invading force never really is a threat. If defensive combat were harder, I could definitely see a use for them. It also hurts that fortified units don't exert a zone of control, so there's little incentive to attack a fort unless it's at a chokepoint.

 

Why build a fort when you can build a farm? If you have to build a fort to survive, you've pretty much lost.

 

I will build them when I have a worker doing nothing sometimes. If there is terrain that your cities won't be working and there is a civ nearby it doesn't hurt to build them just in case. I don't believe they cost any maintenance, so as long as a worker is doing nothing anyway why not build them? They are always a low priority to other tile improvements, but eventually you will have a worker with nothing to do.

 

exactly, and it's also something that's worth building in the 4th and 5th tiles out from a city, especially when you're playing ICC, and even more especially when towards the end you're likely to be out-teched.

 

I use them at choke-points or for a ranged unit I keep in defense. They're very useful though.

 

I never use them because the graphic is hideous!

 

I use the fort only on chokepoints, even then, it's iffy on if I'll even build one.

 

I don't think it's fair to say that you'd never need one, I've successfully used them a few times. Usually if I'm that hard-pressed I'll use one of my GG's to make a citadel, however.

 

I've used them few times. Once I was playing as Aztecs, Tiny Map & 18 civs ! Since I was constantly at war with whole world, I had to build few forts in order to defend against hordes of enemies. In the end I defeated about 10-12 civs. The rest were small ones so I quit the game.

 

According the 275 patch release notes enemies will target units defending in a citadel. Has anybody noticed if they also target forts now?

 

Seldom. If a good choke-point exist (say in a mountain range) I will build one. I have noticed that other countries units CAN'T/DON'T move over your fort it its occupied, so that makes it useful sometimes to force them to go the "long way around" if the terrain right.

Of if I'm getting spammed with lot of units and have on a couple of defenders and need the extra defense, I'll build one - and then convert the hex to a productive square latter.

But I would guess, at most, one (average) to three (at most) a game.

 

While you're right that I wouldn't waste a potentially productive tile on a fort, they can be useful at strategic choke points at the periphery of your territory--particularly if on hills that can be supported from the rear by artillery. They are not, admittedly, as useful as their CIV counterparts.

 

A lot of times after I reach the Modern era I'll be waiting for the AI to catch up in tech so we can have a fun world war. Right around then I'll start looking around for likely defensive spots and pop up a few.

(Late game, if you've got strong culture cities you'll also have a good sized "halo" of tiles too far away to work, but within your boundaries.)

 

When building up especially doing a one city challenge for a culture win I build them in defensive spots all round the city for when the AI decides to race through to my one city just before I win. Nothing worse than a few policies from winner and a strong AI decides to invade.

 

As most others said, only at chokepoints. If they could function as canals like they did in 4, that'd make them much better.

 

1) Tile is outside of a city's workable radius (> 3 tiles).
2) A border tile with a hostile(could war at any time)/at war Civ.
3) Strategic point.
4) Snow (can't build any other improvements except roads).

 

I've built them. Like others have said, choke points. That, or if I do an OCC I put them on my borders in-case any AIs start to get any funny ideas.

 

citadels I find are very useful at times. forts I have no use for.