Are colonies worth it?

[Ammar]

I've played around a little with the new Colony feature and to be honest I can't quite see how they are worth pursuing. Building several cities on another continent and building them a basic infrastructure is a massive undertaking.

In return you get a minor power as a Vassal. Just seems not that useful. If you're going after domination it seems more useful to spend your time on conquest.

So, do you feel investing in a colony helped? Is it only useful in particual situations, like after a sucessful war against an oversea enemy? Do you have a strategy you can share that would help me get more of an use out of them?

 

[vodlaian]

Colonies can be great if used properly. One big factor is the extra overseas costs when you spread to other islands/continents, colonies cut this cost and still allows you to get the resources.. Another benefit is it gives you 10+ relationship with the created civ. So they normally end up becoming a long term ally.

I've had good and bad experiences with this. My bad experience is in my current game where I liberated a civ on an island with only a fish resource. That was a big mistake, I have to fund them and send them boat loads of units to keep them alive. But it's kinda fun at the same time and adds a new dynamic.

 

[AlessioCerci]

Yes. Example: i was recentyl playing a terra map as Joao and i captured/settled 2 cities in the new world (carracks rule) However they were costing me loads of money and it would take ages to get the forbidden palace there. (obviously no state property cos it was at the time of optics)
So i gave them their independance (it was Roosevelt who took charge btw) I then gradually ferried workers/settlers/units across and gifted them away to help him get going. By the time everyone else had astronomy Roosevelt had taken control of 90% of the continent.... and heres the best bit - despite the fact that he has more population and area than me he will not break free unless i get him pissed off.

Now i can ask him to research one thing while i get another and then we trade. I effectively have double the research of anyone else.

 

[LlamaCat]

I have a question about colonies... what are the specific conditions to be able to grant their independence? the Civilopedia only vaguely states that once these cities "reach a certain level" you will have the option. How many cities, what "level"...anyone know the specifics?

 

[vodlaian]

I have a question about colonies... what are the specific conditions to be able to grant their independence? the Civilopedia only vaguely states that once these cities "reach a certain level" you will have the option. How many cities, what "level"...anyone know the specifics?

The only requirements I know of are 2 cities on the same body of land.

 

[nightinerr]

AWESOME. I did NOT know about this. I should have read the manual. I wonder if I missed anything else.

 

[mice]

They are good for Apostolic diplo victory. They will vote for you no matter what.

You can gift them your obsolete units and they will upgrade them.

Tech trading, resource trading, add to your power rating, add to your Domination % , deprive the land/ resources from rival AI.

 

[Zebra 9]

Colonies sound so cool.

 

[Mesousa]

Just to be sure: If I turn vassal states off in the game setup, colonies can't be created either?

 

[AriochIV]

Because there is no size requirement for the cities, all you need is a ship with 2 settlers in it and you have an instant colony. Each city will spawn 2 defenders when you liberate it, so you don't need to worry about sending troops either (though gifting a Worker or two will help speed them along, and sending a missionary with your religion won't hurt either -- usually by that time my workers are standing around doing nothing anyway).

When you have military entanglements on your home continent and don't have forces to spare to defend overseas cities, colonies are a great way to cheaply establish a friendly presence overseas (and perhaps get some useful resources, as they are you vassal and must give them up if you demand) and deny territory to your expanding rivals. Colonies also make good tech trading partners... they seem to be very good in acquiring new technologies even when they are tiny (don't know whether they trade for it or cheat).

 

[Zoolooman]

Yes. Colonies are great. I only have problems with the vassal system.

 

[afa2000]

Colonies are the best new feature IMO. If you play archipelago low sea level, just make 2 settlers and send your galley somewhere. I had 5 vassals in a large map, nobody else dare to declare war on me, that would be a 6 x 1 war.

 

[meatwad4289]

I've yet to set up any colonies, however, from wha ttthey sound like they are jsut vassals.. I would like a colony to be able to do what it wants but I still want to say, Build My military ect... I'd actually like to run it still, but have it considered a seperate country with loyalty to me lol.. it should be "The king wants us to build riflemen WE BUILD THE RIFLEMEN!" not "I'd like you to attack here" when all they have is a handful of units.

 

[BARBEERIAN]

One great thing about colonies is if you're just too lazy to settle an entire empty island/continent. Just send over a Galleon with 2 settlers and a worker and liberate the cities right away. Since they count as your vassal the points help towards your victory and it's much easier to let the AI spam settlers at that point in the game while I focus on my main strategy. Plus they're basically guaranteed AP/UN votes unless you really piss them off.

 

[InvisibleStalke]

The other good thing about colonies is that they can fill up land you don't want to fill - because the cost of setting up your own cities will be a drain on your economy for a long time. Drop off two settlers, some workers, rush a theatre and a lighthouse or some other basic infrastructure and let them loose with tiny cities. They can fill up an island.

They won't be a huge help to you, but probably more help than filling the island yourself will be. You increase your land% by half for domination. You get guaranteed votes. You deny land to the AI (always good) and you may be able to get an extra tech sometime in the future by directing their research on a tech you want but can wait while you research 3-4 others.

 

[AriochIV]

You deny land to the AI (always good) and you may be able to get an extra tech sometime in the future by directing their research on a tech you want but can wait while you research 3-4 others.

I think land denial is the biggest plus of the colony system... grabbing random islands is usually where the AI gets ahead, because humans players (or myself at least) are too lazy to make the concerted effort to colonize them all, so now you can fill up some of that space with a friendly civ at very little trouble to yourself.

Such island colonies may get clobbered when you go to war.... but better them than you. And it's often easily repaired... in my current game, I had to pound on Peter (who had the only nearby source of oil) on the main continent, and I clobbered him, but in the meantime his substantial naval forces took two of my colonies' cities. But by the time I'd taken his last on-continent city and offered peace, he was so beat up that he agreed to give me back all the cities that my colony had lost, plus one (which I immediately liberated back to colonial control... and defenders magically spring up to fill them!). The joke is that Peter had split off most of his overseas holdings to a new colony (Stalin) just before the war, so by the end of the war his colony had more territory left than he did. But I digress...

 

[Re/\/\eDy]

Here's a question though: Do colonies start with "cautious" relations with rival nations or do they share your relations you have? For example, I want to nuke my ENEMIES. How will my colonies take to this? It's worth noting I've seen "cautious" relation civs get a relation deduction of "You nuked our friend!" even though they have "cautious" (ie. normal) status, so I'm concerned my colonies will turn on me if I'm nuking people, even if they're my enemies.

 

[AriochIV]

Your colonies appear to start out with neutral relations with other civs, but their relationship with you is so high (+10 just for creating them, plus bonuses for open borders, defensive pact, and more if you liberate more cities and gift units) it probably won't matter. But yes, I did get a -2 penalty for declaring war on someone my colony considered a "friend." But since I'm at net +33, it's hardly an issue.

 

[Reveilled]

Another highly useful aspect of Colonies is setting up puppet governments on intercontinental enemies lands. In my current game on a 1 continent per player map, I've been invading and conquering the major islands of rival civs, gaining them as vassals on the smaller islands I don't want to go to the trouble of invading, and setting up a seperate vassal on their main island.

 

[MrFelony]

Not sure if any of you have come accross the quest where you have to "spread"your influence to 13 different bodies of land...but this seems like the best option to save yourself from the upkeep after doing so...i wish i thought of this!