Automated workers?

[shawy89]

I dont know about u guys but i always put workers on automated. Iv heard this is a bad thing tho, why?
I play on noble and have won plently of games and my economy can be brilliant! So i dont see the problem, i sometimes do everything myself at the very start of a game when i only have 1 or 2 workers. but when get to 3 or 4 its just too time-consuming!
I won a diplomatic with Zara on epic today in 1954 and it took me 3 hours 15mins. i was in at war with 4 people, wiped out Brennus, made Gilgamesh, Hannible and Mansa Musa my vassals.
Does this seem short to u?
How long do ur games last and do u put workers on automated??

 

[Sisiutil]

The higher you go in the difficulty levels, the less you'll want to automate workers. I'm an Emperor level player who's just about ready to jump to Immortal and I hardly ever do it.

You'll need to more stringently implement a specific type of economy (specialist, cottage, food), and the Workers aren't aware of this so you'll get a mix of tile improvements rather than the exact type you need. They'll also change them on you, maddeningly, when you're not watching. There may also be times when you deliberately don't improve a particular tile in the usual fashion; I've replaced dye plantations with watermills, for example, around my riverside ironworks, especially when I have plenty of other dye tiles. Automated Workers, however, will feel obliged to put that unneeded plantation back.

Another thing: when I get the ability to build railroads, I prefer to boost production first by laying tracks on mines, lumbermills, and quarries. Then I link those tiles together to speed transportation. Automated workers won't build railroads this way.

The only time I automate workers is near the end of the game. At that point I may set them to automatically build a trade network just so they'll lay down railroads on all the tiles that don't have them. But I make sure I have the "automated workers leave existing improvements" and "automated workers don't chop forest" options ON.

EDIT: I forgot to mention--my games usually last about 12-15 hours, on average. The higher levels also require more micromanagement.

 

[Slip de Garcon]

And also because they start messing about like a bunch of saturday-job teenagers in a supermarket and not doing what you want. I converted to the 'way of the micromanager' when I came to Civ4. I used to automate trade when I ran out of things for them to do, but BtS seems to have messed this up too, so I just manage their every move for them. that's progress I guess.

 

[Vizzini]

I dont know about u guys but i always put workers on automated. Iv heard this is a bad thing tho, why?

Well, they'll build forts on resources in your cultural borders instead of building the appropriate improvement.

I automate trade-network workers, but never my improvements because you can't specialize that way and the AI makes stupid decisions (Workshops on irrigated grasslands anyone?) That's a cottage or a farm tile IMHO. A workshop is just silly.

Even if you like to automate and it works for you I would strongly suggest you keep a handful of workers under your own control so you can dictate priority builds.

Automated Workers, however, will feel obliged to put that unneeded plantation back.

In the Options menu there's a checkbox "automated workers leave existing improvements" or some such. Check it and they'll never do that again.

I used to automate trade when I ran out of things for them to do, but BtS seems to have messed this up too

That's a bug that's fixed by the unofficial BtS patch (see sticky)

 

[LordMachiavelli]

I used to automate trade when I ran out of things for them to do, but BtS seems to have messed this up too, so I just manage their every move for them. that's progress I guess.

I used to put them all asleep, either all in my capitol, or maybe a couple different cities if I have a lot of land. Then I know where they are if I need them again. I automate trade now that that's fixed though.

LM

 

[Supr49er]

As a charter member of MMA (Micro Managers Anonymous), I say never automate your workers. Keep a close eye on them to make them build what you want, where you want, when you want.

 

[troytheface]

once again- don't listen to all that advice- it is for a herd-like mentality.
automate- it is for progressive hyper modern type of players-

let the stodgy worker movers eek out every last ounce of profit or happiness-
for me- freedom to the workers! An old chess adage- it is not one mistake that will lose a game- it is usually the inability to fight on- to continue the struggle- to make a bad situation better- these are keys to progress- not making sure a worker builds a farm for gods sake.
My advice- never reload- never give up - and automate.

 

[Leodavinci]

Set "automated workers leave existing improvements" and "automated workers don't chop forest"
Choose 2-3 workers for your special task squad, automate the rest

But really, that is just an advice of a person who plays on Prince with 50/50 success

 

[AluminumKnight]

I play on noble

advice of a person who plays on Prince with 50/50 success

No offense, but Noble and Prince are not top level play. There's nothing wrong with automating workers on Noble (even on Prince you've said you keep 2-3 for priority stuff), but as you move up in difficulty, you'll find that if you don't control almost all, if not all, workers manually, the game will be harder. I myself only play on Monarch, but I only automate workers to "Build Trade Network" in that Renaissance stage before railroads where you're pretty much done building improvements. They fill my Empire with roads, and then rail once I get the tech.

Workers just do dumb stuff sometimes, and 2-3 under my control are only enough to be improving 1 newly built city (not enough if it's a jungle city). I'd rather make sure they're doing stuff right.

 

[TyranusBonehead]

I will micromanage all workers, except for any devoted to building a trade network, they are automated.

 

[LunaticSlave]

I personally never automate no matter what difficulty choose to play, automated workers in my experience are dumb in most cases. I like to have control on my city surroundings and specialize them, thing you can hardly do with auto workers. I do automate em when is time to make railroads, i use the "build trade network" auto option. As soon i notice the railroads are done, i cancel the automation and get em back under my control.

my 2 cents

 

[LordMachiavelli]

I micromanage 90% of my workers. I move stacks around from city to city, working tiles, and leave the other 10% on network to fort new resources and RR between cities.

LM

 

[Bigfoot3814]

One of my first posts had to do with my trouble with worker automation. It's really best just to give the orders yourself. Worker automation also makes it easy to build too many, which can be a waste of valuable hammers.

 

[Sinapus]

I don't automate my workers. I tend to hold down the shift key and give them specific orders, then let them complete them. I sometimes have to get extremely specific because the "route-to" function doesn't work quite the way I want it to.

 

[Vizzini]

BTW, once you do get railroads you should have at least a squad of workers running to every mine on your map and dropping a railroad on it. The rest can be automated but I want that bonus just as fast as I can.

 

[GenMarshall]

I dont automate my workers since I'd rather not have the computer mess up my improvements and wreck up my production and weath input.

 

[Kadazzle]

Yeah, I never choose to automate my workers, it seems pointless to me because they always end up building a farm on wine and a cottage on a hill.

 

[TheMeInTeam]

Automating workers is for when you're still getting used to the game and don't want to deal with everything all at once.

Once I learned to make improvements that specialize cities or to achieve objectives, I realized just how piss poor automated workers are. They waste turns, make sloppy improvements, and generally suck.

HOWEVER, I only micro my workers through the early game. Once I've got like 6-10 cities, I let them automate (set to leave old improvements) and just use the AI cities like the AI was (usually commerce). I don't like 20 hour games. I like 4 hour games. Automated workers are ok for making all your roads into railroads too. Generally though, you want to micro them until you feel you have the game under control at least.

 

[LordMachiavelli]

Another reason I don't automate (or trade network too many) is that once they're on their own I'll never find them again! lol

LM

 

[Sisiutil]

Another reason I don't automate (or trade network too many) is that once they're on their own I'll never find them again! lol

LM

Good point!