How do you identify a good location for a production city? Theoretically, what would be the best position for a production city? A screenshot would help too. I'm good at seeing good "general" locations like by a river+lux resource but I have a difficult time knowing what to look for when it comes to specialized cities, especially a production city. I sometimes go "oh that's a good spot" then settle it only to realize I can't grow.
Best Location for a Production City?
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Martin Alvito
Real men play SMAC
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The importance of food tiles varies with how aggressively you're running Maritime. If you need food, a single Flood Plains/Grassland Wheat on a River is huge.
It also depends on when you need the production. In the late game, Forests are king. Before then, a combination of Grassland and Hills is just as potent as a Forest with a Food special or two.
It also depends on when you need the production. In the late game, Forests are king. Before then, a combination of Grassland and Hills is just as potent as a Forest with a Food special or two.
Martin Alvito:
I'll add a caveat to that: it also depends on how aggressive you can be with Maritimes. Sometimes, there are only two Maritimes left in the game by the time you get Astronomy, and both might be under attack by a runaway Civ. Other times, you get six and they're all in your continent.
I'll add a caveat to that: it also depends on how aggressive you can be with Maritimes. Sometimes, there are only two Maritimes left in the game by the time you get Astronomy, and both might be under attack by a runaway Civ. Other times, you get six and they're all in your continent.
It's quite difficult to tell in CIV5. It changes through the game too.
In the early game you're looking at farms along a river with hills.
In the mid game you're looking for production from hills and food from maritime states.
In the late game you're looking at a big forest with lumbermills.
In the end game you're looking to get massive hydro plant river production with solar plants and factories etc. A captured capital is usually good since your own capital doesn't get the railroad bonus.
Production bonuses from policies, such as the +3 for coastal cities, might make a difference too.
In the early game you're looking at farms along a river with hills.
In the mid game you're looking for production from hills and food from maritime states.
In the late game you're looking at a big forest with lumbermills.
In the end game you're looking to get massive hydro plant river production with solar plants and factories etc. A captured capital is usually good since your own capital doesn't get the railroad bonus.
Production bonuses from policies, such as the +3 for coastal cities, might make a difference too.
patsfan454
Warlord
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I agree up until the last sentence. Who wastes a policy on the +3 from coastal cities? (unless maybe you are playing archipelago)
InquisitorIsaac
Chieftain
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You shouldn't depend on Maritime City States for your food. They steadily drain your economy/treasury via lump sum, thin down your military, and are targets for other Civs.
Bandobras Took
Emperor
Assuming Maritime cities get hit with the nerf bat, the key to a good prod city is being able to feed the spots working hammers. Assuming you can reliably generate Great Engineers, you'll want a lot of Grassland next to rivers. Otherwise, food with hills/lumbermills can work.
Rome's expecting a hydro plant, while Antium's using the more traditional food/hills approach and will get a Solar Plant. Antium's got some nearby Floodplains/ wheat and an Oasis to feed the hills, not to mention two sources of iron, while Rome's got Manufactories (3 production that feeds itself is the best deal in the game, as far as I can tell).
Rome's expecting a hydro plant, while Antium's using the more traditional food/hills approach and will get a Solar Plant. Antium's got some nearby Floodplains/ wheat and an Oasis to feed the hills, not to mention two sources of iron, while Rome's got Manufactories (3 production that feeds itself is the best deal in the game, as far as I can tell).
Wuzetian
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How do they thin down your military exactly? You don't have to station units in them or anything like that. If another civ targets them, they either waste their guys poking around, which makes my invasion of their main cities easier, or they take it, in which case I come back, liberate them, and get so well-liked that I don't need to pay them to be friendly again.
HermannLombard
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Presumably by cutting down on purchased units.
Licinia Eudoxia
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As people have said, along the coast, near lots of mountains, along river even, and with forests if possible.
If you want the BEST, I'd also suggest: the city itself be on a flat tile (no hill) for a Windmill, and that it be near a Desert tile maybe (for Solar power eventually?), Hydroelectric gets 1 hammer for each tile next to a river. If you're worried about having a desert tile being a waste, you could drop a Great Engineer on it to create a factory or something.
On the coast, you can get three hammers from Commerce social policies, and you can get 5 hammers in all cities from Order social policy. And another hammer from Liberty social policies. Those nine hammers are huge.
Since you're on the coast anyway, I would suggest also finding a spot that has 2-3 (or even more!) sea resources (fish, whales, pearls), because Seaport will give you +2 hammers for each sea resource, and sea resources can also provide a lot of food which you aren't likely to get from your land tiles. If it's late game, you can even get offshore oil platforms, which add even MORE hammers.
As people said, there's a lot of different factors that can go into it. I don't look for all these things, I was just trying to design "the most hammers possible." Obviously, food is important as well, depending on how you use maritime city states especially.
edit: Wu Zetian, is that on Legendary start? I've never seen such resources!
If you want the BEST, I'd also suggest: the city itself be on a flat tile (no hill) for a Windmill, and that it be near a Desert tile maybe (for Solar power eventually?), Hydroelectric gets 1 hammer for each tile next to a river. If you're worried about having a desert tile being a waste, you could drop a Great Engineer on it to create a factory or something.
On the coast, you can get three hammers from Commerce social policies, and you can get 5 hammers in all cities from Order social policy. And another hammer from Liberty social policies. Those nine hammers are huge.
Since you're on the coast anyway, I would suggest also finding a spot that has 2-3 (or even more!) sea resources (fish, whales, pearls), because Seaport will give you +2 hammers for each sea resource, and sea resources can also provide a lot of food which you aren't likely to get from your land tiles. If it's late game, you can even get offshore oil platforms, which add even MORE hammers.
As people said, there's a lot of different factors that can go into it. I don't look for all these things, I was just trying to design "the most hammers possible." Obviously, food is important as well, depending on how you use maritime city states especially.
edit: Wu Zetian, is that on Legendary start? I've never seen such resources!
Wuzetian
Warlord
I was shocked too.
That was a standard size inland sea map. I didn't remember if it's a legendary start but this is not even my capital.
Wuzetian
Warlord
A desert tile may not necessarily be a waste. Flooded plains and desert hills counts too. And I've run into situations that 1 tile of flooded plain pop out of no where right in the middle of some grassland or plain. It's just ridiculous.
Bandobras Took
Emperor
Here's how Rome ended up later on. 240.8 Hammers isn't bad, even if that's the conditional level. 
The output might have been higher if I had befriended some Maritime city-states to grow the capitol.
The output might have been higher if I had befriended some Maritime city-states to grow the capitol.I think it depends on the era. Like others have pointed out, hills can be good, when you acquire engineer technology and can build lumber mills, forests become good too.
My better production cities in later stage of the game tend to be cities with river for hydro plant as I can also throw a nuclear plant + factory in it. If possible, add wind mill + solar plant as well and you can really see your production skyrocket.
Deserts flood plans along the river is pretty good, they provide food initially then later huge production boost with windmill + solar plant + hydro.
coastal cities can be good, if there are a lot of sea resources closeby (within 3 tiles) so you can add a seaport and boost production. Otherwise, coastal cities tend to be not as good (although in one of my game, I conquered Kyoto, Japanese capital that was a coastal city, with sea resources and also sits along a river in the desert, it was huge in production.
My better production cities in later stage of the game tend to be cities with river for hydro plant as I can also throw a nuclear plant + factory in it. If possible, add wind mill + solar plant as well and you can really see your production skyrocket.
Deserts flood plans along the river is pretty good, they provide food initially then later huge production boost with windmill + solar plant + hydro.
coastal cities can be good, if there are a lot of sea resources closeby (within 3 tiles) so you can add a seaport and boost production. Otherwise, coastal cities tend to be not as good (although in one of my game, I conquered Kyoto, Japanese capital that was a coastal city, with sea resources and also sits along a river in the desert, it was huge in production.
One of the best ways to get huge production in the late game is to use massed specialists (fed by MCS) and the Statue of Liberty. You need large cities, size 20 and bigger and the Freedom SPs that give +50% GPPs and only consume 1 food. When you run lots of specialists (scientists, merchants and engineers) you get lots of science, gold and hammers and they cost only 1 food. With research lab, stock exchange and factory, windmill and workshop you get 5 scientists x 3 x 300% = 45 science and 4 merchants x 2 x 183% = 14.6 gold and these give 9 hammers, then the 3 engineers each give 3 hammers so that's 18 hammers in total. The 12 specialists only consume 12 food and give +6 happiness. Of course the problem is you only have 8 citizens left to work the other tiles 
if the city is only size 20. If you get Secularism as well then it adds another 72 science 
This is a great set up for the Space Race, with space factories and railroads.
The big problem for this technique is that it doesn't gain much from a golden age as specialists aren't affected, but it sure is good at generating golden ages of the happy bucket type and from the great people. So work more tiles during a golden age and the specialists outside one.
if the city is only size 20. If you get Secularism as well then it adds another 72 science This is a great set up for the Space Race, with space factories and railroads. The big problem for this technique is that it doesn't gain much from a golden age as specialists aren't affected, but it sure is good at generating golden ages of the happy bucket type and from the great people. So work more tiles during a golden age and the specialists outside one.
