Changing victory conditions

[FastWorker]

Is there a way to change victory conditions during a game? Sometimes one method of winning is more suitable to a particular game than another, but I don't know until the game has started, or sometimes until well into a game. In the game I'm playing now, I'd really like to go for a conquest, but fear that domination is just around the corner. Can I change this midgame?

 

[smjjames]

yea, in a regular game you can change tactics for a different victory condition anytime.

also, is it domination for you or domination by someone else thats around the corner? and doing war doesn't increase your borders that much unless its a large culture sharing your border.

 

[`DG`]

I dont think he's meaning to change tactics, but to change what will trigger a win. For example, sometimes I'm playing and realise that I'm about to hit a cultural win, but I'm enjoying the game and would rather force it to hang on for domination.

You can just play on after the victory, but somehow knowing you would have already won doesnt take the fun out of it as much as a sign being stuck where you cant miss it saying that you already have.

 

[FastWorker]

I guess what I'm asking is how to remove a domination victory so that I don't get that unintentionally. I'm the one who is close to winning, and my culture is strong enough so that I keep flipping cities to me.

Is there a box or option that I can check to change it midgame?

 

[FastWorker]

knowing you would have already won doesnt take the fun out of it as much as a sign being stuck where you cant miss it saying that you already have.

You're dead on, DG. Somehow it takes just a little bit away...I can't even explain how or why.

 

[smjjames]

I guess what I'm asking is how to remove a domination victory so that I don't get that unintentionally. I'm the one who is close to winning, and my culture is strong enough so that I keep flipping cities to me.

Is there a box or option that I can check to change it midgame?

AFAIK, you can't do that midgame without starting a new custom game because you can set which victory conditions are available for a custom game.

I don't know if the worldbuilder would have it, but I really doubt it.

 

[Mewtarthio]

I suppose it would be theoretically possible if someone could decypher the .SAV files. Note that I say "theoretically." If you open one of those files in Notepad or WordPad or something, you'll notice that they are utterly indecypherable, and even if some genius did manage to crack the code, he'd be stuck telling the rest of us to "replace that line with a double-headed arrow/squiggle dash/black square with hole in the middle..."

Alternatively, you could try replacing the Python files themselves to remove the victory condition entirely. Be sure to back up those files, though.

 

[scienide09]

It's possible to alter a savegame file to remove victory conditions. Mewtathio is on the right track, but there's an extra step or two involved.

Here's the easy(?) way to do it, without having to decipher the regular .SAV code.

Open the game you want to edit.
Switch to the Worldbuilder.
Save the WB file as something you will remember.
Exit CivIV.
Navigate to the Civ4\Saves\Worldbuilder folder.
Using notepad, open the WB save you that you made (right click > open with... >notepad)
Under the first heading "BeginGame", find the victory condition you want to remove, then delete it.
Example:
Victory=VICTORY_DIPLOMATIC -- if you delete this, there will no longer be the possibility of a diplo victory.
Save the notepad file.
Start CivIV
Select "Load a Scenario"
Select the name of the WBsave that you created, load it.
Enjoy!

(The same steps can be repeated to alter a game in progress, including adding variables like victory options you accidentally unchecked, etc.)

NOTE that because you're loading the game as a scenario, some functions of the game are treated as if you're starting from scratch. Your cities, improvements, units, etc. will all be intact. However, one of the most glaring problems that I've noticed is that GP limits are reset to zero. This means that you'll get a large number of GP's almost immediately (assuming of course that you've got a GP farm and/or a large number of GP point producing cities).
This seems unfair to me -- in the mid to late game, you should not be getting a new GP every couple of turns. But it happens this way, and I don't know how to stop it.
IMO, this is not balanced by the fact that the AIs also get a bunch of new GPs.

I hope that helps.

 

[FastWorker]

scienide09,
When I started reading all the steps to do this, I thought there's no way that I'd do all that, until you mentioned getting extra great people. I'm all for that idea! :-D But then again, I'm not very balanced.

 

[scienide09]

Well, as long as you're happy.

As for the process itself, it only takes about five minutes.
That can definitely be worth it if you're looking to salvage a game that you've invested multiple hours in, and suddenly realized that you forgot to change a stupid victory condition.