Civ3 GOTM #1 *Spoiler* talks

[Thunderfall]

How's everyone doing in the game?

I am in 500 AD, just killed the Aztecs and the Babylonians are almost dead (they have 3 cities left). The immortals are invincible!! :jump:

The map in this game is terrible! There are no rivers or ponds anywhere near the starting location, meaning no irrigation is possible for a long time.

Here is my histograph at 500 AD:

http://www.civfanatics.com/civ3images/gotm/mygotm01/histopower500ad.jpg

 

[adamschroeder]

My game is similar. I have taken out everyone on the starting continent. Immortals are definetly the key, they have to be my favorite special unit so far.

 

[terrylo]

I agree that Immortals are the key to this game (my game is described in the "goodie hut" thread). I think that I could have stayed alive longer if I had switched over to Immortals earlier. As it was, I was concentrating on making more Settlers to make more cities (hard when your population grows so slowly) and on getting some Temples so that I'd have enough Culture in my frontier cities to resist absorption into the Aztec empire.

I'm glad to hear that other people are having a better time of this map than I did.

 

[Phorever Phalanx]

Well, I'm glad to hear someone is doing well. The combination of prince level and a skinny landmass is doing me in. I'm at 500AD but just lost 1 of my three cities (down from 5).

My main problem was dealing with 3 hostile civs united against me. The Aztecs were a given, but the Babys slipped a settler past both of us and took the "neck" south of my first city. I first tried to culture-assimilate it, but the Aztecs & Babys united and attacked while I just had Archers and Spearmen. Once I got Immortals I fought back farily well (bad time for a golden age!), but the Zulus allied with the others and have been landing units behind the front lines on both coasts.

This is my fourth game - I haven't finished any, but save them as I accumulate more strategy ideas to try out. One of them is a King game that I will probably win, but with a bigger landmass than this.

The biggest AI difference from civ2 is that the AI figures out good strategies before I do - using terrain, multiple units, retreats, feints (move toward a city, then attack back at front). What I look forward to is winning a game with good strategy, regardless of the level. It looks like it's easy to do well if you are #1 culture or military, but I want to survive and thrive when I start out as "one of the pack."

 

[adamschroeder]

Well I just finished the game and the world is in my grasp. I could have probably gotten a better score by letting the last civ stay alive while I develop the world... but what fun is that.

This completes my fourth game and it is my highest score by far!

 

[jeff]

man corruption in this game is a killer thats for sure. All of the Aztec citys I conquered are all producing only one shield under a monarchy I wiped the aztecs off of the mainland but they have a few outposts straggling off to the east; soon I will destroy the aztecs. Muhaha.

 

[Thunderfall]

Originally posted by jeff
man corruption in this game is a killer thats for sure. All of the Aztec citys I conquered are all producing only one shield under a monarchy I wiped the aztecs off of the mainland but they have a few outposts straggling off to the east; soon I will destroy the aztecs. Muhaha.

Yeah, corruption is far too rampant. Some of the former Aztecs cities lost 16 out of 17 shields even after I swicth to Republic!!! Can't really build anything with 1 shield, and I can't rush build courthouse because I have only 25 Gold.

 

[Cyclopee]

Once you have enough money hurry a courtnouse. Then try building The Forbidden Palace in one of the conquered Aztec cities. Sure took care of coruption in my game.

 

[Rogue Knight]

Courthouses don't seem to have nearly the effect that they did in Civ II . . . have you noticed that too? I'm building the Forbidden Palace right now; the only trouble is it's going to take like 80 turns to build!!

Do you know if We Love the King days decrease corruption in the celebrating city? I haven't been able to tell if they do or not . . .

 

[jeff]

this is just stupid. I am in a democracy with courthouses in almost all of my cities. Corruption is so bad many of my offshore cities shields and commerce are all corrupted. Most produce one shield per turn. I thought it was due to forgien workers but that is not the case. You just cant have huge empires across this map effectively. This map especially cause all it is is a bunch of islands. I didnt realize this and used my forbidden on the aztec capital but all of my captured zulus cities are pretty useless. Communism can help this but then you get a lot of corruption in the cities near the palaces oh well... I will previal over the americans!

 

[Thunderfall]

Courthouse is useless. In Civ2 it halves the corruption, In civ3 it probably reduces corruption by 5%.

I got my first Great Leader at around 1450 AD. I chose to use it to rush build Forbidden City in Tenochtlan instead of creating an army. All the cities around Tenochtilan have much lower corruption after that. Now Tenochtilan (size 12) is producing 13 useable shields per turn. (used to be only 1 shield) I think having 5 or 6 productive cities is more important than 1 army.

Here is a screenshot of Persepolis in 1525 AD:

4 wonders built and another one is almost finished.

http://www.civfanatics.com/civ3images/gotm/persepolis1525ad.jpg

 

[Serg]

Thunderfall, why on your histgraph there arn't other 2 civs? Must be 6 civs or not?
I'm at 330BC now and triggered to the GA. This is my first Civ3 game and it's very hard to play although I'm a leader. Why when I've been discovering the Plyteism and Monarchy it was taking alvews 32 turns don't depending on science resource?
At despotism cities dasn't grow over size 6, it's pitifully.

 

[Serg]

At 10AD I've got 5 cities, 2 Wonders and Score=184(First).

 

[Serg]

At 210AD I've got 9 cities, 2 Wonders and Score=208(First). Some turn before I killed Aztecks. Go to Babylonian.

 

[Thunderfall]

Thunderfall, why on your histgraph there arn't other 2 civs? Must be 6 civs or not?

I have no idea.. maybe it only shows the known Civs. I found the Iroquois and the Americans much later...

 

[Lord Oden]

IS anyone else having trouble keeping and holding a city after capture? all mine are being "re-liberated"

The aztec capital was reclamed with 2 revolters eventhough i had 8 immortals and 6 capatults based there!! I lost my entire army to a couple of pissed civilians
where is the since in that?

I have even lost towns with no revolters and just a couple of content workers.

I became piss and i just raze each town from there on. Killed them all men women and children. Man those Aztec are annoying to deal with.

Has anyone had any success with holding captured citys? Is there a good ratio of troops to revolters to hold a city?

Anyways I have been having more trouble holding cities that capturing them. oh well.

Let me know if yall have the same problem

 

[Thunderfall]

I became piss and i just raze each town from there on. Killed them all men women and children. Man those Aztec are annoying to deal with.

Bad idea to raze all the captured cities. After you capture a city, you should leave the city empty and station one military unit outside, preferrably a veteran immortal unit. This way you can take it back the next turn when the city defects back to its former owner. (The city usually has a spearman, so 1 vet immortal is enough to take it back)

Since you only need one unit to "guard" the captured city, you can move the rest of your troops to capture nearby cities. You can safely fortify troops in the city you catured ealier once the nearby cities are under your control.

 

[jeff]

holding the cities is based entirely on culture it seems. The first city I had turned sides but after that no more did because I took some prtective measures. Make sure the city wont go into disorder once the resisters are crushed by taking some of your workers off and making them entertainers and then hurry a temple asap. It doesnt matter how many troops you have there but I think it does matter how many forgien workers. Make sure you take cities that arent surrounded by other cities but thats pretty commonsense. I always bombard a city's pop down before a takeover. culture is a big thing in this game thats for sure, religous civ's have the defensive advantage it seems. The histograph only shows known civs thats why in the beginning you cant view the histograph.

 

[sekong]

I'm at arround 1200AD, scores arround 400+(first).

Aztec declared war on me early, then I had Immortal. I lost one small city, then I gain it back plus another Aztect size one city. When troops of Immortal piling next to the size 7 Aztec captial. I asked their idea about peace. They offered 2 worker and polytheism for it. I agreed. Persian was in peace since then. Soon we know how to write and build Embassy with Aztec, and agreed on Right of Passage. Soon, we build road to Aztec. I selled fur to them for 1 gold per turn.( I raised it later).
About the time Persian was researching Literature, Aztect and Babylonian were at war. I decided to watch. It ended after years. Then we began to trading fur with Babylonian for incense. Later, we import wine from American, spice from Iroquois, but in much higher price. I offered Iroquois fur plus Engineering, American with fur plus dye.
BTW, I think my trade advisor is a great fortune-teller. He can prodict what's the fate of my offer with 100% accuracy. Every time, when he said "it probably Ok", it means it will be OK.

Another important event was that a size 4 Babylonian joined us from Island Iron. Island Iron is a middle size island with 3 iron 1 gold and at least one horse on it. They wish to have more access to the library in our Horseville town, I guess. Island Iron is even more crowdy now, with American joined the party from North. Now it hosts 4 civs, including Aztec, American, Babylonian, Persian; 6 cities, including 3 of us. However, We are controling all 3 irons, with a colony at north.
Game is tedious. Victory end is still far. We need some music, and we get it. One wonder related to it is under construction...( Maybe continued )

 

[Malys Faisent]

Egads, this was my first GOTM and I didn't fare that well (hell I didn't even bother to submit it)

I feel I got a little burnt by the way Culture works in the game.

I got nothing from the first hut, and barbs from the south hut, I quickly built two cities to my north and marched south to meet up with the Aztecs, I conquered one of their cities right off, built a long road to it and a colony on the horses and iron resources. Then I built a huge army of Immortals (10 I think, at least 9) and marched down to claim their capitol and get the Oracle. I met and smashed a Zulu village that was directly to the south of the Aztec capital to use as a base and invaded, I took over the Oracle without a single loss!!?! Pretty much every city I owned (7 at the time) had only one defender...I was entirely on an expansionist kick).

I stationed my entire army of 10 Immortals in the Aztec capital to stop them from resisting quicker, which it did in 2 turns (size 5-6 city at the time)...I thought I was going to be able to waste the remaining Aztecs in about 10 turns and mop up on any Zulu's that wandered by...much to my complete disappointment, dismay, disaster, and any other dis that you can come up with the Aztec capitol switched back and I lost my entire army in one turn...I had close to double (if not more) military units in the capitol than people to keep the peace, and the only real culture improving thing the Aztecs had was in my hands...I couldn't believe at how devestating the switch was...I lost SO much in one turn when I was basically going to drive the Aztecs into extermination...to give you a feel I went straight for immortals and then immediately switched to a war footing...I didn't bother with building anything but temples and barracks in all my cities (makes me wonder why the Aztec culture was so much better than mine...it was only slightly better!)

Regardless, with the loss of my armies and being only slightly defended I was pretty much doomed...I think I could have held them for awhile at the small section of land that joined the north to the south (where the horses were) but it was a losing position regardless of how you sliced it. Jaguar warriors and Impis would have been the end of my empire...all because of one random chance roll that didn't go my way.

Sigh, maybe next month.