Welcome to the forums, Magnus of Borg
You obviously did a kickstart into cIV.
Did you read through the forum a bit?
There are many good guides out there...
To answer some of your questions :
1) happiness at low level isn't a problem
At prince it becomes a bigger problem. At emperor+, it's really the biggest early issue IMHO.
And if you don't regenerate the map, it can be a real issue on prince too...
2) Starting position is very important, but you don't know it all in the first glance. An isolated start is really not the same game. A tundra start or a jungle start are 2 different games. I like to play the hand I'm dealt.
3) Lions are early barbarians. Animals don't enter your cultural territory. So the best early tactic is to keep the workers in your culutral borders (there is enough to do!) or protected by warriors...
After a while barbarian waqrriors/archers/axemen show up. The most effective strat is fog busting, since keeping away the fog of war prevents barbs from popping.
Keeping immortals in place of archers for city defence is a good move. Keeping a basic chariot isn't. The immortals benefit from terrain defense, while other chariots don't.
4) optimal tech path = the one that keeps you going. You need worker techs, you need military techs (BW!), you need economic techs (writing, currency, Code of Laws)...
There is no always good techpath, but the most common ones lead through BW and alphabet (required to extort techs from AI). Founding a religion isn't a bad move (if you start with mysticism), it's a long term strat.
5) many cities hurt you in the beginning, but are worth it in the long run. With trade routes and a few cottages, a city is often worth the maintenance. You must beware of too many cities before you have currency and CoL.
6) culture expands the borders.
Sources of culture : creative traits, buildings, commerce + culture slider, religions, building culture, specialists.
A monument is the cheapest way (except building stonehenge when you have 4+ cities) to have little of it, religions are even better in some circumstances (let them spread freely, and it costs 0).
I still favour a library, because it's not a "just for culture" building. It gives also a bit of science and allows 2 scientists.
7) early wars are certainly worth it. If you cannot efficiently finish a neighbour, peace for a few techs is a good deal. construction isn't that far away, if you extort masonry and maths
8) Marathon makes everything 3 times as costly. Play a normal speed game.
9) Military advisors in a specialized military city can give you level 4 units right out of barracks. Or even level 5, with West Point and theocracy or vassalage. + they give 3 beakers each under representation.
10) You need to build a strategy for your promotions. One medic / stack is required (not really a rule, but if you don't do it, the price is high). Conquering cities is easier with CR (duh!), defending your stack is easier with either a good terrain promotion (guerilla on hills, woodsman on forrest) or combat, or combat + anti something. I like to have a spear with antimounted, an axe with antimelee, a medic, and a lot of CR catapults. But that's just my style.
11) conquering capitals requires :
- a lot of troops
- some sacrificial ones
You can lure out troops, but it's a little "cheap" IMHO.
With a ratio of 3 to 1 troops, you should be able to capture a capital.
My guess it to send immortals with flanking I and II first.
Loads of those.
7 defenders require at least 8 or 9 semisacrificial immortals.
Why those? because when they flee, they earn xp and the defender doesn't
.
If it's on a hill, double this.
14 immortals to soften up those defenders, then a few to fight so so fights. Then assault troops.
You will lose 7 to 10 immortals, which is a lot but not more than what the AI will lose.
12) Tech extortion : you need to know alphabet (or to attack someone who does), you need to hurt him a lot, and you need to face someone actually willing to trade techs = not tokugawa.
You obviously did a kickstart into cIV.
Did you read through the forum a bit?
There are many good guides out there...
To answer some of your questions :
1) happiness at low level isn't a problem
At prince it becomes a bigger problem. At emperor+, it's really the biggest early issue IMHO.
And if you don't regenerate the map, it can be a real issue on prince too...
2) Starting position is very important, but you don't know it all in the first glance. An isolated start is really not the same game. A tundra start or a jungle start are 2 different games. I like to play the hand I'm dealt.
3) Lions are early barbarians. Animals don't enter your cultural territory. So the best early tactic is to keep the workers in your culutral borders (there is enough to do!) or protected by warriors...
After a while barbarian waqrriors/archers/axemen show up. The most effective strat is fog busting, since keeping away the fog of war prevents barbs from popping.
Keeping immortals in place of archers for city defence is a good move. Keeping a basic chariot isn't. The immortals benefit from terrain defense, while other chariots don't.
4) optimal tech path = the one that keeps you going. You need worker techs, you need military techs (BW!), you need economic techs (writing, currency, Code of Laws)...
There is no always good techpath, but the most common ones lead through BW and alphabet (required to extort techs from AI). Founding a religion isn't a bad move (if you start with mysticism), it's a long term strat.
5) many cities hurt you in the beginning, but are worth it in the long run. With trade routes and a few cottages, a city is often worth the maintenance. You must beware of too many cities before you have currency and CoL.
6) culture expands the borders.
Sources of culture : creative traits, buildings, commerce + culture slider, religions, building culture, specialists.
A monument is the cheapest way (except building stonehenge when you have 4+ cities) to have little of it, religions are even better in some circumstances (let them spread freely, and it costs 0).
I still favour a library, because it's not a "just for culture" building. It gives also a bit of science and allows 2 scientists.
7) early wars are certainly worth it. If you cannot efficiently finish a neighbour, peace for a few techs is a good deal. construction isn't that far away, if you extort masonry and maths
8) Marathon makes everything 3 times as costly. Play a normal speed game.
9) Military advisors in a specialized military city can give you level 4 units right out of barracks. Or even level 5, with West Point and theocracy or vassalage. + they give 3 beakers each under representation.
10) You need to build a strategy for your promotions. One medic / stack is required (not really a rule, but if you don't do it, the price is high). Conquering cities is easier with CR (duh!), defending your stack is easier with either a good terrain promotion (guerilla on hills, woodsman on forrest) or combat, or combat + anti something. I like to have a spear with antimounted, an axe with antimelee, a medic, and a lot of CR catapults. But that's just my style.
11) conquering capitals requires :
- a lot of troops
- some sacrificial ones
You can lure out troops, but it's a little "cheap" IMHO.
With a ratio of 3 to 1 troops, you should be able to capture a capital.
My guess it to send immortals with flanking I and II first.
Loads of those.
7 defenders require at least 8 or 9 semisacrificial immortals.
Why those? because when they flee, they earn xp and the defender doesn't
.If it's on a hill, double this.
14 immortals to soften up those defenders, then a few to fight so so fights. Then assault troops.
You will lose 7 to 10 immortals, which is a lot but not more than what the AI will lose.
12) Tech extortion : you need to know alphabet (or to attack someone who does
), you need to hurt him a lot, and you need to face someone actually willing to trade techs = not tokugawa.
