Cottage Rush? Do worker first strategies work?

[DarkSchneider]

I got a start on a Monarch game, playing as Hannibal, that I was initially going to discard. I was all alone on an Island, with a great start, but only two decent spots for expansions. Then I remembered that I was playing with tech trading turned off. So I decided to use the start as an experiment, and try playing the same start a number of different ways to see the outcomes.

Well first of all, I decided that I would try to found an early religion, and I wanted to see if I could found judism. My initial start had four floodplains, a sheep, a pig and a number of forests/rivers and hills.

The first game I tried building a warrior first, letting the city grow to size 3. Then I built a worker, and teched to Animal Husbandry. I built pastures on the sheep and pig and then teched to pottery for cottages that I built with the second worker. After that I beelined to Monotheism, but was beat by the AI.

The second game I built the warrior first, and grew to size 3 like before. This time however, I teched to pottery first, and built the cottages, researched animal husbandy and beelined to Monotheism. I was still beaten by the computer, but it was much closer. I was researching monotheism when I got beat.

The third game, I built the worker first, teched to cottages, then husbandry and then beelined to monotheism. I was successful in founding Judism first, and the economy for that first city was just killer.

I wonder, assuming you have an isolated start, is doing a cottage rush always a viable option with a Financial player? It sure seemed to be in this game.

 

[DaveMcW]

If you want Monotheism, you should beeline and get cottages/pastures later. Build a warrior and settler while you're waiting.

 

[cabert]

If you want Monotheism, you should beeline and get cottages/pastures later. Build a warrior and settler while you're waiting.

so true!
What good is it to research pottery before monotheism if the target is monotheism ?

+ you start with fishing, so you can just work water tiles

 

[DarkSchneider]

The point of doing the cottages early is that they grow! Then you use the extra income from the cottages to fuel the rest of your technological growth. With financial, a cottage next to a river immediately starts producing an extra 2 commerce a turn, which becomes 3 commerce a few turns later. If I wanted to get an early religion directly, I would have gone for Hindusim like I usually do.

Also my starting spot had no ocean access, so I couldn't try a work-boat start.

 

[Nacht]

The growth of those cottages will help you research Divine Right, not monotheism.

 

[Pete2006]

Worker first is the correct start in 9/10 games.

 

[DaveMcW]

In your specific case, I would build:
Warrior
Worker (mine while waiting for techs)

While researching:
Mysticism
Polytheism (religion!)
The Wheel
Pottery
Agriculture
Animal Husbandry
Masonry
Monotheism

 

[DarkSchneider]

The other thing I keep thinking, which I mentioned in another post. If worker first is, indeed the correct starting build, that means that on Monarch and above the computer gets something like a 17 turn headstart on you, since you are building a worker for 17 turns without growing your city, and the computer gets a worker from the start for free!

 

[Dirk1302]

Worker first is the correct start in 9/10 games.

Agreed, i think there are 2 general exceptions,
-A start with 2 or more seafood i go fishing and build 2+ boats, great for early research.

-Financial leader + a bunch of floodplains, then i start wheel, pottery while building warrior/scout(unless i start with mining then it's worker first again). a worker would have nothing to do.

 

[Nacht]

-A start with 2 or more seafood i go fishing and build 2+ boats, great for early research.

why not with only one seafood? I even put 0F/3H tiles into use, thus halting growth to get them. Growth is useless unless there are improved tiles to be worked.

 

[Dirk1302]

One seafood depends on the rest of the capital, if you've corn and cow for instance i'd leave fishing for a while and go for ag/ah and worker first to work these tiles asap. Growth is useless when you get over the happiness cap but with slavery you churn out settlers and workers fast. One seafood and one normal food resource is rare, there must be compensation in floodplain then so i'd go worker first probably.

 

[InvisibleStalke]

Pottery first is my plan for financial as long as I can get river cottages. Getting several +3 commerce tiles up early greatly speeds your early research. On Monarch and even Emperor there is usually enough time to do this and then get military techs.

But I don't beeline pottery with a non financial civ - I'd rather get the specials worked and beeline the appropriate techs for those based on my starting location - and I prioritize Bronzeworking higher.

Worker first always unless:
1) The worker wouldn't have anything to do when I get my first tech and has to wait until my second - in which case I build warrior first and switch to worker at size two.
2) Have fishing and seafood, since sea tiles give you commerce and food in a nice package. Then use the growth from seafood to whip the first worker.

 

[joza]

i completely agree with invisiblestalke...
i do exactly the same and it works great unless i don't get killed by barbs to early

 

[thadian]

If your like me and always seem to start in the middle of the jungle without BW, then your just screwed. In all other cases, worker first if you have things to improve right away, otherwise, make your worker, then when almost done, queue it and work on the warrior.

When you finish your tech that will let you make improvements, finish the worker, until then, keep making warriors.

Also, you can queue 2 workers in this fashion and build nothing but military until your ready for another city.

 

[thadian]

Oh, and always turn off those dumb barbarians on difficulties above noble. ON monarch and prince, they will come in with axemen when you have no defenses.

below that you almost need them there just to keep things interesting, but unless your playing Quecha rush, always turn barb off.

 

[popejubal]

Oh, and always turn off those dumb barbarians on difficulties above noble. ON monarch and prince, they will come in with axemen when you have no defenses.

below that you almost need them there just to keep things interesting, but unless your playing Quecha rush, always turn barb off.

I like Barbarians. They're the reminder that I'm not just a blind turtle playing in my own sandbox. If I don't play the game agressively, someone is going to come take my empire away from me.

 

[LuckyAC]

Turn off enemy AIs on higher levels too, they make it harder. I just like to sit in an empty world and build things, not play Civilization IV

 

[thadian]

nice mockery but different ends call for different means. If your adjusting to a new difficulty, or are testing a new theory they arent needed.

I turn them off because i normally get barb rushed right off the bat and have no means to defend myself with on monarch. Even if i make 3 warriors before going worker-settler-worker i still either underproduce and get mauled or overproduce and get bad economy.

Yes, i need to get it down better before i try a higher difficulty or try MP. As for the enemy AI's, i set the enemy AI to diety, used worldbuilder to give myself the same "abundance" it gets, and learned its not any smarter - just has better research and start.

Also, cottage rush depends. Are you along a river? Do you have the starting techs to research and get it going right away? by all means. If not, aim for a religion. Opposed to saying "im going to play cottage rush, Buddah-Christan-Islam founder, axer etc etc... Look at your starting position, it will tell you real fast what you will need to play.

Pope, Do you like barbarians regular or raging? I used raging a lot on the first 2 difficulties, but then the enemy AI would march in with 14 super promo sterioid troop armies and great generals...

 

[futurehermit]

Barbs are not so bad on monarch. Just build your first city right next to copper or horses and you are fine. And don't delay getting your first city out. No barbs makes things too easy early on.

 

[Dirk1302]

Pottery first is my plan for financial as long as I can get river cottages. Getting several +3 commerce tiles up early greatly speeds your early research. On Monarch and even Emperor there is usually enough time to do this and then get military techs.

But I don't beeline pottery with a non financial civ - I'd rather get the specials worked and beeline the appropriate techs for those based on my starting location - and I prioritize Bronzeworking higher.

Worker first always unless:
1) The worker wouldn't have anything to do when I get my first tech and has to wait until my second - in which case I build warrior first and switch to worker at size two.
2) Have fishing and seafood, since sea tiles give you commerce and food in a nice package. Then use the growth from seafood to whip the first worker.

I play exactly the same in these situations