Damn... Commerce SUX!

[FredLC]

Is it just me, or you guys are also having trouble with the 1.17?

I don't mean the techs exchange question, that one is hopeless spoiled and little people seens to disagree on that. My problem is that, since after the patch, all my alternative sources of gold are gone.

Exchanging my techs is now useless, because it's the same of giving them away. I have a short lead, and selling them is equal of making everybody in the world a close match with the new patch.

So, i figured... let's expand. I'll get loads of resources, and sell them at diabolical prices to get all the money to me.

BUT, in my 1th game... i couldn't sell a thing. EVERYBODY had all the resources i had to spare.

It's a coincidence, i said... let me try again. But in my new game, situation was just a little better, i could sell horses to the germans, but they weren't interested in paying much for them.

I tryed again several times, and it's no good. despited the fact that i, very commonly, have several sources of iron and coal and saltpeter and wine and gems.... nobody wants to buy them.

So, i have to get the money the hard way, and i am never able to really get a huge treasure.

Are you guys having that same problem?

Regards .

 

[damunzy]

I am having the same problems but I think it has more to do with my inability to play the game after the patch.

 

[solarjetman]

In the games I've played (on Regent) it has seemed as if I'm always behind the AI in techs in the ancient era. But the nice thing about the ancient era is you don't really NEED the tech all that badly. You need Iron Working for Swordsmen, and Pottery for Granaries, and Literature for the Great Library...but in my experience I can get by without:
Mysticism
Polytheism
Horseback Riding (if I have iron)
Philosophy
Mathematics
Currency
Construction
Code of Laws to a lesser extent

I mean sure, these are all nice, but what I want in the ancient era is to crush my nearby enemies, and what do I need to do that? Cities, workers, barracks, and swordsmen. When I've brought my nearest neighbor to his knees, I just demand all the techs he's got that I haven't discovered -- and since the AI players trade tech between themselves so much, this gets me caught up with everybody.

Alternatively, you can just concentrate on getting the Great Library built (since you can start it before discovering Literature just by starting either a Palace or the Pyramids), and then even if you're behind in science, contact two civs and you're fine.

The long and short of it is, half the ancient era techs are only good for getting you out of the ancient era -- so as long as you get them, somehow, before the enemy AI gets Knights and Pikemen, you're in good shape. If at some point during this period you're 5 techs behind, that's perfectly OK.

And I've found that once I get caught up in the middle ages, I stay caught up -- in fact in my current Regent game, I just discovered Motorized Transportation, and the rest of the civs are still working on Combustion and Scientific Method.

So for making money, go ahead and jack up your taxes early on to get some cash flow, and if you grab enough territory you can keep your taxes high without getting behind on research. Especially if you skip a lot of optional middle age tech....for example, I usually don't want go go democracy until after I've leveled a few opponents with tanks....so why bother researching Printing Press?