Everything I have needed to know in life, I learned from Civ 4 tech quotes

[Bostock]

Does anybody else treat the tech quotes a bit like -- to stretch the word a bit -- koans regarding strategy, to be pondered and mined for wisdom?

Here are some examples of what I'm thinking of:

"If you chase two rabbits, you will lose them both." If (on a level that actually challenges you) you try to achieve two major goals at once, you will fail at both. Focus!

"You should hammer your iron while it is glowing hot." Hey builderfreak (dat's me!), when you get a military tech advantage like that Iron you may have just popped, then for God's sake USE IT before it expires!

"Do not throw the arrow which will return against you." If you are going to head on the warpath, be sure your plan is not one that will turn right back around to hit you in the face.

"Meditation brings wisdom. Lack of meditation brings milk and cookies. They stay for tea." Wait, that isn't it...

"Meditation brings wisdom. Lack of meditation brings ignorance. Know well what brings you forward, and what holds you back." Having cities capped at e.g. size 5 will lead to a much better "wisdom" rate than cities capped at size 4. Maybe building a monastery and missionaries will bring you forward. But maybe it will hold you back. (Say, you already have gold, furs, and silver -- in that case, what's the point?) In either case, know well!

There are more, but perhaps this kind of thinking doesn't interest anyone, so I'll leave it at this for now.

 

[NcNikke]

I haven't really thought of them strategically (did I get that right?) I just think they're entertaining.

 

[Neal]

I'll bite.

"I got pig iron, I got pig iron, I got all pig iron!" Pig iron is iron, but it's crappy, brittle iron with few real uses. Be careful not to enter into military alliances or defensive pacts with civilizations that aren't able to hold up their end of the bargain.

"Beep.... Beep.... Beep.... Beep...." Always remember that, in single player, your opponent is a computer. Its decisions are all algorithms and programming. In other words, underneath all of the fluff, it is predictable. Plan your battles accordingly.

 

[Jerrymander]

"Compound interest is the most powerful force in the universe."

 

[Bostock]

"Compound interest is the most powerful force in the universe."

So true. So, so true.

 

[Artichoker]

I have one word for you...

Spoiler :

Plastics!

 

[Zanttu]

"Do not throw the arrow which will return against you."

I think this as a diplomatic hint. Don't make your neighbours angry if you don't seek for a war.

I have actually those voices turned off, partly because I get bored to them and because I usually listen to music while playing.

 

[Defiant47]

"You can get more of what you want with a kind word and a gun, than you can with just a kind word" - Al Capone

Self-explanatory

 

[Commodore Nate]

"Beep.... Beep.... Beep.... Beep...." Always remember that, in single player, your opponent is a computer. Its decisions are all algorithms and programming. In other words, underneath all of the fluff, it is predictable. Plan your battles accordingly.

Aw you stole mine.

"The engineer knows he has achieved perfection, not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

Same is true of writing when you don't have anymore red marks after 40 drafts.

 

[Bandobras Took]

I AM the State.

Don't be afraid to be a tyrant if you want to win.

 

[Jerrymander]

"You can get more of what you want with a kind word and a gun, than you can with just a kind word" - Al Capone

Self-explanatory

"Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun." - Mao Tsetung

:3

 

[Neal]

Alright, a few more.

"The real problem is not whether machines think, but whether men do." This is a particular problem of mine. In the mid- to late-game, it's easy to zone out and go on autopilot. All the while, your computer opponents are still chugging along, making the best decisions they can. Pay attention! Don't rest on your laurels! Think!

"Before that steam drill shall beat me down, I'll die with my hammer in my hand." Technological progress is nice, but even an obsolete army can cause problems if backed by overwhelming numbers and a willingness to use them. Don't assume that just because you have riflemen to their longbows that conquest is a fait accompli.

"The wisest men follow their own direction." The community here is knowledgeable, experienced, and eager to offer advice, but they're no substitute for rolling up your sleeves and learning from your own mistakes. After all, we learn more from failure than from success.

 

[AbbieRevo]

"Banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies." - The Economy is the basis of everything you do. Don't neglect it.

I've had some of my best economies playing as Toku, because I know I have no economic advantages so I try extra hard to make sure I plant those cottages early.

 

[URSExelcior]

"The future will be better tomorrow." -Dan Quayle

 

[r_rolo1]

"You can't trust a computer you can't throw out of a window"

This is, never expect that a strong AI will save you when you're in a bad time ( in a very creative intrepertation )

 

[NcNikke]

"The designer knows he has achieved perfection, not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."
.

Fixed that for you

 

[Bleys]

"Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime"

Its one of my favorite quotes of all time, I was quite pleased to see it in this game, and in a tech that everyone gets every single game.

Slightly off-topic, there is another story I like to tell people. Its about a man who decided to go for a walk on a beach, when he noticed an unusually high tide had washed thousands of starfish up on the beach, too far to get back into the water. The man thought nothing of it, and continued his walk, when he noticed another man down the beach a ways throwing something into the water. As the first man got closer, he noticed the second man was picking up the starfish and throwing them back into the sea. He approached the man, and said "What are you doing?". The second man answered "These starfish washed up on the beach, and they will die if they dont get back into the water". The first man said "There are thousands of them though, how can you possibly make a difference?" The second man picked up another starfish, tossed it into the ocean, and said:

"Made a difference to that one."

 

[LiberiGlacialis]

"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will lose both and deserve neither." - Benjamin Franklin, Liberalism

Don't give up an option just to gain a little security from something. You lose that option now, and the "security" later.

 

[PaulusIII]

"You can't direct the wind, but you can adjust your sails" - Even with the best diplomacy in the world, you cannot expect to fully control every AI's diplomatic move or DoW's. Instead, adapt to crazy actions and use them to your advantage.

"Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be a vulgar brawl" - Don't forget to bring along siege units.

 

[Jaaboo]

"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will lose both and deserve neither." - Benjamin Franklin, Liberalism

One of my favorite quotes of all time and quite applicable in this day and age no? Sadly not quite so applicable in game unless you're talking about losing the lib race trying to be greedy or some other stretch. Ruling with an iron fist is fairly effective when you cannot be overthrown by your people.

I just like that they got Leonard Nimoy to do all the quotes (except for the new BtS techs). It adds a lot more gravity and solemnity to them. (Except maybe the line from The Graduate and "Beep. Beep. Beep.")

The quotes aren't always a good thing though. I tend to puff my chest out a bit too much after teching Construction; "And on the pedestal these words appeared; Behold! My name is Ozymandius, King of Kings. Look upon my works ye mighty and dispair." I imagine myself as a King of Kings while building a couple dozen cats, when I should be heeding the advice about throwing arrows.