faster civilization advances

[abby]

Hi-
I have looked around a bit and haven't found a good answer to my problem - other civilizations always seem to acquire advances faster than me! I build libraries, universites, etc. and create scientists and put 100% of my budget onto civ. advances. Is there something I'm missing?

Thanks...

 

[troopper5]

There surely isn't a good answer to this question.

But it's about all up to you: build build build, and try to defend and attack your neighbours at same time. Usually when I play, I use capital quite long time as "settler base", so I won't build any improvements to there, until I've got a nice territory. Then I build granary, and settlers, settlers.... Other towns can be used to train military, workers and other settlers....

 

[sealman]

abby:

The AI tends to trade techs amongts themselves so it appears that they are researching them faster. It is most likely the scientific AI civs (who i believe research a little faster) who research and trade to the others.

If you would care to post a save game, I am sure some of our experts here can take a look and offer some more advice. Otherwise, I think that there may be some research articles over in the strategy section of this site.

 

[ManOfMiracles]

What difficulty level are you playing. The AI research faster at higher levels.

Build an army of workers and improve the squares ASAP. Roads will increase your gold so you can speed up research. Early in the game you will probably want 2-3 workers for every three cities.

Switch citizens in highly corrupt cities to scientists for an extra boost.

 

[troopper5]

Oh, also YOU will research faster on higher difficulties...
I'm not sure about this, but when I play on chieftain, it takes me to year 800 A.D. to get to medieval. Harder difficulties I'm there much faster.

Tell me if I'm wrong.

 

[Black_Hole]

at chieftan to warlord you are ususually ahead of the ai, at regent to monarch you are usually head to head and above that you have to trade, trade, trade to even be kneck and kneck

also it helps to get a tech that no one else has and sell it to everyone

 

[troopper5]

Maybe I should change my tactic... To this time, I've usually never traded techs with other civs... Always developed them on my own.

 

[Psychonaut777]

As you get to higher difficulties you'll find that you have a harder and harder time keeping up. You'll have to find all kinds of sneaky ways to get techs, from waging war and then getting techs in return for peace or buying them for gold/turn etc etc. Also, if figure out what paths the different AI's tend to research before others, you can keep ahead by getting the one's they don't then trading all over.

Also, never make a trade when it is offered on an AI's turn. If you give one AI a map, contact, or tech on their turn, by your turn they will all have it. Always make deals on your turn and try to get as much as you can from each civ for the one item, even if it isn't much, that way another civ doesn't get an advantage.

Also, keep all contacts to yourself. If you can keep the civs from contacting each other you hold all the advantage as the middleman - do this by cutting continents in half with your borders or units or by cutting off sea passages in the early ages with ships.

=)

 

[MSTK]

Remember - the more cities, the more research.

The "average" is about 10 cities by the end of expansion phase.

 

[troopper5]

Err, what's an expansion phase? :?

 

[abby]

Thanks for the advice... I did notice that all the AIs had the same advances and if I research something different then they all want to trade with me. I just started a new game with a scientific civ and am going to try to stay ahead this time with the civ advances. I am only playing on warlord so i can imagine how much trouble I am going to have if i play at a higher level.

 

[JMK]

Thanks for the advice... I did notice that all the AIs had the same advances and if I research something different then they all want to trade with me. I just started a new game with a scientific civ and am going to try to stay ahead this time with the civ advances. I am only playing on warlord so i can imagine how much trouble I am going to have if i play at a higher level.

If you play on warlord, I would suggest you to play an expensionist Civ and build a few Scouts let say 3 at first then a granary then a settler and a worker. try to have twice as much as morkers you have city. then build more scouts from the second city and expend.
During the expension phase, if you have room to expend, build worker, settler and warrior (do not build Spearman they are too expensive), set your research on 100% and try to go to Republic as fast as you can, if you meet another civ try to trade. Once you discovered Republic revolt the same turn. Once you are a Republic adjust your luxury slide to make sure all citizen are at work and no city will revolt.

 

[DreadCthulhu]

Err, what's an expansion phase? :?

The expansion phase of the game is right at the beginning, when you & all the AIs are trying to settle all available land with cities. The expansion phase ends when all the land is occupied by various Civs.

 

[Lennon]

The expansion phase of the game is right at the beginning, when you & all the AIs are trying to settle all available land with cities. The expansion phase ends when all the land is occupied by various Civs.

Also known as the frustration phase, when your warriors get their butts kicked by barbs, your goody huts give you useless stuff and your neighbours reach all the luxuries before you do... Oh well, maybe it's just me trying to reach for more than I can carry. I had to quit a game last night because I was tired, hungry and upset. I had TWO luxuries, but just because I hadn't got one single tech from goody huts (I was expanionist so I got them all with scouts) and Greece beat me by one tiny turn to settle a field of four ivory tiles I called it quits with a roar. Hate myself sometimes, that really should have been considered a pretty good start...