Featured Game 4 Pre-Discussion

Thalassicus

Thalassicus

Bytes and Nibblers
Joined
Nov 9, 2005
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Location
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Download Game 4
(or download an alternative with combat animations)
​


This thread is to discuss strategies ahead of time for the Game 4 start location. Please DO NOT post details here after you start. Discuss games in progress in the two spoiler threads above.


Game 4 Start Location

featured4a.png
featured4b.png


​

  • King difficulty.
  • Normal speed.
  • Normal map size (8 players).
  • Modified Continents-Plus map.
  • Default advanced game options.
  • Any victory type allowed except Time.
  • Elizabeth of England:
    • +30:c5war: experience for ships.
    • Steam Mill replaces Workshop, with +1 :c5production::c5gold: on Luxury Resources.
    • Longbow replaces Crossbow, with +1 range -3:c5rangedstrength: strength and indirect fire.

No paid DLCs will be used for this game. Before the game starts on Friday, take 2 quick steps to temporarily disable any paid DLCs you have:

  1. On the Windows desktop create a folder "DLC - Backup."
  2. Move paid DLCs* to the backup folder from:
    C:\Games\Steam\steamapps\common\sid meier's civilization v\Assets\DLC
*The Shared folder and DLC_01 (free Mongolia pack) must remain installed.

Continents-Plus has better islands and offshore citystates than Continents maps. If you like the maps used for VEM Featured Games, I highly recommend downloading the Explorers DLC for the capability to use the Continents-Plus and Pangaea-Plus map scripts in your own games. It's by far the best DLC for Civ 5. These map scripts quickly became my favorites in the Civilization series, and provide better VEM gameplay than standard maps.
 

Attachments

Wow, nice starting spot. I will settle in place, rush buy a worker ASAP and farm as much river side as possible. Start with right side of Tradition, go for the GL, and National College right after. I hope there isn't an aggressive Civ too close, will likely be neglecting a military. An archer or two and the starting warrior to protect improvements from those barbs. Expand to any nearby unique luxuries after the National College is done, perhaps delving into Liberty if there are atleast three uniques to claim.

Looks like fun!
 
Dream start setup for me. I've seen something even close to this once in hundreds of games. (I understand you modified the map to make it interesting, but just as a basis for comparison).

I would move 1 space to the southeast to found my starting city. Machu and Observatory are both still accessible at the 2 hex mountain range in version 157, and by straddling the river you can use the watermill improvement for a production kicker.

Any strategy could be workable with such a great start, but England's bonuses favor a medieval military push. At king, I find that if you don't run the tech gauntlet to Notre Dame you usually CAN'T do a big military push because happiness won't support it, so you're essentially railroaded into that, but once you can clear the happiness hurdle, then you can play as you please.
 
This start is amazing, perhaps too good - I think I'll settle in place, and given the great tiles in the third ring, will probably get up to pop 4 and grab Stonehenge. Depending on neighbors I might try a wide strat to stress-test the new science mechanics, and as noted a military push with LBs will likely be in the cards.

@Intaka, by moving SE away from the mountain you'll lose the observatory option because you'll be three tiles away, and the start currently is already riverside (check the strategic view) which I missed at first glance too, though I think it would make the start quite a bit more interesting if it weren't, there'd be some real choices to make.
 
I think the 3:c5food: coast tiles, 4:c5food: wheat, and a 3:c5food: granary will provide plenty of food. Unless I discover lots more luxuries nearby, I plan on lining the rivers with villages and fast-expanding. There's a number of good tech paths to choose from with this start:

  • Sailing - Pearls and triremes.
  • Calendar - Stonehenge to get those great 3rd ring tiles.
  • Animal H. - Sheep and horse-reveal.
  • Archery - England focuses on archers.
  • Masonry - Gems and marble (getting those will require tile purchasing, additional cities, or Stonehenge).
After those high priorities, Trade would unlock borders, roads, and the Colossus. The Wheel provides stables (sheep, possibly horses) and watermills. Bronze Working might be good for me if there's a citystate nearby to conquer with archers+spears. Optics will unlock a lighthouse, that island-ruin, and any other nearby islands.

I'll probably open with Honor to kill barbarians, then figure out if I want to go further in Honor or go for Liberty. I'll pick Honor if the start location is crowded and/or there's a close citystate to attack, and Liberty if opponents are far away with plenty of room to expand. Commerce will be a high midgame priority since we're playing England. Water gives lots of gold and matches well with Commerce's gold+naval bonuses.

My first priority will probably be the Great Lighthouse. Combine that with England's trait and a Barracks, and ships can start with 60:c5war: experience. The lighthouse will also give tons of food for the water tiles.
 
As what we can see now is so good, I'd guess the lands around it aren't as peachy. Thus, I'm thinking of moving my settler one or two North-West and thus being able to have two coastal riverside cities (3 or 4 spaces difference is enough).

First I'll move the warrior east to see if it's possible to build a third riverside city inland. This way I can decide wether to lose one turn by moving the settler over the river or not. The problem then is to get the three cities up as fast as possible (thus for me probably liberty -> Free Settler). Tech patch will be sailing to work boat the pearls and then depending on where the second city goes mining or masonry. I'm not in the mood for a conquest game, so I will probably wait with Honor.
 
Intaka said:
I would move 1 space to the southeast to found my starting city. Machu and Observatory are both still accessible at the 2 hex mountain range in version 157, and by straddling the river you can use the watermill improvement for a production kicker.
Click to expand...

If you move 1 tile South East, you'd be three tiles away from the mountain, unable to build these and the starting position is next to a river too.

I'd settle in place, go Mining, Masonry and hope one of those ruins pops a tech. Rush buy worker and purchase those tiles. Build villages on all riverside tiles. At King you could probably go for Pyramids, Great Library and maybe Collossus. Getting the 20% wonder build bonus SP is a must, so right side of Trad, then left side of Liberty for the settler, just about the same time the Pyramids finish (in my experience) and get up to three cities.
 
I stand corrected. Settle in place it is, then. If I were forced to choose, river would be the priority over the mountain access, but as you pointed out, there is a river tucked in the starting location as well.

And that is why I play with the grid overlay on, right there. ;)
 
I'll tell you one result of such a rich and varied start: these are probably the best comments I've read in all of our VEM group games.

While the Stonehenge start makes a lot of sense, I want to play a gold- and war-based mid-to-wide game with England. For this reason, first sending the warrior upriver like mitsho in order to determine whether I could build three solid cities close to each other seems most appealing. The downside is passing up a gold super-city for the ages.

Trying to stick with the plan, I would pass up Tradition (and the GLib) and go down the Liberty path, taking Honor first or second if the barb situation warrants, and otherwise passing it up. While the Pyramids are tempting for a third city, I will probably focus on the Lighthouse and Colossus.
 
I'll likely be going for Sailing first, if not very early. I'll be scouting the coast. I want to know exactly where my enemies are: With the GL and Lizzy's UA, I'll be able to conquer them via naval bombardment with ease. It will also give me access to those tasty pearls.
 
Great timing as I just started using the VEM mod. So much for me to adjust to from vanilla but I am always a sucker for a super city so would prob SIP go for SH and then take stock - either expand or plan for assault that hits the accelerator when LBs arrive

Question: Have the diplo consequences (with AI and other CS) for conquering 1 (or more) CS states been changed from vanilla at all?
 
ifinnem said:
Question: Have the diplo consequences (with AI and other CS) for conquering 1 (or more) CS states been changed from vanilla at all?
Click to expand...

It doesn't look that way. CS still band against serial aggressors, and the more peaceful AI still consider the human player a warmonger for warring.
 
There's another way to tell in normal view: the start tile has 2:c5food:, so it must be a river. :)

Seek said:
The major civ diplo hit is still there, but the hit on nearby CS is lowered in VEM.
Click to expand...

Both diplomatic penalties are lower in vem, and citystates don't declare permanent war.
 
I surely would like to download this map/starting position(it looks amazing). Im a big fan of water resources and coast cities. And the marble for the quick big lighthouse or great lib.
 
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