We're all here because we lust after progress, aren't we?
I play the game because I want to prove myself as an administrator of society, and i go all the way to the end. i lust for every new advancement and every sort of progress. everything that yeilds exponential gains makes me salivate.
I like to build and create. I like civilization. What i lust after in real life are future techs that i can see emerging. why not throw progress lovers a bone and give them what they want without the wait? it's tantalizing.
There is no such thing as an age in Civ 4, only technologies. So my suggestion is, why don't we recommend techs and advancements in this thread?
and i have a few i would like to recommend.
Tech: nanotube mass production. it could allow better building construction (less time for all buildings), and ALL KINDS of other applications. it could allow the construction of SKYHOOK wonder. skyhook is a real concept that would allow ultra-cheap transport for heavy things to space orbit. it really does require nanotubes. in real life skyhook would be the greatest and most profoundly world-changing wonder ever constructed, and launching the heavy cable would be the greatest non-war effort ever attempted by a civilization.
Tech: kinetic cannon. ships can be upgraded to use kinetic energy artillery, which use a metal slug sliding on long rods driven by electricity only, and thrown high into the atmosphere before vaporizing their targets. the pentagon is developing these, but the rods keep melting due to the massive current used. they'll get it right soon. the artillery can reach farther than any other artillery and uses less cargo space and raw materials (simply using the energy from the ship's nuclear reactor). I recommend that ships outfitted this way have stronger and more far reaching bombard. perhaps 3 or 4 tiles.
Tech: vacuum magnetic levitation trains. these Maglev tunnels would allow incredible speeds of travel as if it is no big deal. without friction mach 7 is not expensive for a maglev. construction cost is high, but we could have it today if Bush hadn't spent more than the money it would've taken for a NewYork-London-submerged-4000mph-maglev, ON a pointless war.
As i understand it, the railroads in Civ 4 are probably not going to be unlimited movement, unlike civ 3. so what i recommend is that the Airless Maglev tech either automatically upgrade, or with some additional worker action, upgrade railroads to this, giving instantaneous and unlimited movement. NY-London would take an hour in real life.
i don't like the idea of laser troops because i don't see that as being realistic. however,
Tech: defensive laser canon. we already have one or two of these and we should transport it to the green zone in baghdad but they're slow about it. this can detect and shoot down barrages of mortars and cruise missiles and even planes that come within 5 miles of it. if stationary, it can just be plugged into the electricity grid. it's a pretty good air defense. it cannot stop ballistic nuclear missiles or kinetic artillery slugs--that's just real life. it can destroy any other kind of artillery or missile though. each system currently costs 25 million.
these could add a lot to the gameplay and the incentive to keep advancing as the game goes on, and i open it up to any suggestions anyone else might have.
), copying and pasting all of your replies into one post will make for a less cluttered thread.
I did ignore a lot of laser issues in the post, but I do recall issues on penetration, actual physical damage to targetted object.EDIT Duh, obvious Lasers impart sod all kinetic energy and essentially rely on heating the target, so if missile's explosives/fuel can be ignited it works, its a lot harder for other targets though
