Civ 4 Bts, Custom Game, Continents, Huge map, Warlord level, four AI opponents. I am playing as Frederick of Germany. The only AI I can see is Manu Musa.
No matter what I do, my economy is bad. If I develop slowly, Manu SPAMS insanely building cities and gobbles up all the territory and resources. If I race him to build around the resources, my economy PLUMMETS, literally skyrockets downhill.
Something I need explained: HOW can Manu build so many cities, and STILL outrace me in technology development? HOW can his cities expand their influence so quickly, and grow in population so quickly? HOW can he maintain his economy with so many cities? If build even HALF that number, my economy crashes and stays crashed for the rest of the game.
My populations grow at a crawl, and quickly reach the point where citizens are angry, or sick, or both. Throwing things at them to make them happy barely works, and not for long. It does not seem to matter much if I build near water or not, my cities grow slowly and stay small.
Worst of all, even though I have closed borders with him throughout the game, Manu seems to instantly know everything I am doing, everywhere, and responds instantly by building a tiny city right on my border, which quickly works like acid to push my borders back.
Resources are spread so far apart that I have to string my cities with roads to connect them. Manu quickly cuts these roads by building cities on them.
I try building spies to steal from him, but either there is no option to Steal Technology, or the selection of WHICH of his technologies I can steal is limited to something useless.
I cheat by setting the Random Barbarian Villages so that I can choose what rewards they produce. I took Settlers, so I could expand quickly, and whatever Technologies I could get. Therefore, I start out with something like eight technologies Manu does not have. Yet in a very short while, Manu is STILL outracing me in technology production. I guess he could be trading with the other three AI civs, but I doubt this. I think Manu and I are stuck on the same big continent alone. It's too large to explore.
I want those Barbarian Village resources, but dealing with the FLOOD of advanced-weapon barbarians is deeply exhausting and highly distracting. For many turns, I am paralyzed and cannot expand because Im' too busy cranking out axemen to kill the hordes of barbarians. Seriously, it's too much. Too many of them, and they're too tough to kill. Someone jumped the shark when they designed the game this way.
I'm not a machine. I get tired and frustrated and angry and exhausted dealing with the barbarians. When they finally stop flooding, it's too late. I've spent all my time and energy fighting off barbarians, and Manu has ROCKETED past me in score and technology. You say post guards to bust the fog. You say go kill the barbarian cities. This COSTS time and many soldiers. If I do that, Manu races past me.
Sometimes Manu turns out to have built the Great Wall, but even when he does not, it SEEMS as if he is totally immune to this flood of barbarians. How is that possible?
I have ZERO clue how to run a "specialist economy" and really do not want to learn. That screen is totally confusing. I click to, I guess, turn citizens into specialists, and it appears to do NOTHING to help me.
Most of my cities have to stay small. If I let them grow, they very very very quickly become sick or unhappy. Manu's cities seem to INSTANTLY turn to size five, then grow insanely fast after that.
No matter where I build a city, I get a message saying that the citizens are "rightfully" asking to join Manu. This is right at the beginning of the game, and I'm building like thirty squares away from him! How is this possible? He builds next to me, I try to surround him, and his cities NEVER NEVER NEVER convert to mine.
I race to build a religion, Hinduism, and spread it with many missionaries, and this appears to be total waste of time, money and energy. NO ONE ever converts to my religion, and they HAMMER me constantly to convert to theirs. I dont' see any benefit whatsoever to even having any religion at all.
How do I set the game to prevent any AI opponents from running a Specialist Economy?3
I don't know what they're called, but there are options to change things like your style of government. I begin with Monarchy and Slavery. It seems as if all of the steps up from these are JUNK. They do nothing to help, and if I do switch to, for example, Serfdom, I get ZERO benefits, and it seems as if the economy just gets worse!
HOW are you supposed to know when to change things like this, and WHY? It seems as if these changes only hurt you.
No matter which Civ I choose to play as, I start out the first few turns ahead of everybody in score. Then, as soon as I start building cities, my economy CRASHES, and nothing I do changes this at all, EVER.
It is as if the game DELIBERATELY PUNISHES you for expanding!! Except, the AI opponents expand insanely fast, and get rich and advance in tech?..3..
When you give a command to a city or a unit, the game instantly YANKS your point of view away on the map to another city or unit. That STINKS. HOW HOW HOW do you set the game so that the point of view STAYS in one place until you are finished with that area?
I have to play on the HUGE map. Every other smaller size makes me end up with a map where I have something like SIX enemies ramming down my throat about two squares away!
The game seems to DELIBERATELY wedge you between two enemies, who quickly team up to attack you at that same time. Even if you have more money, technolgy and soldiers, there is NO WAY to win against two enemies at one time, and the game seems to KNOW this!
You work HARD and for hours and hours and hours and hours and days and days and days in real time to get ahead and you are winning, and suddenly EVERYONE on the planet is attacking you at the same time? How is that sane or fair?
No matter what I do, my economy is bad. If I develop slowly, Manu SPAMS insanely building cities and gobbles up all the territory and resources. If I race him to build around the resources, my economy PLUMMETS, literally skyrockets downhill.
Something I need explained: HOW can Manu build so many cities, and STILL outrace me in technology development? HOW can his cities expand their influence so quickly, and grow in population so quickly? HOW can he maintain his economy with so many cities? If build even HALF that number, my economy crashes and stays crashed for the rest of the game.
My populations grow at a crawl, and quickly reach the point where citizens are angry, or sick, or both. Throwing things at them to make them happy barely works, and not for long. It does not seem to matter much if I build near water or not, my cities grow slowly and stay small.
Worst of all, even though I have closed borders with him throughout the game, Manu seems to instantly know everything I am doing, everywhere, and responds instantly by building a tiny city right on my border, which quickly works like acid to push my borders back.
Resources are spread so far apart that I have to string my cities with roads to connect them. Manu quickly cuts these roads by building cities on them.
I try building spies to steal from him, but either there is no option to Steal Technology, or the selection of WHICH of his technologies I can steal is limited to something useless.
I cheat by setting the Random Barbarian Villages so that I can choose what rewards they produce. I took Settlers, so I could expand quickly, and whatever Technologies I could get. Therefore, I start out with something like eight technologies Manu does not have. Yet in a very short while, Manu is STILL outracing me in technology production. I guess he could be trading with the other three AI civs, but I doubt this. I think Manu and I are stuck on the same big continent alone. It's too large to explore.
I want those Barbarian Village resources, but dealing with the FLOOD of advanced-weapon barbarians is deeply exhausting and highly distracting. For many turns, I am paralyzed and cannot expand because Im' too busy cranking out axemen to kill the hordes of barbarians. Seriously, it's too much. Too many of them, and they're too tough to kill. Someone jumped the shark when they designed the game this way.
I'm not a machine. I get tired and frustrated and angry and exhausted dealing with the barbarians. When they finally stop flooding, it's too late. I've spent all my time and energy fighting off barbarians, and Manu has ROCKETED past me in score and technology. You say post guards to bust the fog. You say go kill the barbarian cities. This COSTS time and many soldiers. If I do that, Manu races past me.
Sometimes Manu turns out to have built the Great Wall, but even when he does not, it SEEMS as if he is totally immune to this flood of barbarians. How is that possible?
I have ZERO clue how to run a "specialist economy" and really do not want to learn. That screen is totally confusing. I click to, I guess, turn citizens into specialists, and it appears to do NOTHING to help me.
Most of my cities have to stay small. If I let them grow, they very very very quickly become sick or unhappy. Manu's cities seem to INSTANTLY turn to size five, then grow insanely fast after that.
No matter where I build a city, I get a message saying that the citizens are "rightfully" asking to join Manu. This is right at the beginning of the game, and I'm building like thirty squares away from him! How is this possible? He builds next to me, I try to surround him, and his cities NEVER NEVER NEVER convert to mine.
I race to build a religion, Hinduism, and spread it with many missionaries, and this appears to be total waste of time, money and energy. NO ONE ever converts to my religion, and they HAMMER me constantly to convert to theirs. I dont' see any benefit whatsoever to even having any religion at all.
How do I set the game to prevent any AI opponents from running a Specialist Economy?3
I don't know what they're called, but there are options to change things like your style of government. I begin with Monarchy and Slavery. It seems as if all of the steps up from these are JUNK. They do nothing to help, and if I do switch to, for example, Serfdom, I get ZERO benefits, and it seems as if the economy just gets worse!
HOW are you supposed to know when to change things like this, and WHY? It seems as if these changes only hurt you.
No matter which Civ I choose to play as, I start out the first few turns ahead of everybody in score. Then, as soon as I start building cities, my economy CRASHES, and nothing I do changes this at all, EVER.
It is as if the game DELIBERATELY PUNISHES you for expanding!! Except, the AI opponents expand insanely fast, and get rich and advance in tech?..3..
When you give a command to a city or a unit, the game instantly YANKS your point of view away on the map to another city or unit. That STINKS. HOW HOW HOW do you set the game so that the point of view STAYS in one place until you are finished with that area?
I have to play on the HUGE map. Every other smaller size makes me end up with a map where I have something like SIX enemies ramming down my throat about two squares away!
The game seems to DELIBERATELY wedge you between two enemies, who quickly team up to attack you at that same time. Even if you have more money, technolgy and soldiers, there is NO WAY to win against two enemies at one time, and the game seems to KNOW this!
You work HARD and for hours and hours and hours and hours and days and days and days in real time to get ahead and you are winning, and suddenly EVERYONE on the planet is attacking you at the same time? How is that sane or fair?
Last edited:
