Germania-getting started

[Libertarian9]

I am a hardcore German player. Not really because I like their attributes, simlply because I am mostly German. But I was wondering if any of you would be so kind to give me any good strategies of starting out. My personal preference is to wage war on the closest civilizations to me until their destroyed. But how do you most efficiently undertake a task like that? Do you produce military units right away or expand until you can aquire advanced units like the Swordsmen? Any help greatly appreciated, thanks.

 

[Buecephalus]

I like to play quick conquer games sometimes and here's what I do. Build my 1st city. build a warrior. send that warrior out to scout other civs. build a barracks (yes, I've left my 1st city undefended) build a spearman to defend 1st city. build settler. then my 1st city starts building archers. find a site close by. build 2nd city. build barracks in 2nd city. build spearmen. then my 2nd city starts cranking out archers as well. usually I've found another civ by then and I start wiping them out. my initial tech push is iron working but I've usually mopped up that 1st civ before I even get swordsmen. I like to play Chinese when I play these kinds of games. Once you've got the Rider you can pretty much pillage the world.


"do or do not, there is no try."

 

[BillChin]

For a fast war the best strategy depends on the difficulty and world size you select. On lower difficulties (Warlord and Chieftain) just crank out as many low level units as you can after you settle two to four cities so you can support 8 to 16 units in the field.

On Monarch difficulty and above, Horsemen backed by Catapults and a maybe some swordsmen make the best attacking army. Wait until you have overwhelming numbers (20+ horsemen) to attack. For this horses are the key resource so research the Wheel first thing. To build enough cities to support this army (8 to 15 cities), build them very close to the capital, one to three squares between cities. Close in cities have lower corruption, higher production and create an easy to defend position in case the fortunes of war turn against you. You can trim some of the cities after the first age so the others can become sprawling metropolises.

Another good tip is to bribe nearby nations to stay out the war. One free gold per turn usually does the trick. The neutral nations may join in on your side after a few victories.

 

[spork]

I think the Panzer is the best special unit available, but working it into your stategy could be hard, because it might come too late to make a difference. I agree with the barracks building advice, and would add that you should keep an eye out for weak neighbors. Destroy or cripple a civ asap with swordsmen, and take over their territory. Build as many knights as you can; these upgrade into cavalry, who will do a lot to defend your state from attacks by picking off invaders who violate your land. Make sure you have many suburbs near your capital, as well as near your Forbidden Palace, so that when the time comes, you can crank out 3-4 panzers per turn (this means having 16 cities that can each make a panzer in 4). Then you should be able to take the world.

If you play Diety like I do, you shouldn't try to build any wonders (just capture them).