Highest Score

I just finished one of my best games, 195% on King level :thumbsup:
 

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is this bragging on highest score
full legit ? (say no swap purchases into units no fast setlers etc)
or
semi legit ? (using fast setlers and unit purchases)

my current game i am going semy legit (although i am not going full blown out with fast settlers)
1800s current date and 130% in king.
got all civs extinct except russia and france mostly because they are not in the way ,feel like im lacking a lot on the side of expansion.
future tech 40 by now and getting 2 per turn.
using too many units. as i found caravans can give me a lot more $ per shield than any building
i think i can achieve more than 2k score before the deadline, but turns are getting soo slow now that im losing interest in the game..
 
Everybody has their own rules, but most people here push the game to its mathematical limits, so they do use save/load, fast settler, etc.
 
but turns are getting soo slow now that im losing interest in the game..

Hehee, i hear you, been taking a break from my attempt for a few weeks, got up to 3 hours per turn, finally reached a point where the game's more planning than actual playing. This break has really cleared my head about the game, new insights about how to proceed pop into mind now and then, often while thinking about something completely different. Definitely a good idea to take a step back now and then, a deep mental breath.

Hardest thing to solve was deciding on the best method of record-keeping, a spreadsheet or textfile or pen/paper, plot out the endgame moves on a turn-by-turn basis, or city-by-city? Turns out the best data structure for managing a large empire is "zone potential", a measure describing a geographical subdivision's proper average city size. Most surprising thing is that land-use reaches a point of rigidity, but beyond that, the zones begin to behave like superconductors, but with completely fluid movement of wheat, instead of electrons.

No cheats used, that was the point of what i set out to do, find the highest score possible with zero cheats. Now over 5,000 civscore, projections say it will top 6,000 handily.
 
In 1240Ad I am at 209%, in Prince. I use a normal version of the game. I must have 87 cities and none of them has a smaller size than 10 (maybe on that is still growing)


I start in Earth with the Russians because at the beginning you need production, and Russians start in the middle of the woods (you often get a special wooden tile in the direct neighbourhood of the city).
I only build settlers. I go to democracy as fast as possible, and I try to all my ennemies (but 1) as fast as possible, although Nothing can delay my city build expansion. I therefore chose 4-5 civilizations to start with. I usually end finishing all my research between 1000BC and 0AD..


What I do:

First thing, I put research to 100% science. I then build the city where the settler is (do not move you lose very precious time!), I put a settler to build and I save the game.
.(in this very game, I started in prince and had 2 settlers at start, which is a HUGE advantage, hence the good score)
2. Then I build the cheapest unit to explore the environment. I Don't save the game, I just want to see where to build my next couple of cities and where the ennemies are. After I have enough information, I quit the game

3. The game really starts NOW.

I restart in 3980 BC, knowing exactly where my 2-3 next cities should be built, I build a settler. When it's there I send it without any extra move to his next city location and build a second city, etc. I eventually find quite soon a little house). I save before getting the house. And I restart until I have a military unit. If you're far enough from any off your cities, that unit will be home to "NONE" city, which is good for democracy later).

CITY LOCATIONS:

Very important. As the goal is to have them grow as much as possible, it's important that the cities don't steal each other ressources. Sometimes it is impossible but it is key to have the best ratio between "cover the entire maps with cities where they build, trying to have a little squares left possible not exploited on the map. That will later all bring science tech, and money. See on the picture.

So I NEVER build a military unit in the beginning, I find one in those houses. With that unique military unit, I go and see my neighbours. I talk to them and trade all science tech they want. When they have none left for me to trade anymore (It requires only one talk, unless they have more than you, which is unlikely), I kill them with my unit. Of course, in order not to fail, I save and try, until I do… And I do this for the entire big continent (africa, Europa, asia).

I extremely rarely build a city on a tile that isn't appropriate. Very rarely a desert. Never a mountain or a hill. (a hill could probably work though, with irrigation help from beighboring settlers).

SCIENCE UPGRADE:

I Always stay in 100% science. Unless I begin to build in my cities, and then I adjust to stay positive but max science possible. Why? Because science give you all the necessary science, but also each future technology counts for precious points in the ranking.

First goal: DEMOCRACY. Find the fastest way to get democracy. As SOON as I have it, I start a revolution and switch to democracy.

The next most important Discovery is Railroad. To be able to exploit at the most every possible tile of the game. Whenever you have found RAILROAD, you build a railroad on the tile where you want to build your next city. Extra food.

FAST EXPANSION:

It is important to understand that I NEVER build a single military unit. None of my cities are protected. Which doesn't matter because I know the map and because I save and can restart in case of pirates, or ennemies.

I ONLY build settlers. I stop building settlers in the city when the entire continent is filled with cities everywhere. The ideal organisation of those is Always the hardest part. I requires to know the map well.

After the continent is entirely settled, I then keep one settler per city and I begin to do all the road and irrigation work. I then let the city grow (continuous settlers avoid them to grow to 5 and begin trouble), I then build first a granary (or a temple is trouble has already become, which is when the city hits 5 in Prince mode). I irragate every single square of every single city + railroad. It is a bit tiresome. I arrange and develop most of the cities with the clicking. I won't wait for the settler to finish his irrigation in 4 rounds. I do the 4 rounds in one by clicking back on the settler and give him the order again. This is the absolute key to win crazy time!


BUILDINGS IN THE CITIES:

I begin to build in the cities when I have no more city to build. I then let my cities grow by irrigating and railroading every single tile as fast as possible.
I never build a single "production" building, such as factory or others. My ideal order is:
- granary (increases speed of growth massively)
- temple
- coliseum
- cathedral
- aqueduct (when city is around 9)
Then I begin to build Library, university, market and bank (in that order, science is more important than anything). But Always keep money entering, it is important because it sometimes is valuable.

Of course, this may vary, if a city grows really fast, sometimes the temple (or a second settler!) is more urgent than the granary.
I select manually where to put in the city my food on the map. In the beginning I favour production in all the cities, to have many settlers as fast as possible. Some cities that grow crazy fast (which happens when everything irrigated+ railroad everywhere), I sometimes have a second settler in that city.


WHENEVER I CAN

I build a ship and I bring settlers to America, Australia, Madagascar, Japan, England, Indonesia, Cuba, etc... All the islands. The more cities, the best.

How to conquer America, where there are civilization well established without military units? You build diplomats. And go to your ennemy. Never talk to him! Otherwise, in democracy, you might be enrolled in peace and can never kill your ennemy again unless he attacks you or if you start a revolution (which can NEVER NEVER happen! too much time lost).


You buy on of his units. And with that unit, you destroy all the continent. In the meantime, your settlers begin to build as many and as fast cities as possible, near to the existing one. If a conquered city is placed in an annoying matter, it is Always possible to starve it to death. When it's at 1, build a settler (without the city reaching back 2) and the city is gone. If the city conquerred is big, you need to build many settlers to make it reduce faster.


Always KEEP ONE ENNEMY ALIVE. The ideal ennemy to keep alive is the English. They're on their small island. Make sure you last ennemy city is weak. Put many diplomats on all its feeding squares, so his city doesn't grow and you can build nearby and take it all.


I put a print screen of my revenues, now in 1240 AD, if I were in 100% tax.
All muy cities are fully built. I build and burn SDI Defense.

I will eventually soon have an issue with pollution. I will try to reverse the phenomenom by, at the first alert of weird pollution, retake a save of the game 20 or 30 turns before the alert, and massively reduceall my cities (by buying settlers in all cities turn after turn).


TIPS:

CARAVANS are very useful. They cost nothing to keep.
1. Trade: for the best trade, choose two cities that are far away from each other and that will have a good trade production when they grow. Usually cities on the coast (seas are goldmines of money/food)

But also, to help cities with little production capacity to build their buildings. Therefore, select a wonder. Send the caravan to help build wonder. And then back in the city and change wonder to the building you need. May use multiple caravans for most buildings.

DIPLOMATS:
Extremely usefull. The can buy units, the move of two, the freely walk through ennemy units where other units would be blocked. They cost Nothing to keep. They can discover land. I destroy ennemies only with diplomats. I never build military units.

When my cities are fully built. I build constant caravans. And I save them (sentry) and occasionnally use them to build wonders massively in one turn.

Railroad on th water! Doesn't make you win moves for ships, but gives extra trade for the cities nearby.

In the cities: After I finish the building massive settlers phase, I begin to move my ressources from production to food. The goal is to grow fast.

WONDERS OF THE WORLD:

Build them all! With caravans help. If an ennemy has built one, you need to take that city without destroying it (means entering it when the city has a minimum size of 2).

Why build them?
1. They earn points in your final score.
2. So your ennemies do not build them before. Otherwise you will have to conquer and keep (!) that city.
3. When you discover much but your cities just begin to build, you have no access to the menu of the buildings ("more" button) because it's just too long and the screen can't handle it, you just get a double "more".. Which forces you to build unwanted buildings (double right clic on "change" for automatic selection). When I see my menu gets big and that I soon will not able to get to the other menu, I begin to build massive caravans, and I begin to build many cheap (useful very often) wonders. Then my menu gets smaller and I can reach the second menu.


IMPORTANT WONDERS:

Women's suffrage
Magellan's Expedition
Darwin's voyage
JS Bach Cathedral (+1 happy in all cities of the continent)
Great Library (to be put in the city that will eventually have the biggest trade production and hence science)

I might miss one or two but most of them are totally usefull.
And DO NOT build the one that force your ennemies to make peace with you (is it not United Nations? I'm not sure), unless you have destroyed all the ones you needed to destroy.

LITTLE HOUSES:
They offer money, sciences, units, to build a city there, or barbarians that will surround you. Randomly. If you're Emperor, you will have more barbarians than in Chief.
The best way is to save before and chose what you need.
If you just don't want Barbarians, do not take the house before its immediate surroundings are discovered. Note that Barbarians do only appear in not discovered areas or in areas long discovered but that haven't been scouted for a long while.

BARBARIANS:
You can avoid to have them in the little houses, but they still can come from the water or the hostile lands where no cities are built. (north America).
How to deal with them? Either they are at more than one turn distance from you and then you have time buy or bring back a unit to defend (I only defend with settlers, it might take some save and reload but not much.
If they are in a one move distance (because landed from the sea next to your city), they is not much to do. But quite quickly, you have connected all your cities and there are settlers everywhere. So you can Always bring one in defense.

RAILROAD:

To have ASAP after democracry. They increase your growth and revenues. They make you win a LOT of time.
For every city built after this Discovery, build the city on a previously railroaded tile! Build a city counts, on the tile, as an irrigation + 1 road. A railroad brings 1 extra food on normal tiles. Always useful.

Hope it's readable, that someone will ever read that:), and to hear from you maybe.


WHEN I DON'T NEED SETTLERS ANYMORE:

After having connected and irrigated almost the whole world, I begin to have many useless settlers. So I keep 2 per continent (in case of pollution or defense or whatever). I use the dozens of useless settlers to artificially grow my cities that are still smaller than 10. Go on the city with any settler and clic on "b". It will sacrify the settler and give +1 to your city. Of course, it requires to anticipate temples and cathedrals, if you do it massively (one city from 2 to 10 in one turn for example). What is then left and that I really can't use, I simply discard them.


MONEY:

I keep my revenues Always the least minimum below my cost. Usually between 60 and 80% of science. I sometimes offer myself 3 or 4 rounds in a row of 100% tax, just to win LOADS of money. And that helps me not to be slown by my production rate to build (granary, temples, etc.) that can't follow my growth.


WHEN IS THE CITY FINISHED:

When every building I want is built in the city, I build caravans. I sometimes do the caravans after all the necessary buildings such as granary, temple, aqueduct, coliseum and cathedral but before I start doing the market-bank-library-university. I also sometimes build market and bank before Library and Uni. Dépends on my needs in the game.
I have 3 trades per city (it's the max) with caravans sent in big cities remote (Overseas often, heavy logistics). When that is done, I build caravans. And these help me to build the wonders of the world. Or build anything else for that matter (just select Wonder in a city, bring caravans to help build Wonder, and then swith back to the desired building)
 

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Java could do with 1 more railroad :P
That is an interesting way of playing with a lot of dedication. I personally don't like the saving and loading all the time so if barbarians or some people take my city I curse and take it back later.
 
My Highest score was on King difficulty at 123%, I was playing the map for "customize" with Small, Temperate, Normal, 5 Million.
I tend to like isolated islands to start so I can grab Democracy asap to grow as quickly as I can. I don't do too well otherwise.

I've been a bit spoiled on playing the "infinite money" cheat on Civ though.

My usual way of waging ware as a democracy involves using the diplomats to incite revolts etc.

For defending against barbarians, I use Fighters once they are available and fly them out till they die so they don't cause unrest. The Women's Suffrage wonder is a miracle for democracies. It allows you to pull a combat unit away from the city. Don't pull too many or you'll have unrest though.
 
Java could do with 1 more railroad :p
That is an interesting way of playing with a lot of dedication. I personally don't like the saving and loading all the time so if barbarians or some people take my city I curse and take it back later.


Indeed ;-) but Java will never grow enough to need all its tiles. So it's not necessary
 
Emperor Frederick's Temples and Settlers

I didn't play it for score. I played it so that I could make a GIF of the Earth being conquered by the system and covered by an evil black grid. But it did get a pretty good score.

Germans0.gif
 
My highest score, roughly 20 years ago, was 253% on emperor. However that game was played purely with high score in mind. 3 civ earth setting, cleaned out the other two with an early chariot, kept one foreign city as hostage and started building. The map looked pretty much like Tristan's above. Only difference was that those funny 255 production / 255 trade / 255 food tiles started to spawn in the arctic.

Those were the times!
 
In this game I'm playing, I'm germans. It's prince and I've wiped out almost everybody in the planet. I'm leaving one Aztec city one because intent has a super veteran phalanx (destroyed a bomber, armor, cannon, 23 chariotschariots, 3 catatpults, and a battleship. They were all veterans) and citywalls. I am not trying to wipe them out, but just isolate them so they can't grow and I can build my spaceship.
 
cant remember exsactly but had a rating of over 11k - been 20 years since i played this game now and it is funn to stil see so much eager in here :)
 
I built a massive spaceship with 30k colonists and 100% chance of success. I was huge and there was no more military threat so I had all my cities work on spaceship parts. My final score was 735. I kept playing for a while and a newspaper came up and said "comrade Jack Mac plans to retire in 20 years." Twenty years later it said " comrade Jack Mac retires after 6000 year reign. " that's how my game ended!
 
I know that fast settler is a cheat, but I would like to do it but I don't know how :( how do you do it?
 
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