Homeland Security help

[Riffraffselbow]

I'm definitely a builder; I can barely defend my nation even on Warlord. I can't stand playing offensively. Give me some tips in defending my nation!

Let's say, for the sake of this thread, that I have a 5-city nation bordered by 2 other nations (1 friendly builder-type AI, 1 cautious warmonger type AI, and 1 borderline pleased-cautious builder-type AI) of comparable size/tech. Every city except my capitol is a border city. How large should my standing army be (feel free to use %'s of the enemy if that's the best way to describe it)

I'm talking mainly classical/medieval era here; after swordsmen and before apostolic palace becomes a factor.

Of note: I play Marathon (aka free Heroic Epic) Huge, so keep that in mind. And no, I'm not willing to switch down to Epic or Normal .

 

[nbcman]

You should have at least 3 defenders in each border city:
1 archer type (archer/longbowman)
1 axeman type (axeman/maceman)
1 spearman type (spearman/pikeman)

Additionally you should have some reserve units (preferably mounted) that can move to threatened areas plus some catapults for collateral damage to attacking stacks.

You should try to have a military strength close to the strongest opponent-or at the very least don't have the weakest military. Usually the lowest military civ is attacked.

But what you may want to consider is diplomacy. If you have two friendly civs and only one unfriendly civ, try to involve the friendly civs in a war with the unfriendly warmonger. Then go to war and take over the warmonger unfriendly civs cities. You will eliminate an opponent, improve your relations with the two friendly civs, and increase your land area.

 

[Riffraffselbow]

You should have at least 3 defenders in each border city:
1 archer type (archer/longbowman)
1 axeman type (axeman/maceman)
1 spearman type (spearman/pikeman)

Additionally you should have some reserve units (preferably mounted) that can move to threatened areas plus some catapults for collateral damage to attacking stacks.

You should try to have a military strength close to the strongest opponent-or at the very least don't have the weakest military. Usually the lowest military civ is attacked.

But what you may want to consider is diplomacy. If you have two friendly civs and only one unfriendly civ, try to involve the friendly civs in a war with the unfriendly warmonger. Then go to war and take over the warmonger unfriendly civs cities. You will eliminate an opponent, improve your relations with the two friendly civs, and increase your land area.

Thanks for the tips!

In "interior" cities, I should be able to get away with 1-2 defenders, correct?

 

[nbcman]

Yes, one defender is enough for interior cities. Unless you need more units for happiness when you are in Hereditary Rule civic.

BTW, welcome to CFC

 

[Bandobras Took]

I'll echo the diplomacy vote -- knowing which neighbors will attack you and why is extremely powerful. I started next to Boudicca in one game and was able to hold peace with her throughout the whole thing simply by keeping her friendly. I even managed it with Tokugawa as a neighbor once (one of those rare Civ moments that makes you smile).

In addition, there's an article in the strategy forum http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=163098 that explains how the AI evaluates your military potential -- sometimes you can outpower a potential attack declaration even as a builder.

 

[Yesod]

If you dont have your border city cottaged up then you can build only archers and let the AI kamikaze you defenses. They'll raze you improvements but you can just build them back.

Otherwise, I think mounted units and siege works best. Barrage on catapults to weaken the stack's spears and then horse archers to wipe out the catapults and crush defenders. Mounted units rule the field with double movement speeds, letting them cover your entire empire before the walls come down.

Also, why do you have 5 cities on warlord? You should get 6 on a standard map at the very least. A warlord AI stack should only have 9 units??? If 3 are catapults then 3 catapults and 6 horse archers should be plenty. As for numbers, try evaluating in terms of % of commerce. 10% is good, but offensive units might push you up to 20%.

 

[Riffraffselbow]

If you dont have your border city cottaged up then you can build only archers and let the AI kamikaze you defenses. They'll raze you improvements but you can just build them back.

Otherwise, I think mounted units and siege works best. Barrage on catapults to weaken the stack's spears and then horse archers to wipe out the catapults and crush defenders. Mounted units rule the field with double movement speeds, letting them cover your entire empire before the walls come down.

Also, why do you have 5 cities on warlord? You should get 6 on a standard map at the very least. A warlord AI stack should only have 9 units??? If 3 are catapults then 3 catapults and 6 horse archers should be plenty. As for numbers, try evaluating in terms of % of commerce. 10% is good, but offensive units might push you up to 20%.

In this situation, I had 5 because I got boxed in "france" in the Earth2 mapscript. Direct borders on 3 civs (geographically speaking, spain/rome/germany; Literally Lincoln, Cyrus and Hammurabi). VERY tight, it felt like playing Tiny with 18 civs. Also, cyrus managed to sneak around and settle where my 6th city was going to go in another 20 or so turns.

 

[scothed]

There is a lot of truth in the idea that the best defence is a good attack. In games where I meet an AI early on, I've started hitting the nearest one hard and trying to take them out. Normally you can wipe out a civ early doors and find yourself with some nice well developed cities to boost your empire!

If you really, really, really don't want to attack, then I would have a mini stack of defenders near each border and a reserve of mounted units in the middle of your empire. Then try to keep the AI''s happy! Sometimes, though, you may have to take preemptive action and declare on a civ if; a) you are ready and b) you are convinced they will declare on you.

 

[Kesshi]

Riffraffselbow,

Two things to improve your gameplay.

One, make a dedicated military city. This city will be an early high production city and you should build only a barracks there. Maybe some happiness buildings and possibly a granary, but I usally don't worry about those if I have hills to work. This city's only job is to pump modern military units, and then a forge once MC is learned.

Two, view the graphs, specifically the ones which show your power compared to your rival's power. If you're significantly lower than them in power, they will see you as a potental target.

 

[MadmanAtW]

I'll echo the diplomacy vote -- knowing which neighbors will attack you and why is extremely powerful.

I've seen a lot of this on this forum- such and such AI/personality never DoWs when Pleased, this one gives -2 instead of -1 for "You refused to help us!", etc. Is there a list somewhere of all of these known traits?

Actually, before hitting post I thought I'd check the XML... I see a lot of this info (things like DeclareWarThemRefuseAttitudeThreshold = ATTITUDE_PLEASED for Alexander, which I assume means he will not declare on anyone who he is Pleased with), but has anyone put it in a more readable fashion?

 

[Gooblah]

Keep Barrage-promoted Siege units to attack enemy stacks in your cities. Make sure you have 2 Movement units that can reach the border cities quickly from the interior to mop up after your Siege attacks. Use a combination of defenders, and ensure that they're either highly promoted, new, or both.

 

[Bostock]

The best defense is good diplo. A border where you can keep your neighbor above the threshold for DOW (and where you can be sure they will close borders with your enemies) is a border where the only garrison you need is a warrior.

 

[Cashew]

Stack your "defenders." Ideally you'd have them in as few groups as possible to cover your entire empire using a good road system. The bigger the stack the harder it is to kill.

 

[Skallagrimson]

With 5 cities you won't have any of your national wonders unlocked so that's less to build right there.

Might as well build units.

And if you're building units, might as well go bonk some heads.