How big of an army/navy do you build?

[Rathelon]

I'm curious how others are gearing up in their games. Myself, I don't seem to build a lot of troops, and I move them around in groups for wars. Probably makes my games take longer doing it that way.

In the early game, I generally only build one garrison unit per city (typically ranged units). If I get attacked, I bring them all out to fight off the attack. That doesn't happen often though. Because of the lack of gold in the early game, it's just too expensive to try to build my later-game 'divisions'.

As soon as my gold allows, I will build my first division. These consist of 3 front line units, and 2 siege units. I keep these divisions together as a fighting force throughout the game, and they move and fight together. In the course of a typical game, I never need to build more than 3-4 divisions (usually 3 is enough). So, that's 15-20 units plus my key cities usually retain a garrison unit.

As far as naval units, I will build one or two triremes as soon as I research them, to begin exploration. Then I build a caravel or two to explore deep blue. I don't concern myself with naval warfare much until I have frigates. Once I have those, I build 4 or 5 of them and keep those until I can upgrade to battleships. What I really like are submarines, but I still tend to build just a few of them because they are so potent - no more are needed. I will usually build a carrier or two when I can, but those tend to just be gravy. All in all, 10-15 naval units total in a typical game.

Similar pattern for aircraft. When I get flight, I build 5 bombers and 5 fighters, and rebase them about where needed.

Does anybody else do something similar?

 

[troublmaker]

When I'm playing Pangaea I don't build a navy at all. At early game (3-4 cities) I'll make sure to have about 3-4 catapults (and their later upgrades) 1-2 warriors (and their later upgrades), and 1-2 archers (and their later upgrades).

On Continents I try to stay land based until I can get rid of my continent mates or if I'm super friends with them and don't see them betraying me any time soon.

In Pangaeia I almost entirely go navy spending a tonne of resources on getting 2-3 melee ships and 3-4 ranged ships so that I can control the sea, and takeover towns.

It's basically just enough units to be able to defend enemies so they don't think about declaring war and invading you en masse.

 

[otaman1]

Before the Medieval era, I usually have around 15-25 swordsman, 5-10 archers, 3-6 catapults, and 6-8 horsemen

 

[Socratatus]

Very, very few unless war is on the horizon. I`m in the Modern era and have only one battleship, one machine gunner. The other 17 or so Civs have dozens of military units. Most of them could wipe me off the map if they wanted...

But I play a VERY careful peaceful game, refusing to be drawn into wars and being very careful about who I agree stuff with. In this whole time I`ve managed to avoid being denounced or having to denounce anyone while everyone else has been going to war or thinking of it with eachother. When I see a Civ beginning to look at me for an attack or getting a bit unhappy I do things like tell it if I know a secret or give it some free gift I don`t need.

Finances are going through the roof, the people are 17 of Happiness and all`s well. Once i`ve reached the era of nukes i`ll start to build a defensive army. But of course I have a very careful eye on everything just in case someone looks like suddenly declares war!

 

[OmniPotent42]

Before the Medieval era, I usually have around 15-25 swordsman, 5-10 archers, 3-6 catapults, and 6-8 horsemen

And how are you not bankrupt? Unless you're Shaka or Germany that's like 40 maintenance, and soon to double in the medieval era.

 

[homegrown]

I'm kinda paranoid. So I usually start out with 8 archer/cbs and 4-6 warriors; 2-4 horses if I have them. Then I upgrade those units the whole game. I usually try for Consulates as soon as I finish Trad/Lib and then let the military cs send me updated units for the rest of the game. My "peaceful" builds end up with me having an army of about 60 units. When I hit Flight, I build as many gwbs (in armory cities so I can get the Range promotion) as I have oil for. I usually completely forget about a navy as I play mostly pangs, but 6-8 frigates upgraded to battleships to defend a couple coastal cities doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

 

[OmniPotent42]

60 units? Are you insane? I play on immortal and you will hardly need more than 30 units for defense and conquering, even in later eras. How you stay above 0 gold income is beyond me if you are serious about building that many units that early.

 

[Tachii]

Immortal difficulty:
5-6 CBs, 1-2 catapults, 2 melee units. Good for Classical era war game.
Medieval: build 1-2 mounted units, ranged units stay the same, melee optional to get 1-2 more.
Renaissance: pretty much the same. Build about 3-4 Galleas
Industrial/Naval warfare: If I haven't gotten 5 Frigates yet, that's usually how much I'll make. Make 2 Privateers to convert enemy Frigates/Privateers.
Modern era: Airplanes. Build as many Bombers to win the game.

 

[homegrown]

60 units? Are you insane? I play on immortal and you will hardly need more than 30 units for defense and conquering, even in later eras. How you stay above 0 gold income is beyond me if you are serious about building that many units that early.

LOL, not insane. Just paranoid. I'm playing on immortal now and you're right, I struggle with gold a lot, but once I get good intl trade routes going and markets/banks built, it all works out ok. I can always turn off the cs spam and delete pikemen when I run into unit maint issues. And by endgame, I'm making enough gold to buy off some cs for a few more delegates to the WC.

 

[Matthew.]

Seems like more than ~8 units in an area begin to step on each other, so usually stick with about that number.

On land that is typically something like 3 melee and 5 range. If I open up a second front, I will add on another group of ~8.

Naval ends up being the same ratio of around 5 frigates and 3 privateers. I also usually have a few caravels running around, but mostly for scouting the map. In the very late game I will add on a few submarines since AI cannot counter them.

Air is the only area where I will stack as much as I can depending on oil and gold.

So a war-heavy game may be something like ~16-20 land units, ~8-10 naval, and a bomber stack of around 9-16. Of course that is late in the game. For the first half of the game I usually have only one land army of around 8 units and perhaps a trireme or two.

 

[IBYCFOTA]

I used to pay a lot of attention to the demographics screen and would always try to be #1 or #2 in military. That generally meant I struggled financially for most of the game - especially in G&K where there were no trade routes. Eventually I figured out that you can field a very capable defensive army with a handful of well placed units, and that allowed me to focus more on city development with an emphasis on a strong economy. When you have a lot of gold you can very quickly put together a strong defensive military if somebody decides to attack you. For the most part though you have a pretty good idea of when you'll need to invest in your military before they're needed. If you have an aggro neighbor, or you've been forward settled upon, etc. it's a good idea to build a few more units than normal. I wouldn't go overboard with this however unless I'm planning to invade a fellow civ. That's the only way those massive maintence costs are worth it.

 

[rodrigoq]

I find planes are better than ships... My classical armies are usually 2 spearmen, 6 archers. 1 spear is a tank unit, and takes dmg, 2nd spear is a medic unit. The archers just level up on AI cities till they have +range and logistics. Shaka and aztecs are great civs to fight if you want awesome archers by med era.

 

[otaman1]

And how are you not bankrupt? Unless you're Shaka or Germany that's like 40 maintenance, and soon to double in the medieval era.

I'm a trademonger so I get my extra GPT from other civs

 

[kb27787]

early game, if I get holy warriors, then 8 archers/CB + 1-2 catapults/trebuchets, 1-2 horse. (conquer the wonderhog)
middle game: whatever's leftover from early game; garrison them one each per city to avoid upkeep.
late game: if I have a coastal city, 3 subs. Then 3-4 triplanes/upgraded planes (enough to cover your empire). 6 foreign legion (if I am about to be attacked, I have a writer ready) + any troops leftover from my early war as guns/cavalry

 

[Byzantine Bomb]

So many strategies...and recently I've been going without a military until the early industrial
Once I do have a military, I'll keep artillery in coastal and border cities and a navy large enough to at least delay an invasion force. Continuous scouting of the AIs determines if I'll build more or demobilize.

 

[Talcove]

Usually one ranged and one melee unit per city, in the later game. In the earlier game I'll usually have some extra melee units. I tend to keep just enough to defend my land against invaders and barbarians.

 

[Theruss]

Usually have an archer or it's upgrade in a city garrison. Which is useful for defense and if I am in the Tradition or Honor tree. Then, I usually have a standard army composition of 6 or so ranged units, 3 siege weapons, and 4 melee. Of course, these numbers can vary but that's the average.

As for Navy, maybe a couple Triremes if I have coastal cities, and a few of the ranged medieval ships (their name escapes me at the moment.) Those ships are mostly for defense, but if the enemy has a coastal city, they will support the land base units. Once Navigation is researched. 4 Privateers and 6 Frigates.

 

[Callonia]

I always have a minimum of one land unit per city whether I like it or not, It's a must for me, no exceptions.

After that, dependingon the progression of early era to mid game, 20-60 units running around that's not garrisoned.

Then uber late into the game I could reach 100 easily, I think my highest was 300+ in few Gods n Kings game. i have yet to play this long in brave new world. No military threat has materialized yet.

I've had a massive naval battle with iroquois once.. over 150+ ships combined on both sides was lost on that war. All my privateering dessys was sunk except for the last one which I managed to hide.

 

[PrimoXanthous]

Me??
clasical: 2 warrior, 1 Composite bowman, 1 spearman, 1 horseman, 1 trireme.
Medieval: 4 swordsman/ longswordsman, 1/2 crossbowman, 2 trebuchet, 2 knights, 1 trireme
Rennaisance: 4 musket, 2 crossbow, 2 cannon, 2 knights 3 Caravel (Ussually named: "Warrior Class" "Navigator Class" "Vanguard Class" name depend on their promotion ) 2 Frigate
After Rennaisance?? depend how warmonger my neighbors are.

 

[Ximixanga]

A lesson I learned from several games of Vanilla and G&K is that you can't build a strong empire without the means to protect it. After losing my fifth game in a row due to a lack of a proper military, I shifted my early-game focus to regular military production. In BNW, It's much more difficult to have a large standing army now, especially in the early game, but it's something that I consider essential to my progress. I typically make little to no money until the renaissance when my trade routes finally go up, but I tend to have one of the largest or most powerful militaries in the world at nearly every point in time unless Shaka or someone on a rampage is on the map at the same time.

How big is always the question to ask. You'd like to have enough units to be able to protect your territory and also enough units to be able to wage war should you have to come to that. My typical formula is something like this: 4 melee, 3 ranged units per city with a scattered amount of mobile and artillery throughout the empire in strategic positions. Depending on whether I am going tall or wide, this number is sometimes doubled or halved but I hardly ever have more than 30-ish land military units at any time. I'll have a roughly equal amount in air and sea military, albeit split 50/50 in comparable size.

I occasionally build an air force, but nothing greater than 2-3 aircraft stationed in every other city. I don't bother to build a navy until I get caravels, which I typically build 3-6 of and have them explore the world before returning to my waters. I like to settle on coasts most of the time, but tend to neglect my naval forces. I almost never have a proper navy until the late modern era, usually consisting of a some destroyers, a few battleships, and several submarines. If I am rolling in money and have the resources, I will aim to be a major nuclear power by buying a few a-bombs and missiles.

City defenses are typically neglected until the medieval era, unless I am settling aggressively or have war-like civs neighboring my borders. Walls and castles are typically all I have by the industrial era, with arsenals going up in the late atomic era, and military bases sometime halfway into the information age. I have no use for forts. As a minimum, I try to have at least 10 units by the classical era, 20 by the renaissance, and 30 by the modern era. My armies are composed of one half of mixed melee units and the other half are ranged with some artillery units and a handful of mobile units thrown in. They mostly just stand around and make odd faces at the units outside of my borders for large parts of the game.