I want to be able to get lightyears ahead in technology compared to the AI, and build up a military showing my technological might. I want to have tanks while the AI still has pikemen and swordsmen. Is there a strategy to doing this? A certain nationality? Anything?
How can I get ahead of the AI in technology by lightyears, and have a large military?
- Thread starter armed2010
- Start date
wilbill
That Old Time Religion
Welll... you can, but probably not in every game you play.
You'll probably need to stick with the two lower levels where the human player gets a bonus in trading and some other minor things. Regent might work, too.
Then - and here's where it's counterintuitive - trade, sell, and give away the techs you develop ahead of the AI's - at least through the Middle Ages, maybe into the Industrial era.
"But," you say, "I want to be ahead of the AI's." If you don't trade your techs early you'll never get as far ahead as you want to be. By trading, you're letting the AI's do some of your research for you, freeing up your gold and shields to build your civilization to the point at which you can slide the research slider up and start researching new techs every 4 turns and leave the AI's in the dust.
Give it a try.
You might also learn to use the editor and setup a modded game that'll start with things as you describe.
(Brief editorial comment)
What you want to do may be fun a few times, but in the long run I think you'll discover that Civ 3 is at its best when one or more of the AI's actually gives you serious competition. Above Monarch level, human players almost always lag behind the AI's in research for much, if not all, of the game. That's one of the real challenges.
(End editorial)
Play the game the way you want and enjoy it. There's not a "right" way to play Civ 3 as long as you're having fun.
You'll probably need to stick with the two lower levels where the human player gets a bonus in trading and some other minor things. Regent might work, too.
Then - and here's where it's counterintuitive - trade, sell, and give away the techs you develop ahead of the AI's - at least through the Middle Ages, maybe into the Industrial era.
"But," you say, "I want to be ahead of the AI's." If you don't trade your techs early you'll never get as far ahead as you want to be. By trading, you're letting the AI's do some of your research for you, freeing up your gold and shields to build your civilization to the point at which you can slide the research slider up and start researching new techs every 4 turns and leave the AI's in the dust.
Give it a try.
You might also learn to use the editor and setup a modded game that'll start with things as you describe.
(Brief editorial comment)
What you want to do may be fun a few times, but in the long run I think you'll discover that Civ 3 is at its best when one or more of the AI's actually gives you serious competition. Above Monarch level, human players almost always lag behind the AI's in research for much, if not all, of the game. That's one of the real challenges.
(End editorial)
Play the game the way you want and enjoy it. There's not a "right" way to play Civ 3 as long as you're having fun.
Phantom Lord
live by the sword
And soon another "What the heck, a spearman just killed my tank!" thread is due ...
You can get ahead, eg by crippling all enemies early in the game and reducing them to a few cities.
But when you arrive at the point of being technically superior and equipped with a huge modern army, you could have won the game long before. There's no thrill left, just the administration of your empire. The world is your zoo where you keep a few cultures that you could extinct whenever you like.
Contact between civs is the key to techological developement.
When civs contact each other they trade techs between each other and can quickly catch up any tech lead.
I have had games where I have started on the largest contient beat up and surpressed my neighbours. Gone on to build the Great Lighthouse contacted the other civs. Maintained this isolation as long as possible with priveteers.
War that you are not involved in is also good for your tech lead.
Form an allience against a far away civ with its neighbour.
Give cities that have culture flipped to you to a far away civ.
or use a settler to create a city near an aggressive neighbour and give it to the civ you want them to go to war with.
When civs contact each other they trade techs between each other and can quickly catch up any tech lead.
I have had games where I have started on the largest contient beat up and surpressed my neighbours. Gone on to build the Great Lighthouse contacted the other civs. Maintained this isolation as long as possible with priveteers.
War that you are not involved in is also good for your tech lead.
Form an allience against a far away civ with its neighbour.
Give cities that have culture flipped to you to a far away civ.
or use a settler to create a city near an aggressive neighbour and give it to the civ you want them to go to war with.
It can be easily done! Just go back to the Chieftain or Warlord level on a huge map with the minium number of civs. That should do the trick.
okleydokley
Chieftain
- Joined
- Dec 2, 2001
- Messages
- 7
I have gotten to this point many times, and (after deciding that I need to play a higher difficulty) I realize that it starts to feel more like sim-city then civilization.
But, since so many people like sim-city, I guess there is a calling for this type of play.
Bismarck
The Iron Chancellor
Maybe I'm cynical, but I suspect a troll.
EDIT: or a newbie.
EDIT: or a newbie.
Phantom Lord
live by the sword
I agree, building enormous civs and "milking games" is all about this. I've played such games in Civ 1, where it was truly easy to get ahead.
Aggie
Deity
It's not as easy as civ2 or Alpha Centauri, because every tech takes AT LEAST 4 turns to research. In previous games you could have 1 to 4 techs per turn.... That helped to speed up things...
If it take you 4 turns per tech, it would take the AI at least 10 turns per tech at the Chieftain level. Therefore, you could "get ahead of the AI in technology by lightyears".
That was exactly why I recommend him to play the Chieftain level.Missing Persons
Chieftain
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2001
- Messages
- 22
The AI follows a certain research path which I have noticed in the ancient age on all difficulties. I have noticed that the AI puts off techs like Monarchy and Polytheism, and sometimes Literature. Usually I can trade these for whatever I they have.
From the medieval times and on, it helps if you have your forbidden palace ideally located to create the two-empire effect. You can get a strong tech lead even on Monarch.
This is how I sometimes get such a lead.
From the medieval times and on, it helps if you have your forbidden palace ideally located to create the two-empire effect. You can get a strong tech lead even on Monarch.
This is how I sometimes get such a lead.
Missing Persons
Chieftain
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2001
- Messages
- 22
Referring to my previous post.
The "light-years" lead will more than likely be seen on Chieftain. But on higher levels, you will see a nice window of opportunity by beating the AI to key military techs (MIl Tradition, replaceable parts)
The "light-years" lead will more than likely be seen on Chieftain. But on higher levels, you will see a nice window of opportunity by beating the AI to key military techs (MIl Tradition, replaceable parts)
Generalissimo
Chieftain
In my current Regent game I am lightyears ahead of everyone else. I started out on some grasslands with cows nearby. Scouting about with three warriors i started making tons of setlers. By taking up all of the grasslands around me the AI was forced to settle mainly in jungle, which is slow. Of course the Zulu and Persians did manage to take some nice city places so I ended up taking those over, and then i decided it would be a good idea to just go ahead and take all of their cities. I am now fighting the Japanese on one front and the Koreans on the other. I have calvery and the Japanese don't even have pikemen yet, but the Koreans do. I went strait for calvery, so I didn't get to use my Knight UU. I think once I consolidate the huge Island I'm going to research chivary and get a Golden Age.
farting bob
ThEy MaDe Me Do iT.
play on chieften, build up a large army in the begining half, you should have a ok tech lead anyway because of there retardedness when you play on chieften. then wipe out half there empire at least. only stop when you can get some cities out of them in a peace deal, this is easy to do when you have superior units. leaving them with only a few cities left they slow down in research, money, and army size. then wait until modern era and the gap should have grown alot. you have MA's and they have pikeman and knights!
billindenver
King
You could do that on Chieftain too. See you science to zero and don't trade anything ever or make any terrain improvements.
Tiger_Nation
Warlord
If you play on an arpileago (can't spell it but you catch my drift) there can be some far away civs which are a long way behind you techno wise because they didn't get contacts to trade with and also because they lack the space to expand in but the problem with that is that you won't be able to expand too.
wargasm23
Warlord
i think the research development in civ3 is too one - sided. A nation, the USA for example comes out with numerous technologies at one time based on the resources available. Civ3 should also take this into account.
Why spend so many turns on just 1 tech, why not several techs?
That is why i research the BIG techs and sell them for 3-4 smaller techs to get up the tech tree very quickly.
I think we are on a roll.
Why spend so many turns on just 1 tech, why not several techs?
That is why i research the BIG techs and sell them for 3-4 smaller techs to get up the tech tree very quickly.
I think we are on a roll.
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