How do you REX without going broke?

[mrtauntaun]

I tried a search for this, but it's such a common term it's used a lot (and REX itself is too short a word to search).

I try to expand very rapidly, but if I do it too fast, I go broke very quickly. I can sometimes get a good axe rush in to slow the AI down, but if I don't have access to copper or there is a lot of land between us, I can't settle it fast enough without killing the economy.

What's the secret of REXing? I currently play on Prince, but am looking to move up in difficulty.

 

[so18apm]

Well, I'm no expert. But, from what I have read you will be going broke during REX. The idea is to claim all the best land first, then recover your economy afterwards (trades for gold, great merchants, cottage spamming). Don't neglect your military either or you won't be able to survive long enough to recover.

 

[DaveMcW]

Cottages!!

 

[mrtauntaun]

So take the initial hit to the tech slider and go for a booming recovery later?

 

[mrtauntaun]

I spam cottages like crazy, but it takes a long time for the cities to grow and the cottages to mature. It's during this time my economy tanks and research suffers. If this is normal to fall behind technologically and then recover later, then I guess I am doing it right?

 

[Skurn]

Try to get pottery and writing, then you turn research to 0% while building libraries.
When done, you can assign scientists to generate some beakers and alternate between 0% and 100% slider while teching to currency and/or COL and growing your cottages

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

Falling behind in Tech in the earlier game and then recovering to surge ahead is the right idea. Even better if you never fall behind. BUT, if you're ahead in techs early on and then sputter and fail later, that's a problem.

The idea of REX is that you're research slider suffers big time until grabbing Currency and CoL. Growth is most important in new cities so you can whip infrastructure and then allow it to grow onto the cottage tiles. So work your food sources first. I tend to pull my citizens off of production and hamlet / cottage tiles in library cities to work scientist specialists during the final stages of the REX. It allows the remaining village/town tiles to provide the gold to sustain my REX while not falling WAAAAY behind in techs.

Mind you, I'm still new to Prince, so I'm still adjusting to the new maintenance costs and faster AI teching.

 

[DaveMcW]

You can build libraries in high-food cities and run scientists while waiting for cottages to grow.

 

[mrtauntaun]

Interesting. I tend to be a technology snob, I love have the tech edge. So it always irked me leaving my tech slider less than 50-60 at any time. But if setting to 0 works, heck Im all for it.

 

[madscientist]

REXing involves maximum number of cities until either you go broke or run out land (or rivals!).

Some things to remember

1) Keep military up!

2) Target Pottery (cottages), writing (libraries), and sailing ( efficient sea tiles and trade routes) BEFORE your treasury runs dry. IT sucks to be at 10% slider while teching Pottery and wrinitng sill.

3) Aim for Code of Laws and Currency to build wealth, trade routes, courthouses, Caste system, and markets.

4) If you got a Holy City, make sure you add a priest specialist to possibly pop one for a shrine.

Several on my RPCs dealt with REXing, notably the 2 Catherine ones and the Roosevelt one.

 

[Unconquered Sun]

I spam cottages like crazy, but it takes a long time for the cities to grow and the cottages to mature. It's during this time my economy tanks and research suffers. If this is normal to fall behind technologically and then recover later, then I guess I am doing it right?

Non-financial cottages aren't the best way to keep your economy afloat after heavy REXing or rushing.

The typical unit pump city works a food resource and mines. At some point you'll have enough units and settlers, and your cities become a liability. Adding some 1-commerce cottages can't solve the problem. Library scientists (6 beakers) can't either, although their GPP could when you're in position to bulb an expensive tech and trade it to all the AIs.

The fastest way to transition from unit pumping to research is to actually build research/wealth, while waiting for cottages and GPP to pick up.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

The fastest way to transition from unit pumping to research is to actually build research/wealth, while waiting for cottages and GPP to pick up.

That's very true. Having your hammer heavy city build research can provide a lot more than running 2 non-Representation scientists (6). But ONLY do so if your power rating is close enough to your immediate neighbors. We don't want them to start salivating over all that land and no soldiers

 

[ml3js]

Normally, (playing at emperor), you can expand 4-6 cities without going below 60% in Tech if you work your tiles right. I usually try to make one of the new cities I found produce quite a lot of money, usually by founding it next to grassland rivers/floodplains and cottage them as quickly as possible. If you do that, that sole city can support a REX good enough to "block" in terrain behind you so the AI can't get to it. Then you hit CoL, whip courthouses as quickly as possible in all towns which basically allows you to found another 3-6 cities in the terrain you blocked off.

Either way, you won't fall behind too much in technology if you pick your technologies and trade wisely when you can and hopefully you can soon have a good economy going.

 

[TheMeInTeam]

That's very true. Having your hammer heavy city build research can provide a lot more than running 2 non-Representation scientists (6). But ONLY do so if your power rating is close enough to your immediate neighbors. We don't want them to start salivating over all that land and no soldiers

You just need enough units to defend yourself. On difficulties where expansion costs actually matter, there's no way you're going to get enough power to deter a declaration outright.

 

[Stolen Rutters]

The non-secret is to plant all early cities next to special food tiles. If a city can't work a corn/fish/cow/pig etc. Do NOT build it until you are past currency and code of laws... (unless it's the only source of early metal of course).

The long term secret is to specialize your cities but that means you have to get past the empire growth techs, so to speak.

Madscientist has the tech path down. You need those techs to keep tech rate up when the slider is down.

If you are a slider hog, remember that the slider doesn't count all your research. It only shows how your commerce is split up. It doesn't count any of the output from your specialists, or hammers used to build science or gold. 0% slider just means all your commerce is going to , or , not .

You could be building with the science slider at 0% or building with the slider at 100%... and theoretically getting the same result, if conditions were exacly right.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

You just need enough units to defend yourself. On difficulties where expansion costs actually matter, there's no way you're going to get enough power to deter a declaration outright.

So should I plan on being attacked? I'm playing Prince. Mathematically, I know it's no where near as bad as Emperor, but I'm feeling the maintenance/distance from palace costs big time.

I started a game last night. Random leader - Mao Zedong. I spawned in an area that was pretty resource and production poor. It wasn't really all that great for food sources either. To be honest, the capital was the only BFC that was anything but disappointing for a long track of space. So I was settling way out there to grab worthwhile land and to stop van Oranje's REX. The maintenance was killing me, but I was still popping units left and right trying to remain at least close in power to deter a DoW.

Should I just build enough units to defend my border cities well and then build or after that?

 

[TheMeInTeam]

Should I just build enough units to defend my border cities well and then build or after that?

Usually. For prince I'd check the leader reference chart. Some AIs need to be a bit stronger than you to DOW, others you'd need 150% of their power to deter war. Diplomacy is almost always the superior method of avoiding war, though (at least early). And, as you may have noticed, building wealth or research can help you out a ton (and it's pretty easy to get access to building research). Overbuilding military or buildings can slow research a lot, and it's hard to notice that you're doing it and the extent of the impact at first.

If you can get above their dow power threshold easily. go ahead and do it. For guys who don't declare at pleased, just get them to pleased then you can neglect military a long time.

With super warmongers like the shaka/monty/alex/genghis types, IMO if they border you alone you'll want to rush them or prepare for war on defense. If they border multiple civs and you can get them to pleased, bribe them elsewhere before they decide you should be the target.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

Thanks a lot, TMIT. I've pretty much given up on my current Mao Zedong game discussed above. I've been able to keep up okay tech and military wise up to this point. But as I saved my game last night before closing shop I noticed that 4 of the AI on the 7 leader standard map are ahead of me in tech. Willem van Oranje is very far ahead (first to Lib which I don't have, Astronomy which I don't have, largest army, and sizeable landmass).

I did okay in the diplo category, but it has become apparent to me that I don't even have a viable victory condition. The land I have is just too crappy. I'll post a screenie when I get home if I have time. Tons of grassland only tiles, barely any food resources, only 2 lux resources, 1 iron resource, no copper, and barely any hills. I needed to be in slavery b/c of the lack of production tiles therefore I can't lay workshops down on the grassland tiles for anything better than 2 1 which is totally unacceptable without food resources.


If I had been able to build the AP, I might have been able to pull a diplo victory since everyone on the map (including Shaka who is a different religion!) is Pleased or Friendly. Even with my borders colliding with Justinian AND he's a different religion, we're Pleased. I'm proud that I was able to keep up (up this point aro 1300AD) with the crappy land that I have.

I'm pretty much looking at a loss. I'll probably DoW on Justinian to try and wrestle his resource heavy land away from him. If I lose, oh well. I'll start a new game.

 

[Monsterzuma]

Some AIs need to be a bit stronger than you to DOW, others you'd need 150% of their power to deter war.

That's very interesting. Which of the AI leader statistics are you talking about? "Aggression level" maybe? How are the "high", "very high" ratings linked to power ratio percentages? Is there a place where this info is condensed in a strategy guide?

 

[peppe1]

I had a game the other day that went much like your Mao game, but I didn't get to unit massing. I had maybe three units in a border city when Fredrick declared, and they held off the first wave (pre-construction). I was a little unprepared, but I immediately whipped some garrison units in the city and a few close cities to send to the border one. They all arrived in time and held off the second wave. I continued to produce a mix of units and ship them to the border. Eventually Fredrick lost enough units and I had enough built up to counter attack and take a couple of his close cities, then sue for peace. Peace for me usually means secure what you took, build up for the 10 turns, and launch the next offensive until the AI that DoW you is eliminated.

Early game a good unit mix in a garrison city can hold off huge stacks while re-reinforcements are built and arrive. Keep tabs on enemy tech as siege drastically affects your ability to defend. Once the enemy starts bringing siege you better be able to counter with something (more siege, mounted units, diplomacy, etc).

Worry about your power when you are ready for war so you will actually make use of your units. You need some units to defend, but don't need a SoD that keeps up with the enemy's power. If you do that you sink a lot of hammers into units that may never see battle. Diplomacy is easier and more efficient to manage the chance of war.