lol no, they don't use nukes tactically
Tubes are nice, but they just don't pack enough firepower like Bombers and Battleships. Or nukes.
I dont say they use nukes tactically, but they know how to throw them at you and since they are so powerful finesse is no longer the key to success.
Tubes have firepower against cities. You do not kill units with them. 4-5 Artillery + a lancer will take most industrial cities in a few turns. All you need is a path for your lancer. Unit killing is done by your upgraded ranged units in this scenario. Of course, as always there are exceptions, like the great wall AI on hilly terrain or lots of rivers to cross. I find unit killing easy enough, especially with the help of GG bombs, which also mitigate the effect of choke points.
Taking 100 defense cities can be a pain even with rifles, but artillery + a lancer do it easily and without losses.
smallfish said:
I'd say there are two waves you can do Domination: the early good ole Tabarnak style Classical/Medieval rush, or Lategame (which includes one more turn). For lategame, I'll say wait till Modern, get Battleships and Bombers (with fighters), then go rolling. Much safer than solely relying on tubes, and gods help you if you do that against an England with hilly terrain because longbow machine guns are insane as hell.
England on hilly terrain is a beast, I agree. I do not rely purely on tubes though. I would rather say tubes are usually the moment were I start to be aggressive even if no AI decides it wants a fight. So tubes define the point were I start declaring wars by myself, unless of course the AI stays peaceful in early game but that is rarely the case.
Classical rushes as a strat were you initiate the conflict and fight the war you wanted are a rarity on deity in my opinion. You will have your war anyway, at least most of the time due to aggressive neighbours. So usually, at least for me "rushing" is equivalent to staying alive as you get swarmed by one or two AIs turn 40.
Once you beat their units, you start the counter offensive, true. But that is not the same as domination right? I do not see how you would beat 7 civilizations in classical/medieval times. You do not have the infrastructure necessary to support your domination. Neither units nor happiness will be developed enough.
Of course, I dont start warring in industrial, but for me it is the first time where I will get both the momentum and happiness going to conquer lots of cities. Up until then, I will probably have defeated 2 or maybe 3 AIs, but more? How?