How to go about things in game?

[Wafflecakes]

I'm still playing Warlords I'm afraid, and they spank settlers through my territory with gleefull regularity.

Got BtS on order though... a month before CiV comes out. lol

 

[Tk1]

Folks,

How different is Warlord compared to vanilla Civ 4? And what about Beyond the Sword?

I've got Warlord, Beyond the Sword and Colonization in my Disc Bank but never installed them onto my hard drive because Civ 4 is complicated enough I'm just curious and want to know...

 

[BaBaUTZ]

U may want to play "Vanilla" for learning purposes. But after that, u should move to Beyond the Sword. It has everything, that Warlords has (except the singleplayer Scenarios) and even more. With mods like "Better BUG AI" (improves interface and AI) its imho the best u can get out of Civ4.

 

[ParadigmShifter]

Haven't played much vanilla for a long time, it's pretty similar to warlords except some of the traits are different and there are no unique buildings.

The AI kind of sucks in vanilla/warlords but they get huge bonuses compared to BtS.

BtS AI is (slightly ) better, they don't get as big bonuses, and most people prefer it. It's generally harder than vanilla/warlords at noble (perhaps prince) and below, but the higher levels are easier in BtS in my opinion (deity and immortal are still extremely challenging though).

 

[Wafflecakes]

Just got BtS. Wow that's different, and easier.

 

[Tk1]

Hi folks,

I need your help again. For the last couple of days, I've spent 10+ hours on Civ4 vanilla version and a few hours on Warlord. I have the following questions:

1) How do I get rid of or improve the complaints "The city is too crowded"?
2) How do I speed up the unit generation of a newly built city?
3) What do I do to get more "coins"?

Thanks
Tk1

 

[ParadigmShifter]

1) You can't, you get 1 unhappiness from this for each population point, but you can balance this with happiness resources, buildings and the culture slider.
2) Use slavery to reduce population to rush build, use Universal Suffrage to pay to complete a unit/building/wonder or work higher hammer tiles (and build forges, factories and power plants).
3) Complicated question, see this thread: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=367302

 

[Tk1]

Thanks for your swift reply

This game really is a piece of work. Each feature, function or thing has a meaning behind it now that's very interesting. But I find it hard to understand some of them. For instance, how Slavery is related to faster unit generation? Let me guess: citizens become slaves and work as such? But still the slaves are part of the population of the city, so...

About the unhappy citizens, I've noticed in the City Screen there is a + and - button next to the citizen icon, what is that for?

Thanks again for the pointer to the In-depth Guide to Commerce. How commerce is produced?

Another few questions:

It only occurs sometimes, that all the technologies research available for selection takes hundreds of turns and when it's set to run it falls back to normal values...is that a bug?
If I put a worker on trade network automation, do I still need to build cottages, mines and farms?

 

[Sisiutil]

This game really is a piece of work. Each feature, function or thing has a meaning behind it now that's very interesting. But I find it hard to understand some of them. For instance, how Slavery is related to faster unit generation? Let me guess: citizens become slaves and work as such? But still the slaves are part of the population of the city, so...

Actually, no, the slaves are no longer part of the population of the city. When you use the slavery button, you are sacrificing part of the city's population in return for hammers toward the current build (and, if you work it properly, in return for additional overflow hammers toward the next build as well). Basically, slavery allows you to convert food into hammers.

About the unhappy citizens, I've noticed in the City Screen there is a + and - button next to the citizen icon, what is that for?

It won't affect happiness. That button just pulls a citizen off of a tile so you can make him into a specialist.

Thanks again for the pointer to the In-depth Guide to Commerce. How commerce is produced?

Several ways: cottages, trade routes, specialists (especially merchants), working high-commerce tiles such as dye, gold, gems, etc. You then use the science/culture/espionage sliders to determine how much commerce is redirected to those purposes and how much is converted to gold to go into your treasury.

It only occurs sometimes, that all the technologies research available for selection takes hundreds of turns and when it's set to run it falls back to normal values...is that a bug?

This sounds like something that happens during anarchy, when you're changing civics (if you're not a Spiritual leader). In which case no, it's not a bug, it's normal. It's also normal if you're mucking about with the sliders as described above.

If I put a worker on trade network automation, do I still need to build cottages, mines and farms?

Yes, because you should never automate your workers--at least not until after you have railroads and all the major tile improvements are done.

 

[Tk1]

Actually, no, the slaves are no longer part of the population of the city. When you use the slavery button, you are sacrificing part of the city's population in return for hammers toward the current build (and, if you work it properly, in return for additional overflow hammers toward the next build as well). Basically, slavery allows you to convert food into hammers.

Okay I can understand the technicalities behind all that now. In fact I doubt any if any players will actually think about this shall we say nuts & bolts in the heat of a battle or during the development of the civ. What I really want to know more about is how slavery and population fit together. I can understand why we have to research masonry in order to get to build Stonehenge because masonry is the technology required to utilize stone to build something out of it - which is Stonehenge. I also understand that I need horse as a prerequisite resource for horse archer. I appreciate all this historically accurate logic connections or relations, they're all fabulously sensible. My confusion really is about how slavery is related to population reduction. Actually I have same kind of vague understanding about religion.

It won't affect happiness. That button just pulls a citizen off of a tile so you can make him into a specialist.

Right, so this is how the button works. I've heard of specialist, what does a specialist do? How it affects military, diplomacy or the growth and development of the civ?

Several ways: cottages, trade routes, specialists (especially merchants), working high-commerce tiles such as dye, gold, gems, etc. You then use the science/culture/espionage sliders to determine how much commerce is redirected to those purposes and how much is converted to gold to go into your treasury.

Now this is something I want to discuss with you folks. I actually started out a game yesterday and it is still running. 5 hours I am entering modern era I suppose. Below is a screen shot of the territory of Rome, with 5 cities. The next one is Rome's city screen. I have plenty of food and hammer (production?), I have never built any cottages nor any farms throughout the course of the game so far. So where do I get the food and commerce from? I just set each worker produced to automate trade network.

This sounds like something that happens during anarchy, when you're changing civics (if you're not a Spiritual leader). In which case no, it's not a bug, it's normal. It's also normal if you're mucking about with the sliders as described above.

What is a Spiritual Leader? Heard of sliders all over the place, what is a slider in the game? Sorry stupid questions really

Yes, because you should never automate your workers--at least not until after you have railroads and all the major tile improvements are done.

As said above, I didn't built any cottage nor farms but this is what I've got so far by automating the trade network build function of workers

 

[Tk1]

(1) What is the use of religion?
(2) How do I understand, conceptually, having different religions in different cities?
(3) Technically, what good does it do to my civ having researching different religions? Do they help militarily, politically, culturally or civ growth?
(4) Why would I want to create a missionaries?
(5) If I keep sending missionaries and spread my state religion to other civ's cities, what are the benefits of these missions?

*Question about Uranium
(6) I was in Modern Era now. And Uranium is extremely rare. It fell into Elizabeth territory which is on the far upper left of the map and I was on the far right of the map. Obviously we were separated by other civs. I knocked on Elizabeth's door more than a few times, trying to see if Uranium is up for trade but disappointing enough, it was. Without it, I can produce nuke. How do I get Uranium in this case, apart from seizing the territory which means war against Elizabeth?

 

[Alki]

Why are the hills around Rome not worked?

 

[Season]

I generally play on noble, so that I am equal with the AI to begin with. I start with settling near stone or marble and researching polytheism(I begin with Huayna Capac). I build a worker, then stonehenge, leaving my city undefended. Next I build the temple of Artemis while researching priesthood, masonry and fishing if I am near water resources. I then build the great wall, the oracle and a settler. I settle and then build the pyramids. Or in short I build in my capital city nothing but wonders until the industrial era and in all of the others science and culture related things in my others. I usually have an empire of around 7-8 cities and a score of 1500+ by the modern era. At the modern era I am usually most scientifically advanded so I mass produce military units and win 3-4 wars getting me around 20 cities. I then either win by diplomacy or space race(occasionally culture).

~Season~

 

[Tk1]

I generally play on noble, so that I am equal with the AI to begin with. I start with settling near stone or marble and researching polytheism(I begin with Huayna Capac). I build a worker, then stonehenge, leaving my city undefended. Next I build the temple of Artemis while researching priesthood, masonry and fishing if I am near water resources. I then build the great wall, the oracle and a settler. I settle and then build the pyramids. Or in short I build in my capital city nothing but wonders until the industrial era and in all of the others science and culture related things in my others. I usually have an empire of around 7-8 cities and a score of 1500+ by the modern era. At the modern era I am usually most scientifically advanded so I mass produce military units and win 3-4 wars getting me around 20 cities. I then either win by diplomacy or space race(occasionally culture).

~Season~

What about religion? How do you manage that?

 

[Season]

What about religion? How do you manage that?

I play as Inca, so I usually get Hinduism every time (Polytheism tech) and build the shrine for extra cash. I use one city just for missionaries until half of the Civs are Hindu and then I let it spread naturally. By end game, you will generally have 40 cities or more with your religon this way (On a huge map) So thats an easy +40 Gold per turn. Use a bank and you have 65.

 

[EvanMeisterX]

(1) What is the use of religion?
(2) How do I understand, conceptually, having different religions in different cities?
(3) Technically, what good does it do to my civ having researching different religions? Do they help militarily, politically, culturally or civ growth?
(4) Why would I want to create a missionaries?
(5) If I keep sending missionaries and spread my state religion to other civ's cities, what are the benefits of these missions?

*Question about Uranium
(6) I was in Modern Era now. And Uranium is extremely rare. It fell into Elizabeth territory which is on the far upper left of the map and I was on the far right of the map. Obviously we were separated by other civs. I knocked on Elizabeth's door more than a few times, trying to see if Uranium is up for trade but disappointing enough, it was. Without it, I can produce nuke. How do I get Uranium in this case, apart from seizing the territory which means war against Elizabeth?

(1) Religion gives a and a bonus to the city it's in. Religions also allow you to build that religion's temple and monastery. Also, if you have the holy city for the religion (the city the religion was founded in), a Great Prophet can build a shrine in that city, giving you +1 for each city that religion is in.
(2) Each religion gives the same bonuses, and they stack on top of one another. Having one religion as your state religion gives extra bonuses from that religion.
(3) If other civs have the same state religion as you, they'll like you more. However, if they have a different one than you, they'll like you less. If you are using the Organized Religion civic, buildings are created 25% faster in cities with your state religion. With Theocracy, units built in cities with your state religion receive +2 experience points. With Free Religion, you have no state religion, but you still receive +1 extra happiness from each religion in a city, and +10% research.
(4) Missionaries can spread religions, potentially causing other civilzations to switch to your religion. Plus, if you spread the religion which you have the shrine for, you'll receive more every turn (+1 from every city that religion is in)
(5) That's explained with (4)
(6) You could check and see if any other civs have Uranium, and see if they want to trade it. Or, invade one of those contries with it, and take it.

 

[Tk1]

(4) Missionaries can spread religions, potentially causing other civilizations to switch to your religion. Plus, if you spread the religion which you have the shrine for, you'll receive more every turn (+1 from every city that religion is in)
(5) That's explained with (4)

Further question: What good does it do to me when the other civilization switches to my religion? Does it serve a conquer purpose? Or it just makes things easier for say forming alliance ...etc?

 

[Darth Caesar]

Further question: What good does it do to me when the other civilization switches to my religion? Does it serve a conquer purpose? Or it just makes things easier for say forming alliance ...etc?

It improves relations with the nation. Although how much it affects your relations is different for different leaders, for example Isabella will love you if you have her religion and hate your if you don't, while somelike Ragnar (I think.) is almost indifferent about religion.

 

[Tk1]

So there is no religion victory is that so?

 

[Darth Caesar]

So there is no religion victory is that so?

Well in BTS there is the Apostalic Palace that is like a Medieval UN where you can get a Diplomatic Victory. But the difference between that and the UN is that the Vote is determined by religion and not Population.