How to keep growing with high Science %?

[Mt.Everest]

Hello,

One problem I am having (yes, newbie) is once I get going (about 10 cities, good number of military units, workers, etc) I cant figure out how to get enough gold to keep my Science slider up over 40% or so.

I seem to be pulling in alot of gold, but my expenses are always too high. Growing +13 becomes Shrinking -16 or something with one 10% boost to science.

What are the tricks to getting enough gold to keep Science at 80-100% percent once the game really gets going? I trade luxuries whenever I can, I try to make a few scientists/tax collectors when I can in large cities, and I dont think Im building too many military units, but maybe I am. I usually have about 3 garrison units and 3-5 offensive units in my cities.

What am i doing wrong and why cant I get enough gold to keep growing along with Science up high?

thanks
MT

 

[777]

Well I keep my science slider at 50-60% and it's enough. I've seen that if rise above that level turns stay same but I lose huge amounts of money.

Do you have useles imps in your cities? Cathedrals are quite useles, I rarely use them. Luxs keep my people happy.

Have you roaded all tiles where people are in work?

 

[col]

Republic and marketplaces and roads.

 

[Khan_Asparuh]

Consider the 10% variation.
Change of -29 g means your total income is about 290, it's not too much for a mid sized civ in the beginning of the Middle Age.
Still, 3 units garison per city + several attackers is a lot. If you're in republic, this is killing. Check your military support costs, and yes, road a lot.
You can't go on constant 80-90% research if the AIs are not funding it with GPT deals, simply because of the improvements support (and eventually military). So trading is the way to keep your research high.
Still, dont lock yourself in the idea of having a constant research rate. In my games I go through every rate possible, depending of the time it takes and my treasury. Calculate the optimal rate for research for each tech.

 

[Rik Meleet]

Republic and marketplaces and roads.

and libraries help as well as they allow more science for a lower science %-age.

 

[Michelangelo]

Usually you don't have to put units into your inner cities. They are much more effective at the borders. And check F3 for allowed units/unit support it'll tell you if you have to much (depends on government type)

Also I normally use the far away and thus corrupt cities for increased unit support, and if at all possible get the biggest number of specialists it can affort (this usually means stop growing while still small, rule, stop growing when all 3+ food squares are used)

And offcourse science buildings, but only in the core cities where they have any effect.

 

[Lockesdonkey]

No. What you should do is this:

Maintain a high SR.
Go on a barb-hunting campaign.
Get ahead technologically.
Build imps in this order:
Temple
Library
Marketplace
Cathedral

Go for Monarchy or Republic, depending on the size of your military and the size of your cities.
Make sure that all cities are defended, but utterly disregard your offensive military (other than what is necessary for a barb-hunt)
Sell/trade tech to everyone.

Go straight to Economics, ignoring everything else; build Adam Smith's Trading Company.
At this point, the AI should be offering gold per turn for your techs. However, do NOT sell Economics until you feel certain that you will get Adam Smith.

Continue your researches. Getting Copernicus is advisable, but not necessary. Newton's University is also important.

Get Democracy.


At the beginning of the IA, you should be able to sell your tech for exorbitant gpt. Always try to find the highest possible price when selling, the lowest possible when buying.


You will be advanced, 0.10.0, and making 200+ gpt.

 

[Khan_Asparuh]

I've allways been against giving hardcoded rules to win. Improvements build order - that's something to decide out there on the field, often my market is before my lib or the inverse. You're not forced to go in Democracy in every game. There are no MUST HAVE wonders, because you can miss them all.
Trade techs not because you dont need them anymore but because someone else will trade them or because what you can get in exchange is worth. Sometimes taking the risk of missing Smiths is giving enough money in exchange that you don't care if you really do, Smith's effect equivalent is allready in your pocket.
I'm a demigod player. I was struggling at Monarch when I found CFC, and the best thing I learnt here was that there are no hardcoded paths. (plus several details on the ingame mechanics). It allowed me to go up.
The best you can do to improve your gameplay is to read others games and analyse every decision they take.

 

[Moonsinger]

Republic and marketplaces and roads.

And scientists! Lots and lots of scientists!

 

[tR1cKy]

No. What you should do is this:

Giving absolute rules is always wrong.

Maintain a high SR.

He's a n00b, so he probably ignores what 'SR' means.

Go on a barb-hunting campaign.

Correct.

Get ahead technologically.

Not necessary. It's enough to acquire a tech that no one else knows and sell it around. Usually it earns 2-3 techs and some cash.

Build imps in this order:
Temple
Library
Marketplace
Cathedral

As i said, absolute rules are always wrong.
Marketplace are often the 1st to be built, since it raises money and, with 3+ luxuries, it raises happiness too. Libraries go 1st if he's scientific: they are cheap, provide culture and give science bonus. Temples are 1st only if his civ is religious and often the may not be needed at all.

Go for Monarchy or Republic, depending on the size of your military and the size of your cities.

Correct.

Make sure that all cities are defended, but utterly disregard your offensive military (other than what is necessary for a barb-hunt)

This is pure nonsense.

Sell/trade tech to everyone.

Correct.

Go straight to Economics, ignoring everything else; build Adam Smith's Trading Company.
At this point, the AI should be offering gold per turn for your techs. However, do NOT sell Economics until you feel certain that you will get Adam Smith.

This is only one of the possible strategies in the middle ages, and not the best at all.

Continue your researches. Getting Copernicus is advisable, but not necessary. Newton's University is also important.

They give the same science bonus.

Get Democracy.

If he's in republic, switching to democracy is a huge loss.
If he's in monarchy, he probably is going for a war-stile game so switching to democracy is pure nonsense.

 

[Khan_Asparuh]

He's a n00b, so he probably ignores what 'SR' means.

Actually I'm not exactly a n00b but am not sure if SR means Scientific Research. Is it? Not the most used I'd say.

 

[garric]

Most of the time my science is at 0, because I trade for techs, I never actually research them.

 

[777]

No. What you should do is this:

Maintain a high SR.
Go on a barb-hunting campaign.
Get ahead technologically.
Build imps in this order:
Temple
Library
Marketplace
Cathedral
.

I'm not sure is cathedral so important. I barely use them, only if occupied city grows up to 12 so I can keep WLTK more easily. But it's not necesary 'till the hospitals come.

 

[tR1cKy]

Actually I'm not exactly a n00b but am not sure if SR means Scientific Research. Is it? Not the most used I'd say.

I meant the thread starter, not you.
Well, it should mean scientific research (which is redundant btw).

 

[TyranusBonehead]

Build your cities closer together and road everything to decrease corruption. This will give you more gold to spend on research. Trade techs, and definitely go on a barb-hunting trip with 2 warriors at least to try to cover as much ground as quickly as possible. You can always disband them when everything's found. Get to Republic, but try to have your cities mostly roaded beforehand, so the hit you take will be less. Lastly, start putting in courthouses in every city, particularly those far away from the capital. And expand, expand, expand.

 

[Khan_Asparuh]

I meant the thread starter, not you.
Well, it should mean scientific research (which is redundant btw).

I meant that even a not-newbie ignores this abbr. And it's really redundant btw.
If not I agree with you on the other points.
But I remember my first readings of the forums, all seems so complicated in the beginning that we finally need a "to build" list and stuff like this. Getting rid of this and the wonder obsession is the real boost for a higher diff level.

 

[tR1cKy]

It's the 1st time i see this abbreviation too
I thought to 'scientific research' simply because i cannot find anything else meaningful for it.

 

[Tomoyo]

Science Rate?

And defenders do nothing but take up gold. Don't build them until rails.

 

[Khan_Asparuh]

Science Rate?

And defenders do nothing but take up gold. Don't build them until rails.

This one sounds better.
Well, IMO defenders are more needed before rails then after.
With roads a defender can garison max 3 cities. With rails - nearly all. I tend to defend better before rails and to leave cities empty after.
As I've allready mentioned it, I really hate having units staying idle. So I tend to minimize them too, at least until there's nothing else to build.

 

[Drakan]

Go for Monarchy or Republic.. .

Specially Republic.

Get Democracy..

No. Don't swap to democracy, it's a complete waste as pointed out already by Tricky.

Republic is fine at all levels whether you want to win by conquests, diplo, SS, dom ....