Huge Map Expansion Plans

[vorlon_mi]

As part of some experimentation I wanted to do, I recently stepped up from a Standard size map to Huge -- and Pangea, to boot. Regent, if that matters.

My past habits have been to conduct expansion through most of the BCs, and I tend to space my core cities CxxC, to allow for quick reinforcements via roads. I expand until I bump up against an AI, or see that I need a particular resource, and begin preparing for war.

But there's just soooo much land on a huge map! I've been expanding, and roading, and improving, and expanding, and roading .... <puff, puff> all the way to 50 or 90AD, and I haven't filled all the land between my core and the AI frontiers. My cities are not yet grown above size 6, since I keep popping out settlers and workers. I've been building military to deter aggression, although I had to reach across 1/4 of the map to get to some iron.

Question: On huge maps, do you expand by:
1) incrementally expanding your borders, 3 or 4 tiles at a time, until you hit the sea or the AI?
2) walking a settler/defender pair way, way out... like a tentacle ... and then fill in the gaps? Given that I've got open spaces in all four compass directions, I could have four or five tentacles to fill behind.

 

[Spoonwood]

1) I just expand like I would pretty much on a standard sized map.

2) I play "farmer's gambit".

 

[iPwn]

I think below demigod there is no reason (other than early commerce) not to build Pyramids either immediately or after building one settler. You probably don`t want max number of opponents - just to make sure there is enough room. They are awesome for lazy people who don`t want to bother with nerdy worker factory stuff.

 

[Theov]

IF there's a recourse or lux or some other spot I need to take, I go there first and fill the gaps later.
So when I see the map, I have a planned the result already and then prioritize the spots.

Imagine the continents of the americas (north and south). If I'd see that I'd first go to mexico and build a city there, to block the AI from entering my part. Then I'd fill up the rest.

 

[RickFGS]

For huge epic maps i tend to organize in teams, that is:

1)Road is made instantly by 3 workers, so i make 1 team of 6 workers to start building a road towords the direction i intend to expand in near future, if more directions, more teams. First three workers build a road instantly, the other three workers in reserve move over the newly placed road and build a road next turn, thus, 1 road per turn is build in any given direction;

2)Divide cities in three types: Military pumps (must have barracks), Settler Pumps (must have Granary or wheat/cow/wine/game), Worker Pumps (all other that grows and makes worker at the same turn);

3)Core cities along rivers/coast.

4)Use ship chains along coast to transport units across long distances.

5)Identify chokepoints and draw adversaries there.

6)Blitz nearest neighbour when enough Horses/Archers/Swords. Strike with decisive force, no prolonged wars. Use battle settlers.

 

[Spoonwood]

1)Road is made instantly by 3 workers, so i make 1 team of 6 workers to start building a road towords the direction i intend to expand in near future, if more directions, more teams. First three workers build a road instantly, the other three workers in reserve move over the newly placed road and build a road next turn, thus, 1 road per turn is build in any given direction

Though perhaps useful in certain situations, if you want to also develop your territory, this wastes worker turns. You spend 3 turns in movement per square this way, when you could have just spent 1.

 

[RickFGS]

The objective is to build a road in a direction asap, of course i tend to build a lot of workers, i´m not saying you should focus only on this highway and not develop the countryside, what i´m saying is you should consider to make at least one team for this apart from your regular workforce.

If you calculate waste, you are losing on the short term, but gaining afterwards, if you make this after you have your settler/worker pump working at full steam, you will love beeing able to colonize, get troops fast to the front in few turns and keep momentum, this will make a sort of baby boom effect, nail Pyramids and you´ll have even more fun with this on a huge epic map.

But of course, your argument is correct, looking only at territory development, you are losing worker turns that could be aplied elsewhere, its a question of choices and adapting.

 

[Delphi456]

vorlon, try this: In the map editor, set the huge size to 200 x 200 and play with all 31 civs. This is a good map size for pangea. You'll get between 7 -10 cities. Russia is my favorite civ for this map. If you want continents, go with 210 x 210.