I just got my hands on a civnet strategy book...

[stwils]

This is a small book by Jonatha Caspian-Kaufman.

She gives three strategies for playing (I assume also for single play not just multiplay)

1- The Economic Game
2-Roll Forth and Conquer
3-Winning Through Technology

Each is elaborated on.

My question is this. When you start up a game of Civ1, do you have a certain strategy in mind? Or do you just let the terrain - and spur of the moment inspire you what to do?

I do not plan my games ahead. Just go with the flow. (Maybe that is why I don't win too many of them. )

stwils

 

[trada]

O_o Where did you find that little gem? You lucky guy!

Those three stradegies sound like that pretty much cover everything. Roll Forth and Conquer sounds like ICS + a large military rush. Winning Through Technology is SS victory obviously through science cities. But The Economic Game? How would that differ from Winning Through Technology? Is it playing it rich and fighting with diplomats?

When I start up a game of civ1 I usually don't have a strategy. I, too, play with the flow of the game. Every game is a unique adventure. I usually try to aim for being a super-power in the modern age competing with another (or more) large civ/s. That's very neat. But it can a scenario hard to engineer. Mostly, I try to make a story out of my choices and actions in the game. Something that, after you finish and watch the replay, you can think "Wow. That was awesome enough to tell people about". Now, whether you can find anybody who would care to listen is another story..

 

[Osvaldo Manso]

Like you, I normally play with the flow of the game and not against it (I think there's a similar advice in the original manual or perhaps in «Rome in 640k a Day»).

However, a peaceful start is part of my style. I don't like being engaged in early wars. Even in the modern era, I rarely trigger war. But sometimes, when I don't have enough room for at least 5/6 cities I need to start a war early on to destroy the neighbouring civilization before they get too big. And other times, especially in the modern era the other civs get so annoying that there's no way to avoid war.

I like a lot to start alone in a continent, grow consistently and then begin to explore the oceans and find the other civs. However, this is not the case with my current game as some of you know...

I rarely play Earth but when I do I find it very challenging to play the English!

 

[Alex Johnson]

I only have one strategy in Civ1: Roll forth and conquer! I play to fight and usually start wars as soon as I meet people. If I'm really unprepared for such (which happens a lot in the mid game when I'm trying to fix my unhappy cities and keep them growing) then I accept their offers for peace, but they usually would rather go to war at that part of the game. So I'm practically always at war.