Improving desert tiles

[Ayjona]

Is there anything I can do to make desert tiles even remotely useful, or change them into another terrain type altogether? Something along the lines of digging rivers, or irrigating desert regions, much like humanity has done in the real world (even if it is extremely costly and time-demanding).

I'm playing an online game with a friend of mine, and he says it's possible they can eventually be altered into other types of terrain, but he cannot recall where he'd seen this, or if he might be confusing Civ IV with an older Civ title.

 

[TheLazyHase]

Is there anything I can do to make desert tiles even remotely useful, or change them into another terrain type altogether? Something along the lines of digging rivers, or irrigating desert regions, much like humanity has done in the real world (even if it is extremely costly and time-demanding).

No way, as in real life. Desert tiles stay in desert. If Sahara is still in expansion, it's not because mankinf is a lazy bunch, but because really we don't know how to do. Same for gobi.

I'm playing an online game with a friend of mine, and he says it's possible they can eventually be altered into other types of terrain, but he cannot recall where he'd seen this, or if he might be confusing Civ IV with an older Civ title.

He's confusing with civ2, where you could terraform the entire planet to lush grassland. And maybe civ3, I don't recall very well.

 

[Woodreaux]

On the bright side, I think desert tiles are more likely to host oil resources. As for what to do with them, I generally build forts on them, that way they can at least serve as air bases.

 

[dirtyparrot]

At best, you can build a city on top of one. But, as for the other desert tiles, I'm afraid you're out of luck. Maybe you'll discover oil on one of then, but other than that, you don't have much to hope for.

 

[TheEnforcer]

Esc/World Builder/Map_Option/River_Placement

 

[MilesGregarius]

Esc/World Builder/Map_Option/River_Placement

Pretty sure you still need to manually change desert to floodplains, even if next to your new river. Otherwise you'll have a bunch of 0/1 tiles that you still can't improve.

Barring World Builder or a late resource, city placement and forts are about it.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

How bout Incense? Still a hard sell considering you get 0 food! :O

 

[capnvonbaron]

I fort a few, usually, for use as airbases and ship harbors. Otherwise, build on them if they sit alone or near a lot of resources, or just build around them entirely.

Also, I recall a bug that allows for watermills on riverside desert. The watermill can at least be marginally useful with State Property I guess I don't oft see riverside desert except on terra maps for some reason

 

[Freedom]

I fort a few, usually, for use as airbases and ship harbors. Otherwise, build on them if they sit alone or near a lot of resources, or just build around them entirely.

Also, I recall a bug that allows for watermills on riverside desert. The watermill can at least be marginally useful with State Property I guess I don't oft see riverside desert except on terra maps for some reason

riverside desert should be flood plains

 

[TheMeInTeam]

riverside desert should be flood plains

Barring the case of the magic desert fairy wand also known as global warming, you mean .

 

[r_rolo1]

riverside desert should be flood plains

Says who? That depends on the map script. In terms of the game saying that riverside desert should always be FP is the same thar saying that all the riverside hills should be forested....

 

[capnvonbaron]

Says who? That depends on the map script. In terms of the game saying that riverside desert should always be FP is the same thar saying that all the riverside hills should be forested....

Exactly. TMIT has a point too. But I'm 100% certain I've seen riverside desert tiles on maps generated by the game even before global warming. I've even gotten in the habit of checking to make sure all the "floodplain" around rivers is actually fp and not desert because of it. If I can, I'll put a city on the riverside desert tile and reap the benefits.

 

[Silu]

Exactly. TMIT has a point too. But I'm 100% certain I've seen riverside desert tiles on maps generated by the game even before global warming. I've even gotten in the habit of checking to make sure all the "floodplain" around rivers is actually fp and not desert because of it. If I can, I'll put a city on the riverside desert tile and reap the benefits.

Yes, as rolo said certain map scripts generate riverside desert. Not the standard ones like Fractal/Pangaea but ones like Custom_Continents (IIRC) and the other stranger scripts.

I don't think it's a bug that you can watermill riverside desert and ice tiles (which you can't improve otherwise). After all it's a watermill, not a grasslandmill, desertmill or icemill.

 

[capnvonbaron]

After all it's a watermill, not a grasslandmill, desertmill or icemill.

Good point... although I'd love to have me a hillmill

 

[TheWilltoAct]

Says who? That depends on the map script. In terms of the game saying that riverside desert should always be FP is the same thar saying that all the riverside hills should be forested....

That doesn't even make sense rolo.

I believe he's referring to the changes in the 3.19 patch,

Oh Sweet!

// add floodplains to any desert tiles the new river passes through

from the 3.19 discussion thread

 

[Silu]

Flood plains is not a terrain type, like grass, plains, desert and so forth. It's a terrain feature (or similar, don't remember the exact term) like forest and jungle and it doesn't have an inherent link with desert river tiles. Go check out Civilopedia for the specifics.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

I don't think that has anything to do with what I'm saying Silu, there was some sort of a change made in the 3.19 patch that impacted riverside desert tiles. That's an excerpt from the code.

 

[Neal]

Riverside Desert may not happen a lot with random maps, but play Earth a few times and you'll get used to it. After all, them ain't flood plains on the banks of the Rio Grande.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

Yea I'm not saying they are like a myth or something heh

From what I'm hearing it seems the change only affected particular map scripts.

 

[TheMeInTeam]

The 3.19 patch scrapped desert rivers that were generated via capitol map beautification. As rolo says, the normal script can still make them if they're part of it. Most map types don't allow it now though.