in the beginning....

[ArcticWolf]

First, hi to everyone, I am a newbie here.. (And I looked at the hall of fame..I feel so..small now) <img src="icon9.gif" border="0">

Anyways, I have been playing mostly at Prince, but I have decided to move up to king and emperor..and I am in trouble. I have mostly trouble with wonders (Getting them) and, well, the enemy usually has more science than I have. I am almost always the largest, maybe not the meanest, but I have lots of people and I am land-fat..so to say...help me <img src="icon9.gif" border="0"> what am I doing wrong? I want my wonders...

uh, another question too: When I expand, I first build settlers, then I build more settlers. I build no warriors or horsemen(I hope I get some military from the huts)..I spread like the plague..is this smart?

btw, there is a squirrel outside my window, sitting in a nearby tree, and it has been sitting there and staring at me for..30 minutes now. Is that normal? I am worried...

 

[Enkidu]

Nothing wrong with building as many cities as you can although on higher a difficulty level you will start to have to build some units to prevent unhapiness (I take it you're in monarchy)

 

[shadowdale]

If the AI is getting more research then you with less cities then you are either not using a science friendly government (republic and democracy) or you aren't using any trade routs!!!

My suggestion is that you try to get replublic/democracy ASAP and start building a lot of caravans to get some trade flowing - but it might also be because the AI is very good at trading techs with other AI Civs.

About the wonders - well only build them in cities with a high shield production and build some extra caravans to help them on the way - and well sometimes it helps to buy them.....

<img src="graemlins/snipersmilie.gif" border="0" alt="[Sniper]" />

 

[starlifter]

At higher difficulty levels (e.g., Emperor and Deity), you will not get all the wonders built yourself. Pick the most critical ones and plan ahead to be able to build them.

CRITICAL:<br />Michelangelos Chapel<br />JS Bach<br />Hoover Dam

VERY IMPORTANT:<br />Pyramids<br />Colossus<br />Copernicus<br />Leonardos Workshop<br />Shakespeare<br />Isaac Newton<br />Marco Polo

You can of course capture any important wonders the AI builds... in some cases, you can delay a city capture until the AI builds the wonder for you, thus saving the shields.

 

[ArcticWolf]

Hmm..I started a nice customised map with the Celts this morning...Only important things I lost was United nations and Shakespeare's theatre..but now I am worried about my size..I only have 19 cities! I am leading in tech, and my cities have high production, and I have a ultimate science city..democracy..trade routes..

my question is: Could there still be something I could do? without starting a huge war? oh wait, I am in war with almost everyone...it is 1750. I just invented mobile warfare. Should I attack some enemy with gunpowder only?

 

[jomey]

my question is: Could there still be something I could do? without starting a huge war? oh wait, I am in war with almost everyone...it is 1750. I just invented mobile warfare. Should I attack some enemy with gunpowder only?[/QB]<hr></blockquote>

No right or wrong way to proceed.I find this the most enjoyable part of the game.. <img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">

But just a few of pointers.

If you are going to start obliterating civs then make sure that you can defend the cities. I generally find alpine troopers are good for this as the ai may not have developed their terrain yet.There is nothing worse than spending half the game researching only for another civ to to steal it from you. It sounds like the ai civs are allied against you so word will spread pretty quickly.

Have a few spies handy to check out the area first and also if your tanks have problems moving around in enemy terriory(send the spy into the squares where your tanks want to go).

Might even consider changing your government to fundy for a while, just to maximise the production and also keep your cities content.

Make sure that you have plenty of engineers/tranports handy. I find that movement is the key to big campaigns(depends on your terrain).

Question yourself,"what will you do with the captured cities ?"

The main difficulty is to know when to stop yourself being overstretched.

At the end of the day , how do you want to finish up : "all - conquering tyrant" or "enlightened being to lead mankind into the stars"<br /> <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[LOL]" />

 

[Goatman]

I am one of those who likes to lead his people to the stars, but I have found that in either case it helps to have as many cities as possible (As if nobody esle has figured that out).

My favourite/easiest method for capturing these cities is by bribing them with spies, and this is easiest under a democratic government (because of the extra trade). Using this method you can wipe out 99% of a civilization without them being able to do a thing about it <img src="graemlins/smokin.gif" border="0" alt="[Smoke]" /> . You also keep all of the cities of your enemies, meaning that you generally don't have to bother with building them yourself.

Question yourself,"what will you do with the captured cities ?" <hr></blockquote>

You can allways find something to do with more cities.

For a lot more free advice see my "Stuck as a prince" thread and you'll be <img src="graemlins/hammer.gif" border="0" alt="[Hammer]" /> in no time. <img src="graemlins/king.gif" border="0" alt="[King]" />

 

[el_kalkylus]

I really like paratroopers. They are fast, can move almost anywhere and take cities. They can kill tanks etc...everything, just as long as they are veterans. They never lose. Skip big waters and take the city you want with some paratroopers. Bombers, howitzers and paratroopers are the way to go.

 

[Smash]

in the beginning....

if you are moving up to king,emp and deity you need to pay more attention early to unhappiness.The higher the level the less of a settler feast it will be.The riot factor will kick in with less cites.You'll most likely find Republic as your early government less attractive.You may even need those temple things.You'll actually need units for martial law and real defense.The battle odds are in your favor on lower levels.Things get tougher on the military front as you move up.

The ai has smaller food and sheild boxes for increasing levels.They are smaller than yours beginning at Emp level.This means they will develop quicker than before.Most likely,you will not get all the early wonders at least.You must decide which to try for.Hanging Gardens gets stronger and stronger as you move up in difficulty.

As always,try for a super science city.Cope's and Sir Isaac's at least.This concept will always put you way out front in tech.

Trade is powerful for any level.The higher the level the more useful it is.You don't HAVE to trade,but it sure makes the game alot easier.

When you don't know what to build,build a caravan.When you think you have enough..build some more.Camel power.

A typical build sequence for me at deity,assuming I get no units form huts first after 5-10 turns of a look around.
2 settlers so
city
city
warrior in each>out to explore
2nd warrior in each before size 2.
settler in each before size 3
.then..
another unit in capitol(horse or phalnanx) and start wonder
2nd city builds at least 2 more settlers,then a 2nd units,then start wonder #2.

or
another round of settlers in each....then the above

Hopefully I have found some units or nomads or advanced tribes in the mean time.A Monarchy pre-req is ok also but I prefer some early units over tech.I want to scout out city sites, specials,other civs and more huts.