It's There, But I Can't Get to It!

[Dwight Frye]

In a game I played recently, the only source of saltpeter in the area under my control was located on a mountain that was part of an island consisting of 3 squares, all of which were mountains. The square with the saltpeter on it was within the boundaries of one of my cities, which was on a slightly larger island a couple of squares away.

I tried everything I could do to gain access to the saltpeter, but nothing worked. The three-square island couldn't be settled, since all of the squares were mountains. Why would the AI put saltpeter where it could never be exploited, other than to mess with a player's mind? Or did I miss something?

 

[Sparthage]

The only strategy that might get it, would involve an airfield. That wouldn't be helpful would it? Unfortunately, it looks like you're stuck without the source.

 

[CommandoBob]

Looks like another civ will just have to loan you that saltpeter, right?

 

[darski]

Looks like another civ will just have to loan you that saltpeter, right?

That is always my first thought on resource acquisition...

Who's got it?

and

Who's gonna get it?

 

[Lanzelot]

Looks like another civ will just have to loan you that saltpeter, right?

I never understood, why this game is called "Civilization". It should rather have been called "Barbarism"...

 

[Ataxerxes]

I never understood, why this game is called "Civilization". It should rather have been called "Barbarism"...

Maybe it's because we, like civilized peoples in general, are more likely to backstab our friends (or be backstabbed by them).

 

[GamezRule]

Or because of all the peaceful victories available.

 

[Bartleby]

The only strategy that might get it, would involve an airfield. That wouldn't be helpful would it? Unfortunately, it looks like you're stuck without the source.

FYI, an airfield wouldn't work.

 

[Sparthage]

FYI, an airfield wouldn't work.

That's what I originally thought, though I've never tested it.

 

[scratchthepitch]

Dwight Frye

"It's There, But I Can't Get to It!"

I think one of the first changes I did to the game was allow cities to be built on all land terrain. Except volcanoes, no sense giving the AI any more harebrained ideas than it already has.

 

[Elephantium]

Aw, c'mon. The best cities are built in calderas!

 

[scratchthepitch]

Hey, with the Civ AI, Pompeii is something to strive for:

"Wow, this place has got hot rocks, imagine how much we will be able to save on our heating bills"

"But you live by the equator?"

"Enough with your negative attitude, already".

 

[Ataxerxes]

Hey, with the Civ AI, Pompeii is something to strive for:

"Wow, this place has got hot rocks, imagine how much we will be able to save on our heating bills"

"But you live by the equator?"

"Enough with your negative attitude, already".

It's happened. You get the message at turn 10 that so-and-so has been destroyed. Pompeii all over again. Human advantage over the AI shows up at turn 1 - sometime you gotta move the settler.

 

[scratchthepitch]

It's happened. You get the message at turn 10 that so-and-so has been destroyed. Pompeii all over again. Human advantage over the AI shows up at turn 1 - sometime you gotta move the settler.

I've seen quite a few AI civs bite the dus..., I mean volcanic ash, because they settled next to a volcano. I mod the game so volcanoes pop their corks much more often. My favorite AI civ demise was when an AI settled both their first and 2nd cities next to volcanoes that both blew in rapid succession and naturally nailed both the towns.

Moving the settler to a better spot seems such a simple thing for the developers to program, but they never did it. Seems every civ version had that same exact problem. Like they kept that bit of the AI programing unaltered since Civ1.

 

[Nergal]

I've got the same thing in my current game, 3 tile mountain island with salt ... I considered airfieldbut I had salt anyway, the portugese got stomped and just about to hit the Ottomans

 

[DWetzel]

It's happened. You get the message at turn 10 that so-and-so has been destroyed. Pompeii all over again. Human advantage over the AI shows up at turn 1 - sometime you gotta move the settler.

Sometimes even the barbarians don't know better:

 

[templar_x]

and did the volcano get the 25 bucks?

templar_x

 

[darski]

Sometimes even the barbarians don't know better:

I love that pic. I wish I had seen it.

 

[darski]

So why is there so much room around that pic? I tried to get rid of all that white but no go?

 

[DWetzel]

So why is there so much room around that pic? I tried to get rid of all that white but no go?

Ancient lack of Paint skills on my part, I think. The screen shots are actually from COTM 49.