Managing Population

[Crime Doesn't Pay]

1) Is it a good idea to use hereditary rule and build soldiers every time you reach the happy cap?
2) Should one continue to grow their cities if you've not reached the happiness cap but the city is getting unhealthy?

 

[kossin]

1) Yes! An extra workable tile or an extra scientist, especially in the early game, can be crucial later on. You can look up VoU's whipping article concerning making an army while building the Globe Theater. Nifty trick.

2) Yes. Add in -improvement buildings if you can spare it here or there when growth is hindered severely . Trading for -ressources will do as well.

 

[VoiceOfUnreason]

1) Is it a good idea to use hereditary rule and build soldiers every time you reach the happy cap?
2) Should one continue to grow their cities if you've not reached the happiness cap but the city is getting unhealthy?

1) Every time is too absolute. But often. Maybe even very often.

Not all cities are created equal, though - a key strategic element of HR is that you can transfer happy from one location to another. So your juicy commerce capital (with it's yummy modifiers) wants to be very big. But that's not so important for your military pumps - so you build new units, which replace the old ones, which in turn return to your great cities to scare the citizens happy.

2) Again, very often. The health cap basically just ups the food cost of your "last" citizen - in other words, instead of giving up two food for another worked tile/specialist, you are giving up three. In cases where that increases the total yield in your city, you should go for it. Contrast this with the case of exceeding the happy cap, where you are losing two extra food for nuthin' (to first order).

 

[Crime Doesn't Pay]

Another question...
How does one deal with the unhappiness that comes with slavery?

 

[Bostock]

With even more slavery.

 

[UncleJJ]

There are several ways to deal with slavery unhappiness. Obviously you want it to wear off eventually and every 10 turns (normal speed) you regain 1 happiness but there are situations where you want to whip faster and so it can accumulate. With HR you can just add another garrison, perhaps moving one from another city. Whipping some buildings like a temple or forge can offset the whipping unhappiness and increase the happy cap in the city. If possible, it is better to use a 2 or 3 population whip and then allow the city to regrow by which time the unhappiness will have worn off.

 

[Bostock]

See? What did I tell you?