Need advice again...

[klopolov]

I just started a game on regent for Russians and share a small continent with the British. We are separated by a 1 tile choke point and they have no iron, while I got more than plenty. I bought alphabet from them and they were polite towards me. However, once I built my city next to the choke point and blocked them from going into my territory, they declared war on me and keep sending groops of 5-10 warriors with spearmen at me. I garrisoned 5 swordmen in my choke point city and one in each of my other three cities (since they still have some warriors running around my land). But should I keep building my cities and expand them or just switch to swordmen production? I only have four cities, while British have at least 7-8. Do you think I can take on their larger number of warriors with my swordmen, or should I just defend that city and build my cities and infrastructure up in my territory? I have room for another 3-4 cities in my territory and have furs, wine and horses in abundance.
Thank you

 

[Kayak]

On regent you should be able to hold them off, expand into the extra space and then finish them off. You don't want the war to tie you up and some civ with seafaring settle behind you. four more cities should go pretty quickly. At least that's my prefference.

 

[predesad]

i agree with Kayak, get rid of the warriors in your territory, fortify the choke city then pretend you are not even at war. perhaps build a few swords and send next to one of their cities and then get peace for a city, but don't let that distract you from focusing on expansion, try to use the swords already in the choke city after the initial AI onslaught. How did you let the AI get up 8 cities to your 4 on regent?

 

[klopolov]

Thanks,
I started in between the desert and the tundra, while AI has very good land. There are only three great places for cities and I occupied them already, I was building the infrastructure for them and improvements since I knew that this land was all mine and I could take my time with it. I did not think that the British would attack me for no reason... I guess that would teach me...
Also I am still learning and my expantion phase is not that good, this is my second serious game (I won the first one on the second difficulty by sweeping through everyone with a 100 cossaks).
Anyway, thanks for advice!

 

[Kayak]

Don't let anthing get in the way of your expansion. Nothing is worth the territory gain for later in the game. Use those first cities to pump out as many settlers as possible. At higher levels if you stall in the begining you will have to dig yourself out of a big hole. Of course it all depends, but I don't usually worry about infrastructure too much until I'm establishing my 2nd ring of cities. Use the starting worker to do as much as you can on your capital 1st and then your 2nd most productive city. By that time you will have established enough cities to have some of the less productive cities pump out lots of workers to link things up quick.
I, and I think many others, get a lot from reading/lurking in the Succession Game forum. The sreenshots and inter player discussions will teach you a lot fast, and sometimes in a more interesting way than reading through the war acadamy.

 

[superslug]

If you've got Iron/Swords and they've got Warriors and Spears, I'd send whatever stack I could in there and kill them dead. At the very least take a few cities and then sue for peace.

 

[Alone]

You did well that you build infrastructure in your cities (I did it all the time). It will be payed off latter in the game. It's not a big deal that they had 8 cities becouse they have no recourses. Great moov that you build city to choke them come by land to your teritory, now as you were already adviced, defend this city, expand in the rest of teritory and after that conqured and destroy English at least from your island. That would be 8 yors n 8 conquered cities 16. If it's a standard map thats an exelent no. of cities for nice rise of nation after you build for. Palace. And discover tech to start build Great Library before you meet other Civs (this part is must, when you're on isolated island) and don't bother to find them they will find you and broth you a nice present of free tech I assume.

Send a pics if you can.

GOOD LUCK!