New player kind of lost looking for help

[Keyne]

Hi all. I am a new player and looking for ways to approach civ. For instance what is a good way to start thinking or learning about game mechanics and laying out a strategy for early mid and late game? I have read the manual and started studying the tech trees to build an initial idea of the path to head down toward a given victory type.... However in the game itself I get a bit paralyzed with all the choices... What to do with gold.... Befriend city states that eventually degrade and require more gold... Should I attack that small civ now before it gets bigger? I feel like i am just groping around in the dark on this stuff. Also, I know it's all part of the fun and has been but at the same time I wonder if I am approaching the game right.

Any good sources of info out there about how best to do this or is it just best to play and see what works? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

K

 

[CHEESE!]

Have you played any of the previous titles?

 

[Crazyface]

Well for me, I decide somewhat early which way I want to try and win (once I get my bearings, resoureces, other civ's, proximity to me etc).....once you decide that you should try to focus your research more in that area but don't neglect the other paths. LIke if you want to win by conquest, make sure your researching the military stuff first/often, then go back and research the rest as your empire grows.

Also, every game can be so different, like if you get really agressive civ's near you, they may force you to build military to defend, or if you get a nice resource area and peaceful neighbors, you can maybe try science or diplo victory.....just gota feel it out and see how it goes.

Its a steep learning curve but theres no experience like playing...just jump in. I never did win a Civ 4 game..but I am 1-0 on Civ 5 so far!!