Was Civ4/Mac stable for you before the patch? I have always had trouble with it, no matter the OS version or patch level. I got a new iMac several months ago and that made quite a bit a difference, enough for me to try large maps. Then I (re)discovered the GOTM and finally felt Civ4 had some replay value.
But Civ4 has always been prone to crashing for me. Given my earlier frustrations, mere random crashes seemed like a significant improvement! I have unconsciously developed some superstitious behavior, like always waiting a second before clicking the tech investment arrows. I have noticed other patterns, as Civ4 seems more likely to crash the longer the game has been up or been in the background. I now regard the crashes as a feature, a reminder that I should be spending my time more productively like posting on forums!
