I had been looking to play colonization for quite a while (didn't put much effort in, but always had my eyes open), but never got a chance. Recently in another forum, talking about civ 4 colonization I was directed to FreeCol
(I recognize this site isn't about FreeCol, but I am already on it and it should be similar)
So I got it running, but even on the easiest difficulty, I can't seem to get myself established. I either get crammed in by other Europeans and/or natives with only 1 or 2 colonies, or in my latest game settled my own island, but though it had tons of ore, it had one city with lots of food and decent wood (2 fish, 10 food city square a few woods), but little wood, food, and no luxury resources elsewhere. So I have one good city, a useful one, but the rest are really bad (I am switching the single colonist between ore and tools).
I have a quite a bit of civ experience (II and IV) but that just seems to confuse me. I can't get used to the fact that my colonists are everything.
So, any tips on how to get my colony going?
I have been playing Dutch, as they seem to help get started with the merchantman.
From my attempts, some questions i have come up with are:
Is it worth taking the time to look for a good, clear site for my first city (I am used to civ, where that is far to crippling)?
Should I focus on growth in my cities, or expansion early (other threads here show ~8 is a good number)?
Is it worth putting effort into bells early or should I focus on money/improvements?
If I get a good food site (such as my +24 food at 3 pop) is it better to spawn colonists, or use it as a production powerhouse (with lots of population) and rely on going to Europe for people?
If Europe boycotts a resource, will they ever lift that boycott?
Are coastal cities really that bad, their convenience is so nice?
One thing that really stood out compared to civ: Terrain improvements. Are they worth it early, or should they be ignored until you get established? 20 tools can be expensive early on, at least for me.
Also any other newbie tips, and perhaps a ganeral build order to get new colonies established.
Thanks for any time you spent on this, and yes it may be different that real colonization, but I hope it is close enough to get me going (much steeper learning curve here than civ).
PS: I apologize if there is another source for this info here, but I have looked and can't find it.
Wow, didn't realise how long this was until I accidentally posted it in the wrong thread
(I recognize this site isn't about FreeCol, but I am already on it and it should be similar)
So I got it running, but even on the easiest difficulty, I can't seem to get myself established. I either get crammed in by other Europeans and/or natives with only 1 or 2 colonies, or in my latest game settled my own island, but though it had tons of ore, it had one city with lots of food and decent wood (2 fish, 10 food city square a few woods), but little wood, food, and no luxury resources elsewhere. So I have one good city, a useful one, but the rest are really bad (I am switching the single colonist between ore and tools).
I have a quite a bit of civ experience (II and IV) but that just seems to confuse me. I can't get used to the fact that my colonists are everything.
So, any tips on how to get my colony going?
I have been playing Dutch, as they seem to help get started with the merchantman.
From my attempts, some questions i have come up with are:
Is it worth taking the time to look for a good, clear site for my first city (I am used to civ, where that is far to crippling)?
Should I focus on growth in my cities, or expansion early (other threads here show ~8 is a good number)?
Is it worth putting effort into bells early or should I focus on money/improvements?
If I get a good food site (such as my +24 food at 3 pop) is it better to spawn colonists, or use it as a production powerhouse (with lots of population) and rely on going to Europe for people?
If Europe boycotts a resource, will they ever lift that boycott?
Are coastal cities really that bad, their convenience is so nice?
One thing that really stood out compared to civ: Terrain improvements. Are they worth it early, or should they be ignored until you get established? 20 tools can be expensive early on, at least for me.
Also any other newbie tips, and perhaps a ganeral build order to get new colonies established.
Thanks for any time you spent on this, and yes it may be different that real colonization, but I hope it is close enough to get me going (much steeper learning curve here than civ).
PS: I apologize if there is another source for this info here, but I have looked and can't find it.
Wow, didn't realise how long this was until I accidentally posted it in the wrong thread