Old Debate, New Circumstances: What do you build first?
- Thread starter thelibra
- Start date
ezwip
Prince
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2006
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- 389
I prefer marathon. I'll build a settler first and research mysticism. I send out my warrior to explore the area surrounding the capital and to search for those huts. I usually pop another warrior or scout from them. Once the settler is built I found a new city, and that city begins creating a new settler. I'll keep that up until there is no room left for expansion, then I'll start picking on my neighbors. With the first city I'll go for stone hedge which usually fails, and I get the cash from that which is what I really want so my research stays at 100%. When the second city is done with a settler it will go for a worker, then units. Throw a barracks in at the most opportune time. Repeat and rinse as necessary. If I stall popping out a settler right away I almost always lose. I'm sure it would be instant death if I played against a real player this way though.
Lefund
Chieftain
On Epic, huge maps, I build warriors and maybe a monument untill my capital is at 3, where I build my first settler and I might get another warrior before getting my capital on Stonehenge. Meanwhile, I try to get some religon as quickly as possiable, technologically. I usually don't get to my first worker till like 2400 BC or something like that. I like my cities to grow and anything that'll take 15 turns of no growth is kind of painful for me.
jkp1187
Unindicted Co-Conspirator
Good point. For the record, I almost always play normal speed/standard size/usually somewhere between 8-12 civs.
@Elandal: I'm always a little nervous about sending two work boats out even if I have more than one sea resource available. I'd rather build one work boat, then a worker, then one or two other things (defensive unit/settler most likely,) before building that second work boat. You've had good experience with two workboats right out of the gate?
Yes, two workboats has been OK. Or actually, it does depend a bit on other tiles you have to work.. For two workboats I'd prefer two forested plains hills (or other 3P tiles), but will do with one + 1 1F2P tile (eg. forested plains or forested grass hill).
With two workboats you still don't really want to grow past three, so it's two workboats then worker. With worker out, possibly warrior - warrior - settler. That way as you grow to size four you hopefully will be working two seafoods + 2 high hammer tiles (the worker should mine something). Workers / settlers will be fast builds this way.
With two workboats you still don't really want to grow past three, so it's two workboats then worker. With worker out, possibly warrior - warrior - settler. That way as you grow to size four you hopefully will be working two seafoods + 2 high hammer tiles (the worker should mine something). Workers / settlers will be fast builds this way.
Except if you're expansive or imperialistic, in which case only hammers (not food) is multiplied 
In any case, the reason to get hammer tiles on land is to balance the high food from two seafoods. They will provide high growth already, so you probably want hammers from the land. If you go for more food from land, you grow too fast for whipping even
In any case, the reason to get hammer tiles on land is to balance the high food from two seafoods. They will provide high growth already, so you probably want hammers from the land. If you go for more food from land, you grow too fast for whipping even
Except if you're expansive or imperialistic, in which case only hammers (not food) is multiplied
In any case, the reason to get hammer tiles on land is to balance the high food from two seafoods. They will provide high growth already, so you probably want hammers from the land. If you go for more food from land, you grow too fast for whipping even
I'm not certain, but I think it was fixed in BTS so that even with imperialistic and expansive, food or production doesn't mattter when making settlers or workers.
1.) Worker
2.) Warrior (but only til city pops 2, working a food tile)
3.) Settler
4.) Finish warrior and then another warrior
5.) Worker
This varies sometimes as my explorrior might die, or I got a scout instead in the opening stage. If capital is coastal with some seafood, replace the 1st warrior with a workboat and FINISH it before settler is started (city might reach pop 3).
I used to let my capitol reach maxsize before (so building anything that wont stall growth), but thats way too much downtime.
2.) Warrior (but only til city pops 2, working a food tile)
3.) Settler
4.) Finish warrior and then another warrior
5.) Worker
This varies sometimes as my explorrior might die, or I got a scout instead in the opening stage. If capital is coastal with some seafood, replace the 1st warrior with a workboat and FINISH it before settler is started (city might reach pop 3).
I used to let my capitol reach maxsize before (so building anything that wont stall growth), but thats way too much downtime.
Warrior, Worker, Barracks, Archer, Archer, warrior, Warrior, Warrior, Take nearest enemy capital, Worker, Settler
What difficulty does that work on? I usually play immortal, and that kind of rush would do nothing more than give some of my opponents a few exp points, and you would stifle your own expansion very much so.
I always go the maximum fastest expansion route, depending on my starting resources/techs. A worker is only first if i have an irrigated food source and agriculture. Workboats/seafood is my favorite, but luck rarely gives me a coastal start. I time my first worker 1-2 turns away from bronzeworking, chop the second, chop 2 settlers, chop another worker, build a warrior then grow my capital to happy cap, chop more settlers/workers until I have around 6-10+ cities, and cottage everything like mad except for a few production centers.
Scaramanga
Brickhead
Worker after population 2. Like clockwork! 
Unless it's in 3.13 (I'm still on 3.02, waiting for mods and unofficial patch to stabilize) then no - food still isn't multiplied in expansive / imperialistic. And as expansive was nerfed (worker production multiplier down from 50% to 25%) it might be worth it to grow to size two to get four hammers as expansive.
eric_
Emperor
The first thing I do when I start a game is take stock of any resources that will occupy the BFC. Probably 85% of the time, there is a resource available that will be accessible (i.e., the necessary tech will be researched) by the time I can pop a worker. So, I build a worker first ~85% of the time. If I'm on the water, and there's a crab, clam, or fish, I always build a boat first, unless I don't start with fishing. In that case, and assuming there is an accessible resource nearby, I build a worker until I have researched fishing, then I switch over to a boat, and then back to finish the worker.
If none of those apply (no water resources or resources accessible via early techs), I'll go with either a scout or a warrior first, as I *love* exploring. In the meantime I go for mining>BW so I can at least mine hills and chop forests. If there are no accessible resources, but there are water resources available and I don't have fishing, I'll build a scout or warrier until fishing is researched, switch to boats, then back to scout or warrior while I go mining>BW.
Anyway, when I go worker first, I follow up with a warrior, then barracks, which I build until I achieve size three, at which point I switch over to building my first settler. Once the settler is built, it's back to the barracks, and then I build military for a few production rounds.
If I build a boat first, I usually follow up with a worker, depending on the conditions described above.
Finally, in all cases these are just guidelines; I try to let the map and circumstances guide my decisions, not habits that *usually* work.
If none of those apply (no water resources or resources accessible via early techs), I'll go with either a scout or a warrior first, as I *love* exploring. In the meantime I go for mining>BW so I can at least mine hills and chop forests. If there are no accessible resources, but there are water resources available and I don't have fishing, I'll build a scout or warrier until fishing is researched, switch to boats, then back to scout or warrior while I go mining>BW.
Anyway, when I go worker first, I follow up with a warrior, then barracks, which I build until I achieve size three, at which point I switch over to building my first settler. Once the settler is built, it's back to the barracks, and then I build military for a few production rounds.
If I build a boat first, I usually follow up with a worker, depending on the conditions described above.
Finally, in all cases these are just guidelines; I try to let the map and circumstances guide my decisions, not habits that *usually* work.
vilemerchant
Prince
I don't see the point of wasting a lot of turns building boats since they can be whipped in 1 turn once you have BW.
eric_
Emperor
Well, for one thing, boats help get workers out faster.
blitzkrieg1980
Octobrist
I can only see the worker, worker, settler as a good idea if you have a lot of resources in your capital's fat cross, and if you are alone on your landmass.
I have to say that warrior-worker-warrior-settler-archer-worker is my usual path depending on the civ's starting techs and my start location.
blitzkrieg1980
Octobrist
The workboat is an excellent first build option if you have the ocean food resource and fishing tech. Your population will continue to grow as you build it, and the food will skyrocket when it is finished. This allows for your second citizen to work a majority hammer tile to boost production, or if you have Pottery, to work a cottage tile early for big research and commerce boost
vilemerchant
Prince
So I guess to build that archer you're immediately researching hunting/archery instead of BW, AH etc? Why not research BW and let your settler go and get the nearest copper?
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