Population

[Scrivener]

Hail everyone! I understand that the largest area of a city is 21 total squares. Is the maximum population of a city 21 or can more than one citizen populate a square? I have Civ3 Vanilla. Thank you in advance for you responses.

A loyal servant,
Scrivener

 

[Synobun]

A city can go past size 21, i've seen one go past 30 before.

 

[Aceman101]

Hail everyone! I understand that the largest area of a city is 21 total squares. Is the maximum population of a city 21 or can more than one citizen populate a square? I have Civ3 Vanilla. Thank you in advance for you responses.

A loyal servant,
Scrivener

You can build cities over the size of 21. But I wouldn't recommend building cities that big because:
1. It is hard to make citizens happy when it's that big.
2. No more tiles can be worked by citizens (I don't think anymore tiles can be worked).
3. There are no more benifits to a city that is over size 21. No better production, no more tiles worked...
And I think the bigger a city the more pollution it produces.

Crosspost with d.highland.

 

[gmaharriet]

While Aceman is correct in much of what he says, a citizen working a high-food tile may be able to support a specialist, and specialists can produce additional gold or beakers for research.

I rarely build hospitals to allow my population to grow above size 12, but there may be circumstances where it's to your advantage to do so.

 

[Ansar]

Population can go over 21.

If it does, a specialist (the normally assigned one is a entertainer) is assigned. You can change it, but since you are at the tile limit, it will just make specialists until the town can't grow anymore.

 

[AutomatedTeller]

there is usually only 2 times people grow a city past size 20 (which corresponds to the number of workable tiles)

1) When the goal of the game is to have the highest score possible - this is obtained with as many citizens as possible.
2) this is pretty rare - when you capture an AI city that will be highly corrupt and they have already built a hospital and you want to make a lot of scientists/tax men.

 

[MAS]

There is a 3th reason to do it.
3) When you are going for the space race victory, and you currently have nothing left to build, and thus no use for shields. Irrigate everything, and just create more scientist (in your core)

The unhappiness isn't as big a problem as you may think, a specialist, after all, is always content.

 

[Tone]

And I think the bigger a city the more pollution it produces.

Correct. Each pop point above 12 contributes an additional 1% chance per turn of that city being polluted. Add in the effects of a factory and coal plant and you'll have plenty of pollution to clear up. Like Harriet, I prefer not to go above size 12. (I also avoid factories if I don't need the production.)

Pollution due to high population can be countered by having a Mass Transit System built but Ecology is a whole age away from Sanitation.

 

[Aceman101]

While Aceman is correct in much of what he says, a citizen working a high-food tile may be able to support a specialist, and specialists can produce additional gold or beakers for research.

That Is also True .

I rarely build hospitals to allow my population to grow above size 12, but there may be circumstances where it's to your advantage to do so.

I rarely build hospitals too, unless. It's one of my core cities and has lot's of food left over, and will also build the hospital quickly. And when I capture an A.I city that has lot's of food and already has a hospital in it, As A.T said. But I don't go past 13 because I only build the hospital for a metropolis bonus.

Correct. Each pop point above 12 contributes an additional 1% chance per turn of that city being polluted. Add in the effects of a factory and coal plant and you'll have plenty of pollution to clear up. Like Harriet, I prefer not to go above size 12. (I also avoid factories if I don't need the production.)

I thought that would be right but i didn't know it's +1% chance per citizen. Thanks for the info, Tone! .

Pollution due to high population can be countered by having a Mass Transit System built but Ecology is a whole age away from Sanitation.

While Ecology is a whole era away, If you have the pollution under controll (Cleared every turn) then It's not so much of a problem. However if the pollution is getting critical (The worst offenders are Nuclear Missiles) then global warming will come resulting in a tile being degraded. This usually gets critical in the modern era due to ICBM's And tactical Nukes. It is inevitable which tile will be degraded. OK back on topic now .

 

[Desertsnow]

I had a city at size 38 once, (it later starved down to 37 and stabilized there) and I've seen saves and screenshots of games with cities in the fifties, so yes, it's possible; if you have lots of grassland and floodplain tiles and irrigated food bonuses, a city can get huge.

 

[MAS]

the highest theoretical population you can get (if you set it up in the editor) would be size 71.

A floodplain gives 3, irrigation gives 1, rails add 1, wheed gives 2 bonus, for a total of 7. The center always gives 2. there are 20 tiles around the center.

There have to be 20 working so that makes 51 specialist, they can produce structures (not units) with 102 spt. Or, 102 gpt tax income. Or, 153 beakers per turn.

 

[Bartleby]

The biggest natural city I ever saw was size 50/starving at size 51.

 

[Aceman101]

Size 50, that would mean all the tiles must be irrigated.

 

[Bartleby]

Yeah, all floodplains and a few wheat. This was in PTW so the specialists weren't so useful.

 

[Scrivener]

Hail everyone. Thanks for all the responses. I only have Civ3 Vanilla and wouldnt bother "tweeking" the map in my favor even if I could.

A loyal servant,
Scrivener