Questions about "Science Farms"

[TheOverseer714]

I think I get the basic idea of science farms, but I am yet to completely nail down the whole process. So I have a few questions for those who use them frequently.

1. Where are they best sited, near the capital, or far out in the highly corrupt areas?
2. What size should they be, and how many scientists are best?
3. Should you build anything else there, should they be set to generate wealth, or build artillery pieces, which doesn't require a barracks.
4. how many would be best?

 

[MAS]

1. Where are they best sited, near the capital, or far out in the highly corrupt areas?

In the corrupt areas

2. What size should they be, and how many scientists are best?

It depends on the food available and whether or not there is fresh water near the town (lake or river) A you don't want to build an aquaduct.

3. Should you build anything else there, should they be set to generate wealth, or build artillery pieces, which doesn't require a barracks.

I'd let them build wealth, but some people let them build artillery, but not so much for the artillery itself but to have stash of shields available, for when they need an other settler or something. Bu tit really depends on your needs, at some point, you are better of building wealth anyway. If I build any city improvements in them, its because of a specific strategic reason, like a border expansion on a certain border city, or a barracks to quickly heal nearby troops, or a harbor or airpoirt to connect them to my trade network. But 99% gets nothing.

4. how many would be best?

You can build 511 cities, (leaving 1 for the AI) subtract the number of cities that are core cities, and you have your answer.... Nuff said...

 

[vmxa]

They really become viable after rails. Then you can get the extra food and get by with the fewest farmers.

The arties are mainly in AW games, where you can use them well or as was stated, bust a settler with the shields. You can crank out an aqua using CE's or Cops later in the game.

 

[gmaharriet]

As the others have said...corrupt areas, few or NO improvements, much better after rails.

That being said, I find they first begin as a way of managing unhappiness...just one taxman/scientist here and there to prevent a riot. Often specialists are needed when first revolting out of Despotism and the happiness issue doesn't go way when entering Republic, so the specialists often just stay there.

Gradually as I expand or conquer into more corrupt areas, it makes no sense to build improvements, so I replace the AI mines with irrigation and let the towns grow. Eventually rails and enough territory can make the benefits enormous, no matter what the victory condition.

I usually set the builds to some type of arty, but keep an eye on the sheilds accumulated and skim workers, settlers or whatever else I need before most of the arty ever complete. If and when I just don't need more of anything, I may set some of them to wealth.

The conquered AI areas have very wide city spacing, so I fill in between where possible with CxCxCxC, but it depends on the type of land. Irrigated, railed grass can often support size 6 towns with 2 working the fields and 4 scientists/taxmen. Areas of tundra/desert may support only a specialist with nobody working at all...especially with AGRI civs...and you do also get the unit support from the town.

 

[ecuwins]

Wow, gmaharriet is hard core. That sounds like a lot of work.

 

[Aceman101]

It isn't unusual to find players that spend 1+ hour(s) in just one turn. That is from the industrial age onwards. I pretty much do what gmaharriet does, except I build wealth instead of artillery.

 

[Sashie VII]

It isn't unusual to find players that spend 1+ hour(s) in just one turn. That is from the industrial age onwards. I pretty much do what gmaharriet does, except I build wealth instead of artillery.

Most I've ever spent was around 20-30 minutes

And I don't have a calculator next to my laptop either

 

[gmaharriet]

It isn't unusual to find players that spend 1+ hour(s) in just one turn.

My lengthy turns, besides warfare turns which I think are longer for everyone, are the last turn before discovering a tech and the first turn beginning a new tech. Science farms almost always take at least one turn off of research and on that last turn, after checking to lower the Sci slider, some of the scientists can be turned into tax guys, thus doing additional fine tuning to save more gold pieces.

The first turn of new research I'll see how high the slider has to be to get a 4-turn tech, change it to 5, then use scientists to bring it back to 4 turns...again saving some gold. For the really expensive techs, it might be fiddling with 5 and 6 turns the same way.

It's just a habit I've developed, much like managing my own workers, and I don't think of it as hard work.

 

[TheOverseer714]

Thanks for the input, folks. What I don't already do, I will start doing. I think I need to soup up my MM skills to try to do better at the higher levels. I think I need to get past my bad habits of hurrying, and then I'll get better scores. I think there needs to be an article about this in the war academy management area........

 

[Aabraxan]

There is an article on specialist farms in the War Academy.

http://www.civfanatics.com/civ3/strategy/specialists.php

 

[Aceman101]

Most I've ever spent was around 20-30 minutes

And I don't have a calculator next to my laptop either

I do that too, sometimes. Although I usually spend a bit more time than that in a turn.

My lengthy turns, besides warfare turns which I think are longer for everyone, are the last turn before discovering a tech and the first turn beginning a new tech. Science farms almost always take at least one turn off of research and on that last turn, after checking to lower the Sci slider, some of the scientists can be turned into tax guys, thus doing additional fine tuning to save more gold pieces.

Now that, I don't do.

The first turn of new research I'll see how high the slider has to be to get a 4-turn tech, change it to 5, then use scientists to bring it back to 4 turns...again saving some gold. For the really expensive techs, it might be fiddling with 5 and 6 turns the same way.

That I do.

It's just a habit I've developed, much like managing my own workers, and I don't think of it as hard work.

Nice habit. When I get frustrated because war isn't going to plan, I just ditch the science and keep sending more troops.

 

[garyg]

If I have to build some structure in a science farm I turn all the citizens I can into civil engineers. This allows you to build the aqueduct, harbor or temple quickly. After completion I switch the engineers to scientist.

 

[Mirc]

It isn't unusual to find players that spend 1+ hour(s) in just one turn. That is from the industrial age onwards. I pretty much do what gmaharriet does, except I build wealth instead of artillery.

My longest turn was a little over 2 hours. In my current game, where I'm in the Industrial age, I have like 5 saves from each turn. Because I always feel insecure when making a hard choice, so in those hours I save a lot of times.

 

[Aceman101]

How do you get through a game?

 

[eldar]

I'm with gmaharriet - the most MM'ing is done on the first & last turns of research.

I think that CxC is ugly city placement so I won't do it. I'll abandon cities to get the best possible CxxC placement, but won't resort to ICS. Even if it costs me a few turns of research here and there I'll also slow-build aqueducts, and some culture, using Engineers where possible.

 

[Aabraxan]

I think that CxC is ugly city placement so I won't do it. I'll abandon cities to get the best possible CxxC placement, but won't resort to ICS. Even if it costs me a few turns of research here and there I'll also slow-build aqueducts, and some culture, using Engineers where possible.

I'm just the opposite. Once I start laying out the science farms, I'll count tiles to squeeze in as many cities as I can. Then I try to set them up at zero growth so that the only decision necessary is how many specialists need to be scientists and how many need to be tax collectors. I'll even spam desert and tundra areas with 1-pop farms.

 

[Aceman101]

With me, my core cities are always to far apart like CxxxxC and my science farms are like CxC.