Quick Answers / 'Newbie' Questions

[Roland Johansen]

How exactly does attack & defend work? Is there really any difference between attacking and defending? The Main Civ IV manual is unclear. It just says each unit has a certain strength and this is used to calculate odds.

What's the point then (for instance) of having an extra first strike as you have the same odds of dying if you attack or defend?

The following War Academy article explains everything about how combat odds are calculated in Civ 4: Combat Explained.

The article is a bit technical here and there, so if you have more questions, then just ask them here.

The strength value of units is influenced by various factors. First, there is terrain. The terrain bonus is only for the defender and only when the defender can make use of the terrain. Knights for instance can't, but that is mentioned iin the unit description. Rivers add a 25% defense bonus and an amphibious landing gives a 50% defense bonus to the defender.
Second, you have the various promotions. A unit with the city raider promotion for instance gets a bonus when attacking cities.
Third, there are certain special bonuses that certain units get against certain other units. For instance, the spearman gets a 100% bonus against mounted units (attack or defense), the grenadier gets a 50% bonus when attacking riflemen.
All of these bonuses can be found in the civilopedia.

As the article explains, all the percentage bonuses are applied (positively or negatively) to the defender (except the combat promotion bonuses) to get the final strength of the defender which is then used to get the combat odds. You can see the combat odds and the final strength score of attacker and defender when moving your mouse over the opposing unit and holding the Alt button. This way, you'll know if it is a good idea to attack or not.

Thx JujuLautre & Ori...but your links don't seem to offer any info concerning the changes made before patch 1.61 !

Some games offer a text-file, when patching, which indicates the complete history of all the versions (new features & bug-fixes), not only the current patch-version.

I find it strange that there does not seem to exist one webpage or text-file compiling ALL the changes & fixes made since the retail release of the original C4 (Fall of 2005).

I haven't played since January 2006 : I would consequently would like to learn about ALL the changes & new features.

For example : when starting a custom game, Sunday, I noticed that a game-speed had been added, called "Marathon". What is that?

I will try to hunt on the Net for all the various patch-versions' changelogs and integrate them in one single document, if nobody else hasn't already done that (which would surprise me, if such was the case).

I think the changelog of the changes made in 1.61 includes those of earlier patches.

 

[Sorceresss]

Done! I have compiled all the changes & fixes in a small-type, 7-page Word-doc which includes the changelogs of all 4 patches (1.09, 1.52, 1.61, 1.74). If anybody wants this compilation, PM me your e-mail address.

 

[HKSPSF]

Is it possible to culturally flip an opponents capital city?

 

[Tanktunker]

Yes, from past experience.

 

[cabert]

How exactly does attack & defend work? Is there really any difference between attacking and defending? The Main Civ IV manual is unclear. It just says each unit has a certain strength and this is used to calculate odds.

roland answered in a very detailed post already, and I think you need to check the "combat explained" thread.
I still have a few things to add about defense vs offense.

- As Roland said, the terrain is usually favorable to the defender (exception is City raider attacks which can really turn the tide and make it so that even good defenders could be better off attacking the enemy stack).
- The computer automatically selects the defender with the best odds against the attacker, so this is also favorable to the defender, provided you have a mixed stack with varied bonuses.
- Some units deal colateral damages when they attack. This doesn't work when you defend. A stack of catapults certainly should attack and not defend.

What's the point then (for instance) of having an extra first strike as you have the same odds of dying if you attack or defend?

What do you mean?
having an extra first strike helps you win wether you attack or defend, so the point of having an extra first strike is to win more often .

 

[BrantleyL1]

- The computer automatically selects the defender with the best odds against the attacker, so this is also favorable to the defender, provided you have a mixed stack with varied bonuses.
[snip]
having an extra first strike helps you win wether you attack or defend, so the point of having an extra first strike is to win more often

So, one problem you might run into is that if you have a mixed health stack (some units are hurt and have less than full strength) and you are attacking, your hurt units attack first, which could result in less than satisfactory results... e.g. your 1 point tank attacks a full-strength warrior and dies a horrible death... (This is my impression, anyway, is this correct.)

So, to get better results, attack with your full-strength units and when you win, move the hurt units into your new city and put them on heal.

It also seems that when the AI attacks YOU, that the hurt units defend first. Also, is that right??

And as to first-strike... I'm still not sure I understand this. As I understand combat, it works kind of like this.

There are one or more rounds.
The "dice are rolled" and a winner determined. Hit points are figured.
The hit points are subtracted from the loser.
If the loser is zero or below, he dies.

In first-strike, does the "first striker" get a FREE round (without a possible loss)? He might not inflict damage, but he won't take any??

Thanks for helping all of us to understand this better.

 

[Roland Johansen]

So, one problem you might run into is that if you have a mixed health stack (some units are hurt and have less than full strength) and you are attacking, your hurt units attack first, which could result in less than satisfactory results... e.g. your 1 point tank attacks a full-strength warrior and dies a horrible death... (This is my impression, anyway, is this correct.)

So, to get better results, attack with your full-strength units and when you win, move the hurt units into your new city and put them on heal.

It also seems that when the AI attacks YOU, that the hurt units defend first. Also, is that right??

And as to first-strike... I'm still not sure I understand this. As I understand combat, it works kind of like this.

There are one or more rounds.
The "dice are rolled" and a winner determined. Hit points are figured.
The hit points are subtracted from the loser.
If the loser is zero or below, he dies.

In first-strike, does the "first striker" get a FREE round (without a possible loss)? He might not inflict damage, but he won't take any??

Thanks for helping all of us to understand this better.

In general, you shouldn't attack with wounded units. Wounded units in a stack will typically not defend first. But of course, when a sprearman with 90 out of 100 hitpoints and an archer are in a flatland stack and are attacked by a chariot, then the spearman will defend. The unit with the best chance of victory will always defend.

Yes, first strike rounds are free rounds where the unit with the first strike can't lose hitpoints, but does have a chance to do hurt the enemy. You typically need to win 3 to 8 rounds to win the battle. A battle between two equal strength units deals 20 damage per won round and thus 5 successful hits are required to win the battle.

 

[TheLastOne36]

Can someone list the maps that come with Vanilla?

Just wondering as i want to delete the ones that i downloaded and did not come with the pack.

 

[TheLastOne36]

No need to answer. I found my answer.

 

[MangleMeElmo]

Nuclear plants melting down is BS. It happens way more often in CIV than it does IRL. In fact, it rarely happens anymore in IRL, so what gives? Is there any way to fix this so that nuclear plants have a far less chance of melting down? Has it gotten any more reasonable in BTS?

 

[kuldiin]

I can select all the cities on a continent, but how do I click select all cities in the world (so I can instruct them to build the same thing?)

 

[Roland Johansen]

Nuclear plants melting down is BS. It happens way more often in CIV than it does IRL. In fact, it rarely happens anymore in IRL, so what gives? Is there any way to fix this so that nuclear plants have a far less chance of melting down? Has it gotten any more reasonable in BTS?

The chance of a nuclear meltdown is controlled by the file
...\Civilization 4\Assets\XML\Buildings\CIV4BuildingInfos.xml
Go down to BUILDINGCLASS_NUCLEAR_PLANT in that file and then to the variable iNukeExplosionRand>2000</iNukeExplosionRand

The 2000 means that each turn each nuclear plant has a chance of 1 in 2000 to suffer a nuclear meltdown. If you set the variable higher, then the chance becomes smaller, if you set the variable to 0, then it won't happen at all.

Note that if you play Warlords or BTS, then you need to go to the file in the relevant directory.

You shouldn't change the file directly but create a tiny mod. If you do want to change the file directly, then make a backup of the original file.

I can select all the cities on a continent, but how do I click select all cities in the world (so I can instruct them to build the same thing?)

I thought it was Alt-select, but I must say that I never use it.

 

[hogie12345]

Hello.I have a question. please answer me. Excuse me for my bad english.

While I am playing this game(original version), I cannot hear any music.
Only If I get near to city by scrolling mouse wheel,I can hear music.
There are many mp3 music files in ..\Firaxis Games\Sid Meier's Civilization 4\Assets\Sounds.
How can I hear these music in game?

Is my Civ4(original version) broken?
I can hear music when I am playing "Beyond the sword".

 

[hogie12345]

I think my civ4(original version) is broken.
So, I will play with "Beyond the sword".

 

[Roland Johansen]

Hello.I have a question. please answer me. Excuse me for my bad english.

While I am playing this game(original version), I cannot hear any music.
Only If I get near to city by scrolling mouse wheel,I can hear music.
There are many mp3 music files in ..\Firaxis Games\Sid Meier's Civilization 4\Assets\Sounds.
How can I hear these music in game?

Is my Civ4(original version) broken?
I can hear music when I am playing "Beyond the sword".

I think my civ4(original version) is broken.
So, I will play with "Beyond the sword".

There was a problem with the music in vanilla civ4 in the first age of the game (the ancient age). I believe it was fixed in one of the patches. But if you have Warlords, then I see no reason to play vanilla civ4.

You always get the diplomatic music when you zoom closely towards the cities. That is a bit unrelated. It's different music than the one you hear when you are at a normal distance to your cities.

 

[BrantleyL1]

I've been playing for a while now and TRYING to get a little better. I can pull off a space race victory (one time in something like 2049, last night in 2008). I got a diplomatic victory the time before that, but I have NO idea why. I did not think I had THAT good relations.

Anyway, I JUST noticed that building a factory adds 25% to and 50% if it's powered. AND labratories cut the build time on space components AND building the space elevator further reduces that. So MAYBE I should build the elevator earlier and build factories earlier and power them -- at least if I'm looking for a space race victory... (Comments?)

BUT, here's my newbie question....

Early on, it's good to plan on a production city. What suggests that a city would be good as generally surrounded by farms as opposed to generally surrounded by cottages??

Late in my game, i wished that a couple of my cities had more , but they were already maxed out on food - one was even on starvation - so, I could not go back in and change the farms to cottages.

One other thing I noticed is that engineers add . So, I went into a few of the cities and changed over from Artists and Scientists to engineers.

Comments??

One funny thing about the game I finished last evening... Monty was down to ONE city by the time I met him. He kept making demands, but I ignored him & he stayed annoyed the whole time. I wonder why one of the other AIs on his continent did not wipe him out.

 

[Sisiutil]

I've been playing for a while now and TRYING to get a little better. I can pull off a space race victory (one time in something like 2049, last night in 2008). I got a diplomatic victory the time before that, but I have NO idea why. I did not think I had THAT good relations.

Anyway, I JUST noticed that building a factory adds 25% to and 50% if it's powered. AND labratories cut the build time on space components AND building the space elevator further reduces that. So MAYBE I should build the elevator earlier and build factories earlier and power them -- at least if I'm looking for a space race victory... (Comments?)

BUT, here's my newbie question....

Early on, it's good to plan on a production city. What suggests that a city would be good as generally surrounded by farms as opposed to generally surrounded by cottages??

Late in my game, i wished that a couple of my cities had more , but they were already maxed out on food - one was even on starvation - so, I could not go back in and change the farms to cottages.

One other thing I noticed is that engineers add . So, I went into a few of the cities and changed over from Artists and Scientists to engineers.

Comments??

One funny thing about the game I finished last evening... Monty was down to ONE city by the time I met him. He kept making demands, but I ignored him & he stayed annoyed the whole time. I wonder why one of the other AIs on his continent did not wipe him out.

Hmm... okay, sounds like you're still coming to terms with a few basic concepts. You came to the right place!

1. The diplomatic victory: the main thing there is the opponent you're up against. That's either (a) the biggest civ or (b) the one that built the UN. Or both, and you're the 2nd biggest civ. In any case, so long as the others dislike you less than your opponent, and you haven't done much to tick them off, you have a reasonably good chance at a diplomatic win.
2. Hammers are very important in the game, so anything that gives you more of them is very welcome indeed. For a space race win, factories and laboratories are indeed priorities. The Space Elevator is not essential, but sure is nice. Similarly, the Three Gorges Dam (which supplies power to all your cities on the continent) is handy for space race wins. Other tactics you can try to speed it up include changing civics to Universal Suffrage and State Property (both of which give a hammer boost), and using Great People for a late Golden Age when most of your cities are building space ship parts.
3. You seem confused about the purpose of cottages. Cottages give you commerce, not hammers. If you want hammers from riverside tiles, you put watermills on them. Generally the best early production cities will be locations with several hills but enough food resources to feed the city's population (since hills are notoriously low in food). Later in the game, a city with lots of riverside tiles can be made into a production powerhouse with watermills and workshops, though this has been nerfed a little bit in Beyond the Sword (State Property's boost to those tile improvements has been removed in favour of a 10% production boost in all cities). Taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture for a moment, I'd suggest looking into the concept of city specialization. There are some threads and articles here on the site (check out the War Academy) that go into it in detail.
4. Yes, specialists add hammers, commerce, science, or culture--or some combination thereof--to a city. They also help generate Great People of a certain type. Run specialists not just based on what they'll contribute to the city, though that is important, but also based upon the type of Great Person you want to generate (running scientists make it more likely that you'll generate a Great Scientist and so on).
5. Monty is annoying and any human player coming across him playing an unintentional one-city-challenge would gleefully wipe him out. The AI, however, moves in strange and mysterious ways. If you're playing with the Warlords extension pack, it could be somebody made him their vassal.

 

[ggganz]

There was a problem with the music in vanilla civ4 in the first age of the game (the ancient age). I believe it was fixed in one of the patches. But if you have Warlords, then I see no reason to play vanilla civ4.

You always get the diplomatic music when you zoom closely towards the cities. That is a bit unrelated. It's different music than the one you hear when you are at a normal distance to your cities.

The lack of music in the Ancient Era was not a bug, they just never made music for it. It was not "fixed" in a "patch" but "added" in "Warlords". The old Classical music was used as Ancient music and in place, Civ3 music played in Classical Era.

So, to answer your question, hogie12345, you should start hearing music once you get to the Classical Era, which you can do by reaching a certain level of technological advancement (For example, researching Iron Working, Calendar, etc.)

 

[Roland Johansen]

Later in the game, a city with lots of riverside tiles can be made into a production powerhouse with watermills and workshops, though this has been nerfed a little bit in Beyond the Sword (State Property's boost to those tile improvements has been removed in favour of a 10% production boost in all cities).

In BTS, workshops and watermills still get the food bonus in state property AND the civic gives a 10% production bonus. The 10% production bonus is not that impressive however as you already have a high production bonus in your cities at that time and 10% more isn't that great.

 

[ggganz]

But the higher the base production, the more the 10% adds.