Quick Answers / 'Newbie' Questions

[Zenon_pt]

I found the Warlords Expansion link on the Civfanatics home page.

When can we except its launching?

 

[frankcor]

I think the guys who did the system requirements thing were more than a little optimistic.

In most organizations, that's usually a negotiated settlement between the marketing and development departments.

 

[a4phantom]

Thanks I'll check that out, although I don't think that's it. I have 512 MB Ram, plus a 128 MB dedicated video card, so that shouldn't be the problem . . . prior to one of the patches the game did sometimes freeze up over RAM but I think that was a nearly universal problem because the upatched game was such a hog.

 

[a4phantom]

Hmm, curious, the progress bar's always been green for me... maybe there's different versions of the game for different countries. Or maybe I'm colourblind.

Anyway, addressing the actual error - what size are the savegames you're trying to load? My guess is they're fairly large, correct? If so, do you have trouble running Civ4 games towards the endgame, or the midgame on larger maps? If that's the case it could be just a spec-related issue. (I know that the "recommended specs" are, IMHO, vastly underestimated... with those kind of specs you'll just barely be able to run the game, and certainly won't be able to tackle the huge maps in the space age. I think the guys who did the system requirements thing were more than a little optimistic. )

But it's not while loading a saved game, if I get that far I have no problems there, it's while actually starting up Civ4 itself.


Can someone point me to a good article on diplomatic victory? It's the only way I haven't won yet, and I'm attempting it on Prince level (my second Prince game, won the first with early Conquest) as Gandi. All I know so far is that I have to finish off the Japanese, since they're the only civ that hates me and they have no friends to piss off. I've converted to Free Religion, so noone should have a beef with me there. It's about 1200 AD I think.

 

[a4phantom]

When can we except its launching?

The link you were responding to says July. Here's hoping it's not the premature mess the vanilla was released as.

Amazon doesn't have a link for it yet.

 

[Harrier]

In most organizations, that's usually a negotiated settlement between the marketing and development departments.

I would not say negotiated - thats a bit unrealistic.

A bit like the development teams realistic finish date, compared to the one from Marketing.

I would not dare to comment on which was accurrate - but probably both are wrong and the middle figure would be right.

 

[frankcor]

I would not dare to comment on which was accurrate - but probably both are wrong and the middle figure would be right.

Excellent point, Harrier.

 

[Conquistador 63]

I' ve searched this forum and couldn't find any info about city ruins. Do they have any function in the game or are just eye-candy? When I try to build a farm, cottage or anything else I get a warning "this action will destroy the city ruins, are you sure?". Am I missing something?

 

[a4phantom]

I' ve searched this forum and couldn't find any info about city ruins. Do they have any function in the game or are just eye-candy? When I try to build a farm, cottage or anything else I get a warning "this action will destroy the city ruins, are you sure?". Am I missing something?

City ruins are mostly aesthetic (if you're into barbarian chic), but they do protect the road on that square from a round of pillaging.

 

[a4phantom]

Excellent point, Harrier.

I thought your original phrasing was witty and summed the matter up pretty well (the developers hopefully wanting to do it right vs. the marketeers who want it released in whatever condition at peak buying time).

 

[The Tyrant]

I had one game that made me wonder if city ruins influence AI decisions of where to settle. Over the course of the game I ended up razing the "same" city several times. Each time I razed it, the AI would build another city in a tile adjacent to the ruins. By the end of the game there was a cluster of ruins showing where the city had been placed each time. It was almost as if the AI took the ruins as a warning "This is not a safe location for a city -- build elsewhere."

On the other hand, I have had plenty of games where the AI rebuilds a city directly on top of the ruins from the last razing, so ruins are not an automatic "settle elsewhere." Maybe they are a factor influencing the decision, but if the surrounding resources and tiles are good enough then the AI settles there again anyway?

EDIT: City ruins also have the unfortunate feature of being treated as a "bonus" and a tile can only have one bonus. Floodplains are actually desert tiles with a floodplain bonus. If the city was built on a floodplain, then the ruins will remove the floodplain bonus and leave the tile as a desert tile.

 

[Hjor]

Concerning workers and automation:

Is there a command that will automate your workers without having them change your current improvements, like in civ3? Maybe that's the default - I haven't tried automating them yet - but the little text box for automation doesn't clarify. I just don't want to automate them late in the game and have them tear up all my improvements.

Thanks!

 

[Harrier]

hjor -

On initially loading Civ4 select 'Advanced' - then 'Options'.

You will see a check box option 'Automated workers leave old improvements'.

There is also another nice option 'Automated workers leave forrests'.

 

[desicator]

with universal suffarage, how do i spend money to hurry production?

 

[Matty R]

Hi everybody.

I got Civilization 4 yesterday and I've spent a few hours on it. Thing is, I'm really struggling to understand some of the basics.

I have 2 farms built, with a third being built and a mine being built, along with a third worker in production. Why doesn't my city grow?

I have 2 mines, both with 4 hammers, yet the turns taken to build or develop doesn't appear to change. What do the hammers actually do?

If I develop land, does it have to be linked to my city, or does it just have to be within my cultural border for it to provide for the city?

Whats the longest game possible? I've got it set to Marathon, but it still goes a bit too quick. I got to 1500BC in less than an hour.

I set a worker building a farm, while another farm and a mine are being built. It says it will take 10 turns. So I play my turn, check again and it still says 10 turns. When I mouseover the worker it says "Build a farm (13)". What am I missing?

What do the emphasize buttons do? When should I stop a city from growing? And what does the number next to a city signify?

I've played the tutorial twice, but I'm still no wiser. Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[a4phantom]

EDIT: City ruins also have the unfortunate feature of being treated as a "bonus" and a tile can only have one bonus. Floodplains are actually desert tiles with a floodplain bonus. If the city was built on a floodplain, then the ruins will remove the floodplain bonus and leave the tile as a desert tile.

Good to know and easily dealt with, any military unit can 'pillage' ruins off the map. You should get a bonus for building on or near ruins, all that stone available and probably some cultural points. On the other hand, you'd need to garrison a Ghostbuster.


desicator: with universal suffarage, how do i spend money to hurry production?

It's a button in the lower mid screen, to the right of your building options (units, buildings, etc.) Near whip and draft and automate city govt options.


== Matty R
I have 2 farms built, with a third being built and a mine being built, along with a third worker in production. Why doesn't my city grow?==

Welcome to the club! Cities don't grow while producing settlers or workers. When the worker is done the city should start growing again, assuming it is working those farms (in white circles on the city page you get to by clicking on the city)

==I have 2 mines, both with 4 hammers, yet the turns taken to build or develop doesn't appear to change. What do the hammers actually do?==

Your city probably isn't working either mine. It's probably working those farms. Look at the city screen and see which tiles have white circles.

==If I develop land, does it have to be linked to my city, or does it just have to be within my cultural border for it to provide for the city?==

Both. A city can use land that is within it's 'fat cross', which means two squares in all directions except diagnal which is one square. That land also has to be within cultural boundries. A city with no culture can only use the 8 squares touching it (unless the culture of another of your cities puts those squares under your control). The first time a city's culture expands its borders it forms the shape of the "fat cross".

OOO
OOOOO
OOXOO
OOOOO
OOO

==Whats the longest game possible? I've got it set to Marathon, but it still goes a bit too quick. I got to 1500BC in less than an hour.==

The early years go by quickly in that every turn is several years. That slows down soon. I think Marathon is the slowest setting, but you could use a bigger world and Continents or Archipelago instead of an all land map to slow down meeting other civs.

==I set a worker building a farm, while another farm and a mine are being built. It says it will take 10 turns. So I play my turn, check again and it still says 10 turns. When I mouseover the worker it says "Build a farm (13)". What am I missing?==

I don't understand. Are you trying to build a farm and a mine on the same tile? One will replace the other.

==What do the emphasize buttons do?==

The emphasize buttons tell the city's governor vaguely what you want done. Are you trying to grow the city? He'll send the workers to farms and grasslands. Production? He'll put them on forests and mines. Produce Great People? He'll make as many citizens as he can specialists.

==When should I stop a city from growing?==

When there are equal (or more) red unhappy faces than yellow happy faces at the top right of the screen. Same if you have more green sick faces than redcross health symbols. Connect to happy resources like ivory, gold or silk, or build temples to add happiness. Build aqueducts and graneries, connect to cows and grain and fish and stuff to add health. Once you're back to having more health than unhealth and happiness than unhappiness, you can let the city grow again until they're equal.

==And what does the number next to a city signify?==

The big number in the circle or star is the city's size, how many population points it has. The top small number is how many turns till the city grows in size (this disappears when you're building workers or settlers). The bottom small number shows how many turns to complete production on whatever you're building. Bonus points if someone knows what the varying *colors* of the city's star or circle means.

 

[Matty R]

Good to know and easily dealt with, any military unit can 'pillage' ruins off the map. You should get a bonus for building on or near ruins, all that stone available and probably some cultural points. On the other hand, you'd need to garrison a Ghostbuster.


desicator: with universal suffarage, how do i spend money to hurry production?

It's a button in the lower mid screen, to the right of your building options (units, buildings, etc.) Near whip and draft and automate city govt options.


== Matty R
I have 2 farms built, with a third being built and a mine being built, along with a third worker in production. Why doesn't my city grow?==

Welcome to the club! Cities don't grow while producing settlers or workers. When the worker is done the city should start growing again, assuming it is working those farms (in white circles on the city page you get to by clicking on the city)

==I have 2 mines, both with 4 hammers, yet the turns taken to build or develop doesn't appear to change. What do the hammers actually do?==

Your city probably isn't working either mine. It's probably working those farms. Look at the city screen and see which tiles have white circles.

==If I develop land, does it have to be linked to my city, or does it just have to be within my cultural border for it to provide for the city?==

Both. A city can use land that is within it's 'fat cross', which means two squares in all directions except diagnal which is one square. That land also has to be within cultural boundries. A city with no culture can only use the 8 squares touching it (unless the culture of another of your cities puts those squares under your control). The first time a city's culture expands its borders it forms the shape of the "fat cross".

OOO
OOOOO
OOXOO
OOOOO
OOO

==Whats the longest game possible? I've got it set to Marathon, but it still goes a bit too quick. I got to 1500BC in less than an hour.==

The early years go by quickly in that every turn is several years. That slows down soon. I think Marathon is the slowest setting, but you could use a bigger world and Continents or Archipelago instead of an all land map to slow down meeting other civs.

==I set a worker building a farm, while another farm and a mine are being built. It says it will take 10 turns. So I play my turn, check again and it still says 10 turns. When I mouseover the worker it says "Build a farm (13)". What am I missing?==

I don't understand. Are you trying to build a farm and a mine on the same tile? One will replace the other.

==What do the emphasize buttons do?==

The emphasize buttons tell the city's governor vaguely what you want done. Are you trying to grow the city? He'll send the workers to farms and grasslands. Production? He'll put them on forests and mines. Produce Great People? He'll make as many citizens as he can specialists.

==When should I stop a city from growing?==

When there are equal (or more) red unhappy faces than yellow happy faces at the top right of the screen. Same if you have more green sick faces than redcross health symbols. Connect to happy resources like ivory, gold or silk, or build temples to add happiness. Build aqueducts and graneries, connect to cows and grain and fish and stuff to add health. Once you're back to having more health than unhealth and happiness than unhappiness, you can let the city grow again until they're equal.

==And what does the number next to a city signify?==

The big number in the circle or star is the city's size, how many population points it has. The top small number is how many turns till the city grows in size (this disappears when you're building workers or settlers). The bottom small number shows how many turns to complete production on whatever you're building. Bonus points if someone knows what the varying *colors* of the city's star or circle means.

Wow. Thanks. And thanks for the welcome.

For that building a farm thing, I've got a worker building a farm on the Eastern border, a farm being built on the Western border and a mine being built on the northern border. This thing has happened with every development I've tried. Its almost like they're missing turns. It first says it'll take 10 turns.

10 turns
Play a turn
10 turns
Play a turn
9 turns
Play a turn
8 turns
Play a turn
8 turns

Thats just for the farm on the eastern border. It ends up taking about 17 or 18 turns to complete it.

Do the population points actually do anything? Do they allow anything the higher they get? Do they tell you how many tiles are being worked? Is there any way to change which tiles are being worked?

If I've got 2 cities, and their cultural borders overlap, do they share resources like food and production? Or do I need to build a trade route?

Sorry for all the questions.

 

[a4phantom]

Wow. Thanks. And thanks for the welcome.

For that building a farm thing, I've got a worker building a farm on the Eastern border, a farm being built on the Western border and a mine being built on the northern border. This thing has happened with every development I've tried. Its almost like they're missing turns. It first says it'll take 10 turns.

Thats just for the farm on the eastern border. It ends up taking about 17 or 18 turns to complete it.

Sounds like a bug. Have you updated (patched) the game?

Do the population points actually do anything? Do they allow anything the higher they get? Do they tell you how many tiles are being worked? Is there any way to change which tiles are being worked?

They do almost everything. Each population point can work a tile, in addition to the city square tile that you get free. It's population points that work the farms and mines that your worker units build. Furthermore, once you have infrastructure (temples, forges, libraries, etc) population points that aren't needed to work the land can be converted into specialists.

If I've got 2 cities, and their cultural borders overlap, do they share resources like food and production? Or do I need to build a trade route?

If their fat crosses overlap then the first city (London) to start working a mutual tile will block the other (Liverpool). If you want Liverpool to work that tile, you have to take london off it. So no they don't share resources like food and production, they exclude eachother. However . . .

Or do I need to build a trade route?

Absolutely, because there are other resources than food and hammers. In addition to providing a food boost to a city working its tile, after a pasture is built the cow resource gives a health bonus to every city connected to it by roads, which allows higher levels of population. Mining silver and spreading it around your cities with roads increases happiness, also allowing larger cities. A hunk of iron improves the hammer yield a city receives for working that square, and if you build a mine on that iron, every city attached to it by roads will be able to produce swordsmen. In Civ4 I believe every single resource (horses, corn, fish, everything) provides health or happiness benefits or allows or speeds production of certain things in cities they are connected to, unlike Civ3 which had some passive resources which only benefited the city working the square. Also, if you have excesses of these resources you can sell or trade them to foreign civs if you have a trade network with them (I think you need a connection from your capital to theirs in addition to a connection to the resource).

Sorry for all the questions.

Don't be silly that's what this forum is for.

 

[Matty R]

Again, thanks.

I'm starting to get the hang of it now. I've not put any patches or mods on the game. I think my version is 1.09. Not too sure about that though.

I've got another question. I started a new game and went straight for Buddhism. Working through mysticism then meditation. I didn't miss any turns, so I was researching these 2 things in succession with no skips. How is it that the Spanish managed to found Buddhism 4 turns before me?

Ooh. Another question. I've founded Hinduism and Judaism, and they were each founded in seperate cities. I'm currently building a road between them. Will I have to choose a single religion once the 2 cities are linked, or can I have different religions in different cities? I'm planning on building a third city and founding Christianity in it. Would that be a good idea?

 

[a4phantom]

Again, thanks.

I'm starting to get the hang of it now. I've not put any patches or mods on the game. I think my version is 1.09. Not too sure about that though.

Patch it up right away. It's under "advanced" in the opening menues when you start up the game. The game was released a real mess, I don't think it even started to stabilize until 1.51.

==I've got another question. I started a new game and went straight for Buddhism. Working through mysticism then meditation. I didn't miss any turns, so I was researching these 2 things in succession with no skips. How is it that the Spanish managed to found Buddhism 4 turns before me?==

The Spaniards start with mysticism. If you don't start with mysticism, don't count on founding Hinduism or Buddism. In any case, I'd try for Hinduism since the AIs seem to jump for Buddism since Meditation is slightly cheaper than Polytheism. But polytheism is more immediately useful, and leads to Monotheism which founds Judaism. But don't get addicted to trying to found all the religions, it'll put you behind on developing your land with farms (agriculture), mines (mining), cottages (pottery) and animal resources (animal husbandry). Plus you want to discover bronze and iron working early so you can be sure to found cities by iron.

==Ooh. Another question. I've founded Hinduism and Judaism, and they were each founded in seperate cities. I'm currently building a road between them. Will I have to choose a single religion once the 2 cities are linked, or can I have different religions in different cities?==

There is no way to eliminate a religion from a city where it exists, and religion does not naturally spread to cities where another already exists (but you can add additional religions with missionaries, which is a good idea because it allows more temples/monestaries and thus more happiness/culture/research).

Then there is the question of which religion your nation will have as a state religion. If you pick Hinduism, make sure to spread it to your Jewish and third city. If you pick Judaism, spread it too all your cities. It pretty much comes down to whether you can live without hamburgers or hotdogs - unless the other civs are picking up either religion (look at their names in your lower righthand corner). You want to have your state religion 1. be the same as the civs you want to be friends with and 2. be represented in *all* your cities for the +1 happiness and various bonuses in each city depending on your religious civic. It's also nice if you have the holy city of your state religion, but not essential. If Isabella of Spain is nearby and has founded Buddism, expect hostility from her throughout the game. Every ruler will sour on you a bit if you have a different religion, something like -1 to -4 on diplomacy, and Isabella is the worst. Since converting to Buddism wouldn't work well for you and she won't convert away from it if she has the Buddist Holy City, don't expect good relations with her. So you should see whether Judaism or Hinduism is present in the cities of your other neighbors, convert your empire to whichever your neighbors are, and then send missionaries to their cities (requires open borders and either monastaries or the Organized Religion civic) to make sure they convert and stay with your religion. Shared religion is one of the most important factors in who likes you and who hates you. Hopefully you can isolate Spain and Buddism in a sea of Hinduism or Judaism.

==I'm planning on building a third city and founding Christianity in it. Would that be a good idea?==

Sure, why not, but I'd focus on keeping the neighborhood Jewish or Hindu (whichever you decide to be). Christianity comes with a free missionary but by the time it's founded the early religions usually have a foothold. Your goal is to contain Buddism, because you don't want Isabella to have any friends.