Quickest Way To Win Space Race

[Brew God]

Hello You Civ Fans!!

My last message hinted on the same subject. The question is what is the easiest way to win by the space race victory. How do you get to the Apollo Mission Program and win. I am playing the easiest level so I don't have much AI interference. What are some tricks and tips.

Any suggestions or tips would be great.

Brew God

 

[lbhhh]

The Appollo program allows you to start building spaceship parts, so start with that.IIRC, research labs increase spaceship parts production as does the space elevator wonder.Also build forges, factories, powerplants etc in your cities that will be building spaceship parts to increase prodcution. Lastly, just make sure you keep ahead of the AI technology wise and you will be fine.

 

[ShaLouZa]

I usually do something like that, in that order :

research Assembly line to build factories and powerplants (and infantry to protect it)
Rockets to be able to build Apollo
Industrialism to pop aluminium while I'm finishing the factories and powerplants
start Apollo as soon as one of the high production cities is powered
Computers to fasten the research and build the laboratories that give + 50% production for space parts
Robotics and Satellites to begin the space elevator and build mech infs to protect it
Fission --> Fiber optics --> Fusion to get the great engineer if you're first to discover it and burn him on the space elevator (every turn counts)
Ecology --> Refrigeration --> Genetics.

You'll have several intermediary techs to discover to be able to research those, like Plastics or Radio if you don't have it yet.

There are three parts really expansive : the docking bay which comes with Robotics, the engine with Fusion and the stasis chamber you can build with Genetics. You'd better have 2 cities with high production. When you discover Robotics the second best city starts to build the docking bay. You keep the best city to build the space elevator once you have Satellites. When you discover Fusion, put the second best city to build the engine, not the best one. Why ? Because by the time you discover Genetics to build the last part, you won't have this one finished, even if it's your best city that builds it. Keeping your best city to build the last part makes you gain some turns in the end. Meanwhile, all your other cities with some production build the other pieces.

 

[automator]

To beat out the AI, I always make sure I've got the following in my production cities before I finish the Apollo Project:

Factories and power (usually Coal, since they're cheap and I can deal with a bit of unhealthiness)
Laboratories
Space Elevator

Usually, I'll have my #1 prod city building the Space Elevator (love having an Engineer to do this -- rushing to Fusion is nice for the free GE) while the #2 city does the Apollo Project. I keep the #3 city for the building of Mech Infantry and any extra tanks/MAs that I need.

Then I set the lower-output prod cities to build the easy space parts, like the casing. I don't want to waste the city that can build life support in 12 turns to build a casing part that will only get finished there a couple turns earlier than the lower-prod city. High prod cities do the big pieces.

Probably isn't a concern at low levels, but on Prince and above, the AI get's really pissy if they find out that you're near completion on the spaceship. Even a friendly civ might attack you to prevent your launch. So that's why it's nice to be able to finish it in BIG CHUNKS, rather than one piece at a time. Get your production set up so that all the casing pieces come together within a few turns. Also nice if you can first finish the expensive bits (life support, cockpit, docking bay), then quickly build the little pieces.

 

[Sisiutil]

When I'm reaching the end of the tech tree, I usually make two bee-lines: first to Robotics, and second to Fusion.

Robotics opens up access to the Space Elevator wonder, which significantly speeds space ship part production. I sometimes have the elevator built before the Apollo Program!

Fusion gives you a free Great Engineer if you get to it first. There are two possible uses for the GE at this point: either use him to finish the Space Elevator if it isn't finished, or combine him with another (non-GE) great person for a golden age.

I usually use the fusion GE for the latter, since the Space Elevator is usually nearly finished by the time I get Fusion done. I try to time the golden age so that it occurs when my cities are building space ship parts, especially the expensive ones. The AI is sometimes ahead of me on the minor parts (casings and thrusters), but the GA usually shoots me ahead to victory.

Aside from that, automator's recommendations for city builds make sense. It's also worthwhile to switch to the Universal Suffrage civic before going into the space race full-bore if you haven't done so already. Your towns then add to your production while keeping your income and research high.

 

[ShaLouZa]

the expensive bits (life support, cockpit, docking bay)

The cockpit is cheaper than the 3 err... propulsors ? rockets ? thingies. It's the engine which is expensive.

In my post above,please regard "mooring thingy" as docking bay and "stasis stuff" must be life support (is that the one you discover with genetics ?). I'll correct that.

Can someone give the exact english names of all the parts please ?

I usually use coal plants too. But if you happen to not have coal and can't trade it, research Fission asap (just after Assembly line) if you have uranium and build nuclear plants.

 

[Tristan daCunha]

Can someone give the exact english names of all the parts please ?

SS Casing (5 needed)
SS Thrusters (3 needed)
SS Engine (1 needed)
SS Docking Bay (1 needed)
SS Cockpit (1 needed)
SS Life Support (1 needed)
SS Stasis Chamber (1 needed)

 

[ShaLouZa]

Thanks.

So the expensive parts are the docking bay, the engine and the stasis chamber. Everything else is cheaper, especially the casing and the cockpit.

 

[Armorydave]

Get Communism and build Scotland Yard so you can perma-sabatoge the aluminum supplies of your competitors (Kremlin is good as well to buy factories and power plants cheaper). Sometimes they are trading for aluminum so you have to figure out who they are trading with and go after their aluminum mines. At higher levels, this will frequently provide the difference between winning and losing.

 

[Sisiutil]

Another helpful item: the Three Gorges Dam. It boosts production in all cities on the continent, and is available from Plastics which is on your space race tech path. Not essential, but useful if you're going for a faster space race, which is the whole point of this thread.

 

[flamingzaroc121]

well the Three Gorges Dam is only good if you have enough health to build a factory in your cities that is why i like bismark so much, he is expansive so he has enough health, and his UB is a factory

 

[Sisiutil]

Who needs expansive? Kill your neighbours and take their health resources!