Reaching Modern Time

[GandalfTheGrey]

I'm always reaching Modern time past 2000, to late to build UN and get Space race etc..

how can i boost my science, i already give more gold with the advisors, but isn't enough??! what really boost your science?? some buildings maybe?!

 

[Portent]

Try libraries, universites, and research labs! Some wonders can be espescially helpful to science, such as the Great library, Theory of Evolution, etc.

 

[Hitman78]

I've been having the same problem as Gandalf, and I've been concentrating on the "science" wonders/improvements and they don't seem to make any difference...

I'm still playing on Chieftan , does that make a difference? Also, I don't like to have TONS and TONS of cities...usually make around eight of my own and then take over a few more through culture/warfare. Any advice?

p.s. - I made it to the very end of the Industrial Age on my last game, so I'm not too far away.

 

[abenamer]

Unfortunately, this game does require at least 12 cities to make a go of it. I've done it with less than 12 but I ended up losing the histogram battle by like 20 points

You might want to switch your civ to one that is scientific if you happen to be a University player from SMAC -- I was one too in SMAC but I find myself oddly comfortable with the Persians who are militaristic and commercial.

 

[Adam Wallock]

In my last Regent game we were up to Modern Armor, ICBM's and Battleships by 1900. With proper expansion and military conservation, as well as two major time savers, The Great Library and the (not-as-good-as-before) Leonardo's Workshop, you can pretty much devote all of your cities efforts to building Science improvements and wealth. Oh yeah, Republic followed by Democracy are critical for the increased Commerce.

Don't go to War before this point. Keep the AI's happy, even the mean ones.

 

[Wuf]

I think it's either:

1) on chieftain, you have no good allies to trade techs with and get ahead slower

OR

2) you didn't expand enough.

I think it's #1. I was on track for my civilization until 1930 or so. I'm still using cavalry in 1997. The civil war era was perfect though. I have never seen a more accurate 1880.

I also conducted an incredible 1820's ish naval siege of a Zulu island. I bombarded the city, landed untils from a Frigate. Etc. Etc. I'm telling you it was perfect!!!

If only I can make 1990 feel like 1990 I'll be set.

 

[Borealis]

The chieftain era does seem slow... one way to *fix* this is to trade techs for stuff from the AIs, and or make them adore you by giving it to them. Of course, if you're far enough ahead that the AI's can't trade you anything good, then you can probably give them 1 or 2 techs that aren't worth much to you in loss of advantage to them.

Corruption is also a huge, huge factor in this- even with the Forbidden Palace and courthouses galore, my cities lost commerce to corruption.

Once I even had a size 11 capital city lose 1 commerce point to corruption- yes, it was one point, but in the CAPITAL? Isn't that supposed to be all virtuous and corruption-freee?

 

[duke o' york]

One thing that no-one has mentioned yet is that the Colossus is a vital wonder if you want good science. You have to pick the right city to build it in, but the trade bonus applies to science and to cash and it lasts for a long time. As the foundation of a SSC (that's Super Science City), it will boost your advance rate no end, and when coupled with other scientific wonders like Newton's can produce most of your civ's beakers by itself. I maintain that the Great Library is still useless and that the only reason to build it is if the wonder you were first going for has been completed elsewhere and you've got hundreds of shields on your hands with no other wonders to build. If you want techs, trade for them! This has the added advantage of making everyone think your really nice. The fools!

 

[Avenger]

Tanks, Planes and Marines in 1695. I have over 50 cities, and most of them are size 20+ I am on Regent level, but I believe the trouble you are having is caused more by a lack of big cities. My really big cities, the ones with lots of trade dollars, number around 20. I don't see how you can get fast science without those.

--Avenger

 

[GandalfTheGrey]

yup i was playing chieftain and my allies has nothing to trade.. so i must tech up by myself.. i had only 11/12 cities, maybe not enough?!

so i must try a higher level?? or build more cities?!

 

[GandalfTheGrey]

Originally posted by Avenger
Tanks, Planes and Marines in 1695. I have over 50 cities, and most of them are size 20+ I am on Regent level, but I believe the trouble you are having is caused more by a lack of big cities. My really big cities, the ones with lots of trade dollars, number around 20. I don't see how you can get fast science without those.

--Avenger

do you have ruined so many civs or build so many settlers

 

[CeasarSalad]

Originally posted by GandalfTheGrey
yup i was playing chieftain and my allies has nothing to trade.. so i must tech up by myself.. i had only 11/12 cities, maybe not enough?!

so i must try a higher level?? or build more cities?!

Playing a higher difficulty might help, but there is something else you can do. Try deliberately researching advanced techs as soon as possible, skipping over more basic techs. For example making a b-line for "construction" is a good idea. The AI generally researches in a careful way much like the science advisor suggests. If you go for advanced techs quickly you can trade them for the techs that you skipped, or sell them. In my experience sellings techs is a good idea. If you sell a tech to one civilization, you may as well sell it to all of them since they will probably trade it to each other anyways. You'll get a lot of gold, which you can use to increase science spending, which will help you get more techs to sell!

 

[Stuie]

Originally posted by CeasarSalad
If you sell a tech to one civilization, you may as well sell it to all of them since they will probably trade it to each other anyways. You'll get a lot of gold, which you can use to increase science spending, which will help you get more techs to sell!

This is exactly what I did in my current game. I've had science set to 100% for most of the game (until the 4 turn minimum kicked in) and used the gold/per turn from other civs to support my civilization - science, luxuries and military. Once you get into this mode, the AI cannot keep up with your science research, as the majority of their gold is being sent to you! Thus as you discover techs, you can keep turning around and selling them to everyone.

 

[virt]

Hmm...I've always held on to my tech's like they were my children. Knowledge is power, right? The idea of selling tech's seems like a bad idea to me! And if I just got Gunpowder, why should I give it away, just so my enemy can make it harder for me to whip him?

Do you sell all your tech's or only the non-military ones?

But hey, I'll try it. I like the idea of selling the same tech to every civ and getting the big bucks for it...

 

[Hitman78]

Still playing on Chieftan, and I've at least got railroads, ironclads, etc...Sticking with Republic and eventually Democracy was probably the biggest help, even if it does mean I have to share my continent:crazyeyes

I'll probably start moving up the difficulty levels soon, just wanted to make sure I had a hang of the game again since so many of the concepts are different from Civ 2.

 

[Alexander I]

what is SMAC? see it all the time but can't figure it out?

 

[Avenger]

As soon as the game begins I build warriors, barracks, settlers, then a whole slew of warriors, go to the closest enemy civ and take all of his cities. I fill in the space between us with cities, and use the leader that I always get to rush build a forbidden palace in his old capitol. That usually takes 4000 years.

SMAC = Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri

--Avenger

 

[Larry]

trade away everything, it's great!

 

[Quizpeachablari]

Originally posted by virt
Hmm...I've always held on to my tech's like they were my children. Knowledge is power, right? The idea of selling tech's seems like a bad idea to me! And if I just got Gunpowder, why should I give it away, just so my enemy can make it harder for me to whip him?

I also thought that this was the case. Guess I was too conservative. But I tried selling them, and I found out that this worked much better. I just had to make sure to appease them since it would be very hard to beat them with my military.