Some questions from the manual

[BubbaYeti]

1) Is coal no longer required for railroads? The manual lists only ironclad and factories as requiring this resource. p42

2) Why does a catapult require iron? I can't think of a single piece of a catapult that really needs to be metal. p144

3) Anyone else bothered by the fact that a great artist can culture bomb and flip citadels from one side to another? p102

4) Anybody know how many XPs the Embarkation promotion requires? Since this promotion is necessary to embark a unit (and use them in a seaborne invasion) it seems to me to be the most valuable promotion. p53

I guess we can wait until tomorrow to find out numbers 1 and 4, but I'm curious if numbers 2 and 3 bother folks.

 

[zerotwo]

My only question from the manual so far:

Why does Ghandi look like some kind of deadly muscular kung-fu master?

 

[Ddude97]

1) Is coal no longer required for railroads? The manual lists only ironclad and factories as requiring this resource. p42

2) Why does a catapult require iron? I can't think of a single piece of a catapult that really needs to be metal. p144

3) Anyone else bothered by the fact that a great artist can culture bomb and flip citadels from one side to another? p102

4) Anybody know how many XPs the Embarkation promotion requires? Since this promotion is necessary to embark a unit (and use them in a seaborne invasion) it seems to me to be the most valuable promotion. p53

I guess we can wait until tomorrow to find out numbers 1 and 4, but I'm curious if numbers 2 and 3 bother folks.

#1 I don't know, perhaps another bug in manual?
#2 Almost definitely balance reasons
#3 No, not really
# 4 It isn't know how many XPs are needed for any promotion

 

[BubbaYeti]

My only question from the manual so far:

Why does Ghandi look like some kind of deadly muscular kung-fu master?

diet and exercise?

 

[zorven]

#4 - My understanding is that all units receive the "promotion" upon discovery of Optics (I believe). No XP required.

 

[AriochIV]

Coal is now a strategic resource. Buildings and units use up units of strategic resources, but there's no longer a binary "has coal/doesn't have coal" situation like in Civ IV (as far as I know). So no, railroads don't require coal (or iron).

The manual says that the Embarkation promotion becomes available with Optics. Astronomy increases speed and allows travel on Ocean tiles (and presumably changes the graphic to a galleon). Steam increases speed again (and presumably changes the graphic to a modern transport). This jibes with the tech tree, but it conflicts with the reports from the German game show.

The strategic resource requirements are pure gameplay and have nothing to do with reality; catapults, trebuchets and frigates require iron, but cannon and artillery don't. Modern armor requires aluminum, but mechanized infantry don't. It doesn't need to make sense.

If you see a Great Artist coming your way, declare war.

 

[Ahriman]

1. Yes, iron not needed for railroads.
2. Balance. To make siege units vs swordsmen a meaningful tradeoff.
3. No.
4. It seems in practice like this isn't a promotion you select as a level-up in the final builds.

 

[PawelS]

2) Why does a catapult require iron? I can't think of a single piece of a catapult that really needs to be metal. p144

Nails?

 

[Bear85]

Culture bombing citadels confuses me too. What happens to a unit garrisoned inside the citadel when this happens? Is it just ejected or does it switch allegiances?

Must be pretty difficult to sneak a great artist up to a citadel to flip it without him being destoryed anyway. Do ranged attacks on great people destroy them instantly? Even if they're stacked with a military unit?

Is there any other way to capture a citdel?

Lots of questions...

 

[Johnny Be]

Culture bombing citadels confuses me too. What happens to a unit garrisoned inside the citadel when this happens? Is it just ejected or does it switch allegiances?

Must be pretty difficult to sneak a great artist up to a citadel to flip it without him being destoryed anyway. Do ranged attacks on great people destroy them instantly? Even if they're stacked with a military unit?

Is there any other way to capture a citdel?

Lots of questions...

And less than 24h to the answers!

 

[BubbaYeti]

Is there any other way to capture a citdel?

If the game considers a citadel a souped up fort, then no...forts disappear when captured.

For the great artist trick, culture bomb to flip a neighbor's citadel as a prelude to declaring war. The neighbor won't be happy about it, but if you are about to attack anyway who cares?

Call it the "culture-bomb citadel exploit". It will work if the citadel is within two hexes of the border, since the great artist must be adjacent to your territory before bombing. An open borders agreement is presumably necessary for the artist to access the neighbors territory.

If the citadel is right on the border, its even simpler. The great artist can bomb it from inside your territory, without open borders!

There's a lesson here kids...never place citadels too close to a border!

 

[Ddude97]

Nails?

No, I think they'd most likely be wood