Starting Civ IV: what to buy?

[jlvfr]

Hia folks.

I'm a long time CivIII fanatic. I tried CivIV when it came out but hated it: too slow, confusing, etc...

But I'd like to give it another shot. Problem is, I have no idea what to buy. I see multiple expansions, and the software shops have multiple packs, so I'm a bit lost

Could someone advise me on what to spend my cash please?

 

[Joshua368]

Beyond the Sword is all you need, but you should probably make sure you enjoy the basic game first.

 

[jlvfr]

Beyond the Sword is all you need, but you should probably make sure you enjoy the basic game first.

Well, I heard that many changes and improvements were made over the basic one, so...

Is "Beyond..." standalone, or do I have to buy the original?

 

[Matthew5117]

No, Civilization 4, just the plain one, is called here at CivFanatic Forums, Vanilla. You need vanilla in order to play BtS (beyond the sword).

The other expansion pack is Warlords. BtS has everything that Warlords has, so no need to get Warlords. Next, you may have also seen the Gold Edition.

This Gold Edition just has Vanilla and Warlords. No need to pay more to get the Gold Edition, because like already mentioned, BtS has everything that Warlords has. This was a mistake I did...

Finally, you may have already seen the Colonization version of Civilization. Colonization is not an expansion pack, it is a separate game, however, it runs on the same engine (coding in other words).

Finishing off, if you want to view these games, here are the links:
Vanilla
Warlords
BtS
Colonization

So, in conclusion, if you don't want Colonization but you want all the other games, get Vanilla and BtS. Nothing more, nothing less.

Glad I could help.

 

[jlvfr]

Thanks a lot for the info folks.

And I've just found a pack on amazon.uk for vanila+warlords+bts for only £10

 

[Death Zebra]

Thanks a lot for the info folks.

And I've just found a pack on amazon.uk for vanila+warlords+bts for only £10

If you haven't ordered yet you might want ot check your local Zavvi. After it went into administration I was able to get Civ 4 Complete on Xmas eve for £7.

 

[jlvfr]

If you haven't ordered yet you might want ot check your local Zavvi. After it went into administration I was able to get Civ 4 Complete on Xmas eve for £7.

Don't know those shops...

I'm not in the UK. I just use amazon.uk because it's the closest english-writen "version" of amazon

 

[KingLoraxII]

While your add it - if you are looking for enhancements - then download the Blue Marble & BAT Mods. You can find their info in the download section or on sourceforge.net

Those are enhancements that make the game flow & look better - more info - will help with any confusion issues I think.

 

[Supr49er]

Welcome to the Forums Death Zebra.

 

[SkinzRool]

I wouldn't buy anything but the game. Download Sevomod for free. It's the best mod out there!

 

[bippukt]

I wouldn't buy anything but the game. Download Sevomod for free. It's the best mod out there!

No, download the BUG mod. It's the best mod out there and it is still improving significantly

 

[CCRunner]

I wouldn't buy anything but the game. Download Sevomod for free. It's the best mod out there!

No, download the BUG mod. It's the best mod out there and it is still improving significantly

Blasphemy!! FfH II is the best

 

[bippukt]

BUG - it doesn't alter the original gameplay. So I am playing the same game as all the others here

 

[playshogi]

The HOF mod is the best mod.

 

[sagji]

BUG - it doesn't alter the original gameplay. So I am playing the same game as all the others here

It just fixes loads of UI bugs.

FfH is the 2nd best mod - its main failing is that it doesn't include BUG mod.

EDIT:
Also BUG and FfH are both free - though if you pay for download data/time FfH is quite big.

 

[Matthew5117]

Uh... if you pay for download data/time, download the file from say, a library for something, put it on a flash-stick and use the files from that rather than paying.

 

[jlvfr]

Ok, so now I got all the originals. What are the BUG and FfH mods please?

 

[Willem]

Ok, so now I got all the originals. What are the BUG and FfH mods please?

BUG stands for Basic Unaltered Gameplay. It's a User Interface enhancement mod that adds all sorts of extra info to your main game screen, and others, so it's much easier to manage your empire and your armies. The game itself is not altered in any way, only your UI. It's a must have mod as far as I'm concerned, I can't see playing the game without it anymore.

FfH is the Fall from Heaven mod. It's a complete overhaul of the game to turn it into a fantasy type experience, not a civilization one. I've never actually tried it myself but it's supposed to be very good.

 

[Willem]

It just fixes loads of UI bugs.

It does alot more than that. The fixes are just a small part of what it does.

 

[jlvfr]

Ok, so where do I get them? I thought they would be on the "modpacks" of the civ IV area...