Strategy Revamp, need help

[D712]

Okay, so I have been playing Civ for about 2-3 years now. I have Civ 5, and am pretty good. But no expert by a long shot. I need some help with a few things:

1. I can make a lot of money, but I cant get enough science. For some reason I can never get a head of the game in science, I usually fall behind. I build libraries, universities, and everything. But I just can get enough of the science.

2. Same as 1, but with culture.

3. How can I build a tall empire without being too small and falling behind in the world?

4. Can't figure out what Civ is best for me. The Arabian Empire seems to be good, I get good cash and resources cause of the Bazaar. But I fall behind scientifically and culturally.

I play on Prince, havent beaten a game in awhile. I need a strategy revamp. Help!!

 

[vexing]

here's a simple start that should work well:
use siam,
build scout, worker, library, national college
research pottery -> writing -> (tech for luxury, ie calendar or mining)
get tradition for first policy
when you finish improving your luxury sell it for 300 gold, and spend 500 on an alliance with a close non hostile maritime city state.
when you're done with national college build settlers and found a few other cities.

 

[basta]

Or use Russia, which is one of the few civs that will almost always have iron deposits near the capital (double, too), open with liberty and take the 3 right side to get your settlers out there and production and culture going, provoke an early war by settling your 3rd or 4th city next to your nearest neighbor on a plum site, beeline military techs and prepare yourself for a nasty fight. Opening build order monument library in new cities and build the NC as soon as your last library completes.

Build the krepost in Moscow (mostly for the border expansion so you won't have to buy many critical tiles) and start pumping out units and at the end of it you should have a serious army and a puppeted empire with tons of cash and resources to buy RAs and several CSs. As you're now well off and dominant, you can backfill on science, start your own war at your leisure to bring in even more cash and resources, and take rationalism and philanthropy to catch up on science/culture.

 

[GCavalry]

1. Science is very depend on population. So in you capital chose Tradition (+50% pop increase) build National college, build as much farms as possible. And build university asap. You should have a huge capital city that bring more than 50% of the science. Go Civil service early.

And I suspect you are behind because you don't make Research Aggreement enough. Currently it is nearly a game breaker. Just do it with everyone that you will not war. Save money, build trading post in other cities.

2. Culture: you need to build temples and use Culture City States. Monuments is not enough. The stonehenge is one of the best wonders, nearly equal 3 temples without maintainance.

 

[Michl2602]

... and always put in as much science specialists as your cities can feed. Also preventing piety SP-branch and waiting for rationalism helps with 1. but definitely makes it harder with 2.

But culture is for hobbyists anyways.

PS.: You also could like Incas (for their additional observatories, as mostly playing in mountainous areas) or Babylon for their additional science boni. Sorry enough both of them are DLC.

PS2.: If your goal is to maximally balance between 1. and 2., Siam should be the civ of your choice, like someone already mentioned here.

 

[metatheory]

Try to get two cities to 12+ population by the industrial era and stock them with the usual science buildings. Also, Patronage Scholasticism while allying with 3-5 CS allies can give a big boost.

 

[KM]

1. Science. Playing the AI at high level most science comes from RA's (research agreements) and the science your empire produce is secondary. There are people who actually managed to win science victory on deity with one city around turn 200. Time your RA's to give you the expencive techs. And have a lot of them and you won t fall behind.

2. Small empire is the key here. Most efficient is one city. Use only the capital and heavy use of RA's to get the tech s that allow culture buidings as early as possible. It is possible to win a culture victory on deity at turn 210 ish mabye even earlier.

3. Focus the cities on growth. You need huge cities to make up for many, buy maritmies, make farms insted of tradeposts, build graneries, mills if possible, everything to make the cities bigger faster.

4. Best civ depend on the strategy you are aiming for. For example. culture win against the AI with one city I'd say egypt is best since you need to beat the AI to a lot of wonders and get them as fast as possible. For multiplayer on small maps and agressive gameplan, france or russia. France because the bonus culture saves you money from not having to buy tiles that you can use to uppgrade woriors to swords and get you a great general early and russia to get a lot of iron even if u have just a few 2 iron tiles close.

Each strategy and gametype have different top tier civilizations.

 

[D712]

Thanks you guys!

My strategy usually is to build things. I love building things an growing a high population and culture. I almost never go to war. But I usually end up not paying attention to military and then getting declared war on and having to repel a larger enemy. Any suggestions on civs that would fix this?

(BTW, I have all the DLC civs and such)

 

[vexing]

But I usually end up not paying attention to military and then getting declared war on and having to repel a larger enemy. Any suggestions on civs that would fix this?

wait... fix what? a civ that will make you pay attention to military?
siam, france, persia are all really powerful. try out any of them.

 

[Tabarnak]

But I usually end up not paying attention to military and then getting declared war on and having to repel a larger enemy. Any suggestions on civs that would fix this?

(BTW, I have all the DLC civs and such)

Keep some spare money for unit upgrades. For example, if you dont discover metal casting, you can build warriors and upgrade them to swordmen. It's faster than building swordmen by yourself. You can raise a nice army in few turns. In fact, try to win by domination if you really want to beat a higher level for the first time.

 

[KM]

Thanks you guys!

My strategy usually is to build things. I love building things an growing a high population and culture. I almost never go to war. But I usually end up not paying attention to military and then getting declared war on and having to repel a larger enemy. Any suggestions on civs that would fix this?

(BTW, I have all the DLC civs and such)

not any cis will fix this but what yu do in game will.

Now there is one thing that minimize the risk of beeing DoWd by the AIs other than just having a big army and that is doing bussines with them.

Make sure that you have a load of agreements with all the AIs close to you, even unnecessary ones. Trade one luxury you just have 1 of for another. Sell strategic resources you dont use. have research agreements, open border agreements, any kind of agreement you can think of. The more you have the less likely are they do DoW.

The other part is to make the AI hate each other. Bribe your AI friends to declare war on each other. Make sure all your close negbours dislike each other.the more time they are at war with each other the less risk are you running to be the next target. It s very seldom the AI DoW when they allready have 1 war to handle.

Now that is for diplmoatics and doesnt take any special civ to acomplish.