Tech Slump

[AnaNg]

Game: Civ IV vanilla
Noble
Various Leaders

OK so I'm getting the hang of the early stages of the game... sort of. Still needs some tweaking but I'm no longer getting bullied and such early on, I've got some of my rival's personalities down so I know how to somewhat play them, wonder/GP balance and set up with cities is getting better, I've learned you can't neglect the seas, etc and all seems to go well through about oh, I dunno, gunpowder.

Then it always seems like all of a sudden I'm just getting infantry and everyone else has bombers and mechanized infantry and I have no idea how it happens. I try to trade for techs and either no one will trade with me or we have all the same techs. I've tried researching techs they're not and either they don't want the stuff I've got or if I do manage a trade I've just inadvertently launched them towards some massive power unit and my previous "Friendlies" now have the tools to wage war on me.

I have no idea how I'm falling so far behind - any common issues that usually cause that that anyone can help me with?

Thanks.

 

[AlessioCerci]

Some problems you may have: A small(ish) empire, small cities due to lack of health/happiness, or a lack of cottages.
These 3 things will prevent you from teching very fast.

ps. Buy BTS!

 

[AnaNg]

Some problems you may have: A small(ish) empire, small cities due to lack of health/happiness, or a lack of cottages.
These 3 things will prevent you from teching very fast.

ps. Buy BTS!

Hmm, 2 out of 3 is pretty bad. I'm not tiny but I'm not huge - I really need to get the hang of the early war, I think.

Thanks! I'll try growing bigger and emphasizing cottages a bit more.

 

[futurehermit]

Yes, something new players often experience is that they do not expand large enough (OR they over-expand which can also stifle the economy). So make sure you expand slow-but-steady until you have the largest empire in the world (doesn't have to be super-huge just 2-5 cities larger than anyone else).

Then make sure you have most of your cities cottage-spammed. DaveMcW (the cottage enthusiast) has a rule of thumb which I think is good: Any city that can support at least 10 cottages prior to biology (i.e., have enough food to still grow while working 10 cottages) becomes a commerce city and the rest become production cities (mines and farms). In your commerce city grassland hills get cottages or windmills. The odd plains hill gets a windmill.

Then, yes, make sure you grow your cities large. This means drama/construction with 20% culture slider or (more commonly) hereditary rule to increase your during the pre-astronomy period where is at a premium. Also make sure to build health and happy buildings and trade for resources. See Cabert's signature for his health and happy write-ups. They are quite good.

Also, judge what you need to do from the map. Lots of available land with distant opponents? REX: rapid expansion. Get out workers and settlers and defenders and settle the empire spamming cottages as you go (prioritize col and currency to aid the expansion). Getting hemmed in by a close neighbour? Have copper nearby? Claim that copper and start pumping axes and go after that pesky neighbour. Once they are wiped out look around. Is there some more land to settle? Settle it. Another close neighbour? Take them out.

 

[Harbourboy]

There are so many variables that could be in play but it's probably to do with a lack of focus and specialisation. It's hard to tell whether you have been following a 'builder' strategy until that point or a 'warmonger" or a mixture of both, or what victory condition you are aiming for. A bit mor information would help us analyse your tactics.

 

[AnaNg]

Futurehermit - I think you really did nail it. I'm still having trouble finding the sweet spot of expansion. Then, as mentioned, I've got some sort of "early war strategy" deficiency. Either I wait too long or I pull the trigger too early and they snuff me.

DaveMcW (the cottage enthusiast) has a rule of thumb which I think is good: Any city that can support at least 10 cottages prior to biology (i.e., have enough food to still grow while working 10 cottages) becomes a commerce city and the rest become production cities (mines and farms). In your commerce city grassland hills get cottages or windmills. The odd plains hill gets a windmill.

OK this is awesome and I'll use this next time. I'm good about keeping my cities balanced on happiness/health but apparently bad at cottages

Also, judge what you need to do from the map. Lots of available land with distant opponents? REX: rapid expansion. Get out workers and settlers and defenders and settle the empire spamming cottages as you go (prioritize col and currency to aid the expansion). Getting hemmed in by a close neighbour? Have copper nearby? Claim that copper and start pumping axes and go after that pesky neighbour. Once they are wiped out look around. Is there some more land to settle? Settle it. Another close neighbour? Take them out.

But I think the above is the bottom line - I just need to work out the initial layout/war as I think all my late game problems actually lie in the first part of the game. Thanks again.

 

[uncarved block]

Yes, Anna Ng (that's a great song, btw), how to handle early expansion was easily what took me the longest to get down. I found prioritizing Marketplaces was a big help in the long run, as two or three in your core cities can pay for a lot of expansion (and a bigger army!) It wasn't until the happy caps got reduced in BtS that I realized how much I was relying on that bonus for playing at Noble-- you can whip the heck out of your cities early, and still grow them to size 8+ at the drop of a hat.
Hang in there. After a while, I got to the point where the AI could hang around until about Education, then just get left behind researching Nationalism and Astronomy. Of course, this was on Warlords, where Trebs guarantee the warfare never stops, so take this with a grain of salt.

 

[futurehermit]

No problem, hope things work out for you