A Prince player knows the exploits but doesn't use them because the gameplay is more satisfying if you pretend you don't know about the exploits.
Like how a wrestling fan knows that wrestling is fake but acts like it's real, many Prince players know that the AI can be outsmarted with exploits X, Y, and Z but act like those exploits don't exist because it would break the illusion of a good game.
If one were to use those exploits, they would have trouble understanding how anyone would find Prince a challenge.
CS workersteals? GPT for gold then DoW? Skilldorado? Or are you talking about stuff like selling the AI OB or luxes that it doesn't actually need but will buy anyway?
Either way its a simple affair to crush Prince level without any of that.
A Prince player knows the exploits but doesn't use them because the gameplay is more satisfying if you pretend you don't know about the exploits.
Like how a wrestling fan knows that wrestling is fake but acts like it's real, many Prince players know that the AI can be outsmarted with exploits X, Y, and Z but act like those exploits don't exist because it would break the illusion of a good game.
If one were to use those exploits, they would have trouble understanding how anyone would find Prince a challenge.
Guardian PL's post said that only the 3 top difficulties were any challenge. This is only true when using exploits or copying strategies. Watching a Prince level player, you might expect high-level players like this to say "you know you can [exploit AI] and get more gold right?" which I feel is similar (and yeah it's a stretch) to someone telling a smark "You know it's fake, right?"
I'm really not sure what you're aiming at. Playing Civ 5 is one big exploit. Trading luxuries is an exploit. Selling Open Borders is an exploit. Buying City States is an exploit. Settling cities is an exploit. Buying buildings is an exploit. Manually assigning workers is an exploit. Destroying AI when for some ridiculous reason it decides that you're the baddie and then proceeds to chew at your heel while you're taking its cities like a candy from a baby is an exploit. Puppeting is an exploit. Upgrading units is an exploit.
Care to elaborate on those "eeeevyyiil exploits" that one can't do? Cause I'm at a loss here. I just play the game. I don't need to "pretend" anything.
I hardly ever declare first unless in mid-late game when I have to stop an AI from overgrowth, I don't sneak-attack city states or AI for workers at the beginning because I still don't know what is going to happen later on and (more importantly) want to leave myself a "free DoW card" for later, and I don't settle for all AI cities or their gold when they lose some of their army because I might as well end game there.
The last one could be necessary on Deity but I'm not keen on playing that level for one reason, that makes it almost as boring as playing on Prince, and was splendidly portrayed by aimlessgun's amazing thread:
Spoiler:
Night of the Living Landsketch
While 2 Rifles clean up Gao, the other 2 stayed to defend Frankfurt. Surprise, a whole new army streams up out of the fog. At this point I'm convinced that Bismarck is somehow reanimating the Landsketch that I kill and sending them back into the fight as shambling undead nightmares. The perfect troops, really.
You've got to admit it's gettin' better, getting better aaaall the time.
Well things begin to improve, and I finally start taking some cities, first Gao (very nice city, Notre Dame!) then move south through Taghaza and Dusseldorf. My riflemen continue to fight off the undead hordes. I've given up any hope that they will stop coming. I annex Timbuktu so I have a rushbuy point in the West, and start buying Artillery.
Skeetshooting contest. I shudder to think that some players actively opt to play with combat animations ON...
I have no clue about the wrestling other than how Bill Hicks depicted it, so I don't know what a smark is. But then it looks that I don't know what an exploit is either, so perhaps I'll learn something today
P.S. And you don't "copy strategies". You actively mix, create and adapt them to your current map/game setting, otherwise they're not worth a thing.
P.P.S. @PreLynMax I don't have the required DLC to open your save, but I think others were quite helpful in that area.
A Prince player knows the exploits but doesn't use them because the gameplay is more satisfying if you pretend you don't know about the exploits.
Like how a wrestling fan knows that wrestling is fake but acts like it's real, many Prince players know that the AI can be outsmarted with exploits X, Y, and Z but act like those exploits don't exist because it would break the illusion of a good game.
If one were to use those exploits, they would have trouble understanding how anyone would find Prince a challenge.
Guardian PL's post said that only the 3 top difficulties were any challenge. This is only true when using exploits or copying strategies. Watching a Prince level player, you might expect high-level players like this to say "you know you can [exploit AI] and get more gold right?" which I feel is similar (and yeah it's a stretch) to someone telling a smark "You know it's fake, right?"
Ah, I see. That makes more sense. I had to look up the def of "smark" and it was a little different. Your def makes more sense both for your previous post and for the wrestling world in general. This seems to be accurate as each time I sign onto Civfanatics and learn a new exploit, I am able to emulate it and then move up a difficulty.
If you're between Prince and King, you simply aren't very good. There's ample room for improvement, and if you're willing to invest the time this forum's resources could bring your level of play up several grades. Many people on here have invested a ridiculous amount of hours playing and are so good only Immortal or even Deity isn't a surefire win. Learn from them and King will be piece of cake to you.
I'm not sure in which direction to point you, but I know MadDjinn casts his Deity games on YouTube and I would estimate such videos would be a great way to learn. There may be other casts, his is just the only one I'm aware of.
As you will come to understand, once you understand the patterns by which the AI functions the game becomes rather trivial - so, improve at your 'peril'!
I'm not sure in which direction to point you, but I know MadDjinn casts his Deity games on YouTube and I would estimate such videos would be a great way to learn. There may be other casts, his is just the only one I'm aware of.
1) I can't learn anything from YouTube videos. There is nothing of value there.
2) I have MadDjinn in my CivFanatics rubbish bin, and you will join him.
It's not the AI patterns I'm worried about. It's the ecomony and falling behind by turn 100 that's the problem.
Edit: Turns out I didn't ignore MadDjinn, but that dosen't help you any, does it?
I'm a big fan of currency and the first policy of commerce. Since i often play multiplayer(no lux trades for gold), currency is a must. I sometimes get currency before education and theology. Chichen Itza before Liberty finisher(last left side policy) is nice too. And all this before metal casting. With markets in 3 good cities, you can get over 60 gpt just from your own.
Riversided tiles are very important too. Sit them there if possible.
Here is an example of a 3 cities set-up at prince diff. for the 20th GOTM that actually occurs. I have built markets everywhere before theology and education. Turn 105 :
Once again, if the AI improved its tactics, rather than simply giving it more free stuff, the game would be more challenging and satisfying for everybody.
One important step in moving from Prince to King is getting over the illusion that the comp is doing better than you.
Did they just pop Medieval era and you just entered Classic? Did they get that Wonder two turns before you? Do you have two cities and they have five? You're getting two coins a turn and they get 56? You are struggling for happiness and their people are living in complete bliss?
Just get over it, stick to a strategy and you'll eventually surpass them all. Success in King is all about fundamentals, no gimmicks required. It's not that there is such a large gap in skill compared to Prince, it's just that King is the first difficulty where if you're not playing airtight you won't be ahead in the early game.
OK, I was actually trying to be nice and helpful. Not being able to beat King means you're a low-tier player so saying you are 'not very good' is very gentle. My post wasn't even directed at you so your taking offense coupled with your previous responses to such 'insults' in this thread is saying a lot.
OK, I was actually trying to be nice and helpful. Not being able to beat King means you're a low-tier player so saying you are 'not very good' is very gentle. My post wasn't even directed at you so your taking offense coupled with your previous responses to such 'insults' in this thread is saying a lot.
I'm the OP and I didn't take offense. Yeah it's direct, but it's also true. I actually just played two games on King after starting this thread and won both comfortably (both science victories, need to mix it up). Now I'm wondering why I thought King was that difficult in the first place. Well I know why - I just had to be slightly more agressive, build more troops to defend myself from aggression, utilize city states in some way, and spam more RAs.
Next I'll probably play on Pangaea which I've found to be more difficult simply because you have more possible threats around you, and you can't conquer your closest neighbors one by one so easily. So if this thread is still alive, I'll post how I did.
Again, thanks all for your advice. What I've learned so far is to build more units, but also simultaneously really focus on the economy so that I have the money for RAs and City States and upgrading units etc. For some reason I wasn't very good at this before.
I don't feel Prince is difficult at all, and frankly can barely play it as it's too easy. Not trying to be elitist here, but I do look for a challenge where my victory isn't assured. The AI isn't any smarter on higher difficulty levels but the edges it receives does make it more formidable and dangerous, at least.
I've been playing a few multiplayer games with my friend on Emperor difficulty and so far we've been doing pretty well. I can handle King solidly so I may try tackling Emperor in single player at some point soon. I generally play on Epic speed w/ Standard sized maps, often Continents.
I'm not sure what these exploits are that people are talking about, unless they mean trading Luxuries and signing Research Agreements? Which I don't feel are exploits at all. Now if we're talking about building forts on traded luxuries so you get them back to re-trade, or trading GPT for a huge lump sum then immediately going to war-- Yeah, those are kinda exploitative.
Besides that, all I can say is try to make better decisions and know when to take advantage of the situation. If things aren't working out for you then you should re-evaluate what you're doing and try to find what's going wrong. Attempt a new approach to how you usually do things, and don't feel embarrassed about asking for advice. Also don't be turned off from the higher difficulties if you try them a few times and lose. Keep at it until you're used to and familiar with King, Emperor, etc and before long you'll be winning.
Do people feel that King with a huge map is harder than King on a smaller map? My experience on King/Huge is similar to Ellye (post #5); Some AI is ahead of me on every aspect. I have won at King level but it was a Dual map as Germany, and I rushed. For King/Huge some AI somewhere just gets too far ahead, usually via military over their neighbors.
I will try some of the ideas here, but I would be interested if the "King crushers" could also post their map size.
idk. How pro are you? If you're crap then ye, I would if you did a voiceover. If you're good then no it'd be a bit rubbish, there are loads of vids of more interesting diff levels by sterling players.
One thing I noticed when I was playing at King was that you do need to build more military units earlier in the game. Consult your Military Adviser frequently; if one of your neighbors - even if he/she is one civ away - is rated as having an army "...that could wipe us off the planet." you can almost count on being DoW'd unless you've signed a Declaration of Friendship with them. Try to stay in the middle of the pack militarily and you should be okay. If you do get DoW'd, DON'T PANIC! AI combat is usually pretty farcical. A garrisoned Archer, another Archer next to your city, and one Barracks-promoted melee unit close by can handle most early game invasions. Don't counterattack right away, just let the AI expend its units on your defenses while you put together an invasion force. The AI has a tendency to throw everything but the kitchen sink at you in the first few attacks and when the storm subsides the AI is usually tapped out except for city garrisons. That's when you go after your opponent. You don't have to take any cities if you don't want to. Just do some pillaging, put a city under siege and the AI will generally sue for peace on terms that are very much to your advantage.
Oddly enough, there is no Diplo penalty with the AI for this. They're usually Friendly once you sign a Peace Treaty.
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/turn and 5:c5unhappiness. This is probably the best I can do.
