The Unofficial Strategy Thread.

[mad-bax]

Strategy is different from other things in that if your mistake the Way (of strategy), even a little, you will become bewildered and fall into bad ways.

Perception is strong and sight weak. In strategy it is important to see distant things as if they were close and to take a distanced view of close things.

- Miyamoto Musashi

Since there is no official overall strategy thread, and I can't get my head around playing a game without a strategy, I have decided to open and maintain a thread which summarises current game strategy. The second post will contain my/our interpretation of game strategy based on polls and information from the consular offices. It will NOT be what I want it to be... just what I interpret is the framework in which the government is operating. I hope that at some time the powers that be will see the light and open an stickificated official thread.

Subsequent posts may be made (by anyone) to correct errors and to discuss the way the game is going in general.

Strategy is buying a bottle of fine wine when you take a lady out for dinner. Tactics is getting her to drink it.

- Frank Muir (of all people)

This thread is not intended for discussion of which tile gets roaded next and other minutiae of the game. It is for long term strategy discussion and interpretation only.

 

[mad-bax]

Current Strategy Synopsis.

Objective
To win the game by <insert victory condition here> 130K?

Expansion Policy
Give 13 tiles to each city. Be careful when placing cities on the coast

Research Strategy
Use minimum research to Philosophy and take map making or Literature as the free tech.

Military Strategy
None. Commander of the Armed forces wants Bronze Working and Iron Working ASAP and then to build Spearmen - but the decision is outside his remit.

Cultural Strategy
Build a temple in every city.
Build a colloseum in every city on a river.
Build Great lighthouse at any cost.
Build Colossus if at all practicable.
Build Great Library if we have a city capable of doing so.
Keep an eye on borders in case they need expanding.

Government progression
Not decided.

GA Trigger
Not decided - Colossus if Cultural strategy implemented.

Some of this information is contained >>HERE<< but no discussion is permitted in that thread.

 

[DaveShack]

This thread is a good idea, thanks for starting it.

I think the process for determining research strategy, expansion strategy, and overall objective are working well. The list of culture strategy ideas is merely a list of ideas, I don't think we've actually decided on any of them yet.

It is too early to classify cities (with only one kinda pointless) but I think that will develop in due course. The internal consul may want to focus on this next, after the target government type (which seems to be working well).

External strategies (who to be friends / enemies with, how much military we need) have not been a focus yet, but we're just now getting enough information to make planning this area a reasonable thing to do.

 

[mad-bax]

Alternative Strategy Discussion
Since it looks like 130K might win, I have posted an alternative strategy below. The point is not to try to push this strategy (and I don't agree with all of it anyway). Rather, it is to map-out my idea of what a strategy should look like and compare it with what we have now.

If you hire a carpenter and instruct him to "build something", then the chances of getting what you want are near zero. If instead you instruct him to "Build a bookcase with 6 shelves out of mahogany to fill that space over there" then you have a reasonable chance of getting what you want, without having told the carpenter how to construct a dovetail joint.

Objective
130K in fewest number of turns possible.

Expansion Policy
Expand peacefully until the available land is used.
Expand militarily to the domination limit.
Increase city density in 50%+ corrupt provinces to ICS proportions.


Research Strategy
Use minimum research until Great Library is built.
Gift City with Great Library to a weak civ.
Research quickly to MT.
Re-Capture Great Library
Research Economics to allow a Smiths Build

Military Strategy
Take out strongest neighbour first.
Target civs with Pyramids and Great Library early if practicable.
Given the choice, use fast units.
Defend only border towns with minimum units possible.
Build vet units only.
Target Civ owning Sistine Chapel when cathederals become available.

Cultural Strategy
No cultural buildings until a government change.
Build Libraries then Temples and then Cathederals in founded cities.
Build Temples then libraries and then Cathederals in captured cities.
Build universities only where necessary to fulfil Research strategy.
Build Great Library in second city.
Build Sistine chapel in High Shield city. Pre-build to ensure completion.
Build Smiths Trading Company, including appropriate pre-build.

Government progression
Despotism
Republic

GA Trigger
Smiths Trading Company

Leaders
Military Leaders to be used for armies only.
Scientific Leaders to be used for Sistine's, Sun Tzus, Smiths or Leo's as available.

 

[Provolution]

This is the other bid

Poll Supported Strategy Discussion

130 K Culture Win

Objective
130K in line with citizens preference for an interesting game, not gamey

Expansion Policy
Expand by delineating defensible terrain and creating a cohesive and easily administered border, with good production sites and clearly defined external natural borders.

Expand militarily in line with securing strategic objectives related to commercial and naval domination

Increase city density in 50%+ corrupt provinces for taxation and science


Research Strategy
Use marginal research until Lighthouse is built and use curraugh to monopolize contacts for multiple tech trades, expanded with Lighthouse travel for meeting more contacts to trade techs with
Secure Iron Working and Wheel for natural resources, future focus on resource visibility techs and research buildings, then naval strength
Target Adam Smith and Leonardo Da Vinci as well as Magellan for boosting economics, picking up Shakespeares and Mausoleum to sustain border cities close to the new capital center farther north.

Military Strategy
Take out neighbour with most potential first, and gradually weaken strong neighbor.
Target civs with Pyramids and Great Library early if practicable.
Given the choice, use relevant units, and combine with naval elements where possible to use maneuver warfare by land and sea to maximum.
Defend only border towns with minimum units possible.
Build veteran units for external missions and main defense, but cheap regulars in the core may work fine as well.
Target Civ owning Sistine Chapel when cathederals become available.

Cultural Strategy
Start cultural prebuilds for critical wonders, Lighthouse and Mausoleum
Build Temples then Libraries and then Cathederals in founded cities.
Build Temples then libraries and then Cathederals in captured cities.
Build universities only where necessary to fulfil Research strategy.
Build Lighthouse first in the most appropriate coastal city.
Build Mausoleum to contain inland India and Netherlands
Build Sistine chapel in High Shield city. Pre-build to ensure completion.
Build Smiths Trading Company, including appropriate pre-build.
Build Magellans to leverage UU Man O War maximum

Government progression
Despotism
Republic
Democracy

GA Trigger
Lighthouse or
Smiths Trading Company

Leaders
Military Leaders to be used for armies only.
Scientific Leaders to be used for long term wonder builds available.[/QUOTE]

 

[mad-bax]

Provo: You are reinforcing my point whilst missing it completely.

You have laid out an excellent stategy, in that it provides a framework within which the tacticians can work. Whether I agree with the detail of the strategy is not important for this thread. What is important is developing one in the first place. Currently we have no strategy. Look at post 2.

Sure, the strategy may not be just to win the game in the technically best way possible, and all sorts of fun quirks could be added. But once the framework is in, then we can develop the tactics to develop it.

Decisions can be made effectively within my strategy and yours, but not with what we have now. Having a strategy is more fun anyway and would allow opinion to polarise and pressure groups to form. At the moment there is nothing for people to get upset about, or enthusiastic about.

"Where is the role play?" our president asked. "Give people a role to play first" I say, "Then you will get the answer!"

 

[Provolution]

I support your point. But if we had political parties around in game platforms, which is not that controversial at all, we would get a more strategy oriented and passionate game.
This one big happy family ideal, a myth and folly, has no grain of truth, both knows it.
We are here to play a game and argue strategies, not reenacting teletubbies.

 

[classical_hero]

If we were to go down the 29k victory then we will need a completely different strategy than the one that we have here. We will need to focus on finding a suitable city that would have enough production capacity. Obviously this city will need to be near a river, so that we do not have to waste time and shields with building an Aquaduct. If we were to be going down that route, then our GW strategy will change wil a strong foucs on that city. It might also mean a few strategic wars to slow down the tech research of the AI nations.

 

[mad-bax]

classical hero: Yes of course.

Again, it is not the technical quality of the strategy that particularly concerns me. What concerns me is the lack of a Strategy to become concerned about. We have lots of tactical discussions in the threads. What free tech should we take from Philo, where should the next city go, what should we do with our first leader, should we build the lighthouse? etc. In truth, the answer to all those questions is "how the hell do I know?" because we have no aims.

We are an aimless nation

 

[classical_hero]

We are an aimless nation

Follow the leader. For he knows not what he does.