These days are the Mid-Autumn Festival of China，I'm traveling outside，failure to answer questions in time，we can do research in tomorrow's new game.I use translation software to translate my words, possible may cause confusion in your understanding.
I'm not keen on posting too many in this forum. Our Club thinks we can come and talk to you, but I'm the only one here at the moment. Maybe they'll come here later, but now they're just looking behind the scenes. If you have learned anything from me, you can post discussions in my name or in your own name, I don't care.
“Public schools are expensive and really don't do much except in your high-pop cities. The only reason to build them everywhere is as a prerequisite for research labs. ”
“And when should I take Astronomy so I can build/buy observatories?”
Answer: If public schools are not built, all percentage additions buildings are inefficient. Check my saves, after the construction of public schools, my science around 1000, from 500 to 1000. I don't remember very well, but all in all, it has been greatly improved,and the specialist slot is very important. Build astronomy after public school, will lead to higher efficiency.
"If I ignore Steel and Gunpowder, and beeline Industrialization or Scientific Theory, one of the AI's (usually Hiawatha) declares war and I have trouble defending."
Answer: Use knights and crossbows to fight, it will achieve very high combat efficiency. When you are ahead of an era, the enemy will not be able to pose any threat to you. Only use melee units is very inefficient. When you lag behind,use melee units to provide ZOC , the mounted units can provide ZOC and roundabout attack on the enemy, the range units can provide effective output in secure areas. We call it the cavalry-artillery or melee-artillery combination.
How to control your cities population
Answer: ① 1 food = 1 production ＞ 2 gold. When you are not short of money, choice food and production first, can make cities grow fast. In the final stage, converting populations into what you want most, food is no longer needed, it can even make people hungry, as long as they don't starve to death, to maximize output. ②When population growth is needed, lock population in food plots, it is best to provide production at the same time. ③ Population lock on the plots you need,and most of the time, focus on production. When the population is growing, food settlement takes precedence over production settlement, two or three free additional production will be obtained. Then lock the new population on the food plot can keep population growth going.④ When you need to build key buildings, for example Aqueduct, lock the populations on the production plot can be built quickly, and then liberalizing population growth would yield substantial food gains.⑤Overflow production: for example，when you get technology in the next round and you can build a new wonders, demolish the shrine and build it again, lock the populations on the production plot, a lot of extra production can be obtained in next turn, you can build wonders more faster.
How to spread Religion？
Answer: Reduce or don't use missionary to spread Religion, depend on missionaries is very inefficient.Itinerant Preachers(+30%) is much stronger than Religion Texts. I'm sure you've noticed that when your neighbor or neighbor's neighbor owns 30%, your religion will be very difficult to spread because there's a lot of power to suppress you, even you have Religion Texts.
In our club, There is a method called “Qieshu”.
How to use "Qieshu"? For example, when 50 turns, you had build a Religion, then you need to continue building new cities. When you build new cities, don't allow the population to grow until your new cities believe in your religion. When you only have one city believe in your religion, the new city with one population need 100(17turns) to believe in your religion. When your new city believe in your religion, it will spread more and more fast like a snowball. The Religion Texts can't compete with +30%, because +30% doesn't cost anything.
When you use "Qieshu”, the Religion of AI can effect on you too, so your new city have to be 10 away from another cities which believe in other religion. When you have many cities that believe in your religion, you don't have to worry about that anymore.
But remember, If you don't plan to build too many cities, Qieshu is unuseful.
I think my population is just not growing fast enough, even tho' I prioritize aqueducts in every city and build farms everywhere.
