Using Explorers Revealed
- Thread starter gzollinger
- Start date
Julius Bonapart
Chieftain
I am an idiot.
David Dwyer
Chieftain
Well, explorers can't do any of the traditional hijinks of the old CIV 1/2 spy/diplomat so Commando would make a nice name. Small, surgical strikes without major standup combat power.
Good point about the speed 2 meaning 6 tiles at all times. No way can a conventional military unit cover that kind of ground to get in the enemy's rear areas. Only the paratrooper could jump that far in and then he'd have to wait till next turn to attack or pillage anyway -- by which time he'd be dead if the AI is awake. Of course the obvious mass pillage strike is to take 8 explorers and cut off the capital, since all resources have to trace a path to the capital... and you don't even take the reputation hit that starting a nuclear war would entail to do the same thing. Of course, later in the game once railroads are around, you'll need 16 Explorers instead of 8, but it's certainly a tempting idea.
David Dwyer
Post 1 of 1
marshalljames
XXX
seems like we have a comedian in our midst..
![[party]](/images/smilies/partytime.gif "Party [party]")
For euro's who don't get the joke...Ford Explorer,Firestone's exploding tire's..
Wow, using the Explorer to pillage just prior to a war makes a BIG difference.
I had a big civ on my border, crowding and moving in on resources. Their capital was far away. The OLD method of solving this was to build boats, fill them with Cavs or tanks and tote them all the way around the continent, dump them off as close to the capital as possible, start the war, and as quickly as possible, cut the capital off from resources. Of course, the enemy civ would unleash its forces and I'd lose a lot of units. Since this group of units was cut off from reinforcements, they were pretty much a write-off. It would take a couple of turns to cut off the capital, and in the meantime they would have started building resource dependent units which will complete even if I do cut off that resource in a few turns. So I had to fight a much better armed opponant on two fronts.
NOW, with the use of the explorer, I just send in the right amount of explorers right through my enemy's territory..... no boats needed. I pillage every road around the capital. Now, my foe is cut off from resources BEFORE he gets a turn, so no new, powerful units get started! NOW, I am attacking and fighting on one front, and all those units I would have sent on their suicide mission to the capital I now have supported by my nearby territory. Much cheaper, faster and efficient.
I used this strategy against the Russians in a recent game, and since Katherine is always a few tech behind anyway, this invasion felt like the Old Civ2 type of assault, I just swept through. While my Cavalry and bombard units clobbered their cities, my Explorers went around pillaging infrastructure at breakneck speed. It was over very quickly and the only units I lost were a few Explorers.
Using Explorers this way really helps. Thanks for the tip.
I had a big civ on my border, crowding and moving in on resources. Their capital was far away. The OLD method of solving this was to build boats, fill them with Cavs or tanks and tote them all the way around the continent, dump them off as close to the capital as possible, start the war, and as quickly as possible, cut the capital off from resources. Of course, the enemy civ would unleash its forces and I'd lose a lot of units. Since this group of units was cut off from reinforcements, they were pretty much a write-off. It would take a couple of turns to cut off the capital, and in the meantime they would have started building resource dependent units which will complete even if I do cut off that resource in a few turns. So I had to fight a much better armed opponant on two fronts.
NOW, with the use of the explorer, I just send in the right amount of explorers right through my enemy's territory..... no boats needed. I pillage every road around the capital. Now, my foe is cut off from resources BEFORE he gets a turn, so no new, powerful units get started! NOW, I am attacking and fighting on one front, and all those units I would have sent on their suicide mission to the capital I now have supported by my nearby territory. Much cheaper, faster and efficient.
I used this strategy against the Russians in a recent game, and since Katherine is always a few tech behind anyway, this invasion felt like the Old Civ2 type of assault, I just swept through. While my Cavalry and bombard units clobbered their cities, my Explorers went around pillaging infrastructure at breakneck speed. It was over very quickly and the only units I lost were a few Explorers.
Using Explorers this way really helps. Thanks for the tip.
SKILORD
Insurgent
never occured to me even to build em but now i see
Sir. Martin
King of the kings
Nice tip! I´ve never used explorers in civ III, but I´ll begin now! 
obiwankanathan
Chieftain
hehe Bismarck is going to have a lot of fun playing with my explorers now 
If you are playing an Expansionist Civ, try to make as much Scouts as possible in the start.
If you are playing a Large or Huge Map make, let's say 10-20 in the begining of the game (it helps you getting techs too, I often get the first tech tree before 10 AD, even sooner sometimes), and place them on the Iron and Horse sources before the enemy Build's a road there!
And Later when they have saltpeter... try to do the same thing if you can!
If they ask you to leave, just say "I WILL", and stay. They won't ask you again, UNLESS, you have a Military unit in their TERRITORY too...
The good thing about scouts too, is that they are Upgradeable to Explorers!
EDIT: Credit to Aeson for his ideas, these are almost similar to his ideas... even if I used some of them before I read his.
If you are playing a Large or Huge Map make, let's say 10-20 in the begining of the game (it helps you getting techs too, I often get the first tech tree before 10 AD, even sooner sometimes), and place them on the Iron and Horse sources before the enemy Build's a road there!
And Later when they have saltpeter... try to do the same thing if you can!
If they ask you to leave, just say "I WILL", and stay. They won't ask you again, UNLESS, you have a Military unit in their TERRITORY too...
The good thing about scouts too, is that they are Upgradeable to Explorers!
EDIT: Credit to Aeson for his ideas, these are almost similar to his ideas... even if I used some of them before I read his.
Lt. 'Killer' M.
Deity
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2001
- Messages
- 7,475
that`s 'passive aggression' at it`S best! Good one! It's funny how one man's feature is another's exploit, innit.
The Explorer should not be able to pillage; the fact that he can is almost certainly an unintentional design flaw by Firaxis.
How is a unit equiped with a map, compass, and Boots of Haste [tm] meant to destroy a section of railtrack?! I mean, what does he do? Hit it with his walking stick?
The Explorer is useless because the Age of Sail in Civ3 is too close in the tech tree to the Industrial Revolution. I'm not sure what would be the best way to address this, but I think it's basically down to a poorly thought out tech tree. I love the Middle Ages; it's a shame they pass so quickly.
The person who suggested the unit ought to be named Elite Spy Ninja hit the nail on the head. Really, with pillage, it ought to be an S.A.S. or Commando, and available in the late Industrial Age.
Oh well.
The Explorer should not be able to pillage; the fact that he can is almost certainly an unintentional design flaw by Firaxis.
How is a unit equiped with a map, compass, and Boots of Haste [tm] meant to destroy a section of railtrack?! I mean, what does he do? Hit it with his walking stick?
The Explorer is useless because the Age of Sail in Civ3 is too close in the tech tree to the Industrial Revolution. I'm not sure what would be the best way to address this, but I think it's basically down to a poorly thought out tech tree. I love the Middle Ages; it's a shame they pass so quickly.
The person who suggested the unit ought to be named Elite Spy Ninja hit the nail on the head. Really, with pillage, it ought to be an S.A.S. or Commando, and available in the late Industrial Age.
Oh well.
I of course do not know if, as Alc0p0pz feels, the ability of Explorers to pillage is a goof by Firaxis and they never meant it to be this way, or what.
However, I do think, that based on this attention we have focused on the issue, that there is a >65% chance that in either patch 1.18 or 1.19 (if they are out of time on 1.18) that this ability will be patched out, like other tactics we evolve. Seems like they simply do not want anyone to win the game by any method other then their approved one! Remember they said at the start (game release) that "...no one at Firaxis has been able to win at diety ...". Sometimes it seems that they are upset that anyone CAN win at diety!
Now don't get me wrong, I am against any true un-releastic EXPLOIT. I for one simply didn't use ICS in CIv II nor did I play a "massive despot rush" strategy in Civ III, as if was called in one thread. Nor did I do endless loops of massive numbers of workers planting forest and then immediately clearing them. And I didn't care for the trick of switching production prior to a rush, then again after a rush.
But this explorer one I like. It takes planning and effort, and I think it remains to be seen if the ai will not be able to defend against it DURING a war. It is however, as much an exploit to set up pre-war for this as it is to violate ROP agreement, IMO. As long as the rep gets hit for that, I am not to upset about this as an exploit.
Just my 2 cents worth.
However, I do think, that based on this attention we have focused on the issue, that there is a >65% chance that in either patch 1.18 or 1.19 (if they are out of time on 1.18) that this ability will be patched out, like other tactics we evolve. Seems like they simply do not want anyone to win the game by any method other then their approved one! Remember they said at the start (game release) that "...no one at Firaxis has been able to win at diety ...". Sometimes it seems that they are upset that anyone CAN win at diety!
Now don't get me wrong, I am against any true un-releastic EXPLOIT. I for one simply didn't use ICS in CIv II nor did I play a "massive despot rush" strategy in Civ III, as if was called in one thread. Nor did I do endless loops of massive numbers of workers planting forest and then immediately clearing them. And I didn't care for the trick of switching production prior to a rush, then again after a rush.
But this explorer one I like. It takes planning and effort, and I think it remains to be seen if the ai will not be able to defend against it DURING a war. It is however, as much an exploit to set up pre-war for this as it is to violate ROP agreement, IMO. As long as the rep gets hit for that, I am not to upset about this as an exploit.
Just my 2 cents worth.
Yeh but i always assumed that an explorer unit would be armed with some rifles, swords, nasty mean looking sticks, and some pretty mean faces
. So they could destroy roads and rails and such. shooting them up, putting big rocks on them. cutting them up, and pulling faces at tem, or just rename the unit, "commando" or something.I always liked to assume that while im telling large platoons what to do there are spys and such helping behind the lines. thats why i didint download the landmine unit (nice animation by the way) because i just assumed that when infantry fortified they automatically put some mines down
. *looks back* god i cant even see te original topic ive moved that far away from it. Having actually built some Explorers and used 'em to pillage, I take back what I said above ... because he has a specific attack animation even though he's a non-combat unit.
I guess his ability to pillage was intentional afterall.
I guess his ability to pillage was intentional afterall.
Seems reasonable that the unit be re-designated as some sort of commando, but if this is the case, surely the AI would pay a bit more attention to trying to get rid of it from its territory. A few thousand commandoes belted up with demolition charges strolling down Baghdad high street would probably attract some attention and concern from the Iraqi authorities. Like the spy - there could be some risk of "discovery".
Barako
Chieftain
I used explorer before but for recon purposes only.
I'll be using them for pillaging on my next game since I love crippling my opponents a few turns before sending the full might of my military which is usually composed of cavalry/tanks depending on the era.
Thanks for the tips.
I'll be using them for pillaging on my next game since I love crippling my opponents a few turns before sending the full might of my military which is usually composed of cavalry/tanks depending on the era.
Thanks for the tips.
TheDS
Regular Riot
I didn't know they could attack, or that they were ignored, but I had used them a few times to spy on troop movements. Keeping them out of harm's way proved too onerous for me, so I gave up on using these units.
I next considered giving them some firepower (high offense) and calling them snipers. Get some over the lines, smash up a few enemy units, send a few of them to open up some heavily defended point... But I never got around to doing it.
Cutting the Capital off from the rest of the empire does NOT prevent them from using their strategic resources! Any city directly connected to a resource gets to make use of it. I have taken cities on other continents, and as you would expect, could not utilize my strategic or luxury resources in those conquered cities. On the other hand, if the city was connected to a resource, it could be used, even though the rest of the empire couldn't access it.
Building a a road through friendly territory or a port or an airport will suffice to connect both pieces of your lands so that all your cities can use all your resources.
I next considered giving them some firepower (high offense) and calling them snipers. Get some over the lines, smash up a few enemy units, send a few of them to open up some heavily defended point... But I never got around to doing it.
Cutting the Capital off from the rest of the empire does NOT prevent them from using their strategic resources! Any city directly connected to a resource gets to make use of it. I have taken cities on other continents, and as you would expect, could not utilize my strategic or luxury resources in those conquered cities. On the other hand, if the city was connected to a resource, it could be used, even though the rest of the empire couldn't access it.
Building a a road through friendly territory or a port or an airport will suffice to connect both pieces of your lands so that all your cities can use all your resources.
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