what are most important aspects to beat Emperor?

[uglyslaveson]

Yes I can beat Monarch without much problem (no s/l, of course) be it war/culture/ss/dip wins. But I'm beaten EVERY time for Emperor. My closest game was beaten out two components with sword and spear, then a third declare war on me and I have no match for his masketeer and calvary. The two beaten guys didn't want to give me feudalism or engineering even they were only down to ONE city each. And after a long war for 20+ cities, I didn't have a single leader, what a lucky day!

So:

1. how many swordman should I have before start a war?
2. I have 10% lux and quickly run out of $ to buy tech because of the size of army, what should be the usualy balance for army support (gpt)?
3. should I start a long war until the death of the opponent, or I should fight, ask for tech and wait for 20 turn, then repeat?

 

[Randy]

My best advice is go to the GOTM thread and read the posts for an Emperor game.

You are also in luck becauce this mouth GOTM 38 is an Emperor game and so is COTM 07. (GOTM=PtW and COTM=Conquest).

GOTM 37 was a diety.

Read the pregame and spoiler theads as they come up.

EDIT: GOTM is game of the mouth.

 

[steviejay]

expand aggressively until all the space is taken up then build up and boot some unlucky so and so up and down early on to help you grow without the need of alot of settlers. You should then be in a better position to bring the to the rest

 

[budweiser]

1.) Learn to expand quickly (settler pump)
2.) Dont worry about getting every city improvement.
3.) Learn how to do an archer rush.
4.) Pay close attention to trading for techs and learn how to trade effectively.
5.) Micromanage your city tiles.
6.) Use terrain to your advantage and use bombard units to weaken the enemy.

Thats about it.

Welcome!

 

[nullspace]

1. how many swordman should I have before start a war?

Swordsmen aren't the ultimate unit for ancient age combat. If you're going to use them for serious combat, you need to add catapults too. Bombard a hp or two off of everything you attack, and your swordsmen will win much more often. You'll have fewer losses and more leaders.

If you're not using catapults, I'd say horsemen are better than swordsmen. They move faster, and their retreat ability will keep them alive.

2. I have 10% lux and quickly run out of $ to buy tech because of the size of army, what should be the usualy balance for army support (gpt)?

You must have a massive army if it's taking up 90% of your budget. Found and capture more cities and let your cities grow to above size 6 to increase the number of free units. What government are you using? Monarchy is the typical war governemtn, but if you have large cities with marketplaces, Republic can be better. If you have many small towns, Feudalism may be better.

If you're falling behind in tech, you may just need to become a shrewder trader. Only buy a tech when several civs know it, so that it is cheap. Then sell it to everyone who doesn't have it. Take anything they can give, even if it's not much.

3. should I start a long war until the death of the opponent, or I should fight, ask for tech and wait for 20 turn, then repeat?

Yeah, you definitely want to get tech for your trouble. The only benefit of wiping out a civ is to prevent their cities from flipping back.

 

[Offa]

Starting well is the key. Very careful play until 1000bc should see most games at emperor level in the bag.

Thia site is brimming with info, but really GOTM is the main event, and will tell you more than you need.

 

[WackenOpenAir]

Enough workers. And most people who think they build enough: they don't.

When i play gotm and read everyone spoilers, i am always suprised at the low amount of workers everyone makes. I rarely see anyone else than sir pleb with a good worker count. This i think is the most important thing. It goes together with good food management. Realise that food is everything in early game. (you need enough food of course to get those workers)

Really, as i type this, it feels to me like i am helping my own competition in gotm. I know that anyone who will take this advise to heard and starts building more workers will instantly do much better in its games, this also includes many high finishing gotm players.

It mostly amazes me so because everyone does keep telling newbies to build more workers and throwing around numbers like 2 workers per city. While most people don't seem to get much more than 1 worker per city if even that.

 

[WackenOpenAir]

oh and to your questions:
1. how many swordman should I have before start a war?
No one answer for this. depends on the strength of your neighbours of course. Also is it not even always best to start fighting with swordsmen (the swords vs horse discussion put aside)
Usually i prefer to upgrade warriors to swords, then produce horses and upgrade those to knights later. If i have to say a number, i'd say between 12 and 20 swords to start a war, but in some tight games, you might start fighting with archers actually while in other games you will start fighting with knights.

2. I have 10% lux and quickly run out of $ to buy tech because of the size of army, what should be the usualy balance for army support (gpt)?

At decent difficulties, put science to 0% and you will never ever have a problem with gold to support your armies. I never refuse to build units for the sake of unit upkeep. Just be sure to USE your units. conquer cities with them and the conquered cities will provide unit support and gold (put on wealth and a taxman) This way the units will pay their own support. Normally i get much more gold than needed. In the last gotm, i had about 500 gpt income by 100AD and used it all for rush building and upgrading units.

3. should I start a long war until the death of the opponent, or I should fight, ask for tech and wait for 20 turn, then repeat?[/QUOTE]

Differs. If city flips are a problem, kill them, if tech is needed, make peace for tech. If your reputation is no concern or damaged already anyway, go al the way and make peace for tech only to destroy them the turn after.

 

[WackenOpenAir]

> "Swordsmen aren't the ultimate unit for ancient age combat. If you're going to use them for serious combat, you need to add catapults too. Bombard a hp or two off of everything you attack, and your swordsmen will win much more often. You'll have fewer losses and more leaders.
If you're not using catapults, I'd say horsemen are better than swordsmen. They move faster, and their retreat ability will keep them alive. "

Catapults are only for Sid level. on emperor, start bombardment with artillery (if you screwed up badly enough that you haven't won by then)

Horses vs swords is a never ending debate. Which shows they are probably pretty well balanced in comparison to eachother. I use them both.

 

[Offa]

Enough workers. And most people who think they build enough: they don't.

When i play gotm and read everyone spoilers, i am always suprised at the low amount of workers everyone makes. I rarely see anyone else than sir pleb with a good worker count.

Really, as i type this, it feels to me like i am helping my own competition in gotm. I know that anyone who will take this advise to heard and starts building more workers will instantly do much better in its games, this also includes many high finishing gotm players.

I'm listening. Although actually I do try to build lots of workers anyway, really I do .

Qitai was also a great advocate of vast numbers of workers and his results were spectacular. In fact I think his posts are probably the single best thing to read, as they are brief but brilliant. He seems to have given up now, so they are buried in the archive.

 

[EdwardTking]

I play Emperor, huge world, 16 civs.

To my mind, there are four key secrets to success at Emperor:

(1) Lucky start and early huts.

(2) Rapid early expansion.

(3) Good trade relations.

(4) Never fight a war alone, always have allies.

 

[Chieftess]

1.) Learn to expand quickly (settler pump)
2.) Dont worry about getting every city improvement.
3.) Learn how to do an archer rush.
4.) Pay close attention to trading for techs and learn how to trade effectively.
5.) Micromanage your city tiles.
6.) Use terrain to your advantage and use bombard units to weaken the enemy.

Thats about it.

Welcome!

Archer-rush. My favorite tactic! [dance]

I'd put them in this order:

1 - Maximize your first few cities for a settler pump. If you have many cattle (and it still does happen), then you could have 2 settler factories, or a settler factory + worker factory.

2 - Micromanage your cities to get the most spt that's divisable by a unit shield cost. In other words, if you have a 15spt city, that's 2 swords (30shields) every 2 turns. 10spt = every 3 turns. An 8spt city is every 4, but you wind up wasting sheilds. This also means working only the tiles (irragation, mine, roads) the cities will need.

3 - Diplomacy. Look for trades and treaties every turn, if not every other turn.

4 - Research the techs the AI won't. (currency, literature). There's a chart in the War Academy section on the main CFC page. This helps with trading, and keeping ahead in the tech race.

5 - Read up on the war strategies.

a - Archer Rushes. This is a great tactic if you're out of resources. Build up a bunch of archers, and attack the AI.
b - Rail Strategy. Once you get rails, all you have to do is let the AI come to you during the first turn of a war. If your cities have 1 tile between it and the AI, put a unit there just to block a quick path to your city. Once the AI has come in, bombard their units like crazy.
c - The Gauntlet. Cavalry, and other advanced units (or units in a fort) can bombard a unit as it passes. If you have a narrow enough passageway, you can place units so that the AI has to go through those units to get to your cities. The best way to do this is to have armies, or cavs (defended with muskets or infantry) fortified, and watch the AI lose hp like crazy trying to attack.

 

[uglyslaveson]

Thanks for all the replies, gathered a few things here:

1. build a settler factory (still learning)
2. use taxman in conquered cities (never thought of it,
3. micromanage is a necessity in emperor (no? yes?)

Yes, I do use cata with sword and spear and I'm always under Monachy. I use horseman mainly for defending own cities in case AI attacks from sea. I can typically only research about 4-5 techs before start buying because of lagging behind. I should probably study the chart here:

[4 - Research the techs the AI won't. (currency, literature). There's a chart in the War Academy section on the main CFC page. This helps with trading, and keeping ahead in the tech race.] /QUOTE

Just started another game, looks promising this time. AI just finished Sistin as I finally got "mace" after beating Iquo.

 

[uglyslaveson]

Just read a few GOTM posts, what?? You don't build any warrior to defend your cities in the beginning?? Only use them for scout (if the civ doesn't have a scount)??

 

[Tomoyo]

Yes. Definately. Scouting is more important than defense. Way more important.

 

[viper275]

I can typically only research about 4-5 techs before start buying because of lagging behind. I should probably study the chart here:

I think you are learning something important on Emperor: you can't just do self research. I suggest trying a No Research game on Emperor (after your other attempt.) You'll learn the needed trading skills and will be amazed at what happens tech-wise.

 

[Zandrew]

Yes. Definately. Scouting is more important than defense. Way more important.

Regarding undefended cities: doesn't that mess up the happiness level? I usually need a defender or two to keep the population productive. Do you counter that with the luxury slider?

 

[uglyslaveson]

Regarding undefended cities: doesn't that mess up the happiness level? I ususally need a defender or two to keep the population productive. Do you counter that with the luxury slider?

Yes, in my new game I found paying 5-10 gpt for faster expasion is a good deal.

On track to my first emperor win, I've never built a single wonder but now owns more than 10 of them! and finally I'm just one tech behind all major civs!

 

[predesad]

I can typically only research about 4-5 techs before start buying because of lagging behind. I should probably study the chart here:

[4 - Research the techs the AI won't. (currency, literature). There's a chart in the War Academy section on the main CFC page. This helps with trading, and keeping ahead in the tech race.] /QUOTE

I have a virtually dedicated research path:

alphabet, writing, [code of laws, maybe] philosophy

trade starting techs and alphabet for as much as i can get when contacts are made, though trading alphabet can be debatable. sometimes (using f10) if there are numerous seafaring / commercial civs i will research the wheel first or pottery if i dont start with it, hoping to meet a civ to trade for alphabet, but that is a gamble.

I dont trade writing until the turn before i research philosophy, and then i trade to try to get the most expensive tech for free with philosophy, often i take polytheism. if i start as commercial / seafaring, i research writing immediately.

the only other ancient age techs i research are literature & currency trading for everything else, then monarchy with either a scientist or 10% science because it costs a lot to buy it form the AI, the exception is if i went for republic slingshot by researching CoL before philosophy

in middle ages, no real advice for the entry level because everytime i try to guess i am wrong, but once it is available, i research printing press at min, i can get it first and then trade for everything else the AI has. In this way you can at least keep caught up to about halfway through the middle ages and build a good gold reserve. as the middles ages progress i can sometimes have luck by going for the optional wonder-only techs like economics.

my advice is to not get alarmed if you fall behind somewhat and keep going for techs that are low priority for the AI. unless everyone gets ahead of you, eventually it is often possible to research something nobody has and trade it to get caught up or close to caught up

 

[citizen001]

Is it possible to beat Emperor/Monarch without micromanagement?