What is the best order of techs...
- Thread starter big_sis
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Zibong
Chieftain
to get the modern era fast?
Most important point: Taking tech is much more effective than researching them yourself. If another civ has a mandatory tech that you don't, trade/steal/beg/threaten for it. That saves more time than any possible homegrown research order.
Second point: Your rate of expansion is much more important than tech order. In order to research all essential techs, you're going to need a large enough empire that can generate enough research points per turn to discover those late Industrial techs in four turns. It'll help to play on a huge map with relatively few opponents.
Other than that? Select a Scientific civ. Put Priority on Republic and any tech that allows a research building/Wonder (Library, Univ, Copernicus [yuck]). Rush build if possible.
Bottom line? Research order is only one element of the equation. Your other actions throughout the game are just as important, if not more.
Optional
Deity
Zibong is right. Especially in the Ancient Age, most techs you'll get through trading. So often click on your diplomacy screen to see whether there are new trade options.
If you have a town by the sea, send out one or more galleys to try and meet other civs. It's important to meet as many civs as possible, the more you can trade.
But research order is still important. It's usually a good idea to research a tech that is further to the right on your tech screen. They are more expensive, and are good to trade with. For example, if your civ starts of with alphabet, it's a good idea to research writing, and then once you've got writing, try and trade that for techs like the wheel, bronze working etc.
If you have a town by the sea, send out one or more galleys to try and meet other civs. It's important to meet as many civs as possible, the more you can trade.
But research order is still important. It's usually a good idea to research a tech that is further to the right on your tech screen. They are more expensive, and are good to trade with. For example, if your civ starts of with alphabet, it's a good idea to research writing, and then once you've got writing, try and trade that for techs like the wheel, bronze working etc.
PaperBeetle
Emperor
Playing a huge map won't help you tech any faster, as tech costs scale with map size. In fact, it will slow your tech down if anything, as your rate of expansion does not scale with map size, so it will take you longer to expand to any given % of the land area.
It is important to keep an ey on the situation around you and be flexible, but certainly there are some tech paths which are more conducive to fast research than simply casting around randomly.
In the ancient age, the primary path in C3C is Writing > Laws > Philiosophy > Republic (free). After that, you need concentrate only on Maths > Currency, and you should be able to trade for the rest. In PtW, getting into Republic requires a bit more effort. There are a couple of other stray techs which you may need to stop out for; Pots, if you can't trade for it; Mapping, if you are isolated; Literature, as soon as your core towns are in a position to benefit from libraries (i.e. large and well-improved).
In the Medieval, concentrate on the upper branch at least as far as Astronomy, remembering to build universities in your core, and prebuilding Copernicus. How much of the bottom branch you need to research depends on how your AI is getting on, but you should concentrate on getting to Gravity as fast possible, again prebuilding for Newton.
In the Industrial, you will probably have to do most of the work yourself, so the order is not so important. Prebuild Darwin, arranged to finish the same turn as a tech, and take Atomic and Electronics free. You need to make a judgement call on whether your empire needs hospitals to hit 4-turn research; Sanitation is an optional tech, so don't research it if you won't need it. You should be able to arrange for the AI to research Replaceables for you, but again there's a judgement call whether you want them to have such a powerful tech, and whether you can afford the delay of waiting for them to research it (often you are still railroading, and it will increase your worker speed, or you are still conquering, and artillery crush all opponents).
It is important to keep an ey on the situation around you and be flexible, but certainly there are some tech paths which are more conducive to fast research than simply casting around randomly.
In the ancient age, the primary path in C3C is Writing > Laws > Philiosophy > Republic (free). After that, you need concentrate only on Maths > Currency, and you should be able to trade for the rest. In PtW, getting into Republic requires a bit more effort. There are a couple of other stray techs which you may need to stop out for; Pots, if you can't trade for it; Mapping, if you are isolated; Literature, as soon as your core towns are in a position to benefit from libraries (i.e. large and well-improved).
In the Medieval, concentrate on the upper branch at least as far as Astronomy, remembering to build universities in your core, and prebuilding Copernicus. How much of the bottom branch you need to research depends on how your AI is getting on, but you should concentrate on getting to Gravity as fast possible, again prebuilding for Newton.
In the Industrial, you will probably have to do most of the work yourself, so the order is not so important. Prebuild Darwin, arranged to finish the same turn as a tech, and take Atomic and Electronics free. You need to make a judgement call on whether your empire needs hospitals to hit 4-turn research; Sanitation is an optional tech, so don't research it if you won't need it. You should be able to arrange for the AI to research Replaceables for you, but again there's a judgement call whether you want them to have such a powerful tech, and whether you can afford the delay of waiting for them to research it (often you are still railroading, and it will increase your worker speed, or you are still conquering, and artillery crush all opponents).
Sashie VII
Balance of Power
PaperBeetle's right 
However, I think difficulty level also affects how fast you can advance.
However, I think difficulty level also affects how fast you can advance.
Zibong
Chieftain
Oops. Did NOT know that
. My standard-or-smaller-map games had always ended in the early-to-mid Industrial (gotta love cavalry), I just figured a larger map = more room for expansion = more cities = more commerce = faster tech. I never really bothered to calculate how many coins it took to research each advance.
Theryman
King
No, just how fast the AI researches. You yourself will not advance any faster on your own on Diety, but if you trade, you will advance much more quickly, simply because the AI is pumping out techs very quickly.PaperBeetle's right
However, I think difficulty level also affects how fast you can advance.
So you will reach the MA earlier on more difficult levels, but only because the AI will actually help you research.
Sashie VII
Balance of Power
Theryman said:
That's what I meant by difficulty levels
Bartleby
Remembers laughter
I think that the tech costs for the AI are the same regerdless of level, while the tech costs for the Human increase with the levels [It was changed to this way in one of the patches, IIRC].
If you can expand fast enough, you may be able to achieve four-turn research more easily on a big low-level map than on a small high-level map (especially at chieftain, since tech is half-price).
If you can expand fast enough, you may be able to achieve four-turn research more easily on a big low-level map than on a small high-level map (especially at chieftain, since tech is half-price).
I'll try that! put more ai civs in, i like playing on really cramped maps, and as there are more ai opponents researching things there are more opportunities to trade for tech.
makes it easier to catch up as there are usually one or two that get left behind who you can trade techs with
makes it easier to catch up as there are usually one or two that get left behind who you can trade techs with
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