blind biker
King
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Where are ciV competitors?
- Thread starter Ermak-
- Start date
That game is amazing!
Awesome graphics and great UI.
That and much more rich and in depth game play than Civilization 5.
builer680
eats too much Taco Bell
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I've had GC II (with ToA / DA expansions) on my hard drive since it was released a couple of years ago, but never played it much. I got M2TW (with Stainless Steel mod) at the same time, and Civ IV a bit later, and played both of those for all the years until Civ V, and have now gone back to them after uninstalling Civ V a couple days ago. If only I could sell this game
However, I loved GC 1, but it's been so long and with little experience in GC 2 I feel really lost. I'm not sure how a lot of things work in it. For example, would it be better to build only money buildings, since production is tied directly to money? What is the difference between morale, approval, and popularity (if there is one)? Those kinds of things.
I've read the manual and checked at the forums to dig through old posts to get a better feel, but wind up lost. Maybe you could help with those questions? If so I'd appreciate it!
The GalCiv2 wiki is a good place to get info.
http://galciv.wikia.com/wiki/Galactic_Civilizations_Wiki
Popularity has to do with how well you are liked by other civs and really doesn't have anything to do with morale or approval.
Approval and morale are linked. Approval is basically the overall approval rating of the populace. The higher the taxes, the lower the approval. The lower the approval, the slower the population growth and the less likely the government you chose for your race will win an election. Morale is basically a bonus that increases the approval of the people on your planets. The wiki explains it well I think.
http://galciv.wikia.com/wiki/Morale
So basically there are a bunch of things you can do to increase the morale of your population which will in turn allow you to maintain the approval rate you want while still maintaining a high tax rate. I like to really keep my taxes high so I focus pretty hard on morale bonuses.
http://galciv.wikia.com/wiki/Galactic_Civilizations_Wiki
Popularity has to do with how well you are liked by other civs and really doesn't have anything to do with morale or approval.
Approval and morale are linked. Approval is basically the overall approval rating of the populace. The higher the taxes, the lower the approval. The lower the approval, the slower the population growth and the less likely the government you chose for your race will win an election. Morale is basically a bonus that increases the approval of the people on your planets. The wiki explains it well I think.
http://galciv.wikia.com/wiki/Morale
So basically there are a bunch of things you can do to increase the morale of your population which will in turn allow you to maintain the approval rate you want while still maintaining a high tax rate. I like to really keep my taxes high so I focus pretty hard on morale bonuses.
builer680
eats too much Taco Bell
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Thanks Ayt, that was a very well written answer! Now, I'd like to see if there's anything wrong with building only money buildings (no research or factories AT ALL) since they're both tied directly to money. Or do you get more specific bang for your buck by building factory/research buildings?
Research and factories are only tied to money in that the buildings that provide them almost always cost upkeep. You definitely want to build buildings of both type, though not necessarily on every planet.
One thing you have to be careful of starting out is balancing the maintenance of the buildings you build with the amount of income you can generate. When I first started out I'd often overdo it and cripple my economy because I went overboard with research and industry buildings. One trick I learned that I somehow hadn't thought of previously was to just fill out your planets with economy buildings even if they take up all the spaces after you've built your initial factory (or two) and research building (or two). I also build a morale building at some point fairly early on so I can jack up my tax rate. As more buildings become available to you and your empire spreads out a bit (spreading your tax income as well), you can just build over the economy buildings.
Taxes are tied to population, so spamming economy buildings on new planets only makes sense once you reach a certain pop level. The wiki could probably tell you what that is. It has been so long since I've played I don't remember.
Once things get humming along, I tend to build specialist planets based on what kinds of planetary bonuses I get and the size of the planets. Even smaller planets can be useful as industry-ship builders, small research planets, small economy planets, etc. Big planets specialized a certain way can be absolute monsters, especially if you get some decent bonuses. Having a planet with a few planetary bonuses in industry that also builds the industrial capital and a power plant can help build your military or allow you to build key galactic achievements and trade goods.
That's just some rough info. I'm sure others could improve on what I posted.
On, and this is important when it comes to approval and setting your tax rate.
You have a global and a planetary approval rating. The global rating affects elections. That is found in the bottom left corner and on the financial management screen. I think your global approval needs to be 44% (IIRC) to win an election. The planetary approval affects population growth, and the planetary approval will be based on pop size and any morale bonuses you are getting (global or from specific buildings on the planet). In the beginning, your capital may be at 44% approval because of the population size, whereas the first planet you colonize will be close to 100% because it is so small. It can be nice to get double population growth due to 100% approval on newly colonized planets in the beginning if it means moving the tax slider only slightly lower.
Controlling approval, morale, taxes, and maintenance is part of the fun balancing act of the game.
One thing you have to be careful of starting out is balancing the maintenance of the buildings you build with the amount of income you can generate. When I first started out I'd often overdo it and cripple my economy because I went overboard with research and industry buildings. One trick I learned that I somehow hadn't thought of previously was to just fill out your planets with economy buildings even if they take up all the spaces after you've built your initial factory (or two) and research building (or two). I also build a morale building at some point fairly early on so I can jack up my tax rate. As more buildings become available to you and your empire spreads out a bit (spreading your tax income as well), you can just build over the economy buildings.
Taxes are tied to population, so spamming economy buildings on new planets only makes sense once you reach a certain pop level. The wiki could probably tell you what that is. It has been so long since I've played I don't remember.
Once things get humming along, I tend to build specialist planets based on what kinds of planetary bonuses I get and the size of the planets. Even smaller planets can be useful as industry-ship builders, small research planets, small economy planets, etc. Big planets specialized a certain way can be absolute monsters, especially if you get some decent bonuses. Having a planet with a few planetary bonuses in industry that also builds the industrial capital and a power plant can help build your military or allow you to build key galactic achievements and trade goods.
That's just some rough info. I'm sure others could improve on what I posted.
On, and this is important when it comes to approval and setting your tax rate.
You have a global and a planetary approval rating. The global rating affects elections. That is found in the bottom left corner and on the financial management screen. I think your global approval needs to be 44% (IIRC) to win an election. The planetary approval affects population growth, and the planetary approval will be based on pop size and any morale bonuses you are getting (global or from specific buildings on the planet). In the beginning, your capital may be at 44% approval because of the population size, whereas the first planet you colonize will be close to 100% because it is so small. It can be nice to get double population growth due to 100% approval on newly colonized planets in the beginning if it means moving the tax slider only slightly lower.
Controlling approval, morale, taxes, and maintenance is part of the fun balancing act of the game.
builer680
eats too much Taco Bell
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Many thanks for your effort and time Ayt. I'll keep digging around, but you've certainly helped more than a little!
After trying really hard for 2-3 months after release to like Civ V, it's a real eye opener to get back into what a 4x game SHOULD be (imo, of course
). Powerful UI tools for managing a huge empire, epic storylines, comparatively decent AI, beautiful battles, real immersion... not to mention load screens that take 4-5 seconds and not minutes!
It ain't perfect for sure, but it's damn good so far, and even the little I'd played it when I first got it a couple years ago I remember liking it a lot. I just liked the other games I had a little better at the time, hence me finally getting back to really trying to learn all the ins and outs of this one.
After trying really hard for 2-3 months after release to like Civ V, it's a real eye opener to get back into what a 4x game SHOULD be (imo, of course
). Powerful UI tools for managing a huge empire, epic storylines, comparatively decent AI, beautiful battles, real immersion... not to mention load screens that take 4-5 seconds and not minutes!It ain't perfect for sure, but it's damn good so far, and even the little I'd played it when I first got it a couple years ago I remember liking it a lot. I just liked the other games I had a little better at the time, hence me finally getting back to really trying to learn all the ins and outs of this one.
I'm certainly no expert, but I had a lot of fun with vanilla GC2 and Arnor in particular. I tend to play on tough difficulty with the "force AI to use max CPU" or whatever it is called checked under game options. I should probably play a level higher, but this level gives a solid challenge while still being fun. It's also fun to figure out the different strategies for the various races with their unique tech trees.
I was a lot like you in the beginning I think. I got the game, but only dabbled a bit and didn't take the time to really figure it out so I played other games. When I finally got around to it, I got completely sucked in.
I'm glad I responded because it is making me want to play the game for the first time in quite awhile.
I was a lot like you in the beginning I think. I got the game, but only dabbled a bit and didn't take the time to really figure it out so I played other games. When I finally got around to it, I got completely sucked in.
I'm glad I responded because it is making me want to play the game for the first time in quite awhile.
builer680
eats too much Taco Bell
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Yeah I'm learning more and more each game I start. I'm kind of pushing a little further each game on Tough now, after having beaten it easily on Normal... but not really understanding how I made so much money with no money buildings (about halfway through I was making 2500+ BC/turn) at all on any planet, no economic starbases, and a 0% tax rate. At that point in time I owned about half the Galaxy on a small map.
My guess is that it's just simply too much bonus for the Human at that level, so I'm stepping it up a couple notches and finding it more important to actually understand what the buildings do.
Glad to renew your interest a bit with my questions too.
My guess is that it's just simply too much bonus for the Human at that level, so I'm stepping it up a couple notches and finding it more important to actually understand what the buildings do.
Glad to renew your interest a bit with my questions too.
SHaW1986
Prince
HAHA! cute living room? i thought you were serious... oh well... me personally im experiencing one-more-turnitis with Victoria 2 (not really one more turn since its an rts, but whatever).
Victoria II is a lot of fun.
Master of Magic, Age of Wonders, Elemental, EU3 and Torchlight are all excellent. I can't choose...
So many games, so little time.
blind biker
King
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You didn't say if you liked it! C'mon, admit it, your inner little girl was amused!
Jenarie
Prince
I liked it! I made everything purple! Except the cat. The cat was grey.
blind biker
King
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Purple is also MY favorite colour! Purple and violet.I liked it! I made everything purple! Except the cat. The cat was grey.
What else do we have in common? I like pasta.
Drakarska
Epic Dadness
Hmnnn... How about a nice Angel hair w/parmesian and sautee'd chicken and portebello? ( I'm a chef, sorry. sounded good). BTW, purple rocks!
blind biker
King
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Of the seasoned cheeses, I much prefer grana padano and pecorino to parmigiano. Also, I like some of the french goat milk cheeses. But essentially, I'm really a simple person who likes his gnocchi al gorgonzola and spaghetti alla carbonara (but must be done right!).
Drakarska
Epic Dadness
I was thinking more of lunch than dinner and prefer the italian versus the french, but your right, the carbonara must be done right.... Hmnn, come to think of it, so should Civ. Remind me later to critic Shaefer on his cooking, as I'm off to get some extra-virgin olive oil.
Best of both worlds option:
Venison and porcini ragout served overtop parsnip gnocchi with a nice bottle of Chateauneuff-du-Pape.
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