Which patches, mods, etc. for Civ 3 vanilla?

[Sinterklaas]

Hello everyone,

I'm about to reinstall my old vanilla version of Civ 3. Which patches, mods and map pack(s) do you recommend for the vanilla version of Civ 3 (and why)?

And is there a map editor available for this game?

 

[vmxa]

You would want the last patch 1.29f. NOt sure about mods as I did not use any till C3C. There is a list in the creation forum.

 

[Diviner]

In the case of mods I highly recommend to upgrade Conquests if possible. Conquests was designed specifically to make modding easier and most of the more famous mods (MEM, Anno Domini, Age of Imperialism, TAM etc.) that came out in the last years use the game mechanics of the expansion.

There is a map editor available to the vanilla version of course. It is named Civ3Edit.exe and can be found in the same directory where the executable of the game can be found. However, I am afraid it lacks a minimap which is a real bummer... One more reason to upgrade Conquests No matter which version you choose eventually - the map editor gives nice possibilities. Aside from drawing maps you can change the rules and create modifications yourself.

 

[Sinterklaas]

Allright, thanks!

I also remember using "Snoopy's terrain graphics pack" (or whatever it was called) back then. Can anyone here recommend good and realistic terrain graphics and if so, where can these be downloaded?

 

[Diviner]

The Creation and Customization sub-forum would be a good place to start search.

Terrain Graphics library
It's a little outdated (last update 2005!), but you can search the Creation and Customization / Graphics Modpacks sub-forum for specific terrain sets any time.

I am afraid that some terrain mods are for conquests only and backward compatibility might raise issues, but I am not certain.

 

[Sinterklaas]

Many thanks! I've found back Snoopy's terrain graphics and will start a new Civ 3 game soon!

By the way, anyone knows how to prevent the so-called "stacks of doom" from appearing? You know, like when the AI suddenly attacks you with a stack of about 100 mechanized infantry units and it takes the game at least 15 minutes to move them all, after which the game becomes totally unplayable and the AI steamrolls your country even though it shouldn't have the amount of gold to maintain such an amount of units.

 

[Diviner]

I am afraid there is no cure for that slowdown-effect, huge maps with lot of units tend to overload the game engine a little bit, because sadly it was not designed correctly (not scalable enough) Stronger computer is the only solution that works every time... However, there are many reasons in this effect, you can search for it, because everybody faced it at least one time. There may be some advices to ease the effect.

However, if visible moves are your problems that has a solution - Turn on CAPS LOCK (or hold down shift under interturn) - move animations then are disabled. You can disable them through the Preferences too.

 

[CommandoBob]

Also, don't automate workers. That will extend the IBT, too, since the AI will look and see what task can be done by worker 1, determine that none exist, and then repeat this for each worker. Plus, you can manage your workers better than the game, anyway.

 

[Theov]

Hello everyone,

I'm about to reinstall my old vanilla version of Civ 3. Which patches, mods and map pack(s) do you recommend for the vanilla version of Civ 3 (and why)?

And is there a map editor available for this game?

Just get C3C (civ3 conquests) for 10 euro's at the local free record shop or something. It's patched and everything.
Best game ever.

 

[timerover51]

Hello everyone,

I'm about to reinstall my old vanilla version of Civ 3. Which patches, mods and map pack(s) do you recommend for the vanilla version of Civ 3 (and why)?

And is there a map editor available for this game?

If you are going to do any serious modifying of the game, you need to get involved in the Creation and Customization Forum, as there is a vast amount of knowledge there. Civ3 Complete has all three versions of the game and there are pluses and minuses to each version. If you are looking for online scenarios and mods of the game, look for those that are labeled .bic files, as these are compatible with the basic version.

I have played around a bit with the editors for all three versions, and prefer playing on custom maps that I randomly generate and then place additional resources on, along with moving the starting locations around a bit.

Is is also nice to see another member of the forum from the Netherlands, as my family background on both my mother's and my father's side is Dutch, with my father's grandparents arriving from the Groningen area in 1897, three months before my grandfather was born.

 

[gozpel]

Many thanks! I've found back Snoopy's terrain graphics and will start a new Civ 3 game soon!

By the way, anyone knows how to prevent the so-called "stacks of doom" from appearing? You know, like when the AI suddenly attacks you with a stack of about 100 mechanized infantry units and it takes the game at least 15 minutes to move them all, after which the game becomes totally unplayable and the AI steamrolls your country even though it shouldn't have the amount of gold to maintain such an amount of units.

If you have 50 artilleries at least and the same amount of rifles/inf/tanks you should be alright. Or 80 arties and 30 rifles/inf/tanks are probably better. Just wear them down and never stop adding units to your stack. They'll suicide nicely against your walls and then you can go forward.

 

[Sinterklaas]

Thanks for all the advice! Is it also possible to wipe out the entire stack of doom with a nuke? That would be a cheaper solution.

@ CommandoBob: what is IBT?

@ timerover51: hallo fellow Dutchman! My grandmother is from the Groningen area as well.

 

[gozpel]

IBT - In between turns, the AI gets the first shot.

Just to save CommandoBob a post