Workers...micromanage or automate?

[all smiles]

I normally automate workers, but by the end of the game I've got a swarm of workers scurrying around...in a manner that doesn't appear very efficient, I might add. Seems like they're all scrambling to the next pollution site, but by the time they all get there, the pollution's already been cleaned up by the first one or two workers that arrived on the scene.

I'd sure like to see worker AI adjusted a bit to keep workers from ALL reacting to an event (like pollution), when one or two workers will do the job just fine.

Am I the only one who perceives it this way....or maybe I'm just doing something wrong?

What do you guys do with your workers?

I apologize if this topic has already been exhausted previously...I'm new to this forum. Thanks.

 

[Warlord Sam]

I usually have about five on micromanagement, and the rest automated. With railroads all over creation, a bunch of workers clean up the pollution in one turn, and there's still a lot more that don't go to the now clean site, but instead continue on their duties.

 

[spork]

Automated workers tend to do much more harm than good (i.e: destroy mines for irrigation when you're in despotism and irrigation is of no help). The automate feature is absolutely moronic. I could have written a much better worker script, but since their current script is so ********, I find I have no choice but to micromanage them. Learning keyboard shortcuts for everything becomes absolutely necessary if the game is to be any fun at all.

 

[Woody]

Spork there is lots of different levels of automation.

Shift A The worker will not change curent improvements, only make new ones.

Shift P The worker only cleans up pollution.

Shift I The worker only works around one city.

Shift F The worker clears forests only.

Shift J The worker clears jungles only.

I usually micromanage them early, but when I get monarchy Its off to auto they go. Sometimes if i want to rush a particular square I'll take 4 or 5 off auto and send them there.

 

[Brutal]

Early game I definately dont automate my workers. I make sure towns and resources are connected and start building road to future city sites. After the main network is established then I start to automate the workers. When I hit steam power I try to gain control of a good portion of my workers so I can get my rail network to each city so if I need to move troops quickly. After that I automate about half again and the rest begin pollution patrols. Really irritates me that only two workers will goto pollution sites. I wish you could hit the shift - P and they would all stay on pollution patrol until otherwise assigned.

 

[stargazer]

Originally posted by Brutal
Really irritates me that only two workers will goto pollution sites. I wish you could hit the shift - P and they would all stay on pollution patrol until otherwise assigned.

Brutal, I agree that the limit of two workers per site being automatically assigned by Shift-P is a pain. Wasn't this something that changed with the patch--that is, earlier, Shift-P didn't have this 2 per site limit?

Of course, if on any unlikely turn there is no pollution to clean, I'd like my previously assigned workers to request new orders rather than stand around and wait for some more pollution to show up.

 

[tetley]

Absolutely 100% micromanage.

 

[Hobbes]

Micromanage - yes, but it gets to be a pain to send 16 captured workers (they are the only workers I like to have latter in the game) to a hill site with polution.

 

[CivAl]

I'm still in Monarchy, early in the Middle Ages, but I've micromanaged all the way. It's important very early in the game to mine/irrigate to get cities balanced between production and growth. Then you need to connect all cities with roads. By that time you're out of Despotism which means you need to go on another round of improving. All these actions should probably be microed. Then you can leave your workers alone or disband all you don't need, until steam power comes along and you need to rail quickly.. that might be better to auto. Haven't got there yet

 

[Psychlone]

I micromanage my workers all the time, but I wasn't aware of the commands listed above. Now I may automate a few for limited tasks.

Some other handy ones:

Ctrl-R worker builds a road to point you designate with a cursor.

Ctrl-Shift-R worker builds railroad to point you designate. (This is only useful for lying initial rail routes. Once much rail is laid, workers will ride the rail to as close to the cursor as they can, then build, rather than laying on a most direct path over unrailed territory)

This one I'm not sure about, but I think Shift-N will make workers build a trade network of roads between all your cities.

 

[Rock]

Originally posted by Psychlone
This one I'm not sure about, but I think Shift-N will make workers build a trade network of roads between all your cities. [/B]

Yet, Shift-N make the worker build road/rail network on all the squares under your control. this is important at later stage when other workers run out of things to do. it will stop 10+ worker rushing onto a square without road and wasted one turn to build a road. I usually keeps two to three workers on this mode.

Workers will try to balance shield and food production. Later in the game when the city is getting bigger, workers will convert mines to irrigation to ensure growth. These actions tends to convert human controlled mine to irrigation or mine to irrigation unless Shift-A mode is used.

 

[CivAl]

Of course if you're that worried about micromanaging workers, just play an Industrious civ, and you can easily make do with 6-7 workers total. With the one worker given to you at the start of the game you can hopefully build roads to at least three cities before you get your first settler...

 

[stargazer]

To three sites for future cities or to three AI cities or do you have some settler-less way to spawn cities that you have told us about?

The point is well taken, though.

And since a captured AI worker works at 1/2 speed, is it half of your industrious speed or 1/2 of everyone elses'?

 

[CivAl]

I would imagine the worker works at half of its own usual speed. So if you captured a Persian worker it would work at 100 percent instead of 200. Whereas if you captured a Babylonian worker it would work at 50 instead of 100.

Q: does the worker effect of democracy apply to captured workers? IE, does a captured Babylonian worker work at 75 percent under a Democracy? Is the effect of democracy cumulative with industriousness, so an Egyptian Democrat works at 150 percent?

 

[Furry Spatula]

what i noticed is if you are industrious, then your workers work twice as fast and if you capture a worker they work at the speed a worker who is regular, non industrious. SO that is an advantage of industrious, if you are nonindustrious those captured workers are acutaly 4 times slower than an industrial civs own workers. sorry if that was hard to follow

 

[skywalker]

I only automate workers to "build RR to" between cities that already have a road between them.