Apolyton Civ4 PREVIEW (By Solver) - Part 2 online

[Freddz]

I can't agree with you.

[Xmudder]

Originally posted by sophist

I think the feeling is that if a particular combination of ingredients is much too powerful, then those ingredients themselves are at least slightly too powerful. I also share the disappointment that such a flaw is built into the game. That no leader has those traits out of the box isn't a fix. To me, it's a smell that there is a defect in the game design. It's not an enormous one, more like the princess and the pea, but it's still there, and I wish it wasn't.

Well, they could always go back to +50% worker production. That should solve some problems. I mean, +100% GP is a civic (pacifism), and so is +50% worker production (Serfdom). Shouldn't be too game breaking.

Might make an interesting mod to see what happenes.

I'm playing Ghandi as is, mainly because I hate anarchy and I hate losing wonder races, and spiritual / industrious should help me avoid that.

I'm even considering making a run for Montheism. India already has 2 of the 5 techs needed (Mysticism, Mining) to grab 2 religions at the get go.

Oh, and Solver, what happens during a Golden Age. You don't seem to think very highly of them.

[Solver]

Golden Age = more shields and commerce. It's not that I don't think highly of them, I just usually use my GP for other things.

[Xmudder]

Originally posted by Solver
Maybe, but all the other combinations are in excellent balance now. Plus, Ind/Phi would be overpowered under the right circumstances certainly, and not always. For example, if you get the wonder that increases GP birth rates further, or if you get stone/marble, that would be too crazy.

Stone / marble are scarce? I had the impression they are just as common as the other resoruces - scripted in to be 1 per civ.

If they were rare, that would be a bit unbalancing, don't you think?

[sophist]

Originally posted by Xmudder
Well, they could always go back to +50% worker production. That should solve some problems. I mean, +100% GP is a civic (pacifism), and so is +50% worker production (Serfdom). Shouldn't be too game breaking.

An idea I had since my last post was to have the traits make it easier to spawn a Great Person of a corresponding type. A Creative leader would have it slightly easier spawning Great Artists. A Financial one would have it easier getting Great Merchants, while Industrious means easier Great Engineers, Organized means easier Great Scientists (a bit of a stretch), and Spiritual means easier Great Prophets. Organized leaders would have a much smaller bonus, but it would apply to all Great People. Expansive and Aggressive are left out in the cold with this scheme, but maybe we can devise a Great Explorer and Great General to fill them out, or balance the Great People production deficit with another, different type of benefit.

[Freddz]

Originally posted by Solver

Solver, or any other who has played the game, what would you say is the weakest part of the game. The part that you were less than satisfied with? I understand that this is mostly subjective but I am curious.

Espionage, I would say - it's not horribly useless, but I just feel it's underwhelming and not really excited.

Underwhelming eh? Something you told them as a beta-tester I hope. Ugh...... I was hoping espionage would be fun and decisive...
Ah well, screw it, the rest seems good.

[alva]

They need to leave something to whine about for the expansion.

[Dale]

Oh no! STOP THE MASTERING! One trait combo out of 28 is unbalanced! I demand that Firaxis fixes it NOW! I will refuse to buy the game now! I don't care if 99.99999999% of the game is fantastic it's another PTW!










Tools.

[Freddz]

Yes, they know it's good publicity when we start toppling the forums over in despair over a feature... when we start pulling each other strings to feelings of doom and gloom towards Firaxis... then they have a great-selling expansion... man...
Or eat cardboard out of frustration... that could happen too, right?

[Aks K]

@Solver: Not sure if you saw these questions regarding Super specialists (hope you are allowed to answer this):

What do the generate then? Is it so that Super scientists only generate breakers? Is there a general scheme to this?

Aks K

[korn469]

well it sounds like if a Philosophical leader builds the wonder that grants faster GP's then that civ will have a major advantage in the game. Also financial looks like one of the weaker traits, especially if you compare it to industrious.

[Solver]

Super specialists generate stuff depending on their type. Super-scientist generates breakers, super-artists culture, etc.

[The_Aussie_Lurker]

You don't know how disappointed I am to hear about espionage Solver. After the joke they gave us in Civ3, I really thought they had learned their lessons. Unfortunately, they seemed to have 'thrown the baby out with the bathwater'-bringing back spy units rather than simply expending all their 'espionage' energies on making the Civ3 espionage system much more fun and effective. I don't think I will be TRULY happy with the game until ALL the strategies are on a roughly equal footing-including 'dirty tricks' !
I would like to second the question, though, you did express your disatisfaction with espionage to Firaxians?

Yours,
Aussie_Lurker.

[Aks K]

Originally posted by Solver
Super specialists generate stuff depending on their type. Super-scientist generates breakers, super-artists culture, etc.

Nice. I guess that Super-scientist only generates breakers.
How many hammer does a Super-engineers produce/turn - if they exist?

Aks K

[Anakha]

Originally posted by Solver
Super specialists generate stuff depending on their type. Super-scientist generates breakers, super-artists culture, etc.

Originally posted by Aks K

Nice. I guess that Super-scientist only generates breakers.
How many hammer does a Super-engineers produce/turn - if they exist?

Aks K

Is there some kind of conspiracy to rename beakers to breakers just like shields were renamed to hammers?