City placement

[DeepO]

Originally posted by lethe
Really, really ponder the power of closed borders. You can abuse this in ways the AI can't even begin to comprehend. Please do so.

I wouldn't call it abuse, though. The AI will do the same thing. I don't know if it is intentional or not, but more than once will a AI who controls a chokepoint not sign open borders with me.

Also, 10 cities during initial expanding phase on a normal map, with still room for inner ones? Time to up the difficulty, me thinks

DeepO

[ktbutts]

On Noble level, I've found a better use for the choke point.

1.) Block of Neigboring Civ's border.

2.) Sign Open Border agreement

3.) Concentrate accumulating culture

4.) Watch the AI create cities on the opposite side of your empire.

5.) Watch as AI city culture flips to you (sometimes requires a culture bomb.

[DeepO]

Settling cities in the middle of enemy territory is always nice, whether they are chokepoints or not. However, if you do that, be prepared for some heavy defense, and some heavy investments in culture as well! An early GA can be critical because if you wait too long, a GW won't be able to flip those cities.

Waiting to let others settle their cities might not be ideal: the AI will try to settle just outside of the most dangerous tiles. If you leave them exactly enough space you control that, though.

Nice little tactic, but careful, there is certainly no guarantee for succes.

DeepO

[vee4473]

Originally posted by ktbutts
On Noble level, I've found a better use for the choke point.

1.) Block of Neigboring Civ's border.

2.) Sign Open Border agreement

3.) Concentrate accumulating culture

4.) Watch the AI create cities on the opposite side of your empire.

5.) Watch as AI city culture flips to you (sometimes requires a culture bomb.

That is interesting, but I would always choose to keep closed borders so that I could settle my own cities where I wanted.

Especially since culture flipping can be a gamble.

I suppose it could be useful if you couldn't make settlers at the moment, and wanted to try and stifle another rival civs expansion.

If it is you and another civ on one side of the choke point and a different civ on the other side, that could be useful in trying to "dilute" your side.

Instead of letting one civ build up in that area.

[Kindbud]

Originally posted by lethe
Really, really ponder the power of closed borders. You can abuse this in ways the AI can't even begin to comprehend. Please do so.

Agreed! While the constant nagging to open borders gets old you it offers a certainty in border integrety and serves as a nice carrot to tease the AI players with.

I've completely changed my aproach to starting in that instead of founding the 2nd city as close as possible to the capital, to connect and share resources and troops, I send the settler either towards the nearest discovered AI or a logical bottleneck to block out mulitple opponents.

since the road no longer auto generates gold and trade caravans are long gone, trade has moved to a higher level of gameplay - which makes a lot more sense, though I occasionally miss bum rushing wonders in the later stages of Civ II.

Downside to closed borders is you can't export religion.