Key Techs

[ktbutts]

Definitely true. Any one type of unit can be countered. All I'm saying is that going directly to the bronzeworking tech yields more than going to Archery. As such, an early defense (prior to building multiple defenders) of axemen IMHO are better than archers. While they lose first strike, they gain the benefit against melee which will be the most common early attackers. Also, when you can go back and fill in other defensive units, they can remain as garrisons to counter swordsman or be deployed as effective attackers.

[Simplicity]

Now *that* is a good point.
Axemen are useful in that if you do suddenly go to war, poof, you have an army from those garrisons sitting around.

[Krill]

Axes counter swords, spears, and other axes. Against Melee units, an axe is strength 8.5 if it has combat 1 and combat 2. A sword, with City raider 2, is, what, strength 8.7, but then the sword has to attack the axe, so the axe can be over strength 10, due to fort bonus, and defensive bonus from culture and walls.

Or the axe can attack the sword. If that happens, a combat 2 axe is 8.5, against strength 6 sword. The sowrd is strength 9, if it can get onto a forest...

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And remember, if you go to war with just axes, you will liely get ripped to shreds by chariots or horsearchers using the defender road network.

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Archers are cheap, 25 shields. Axes cost 35 shields, and require iron or copper. I have been in positions where I have had neither, and archers surficed. Archers gain a city defence promo, and are incredably easy to throw out in a pinch. An archer with city defence 1 and 2 is pretty powerful, IMO. An Axe would definately have problems breaking through that in a normal city, and swords would also have to be carefully promoted to come out of the battle alive...

[ktbutts]

All true.

However, in terms of getting early momentum, would you go after the Archery tech prior to Bronzeworking?

Archers/Axemen I think are of roughly equivalent value (even considering the additional hammers required), but bronzeworking supplies so many more benefits (cut trees for early mineral booms, slavery for pop. control, show copper). Archery only supplies you with archers.

[DeepO]

Originally posted by ktbutts
All true.

However, in terms of getting early momentum, would you go after the Archery tech prior to Bronzeworking?

It's a choice... however keep in mind that bronze can be a scarce resource. There are more then a few situations where you go to battle before you can hook a source up. Especially if there are horses near your starting position.

DeepO

[Krill]

it depends. If I have a coastal start with some bonus seafood, I will probably forget BW, and try to get those work boats out, grow my capital, and either research a religion or towards alphabet (on prince, I can still whore my way to a fair amount of the techs I have not researched). If I have horses/cows/pigs/sheep, I will go for Animal husbandry.

It all depends on the start, to be honest. If I had alot of forest, and hills, I would probably go for BW. If I don't have any, I might not bother.

I will admit that I often don't bother with archery, and go for BW, but when I don't go for BW, I go for archery fairly soon, after getting one or two necasery techs.

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So you could say, It depends on whta strat I want to follow. if I wanted to go on the rampage at the start, I would go for BW right off the bat.

[DeepO]

Having horse archers instead of swords can also work: you might be able to get there earlier.

Not mentioned here so far, but fairly obvious: any tech that unlocks a resource making it possible to direct your settlers, invaders, or pillagers is essential.

DeepO