Unflippable Cities?

[Cordelayne]

In my current game it's 1975 and I'm far ahead with about 7000 points, next highest is about 2500 points. There was a race between me and the AIs for a big barbarian island near my home island. I grabbed most of it, and flipped a couple of enemy cities. Now, for hundreds of years the island has had my nine big strong cities, plus an American size 1 city on one tile right in the middle. I keep checking it, and it now says "Americans 47%." It has been under 50 percent for at least 100 turns.

How low must it go before it flips? Are some cities unflippable? I spent a fortune rush-building broadcast towers, etc. around this unsightly blue blemish on my huge sea of green, to no avail.

Incidentally, playing on Noble as the Scots (Philosophical and Industrious).

[Tattila the Hun]

Well, cities taken by military conquest don't flip, atleast back to the original owner... Or so I heard.

[Cordelayne]

This particular landlocked American city that I'm talking about--ironically named Miami--has never been conquered by anybody. The Americans had landed a settler with some troops, and I founded cities right around them on the next turn, forcing the settler to the interior of the big island, where it dithered for about 10 turns and finally founded Miami, which was immediately squashed into one square. It has been one miserable square for hundreds of years.

Since it is on a square that is 53 percent Scottish and 47 percent American, why doesn't it flip to me? I certainly have cultural flipping enabled--that's a major tool of conquest for me.

By the way, I stayed home today all day waiting for a Verizon repairman who never showed up, so lots of time for Civ. In my current game, I'm going to win a world conquest game on a standard map. I think world conquest is a LOT easier on Civ4 than on Civ3 or Civ2!

[carlisimo]

I've only seen them flip at close to 0%. If that city isn't dropping to the 10s or 20s, I suspect yours are too far away? After all, it seems to have stabilized at around 47%.

I think their military units have an effect too. I've been able to hold on to almost-fully-converted cities that had a big army in them. A couple of times I've taken my army out to use somewhere else, and had the city revolt shortly after.

[Cordelayne]

Interesting points. I suppose the big army is the key. The Americans have spent a lot of resources building up that city to a huge army (about six infantry units) even though it is a total crap city. American pride, I guess.

[MattPilot]

Since the city is only one tile, it is hardly worth the maintence cost. Assuming you have good relations with the americans, ask for the city during negotiations.




Anyway, to flip a city, your culture per plot rate must be higher than theirs. Depending on the distance your cities are from this little annoyance, your culture output must way more than the cities.

If it stabilized at around 47%, then you aren't generating enough culture. Even if you have it at 1%, and its plot culture is growing in the enemy's favor, you probably won't flip it.

So if your lowering the culture by 1% every turn, which isn't to hard to do, just build appropriate buildings and/or number of cities, you should have the city in no time.


Some more peaceful solutions to help you get the city:

- Get Open boarders and have the city match your state religion. It will improve your chances of flipping.

- Increase culture slider to get more culture points until it flips

- Build culture in the closest surrounding cities until it flips.

- Great works from Great artists - these may help to speed it up, but make sure you are generating more culture per plot (% of ownership goes your way) otherwise the enemy city will initially lose some %, but gain it back through superior culture generation in the following turns. In that case, making the great artist a superspecialist may be a better option since you may be then able to trump his culture generation, which is important to flipping a city

- And last suggestion, as already stated, try to negotiate for the city.

[Cordelayne]

Fascinating. Some posts like this are a LOT better than the manual or the "official" hint book. I'll try negotiating. I tend to spurn that. I have built the maximum number of culture generating buildings in all neighboring cities. I have culture slider just at 2--I'll try moving that up way high for a few turns. Hadn't thought of that either. I keep waiting for a Great Artist. Though I've had about 20 great persons this game, no artists yet. Thanks for hints!