Settler Chop while still growing city - Exploit or Feature?

[khearn]

Given that one of the major stated design goals for Civ 4 was to reduce micromanagement, and given that this "tactic" requires micromanagement, I think it's pretty clear that the designers didn't intend for this to be a feature.

But that's just one man's opinion.

[Dog of Justice]

Originally posted by Blake
I think this would actually be more significant with chopping wonders for Ind civs, ensuring that a chop always lands on a wonder, like building a settler with food while chopping the wonder.

Actually, all that matters is ensuring that chops do not cause overflow into the wonder, since overflow in this situation is arguably bugged and hurts you.

Otherwise, no matter what you do, you get 30 "honest" shields worth of production.

[Blake]

I specified building the settler with food. Say you have an insanely high food start but so-so hammers. You can build a settler with food, you CAN'T build a wonder with food. Thus it would make sense to ensure chops land on the wonder rather than the settler.

[Rasputin]

Originally posted by khearn
Given that one of the major stated design goals for Civ 4 was to reduce micromanagement, and given that this "tactic" requires micromanagement, I think it's pretty clear that the designers didn't intend for this to be a feature.

But that's just one man's opinion.

best argument so far

[Cort Haus]

So there are people here who think that all micromanagement is exploitative because the aim was to reduce it?

We'll be told that not using auto-workers is an exploit next...

[Aeson]

Settlers/Workers are intended to be built with Production and/or Food. Either alone will work (though good luck getting a pure Food one ). Forest are intended to increase Production. Builds are intended to remember (and slowly degrade) their Production. I don't see anything involved being unintended functionality.

I don't think this is even an especially useful course of action either. It could be worth considering, but definitely isn't a required tactic. Chopping is good for getting things done ASAP... delaying a Settler you have deemed worth chopping seems to be counter-intuitive.

[Bluefusion]

The problem I have with all of these exploits/MM strategies is that they really just take the fun out of the game and reduce it to merely following a set of tedius "algorithms" (I'll use this poorly fitting word).

In single play there is no problem (even I use the chop strategy a bit), but I'd hate to play in a multiplayer game in which others are MMing their way through a game in which the developers clearly set out to reduce the MMing problems of Civ III.

While micromanagement may not be a big deal, and it truly isn't (after all, what one player does during his turn is of no concern to me), in the first dozen rounds of play, a MM strategy that expands a Civ in a way the developers never intended could upset the entire flow of the game.

That I suppose is the general complaint of those who call certain MM strategies exploitive.

However, some have brought out that this strategy really isn't worth the time. Plus we really have yet to chronical the long-term pitfalls of deforestation vis-à-vis health. Chop "exploits" may really just be myopic strategies

[djpsychonaut]

Originally posted by Cort Haus
So there are people here who think that all micromanagement is exploitative because the aim was to reduce it?

We'll be told that not using auto-workers is an exploit next...

I'm just waiting for someone to post that thread...

Let's add to the list of exploits chopping to speed up a wonder...

This isn't an exploit because if the game designers didn't want you to do it, then chopping wouldn't reap shields... plan and simple.

Any chop strategy requires a degree of MM unless you put the workers on automate and have them haphazardly clear-cut the continent. Chopping is a strategic decision to use valuable forests to speed up the production of SOMETHING. Only you choose what that something will be.

[djpsychonaut]

Originally posted by Bluefusion
The problem I have with all of these exploits/MM strategies is that they really just take the fun out of the game and reduce it to merely following a set of tedius "algorithms" (I'll use this poorly fitting word).

Just as the AI will never be as skilled as a human player without its bonuses on higher difficulty levels, the AI will never be as good at managing your resources for you as you would be MMing them.

[Dominae]

There is little to nothing to be gained from this "exploit". While it was not "intended functionality" in the design sense, Firaxis were aware of it during development and decided to leave it in. It does not confer a significant advantage over the AI (which chops Forest very haphazardly), nor is its use all that relevant in MP.