The four ciry rush

[Ithkul2]

Strategy - The four city rush:

1. 1st turn settler
2. send scout(warrior) for useable locations (not far away)
3. when settler is done make a new settler
4. when 2nd city is founded make settler
5. when these settlers are done make warrior for defence in all 4 citys.
6. build granary in the 4 cities after warrior is done.

Optional:
7. build lighthouse
8. build worker (one for each city)
9. build library
10. upgrade warrior to axemen
11. build forge (slave rush when you can afford it)

Positive:
* Higher population, production and research later in game compared to others. It will rocket past others on the long term
* Barbarians spawn to late to kill cities

Negative:
* High risk, avoid animals with settlers.
* High risk vs agressive human opponent.
* Very slow tech and development at start.
* Most likely no founding of relgion. Might get islam if you rush it, but i would not recommend it.

- Please let me know your opinion on this topic. thanks

[BigWilly1974]

I'm following more or less a similar rush strat to get 4-5 cities early. I will often build a worker in a couple of cities to rush out a settler and to start making tile improvements.

After that, I've been tending to focus on granaries, then into barracks/libraries depending on the city and it's tiles.

I do tech straight off for Polytheism(Hinduism) at the start of the game.

On Monarch, I'm having moderate success with it. I'm still refining my game on Monarch.

[Yuufo]

Maybe an enjoyable strategy on lower levels, but at Monarch - Emperor you are going to be crushed...
Building two settlers in your capital -> 25 + 25 turns, 2000 BC. You have no improved terrain. At monarch level, barbarians may enter cultural influence zone after 1500 BC (sooner for above levels), they'll own you. If your four cities survive, you still have the upkeep cost problem!

Your start has to be quicker! For example, begin with worker, most of the time your capital has two highly productive tiles, work them (be sure to research the appropriate techs first - agriculture for farms etc...). Then build scout or warriors up to city size 2, then you should build a settler in about 12 turns. It may even be quicker if you have Bronze Working and chop the forests.

A good start is crucial! Work this part of the game!

[AEdwild]

Playing on NOBLE

I am having my most successful game by doing a 4 city rush. It is now 1902 and my technology and gold are zooming through (9 cities). The downside is a dangerously ignored military which I am just starting to upgrade develop (buying friendship from the AI, ie bribes).

I have the most culture, most money, but am not the most advanced. My ranking is 2. I just have to figure out how to get Mansa before he comes to the conclusion he needs to clobber me first.

[The keeper]

I get my capital to size 3 before I build a setter, and I build a worker before the settler. I dont particularlly like the settler first gambit.

Then, I use my capital to pump out 3 quick settlers (chop rush possibly). You then end up with roads connecting where you want to build, and the ability to improve tiles as they come available to be worked. I also have a small military to work with - a few warriors. The warriors have previously scouted all the nearby terrain, so I know the best places to build.

[bjsiders]

Tried that and failed

I'm playing the Malinese in my most recent game, on noble, continents, normal length, huge map.

I tried a few approaches. First I did worker, chop-settler, worker, chop-settler, and then went for pyramids and oracle. I missed pyramids by 5 turns, oracle by 20 and I had almost no military.

Determined to learn from my mistakes, I reloaded the same game again, and this time I did worker, farm/chop settler, warriors until the city got to size 3, 1 worker, one settler, and then warriors until I could start Oracle. Last time I'd boxed in a penninsula to expand into later. This time I pushed out towards the other Civs first and found -- MARBLE! My first worker farmed the heck out of my capital and I had insane production there in no time. I sent the settler and cond worker to pick up the marble tile and then found -- STONE! I sent the second settler to the stone and squeezed out another worker. With these three cities I was able to get Pyramids, Stonehenge, Parthenon, and finish Oracle on the same turn I discovered Code of Laws, netting me Civil Service. After that, all four cities built 10 Skirmishers each, which I used to annihilate the Chinese, Aztecs, and #()%&*@()^@&(^ Spanish. God I hate Isabella.

I couldn't get to the Great Lighthouse in time but I've built every other wonder so far and my score is 3x higher than the next-highest. NOBODY threatens me, demands anything, or attacks with the size of my military. I'm not naturally a warmonger, so I have to force myself to build military units. I basically have a rule - I built 1 military unit between the construction of any other buildings. If I want a Granary and a Market? Pick which one is most important, build it, then one military unit, then the other. The only exception is Wonders that I'm concerned taht the AI might get to first (not much risk of that in my current game).

As a result of this policy, most of my cities have 5-7 military units and I have a field army of 20-30 available all still with Science at 90% and making +40 gold/turn. By far this is my best game. Granted, it's only "Noble" level but I've been getting creamed at this level so far, so my progress in this game is encouraging.

The things I did differently were:
(1) **** BUILD UP MILITARY AND LOTS OF IT EARLY ****
(2) Pick city locations more carefully. I scouted a LOT of land to find marble and stone. It might take some extra turns to move the settler all the way out there, but depending on how far it is, you make it up in having the resource available. First, that second city doesn't HAVE to build the wonder, it just needs the resource in its radius and a road/quarry. My capital ended up building a lot of them since it was built up already and the second city built military.
(3) Build up great leaders quickly. I have about 6 priests in my capital city and even though it's a GL city it has 40 hammers of production with no mines.

[upsidedown]

You forgot one thing you did differently(presumingly): you killed off three+ civilizations pretty quickly. That does make a huge difference.

[Ithkul2]

When i tested this i was playing at settler or something. Dont work as well as other strats. I'd go look at Vel's strats instead of this one. It was an idea tho, but only on lower difficulties. thanks for your time