Do you guys cheat?

[Eomer]

I was wondering how much or likely any of you are to cheat?
I admit sometimes I do- but only a little. Usually, what i do is go to Worldbuilder and give myself a settler (at the beginning when I only have one city and it would take 20 turns to build a settler). Or during the same time, I may give myself a builder. But that's about it.

What about you guys?

[alva]

Nah, not really. I don't even take advantage of certain tactics wich favour the human too much (more the case in CIv3 ( ship chaining to give just one example)).

Having said that, I have absolutely no problems with people who do 'cheat' IN SP.
It's your game and time, do whatever you want with it and have fun your way....that's the most important bit.

[Seedle]

I cheat. I don't give myself units, but I do use worldbuilder to check at the beginning of the game whether the map is one I want to play or not. Sometimes if I feel the map has merit, but is flawed, I'll fix the flaws before I start playing. I'll also load an auto save to whip a wonder if someone beats me to it.

[Yaga]

I usually do quite a bit of map 'normalization'. I like to think that I'm not cheating per se, but it just does seem close.

1. Use Advanced Start
2. Build out your starting position as-is
3. Hit 'Begin'
4. Don't end turn, but zoom in close go into World Builder
5. Hit Crtl-I twice -- this removes the I even physicaly cover the mini-world map and collapse the civ/leader pane while I do this, just so I don't get the image of the world and/or my opponents stuck in my eye
6. Scroll around 'fixing' those bits of the map that are traditionally problems:
- Keep an eye out for under-represented and over-represented bonuses. Game, silver, wine, and wheat are usually under represented
- Dye, Elephants, and Fur are usually over represented, and often bunched together real close.
- I prefer playing on with a higher civ:land ratio, so I'll usually turn small islands into bigger island, pad out peninsulas, make deserts smaller, forest tundra, minimize ice, etc. I'd rather have a nice, tight game of 16 on a standard map, at the risk of some verisimilitude, than have a large map with lots of wasted space
- I usually extend rivers, and will add smaller rivers around mountains and hills, esp along the coast -- the game will almost always place Civs next to fresh water, so I like giving it more options
- I also like strategic portages, and so will sometimes tweak landmasses to have nice choke points -- makes navies more important.
- Finally, I'll extend the Coastal regions to cover the whole of some bays -- especially if there's only a couple of ocean squares stuck in the middle
7. While doing this, be sure to zip around randomly -- I find this helps me from remembering the particular arrangement of features too much
8. Slip back into the game mode, and hit End Turn.

Voila! I now have a map I know is going to be 'fun' in general, without knowing the specifics of where I should bee-line to to get the best stuff.

The only thing that's really 'cheating' is that I will make sure there's either Copper or Iron within a reasonable reach of my Civ. I try to balance it if there isn't -- replacing a Stone or Marble, or a couple of Gold and/or luxuries with a Copper or Iron that's just outside my borders.

To make it even more interesting, I've also played a couple of games where I remove Copper, Iron, and/or Oil completely from the map -- or leave only one or two, now that we have BtS and the random events can kick in to for Greed.

[Ming]

I've gone into world builder to correct errant key strokes. Like giving a unit the wrong promotion... or if I pillage something I didn't mean to... or if in the process of deleting an old unit, I delete the whole stack. If I can't correct a "mistake" (not a bad decision) with a reload, I will correct it in World Builder.

It was funny... in an MP game the other night, I built a city on the wrong square. I was attempting to move the settler, but instead, hit the create city tile. My first thought was, time to reload... but then remembered I was playing MP.

And since I am an MP player, cheating in an SP game holds no real attraction... since in MP you are stuck with whatever happens

[Cyrus The Mike]

I do use the world builder... a lot. every game in fact. usually to deleat a barbarian thats right next to a settler. But sometimes I use it to give me a certin religeon or a wonder that I had one turn to go.

Rarely do I ever give myself units. sometimes if my scout dies real early I'll *cough* replace it *cough* with an explorer. I usually give me a unit if I feel "cheated" (three axmen lose to one archer and the city has no walls)

otherwise I neeeeeeevver use it

[ybrevo]

No, I don´t see much fun in cheating, but if I make a silly mistake - and I often do! - I reload the game (while shaking my head in disgust).

The latest example: Caesar wants to swap a minor tech with one of my majors (can´t remember which) plus 230 in gold. Totally ridiculous, but I thought HE would give ME the 230, and I badly needed the money. Next turn I had lost most of my treasure, and yes - time to reload.

You just can´t play CIV. without concentrating a bit

ybrevo

[The Priest]

I'm with Ming.

I will 'cheat' (reload) when I have made a mistake - wrong key stroke etc., - or to avoid micromanagement. For example, while healing your scout doesn't notice a bear creeping up on it. Either every turn you need to manually check it (unwanted micromanagement) or you allow yourself to reload if you didn't notice the bear had appeared and the computer didn't tell you.

[guermantes]

For example, while healing your scout doesn't notice a bear creeping up on it.

// turns on 'Show enemy moves' //

As for the topic, I would never go into worldbuilder in a game, though probably not because I feel strongly about cheating but more because I don't want to ruin the pleasure of fog busting and discovering resources and other civs. That's the greatest thing about this game! Discovering something outside your borders and beginning the quest to put it under your control. That's also why the 2nd half of the game is less fun than the 1st.

I do have been known to re-load savegames after idiotic battle decisions ("OK, let's try Operation Barbarossa this way instead...") or when a gambit to send out a settler un-escorted didn't go my way.

[Bkeela]

I used to cheat with Alpha Centauri - to the extent that I would reload a save up to a hundred times or more to achieve the desired result. The fix to that was with inevitable outcomes, which pretty much cured me off the bad habit.

Towards the end of my SMAC playing however, I developed a taste for Iron Man, and focussed on improving my game rather than just role playing (yes, I use TBS as an outlet for role playing). Thus when I began Civ IV, I had an ethic of never re-loading. Swallowing every consequence of my action, and weather sometimes atrocious bad luck.

Now it feels really good having a massive continent spanning empire, knowing that it was earned the hard way.

[Theben]

Sometimes, if an AI beats me to a wonder or religion (almost always by 1 turn!), I'll reload and try to get it 1st. Otherwise no, except I have a quirky mouse that double clicks a lot. I really hate it when I try to get battle odds by hovering the mouse over a tile and the next thing I know my unit has attacked and died. Then I reload also.

But I don't reload if I manage to win.

[jbp26]

I'll regenerate a map a few times to get a start i think will be fun to play (not overpowered- just fun). thats the only tweaking i do, the trileague tournament really got me out of the habit of ever reloading.

[Ming]

I used to regenerate the map a few times as well. But since we can't do that in MP, I had to learn to play the crappy starting locations. So now, I just play the crap that is dealt. It has improved my MP play.

[Garth Vader]

Oh yeah, I cheat a lot. I don't have as much time to play as I used to so I cheat to get the experience I want out of a game.

I check the WB on the first turn to see if it's a decent map for the style or civ I want to try.

I will adjust the terrain a bit to optimize cities. I don't give myself specials that aren't there, but will move a hill or desert or mountain for irrigation chaining or city placement.

If the AI beats me to a wonder I really want sometimes I will reload and do something different to get it.

I reload on some combat defeats, usually GG's or heavily promoted city raiders.

I have given myself a few archers in the early game if I am about to get overrun.

Yeah I am pretty bad

[Ming]

Originally posted by Garth Vader
Oh yeah, I cheat a lot. I don't have as much time to play as I used to so I cheat to get the experience I want out of a game.

As it should be... Cheating in MP/other people is one thing... but against the AI, I have a hard time considering it as cheating. Unless you are going to post your score in some HOF, or brag that you can win at the highest levels, how you play the game to maximize your fun is really your business. Games are entertainment, and if making some simple changes to your land before commiting 10 hours to a game will enhance your enjoyment. Why not. If your desire is to play it iron man style, go for it. If you want to reset every once in awhile, who cares