Forts - What gives?

[rah]

as well as dockyards for quick troop unloading

Hmm never used on for this. Thanks for the concept. I'm sure the pratical uses for this are not frequent but I can think of one or two times this would have helped. Usually there would be a city close enough to provide the same function. As always, I usually learn something here every few days.

[Asmodeous]

Don't forget that they're the ONLY way to claim a resource that's on a 1t island with nothing of value around it outside of building a crappy city that will be nothing more than a drain on your economy, as just farming it or what-have-you will give the production bonus but NOT the resource itself. (Assuming the tile is in your civ borders)

Me.

[rah]

yeah, that was covered earlier in the thread. Quite useful info.

[wodan11]

1t islands are far from crappy, esp if you are running slavery or US, and have Astronomy (which you almost certainly do, or you pbly couldn't get to the island in the first place). Just don't waste your time with unnecessary buildings. Whip/cash rush harbor, library, or whatever makes sense, then leave it alone. Don't forget to take into account trade routes when you look to see if it's a net gain.

BTW, it's the two-city small islands that I find not worth it. That colony maintenance is a killer. OTOH, the many-vassal strategy is huge if you're doing a trade economy or mercantilism.

[Lord Avalon]

A fishing village under Caste System can also be beneficial.

Are two-city islands that bad? I thought it was 3 cities where costs get really bad.

[wodan11]

It's 2. The same as the number where you can create a vassal.

[joncnunn]

2 is the first where there's any extra expense; also the first where you can liberate.

3 is still very minor.

4 is where it's significant enough to loosen up city spacing if colonizing and raize extra cities if conquering.

5 is the most I'd want unless I had either a FP (or Versailles) there.

[Asmodeous]

2 is the first where there's any extra expense; also the first where you can liberate.

3 is still very minor.

4 is where it's significant enough to loosen up city spacing if colonizing and raize extra cities if conquering.

5 is the most I'd want unless I had either a FP (or Versailles) there.

Would it be worth keeping all 6 of an enemy nation if you could plop your FP in the center of the group where their capital is?

Me.

[rah]

Once you've got your infrastructure up and running a few corps or state property, it really doesn't matter much.

[joncnunn]

Would it be worth keeping all 6 of an enemy nation if you could plop your FP in the center of the group where their capital is?

Me.

You can have as many as you want if you build the FP (or that wonder that functions as another Palace) on that landmass because it appears the colonization expense goes away entirely.

[joncnunn]

After your effectively done researching and mostly done updating units, you can also support a lot more colonization expenses on foreign landmasses than before.

Also, Holy Shrines should always be keepers. Chances are really good the income it's bringing in will significantly offset colonization expenses.

[rah]

We had a bizarre one in an mp game last week. (sorry no screen shots)
Copper off coast on an island in city's bfc. Fort and road but no copper.
Then he moved a ship into the fort and now copper was avial. WEIRD.
WHen he moved the ship out, the copper stayed avail.

JR, please verify that this is what happened so people don't think I'm crazy.

It was strange because he asked what to do and we referenced this thread and said build a fort and a road. He was pissed when he did and still didn't have access to it.

[wodan11]

That is pretty weird. Stranger things happen in the game, though.

[-Jrabbit]

I built the city on stone, on a nearby island, in order to cover the copper in a fat cross. The copper was on the mainland but isolated at the end of a peninsula by a mountain. (Had no other copper nearby.)

So I ferry a worker out to mine the copper; he roads the square while he's at it. At this point, I was getting the production hammers from the square, but could not build axemen. Frustrated, I ask Ming and rah what I'm missing (as I'm a relative noob on fine points like this). They tell me I need a fort.

So my boat ferries another worker out to build the fort. Result = NO CHANGE. Still can't build axemen/spearmen. Worker hops on the boat and leaves in disgust. (Note: Ming and rah can confirm this. I showed them the screen and my build queue.)

THE WEIRD PART
I had given up on getting copper from this square. Ming and rah had no suggestions. As rah states, a few turns later, I ended up with a boat ending a turn on the copper/mine/road/fort tile (to save a space). No passengers in the boat. At the end of that turn, suddenly the axes and spears are available as build options. (Again, Ming and rah can confirm.)

Next turn, I moved the boat away, half-expecting the build options to disappear. Maybe I would have to move an archer onto square to keep the resource active? No. Once "activated," it stayed that way.

So, is this normal? Is this new information? Has anyone else experienced this?

[Blaupanzer]

Not normal at all. Are you certain that you did not get a new tech in between, either by trade or development?
You need the tech for resource: couldn't see the copper without BW.
You need sailing: have "boats," so have sailing.
Need a connection to the capitol? The mine/road has worked for me where city on one island and resource on another (both islands of 4 - 5 tiles.
Can't see how the boat could trigger the connection. What programmer in his right mid would even attempt that code, when incidence would be so rare?