Wouldn't losing techs be interesting?

[petermarkab]

Maybe by not building enough educational institutions you would run the risk of not having enough pre-eminent thinkers, and once they died some of their knowledge would die with them.

so for every 8 population you must build a library or chance losing a tech!

or something like that

regards,
Peter

[smellymummy]

well maybe not lose the tech outright, although some loss associated to the tech, due to some event where mass loss of education happens, would be challenging. in civ3, tech gain was cake and caps on research where really a no brainer. something that hurt research big time would just add to the decisions we have to make

[realpolitic]

Maybe a nuclear war could cause civs to lose techs.

[nbarclay]

The Dark Ages in Europe came about because the technologically advanced Roman civilization was overrun and essentially destroyed as a civilization by barbarians who had no interested in learning or maintaining the technology. I'm not aware of any precedent for a major loss of technology that does not involve the virtual destruction of the civilization that had held the technology.

[realpolitic]

The Taliban barred women from jobs, losing a large precentage of doctors must have damaged medical techs.

The roads and water infrastructure in Afganistan were so badly damaged that the only ground troops needed to beat them were cavalry. (Yes I know America bombed them, but they had become so backward, it was as if tanks hadn't been invented).

[realpolitic]

And Islam has kept the MidEast in Monarchy.

[NanoDingo]

Spies could have an "Incite Book Burning" ability, but only certain Techs could be "burned" in this way, mainly ideological Techs (Communism, Nationalism etc) and it would have to cost a lot.

[TimeTraveler]

I kinda like the idea of having technology require maintenance. Of course, I'd like to see it deducted directly form the research rate. ...like lose 1 research point/turn for every 10 research points obtained. Basically, the gross tech rate, minus the tech maintenance would give the net tech rate. If the net tech rate is less than that of any individual technologies, those advances won't be available for complete research, making. Therefore, if the net tech rate is too low to also maintain anything otherwise available, then research grinds to a halt. Additionally, if something causes a net research rate to drop below zero (like if you have an already low rate, then lose a city or choose a civic that decreases research), research goes backwards . As research points drain completly away from a semi-developed technology, the player must then choose a technology to sacrifice and watch it wind down. This would continue until the net tech rate is no longer negative.

I imagine that a move like this could place a larger incentive to have a larger gross tech rate, even if the player doesn't have anything needed to research. Of course, it could be set where gross tech rates are all increased or something...

[Bobby Chicken]

loosing a tech would be like loosing an infantry because it got old. It happens, but it doesn't work in a game.