Deity player question

[kcbob]

I have a question concerning the upcoming Civ 3. While this question might be more appropriate in that forum, the target audience is those players of Civ 2 that play at Deity level.

The question is, when Civ 3 is released and you finally get your hands on your very own copy, are you going to start at Deity level or work your way up from the lower skill levels? While I fancy myself as a slightly above average Deity level Civ 2 player, I'm sure I'd get smoked if I started out at that level in Civ 3. I might not start at the bottom but I'm certainly not going to start at the top.

Or should I? How about you all?

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Frodo lives!

[Ming]

I'll start at Deity level. Any new game I pick up I always play at the hardest level. You don't learn any lazy or bad habits that way.
I just don't see the point of playing something that is supposed to be "less" challanging

[Smash]

Whatever level is lowest for me.Gotta get familiar.You must walk before you run and crawl before you walk.

I'm almost positive I will not finish that 1st game.Once I get familiar I'll immediately quit and move up.

Then again I will be waiting to hear before buying so there may not be a first game.

"How is it so far?"

"Its ok.I still havn't figured everything out.Wanna play Civ2?"

[drake]

I agree with Ming.......why go soft on yourself? If you start at the hardest level and play it long enough, you will get good at it........civ 3 won't be all that much more challenging anyway I wouldnt guess. (But I've been wrong in the past)

[Paul]

I'll play a first game on the lowest level. Get to see all the wonder movies so I can disable them after that and get a feel of the game, the new units and stuff. Then I'll play my first serious game on the highest level.

[TCO]

Ming, just as there are different strategies for different maps, there are different strategies for different levels.

Plus, if you play MP rather than against the AI, there is less reason to shoot for the hardest level...and more reasons to explore strategic tradeoffs which differ depending on level...

[War4ever]

quote: Originally posted by Ming on 04-20-2001 02:06 PM I'll start at Deity level. Any new game I pick up I always play at the hardest level. You don't learn any lazy or bad habits that way. I just don't see the point of playing something that is supposed to be "less" challanging

I have to agree with Ming here..... civ3 will likely be an upgrade for most of us obviously with a few new things to make it a better game... sorta the way civ2 was from civ 1. If you have played a series for almost 10 yrs.... well you will know most of it i would think by now

I will likely play the hardest level and even if i lose the first one i will continue on that path.

But like stated by another poster.... play where you feel comfortable.... if that means lowest or somewhere in between so be it...... besides there is some truth to trying strategies on lower levels..... its called a safety net
I will win via rage and attrition before i send that crappy plane in the air anyways

[Archangel MasterBob]

I probably do chief just so I can pick up the basics, then I'll go full-swing on diety. How long before Civ III comes out anyways?

[Father Beast]

I don't play at deity anyway, but I'll start on chieftan, and get my feet wet. get a feel for the game. my second game will probably be on deity, to see how bad I can get plastered.

I didn't used to play on higher levels until I came here. I had to try it once to see If all you guys were really that good.

Point was made, you ARE that good. but I learned how much fun it is to get my civ totally outmatched and destroyed. I do it now and then to see if I can survive the game.

I was a bit disappointed by my Headstart scenario on deity. I expected a huge battle with my well entrenched defenses, and a greek diplomat bought my capitol. too bad...

my third game will probably be to find my level.

[Scouse Gits]

I can't entirely agree with Ming - there are many games that I don't start (or finish) at the highest difficulty level. But Civ - assuming that it is still recognisably Civ will I am sure be a Deity kick off and like Father Beast says - let's see how hard it kicks my butt

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Scouse Git[1] -- git1@scousers.net

"Staring at your screen in horror and disbelief when you open a saved game is one of the fun things of a succession game " - Hueij
"The Great Library must be built!"
"A short cut has to be challenging,
were it not so it would be 'the way'." - Paul Craven

[Jarouik]

I will probably start playing with Chieftain/Warlord/Prince and work my way up one level at a time every time I win the game. Remember that, more probably than not, the rules tweaks, modifications and all-around new features in Civ 3 will mean the usual strategies for winning on Deity won't work as such, and I want to start playing Civ 3 from scratch, the way I started Civ I back in 1992: just have fun building an empire you like and getting the feel of the game, trying all the possible options and features before starting to optimize and solidifying a single strategy to win the game (even now, I rarely play a standard ICS game where I build nothing but Settlers and Elephants/Crusaders in all the small cities and take over the world, although it certainly is the easiest way to get a high score, because it gets a little boring). It certainly will be much more fun starting on a lower level, even though it will take more time to learn how to beat the Deity level that way, since that is not the only point of the game.

[Sergei Vamos]

I'll start at Deity of course (if I get the game). I wasted too much time on Civilization 2 on the easier levels working my way up when I could have mastered deity a lot earlier. I'd wasted time and as I think "Ming" says, I picked up some bad habits that maybe made Deity even more difficult than it needed to be. Now I find Deity horrendously easy. There should have been a harder level than Deity IMO.

[Hasdrubal]

I'll start on deity.

That way, I'll be sure that I won't get to try out everything, and learn all the inner workings of the game right at my first go. It will increase the lifespan of the game.

I should state that I started SMAC on the highest difficulty, and got my but utterly kicked.

[Earwicker]

Depends upon how much Civ I'm playing at the time. If it's a lot, I'll go straight for the jugular with the expectation that the basic game skills won't be that different. If I'm back to a Civ hiatus (which seems likely), I'll give it a once-through at King to warm up, then skip to Diety.

[DaveV]

I remember a Brian Reynolds interview at the time Civ II was released. He suggested that experienced Civ players start at one level lower than they were used to playing, so they could adjust to the new game. I dutifully started at King and worked my way up to Deity over the course of three games.

The next-lower level advice will still probably be apt. The problem at this site is that many people would be playing the next level higher than deity, if it existed. So it makes sense to me that anyone who is not challenged by Deity would start the new game at the top level. Those who are struggling at Deity might consider stepping down a level for Civ III.