Do you Auto Settlers?

[Mercatia]

Do you automate settlers?

A. Yes
B. No
C. Sometimes

[Scouse Gits]

No - the auto Settler is far too stupid - he will irrigate unused squares before he roads used ones and all sorts of similar calumnies...

The only exception, very occassionally I might just be tempted to hit 'k' if I think that it might cause some illegal irregation - not in competition of course - just when I'm SPing for fun.

SG[1]

[Mercatia]

Ive been playing a game for 3 days now though many little 1 or 2 city islands. Roading hasn't been an issue and Im tired of telling them settlers what to do. Oh well will see if it hurts me any.

[Messer Niccolò]

Originally posted by Scouse Gits
The only exception, very occassionally I might just be tempted to hit 'k' if I think that it might cause some illegal irregation
SG[1]

So do I...
Oh, maybe later in the game when there is a lot of pollution I sacrifice 2 or 3 settlers to the "k" key, usually I'm not disappointed (they first go to the polluted square so they don't have time to create problems.

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

I voted 'sometimes' but I should have said 'almost never'. The only time I automate is when there is no water around - as SG [1] intimated, sometimes an auto'ed settler will irrigate without a water source, which is handy when landlocked. BTW, some call this a cheat (??).

Otherwise, they tend to do dumb things like cut down irrigated forests, or destroy silkworm habitats, when automated. Usually the risk of wasted settler actions is too high to automate them.

STYOM

[Straybow]

No, automated settlers are idiots. And I'd never, ever, ever do it just to get a freebie irrigation. I would embark on a Mad Scheme to irrigate the entire 17 tile route from the nearest river, around the mountain, through two hill tiles…

I like Mad Schemes

[Scouse Gits]

Good for you StrayBow - I like eople who stick to their principals however costly they prove to be - I too like Mad Schemes

SG[1]

[Andemagne]

noup, never.

[Mercatia]

Straybow earned my respect!!! Geesh that mad scheme sounds like hard work.

[Smash]

...for the no water access irrigation trick thingy once in awhile but generally, no, if there is something left to do.

[shade]

No way they get selfcontrol...
(but it might take some time moving those ~450(or was it ~700) engineers around and let them transform all those plains )

(ps what is the chance of getting a caravan stuck on a mountain when it's the only not-RR square on the island,using the Go-to command ???...)

Shade

[mrboo123]

No, there idots(

[Mercator]

Only on two occasions might I automate settlers:
1. landlocked square, but even then only when doing it the "normal" way would require way too much effort.
And often even then the AI is too stupid, and runs away from the square I want it to irrigate. If I'm not alert enough I'll lose track of the settler and it'll destroy the countryside by leveling forests etc.
2. I'm in the end game, have way too many settlers/engineers and just want to clean pollution and boost the population. Then I'll automate the lot to turn everything into farmland and clean pollution.

[-Jrabbit]

Never ever.

Re Mercator, I do see the upside of endgame pollution/farming automation. Guess I just seldom get to that point...

[Juggler]

No
Tried it once but after that never again.