Tweet
The problem
While Civ3's first two ages provide some interesting research choices for the human player (e.g. following the monotheism line vs. the engineering line in the middle ages), at the beginning of the industrial age there's only one obvious choice: Beelining for Scientific Method and (pre-)building Theory of Evolution, then taking Atomic Theory and Electronics as free techs and building Hoover Dam. The typical ToE - Hoover beeline will involve researching the necessary techs plus Industrialization (for rushing a factory and a Coal Plant in the cities that will build the wonders), sometimes also plus Nationalism (if there's the threat of a cavalry attack by a powerful AI). After finishing Hoover, the human player normally has a huge production advantage and effectively won the game (that is, if he didn't already win by a cavalry blitz.
)
Taking a closer look, the most unbalancing factor seems to be neither the possibility to get/enlarge a tech lead by building ToE (although this is a very attractive strategy) nor the option to use ToE's free techs for securing an advantage to build Hoover (although a free hydro plant in every city isn't that bad, either). The crucial point, IMO, are the tech costs. Atomic Theory and Electronics have costs of 200 and 180, and therefore are the most expensive techs that a player is likely to have as research options when he finishes ToE. (Radio, Flight and Advanced Flight are the only industrial techs that are also that expensive, and they show up much later in the tech tree). Choosing any techs but A.T./El. as free techs means wasting a huge amount of 'free' research, and therefore taking the A.T./El. route - and building Hoover - becomes the obvious choice. There are some alternatives that would be attractive in principle (e.g. going for The Corporation and building a lot of stock exchanges), but as long as there's the issue of 'wasted' free research, the human player will postpone these alternatives.
Possible Solution
Reduce the cost of Atomic Theory and Electronics by 60 each (A.T. from 200 to 140, El. from 180 to 120). Correspondingly, increase the costs of The Corporation and Replacable Parts by 60 each (C. from 100 to 160, R.P. from 140 to 200). This makes The Corporation (which gives stock exchanges) and Replacable Parts (which gives Infantry, Artillery and double worker speed) the two most expensive techs that a player can get for free with ToE. Now going for A.T./El. because of Hoover means wasting free research. This should make for some really interesting choices.
What do you think?
While Civ3's first two ages provide some interesting research choices for the human player (e.g. following the monotheism line vs. the engineering line in the middle ages), at the beginning of the industrial age there's only one obvious choice: Beelining for Scientific Method and (pre-)building Theory of Evolution, then taking Atomic Theory and Electronics as free techs and building Hoover Dam. The typical ToE - Hoover beeline will involve researching the necessary techs plus Industrialization (for rushing a factory and a Coal Plant in the cities that will build the wonders), sometimes also plus Nationalism (if there's the threat of a cavalry attack by a powerful AI). After finishing Hoover, the human player normally has a huge production advantage and effectively won the game (that is, if he didn't already win by a cavalry blitz.
) Taking a closer look, the most unbalancing factor seems to be neither the possibility to get/enlarge a tech lead by building ToE (although this is a very attractive strategy) nor the option to use ToE's free techs for securing an advantage to build Hoover (although a free hydro plant in every city isn't that bad, either). The crucial point, IMO, are the tech costs. Atomic Theory and Electronics have costs of 200 and 180, and therefore are the most expensive techs that a player is likely to have as research options when he finishes ToE. (Radio, Flight and Advanced Flight are the only industrial techs that are also that expensive, and they show up much later in the tech tree). Choosing any techs but A.T./El. as free techs means wasting a huge amount of 'free' research, and therefore taking the A.T./El. route - and building Hoover - becomes the obvious choice. There are some alternatives that would be attractive in principle (e.g. going for The Corporation and building a lot of stock exchanges), but as long as there's the issue of 'wasted' free research, the human player will postpone these alternatives.
Possible Solution
Reduce the cost of Atomic Theory and Electronics by 60 each (A.T. from 200 to 140, El. from 180 to 120). Correspondingly, increase the costs of The Corporation and Replacable Parts by 60 each (C. from 100 to 160, R.P. from 140 to 200). This makes The Corporation (which gives stock exchanges) and Replacable Parts (which gives Infantry, Artillery and double worker speed) the two most expensive techs that a player can get for free with ToE. Now going for A.T./El. because of Hoover means wasting free research. This should make for some really interesting choices.
What do you think?
how about something more radical, like moving Scientific methods tech much earlier, say after Theory of Gravity, and make it non-compulsory to get to Industrial Age ! 
Comment