Just the game, or do I suck!?

[Qaiphyx]

Ok... Ive played a few games with various civs. I started out on cheiftain and they were extremely easy. When I moved to warlord I get the crap kicked outta me. I am usually behind scientifically, expansion wise, military wise, and economic wise. No matter what I do I always get beat down and lose. Anyone know what I might be doing wrong?

[Rhothaerill]

If you post a few saved games at various points in the game then we can look at them and check it out.

One of the best recommendations I can make is to read through some of the strategy threads, both in the current forum and especially the archives. The strategy forum has links to all the classic strategy threads. After reading through some of them they should give you some ideas to improve your gameplay.

Good luck.

EDIT: Check out the Glossary for Civ3 Strategy by bsklepzig as the top of the forum for the links to the other good threads.

[vmxa1]

Re: Just the game, or do I suck!?

Qaiphyx, the most important aspect in the game are micromanaging workers and to a lesser degree the citizens.
Then trading is a big factor.
To that end, I would suggest going to CFC and reading Crackers thread on Opening moves. It is pinned in the strat thread, so it is easy to find.
Other aspect will need to be master as you move up, but at warlord, those two items so be enough.
CFC is Civfanantics
We have a topped thread on early strats here as well, but often things are spread all over the place and it is not alway coherent. If you manage to read it all, then it is useful.

[Qaiphyx]

Well how about I tell you wha4t happens. Im start expanding and find out that I can only build about 7 cities cause the other nations seem to have spread a tiny bit more rapidly than I. Then they seem to research a bit faster too, to the point that after a while they will be way ahead of me. Even if I have y research up to the max. It just seems a little rediculous that they go from me having no compitition to them pounding me.

[Qaiphyx]

Here are 2 different times in one of my games.

http://apolyton.net/upload/files/Qaiphyx/CivilizationIIIAutosave1100BC.SAV

http://apolyton.net/upload/files/Qaiphyx/CivilizationIIIAutosave1050BC.SAV

[vmxa1]

Ok this confirms that a visited to the opening move thread will make you a much improved ruler.

The cities are very far apart and what is really hurting your production is you have no tiles improved, except for roads.
The city that you captured had something like three mines and the AI is not know for it great planning.
With neither mines or irrigation, it is hard to grow or build.
You have not hooked up your empire, so only one city can use the horses. I see Iron, but no roads to it.
Swordsmen here would rip the spearmen up. Horses or chariots are very handy.
A lack of workers to get the improvements and maybe not optimizing their movements to save time.
If you have 2 or 3 mines in your largest cities, you would be getting some research.
Note that 100% research yields the same 10 turns as 90%.
I am not aware of the whole situation, but you have tech that could be traded for other tech and cash.
It would be very useful to get contact with all civs to leverage any tech you can sell and maps, not to mention it will make researching cheaper for you.
In depostism it is usually better to mine shield grassland tiles first and then mine grassland.
The one exception to that would be if you are using that city as a settler pump, then get all the food boos you can.
Try a tighter city placement, say CttttC instead of CttttttC.

[Qaiphyx]

This should help me out alot. thanks very much. I guess I suck! haha

[Rhothaerill]

I second what VMXA1 said.

I don't know if you played CTP2, but it looks like you were trying to place your cities like it was done in that game. Cities in Civ3 just don't grow as fast. If you have such a wide placement style then the AI civs will stick their own cities between yours like they did south of Beijing. You definitely could use more workers. The game is often make or break with the way you plan your workers to upgrade your city tiles. A road network is a must for quick movement to each city as well as connecting up the luxury and strategic resources so each city can use them.

I would even go one step further and say CtttC for a city tile placement. I've been experimenting lately with a CttC spacing for even tighter control of the cities.

You don't have to master everything right away, but if you put VMXA1's suggestions into play and take a look at the opening move thread then you'll soon be winning regularly and moving up the difficulty levels.

[Brundlefly]

Slurp!!!

[alva]

Another I would like to ass is to govern your own cities, don't put them on auto.!!
I saw a couple of workers auto-move too, learn to do them manual.

Have fun