canals, and other new tiles/terraforming

[ancient]

I think you should be able to build canals in civ3
theres two ways you could be able to make this happens, one way, the way I would prefure it to be would be as a terrain improvement where the tile would be change in to a river tile, the only exception to this would be that each 1 canal tile can only touch 2 other canal/river tiles max. the canal should increase shield production but decrease food, because a canal wouldnt be a source of food at all. so maybe -3, -2 food per canal tile..


the other way could be as a wonder maybe name it suez canal or eerie canal, but you should probably just name it, canal network. this would work like the great wall will, so let say i get 16 canal tiles to place where ever i want in my territorry because i built the wonder canal network, so i choose to connect a few citys to the ocean, thus allowing them to be naval centers.

i made this post because ever since ive been here, i have never seen anyone say anything about canals. firaxis hasnt mentioned anything about new terraforimng or anything and i think this would be the most logical

well if anyone else has there idea for tile post them here..

[Adagio]

Could be nice as a tile improvement

[Grumbold]

If I knew how to, I'd link this thread to all the other canal ones

Seriously though, if you like canals, bump the thread that best expresses what you want to say....

[Provost Harrison]

I like the idea of this as a wonder. I am sure I remember hearing about it implemented as a game feature as a wonder, but it is probably just my mind playing tricks on me.

[Recurve]

The Civ2 tile improvements seriously lack imagination and I dislike the way you have to plaster everything with railroads, farmland and mines (yawn).

I'm looking out of my window now, I see roads, open countryside and a 747 jetting off. Not a railroad, farm or mine in sight!

The next civ should offer at least 2x the current tile improvements, including canals. I'm also open to the idea of a wonder (say the "Industrial Revolution" for canals or the "Autobahn" for motorways) that would give a civ a head-start on construction.

[Mahdimael]

Perhaps the told improvements need to be miniaturized. Remember that a civ square is many miles. So if we had a mountain tile, it could possibly look a little like this:
_____________
| /\/\/\/\/\/\/\\ |
| /\/\/\/\/\/\/\m/\ |
| /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\\|
|/\/\/\/m/\/\/\/\/\\|
|\/\/\/\\/\//\/\/\/\/|
|/\/\/\/\/\/\/\\/\/\/|
----------------------

ok, it's not very good, but can you see what I'm trying to say? Maybe a few tiny mines or farms or whatever on a tile rather than a big old farm covering the whole thing

[Swissy]

I agree with having a canal tile improvement. But a canal should be like a road, no benefit should be given beyond naval units being able to cross land tiles.

[Earwicker]

Well, a canal tile should at least have trade increase, even above the one arrow given for river. Two arrows? Think of them as pre-superhighway superhighways in trade terms. Tremendous impact.

That said, they were quickly replaced with the advent of railroads. This would represent something new for the programmers, but how about certain tile improvements boosted/ made obsolete by certain tech advances? This would be a good one to try it out on.

[Gramphos]

Originally posted by Provost Harrison
I like the idea of this as a wonder. I am sure I remember hearing about it implemented as a game feature as a wonder, but it is probably just my mind playing tricks on me.

You are right. It has been said that the Great Canal will be a wonder placed on the map.

[TechWins]

I think the irrigation is supposed to represent canals.

[Inverse Icarus]

ancient, do you just look at my old threads and write the same thing?

cause you've done just that twice.

oh well. great minds think alike i suppose.

http://apolyton.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=312895#post312895

[Sabre2th]

Canals should definately be in civ3, but with some limitations.

[Jonny]

Originally posted by Earwicker
That said, they were quickly replaced with the advent of railroads. This would represent something new for the programmers, but how about certain tile improvements boosted/ made obsolete by certain tech advances? This would be a good one to try it out on.

Perhaps canals could create 2 trade as well as let ships move through land. However, when railroads are discovered, it could go down to 1 trade, and down to no trade with automobile. However, ships could always move through, no matter what technologies you have.

By the way, what advance would allow canals? Construction? Engineering? Trade?

I always liked the idea of canals in Civ.

[Dr Strangelove]

Actually canals should increase food production and/or city size limit. In pre-industrial Europe canals and rivers were the only practical means of moving food great distances. If wagons were used the horses could eat more than the weight of the cargo. Canals enabled inland cities to draw their food supply from more additional river networks. Paris, for instance would receive food supplies from the Loire river valley area in addition to the Seine river valley area.

[Jonny]

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
Actually canals should increase food production and/or city size limit. In pre-industrial Europe canals and rivers were the only practical means of moving food great distances. If wagons were used the horses could eat more than the weight of the cargo. Canals enabled inland cities to draw their food supply from more additional river networks. Paris, for instance would receive food supplies from the Loire river valley area in addition to the Seine river valley area.

I don't know if this is a good idea. After all, the canals themselves are not producing the food. Maybe canals could act as a water source for irrigation, and you could build irrigation in a canal square, but I don't think the canal should actually produce the food. And about shipping things long distances: maybe canals could also increase the movement rate of caravans (representing river barges, trading ships, etc.) as well as allowing ships to travel on them.