How to get around ugly roads on mountains

[Ralf]

Most of us think that current roads on mountains just doesnt look that good. Click this screenshot and you get the picture.

Couldnt they camouflage the problem by (besides colonies & fortresses) only allowing roads/RR:s to be built IF there is a mountain-fortress or -colony already there?

This way mountains becomes much more of challenging obstacle in Civ-3. More challenge = more fun.

[Sabre2th]

They shouldn't try to cover it up, they should just fix it. It's not realistic AT ALL to block mountain roads like that.

[Ralf]

Originally posted by Sabre2th
They shouldn't try to cover it up, they should just fix it. It's not realistic AT ALL to block mountain roads like that.

I should have guessed it.

The game must adjust to 100% realism-demands - not the other way around: realism-demands adjusting to whats best for gameplay. And of course - as always:

Not a word about how/if the idea could enhance game-challenge and gameplay of Civ-3.

[Ecthy]

we should be able to build roads wherever we want. and they're not supposed to look plain ugly on hills mountains or forests.... they really should fix it... of course, 1005 realism sucks coz it's annoying in many ways, but civ is a strategy simulation, not a text adventure

[N35t0r]

Not only roads above mountains, but roads above resources (and some stuff which looks like a mine also)

I think that resources should be on top of all...

[Ralf]

Originally posted by Ecthelion
we should be able to build roads wherever we want.

OK then - they probably let you do that anyway.

But in order to avoid those dense & ugly end-game spiderwebs of roads, they should really let roads on each and every city-area tile, be somewhat of a mixed blessing.

The Civ-2 team thought that Civ-1 style railroads on each and every city-area tile simply looked ugly, so they adjusted the RR-benefits and introduced improved farmland. The Civ-3 team should push these adjustments further somewhat with roads also.

[Ralf]

double-post

[Ecthy]

like in CTP then?

the trade bonus roads give is too strong, that's true, that's why CTP has less roads in a game: no trade bonus

[Ralf]

Originally posted by Ecthelion
the trade bonus roads give is too strong, that's true, that's why CTP has less roads in a game: no trade bonus

I dont think that no trade-bonus at all is possible, considering the cost for unit-support, city-improvement support and what else.

Roads must give trade-bonus (at least on some terrain-types), but perhaps irrigated tiles without roads give you maximized food-bonus, while irrigated tiles with roads give you halfed food-bonus (but max trade-bonus). Something like that. This is what I mean with "roads should be a mixed blessing" in termes of food/trade-bonuses.

[Ecthy]

nice one!!

but it might lead to strategies like getting food from somewhere sle and only building roads around the cities.... get the point? they should abolish the trade bonus and give trade for road connections to other cities and for trade resources... the city square might produce a basic amount of trade as well... but I doubt we can impact it anymore

[eNo]

Though the roads do look ugly as they are, finding an alternative without changing the rules or ease of play is difficult. If they re-work the road graphic into the mountain graphic so that the road goes through the mountain, it'll probably be harder to see if the mountain tile has a road already and to which of the neighbouring tiles the road attaches too. How many ways can you tell the player "This tile has a road"? A little road icon in the corner of the tile would be silly....

CivIII roads may look ugly but real roads are ugly too. They're ugly grey lines criss-crossing the countryside. But they're there because they do much more good than harm. Plus a road going through the amount of land that a tile represents shouldn't really have an impact on the tile's productivity.

[yin26]

Notice how the cities sit on top of the roads? Mountains will be the same way by release time...

[Shadowstrike]

Why don't they just make up another half dozen terrain tiles to show a road going "around" a mountain? Other then the possible code messes that would cause, there isn't taht much of a problem.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by Ralf
Roads must give trade-bonus (at least on some terrain-types), but perhaps irrigated tiles without roads give you maximized food-bonus, while irrigated tiles with roads give you halfed food-bonus (but max trade-bonus).

Why is that? Considering a square is hundreds of miles on each side, what kind of a negative impact a road has on it's food production capabilities? None whatsoever.

[Ralf]

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
Why is that? Considering a square is hundreds of miles on each side, what kind of a negative impact a road has on it's food production capabilities? None whatsoever.

OK - but have you any alternative, perhaps more intuitive ideas how "infinite" dense road-spiderwebs can be deterred, or at least not ONLY beneficial?

Some civers have suggested roads/RR:s having a slight gold maintainance-cost. In the domestic advisor-screen the expenses are divided between: science-funding, corruption, maintenance (of city-improvements, but perhaps also roads/RR:s), unit costs and payments to other Civs. Maybe road/RR support-costs is a better solution.