Anyone printed out Vel's strategy guide?

[Capt Dizle]

the whole strat guide for v 1.17f would be very short build stuff buy tech kill stuff thats about it oh dont forget buy mpp with several ai and declare war cant lose to starved ai

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by jimmytrick
the whole strat guide for v 1.17f would be very short build stuff buy tech kill stuff thats about it oh dont forget buy mpp with several ai and declare war cant lose to starved ai

This is good advice to follow, if my desire was to play (not win) on chieftan.

If this is your "strategy", jimmytrick, then I can understand why you think the game is broken.

[Arrian]

Actually, setting science to zero, buying techs, and warmongering like a madman is a viable strategy under 1.17, particularly on the higher levels. Very viable, it seems. I can't bring myself to do it, but it is more economical than maxing out science.

The reality is that warmongering is more effective than building. I'm more of a builder than a warmonger, but my best game (score) yet was played as Japan, and the first thing I did was crush India and China. My own continent + 3 great leaders = a big lead. I then played my normal style (go for the tech lead) and it worked great, but I could also have just bought tech as the AI got them and used the insane amounts of cash I was raking in to rushbuy large city improvments, and then, once my cities were all set up, switched back to research mode.

What Jimmytrick is referring to is the AI meltdown syndrome once Nationalism and Communism have made the rounds. Get them into a war (hence the MPP and attack comment), and they will go commie, and start drafting and whipping. In relatively short order, their cities are FUBAR, starving just to keep them from civil disorder. It's a little pathetic, and annoying if you actually wanted to keep a captured city (which, by that stage, I don't. I go with the William Wallace approach - "Burn it").

-Arrian

[sboog]

Arrian, I'm confused. I thought setting science at 90% or 100% was a smart thing to do in order to get advances faster.

sboog

[rlk1220]

Originally posted by Arrian
Actually, setting science to zero, buying techs, and warmongering like a madman is a viable strategy under 1.17, particularly on the higher levels. Very viable, it seems. I can't bring myself to do it, but it is more economical than maxing out science.


-Arrian

I agree...I feel like a pimp doing it, but man does it work. I was 4 or 5 techs down two 2 civs (as Greece no less..did SOMETHING wrong) and fell into it. Now they are buying techs from me...my research is maxed out and I'm still bringing in 600-700 gold/turn. They just keep selling their souls for the latest and greatest. This turn around took @ 40-50 turns straddling the last 2 ages. It didn't hurt that they were in the already mentioned meltdown phase...

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by sboog
Arrian, I'm confused. I thought setting science at 90% or 100% was a smart thing to do in order to get advances faster.

sboog

What he means is that at the beginning of the game, there is very little hope of gaining a tech advantage, due to the ai trading everything. Of course there are situations where you have to research, ie isolated on an island, need map making. If eveyone owns a tech, except you, which will likely happen if all are in contact, then you can buy the techs quite cheaply, often for a map or small amts of gold.

But: there comes a certain point when you have to do your own reasearch to try to gain a lead. I usually do this in the late middle ages, trying to get cavalry first. If you don't take the lead, you will find yourself losing out on wonders and will havie a weaker army.

However, I very rarely would set my tech rate to 90 or 100%. it just is almost cost prohibitive. But, since I had the tech rate so low in the beginning, I probably have built up a nice treasury for the run to cavalry, and can lose a bit per turn and not care

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by Arrian
Actually, setting science to zero, buying techs, and warmongering like a madman is a viable strategy under 1.17, particularly on the higher levels. Very viable, it seems. I can't bring myself to do it, but it is more economical than maxing out science.

Arrian-of course this is a viable strategy, one that I use myself sometimes. My point was rather that jt (out of anger or failure) was exagerrating the lack of intricacy of the game.