Ok guys I need your input here....

[Knightblade pDM]

If I change the maximum research time(in turns) down from 40 to 24..make the Golden Age 30 turns and make the city sizes 8 and 15, will it unbalance the game?? I've made other mod changes as well, but I notice that the game never became unbalanced.

I want to lower max research time down to 24 to make combat during the ages quicker and get into the Modern Times earlier. Do you guys think this is good? If not, your suggestions please are welcome..thanks

[Lucarse]

It depends what era you like playing in? alot of people get more out of the early game and the later.

I can't see how it would become unbalanced if the AI is researching tech as fat as you, the AI doesn't tend to upgrade units so if you advance quickly you may get a military advantage?.

[Knightblade pDM]

Well, I love Ancient warfare and I always try to get an early military advantage anyway. Sometimes, depending on my starting location, I don't upgrade units that fast either, but that also depends on resource locations. The AI to me seem to upgrade units as quick as they possibly can. The main reason I'm doing this is because I want Modern warfare to come sooner. Most of my games are over before nukes and MI/MA. So I want to speed things up a little bit

[Lucarse]

If its just a matter of getting to the end techs before 2050 or what ever, try upping your reserch and aggressively trade techs, you'll find if you maitain peace and trade techs you'll advance quickly then unleash hell!.

[Knightblade pDM]

Yeah I do that, but I still seem to finish my games quick because of how aggressively I warmonger against the AI. Sometimes I barely make it out of the Middle Ages because I conquer the AI rather quickly, depending on my mood during the game LOL.

Normally what I do, as soon as I meet my first civ, is turn off research and buy/trade techs then resell them to civs that are behind. And if I get the GL, once that is obselete I start research again or just keep buying/trading then reselling. So it's not really a matter of getting to Modern quicker, I just want to speed things up a little bit more and combining it with my current style of play.

[miccofl]

If you really want to speed things up decrease the "minimum" research time down to one, or just start the game with all civs in the age (or just before) you prefer to play in. For those who like to play with stone knives and bear-skins, increase the minimum to 12 or more to keep your game in the preferred age.

[Lucarse]

Originally posted by Knightblade pDM
Yeah I do that, but I still seem to finish my games quick because of how aggressively I warmonger against the AI. Sometimes I barely make it out of the Middle Ages because I conquer the AI rather quickly, depending on my mood during the game LOL.

Leave the poor AI alone and get advanced! then kill him later with better toys!

Bully.

[Knightblade pDM]

LOL for all the hell they've given me over the past months, it's time for me to get some payback. But anyway, you guys think this is a good idea? I really want to play around customizing my own mod. I already changed UUs, other units and other settings..I just have the general sets to figure out then I'm set

[Hurricane]

Reducing the max research time to only 24 turns is sure unbalancing the game, since the 0% research strategy becomes even more viable. As we all know, the AI won't ever use this strategy.

City size OTOH might even be a small advantage for the AI, especially on the harder levels when they grow faster. Larger cities early means a wide city spacing is less bad as otherwise, which is good for the AI.

30 turns GA sounds awfully long, as they are extremely powerful already. This means it is vital to time the GA well, and means it largely will boil down to which civ you play. A civ with a middle age UU (like the Japanese or Chinese) will probably benefit most of this change.

[Knightblade pDM]

So don't do the changes at all then? I don't want the game unbalanced at all and give the AI and even bigger advantage in the tech race. I play on Regent, and sometimes find myself way back in tech because of my warmongering. When I get the GL I'm back on track and after that I pull away and annhiliate the AI

[cracker]

Knightblade,

I have been following your other posted threads. Not to chase you around but definately to try and figure out how to help you out.

I downloaded the save game you posted and looked at you position and play style.

Do not mod the game at this point becasue you existing style of play is not very effective. Your openning moves seem to be weak, slow, and helter skelter. This translates into a weak empire that is not strong enough to support you in making all the tactical and strategic mistakes that you are still making in the game.

You can fix these problems by reading some competent strategy articles and learning some of the key skills that they present.

The first article you should read is the article on:

Improving your Opening Play Sequences

(when the server comes back up on 9/13 you should read the article and play with some of the test scenarios to get a better feel for what you should be doing in the first 50 turns of the game.

Regent is a fairly easy difficulty level to win at once you know the basics of how to play the opening game.

Modifying the game when you do not yet understand how to play the basics, will really degrade your ability to play the game or get help in finding the skills that will make you a better player.

After you get your opening play upgraded to a functional level, I would guess that you will need to practice some skills with letting your AI rivals live long enough to do some important work for you (research techs, build roads and stuff, clear jungle) while you strategically deny them the resources that might make them a major threat to your survival. (you want to play as some non-industrious civ and play next to France, China, America, or Egypt to get a better impression of why this is an important skill).

You also need to master the value of using units with increased mobility. Most novice players have to make a transition to understanding how valuable horesmen can be if you truly get a handle on the attack and defense values of units in combat. The player how can understand and master the conditions where horsemen can dominate the world will almost always perform better than the player that always relies on swordsmen (use the Iroqs to first learn these skills and then switch to the Egyptians). We have a second detailed strategy article up and available for you to read to help you gain a better understanding of how mobile unist should be used:
War Chariots in a Campaign Against Japan
(again this link may not be up on 9/13 but keep trying)

Keeping working at the Regent level and avoid the temptation to mod the game until you have a better handle on how the software works.

Good luck,

[reefer addict]

Most of my games are over before nukes and MI/MA. So I want to speed things up a little bit [/QUOTE]

if your winning that early and easy you should move up to monarch or emperor, you wont be killing off everyone in the middle ages and will probally have alot more of a challenge.

the down side of changing the max time for research is your units will be obsolete by the time you build them.

emperor means you start off slow and behind in tech most of the early game but can usually pass the ai when you get to the industrial age, the ai seems to drop the ball when it comes to modernizing and gives you a chance to catch up in time to have some serious modern warfare

[Knightblade pDM]

Thanks for all the help and pointers Cracker. Every CPU game I play I catch on early to. I never had any strategy problems with games until I purchased Civ III LOL. So I thought I can just pick it up, play and win. I'm playing another game now, as Japan(drew it randomly) on a Standard map with 7 other civs. if I upload this game, do you want to take a look at it?? My closest neighbor in that game is Babylon I believe. I've read the "..Opening Moves.." thread before, but for some reason it won't sink in. But I'll C&P them and read them offline which is probably what I should've done earlier. Thanks a whole bunch Cracker..much appreciated I'll upload that game a little later in this thread

[Nosferum]

---If you're like me, the problems you had with Civ III had to do with shaking off your old Civ II habits.

[Knightblade pDM]

Nosferum..I never bought Civ II or even the original. I bought Civ III about, hhmm, early '02, maybe late '01, so I'm new to Civ completely. On top of that, I've been involved in other games that have taken more of my time