Civ III Site Updated

[Father Beast]

Just thinking over the resource system again. does this mean that if your culture doesn't extend to a resource within your city limits, that you would have to build a colony WITHIN YOUR CITY RADIUS to take advantage of it?

Just thinking...

[Father Beast]

Hey, Jeff posted just before I did!!

Thanks for your answers, and yet another previously unrevealed part about gameplay (fortresses and ZOC)

I can't help but wonder if you have to have a citizen working the square with the special resource, or you get it either way. and can pillaging units from a civ at war cut me off from the resource by sitting on it, like they can keep me from producing tiles in civ2?

[java4me]

Is the limit on how far your cities borders can go the same as it was in Civ2 or are they bigger in Civ3?

[Simpson II]

quote: Originally posted by Ralf on 05-12-2001 07:11 AM I just hope that they follow this up by tweaking weaker (but still aggressive) AI-civs to concentrate much more on pillagin instead of fruitless HP citywall-banging. They can do much more damage this way.

You didn't play Smac, did you? That's exactly what they decided to make the AI do there. It would bring up a stack of 20-30 troops, then move them around pillaging while my bases were defended solely by 1-1-1 scout infantry. Very bad idea, the AI should attack when it has massed troops.

[El hidalgo]

quote: Originally posted by Father Beast on 05-11-2001 11:35 PM The one thing that I was hoping for during those munte-and-a-half long slide loads. waiting, waiting, will they do it? DANG! Didn't happen. I was hoping they'd finish the Pyramids and see it on the map. Either they didn't finish them, or wonders don't appear on the main map. Dang...

I would like to see that too, as well as the temple (and any other improvements). In short I'm hoping for more uniqueness in appearance among cities, especially in the modern age where in Civ2 they all look exactly the same depending on size (and it's so easy to make any city large enough to get the biggest city graphic). Even large modern cities in the real world aren't all generic skyscrapers. Look at New York vs Boston vs London vs Kuala Lumpur vs Hong Kong vs Tokyo vs Sydney... etc. Simiarity but not identity. I also hope certain wonders can be built only in certain locations... Lighthouse only in a coastal city, Hoover Dam in a city by a river, etc.

I like the colonies, but I would like it better if they had the potential to develop into real cities in their own right, like New York (New Amsterdam), Carthage, etc. At least if the colony is far enough away, unlike in the example.

Also, I wonder what it means to have a border that extends into the sea, as in the example of Rome? Do you control that area of the sea, too? That would be nice. Maybe you could even built a harbor/port even though the city is slightly inland, like Rome (Ostia), Athens (Piraeus), Los Angeles (Port of LA/Long Beach).

Also I notice that the river is narrower in some places, wider in others. I wonder if this has anything to do with navigability of the river? I really hope so. I want deep-water river ports which ocean-going ships can access! (And canoes or something that can't go in the ocean for smaller rivers.) I want to build an inland port city like Manaus!

Lastly, about foreign nationals living in your city. Their revolting or not should not depend only on culture, but on military might and perhaps other factors as well. Think of Genghis Khan -- he'd slaughter everyone in a conquered if they dared disobey (till Mongol military might started to collapse). Perhaps you should have the option of killing all natives in a city, though this would penalize your culture rating and the other civs' attitudes toward you.

Anyway, thank you Dan and Firaxis for the update! Looking good!

[Sirotnikov]

Colonies must be connected with road to one's city. So does it means no colonies overseas?? And how about resources that are found in the sea (like whales)?

Also, you still haven't explained how do unique civs work...

Good updates after all. Still seems ineresting.

[joseph1944]

In the screen shot we see a border 3 tiles away from city center, however all screen shots of a city screen only show 2 tiles from city center. Maybe they will tell us later.
After looking at most of the threads tonight, not bad. Still a few people unhappy, but most of the people are happy.
I’m very please with everything that I saw in the Firaxis update. One thing is very clear, we will have to produce a lot of military units before we can start upgrading cities with improvements. In Civ 2, I always build two defender per city and then started to build improvements one after another.
Have most of you notice that the screen shots are a lot better each time they show us new one?


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[bagdar]

That means the unhappiness/units-out-of-the-city relation in Democracy has changed, has it not?

[Theben]

quote: Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui on 05-12-2001 05:03 PM You know, one of the best things in the shot was the iron that popped up when you discoved iron working. This will be cooler than I first imagined. Think, what you think is a worthless city, suddenly becomes the most powerful city in the world after oil is discovered there.

Erk...I agree with Imran...*Theben has stroke*

[Theben]

I keep forgetting I have questions for Firaxis:

1) Can the colony be upgraded to a city? Can it grow into one (I know, already asked)? Will placing a settler (likely) or another worker (maybe) upgrade it?

2) Can colonies generate borders? What about fortresses? Are there different levels or types of fortresses?

3) You mentioned that borders are separate from "workable tiles", but does terrain have to be within your city's border in order to work it?

4) What does that peace flag represent? Is it an on-screen indicator of a city in We Love the...Day? Will it only turn on when the city is celebrating or will it (or something else) appear when current indicators (growth, etc) will cause the city to celebrate the following turn? Is there one for civil disturbance?

5) With all the possible luxury resources, it seems that keeping a city happy should be easy. Cn you hint to what are some of the balancing factors?

6) I assume that there is a "patrol" or "guard" command for units. Will it be possible to assign a unit to "patrol" along an entire given trade route (i.e., be the "escort", either overseas or within the your borders on land)?

Any & all answers greatly appreciated!

[Russian King]

quote: Originally posted by Ralf on 05-11-2001 08:43 PM Below Firaxis-answer really feels reassuring: "Alexander, Have no fear! You will indeed be able to decide which tiles within your city border your citizens "work"."

YES-thank you firaxis for listening!!!!!(:kiss-hug
I love what i read and most of what I see. But the rivers and roads are still a little confusing. So are some terrain tiles-just cant figure where everything really is.
I guess you'll fix that and THE GODDAMN CITY NAMES in the future, but everything else looks good.

By the way: are you doing the other ages yet? i wanna see the NUKE!

[Ralf]

quote: Originally posted by Jeffrey Morris FIRAXIS on 05-12-2001 09:37 PM Workers are increasingly becoming mobile "population points", and building colonies is one of their more spectacular abilities.

I see that you guys have killed several birds with one stone here. Workers and settlers can therefore acts as optional war-refugees (or deliberate peacetime pop-transferrings, for that matter). Then any of your border-cities is likely to be irretrievable conquered; you rush-build a worker/settler and move it away somewhat just in case (replacing them perhaps with incoming defenders from other cities) - and if that border-city nevertheless gets conquered, you continue moving these refugees over to a safe city, thus strengthening that city in the process.

quote: Unlike terrain improvements, colonies consume the worker, much like a city consumes the settler. You don't get the worker back if your territory merges with the colony

Good! I dont want to regain that worker, because that would mean one step backwards appeasing ICS.

quote: In this game you need to defend your TERRITORY, not just your cities, or you will be swiftly punished. I find myself building hillside fortresses more in this game than Civ2/SMAC et al. One advanage of this terrain improvement is the zone of control it gives units normally without one (read: most ancient and middle ages units). But it's their ability to protect vital trade roads, colonies, and goods that makes them invaluable.

Well, what can one say? Thumbs up! Those fortresses should be put in better use then they where in Civ-2.
[This message has been edited by Ralf (edited May 13, 2001).]

[Myronides]

quote: Originally posted by Jeffrey Morris FIRAXIS on 05-12-2001 09:37 PM Workers are increasingly becoming mobile "population points", and building colonies is one of their more spectacular abilities. Unlike terrain improvements, colonies consume the worker, much like a city consumes the settler. You don't get the worker back if your territory merges with the colony (the editors will probably allow this to be customized). ... Jeff

Then I hope they are cheap to build and maintain.

[JosefGiven]

First off, almost all the features of Civ III so far displayed are looking splendid. Thanks to Dan and the Firaxians (possible name for a band?) for keeping the Civ III website updated in sterling fashion, too.

quote: I noticed that most of the flat land types had green and grey marks on them (to delineate production, ala civ2). But they don't look that great. Wouldn't it be better to simply say (in the manual) that plains produce I 1 shield, grassland 1shield+1food, and then have a special fertile (black earth?) symbol for those especially rich grasslands that produce 2 food? It would make the map look nicer, cleaner, and less obviously tiled. The shield/food marks really throw the symmetry in your face.

A good point by Krypter. It really is not necessary to include those shield-denoting blobs...perhaps you could go down the Civ II road, and include shield blobs only on terrain where they are 'optional', like Grassland/Grassland shield.

Will a zoom function be included, like in Civ II? I found I needed to use a zoom level different to the default view, so it'd be nice to see the feature available in Civ III.

I must add my whinge to the general cacophony of complaint about unique civs and civ-specific units. PLEASE KEEP THEM OUT! Would America have produced the F-15 if they had started off in central Asia under a Parliamentary Monarchy? No!

Still, credit where it's due...I think you're basically on the right track, Firaxis Bless you!

[Ralf]

quote: Originally posted by Myronides on 05-13-2001 08:52 AM Then I hope they are cheap to build and maintain.

Civ-3 settlers should be just as expensive to build and maintain as they where in Civ-2. Workers on the other hand should be proportionally cheaper, of course. They should however definitelty NOT be as cheap as Civ-2 warriors or even phalanxes - workers must cost a little more then those.

[This message has been edited by Ralf (edited May 13, 2001).]