The 'L' Maneuver

[Sime]

The ‘L’ Maneuver

This is a tactic - not a strategy, but there isn’t any tactic forum.

Also, I haven’t read all the posts on this site so I am not sure if something similar has already been posted

That said....

A tactic I like to use in peace time is to ‘peaceably’ remove unwanted rival civ settlers from land that you have claimed as your own (outside your cultural borders). To do this you will need four military units (fast moving units are preferable for obvious reasons but any unit will suffice as settlers can only move one space). Arrange these units into an ‘L’ shape on the unwanted settler’s adjacent squares. Different variations of the ‘L’ shape should be used, depending on which way you wish to herd the settler. The settler has some options but he cannot advance into your territory. The worst that can happen is that he will build a city where he is. With the computer AI he mostly tries to find a way around the ‘L’ occasionally moving back a space, which is all the better for you. Just remember - as long as he stays active, keep the settler in the crook of the ‘L’.

It is best to keep scouts on the borders of nearby civs so you will receive early warning of advancing settlers.


Sime.

[Eli]

So half of your turn you will be busy with stopping hordes of AI settlers?

Good idea, but this is just like lumberjacking... Too tedious.

[War4ever]

good idea if on a big map and you can't settle quick enough...

for me thats too many units for babysitting....by the time the ai gets to me i have already gotten to them and i would just pick off the setter and take the two workers..

[Fistleaf]

All I do is invade a nearby civ early, raze cities to get hordes of free workers and fortify one worker in each unclaimed spot. The AI settler will never enter your territory if all free space is occupied.

[Grim Legacy]

You can usually see where the AI settler is heading. Two units suffice to cut it off -a nice trade too: two warriors keep a Settler and a Spearman in limbo.

[solo]

Let him settle in a prime spot and capture the city. This saves the cost of building a settler yourself and speeds your own expansion.

Later in the game, when that AI settler is wandering across your empire to that one, desert coastal tile your borders do not yet touch, the L is handy for maintaining peace, as I have yet to see an AI attack me when one of their settlers is wandering around on my turf. They are determined little buggers too, always trying to find a way around the L, and I swear I once saw one throw up its arms in frustration!

[absimiliard]

I have used this tactic myself. I find I can make it work with three units though. One directly between the Settler & his target square and the other two next to both. It's really the same as your "L", I just don't extend one arm out like you do.

This is useful for me during the early "Land-grab" phase of the game, right up until my borders fill in my empire. After that it's rarely an issue any more.

[star mouse]

I have also used this. I think I eventually hit upon the "L" after trying a less efficient straight-line arrangement of five Cavalry. (Having just taken out the Babylonians, I had some bored troops with nothing to do.) I had my chorus line of cavalry lined up next to the errant settler, and if the settler moved to the left I moved all five cavalry to the left.

Eventually my borders expanded and the free space disappeared, and so did the settler's wanderlust.

[G.A]

Originally posted by star mouse
I had my chorus line of cavalry lined up next to the errant settler, and if the settler moved to the left I moved all five cavalry to the left.

That`s bloody Arcanoid, not Civ

[star mouse]

Originally posted by G.A
That`s bloody Arcanoid, not Civ

LOL ... and I swear, the settler bounced off in the appropriate manner once or twice as well

[Zanzin]

This is a clever strategy, and I've used it to halt AI settlement. I wanted an entire continent to myself....there were 4 civs on a "T" shaped land.

I was on the bottom of half of the vertical bit of the T, but ideally I wanted to settle the entire vertical bit. I couldn't pump out settlers fast enough - so, to stop the AI, I built a physical border with units at the top of the vertical bit - it worked perfectly - the AI never really considered using boats to move their settlers. This was there was no war, and everything was peaceful, and I settled the entire vertical slash in my own good time!!

[Blaupanzer]

A vision of the settler and escort dancing across the landscape with your four units emerges. It is either surreal, or all too real. Central Asian tribes and the Plains Amerinds both used a variation of this method to "shepard" folks out of their lands.