strategic resources

[badams52]

Originally posted by Bluefrog
Some may consider this an exploit, because the AI would never think outside the box, as it were, and do this itself.

I see it as an exploit since the real world doesn't work that way.

Hmmm, let's see. I want to have a large army of MAs, so let's disconnect all aluminum from our cities, build masses of tanks, reconnect the aluminum, then pay a little gold to retrofit them and make them into MA.

edit: added the aluminum for clarity...

[Mazarin]

upgrading units is absolutely ok as long as it isn't performed excessively (I don't see any problem in upgrading defensive units or a couple of horsemen, but it is an exploit when you upgrade 30 warriors to swordsmen and rush an opponent who is clearly superior technologically)...what you actually do is rushbuying at the price of 2gold for 1 shield...they should fix the upgrade costs to 4:1

[Bluefrog]

Actually, badams52, that logic is slightly flawed. Modern Armor doesn't require any more resources than tanks to build...it's just an advance in technology, more advanced methods of using what you have. Most upgrade paths are like that (chariots-horsemen, archers-longbowmen, et al.)

You can train people to fight, though, and not have iron available. Once you get iron, you outfit them with swords, shields, and armor, and they are considerably more battle-ready. At the cost of gold, of course. That's not unrealistic.

What is unrealistic, though, is a civilization willingly not mining ores its people could use for other purposes aside from battle, heh. (In fact, it could be argued that Iron should be a prerequisite for most city improvements.)

[badams52]

ahem, *cough cough* aluminum *cough cough*

[Bluefrog]

Oh, yeah, there's that. Heh. My bad. I have all my territory RRed by that time, so unless I'm completely bereft of a resource, I don't know I need it for something, heh.

[badams52]

Blue, but seriously, training people to fight without swords and armor, and then giving them to them is different than training people to fight with swords and armor. And I'm fine with it costing gold to make warriors into swordsmen.

What is unrealistic, though, is a civilization willingly not mining ores its people could use for other purposes aside from battle, heh.

This is the point I was trying to make by saying real life doesn't work this way.

And on your first point, the upgrading from Airplanes to Jet Airplanes truly shouldn't happen. Let's take this old prop plane, add some jet engines and Boom, jet aircraft

[joncnunn]

Would anybody still build fighters if they couldn't be upgraded to Jet Fighters later (and in case of the Americans, the F 15?)

As it is, Flight is one of the last Industrial Era techs I reserach. (I have a mod that turned the typically bypassed Ampheous Warfare & Advanced Flight techs into requried techs for advancement.)

When I'm a Scientfic Civ, there is over a 90% chance that the free tech granted will be Rocketry.

[Chemical Ollie]

Edit: Posting when drunk is not recommended.

[Master Zen]

It's not just a question of "upgrading" a piece of machinery. IMO, the upgrade represents a makeover of equippment. Look at a fighter squadron with P-51's suddenly gets new P-80s and later F-86s... that's upgrading.

And being behind in resources has its advantages. I usually make a huge 30+ horseman army for the sole purpose of upgrading it to knights when the time comes and start a war then.