Intermediate between difficulty levels

[monkeyman]

A simple question:

What game settings (continents type, # civs, etc) do you use to make a more difficult monarch? On the same note, how can you nerf emperor settings to make it easier?

Non-editor suggestions are most desirable.

--mm

[CrONoS]

hhummm I press on Random and I pray for a good map....

hehheheh...

[bongo]

Random everything, except for barbarians. Pick 'Massive barbarian uprising every 5 turn' or 'raging'

[Mountain Sage]

A more difficult Monarch game? I don't know, really.
But if you want a better challenge, go for an archipelago setting.
First of all, you have to adapt your Wonders and tech research: go for the Colossus, GLighthouse etc.
You also have to adapt your units: you have to switch mentally from a 'classical' pangea game (Archer's rush, Horsemen etc.); forget your beloved Horsemen for a long time: build Galleys instead (LOTS) and explore every bay, inlet, nook and cranny (you can find some Robinson Crusoe goody-huts on isolated islands).
Be very careful with map trading and especially communications. Often, and up to Magnetism, civs are grouped by 'bunches'. They are on the same tech level, since they cannot make contacts (the AI does not launch 'suicide-galleys). This is your opportunity for tech brokering and dry-milking.
Finally, the logistics can be a real challenge: try to invade with 30+ Horsemen on Galleys!
Good luck and have fun.

[monkeyman]

Hi all,

bongo, cronos_qc
I always play everything random...Barbarians on any setting are an undocumented war acadamy improvement...

Mountain sage
Actually, archipelago is my favorite when it comes up. As hard as it is for the human player to manage invasion forces, the ai is really bad at it. Tactics-wise, the ai is decent, since it microes the hit and run so well, but its strategic management of its navies is a real disadvantage for the ai. Add to this that I only just recently started using horsemen and never use archers unless I have no horses and no armor, so these disadvantages are not really critical for me.

So, I tried a game on emperor and figuring that I didn't want to spend too much time getting slaughtered, I played a tiny map. Well, I (Celts) spent the ancient age in the basement, but it turned out to be an archi map, lowest water. I had just gotten a decent # of my UU's built when the 3rd place civ (Mongols) attacked. ~30 turns later I had their main land mass as well as mine. Long story short, a few abortive invasion attempts by #1 (persia), then I get tanks and it's all over but the shouting.(domination victory 190something). Aside from #3 mongols taking the bottom of my main land mass for a silk lux, the game was never really in danger.

So I booted up a Deity game (tiny again) and it's pang, an east asian festival #1 China, #2 mongols, #3 japan, #4 korea (me). Aside from some serious ass-kissing on my part, and being in the sub-basement (score is 1/2 japan's), I just got to the middle age and no-one is in the industrial age yet. There have been some wars, but I have not participated at all. Everyone has an ROP with me (thanks for the idea of buying it to push civs from polite>>gracious which I saw in a thread here last night but I don't remember who said it), and I've been buying 80% of my techs. Also got lucky with a sweet repeating deal with the mongols for my only horses. I am so weak, I can't use them anyway...(how's that for novel deity strategies?)

Lessons learned: #1 Tiny is easier. #2 archipelago is easier. #3 effective diplomacy may be a game-breaker. By all rights, (#1)China, my next door neighbor, should be shoving riders into my capitol (a mere 2 tiles from the border). But they instead are messing with stronger #2 mongols and stronger and farther #3 japan. I still have spearmen in most of my cities, it would not weaken them at all to send in those riders and take all of my cities in ~10 turns. Well anyway, I'll learn when I finish my game if #3 really applies.

--mm