Getting Started

[cffl]

I just got started with the game, the only game like this i have played is Colonization.

I was wondering if some of you experts could help me get started.

Who should i be? where do i start? how many cities shoudl i build. What things shoudl i worry about? What settings for production, rations, etc??

thanks a ton!

[Davor]

Be whoever you want to be. It dosnt matter. Its all a name anyways.

When I start the game first thing I do after I found my first city is going to the Empire Manager screen and put the sliders for Food all the way down and Production all the way up and Gold all the way down.

When making second city check your happiness to make shure that city wont revolt. might have to put the gold up but dont put food up unless you have to casue that will slow city growth.

hope this helps.

Davor

[MrFun]

Do not forget though - put the Food Slider back in its proper place before things get bad. I know - an obvious point - but a person could forget to do so.

[New Yorker]

u should also put up the public works to 30 or 40 so u could build tile improvements quicker. believe me tile importments r useful

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if at first u don't succeed, skydriving ain't 4 u

[micrif]

In addition to the tips above:
- start building some warriors to explore.
- start by setting public works to 0% (this way more production goes to building warriors)
- after a while set your public works to an higher level (to make roads and other terain improvements)
- avoid revolts in your cities by putting some units in them or (as mentioned before) increase wages.

[MrFun]

Here is a more complete rundown on how I play the beginning of the game:

Initial build queue:

1 Warrior
1 Phalanx
1 Phalanx
1 Settler
Granary
a Wonder

In the very first opening turn, I also set the following:

-Public Works at 10% until later
-Military Readiness at Alert level (mid-setting)

I explore with each Warrior that the first few cities produce while they get their defense from the two Phalanxes. Note that my strategy involves a slower paced expansion since I do not build a Settler until after the first three Military units are built.

[TacticalGrace]

Firstly, always play the English.

When starting a new game, one of the most important influential factors, sadly, is whether or not you have optimised your sliders (rations/workday/wages). Whenever I've forgotton to do this when I start a new game, even if it's only for 10 turns or so, I've fallen badley behind. Whenever I do remember I easily win.

Barbarians and slavery - does anyone else find it EASIER to win if there are more barbarians? If I have a high barbarian setting I know that I'm going to need strong defences and that slavers are going to be busy. The barbarians are an easy source of slaves. They are easy to defeat and don't make anyone angry.

almost feels like cheating setting high Barb level.
[This message has been edited by TacticalGrace (edited January 19, 2001).]

[Cannes]

I always settle straight away to churn out settlers and explorers as quickly as possible. Your speed in developing early is imperative as your power curve tends to have exponential growth. I know that the power curve doesn't show actual strength, but it is a decent marker. With my capital my early build queue is something like this:
Warrior
Settler
Warrior
Settler
Granary
Wonder

The warriors go exploring searching for huts while the settlers form cities which each produce another warrior for exploring and then settlers for even more cities and archers, phalanx or warriors for martial law and protection from barbs.
[This message has been edited by Cannes (edited January 18, 2001).]

[Quivering]

In multiplayer, you HAVE TO build alot of Warriors and get Ruins, ASAP. The more you get, the higher chance you win. You can't believe how big a difference it is to get a Settler/Disbanded city from it. Even a unit or two can make a difference.
Check the tech curve in the beginning, DO NOT attack those on top. They might have ballistics and then your screwed. If you are the one with ballistics... hehe

If you don't have barbarians, which most don't play with, you can empty your cities and rush an opponent as soon as possible. The danger is if someone else is moving towards you already but usually, it isn't so because everyone builds defenses and then attack. By attacking with your defense, you'll easily multiply your cities and have from this point an easy time on killing the rest. By the time the others have built settlers and a warrior or two to defend, you've got as many if not more cities as them plus you already have a standing army and your cities aren't 1 pop smaller a piece.

So the tip is: Build units, units, units. Warriors after warriors. Your tech won't be speeded by building anything else. Settlers are suicide. Just kill kill kill.

As you can see, this is boring. If I wanna play a wargame, I play SC/BW. So try playing long games but it's hard to get one started. Sometimes, you just have to settle for small crappy maps more often than not.