|
|
|
WE WILL DESTROY YOU
Last Seen:
3/11/2010 10:53 AM
Posts: 6,812
Visits: 31,300
|
|
When Scipio posted this Prince Dynasty Game, it inspired me to start a new thread.
When I play the one player game, either with the Ness/LC dynasty, or solo, I play on the Emperor level. For me I've come to view the Civ not as merely some game to blow off steam and waste time, but rather an exercise in attention to detail, strategic focus on short term and long term planning, and so on and so forth. Maybe that is why I've been able to get to the Emperor level at this point.
Anyways, I would like to start some advanced level discussion to see how others who might be at this level or higher deal with the challenges that come with it.
Wonders and Religion
I'll start with the Wonders and Religion, as both involve some kind of race to get a singularity. They are two sides of the same coin. My basic attitude for this is to sacrifice as much as possible. It is essential at the higher levels if you want to get anywhere.
For the Wonder, that means sacrificing everything you possibly can for production. If your city has to starve nearly to the point of reduction, so be it. If your science lags for a couple of turns to get the wonder built faster, that is the price you have to pay. Of course you want your city to be maxed out in size, relative to the situation, to maximize production, but once you get there, cut the reins and go full steam ahead. I've been burned one too many time, missing a wonder but 1 to 5 turns because I did not make the necessary adjustments to maximize production. And even if you do everything possible and still just miss it by a couple of turns, you still get a whole lotta gold. I don't know about higher levels, but I have found it IS possible to get wonders on the Emperor level.
As for the Religion, the same sacrifices you make for production, you instead make for commerce as it relates to science. Of course, you have to make a realistic assessment to whether or not you have a shot at the Religion, because if you do not, all the squeezing of scientific potential in the world is not going to make a difference, but if you think you have a shot, go for it. You don't want to miss that religion by one turn do you? For some of the earlier wonders, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, there is not much you can do, maybe move your workers around to tiles with commerce from those that are lacking, but for the later religions, Confucianism, Taoism, Christianity, Islam, the Science specialist is your best friend. Make sure you have access to the specialist, and use it to your fullest potential.
And if you don't end up with a religion, the game is not over. If you can keep yourself in the game long enough to merit serious endgame consideration, you should be able to make a serious push at one or two of the corporations to compensate for the lack of religion and set yourself up nicely for that final push.
I'm curious to hear what others might have to say about playing at the Emperor level and above. NC, I know you're there. Artymus, Ness? Anyone else?
|
--
HUMANS! PREPARE FOR ULTIMATE DESTRUCTIONS!!!!
MOOD:
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
Game slut
Last Seen:
Yesterday @ 10:45 PM
Posts: 9,131
Visits: 11,087
|
|
|
|
|
|
WE WILL DESTROY YOU
Last Seen:
3/11/2010 10:53 AM
Posts: 6,812
Visits: 31,300
|
|
Well doc, I did mention that I do not just play this game for a fun distraction. If I want that, I go play Grand Theft Auto III. 
For me, Civ is more a tool for sharpening the mind and such, somewhat like chess, I guess. As far as the tedium is concerned... well, I am, in fact, a bench scientist/biologist, so tedium is what I do for a living, you know, repetition of experiments and all that, and I enjoy what I do, so I guess I could say tedium does not bore me, but rather is more of an escape.
For me, with civ, the enjoyment is not just building up some huge army and crushing everything in its path. Instead, for me the enjoyment as taking one settler unit and building it into an empire and getting to the point where winning is a great possibility. If I don't win the game, eh, there's always next time, but I like to take different circumstances and see if I can just get to the same result.
|
--
HUMANS! PREPARE FOR ULTIMATE DESTRUCTIONS!!!!
MOOD:
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Game slut
Last Seen:
Yesterday @ 10:45 PM
Posts: 9,131
Visits: 11,087
|
|
|
Hmmm. Well maybe I should buy Grand Theft Auto, cause what I primarily want from my games right now is DISTRACTION! I've found that games like Civ, the Matrix games, etc., basically complex turn-based strategy games are fun for me through the learning phase: getting to the point where you've mastered the game against the AI at parity. Beyond that, it starts to seem like work . . . though defeating poor hapless human opponents in PBEMs is a joy that never fades 
|
--
tones (9/1/2009)
I was minded to compare this site to a sort-of-private Facebook, but, on reflection, that's not right . . . Nope. Here is a forum to exchange views and discuss topics and maybe have some literary fun; post some interesting pics (not Megabits of family krap); flag up some internet sites of Interest; pass on the occasional joke. To me, (struggling for analogy here) it's bit more like a quiet and cosy pub with locals you know and the occasional visitor from "outside"; thick stone walls and a cellar full of well-kept ale. Facebook, on the other hand, is some awful massive city-centre club that serves Fosters lager. And, you know what? I am not unhappy with that analogy. I prefer the pub.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Make my day
Last Seen:
Today @ 6:29 AM
Posts: 3,259
Visits: 5,538
|
|
|
|
|
|
EVERYBODY PANIC!!!
Last Seen:
Today @ 2:44 AM
Posts: 5,637
Visits: 7,018
|
|
|
I find it hard to justify building wonders on Emperor setting. They are sooo expensive compared to normal and if you're industrius, then perhaps thats a good reason to do it, but otherwise I tend to think its better to take them from other civs rather than build them on your own. I tend to emphasize commerce more on Emperor setting, but with the caveat that you MUST crush someone fairly early in the game if I'm going to make a game of it. If you don't, the AIs will run away with it starting about the middle ages. Another thing is to perhaps play with the intention of permanently allying with someone. Pick someone you want to ally with and give them whatever they want. They might carry you in science once you ally. Cheesey a bit, maybe, but its a way to win. Also, if I don't get a great starting position, I will regenerate the map on the 1st turn. An average to poor starting position will guarantee you'll LOSE on Emperor setting, IMHO. Great thread, LC. I'd love to hear some odd Emperor strategies out there. I tend to lose 1/2 of these games, if not more at times, but I agree with you, LC.... Its the ultimate chess game in my mind. The deck is stacked against you from the beginning and if I triumph, I feel like a genius. lol.
|
--
"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." -- Bill Cosby
Mood today: 
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Make my day
Last Seen:
Today @ 6:29 AM
Posts: 3,259
Visits: 5,538
|
|
|
|
|
|
Game slut
Last Seen:
Yesterday @ 10:45 PM
Posts: 9,131
Visits: 11,087
|
|
tones (12/8/2008)
Its the ultimate chess game in my mind. The deck is stacked against you from the beginning Hmmm... mixing your metaphors there a bit Nuke Yes it is like a chess game, to a certain extent, but there is too much random stuff happening for the analogy to stand up more than just briefly. It is a game of chess where your opponent makes decisions based upon which card he draws from his private pack. The "difficulty" of higher levels only comes from the fact that he (effectively) starts with many more pieces than you. Like Scipio, I tend to lose interest battling such "unfair" odds. The AI is not being smarter - it is just being given an artificially higher chance of winning. That annoys me rather than stimulates me. However, each to their own - at least we all have a choice of which level to play at, and we all, I guess, end up with the one we find most fun. I suppose higher levels force you to explore alternative strategies to the usual but there is something slightly wrong with that to my mind - you should be able to win at high levels by being a better player, not by using some weird means like "thou shalt not build Wonders cos they're too expensive and you will lose". It misses the point IMHO. I agree completely. I enjoyed mastering Civ3 on Monarch difficulty (one notch above parity), but I always found the sheer magnitude of the AI exploits (e.g., showing up on my shorelines with 5 boatloads of rifleman when I had merely 3 or 4 pikes and longbows guarding my cities) to be just gamey and annoying. I won a few Emperor games in Civ 3 but mostly I just found them tedious, and annoying. There is definitely a 'trick' to winning on the disproportionately unbalanced difficulty levels, but I don't enjoy these games for learning and performing tricks. I'll be perfectly content if I can master Prince level, and occasionally (if I'm lucky enough to have a forgiving if not beneficial map-combo) have a really close and fun win on the next level up. And I'm by no means in any hurry to get to either of those places; it is not after all a job! I probably played Civ3 Conquests for a solid year before I got bored with playing at parity with the AI, and started trying my hand at Monarch. I probably played it for another year or more before I really had mastered that level. What's the rush!?
|
--
tones (9/1/2009)
I was minded to compare this site to a sort-of-private Facebook, but, on reflection, that's not right . . . Nope. Here is a forum to exchange views and discuss topics and maybe have some literary fun; post some interesting pics (not Megabits of family krap); flag up some internet sites of Interest; pass on the occasional joke. To me, (struggling for analogy here) it's bit more like a quiet and cosy pub with locals you know and the occasional visitor from "outside"; thick stone walls and a cellar full of well-kept ale. Facebook, on the other hand, is some awful massive city-centre club that serves Fosters lager. And, you know what? I am not unhappy with that analogy. I prefer the pub.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
WE WILL DESTROY YOU
Last Seen:
3/11/2010 10:53 AM
Posts: 6,812
Visits: 31,300
|
|
SILENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is not the "why I hate the higher difficulty levels thread!!!!!" Please take your negativity OUT of here!
Haha, just kidding. Doc, you say it gets to a point where it becomes work. Well to you maybe it does, to me it is a labor of love!  and besides, you don't expect activities aimed at sharpening the mind to be effortless do you?
Nuclearcow (12/8/2008)
I find it hard to justify building wonders on Emperor setting. They are sooo expensive compared to normal and if you're industrius, then perhaps thats a good reason to do it, but otherwise I tend to think its better to take them from other civs rather than build them on your own.
Justify this, beeeyotch!!!!! :
This being my current Emperor game. Notice the Great Wall, the Stonehenge, the Hanging Gardens, the Pyramids, AND the Temple of Solomon. I think to succeed in the Emperor level you have to have a flexible game plan. Certain situations, such as having immediate access to the Stone allow for such things.
I tend to emphasize commerce more on Emperor setting, but with the caveat that you MUST crush someone fairly early in the game if I'm going to make a game of it. If you don't, the AIs will run away with it starting about the middle ages.
It also helps if you do have a financial oriented Civ, such as the Mali as in my game, screenshot provided above. That really does seem to be a very powerful trait for the humanplayer to have on this level of play, it sort of serves as an equalizer.
Another thing is to perhaps play with the intention of permanently allying with someone. Pick someone you want to ally with and give them whatever they want. They might carry you in science once you ally. Cheesey a bit, maybe, but its a way to win.
Interesting strategy. They say jump, you say how high. Well, it definitely helps to have friends in high places, I will not deny that.
Also, if I don't get a great starting position, I will regenerate the map on the 1st turn. An average to poor starting position will guarantee you'll LOSE on Emperor setting, IMHO.
For me, I quite enjoy the games that seem hopeless, even the ones where I have no chance of winning. It is quite fun for me to see how long I can last in these types of games, and what stops I can pull out to thwart an invader or to see if I can get myself into the space race before the top AI finishes it.
Great thread, LC. I'd love to hear some odd Emperor strategies out there. I tend to lose 1/2 of these games, if not more at times, but I agree with you, LC.... Its the ultimate chess game in my mind. The deck is stacked against you from the beginning and ifI triumph, I feel likea genius. lol.
I think the saying goes, if you are winning about half the time you are playing at an appropriate skill level. See for me tones, scipio, it does take strategy and different ways of thinking and playing to beat an opponent that has an advantage over you, because, thinking about it, at the lower levels, even at Noble, where all things in game are equal, we the human actually have an advantage over the AI, and that is our brain. Giving the AI more toys kind of levels the playing field. Then again, if you just want a fun diversion, then using your advantage, your brain to devise such strategies may not be all that appealing. 
|
--
HUMANS! PREPARE FOR ULTIMATE DESTRUCTIONS!!!!
MOOD:
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
EVERYBODY PANIC!!!
Last Seen:
Today @ 2:44 AM
Posts: 5,637
Visits: 7,018
|
|
|
|
|
