Strategy Thread - for quick strategy questions and answers

[zanth]

Yep, quite impressive

[zanth]

And btw, how does overflow work? Especially for techs..Is there a rule like hammers that tech cannot overflow more then it costs itself?

[T-hawk]

There's no limit on beaker overflow. The limit on hammer overflow is necessary so you can't repeatedly build cheap units, store up hundreds of overflow, and crash-complete a wonder instantly when you get the tech. Beakers don't need that because you can't repeatedly research cheap techs and there's no reason to store up lots of overflow.

[plako]

There's no limit on beaker overflow. The limit on hammer overflow is necessary so you can't repeatedly build cheap units, store up hundreds of overflow, and crash-complete a wonder instantly when you get the tech. Beakers don't need that because you can't repeatedly research cheap techs and there's no reason to store up lots of overflow.

Correct expect there are often 1st to bonuses that are best collected 1 turning them using large beaker overflow. Best example is Music that is not very appealing tech to rush towards, if you don't get Artist out of it.

[WilliamLP]

What are the important strategic differences between a Pitboss game at normal speed, versus a PBEM game at quick speed. It is possible to be much better at one than the other? I.e. to have a style or skillset that doesn't translate well back and forth?

The obvious differences:

- Quick speed devalues chops, because they still take 3 worker turns (plus moving there) yet the hammers and most other turn costs in the game are scaled down. Thus plays and traits that benefit more from forest chops are presumably weakened? (E.g. Expansive, Imperialistic, maybe Industrious?)

- Techs take fewer turns to complete, but military units don't move faster, so they could become obsolete earlier in a war. This is an advantage to a teching defender that should balance to reduce warfare.

- PB gives a small (?) advantage to playing with the clock, as well as logging in at multiple times for C&D info and proposing AI diplo. Plus you can do a lot of C&D outside the game with CivStats. Not just score changes but looking at times when people are logging in, who is choosing to play in which order, how long people took to play, etc.

- Maybe quick speed and smaller maps emphasize early city micro and sandboxing more, because each more has larger ramifications in terms of the percent of your civ's life. Does this logic follow?

- Smaller games may increase the value of going for one-per-game events like wonders, religions, races to goodie techs. The expected return should be higher with fewer players to compete?

[Commodore]

- Quick speed devalues chops, because they still take 3 worker turns (plus moving there) yet the hammers and most other turn costs in the game are scaled down. Thus plays and traits that benefit more from forest chops are presumably weakened? (E.g. Expansive, Imperialistic, maybe Industrious?)

- Techs take fewer turns to complete, but military units don't move faster, so they could become obsolete earlier in a war. This is an advantage to a teching defender that should balance to reduce warfare.

- PB gives a small (?) advantage to playing with the clock, as well as logging in at multiple times for C&D info and proposing AI diplo. Plus you can do a lot of C&D outside the game with CivStats. Not just score changes but looking at times when people are logging in, who is choosing to play in which order, how long people took to play, etc.

- Maybe quick speed and smaller maps emphasize early city micro and sandboxing more, because each more has larger ramifications in terms of the percent of your civ's life. Does this logic follow?

- Smaller games may increase the value of going for one-per-game events like wonders, religions, races to goodie techs. The expected return should be higher with fewer players to compete?

-Yep.
-Yep.
-Yes but it's terrible manners and Lord Parkin should die in a fire.
-Kinda. I like both, but Quick is much more intense; got to plan your Communism push before you start on CS...
-Yep.

A big one is a slavery buff; 20h/6t is better ratio than 30h/10t, and 20h gets OR or forge benefits perfectly while 30h loses .5h...

[Krill]

Slavery is generally nerfed when used to build foodhammer units though, as you need 1 turn to build into the unit and another turn to finish it when you slave so you only have 4 turns to grow on quick for a perfect cycle, but 8 turns on normal. So IMO it's better to say that slavery is generally nerfed, as workers and settlers are the main beneficiaries of the slavery production.

[Jowy]

Any advice on how to keep up in tech?

[SevenSpirits]

For most players this is the wrong question to ask, i.e. focusing more on tech at the expense of growth will give a poorer result. But a good target for growth will also give economy: try to gain as much population as you can that works resources and (grass and/or river) cottages. I recommend focusing on improving the efficiency of these goals, by making sure to produce enough workers and settlers, taking advantage of granaries and slavery, getting enough happiness, and playing with care and foresight.

If you already have that under control, also consider giving your capital special treatment to run bureaucracy through library+academy, and try to get more great people.

[eastway]

Any advice on how to keep up in tech?

Do not have to attack every civilization at every chance you get.