I printed out the strategy and followed it word for word...

The settings I used were 7 Civs Large world 125x80 Wet , Tempoerate, large land mass, 3 billion yrs. Deity level. Raging hordes .

Using XinYus strategy I discovered Monarchy well before any size 5 developed and then realised that this strategy really needs good starting point. So I started again, this time I wandered my settlers till they discovered good food source (river) this took till 2850BC by then AI was too big and I quit as his hordes of Chariots stormed my two citys defended only with Unveterna Warriors

next attempt I used DaveVs ICS strategy again same settings..

In his printout it stated "..at deity level you'll need a second warrior in some cities to keep order after your fifth city under despotism or seven under moanarchy..." I found my citys were growing too quick to manage with only warrior and were all in riot before i had tha tmany citys...

Then the AI civs discovered me and declared war and too k3 citys in two turns...

I followed the Strategys to the letter and still cant seem to get this right can anyone please explain better and help me !!!!

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Rasputin The Mad Monk,

quote: Originally posted by Rasputin on 02-26-2001 06:40 AM Wel li tried and failed, any body here can offer any personal tips for newbies like myself ???

Well Rasputin, if you care send me some of your save files I could examine your games and give you some suggestions. My email is 'marko.raunio@luukku.com'

I'm not sure how long you've been playing civ. If it hasn't been long, then you may just need more practice. If it has been long, then you need a new attitude.

ICS is all about having a bunch of really crappy cities and churning out only settlers and offensive attackers. If you're building Colossus or a bunch of happiness improvements then you're on the wrong track. You must unlearn what you already know.

First build a lot of settlers, set up a bunch of cities, and go to Monarchy. You might want to temporarily stop building cities once you have 6 or so until you can build the Hanging Gardens (to avoid the many cities riot factor). If you do, temporarily max your taxes and build swift units in all your cities. Send all these units to the wonder city and disband them to help build the Hanging Gardens. Check every turn to see if you can buy it yet. If a city becomes unhappy during this time, just use more elvises and grit your teeth.

Build the Hanging Gardens. Once you do, make sure your science is maxed out again and try to only build lots of settlers and one defender per city. Do NOT build Colossus or Copernicus's Observatory or any other science stuff. You're going to be a petty tyrant who rules through lots of low-tech units. Do NOT build any city improvements - not even a temple (well maybe in your wonder-building city but nowhere else). If a city is sad, make an elvis and build settlers there. All settlers make roads between cities and build new cities - no irrigating, etc. (Big cities mean big unhappiness.) Continually found new cities.

Note: The Hanging Gardens is buggy. If you have the Hanging Gardens and another city with two or more units inside riots, try moving one of the units out of the city. Paradoxically, with the Hanging Gardens, martial law units can make a city more unhappy.

A nice order for techs is:
Monarchy - become monarchy
Pottery - Hanging Gardens
Feudalism - Sun Tzu's War Academy (all your cities will make attacking units, none will have barracks)
Monotheism - Michaelangelo's Cathedral (and crusaders)

Don't stray from this path! Up until now, we've just been building lots of settlers with a few warriors thrown in to scout out new lands to settle and to fortify around the AI so they can't expand their empire.

Once you build Michaelangelo's Cathedral and you've built cities near an opponent - it's time for war! Have all your cities that aren't rioting (or that can't make settlers) make crusaders (rioting cities with enough food continue to make settlers). Once you have a good number of crusaders (8 or so) get them together and have them all attack the closest enemy city on the same turn. (If you're really anxious to fight or if peaceful city building is no longer an option, a bunch of elephants can do the trick too.)

Once you take over a couple of enemy cities it's all downhill. You'll keep capturing and building cities meaning more and more cities building more and more crusaders. You might also need to get writing and diplomats if enemy city walls become a problem.

You tech path continues as:
Invention- Leonardo's Workshop
Democracy - Statue of Libery

(You can throw a quick Theology - J.S. Bach's Cathedral in there if happiness gets too out of hand.)

Once you build the Statue of Liberty - switch to a Fundamentalism. Then there's no more unhappiness! You can max taxes and spend all your money rush buying even more attacking units. If the defenders get too technologically advanced, switch to Communism, max science, and discover tactics (dragoons). Then back to fundamentalism for more fun. You might even squash all your enemies before cavalry are needed.

Winning at high levels requires more than just following a strategy guide. The player still has to have a great deal of knowledge and skill in handling all aspects of the game. Those can be developed at lower difficulty levels (and reading posts in this forum!). Each game is different and one has to be able to adjust to circumstances that deviate from what is set forth in the strategies.

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One hundred victories in one hundred battles is not skillful. Subduing the other's military without battle is skillful.

Also, my apologies, Rasputin. Your Colossus and temple remarks concerned an OCC game, not the ICS game. I misread your posts.

quote: Originally posted by Rasputin on 02-26-2001 03:10 AM ok i built colussos , got 3 warriors in ciuty plus temple, city gone to size 5 and is unhpapy... built marketplace people happy agaion, size 6 they unhappy, stil lno tribute fro many AI they keep demanding tech from me which i have to give to retain peace, this is looknig bad again !!!!

You're not in Monarchy - are you? After Bronze Working, this is your only technology goal. Do not trade any technology other than to access Alphabet, Ceremonial Burial, Code of Laws, or Monarchy itself. The more technology you have, the slower your next advance will come through research.

On the other hand, give the AI everything (yes, everything!) you have in your technology list in order to prevent war, get peace (demand tributes with enthusiastic/worshipful tribes), and ideally secure an alliance (and then ask for tributes).

I decided to emulate the startegies as listed here but have been unable to attai nthe same success rate..

Obviosuly the writers of these strategies miss the little things they take for granted. (What ever that is) Having played for over 2 years and stil lnot winning i am obviosuly doing something major wrong, in Multipalyer I can last as good as anyone else, but at SP i suck....

In ICS I will give the advice above a close run through tomorrow..

In OCC I was in monarchy and still had trouble keeping people happy...

I will start again and save the send games to the email address supplied, hopefully you will pick up where i go wrong