PC Gaming Discussion

[oweb26]

In a further effort to distract myself from life, I decided to get Civ. 5 for my Macbook. So what do I need to know about the game?

Got ready for 2 hours to feel like 15min. I have never went for a cultural victory or economic one (though I Have gotten close on both) I am always a military domination kinda guy.

If you choose to go that route, get horses ASAP and research pottery and writing( these two things will speed up production and you will get techs faster). Then do Iron Working ASAP, if you are surrounded by water you will want to get the navigation ( I think thats it) technology so you can get across the oceans , lakes, etc.

I am so feared in my game that I can pretty much capture any city so everyone is offering me peace and wants to be friends or choose their side.


I did destroy Ghandi because he as getting to big right beside me. LOL

[morsdraconis]

Got ready for 2 hours to feel like 15min. I have never went for a cultural victory or economic one (though I Have gotten close on both) I am always a military domination kinda guy.

If you choose to go that route, get horses ASAP and research pottery and writing( these two things will speed up production and you will get techs faster). Then do Iron Working ASAP, if you are surrounded by water you will want to get the navigation ( I think thats it) technology so you can get across the oceans , lakes, etc.

I am so feared in my game that I can pretty much capture any city so everyone is offering me peace and wants to be friends or choose their side.


I did destroy Ghandi because he as getting to big right beside me. LOL

Don't forget the "National College" slingshot approach (+50% science from the city it's built in and +1 culture). All you need for it is Agriculture + Pottery + Writing + Libraries in all cities.

It's ridiculously easy to get early on and provides a HUGE boost to Science when it's needed most (in the first 20 turns or so).

[Kingpin32]

Well it turns out that I may not be able to play due to the fact that I have an Intel integrated graphics card. Which sucks.

[oweb26]

Don't forget the "National College" slingshot approach (+50% science from the city it's built in and +1 culture). All you need for it is Agriculture + Pottery + Writing + Libraries in all cities.

It's ridiculously easy to get early on and provides a HUGE boost to Science when it's needed most (in the first 20 turns or so).

Yeah I did forget about that, I have that in Washington, actually my Washington can do military or science with relative ease.

How is cities XL 2012 anyone?

[morsdraconis]

Well, I won my first game of Endless Space and I think I'm glad that I ended up not buying it after all. The game really is just exactly like Civilization even down to the fact that it's IMPOSSIBLE to win a diplomatic victory and it's much easier to just outclass the CPU militaristically and just mow over them (like I just did).

It's rather disappointing that, once again, another turn-based strategy game that's supposed to have multiple ways to win really only has one: blow them to hell with better ships.

[JeffHCross]

It's been so long since I've played a "blow them to hell with better ships" (i.e. a sci-fi 4X or RTS game) that I'm really not sure I'd mind.

[oweb26]

Well, I won my first game of Endless Space and I think I'm glad that I ended up not buying it after all. The game really is just exactly like Civilization even down to the fact that it's IMPOSSIBLE to win a diplomatic victory and it's much easier to just outclass the CPU militaristically and just mow over them (like I just did).

It's rather disappointing that, once again, another turn-based strategy game that's supposed to have multiple ways to win really only has one: blow them to hell with better ships.

I dunno a diplomatic victory is hard on Civ V (next to impossible) but I know on Civ IV I have had some cultural and economic victories.


A diplomatic victory in Civ V is like the episode of Pirates of the Carribean where they say all the pirates kept voting for themselves, that is in essence what happens on Civ.

[SmoothPancakes]

I dunno a diplomatic victory is hard on Civ V (next to impossible) but I know on Civ IV I have had some cultural and economic victories.


A diplomatic victory in Civ V is like the episode of Pirates of the Carribean where they say all the pirates kept voting for themselves, that is in essence what happens on Civ.

Yep. I'm sure as hell not gonna vote for anyone but myself. And the only way to get anyone else to vote for me is to have alliances with them. Other than that, everyone just votes for themselves, since they all want to win.

[jaymo76]

With 2 hours to go before the offer expired I picked up the Tropico 4 Bundle for $16. It included the game and all of the DLC. I read a lot of reviews that said you don't need all the extras, but for 75% off how can you go wrong? I also picked up Grand Ages Rome: Gold Edition for $5 which includs Grand Anges and the EXPANSION PACK for Reign of Augustus. It was either this or IMPERIUM ROMANUM for $3.99 but Grand Ages has a lot more stuff and better (though still weak) combat. Two solid games for $21. What a deal!

[jaymo76]

Just for a free time killer, I might pick up Airline Tycoon 2. It's really cheap. Does anyone have it?

[JeffHCross]

I cannot fathom how you guys have that much extra time

( Then again, I do fully recognize how much time I've spent this weekend on NCAA / TGT alone )

[jaymo76]

I cannot fathom how you guys have that much extra time

( Then again, I do fully recognize how much time I've spent this weekend on NCAA / TGT alone )

Vacation / playing late at night after the kids go to bed.

[morsdraconis]

I dunno a diplomatic victory is hard on Civ V (next to impossible) but I know on Civ IV I have had some cultural and economic victories.


A diplomatic victory in Civ V is like the episode of Pirates of the Carribean where they say all the pirates kept voting for themselves, that is in essence what happens on Civ.

With Endless Space, it is impossible because it doesn't do what Civ does (the whole get together and vote thing). Unfortunately, it's based on being at peace with races and it builds up over time. The issue is, the CPU controlled races will flip out and decide that you either have too much military, not enough military, your influence ring is touching theirs, or some other bogus bullshit and decide to go to war with you, no matter if you're at peace with them or not.

It's definitely an issue in the game because it's literally impossible to achieve diplomatic victory without doing some REALLY cheap things to keep the CPU controlled races from constantly fighting and being at war with either you or themselves.

As for an economic victory, you have to make a SHIT TON of money for it to kick in (20k a turn or so) and I just don't see how that's possible without having seriously unhappy citizens, which totally puts everything else at a halt. Most I've been able to make a turn has been 2k or so, but I also wasn't really trying to pull it off. It might actually be something to try some time down the road.

Science victory (culture in Civ basically) is nigh impossible too because you have to research the final tech in the Science tree which is INCREDIBLY expensive. I was specializing in getting as much Science per turn as I could and I was still only getting about 2k or so a turn whereas the final tech in the Science tree costs somewhere in the neighborhood of 50,000 or so to research (if I remember correctly).

All of that is just FAR more difficult than just building a powerful array of ships and blowing everyone to shit.

[oweb26]

With Endless Space, it is impossible because it doesn't do what Civ does (the whole get together and vote thing). Unfortunately, it's based on being at peace with races and it builds up over time. The issue is, the CPU controlled races will flip out and decide that you either have too much military, not enough military, your influence ring is touching theirs, or some other bogus bullshit and decide to go to war with you, no matter if you're at peace with them or not.

It's definitely an issue in the game because it's literally impossible to achieve diplomatic victory without doing some REALLY cheap things to keep the CPU controlled races from constantly fighting and being at war with either you or themselves.

As for an economic victory, you have to make a SHIT TON of money for it to kick in (20k a turn or so) and I just don't see how that's possible without having seriously unhappy citizens, which totally puts everything else at a halt. Most I've been able to make a turn has been 2k or so, but I also wasn't really trying to pull it off. It might actually be something to try some time down the road.

Science victory (culture in Civ basically) is nigh impossible too because you have to research the final tech in the Science tree which is INCREDIBLY expensive. I was specializing in getting as much Science per turn as I could and I was still only getting about 2k or so a turn whereas the final tech in the Science tree costs somewhere in the neighborhood of 50,000 or so to research (if I remember correctly).

All of that is just FAR more difficult than just building a powerful array of ships and blowing everyone to shit.

WOW well in your case then yes. I was going to buy this game too but I just decided it looked like too much for me at this moment. I am also still playing on my old pc dunno if it can handle it.

[oweb26]

Vacation / playing late at night after the kids go to bed.

That is exactly how I play. I haven't even touched football all weekend because of this sale and all the new games I have bought.

[SmoothPancakes]

That is exactly how I play. I haven't even touched football all weekend because of this sale and all the new games I have bought.

Raises hand. I haven't even turned on my 360 at all since probably Thursday, been so busy buying and playing new games through the Summer Sale. I'm gonna try to get back on NCAA today, gotta get defensive coaches named and finished and get some sliders figured out still.

[SmoothPancakes]

Alright, so I got sucked back into Crusader Kings II. Just hit 1166 in my current game, on my fourth generation ruler. After that years-long succession war when my first ruler, King Aedan I, died, I changed the laws to make the Kingdom of Ireland a primogeniture kingdom. It may cause some anger for the other siblings and lead to a chance of revolt, but keeping the titles all with a single person, the oldest son, I haven't had to worry about succession wars since early on.

Currently, I'm waiting as my current ruler, King Demman I, is only 15 years old (the previous heir, Duke Demman I of Leinster, died young, so the first son of Duke Demman (current King Demman I) was next in line, but still young, only 12 years old when he rose to the throne. In the last 50 years of the game, things have become very exciting. I was able to make a beachhead on the English coast thanks to some fabricated claims and usurped titles, making myself the King of Wales in the process. Then everything came to a complete standstill. I was left opposed by the Kingdom England and the Kingdom of Scotland, both very secure kingdoms with MASSIVE armies. The largest army I could bring to arms (with the help of hired mercenaries and holy armies), was 15,000 soldiers. I declared war on England and Scotland separately over a period of three years, they both came storming in with armies over 20,000 soldiers strong. Whooped my ass and I ultimately had to surrender both wars.

Then everything changed in the last 5 years. Shortly after King Aedan II died and King Demman I took over (with regent), the King of England died, starting a massive fucking civil war. Currently in 1166, there are 15 separate counties and duchies in former Kingdom of England lands. The Kingdom of England still exists, but it is fractured all to hell. So now is my chance to start stealing some land from these various counties and duchies (who have much weaker armies than the Kingdom of England) and give myself a large foothold for the future whenever the Kingdom of England pieces itself back together.

I was hoping the same would happen to Scotland (since their king is old and it's also not long before he croaks), but Scotland has Agnatic Primogeniture laws, so I doubt they'll have a full blown civil war. England is Agnatic Elective, so shit hit the fan when King Leofwine I died. Now they have King Harold IV, some 16 year old fat fuck who definitely does not appeal to everyone in England based on the massive Kingdom-wide revolts and wars.

The only thing that's pissing me off, is I have only managed to steal the county of Shrewsbury, thanks to my dumbass Chancellors taking FOREVER to fabricate claims. I could have had the counties of Hereford, Derby and Worcester months, even years ago if my damn Chancellors would hurry the hell up. That's my main worry, that the Kingdom of England will start to regain it's power and Derby, Worcester and Hereford will all fall back under English reign (Hereford already has fallen back under the control of King Harold IV) before my Chancellor can fabricate claims for those counties and I'm able to declare war and take them under my reign.

I think saying that Crusader Kings II has become my new #1 PC game to play whenever I can (previously that top spot rotated between Civ IV/V and Rome: Total War) is a massive understatement at this point. This game is so much damn fun, especially as leaders rise and die and random counties and duchies suddenly revolt in various lands, allowing for primo land stealing chances. Plus add in the various murder plots and threats that arise, throwing people in the dungeons and either execute them sometime down the road or let them sit there and rot (my record longest prison sentence was my brother, who I let sit and rot for 50 years and ultimately dying in prison due to rebelling against my rule and declaring war on my kingdom, becoming a traitor to the crown), excommunicating people now that I have my own anti-pope, attempting to assassinate members of my court and my vassals' courts, as well as assassinate foreign leaders or their heirs, and lots of other stuff.

This was definitely one of the best purchases I've ever made in gaming. And with the loads of mods that people have created for it, plus basically the impossibility of any two games playing out the same, the replay value is infinite. I could rule my dynasty for 400 years and multiple generations in one game, only to be assassinated and my dynasty come to an end in my first or second generation in another game. I love that unpredictability and complete and total unknown in games. Part of the reason I love the Total War and Civilization series, because I have never had a game in either series play out the same as, or even similar, to a previous game. It's always a blind future in these games, most of all in CKII, since things can happen so suddenly (your ruler suddenly die or unexpectedly die young, your ruler be assassinated, vassals or siblings revolt and declare war on your kingdom, other kingdoms, duchies or counties declare war on you, etc) without much warning or advance notice, it truly catches you off guard at times, and if you're not prepared for the worst, you could see your entire kingdom that you have spent decades and generations building crumble before your eyes in a matter of years. I love that blind, unknown future in a game.

[morsdraconis]

Uggh. Damn you Smooth. The temptation to buy that game keeps happening. It sounds amazing but I know how god damn complicated it all is. Gah!

[oweb26]

Uggh. Damn you Smooth. The temptation to buy that game keeps happening. It sounds amazing but I know how god damn complicated it all is. Gah!

It definitely takes a level of dedication which is why I havent fired it up that much. Anno 2070 is fun enough for me.

[SmoothPancakes]

Uggh. Damn you Smooth. The temptation to buy that game keeps happening. It sounds amazing but I know how god damn complicated it all is. Gah!

Yeah, I'm getting pretty good at that.

An update on my previous post, I played for a while longer before calling it a morning, currently in September 1186. The Kingdom of England has been a complete mess. Since King Leofwine I died in battle back in 1159 (ending his 32 year reign), King Harold IV's reign only lasted 20 years before he died in a suspicious accident (aka someone assassinated him), ending in 1179. The next King of England, King Gregory I, only reigned for 5 years, until 1184, before dying in a suspicious accident, so England now has their fourth King, King Godfrey I, in 27 years, causing constant wars, revolts and rebellions breaking out all over the entire English kingdom.

I've used that to my advantage, pressing de jure claims on the counties of Cornwall and Devon since that Duke rebelled, allowing me to declare war directly on the Duke and claim those lands without going to war against the Kingdom of England itself, claiming the duchy of Cornwall, so far giving me the Kingdom of Wales, the duchy of Cornwall, and the county of Shrewsbury all stolen from the Kingdom of England since 1100.

Scotland's shriveled up old fuck ruler, that bag of bones is still breathing, but he had some revolts, so I was able to snag the county of Galloway that I had claims on, giving me a foothold in the Kingdom of Scotland's territory on their southern border. Right now my full focus is on England and it's lands, as they keep suffering revolts from various duchies and counties, as well as having extremely high and frequent turnover in Kings, giving me loads of chances to steal land.

England is example #1 why I will never change my succession laws to Elective Monarchy, because things turn to shit the moment your ruler dies and every Duke thinks them or their children are the best option to take over the throne, leading to massive civil war when they themselves or their children aren't elected to the throne.

To put things in perspective, England has had four Kings in the last 27 years alone (I'm 120 years into the game so far). Ireland has had four Kings since the Kingdom of Ireland was created in 1086. King Aedan I was able to create the Kingdom of Ireland after 20 years of rule (started the game in 1066), before being murdered by the Earl of the Isle of Man in 1093, ending his 27 year rule. King Amlaib I ruled until dying a natural death in 1124, ending a 31 year reign. King Aedan II ruled for 38 years before dying a maimed cripple in 1162. And King Demman I has ruled for 24 years and is still going strong.