Sid Meier's Civilization III/Gameplay: Difference between revisions
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The precise goals of the game vary from game to game. For instance, in [[Civ:Civilization|Civilization]], there are two ways to win: launch a spaceship to Alpha Centauri, or destroy all the other nations. Every Civ game has equivalents to these two goals. Most of them have more. For instance, the Transcendence victory in Alpha Centauri corresponds roughly to the spaceship victory in Civilization. | The precise goals of the game vary from game to game. For instance, in [[Civ:Civilization|Civilization]], there are two ways to win: launch a spaceship to Alpha Centauri, or destroy all the other nations. Every Civ game has equivalents to these two goals. Most of them have more. For instance, the Transcendence victory in Alpha Centauri corresponds roughly to the spaceship victory in Civilization. | ||
As in [[en:chess|chess]], the game is divided into several phases and the ultimate goal of the game should not distract you from playing each phase | As in [[en:chess|chess]], the game is divided into several phases and the ultimate goal of the game should not distract you from playing each phase correctly. Checking the king without purpose is useless in chess, as is making empty threats for no reason other than to make threats in Civ. In both games, an empty threat may or may not be effective, but for it to be truly effective it must have sound reasoning behind it, and if it does not work it must not punish the player who made the threat. | ||
==Cities and production== | ==Cities== | ||
All Civilization games have cities. Alpha Centauri refers to them as "bases", but they serve exactly the same function. The primary function of a city is production. The secondary function of a city is acquiring and holding territory. By acquiring territory, you reduce your enemy's possibilities for production. Therefore, an unproductive city can still be very useful, but a productive city will almost always be more useful. The ideal city serves both functions. | |||
===Good city sites=== | |||
The details of what constitutes a good city site depends on the game. For instance, in Alpha Centauri, high elevation is desirable. However, most other Civilization games have no concept of elevation. What they ''do'' share in common is that different terrain will produce different resources and have different defensive capabilities. Therefore, what makes a certain site desirable is always the same: an abundance of resources and an ability for the city to defend itself. | |||
===Resources and production=== | |||
Cities always produce three resources. These are usually named ''food'', ''shields'', and ''trade''. In SMAC, these are called ''nutrients'', ''minerals'', and ''energy'', respectively. In Civilization III, "trade" was renamed "commerce". In Civilization II: Test of Time, the names depend on the current game being played. Regardless of their names, they always serve the same functions. For consistency, we will refer to them as food, shields, and trade. | Cities always produce three resources. These are usually named ''food'', ''shields'', and ''trade''. In SMAC, these are called ''nutrients'', ''minerals'', and ''energy'', respectively. In Civilization III, "trade" was renamed "commerce". In Civilization II: Test of Time, the names depend on the current game being played. Regardless of their names, they always serve the same functions. For consistency, we will refer to them as food, shields, and trade. | ||
Your cities are populated by citizens. They will work the surrounding terrain and produce goods. | Your cities are populated by citizens. They will work the surrounding terrain and produce goods. Each citizen may work one tile, plus the city tile which is always worked automatically. For instance, a city with 6 citizens can work up to seven tiles: the center tile plus one tile per citizens. Citizens can also be specialists and not work tiles; this will be discussed later. | ||
These are the three kinds of goods that your cities will produce: | These are the three kinds of goods that your cities will produce: | ||
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** Science - The taxed goods go toward improving scientific research. | ** Science - The taxed goods go toward improving scientific research. | ||
** Luxury - The taxed goods go toward entertaining the populace, keeping them happy. | ** Luxury - The taxed goods go toward entertaining the populace, keeping them happy. | ||
===Citizen happiness== | |||
For your cities to be productive, their citizens must be kept content. If the number of unhappy people exceeds the number of happy people in a city, the city will fall into civil disorder. Content citizens and specialists do not enter the equation. When a city is in civil disorder, ''no'' goods are produced other than food. (In some games, rush-building during disorder is impossible, as well.) Some Civ games have nuclear power plants or other improvements that are dangerous to have in a city under civil disorder. Also, some Civ games have forms of government that cannot handle prolonged civil disorder (usually Democracy). | |||
==Research== | |||
Each turn of the game, you have a chance to accumulate research toward a "tech" (technology). Techs will grant you new capabilities, or at least the chance to acquire them later, and can be used as a trading item. The only circumstances you will not accumulate research are if you have no cities, your research rate is at 0%, or you have cities and a research rate but are not generating sufficient trade in any cities to put taxes into research. The technologies always follow a hierarchy, called the "tech tree". Most Civ games have one huge tech tree, but Civilization III has four tech trees, one for each Age. All the games have etxremely different tech trees, but they all share similarities. For instance, many players could not tell you the exact effects of "Electricity" for every single Civ game without looking it up (but good players will certainly know them for their favorite games). This is because the name of the tech may have little to do with its effects. | |||
==Expansion phase== | ==Expansion phase== | ||
