Civ 2 Walkthru

The Unofficial .o88b. d888888b db db d888888b d888888b d8P Y8 `~~88~~' `8b d8 `~~88~~' `~~88~~' 8P 88 `8b d8 88 88 8b 88 8b d8 88 88 Y8b d8 88 `8bd8' 88 88 `Y88P' d888888b bd d888888b d888888b .d8888. d888888b d8888b. .d8b. d888888b d88888b d888b db db 88' YP `~~88~~' 88 `8D d8' `8b `~~88~~' 88' 88' Y8b `8b d8' `8bo. 88 88oobY' 88ooo88 88 88ooooo 88 `Y8b. 88 88`8b 88~~~88 88 88~~~~~ 88 ooo 88 db 8D 88 88 `88. 88 88 88 88. 88. ~8~ 88 `8888Y' YP 88 YD YP YP YP Y88888P Y888P YP d88888b .d8b. .d88b. 88' d8' `8b .8P Y8. 88ooo 88ooo88 88 88 88~~~ 88~~~88 88 88 88 db 88 88 db `8P d8' db YP VP YP YP VP `Y88'Y8 VP Release v2.2 Last Updated: May 31, 1996 15:44 GMT Written by: Edward Kenworthy ([email protected]) =========================== ***A PLEA FROM THE HEART*** =========================== I had a hard disk crash which meant I lost version 2.1 and all the contributions made by people after that. If you contributed and your contribution is not here can you get back to me. I'm particularly keen to get the naval strategy someone contributed - but I can't even get back to them to ask because my email address book went with the hard disk. This is version 2.2 DISCLAIMER The purpose of this FAQ is to aid the public regarding strategies and tactics to use in the game Civilization II, by Micrprose. In no way should this promote your killing yourself, killing others, or killing in any other fashion. Edward Kenworthy claims NO responsibility regarding any illegal activity concerning this FAQ, or indirectly related to this FAQ. TRADEMARK INFORMATION Civilization 2 is a trademark, and is so acknowledged. Any trademarks not mentioned here are still acknowledged. COPYRIGHT NOTICE This article is Copyright 1996 by Edward Kenworthy. All rights reserved. You are granted the following rights: I. To make copies of this work in original form, so long as (a) the copies are exact and complete; (b) the copies include the copyright notice and these paragraphs in their entirety; (c) the copies give obvious credit to the author, Edward Kenworthy; (d) the copies are in electronic form. II. To distribute this work, or copies made under the provisions above, so long as (a) this is the original work and not a derivative form; (b) you do not charge a fee for copying or for distribution; (c) you ensure that the distributed form includes the copyright notice, this paragraph, the disclaimer of warranty in their entirety and credit to the author; (d) the distributed form is not in an electronic magazine or within computer software (prior explicit permission may be obtained from Edward Kenworthy); (e) the distributed form is the NEWEST version of the article to the best of the knowledge of the distributor; (f) the distributed form is electronic. You may not distribute this work by any non-electronic media, including but not limited to books, newsletters, magazines, manuals, catalogs, and speech. You may not distribute this work in electronic magazines or within computer software without prior written explicit permission. These rights are temporary and revocable upon written, oral, or other notice by Edward Kenworthy. This copyright notice shall be governed by international copyright law. If you would like additional rights beyond those granted above, write to the author at "[email protected]" on the Internet. CONTENTS: [1] Introduction [1-1] Foreword [1-2] About the unofficial Civilization II Strategy FAQ [1-3] Getting the unofficial Civilization II Strategy FAQ [1-4] Adding to the FAQ [1-5] Acknowledgments [1-6] Accurate Information [1-7] The format of this FAQ -Section One- GAME ELEMENTS [2] The Tools Of The Trade *2-1* Infantry [2-2] Mounted [2-3] Vehicles [2-4] Big Guns [2-5] Naval Units *2-6* Aircraft [2-7] Trade Units *2-8* Buildings [2-9] Terrain Improvements *2-10* Governments [2-11] Wonders of The World [3] Important information not in the manual [3-1] [blank] -Section Two- STRATEGIES *5* The Early Game [6] The Mid Game *7* The Late Game *8* Player tips [9] War Stories -Section Four- MISCELLANEOUS *10* Internet resources [10-1] Third party programs [10-2] World Wide Web sites *10-4* Other FAQs and texts *11* Bugs, updates, future games [11-1] The wishlist [11-2] Questions regarding Civ2 present and future *11-3* Update patches [11-4] Errors in the Civ2 manual [12] Conclusion *13* Revision History ------------------------- CHAPTER [1]: Introduction ------------------------- [1-1]: Foreword ================== I was rather disappointed at the lack of any sort of strategy guide or faq for Civ2 - so rather whine about it I decided to write my own. And here it is. What are my credentials ? Well I've been playing Civ since 4000BC (or does it just seem that way) and Civ2 ever since it was published (about five minutes ago). I've never scored over 200% (basically because I declined to use the various "cheats" in Civ (goody two shoes!) but did regularly score over 100% on Emperor. I seem to be managing similar scores in Civ 2. If you have any new tips, comments or questions please email them to [email protected]. Good ones will be included in the next version of this document - with a credit of course. [1-2]: About the unofficial Civilization 2 Strategy FAQ =============================================== Welcome to v2.2 of the Unofficial Civilization 2 Strategy FAQ. Version 2.2 is an update from v2.0 but excludes material in v2.1 because I had a hard disk crash. See top of this faq for a plea for help. 'Unofficial' means that this FAQ is not supported by Microprose. Civilization II is the name of the game. FAQs are (F)requently (A)sked (Q)uestions. Revision classification works something like the following. If a new version of the FAQ has only a small amount of information changed or added, the version number is increased by 0.1, and is called a 'minor revision.' If a new version of the FAQ has a substantial amount of new information changed or added, the version number is increased by 0.5, and is called a 'standard revision.' If a new version of the FAQ has a huge amount of added or changed information, major parts of the FAQ are rearranged, or major parts of the FAQ are rewritten, the version number is increased by 1.0, and it is called a 'major revision.' You may be wondering why chapter numbers are enclosed in either []'s or **'s The definition of these is as follows: []: Chapters enclosed in square brackets mean that the information contained in the chapter has not been updated since the previous FAQ. **: Chapters enclosed in asterisks mean that the information contained in the chapter is new or has been updated for the current version of the FAQ you are reading. [1-2-1]: Is the FAQ related to the Official Guide to Civilisation II? =============================================== No, the Unofficial Civilization II Strategy FAQ is not related in any way with the Official Guide to Civilization 2 other than in topic. Nor is the Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ meant to be competition to the Official Guide. [1-3]: Getting the unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ =============================================== [1-3-2]: via Usenet ---------------------- The unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ is posted on the first of every month (or earlier if a new version is released) on the following Usenet groups. (1) comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.strategic The 'Subject:' line of the post will be 'Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ v??.??' where '??.??' is the version number of the FAQ. [1-3-3]: via Internet FTP ---------------------------- New releases of the Unofficial Civ II Strategy FAQ can be found at the following Internet FTP sites: [well actually nowhere yet. But if someone would care to carry it and let me know I'll note it here.] The file name of the upload will be 'civ2s??.faq' where '??' is the version number of the FAQ. This filename is for FTP sites only. BBS filenames are outlined in [1-3-5] [1-3-4]: via WWW ------------------- New releases of the Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ will be found on the following World-wide Web sites: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/POde/ Gamer's Site: http://www.cybernet.dk/users/kolstrup/ HTML versions of the Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ can be found on the following World-wide Web sites: [None yet, but I'm working on it] [1-3-5]: via BBS ------------------- New releases of the Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ will be uploaded to other BBSes as the opportunity arises. They will be under the file name 'civ2sfaq??' where '??' is the version number of the FAQ. ATTENTION: ALL BBSes, CompuServe, Ammerica On-line, and all other information services. PLEASE conform to the naming standard of the Unofficial Civ2 Strategy FAQ when placing this file on your system. The file name should be 'civ2s??.zip' where the '??' is the version number of the FAQ or 'civ2sfaq??.txt' if the FAQ is a text file instead of PKZIPped. [1-4]: Adding to the FAQ =========================== Where you see the words [blank] or [incomplete] in this FAQ is a section that needs filling in. I depend heavily on contributions from people like yourself to make this FAQ whole. Please, don't make me beg. Help me fill in the blanks. If you have something to add to the FAQ, please send E-mail to '[email protected]' (no quotes), with the subject 'Civ2 Strategy Guide' explaining what your addition is. It will be reviewed, and if accepted, added to the next FAQ version. In the E-mail, please supply your name and E-mail address. Please note that all submissions to the FAQ become property of the author (Edward Kenworthy) and that they may or may not be acknowledged. By submitting to the FAQ, you grant permission for use of your submission in any future publications of the FAQ in any media. The author reserves the right to omit information from a submission or delete the submission entirely. [1-5]: Acknowledgments ========================== Microprose Studios for making this great game. My wife. (Hi Angela!) And big thanks to everyone else who sent something my way, or posted answers to questions in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.strategic. You are all listed next to your contributions in this FAQ! Forgive me if I miss anyone. If for some reason I HAVE missed you, PLEASE send me E-mail so I can give credit where credit is due. Jim Venn <[email protected]> who has made contributions all over the place - rather than scatter his name all over the place I've listed it here as an acknowledgement. [1-6]: Accurate Information ============================== An attempt has been made to make the information in this FAQ as accurate as possible. Harder still is verifying the correctness of every hint and tip. I do try hard to make sure there are no bogus entries in this FAQ, but, undoubtedly, one or two will probably slip by. Please let me know immediately if there is any information in this FAQ that you know is incorrect. Also, because the game was recently released, future updates and add-ons may render parts of this FAQ obsolete. [1-7]: The format of this FAQ ================================ I have been copying the format and style of the granddaddy of all FAQ keepers, Hank Leukart ([email protected]) of the 'Official' DOOM FAQ. ============================== -SECTION ONE- GENERAL OVERVIEW ============================== ------------------------------------------- CHAPTER[2]: The Tools Of The Trade ------------------------------------------- This chapter contains information on the various units, buildings, wonders etc available for use in Civ2. *2-1*: Foot Troops ================== [2-1-1]: Settlers -------------------- Settlers are replaced by Engineers with the discovery of Explosives. [incomplete] [2-1-2]: Engineers ---------------------- Engineers work at twice the speed of settlers - so for example a road across a plain is completed in 1 turn rather than two. They also move at a speed of 2 and can actually radically change terrain - for example mountains to hills and desert to plains ! [incomplete] *2-1-3*: Warrior --------------------- These are the worst combat unit in the game. Only build them if you’re desperate and have no better technology. *2-1-4*: Phalanx --------------------- Best value for money in terms of defence in the early part of the game. Great when used in conjuction with Elephants and eventually Crusaders. Phalanxes are upgraded to Pikemen. 2-1-5]: Legion --------------------- Legions are upgraded to Musketeers. [incomplete] *2-1-6*: Explorer --------------------- An extremely underrated unit. The explorer has a movement of 3 regardless of terrain and it ignores enemy zones of control. Very useful for maneuvering combat troops through enemy zones of control. If adjacent to an enemy unit just move the explorer forward and wait them, move a combat unit on top of the explorer, then pull the explorer back out of the front line reducing the risk of them being attacked. Repeat until troops have flowed past the enemy fortifications. A good substitue until you've researched guerrilla warfare in which case partisans can be used Explorers are never upgraded by Leonardo's Workshop. They also never become obsolete ! [2-1-7]: Pikemen --------------------- Pikemen have their defensive strength doubled if they're attacked by mounted troops. Legions still walk all over them however. (Perhaps this should have been modified so that they receive the same bonus against non-gun powder infantry. Remember the Swiss ?) Phalanxes are upgraded to this unit. Pikemen are upgraded to Musketeers. *2-1-8*: Musketeer --------------------- A good defensive and reasonable offensive unit. It's hit points are double that of the non-gunpowder troops so don't be affraid of taking on fortified pikemen. [2-1-9]: Rifleman --------------------- On a cost/strength ratio these are probably the best defensive unit. These are the final troop type that infantry are automatically upgraded to by Leonardo's Workshop. [2-1-10]: Alpine Ski Troops --------------------- The major ability of Alpine Ski Troops is that they can travel three squares regardless of the terrain type. They do still take advantage of Railroads, but Roads have no effect. These troops are never upgraded by Leonardo's Workshop- nor is any other infantry type upgraded to it. [2-1-11]: Marines --------------------- The major ability of Marines is that they can directly attack a city from a transport ship (what Civ2 calls an Amphibious assault). These troops are never upgraded by Leonardo's Workshop -nor is any other infantry type upgraded to it. *2-1-12*: Paratroopers --------------------- The computer makes extensive use of these. If you leave a city undefended (or all the defenders are killed) you can be sure there'll be one of these around ready to drop in for a cup of tea and a bite to eat. Great when used in conjuction with bomber strikes across bodies of water that leave an enemy city defenceless. The computer AI seems to be particularly keen on this tactic. These troops are never upgraded by Leonardo's Workshop- nor is any other infantry type upgraded to it. [2-2]: Mounted =================== [2-2-1]: Horsemen --------------------- [blank] [2-2-2]: Chariots --------------------- Chariots were significantly down graded from Civ. If you want to go an early crusade - choose Elephants. [2-2-3]: Elephants --------------------- [2-2-4]: Knights --------------------- [blank] [2-2-5]: Crusaders --------------------- [blank] 2-2-6]: Dragoons --------------------- [blank] [2-2-7]: Cavalry --------------------- The best of the mounted troops. [incomplete] [2-3]: Vehicles =================== [blank] [2-4]: Big Guns =================== [blank] [2-5]: Naval Units =================== [blank] *2-6*: Aircraft =================== 2-6-1]: Fighter --------------------- Fighters are only really useful for a couple of jobs: taking out bombers that are hanging around and for attacking that spy or diplomat that's just out of reach. Forget trying to escort bomber groups - it just don't work. *2-6-2*: Bomber --------------------- Can be used for interdiction as it exerts a zone of control and grounds units are not able to attack it. Particularly effective if your oppent hasn't discovered flight yet. Useful for taking out marauding stacks of enemy units. [2-6-3]: Stealth Fighter --------------------- Calling this unit a Stealth fighter is a bit of a misnomer. A better name would have been Jet Fighter. There is a rules.txt and unit.gif file that adds Jet Fighters Bombers between Fighter/Bomber and their Stealth versions. [2-6-4]: Stealth Bomber --------------------- Useful for taking out marauding stacks of enemy units. See comments about Stealth Fighter. [incomplete] [2-6-5]: Cruise Missile --------------------- An expensive unit to use - it dies regardless of whether it wins. As with all air units it causes unrest in a Republican or Democratic city. (Remember Greenham common ?) Useful for a quick surgical strike against a stack of naval units. But not if there's an AEGIS Cruiser present (and you're playing a version after 1.07). [incomplete] [2-6-6]: Nuclear Missile --------------------- Expensive and as with all aircraft causes unrest. Besides who wants a nuclear arsenal planted in their driveway? Here's a tip: "I have noticed that if you build an airbase 2 hexes from your city and station nukes there, the Ai does not seem to be able to detect them. Wala! Missile silos." [[email protected] (JefEri)] [incomplete] [2-7]: Trade Units =================== [2-7-1]: General Comments --------------------- blank] [2-7-2]: Caravan --------------------- [blank] [2-7-3]: Freight --------------------- [blank] [2-8]: Buildings =================== [2-8-1]: Palace --------------------- Important for corruption calculation. The further a city from the one with your Palace in - the greater the corruption (except at Democracy of course). Without a capital EVERY city is treated as being the maximum range away !! [2-8-1]: Temple --------------------- Reduces the number of unhappy citizens by 2. Increased effect with Mysitcism and double effect if you control the Oracle. *2-8-1*: Granary --------------------- Allows you to create a food stockpile. This is important for two reasons a) it gives you a buffer zone in case of famine and b) it halves the amount of stored food you need to build up to create a new citizen. The Pyramid gives a granary in each of your cities. Perhaps something to with the story of Joseph and his Coat of Many Colours ? Not a particularly useful improvement. Happiness improvements are more valuable as the best mechanisim for growth is gaining We Love ? Day in your cities. But this of course depends on being democracy or republic. [2-8-1]: Barracks --------------------- Barracks have two effects. Firstly all new land unit (except settlers, engineers, explorers, diplomats and spies) are built as veteran units. Second, and the thing that makes Sun Tzu's Academy less valuable IMHO (because you have to build the barracks anyway to get this benefit) is that each turn all land units in a city with a barracks are healed back to full strength. [2-8-1]: City Wall --------------------- City Walls have two effects. Firstly the defensive strenght of any unit attacked in the city is doubled. Bombers,Stealth Bombers, Howitzers and naval units ignore this effect. City Walls also prevent the loss of population should one of your units inside the city be destroyed. [2-9]: Terrain Improvements =================== [2-9-1]: Irrigation --------------------- [blank] [2-9-2]: Roads --------------------- [blank] [2-9-3]: Mines --------------------- [blank] [2-9-4]: Railroads --------------------- 2-9-5]: Farmland --------------------- *2-10*: Governments =================== [2-10-1]: Republic --------------------- This is the most versatile and usually the one I stick with. Can punish weak civilizations while still keeping up in science. [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] *2-10-2*: Democracy --------------------- This is purely a mind-your-own-business government. The best economically, but I'd rather go to war in Anarchy. [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] The best government in terms of trade and research. With the assistance of happiness wonders and improvements it is possible to sustain periods of warfare without having to switch to Fundamentalism. Additionally your cities can't be bribed when your under a democracy. [2-10-3]: Fundamentalism --------------------- Sure science is low but you can put Luxury at 0% and Science at max (I think 70%) and still grow a huge bank account. War is the focus here. I still remember the time I sent 20 tanks to crush the Chinese and backed them up with 20 more in very few turns... Or how about that Celtic town I attacked with 4 nuclear warheads just for kicks? [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] *2-10-4*: Communism --------------------- Not good for much actually, but better than primitive governments. [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] Easily the worst of the modern governments and not recommended. Fundamentalism is a better platform for all out war. *2-10-5*: Monarchy --------------------- I usually skip right to Republic. [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] Important to switch to Monachy as soon as possible and all initial researchshould be channelled towards attaining this. [2-10-6]: Despotism --------------------- Better than Anarchy ! [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] but don't wait for some kid to draw the sword out of the stone. Crown yourself and go Monachy as soon as possible. [2-10-1]: Anarchy --------------------- It's better to hear your advisors argue than listen to the terrible Elvis impersonator. [[email protected] (William R. Brickles III)] [2-11]: Wonders of The World =========================== **[2-11-1]**: Must Haves --------------------- Great Library, Leonardo's Workshop, Michaelangelo's Chapel, Women's Suffrage, Hoover Dam, Great Wall. [2-11-2]: Nice To Haves --------------------- King Richard's Crusade, Oracle, Copernicus's Observatory, Magellan's Voyage, SETI project, Eiffel Tower, Statue of Liberty, Cure for Cancer, United Nations. [2-11-3]: Not Really Bothered --------------------- Pyramids,Hanging Gardens, Lighthouse, Shakespeare's Theatre, Marco Polo's Expedition, Apollo Project, Manhattan Project, Sun Tzu's Academy. [2-11-4]: Exceptions --------------------- This may alter slightly depending on the environment. For example if you have lots of small continents in your world the Magellan's Voyage and Lighthouse become more important. [2-11-5]: Wonder Denial --------------------- Of course by having a Wonder yourself you deny anyone else from having its benefits. This is particularly important for certain Wonders, like United Nations. It's incredibly frustrating to have to stop fighting because the other side has this Wonder ! (Or to struggle to research a technology only to have your enemy acquire it from his Great Library!) [2-11-6]: Obsolete Wonders --------------------- Be careful about the technology you choose in order to avoid accidentally making one of your critical Wonders obsolete too early. Metallurgy for Great Wall and Mobile Warfare for Leonardo's Workshop are the critical ones. [2-11-7]: Specific Wonders --------------------- [2-11-7-1]: The Great Wall --------------------- If you have the Great Wall - remember to prepare for it's obsolescence. There's nothing quite so unpleasant as being attacked by another civilisation only to have all your cities lose their walls because some SOB discovers metallurgy ! *2-11-7-2*: Leonardo’s Workshop --------------------- A note on Leonardo's workshop. It does not immediately upgrade all your troops - that only happens when you gain a technology. So when you build Leonardo's workshop all your units get upgraded. And when you gain a new technology Civ2 checks to see if your units should be upgraded. But if you gain control of other units (except by building them) - for example through bribery - these are not upgraded until the next time you gain a technology advance. Another effect of being upgraded by Leonardo's Workshop is that any veteran units lose their veteran status - even if they're in the city with a barracks. *2-11-7-2-1* Evolutionary Paths ------------------------------ [[email protected] (Bob Doolittle)] These are some of the upgrade paths units take. Any further contributions gratefully accepted. Horsemen -> Knights -> Dragoons -> Cavalry Chariots -> Elephants -> Crusaders Settler -> Engineer (explosives needed to evolve) Phalanx -> Pikeman -> Musketeer -> Rifleman ============================== -SECTION TWO- STRATEGIES ============================== ------------------------------------------- CHAPTER[5]: The Early Game ------------------------------------------- [5-1]: Expand Rapidly =========================== Build lots of cities quickly. Forget about building an army or garrisons and build settlers. On Emperor level this is easy because you don't get any discontent until your third citizen and by building lots of settlers you ensure you don't have cities that big. On Deity level it's harder because the second citizen is discontented. The plan here is to still build lots of settlers quickly - but take the occasional break to build a garrison or temple to keep the citizens quiet. The sole exception to this is if you find yourself on the same continent as another player. In which case the priority is to kill them as quickly possible. Do *not* build up first - they will be too !! [5-2]: Build Roads =========================== Always build at least one road or irrigation with each settler before building a city. Roads are important early for the trade boost you get. Otherwise you'll run out of money ! Once you have 5-6 cities established begin to build roads connecting them - both too increase the speed of response of your armies and to improve trade. [5-3]: Establish Your Borders =========================== Seal off your continent as quickly as possible ! Along with destroying any other civilisations you find on your continent you should fortify units on its land borders as soon as possible to prevent others moving in and thereby giving yourself exclusive access to the continent. If you're playing in the real world then Africa is one of the easiest continents to achieve this in - simply fortify a unit (and build fortification when possible) at the Suez canal to prevent access to the whole of Africa. (The Americas comes a close second - because you have an ocean to separate you. The disadvantge is a lack of opportunities to trade technology with other civilisations.) [5-4]: Change To Monarchy =========================== The most important early advance to get is Monarchy. Despotism is just too inefficient for you to get far with it. Although it is OK for the early turns because of the reduced maintenance you pay for units. "Get into Monarchy ASAP. Then once you have monarchy start irrigating the hell out of your land. At this point, pump up the population with a We love the ___ celebration. Boost the luxary rate to get all of your cities into We_Love, and let this go for a few years till they hit the aquaduct wall at size 8. Then reset the tax/science rate, build aquaducts and temples, etc, and then have another celebration and boost your cities to size 12. Once you research sewers, you can have another sale. "Of course, to have such large cities, its necessary to have Mike's chappel (sp?) and other people pacifying Wows." [[email protected] (John Thibeault)] [5-5]: Republic Costs ========= Back to main menu Back to walkthrus <