I'm working two jobs again, which means getting out for multiplayer and roleplaying games is more difficult. Also, the mostly torpid Prince of Flint is working again, which means both of us have less time, and therefore less time to organize gatherings of either the CCG or RPG variety.
I've been playing some on 1-player games. I have a weird need for strategy-based entertainment. I picked up Civilization Revolution on my iPhone in July. It was free over the 4th weekend, and since I don't like to pay for apps, generally speaking, I swooped it while the swooping was good. Turns out it's normally 6 or 7 bucks. So, that was a sweet deal for me.
I played the original Civilization game on my dad's Commodore Amiga 1000 computer when it first came out. This would be in 1991. I was eleven. It was pretty cool. When I saw that my mobile device had a variant I thought I'd check it out to see if it can hang. It can hang.
The iPhone version is a port of a stripped down version of Civ released on the major game console's downloadable games services. It's pretty simple and takes roughly 2 hours to play a game. My first few games (and the harder difficulties) took much longer, but, the process has since become rather streamlined.
I take the role of one of sixteen great leaders of sixteen great cultures, and using their distinct advantages (and a lot of luck) I dominate the world in some way. There are four ways to win: Conquer all other capital cities to achieve a domination victory, save 20K in gold and then build the world bank to win by economic victory, achieve 20 cultural landmarks (either building wonders of the world or attracting "Great People") and build the United Nations to get a cultural victory, or research all the technologies in the game and then build and launch a space colony to win a technological victory.
The conquer victory is the easiest, and the quickest. But all of the various win conditions inform the others. For instance, having superior tech and the money to afford massive advanced armies certainly helps in a military campaign. Culturally dominant nations will often seduce and absorb smaller cities from less cultural neighbors with ease. And so on.
I prefer to play the game on “king” difficulty, which is the middle setting. Anything less is too easy, and anything more is frustrating in a “the computer cheats!” throw-your-controller-which is actually-your-phone way: I once had an enemy ship park outside an island city and never move away, yet every other turn, like a goddamned Gauntlet II ghost generator, a Legion Army (which is a weird redundancy in the game) disembarked and threatened that city. Fuck all that noise. I at least want the illusion of fairness, even if the AI gets mad production bonuses (they do; they always have, even in 1991).
The game has a lot of replayability for me, mainly because of the various leaders/nations available for play. I want to put down some reasons why some of them are awesome and why it really sucks to play as others.
Americans/Abraham Lincoln:
Well, at least we get the tall guy. Note that Americans are the top of the alphabetically list for the game. Conicidence? I don't think so. It's a damn shame that playing as the Americans is actually not a lot of fun. The game is divided into four eras, and at each era the various civilizations get different bonuses. The American bonuses are pretty lame. They do start the game with a Great Person, but that's a total crapshoot. Chances are they’ll end up with Thomas Edison or Karl Marx, who don't do much for an early civilization. The early game is all about violence: If I can take an enemy capital early I've effectively doubled my civilization while eliminating an adversary. Adding to science or culture(even more of a cultural bonus than Great People already give, anyway), as Edison and Marx do respectively, doesn’t benefit my wars directly for quite some time.
The Americans don't do violence well until the mid- to late game. Later era bonuses they receive include the ability to pay less to rush units out of production and building super-bitchin’ factories (when they finally get to build those in the endgame). The problem is, by then I've probably been slogging through a two-front war for two millennia. 1.5
Arabs/Saladin:
The Arabs are scary good. They've got some interesting monetary era bonuses, but all that shit doesn't matter because their early military game is fucking incredible. They start the game with free Religion technology. This allows them (and their game defaults) to have a Fundamentalist government. Fundamentalist governments in CivRev give the ground units a +1 to attack strength, but don't allow libraries or universities to contribute to science production.
In the early game, I don't have any libraries to care about, and the attack bonus effectively doubles how strong my basic Warrior units are. I've won some super-early domination games with the Arabs simply because of their Religion tech. The fact that they get free Math tech (=Catapults) and _additional_ bonuses to mounted unit's attacks in subsequent eras is just crazy talk. I find it hard to argue against these guys. The AI opponent Saladin makes life difficult for me for similar reasons. 3.5
Aztecs/Montezuma:
I don't like the Pontiac Aztek, but I like the CivRev Aztecs. They start the game with some pocket money and their military units automatically heal to full health after any successful combat. That's pretty strong. They never have to halt a grinding advance to nurse their wounds. Early on, they also gain science production from Temples, which makes a single building add to both culture and science. If the Aztecs can bully another Civ out of the game with a quickness they have a great shot at winning via late-game economic growth, and sometimes they can just dominate the globe early with their supersoldiers. Aggressive expansion is the name of their game.3.5
Chinese/Mao:
Mao made it into the game? Hardcore. The Chinese have some of the best era advances for a technology run. It's too bad that the tech victory is the hardest to achieve before someone puts a Bomber in your anus. Still, they're a lot of fun. They get a bunch of free Writing-type technologies, and libraries cost half at around the midpoint in the game. Also, new Chinese cities always start with more people than other Civs, so the Chinese are great at early expansion and productivity. I still usually wind up rolling my tank units through the other capitals when playing as the Chinese, but that's only because the AI-controlled Civs tend to get lippy and aggressive while I'm winning the tech race by a large margin.
The one time I actually tried the Communism government I was playing as the Chinese. It was whack. Under Communism, all city production increases by a huge amount, but Temples and Cathedrals (the main source of city culture) no longer add to culture. The increased production made the late game quick, and through my ruthlessness, brutal for everyone else. I prefer the culture victory in the late game, so I shy away from Communism most of the time, but damn is it a way to get shit done. 3.0
Egyptian/Cleopatra:
Playing as Cleo is a lot like playing as Lincoln in that their start-of-game bonus is a crapshoot: The Egyptians start the game with a random ancient Wonder of the World. The difference for me is that while there is a preponderance of mediocre Great People, Wonders of the World have some awesome benefits, and while some are lamer than most (Stonehenge is meh), others are freaking incredible. The Great Pyramid allows access to all forms of government (see Arabs and Fundamentalism or Greeks and Democracy or Romans and Republic. . .), and the Great Wall makes it so rivals simply can NOT declare war on me. That’s hot. Eventually ancient wonders become obsolete, so their bonuses are not forever, but that push in the early game can make a huge difference.
But hey, Cleo gets other bonuses as well! Most of them are food/population oriented, so expansion is easier for Egyptians, and in the late game they get a boost to the economy, but for the most part the wonder is where it’s at. 2.5
English/Elizabeth:
Ah, Elizabeth. My personal favorite monarch of the bunch, but as I’m the sort of guy who reads Shakespeare for funsies I’m a little biased. It’s too bad that the English aren’t super cool to play in CivRev. They do start with a Monarchy government, which adds huge cultural bonuses and allows access to the Feudalism tech early (which allows Knights units, strong and fast mid-game assault troops). They also have Longbowmen, special early-game defensive units (everyone else’s Archers are called Archers, the game does this with every Civ’s iconic troops, Russian Horsemen are called Cossacks, etc.) with mad defensive skills. So they’re good at holding cities in the early game if I can capture them.
However, capturing cities isn’t their strong suit unless I relentlessly pursue that agenda. That can be frustrating, especially if more than one AI Civ has their sights set on me. The later-game bonuses for the English are quite navy-centric, which is odd as navy forces don’t account for a huge part of the game. Ultimately, the English are interesting, but not the strongest of the factions to play. 2.5
French/Napoleon:
The poor French. It seems almost all of their advances and bonuses are pretty lame. They get free Pottery tech from the start. Wooo! Earlier granaries! They start the game with a Cathedral, which is actually a big cultural bonus. However, it’s not nearly as awesome as starting with a wonder like the Egyptians (wonders and cathedrals both add a lot to culture). Later on they can build roads for half price, they get bonuses to Cannon attack, and they get faster-walking Riflemen. None of those things are particularly exciting. The roads thing is about as good as it gets. In the early game the cultural bonus from the Cathedral is sometimes enough to swoop up smaller nearby cities from more barbaric Civs, but overall the French are not much fun to play. Most of my losses in the game are with the French, which says a lot, I think. 1.0
German/Bismarck:
Bismarck! I chuckle at the chosen leaders for the game sometimes. The Germans are absolute military beasts. Their start-of game units all begin as Veterans, and if I build a Barracks early all units automatically begin with Elite unit upgrades. That’s crazy talk, and that’s only the beginning. As the Germans advance in technology, they get production bonuses, cheaper Barracks buildings, and extra money. They tend to expand and conquer at least one enemy Civ early with ease, and if I can maintain a tech advantage while I perpetrate extensive conflict I tend to win via domination quickly. Elite unit upgrades include Infiltration (+100% attack against cities), Blitz (two assault moves per round for the unit), Loyalty (+50% defense in home territory), and Leadership (+100% defense while supported by other units). Elite upgrades are substantial. If the Americans start with a Great Warrior Person they can get these advances for all units built in one city. The Germans get them all the time. 3.5
Greek/Alexander:
The Greeks are a paradoxical bunch. Alexander is a great warrior type, but his Civ isn’t very warlike. The Greeks start the game with knowledge of Democracy and a Democratic government. Somehow, knowledge of Democracy gives a Civ the ability to build strong defensive Pikemen units, called Hoplites for the Greek Civ (they are stronger than Archers, the basic defensive unit; English Longbowmen are as strong as everyone else’s Pikemen). So they get a sweet defensive bonus early. Democracy as a government style contributes a 50% bonus to both gold production and science production, but the congress will never allow a Democratic nation to perpetrate acts of aggression. So while the Greeks, led by famous conquerer Alexander the Great, adhere to their free bonus tech government, they can’t conquer other Civs unless those Civs come after the Greeks first.
The AI makes keeping a Democracy difficult. Oftentimes Saladin or Bismarck will try to bully me into giving them money or tech, run armies all over my borders, try to capture my cities, and so forth. Then, when I use my superior tech to fight back, and move my Knights/Catapults/Tanks/whatever in to take Tripoli or Berlin, the villain suddenly sues for peace, and if I’m in a democracy, I _must_ accept their offer for peace. Congress won’t let me decline. It’s maddening. That’s when I change governments to Fundamentalism or Monarchy and crush my foes. Interesting political commentary there.
Anyway, the Greeks also get a free Courthouse, which expands a city’s radius, so Athens is an expansive place early on. Later, they get cheaper libraries, additional Great People, and bonus food from sea areas. These are all scientific and cultural bonuses. With their substantial science bonus from early Democracy, the Greeks can make a serious go at the tech game. It’s too bad that the opponent AI makes a habit of forcing me to change governments so that I can exact sweet sweet revenge against them. The Greeks are alright, but not awesome. 2.5
Indians/Gandhi:
Indians begin the game with access to all natural resources. Normally a certain tech must be acquired in order to access a given resource. For instance, Irrigation gives access to Wheat resources, which give huge food/city growth bonuses. The Indians get access to all of them right off the bat. It’s huge. Forget that they get cheaper settlers and half-price Courthouses and free Religion tech later on, their start-of-game bonus is great. They always seem to start next to a resource as well, so they can usually access their bonus immediately. Currently this is my favorite Civ to play, because the random nature of their bonus (which resource will it be?) offers different replayable scenarios: Do I start with Oak nearby and Delhi is a production powerhouse? Is it cattle and my city grows at a ridiculous rate? Are there several patches of Oil resources nearby, which make it so I can outstrip all other Civs in production even early and expand into greatness?
Also, it’s a lot of fun to have Gandhi roll tanks through other Civs who have wronged me too many times. Suck it, Napoleon! 4.0
Japanese/Tokugawa:
Ah, the Nihonjin. Lovely people, and a great Civ for play. Their bonuses at start don’t seem significant. They get Ceremonial Burial (and the ability to build Temples) and a +1 food bonus from Sea terrain. That food bonus turns out to be huge. Sea squares normally only produce trade, which turns into either Science or Cashmonies, but having food/city growth and trade/science growth bundled at the start of the game makes the Japanese technology powerhouses. They also get a bonus to their Knight unit attack (their Knights are called Samurai), which means researching Feudalism early (because of the tech bonus) is a good idea. I usually win fairly quick (1800AD-ish) domination victories with the Japanese. They tend to expand quickly and then crush all foes whenever they get Feudalism, which can be a lot of fun. 3.0
Mongol/Genghis Khan:
The Mongols are one of my favorite Civs. However, they're a little tricky to play. They have some great benefits at the start of the game: taking barbarian villages converts them into new cities for the Mongols, and anytime a rival Civ’s city is captured it actually produces more trade than normal Mongol cities. So they’re a militaristic Civ, which is great in the ancient era. The barbarian villages thing is huge, but it can be a real pain. While getting a new city each time they crush a village allows for quick expansion of the empire, it turns out many of the map’s natural resources appear underneath barbarian villages, so taking them instead of razing them (not an option for Mongols, they just take them) actually limits the special resource terrain available to the Mongols. Further, since the barbarian placement is random, sometimes a new Mongol city actually has horrible access to resources around it. For example, I’ve taken villages and then realized that they have no access to food resources, so the city will never grow in population. That’s essentially a lame duck of a city. Same with an overabundance of food resources and no production squares (forests, hills, or mountains).
Later on, Genghis gets bonus speed to Horsemen units, extra production from Mountain squares, and finally free Communism tech. All that stuff is great, but by the time I get most of it I’m on an all-out offensive against at least one, if not all of my rivals. If my barbarian converts are good, I’m in good shape. If not, then I’m in trouble. That element of randomness makes playing them fun, but sometimes frustrating. 3.0
Roman/Caesar:
The Romans are the most cultural-centric Civ in the game. They start the game with a Republic, which allows them to build Settlers for less city population, allowing quick expansion. They also get half-price roads. Their next era advance is half-cost wonders of the world (which produce culture), which is nuts: building Oxford University or the Himeji Samurai Castle is cheaper for the Romans than putting a wall around a city. Their next era bonus is additional Great People, which is another culture producer. So by mid-game the Romans are churning out an insane amount of culture bonuses, optimally. They push for the United Nations-building cultural victory, and in fact almost all of the games I have lost are due to me not crushing Rome early and then not having the resources to do so while they generate an insane amount of culture. Rome, as an adversary, is a late-game powerhouse. However, their early wargame is only mediocre, and that can make life difficult when I’m actually playing as Caesar. 3.0
Russians/Catherine:
Catherine? What? Best they could do, eh? I’m a little conflicted about the Russians. They start with a local area map and they get bonus food from plains, which are normally subpar city growth squares. However, the map bonus is fleeting, and as soon as I get a Warrior unit to start scouting it’s obsolete. The plains food bonus isn’t nearly as good as the Japanese sea food (:D) bonus either, since instead of +2trade going to +2trade +1food for the Japanese, the Russian plains go from +1food to +2food, which isn’t nearly as significant. Russians do get substantial bonuses later in the form of automatic Loyalty (+50% defense in own territory) upgrades for defensive units and half-cost Riflemen, which are the late/mid-game defensive unit of choice. So the Russians are good at holding whatever they’ve gotten by mid-game, but getting there can be difficult.
Their last era bonus is half-cost Spy units, which is amusing and can be nasty when mounting offensives, but all of these bonuses make me feel blah. I’ve had some great victories as the Russians, but I’ve just as often been angry at my own mediocrity playing as them. 2.0
Spanish/Isabella:
The Spanish bonuses manage to capture the spirit of exploration and naval superiority well. That’s pretty cool. When exploring the map, sometimes a unit will discover a naturally awesome hill/river/grassland etc (which isn’t a special “natural resource”) that gives a one-time cash bonus for discovering it. The Spanish double their exploration cash, which can be a big help in getting started. It makes for weird play as the Spanish, as I’m not as worried about finding new avenues to explore and barbarians to capture, but instead I’m meticulously checking every square for bubbling spigots of cashmonies.
The Spanish also start with Navigation tech, allowing them to build Galleons in 4000 BC, about four millenia before anyone else. Later on they get Naval combat bonuses and bonus gold production.
All of that is well and good for an economic game, and the Spanish do that perhaps better than anyone. But in the ancient, ground-assault era, they aren’t better off than anyone else, and they’re actually worse off than the naturally militaristic Civs. So while playing as the Spanish can be fun, the early game can be a bear. 2.5
Zulu/Shaka:
The Zulus have some interesting bonuses. They get an “overrun attack” at the start of the game, and their basic Warrior units have an extra movement, making them incredible scouts and an agile assault force in the ancient era. As time progresses that isn’t so awesome. Their other era bonuses are rapid city growth and mad gold production, which are both pretty good in general. The thing about the Zulus is that if they don’t find another Civ capital to prey upon in the first couple of millenia, they’re going to have a hard go of it. Those early benefits are wasted if not spent, unlike, say the Mongol barbarian conversion benefit, which lasts the entire game. So, for as much as I like the Zulus, they still have some troubles. 2.5
-Mark out
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