Build order

[Gandalf Parker]

Main answer: turn up the independents. They give the AI more trouble then they give you. I dont know why a setting of 3 is default. I think 4 would help alot of newbies. 5 works well with normal AI. Personally I prefer 7.

some opinions of my own
Initial turn: put everyone on research that can, and the rest on patrol. Hire any mercs. Turn taxes to 200%. Build whatever is best to boost your troops and the merc depending on nation. Healer, bows, flyers, cavalry. Whatever is lacking. Notice what you ran out of first in making troops, gold or resources.

2nd turn: take weak neighbor with an eye on whatever you ran out of Last turn. Build cheap patrollers (or turn down taxes). Rent more mercs.

Always build a commander of some sort. Always put 1 in a province defense, 11 if its important (lab, special recruitable units), 21 if its a chokepoint or has a castle.

Take every province that connects directly to your castle. Then start selectively doing provinces.

[ April 12, 2004, 01:28: Message edited by: Gandalf Parker ]

[HotNifeThruButr]

Always make commanders? Even without troops to command? Do you mean comms that can fight, since Eunuchs are useless in a brawl?

Edit 1: about taxes, I usually take a high order domain, how high can I crank out taxes if I want no unrest with 1, 2, and 3 levels of Order?

[ April 12, 2004, 01:35: Message edited by: HotNifeThruButr ]

[Graeme Dice]

Originally posted by HotNifeThruButr:
Edit 1: about taxes, I usually take a high order domain, how high can I crank out taxes if I want no unrest with 1, 2, and 3 levels of Order?

The order/turmoil scale has no effect on unrest. Any taxation above 100% will cause unrest and population death. Any taxation below 100% will cause unrest to decrease and the population to remain the same.

edit: Fixed my error in the Last sentence, low taxes reduces unrest.

[ April 12, 2004, 02:17: Message edited by: Graeme Dice ]

[Yossar]

Why wouldn't you attack with your army on turn 3? Searching provinces and building temples are important but if you feel like you aren't expanding fast enough, those are the main culprits.

[HotNifeThruButr]

I really like having a temple in every province, is it really necessary? I remember when I used to put fortifications in every province, until I found out that they were more effective without neighboring forts.

I usually don't attack on turn 3 because my army would have just got licked, and I loathe losing income to tax reductions, so I find patrolling better. I'll try it your way.

[Duncanish]

Any taxation below 100% will cause unrest to increase and the population to remain the same.

Taxes below 100% cause unrest? I thought they lowered it. Or have I been making a big mistake this entire time?

[Graeme Dice]

Originally posted by Duncanish:
Taxes below 100% cause unrest? I thought they lowered it. Or have I been making a big mistake this entire time?

Sorry, that's a typo, and I've fixed it in my post now.