Population plays a very large role in Civilization 5. I recently just experienced one of my cities starving. I tried to figure out how to provide more food for my people in that city but all I could find was that a worker will eat excess food. I am unsure of how to actually get food for my people. The population's of my cities tend to grow a great deal at the beginning after I first construct them. The more and more cities I have created the harder I find it to control the population. I haven't yet grasped how to manage them all, what type of people do what, and how many cities are too many?
I have found only a few ways to control population in the games 1) by gifting a unit to a city state and 2) I don't know if this is necessarily my own control, but citizens can be killed/stolen by enemies 3) and if they don't get enough food they can die. The game also allows the gamer to control population by letting you figure out what type of citizen you want to produce.
In the game one can see the stages of population that we learned about in class as well. Throughout a number of turns a civilization passes through a variety of eras/ages. Thus far in my game I haven't been able to get out of the Ancient Era. I perhaps need to concentrate on improving my technology or something. With each passing turn decades pass as well and new ideas/technologies/ and improvements are created/available which is not unlike actual patterns of population.
In regards to cities I have noticed that the game follows the trends that we have talked about in class. When I have a settler and click on found a city I find that locations where the game suggest I build a city are near a body of water, fertile areas that are conducive to growth and prosperity. Conflicts are an issue in the game as well. I have experienced being allies with cities states, losing those allies, trespassing in city states and trying to make amends with two different other civilizations while making them both happy. Governmental policies are starting to play a bigger role the longer I play. I have been helping myself create good relations with other civilizations by returning their captured units instead of keeping them for myself. I guess I will see how that strategy works for me in the end? Being the good guy doesn't always pay off.
Glad you're getting the hang of things, Desi! I think you're right in mentioning the new ideas and technologies. Opening up your Civ. to knew ideas and concepts has a huge effect on game progression.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I'd like to point out. It's not made explicit, but the units(typically military units) aren't necessarily the same as your population. Individual city population stats are found in the city menu.
Also, the size and number of cities is totally up to you and your play style. I've played with friends who built as many cities as the game would allow, and I've personally played games where I'd focus on maybe four cities maximum. It's neat to see how both city size and number affect and are affected by those social policies you earn with culture. For example, the Tradition tree is meant for tightly focused cities whereas the Liberty tree lends itself to many cities within a civilization.
It's nice that you observed how complex the interrelationships between different factions as the game progresses. More people equals more chances for people to either quarrel or cooperate. No matter how hard you try and avoid it, someone'll always be at your doorstep.
Anyways, your posts look good, and I'm looking forward to seeing how things progress! Good Luck!
-Tiff
Deseray,
ReplyDeleteI've started a Civ V Therapy and Support blog where I plan to post help and advice for students. I've posted regarding one solution to starvation in your cities. Take a look: http://drhosselkusonciv5.blogspot.com/