I was thinking about this, but every time I want to write a new thread, I feel I would miss too many informations around. Now, I will try to add things to beat Americans with all civilizations, but specially using China, Romans, Zulu, Spain, Aztecs.
More I play, more I find Romans have the highest rate of stopping Americans and giving them problems. Why do I think this? Romans have republic since the start. China can do well obviously, but please, stop telling me you get 15 cities in 20 turns, that's all about luck. China usually needs 2 grasslands and 2 trees to build new settlers, while Romans only need 1 grassland and 1 tree. With 1 grassland and 1 tree, you really need few gold and trees to build a settler. Do I talk about them because I love them? No, I explained it why, and I prefer them than China. China can produce a lot of units and get a lot of science but.. It's hard to get enough production and mass it in one city or send it to the enemy, you should know that. Then, that's why I prefer Romans, with all their great bonuses:
Set tree/grassland and work on the grassland for 4 turns, that's 8 food, all you need to grow back to 2. Meanwhile, you could bank 8 hammers. If you have got only 1 tree, then set workers on gold (if you haven't got much), and you will get it in 8 turns (ancient obviously). If you can share forests beetwen two cities (like when you build a settler in one and you grow in another), you mostly need 6 turns to build a settler. 4 if you got much gold. Expand everywhere, and bank some gold for the roads. The horse rush can be countered with warriors and road beetwen two cities, make sure you can damage it first, then form the army and counter (or defend if that's risky). Build cities everywhere, every spot you can have is good. Spots with no forest/grasslands should wait for medieval era, so you get +2/3 science per city (another worker, literacy maybe).
Get irrigation and literacy if possible. These are the best bonuses you can get that will help you. Obviously you don't need, but if you get literacy first (long run) then irrigation to upgrade bad cities, you will "ensure a win". They can usually hit COL by 1000-500 BC, let's be fair and don't talk about luck, etc.. By 0 AD you can have 20 cities already, before they have reached 10, without many problems. All you needed is 120 gold at the start, and keep selling to the AI technologies and make them war/peace trick to get gold, if possible (if it's still alive). If you have enough gold, and you want to make it easier for you, then just build a city next to the Americans. Do this before they hit medieval, if you can defend it. Then your first unit you build, if you don't need it, should be sent in his territory, to defend that new city. No growth, you only need two trees, keep building lots of units. Archers should be enough, but if you want, go for legions. Put archers in his territory, and box him as fast as possible. Keep sending settlers and building cities if possible, so you will box him really fast and easy. Same here, choose 2 trees spots, and build archers / legions. Send them as near as possible to his cities. If he wants to pass, you will know that. Doing this before you expand to 15-20 cities, or doing that after is not a real problem, but as fast as you can do it without much risk, more you ensure a win. If he has to expand to islands, he won't produce units really easy, and he will let you conquer the mainland, then bad for him. If he wants to remove the pressure, he has got to build units. He could build catapults armies, you could say, but.. That's wasting gold for some turns, slowing down expansion, and, let's say the catapult die (to an archer army, if you got one), that's -60 gold at least. Fortress is your friend, and you could get 18/21 defence. That requires armies to be ready before you reach that defence.. Then, in other words, you have got a nice advantage on him.
Build last few settlers to put in islands, and use these to help you in science/gold if needed.
Another trick you can use, that could be the same, is building a city next to them, with few units in the city. Then, here there are the "advantages":
-He take it, gets a technology and few gold (use it if you don't want to lose much gold). Plans ruined to build knights, perhaps he could reach industrial era too fast. When that happens, you could be on the same plan and you can beat him much easier. After he takes it, you take it back with an army ready, waiting for him.
-He doesn't take it. You box him, and slow his expansion. You will take his cities boxed in with few problems.
Now, let's say you have defended in some way, with some cities in the front. Build legions armies everywhere. Veteran obviously, you have to stop the knight rush. They usually try that also if that's slow. You can build as much legions as his knights if you want. By now, if you have followed the Romans strategy a bit, you should have a nice production city, building wonders, and now let's explain what you need:
Leonardo's Workshop
East India Company
Hanging Gardens (if you want to improve production and that's worth)
Samurai Castle
All of these are useful, but you mostly need Samurai Castle or Leonardo's Workshop.
Let me explain why.. If you have 10 legions armies, all these will turn into knights armies. That is 10 knights armies that you paid 300 hammers, instead of 750. He has paid 750 gold for those armies, then, it's all earned. 400 hammers vs 750 gold. You only need 3 cities with 2 trees each (or more, if you got irrigation), and here's the trick.
If you get Samurai Castle, you can beat his knights. Find them, kill them, or counter attack them. After you have killed enough, you should attack him. Use archers (no armies) to defend. 3 archers won't be overran, and that means wasting 3 attacks, where you can counter. Then, 6 archers could be ok. Maybe one army could help, to defend to those first armies.
Galleons can help, you can build them to help conquering him. If you get East India Company, you should try to turtle up and press him where you know he has few defences. Every city you gain, is a bonus for you.
Another thing you can do, while building cities in the front, is choosing a nice growth spot, with some production, get it, build a temple, and use it to flip cities back, or slow him anymore. In industrial era you get +50% culture, meaning you could get like 10-15 per turn with ease. If that doesn't help to defend, it helps to press him. He will have to declare you war, and you will see units. Settle islands obviously if you don't want him to get every spot, but all you need is taking every capital. If they reach industrial and you are more advanced than them, that's a victory. No real luck required, only skill on doing all these tricks. All this can work with other civilizations but Romans are the best with this.
I hope that helps, tell me if you have got problems with that.
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Originally Posted by bold blaster
