City placement

[antha71]

Hi,

Just got the game about 3 days ago. My people arent happy, they revolted, but it was fun. My main problem seems to be placement on certain buildings in the city. I have read as many walkthroughs as I could find, read the posts on the forums but they dont really address the building placements. As an example:

Nekhen (Easy), First campaign. Where the camera starts looks like a decent place to build. I placed my palace, priests, shrines and nobles on the "bluff". Put farmers down by the water to the north. But that was the easy part. My main question is...If I put luxury shops and common shops up by the nobles away from their resources will that affect their crafting or the people's ability to shop? Seems my nobles have shopping problems more than anything else.

[Kiya]

..If I put luxury shops and common shops up by the nobles away from their resources will that affect their crafting or the people's ability to shop? Seems my nobles have shopping problems more than anything else.

You have to do sometimes compromises as where you put your shops. I usually try to build them near my nobles even if their resources are further away.

Do you have the maximum amount of farmers? If your nobles don't have enough food they can't buy things. Food IS money in CoTN. Do your nobles have servats to help them with shopping? Servants also help lux shopkeepres to collect materials for their shops.

Welcome to the boards, antha71. :)

[MAX-1]

Example,

Reeds are a ways away and your basket maker cannot keep up with demand because of distance, then yes, place another basket maker/shop.

Poor location to resources does have an effect on the production rate. The father/child will spend more time gathering raw materials thus less time produceing.
REMEMBER: Lux shops can hire a servant to help collect raw materials.:rolleyes: :cool: :rolleyes:

[neoskeptic]

@Max-1
So at the start, how many servant houses should we build in nekhen? (assuming we have 6 noble houses and 6 lux shops)

@antha
The other way to satisfy the need for luxuries is to build a market square and invite traders. It keeps your lux shops in the black and gives you stuff to earn.

I made the same decision as you did on my first game, and it may be the better place to build as it will grant you better access to the granite quarry. (basalt statues, copper and emeralds can be imported from off site quarries)

@everyone else
Hi! First post here!

[MAX-1]

Hi neoskeptic,

like the name BTW.:D

Servant homes tend one nobel or elite or Lux shopkeeper. So at least one servant per nobel, educated elite, Lux shopkeeper. The only person whom the servants do not server are the priests.

Also, keep in mind that nobels and elite shop top down.
This is to say, that is presented with a choice of fur or sandels, they will shop for fur first.

[antha71]

Okay, I went and retried this town. It is going smoother this time since I placed a group of common shops down by my farmers AND a group of common and luxury shops by my nobles/palace. I started with just 4 servants for my lux shops and 2 nobles. Increased servants if nobles or lux were getting behind on their shopping/gathering. Opened up trade with all available outposts.

Now the prestige has stagnated at ~33. Thats my next project, to figure that out!

[arcan]

To get higher prestige, you have to get your pharaoh a tumb bigger dan his predecessor's (this will lessen the hit at his death) and make sure everythig is ok to have him burried. You can also build tombs for your royal family and nobles. Statues are also something. Buty the best way is to open WorldLevel sites. You'll be able to build obelisks.

[MAX-1]

Okay, I went and retried this town. It is going smoother this time since I placed a group of common shops down by my farmers AND a group of common and luxury shops by my nobles/palace. I started with just 4 servants for my lux shops and 2 nobles. Increased servants if nobles or lux were getting behind on their shopping/gathering. Opened up trade with all available outposts.

Now the prestige has stagnated at ~33. Thats my next project, to figure that out!
Oh,
PRESTIGE.
(See below for Hints)

Prestige can be achieved through many different ways. These include and are not necessary limited to, are:

PROPAGANDA PRESTIGE

Statues (basalt and/or brick)
Stele
Obelisks
Tombs*
World Level sites openedTOMBS

SM., Med., Lg. Mastabas
Five different sizes of PyramidsEVOLUTION OF THE PALACE



HINTS:
~ Start slow. Approach it as an on going and on gRowing new "job classification" in your society/city.
~ Be ready to accomidate this newly explodeing populus with food stocks, bakeries, shopping, health care/worship system in place, and new a new group of elite educated workers. Have this in place first. (I do it in that order)
~ Start small and work with what you can manage. Don't think that you'll be able to manage a large, complicated Prestige/Propaganda project right off the bat. Learn the intricacies of brick statues* first. This will allow your new overseer(s) and laborers to settle their new homes.

Brick statues require a steady supply of bricks. This too will require a few things in place to provide optimun output.~ Once you have a steady supply of bricks, and have satisfied your new labor division, it is time to put then to work.
~ All basalt may be quarried in advance up to a maximum limit without statues in que. Sm. basalt staues are a max or four(4) and Lg. basalt at a max of one(1).
~ Once statue bases that are fully built, it then triggers the overseer to the base. Once that trigger is active, laborers run out to perform any or all of the following tasks: carving and/or hauling.
~ Obelisks and stele are carved only when the finished base has triggered the overseer to get working.
~ All Limestone quarries can be dug, and dug, and dug,...and dug some more, even without a pyramid base.
~ The recomended starting item to initially bump prestige with is a sm. mastaba. NOT PALACE UPGRADES.

[MarkDuffy]

Okay, I went and retried this town. It is going smoother this time since I placed a group of common shops down by my farmers AND a group of common and luxury shops by my nobles/palace. I started with just 4 servants for my lux shops and 2 nobles. Increased servants if nobles or lux were getting behind on their shopping/gathering. Opened up trade with all available outposts.

Welcome to our family, Antha! :)

This (http://www.tiltedmill.com/forums/showpost.php?p=59695&postcount=5) is my build order. Click on the thread link at the top right to read other's build orders. Most people say I place waaay too many brickmakers/layers. I LOVE bricks! :D Lots of bricks early let's you build quickly. The Cult Temple, Palace upgrade & mastabas need lots of bricks.

You will need more shops, built in complete sets all over the place.

More Nobles & lots of farms. In general, I place one servant for each Noble & almost one for each lux shop. Servants get paid by the people who hire them & not from bakeries, so their employers have to have bread to pay the servants.

When a mission begins the game places the camera where the devs think is the best place to build your city. I try to build my city smack dab in the center of the map, where there is a very wide flood-plain for LOTS of farms. This way you can reach the entire map of quaries & mines w/o having to build labor camps. However, for Nekhen, follow the dev's lead & build where you did.

COTN = food, bricks & prestige.

Now the prestige has stagnated at ~33. Thats my next project, to figure that out!

Open sites on the World Map so that you can build propaganda monuments such as obelisks & steles. Opening the sites will get you exploits prestige.

Max did very well on prestige. I just added a bit. :)

[MAX-1]

:D :D :D Here's mine. :D :D :D (http://www.tiltedmill.com/forums/showpost.php?p=51932&postcount=9)

[MarkDuffy]

Max is a slow & steady builder (and the Forum Master at Pretty).

I pride myself on Fast & Ugly. :cool:

Max also likes to have villagers available, whereas I try to use them up as fast as I can! :D

There are a zillion ways to approach this game, Antha. You will quickly find yours! :)

[neoskeptic]

I've managed to breeze through Nekhen now. Built the nobles area in the eastern desert a ways south of the granite quarry.

started with 6 lux shops, 6 farms, 8 common shops (1 set for farmers and 1 set for nobles), 2 brickworks, 1 layer, and 1 bakery.

When the bakery was built, and the lux shops occupied, I laid down 6 nobles, more farms, and 4-6 more brickworks, 3 brick layers, priest quarters, school, shrines, healthcare, 13 servants (6 nobles, your family, 6 lux shops) and papyrus. and at least 2-3 more bakeries.

I ignored scribes until I raised my prestige to get a fifth educated worker.

My mistake (sorta) was to have a palace upgrade rather than mastabas.

Needless to say I managed to finish in 11 years with 530 people or so. I built common shops as needed, and raised steles for propaganda.

I've built a small labor city near the granite quarry but I don't need the granite anymore.

I want to make a "monument park" (for practice, I continued the scenario) because my prestige is stuck at 60, and with my pharaoh's death, is now at 50.

Should I:

1) level the labor camp (bakeries and all) and set up a new one on the side of the river nearer the basalt statues with brickworks, brick layers, and stonecutters?

2) set up a new noble area in the western desert, with shops, shrines and the like, to keep the overseers happy? How many nobles will I be needing?

I also want to try to raise an army and conquer that enemy fort. any suggestions how to go about it?

[MAX-1]

I want to make a "monument park" (for practice, I continued the scenario) because my prestige is stuck at 60, and with my pharaoh's death, is now at 50.

Should I:

1) level the labor camp (bakeries and all) and set up a new one on the side of the river nearer the basalt statues with brickworks, brick layers, and stonecutters?

2) set up a new noble area in the western desert, with shops, shrines and the like, to keep the overseers happy? How many nobles will I be needing?

I also want to try to raise an army and conquer that enemy fort. any suggestions how to go about it?

Try both. :D :rolleyes: :D

[MarkDuffy]

I also want to try to raise an army and conquer that enemy fort. any suggestions how to go about it?

What ?!?!?

You won before defeating the fort?

That's CHEATING! :D

(Can't wait for the response! :eek: )

[antha71]

What ?!?!?

You won before defeating the fort?

That's CHEATING! :D

(Can't wait for the response! :eek: )


Haha I barely got my people fed and with luxuries. There was no way I was gonna try to build an army! :p

[MarkDuffy]

Haha I barely got my people fed and with luxuries. There was no way I was gonna try to build an army! :p

Definitely continue play then & open all the World Map sites, defeat everyone & build all the WM monuments or else you miss out on a lot of the fun, Antha. The tougher WM sites will give you lots of exploits & propaganda prestige. Then even more WM sites will appear!

Continuing play is one of the great characteristics of COTN! :)

[neoskeptic]

I raised an army of 102 spearmen before I realized I already clicked on the siege option. So I just waited ten years then Baris fell. I set up the stele for that victory next to the training ground. It's best to make the men feel appreciated.

Overseers and laborers are your best friends when it comes to prestige. :D

A majority of my prestige came from statues and steles. I ended the scenario as a god. (200+ prestige) I learned that if you want to make your city pretty, you better do it with monuments. I never did set up a second town across the river though.

I'll post screenies when I can.

[MarkDuffy]

I raised an army of 102 spearmen before I realized I already clicked on the siege option. So I just waited ten years then Baris fell. I set up the stele for that victory next to the training ground. It's best to make the men feel appreciated.

That will work also. The Fort needs something like 200 soldiers, but you can win with less if you siege for a bit.

[neoskeptic]

Actually if you build just 20 spearmen and a whole lot of weaponsmiths, enough to produce the 40 pieces you need each year. The siege will work. Commanders are not part of the siege requirements, I think. And each year of the siege you get exploits prestige.

Originally Posted by MarkDuffy
What ?!?!?

You won before defeating the fort?

That's CHEATING!

(Can't wait for the response! )

Oh nos! I'm a cheatar! :p

[riversandlakes]

I was wondering on the "ratio" between townhouses:servants and lux:servants? 1:1 for the former? Are servants sharable between lux shops?

Because they moonch bread (right?), so I'm trying to cut costs :D

[CaitGrey]

A servant will only serve one household - if you click to see the family information, it will tell you if which household. You can then see if this is a noble, a luxury shopkeeper or an elite.

[riversandlakes]

An elite uses a servant too? If I were to put a servant right behind every townhouse, does this mean he's automagically assigned to that townhouse?

Does an overseer/priest/commander get to use a servant? Via the same way above?

A servant will only serve one household - if you click to see the family information, it will tell you if which household. You can then see if this is a noble, a luxury shopkeeper or an elite.

[Kiya]

Does an overseer/priest/commander get to use a servant? Via the same way above?
Servants don't definitely help priests who would need a helping hand since they have a lot of different tasks and are not married.
I think also overseers and commanders don't use servants.

[riversandlakes]

Time and again I've noticed Priests leaving to work with Red icons of wares (both types) for quite a long, long time. He sure is a workaholic! Though he always makes sure he never runs out of bread! :)

I think he's like me - going really 0 on supplies before shopping once a month ;p

Servants don't definitely help priests who would need a helping hand since they have a lot of different tasks and are not married.
I think also overseers and commanders don't use servants.