The Arms Race: Who are you?

[Monk]

What sort of nation are you?

I have discovered that within the game, there is a game. The technology tree facilitates an arms-race between the nations of etw. I was focusing on land tech, and when it came time to really put my navy into action I found myself severely outmatched by my neighbors. Their warships were making quick work of my frigates and really making me see the value of investing in Naval technologies.

It was a harsh lesson, but one I learned in stride. My navies are growing stronger every turn, not as strong as Brittan's but getting there!

[Sir Beane]

What sort of nation are you?

I have discovered that within there game, there is a game. The technology tree facilitates an arms-race between the nations of etw. I was focusing on land tech, and when it came time to really put my navy into action I found myself severely outmatched by my neighbors. Their warships were making quick work of my frigates and really making me see the value of investing in Naval technologies.

It was a harsh lesson, but one I learned in stride. My navies are growing stronger every turn, not as strong as Brittan's but getting there!

Since I have 12 universities at the last count I focus research on everything. It's actually pretty easy to max out the tech tree with enough schools and Gentlemen.

[JAG]

Man that many Uni's must cause some problems with clamour for reform and unhappiness.

I tend to focus on the important land techs and then significantly focus on the philosophy techs, because they have such important roles to play on every other aspect of the game - if you get the important philosophy techs early, it helps you rattle through the rest of the techs, giving you a big time tech advantage over everyone else, you can even start trading some away to fill in the gaps, and still be significantly in front of everyone.

[Fisherking]

I suppose it is faction dependant but a strict focus on only one does not seem the way to go.

With that said however, as a player interested in global expansion then Naval Technology would have an edge in that equation.

[Polemists]

I focused purely on economy for a long time, farms, textile mills and other areas.

I changed almost every school I had into a church. Meaning even when I had 30 regions I only had 4 schools, but a TON of churches (goo conversion rates woot.)

I mostly focused on ports for navy and the only military I researched was caribnes for the longest time.

Next game I may research navy more but as Austria it seemed by time i got to the naval game I was already to late to do much.

[andrewt]

I'm skimming the top of the trees first. I'm doing enlightenment first to make my future research faster then economy to get more money for more conquests and schools. Then I do army/navy. I'm going to stop doing economic ones if I don't really need the money.

Some of the army/navy ones seem to be decent "moneymakers" if you have tons of upkeep as they reduce it.

[Eusebius86]

I'm going to stick with researching army tech until someone comes up with a decent mod for navies. I mean, since when does a ship of the line have an upkeep cost equal to that of 40 skirmishers? I also don't appreciate how the AI stat stacks on higher difficulties...

[Beskar]

Since I have 12 universities at the last count I focus research on everything. It's actually pretty easy to max out the tech tree with enough schools and Gentlemen.

You are sure a beanie. I only have 6 and I think that's a lot at times, sometimes there isn't "more" to research.

[Lord of the Isles]

You are sure a beanie. I only have 6 and I think that's a lot at times, sometimes there isn't "more" to research.

It's a slow day at work, so even a 'beanie' pun got a laugh

Since I've been unable to get beyond turn 54 in any game due to CTDs, can one of you lucky people who don't have these issues tell me how the 200 turns of the Grand Campaign fits with the technology tree? Do you finish researching everything by 1780, or are there still things you cannot get done by game end? And how about technology trading with other powers: it seems to get harder as the early years unfold, but perhaps that changes later?

Different estimated answers for different numbers of schools/colleges/universities welcome.

[Sir Beane]

It's a slow day at work, so even a 'beanie' pun got a laugh

Since I've been unable to get beyond turn 54 in any game due to CTDs, can one of you lucky people who don't have these issues tell me how the 200 turns of the Grand Campaign fits with the technology tree? Do you finish researching everything by 1780, or are there still things you cannot get done by game end? And how about technology trading with other powers: it seems to get harder as the early years unfold, but perhaps that changes later?

Different estimated answers for different numbers of schools/colleges/universities welcome.

It's possible, with effort, to finish the tech tree about half way through the 200 turns. Tech trading is a dud. The enemy will almost always refuse to swap technologies unless you are offering them a province or huge sums of money.

[satchef1]

Enlightenment for me, victory through political and economic progress. When i do go to war it's small stacks of highly trained, high valour soldiers under a high command general, it's always nice to see the enemy lose 2000 men against an army of 700!

It's a slow day at work, so even a 'beanie' pun got a laugh

Since I've been unable to get beyond turn 54 in any game due to CTDs, can one of you lucky people who don't have these issues tell me how the 200 turns of the Grand Campaign fits with the technology tree? Do you finish researching everything by 1780, or are there still things you cannot get done by game end? And how about technology trading with other powers: it seems to get harder as the early years unfold, but perhaps that changes later?

Different estimated answers for different numbers of schools/colleges/universities welcome.

I've got 2 techs left to research at 1750, should be able to do it a lot faster though because i didn't really know what i was doing at the start of the game. Always give the high research timed items to your best university with the best scholars in.

[Polemists]

Tech trading is a dud. The enemy will almost always refuse to swap technologies unless you are offering them a province or huge sums of money.

Actually I got a fair bit (16 or 17 different techs) by simply conquering nations down to two provinces or so and then forcing them to give up techs and payments in a peace treaty by hitting the threaten button.

It was a primary reason I kept taking out Wutemburg (3 times), they had so many tech, and were so easy to threaten for it :)

[Hengist]

In my first completed campaign as Prussia i focused on Land Tech and Agriculture, with abit industrial.

You really dont need Naval tech to conquer all of Europe. The rest comes naturally, as you capture alot of Universities which research the neglected trees like naval and enlightnment.

[Dead Guy]

When I got to fire by rank, I wondered why I didn't bee-line directly to it from the start. I think it's that powerful. I do tend to focus on land techs though... But at first I mainly went for enlightenment to speed up the research rate, and industrial, particularly agriculture, to promote growth. Now I have five universitys and I tend to balance it more. I have avoided war with GB and UP so I'm still on the first line of navy techs!

[Zim]

I tend to focus on land and industrial techs to the detriment of the enlightenment techs.

Hasn't been working for me in my latest game. I think taking too long before getting empiricism to upgrade my schools (and just maybe the fact I forgot to research anything in one of my schools for ten turns or so. ) has caused me to fall behind.

[MadKow]

I haven't played any full blown campaign yet, only a few dozen false starts, to get the feeling of this games that changes a lot of what used to be the approach i had with TW games.
So, i have been sort of testing starting strategies with the UP (Dutch). Besides a quick grab of plug bayonet (to fight the pirates of the Caribbeans , i tend to focus on enlightenment as i try to stay at peace as long as i can and that means only one School/College to start with. The bonuses they give to research may compensate in the medium/long run.
Not sure, though. Conquest may be more efficient... But i do like to turtle and emerge as an unstoppable force.

[Polemists]

If you decide to forgo a tech sooner or later you will get it. Once every major faction except one has it, the last nation gets it automatically.

This may not seem like much but as the game goes on you'll find one or two techs every handful of turns sat on your lap just do to the speed of other nations tech advances.

Each time you do a enlightenment tech you do go faster for research but you also get a -1 thru -5 for clamour to reform.

[Rhyfelwyr]

Even though I've been playing as Britain, I've found land technologies to be the most useful. Philosophical developments often seem to have many drawbacks, such as Clamour for Reform.

[Sheogorath]

What the AI seems to be unwilling to trade is mostly MILITARY tech. I've bought a fair few economic/'social' technologies off of them at decent rates (mostly for other techs).

There are a few things they'll refuse, but it helps if they're allied/very friendly.

[Shadow_Wolf33]

I generally follow a fairly balanced research plan, focusing most of my energies onto land based military techs (cannon and infantry). Once I get up to about 4 universities I'll generally have 2 going military tech, one industrial, one enlightenment, and then I can use my improved military to conquer more land and get more universities for even better learnins.

If my military tech is ahead of other factions enough to be significant, then not too many people can put up a good argument against me with a bayonet up their posterior.

Naval I do research a bit of, but don't focus a high amount of energy on, as the seas in Europe are generally fairly calm, and most conflict happening in the Caribbean. I can generally stand to have my Caribbean fleets hiding in port until I can get fleet re-enforcements out there to beef them up, or a dockyard built there for a bit of on the spot re-enforcing. In Europe, my general plan of attack is to take out a country's port provinces first and foremost, which will cut off their navy from supply. After that it's just a numbers game, that I will win so long as my land forces can hold the line.

[magnum]

Generally I place 1 university in every territory that can support one. Depending on the faction thats usually about 4-8 universities. At that rate I can afford to research all the tech trees and generally finish all tech at or a little before 1750. Thats well ahead of the AI. Then I take my tech'd out armies and have fun marching around and exping them up. Nothing more devastation than a full stack of top tech troops/ships running at 3 chevrons.

[General SupaCrunk]

Haven't played yet...

[Graphic]

Fast tech to Fire By Rank always.