Really need help in the game!!!

[Morgoth101]

Another thing: I've been trying to get ZPG in cities like Carthage and the like, but it doesn't come. How do you really get it?

[ReluctantSamurai]

Another thing: I've been trying to get ZPG in cities like Carthage and the like, but it doesn't come. How do you really get it?

This question comes up frequently and there is no set way to do it. I will probably document the development of a single city, at some point, for a given faction to illustrate how it can be done. Choice of temple plays a very important role. To take your example of Carthage, in my last Scipii campaign, when I conquered it, I immediately tore down the existing temple and built the Saturn temple....the best law & order one available to the Scipii. One might be tempted to use the Vulcan temple because Carthage most often becomes a major training center, but with rampant population growth, law & order are far more important and that extra % conferred by Saturn over Vulcan can be the difference.

One thing peculiar to note is that, contrary to the usual practice of having a governor stacked full of good traits, there is one bad trait that actually helps in the case of Carthage....that of "Poor Farmer". When you get one, send him immediately to Carthage The worse the trait (ie. "Loathes Farmers") the better. It does wonders for slowing the grain-driven population boom.

I didn't get ZPG in Carthage in my last Scipii campaign until I hit about 32k in population. I didn't need a governor at that point, nor even a full 20-man garrison. Surprisingly, I could maintain population loyalty in the green, although this isn't necessary (even blue level of loyalty---80%---is enough), as long as you get the orange icon for growth, indicating that it has stopped.

I've had a little problem getting my screen capture to work properly as of late, so when I get it straitened out, I'll post a screen from the above Scipii campaign. And btw, I always move my capital to Syracuse, as the Scipii, and I never bother with taking all the Numidian settlements. After capturing Cirta and Lepcis, I don't bother with those poor Bedouin settlements waaay out in the desert...no profit in them Instead, I head straight for Greece!

[Morgoth101]

Thanks! I think I got ZPG only once, and it was in a city that I NEEDED population growth :-P. But I sorted that out. As for the bad traits, I haven't seen any of those traits for quite some time.
Oh, and I usually take only Tingi from the Numidians. Why? Because of the mercenary elephants!!!:-DD

[ReluctantSamurai]

Okay...here are some screenies from a few recent campaigns. Unfortunately, I must have deleted save-games from Germania, Scythia, and Britannia to illustrate how things can go for barbarian factions.
http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1293805812
http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1293805895

The first two are from a recent Macedonian campaign. Capital is where it was at the start...in Thessalonica. Sparta, Corinth, and Larissa are not at ZPG in this image because of recent training in those cities. The Macedonian Temple of Zeus is perhaps the best law & order temple in the game, and nearly all settlements in these two images have it.

The next is from a Greek Cities campaign:

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1293806113

The next two are from a Carthage campaign with the capital in Carthage:

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1293806196
http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806277

The next two are from a Brutii campaign with the capital in Athens:

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806361
http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806411

I never use the Mercury temple as the Juno temple gives the same trade bonus at the pantheon level plus an exp bonus. Markets are good enough to increase trade before you get the pantheon built.

The next two are from an Armenian campaign with the capital in Tarsus:

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806487
http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806577

I haven't moved into the Nile Delta yet, but those three cities can also be brought under control, though they will need governors due to distance to capital and culture penalty.

This one is from a Scipii campaign with the capital in Syracuse:

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/a...jpg?1293806636

Carthage is not at ZPG in the image because of recent training activity, but it returns to that state after replacing the population given to the new units.

Hope this is of some interest.

Oh, and btw, you don't need to capture a province to recruit mercs there. You can do it in any province as long as you have an open slot in your army and a general.

[Morgoth101]

Hey it really helped! Thanks! By the way, how do you get campaign pictures over here?

[ReluctantSamurai]

You need an account at Imageshack or Photobucket to upload images to here.

I hope the screenies I posted help put to rest the myth that maximum farm upgrades lead to squalor, unrest, and revolts. Most of the cities shown have max farm upgrades, with the exception of grain bonus areas like Carthage, Syracuse, etc., and most don't even require a governor.

[Morgoth101]

cool,thanks. thos pics really helped