Optimal Build Order

[AkumaX]

Ok, I'm new to SWGB and I've never really played Age of Empires (and derivatives). I used to play a lot of Total Annihilation (IMHO, still has the best interface out there) and I was pretty decent. I played Starcraft a little, but I didn't like all the micromanagement. Anyway, I played a few games on the Zone (is that where you guys play? If not, where?) and got my ass handed to me. It's not a surprise, since I finished the training mission, and then decided to just give multiplayer a try. It was a learning experience.

 

Anyway, I could tell that I wasn't building up and managing my resources very well. Can you guys give me a general build order that you guys use? Tips would be good, as well.

 

I know it depends on what tech lev you are trying to reach before attack, what civ you are playing, how many people you are playing against, and what size/kind of map, but just assume for now:

 

Say I just want to rush up to level 4 as fast as possible. What do I do? I was thinking something like this:

 

1. create a ton of workers

2. build food proc center

3. gather food #1 priority, then carbon

4. build carbon collecting center

5. build power supply do-hickey

6. collect ore and collector thingie

7. build troop center

8. go to T2

9. war center and shipyard

10. T3

11. Two T3 buildings and T4?

 

I'm not so concerned with the later stuff. It's the beginning stuff that I'm falling behind on and it's killing me.

 

Thanks for any help guys.

 

-AkumaX

[Knights_Q2]

Because of the randomness of resource location in this game, build orders are impossible, sorry.

[Jedi_Knight]

if you are having trouble have some allies they will take care of the enemy while you build up your economacy thats what I did

[Chessack]

Originally posted by AkumaX

Ok, I'm new to SWGB and I've never really played Age of Empires (and derivatives). I used to play a lot of Total Annihilation (IMHO, still has the best interface out there) and I was pretty decent. I played Starcraft a little, but I didn't like all the micromanagement. Anyway, I played a few games on the Zone (is that where you guys play? If not, where?) and got my ass handed to me. It's not a surprise, since I finished the training mission, and then decided to just give multiplayer a try. It was a learning experience.

 

Anyway, I could tell that I wasn't building up and managing my resources very well. Can you guys give me a general build order that you guys use? Tips would be good, as well.

 

I know it depends on what tech lev you are trying to reach before attack, what civ you are playing, how many people you are playing against, and what size/kind of map, but just assume for now:

 

Say I just want to rush up to level 4 as fast as possible. What do I do?

 

 

I don't really play multiplayer games, but I have played AoE and AoK a LOT against the computer. First, I will say that there is more than one way to skin a civilization, as it were. I have used different strategies with each civilization (In the AoK/E group -- only played 4 o the civs so far in GB, since I just got it the other day). They can all work or not work depending on how many other players are in the game, how efficient your enemies/allies are, and how carefully you watch when your workers go idle.

 

One thing to pay careful attention to (Unless you're the Trade Federation) is the # of prefab shelters you have. This is crucial to the ability of your civilization to develop, and can bring you to a stand still for about 45 seconds while you detail a builder to make one, if you max out too fast. You should build a shelter right away, even before you need it. Then what I usually do is alternate, building one "Production building" (Food Proc. Plant, Animal Farm, etc) and then one prefab, then another production building, then another prefab, etc. I have one worker dedicated to build, build, build, and every other building is always a shelter (until I hit the pop. limit). If you do it this way, the timing is such that, by the time your command center cranks out 5 more workers, you will have had time to build a regular production building, and another shelter, and you can then make another five workers.

 

Also, I don't agree with the strategy of "race to age 4." Again, I have not played much against humans, and sometimes the computer does stupid things. But almost universally in AoE and AoK, the computer would beat my pants off to age 4, but in doing so, it would lack for the production buildings and the technology advances, and in short order I would surpass it, and kick it's butt (unless you set it on the really hard levels, where it's either superhumanly smart or, as I sometimes suspect, it "cheats" -- and even then, I still win more often than I lose).

 

Do not discount technology development, which you need "Production buildings" to create. A stormtrooper fully tricked out with all the possible upgrades, is going to kick the crap out of a supposedly "better" unit that has not been improved at all. War Center improvements can *really* help out here, as can the improvements found in the unit's home area. Also, the worker speed/gathering improvements can really help things. If you don't increase your carbon gethering, worker speed, etc, as much as possible, you will find yourself in Age 4, with very slow, inefficient workers -- which will lose against someone "merely" in Age 3, but with all the unit improvements.

 

In fact, in AoK (again, I have only played a couple of complete games and a few campaign episodes of GB yet), the computer regularly won the race to Age 4, rapidly built some Age 4 units, and would attack my "poor Age 3" civilization with supposedly "weaker" but highly improved units -- and again, I won those battles much more often than I lost.

 

The key is to make your defenses sound. Good defenses with walls, turrets, ranged and hand-to-hand units, and some anti-aircraft ability (a neat new level of strategy in this game, IMO), you can hold off the enemy while developing your civilization. Have enough workers to keep your resources up there (make sure you never have to sit around and wait until you have enough carbon to build a unit -- if you do, you don't have enough carbon gatherers and should build more), and keep your defenses strong, until you are ready to build enough forces to attack.

 

At least, that's how I played AoE and AoK, and it's how I expect I will play GB, over the long haul.

 

Good Luck!