How to win in Civilization IV when Playing as the English Empire - Ultimate Guide to the Civ IV Strategy Game by John Sinitsky

Civilization 4
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Introduction

Sid Meier’s Civilization was THE computer game when it was introduced in 1994 and was first real turn-based strategy ever. The latest PC playable version of Civilization is “Civilization IV”. It was released in October 2005 and has many fans across the world.

3 years is an a lot of time for any computer game to exist - but not for this one , as it remains one of the best strategy games to this day. With the victory options and most the pre-game selections (choosing the map, the climate and sea level, game speed and world size, Difficulty Levels (A,B)) covered in previous articles, we continue with a review of civilizations to choose from. The next nation to be examined is England.

English Empire Overview

When playing as the Enland nation, you will have the Redcoat as your unique unit (replacing the Rifleman). The unit is more powerful (16 instead of 14) and has +25% strength with gunpowder units – making it far less vulnerable to Grenadier attacks. It does not require resources and has +25% strength with mounted units (both common for Rifleman), making it a very good contestant versus Cavalry. Having such a powerful unit as early as possible in the game is a must – so do research Rifling (beware that Chichen Itza is being obsolete).

The starting technologies for the English are Fishing and Mining, meaning Sailing, Masonry and Bronze Working are available instantly.

The civilization has only 2 leaders – Elizabeth and Victoria

Queen Elizabeth

Elizabeth is defined as “Philosophical” and “Financial”. This means you will have a bonus of Great People appearance (+100% birth rate). However, doubling zero is still zero – so you should either build wonders or create specialists in your cities. Universities (that speed up your research by 25%) are built with double speed, so discovering Education and building Libraries (required for University) is very logical.

“Financial” should make you research “Banking” as soon as possible, as the Banks are constructed at double speed. As you will probably have many banks it will bring you closer to the Wall Street wonder. Also, you should concentrate on terrains which produce more commerce, as you have a bonus of +1 for each square that generates 2.

Queen Victoria

Victoria is “Expansive” and “Financial”.

With the effects of “Financial” explained above, being “Expansive” means you construct Granary and Harbor at double speed. This enables quick population growth and prevents health problems – especially since you also receive a +2 health per city. Discovering Pottery and Compass will help you to take advantage of those buildings.

This post is part of the series: Civilization IV - Guide To Sid Meier’s Civilization IV PC Game

This series on Civilization IV tells you how to get the best out of the classic Sid Meier PC game. Game strategy and options are reviewed and disscussed

  1. Mastering Civilization IV - Victory Conditions
  2. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game Part I – Selecting a Map (A)
  3. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part II – Selecting a Map (B)
  4. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part III – Climate and Sea Level
  5. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part IV – Map Size
  6. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part V – Difficulty Levels (A)
  7. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part VI – Difficulty Levels (B)
  8. Mastering Civilization IV – Starting the Game - Part VII – Game Speed
  9. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing the civilization - Overview
  10. Mastering Civilization IV – The American Empire in Civilization IV
  11. Mastering Civilization IV – The Arabian Empire in Civilization IV
  12. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Your Player Nation – Aztec Empire
  13. Mastering Civilization IV – Playing As The Chinese Empire - Choosing Your Playable Nation
  14. Mastering Civilization IV – Playing as the Egyptian Empire in Civ IV
  15. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Your Nation – English Empire
  16. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Which Nation to Play – French Empire
  17. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Playable Nations – German Empire
  18. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing A Playable Nation – Greek Empire
  19. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Which Nation to Play – Incan Empire
  20. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing the nation – Indian Empire
  21. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Which Nation to Play in Civ IV – Japanese Empire
  22. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Which Nation to Play – Malinese Empire
  23. Mastering Civilization IV – Mongolian Empire in Civ IV - Choosing the Nation to Play in Civ IV PC Game
  24. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing Playable Nations – Roman Empire
  25. Mastering Civilization IV – Choosing the Nation to Play in Civ IV – Russian Empire
  26. Mastering Civilization IV – Playing as the Persian Empire in Civ IV - Player’s Guide to Choosing their Nation in Civ IV
  27. Mastering Civilization IV – Selecting Playable Nations in Civ IV – Spanish Empire