A thread on #Civilization3 / #Civ3 from a novice player:

I've gotten back into Civ 3 after some time away. I really like the game, even if I'm not an expert and I don't fully understand all the intricacies. I've enjoyed a handful of Civs, mostly Industrious ones, especially Maya

But I've been experimenting with other playstyles to see if maybe there's something I've missed that I could exploit and raise my game to a higher level. One Civ that I landed on is Portugal. I'm trying to see if I can use their strengths to become "the dealer" at the table.

I'm not a super patient player, so I tend to define success by how fast a start I can get. My goals are 1) Eliminate the first Civ I come across as quickly as I can, just to have that much more space to expand and not be stifled. That's hard to do with a non-military Civ...

So that doesn't play to Portugal's strength. 2) Scout and claim advantageous areas to settle as fast as I can, and 3) Establish contact with as many rival Civs as I can as fast as possible. Portugal's Expansionist and Seafaring traits allow me to do that when used correctly.

I read an expert saying that Expansionist and Seafaring are contradictory traits. In a weird way, I think they're complimentary. Even if you're on a pangaea, you still have a curragh clipping along the coast meeting Civs on the opposite side, while your scouts dive inland.

If you're on an archipelago, your scouts are still identifying the prime real estate, which is at more of a premium, while your ships do their work. Which maybe isn't as big of an advantage as Scientific or Religious, but it's not nothing.

So what it boils down to is that you're nailing down resources and luxuries, popping goody huts for tech, and using it all (plus communications) as trade capital to fund research. That gives you the Space Race advantage plus a head start on military-related tech.

Had a game just like that the other day. Not my most dominant win but maybe my most satisfying. Was on an arch map. Wiped out the Celts very early. Ferried Crusaders to wipe out the Byzantines on a nearby island, then stayed peaceful and got an easy Space Race win.

In my current game though, I got complacent and took the AI for granted. The Japanese took one of my cities when I called their bluff and wasn't actually prepared for war, but fortunately I got it back quickly with no further damage.

That's kind of the fly in the ointment with my "dealer" theory... in Civ, you might get stuck going to war whether you like it or not. So I wonder if Militaristic is a must-have trait, especially as you climb in difficulty?