Valor's Guide to River Civilization

Before you freak out!
River Civilization is the most popular advanced setup game. This is really for people who play advanced setup, and to those who don't imagine it not as a nooby game (which I'm sure you do), but as simply a different supremacy map.

Overview
River Civilization is the most popular and one of the most classic advanced setup games in age of mythology, I have no idea who created the first one and I'm not sure anyone but the creator does. However, in this guide I will explain how to effectively win on this amazing map. Before I go into detail I'll explain the general concepts:

• Teamwork this is a 3v3 game, teamwork is very important
  
• The River They dont call it River Civilization without reason, win the river and the game will basically be yours.
  
• Transportation Always have a plan! What if you don't get water?What if your base is ambushed?
  
• Land Invasion The river control will help, but if you don't get it and even once you have it, you must always consider the land
  
• Territory Plan out your territory for maximum efficiency
  

These are the main points I will be talking about, first up: Teamwork.

Teamwork
There are many variations of river civ, but I have never seen one that doesn't have a 3v3. In the beginnings of the game you should always get your allies talking and plan out where you're going to settle. Don't think you can win this on your own. I have seen three good players lose simply because my team had talked better and planned out our attacks. I have also seen teammates settle very close together and end up competing for resources. Not much has to be said even simple flares are fine. I recommend playing this game with friends or clanmates, people who will communicate with you well. Well this topic is short, but it's basically self-explanatory.

The River
As I say to my teammates, win the river, win the game. The River could be the most important part to winning, but how exactly should one win it? With ships of course! Don't waste precious resources that could be used for ships on towers, and rather build as many as you can until the river is yours. Never have your naval fight in classical, in fact don't even build any arrow ships in classical and just wait. If you do get attacked din classical just put a fishing ship in your dock so that it kills the weak arrow ships. The best way to win the river is to FM, a FM is kind of hard to do on this map so most people do a FH and spam siege ships. I myself, do a semi FM and put some people on gold and wood in classic then go straight to mythic. This way I have the Champion siege ships and can pound any buildings within 30 meters of the coast. If you are Egyptian you are at a very large advantage as your fishing ships can easily maneuver around and put up docks nearly everywhere. More docks=more ships= more winning! The river is in fact so crucial that instead of going through Apollo for his excellent god power, would recommend Dionysus for his Scylla's which can turn the battle in your favor. Once you have the sea, you can transport units and the Underworld Passage isn't as important. So remember:

• Do not fight in classic
  
• Best time to fight is Mythic
  
• Always go for good water gods
  

Follow these rules and the river (and the game) will be yours!

Transportation
Transportation on river civ, just like any other game is very important. The main thing about river civ though , is that you won't usually have enemy units on your island so you will have to cross water to get to them. The most traditional way, and generally the most obvious is by boat. Transport Ships, Long boats, Leviathans, etc. To do this it is best if you have won water, in which case it will not be a problem as there will be no ships, or towers to kill your boats. If you have no however then you must pick your time carefully, plan when to do it and most importantly use the shortest distance. But even if you have only a small space to go, don't be jumpy, as their is nothing more annoying then losing your 30 troops at sea. Hitler calculated the English Channel was only 21 miles at its shortest point but never dared risk it as air resistance was to much. There may not be air resistance, but you never know what could be lurking just outside your LOS. So always scout the point, and always use the shortest point to ferry your troops if you have not won the water. If there are towers blocking you then get some siege on it, or even send a flying unit to distract fire. However, transport ships are not used as much as you think, a lot of people use godpowers. Underworld Passage is one of the best godpowers, but I have seen it been stupidly used so many times. The beauty of this power is in the fact that you can transport any unit through at any time as long as both sides stand. Knowing this, don't try to do anything stupid like putting it right in the middle of someones base. Not only will it be destroyed extremely quickly, but also there are 3players on the other team, depending on the age, they can have up to 12 different godpowers. Which unless countered (with rain or eclipse, etc) can totally destroy your "surprise attack". Use your Underworld Passage more tactically at a point where you can build up so that your attack doesn't rely on the passage and you can hold your ground as long as it takes. Another commonly used godpower is vortex, god this is annoying. Most commonly used for the same type of "surprise attack" I tell people not to use with Underworld Passage, but its ok this is a different godpower, you get 3 uses and they are all quite quickly recharged. I also recommend using this power defensively, as one of the 12 powers I mentioned which can ruin a poor use of Underworld Passage. Nothing really counters vortex, except for vortex itself then the battle really comes down to whoever has the bigger army which you should always have. The only other transport power I can think of right now is Shifting Sands which should absolutely never be used to transport your enemies army. It only will move about 4 of them and that is just a total waste. No, I recommend using it to transport villagers to build up, or soldiers to clinch a crucial battle. It also can save your allies if they get ambushed, in fact using this power I once saved the last villager of my ally and moved them to a much safer territory. I don't consider rocs a godpower, but I consider them OP on this map. Use them however you want, they only hold 15 and are tough nuts to crack. No advice here only don't be really cheap and watch out for priests! A last comment is to always have a backup transport for your villagers. Anything can happen in river civ and if you villagers get attacked, you don't just leave them to die. Always have some transport waiting for them so they can live on to fight another day. This is all you'll need to know about transportation.

Land Invasion
This is obviously very self explanatory, and as I just explained transportation there is little left to say. You need a good land invasion to back up your good river invasion. It may be difficult to do both things at once which is why I recommend discussing amongst your team who will go in on land, and who at sea. Lot's of people will just land on one of the islands and attack, but they are the ones who will not win. Conquering an island isn't a single army job but more of "siege". land your troops and some villagers and dig in. Build rax, fortresses (or whatever god you are) take a town center, and set it up for a good invasion. Now you just slowly take over little pieces o land until the island and the game, are yours. Not much else to say to this other then that tip to build up before you invade.

Territory
Last, but certainly not least is the section about territories. I have played many games of River Civilization and I have seen many different uses of territory and I will tell you what is in my opinion the best thing to do. A lot of people build a town center and then use that small area for everything: military, economy, everything! I strongly do not recommend this, as once you are attacked there, everything suffers. When I play, I expand a lot I usually end with 12 settlements, but I have won the game. I settle in one spot first and then expand to an area where I have most of economy settled, an area where I have most of my military, and an area that is strictly for research. This is a much more efficient system that allows me to micromanage my units a lot easier.I recommend putting you economy farther away from the rest so that it is harder to be invaded, and always have a way out! Don't get stuck somewhere! By dividing your territories in these "sectors" it will be much easier for victory.

Let me know if I didn't include something!

[This message has been edited by Xx_Valor_xX (edited 11-17-2007 @ 02:12 PM).]