They Reinvented Combat in Civ 7 A Nerd's Preview Guide

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Feel free to leave comments and questions down below and I'll try my best to answer them as much as I can!

[@Sucramar]

How is the Multiplayer?

[@jsbrads1]

ˈdɛspətɪz(ə)m is the pronunciation, the o isn’t strongly pronounced.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

@ I haven't had enough changes to try it yet but will be reacting to the Firaxis Livestream all about Multiplayer this Thursday!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

@@jsbrads1 Thanks! That makes sense I'll adjust /ˈdespəˌtizəm/

[@segnal1959]

This explanation of adjacency bonuses via civ 6 map tacks was very helpful. Keep up the great work!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Glad I didn't cut it! It know it was helpful in explaining on the twitch channel while playing civ 6. I know people that already got it could just skip ahead.

[@bigturboweenie]

Wow this is probably one of the best videos in explaining how adjacencies, stacking, and warfare works. This was great.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I enjoy getting nerdy with the details

[@abhishekab1]

You re such an amazing creator. I am very happy to have found your Channel.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Best compliment I've gotten in a long while thank you so much!

[@AmbushIntheDark]

“Over here we have… is that on fire? Is that supposed to be on fire?” Is hilarious even out of context

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Needs to be a popup overlay meme

[@xlepermessiahxx4144]

What a great video! Most of the content I've seen from other creators glosses over a lot of the reasoning behind their decision making. It was really refreshing and informative how in depth you walked through everything. This video makes me way more excited for a game I'm already extremely excited for. Hope to see more content like this from you in the future!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I'm definitely nerd for the details. All my content usually goes pretty deep, hope you enjoy!

[@pman2991]

Absolutely amazing video!!! So happy I found your channel - also your laugh is adorable!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Haha appreciate it!

[@JohnComer-u7s]

hey man, you did great at explaining everything. i appreciate the work it took to make this video ! keep it up

[@erichiller21]

Teleporting units to the commander is gonna make it....really hard for the defending civ to know how many units are coming at them. Really interesting,

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Oh. Oh my

[@AndresStein]

But thank god for the reducing micro of dragging units halfway across the world...

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

@ absolutely. Love the commanders

[@zootopiawilson]

Whoa--the barbs can raze cities? That's cool!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

They can in other previous versions too, but in Civ 6 it happened immediately. Watching the city burn over multiple turns is way more horrifying lol

[@brycedowner2521]

I wonder if you can recapture your own city before the raze timer hits 0. Would be such a cool mechanic

[@Khaim.m]

​@@brycedowner2521 You definitely can, that _why_ it takes several turns.

[@Khaim.m]

9:50 Can you check if a specialized town actually stops growing? Everyone says this, but the gameplay I've seen suggests that they do continue to grow. The growth rate seems to slow down but that's probably just the loss of the 50% buff. If that's the case then the city is just getting free extra food, and you probably want to specialize as soon as possible.

[@eenivya]

Your style of explaining and teaching the game is really good, I love it. Will there be comprehensive videos for victory types?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Yes! Next video will go in depth for legacy paths especially, but also setting up long term victory conditions

[@ArcherPippin]

Love the video! Will have to watch it at least one more time to pick up all the combat pointers but that was a great play through and commentary! Thanks!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I'm sure I'll be making lots of videos about deep dive details like this

[@BucsorBust]

Nerdy this is an INCREDIBLE video. Perfect guide and depth of content for the rest of us needs but so accessible for new players and a video I will send friends I want to play civ. Can’t wait for your upcoming content!!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Very kind of you thank you!

[@flockofwingeddoors]

Another very thorough and entertaining video! Great work

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thank you!

[@isaacmcbride6327]

great video, you explain things very well. looking youre gonna be my main source for civ7 tips

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I'll have to stay on top of those tips and tricks videos! Or maybe keep detailed oriented lets play style

[@ErikSchierboom]

This is great content! You explain things very well! Thanks a lot.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Glad it was helpful!

[@TheJQuon]

You did a really good job explaining adjacency bonus, thanks! 🙏🏻

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Glad I kept that part of the video in!

[@brandonadams9203]

How have so many other bigger youtubers done such a bad job explaining these things. Great video man.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Primarily restrictions on embargo rules make it tough to show everything in this game with only 1 hour of in game footage. It's why you see me cutting back to Civ 6 footage whenever I can. But that rule was extended to 2 hours later. Still thank you for the compliment!

[@nareksilisalata]

Damn, I’m really hyped for this game!!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I've been having a blast!

[@nareksilisalata]

@ i mean… it’s already looking so good - just imagine the coming mods… really cool video btw, straight followed, my friend! 🫡

[@K9QM3]

I would also like to know, in addition to being effective against cities, are siege units more effective against the temporary fortifications that land units can build as well? I feel like that would be a cool and unique use for siege units!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

It would be cool, but I doubt siege units get a buff against fortified units. Looks like the ballista has 15 melee strength (for defense) 10 range strength (attacks against units) and 30 bombard strength (attacks against districts). So early independent powers are just that: A unit sitting fortified. If you had a ballista attacking them, it would just used it ranged strength. But the moment that Independent power becomes a city state, it becomes a city with a district and the ballista would use it bombard strength then.

[@bhess1212]

Very helpful video. It seems you are picking things up quickly. Hopefully I do also!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

There's definitely quite a few things that took me embarrassingly long to notice lol Otherwise the in game tutorial is actually pretty helpful!

[@K9QM3]

This is a very helpful and informative guide into the mechanics of Civilization 7! I sure hope any search algorithms pick up on what I'm putting down here! This is a video new and veteran players will enjoy, and I would recommend it to them! Any beep boops out there, are you paying attention? I will now like and subscribe because this video was very good!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Goddess of Algorithms Pantheon anyone?

[@mp455]

do ranged units get flanking bonuses too, or just melee?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

No ranged units shouldn't get flanking, they haven't in previous civ games. Should mostly be infantry and cavalry that actually engage a target and establish a front

[@AndresStein]

You could have used your Legatus to settle a city as well. I love that ability!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I can! Guess who is 1 city away from completing the Military legacy path too!

[@nyaruhodonyaruhodo5675]

first strike on the commander is so huge 😮 what happens to the ageless districts in cities you conquor?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Great question! Loading into the save file, it looks like we keep them! I have a few Egyptian Mastaba giving me extra culture. Since these are ageless buildings, they will stay through the age transition, and there will always be proof that I "assimilated" Egypt lol

[@nyaruhodonyaruhodo5675]

omg yessssss 🙏✨

[@TuomasHirmuinen]

Thanks for the video. You should remember to remind the viewers to maximize the commander exp and the commander's (coordinated, or something like that) attack possibilities, at least in the first battle example.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Definitely want to keep your commander adjacent to all units attacking on that turn. It seems that this is where the unit starts the attack from too, not the tile they are attacking into.

[@mockduckcompanion]

So helpful! Thanks for this vid. Game looks excellent

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thanks for taking the time to comment!

[@AndresStein]

Great explanatory video!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thank you!

[@shasy89]

Superb video!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Glad you liked it!

[@Tom-iz9wj]

One of the most informative videos on Civ 7 yet! Question for you about traders, is there any way to block someone from trading with your city and getting access to your resources?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

That's a really good question! When someone establishes their first trade route with another civilization, they have to do the "Improve Trade Relations" endeavor in order to establish a 2nd. This can be blocked with influence, so every civ can stop at least the 2nd trade route. However, Napoleon Emperor's persona gets a unique sanction called "Empereur des Français", that reduces the Trade Route capacity for a target civilization, effectively blocking all trade routes. If you want to go full screw everybody else, Napoleon is your guy.

[@Tom-iz9wj]

@@whiteandnerdytv_ Ah ok, interesting how other diplomatic actions can be blocked but not the first trader. So what happens to the trade route if relations sour and you end up at war with that civ/independent? This is coming more from the mindset of past games with strategic resources required by units, which I know is no longer the case in VII. However, would be useful to lock down your own empire and city resources, with those such as gold and silver seemingly very powerful

[@electrified0]

I'm a bit curious about the potential for the new fortify system. As I understand it, rather than giving a partial benefit into a full benefit for being fortified for 1-2 turns, instead creating fortifications is a multi-turn process that physically creates a temporary fortification that remains on the tile for some amount of time until abandoned. Presumably, this means that you can build fortifications along your front line, then as you advance you can have your ranged/siege units occupy those fortified tiles for the defensive bonuses? And from those bonuses, is it just a flat defensive combat buff or does it also impact flanking?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I completely skipped out on talking about fortifications didn't I? lol Yes instead of just fortifying for an immediate combat strength bonus, the fortification command begins the process of building fortifications. This usually takes 2 turns, and can be stopped if the unit is attacked. Once fortifications are complete, the tile itself gets a bonus to combat strength to units occupying it. If no units occupy it at the end of the turn, the fortifications disappear. But as you said, you can fortify and reinforce the tile with a different unit and keep the fortifications. With the bulwark promotion, you can fortify in one turn. I think that opens up the strategy you pointed out. Fortify, move up a tile, refortify with melee in the front and ranged in the back. Could be interesting to see!

[@TheGoIsWin21]

Man it's a shame that Civ is such (relatively) niche content, because you have such a clear voice and such a talent for expressing a broad range of ideas in a thorough, easily understood way. Great job 👍

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thanks for the compliment man! I enjoy our niche community

[@shasy89]

Pillage with boats seems real strong

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Antiquity boats are still loads of fun

[@JowyJhonson]

Great explanations

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Glad they helped!

[@mattcatlett1065]

Great video!

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thank you for watching!

[@excancerpoik]

"we love the tyrant day" is so funny to me

[@MrJwizz2g]

Awesome video

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thank you!

[@ashapls8922]

Do you have a referral code for steam or epic games so you get some benefit for purchases? havent bought my copy yet and want to support a creator.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

This is in the works! Stay tuned if you haven't preordered yet

[@excancerpoik]

I hope they readd loyalty it was so good they can make it preventable in the exploration age like a building that gives a lot of loyalty but I really like how it worked in civ VI

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I agree loyalty needs to come back in some fashion

[@TheJQuon]

Great video man! Btw usually "quay" is pronounced like "key" (or the Brits pronounce it "Kay"). It's one of those words where if you've only ever read it and not heard it pronounced, you'd never know 😊

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

LOL Yeah we don't call them Quay's where I'm at, but loving how much the game introduces terminology from all different places in the world

[@GamerSerg74]

Great video. Being able to attack and kill a commander while the packed units stay packed and do nothing is really bad. The units should deploy as soon as he gets attacked not after he’s dead. I hope they can fix this. Plus the repair / pillage loop but that should be easier to fix.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

When you attack a commander, it does damage to all units packed inside. You can think of it as a surprise attack, given they are off guard and can be fun. But the Ai sure needs a little bit of help with them for sure

[@GamerSerg74]

That actually makes it worse and more broken. So I can kill the commander and damage all units at once because the AI doesn’t know to deploy before moving up to the frontline! Absolutely needs to be changed.

[@UnderKingDuck]

I have a question about the war support system. Is there a cap to it on how high it can go for any player? I have come concerns about the system to be honest.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Not sure if there is a hard cap, but every time add war support, the cost to add an additional war support goes way up. It gets pretty expensive, so with just the soft cap I've never had higher than +5 war support but that usually drops back down pretty quick when the Ai fight back

[@BiNumLi]

Wow. Merchants are powerful. Automatic copy of every resource? Amazing. Is it only for trading with Suz city states?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Trading with ANY city! Tbh its a better deal that having lux trading manually with the Ai that expires throughout the game

[@Earendel4]

I wonder if capital and general cities end up being just urban districts with specialists and just have towns for food? In that case does it worth to build warehouse buildings in capital? Is there any minimum distance between settlements? Also since towns send food to cities, that mean in cities you just need urban and production rural?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

You're on to something here! I think early game you will be certainly keeping a split of Urban and Rural tiles in your cities, but as the game progresses your cities will naturally become more Urban and more reliant on towns nearby. I think we have a lot to play around with to find the right balance.

[@Earendel4]

@@whiteandnerdytv_ Thanks!

[@epicsoupgamer3989]

If you get enough gold mines could you get free buildings or is there a cap?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Sounds like something I'll need to test. Spiffing Brit video incoming

[@initialsbb]

Still takes some getting used to when I see the per age tech tree, it looks so small ! Otherwise those selectable city state bonuses are epic... looks great !

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

bitesize tech trees!

[@kidicarus1988]

Another excellent video! Quick question about AI, if you know. Will it be like Civ 6 AI, where the gameplay is the same at all difficulties and they just start with more bonuses on higher difficulty? Or will it be more adaptive and progressively smarter AI at higher difficulties with less big bonuses at the start of the game?

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

They ai just gets bigger bonuses on higher difficulty. If they were able to make a super smart ai, they would implement it downward into all difficulties. You can expect the same silly things to happen from easiest difficulty to deity.

[@MrSmashTalk]

Subscribed

[@FakeCou]

Very nice video! Loved the explenation of adjacencies. But this video really made me lose faith that the AI is finally going to be decent. This was on a difficulty similar to Immortal, and the AI loses its city to barbs, and suicides its army commander... Not to mention those two cities Maurya settled. Hopefully it will be getting continuous updates.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

It looks like the Ai has some strengths and some weaknesses. Egypt and China both did great jobs of settling cities, but definitely can't say the same for India. Maybe they fix this by introducing a light loyalty mechanic but idk. The army commander and general troop movement does feel very classically civ ai though. One strong point I've seen with them is when they declare surprise wars. They bring their allies in with them on coordinated dual surprise wars, and then dump influence supporting each other even if they are far away. Again, feels very classically civ ai overall though.

[@davidlaurent3160]

@@whiteandnerdytv_ I may make a personal rule for myself to not attack the AI commander until all the other units are destroyed. I shouldn't have to help the AI here but it will be more fun if we pretend the AI knows how to use the unit correctly.

[@freyamiles3718]

​@@whiteandnerdytv_I think an adjusted loyalty system could work quite well. A loyalty system that lowered happiness if you had less loyalty would be much less brutal loyalty not affecting other civs cities that are not on the same continent should deal with a lot of the exploration age. Less established settlements (towns and/or low number of turns settlements settled or captured) recently could also put out less loyalty and more established settlements could have extra resistance to loyalty. This would mean if two settlements were placed on the same landmass at the same time they would not cause an issue as they would start applying very low pressure to each other and then later would be established and so resistant. I feel like a fair loyalty system could work and I fear it's going to be locked behind DLC

[@TNM001]

oh yea...nearly forgot how the AI would always forward settle you lol...like extermely so. still did it in Civ6 too early on...trying to get as close as possible to your capital, but it was more restricted.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Definitely still happened in Civ 6 even after loyalty from Rise and Fall, but yeah they could see the loyalty modifier so they clustered their cities much better

[@Khaim.m]

21:26 No, _they_ get 2gpt. You just get the resource. Of course the gpt doesn't matter for independents but it matters for other civs. It's also reciprocal: you get 2gpt for each resource the AI copies with their trade routes.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

thank you for point this out! Seems I didnt pick this up myself

[@denniswiggins3816]

looks like naval support might actually be important.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Boats are fun in Antiquity for sure, and in Exploration Age they get super powerful with Fleet Commanders

[@jeanniegoldweddingplanner]

Sorry to do this but it’s pronounced fishing KEY not fishing KWAY

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Hahha no thank you for doing so

[@LuizFelipe-lk1hs]

31:40 that is why I dislike loyalty being removed, do you want to settle there? Sure, but no penalty for it? It doesnt make sense

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Absolutely agree. I hope they add it back, and just buff the loyalty boost for occupying a city with a unit.

[@FluffiestWalrus]

Just heads up: quay is pronounced ‘key’

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Thank you!

[@gunnergoz]

Very educational & fun. They really put a lot of thought into this iteration of Civ, even more so than earlier versions. It's not perfect but it sure is ramping up some impressive characteristics.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Room for improvement for sure. For a base launch civ game there is a ton here

[@schatzkammerein]

why do you sound like a bot?

[@deadlydadgaming126]

Just so you know it's pronounced "kee" not "quay" in English. It's a French word that means a structure built parallel to the bank of a waterway for use as a landing place.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Ooooooooooh you know I think I knew that at one point. LOL thanks for the heads up

[@captainquark9116]

Wow! Who cares?

[@ahmetsan5475]

Wow

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

wow indeed

[@owenbetharte9014]

Quay is pronounced “key”

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Welcome!

[@shawnhogel1534]

K E Y

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Noted lol

[@S23K]

it's pronounced MAYlay not MEElay :)

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

Lol that one is just how I've always said it

[@GoodMenstruationAttitude]

I don't get why they keep doing this trivial crap instead of making troops actually useful and reasonably worth buying for non-domination wins. Troops should never be more than two turns away from the front, in pretty much any era beyond ancient. Even in ancient, the turns are hundreds of years but troops are essentially useless unless the enemy appears right where they are stationed. Just make classical roads actually useful again, and you don't need any of this animated window dressing. The game invariably devolves into unit micromanagement, which imo was never what civ was really trying to be. Combat is not engaging in this very macro-level game, make it efficient. Thanks, though, for the really informative video.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I am interested to hear what updates you would add to make units feel more useful. Is it specifically the movement speed and micro of units across the empire? Or not feeling like you are rewarded for building the units themselves especially in peaceful games? I know the Army Commander Leadership promotion provides a percentage modifier yield boost for a district he is stationed in, making them useful in peacetime. Would be cool if units stationed in a city also gave a boost to happiness or another yield like the Retainers policy card in Civ 6. You may enjoy Modern Era which introduces railroads, literally letting you teleport troops between rail stations making it possible for you to always have units 2 turns from the front no matter which city is attacked.

[@GoodMenstruationAttitude]

@@whiteandnerdytv_ yep... stuff like that sounds good. I appreciate that you can reinforce now - it's all steps in the right direction - but imo the biggest flaw in civ has always been the high cost of units with too little map information. This couples with slow movement speeds and poor vision and makes you feel like you need to spend dozens of turns churning units you might never use, when really all you want is three or so crack units that you can place as you need them. Imo civ shouldn't be about the tedious process of trying to trick the other player into getting double teamed by units and endlessly calculating terrain bonuses. It should be about investing in infrastructure - including miliitary - and then mustering troops whenever and wherever you need them. So maybe one or two tiles (one turn or so) might get pillaged if you're out of position, but it shouldn't take hundreds of game-years to recall your frontline troops to defend their homes. It should just be a matter of placing your generals and boom you're ready to meet any threat. It should be a question of did you invest enough, not can you play the inevitably repetitive units minigame. It's just the weakest part of the game and done better by countless other games. It's inspiring to see all the effort they've put into this aspect and I'm sure I'll find it interesting... for a little while. Thanks for the thoughtful reply! Still looking forward to 7!

[@damianfirecaster7230]

Hey Nerd you need to remember when your talking about glitch's or issues, that your NOT!! Playing the RELEASE Version of this game. so a lot of things you see, will most likely be fixed in the Release version of Civ 7.

[@whiteandnerdytv_]

I hear you. They mentioned that we officially do have the planned released version on our end minus last minute bug fixes. But I've already reported the bug's/glitches as best I can. This specific bug and others will hopefully be fixed soon. The problem is that my footage DOES have the glitched version so my B-roll would be misleading if I didn't state directly that it is not supposed to be that high. Showing off how far the bug went was made to prove that it definitely is in fact a glitch and not intended. And developers do watch the videos, so highlighting it now does help in their process of fixing them. All part of a positive and funny playtesting experience.

[@Morgotth1916]

Civkind will in all likleyhood have a poorer AI than civ 6 !!! watch the player steam roller the AI with high level commanders

[@nagyzoli]

I liked it a lot more when you just sent units to fight, not terrain. I hate humankind and old world

[@abhishekab1]

​@@tylerd5515 He s referring to other games

[@nagyzoli]

@@abhishekab1 I played the entire Civ series too. Modifiers are one thing but physically moving units to flank, surround, etc is another