Why can't I raze a city I have just taken over?

[Niknud]

Why is it I can salt the earth on a city I build but when it comes to a city that was put in a ♥♥♥♥♥♥ location by the ai why can't I raze that city after taking it over??

[Pillow]

You need to wait a few turns until the happiness improves to raze. Best way to remove unwanted AI cities is to use privateers and no need to even be at war. Privateers capturing cities and they are immediately razed.

[Niknud]

I am sorry but I have to make a population happy in order to raze it to the ground? Dumbest mechanic I have ever heard of.

[Done25]

Apparently it's to prevent people from taking ungarded cities and razing them in a single turn. It does break the immersion a bit, especially since privateers raze the city on victory anyways.

[Niknud]

Its a crap mechanic. Cities that have no guards should be razed to the ground in a single turn or 1 turn for each level of population. What sense does it make to cheer up a city you are just gonna tear down anyways. I will be honest with you I have lost interest in playing this game because of this single mechanic.

[Jiks]

It's not happiness actually, it's ownership. You have to get the city under control before destroying it.

Of course, this is balance mechanic, cities are faily easy to take and this gives people a brief chance to take their city back.

If you really don't like this, play as the Cultists, they can instantly raze any city. Or create a custom faction with that ability.

[Niknud]

Cities are pretty easy to take in most 4x games and that is part of the game. I would even accept allowing players to seige a city down to nothing in order to destroy them. For me this is a deal breaker and that is to bad because I enjoyed other aspects of this game.

[Supermarine]

Yes, I think we need the option to raze pretty badly. Having to wait breaks the natural flow of conquest. Especially for factions like the Necrophages. It's not even logical.

It exacerbates one of the worst features of most 4X games, which is slow, boring late-game experience.

If it was implemented for balance, it still doesn't make sense. Why would you want to slow the gameplay? The game is already unforgiving as it is... there is almost no possibility for the underdog to win.

[SnugSnug]

Originally posted by Supermarine:

Yes, I think we need the option to raze pretty badly. Having to wait breaks the natural flow of conquest. Especially for factions like the Necrophages. It's not even logical.

It exacerbates one of the worst features of most 4X games, which is slow, boring late-game experience.

If it was implemented for balance, it still doesn't make sense. Why would you want to slow the gameplay? The game is already unforgiving as it is... there is almost no possibility for the underdog to win.

There are already 2 distinct ways that one can insta-raze, the cultist faction ability and the privateer research, beyond that one has to wait then salt the earth. Making it a common mechanic with no delay would devalue the special ability/ specific research.

Since war is only one of paths to victory artificially slowing it allows some of the other routes to be more competative than the relatively quick assasination (supremecy) or conquest (%occupation).

[Niknud]

You can defend the mechanic all you want but the fact I have to research a tech inorder to raze a city is just utter garbage. I didn't realize setting fire to a city and killing its population was a technological marvel.

[Count_Dandyman]

Originally posted by Niknud:

You can defend the mechanic all you want but the fact I have to research a tech inorder to raze a city is just utter garbage. I didn't realize setting fire to a city and killing its population was a technological marvel.

Yeah how dare those people resist being massacred and having everything they own and rely on destroyed.

[Arthuria]

You aslo can create a custom race. Your favorite, with "enemy weapon" economic aspect. It cost 15/80points. Make you able to destroy every city in one turn without research.

[SnugSnug]

Originally posted by Sheynes:

You aslo can create a custom race. Your favorite, with "enemy weapon" economic aspect. It cost 15/80points. Make you able to destroy every city in one turn without research.

That's the cultist standard ability, it's double edged as its non-optional every victory will result in an instant raze and an industry stockpile gain.

[Done25]

Originally posted by SnugSnug:

Originally posted by Sheynes:

You aslo can create a custom race. Your favorite, with "enemy weapon" economic aspect. It cost 15/80points. Make you able to destroy every city in one turn without research.

That's the cultist standard ability, it's double edged as its non-optional every victory will result in an instant raze and an industry stockpile gain.

And stockpile is an absolute pain in the ass to use. It would be nice if there was some way I don't know about to use some 50+ stockpile at the same time...

[Devin]

Originally posted by Done25:

Originally posted by SnugSnug:

That's the cultist standard ability, it's double edged as its non-optional every victory will result in an instant raze and an industry stockpile gain.

And stockpile is an absolute pain in the ass to use. It would be nice if there was some way I don't know about to use some 50+ stockpile at the same time...

Man, I was just thinking this. I really want to like cultists but they're kind of a pain.

[Lady Crimson (RIP)]

Razing a city is an awful economics choice.. so.. while I agree that it could be a good option to have.. Is it the usually a really bad idea to raze (yes) and not game breaking to not have the option? (yes)

Salting (I beleive you mean) a city removes everything that has been gained on the city usually.
You can salt the earth of any city if you really want to, all that it requires is full ownership.. it would be game breaking to allow it otherwise because:

If you allowed people to salt the earth instantly after conquering a city.. you could take over another players city and turn it into a settler under your full control (ignoring ownership penalties, and making it impossible for the player to take back their now salted city).