What is the advantage/drawbacks of each game speed?

[Sightless17]

Just want to hear some thoughts about what is good or bad about the different speeds you can play the game at.

[Playstation 1 enjoyer]

The longer the speed, the less of an advantage the A.I. have over you, especially on higher difficulties, as they spend a longer time in each era and thus give the player an easier time to get caught up to them.

I personally prefer epic speed. I got pretty annoyed with how quickly units would become outdated. By the time I researched a tech, created some units, and marched them to an enemy's border, they were usually outdated or very close to being so. It just feels more immersive to me.

[knighttemplar1960]

Production is pretty well balanced in each speed. The advantage of Epic or Marathon (and the disadvantage of Quick) is how many times you can move units per era and your economics. The longer the game time the more distance you can cover. Epic and Marathon give you time to take care of barbarian encampments before the next one can spawn. Making 10 gold per turn on Standard is chump change but on Epic or Marathon it has a chance to add up.

[Washell]

Originally posted by knighttemplar1960:

The advantage of Epic or Marathon (and the disadvantage of Quick) is how many times you can move units per era

Which also makes large maps playable.

[kensw]

There are also several mods that increase research time without effecting anything else.
I use " Extra-Slow Research " it is old but still works very well - seems to work well with all mods.

[Lady Crimson (RIP)]

Longer means it's easier on combat warring players and traveling farther to colonize, fast speed is easier on defensive non-warring players and more condensed methods.

I only play normal speed since I view it as the speed intended.

[Damsteri]

Longer game speeds are quite broken as the gold amounts are not scaled on all places.

AI can be totally destroyed on longer game speeds too. AI doesn't value their units any more in longer game speeds, so you can totally destroy an AI by stealing their unescorted settler and/or worker and they will never recover from that.

I would love to speed lower speeds, but the game works best on standard speed. Game mechanics are either broken or easy to abuse on slower speeds.

[Grendalcat]

Originally posted by Lady Crimson:

I only play normal speed since I view it as the speed intended.

Same here. I tried a slower speed once, but didn't like it.

[Groogo]

Originally posted by Damsteri:

Longer game speeds are quite broken as the gold amounts are not scaled on all places.

AI can be totally destroyed on longer game speeds too. AI doesn't value their units any more in longer game speeds, so you can totally destroy an AI by stealing their unescorted settler and/or worker and they will never recover from that.

I would love to speed lower speeds, but the game works best on standard speed. Game mechanics are either broken or easy to abuse on slower speeds.

I play marathon speed with The Community Patch and AI settlers are escorted by a combat unit.

[Damsteri]

Originally posted by Groogo:

Originally posted by Damsteri:

Longer game speeds are quite broken as the gold amounts are not scaled on all places.

AI can be totally destroyed on longer game speeds too. AI doesn't value their units any more in longer game speeds, so you can totally destroy an AI by stealing their unescorted settler and/or worker and they will never recover from that.

I would love to speed lower speeds, but the game works best on standard speed. Game mechanics are either broken or easy to abuse on slower speeds.

I play marathon speed with The Community Patch and AI settlers are escorted by a combat unit.

I was not talking about mods. AI may escort settlers without mods too, but it depends on many things if they use escort or not.

[Groogo]

Originally posted by Damsteri:

Originally posted by Groogo:

I play marathon speed with The Community Patch and AI settlers are escorted by a combat unit.

I was not talking about mods. AI may escort settlers without mods too, but it depends on many things if they use escort or not.

I did not say (or think) that you were talking about Mods, I was just saying what I do so others reading the thread may know. :)

[Njorl]

I almost never play militaristically, so I play on the quick setting. All of the same things happen, just a little quicker.
You can still do conquest on quick pretty easily if you have an Islands map or archipelago. Seaborn invasions go quicker so your units aren't becoming obsolete before they attack.

[knighttemplar1960]

Originally posted by Njorl:

I almost never play militaristically, so I play on the quick setting. All of the same things happen, just a little quicker.
You can still do conquest on quick pretty easily if you have an Islands map or archipelago. Seaborn invasions go quicker so your units aren't becoming obsolete before they attack.

That's because there are less of a variety of sea units. They don't become technologically obsolete as fast as land units do.