Any learner games

There are many 4x strategy games, but GC differs from most of them in a number of ways. Your best bet is to just start on cakewalk and keep plugging at it. And if you've got any strategy questions, just ask here or on IRC (irc.stardock.com #GalCiv).

I reccomend digging up a copy of Ascendancy. It's an old game, but it matches up to GalCiv surprisingly well, and is a bit more intuitive to learn. Do a little web digging, you'll find it.

Just ask experienced players how they go about things, and make sure to check out the Beginners Strategy guide (its posted on the forums). You can get insight on some tried and true methods to win a game. If you apply these methods you will get experienced in the game over time.

Make sure to read the manual too, to learn of game functionality not shown in the beginner's strategy guide.

Try Galactic civilisations 1

use the search here to key in on 'morale' and 'economy' strategies. that is prob where your having the trouble and there have been several threads active in just the last week or so that should be helpful.

bah, check out these:

[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=121788"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=121788">Link
[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=121524"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=121524">Link
[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=118667"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=118667">Link
[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=119134"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=346&AID=119134">Link
[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=248&AID=109902"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=248&AID=109902">Link
[link="https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=347&AID=122009"]https://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=347&AID=122009">Link

hope that helps a bit. can't promise these are the best threads but they seem to be fairly current for the most part. be aware that the game has changed significantly over the last few patches(1.2 being current) so check the dates when you read the threads.

Here are some great Places to start

First SD's very own: Galactic Civilizations II: Beginner's Strategy Guide:

**BEGINEER**
https://www.galciv2.com/Journals.aspx?AID=104908

That will set you up on the fundamentals.

Next are actual game examples. Now they won't be so specific that they will tell you when to move x ship y squares but they will give you an idea of how you should be thinking when you're playing the game. Plus they are fun reads:

**INTERMEDIATE**
https://www.galciv2.com/gameplayex.aspx

And finally Wikipedia's plathora of more detailed strategies. This work in progress hopes some day to cover every topic in the entire game. Can be information overload for the uninitiated.

**Advance**
https://www.galciv.wikia.com/wiki/Galactic_Civilizations_Wiki

Finally play games. Start at Cakewalk and tiny and move up as you improve. Chess isn't all about rather you are grandmaster or not. But the joy in improving your game and finding the right level of competition that suits you.

I really can't recommend any other 4xs, really. I played the Total War series for a long time, then gave up in disgust as the suck factor was introduced with Rome and started to increase exponentially with its expansion. I've tried a few others, but nothing so far has held my attention like GCII. I started as a board gamer (OGRE, Third Reich, War and Peace, World in Flames, Swords and Sorcery, etc.), with only human opponents available, and I think that soured me on most of what's out there in terms of AI opponents today.

I recently posted part of my early game strategy here (look for my first post in the thread). The only thing I would add is this - put some ability or political party points into Diplomacy, as well. Diplomacy not only helps you trade techs, it also improves your relations with other races, making it less likely that they will declare war on you. It's always best to wait until you're ready to go to war, after all.

Just play on Cakewalk and experiment with stuff until you get a feel for the game. At that difficulty level the computer players have a massive economic penatly which makes it slow and difficult for them to do just about anything, like colonize new worlds or conduct research. Due to maintenance costs, it's unlikely they'll be able to afford to defend all of their colonies, leaving some wide open. They won't have enough ships to launch a serious offensive against you, and before they can actually invade one of your worlds they have to research Planetary Invasions, which will take them a long time. Take your time, you will have plenty of it.