Hey, 

So I really enjoy Endless Legend, but I'm inexperienced with strategy games in general and this is no exception. I understand the game mechanically but I'm always lagging well behind AI in all areas even on a normal difficulty. Skimming through the forums briefly, I guess I'm too slow? But I'm not sure how to play smarter or faster, it seems like I'm always just waiting for the next thing to build or the next research to finish without achieving much in the mean time. 

I haven't found any tutorials that are't super beginner orientated, I understand how they game works but I'm looking to improve. Tips, tricks and tutorials are super appreciated!! 

You tried to read these gameguides ?

https://steamcommunity.com/app/289130/guides/?

The one from Jojo_Fr is very interesting, but also very long

WingedSeahorse wrote:

Hey, 

So I really enjoy Endless Legend, but I'm inexperienced with strategy games in general and this is no exception. I understand the game mechanically but I'm always lagging well behind AI in all areas even on a normal difficulty. Skimming through the forums briefly, I guess I'm too slow? But I'm not sure how to play smarter or faster, it seems like I'm always just waiting for the next thing to build or the next research to finish without achieving much in the mean time. 

I haven't found any tutorials that are't super beginner orientated, I understand how they game works but I'm looking to improve. Tips, tricks and tutorials are super appreciated!! 

Unless you really know what to do and there is opportunity, human player is always behind in score, at least at the start. Later on you will probably get even or maybe higher than them, thanks to upgrading, building... and wars.

That being said - I don't know if there is a way to 'normaly' beat AI score on Endless by turn 25. I manage to get 106 points, while they were at 300, almost every one of them. While the game is still fresh... I don't see how I'm gonna win this with Ardent Mages...

The only way I've found to lower AI's score is either instigate wars between them, or just do it yourself. What I found useful so far (as Necrophage) is, after founding the capital, I scout with my 2 foragers and my hero, meanwhile I build a Mill Foundry, 2 Necrodrones, then whatever else I need to survive. Found 1 more city, or 2 more if you are building sewers in each city. Once you get to Era 2, attack your nearest neighbour and take his city. :) In my example, with Necrodrones, I do it with Proliferators, so even if I lose my foragers, as long as I survive the 6 phases of combat I get Battle Borns to replace the dead ranks.

It's the same with other factions to be honest... Play underdog for a while, if someone declares war on you, turn the tables on him and force him to truce you (or you can do it yourself if you've expanded too much). Or just play aggressively on neutral regions until they declare war on you. Don't bother about playing nice, AI never plays nice with Cold War factions on neutral regions, let alone their own regions. If they get angry because you killed their scouting army... Don't forget they do that to yours too, even on neutral grounds.

I am, by no means, a pro, but after a lot of disastrous games I like to think I've picked up a thing or two (watching YouTube vids and reading guides also massively helped). I'm assuming you're asking for help on how to play in general rather than how to get the Turn 25 achievement, so here are a few things I do:

1) Unlike some suggestions, I like to keep my initial military intact. Spreading them out means you're paying for higher army upkeep -- and that negative sign on the Dust metre gives me a heart attack. If you find that the ability to scout the area more (and loot more ruins) is well worth the cost, then go for it. Do what's fun for you!

2) My initial research queue tends to go: industry, food, dust, science (except for the Broken Lords wherein I prioritise dust over industry). The logic behind this is: more industry = faster building of stuff = more windows of opportunity to grow your army. Also, I enjoy building those Era wonders so any and all extra industry is much appreciated. If you're on a river or near a lake/seashore, I'd also recommend the Dust Filtration thingy (I really don't remember the names. Is it obvious I'm not a pro, now?).

3) This one may be a bit unorthodox but I like to get the Searching Party tech. It's the one that increases your chance of getting something from ruins versus flat-out nothing. Since I use my initial army for scouting and ruin-poking, I feel like the investment adds up on the longterm.

4) Learn what you can and can't fight early on. Some minor factions are easy pickings for the "Pacify villages/kill armies" Era Deed while others will pummel your army to the ground. Pick your fights. I like having my army generally intact (i.e., not dying); they're kind of like a safety blanket.

5) I generally skip the Titanium/Glassteel armour/weapons techs until I'm in Era 2/3. I find that the basic stuff that you get is works just fine. Oh, and remember to update your units' outfit! Each new Era opens up new possibilities and stronger varieties of weapons and armour. On that note, I also try to update my army's outfit early on. Basic units tend to only have weapons and no armour on so I like to add some cushion for the pushin' as soon as I can. Same goes for the Hero.

6) Check your Hero's skills, namely, the rightmost section. Does the Hero seem more useful as a governor or a general? Or (like the Forgotten) is the Hero best used swapping back and forth between governor and general? If the latter is the case, I try to keep the Hero as a governor whenever buildings are about to finish (especially the big ones). The exp really adds up. Unlike any other Hero you'll get in the game, the first one will have the chance to rack up a LOT of exp. Don't be afraid to switch your Hero back and forth early on if you think it will work best. Just try not to get the Hero killed. 

7) When scouting the area, try to find regions that would really work best for you. The AI tends to build settlers early on so if you really want a certain region, feel free to make settlers before your next building. Just remember that when building a settler, your cities don't produce any Food so switch all those minions to something else like production or Dust. When in a hurry, buyout stuff if you can. Also, the Dust from ruins helps (see #3).

That's all I can think of for now, but I hope you find this helpful. Have fun crushing empires to your will!