Slitherine

I started a game on experienced level playing as Sparta, and I am going broke after 6 turns. I haven't added any troops. I am loosing 40 gold a turn on regional trade mostly because I am missing iron and pottery. My metal production keeps going up and I can't use the metal I have due to lack of gold. How do I get out of this downward spiral?

go over your economy, do you have building(s) that are really nice but are either missing core trade goods or trading outside your realm? If so destroy them, you can always rebuild later.

If not this, then review your army. disband a couple of units?

Or, more positively, if you can capture a capital off someone that might give you a one-off cash boost.

and of course, look at decisions and pop assignment, you may need to take a hit on the CDR/pop growth to get pop assigned to commerce?

If you want to keep the building, turn it off 2 turns, then back online one turn, repeat the cycle.

Experienced level of difficulty and beyond is a brand new world (of pain) as experienced troops cost more in upkeep. So your indomitable Spartan phalanxes will cost you a lot as they conquer and shew down the enemy.
Keeping them in a friendly region reduces upkeep by 25%. So only bring the minimum number of phalanxes to do the conquest job and keep the rest at home. Don't recruit an extra phalanx unless you really need it.

Experienced difficulty for Sparta is definitively not casual and ask for some in depth knowledge of the game finer mechanisms, some micro management and part of luck, for Sparta at least.

Thanks for the help. I was able to pull out of it through a combination of shifting my citizens to work commerce, and disbanding a phalanx. Also the next turn I was able to trade for ivory which I was loosing 21 gold per turn on. My first game was Rome on balanced, and I really didn't pay attention to trade. This was a much different experience.

Pocus wrote: ↑Sun Dec 08, 2019 4:24 am If you want to keep the building, turn it off 2 turns, then back online one turn, repeat the cycle.

Experienced level of difficulty and beyond is a brand new world (of pain) as experienced troops cost more in upkeep. So your indomitable Spartan phalanxes will cost you a lot as they conquer and shew down the enemy.
Keeping them in a friendly region reduces upkeep by 25%. So only bring the minimum number of phalanxes to do the conquest job and keep the rest at home. Don't recruit an extra phalanx unless you really need it.

Can the AI do that?

Pocus wrote: ↑Sun Dec 08, 2019 4:24 am If you want to keep the building, turn it off 2 turns, then back online one turn, repeat the cycle.

Sounds like a gamey exploit to me.

well .. I'd agree a little but doing this its still taking up a slot, you get the loyalty hit (2*upkeep if I recall) every time you order the disband and 1/3 turns it costs you. So there are some significant negatives.

Its a bit like getting rid of some tier 1 buildings once you have a lot of a type to free up space for more tier III. No reason why not, but its not cost free.

Morbio wrote: ↑Wed Dec 11, 2019 10:29 am

Pocus wrote: ↑Sun Dec 08, 2019 4:24 am If you want to keep the building, turn it off 2 turns, then back online one turn, repeat the cycle.

Sounds like a gamey exploit to me.

The price to pay is a hit on loyalty though ... This is a temporary measure, as the building also uses a building slot .Why would you want to keep a building that would work at best one turn every 3, if you don't intent to fix the situation or have no use for it?
That's handy when you are in a dire pass, you disable the costliest buildings for 1-2 turns, but that's temporary.