On the subject of multiplayer, it will not be included in the initial release.
If you haven’t already gotten a response to this, you’ll be happy to know that yes, you can eliminate conquered cities with the push of a button. 
Cite: CivFanatics forums. Scroll down a screen or two to see it.
Just three levels of unit experience, from what I’ve heard. One more than in Civ2, but it’s going to feel like a small step back for us SMAC players. I also don’t know how I’m going to live without the brilliant government and logical terraforming systems, but hey. It’s Civ. I think I’ll manage.
All of the Civ3 information that’s out there, in one easy-to-read package, can be found here.
http://www.civfanatics.com/civ3infocenter.shtml
And if, for some twisted, fanboyish reason, you want to keep up on breaking Civ3 news, well you can find that here. Not that I visit that site religiously or anything. Nuh-uh, not me.
http://apolyton.net/civ3/
Oh HELL yeah.
I’m not sure I should mention this to my dad. The night before his oldest daughter’s wedding, he stayed up until 4 am playing Civ II.
The Palace from Civ1 is back? YIPPEE!
Are you sure? I thought I recalled reading somewhere that the game will ship with basic multiplayer support, but that they are planning to do more work on that and work out some more complex and exciting multiplayer modes to be released after the initial shipping date… But I could be wrong. And of course I have no evidence.
Concerning multiplayer … this is what the official Civ3 site says from the FAQ last updated in August:
Will there be multiplayer support for Civ III?
We’re working on some unique things with multiplayer, but we’re not ready to start talking about it yet. It has always been challenging to make multiplayer really fun in turn-based games and we’re looking at new ways of approaching that.
But more importantly count me in for the SDMB death match. May your cities glow … with radiation!!
Me and my friend are preparing a brand new system specifically for gaming (Have any of you heard of nVIDIA’s new graphics chip?).
This is going in his garage, which will be networked to cable.
And I’m soooo going to flunk college.
Nah, Heroes 4 was moved to Q1, 2002.
http://www.gonegold.com/roadtogold/strategy/index.shtml
If I start muttering about “strawh-burysh” and the like, it’ll be a sign that I’ve either purchased <i>The Caine Mutiny</i> on DVD, or that SSI’s new game <i>Destroyer Commander</i> has hit the shelves.
Either way, I’ll be warming up my Cap’n Queeg persona.
Damn! Screwed up the coding! Moderator to eisle 9!
I swear that Sid Meier produces the closest thing to the digital form of crack I’ve ever seen. I’ve been known to play Civ2 and Alpha Centauri for an entire day. From sunrise to sunset.
Looks like I’m about to lose more free time. 
Because of this thread I’ve now re-installed Alpha Centauri, and it’s as addictive as ever… can’t wait for Civ III!!
I wish someone would discover a way humans can use photosynthesis in the next month or so… Imagine that, just sitting in the sun the whole day, playing Civ.
S.
Count me in for the worldwide destruction derby. My strategy is somewhat like Tranquilis’, but I take a more defensive stance. I have each city build as many settlers/engineers as it can support without trashing its production, then set them loose doing massive improvements and fortifications. When I get industrialized, I keep large armies on hand to occupy the forts at the first sign of attemted invasion. If I am trying to do my own invasion, I take over a few cities at once then use airports to do massive troop transports from my home cities.
Well, I’ve been member of Apolyton Civilization Site forums for three years, I’ve followed news about Civ3 the day the rumours of it coming started, I contributed to The List (when us, the fans, organized and put together a 500+ page document chock full of Civ3 suggestions for Firaxis to peruse and I organized the Religion section), so yes, you could say I might have slightly positive feelings when it comes to buying, possibly playing Civ3. A pity it appears later in Europe than in America and I have to hear all the good stuff about it from gloating Americans before I get a chance to play it.
And since I can’t stop advertising Apolyton Civilization Site forums, you can use the Civ3 forums for your feature-related questions. There’s bound to be someone who can confirm that the feature you’ve been wishing since Civ1 is in (or isn’t, because it wouldn’t have been fun or practical.) With luck, you can even catch a member of elusive Civ3 team.
One big improvement is the concept of borders which ive been waiting for forever becuase I’m tired in civ 2 of other civs parking theit units in the middle of my roads and making things impossible!
In fact I hope they redo a lot of the structure of the game like in democracy 2 turns you have unrest in a city and the goverment falls ?
Or say early in the game i come across a foregin unit they surround my unit and dont allow it to move until a war or they disband it
And they should give the settlers some defense on the civ 2 multiplayer gold edition you can put your units on auto but when being invaded they wont move and they get killed
And although in the original civ 2 they say they corrected this its still possible for a crusader to kill a rifleman now I dont know if thats becuase I use quick battle or not
If anyone does want a online civ 2 game let me know I quit using the gaming zones becuase they used a cheat program and I just didnt like the style of play that was typical on the networks
But theres a few tweaks they need to make but ive listed the major ones I’d like
Actually there was a lawsuit on who owned the trademark civilization since it was owned by avalon hill on one of their board games ( ehich civ is loosley based on )
between them sid meyer and hasbro ( who in my opinion trashed the atari and mprose trademark) which is why sid couldnt use the civ name on alpha centari and hasbro couldnt use it on call to power 2 but its all been settled out of court
One of the greatest things that a new Civ game could do is to actually PLAY the opposing civilizations according to the same rules imposed on the player. Having a phalanx pillage your irrigation or having a battleship bombard your shore the same turn that the civilization discovers steel is a bit irritating.
But it’s still the best game out there!!!
Good point, that. Sid has gone on record saying that enemy triremes aren’t subject to the 50% sinkage risk by going away from shore- he wanted to ensure that contact would be made with overseas civs before the Age of Sail- but IMO, all that ensures is that you get invaded by someone you can’t fight back against.
Checking the Civ-specific attributes (find it here, specifically the java popup linked in the column) makes me realize that I’d probably be best-suited to the Persians or the Greeks - and MAYBE the Germans, Chinese, and Romans - and definitely not the Iroquois. Just not my style.
23 more days …
Gaius Aelius Corradius, leader of the Roman Empire, shall return to full glory.
And as I march my conquering armies through the wastes of the glory that was Rome, I shall mutter to myself, “Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair.”
Nah, nah.
I’m just eager for some good ol’ fashioned conquest.