Catapult (Civ1)

A Catapult is the first siege weapon available.
==Strategy==
This unit is usually vital in early gameplay, and can be built after researching just three advances, Alphabet, Masonry, and then Mathematics. 
With an attack rating of 6 it can overcome most defensive units of the same era quite frequently. They can also be used defensively in cities, to activate when a city is threatened by attacking nearby units.
Used in combination with more mobile units, such as chariots or cavalry, they present a tremendous threat in early game to any city. Furthermore, they are very cheap to build, and can be produced en-masse quite rapidly.
The only reliable way of halting a catapult is to attack it with another unit, ideally another catapult. Defensively, multiple fortified phalanx units have a fair chance, ideally hidden behind a city wall or perched on some mountains or hills. 
== Civilopedia entry ==
The Catapult was the ancient ancestor of Artillery. It was a large mechanical arm that threw heavy stones, fireballs, or other missiles at a great distance. It could pierce or eventually batter down even the strongest gates and walls, while inflicting damage on buildings and the defenders. Though cumbersome and nearly useless on a battlefield, the Catapult was an effective weapon during sieges and attacks on fortified enemies.