My strat:
1. Max out lumbercamp/farms at 1st city
2. Build market
3. build second city near forest, max out lumbercamp and farms, and continue. (Note: Also build cities near mountains to get metal bonuses from smelters, but wood is far more important than metal until the enlightenment and industrial ages)
4. Build resource enhancement buildings (granery, lumber mill, and smelter in that order) at each city.
5. Build university at each city.
6. continue this type of expansion (continuing economic upgrades along the way). Also, don't max out the farms in the third city. 2.5 cities wotj farms is enough if u upgrade the economic lines.
Note: Improvise your military buildp. Only make enough to survive. When u have 3+ cities, then u should have the resources to concentrate on mili
As u can see, I always boom. I save knowledge for last because it is least vital to your military. Of course, this also depends on the game ur playing. If u are playing a standard quick fight with lots of aging, knowledge becomes very important, very fast, so some improvisation is needed, but on the whole, this strat works for me (I also play Aztec).
Note: On water maps, whales and fish help a lot. They provide u with food, wealth, and metal. For wood, ur on your own.
Also, always max out your trade routes with merchants. This will help the wealth.
We will either find a way, or make one.
-Hannibal