2018-11-05 (c) Copyright Brett Paufler # # # Ice Islands Version #04 # # # Carry Over Principles 3360BC: Buddhism 3120BC: Hinduism 1960BC: Judaism (me) 1360BC: Oracle 300BC: Colossus I can get one city for free (of mainenance costs). And with The Great Lighthouse (and more so with The Colossus), island cities turn a profit. # # # 2018-11-06 4000BC T0 The cycle of eternal rebirth of the Ice Gods starts again! All hail the Divine Reboot for He is Lord and King. Building: Worker -> Settler -> Probably Wonders from There Researching: Animal Husbandry -> Mysticism 3480BC: Buddhism founded... a few turns sooner than last game. Researching: Mining -> Masonry... as I have the time before my settler comes in prior to needing stone 3000BC: Hinduism founded... so this one was a bit later 2200BC: Stonehenge came in... um, didn't carry forward a lot of time data from last game. I am going to guess it's good dozen turns later. Still, I got it. # # # 2018-11-06 2000BC T50 I shall break for a bit after this update, lest the day get away from me. I am working on The Pyramids... and a Settler, so that is good. Already having a second city, I can devote Ragnarok to Wonders and the others to expansion... workers, settlers, ships, and military. I have opted to go for Judaism again. I feel that both The Great Lighthouse and Colossus (as well as numerous other wonders) are required to achieve the score I wish to achieve. But if I cannot make the split this time and lose the Colossus again, I will try a different strategy. I am a few turns behind on Judaism, as I elected to research Mining prior to Masonry. I hope that does not kill my bid for Judaism. Eh, I guess I am going to play the next few turns out and see. I figure I can get the Oracle by 1320BC... and last game, it was built 1360BC. Close... Ironically, if I build the Oracle as fast as I can, my tech situation may well be that I will only be able to get a piddling tech for my efforts... not Metal Casting. And going for the Oracle, also pushes my other research efforts back. So, as much as I would like it, I took Judaism instead. And I will have to live with that decision. Researching: Fishing -> Sailing Trusting that whoever will get the Oracle will be unlikely to choose Metal Casting as their free religion. Having completed a bit of business (and thus, may justify returning to play) I am finding it hard to walk away from The Oracle. But it is the play. I can't go for everything. And I would simply be trading 150 hammers for a lesser number of beakers. I have not planned ahead to get a better tech... and that plan would only come at the expense of something else. Thus, no Oracle. The Ice Gods are pleased with my choice. I must move on. Of course, all this means The Oracle won't come in until long enough after my expectation that I could have picked up Metal Working with it. Oh, well. It is a crap shoot. And I don't like the odds. # # # 2018-11-06 1520BC T62 Neither The Great Wall nor The Temple of Artemis is worth construction, so I will resist the urge. I will need a work boat for the next city, so I will build that instead, as I wait for Sailing to come in. Ah, almost forgot to revolt... well, I did forget, but only for a few turns. Civics: Representation & Organized Religion I remembered when thinking about what to produce for the next city, I wanted to produce a Missionary... but could not. Well, I still can't... not in the capitol. But I'll build one up north prior to whatever else. 1280BC: The Oracle was built in a far away land. Two or three turns later. I maybe could have squeaked it in. It would have been a race. I want to avoid as many races as I can. 450BC: I am going to lose the race for The Colossus. Judaism is too expensive. The southern passage is likely too expensive, as well. It will take founding a second rate city, as my economy sinks into the toilet. I will not be able to support it. I can feel myself floundering. # # # 2018-11-06 200BC T107 I got lucky: pure and simple. The Colossus came in a few turns later than last game. And I was lucky enough to get it. It really is luck. It's way too much to ask for on a normal start. I can see getting an early religion or two or three. And I can see getting both The Great Lighthouse and The Colossus. But both the religions and the wonders... unlikely, lucky. I got lucky. And I'm, also, in line for Christianity. That race is not as important, though. As that's just a stepping stone on the way to Paper (Gutenberg's Press, I'm guessing is the link there). And paper gives me The University of Sankore. Though, if I land Christianity, I will build the Apostic Palace. Lucky. It's too much to ask for. Oh, I almost forgot to mention, but the southern pass has opened. Settling Sea Gate has worked as expected and I can see lush jungle on the other side, which I plan on settling shortly. A settler is in the works. Unfortunately, I am not so focused that I have a settler ready to go. The settler that is ready to go is way up north in the ice fields. Perhaps, I should pull them back. OK. I'm in full on expansion mode, now. I have three settlers in production. All of these are headed south. Thus, I go from feeling lost to feeling victorious (or at least, amped) in the space of a few turns. I really was just hitting end turn -> end turn -> end turn on the assumption I would lose the race for The Colossus. I mean, I don't think I made bad plays. But I'm, also, pretty sure I didn't make any inspired plays. # # # 2018-11-06 1AD T115 Yeah! I'm pretty stoked, now. Pulling in The Colossus made all the difference. I am uncertain about my expansion prospects to the south. But I will exhaust those first. Iron Gate is the first city on one of Korean's outlier islands. In the last game, Korea had already settled this little niblet of land by the time I had make contact. As far as islands go, it's very nice. Six land tiles with iron and clam. It's as good as anything up north... better. The settler up north became Strike Right. Eventually, there will be a Strike Left. And together they will share one lone mine... though each have two seafood resources. One settler is in production, four turns out. And another is stacked behind a granary, fourteen turns out. Since I am running the slider at 60% and the new seafood cities are turning a profit at size two, I'm going to aggressively REX. Let's go for at least one and perhaps two settlers in production at all times. Two is a much better goal. I need to settle up. Also, I need more boats. Seven cities at 1AD is not stellar. But it's doable. I should have contact with Washington prior to researching paper, so I will let his tech level guide me somewhat in my next selections. Monk Economy without a doubt, but exactly where and when is up in the air. I'm hyped! This feels good! # # # 2018-11-06 375AD T130 I'm a bit overextended in the South Lands. Washington has no idea how much I am encroaching on his territory... or he does not care. Wang Kon is slowly losing his temper and will declare war soon enough. It is my hope I build enough troops in the interim to dissuade him. Three settlers are enroute to the South Lands, which will be enough. From there, I backfill my Homeland. For the moment, axes are replacing settlers. Three axes in production from nine cities. I need to do that for another round or two... and then, work on settlers. I am getting excited. I can feel the nervous energy when things are this close. I'm in trouble if Wang Kon declares war. Hopefully, I can hold him off... which is to say, I hope he doesn't attack quite yet. And then, my garrison will be built up... or so goes the plan. University of Sankore is about to come in. I have no temples, whatsoever. And I am researching Divine Right for both Islam and the Spiral Minaret. Wish me luck. I will lose a city or two if Wang Kon attacks. I am not ready for it. On the plus side, even with the new cities, I'm running 60% on the slider. 540AD: I am no longer the worst enemy of Wang Kon. I must have built enough troops. Still, better safe than sorry. Onwards and upwards. # # # 2018-11-06 980AD T159 I used a Great Engineer to finish the Sistine Chapel. I am a few turns away from the Great Library, which is a race I may lose. I stopped building wonders in my capitol. And for whatever reason, never started again. I need pretty much everything: workers, settlers, troops, missionaries... and Our Father of the Ice holy buildings for the: +2 research +2 gold +5 culture Yeah, so I need to send Missionaries down to the South Lands and build temples. In comparison, I'm pretty much wasting my time building libraries. Oh, well. Yep! I need it all. Also, I was not the first to discover Music (no free artist), which is why I blew the Great Engineer on the Sistine Chapel. Good Night! # # # 2018-11-07 1040AS T164 I just completed The Great Library, which is nice. And have three second tier wonders in production. I don't know what I would consider a first tier wonder at this point... Statue of Liberty, maybe... or The Three Gorges Dam. Joao II just made contact. So, he has optics, but I cannot see his boats. He will circumnavigate the globe long before I will. It's not even a race. I am doing other things. Half of my home continent is unsettled. I need to get on that. And yet, I have precious few settlers in production. OK. That is all the cities of Angola Point and Cowrie Shell will do for the next few rounds. I've queued up four settlers in each. Some other city will need to be recruited for Missionary duty. I simply cannot afford Joao (or someone else) to start settling my Hinterlands. It sort of undermines the entire point of stealing Washington's territory. Yeah, so full on REX... even if it temporarily kills my economy. I can build out of it. I just traded Washington 4 gold for his World Map. It was a bargain. He doesn't know much, but he knows where his own cities are, which is what I wanted to know. Yeah, I'm pleased enough with that, I'm giving 5gp to Wang Kon for his map. Washington: 9 cities -> Could Infill Wang Kon: 7 cities -> arid scrap still available Joao and I are about technologically equal, he has favoured the sailing techs. I lead both Wang Kon and Washington (who is the least advanced). Sooner or later, I will be building courthouses. This will alleviate any concern over my economy... and will make me the Espionage Points Leader. With three opponents, I am struggling. I would like to have a heads up on when Joao II is going to land Astronomy, so I know when the ships are coming. Yes, I would not put it beyond him to settle my lands. I have a desire to try and beat Joao II in circumnavigating the globe, but I am going to resist that urge. If I made it a priority, I believe I could have work boats in position and optics researched in fifteen turns... and then another twenty turns for movement. That puts me at T200 to circumnavigate. Let's see when Joao does it. And now I am Joao's worst enemy. Fine! Let's see if I can steal that circumnavigation bonus from him! # # # 2018-11-07 1160AD T176 I bought Asoka's maps for 180 gold. So, if I circumnavigate first, it's because of that trade. I, also, got philosophy off of him, so Liberalism will be easier to get when the time comes. He's the only one in reach of Education, but he's behind Guilds, so he's nowhere close on the Banking front. Researching: Banking -> Education -> Liberalism -> Economics It is conceivable that Asoka could beat me to Liberalism, but if he's making a play for it, that will show up on the trade screen. Joao II is the only one who can research Astronomy, which means he hasn't. And my Hinterlands are safe for another dozen turns or so. I have, maybe, ten to fifteen infill cities to go. But I'll do the outline first. I have 18 cities, now. So, we'll see how many I have when the Homeland is settled up. If Joao just has the one Carrack, it will be a tight race, but I think I will win. By a quick count, I think I need 12 more cities. I will build setters in the new cities, first. Settler -> Worker. I can't really afford to do anything else. I will trust that I my island cities will carry the economy. And that Wang Kon and Washington would rather peacefully cohabitate than lose a war. I mean, they might well crush me, now. But my fury would eventually reach them. As it is, Washington is slowly but surely beating me in the culture war, which means he is building infrastructure, not troops. Eh, I should build a scout or two to scope out Wang Kon and Washington's land. After Liberalism & Economics, I should think about picking up Nationalism. I was thinking Astronomy as my free tech, but I think that obsoletes The Great Lighthouse and The Colossus. I'll have to check that out when I fire up the game, again. # # # 2018-11-10 1160AD T176 Walking about the city, taking the day off, I made a few notes regarding the game, thoughts on how I could do better. I'll write them down as I try to implement them in the game... or at least, review the game as to why implementing them right now is impractical. 1) Buy Asoka's map again. He only wanted 5gp, so I gave it to him. I do not note any new sea tiles revealed, but this is a cheap way to do recon. 2) Build Missionaries in Strike Right. Thus, after two Caravels, I queued a galley and a Jewish Missionary. I intend to crank out the Missionaries in Strike Right... it has to do something, after all. 3) Cut Joao off. Cancel Open Borders or anything else like that with him. No trading. As such, I had open borders with him, but as I am his worst enemy, let's live up to our reputation. There is no point in helping him in any way. At the moment, he is our number one competitor... though not likely the first we will war with. 4) Paradise will be my Espionage City, which means nothing at the moment, but long term, I will try Specializing in Espionage there. OK. I queued up a Courthouse, but it's a good forty turns out, so nothing imminent there. 5) Start drafting with Nationalism. Thus, I queued Gunpowder (for my unique unit) and Nationalism into the research queue. Researching: Banking -> Education -> Liberalism -> Economics -> Gunpowder -> Civil Service -> Nationalism 6) Paradise gets both Globe Theater and Scotland Yard... hence, the spy specialist city. Also, right now I have three mainland cities. Let's see how many that grows to. # # # 2018-11-10 1270AD T187 I circumnavigated the globe a few turns back, beating Joao. So, that's what you get for being eminently hate-able. I thought about joining the Byzantine Empire in their war against the Portuguese, hoping Joao would capitulate to me, as I have a huge civilization. But long term, there is no benefit from accepting the capitulation. It will bind me in ways I do not want to be bound down the line. I want to be able to pick off a city of his if I want it. # # # 2018-11-10 1360AD T196 Justina is not putting much pressure on Joao. I was going to say he's the tech leader. But no. I am. Pure and simple. Still, Joao got Nationhood before I did. So, I am researching that prior to Gunpowder, as I'd like to build The Taj Mahal for the free Golden Age, wherein I can reset my civics. And if that fails, I have a Great Person landing in a turn. And I already have the two I need for my planned corporations. So, I can burn it. Still, I'd rather wait a bit and see. The Taj Mahal would definitely be worth the price if I got a Golden Age out of it. # # # 2018-11-10 1430AD T203 Portugal beat me to The Taj Mahal, which was not too surprising. I burned a Great Scientist to start a Golden Age and changed my civics to: Representation Nationhood Slavery Mercantilism Organized Religion These might take me to the end of the game. I need to start an army, so that's the next item on the agenda. War! Not sure where, when, how, or with who, but war is in the offing. War! Oh, one final thing: I settled the Holy Mountain, so let's see what kind of benefit that gets me... likely not even close to the maintenance costs for the city, but that's alright, as I'm pretty sure the prophets have said: The Time of the Holy Mountain is the Time of War! Yeah! That's right! It's time for a war! Of course, I need an army first. I should get on that. # # # 2018-11-11 1555AD T221 My soft target for launching a war is around T250... which is when I'll have infantry. That seems to work well for me, but I feel like I am falling into a rut. Still, there is no sense destroying troops for no reason. Both Washington and Gilgamesh are the leading candidates for such an offensive. But Washington has a bigger tech lead... and well, I've been his neighbor for a long time. And he's been a good neighbor. Also, I'll be winning the culture war big time before long. As I'm about to complete The Hermitage (+100% culture) in Paradise and this will allow me to build a second city in that area (a mere four squares away, once I have dominance over Washington). Soon enough, I will be applying pressure to two of Wang Kon's cities. I doubt there are enough turns in the game for me to manage a double flip (flip one city and then build the culture up in that city so much so the next city in line will flip, as well). But it will give me an advantage in the eventual war (I will easily expand my cultural influence, having almost already achieved it). And I'll be able to settle an advance city or two, splitting the difference between our kingdoms. Still, I think Gilgamesh is the first war target. If nothing else, it will be a one sided war, as he does not have Astronomy yet. And next turn, I will be settling two cities on his continent... on ice, to be sure, but it's still his continent. Yeah, it's war with Gilgamesh. I am disbanding my heavy garrison on the Southern Continent against Washington and Wang Kon and moving it to Gilgamesh's territory. And rather than moving workers over, which I was planning on doing, I will declare war, letting Gilgy come into my cultural boundaries, crushing his troops against my superior troops garrisoned behind walls of ice. That all is a good ten turns off, transportation time. But it beats the delay in amassing enough troops to crush Washington. We'll see how it goes. One thing I have learned: about the most important thing in these wars is minimizing the loss of troops. The victory must be decisive... or I will pay in the long term. In other words, it will likely take me a good fifty turns to overtake all of Sumeria (and hopefully, Gilgamesh does not Capitulate to anyone... or at least, not too fast). But I don't want to have to declare peace in all that time. I want enough troops to push the fight forward. So, I feel good about that strategy. My research path, on the other hand, has precious little to do with war. Researching: Scientific Method -> Communism (Great Spy) -> Physics (Great Scientist) -> Rifling -> Chemistry -> Steam Power -> Assembly Line (Infantry) -> Biology -> Medicine (Sid's Sushi> -> Steel (Cannons) -> Railroad (Mining, Inc) Rifling is not bad, in that one gets Riflemen. But I would not be researching it if Infantry did not seem so close. I may push the war with Gilgamesh off until I've upgraded to Riflemen... or maybe I will declare and not do much until I have done that. Infantry is too far off to delay for. I have 20% of both world population and land. It's the land area that I will need to be careful about, as I have absolutely no intention of keeping my population below 46%... especially since (long term) burning my opponents cities to the ground is how I plan on preventing them from launching rockets... and/or destroying them mid-flight. Um, so after this bunch of techs, I should head down the Electricity -> Radio line. Having so many cities (with so many courthouses) provides a whole slew of Espionage Points. In the late game, I should explore that further and see what can be done. Missionaries are still needed... but they are falling off the backside, as other items seem more critical. And with that, I grow tired of writing and looking at the board. War with Gilgamesh! The convoy to sail, ASAP. If it has to, in drips and drabs. War with Gilgamesh! # # # 2018-11-12 1590AD T228 At the end of my turn (and likely, the end of my play on the day), I declared war on Gilgamesh. It's maybe a bit aggressive in that I only have five musketeers on defence (along with three catapults) in Sumeria Landing. But another three musketeers are landing next turn; and two pikemen and a catapult, a turn after that. It should be enough to beat back whatever Gilgamesh can throw at me. I mean, maybe not. Maybe it's not enough troops. Six turns out (or so), I have another trio of musketeers arriving, along with three spears. I mean, I guess I'm a little nervous. On the other hand, if Gilgamesh can amass an attack stack by then, it's of inferior troops. Last I looked, Gilgy was fielding Vultures and Horsemen. Both are strength 6 versus my 9 for muskets (plus I'm playing defence at this point, they are fortified, and I get a plus 20% cultural defensive bonus), so I'm sitting fairly pretty. I think Gilgamesh will have to destroy a lot of {his own} troops to get anywhere. For the most, I am just going to hang out. In eleven turns (or so), I land rifling, which will make my victory much more decisive. And from there... well, it's a good twenty-five turns to Infantry at my current tech rate (20%), so I don't want to hold off for that. Let's see how everyone else reacts. I've got 800 points on India, the second place player. And they go down about a hundred points each from there. Score: 2,278 Normalized: 51,314 I intend to play this to T500, so the normalized score doesn't mean much at all. Still, it gives a power ratio. Yeah, sure. My military is just coming online. But the shear potential is awe-inspiring... or should be to my opponents. Zara Yaqob would declare war on Gilgamesh for two high priced technologies. No one else would. I am cleaning up on the post Scientific Method freebies... though, the obsolescence of my wonders hasn't really helped. Being the tech leader, I am less concerned about that 20% research slider than I might otherwise be. One play I am proud of is settling a single city in Sumeria rather than the two I was initially planning. Yes, I lose a little land. If I weren't going to war, I'd be better off settling both. But only having the one city makes for a single point of failure, as they say. I know where Gilgamesh is going to send his troops. I don't have to split my stack. And that is worth a lot. In the rest of the world, I am building my garrison two troops deep. I may change my mind on this, sending more to the front. But maybe a third of my cities have two units. Hopefully, that will make Washington (sort of backwards this game, I guess it is Roosevelt that techs hard) and Wang Kon (he's bringing it) hold off on any back-stab manoeuvre. And if you're lucky, I'll write up my research on War Weariness prior to my next play session. Hint: It's important that Gilgamesh throws {i.e. kills} his troops against my defenders within my cultural boundaries, because if this happens, I suffer zero (yeah, that's right: zero, nada) war weariness. I can maybe finish half the war (kill half his troops) without suffering any unhappiness effects or build up of war weariness. Definitely worth it. # # # Prior to playing again, I should run a counter-espionage mission in Sumeria Landing. I, also, should probably commit that city's name to memory, as it'll probably be important for the next few dozen turns. # # # War Weariness The most important fact about War Weariness is that one does not suffer any War Weariness (none, nada, zip) for battles fought (win or lose: attacker or defender) within their own cultural borders. Eh, that's a little bit off. One has to have cultural dominance on the tile. But for the shorthand version, within one's cultural borders usually works. Thus: War Weariness +0: Battles where Culturally Dominant +1: If you are the attacker and win +2: If you are the defender (win or lose) +3: If you are the attacker and lose 0: In Homeland 1: Attack, Win 2: Defender, Win or Lose 3: Attack, Lose +6 for razing a city (or thereabouts) +12 for launching a nuke (or thereabouts) But these aren't the important points. What almost always does it for me {gives me crippling War Weariness} is the destruction of large stacks of units. War Weariness is Decreased by -25% for a jail -25% for Mt Rushmore -50% for Police State But that might be a bit premature, as the (shorthand) formula goes something like ~UnHappy = CityPop * WW / 200 * Mods {And this is wrong. I found an extended version of this formula. But as shortened it does not work for me. However, replacing the 200 by 1000 does seem to provide a sort of estimate.} Where: UnHappy: the number of unhappy citizens in a city CityPop: the size of the city WW: War Weariness (that number from wins and losses and which is zero if you are culturally dominant) 200: a constant {wherein I find 1000 actually works better} Mods: Jail, Mt Rushmore, Police State added together, which if equal 100% means that city does not suffer from War Weariness; though, the Statue of Zeus adds +100% WW and I don't know, exactly, how that interacts with the above) War Weariness Degrades at: -1 per turn *.99 per turn So, WW -= 1 WW *= 0.99 Each Turn And that's the primer. The important thing (the shortcut meme): fight battles on your home turf whenever possible, which in the upcoming war means fighting near (and/or in) the newly founded city of Sumeria Landing. # # # 2018-11-13 1590AD T228 The correct name for the city is, indeed, Sumeria Landing. However, to perform a Counter Espionage mission, I not only need a spy, but a spy in an opponents city, so that is not going to happen. # # # 2018-11-13 1655AD T241 Thirteen turns into the war and not much has happened. Gilgamesh has slammed a few troops into my stack... and it was just as well it was just a few, as the Musketeers were not going to stand up to his Knights. However, I have Riflemen, now. And anything he sends at me is free experience. He might just know that, as he's pulled back. But his offer of 200gold is not tempting enough for me to accept a peace. I get Infantry in ten (or so turns). I do not know if I will wait that long to attack. In other news, no one decided to attack me... or join the war, so I likely have Gilgamesh to myself. Eh, as much as I'd like to attack, I should probably wait the ten turns. I will not accept peace, though. War is war. So, in ten turns, I get Infantry, start upgrading... and go on the offensive with my newly minted army. It's just not worth the loss in troops to attack earlier than that. And as I am not racing the clock, troop conservation is far more important than a victory over Gilgamesh ten turns sooner... and let's face it, it may well be ten turns faster after Infantry than before. # # # I am the tech leader. I expect Asoka and Zara Yaqob are trading techs back and forth. But even between the two, they are behind. Before I know it, Asoka will be building a Space Ship. Joao, as well. But if I keep my troops intact, he will lose his capital (over and over again, if need be to a gigantic stack of doom). Eventually, I will need to fight on the main continent (the one with four opponents) in order to destroy Space Ships... or so, I presume. Joao's city of Coimbra looks to be a good starting place for this (for getting a toe-hold on the continent). I can probably flip the culture fairly quickly. Of course, fighting Joao will make for a bloody war, as we are at close to tech parity. Ha! I wonder if there is some way to do this with Espionage? Quick answer is no, but I maybe can use Espionage against Wang Kon and Washington. So, time to actually use some of those points I'm building up. # # # 2018-11-14 1655AD T241 Between play, I have decided to wait for Infantry prior to attacking Sumeria. He's researching gunpowder, so Gilgamesh will have Muskets in a few turns. But there is not that much difference between Muskets and Knights (strength 9 & 10, respectively). Muskets will be better on defence... but then, most of my troops have Pinch (+25% against gunpowder units), so there is little (if no) advantage in rushing the attack. Actually, I'm not going to crunch the numbers that hard. I really am just calling it at wait for the Infantry. It seems the hand down winner to me... certainly over the Knights. I guess the truth is, he's going from Vultures to Muskets, so there is a jump there. Anyhow, enough analysis. The decision has been made. I have 34 units in Sumeria Landing, which I hope will be enough for the war. In conjunction with that offensive, I am going to start building up the American front. But... we'll see. So, I'm sort of going down my notes and along with building more settlers (I'll need two or three more, if not a half dozen... or more in captured lands), I need to spam the missionaries. I have not worked that to its full potential... and I'll have executives to spam in just another thirty turns or so (yeah, thirty was a pretty good estimate, something north of twenty, at least). Anyhow, build more: Settlers Missionaries Next up, looking at the Victory Conditions (as I don't want to nudge up against my own cultural victory and have that keep me from my 50+ Future Tech objective): Domination: I can take over Sumeria, easy, without getting close. From there, I'm thinking Washington & Korea, but we'll see. I need to be able to strike at the Big Four's capitols. Cultural: if I switch to Wonders in Angola Point, I may have a problem, but at 0% culture on the slider and no interest in switching civics to Free Speech, I'm pretty safe on that front. Still, watch Angola Point. Hmm! Sid's Sushi gives me +2 culture per resource consumed in a city. I may win this thing by culture, yet. Space Race: if you have not gathered, my plan is to sack the capitol of anyone getting close to building one. Diplomatic: I simply plan on building the United Nations and never offering a Diplomatic Victory up for vote... of if I am forced, I can abstain. Finally, prior to playing (in earnest, I have a few hours today, I really can't think about anything else, my mind is occupied by the game), I will be cycling through the cities (with an emphasis on the major ones) tweaking things as appropriate. Angola Point: it is my intent to found both corporations here (Sid's Sushi & Mining, Inc), making it a commerce powerhouse. It will get Wall Street, eventually. Market, Grocer, Bank currently in production. All in all, just a few minor adjustments. 1: War with Gilgamesh at Infantry (after upgrade). 2: Prepare for war with America on the same terms. 3: Work on Espionage. There is untapped potential there, as I am racking up the points this game. {And I never did use them much... neither did my competitors.} 4: Spam Missionaries 5: Fill out the Settlers Finally, I'm going to settle the desert on the Byzantine Mainland, to build culture for the eventual war in that part of the world. It's crap, a single fish. But it's the best landing site available. # # # 2018-11-14 1695AD T249 I had a bit of excitement there. I am researching Assembly Line in order to upgrade my troops to Infantry. But I am not that far ahead of the curve of everyone else. Asoka could (if he wanted to) be researching Medicine. And if he did, he'd likely get there before me and be in a position to found Sid's Sushi. But for whatever reason, he has decided to research Physics. Thank you, Asoka. There are others who could research Biology/Medicine, but none of them have Corporation. Only Asoka is in a position to win the Sid Sushi race. And for whatever reason, he does not seem to want to. # # # T250: 1700AD: The Half Way Point Also, Monasteries do not keep the Monk Economy bonuses after the discovery of Scientific Method, so there is not much point in my building them... yeah, it doesn't even look like I am getting the +10% research anymore. So, with Organized Religion, I cannot see much point in building early Monasteries. I'm still struggling with Missionaries. I would have been better off converting 2-3 cities (don't know the exact cost) in lieu of each Monastery. No more Monasteries. Only Temples add to the Monk Economy long term. {Of course, I say this, but a 10% research boost is meaningful if kept for enough turns. This game, however, I rushed to complete a slew of Monasteries prior to their becoming obsolete. A pure waste of energy. On the other hand, the Monk Economy bonuses only become obsolete with computers... so, usually not a concern. Thus, in pure retrospect, I need to give both Temples and Monasteries a higher priority earlier in the game. In fact, I was just doing a bit of math, I could get three temples and three monasteries for the price of The Pyramids.} # # # 2018-11-14 1715AD T253 I accepted a peace treaty from Gilgamesh. I came to the war with one too few units. Well, actually, he was going to decimate my stack (of five or so) so it's not like I was just short the one. But if I had one more unit, I would have taken a second city in this first round. As it was, I got one city... and Gilgamesh accepted peace when he would have been much better off waiting a single turn and killing five badly wounded Infantry. Um, this war is not going as well as planned... perhaps they never do. Still, the kill ratio is easily 5-1 in my favour (perhaps upwards of 10-1), so it's not that bad. Just, I was not expecting to have to ask for peace... and I really needed the peace. I will settle an extra city or two in the desolate south... given the opportunity. I don't think Gilgamesh values the land. On the downside, it gives him more targets, splitting my troops. On the plus side... more land. # # # I am researching Medicine and have no competition, so I will land Sid's Sushi in Angora Point. I will be getting +10 food, at least, per city with Sushi, at that point, as I have loads of fish. I am undecided about the next technology. Asoka is within striking range of Electricity, but is currently researching Steel. Steel is the path for Mining, Inc. But I may be more disappointed if I do not nail the Electricity wonders. OK. I've decided! Researching: Medicine (for Sid's Sushi, ultra important) -> Electricity (to stay ahead of Asoka on the Electricity/Mass Communication Wonders) -> Fascism (for the free Great General) And then? Either the Electricity line or backfill Steel and Railroad for Mining, Inc. Instead of Espionage, Paradise shall be a research hub (and I'll use any extra scientist to bulb half of Electricity, if I remember). I'm sending down a galley full of three Great People (sort of a risky business, that) to found an Academy (the first of the game, along with a Great General. Just checked, the route looks clear. Settling the Great General is mostly for the Research Bonus. But to support the future settling of ALL great generals in Paradise, I'm building a Forge and Levee, which along with three hills and a whole slew of specialists, gives it pretty good production. So, in maybe fifty turns, it will do nothing but troops... and maybe troops intermittently up until then. Paradise: Research Angola Point: Money Three settlers in production, along with two spies, two Islamic Missionaries (yep, not the Jewish ones I need), two ships, and a single catapult. Everything else is infrastructure. 43 Cities Total! Sushi is Five Turns Away! Yippie! In other news, I spent a good four hours (perhaps a bit longer) playing twelve turns, so twenty minutes a turn... not taking into account a half hour to hour at the end for a write up... and that half hour at the start. So, maybe only 10-15 minutes a turn, while actually playing. Next Time: Sushi! Spam those Executives Spam them Missionaries Paradise to a Science City Don't lose your lead! It's substantial! # # # 2018-11-16 Wandering around town yesterday (and the day before, when I had access to the Internet), I made a bunch of notes, as follows... only, hopefully, these are a little better organized. 1) I need better unit build discipline, in that I need to max out my possible executives and missionaries every turn. I am lax in this and many a city is building at a 25% disadvantage as a result. So, long story short, I need to have three each of the State Religion and Sid Sushi Executives (on the board) or in production at all times. I can be more lax in regards to the other religions... but not Mining, Inc Executives. If I am to found the Corporation (or a religion), I should do it right. 2)Turn both Paradise & Strike Right into secondary Wonder Production Cities and Specialize in Science. With all those Courthouses (and other buildings), I have enough Espionage. If fifty Future Techs is the goal, I need to focus on science... and big time. Academies in both cities. Expect them to help build the Electricity line Wonders, too. 3) Gift Girsu (the Sumerian city I captured) back to Gilgamesh {I did not do this} prior to declaring war. Um, a fair bit of math follows in regards to this. Suffice to say, I can't take the War Weariness hit for Gilgamesh throwing his stack at Girsu, as he has cultural dominance, there. At fifty plus War Weariness, he would win... even if he lost. 4) In critical culture cities (Girsu, Sumeria Landing, Just in Time), switch to buildign a Theater, first (over a Salon). A Theater should be first building. So, that's mostly it for the in game advice to myself. # # # COMBAT EXPERIENCE The formula for combat experience is: EXP = iV * Me / Them Me or Them: Combat Strength iV: 4 on attack, 2 on defense There is no limit on the amount of experience a unit can earn... but the odds of earning more than a few points tends toward zero. The minimum experience per combat is 1. And this is all I have ever noted earning. Though, I don't keep track... like at all. # # # COMBAT ODDS Is a complex enough formula, I will not be using it too often. I believe (and this is from memory), the odds per round are: Attacker Odds= (3*A + D) / (A + 3*D) Defender Odds= (A + 3*D) / (3*A + D) Where A or D is the Attacker or Defender's strength, a hit doing strength in damage. Um, once again, this is all very rough. So, for a Knight attacking an Infantry (the exact combat scenario I was interested in), for a fresh Knight and a fresh Infantry (full strength) the odds (if I am correct) comes out to around: A: 25% 12hp D: 75% 33hp Meaning, the Knight would hit around once, before being destroyed, reducing the Infantry by about 10%. If another fresh Knight attacked this now weakened Infantry: A: 27% 12 And from there, I just eye-balled it and said I could count on my Infantry dying after 3-4 knights attacked on average. Which means, I have more than enough units in Sumeria to defend Girsu... but after 25 attacks, I'd be at 50WW, which means roughly 25% unhappiness in each city, which means, defending Girsu is not worth it. Gilgamesh's Stack 10 knights 10 ancient crossbows 5 catapults Killing All: 50+ WW = 25% unhappy 25% UnHappy is not worth it. # # # So, per my War Weariness Analysis a'ways back, Police State (along with a few jails and Mt Rushmore, which is a National Wonder, so it's guaranteed) will go a long way towards solving that dilemna. And believe it or not, there is a wonder that may help with minimizing the impact of going with Police State by allowing me to switch in and out of Police State as it fits my needs. It's called Cristo Redentor and allows switching of civics (maybe multiple times per turn {it does not, only once per turn}), so I could go in and out of Police State as the need arises, staying with Nationalism as a basis... or even Bureaucracy on the turn flip. I mean, odd thing about Cristo Redentor is that it may allow one to be in a different civic during the turn (or two or more civics); and then, switch to another for the turn roll. If so, it's just calling out to be abused. {They changed it in a patch, I believe. Once can only revolt once per turn.} Anyhow, in consideration of the power of Cristo Redentor, I need to review the late game techs. Meaning, I need to take a closer look at the Tech Tree. After all, I may be better off pushing for the Internet... and start researching Future Techs, as soon as possible, letting others fill in the Tech Tree. # # # Oh, I've, also, thought about having a goal {in another game, not this one} be to launch a hundred nukes, so a nuclear wasteland scenario. With that in mind, I wonder what the effects are of a full on nuclear war? Well, I was thinking about writing up my research findings, but I did not find much. # # # Current Game Goals 1: Max Out Missionaries & Executives 2: Focus Paradise & Strike Right (Wonders, Science) 3) Gift Girsu back to Gilgamesh. 4) Theaters, first, in the three or four critical culture cities. Late Game Techs of Note (not already researched): Railroad: for Mining, Inc. Flight: for Airports airlift is nice, but not critical Fascism: Mt Rushmore and Free General Electricity: Broadway Medicine: for Sid's Sushi (five turns out, no one else working on) Radio: Eiffel Tower (free Broadcast Tower in every City), Rock 'n Roll (5 Hit Singles, +1 Happy, resource), Cristo Redentor (says minimal wait, so there is a wait, but allows civic changes without anarchy); thus, radio is a big one Plastics: Three Gorges Dam (free power for all cities on this continent) Mass Media: Hollywood (provides another trade-able happiness resource), United Nations (outlaws nukes, and prevents diplomatic victory; though, I am assuming I would be elected UN Secretary General) Computers: The Internet (grants any technology known by two or more other civilizations, so further back filling not required to maintain tech parity) Fusion: provides a Great Engineer, but it's probably not worth going for otherwise Thus, Research: Medicine (Sushi) -> Fascism (General) -> Steel (maybe) -> Railroad (maybe) -> Radio -> Mass Media -> Industrialism -> Plastics -> Computers -> Super Conductors -> Genetics -> Future Tech Eleven Technologies (91 turns research at current rates) gives 160 turns for future tech, so I will research 16 Future Techs if nothing changes. Things will have to change. Unsurprisingly, I got a 10% increase, by increasing the slider 10%, so I have room to triple the rate... assuming my gold situation conforms. That would give me fifty future techs... so, I still need another doubling beyond that. # # # 2018-11-17 1780AD T266 The last few turns have been doing time... nothing exciting. I am winning the tech race, but just barely. The AI is nipping at my heels... mainly because I am going for it all. As to the Sumerian war, I should have cultural dominance in Girsu in 10-20 turns, so I will wait until then (lots of waiting this game) until declaring war. Also, by then I will have Mt Rushmore, so less of a hit from the War Weariness. Asoka is going for a rocket, so I will need a stack to destroy his ill-placed (from a defensive position) capital city. I am rushed for time, so I will finish this write up prior to playing next time... I hope. # # # 2018-11-19 1802AD: Asoka completed Broadway before I could. I lost the race by four turns. I will put the 400 fail gold into upgrading troops for the eventual assault on Delhi... even though, we all know that's a good fifty to hundred turns off. # # # 2018-11-19 1804AD T272 I would not call it floundering. But I'm building a lot of infrastructure. And it's not much of an emotional difference between having a market in a city and not. If all goes well, I land the Pentagon next turn, which is far more important than Broadway and its Hit Musicals. I've actually moved Hollywood back in the lineup (I only really have three wonder ready cities), as I value landing the Christo Redentor more. Hard break on the day to do a few minutes of writing (and only a few minutes) on other projects. # # # 2018-11-19 1818AD T279 The second Sumerian War begins. I likely made a mistake moving my troops out of Girsu in order to capture a worker. Oh, well. What is done is done. Let us see if the Calvary can get there in time to capitalize on the mistake. Essentially, I traded one worker that I really don't need for 25% defensive bonus on eight units (I moved more out in support of the first four) and war weariness for being in Sumerian Land if they are attacked. It was a mistake pure and simple. Girsu is at 51% French Cultural Dominance. Eh, let's see what Gilgamesh does on the roll. War Weariness: 8 On the roll, Sumeria failed to capitalize on the mistake... thus, it is looking less and less like a mistake. And in fact, Sumeria seems to be taking no defensive action. Gilgamesh's stack did not move. True. I have lots of other forces in the area. But from what I can see of the mechanics, he would have hurt me hard inflicting the War Weariness Damage... and as Mt Rushmore is in the works, this may well have been his best chance for the weariness to have any meaning. 1820AD Sumerian War Weariness: 6 1822AD: Sumeria is on the move. He's positioning to attack a city in my cultural borders. He brought 17 units (max str 10); whereas, I have 15 units (max str 20). He's going to get the snot kicked out of him. # # # 2018-11-19 1830AD T285 Gilgamesh expended his stack with no (zero) loss of units to myself. Good going, Gilgamesh! War Weariness (WW): 48 Somehow, he is ahead of Portugal in the points. Normally, I would accept his capitulation and move the war machine on. But as the goal is to last another 200 turns, I want his territory... all of it. 1844AD: Gilgamesh obliged by massacring his stack, once again. He killed one unit... injured everything... and my War Weariness is now 217 # # # 2018-11-19 1850AD T295 I am not suffering from as much unhappiness as I would have expected from 271WW (War Weariness). True, I have Mt Rushmore. Eh, let's see. Strike Right: Pop 21, with Jail (and Mt Rushmore) gives -50% The {obviously wrong} formula is: ~UnHappy = CityPop * WW / 200 * Mods 21 * 271 / 200 * 0.5 = 14.22 And that's closer to the total effective unhappiness in my civilization than the unhappiness in any one city. Um, either way. It's more or less completely off. My in game results are more like: WW / 1000 * Mods * Pop = UnHappiness So, at a rough number WW/100 ~ Unhappiness in a Pop 10 City. Meaning, I don't know. But the information I got online was not meaningful to me. I'll work with this formula for a while (it gets rounded up) and see how I like it. War Weariness Revised Formula WW / 1000 * Mods * Pop = UnHappiness in City Note: Unhappiness penalty for other civs having Emancipation is population dependent, as well. Oh, I might as well mention that my slavery pops have been getting more than thirty hammers, too. So, maybe there are other techs involved that make slavery more effective... or the hammers are passing through buildings, getting enlarged. I am annoyed (at the inclusion of erroneous data in this write-up) in regards to the WW Formula not working. Oh, well. The good news is that the War Weariness is not nearly as bad as I was expecting. WW: 271 2 Unhappy with Jail 4 Unhappy without Jail In my two largest Pop 21 cities. It's not such a bad hit. # # # 2018-11-20 1852AD T296 Computers obsoleted my Monk Economy. Well, it was a good run. And assuming I get the Internet, not a bad trade. # # # 2018-11-20 1858AD T299 Reloading. The UN is going to vote for peace for my war with Sumeria... and in a moment of stupidity, I accepted his capitulation. Even before exiting the trade screen (after capitulation, doing the open borders dance), I came to my senses and realized the mistake. I will redo the last battle (as I don't have a save) and take the same surrender terms... less capitulation. So, yes. I redid. Accepted the city of Lagash for a 10 Turn Peace Treaty. And will pick up the war in exactly ten turns where I left off. Oh, yeah. Asoka is more popular than I am, so he's having his way with the UN. Turns out it wasn't quite worth the hammers to build. I was expecting to have control. Maintenance costs on Sid Sushi & Mining, Inc are way more than I had anticipated. I've gone from 50-60% research down to 30% and the only real change is the founding of a few corporations. I will have to be measured in my spread, as opposed to the outright spamming I was planning. Build those big cities up. Still, there are 200 turns remaining, which is a long time to inch that slider back up. Also, every Merchant gives me three beakers (at the moment), so that's not too bad. # # # 1860AD: The UN enforced peace barely passed... Oh, everyone was against me (everyone voted for peace, I voted for war), but they barely have a majority. Anyhow, given the forced peace, it was just as well I took Gilgamesh up on his peace offering. It will be war, again, soon enough. 1770AD: Moving excess troops down to Korea & US Territory, for war should the situation present itself. I have a few battleships in production, which should change the military landscape. # # # 2018-11-20 1878AD T308 I just launched what I anticipate will be the final war with Gilgamesh. I have not decided whether to eliminate him completely (probably what I should do), take him on as a vassal (the second choice), or let him live out his life in peace (which ironically, will give me negative happiness modifiers until the end of time, so I should knock him out). To counteract the War Weariness Unhappiness, I revolted into Emancipation, which I can revolt out of in a turn or two. I don't think anyone else has researched computers. Korea might (nope, Wang Kon definitely does not), so the Internet is mine in four turns. It would take me about that long to research flight, which I will get for free after I build the Internet, so research is down to 0%... to stock up on gold. I'm running at around 30% otherwise. And as I have said, I am not spamming the Corporate Executives as quickly as I might otherwise. Three Gorges Dam came in on the Southern Continent (Korea and America's Homeland), so I am building factories down there. And will implement mining on that continent first. Thus, raw materials being imported from Sumeria (via Mining, Inc) with the Southern Lands building... not really sure what? The final war machine, I guess. Even if I don't take anyone over due to territory concerns, I am going to be banging a few heads. Dehli will be mine before the end of the game. I'll reduce India to dust if I have to... which I probably will, because he's going to start working on a rocket before long... every one is. Truth is: Mining, Inc will be more important in the short term. It costs less (like -10gp/turn) to maintain and gives me greater benefits (it will allow me to end my reliance on slavery. So, spamming Mining, Inc. is the plan: to the Southern Lands, then islands. And I will see how things look at that point. It's good to have a plan. Once I am through with Sumeria, I will attack either Wang Ton or Washington, depending on who looks the weakest... or if that is not the deciding factor, Washington, as his land looks prettier. # # # In the final Sumerian War (I am assuming this is it), Gilgamesh managed to do some damage. He sank an unescorted Galley with three Mining Executives in it. That will set me back a few turns. But, eh? What are you going to do? Escort every transport? No. It's not worth it. Even at the loss. # # # 1888AD: I need to spam Mining, Inc everywhere. Do that first; and then, worry about Sushi. Also, without slavery, the turns roll around much quicker. Odd that, a requirement to winning takes longer... much like the inability to automate workers in any meaningful way. In the last half of the game, I just let them do what they want. All my workers in Sumeria are on autopilot. But for the first 1-200 turns, I micro manage everything. The automated workers are just plain stupid. # # # 2018-11-20 1800AD T320 Gilgamesh is no more. I will build one more city to infill his territory. I've already built a couple. And then, that is that. The big news is that there are only 90 odd turns left in the game, as that's when I would win a cultural victory. Asoka will, no doubt, make a Space Ship play before then. But my military is fairly large... and getting larger all the time. I believe it is time to give Nationalism a rest. However, I don't see the advantage in any other civic. I should look again. Barbarianism: No, that was easy. Vassalage: I'm going to faze out building new military and the upkeep would be 100g more a turn than my current rate. So, no. Bureaucracy: Probably what I will go with. It's close to a wash. I lose in espionage points. And don't actually make that much up. Upkeep is 100gp more, which is about what I am at now. Oh, I have Ironworks coming online in the Capitol. OK. That's worth considering. Nationhood: This is what I am in. I lose the one happy from Barracks, which will not be important in ten turns, after the first few Future Techs. Free Speech: Just doubles my culture rate, which ends the game twice as fast, not my goal this time around. I'll switch to Bureaucracy and if I don't like it. I can always make the roll (turn roll) and change it back. Well, it looks horrible on paper. I went from a +32 gold surplus to a -172 deficit at 30% on the slider. But that doesn't take into account that the War with Sumeria is now over {no more Sumer, no more Sumerian War Weariness}. Eh, let's see what the turn roll does. # # # 2018-11-20 1910AD T330 Only eighty odd turns remain. And it is unclear whether Asoka is going to be making a reasonable play for a Space Ship. America is going down fast. I have bombers and Heavy Tanks (40 str, I don't want to bother to look up the name). So, Washington is outgunned. The fight appears to be going fast... and soon enough, I will have the votes to veto any UN Peace Keeping Mission. One cannot airlift Corporate Executives {this is wrong: to airlift, a unit has to start in the airport city, which the executive in question did not}. I'm running 20% research, which is not as high as I'd like. But in the last fifty turns or so, I will be switching production to beakers. So, maybe that will do the trick. Prior to that, I'm going to take down America... and maybe Korea. Vote against my wishes in the UN. Why, I'll so kill you. Yeah. I like a good cake walk. With the new tech, Washington is falling faster than Gilgamesh... of course, I have that many more units. And then the {Civ IV} program crashed, which it does a lot. Eh, no worries. I was getting ready to stop for the night and now I have an excuse. For when I start up next time. 1: Stop building military units. Assume this is the last war that you will fight. 2: Send spies (maybe lots of them to mess with Asoka... or whoever is the rocket leader. 3: Once a city is maxed out, produce research. 4: The War with Washington should be over soon enough... unless the UN gets involved. 4: With the focus on Espionage, that means a city is not built out until it completes the Espionage Buildings... and finally, Nationalism is probably the better civic. So, once again: 1: No More Troops 2: Spies to Asoka 3: Espionage Buildings 4: Build Research 5: Mining Executives, absolutely everywhere # # # 2018-11-21 1910AD T330 I do my best thinking about the game (story, or computer program), when away from the game (story, or computer program). The game doesn't have to end in eighty turns. Much like taking over Asoka's capitol to subvert a Space Ship Victory {and ironically, all this time, it has been Ethiopia that has been building the Space Ship}, I can gift (or declare war and leave undefended) one of my cultural cities. And I think that's what I shall do... tempting someone to declare war and take it. # # # I am already planning for the next Watery Death game (another saved map from long ago). An in that game, I am planning on having far fewer cities, not bother with the Great Lighthouse (though, the Colossus is still a goal), and try for two or three of the early religions... depending. # # # 2018-11-21 1929AD T349 Ah, now here's an interesting development. I am at war with Joao and have been for about two turns. He is vastly outgunned... in that I have bombers and he's working with calvary. Anyway, I just bombed his attack stack to half strength... and he's got the common sense to run into Justinia's territory to heal up on the presumption I won't attack him there, which I won't. But the war might be over by the time he's ready to go. {In retrospect, since I had open borders with Justinian, too, I probably should have seen if I could attack... just for information's sake.} # # # 2018-11-21 1933AD T353 Joao capitulated to Justinia, which is a last ditch effort, as he is 3-4 turns away from being eliminated... capitulation or not. I could have immediately had the UN vote for peace, but as I could not see the diplomatic situation (didn't know if Joao capitulated because Justinian declared war or Justinian declared war for the capitulation: i.e. had Justinian been at war with Joao for a turn or so and I just didn't notice), so we will be at war for at least four turns. I wonder how well prepared Justianian is? Without even looking at the board yet, I'm not overly concerned. I'm vastly more powerful than Joao... and maybe all the rest of the civilizations put together. {The only reason I hadn't won was because I wanted to play with Future Tech.} # # # 2018-11-21 1935AD T355 I had changed my focus away from military, so Justinian's declaration of war caught me by surprise. He's killed a dozen odd units (mainly, because I under estimated his power) and razed a half dozen odd fishing boats... oh, and he's killed off a good portion of my navy. Still, I believe his capitol is in danger. And if he were to take control of mine for a turn or two... well, that would maybe delay that whole cultural victory thing {so not a bad thing}. In other news, I bribed the Ethiopian Empire to declare war on Asoka (of the Indian Empire fame) and it was surprisingly cheap. At two backwards techs (OK, not so backward, but definitely not the Future Tech 13 I'm working on), I should have done it sooner. If I can, I will have the UN declare a peace between Justinian and myself... only to raze his capitol ten turns later. Or, perhaps not raze, but definitely steal from underneath him. I guess if I took it, I would keep it. With his cultural dominance in the area, it would never increase my plot count. # # # It would appear that my naval stack (and we are talking about a stack here) of highly trained professional fighting men, chose to take a detour into a fort... as this would helpfully allow the entire stack of naval units to be destroyed by a single land unit. Yes, this is why I do not build forts. They are less than worthless. Anyhow, so much for the amphibious assault. I will be travelling over the land. # # # 2018-11-21 1946AD T366 I'm surprised no one has built a Space Ship, yet. Of course, I say that and Yara Yaqob of Ethiopia is making a play for it. I queued up a few (so, maybe two) cities to switch to research, but that's a mistake if I have another war headed my way, which I do... against Yara to take out his capital. Then India for similar reasons. And lastly either a war... or perhaps Wang Kon will take Paradise off my hands as a gift. Destroyers can see Submarines. Well, good to know. Justinian was having a field day destroying my fishing boats with his submarines. But if he attacks again in ten turns or so (when the UN enforced peace is over), he'll find plenty of destroyers waiting for him, as that's what most of my coastal cities will be pumping out. Oh, right. Justinian was really mad at me for razing two cities. So, he would not accept peace (wouldn't even talk to me) even though he was getting creamed on the battlefield... though, I was getting destroyed on the High Seas and that is likely why he would not. I'm pretty close to the land limit. But then, there's not much chance of me gaining cultural control over Dehli or Aksum, while there's another city close by. Also, since I will likely have to invade both... it's looking like a sea invasion. I should prepare for that. So, figure I have twenty odd turns prior to Yara. One cannot trade Future Techs. Asoka is sitting on a ton of gold, so I was thinking about trading him something. Yeah, I need to build up that military. Both Yara and Asoka are going to launch space ships at the same time. And I need to decimate their capitols simultaneously. # # # 1) Destroyers 2) Invincible Stack of Doom I'll have a good fifty Future Techs in the next 100 turns, as long as the game lasts that long. Maybe I should take Dehli out first... on my way to Aksum. I was just thinking that it was a mistake to attack Justinian; but then, he was the one who attacked me. Also, I'm thinking the last two cities I took in Byzantine land will make for a good launch pad. I can airlift units in there. And if Justinian retakes the cities after I abandon them, it makes little difference. # # # 2018-11-21 1953AD T373 I am in straight military unit production mode... well, not straight. About half of my cities are focused on military. And the rest are building all the infrastructure they can (everything, basically); and rather than terminal research, it is terminal military units. It's sort of a game of chicken {as to the time of} when I declare war. I'm pretty sure I'll decimate Asoka's capitol, as it is not defended all that well... and it's not really important for me to hold it. In fact, I might raze it right off... or gift it to someone else. Yeah, that's it for the night. I am really falling into the game this time. # # # 2018-11-22 1961AD T381 Zara Yaqob of Ethiopia is making a good showing of it. And is 10-20 turns from launching a Space Ship by my reckoning, which forces me (just forces me) to launch an attack of my own on him. Who knows how many tens of troops I am landing. But as I have a few missiles and he only has 2-3 troops in the target city, it will fall in one turn. Meanwhile, I have a smaller attack force swirling around to the back side of his property to a city tile of his over which I have cultural control for a secondary invasion. In retrospect, that should have been my primary target, as he then smashes his units across my cultural border racking up the War Weariness for him. But it is not to be. I'm working on Future Tech 20+, so Future Tech 100+ is imminently doable for the game. Anyhow, at that high of Future Tech, unhappiness is meaningless. Researching: Future Tech 27 Cranking out 6,817 beakers, while the slider is set to 0%. There is not much I can do about that slider. Though in all honesty, the last 10-20% is from the troop build up. Wang Kon of Korea will take Paradise in trade, which he just might get. Once again, if I had thought of this {next idea} sooner, I would have implemented it {earlier}. Anyhow, most of Paradise's culture comes from the specialists... so, I'm starving the city. No population (or less than it has now), no culture (or less than it has now). I don't think this gambit will take me to the end of the game {Turn 500}. But it might add a couple dozen turns to the time-line on giving the city away. Also, if Wang Kon won't take it for free, I can just declare war on him and leave the city unprotected, which is close to what I have been doing for Strike Right for the last fifty turns. Too many cities to count (around fifty) with Judaism in all but three, Mining, Inc everywhere (I think), and Sid's Sushi in 75%. Mining, Inc is way more important than Sid's Sushi. Sid's is bankrupting me. Of course, I get a huge boost to population. In theory, the map supports 1305 worth of population, which I assume means the total of all undeveloped food titles (or maybe it's developed tiles) yields 2610 or so in food. Meanwhile, my current population is at 1677 (don't ask me how this number is calculated) with a (maybe) 10-20% increase still possible. {In future games}, I may found Sid's Sushi first, as long term it may be more important. But I will definitely spam Mining, Inc. first. Yeah, Mining, Inc. is easier to get and it's at Railroad (after Steel), which means it is on the military tech path. Next Game: Pyramids: I can't see not building them {actually, I'm trying to calculate their worth, so mabye I won't} Great Lighthouse: Likely, not Colossus: Yes, even if I beeline Astronomy, I get 100+ turns of 10+ beakers a turn for a mere 250 hammers (or 125, playing Incan), so it's a bargain Great Wall: if there are Barbarians... actually, either way, as the +100% Great General inside cultural borders is now something I know how to manipulate I won't go down the rest, but: Monk Economy Mining, Inc -> Sid's Sushi Selective Wonders Military Also, I know I will border Bismark of the Germans; so if possible, I would like to make him my pet. And by this I mean have stellar diplomatic relations: give him what he wants, make him my best friend, and have a large enough army, he doesn't dare. When I restart on the 'morrow: Roll the Turn Attack Zara # # # 2018-11-23 1961AD T381 I attack Ethiopia after the roll. I am not expecting much resistance. I will destroy the port cities (utterly raze them) and hold the capitol. My stack is simply too large to care about casualties. And if there is a problem... well, that's what the second wave is for. Two cities razed on the first turn of battle: not bad. But in the end, I need to raze or hold Aksum: the capitol. Ironically, my economy improves ever so slightly with every military loss. But only the airplanes are getting shot down, as of yet... oh, and those forty strength missiles which turns out are not that powerful. I will be voting out Global Civic: Environmentalism in the next UN Election (this turn, if I read the indicators correctly), so I can implement Mercantilism, again: reduced corporate maintenance and one free specialist per city. Attack Submarines seem to be broken in my version of the game: the promotion button doesn't work, I can't raze improvements, and the upscreen display is slightly off... as is the sea patrol option. So, something is wrong. Also, since nothing seems to be working, I can't see a reason to build them in future games. 1964AD: The difference between Environmentalism and Free Market {what I switched to, not Mercantilism} (+25% to -25% Corporation Maintenance was 4000 gold/turn). Running Research slider at 50%, now. Gads! What a difference! Future Tech in 1 turn! Oh, sorry. I'm in a Golden Age, so the improvements of the Civic switch are overrated. The Golden Age is a random event. All of my random events have been positive for the past 10-20 turns. And the last was a free Golden Age, which seems a bit lopsided. Shows how attentive I have been: for the last fifty odd turns (or whatever it has been), I thought it was Paradise that had not yet become culturally legendary. But it turns out it was Strike Right. I doubt I am going to play the game through. I will destroy Zara, as a proof of concept. And assuming India is trailing significantly in the Space Race, I will call it a day. Either taking a Diplomatic, Cultural, or Gentleman's Victory, as we all know I am crushing the AI. The Attack Submarine Interface is seriously messed up, to the extent I doubt I will ever build one again. Strike Right is building an Attack Submarine, which now means I cannot access the city screen... other reasons to call it a day. The game is entering failure mode for one reason or another. # # # 2018-11-23 1970 T390 I am ending this... though, not before officially winning. I was surprised that the UN did not let me try for a diplomatic victory. But all is not lost, I got an enforced peace for ten turns, which is just enough time for a Cultural Victory. I am done playing. Strike Right is producing culture. Angola Point is producing cash. Everywhere else is producing research. Sorry, Strike Right will produce a Jewish Cathedral. And then, produce culture. That will reduce the turns to victory by a few. On the victory screen, it reads ten, but it was eight prior to switching to the cathedral. I'm expecting six when all is done, which will allow me to win while still in a golden age. Ironically, killing Ethiopia's capitol did not destroy their Space Ship in production. But it is my understanding that is what is required to destroy a Space Ship in flight. Either way, Ethiopia will not recover in time. I'll wind up with forty odd Future Techs. Now, to run the clock out. # # # 1971AD: Ethiopia peace vassaled to India. No worries. The game is ending in... six turns; maybe sooner if I get enough culture pops (I think that's unlikely; yeah, totally out of the question) or there's a UN vote (who knows the vote order selection). # # # 2018-11-23 T397 1977AD Cultural Victory Score: 13,306 Normalized Score: 45,984 Future Tech 41 Clam: 17 Crab: 10 Fish: 24 Rice: 1 Sid's Sushi 52 Resources +26 Food +104 Culture Costs +/- 26 gold/turn Mining, Inc 24 resources +24 Hammers Costs +/- 12 gold/turn {Which means, without counting the locations again, I probably counted these wrong the first time around, back in the Game 01 write up.} Maintenance is variable based on city size (and/or presumably other factors) 14,937 beakers a turn with the slider at 0% is enough to research one Future Tech a turn. # # # Based on my previous goal: Sushi Resource: 3 Points Future Tech: 10 Points With 700 being the target post game points total. Sushi: 52 * 3 = 156 Future Tech: 41 * 10 = 410 Points: 556 Score: 556/700 = 0.79429 Eh, I'll call it a B. There is no doubt that if I kept playing, I would have racked up another 100 Future Techs. Oh, I know! I'll normalize it! Since I've only played 497 turns (out of 500): Normalized: 556/700 * 500/397 Normalized: 0.79429 * 1.25945 Normalized: 1.00037 Which I'll take! We are going to call this a 100% Victory! So, yippie for me! # # # 2018-11-23 (c) Copyright Brett Paufler