(c) Copyright Brett Paufler 2019-03-17 # # # The Roman War Machine # # # Settings Map: Tectonics Size: Small Era: Ancient Speed: Marathon Landmass: Lakes 30% Water Aridity: Wet No Barbarians Aggressive AI Permanent Alliances No Tribal Villages No Random Events All Victories 15 Total Civilizations Augustus Caesar as the Human Player Random Tokugawa of Japan Genghis Khan of Mongolia Hannibal of Carthage Bismark of Germany Napoleon of France Catherine of Russia Zara Yaqob of Ethiopia Boudica of Celtia Montezuma of Aztec Isabella of Spain Alexander of Greece Shaka of Zululand Random I chose to put Random next to the Human Player on both sides of the loop on the assumption settlement is in loop order and I wanted a bit of an edge. # # # I will save the Seed, as map roll one. And one may pick any regeneration within the first twenty-five {if they want to compete with me on an even footing}. Though, for added difficulty, one should reduce that number... or just play the Seed. # # # # # # Seed Spoilers # # # # # # 01: Rock Corn: it's not bad, but not nearly good enough. 02: Gold Silk: pass. 03: Double Cow: if I hadn't set the limit at 25, I might have just taken this one. It's doable. But there is not enough food to work all those hills. 04: Cow Wheat with Triple Elephants: I think this is the best, so far. But it is, still, short on food. Those Elephants could be early power houses at 2/3/1. 05: it's pure scrap, not worth the bother of describing. OK. Fine. Corn Silk Beavers: and it's right up next to the Ice and Tundra. A Hard Pass. 06: Sheep Corn: it's on the sea coast and not nearly good enough. The Elephants are way-way better. 07: Sheep Wheat Marble Clams: it has a nice variety of resources. It's a contender. But I don't think it will win. 08: Fish Crab: it's pure Tundra Waste Land. Pass. 09: 3 Gems 2 Clams with another Gem to the side: on this map, I'd tie up the Gems. But I think I'd rather tie up the Elephants. 2/1/6 {for the Gems} is a Researcher's dream. If we assume there are Metals nearby, this could work. I'll save it. It's between the Elephants and the Gems, for now. I think this spot would get a bit better if I moved a square or two prior to settling, which on Marathon is not much of a time hit. 10: 2 Clam 1 Fish: and it has no Gems, so not nearly as good. Pass. 11: 2 Corn on the Seaside: Pass. 12: Wheat Elephants and Silk: But the other Elephant save looks more promising... or at least, I'd rather have three Elephants. 13: Crab 2 Fish Corn with 2 Silk a little ways off. I'd rather have the Gems. It's going to be hard to decide between those Elephants and Gems. 14: 2 Sheep Rock Beaver: unfortunately, this is in Tundra Land, which tends to be a harder start, as I can already see the Ice which will limit any expansion to the South. Pass. 15: 2 Crab 3 Dye: a solid Pass. After all {on the other previous map), I'd get Gems on Turn One. And I already know Mining. 16: 3 Crab 2 Fish: this is a massive seafood start. Five Hills in the Fat Crass make this a definite possibility. Perhaps, a bit less glamorous than Elephants or Gems, but it's got the food. 17: Sheep Wheat Elephants: but not compellingly awesome, so Pass. 18: 2 Gold Cow: Pass! 19: Silk: and it's a hard-hard Pass! 20: Sheep Fish: Pass! 21: Seafood: But not as good as the other, so... Pass! 22: 2 Clam: Nope! 23: Sheep: Pass! 24: Silk: No Way! 25: Total Pass! # # # So, it's between the Elephants, Gems, and Seafood. # # # I misread the Elephants, after a Camp, they only provide 1/3/1. And that is not compelling. Gems are compelling at 2/1/6 and 2/1/7, but I will be production poor. There are not that many hills. Yeah, I do not believe this is the one. Five Seafood is the one. I'll need to figure out a classy name for the Capitol. Maybe, Forest Beach... or Clam Cove. I like naming my cities Something Cove. I will move the Warrior to the West. But I doubt I will find anything more than coast, which is not a compelling reason to move away from those Hills. # # # Clam Cove The Roman War Machine # # # 2019-03-17 2740BC T84 The Celtic Empire has Iron in their capitol's Fat Cross. Lucky! My Iron, which I am lucky to have, there likely is not that much on this map, is down to the South in Tundra Land. It will take another forty or fifty turns to hook up. I beelined Iron. Alphabet is next. But I think I will be lazier in my approach. It is not as critical. # # # 2019-03-17 1760BC T174 Wow! So, it took me ninety turns to hook up Iron. That is a lot of lost War Mongering, which I will have a hard time making up. Or if that's not clear, I just now hooked Iron up to my capitol. Crab Cake Cove {this being the final name of my capitol}: is finishing up a Barracks; and then, it will be on Praetorian duty (1 every 7 turns). Iron Dam: is my Iron City. It already has a Barracks and is working on its first Praetorian (1 every 15 turns). Hard Fish: is not really much of a City... right now. When it's borders pop, it will have access to Two Fish and One Cow, which is pretty nice. Currently, it's building a Work Boat, so both Fish can be worked right at the pop. From there, it will build the Maori Statues... and then, I haven't decided. I will regroup. I am fat on Workers {I have an excess of them}, as the road from Iron Dam to the Crab Cake Cove is fifteen tiles long. There are a lot of Worker Turns in that expanse {and hence, why I needed the excess}. Ethiopia has Stone and it is right up on my border, right up against that road. So, Ethiopia will likely be my first target. Yep, unless something changes, Ethiopia is my first target. In the meantime, I grow Crab Cake Cove another population point (thanks Beaver); and then, it is full on War Production. Yeah, I'm a bit behind because Iron was out of reach, but it is unreasonable to expect it to always be in the Fat Cross. Besides, the delay allowed me to build Stonehenge. Anyhow, Praetorians! War! # # # 2018-03-18 1520BC T198 Zara Yaquob (or whatever his name might be) is the first causality. He was amazingly easy to take down. I probably could have (and maybe, should have) built a few warriors and nailed him earlier. Essentially, the attack required two Praetorians (one for each city). And nothing else. I believe I will be attacking Boudica of the Celts next. I believe I will build a Settler and found a City one tile to the East of where an Ethiopian City that I Razed was located. I mean, it is razed, anyhow {whatever I decide to do}. But then, I'll have to think about that. The Rushing is easy right now (and may well be all game). Certainly, I am better off with Boudica's capitol. And it might cost me the same amount {in Hammers, as building a Settler}, you know, assuming I lose Praetorians in the attack. And if I don't lose any, I am well ahead of the curve. Anyway, this is the place to stop and live a little. I imagine I will be attacking the Celts, tonight. # # # 2018-03-18 1520BC T198 Back from a short trip to the library, where I go almost every day... well, often enough. And it is time to wipe out the Celts... or if they get very-very lucky, someone else. But before I continue, I would like to say that taking out Ethiopia was like slicing through warm butter. It was unbelievably easy. They were shockingly unprepared. Of course, normally the AI gives me a free pass until 1AD or so. So, I am jumping the gun in attacking them. Still, time waits for no man. And my Praetorians are thirsty for Battle & Blood. # # # Oh, one last thing. I was considering building a Scout or two, so as to better locate my next victim. But I'll just use Praetorians. There is no reason to build anything else until I reach Construction and Catapults. {Next game, upon Researching Alphabet, I should start using Spies as my Scouts.} # # # 2019-03-18 1370BC T213 It took a mere fifteen turns to wipe out the Celts. I kept their capitol and razed the outlier City. Both of the capitols I just took over (Aksum from Ethiopia and Bibracte from the Celts) are on Culture Patrol. I am building a Library in each prior to building a Barracks or anything else. I want to push their borders out. Well, that won't be a problem in Bibracte. It's the Hindu Holy City; and as such, gets +5 Culture a Turn. I believe my next victim will be whoever resides to the North East. Of course, that might be no one... or impractical. Pascal looks to be killing me in the Technology Race, so if it's him, I might want to hold back. Or in other words, first I have some scouting to do. Genghis Khan has three Archers in a meaningless border City, so he's pretty well garrisoned. I am just starting to Scout the Zula Empire. So, there's potential there, as well. Finally, Germany is in last place and will be an easy mark. But it's pretty far away. Of course, not as far as Zulu Land. I guess, I have my ordering for the next attack: North East Germany Zulu And then, Korea to the North might just be the easiest. I'll do a bit of Scouting the next dozen turns and come to a decision... which will probably turn into twenty turns, as that will allow me time to finish the Library in my Capitol and get at least two more Praetorians built. Actually, I'll wait until Alphabet comes in, as well. So, I can see the Technological situation. # # # 2019-03-19 760BC T274 It took me 61 Turns to eliminate Bismark {as measured from my previous elimination of... the Celtian Empire}. I have 19 Praetorians, losing five to Bismark's forces, in exchange for a Great General... or at least, that is how I will do the math. My economy is struggling. Research is in serious deficit mode, as my entire economy relies on war booty. Luckily, I get Currency in three turns. At which point, I will build a slew of Forums... I would say everywhere. But that's not the way to go. Some of these Cities will never amount to anything. I Razed Berlin. And will be building New Berlin one tile to the East. That way, I bring another Crab into the Fat Cross, bringing the Food Resources to three: Crab, Fish, Sheep. Ah, Sheep uses Animal Husbandry. I don't know if I can utilize captured Farms {as I don't have Agriculture}. Well, it's either Agriculture or Code of Laws, next. Meanwhile, as I rename the captured capitols to Celtic Bibracte and Ethiopia Aksum (so I can keep their origins straight), I find a Mongolian Settler headed my way. I guess that means Genghis Khan wants to be my next target. It was going to be either Genghis or Shaka. But as I most decidedly have to go through Genghis to get to Shaka, it will be Genghis first. Shaka is Hindu, as am I. Maybe I should give a pass for any Civilization that shares my Religion. I mean, I haven't to date. But the next victim isn't as spacially obvious as it once was. As in, it sucks to be my immediate neighbour. No one is building any Wonders. After Code of Laws (or if someone else gets Confucianism and my priorities shift), perhaps I will go for the Parthenon. Of course, I am running zero Specialists, so I question how much good the Parthenon will do me. In fact, I am still running the basic Civics. And although I get a Great Person in 34 Turns (and the best use for them will almost certainly be a Golden Age), I don't have the Technologies needed to run anything more advanced than the starting Civics. Well, I could switch to Slavery. But for the moment, I am quite happy not Whipping. I have Seafood and Hills. And I am not convinced Whipping yields that much over a solid Food/Hill Combo. My mistake, the Settler was French (in a stack with Zulu and Mongolian forces). I was thinking I'd attack France if Napoleon settles. But then, no. Mongolia feels weak. I think Genghis is my next target barring someone else declaring war... which seems unlikely. My Power is going off the Charts. Ha! I went to trade Genghis for Open Borders, but he won't have it. The real reason was to get trade through to Shaka. But Genghis isn't having it. He's dead. It's as simple as that. Mongolia is the next target. # # # No one is building Wonders. Only three so far. So, maybe I'll build the Oracle... and a few more. Also, I think if one has a First Class City with 3-4 food Resources and an equal number of Hills, Whipping is not the optimum strategy. Maybe, I'll do the math. # # # 700BC: Confucianism was founded, likely by the Mayans. # # # 2019-03-19 450BC T305 And now I know what I should have been Researching after Iron Working: Feudalism. Well, maybe not as a beeline, but it as the goal. I will not be building any Wonders. Not that I wouldn't like to. But in this game of war, I don't see them doing me much good. I am bouncing between Shaka and Genghis. Presently, I am at peace with Shaka, having just taken over his capitol and settled for 40gold. More or less immediately (just a handful of turns later, five to be exact), I declared war on Genghis to have something to do. I'm, also, thinking about launching an offensive against Montezuma. Of course, I don't have that many troops. So after this round of Forums, I need to start building Praetorians, again. I mean, I need some degree of infrastructure... but only some. # # # 420BC: I hit the wrong button and am Revolting into Hereditary Rule. I will let the mistake stand. I got a Great Prophet and was trying to decide what to do with it {if I wanted to Revolt}. So now, it's settled. I'm building the Hindu Shrine. # # # 2019-03-19 280BC T322 I am tearing Genghis a new one. At the moment, I am in a sort of holding pattern, waiting for Feudalism. My assumption is that Genghis will Capitulate as soon as he can. And then, oddly enough, I'll do the same to Shaka. Well, that isn't so odd. But Napoleon is back-filling all of the Genghis's Cities that I am destroying, which means he's going to be next in line. And Genghis will get {some of his} territory back. {Interestingly, after Genghis Khan became a Vassal, he was very slow to build any Settlers and reclaim his lost Cities.} # # # 2019-03-19 190BC T331 Genghis has Capitulated. Next, I will be attacking Shaka, sealing off the peninsula. And from there, I will be attacking Napoleon, gifting his Cities as appropriate to either Genghis or Shaka, both of whom are in a bad way. Genghis has a single City. I razed the rest. While I control Shaka's capitol. And the remainders of his land are so much scrap. It was 57 Turns between this Capitulation and the last Destruction, which is a slight improvement. Personally, I do not believe Shaka will last ten turns. But we shall see. Oh, I'm running Research at 50%. And as I do not wish to keep any of Shaka's Cities, I am building a Settler in Crab Cake Cove for a bit of infilling. Shaka is next. Then, Napoleon. I mean, it is unfortunate. As we are so friendly, but I doubt he will become my Vassal voluntarily. Then again, what would I need to do to make that happen? Well, it's just not going to happen. At +2, Napoleon likes me better than anyone else in the game. But I believe a Voluntary Vassal requires +10 or so: Friendly or Pleased. War with Shaka! Then, war with Napoleon! # # # 2019-03-20 100BC T340 We are ten odd turns into the war with Shaka. And not much of interest has happened. Shaka is hemmed in. And I do believe I have him out-gunned. Though, I have seen how effective his Impis are. They pretty much ignore everything terrain-wise (Forests, Hills, whatever); and so, get to move two spaces all the time. They are also fairly strong. Well, not so much. But for whatever reason, they have been holding up well against my Praetorians. But maybe, we are talking about heavily upgraded units. Four strength is not that much. The big news, however, is that Montezuma has decided to join the war. {He Declared War against me.} I do not have graphs on him. But he is second from the bottom in points. He is going to become my Vassal very quickly. I mean, I'll have to scramble to find the defenders against his five stack invasion force. But I've got two Praetorians right behind him. I guess, I wasn't sealing off that passage as well as I intended. And four more in production. Well, so it's going to be tight. But that first City will be his high point in the war. # # # 90BC: Montezuma decided it would be best to attack my stack (and presumably, raze my Gems) rather than move towards the City. So, he traded three units for two of mine. I believe the City is safe. While he will raze the Gems. Oh, well. Meanwhile, Shaka shows no inclination to talk (much less, Capitulate). But I believe his new capitol will fall next turn, so that should change. # # # 2019-03-20 70BC T343 Zulu Capitulated. So, the Second Zulu War lasted twelve turns. I now turn my attention to both the French and the Aztecs. After that, I believe Korea is on the list. Of course, they are coming into their special unit, a upgraded Catapult, which I may want to avoid. And then, the other target is Japan... mainly, because they, also, border me and the tension is growing. They are getting right up in there... more or less in what I consider my territory. So, mayhaps, I will gift the Aztecs Japanese lands. Much like Mongolia is going to benefit greatly from the upcoming war with France. Wow! On 17% of the land surface, I have a full 26% of the population. The Wonders are being built. But not by me. On the other hand, I lead the Power Graphs... or that portion of the Power Graph I can see. And the Demographics have me topping everything but Commerce, Trade, Life Expectancy, and Happiness. {In a post-game review of the Power Graph, I am not the clear leader in the early age, which means those Power Graphs are not all that accurate. In the future, I should assume that equal Power Graphs mean that I can take an opponent... easy. While to stave off an attack, I should be at least equal to them. Um, that's probably not clear. The AI does not know how precarious its position is.} I will Revolt into Vassalage, as soon as this writing update is finished. The +2 Experience is worth it. Presently, I am building six Praetorians and three buildings. So, I'll trade two turns of production for a second promotion for every unit I create. REVOLUTION! One nice thing about being the power leader is a second front makes little difference. Montezuma does not stand a chance. And will Capitulate once I take a City or two... maybe Tit Land... or whatever he calls his capitol. Does he not realize I am so powerful, I must pick and choose what cities to keep. # # # 2019-03-20 100AD T360 Rather than going through Montezuma's outlying Cities, I marched straight on to Tenochtitlan. And upon capturing it, the vile Aztecs Capitulated. I have troops massing outside of Paris. And I expect a similar turn of events there. My Technology is suffering. But I have quite the War Machine going. Korea and/Japan will be next. Korea, because it is so weak. Japan, because it is so close. From there, the options are a bit dimmer. But at this point, the decision is days away. I doubt I will play past Napoleon's Capitulation. Of course, it will be a bit frustrating if he does not Capitulate over the course of the next few turns. # # # When resuming, it may be a good idea to cycle your cities. You haven't done that in a while. # # # Also, it might make sense to take a few pictures of capitols (or at game end), as those are the only Cities you can afford to keep. # # # 170AD: I did not load the trade screen as I intended when making peace with Napoleon. He is willing to Capitulate and give me a city, but I want a Technology instead. I offered him Peace for the Tech rather than Capitulation with the Tech, so I am reloading. # # # 2019-03-21 170AD T367 Napoleon Capitulates. I immediately declared war on Wang Kon of Korean, as he is my next target. And after that, I will continue north to Greece. I decided to close my borders to Catherine of Russia, which has got to hurt her. As she's got 8 units stuck between my lands. Um, she might declare war. She's got enough on her hands right now, you know. I'm putting all (I tell you all, as in all four) of my Espionage Points into Catherine. Score: 1,228 Normalized: 94,011 I'll get over 100,000 this game, which is very good for me. But, yeah. I believe Catherine will declare, shortly, which will likely be the last stressful point of the game. She could take Crab Cake Cove or Hard Fish, my two best cities. It would be ironic if Catherine declares War on me (and my contingent) only to attack Montezuma. She hates him, you know. I think I'll break after next turn. I'm going to roll, mainly to see if Catherine is going to declare. # # # 180AD: Catherine did not attack... nor did Wang Kon Capitulate despite overwhelming odds. I guess he wants to lose his capitol first. # # # AD190: I gave Cathy Open Borders so she can move her troops and I don't have to garrison my center. A spree of Courthouses is coming online, which will slow the war effort by a good 25 Turns. # # # 2019-03-22 210AD T371 Wang Kon of Korea Capitulates a mere four turns after Napoleon. Not much has changed on the board. I am losing quite a few troops. There numbers are shrinking. And I am going into Courthouse mode. So, that's not changing anytime soon. I believe I will be able to take over the Greeks (encourage them to Capitulate) before having to rest. So, I anticipate the Greeks falling soon. And then, a good 25 Turn Peace, as I regroup. If I had to guess, Japan will be my next target, due to proximity. They have Samurai, right? It could get bloody. Ah, but good old Tokugawa is nowhere near having the requisite Technologies. Now is the time to strike! # # # 280AD: The Greeks have Walls. Um, this is going to be a blood bath. I'll only get one shot at a single city. Well, that's not true. I just took out an outlier. But of Athens and Sparta, both are walled. Still, I think I have enough troops. # # # 2019-03-22 320AD T382 A mere 11 Turns later and Alexander of Greece Capitulates after I take an outlier City and his capitol. It was the capitol that did it. And now, I control Athens. I was thinking about building some Scouts (or Chariots), but the next two Missionaries are going to be put on explorer duty. Japan is next. It will be bloody... or bloodier. One really does not know. Actually, Tokugawa is a bit backwards, as he has no walls. And his Samurai are a long ways off. So, it will probably be easier than I imagine. {I kept on seeing his Swordsmen and confusing them for Samuri, so I kept on thinking he was more powerful than he was.} Either way, the launch of the war is a good dozen turns off. I need to bring troops to the front first. Theology will give me Theocracy for the +2 Experience, giving 7 Experience to units in most Cities and 15 Experience for those from Hard Fish, where I am settling my Great Generals. # # # 410AD: I declared War on Tokugawa at Hannibal's request. # # # 420AD: The Revolution is Over! Yippie! I am now in Theocracy. Unfortunately, I am building more Courthouses than Praetorians. # # # 2019-03-22 520AD T404 Tokugawa of Japan Capitulates, with the score being 125K+ if I win this turn. I wonder how much I shall go for Capitulation in the future. Maya is next up on the block. And Pascal only has three cities. Actually, despite my expectations, many of the Civilizations have opted for smallish empires. I mean, Pascal has three Cities. I have twice that number pumping out nothing but troops, with another coming online in four turns and one after that in eight. Yeah, I just double checked to make sure. And that is how things look in the City Screen. Pascal founded (at least) three Religions {eh, maybe I counted wrong, I think it was two}, as that's how many Shrines he has. Yes, I will swallow him whole. I anticipate my next game (despite a previous belief that I would be playing more of the mods this year) will be as Augustus Caesar, again... with all the standard settings (except Marathon Speed, I like this) on Monarch level to see if I have an understanding... or the AI is just stupid. We'll see. I don't believe there is much use for a strategy discussion. My opponents are out-gunned. True. Russia has 80-90% of my Power. But then, that's why I am attacking the Mayans, instead. And once everyone else it dead, Russia stands no chance. # # # After a walk to the library, it is time to play again, same day. I will wait until I have 5-10 Catapults at the front line, prior to declaring war. Also, as my Cities switch from Courthouses to troops, I will ensure they are Hindu, sending a Missionary if required. # # # 555AD: I declared war on Pascal with only two Catapults in my stack. # # # 2019-03-22 590AD T418 Score: 2,134 Normalized: 138,159 Pacal of the Mayans is no more! Next in line would be Hannibal, but he has Heavy Footmen, which look very strong compared to my Praetorians. I will wait a few turns and see if he is willing to accept Open Borders. I closed them a few turns back, so he's holding a grudge. But if not Isabella, it's him. I'm building Settlers in the capitol to infill some of my land. I am less than 10% away from winning. This is the final push. Ha! I would switch my slider over to full Culture, but I don't have the correct Technology: Drama, I believe. Clearly, it is time to Research Drama. # # # 635AD: I got sick of waiting for Hannibal to grant me passage, so I declared war. I am intending to bypass his territory. We'll see how hard he tries to prevent me. # # # 665AD: War with Isabella. My stack made it through Carthage Lands intact. I probably could have taken out Carthage, as Hannibal does not have that many troops. But what is done is done. A good fifteen turn delay in victory. Well, that's what I get for not managing my Open Borders better. # # # 2019-03-22 690AD T438 I am in the final stretch. I need 3.12% more land for the game. And I am very much in Hit End Turn mode. There is little strategizing left. Cultural Slider is on full. Very shortly (or not) I will be declaring war on Catherine. After all, there is no sense ending the game with any friends. Or actually, if I have the troops, one more City is worth that many more points. # # # OK. Let's end this. # # # 715AD: The Spanish Civilization has been Destroyed. I forgot to mark this at the time. I will have to go back # # # 2018-03-22 745AD T449 Victory! Score: 2726 Normalized: 161,715 4 Civilizations Destroyed 7 Civilizations Vassalled In retrospect, I likely could have taken Hannibal. Well, I killed two Cities of his on the last turn. So, I would have done damage. But I don't know how much I would have been hurt. In retrospect, I should have gone through {attacking his cities} and not around, taking my lumps. # # # I anticipate the next game will be Monarch, normal settings, playing as Augustus Caesar of Rome. # # # I do not believe that I played that well for the last fifty turns or so, I was racing for the end. For a faster completion, I should have: Kept Osaka out of rebellion. I lost at least one turn because of this {i.e. I would have achieved victory at least one turn sooner}. Built more Settlers for infill {at the end}. A half dozen turns were fighting for that last 2% of land. I might have been able to win when Isabella was destroyed otherwise if I had already infilled my own land, which was sparsely settled. Gone through Hannibal {attacking him on the way}. I would have made it. And that is the direction all of my reinforcements were headed. By redirecting them, I had to win the game with what I already had on the front. On the other hand, the second Russian front was courtesy of those reinforcements finally arriving at their new destination {which gave me two Cities in the last turn}. Researched Feudalism sooner. At least one of the early destroyed Civilizations could have been a Vassal, which doesn't count for much. Bu then, the +1 Happy at that stage of the game would have been as important as anything else. # # # Time to play again on a more Standard Map at a higher Difficulty Level. # # # (c) Copyright Brett Paufler 2019-03-22