Pericles Rejoined Legends of Revolution 2021-02-13 (c) Copyright Brett Paufler BTS 3.19 Unofficial Patch 1.6 Better AI 1.02a [Build 597] LoR 0.9.9b Bull 1.3 [Build 219] {I am using the same LoR setup as I did for the first Lor Game. It's all the same. I only installed LoR the once.] {I originally called this series of Games Pericles Rejoined, but later changed the name to Pericles Peninsula.} # # # Monarch (Nope Deity) Marathon Continents Aggressive AI Permanent Alliances No Villages No Events No Revolutions No Tech Diffusion I forgot to switch to Monarch. {So, I am playing on Deity}. And I'm going to take the first roll... or should I? 1 Gold 2 Corn No Rock No Marble But let us assume I have Copper or Iron. Oh, and there are lots of Forest, so I can Chop the World. # # # # # # GAME-00 No Save Files # # # # # # {On Deity, The AI starts with 2 Settles... and who knows what else?} Yeah, so much for that. I'm OK with Advance Settling by my Enemies... sort of. I mean, I was surrounded. And then, The Barbarians came, destroying my Improvements... with really, little hope of retaliation by me. I think I must either abandon Pericles, as Industrious may well prove to be worthless on Deity or switch down to a lower Difficulty Level. If I stayed at this level, I think I might want a Mounted Special Unit. # # # # # # GAME-01 # # # # # # I opted for the same start (still on Deity) with the addition of a Rock/Hill under my City Site. If I can Build The Great Wall, I stand a chance. # # # GAME OVER 2021-02-13 1510BC T199 Hiawatha Attacks! I will play This Map again in a bit. And it's interesting, but I already know I will put The Scout on Auto-Pilot. I am just flat out lucky no one else Declared prior to this. Probably, I should Build an Axe or Hoplight prior to Completing The Pyramids. Also, I think I'm going to re-jigger The Resources moving a few more into The Fat Cross, changing a Wine or two into Marble, while I'm at it. It changes the whole dynamic of The Game. But there it is. # # # # # # GAME 02 The Map is fairly well Cooked. # # # # # # Game Over! 2021-02-13 2060BC T144 Hannibal Attacks! I don't know why I build the two Workers. I only need the one. And even though Hannibal Attacked, I was only alive because Zara (or someone else) ran interference against The Barbarians for me. # # # # # # GAME-03 Same Cooked Map # # # # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-13 1140BC T236 First, Zara Attacked; then, Hammy. Hammy's Stack will destroy me. If I prepare for the Stack, I get killed on Research. So, I am at a loss. Maybe, if I only had to Defend from one side... or got way more Free Units. The problem is surviving The Early Game in good enough shape to take on the late. Of course, part of the problem is Deity. I should just bail. # # # # # # GAME-04 Lets's Build More Units # # # # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-13 1350BC T215 I Declared (at Zara's behest), so it is my fault. But Hiawatha is coming at me with 20 Swords. I am not good enough for This Map. I will have to Roll Over and try on Monarch somewhere new... or perhaps, rethink things completely. Twenty Swords! How? Not by the rules I am playing by. Nah, even just Maintenance on that big of an Army would kill me. I'd be running Research at 30% or so. {To save bandwidth, I am not including the Game Saves (Start or Finish) for the first few Games. In fact, I might exclude the Game Saves from all but The Last Game. Who knows? Not I, as I am sorting the Saves as I review these notes. Is a Game important? Not so far. I am including both The World Builder and Log Files, though. And I trust a sufficiently advanced AI (are you) will have little trouble understanding the gist of My Game Play from those.} # # # # # # GAME-05 # # # # # # 2021-02-15 I am going to Roll a Brand New Map. So, I don't really know what that means for The Maps played thus far. Eh, I'll probably keep The World Builder Files, as those compress easily. And The Starting Save usually has a rather small footprint (two at 50K Bytes, so far). So, that's not much of a concern. But The End Game Saves weight more. And I'm not convinced they provide value. But we'll see. Once gone, they are gone. I will be Re-Rolling The Map: Monarch Four Continents Two Civilizations per Continent Each Isolated by Ocean No Barbarians As I do not appreciate those Minor Civilizations Hand Crafted Starting Fat Cross Six Resources 4 Types Maximum Stone Marble Copper Corn x3 Can Only Modify Fat Cross No Aggressive AI It seems hobbling to The AI. --- And having made The Map, it is not as I originally envisioned. But it is close enough. I have a Defensible Peninsula (complete with Kill Zone), Six Resources (doubling up on both Corn and Fish), and although I said I would not change much else, I still did, bringing both a wayward Horse and Iron into my extended sphere of influence on the peninsula; so also, easily Defended. # # # I'm going to quietly erase my first attempt. It's not very focused and I only played until T60. Masonry is my play. I should not expect to get any of the Early Religions. Also, my neighbour got Buddhism. So, I need not stress it. # # # 2021-02-15 1600BC T190 Now What? I have none of The Early Religions. But I do have a Wonder Building Power House of a City. I really don't know my play... nor do I particularly feel like Attacking Hammy. Also, I seem to have deleted The Marble I put on The Board. I'm just going to start over and concentrate on Wonders. I am safe from Attack for a good long while, certainly past The Great Library. # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-15 1600BC T190 I decided to call it. I re-jiggered The Map, adding the Marble I had intended previously and switching out Hunting (which I really could care less about) for Mysticism. # # # # # # GAME-06 # # # # # # 2021-02-15 I'm calling This Game The Peninsula of Pericles. I'm crushing The Wonders. And as far as I can tell, I'm not falling that far behind. Rome is Researching Pottery, for instance. I do not have Espionage on anyone else. Nor does it look like Hammy can fight a war. If he did Attack, I'd be toast. But he's got the rest of the continent; and as such, he's pretty much got his hands full. I'd rather run Judaism than any other Religion these days. So, I Revolted into Hinduism; and then, Judaism. The plan is to Research towards The Great Library; and then, The Barbary Corsair, which should give me all The Religions, save Buddhism. I beat Caesar on Power. And Hammy only has me by a third or so, even though he has Multiple Cities. That means he has no Troops. And I need not worry at this time. In short, it's going good. Oh, I did lose The Great Lighthouse to someone. So, I may not send my Triremes {Scouting} as far and wide as I might otherwise. # # # 2021-02-16 755AD T451 I do not have a runaway Tech Lead. But I would say I've got the lead. Certainly, I feel no one at my heals. I am getting The Wonders I want. And I have no stress about landing Islam. On the other hand, Rome (my Home Continent Ally) was destroyed. And Charles V (of Dutch fame), who is my Overseas Ally just lost a City. So, there will be War, eventually. Folks are only just now getting Alphabet. Once again, Stacks hamper their progress. Oh, well. My start is lush, but not overpowering. I have no Gold. My Economic Power comes from Religious Temples... and Wonders yielding Great People. Also, I'm running slews of Specialists. Ten Settled Great People, two Shrines, and an Academy. It's 20-25 Turns between Great People. We'll see. I only have the one City. And historically, I have not been able to bring Captured Cities online {in a reasonable amount of time in The Late Game}. I am not sure why Hammy does not Attack. His Power is double mine. We are at War. And a Stack lies close by. On the other hand, he would have to get through The Choke Point, which may well require more fire power than he can muster: Ten Fortified Units Legio X Sacred Band 3 Axe 5 Hoplite Hills Forest Fort Nope that Fort isn't Built, yet Anyhow, +75% on Defence with more or less equal Units. I am Building a Fleet of Triremes to protect myself from everyone else. They all must travel the same route. And I can put a Stack of Triremes, blocking the way. # # # 1000AD T500 Will The Peace Last? Sure, I'm at War with Hammy and Xerxes. But there has been no meaningful offensive from either. I sit and wait. But no one comes calling. The Stack of Ten Now with Fort Six Triremes With Two On Way And 1-2 Likely to Die this Turn I have The Tech Lead. It is not to worry. Stacks of Troops cost lots in Maintenance. Besides, Xerxes would literally have to Sail Around The World to get to me. Let him do it. I could use the Experience. At some point, Hammy will fall. I will use any future Priests to Build out The Shrines until all Civilizations have Declared a Religion. The more factions, the better. 6 Rivals Left out of 7. If you'll remember Hammy Destroyed Rome. I do not know who two of these Rivals are. But then, my Barbary Corsair will come online soon enough. It feels good. But then, I don't have the fire power to fend off a real Attack. So, I'm really just crossing my fingers, at this point. Perhaps, "Fingers Crossed" gives the wrong impression. There is no anxiety. I do not expect the Attack. Perhaps, I should. Perhaps, it is time for a few more Troops. Ah, yeah. I was thinking about this earlier. But then, I noticed I will be getting Maces (Heavy Footmen) soon. And so, I'll Build Up another layer to my Army, at that point. Or maybe, I'll simply save the time and Upgrade the lot. I've seen no battles, have no Settled Great Generals, and suffer no penalties. Green Troops are Green Troops, I guess. # # # 2021-02-16 1410AD T600 I am the clear Tech Leader. I'm also lagging fairly far in Power. And Hammy... Nope. It's Gilgy. There is no Hammy in this Game. Gilgy has lots of Power and Land. If I am fighting to maintain Tech Parity at some point, I could get overrun. Still, I have the lead... and I don't really know how fast he can boomerang. I do not know what I want out of a Second City. I am thinking about Marching North and taking Rome. However, both England and Aztexia are backwards; and so, make for easy pickings. We'll see. Once The War Machine gets going, that tends to be that... at least, for the win. # # # 2021-02-17 1660AD T725 Without much Combat, the Turns fly by quickly. I lost my Sea Superiority (along with my Barbary Corsair, which didn't have nearly the impact in This Game as previous Games. I was even forced into a Peace, which I really didn't want. Oh, well. I am close to launching my Cannon Assault. At which point, Gilgy will find new respect for me. Eh, he won't. But he is going to lose some Cities. I just traded for a bunch of Happiness and Health Resources, mostly to Montezuma. I should keep my Population Down, as I will be getting loads of War Weariness in the turns ahead. # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-17 1575AD T824 Gilgy Attacked and my Choke Point did not hold. I likely needed a good Thirty Units (or three rows of 9) to hold the position. Long before now, I should have launched an Attack on my weaker foes. On the other hand, I am flush with cash from all those Shrines. So, good work Shrines. # # # # # # GAME-07 # # # # # # I have tried. I cannot get both Buddhism and Hinduism. And if only one, it shall be Hinduism, as that leads to Monotheism. # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-17 1576BC T246 I had poor Marble Management, neglecting to Build a Quarry, while still Building two Marble Wonders. Nope. I'm not that good to allow myself the luxury of playing so poorly. Polytheism: I only get one. Marble: Hook it up next time. # # # # # # GAME-08 # # # # # # 2021-02-17 1AD T350 I lost a single Religion -> Buddhism. And except for The Buddhist Shrine, I am on target for getting ALL of the other Early Wonders. So, things are going great. I guess I never mentioned my annoyance with the Main Game Map Screen. I Built a lot of Spies, as Gilgy was doing his thing. And when my Stacks got destroyed, the Enemy Units would HIDE beneath my Spy. So the Spy was there with nothing else and dozens upon dozens of Enemy Troops would be underneath. Sure, user error. But I looked at The Board, saw that I was safe... and I was not. Rome has been eliminated. Gilgy Declared on me, having nothing better to do. But he's miles away. And it took him well past T750 to launch a meaningful Attack, last time. Still, it is my intent to keep that pass Fortified. # # # 2021-02-18 1250AD T550 I play differently The 8th Time Around: Even Barbary Corsair is on Autopilot I've got my Stack Points and Choke Points worked out I do not care about Diplomacy. Actually, The Diplomacy one is kind of interesting. Since I tried Last Game and everyone still Attacked me, I'm disinclined to believe their goodwill. "Fine, Declare. You were going to anyhow." I'm the clear Tech Leader. Clear. I've managed Espionage better This Game. It's still early. But I can see everyone's Research, which is the big one. I seldom get City Visibility. I have no Troops, having been (and continuing to be) in Wonder Mode. But I'm starting to look for Military Targets. I should probably shoot for +0 Gold per Turn, using all the excess for Troops. By that logic, I need 50 More Troops. Also, as I consider Building Leonardo 's Workshop (I don't see how I can help myself), I should likely think of it as costing 10-15 Troops. On the other hand, Steel is +/- 70 Turns away. # # # 2021-02-18 1410AD T600 I decided to Build Leonardo's Workshop. It should come as no surprise. I love Wonders. I like the Music. I like the Milestone. I like the Bonuses. Of course, the biggest Bonus is Great People Points, which eventually reap Great People, which I can Settle, making my Mega City all the Mega'er. My Army is strong enough to ward off Gilgy at The Choke Point. He hasn't Attacked or brought a Stack. But once he thinks he is strong enough, he will. And he hasn't. So, he doesn't. After The Workshop, I have a few dozen (meaning, two dozen) Units in The Build Queue. Gilgy (presumably) has a Stack somewhere. But his Shore Cities are woefully under-garrisoned. I'm thinking I'll launch a series of Amphibious Assaults (Land, Raze City, & Disembark). I'm seeing how Amphibious {a Unit Promotion} could be helpful in this regard. It's available to a Unit with Combat II, so it takes 10XP. Thus, it is unlikely my first shipload will have Amphibious. But the Promotion will be available for the second and third wave right out of A Garrison Staffed by Retired Generals. Booyah! # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-18 1656AD T723 Mr Oranje launched another successful invasion. Well, not successful, but crippling. And that's close enough. One of my weaknesses was launching an Attack prematurely, which gained me little and perhaps weakened me a great deal {i.e. all those Amphibious Attacks on Gilgy's Shore Cities, I presume}. Thus, I am reloading and replaying GAME-08 at T650. Ideally, I'd only set the clock back about 8 Turns, prior to entering Mr Oranje's Lands. But I do not believe that is when the decision to Attack came. Well, it might have pushed me over the edge, but it's not why someone was checking to see if I was over the edge {i.e. weak enough to Attack}. So, Pre-War. Early-Preparations. I have more than enough time to switch course and Build a Navy or in other ways plan for an invasion. Perhaps, it is time to pay Gigly for Peace. This is forward looking talk of GAME-09. GAME-08: My Offensive Lacked Agenda Unprepared for Ally Counter-Attack Mr Oranje has routinely Attacked in The Late Game. It is coming. I am too weak in his eyes. Can I take advantage of that? Maybe, a lot more Cannons in Athens would allow me to harvest some Experience? I mean, in some way, it is Ship Experience or Unit Experience. He has never not come. I'm not going to have that many Units. Eh, maybe I will. Maybe, that determines when he will land. Maybe, he knows more than I know. Units! # # # # # # GAME-09 {A Replay of Game-08 from T-650 or so, you know, if I recall correctly. It doesn't matter. I lost again.} # # # # # # 2021-02-18 I'm thinking that Shipping is the obvious answer to my Defensive Question: Stave Off The Oranje, as Gilgy has been neutralized by The Choke Point. He came at me with upwards of 20 Ships; and therefore, 40+ Units. I'm probably rounding up for both estimates. Still, it's 2-1. Does that decide the analysis? Defensive Odds Units - Yes On Landing Navy - No I have to Attack their Convoy The advantage of a Navy is fewer Units to create and turning the Sea into a Choke Point. Cannons Carry The Land. What will Carry The Sea? --- Astronomy has to be My Next Researched Tech, just to keep a sort of parity. And from there, I'm sure there's a Next Step Up, that I might be able to secure, levering my otherwise stellar Tech Lead. Eh, it's probably not stellar, anymore. But it is there. In the previous play-through, I lost Liberalism to Gilgy. Maybe, I am fated to get Astronomy from Liberalism. # # # 2021-02-19 Having done some off-line thinking, I've come up with these three additional ideas: Mr Oranje IS The Enemy He WILL Attack Naval Techs Astronomy Then? Pour Espionage Into Oranje Get The Counter Attack Ready # # # GAME OVER! 2021-02-19 1554AD T672 I waiver back and forth via Land/Sea & Offence/Defence. I lost two Privateers. And I don't feel like taking the heat. But mostly, it's due to the wavering. Espionage will give me the City Visibility I need to see an approaching Attack by either Charles or Xerxes. Eliminating The Fort at The Choke Point removes City Raider Bonuses from Gilgy's Offensive Stack. Amphibious Invasion {this is future looking for the Next Game}: 9 Land 9 Cannons 6 Galleons 6 Ship of the Line I can target Capitals, growing my Invasion Fleet, while keeping an equal amount back for defence. In short, I shall Turtle. How much do I want to resist the lure of Wonders? I probably should grow my Cities some. Grow on Wonders, full Food. And work the Specialists on Units to maximize output. # # # # # # GAME-10 # # # # # # 2021-02-19 1000AD T500 Things are going swimmingly. Not much has happened, of course. Gilgy Declared. But I have enough Troops on the border. So, he just sent his Troops away. Eh, he might have never Declared if my Troops were in position. Anyhow, he always Attacks, so I'm not Declaring Peace. I will not be Friends with anyone This Game. I am refusing their Demands. And since I believe they will Attack when Gilgy requests, there is not much point in feeding them Technologies. Once again, I am The Clear Tech Leader. Yeah, it's feeling very solid. I was thinking about being very careful in my Wonder Selection. And I have been. I've Built EVERYTHING that came along. So much for that idea. I do have way more Troops than in previous Games... in general and on This Map. 49 Total Units. And although not all are Military, that still gives me a Solid Forty [Fighting Units}. Since the Display wraps Units at Nine, that's my new organizational number. I'll send out 9 Cogs with 27 Units... or something close to that... perhaps, more. As to Units, I am focusing on minimizing the Turns to Production. So, like, if I can redistribute my Citizens to crank out a bit more production and get a Unit in a single Turn, I do that. There is a huge difference between a Unit every Turn and a Unit every other Turn. Hey! I've gotten a lot of Great Engineers This Game. Five Settled for +15 Hammers, which is pretty darn swell. Anyhow, I cannot wait forever to Attack. My lead will evaporate eventually. So, I need to start doing some damage. I just Queued Up 15 Triremes. I should get them at the rate of 1/Turn. And I believe that will constitute the greater part of my Defensive Navy. Eh, I'll need to send some out with my Cogs. So, I will need more. But no one is coming my way via Sea... not for a long time. # # # 2021-02-19 1250AD T550 I have tons of Troops this time around. I lead everyone in Power except Gilgy, who has close to twice my Power. Since most of my Power comes from Troops, I'm seriously prepared for War. And yet, I don't know quite what to do. I can either go overland, which has proven to be suicide in times past. But then, maybe what I need to do is wait for Cannons and march with Fifty Odd Troops. That is likely what I will need to do. So, I have enough Ships. Currently, I'm building Catapults on the theory they will be upgraded to Cannons. So, yeah. That's it. I march against Gigly with an impressive Stack. Eh, I may still do a Sea Invasion. Who really knows? But for now, I am Building Catapults and Trebuchets... and Wonders, all the Wonders they have. # # # 2021-02-20 1510AD T600 Sea Sniper! It is great fun loading my ships with tons of Troops and picking off a Sumerian City or two. Well, actually, I've Razed three, so far. Gilgy's Stack is massive, along the lines of 40-50 Troops. One need not count. If he headed off towards the Choke Point, I'd be destroyed. But his Stack is on the other side of his empire, perhaps protecting against my marauders. Gilgy will pay 45 Gold for Peace. So even if he redirects his Stack, I'm safe. I can buy him off. Of course, that doesn't mean I won't Build another half dozen Troops (perhaps, mostly Longbows) prior to Building The Taj Mahal. Soon enough, I will be abandoning my Attacks on Gilgy's land... or more accurately, I am traversing the continent grabbing the easy pickings and will be Attacking The Holy Roman Empire in earnest with plans to Subjugate. Xerxes of Persia is already at War with Franz, so Franz should not have much of a Stack. And Franz is quite backward. It seems like a clear-cut strategy. Not stacking up The Build Queue is giving me more fine tune control. In the long run (running an insanely profitable Civilization, as I am), maximizing the number of Units is likely very important. Right now, I've got the cash to upgrade, which is how I got all my Bombards, anyhow. So, Build Small Buy Large (whatever that means) is working for me. Or in other words, my Stack contains 12 Bombards. But I did not Build the one, only Catapults and Trebuchets, at noticeably lower Hammer costs, the difference being made up for in Gold. I have visibility on nearly everyone. It can't last. # # # T601: I lost two Cogs and presumably six Units because I separated my Sea Stack. I thought I was invulnerable. But Gilgy still has a few tricks up his sleeve. And now, he wants 235 Gold for Peace, so he knows what he did. T612: A few Turns later and I am still a bit bummed about losing those two Cogs and presumably six Units. Oh, well. It means The Game is still a challenge. And I need to attend. # # # 2021-02-20 1476AD T633 I've been running through The Holy Roman Empire. But Franz would not Capitulate. So, I spun his Cities off as a Colony. Portugal immediately became my Vassal! Sweet! I'm at +12 Diplomacy with Joao. And once I get Astronomy, send over a few Missionaries, and convince him to switch State Religions, it will be even better. Of course, Joao can barely stand. I hope he does not trade my Tech Lead away. # # # T650: The Dutch Declared a while back, fought unsuccessfully, and subsequently paid for a Peace. At about that time, Xerxes gave me his World Map for Peace. But since our Peace Treaty has expired (for some indeterminate time, now), it is time to Declare again, which I will do just as soon as I start The Game up again. # # # 2021-02-20 1510AD T650 The Game hung (black screen for too long) on restart. I hope that's not foreshadowing a crash. I should (yes, should, a word that usually causes problems as no two people's should's are the same) Bribe Gilgy for Peace and Beg 1G from Charles when our Peace Treaty Ends. And with that margin of safety, take Franz (of The Holy Roman Empire fame) out. # # # 2021-02-20 1560AD T675 I have enough Power that the only Civilization that is likely to Declare War is Gilgy. And if he comes by Land, I think I can take him. And if by Sea, I am sitting on A Massive Navy (37 Ships in All). Though, they are spread out. And it is questionable whether I could completely knock out a Stack of 10 Galleons. --- The Peace Gambit {Begging 1 Gold} as discussed worked wonders. Franz is my Vassal. And I'm tired and don't feel like writing. So, that's that. # # # 2021-02-21 1560AD T675 It is true, I enjoyed walking over Franz, yesterday. I showed up with a short Stack, because (if you will remember), I lost two ships, carrying six Pikes... or so, the legends will say. But even more fun was rolling Franz's Cities up into a new Civilization and gifting them to Joao of Portugal. And now (likely today, but maybe not), Churchill will (well, hopefully) suffer the same fate. And so far, I'm only bringing the survivors from The Last War to this one. # # # 2021-02-21 1584AD T687 After Capturing Two English Cities, I spun off The German Empire. At first, I was thinking this was a LOR Feature. But I'm thinking it's off the shelf BTS. In the end, this Spin Off Process doesn't get me a Second City. So, it's really only good for those Overseas Campaigns. Eh, the Spin Off Mechanic, probably only works Overseas. I am sure this will change my Military Targets {in the future}, as Islands and Small Landholdings have become much more attractive {sniping targets}. # # # T688: I should launch a simultaneous campaign against the Aztecs. # # # Cut Hand! No Notes For... {I cut my hand pretty severely. It healed all nice and clean, actually very impressively. I attribute clean heal to applying immediate and continual pressure. Also, the injury occurred while I was washing dishes. So, my hands were clean. And I felt no compulsion to wash the wound, causing me to wonder how often washing the wound has caused more harm than good.} # # # T691: Ha! Gilgy is already at War! T791: Cuirassier Casualties will exceed those of Bombards. T702: Gilgy amd ZerXes should bw fightimng mw\e mnot Monty. {It's good enough.} {The above {} was concurrent with the note. But due to a one hand peck-and-poke typing technique while injured, I decided to keep my errors. Also, I've given some thought to a rambling writing project with no thought of corrections, not even a proofread, which will make comprehension very difficult, as I often type the opposite of what I mean the first time around, skipping not's and whatnot. But I think it might be a fun deciphering project for The AIs. Yeah, I am pretty much convinced that not only are They coming. But that They will take over... the realm of thought, if nothing else.} # # # run Counter_Intelligence(Gilgy) Consolidate Forces move on to Xerxes or C5. {More injury notes. C5 is Charles V, aka Mr Orange in this game.} # # # 2021-02-22 1640AD T715 My two front War against Monty & Churchill is going grand. They are out-gunned. They do not have a chance. Gilgy is at War with Monty and Orange (aka C5, Charles, whatever). He's got maybe 20 Units on The Aztec Continent and took one City. But I will Declare on him after I finish Monty and Destroy those Troops. After which, I will bring ALL my Troops home and finish Gilgy off, which will be it for The Game. With only a Single City, I out-power both Orange and Xerxes (singly, not combined). They will not Attack. It is Game Over soon enough. But for now, I am enjoying the mop up. That trick of Swapping Monty out for Japan or Churchill for Bismark is working out well. Sure, my Research is not going up. But my Sphere of Influence is on an upward trajectory. In short, I believe The Game is in the bag. If Gilgy, C5, and Xerxes came after me, they could take me out. But they won't. This has been pretty fun. If I didn't have The Choke, I would never have gotten this far. The Choke (isolated start, whatever) is a requirement for my current strategies. # # # 2021-02-23 1660AD T725 A few Turns back, Monty Capitulated to Gilgy and Churchill Capitulated to me. Charles V is still at War with Gilgy. I was going to say there was World Peace. But then, I checked. First, I am brining ALL of my Troops back to Athens. And then, I am either going to Attack Gilgy on the mainland or go after Orange. Orange is a Tech Laggard. So, he will be easy pickings. I probably should chew him up while I have the chance. Gilgy is a harder fight... or could be. But I actually want Cities to be on the same continent as my Capitol... and all those Wonders. I'm going to go after Orange. Yeah, I should Attack Gilgy. But he's too powerful. Or really, I will have to Attack both for a Military Victory. Probably Xerxes, too. And it makes sense to get while the gettin' is good. And that likely means, Orange. Gilgy has Cannons... even though I haven't seen any yet. But the war will get ugly before it ends. I wonder what absorbing Charles' Cities into my Empire would do to my Economy? Don't ask me why Gigly has not upgraded his Troops. He's got some massive Stacks of backwards Troops. Orange is about to be smacked down. # # # 2021-02-23 1690AD T740 My Fleet has left for Amsterdam with a 30 Unit Landing Party. Orange does not stand a chance. It's really just a matter of how much Gilgy gets. Xerxes may jump in on the Dog Pile, but I don't expect much from him. And engagement could cause him to over-engage, improving his chances of being the next target. Having no Wonder to Produce, I am building Defensive Land Units to further dissuade Gilgy from engaging in a two front War. I don't think he will. But once Orange is down, he will continue the fight somewhere. Riflemen are 30 Turns away. The War with Orange will be over by then. Amsterdam -> The Hague -> Rotterdam -> Nijmegen # # # 2021-02-25 1702AD T746 Gilgy has just Declared War. This is before I Declared War on Orange. My Ships are right there. # # # T747: I Declared War on Orange. Gilgy is being lax in Upgrading his Troops. And he's spread out. All the same, I gave Xerxes 4K+G to Declare War on Gilgy. Gilgy is not going to fare well. Sure, he may take a Minor Ally's (read, Vassal's) City. But he will make no inroads against my core, which is key. And I will take land from him. # # # IMPLIED VICTORY! 2021-03-04 1718AD T754 I get Rifles in 3 Turns and have more than enough Gold to Upgrade my entire Stack... and if not entire Stack, I have the Gold to Upgrade enough to keep Gilgy at bay. I am calling The Game. I have not played in a week... nor do I care to. I expect to remove Legends of Revolutions Mod from my machine after the write-up. # # # # # # After Notes: Promotable Spies Colonize Captured Cities City Raider Against Forts Build Small Buy Large 1 Unit/Turn Begging 1 Gold LOR Broken Revolutions Ruthless # # # 2021-03-10 (c) Copyright Brett Paufler