Adventure 51: Molach nukes Japanese Isle

[Molach]

My 'report' from the game.
I played this mostly for fun, and it seems I played from start to death of Arabia in one sitting, about 2-3 hours. So just had fun waging war. 'Report' is part from memory, part from reading end-of-game replay and looking at old savegames. I did not have a clear plan about quick finish or not, I tried to dominate with force as quick as possible, but decided that I was going too slow, and thought mabye nukes and gunships would help out.

Scoring:
Finish date: AD 1770
Most Elite Unit: 82 xp (city raider maceman, died taking down the evil Japanese stronghold. Also had a medic maceman who somehow wound up dead too)
Earliest Great General: BC 625
1pt for completing Stonehenge - FAIL (Hammurabi BC 1680)
1pt for completing Eiffel Tower - OK (Around 1750 AD)
2pt for using a Nuke - OK
3pt for killing the last defender with a gunship - OK

Cities:
Settled in place, worker first, settled sparta for copper in 1st ring 2400 and Corinth to block spanish in 2000. Thebes in 625 BC by floodplains to keep teching nicely, and Argos by horses in 125 AD. Some fillers built later on to speed research.

Techs:
Techpath went largely towards Axemen -> Catapult -> Archer -> Macemen -> Heroic epic -> Trebuchet -> Longbow -> Horse Archer -> Knights which were the last to be used in serious fighting. Some infrastructural techs thrown in when appripriate, and I also oracled code of laws, for quick access to courthouses. After all that I just set a path towards fission and rocketry/advanced flight, getting some extra econ techs on the way (e.g. wall street).

Warfare:
After losing two warriors against scouts I had to hunker down a bit, decided to hit Arabia first as they were expanding faster and better than Spain. Built walls in Spain border city, held it with minimum force. Against Arabia, I tried sending 7-8 regiments of phalanxes, but after initial success destroying an army of axemen, they were counterattacked and slain to a man. Did not even get a great general first, as arabs got one. This was the definite turning point, when I decided to play a builders game. Fortunately spain was passive, so enough recruits and city garrison units from my core would meet the Arabian counterattack in the open outside Sparta (fittingly) and send them packing. Minus their weapons. And lives. This would effectively end the fear of invasion of the greek homelands. Arabia was taken out with phalanx and catapults, last city fell AD 580.

I then initiated offensive operations against Spain while continuing with my veteran stack against ethiopia. Ethiopia build second city at BC 825 and were a complete pushover, died AD 1280. However they had opened their borders to the Japanese, who were more of a threat, showing up with 2-3 stacks. Spanish war was just a hard slogging match, spending time to bombard, and sacrificing 2-3 trebs against each city. Slowly but surely the cities fell, until I was at the choke leading into Japanese lands. AD 1430 all resistance ceased.

From the south, my forces had dispersed to slay the ethiopians, allowing a Japanese army to retake the former ethiopian city near Japanese border. However, after successfully taking the city, he decided to send his stack of 5 catapults on a solo scouting mission, leaving horsemen and other useful scouts to enjoy themselves in the city. The only city I lost was reclaimed, and then I could hit spain from the south. This cunning strategy was too much for the japanese marshal to handle, after his catapult-vanguard gambit failed. All cities had to be besieged and bombarded before capture. My pet great-general unit died doing this thankless work, along with 92% of all my siege weapons crews.

Finally, at the year of glory 1545 the mainland was clear of all foreign presence. However two islands had been settled. One was invaded, leaving Shimonoseki to the south. The people lived in peace for 220 years, one day suddenly waking up to find the climate somewhat hotter, the 2 elite regiments of longbowmen mysteriously missing and soldiers wielding strange thundersticks entering the city gates.
And then there were none.

I have screenshots of nukes and empty city, but gonna need some time to set it up. I think I know how, just never did it before. Next reply then.

Fun game. Only regret, I took the island of Nagasaki, instead of saving THAT to be nuked.

[Molach]

Nuke 'em till they glow...


...then shoot them in broad daylight:


Leading to:


And:


Last known picture of the great greek hero:


Who was later to die while heroically leading his troops through a breach in the Tokyoan city walls. By which time he had his 82 xp.


I don't own Civ V. How about another Civ IV one, pretty pwease?

[Compromise]

You can't really see what you're nuking there.... But then, that's the point of nukes, isn't it?

You mentioned the opening of borders letting the distant civ's army through. That's a good point. I wonder if that was part of the scenario design: The distant civs can build up, but can't be reached until the player breaks through (or non-tech-trading AIs get to Writing). Hmmm.

[Molach]

I had dropped a tactical nuke a decade earlier, as way of testing. Nuke was same turn and same target as invasion. You can see my gunships flying there next to the blast.

The nuke was launched from a formerly Japanese city, leading to this conversation between gunship crews and ICBM control.
-Shouldn't we attack?
-No, they said to wait here for supplies.
-What the...?
*BOOOOM*
-SUPLISE!