Chevalier Rides Again: A City Lights exploration

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

oh sherbert, I thought it was just +6 culture in the HOST city. Instead we're looking at +120 culture!? that'll be INSANE. Definitely glad I decided to queue it up, then.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Randoms 264

Multiple turns a day now, typically one waiting whenever I can spare the time for it - which means that my usual reporting time is less! Still, other than trying to plot the precise course through the tech tree, there's not a whole lot of suspense. Here's the dilemma:



To boost Optimization Imperative, I need to have Robotics. Robotics needs to be unlocked in approximately 15 turns, since I'll boost Globalization but not Social Media. Anything other than this timeline will either waste culture or delay our final government.

But research-wise...



I have two competing demands. Robotics is 12 turns away, with only the boost from Globalization still to come in. BUT I also need Nanotechnology, 8 turns away, to unlock the Mars expedition. Meaning, if I pursue Robotics to boost my culture for the last government, I will delay unlocking the Mars Landing until turn 280 or so. However, Osgiliath is building too quickly:



It needs only 4 turns for the Earth Satellite (due on 266), and the Moon landing will take less than 10, meaning I'll need Nanotechnology by turn 275 if I want to maintain the breakneck pace on the science victory.

So, which gets delayed - the government, or the project? Or just ignore the boost and 'waste' culture by blazing through Optimization Imperative anyway? There's no optimal choice here, but it's a good dilemma to have! 

I think, in the end, I'm going to prioritize Nanotech. The goal of the government is to enable more rapid progress on hte space race, after all. ...then again, I'll be FORCED to pause after finishing the Mars colony, because I need to research still to unlock the Exoplanet expedition. Hmmm...Decisions, decisions! I don't need to begin working towards Nanotech until I finish the Earth Satellite, so I ahve a few more turns to decide how to thread this needle. 

Anyway, Globalization MIGHT solve the problem for me, with one of the best late-game science boosters available:


+5% science per suzerainty, and my suzerainty fluctuates between 5-6 cities depending on the envoy battles (and how successful my spies running Fabricate Scandal missions to remove competitor envoys are). So that's +20% - +30% science per turn, which would drop our research ETA on both projects down to <15 turns, meaning I COULD potentially squeeze in both. Except Globalization itself has to be delayed a few turns while Cerin Amroth frantically builds an airport, due in 7 or so turns! 

The polar ice melts, 4 turns early, but I have walls in place in all cities at this point except 3 (The Black Gate, Angband, and Gorgoroth, all of which are hand-building theirs). The floodwaters unexpectedly increase the price of the hand-built walls, too, delaying their completion by 3 turns, but it'll still come in time before permaflooding, estimated in 11 turns. Now I know that's an estimate, not a hard number - I guess the game calculates based on current CO2 levels, not on projected ones. Ah, well. No harm. Robo-Phoenicia, Robo-Indonesia, and Norway are devastated by the floods, with many districts and tile improvements submerged. 

I use the military engineer to chase era score where I cna, wanting to secure a Golden Age to close out the game:


Coal levels are still falling, though, and we might have a minor resource crisis on our hands soon. I could even disband battleships? Might get to that point.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Randoms 267

I decide the optimization problem of grabbing both Nanotechnology to maintain pace on the space projects AND Globalization to not "waste" culture heading to Synthetic Technocracy is impossible. Culture is irrelevant, ultimately, science is the win condition. "Wasting" culture on Synthetic Technocracy is not an issue at all because all we need culture for at this point is unlocking the next big civics and governments, and once we have Social Media, International Space Agency, and Synthetic Technocracy there's no real urgent civics left. So it's full speed ahead on Nanotech and we'll scoop up everything else afterwards. The Lunar Expedition project will give 10 x [Science] bonus to culture anyway, or 6,000 points - more than enough to probably finish Synthetic Tech on the same turn:



Amusingly, the satellite discovers the most miserable, ice-bound village of all time, completely inaccessible from the rest of the world for all of human history:



Anyway. We finish the Lunar landing on 272 or thereabouts, and should begin to work on Mars immediately thereafter. Mars should be launched by 280. Then the Exoplanet by 295 or so -  game might not end by 300 but we'll finish close to it. Needs to cross 50 lightyears, 1 ly/turn. Figure 5 turns to run 5 projects, it will move to 45 Ly remaining and speed will increase to 6 ly/turn. 5 more turns for 5 more projects and speed increases to 11 ly/turn, while distance drops to 15. So, 12 turns total - 307 is our new target date for the end of game. 40 more turns. Might get there inside a month.

[Civ with friends war updates soon - Phoenicia has launched a major offensive at New Equestria and is raiding every harbor and trader he can reach, but initial Equestrian counterattacks have bloodied a few noses and I remain confidenti n my ability to hold. Korea has joined with privateer raids and what looks like a major land invasion supported by Frigates aimed north of Canterlot.]

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

City Lights 100

2 years after start, City Lights hits its 100th turn - an average of a turn a week for 2 years. Jesus. 

Anyway, the pace is up a bit as war has broken out, as my friends opt to dogpile me as (being realistic) the only chance to stop a Cree runaway at this point.

The turn starts here on the southern coast of New Equestria:


The initial Phoenician naval strike on the city of Trottingham, consisting of 2 caravels, has been driven off by my ironclad. Both caravels moved west - one towards the narrow strait between Maretropolis and Saddle Arabia, the other to the new Phoenician city on a small offshore island, founded with my captured settler. My naval squadron arrived on turn 99 from the southwest and began bombarding the city, so Dido stuffs a caravel into the city and upgrades it to an ironclad in a bid to hold it. There's also a newly built ironclad coming up from the south, as well as an army moving over the eastern hills, pillaging me to hell as they go - the dangers of not having a field army in place!

I have two bombards, a field cannon, and a line infantry to defend with at the moment, which should be enough to hold the line against the gaggle of outdated units Phoenicia is throwing at me. Biruta Fortress defending the pass itno Phoenicia is an annoyance but I've no intention of offensive action quite yet. Steel is due in 3 turns, which will stop the Punic advance cold, so no danger on this front, really.

Accordingly, the ironclad shifts west to join my naval squadron. First, our frigates and caravel complete the capture of the city...


(See Trottingham on the far right, to orient this screenshot in relation to the last one) which leaves 1 Punic caravel intact - he might hit my frigates but can't kill them. With new ironclads coming from the east, though, and Trottingham largely secure, I intend to retreat to Maretropolis Strait and bottle up Phoenicia there. 

So the turn ends with this situation in New Equestria:


Turn 103 will see several new units take the field, as well as Steel defenses come online. The loss of my coal mine will be a heavy blow, though, so I need to try to clear these units and get a garrison onto that tile. The bombards can perhaps take down the encampment? 

In the north, there's pillages along the coast and a developing attack on Cloudsdale, north of my capital:


Note the coastal pillages - Korean privateers in the area. Two frigates and two caravels in the north, plus land units. I have an ironclad building and Steel is coming online soon, Canterlot will crash-build land defenders to prevent inland pillages. 

I have few to no units here, so no movements, instead it's getting the empire in order to defend. I need 2 canals to get some inland cities able to build ships, which will come within 5 turns:


A harbor at Rapa Nui, and the ace in the hole up at San Franciscolt. Five turns will see 4 ironclads in the waters around my island - initial goal will be to concentrate them near Baltimare, then assemble with a group of frigates or even Battleships and begin to sweep the enemy coast of shipyards.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

City Lights 101

This is starting to become very serious.

- Napoleon at the Berezina, November 23, 1812



A second Punic ironclad is built and the two launch a concerted attack on Trottingham, doing rather more damage than I'd like. I still need 2 turns to get Steel online, and I don't think the city can hold out on its own. However, I gather my own squadron - 2 ironclads of my own, supported by 2 frigates, a privateer, and a caravel, as well as a bombard on land - off to the west. If the ironclads turn and fight me, I can draw him into a fight in the strait long enough for Steel defenses to come online. If he presses the city, I think he'll redline it, but then I can hit him next turn and hopefully save it. Either way it'll be close! 

To the north, the attack on Cloudsdale is also serious:


If I had even one ironclad here, I could see it off, but I don't, and so no way to hit back at the moment. Cloudsdale isn't an essential city and so this doesn't pose an existential threat, but even losing the city for a few turns (or seeing it razed and having to build from scratch) is a serious irritant. 

Still, next turn my first emergency ironclads begin to come online, and every turn thereafter will see more and more hulls hit the slipways. We know how many privateers I'm willing and able to build in a fucking pinch, so I hope they're ready for the swarms of little bastards that will be coming for them. So we might suffer some more setbacks than I hoped, but should be okay...I think.

Also, England joined hte war, 'coz fuck me, but my two robot allies joined the war. Maybe that'll keep him busy a while. 

City Lights: 271

In a neat bit of good fortune, our airport finishes and triggers the GLobalization inspiration the same turn the Nobel Prize is awarded - to me, of course, since I generated thousands of great scientist and engineer points - and inspires Social Media, so we neatly grab both end-game diplomatic civics on the same turn:



The two civics jump everything by over 100 points in a single turn, helping me race to the end even faster. Which is good, because the Moon landing is going up next turn and I'm JUST unlocking Nanotech in time. It was a good idea to go for that instead of trying to uselessly boost Synthetic Technocracy.


Losing the New Deal drops a few cities from Ecstatic to merely Happy, but nothing to be done there. I also start plopping down power stations wherever I can, as I note my electricity requirements are skyrocketing (and are probably the reason why my coal supply was depleted). There's a brownout at Henneth Annun on turn 269 but otherwise I manage to keep the lights on everywhere.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

The attacks both north and south are pressed hard, and Trottingham is redlined. My squadron attacks from the west, sinking a Phoenician privateer and ironclad, but a damaged ironclad remains next to the red-lined city. In the north, near Cloudsdale, enemy muskets come ashore and I have only one heavy cavalry unit to oppose them. If the cities can survive one more turn, walls come online, but it's VERY close.

In the randoms game, I run out of science as Mars is launched, but I haven't found the Exoplanet tech yet. Research is continuing. In the meanwhile, a flood devastates Osgiliath's industrial zone, and I take a few turns to repair it.



I build the Panama Canal for fun while I wait to unlock the Exoplanet.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Found it, Smart Materials is just behind Advanced Power Cells. I start the research, 3 turns, due on 284. I can start the Exoplanet right after, so figure it launches on 292 (8 turns seems a reasonable estimate - I have 200 production native plus a boost from Synthetic Technocracy and a large queue of workers standing outside the port to hurry things), then my estimate of 12 turns total to win after that. New win date is 304.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Randoms 282



One turn until I finish the Panama Canal, for funsies. It will connect my north coast to my south coast and give Barad-Dur direct access to Phoenicia, if that would ever be necessary. 2 turns until I finish Smart Materials, which enables the end-game space mission. 

Otherwise, note that I'm building half a dozen holy sites around the empire. Faith is up to 100 per turn, but Norway has about 150, and he's made a major push with apostles into the borderlands between me and Indonesia. I don't think he's close, but I do wonder about a last-ditch attempt at religious victory, so I'm building up my own defenses - just in case. Nothing more useful to do with the production at this point, I can't usefully get more science, my amenities are through the roof, culture does nothing at this point, I don't need military units or builder improvements, etc. Just a waiting game, mostly. Probably 20 turns left in this game, about 10 days at the rate we're playing.

City Lights 103

Trottingham falls to the Phoenicians and Cloudsdale is probably doomed to fall to Korea, but Steel comes in just in time:



Instantly, every single city spawns 400 hp walls and now I'm effectively immune to conquest absent battleships or artillery - both of which require coal and oil. Need to scout the map for oil resources, so refining is next. It will cut off my ability to build Frigates as long as I have coal, which is a bummer, and the loss of Trottingham cuts off 2 sources of coal.



Phoenicia suicided one of his ironclads to redline the city and the other takes it, but my squadron is intact and I am able to recapture on the same turn - which spawns walls and now the enemy army and navy in this area are effectively routed. More and more of my own armed forces are arriving, so as long as I can defend the sealanes south of the city, I can hold here. My melee naval units pull back to the west to repair, and I'll follow with the frigates next turn. They're exposed but nothing to be done about that right now. A major priority will be pushing the army to the east to secure the two coal mines and get them repaired. I do have two bombards which might be able to account for the Punic encampment guarding the pass, but I have no plans for a land invasion right now.

In the north, Cloudsdale is redlined and 5 muskets are ashore or nearly so:


The ironclad will be one turn too late, arg! I can only hope that they're demoralized and retreat, but don't count on it. That city is likely lost, but thankfully it's far less important than Trottingham - it can be resettled fairly easily, while Trottingham would have cost me multiple strategic resources and districts.

Anyway, my cities unleash hell. I destroy a marauding Punic caravel in the far west, securing that area I think and putting an end to trader losses and harbor pillages, and begin to secure control of the gulf south of my mainland. The cuirassier hits the two Korean muskets in the north, in a dim hope of drawing fire away from the city.

Final setup is like so:


The land invasion can be defeated using Steel defenses and native unit production. The sea invasion I also think I will eventually drive away. Phoenicia can't sustain his caravel there and needs to sail a LONG way to repair, and Korea has fewer shipyards, so I have high hopes there, although Cloudsdale might fall.

In the south:


only an enemy field cannon remains in view. The first wave here, at least, has been repulsed. Now I have to get ready for round 2 while I focus on clearing the northern ocean. 

Also...


Phoenicia starts the Panama Canal, but it will only enable a single city to contribute ships to the north? Seems like a waste of production if you ask me.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Randoms 285

Arrakis takes revenge, as a massive dust storm howls out of the deserts north of Osgiliath and devastates first my Campus...





...then moves south and devastates Osgiliath itself, wiping out the Spaceport, the Aqueduct, the Harbor, the Entertainment district, and killing fully 6 citizens over the two apocalyptic turns:








Fully repairing the damage would take 17 turns, which is longer than my projected lifespan of the game. What rotten luck! The disaster was timed to hit just as I began the off-world mission, and PERFECTLY aimed to hit damned near everything. This is 10 turns after, mind you, a flood on the tiny river obliterated my Industrial ZOne, which was only just repaired. So overall disasters have ignored the rest of the world over the past 15 turns and only targeted my singular space city. I'd accuse the RNG of cheating based on some logic detecting the spaceport and Science Victory projects, but my usual rule is:

1. Once is happenstance.
   
2. Twice is coincidence.
   
3. Three times is enemy action.
   

So it's still a coincidence, albeit a devastatingly unlucky one. 

oh well, no worries. The outcome of the game is not in doubt. Everywhere Holy Sites are finishing up and my FPT is almost equal to Norway's, so he shan't win a religious victory over me. All it's doing is dragging things out. 

I order repairs of the Spaceport first and foremost, and then will launch the mission - which was previously set to launch on 289. Now it'll probably come around 295 once repairs and the losses to production from the lost population, shipyard, improvements, and trade routes are factored in. So, call the end date 310 now.

[Chevalier Mal Fet]

Repairs complete on 288 and we begin the mission again. It will launch on 293, so end date about 307. Less than 20 turns to go! Maybe a week at the rate we're going.