[spoilers] Infinite Happiness, Commodore the Suryturk

[Kofiman]

You need a naming theme? How about collossal failures.

[Commodore]

You need a naming theme? How about collossal failures.

[BRickAstley]

Here is the starting BFC sandbox for you to look at and start planning, if you choose to do so. This accurately represents what the starting BFC will look like when you load into the game. The file has any strategic resources stripped out (since you would not know those on turn 0).

We reserve the right to make any changes to the BFC, but this is at least very close to what it will look like in game, so should be dependable for planning purposes.

No screenshot for the thread too because that's just time consuming right now for me to go take a picture of each one too.

Link to the starting sandbox: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4491...wordWBSave

[Commodore]

That's cool.

[Commodore]

I think I'm going to go wander. Scout stacks on settler?

[GermanJoey]

Yeah scouts on settlers.

[Thoth]

Theme suggestion:


I just misread your thread title as "Commodore the Skylark".

So go with a Lensman theme.

[Commodore]

Tier 3: Journeymen With Decent Stuff

Donovan Zoi, Stalin of Zulu

When you give a mouse a cruise missile...Donovan has impressed me very positively as an economic player, and not at all as military leader. Nevertheless, Aggressive Zulu are here to cover a multitude of ineptitudes. Industrious, well, see above but I don't think Donovan will totally skunk the trait.

Automated Teller, Charlemagne of Mongolia

AT is a decent player who is prone to check out when his lack of hard-driving push slows him down. That's...actually probably a pretty good psyche for this combination, which is basically old-school Joao with some awesome teeth (Gers now also grant 2xp to all land units). AT won't be barnstorming the whole field but early on that leader combined with a civilization that gets down on its knees and begs for horse archers? Would rather not tangle with.

Elkad, Shaka of America

Murica and Aggressive: Together at last. The Armory is pretty awesome, basically allowing Elkad stables + barracks + monument for just 30h. That’s…gonna hurt, when he gets horse archers online. Easy access to shock chariots, for that matter. Shaka is RBmod Shaka as ever, decent economy and expansion. Elkad strikes me as better-than-shown in 25, where he seemed to just get off to a crummy start; his play was otherwise solid. He’s certainly not a cheap kill, he proved.

Molach, Willem of the Celts

Basically old Financial with basically old Creative? Willem is king again, baby! The main trouble with this combination is that everything cool/strong/fun is slow...Guerrilla III Gaels are awesome, but take Iron Working, full-price barracks, and full-price duns. Financial? Awesome again but slower. Creative? Slower. Couple all that with a good-but-passive player and you get something definitely in the pack but nothing leaving me quaking.

Really Evil Muffin, Julius Caesar of Russia

Russia is nice, Russia is fine, but I never ever hope to make Russia mine…tooooo late. That said, the victor of PBEM 61 does have the REX REGIS JC dropping phat beats and picking up Russia’s slack. REM is actually a pretty tenacious fighter, and an even-handed economist, just don’t see him having the outlook, time, or toolkit to rock us.

Tier 4: Guppies Behind The Wheel

Yuri, Justinian of Khmer

Yuri, while not exactly guppy-level, is rather prone to sandbox mentality; kind of just plays (well) off in his own world. He's definitely down among the guppies with this combo, though...the Khmer aren't great shakes even with expansive barrays; I'm incredibly unimpressed with their UU which basically just exists to snipe GG medics out from under doomstacks. Justinian is...just okay. Imperialistic is great of course but spiritual needs a Man With A Plan to extract maximal utility. Not foreseeing greatness in this pairing.

Cheater Hater, Washington of Inca

Cheater Hater is a very negative nelly. He’s prone to despair, claims to dislike this game, and never thinks well of his chances in any endeavor. This despite doing pretty okay in several games, most notably the Newbie Pitboss Latest (23?)…boy just ain’t got a stomach for setbacks. That’s why, despite the chrome and flash of New Charismatic and the solidness of Inca, I’m just not high on CH’s placement here.

Grimace, Boudica of Japan

Well, I’ll grant you this much; Grimace has recently started missing with violence, and the Ginger Warchick sure facilitates that. Particularly now! Cheaaaap two-promo units, easy access to 3-promo mainline cavalry…nice. As ever, though, her economy is…not impressive, and that’s what I suspect we will see Grimace fail in. Nothing in Japan’s toolkit encourages better paths either…so yeah, I fully expect to see awesomely promoted tiny numbers of outdated stuff.

Hit Any Key, Alexander of Maya

The most basic form of synergy; Aggressive boosts your UU, Philosophical boosts your UB. That’s all very well and good, but I somehow suspect neither side while get hyper-aggressively exploited by HAK, who loves to just kind of chill. Mindy might add on and help, but the odd alchemy of 25 I suspect requires a bit more time and place. But hey, this time at least we might see tons of drafted maces with C1 at least!

Barteq, Tokugawa of Azteca

A better player in the Worst Pitboss, Barteq has cheap granaries, cheap courthouses, maint reduction, questionable 2-moving weak swords, and…barracks monuments? Tokugawa is fun but I’ll never pretend he’s uber, and nor shall I pretend PB14 vets are, either.

AdreinIer, Hammurabi of India

Poor fellow actually might be happy about his roll; he’s got India with the starting tech portion of Civilization 4 nerfed into oblivion, he’s got great cost reductions, and he’s got an unshakable, one might even say delusional, sense of optimism. And, um, a pretty hardcore lack of empathy. I like AI, and he’s a much better werewolfer, but I notice a definite trend in his games where he is unable to comprehend other players’ actions and aggression. That ain’t a good long-term tendency in a supergame.

Tier 4b: Newbies (?) On Ice

TheWannabe, Joao of Egypt

Know nothing of Wannabe, but he’s got a good leader for expansion and a good ancient-era civ. Uninformed WAG: Does decently early, fades along with war chariots and Imperialistic later on.

NyleStandish, Ragnar of Babylon

Pros: Financial broken, won’t get the bum’s rush with Agg and bowmen.
Cons: Nothing synergistic, lack of experience.
Uniformed WAG: Does okay but never catches fire, gets et by nearest vet.

Tier 5: Toddler A With Handgun

Tasunke, Pacal of Persia

Ugh, this guy. Expect: Illegal diplomacy, erratic logins, bizarre trade offers, strange movements, Natneg blocking. Do not expect: Long-term consistency in anything. I don't expect Tasunke to do well, but his Magic 8-Ball foreign policy can produce some odd effects and I fully expect him to Immortal rush someone. Pity, because Pacal is a brokenly good leader again, a sane driver of this combo could win.

[Commodore]

By the way, I haven't spoke much about the start because there isn't much to say. Ivory is second-ring and Sury's culture is only +1 now, so it won't speed the first worker. Bumbling around a bit, there really aren't many interesting levers to pull so it's pretty simple, here's Turn 25, both workers unmoved:

Settling off the coast is strictly inferior for the start, but if the scout finds food I'll do it any way. This capital is only so-so long term; not a lot of river grassland, no levee, FLAT COASTAL...definitely not worth much investment.

...definitely not worth much investment.

Much like this game! RtR 3.0.0.3, artificial map, Tasunke in the field...yeah, not something I'd play if it were presented to me right now.

[Commodore]

Ooh, also:

Fine here, I'll be on vacation and off-grid 10th through the 14th.

Should still just be "follow microplan, move scout" by then (assuming the lurkers are even finished)...anyone mind subbing?