EitB AI Takeover SG

[Qgqqqqq]

Don't forget the economic buildings! If we have festivals, than Markets are a great way to raise our rate (and Elder Councils are okay as well).

I think we 100% keep going with this setup, and see where it takes us. If we win in a few rounds, no harm no foul, we can move on and try out Bob's Mind 3 idea.

[Brian Shanahan]

Game is played.  Not as an impressive set as Bob's but we're still relatively comfortable position.

I took and burned both Yonna (was very cramped culturally, no way to hold it + was Balseraph not Ljosfar) and Gaudium (a useless iceball) with no losses and promoted two fawns to Satyrs.  Our attack will ground out for a while though because Furia is beginning to put archers into her cities:




We need bodies and/or collateral to push further.

I was using a spider (without promotions) that I captured with a Satyr to scout out her core a bit.  It may die if she uses the taskmaster.  The bear Bob captured I stuffed into Inisbofin as a bear pit for the culture.

On peace, she still wants Argenteria back (this is a screenshot from my preview yesterday but she didn't change all set).  We're in a strong enough position to say no to her:




In economic news, we're in a much better spot.  Burning Yonna gave us access to foreign trade routes again so were c. 30gpt better off (and more when harbours go up).
I concentrated on economic buildings in most of my cities except Killybegs which can't really grow, so it's pumping out Fawns (slowly mind you), and Inisbofin is going back to warriorpults. The capital is doing a carnival because happy requirements.

I also built two cities Cafes on the four tile island (never thought to pop the chests. D'oh!) and Ballinasloe up in the icy wastes.  Cafes went reliquary first because it needs food badly and Ballinasloe went market.  Those choices can be vetoed.





In post game news here's the demographics and power screens:





I've also marked out a possible replacement for Yonna, two tiles east of where it was.  It's a decent spot and away from cultural pressure:


No settler queued but down the line it's definitely a spot we want.

Final thoughts:
We should settle for what we have currently, start pumping out a few more fawns and bronze warrior, consolidate our gains and when we've enough units smash Hexam.  We're probably not in a position to beat the Balseraphs without more advanced units, so if we can take Hexam, look to gain at least a blank peace and tech up.

And the save

[Brian Shanahan]

PS Qgqqqqq, you're up!

[Bobchillingworth]

No idea where Qg went, but if he doesn't show up by the weekend does someone else want to jump in?

[Qgqqqqq]

[Brian Shanahan]

If Furia's stack comes down off that hill though it's boned. There's an awful lot of units that can't really defend in it and with the -25% from desert we should be able to slam units into it with good effect. And killing off a stack may be the way to get a better peace.

I'll download the save after breakfast & give my thoughts on the elves.

Edit: took a quick look at the save. I'm fairly certain we are safe from the elves. They are pleased with us, furious with the Balseraphs, thus they'll go after the clowns first (in fact everybody hates the clowns). I'd put a few more warm bodies into each of Inisbofin and Warrenpoint though, if the Lunatics go mad (random chance) they may just smash into the cities and two warm bodies in each isn't really enough.

Apart from that, the game looks in good shape. Our biggest problem is cracking Furia's defences. With archers and with us having no real collateral, we're in a bit of a quandary offensively.

[Bobchillingworth]

I'm glad this won't be a cakewalk after all


We'll need to pop the WS if Thessa invades. I agree with Brian that we also need to have enough troops to hold our cities within Lunatic range; also, consider pillaging Furia's roads near Argenteria so that she can't hit us from her territory without us being able to counter-attack.


Catapults and PoL do seem like the way to go militarily, for the time being. Longer term we may want to sub in Ritualists for the Cats and swap out Guardian of Nature with Sacrifice the Weak. Mages are going to take ages to acquire, while a combination of PoL for fodder, Ritualists for collateral, Axes as shock troops, and Satyr for our elites should be enough to handle Furia's Archers and Assassins, and perhaps conquer the Sidar.


Also please don't raze Mutanabo, if assaulting amphibiously! That's the OO holy city, shrine will be worth a bit.


My impulse is to play defense while having one city on perpetual Settler duty; kill enough invading crap from Furia and she'll likely sue for peace, or we'll have enough elite Satyr that we can simply brute force our way through her closest cities. With the lucky Optics pop we'd be well served to start colonizing the open / barb land near the Sidar once we can spare the resources.

[DaveV]

Got it.

[DaveV]

We're still alive   .

Furia wiped out Warrenpoint easily; I left two token warriors in the city who were easily brushed aside. I was able to wipe the smaller stack (losing only a warrior who removed the stoneskin promotion on her archer), then Furia ran away. Arturus had taken Jubilee, so she may have plodded back down to the south to fight him. She still wants Argenteria for peace.



I built a bunch of units, although we probably still stand no chance if Furia brings Saverous back for a visit. I should have been building catapults in Inishbofin instead of Fawns, oops   . At least we gained cultural control over the Pyre, which makes it a little harder to attack.

We probably have too many workers, but I didn't delete any. They're currently cooling their heels in Ballinasloe, waiting for the borders to pop. I used the slaves to hurry the market in Ballinasloe and the lighthouse in Argenteria.

I erased the sign for a fort to sneak in some workboats for Ballinasloe; it can build its own damn boats.

I mezmerized a C4 bear that I'd seen wandering around south of Argenteria. If we can find some sea monsters, it would be worth trying to recruit them too.

Events:





There's a settler that will finish in two turns in Glens of Killybegs. Should we use him to rebuild Warrenpoint, or settle the island city? I vote for the former; we need to claim territory and the island isn't going away.

Note that turning the slider to zero gives us negative beakers; if we do that, we should set research to some tech we're never planning to go after.

Edit: shallow_thought is up!

[Brian Shanahan]

I'm not sure about refounding Warrenpoint unless we're willing to stuff it with bodies while at war it's just going to get rerazed/captured. Where else to found is a problem though.

What does the defence of Hexam look like currently? It might be a good idea to run down to it and see if we can capture or raze the city. With Furia losing her capital she's definitely on the wane power wise.

Edit after looking at the save: definitely should start pumping catapults out of Inisbofin and anywhere else with a siege workshop. Our other cities can produce warriors or fawns for meatbags.

Defensively we're secure, but I'm not too sure how we push further in the short term. Maybe it's time to pull our horns back and tech upwards to a level where we have superior units.