[Spoilers] GES, Roland & Friends (Mansa of Egypt)

[Gold Ergo Sum]

Its a small map you need 5 unis? Do you have a plan to land OU in no time. .

I am trying to decide how quickly I want to grab Oxford. I think I can just about get forges at Stone, Alpine, Ballast Point and Alesmith fast enough to get univs up in ~6 turns without whipping in any of those cities. Lost Abbey will just have to be whipped I think unfortunately. So that is five cities with univs. I just really don't want to whip any of my stronger cities because I have lots of good infrastructure up. But if I have to, I have to. As for Oxford itself, I can probably get 20 base hammers into Stone, which goes to 30 under Bureaucracy. Plus a forge and OR is another 15. And RL7 is gifting me stone. So really, I think I can pull 75 hpt if my math is right in Stone towards OU. It costs 267 on quick, so I think I can get it built 4 turns without whipping. If I can do all that, I am just not sure why I would set my civ back whipping so much, when the ETA won't actually decrease that much.

That said, I expect Krill to come along and yell at me for being lazy and stupid.

I want to say great game

Thanks.

and i hope i see a war soon because just teching its boring

I am a peaceful soul. Right now the plan is to hand my civ over to Luddite in about 35 turns once I've satiated my builder tendencies and let him blow it all up with his uber war-monger tendencies.

[mackoti]

Right now the plan is to hand my civ over to Luddite in about 35 turns once I've satiated my builder tendencies and let him blow it all up with his uber war-monger tendencies.

Well its not getting me anymore this one, i am so over that game, i think

[Gold Ergo Sum]

Turn 86:

CHs finish EOT at Ballast Point and Green Flash, and my gold costs dropped 14, from -40 to -26 at 70%. Right now I am intentionally running just slightly worse than breakeven, so that my GNP numbers don't rocket up like crazy, and so maybe people think I am running max science because the resource screen shows me making 0 gpt.

Education is due in two turns at breakeven.

Forge due in Stone next turn. Forges due in Alpine and Alesmith in 4 turns.

Maoi cued up at Ballast Point. I think I can build it in 4 turns. It will add 7 base hammers immediately, with 3-4 more on nice 2/1/3 coastal tiles still to grow onto.

ETA on academy in the capital is ~10 turns now.

Confu will spread to Pizza Port next turn, and I will whip the CH there. In two turns when New England grows to size 7, I will 3-pop whip the CH there, which will save a ton in maintenance.

Granary whipped in Karl Strauss. Can probably whip a LH in about 3 more turns, and then the city will grow up big enough to whip National Epic once I have Literature.

Now that I have stone, I have to decide if I am going to try to build Sankore and Minaret. Minaret is a much more tasty prize obviously. But it requires the diversion down to Divine Right.

I have considered founding Christianity and Islam and trying to use my four religions for a culture victory. That could be fun.

My soldier count is running low since I sold the war chariots, but only MNG can attack me. I have an NAP until T150 with RL7, and yuris and Comm have to give me ten turn notice to cancel our NAP. In 10 turns, I could have Gunpowder and whip enough muskets to hold them off. In they give notice 10turns from now, I could revolt to Nationalism/Vassalage at no cost and draft/whip enough muskets to destroy them. If Gaspar hadn't made this map such a damn multi-directional clusterhump, I would be rapidly approaching the time where my tech lead made me pretty safe from all but a dogpile I think.

Luddite, you should have some decent toys to play with whenever you take over.

Overview:

Demos:

Still have the food lead, despite some recent whips. I expect to lose that sometime soon. I am going to keep whipping some of our fishing villages a lot. I may also whip some universities.

[Gold Ergo Sum]

Turn 89:

I finished Education and started on Liberalism. Everyone else is so far away I could probably sandbag get Constitution or Democracy, but I want to start on Taj immediately because Ranamar says yuris plans on building Taj. I am getting my marble back from RL7 now.

Had a long chat with 7. He seems to think I am a big leader at this point. Maybe it was just my perception, but he didn't seem as cooperative as in the past. He wasn't thrilled with how long it would take to get his stone back etc. I offered to trade dyes for it, but he didn't even need them he said. I told him to take it back then if necessary.

7 and I did have an interesting discussion because they were frustrated to get a GEngineer, instead of a GScientist to bulb Astronomy. I offered to buy the GEngineer so I could rush build Sankore or Minaret. He wanted a $1,000. I might do it for Minaret because I could make that back several times over with Minaret. He suggested selling it for less if I could rush Apostolic Palace, since they would benefit too. Yuris already has Theology and is probably working on it right now. I told 7 I would think about the following deal: working one turn of gold, gifting 450g for the GEngineer, then getting Liberalism so I could start on Taj and Theology so I could start on AP, and then gifting 300 more (one turn worth).

My GScientist is due in 5 turns.

I whipped a settler at Port and finished one at Stone to settle my last two major spots. I was basically teching even at 70%, so it was time for it.

I will finish forges at Alpine and Alesmith and Maoi at Ballast Point EOT, allowing me to queue universities in all those cities. Stone will start on a university this turn, and Lost Abbey should start building one and growing into unhappiness to whip.

I made an error by forgetting to whip Gordon Biersch's granary two turns ago. That is going to slow that city down.

Demos:

http://s927.photobucket.com/albums/ad115...ot0466.jpg

[Krill]

I am trying to decide how quickly I want to grab Oxford. I think I can just about get forges at Stone, Alpine, Ballast Point and Alesmith fast enough to get univs up in ~6 turns without whipping in any of those cities. Lost Abbey will just have to be whipped I think unfortunately. So that is five cities with univs. I just really don't want to whip any of my stronger cities because I have lots of good infrastructure up. But if I have to, I have to. As for Oxford itself, I can probably get 20 base hammers into Stone, which goes to 30 under Bureaucracy. Plus a forge and OR is another 15. And RL7 is gifting me stone. So really, I think I can pull 75 hpt if my math is right in Stone towards OU. It costs 267 on quick, so I think I can get it built 4 turns without whipping. If I can do all that, I am just not sure why I would set my civ back whipping so much, when the ETA won't actually decrease that much.

That said, I expect Krill to come along and yell at me for being lazy and stupid.

I'd only call you stupid if you continued to tech for no reason after researching Education.

[Gold Ergo Sum]

I'd only call you stupid if you continued to tech for no reason after researching Education.

All told, I think I can get Oxford in about ~11 turns with stone, ~14 without, without whipping anything.

Other than Liberalism, I would probably still tech Alphabet, Machinery, and PP in that time. I could get that done in 5-6 turns. And PP will be worth 30 base cpt for me by then. I think it is well worth teching that even prior to Oxford.

But everything else would probably wait for Oxford, unless I need to rush out Gunpowder.

The one lingering thought, though, is if playing suboptimally might be worth it to mask my lead until I am closer to Rifling and Astronomy. I might cost myself 1000 beakers, but that is a drop in the bucket if I make twice as many beakers as anyone else. Getting 5 universities in my best commerce cities, Oxford, and an Academy and then turning on 100% during a GAge is likely to get me dogpiled. But I suppose it is also possible to put me so far out in front techwise that I could handle it.

[Gold Ergo Sum]

Turn 91:

So I guess I should bring everyone up to date. After spending ages of negotiating, I made a deal with RL7 that I think was a mistake. So why make it? I am bored.

The deal:

I tech Theology (done) and finish Liberalism to take Nationalism so I can start on Taj (with my marble back). After that I pay them 800g. In exchange, they already gifted me their GEngineer, and I am going to GEngineer rush Apostolic Palace out of from under Yuris's nose.

I am also paying them 10gpt for the right to use their stone. If I get Sankore, I owe them 150g. If I get Minaret, I owe another 150g.

I have already started on Sankore, which after AP, should be done in 5 turns. I will head to Divine Right after running 3 turns of gold to gift to RL7.

After that, I need to decide between heading for:

a) Printing Press
b) Economics for the free GMerchant
c) Construction, Engineering, Gunpowder

I think I should have just kept teching away. Why do I think that? Because that was the status quo and the status quo was going really well. Once Oxford/Academy was up with PP, I would've generated over 500bpt at Stone at max science. In a Taj GAge, it might've been 600-650. I don't think anyone could've done much against that. But again, I am bored and a builder, so why not build? I don't really care if I win. I wanted to play well, I have, and so I am just goofing off now I suppose.

I can settle two more cities this turn if I want. Depends on if it stops me from finishing Lib EOT.

Demos:

[Gold Ergo Sum]

Turn 92:

The most eventful turn of the game so far and I forgot to upload screens before I left.

I used the GEngineer to rush Apostolic Palace. I am now #1 in food, GNP, and MFG.

University of Sankore is due in 3 turns at Stone. Then I can build its university in 3 turns.

I founded two new cities:

The first is Iron Fist, which is a filler city near my capital. I got an immediate Confu spread at the end of the turn, which means my two chops due next turn will have OR bonus. So I will be chopping a granary to finish end of next turn, and with overflow and one more chop left to come, I should be able to have a granary up before the food box reaches half-full at size one, and a LH up around the time it grows to size 2. This city will steal Stone's sheep, putting it into starvation for 3 turns to grow to size 2, and then will work pure 2-food tiles until it slow grows to about size 5, when it will probably need the sheep back.

The second new city was Rock Bottom. I founded this up in the tundra. I am glad I roaded the forests, because I see yuris was bringing a settler over to try and swipe it. That is pretty ballsy of him. That is definitely either mine or RL7's spot. I actually then used the two workers to double road the city tile so I had .5 movement points left to found this turn.

Given that I just stole AP right from under his nose, and I am about to take Sankore and Minaret which were probably also in his plans, and I just founded that city before he could, I expect yuris may be canceling our 10-turn cancellation NAP.

Oh, BTW, I also finished Liberalism this turn.

This turn =

That said, I've put a huge target on my back and I am running super lite on military. As soon as the universities finish at Alpine and Alesmith, they will start on military production, only stopping to sneak in a Confu monastery at some point for the wonder boni.

Now I have to start running cash. I think I can pay back the 800 in 3 turns, but then I will finish Sankore in 3 turns and owe more money.

I need Divine Right for Minaret and Gunpowder for defense for sure.

[Brian Shanahan]

Nice one GES. I kind of dropped out, due to being at home for a few weeks. But it looks like everything is going swimmingly for you.

[Ichabod]

Yeah, the team with a lot of ded-lurkers suddenly left GES all alone.

Everything is looking pretty good, though, so that's not much for a ded-lurker to do other than spam some random posts...