[Spoilers] Commodore as Washington of the Mongols

[Ceiliazul]

how much did total maintenance change on the f2 screen last turn? each new city increases maint for all the others, f2 is the easiest bottom line, i think.

[Commodore]

Um, Ceil, I forgot to check this turn but it's either "many" or "lots". I had another bit maintenance jump this turn due to this little guy. Needless to say, the Forbidden Palace is 100% my next focus.



Also, dangit Blizzard! I recall now that the French mythological turtle hybrid is a "tarasque", a torrasque is a hero-class Ultralisk. As well. Marvel at the power of the GLH!



I'm more or less filling up my quarter of the map now, and it's almost time to go into military mode anyway. The targets are either Mack or TT. This nice little area is going to be great once all the infra finishes up.



The Mongol-Chinese center is much more developed than the Maya-German. At least TT seems to be getting along at an okay clip south of the peaks.



The new citizens of North Centralia are probably going to convert to Christianity before I can get them to see the joys on Hinduism, what with the new holy city being right next door and all. Theocracy is open if I want my knights to be 3-promo out the door.



The free missionary, though, goes to Manticore as soon as he can, because my core needs to start spamming monasteries. These awesome cottages are now villages, and it only takes a few to make that +10% science a nice boost.



As you can see, I opted to eat a turn of anarchy again, as I just could not find a reason to delay turning my capital into a monster like this:



Which, in turn, leads to the rival-worrying numbers like this:



Still pretty behind though. I think Gaspar just snagged music, and I expect him to fire a nice GA very shortly, probably next Caste/Pacifism cycle. Which will be nuts-productive.



Keep on truckin', lill' empire.

[Commodore]

So in two more turns, I'll be hooking up my own marble, which will be all kinds of fun. My battle with TT for culture is about to be intensified with the Hagia Sophia, which will be only a marginal help with my well-supplied worker force, but will be awesome for culture.



Although the one big project, the "make Sphinx more habitable" project, will use some major worker labor. Once that jungle gets chopped, I'll start irrigating through the city a farm all the plains, particularly towards the rice.



North of Sphinx, Gryphon is growing slowly but surely. Once the forge is done I'll swap to 100% growth, although it's not much more to do. I need to max out my population here for another +2 trade route, so that all my coastal cities are getting the minimum +8 commerce from two overseas routes and two big-city routes. Stupid bug, going last as the GLH holder is cheating myself.



Although hey, inland cities are happening. Wyvern needs another farmed flood plain, the southwest one ideally so that I can share it. This place will grow nicely enough with two fp farms, two fp cottages, and an oasis.



North of Wyvern is Jackalope, which is another "zoom-zoom" city. As is a bit of a theme around here, it's making a courthouse, I need to reduce the horrendous maintenance costs here, two turns of gold saving is slightly less than one turn of full-bore research.



Not sure why Gaspar's been so slow to settle the center area. The game has given me a massive, massive temptation here.



Meh. It's kinda dull, but most of what I'm doing right now is growing. Harpy is the nicest little city that I have newly born, growing to size nine and working all hills for massive hammers (one gets a windmill to not starve).



Deep, deep.

[Ceiliazul]

I'm pleased to see Sphinx finally getting some wonder action... it looks like it'll require 3 new farms to irrigate that rice? yikes!

As for the temptation to take that barb city, I don't see Gaspar doing you any favors at all. He negotiated you right out of the yummy FP area... and he won't even tell you about his NAP with the runaway game leader? Get in his grill, even if he is your teammate in 26.

[Commodore]

As for the temptation to take that barb city, I don't see Gaspar doing you any favors at all. He negotiated you right out of the yummy FP area... and he won't even tell you about his NAP with the runaway game leader? Get in his grill, even if he is your teammate in 26.

Agreed. And so, I earned myself a whopping eight gold! Yay!



S'okay. Getting in his grill is definitely my next settle, 1NW of my settler right now on the flood plain. It's annoying, Gaspar, but I'm not too sorry, what with your GA. He's really neck-and-neck with Mackoti now. Mythological hybrid creature suggestion, anyone?



Need to catch up badly, as I'm rather behind these two. Gryphon is going to be important with its huge shrine income, I need to spread more Hinduism, generally make it work harder for me. Huh. What's that, shrine? You and the monastery and the temple are already pitching in?



Oh yeah.



It lies and tells me I'm only two points back of Mackoti, but I'm pretty dang backwards of both westerners. Only one answer: Kill TT and try to use a bigger land advantage to even the scales.



Not really any chance of me winning by Domination, you see, but maybe I can win by domination, y'know.

[oledavy]

Not really any chance of me winning by Domination, you see, but maybe I can win by domination, y'know.

Just wanted to chime in and say I love your enthusiasm for this game Keep up the good work and great updates!

[Commodore]

Just wanted to chime in and say I love your enthusiasm for this game Keep up the good work and great updates!

Thanks mate, it's hard at times. As swimmingly as it feels like I'm going here, I'm so incredibly in the dust regarding everything around here. I mean, it's great that I snagged the AP, but check out who just got new architecture:



To keep up, Gaspar and I need to avoid conflict or he'll just walk away with everything. Still, we're feeling close, Mr. Spar and I. I made a brand new city in the peak area.



Which brings us to rough equality in the center division.



Up north-center, he's evening things up, ensuring he gets the deer and horse and at least a cut of the riverland, although the exact middle is pretty solidly Faun's.



In one small part of the tech recovery, my bureaucracy capital is getting as many religions as I can stuff in there for monasteries. Nice as Bureau is though, I'll still swap to Free Speech when I can, sooo many towns incoming around here.



Gryphon, for instance, is a couple dozen turns in Emancipation away from being a monster in its own right. I actually swapped to a courthouse after snapping this picture, need three more for the Forbidden Palace.



The other monster-that-should-be-but-isn't is Mermaid, now with Moai action. She's about to get all the lovely infra that a growing city needs.



Thus proceeds the game. Machinery->good boats next, methinks.

[Commodore]

Well, it's been fun lads. In case the image is unclear, that's Mackoti's Taj and Gaspar's GLib. Gaspar might, might be able to keep up if he abuses Spiritual (and the Parthenon) to the max, but I'm just in the "strong enough to make the guy who attacks me lose" category now.



At least I'm going down under the silly hat of the Hindu pope.



Even the monstrous Manticore cannot save me now. Sure, it's making more beakers than anyone else's capital, but it's not able to give me great people, unlike Gaspar and Mack's empires.



Gaspar's pushing his borders against mine, having apparently NAP'd Mackoti until the end of all time.



I'm not feeling particularly ept at the moment. I can't even reclaim that stupid mine for Sphinx. Although hey, we're about to make those plains into Kansas, that's something right?



My empire is too bloody expensive. Here's my all-out GNP, still falling short of the GNPs of the westerners. Again, it'd be looking amazing were it not for the fact that I just finished Machinery and Mackoti's a few turns from rifles.



I suspect the Wolpertingese are prescient, here.

[novice]

I suspect the Wolpertingese are prescient, here.

Diplomatic protection is so much cheaper than military protection.

[Ceiliazul]

Im having the hardest time reconciling the anti NAP gaspar in 26 to his almost slimy, quiet diplomacy in his game.