This is gonna be good: von Adlercreutz and Taotao

[taotao]

Oh yeah, I forgot to say:
DZ is now up to 44/44 EP. If he continues to spend EP on us next turn we might need to consider allocating some EPs his way...

[von Adlercreutz]

I feel a bit stupid about saying something like this after signing for a long game. But lately I've been stressed and bit depressed due to things irl and don't feel like putting time for a competetive game. Furthermore, with you doing so much work for this game, it has started to not feel like my game anymore, I know this is my fault and you asked precisely this before teaming up. So I feel I need to change my status from a player to a ded-lurker, maybe sometimes covering turns for you.

[taotao]

I feel a bit stupid about saying something like this after signing for a long game. But lately I've been stressed and bit depressed due to things irl and don't feel like putting time for a competetive game. Furthermore, with you doing so much work for this game, it has started to not feel like my game anymore, I know this is my fault and you asked precisely this before teaming up. So I feel I need to change my status from a player to a ded-lurker, maybe sometimes covering turns for you.

Oh shit, that wasn't something I liked to hear.
I don't mind running the game for a while, when all you need to to to pass a turn is move a few units around, mostly following a plan we've made beforehand and wrapping it up in a matter of minutes (not counting reports or unexpected events). I don't either mind putting some hours here and there playing a complex turn or simming things out. I do, however, feel that I've got too many commitments to play modern era (war) turns day after day after day without adversely impacting the experience for other players (and as you mentioned, that was why I wanted to join you in a team rather than signing up myself).

So how do we proceed?
Do you think it's possible that you'd reignite your interest in the game if I stepped back a bit for a while and you played most turns, reporting or not as you see most fit?

Or should I just play on for a while with the assumption that after things have settled down for you irl you'll come back?

Or should I take more solitary responsibility for our empire? - This is not something I want to do really, and if this is our decision, one of my first actions would be to start advertising for a new team-mate, because really, unless we're killed off way to early I don't see me managing this in a fair fashion.


As far as the next few weeks go I should probably mention that next weekend (sat-monday evening) I'll be in Stockholm and unable to play (but will probably have some internet availability).
Also 10-18 October I'll be in Italy, possibly without opportunity to even check the forum during the time.

[taotao]

Btw. We were about to miss a turn earlier today, but the reload mean I could sneak in our turns after the timer would've ticked out (I was kind of preoccupied with my girlfriend today). Wouldn't have made a great difference though as all units had decent orders luckily.

Anyway, some technical issues during reload/game pause meant I did move our scout and he spotted a new neighbour of ours:



What you see here is the borders of Serdoas (and friends...) second city (claiming gold).

While this might be the most important long term discovery for a while there is, however, a more pressing decision to be made. Namely where to put city 3.
If we go for clams we should really start a workboat in the capital this turn, otherwise perhaps a worker (?).
I'd say intuitively that a 3rd city 1W of gems is slightly stronger in the short term, but putting a city there of course affects the dot map. Have you had a look at dotmapping at all?
I'll present two hastily composed alternatives and a blank map (from the sim) in case you're still interested in these decisions.

alt 1 - clams first + strong commerce gems city:

a downside here is that both northernmost plants are far from sure that we'll get and are very likely to be seen as aggressive if we manage to get there.

alt 2 - gems city first - poor city specialisation

Possibly a better border against REM, but every city basically wants to build everything and darker yellow city could be quite tempting a target for Serdoa...

blank map:

[GermanJoey]

Why do you say that Serdoa's city claims gold?

[taotao]

Why do you say that Serdoa's city claims gold?

Sorry 'bout that. That screenshot is taken from our previous turn. As I was the last to play I also moved the scout the next (current) turn to confirm that it was indeed English borders I spotted and that's when I saw the gold. Forgot (well, I was tired and in a bit of emotional distress after hearing that Adler might drop out) to take a screenshot of it though.

Edit: and by "claiming" I simply mean getting it within their borders. I checked during my lunch break and actually the gold is jungled, so won't provide any super-early commerce or happiness.

[taotao]

t32

Fintourist is still below 0.7 health and debated with myself the longest time whether I should let him heal. Figured out that I'd be able to see into Serdoas second city if I moved him though so that's what I did.




Hmm, Serdoa had the ability to settle his second city for stone, but didn't. Maybe he's started to get over his wonderwhoring tendencies? I'll take this as an indication though that most (or perhaps even all?) might very well have stone within their natural borders.

Also visible in this screenshot is one horse resource, probably belonging to Donovan once this land gets settled. It might also mean that a city 1E of the wheat will be somewhat more tempting, but surely he wouldn't go there if we settled marble beforehand would he?

Speaking of horses, do we have any?
Yes, yes we do
Now I also feel slightly better about switching from workboat to worker as our current build in Oravainen.




Since we're doing decently in the demos I guess it's good rb tradition to take the opportunity to post them as well?

[taotao]

All right,
since I don't seem to know how much help I'll get from Adler, the risk of me/us not having the possibility to play some turns have increased dramatically. To decrease the risk of moves completely contradicting our plans I think I need to present a:
Micromanagement plan
This plan might still be subject to severe change, but at least should give some guidelines to me in a hurry or any lurker giving a much appreciated helping hand.
(I won't give instructions to the scout, but please try to keep him alive and discovering new land/neighbours is always a good thing... )

t34

Warrior onto open grassland if no animals are spotted
Lapua changes build to worker.
Workers road the wheat after having farmed it.

t35

Warrior move to forest 1E of horses. Fortifies.
First worker to finish roading moves back to ivory and starts a camp.
Warrior in Lapua moves to fur and fortifies

t36

Worker finished in Oravainen. The capital starts a settler next
Worker from Oravainen doubles up on ivory and joins the camping effort.
Worker on wheat moves to furs.

t37

Pottery is in, start research on writing.
Fur-worker starts a road.
The available worker on ivory moves 2SW to the hill clam-city will be founded on.

t38

Ivory-worker moves to forest 1N of wheat (outside current borders)
Clam-city worker starts chopping.

t39

Fur-worker has finished road and moves to copper.
Lapua finishes worker and continues on already started warrior.
Newly built worker moves to fur and starts camping.
North of wheat worker starts a road.

t40

Copper warrior starts a road. NO! starts mining!
Fur-worker camps this turn and then stops the action.
(Clamcity worker finishes the chop which goes into the settler that will be built at 100/100h)

t41

Oravainen finishes a settler, starts a granary.
Lapua finishes a warrior, starts a granary.
Freshly built warrior moves 1NW (halfway between Oravainen and Lapua) and fortifies there.
Clamcity-worker moves NE-E to the plains hill that’ll be shared by three cities eventually.

t42

Settler moves to grassland 1W of gems and founds city 3.
City 3 starts granary (working the cows).
Both workers 1SW of City 3 moves to the opposite side of the city and starts pasturing the cows.
Worker on shared plains hill starts mining.
(Fur-warrior potentially… moves to explore fish-city location and 1NE from there)

t44

Copper-worker starts road.
1 Cow worker starts mining gems.
1 Cow worker starts roading cows

t45

Oravainen 1-pop-whips granary (62/60).
Lapua switches build from granary (27/60h) to settler (due in 6t working pigs, wheat, copper and plains hill mine).
Writing finished, starts mathematics.

t46

Copper-worker moves to furs and start camping.
Plains hill worker moves 1W (flat grassland) and starts roading.
Cow worker moves to horses and starts roading those.
Oravainen starts an axeman.

t47

(possibly moves around one warrior close to fish city)
Switch Oravainen off ivory and onto silks to make it grow in one turn.
(potential to switch Revolahti off cows and onto now-improved gems, but that delays growth by one turn)

t48

Lapua hand plain hill mine over to Oravainen and starts to work furs instead.
(Oravainen is back to working two foods, ivory and plains hill mine)
Horse worker moves 1SW and puts 1t into a cottage before canceling action.
Gems-worker moves to horses and starts pasturing those.
Flatland-grass worker (near future clam city) moves NE-E and starts cottaging that grassland river tile.

t49

Worker 2W of Revolahti moves 1SW and doubles up on the cottaging duties.
1-pop-whip Lapua to finish settler one turn quicker at 101/100 (make sure to work copper and not furs as third tile after whip)

t50

Lapua finishes settler and moves it to clams location. Starts new settler.
Oravainen uses still plains hill mine instead of cottage.
Worker south of Lapua puts 1t into a farm while waiting for axe to catch up.
First worker near Oravainen moves 1NW and starts cottaging the riverside grassland tile.

[taotao]

@ von Adlercreutz:
As I stated once earlier I'll be away this weekend from Saturday morning to Monday evening.
Will you be able to play these turns?
Also, I hope that you'll rekindle your interest for this game and I hope that I haven't been too overwhelming with my post-spam thus far. My apologies if it feels like I've shut you out from playing your game.

[taotao]

t34
This was quite a historic year for our Brave Finno-Dutch Empire.

A small detail of our brave club-bearing warriors that henceforth shall be referred to as "Ipecacs Infantry" has ventured out from the comforts of our settlement in Lapua. While cutting across the fertile patch of land between the lakes Evijärvi and Lappajärvi something strange is spotted on the other side of the Perhonjoki river, a detachment of mean armed with clubs as themselves, but with some mean intent in their eyes. Ipecac is now left with a difficult choice. The distance is still too great for any side to to a full out attack on the other yet, but where might be the best place to pick a battle? Continue heading north to the forest there as intended or perhaps it would be better to try and gain some altitude on the rocky slopes further down to the south west? Stay tuned as more reports are sent with our riders!





On the home front it can be mentioned that Lapua has started erecting proper houses now instead of the tent villages of its first days. Still people are poring into the city though, attracted by our lands that are so ample for growing wheat. This has left our populae somewhat in need of more worker labour, but measures have been made to rectify the situation as we speak:





Far and wide the rumours of how good care we take of our people when it comes to feeding them and in most countries the public is left in awe of such excess.





Though the Zulus are still rumoured to only have one proper city to their name, we can't relax too much as our neighbors do sport some impressive capitals thus far.




See you in forty years!