[Spoilers] Pindicator accepts his fate

[Commodore]

You know, I really don't want to finish those settlers.

I think I just want to build libraries and get to Currency

I'm sensing a mild contradiction.

[pindicator]

Yeah, I might be panicking a bit at seeing chumchu be way ahead in beakers, or OT4E way ahead in wonders and mfg. For me I wonder if pouring more settlers out and slowing down my time to reach Currency will be better or worse than getting to Currency first and then sending out settlers.

Or perhaps the right answer is that changing halfway through will be what puts me in a worse positron and I really just need to rise out my land grab / settler spam and wait for that to pay off long term.

That's one thing I admired about the approach StarDoor took: grow tall, and with as much land as there is then spam settlers after you're stable. (That was before I knew he bordered OT4E -- which makes his plan look a lot worse because it ignores that particular reality of his situation. )

[pindicator]

Turn 090

I might also just be suffering from a Grass-is-Greener effect as well.

Right now we're looking at 7.5 turns to get Math. That's pretty good considering what I was fearing it would be. With the cities we're going to plant in 5 turns we're probably looking at 8 turns. My break-even has crept up to 40%. So maybe I can whip some libraries in right as we're done saving gold for Math.

From GNP scrying I can see the following: 1 person has Math, 1 person has Alphabet, 1 person has Metal Casting. Nobody has HBR or Compass or Aesthetics. We know that Metal Casting is OT4E and Alphabet is chumchu. Math must be StarDoor; he's had Writing forever. And OT4E didn't even have Writing last turn (couldn't trade world maps) so he couldn't have it. I need more contacts; I only get GNP boosted for people I've met.

NylesStandish and Zalson agreed to the map trade. I'll do a composite of our hub and the surrounding wheel later on. Tonight ran a little late with the debate watching that happened before.


EDIT: For those interested in details, libraries were started in the capital, Torheven (last minute addition), and Orandrad. Archer finishes end of turn at Kameber, and we'll start one there next turn. We also whipped the lighthouse at Atuan, and we'll start a library there next turn as well. The plan is to get libraries in those cities over the next 4-5 turns as we're saving gold for Math, and then they will be enough to cut down the tech time for math to 7 turns. Or something like that.

I'll probably be running scientists in Atuan and Torheven both.

[pindicator]

Turn 091

Borders pushed out enough from Spevy that we finally have sight on NylesStandish's copper city, and ... OH MY GOD



That's like 30% of his total power right there. Dude could have seriously given me a hard time with just that stack at any point. Hell, he still can. Considering his power has been stable, I'm guessing he saw my Iron Working spike as an invasion and geared up appriopriately. Well, if those 2 dead chariots 40 turns ago also bought a heavy dose of paranoia for my neighbor, then that turned out to be hammers well spent.

This is also why I'm not going to build a library in Karego right away: I want a barracks and about 2 more axes first.

In other foreign news, I found either a bug or a neat feature:



So I don't have relations with wetbandit and when I'm selected on myself and hover over OT4E I can't tell that he's at war. But StarDoor obviously does have contact with wetbandit, and so I'm guessing because I'm selected on StarDoor's portrait the game then lets me know that OT4E is at war with wetbandit. If that's where his power spike is going towards, then hurray for wetbandit! Hope that guy holds out as long as possible (but I kind of doubt it). I also found out with this trick that OT4E and Nyles were at war at some time in the past.

On to domestic issues:



Chopped forest plus overflow from last turn's whipped Lighthouse means that Atuan will be able to 2 pop whip that library next turn. As soon as it regrows to size 4 we'll hire 2 scientists, and still be able to grow at a decent pace (+6fpt).

Staying in the same part of the world:



We're landing a spear ahead of the settler, and have a chariot in the surround for any axes that migiht appear. The settler is due out of Karego in 2 turns, will board on t93, unload on t94, and settle on t95. One of Atuan's workers will join the settler and Karego will have a work boat following about 2 turns behind. 1 worker should be enough to get the city up and running, at least until the granary is whipped. After that point we'll need to shuttle the second one over. Oh! Better would be to just double chop that granary, I bet. I should be able to do that for this spot. I won't have that luxury in the other spot out east of Orandrad though.

[Commodore]

[pindicator]

Turn 093

StarDoor certainly has a nice research rate going.



I wouldn't be too upset if he built MoM. (Although I would if he just ended up building it for OT4E.)

Our turns have been about 2 things:

1. Whipping Libraries in key cities.





I didn't mind whipping the capital here because I was whipping off mines and we have nothing pressing to build besides libraries. As cities start to run into growing to unhappiness I'm going to whip or build workers/settlers.

We've been saving up gold the last 4 turns, and next turn we'll turn on the bunson burners again with these libraries in place. We should be getting Math eot96. If we can get Currency at the same rate, that will be 10-12 turns away (eot106-108 range).

2. Getting these guys ready to settler in 2 turns





Loaded up a settler and a worker this turn up north and will land next turn. We'll pick up the other worker by Atuan after, so both cities will have a pair of workers to get them up and running. Could use 1 or 2 more workers right now though; there are still a few more cottages I'd like to plant down around the capital.

[pindicator]

Turn 094

Played this late last night after getting to the coast, so a brief review of what I did:



Well, this is more what chumchu did. This guy could be a beast late in the game - he's IMP & ORG, and he just settled his 11th city. Plus his GNP is shooting up as he builds research on the way to Alphabet.



Hired the first batch of scientists at Atuan; I also whipped a library at Torheven.

I am whipping a lot right now, but I think this is the right time to do it. I'm at the happy cap, and I won't be able to climb over that happy cap until I get to either Currency or Calendar (or I suppose technically we can go do something weird like Monarchy). Since that is going to be about 12 - 15 turns away, this is the time to get the whips in. By the time the anger wears off we'll be able to grow back to size 8 and beyond.

At least, that's the rationalization for it...

What those libraries have done is up my top beaker rate from ~100bpt to 125bpt. As is, I turned on the science this turn and should easily get Math in 3. Hell, I might flirt with Math in 2 when I plant the 2 new cities.

My next 2 settlers are in position to settle, just waiting for that next turn to roll.

[pindicator]

Turn 095

Empire stitch:





We settled the two cities, Havnor and Vemish. Both only cost 7gpt apiece, which was a bit of a shock. In fact, this makes me want to make some more settlers! Breakeven is simply back to 30%, so I can clearly afford a few more cities.

But then over dinner I was thinking this through a bit more, and I really want to start some settlers and workers now.

So step back a little bit and talk tech. My idea of "flirting with 2" for teching Math was probably a bit of a stretch, but you can see that we're going to get Math in something more like 2.5 turns of research. At that tech pace we're looking at getting Currency in 11.5 turns -- so more likely is we'll be getting it in 10. That means I have to start settlers now to have them ready and moved in position right around when Currency comes in. And I'm going to need more workers to get those new cities up and running in addition to the new population growth that my existing cities are going to be experiencing with cheap markets.

In other words, I need to be starting settlers pretty soon, and workers shortly after. To get a more specific in when to start these, I need to figure exactly what cities I want to plant next, what cities will build the settlers, and continue working it backwards from there. And more immediate, I have a settler finishing in Orandrad in 5 turns that is going to go .... where? And with what worker support?

So I have this window to build workers and settlers in -- and right now most my cities are finishing up barracks. But I'm not going to swap off those barracks for a couple reasons. 1) They're all within a few turns of completion. 2) I am going to want those barracks after Currency, because right after Currency I'm going to tech HBR. So after the markets are completed, I'm going to be building horchers around the empire, because I think this is about when I'm going to need a force to project my strength in the east as well as swords & spears in the core (eventually adding cats and elephants after I grab Construction). In any way, a tech path of Math -> Currency -> HBR -> Calendar -> Construction seems pretty good right now.

P.S. The way metal happiness was balanced on this map is .... odd. Rather, it's the most obviously unbalanced thing in a very balanced map. (Also, I'm probably noticing this because I have no obvious access to silver or gold on this map, while some people have access to 2 or 3 rather easily.)

[pindicator]

Turn 096

I think I might take a shot at Hanging Gardens. If I get it it's going to come just in time to whip markets. If I don't get it, then I get fail gold for pushing to Currency. We finish Mathematics at end of turn. We can 1-turn Masonry after that and then try for building the wonder at Karego-At.

Torheven started on a worker; it's just too far away from where I want to settle to build my settlers there. So that means I can shuffle workers away from Torheven. Settler at Orandrad is done in 4 turns; I think that guy is going to go north. Then I need another settler .... possibly at Andrad, which can 5t a settler if I steal the Rice back from Orandrad.

[Commodore]

Given Exp, you'd rather have ivory/fur/silk/whale over metal happy anyway.

Holy crap you're going to be happy post-Currency. Beeline to knights, whip to the bone?