Epic 11 - haphazard1

[haphazard1]

This is my first ever game report -- hopefully I've got this image linking thing working properly and can keep it interesting. I'll post the report in several chunks on this thread.

I've been playing Civ since the original game, but due to life commitments never got into CivIII and only picked up Civ IV a few months back. So much new material to learn, but I rapidly became completely hooked once again. I found Sulla's walkthrough, then his game reports, and that led me to Realms Beyond. This is my second attempt at an event, and my first finish, but I've been reading past reports and learning a lot.

I've only played a half-dozen games or so, and had never gone for a culture victory, so this event looked great. I decided not to worry too much about the scenario scoring -- I would grab points where I could, but I just wanted the victory. And Sulla overloading the mega-continent with aggressive AI civs had me worried -- I haven't done all that well with early pressure.

Looking through the list of what would score points, the Great Lighthouse jumped out -- surely that was a red herring! Probably means we're dead center on the continent.... Various wonders, the different buildings at checkpoint dates make sense, the Navy SEAL might be fun, and a speedy finish bonus. Cool.

Now on to the game!



Editing here, as issues at work (one of the apps decided to go Klingon philosophical) prevented me from finishing my full write up. Here's the final summary, and the first part of the game report (through about 1280 AD) will be posted below. The rest should go up tomorrow -- apologies.

Final result -- Cultural Victory in 1868 AD, with all three cities (Washington, New York, and Boston) hitting Legnedary status on the turn. Great works created on final turn: 8

Scenario points:

+25 cultural victory
+24 each rival still alive worth 4 points (Toku, Alex, Monty, Temujin, Huayna Capac, Peter)
+3 Hagia Sophia built without GE
+2 Versailles built without GE
+1 Eiffel Tower built without GE
+1 Hollywood built without GE
+4 Libraries built by 260 AD
+3 Temples built by 260 AD (2 Confucian, 1 Jewish)
+0 Universities built by 1502 AD
+0 Cathedrals built by 1502 AD

Total: 63 points (plus any highly unlikely fastest finish bonus points)

This game was a blast -- thanks to Sulla for sponsoring and his shadow game report, and to all who are reporting this game. I have learned a ton from the Realms Beyond community, and as this is only my first real event completion I'm sure I will learn more in the future.


Editing again: Sorry for the delay in getting the rest of the report up. From 1270 AD to the end is now posted. (Jump down to post #6 to pick up the new material).

[haphazard1]

We are America, out to spread our culture to every corner of the world. None shall escape our complete cultural dominance!

I founded on the starting tile -- an excellent location. Began a worker, and set research to Hunting (for scouts on this large pangea) -> Animal Husbandry. Start exploring in rough circle around Washington.

3880 BC - meet Isabella near some ivory. A pangea overloaded with agressive AIs, and I've got Izzy for a neighbor? Just how unfriendly has Sulla been in selecting the AI civs? In short order, I meet Peter, Alex, and Monty -- I think my question has been answered.

3580 BC - Buddhism FIDL, turns out to be Izzy. How the early religions fall is going to shape everything to come.

By 3430 BC, I've also met Caeser and Saladin -- six rivals already. With no shorelines in sight, it is confirmed that Sulla has placed us roughly dead center on the mega-continent.

My scout has revealed all kinds of great land -- lots of gold, flood plains and silk to the southeast, ivory NW, cows, rice, dyes, bananas, incense. My notes read: "Incredible land in all directions! Can I grab it quickly enough?"

3280 BC - Animal Husbandry comes in, and there are horses to the NE, with a site covering the horses, cows, 2 dyes, on a river, a couple forests, and some hills. Sure, there's jungle everywhere, but the horses, cows, and forests are enough for the short term. And with the river for health and all the grassland-to-be...I have a vision of a Great Artist factory, with enough production from the cows, horses, and hills to build the temples, cathedrals, etc., needed for one of my Big Three. This will be colony site #1.

After Animal Husbandry, go Archery (defense) then Mysticism (obelisks to pop borders). I'm not planning to go for Stonehenge, despite being Industrious. At least one spiritual civ will try for it, possible with stone. Too big a risk.

2800 BC - Washington hits size 3, starts first settler. Alex swapped to Slavery a turn before, so I know which way he's going.

Mysticism comes in, start the Wheel (my worker needs more things to do, and I need to start connecting resources). Meet Toku for AI #7. My exploring warrior is eaten by a lion, curtailing exploration for now.

2470 BC - list of most advanced civs -- and I'm not even on it! Not good....

2440 BC - Hinduism FIDL. Doesn't seem to be anyone I've met, although could be Izzy perhaps? (Turns out to be Temujin.)

2380 BC - settler finished, heads NE to found New York.



2200 BC - meet Hatty, who is the current points leader, and NOT Hindu. Who is?

2050 BC - meet Fred, who is also not Hindu. I've now met 9 AIs, who's left?

Finish Pottery, start Mining (for those gold hills) and proceeding to Bronze Working. Slavery will be needed, along with better units. Hope I have copper.

1630 BC - finish second settler, send south toward Saladin. I don't want to push the border too hard; found Boston on desert hill with wine, cows, one gold tile, and two flood plains. Hill will help defense against Saladin, or Alex who is southwest.



Also see my first (and nearly only) non-animal barb of the game - a warrior. One of Alex's roaming axes kills him.

1600 BC - Judaism FIDL - turns out to be Hatty.

1480 BC - finish Bronze Working, have copper at the capital! Also meet Incas, who are ALSO not Hindu. Either mystery civ #11 has it, or Izzy is growing a Hydra. Stonehenge FIDL. (Would turn out to be Temujin.)

1150 BC - found Philadelphia to east, grabbing two golds, rice, hills and some forests. There is still unclaimed land to the east, need to keep expanding!



1120 BC - finish Writing (want Open Borders to start improving diplomacy) and start Iron. Need to see if I have any, and to start clearing jungle. Got Open Borders with all but Toku, Monty, and Izzy (surprise, surprise). Caesar is on the trade network, so he must be E/NE along the river somewhere.

985 BC - list of most cultured - Izzy first, unknown second (who must have Hinduism to be second), then Hatty and Fred. I'm in fifth.

Over the next few turns, I find Roman settlements to the NE and Moscow to the ESE. There is still room for a city between me and each, but I need to hurry.

835 BC - first demand, as Alex asks me to cancel deals with the vile Egyptians. Alex is next door, with axes, Hatty is who knows where to the east (I've seen a couple scouts). No brainer - I agree.

775 BC - found Atlanta in the east, pushing borders with Rome and Russia. On a river, with gold and corn, lots of hills and forest for good production. This city would become a hammer powerhouse, eventually receiving the Ironworks and West Point. At game end, it was pumping out multiply-promoted tanks a bit more often than every other turn. I would build a LOT of troops here.



730 BC - finish Iron Working -- one source in desert west of Washington (need one more border pop), another east of Atlanta (very long reach, would be taken by Rome), third SSE of Philly in unclaimed land. Need to send a settler there soon, but first...

670 BC - found Chicago to the WSW of Washington, in the desert between me and Alex, beating his settler by a single turn! Site has incense, oasis, river and forests, and will help secure that western Iron source. Hope Alex isn't too upset....



I hit end turn...and the horn sounds!!!

[haphazard1]

But it isn't Alex; it's everyone's favorite slave-sacrificing psychopath, Monty!



Why did he declare? We have no common border, and relations while not great (+4) were hardly terrible.

Who am I kidding? It's MONTY, and that's all the explanation there is. Add in the aggressive AI setting, and who knows what this guy will do? He promises that I will pay for my insults. I search the map, hmmm, well, ok, well.... Aha! I found him -- 1 warrior is in the jungle, three tiles north of New York.

Guess that's why it wasn't the "numberless minions" message.

Next turn I finish meditation and start Priesthood, planning a grab for the Oracle. No idea if this is at all reasonable on Prince at 625 BC, but....

OK, three Aztec chariots appear. This is a bit more serious, as I have only one archer in New York! I move the Washington garrison to support, and whip a barracks. Should have built them sooner, but was busy with settlers and such. My military weakness probably triggered Monty's attack. Three combat I chariots against two garrison I archers -- this may get ugly. But Monty pauses 1 turn to pillage my horses, and I whip a spear in New York. The danger passes, although I lose one archer in the fighting.

A couple turns later, mystery civ #11 is revealed - let's welcome Temujin! He is the founder of Hinduism, and is the overall points leader. The same turn, Judaism spreads to Philadelphia - my first religion! I've already got trouble with Monty, and Izzy is Buddhist and would pile on, so I do not convert. In fact, I never adopt a state religion at any time in the game. With this many civs on one continent, picking one religion is just asking for trouble. I'm going to have more than enough conflict without racking up big negatives with half my neighbors. I keep an eye out for opportunities, but my neighbors are always split among multiple religions -- one ally is not worth multiple enemies who share my borders.

400 BC - Fred declares on Alex! The first AI-AI war. Longer term, this would turn out to be a terrible move for Fred, but at the moment he is notably ahead in score, tech, culture, food, etc. However, Alex has the Phalanx, which is a nice edge today; Fred might have the advantage two-plus millenia from now.

355 BC - the Parthenon is built in a distant land. I didn't try for this one, despite the scenario points. My war with Monty consumed a lot of resources, and I was focusing on getting the Oracle. Turned out to be Temujin - Stonehenge and now Parthenon - no wonder he was ahead.

Next turn Monty finally agrees to talk and we make peace straight up.

325 BC - The Oracle is one turn away, but Code of Laws is just 5 turns out. I decide to risk the delay for a Civil Service slingshot. Washington is by far my strongest city, and the boost from Beauracracy would be very powerful.



Five turns later, I complete Code of Laws and found Confucianism in Chicago. Not the place I would have chosen, but it turns out well as the holy city culture helps drive back Alex's border and keeps Athens from overwhelming me.



235 BC - The Oracle is finished, and I grab Civil Service and start the revolution.



Same turn, Alex asks me to declare on Fred. As before, Alex is next door with a big military, and Fred is far away to the west somewhere (my scouting, or lack thereof, was pathetic). Plus the mutual military struggle bonus will help keep Alex happy with me. Total sham war on my part.

190 BC - Monty declares on Izzy, despite their shared Buddhist faith.

130 BC - Peter completes the Pyramids in Moscow. Without stone and with other concerns (settlers, war with Monty, Oracle), I did not even consider them.

100 BC - Finish Alphabet and start a round of trading. Get Mathematics for techs already well spread (Masonry, Meditation, Iron Working). Leaders include Alex and Izzy with Monarchy, several civs have Polytheism, Sailing. I've got some ground to make up.

A few turns later Fred asks for peace and I agree. Alex also signs peace. I finish Monarchy and revolt to Hereditary rule (need the happiness), then start Sailing as a prereq to Calendar. Lots of Calendar resources, and again I need happiness.

Diplomatic demands start coming in:
Incas ask us to adopt Judaism - refused, to avoid conflicts with neighbors
Temujin demands Meditation as tribute - happy to agree, as he is strongest; I get a diplo boost and it is enough to get him to agree to Open Borders
Monty demands Monarchy - refused, as it is a big tech and he is already an enemy

Monty and Izzy also make peace, with no obvious results to the war.

80 AD - Temujin declares on Hatty - Hindu vs Jew. A couple turns later, Hatty drops off the trade network and her score takes a sizable hit. Temujin seems to be having an impact.

Over the next few turns, I finish Calendar and move through Polytheism toward Literature, to make a grab for the Great Library. More diplomatic demands come in (Monty is refused, I won't join Hatty in fighting Temujin, Incas ask for and get Polytheism). I haven't mentioned much on the domestic front, but I have been working towards the checkpoint.

260 AD - I have 4 libraries, and 3 temples (2 Confucian, 1 Jewish)

Sorry, no screen shot here. Save files available on request, not that I expect to be remotely competitive on scoring or finish speed.

[haphazard1]

A few turns later, Toku declares on Fred and asks me to join in. Fred already hates me (for the earlier sham war), and Toku is powerful, so I agree. Again, it is a total sham conflict for me, but I get a nice boost with Toku, who warms up enough to sign Open Borders. Toku was unusually open in this game; maybe the aggresive setting moderated his usual isolationism?

380 AD - Temujin made peace with Hatty last turn, and now he cancels our Open Borders. Could be trouble coming...but why wait? Monty declares again right now! Nothing shows for a turn or two, and in 410 AD I found Seattle in the SE to secure that Iron source.



I also finish Currency to help my economy, and begin Feudalism for better defenders.

With Currency in hand, I start a round of trade deals (my resources for their gold, five such deals) to start boosting relations and strengthen my economy. I also sell some outdated techs for some cash, to boost my units against Monty. I also make peace with Fred.

I'm fending off Monty's units, with some losses. Axes, chariots, some horse archers on his side, axes, spears, and archers on mine. Nothing really exciting here, as he can't really threaten New York (walled with garrison archers and spear). A couple tiles get pillaged -- my horses gone again.

Alex comes along and asks me to convert to Confucianism (which I founded) - I refuse, despite the diplo hit with him, because he is the only Confucian civ in the world right then. (Remember that my holy city is Chicago, very near Athens.) If he piles on with Monty, it could get very nasty, but agreeing could pull Izzy - or others like Caesar, Peter, or Saladin - into conflict with me.

Fortunately for me, next turn Alex declares on Fred, and vents his rage away from me. Whew!

Fighting continues, and my growing culture from Washington claims one of the ivory tiles away from Izzy! However, it is on Monty's incoming attack route, so I'm not exactly in a position to hook it up right now.

515 AD - Christianity FIDL. No one converts as founder. Later turns out to have been Temujin. I start the Great Library in Washington (which had been pumping troops to help repel Monty's steady trickle of horse archers). Hatty just got Literature, but I am Industrious with a Beauracracy-boosted capital. If she has marble she might be able to beat me.

I also found San Francisco in ENE, squeezing into a gap against the Roman border. On river, bananas, dyes (initially Roman), lots of jungle to clear.



590 AD - finish Feudalism. Longbows should help finish the threat from Monty. Start Music to grab the free Great Artist.

Next turn, Toku again asks me to declare on Fred. As before, I agree, and I get further diplomatic boost to pleased. A pleased Toku - very odd.

Saladin is moving some swords around in the SE near Seattle. I need to send some troops down there, but am busy in the NW with Monty. Temujin demands I cancel deals with Egypt; I agree reluctantly -- Hatty is really going to hate me -- but Temujin is more powerful.

Washington pops a Great Prophet from the Oracle and a priest specialist, and I build the Kong Miao in Chicago - 12 gpt! I only have four Confucian cities, so the religion is spreading well even before the holy shrine was built. Big help for my economy!

The following turn I finish the Great Library in Washington, whipping 5 pop (the city had 2 unhappy citizens). Combined with the holy shrine income, my research just jumped significantly. Music would finish shortly, bringing a Great Artist. Not calculating the cultural game plan correctly, I save him for a future great work rather than settling him.

Over the next half-dozen turns, Monty makes a major push. The trickle of a horse archer here, an axe there turns into a surge of horse archers and some chariots (left over early units, maybe?). In 710 AD, there are 11 Aztec units hitting my northern lands! My cities are strong enough to not be seriously threatened (walls plus longbows), but multiple tiles get pillaged, and I lose some units, but I eventually clear out all Monty's forces. One of my spears becomes my first level 4 unit, and Washington starts the Heroic Epic.

With my lands cleared of Aztec troops, Monty agrees to peace straight up. Fred also offers 60 gold for peace, which I gladly take.

I grab Metal Casting (should have done this earlier for the cheap forges) and start on Philosophy.

890 AD - Peter builds the Sistine Chapel! He got a great engineer the previous turn. I should have prioritized this more, I later realized. Having never gone for a cultural victory before, I did not understand how powerful a help this would be.

A couple turns later, Temujin "offers" a small sum of gold for Alphabet. A couple other civs have gotten it, so I agree and then trade it to everyone else who does not already have it, netting some gold and some diplo boosts.

Temujin then declares (again) on Hatty. That Hindu-Jew conflict is ugly stuff.

995 AD - Argh! Rome completes Philosophy and founds Taoism 2 turns before I would have! If only I had pushed Philosophy sooner...I considered it, but thought I could grab Metal Casting first. (It should have been sooner, too.) Taoism would turn out to be the only religion I did not get...almost. (I would eventually get a Taoist city via culture flip only turns before victory.)

Next turn, Peter demands Music. I refuse, as I am building Notre Dame and do not want to lose it. I need the culture, and the happiness would be nice.

1070 AD - Caesar completes the Great Lighthouse. I never tried for this, as I had no coastal cities. Given the late date, it certainly would have been doable to push for these "red herring" scenario points.

I pop a Great Prophet in Washington - drat. I was hoping for a Great Scientist for an Academy (Beauracracy-boosted science plus culture points) in my capital.

[haphazard1]

1085 AD - The horn sounds! Saladin has had enough of my very existence, and our +6 diplomatic status and long-standing trade ties are ancient history. He brings 4 swords, 3 axes, 3 spears, and an archer against Seattle. Uh oh.



Bad news: Seattle has one archer and one axe. (Most of my forces are still in the NW from the fight with Monty.)

Good news: Seattle has walls, and enough pop to whip another axe to chop up all those melee units. Also, Atlanta and Philly each have an axe in garrison to send, along with a spare archer. I have enough money to upgrade both of the archers to longbows. Slightly longer term, I finished Drama a few turns back and started Machinery; with my earlier Oracle slingshot to Civil Service, that will make macemen available. A couple macemen will eat Saladin's melee units as a quick snack.

The fight for Seattle is rough, but thanks to the AI's tendency to stop and pillage (my iron mine in this case), the reinforcements arrive barely in time. Seattle's longbow and one axe were killed, and the remaining axe had under 1 health point left, with four attackers still coming. But with additionl units to man the walls, the city was saved.

I check for possible allies, but the only one willing to even discuss it was Alex, and he wanted three top-shelf techs (including Civil Service) to declare. I felt the price was just too high. Alex was a worrisome threat as it was; with better tech he would really be a problem down the road.

Battle rages for several turns, with more units being fed into the sausage grinder by both sides. Several units threaten Boston's cottaged flood plains, but some Aztec war veteran units move south and use the river for extra defense to hold off the would-be pillagers.

1118 AD - Things have stabilized and I am gathering forces for a counter-attack on Arabian territory. I trade Philosophy around for much-needed cash - my tech will finish next turn and I will need money to boost my axes to macemen. The fact that Saladin has an almost all melee army (other than archers) has helped a great deal...so of course, it changes. War Elephants! Who is trading Sally the ivory?!?!? I have a couple spears (Aztec war vets), but the jumbos make things much more difficult.

1124 AD - Machinery comes in for maces, and I start Engineering to get pikes to counter those elephants. Upgrades all around! Things are looking up...

1130 AD - ...and then all Saladin's archers suddenly turn into longbows. Damn. Catapults enter the fray on both sides and the slaughter intensifies, but my Heroic-Epic-and-Beauracracy-boosted capital is sending a steady flow of units to the front. Philly and Atlanta have turned into good hammer cities as well, and over the next few turns I gain the edge and start to advance.

During all this carnage, Temujin asks me to join his war on Hatty. I agree, and he is up to +7 and pleased.

1160 AD - My forces capture Damascus, along with one worker. Much of the fight has gone out of Saladin, so I let Washington resume work on Notre Dame. I decide that Saladin is going to be eliminated; it is not in the spirit of the scenario, but some of the AI civs are going to die. I need to have enough land to be strong enough to resist all attack, and Saladin was nice enough to "volunteer" his territory by attacking me. Maybe a more experienced player can afford to take steps to keep AI civs alive through gifting cities or joining wars to defend the weak; I just want to win this game (my first attempt at a cultural victory), and actually finish an RBCiv event. I do not expect to be at all competitive on finish time or scenario points anyway; I'll do what I can, but I'm not a skilled enough player to really push for all the possible points. Let the chips fall where they may, and let the civs die where they may -- I'm going for the win first and foremost.

1166 AD - Gibbon publishes his list of the most powerful -- I'm second, with Toku as #1. Doing better than I thought, as all the unit production is paying off. Having macemen doesn't hurt either, I'm certain.

1178 AD - Alex declared on Izzy! Having been waiting for her to attack me in any case, and with my decision on AI civ deaths made, I also declare. Quick action allows my border units (stationed against a renewed Monty threat) to grab two Spanish workers. They'll be useful clearing jungle, and the diplo boost with Alex will help keep him happy.

Medina also falls this turn -- it has silk and marble (!), plus an Academy. Very nice, although the terrain is moderately junky. That marble will be a HUGE boost for the mid-game wonder building I have planned for culture point purposes.

The following turn, Huayna Capac declares on Hatty, joining Temujin and I. The mutual struggle boost pushes him to +13, and he finally (!) becomes friendly. Maybe it is the agressive AI setting (which I've never played with before), but the AIs sit at +10, +11, even +12 and are only pleased. Whereas their relations with each other are +7, +8 and they are friendly. Huayna Capac would be the only AI civ to reach friendly status all game -- and it would only last for a short while before slipping back to pleased.

Alex is moving fast, and has already taken a Spanish city. My worker-stealing units are scouting for opportunities, and discover the reason why: Izzy has only archers and warriors -- in 1184 AD! -- defending.



My scouting was (as it was throughout this game) pathetic (not that Izzy or Monty allowed open borders), so I had not realized Izzy had no metals. It explains her unusual peacefulness -- she just wasn't strong enough to attack. Anyway, Alex was on the march, but with this weak of defense, I was going to try to poach a city or two if I could. I had only spears and 1 axe (quickly upgraded to a mace) in the area after sending so many units south against Saladin, but I would give it a shot.

I also took the chance to exmaine the broader map a bit, and realized there were three sites in or on the edges of my territory where a small but useful city could be wedged. Settler production was started -- even with the planned conquest of Arabia, and maybe some Spanish territory, I needed more cities.

1190 AD - Monty cancels our trade deal, which could be trouble...but then he joins the dogpile on Izzy! My notes read: "She's doomed." My forces reach the walls of Mecca, but are hammered by 4 catapults. Pause to heal and regroup.

Here's a quick look at the overall diplomatic situation at this point:



I'm at war with Saladin, Isabella, and Hatshepsut. Izzy and Hatty each have two other civs at war with them. Plus Toku is still at war with Fred. Lots of red lines on that screen -- and several members were not long for this world.

1208 AD - Mecca falls to the glorious American forces, and 4 (!) workers are taken! This will be a big help in the postwar redevelopment of former Arabian territory -- Sulla was completely correct in his sponsor's notes when he said the AI does not handle plains well. Mecca is actually a strong city site, and once properly redeveloped would become my second-best hammer city (edged out by Atlanta by 2 base hammers) - wheat, iron, a couple hills, four forests, and lots and lots of plains. With all the plains farmed it would be a fantastic production city, and post-biology...wow.



The capture of Mecca also saw some weedy moves by the AI. My forces where at the walls, threatening, for several turns healing from the cat attack. But on the turn of the capture, two Arab longbowmen were busy defending the iron mine and moving between Mecca and Baghdad to the south. Two extra longbows might well have stopped my attack, at least until I could gather more units.



A couple turns later, my Spanish expeditionary force of 1 mace, 1 pike, and 1 spear manage to capture Seville before Alex can reach it. A very nice city -- rice, banana, cows, and lots of hills and forests.



Seville would become another strong production city, and would eventually generate enough culture to flip Pisae to the east...Pisae just happening to be the Taoist holy city, falling to me bare turns before my cultural victory, far too late for Taoism to actually help me. (All six other religions would play a role in my victory.)

1226 AD - Baghdad falls, and I have my first coastal city. Pretty junky terrain though -- ice, tundra, a couple furs, four coastal tiles, and some plains. Even worse, all the decent tiles are shared with Mecca. But it's on the coast, and Saladin built an Academy there (furs plus coast tiles I guess).

Saladin is down to two cities - Najran at the southern tip on the ice, and a former barb city Saxon a little further east on the tundra. The coast west of Baghdad was owned by a colony of Peter, so all Saladin had left was total junk territory. However, that junk included an iron mine, more furs, and two resources I did not have -- sheep and whales. So I continued my campaign of extermination. Removing any "we yearn to join our motherland" penalties was a nice bonus as well; war weariness was starting to hit my cities hard.

1232 AD - Notre Dame completed in Washington! Culture, great artist points, plus happiness all around - a great combination.



1244 AD - Alex demands Civil Service. I don't think so! I'll take the diplo hit -- my military has grown strong during the war with Saladin. I don't really want a fight with Alex, but I'm not giving up a primo tech like CS for nothing.

Washington starts the Hagia Sophia -- scenario points, and my workers need the boost. Lots of Arabian land to redevelop, Seville needs plenty of work, and I still have jungle to clear near New York and San Francisco in the north and northeast. Plus it's more culture for Washington.

1250 AD - We have our first death.



I didn't know it until later (non-existent scouting again), but Toku has been going nuts out west, and Fred bites the dust. Essentially all of what was once Germany has been absorbed by Japan; Toku will remain the strongest military power right through to the end of the game (although I would be close in strength most of the way), and very competitive in tech right to the end. Toku had two techs I did not within 15 turns of my eventual victory, and not because I was not researching right along.

I also take Najran this turn, frozen chunk of ice that it is. Guess what just became the duty posting of all American officials and officers who screw up in especially noteworthy ways?



1256 AD - I hit Saladin's last city, but Saxon has multiple units. I have to regroup and bring up a couple cats.

Izzy is about to die. Madrid has a single wounded archer left, and the race is on between Alex, Monty, and myself to make the final kill and take the Buddhist holy city. I've already moved this turn, though, so I'm out of the running.



1262 AD - Civ deaths #2 and #3. During the inter-turn, Alex captures Madrid and Spain is no more.

How is it determined which civ moves first? Set order by what was selected during the scenario set up? Anyway, Alex gets the holy city...but I realize that those gems are sitting all alone with no cultural influence claiming them. I need a settler up here, stat! With my widespread forges, gems would be +2 happy faces for my cities.

Down south, my forces capture Saxon...but not before another AI oddity/weed move. Saladin sends a galley with a longbow and settler out to the east. Is Saladin himself attempting a final escape into exile?



If so, he should have done it a few turns earlier. That galley and settler had been sitting for some turns. Probably just going for the open patch east on the coast...but a flight to the farther east (if done earlier) might have saved the Arabian civilization.



Three down.

In other news, I make peace with Hatty. Caesar prompty declares on Hatty. Poor girl, nothing much went right for her in this game.

Boston starts the Hanging Gardens (still not built in 1262 AD). And I found Los Angeles northwest of Washington, finally grabbing the ivory and iron in that area more firmly.



Alex's crushing of Spain opened the area up to fresh settlement; the border conflict with his captured cities would be tight for a while, but the growing cultural might of Washington would make the city viable.

And in a key deal, Monty (MONTY!) agrees to trade me stone for gold and silk. If the deal lasts (and this is Monty), it could be a BIG help for wonders and cathedrals.

[haphazard1]

Now that Arabia had been conquered, it was time to consider the big picture, and how I was going to get three cities to Legendary status for the win. I now had enough territory and cities to maintain a strong empire -- strong enough to keep pace in technology and sustain enough military to defend my key culture cities. I wasn't the absolute strongest in tech or military, but I was near the lead in all areas and in better position overall than any other single civ.

My general plan for cultural victory was based on using my industrious trait to build multiple wonders (especially in beauracracy-boosted Washington), running lots of artists and generating Great Artists (especially in New York), and using free speech and a 20% culture slider to accumulate as much as I could over time. To aid this last goal, I had already been working on spreading the religions I had to as many cities as possible, and building temples everywhere to prepare for three cathedrals of each religion. I had gained Hindusim from the former Arabian cities, and my one Spanish conquest provided Buddhism. Combined with Judaism and the one religion I actually founded, Confucianism, I was well on my way to being able to build four cathedrals in each of my culture cities.

What was missing so far -- you've likely already spotted it in the above paragraphs -- was a decision on which city would be the third leg of my victory tripod. The first two were obvious -- wonder building Washington and great artist farm New York -- but there were several possibilities for the final city: Boston, Chicago, and Atlanta were all viable candidates.

Each had some advantages:
-- Boston was well established (not a lot of general buildings still to be built), had OK hammer production (for building cathedrals), and already had some culture infrastructure in place (library, 2 temples, 2 monastaries, obelisk)
-- Chicago was a holy city, mostly established, and had a little cultural infrastructure in place; moderate hammer production
-- Atlanta was mostly established and had excellent hammer production

Each also had some disadvantages:
-- Boston was nearly at its pre-Biology size limit (too many desert tiles), and would never be able to run many artists
-- Chicago would be larger than Boston, but also had a lot of desert and would never support many artists; also, hammer production was weaker, and it would need to spend time building financial infrastructure to pump gold from the Confucian shrine; Chicago was on a pressured cultural border, and was vulnerable to attack from Greece and (more distantly) the quite powerful Japan
-- Atlanta had little culture in place and only one religion so far; it was potentially my best overall hammer city, and thus might be better utilized as a military center; Atlanta was on a pressured cultural border, and was much more vulnerable to potential attack from Russia, Mongolia, or Rome

I weighed my options, and decided on Boston as the third city. Looking at it from game end perspective, Atlanta might have been the better choice; Boston's weaker hammers made finishing multiple cathedrals a very drawn out task, slowing overall culture accumulation. But the possibility of attack against cities only a couple tiles inside my borders helped tip the final decision.

So I now had peace, plenty of territory to develop, and a plan for victory. With wonders under way in Washington (Hagia Sophia) and Boston (Hanging Gardens), religions being spread, and temples constructed in many cities, things were moving forward nicely.

Although it wasn't going to be one of the big three, I started Angkor Wat in Atlanta. With all these temples, the boosted priest specialists would be useful. The culture would help Atlanta stabilize its borders (Russian influence from Moscow and St Pete was stealing two tiles from the city's cross). And I wanted to keep the wonder away from rivals. In fact, with the industrious civ trait, possession of the former Arabian marble, and stone (for now) from trade with Monty, there was no reason for any remaining wonders to fall to an AI civ. I would need to keep up in tech, of course, but I was doing well there. In fact, Nationalism was due in a couple turns, which would open up the Taj Mahal. It would also bring the Hermitage national wonder, which would be a sizable boost to my victory plans.

1304 AD - Two turns to Nationalism, and a great person is born in Washington! Unfortunately, I'm now 3-for-3 on Great Prophets; it was about a 12% chance, and I was really hoping for a scientist or artist instead. Oh well...that's the result of the jumbled GPP pool in Washington from all the various wonders. At least New York's pool is pure artist.

1316 AD - Nationalism finishes, and I move on to Divine Right, with my great prophet immediately lightbulbing about 2/3 of the tech. Islam will give me a fifth religion to spread for culture and cathedrals, and access to two more wonders will help as well.

I found Houston in a gap in the middle of my empire:



It will never be a very big city, as I will not steal tiles from existing cities for it, but the gap includes a flood plain, a silk, and a gold mine which were out of reach. It's enough for a decent (if small) city.

1322 AD - The following turn, the horn sounds again! Peter has decided he doesn't like me, he really, really doesn't like me.

[haphazard1]

It's a replay of the Saladin situation -- OK but not great relations, then a declaration out of nowhere. My military power is greater than Peter's, my tech (including military tech) is better than Peter's...apparently, I'm going to need a MUCH stronger military to deter attacks from the AI with the "aggressive" setting turned on.

The initial threat is small -- a horse archer and a pair of swords outside Damascus. I scramble a bunch of workers out of there (maybe they helped draw the attack?), and start re-gathering the forces which wiped out Saladin. I've got a good number of well-promoted troops, so fending off Russia shouldn't be that difficult. But another war is really going to crimp my culture plans, and if it gets large will almost certainly wreck my chances at getting points for cathedrals and universities at the 1502 AD checkpoint. Maybe I can fight a couple small actions and make peace quickly?

Or... <lightbulb goes off> ... Peter built the Pyramids and the Sistine Chapel! Most likely both in Moscow...I think my military counter-attack just got a target.

Washington just finished the Hagia Sophia (more culture, improved worker output (much needed), and scenario points -- I like it). Even better, it means my Herioc Epic/beauracracy capital can churn troops for a while.

The next few turns see skirmishing around Damascus as my troops assemble. I lost a couple tiles to pillaging, but the city holds easily. So far no action around Atlanta or Seattle, although both share borders with Russia. Chichen Itza is built in a far away land (not getting those scenario points), and in 1340 AD I complete Divine Right and Islam is founded in Houston:



It's another step toward victory, joined by the completion of the Hanging Gardens in Boston (more culture for city #3). 1340 AD and I still got the Gardens. 16 points of population and a permanent +1 health which will be useful for larger cities and more artists.

My counter-attack on Russia begins to roll, as I take Peter's colony west of former Arabia.



I also have troops advancing on Moscow, but Russian resistance is fierce. Peter has machinery tech, and shock-promoted crossbows come after my macemen. I am researching guilds to get knights to clear out these annoying foes, but in the meantime horse archers and even longbows are used to crush them. Peter also makes use of catapults, and five of them hammer my stack as it reaches Moscow - OUCH!

However, it is not enough to stop me, and despite significant losses Moscow is taken in 1370 AD:



Peter still has units for a counter-attack (note the horse archer, 2 crossbows, and a maceman - Peter got Beauracracy a couple turns earlier), and my forces are rather chewed up. But the prize was well worth it:



The Pyramids, Sistine Chapel, an Academy, plus a granary, forge, and market -- a VERY nice addition to my empire! Plus, within Moscow's eventual radius is a source of silver -- 2 more happy faces for my forge-driven cities, once I get some culture here.

Here's a quick globe view of the world as I knew it in 1370 AD:



Yes, I have FINALLY just recently gotten some units out scouting and learned a bit about the other civs. It's an area I need to improve on in future games. I have 19 cities with my two Russian acquisitions. Most are either building military or basic infrastructure (former Arabia), with a couple working on monastaries as part of my "spread the religions" cultural plan.

Over the next few turns not much of note happens. I hold Moscow against Peter's counter-attack, and begin moving toward my next targets. Monty asks me to join his war with Egypt, and I gladly agree for the diplo bonus. Maybe I can keep that stone deal going after all.

1394 AD - I finish Guilds and upgrade my mounted units to Knights -- this should help greatly with those damnable shock-promoted crossbows. I begin researching Banking, both for stronger finances and because the Pyramids have opened the possibility of a double-switch to Representation and Mercantilism.

I capture Yaroslavl' and proceed against the new Russian capital of Rostov. Peter's resistance has faded, and the crossbows are no longer very effective with knights in the picture...although Peter suddenly shows up with knights of his own. Not enough of them, though, and Rostov falls.



My own forces are getting a bit depleted, and I have taken my major objectives from Russia - the Pyramids and Sistine Chapel. I offer peace to Peter for all his gold (420), and he agrees. I have also made peace with Hatty once Monty did, so I can get rid of war weariness and try to get back to my plan.

The next few turns go swiftly, with research moving through Banking and Paper to Education. I'm not going to have universities in 1502 AD, obviously. Angkor Wat completes in Atlanta, which immediately starts the Spiral Minaret. This is purely a keep away move, plus some more culture to help Atlanta's borders. I do not have a state religion, so the Minaret's bonus won't actually help me.

[haphazard1]

1460 AD - a great scientist is born in Washington. Still not a great artist, but the odds of that were low, due to the Great Library. I consider building an academy for culture and science in one of the big three, but in what may be a move I instead lightbulb 90% of Education. 10 turns to 1 turn -- not bad! Maybe I can squeeze in a university or two...and increasing my edge in tech is never a bad thing. I will take Economics after Education, as there is not much risk of losing Liberalism and I would prefer to only swap civics once.

1496 AD - Huayna Capac declares on Hatty...Egypt has been a punching bag for most of the game. I get a bit of a scare as an Aztec Great Engineer is born...but fortunately Monty does not have either Divine Right or Nationalism, so he can not rush one of the wonders I am already building.

I also notice an oddity near Moscow - check out the circled tile:



A flood plains/grassland? I'm thinking this is an after-effect of Sulla modifying the AI civs' starting locations. Still, heck of a nice tile to feed the city.

1502 AD - Checkpoint time! I have completed zero universities and zero cathedrals...ouch. Zero scenario points for me. My scouting is finally revealing more of the world...



...which Toku has just finished circumnavigating. In happier news, Washington completes an important project:



The golden age boosts projects throughout the empire over the next ten turns, driving my cultural plans forward. Among the gains are the Spiral Minaret in Atlanta and more importantly Versailles, which significantly boosts Boston's culture. (Forgot to get a screenshot of this one.) Sure, it is only 4 tiles from my capital in Washington, but the 10 base culture points in the weakest of my big three was the goal. I have built the Forbidden Palace in Damascus to reduce corruption in my southern and eastern territories.

During this time I also found Portland, finally getting a city in former Spanish territory to grab those gems:



It will mean more border penalties with Alex, but I am already getting a -4 there; I don't think it can get worse than that.

I also finish a bank in my holy city of Chicago and a grocer in my capital. The additional funds allow me to raise research back to 80%.

1532 - A report indicates Temujin has taken Memphis. Hatty is crumbling steadily; I don't think she will survive much longer.

I complete Constitution and being researching Printing Press, the final prereq for Democracy, which I plan to grab as the Liberalism free tech. With as many cities as I control, the Statue of Liberty will be a huge benefit.

A couple turns later, though, the Incas complete Education. I need to finish Printing Press and grab Liberalism quickly! Khan also takes Elephantine - Hatty is fading fast.

1559 AD - Temujin adopts Vassalage and Theocracy! Uh oh...quick check, yep, he has enough on his hands already. I sure hope this is because of his ongoing war with Hatty....

1568 AD - Temujin captures Giza! It was nice knowing you, Hatty.... Also, a great artist is born in Washington! This time it was a decent chance (about 45%), but it was nice to see a GA this time. GA #2 joins GA #1 in Washington, contemplating the great work he will eventually create.

On the Russian front, Peter offers Open Borders, which I gladly accept. The cultural pressure on my captured Russian cities has been immense, especially Yaroslavl, which was totally surrounded! I hastily shuffle some more troops there, to eliminate flip chances; the city has already had one Russian revolt.

1574 AD - I finish Liberalism, and take Democracy as planned:



I start Washington on the Statue of Liberty - ack! Even with Industrious, Beauracracy, Forge, and copper, it is going to take 27 turns!



Note the 7 forests at Washington -- I generally avoid chopping whenever possible. Maybe this is a weakness in my early game, not rushing settlers or key buildings. But with Replaceable Parts being researched, those forests will soon contribute many more hammers.

I begin the freedom revolution -- Free Speech, Free Religion, Free Markets. I considered Representation and Mercantilism, but adding a fourth swap would have bumped up the already painful anarchy time. Also, I had a lot of foreign trade routes (since I had so many cities) bringing in a lot of income. I decided to forego mercantilism and wait for the Statue to give me some extra specialists.

From an end-game perspective, this may have been another mistake. I could have sustained the financial loss of mercantilism (I was at 80% research after all), and the extra artist specialists in my big three, and extra Angkor Wat-boosted priest everywhere else, would likely have been well worth it.

Also this turn, Temujin takes ANOTHER Egyption city -- Heliopolis. Hatty is down to one city...which is captured the following turn by Huayna Capac. Bye bye, Egypt and 4 scenario points.

1592 AD - Once I come out of anarchy and adjust to my new civics, I set the culture slider to 20% and leave it there for the rest of the game. The following turns are quiet, as I research through Replaceable Parts to Corporation and (after a quick trade with Alex of Economics for Gunpowder) Rifling.

1628 AD - Great Artist #3 is born in New York, and joins his fellows in waiting.

Peter demands Liberalism, and is refused. He then cancels Open Borders...looks like renewed war with Russia is coming. Hopefully it will hold off a few more turns for Rifling.

1643 AD - Thucydides (who is an old, old dude by now) publishes his list of the wealthiest civs. I'm first, with 3352 gold:



It's nice -- for about 5 seconds, as Rifling tech finishes and I immediately spend all but 57 gold on upgrading my units. 3295 gold buys upgrades for 14 units, and I have a solid force of combat raider 2 and 3 rifles. War with Peter very soon now.

[haphazard1]

To recover my financial strength, I have been building banks, and am finally able to begin Wall Street in my holy city of Chicago.

In less pleasant news, Moscow has a Russian revolt! It has 740 culture (ack! not quite enough for a border pop!) and 14 units! But still it revolts, under heavy cultural pressure from St Pete and Novgorod. Yaroslavl is also still a single tile city. I need to crush Peter just to free these cities up and let them grow.

1661 AD - I finish Chemistry and start researching Steam Power, heading for Assembly Line. More importantly, Washington finishes its latest project:



I decide to (partially) correct my earlier civics mistake and start a double swap to Representation and Caste System. Combined with the free specialist from the Statue, my biggest cities -- including my great artist farm at New York -- can now run more specialists than their artist limits.

As soon as I come out of anarchy, I sound the horn myself and declare war on Peter. It's time to finish this border pressure issue once and for all! This is the only non-sham war I declare over the course of the game; all the other actual fighting has been in wars declared on me.

The next few turns see heavy fighting in Russian territory as I advance on the capital of Novgorod. Peter has knights, muskets, and lots of catapults, and he throws over 15 units at my advancing troops. Heavy losses on both sides, but I continue to move forward. Rifles are just too much for Peter's older troops.

1682 AD - A great prophet (not ANOTHER one!) is born in Washington. Damn. Chances for a great artist were just over 50%.... There is nothing left for a prophet to lightbulb, and Islam is not spread far enough for a shrine to be worthwhile. I consider settling him, but it is too late in the game for that to pay off. I hold the prophet in Washington, in case I get another non-artist (or the Scientist at Physics) and can trigger a golden age.

Also this turn, Temujin declares on Julius Caesar! I'm glad it isn't me, but this is not good news for Rome. And indeed, the following turn has Alex declare on Caesar, and launch an attack which captures Pisae! Rome is in trouble, but I am busy with Peter and have decided not to try and save AI civs anyway. I consider declaring on Rome as well for the diplo bonus with Temujin and Alex, but I have very close borders in two cities with Rome. With my troops busy in Russia, I do not want to risk losing a city.

The following turn I finally capture Novgorod:



The cultural pressure on my cities is largely relieved, and Novgorod has an Academy and numerous lesser buildings. This will bring my first border contact - and diplo penalties for same, eventually -- with Temujin.

Speaking of whom, the Khan captures Neapolis the same turn. Rome only had a handful of cities, and two are already gone. As with Spain, this may open opporuntities for a little poaching. I start building a settler just in case.

1694 AD - Steam Power completes, and I find 4 sources of coal in my territory! Excellent, no shortage of this key resource. Not that I really expected a problem, given how much land I now control. But with Sulla setting up the scenario, who knows what sneaky tricks may have been pulled with map edits?

I also finish Oxford University in Washington -- a little more culture, and Washington is my best science city.

The following turn, Alex asks me to join in wiping out the Romans, and I agree. I have moved up some troops, and much of Caesar's strength has been smashed by now.

I capture St Petersburg after a brisk fight, finally relieving the cultural pressure on Moscow...which has ANOTHER Russian revolt anyway. That makes four revolts...city couldn't actually manage to produce anything, and starved down quite a bit in the few turns between revolts. But this should be the last one...and wonders don't lose their effects during revolts, thankfully.

For a little more AI weed, check out the Russian musket northwest of St Pete, busily pillaging my iron mine rather than defending the rapidly dwindling homeland:

[haphazard1]

1700 AD - Alex razes Cumae, clearing away the Roman influence in the area. My borders expand hugely, grabbing over a dozen tiles of formerly Roman territory. My vulture settler is almost ready to go, fortunately.

1706 AD - Yekaterinberg falls, and Russia is no more.



Wait a minute...there's no message! Peter must have another city somewhere. Well, maybe I can keep those 4 scenario points after all...assuming someone else doesn't stomp him. Since wherever Peter has gone does not seem to be close to me, I sign peace, getting his map in the deal. Yep, Russia apparently vultured a city into what used to be Egyptian territory:



Over the next few turns, Alex captures Antium, cutting Rome down to just the capital. I move into the now unclaimed territory and found St Louis in 1712 AD:



Note the ruins of Roman Cumae 2W1S. The new site does not overlap with San Francisco, and claims iron, cows, and a sugar to the east (under the popup). It will have some border conflict with Temujin's new city (also under the popup, unfortunately; not sure why some screenshots have the popup and others do not), but with Free Speech running this will not be an issue.

Look at the land around St Louis, and keep this date (1712 AD) in mind. I will research Biology fairly soon, and all the tiles around the city will be farmed. St Louis will get HUGE, very very fast; by game end in 1868 AD, it will be over size 20 and still growing.

1718 AD - Temujin captured Rome, and another civ is eliminated from the game. Bye bye, Julius and 4 more scenario points.

From this point to the end of the game, I was at peace with the remaining civs, and they all remained at peace with each other. There was plenty of saber-rattling, and build ups of military force, but there were no further wars. I continued building up my military a bit here, and a bit there, and would upgrade my troops as money and better tech became available. I led in power rating only occasionally; most of the time Toku was in the lead with Temujin not far behind. But apparently my military was strong enough, combined with my tech, to deter any further attacks. My diplomatic relations were not significantly better than they had been with Saladin or Peter, just prior to their declarations, so I was occasionally worried during the remainder of the game. But everyone other than Peter (for obvious reasons) remained in 'Pleased' status for the rest of the game.