[SPOILERS] This Is Asgard! A Tale of Post-Ragnarok Midgard

[oledavy]

Everyone I have ever known...is dead.


The gods....are no more.


Odin...Thor...Freyr...Loki...all gone. All perished in the final battle. As they fell one by one, Midgard was flooded, and our way of life, completely destroyed.


My name is Lífþrasir. Lif and I have wandered for days and found no one left. How we survived among so much destruction, I can only ascribe to the will of the gods. It has long been written that two would survive Ragnarok, but I never thought we would live to see such days, let alone be the remnant of humanity

And so, as we stride among born-again Midgard, we must fulfill the prophecy. It is said that from us, a great progeny will be descended that will reclaim the world. They will build a new civilization, one that will reach greater heights than those who came before. However, every step in our new path, we shall remember the gods who fell fighting Jörmungandr, Fenrir and the countless other foes. We shall honor them and the nine worlds in the names of our sons, or daughters, and our cities. We shall remember with every step them as we march resolutely into this brave new world.

[oledavy]

So, this fall I'm taking a class on Norse Mythology. To help get me acquainted with the source material (and because it sounded fun), I decided to go with a Norse Mythology theme in this game. Cities will be named after locations in Norse mythology, and units will be named after characters.

With this theme, I feel like I have to pick Denmark. While I won't say they're an awful civ by any stretch, there will definitely be much stronger options on the table by the time I get to pick, and I seriously doubt I will have any competition for them. "So, Dave," you ask, "are you conceding the game before it even begins?" No, while they're definitely a weak option, the Danes still definitely have some things going for them. Furthermore, I feel like I can get away with a sub-par pick in this setting. This is a pretty casual game with some players who are really new at Civ5. I feel like I have significantly more experience (albeit against exploitable AIs) than anyone else. So, a bit of a handicap on myself feels fair (and if I lose, I can blame it on my pick! ). Plus, Denmark struck me as more fun to play than any of the high-tier civs which are played to death. And in the end, I'd like to have some fun with this game I'm going to play to win obviously, but no matter how this pans out, I'm going to have more fun role-playing a bit, reading a lot of Norse mythology, and using Denmark's awesome UA and UUs.

So, let me introduce your readers to Denmark!!!



A much more impressive beard than mine.

Denmark is one of the better conquest-oriented civs in the game. So yes, you're going to see some from me (provided I land them of course).

The key thing to look at with Denmark is their UA, and it's synergies with the Berserker

Denmark gets a coastal start bias, and definitely benefits from it because they attack better over water (the main reason they're weak on pangaea). Getting half of England's bonus on embarked units makes a dramatic difference in the early game, and paying just one movement point to land your units means your amphibious units can come off the boats pillaging and fighting, making attacks across water really scary. The big bonus here is the 'no movement cost to pillage.' That may not sound like anything significant, but in Civ5, pillaging restores 25hp to your units. You can sustain an attack on your enemy by pillaging and plundering their land, and Denmark's UA allows you to do this without expending movement points. This is a really useful military advantage, but you have to be fighting to use it

This is where the Beserker comes in. It's a longswordsmen replacement that starts with amphibious and has three moment points. Three movement is a key number because it allows you to attack a city from outside the range of it's attack. All of this synergizes to create a truly terrifying unit. A unit that can move quickly over water, have movement points left after coming ashore, attack from the sea or across rivers without penalty, and can heal off enemy lands without expending movement points.

Terrifying, but extremely niche. Also ungodly fun.

Denmark's other UU is rather lackluster by comparison, and comes too late to make much of a difference. Norwegian Ski Infantry are a rifleman replacement that treat hills like roads. They may come into play here, but the game will probably already be decided by that time.

So, one way or another, there will be blood. Pillaging opponents and bullying city-states could be a very good way to fund my economic expansion. We'll see what happens

[oledavy]

Ichabod already picked one of my personal top five strongest civs (Mongolia). The others are:

Siam
France
Greece
Babylon

On another note....Keshiks

Hope I don't start next to him

[yuris125]

Are Keshiks strong in G&K? I remember being unimpressed by them in Vanilla. Of course, maybe I just missed a crucial detail

No comment on Norwegian Ski Infantry being Danish UU?

[oledavy]

Are Keshiks strong in G&K? I remember being unimpressed by them in Vanilla. Of course, maybe I just missed a crucial detail

Allow me to explain to you the unholy terror that is the Keshik.



First off, it's a Knight Replacement, comes during the early Medieval era with the research of Chivalry. Unlike the Knight, it cannot melee attack. It has 15 str. (compared to the knight's 20), 16 ranged strength, and a range of 2. It also gets 5 movement point, compared to the Knight's 4. However, with the Mongol's UA, this is buffed to six.

So, you say, big whoop...

Wrong! This unit has more mobility than anything until helicopter gunships. Moreover, it can use that mobility to devastating effect, serving practically as 'flying artillery.'

Let's look at the unique attributes:

CAN MOVE AFTER ATTACKING
Quick Study
Great Generals I

They key one here is the first. The Keshik can move 2 tiles out of the fog, fire, then retreat out of range. And it can do this over and over again. On open terrain these things are unstoppable. It's only in rough terrain that the defender has any chance to catch them out in the open.

Quick Study allows the unit to attain promotions 50% faster. And GGI doubles the xp from the unit that goes into the GG counter, generating the other OP Mongolian UU (the Khan) faster. So, not only do you have a unit that can attack out of the fog and retreat with impunity, but one that becomes highly promoted very fast and generates its complementary UU quickly.

A generally good strategy for Mongolia is to build Chariot Archers (which usually nobody builds) stack promotions on them, then upgrade them to Keshiks. The only disappointing thing about this UU is that they upgrade into the normal progression of melee cav units, so some of their ranged promotions can go to waste (though most transfer).

So yeah, if I start next to Ichabod, one of two things is going to happen:
1. We're going to reach an understanding that we should work together with our militaristic civilizations to conquer the world.
2. I'm going to do everything in my power to destroy him before Chivalry.

These things are legitimately terrifying, worse than Phracts or Praets in Civ4 ever were.

No comment on Norwegian Ski Infantry being Danish UU?

No, not really. My Nordic history knowledge, is, I will freely admit, incomplete. However, based on what I do know, considering how much of their history that both Denmark and Norway were the same kingdom, as well as the cultural links between the two, I don't find it particularly odd to give the Danes that unit.

[BRickAstley]

So, I barely play Civ 5, so this might be a dumb question; but since I only see the 2 UUs, do you not have a UB?

[oledavy]

So, I barely play Civ 5, so this might be a dumb question; but since I only see the 2 UUs, do you not have a UB?

Yep! Each civ receives either 2 UUs or a UU and a UB. Denmark is one of the ones with 2 UUs.

[oledavy]

I'd rate Maya 6th or 7th best civ. Good pick by Serdoa, though I feel like there were better Civs out there.

If he does a theology beeline to capitalize on his UA ASAP, he'll be vulnerable to an early rush with swords.

[oledavy]

Arabia is an interesting pick. Not bad by any stretch, but it wouldn't be my first choice in an MP setting.

Banning Desert Folklore was a huge stealth nerf to Arabia, given Arabia's desert start bias. Lest anyone think I was trying to screw over Arabia by banning the belief, trust me, it was necessary. Desert folklore is just so much stronger than any of the other pantheon beliefs that it's a game changer.

So, Arabia:

UA (Trade Caravans): Eh..........it's going to produce one extra gpt for every city you have hooked into your trade network. And double oil resources is nice. You don't pick Arabia for their UA though.
UB (Bazaar): OMFGHAX. This UB is extremely powerful in SP, where you can find AI buyers for every luxury you hook up. However, in MP, it's impact is significantly lessened. Good, just not nearly as great.
UU (Camel Archers): Like Keshiks, only worse. Less movement, no starting GGI or QS. However, Camel Archers do have higher ranged damage (21 vs 16) and more strength (17 vs. 15). Not nearly as terrifying as Keshiks, but still a unit to be feared. They're more tanky compared to the light and fast Keshik. I truly hope we get some Camel Archer vs. Keshik action out of this game, mostly because it would amuse me

[oledavy]

You lurkers might kill me...

but I'm starting to reconsider Denmark.

I have a 3/5 chance so far of landing next to three excellent chivalry UUs that all stomp Beserkers during the one part of the game I might have an otherwise have an advantage. Sounding less and less fun all the time.