-->If you are a fellow participant in the inaugural Pitboss game at the Realms Beyond, please do not read any further<--

Welcome to the home thread of mostly_harmless and Kodii!

We are more than happy to hear your thoughts, comments and support, but please keep all spoilers out. This includes spoilers from this Pitboss game, the RB PBEM, CivFanatics MTDG and Apolyton BTSDG. Both m_h and I are participants in more than one of the above.

Enjoy your stay!

TheArchDuke and I do battle with the RB Crowd ... watch how we do.

Latest version: MoO 1.40m patch.

[MODERATOR ACTION:  The previous link to the 1.40M patch appears to be broken, so I've attached a link to another copy in its place:

Version 1.40m

The link that used to point to the copy on kyrub's hosting space is in spoilers below.]

• bugs corrected- the races now have the appropriate choice of objective  at the beginning of a game - the AI now uses the right race and the right objective when it takes decision about where to allocate the research points- the spies you educate on the same turn against different races are no more overpriced - breaking a NAP / alliance no more positively contributes to your rellations with the AIs (-10, -20 respectively)- the player (AI or Human) who commits an oath breaker is not taken as a victim anymore, but as the tresspasser- combat transporters now work, subspace interdictor works against them - 8th stargate bug corrected (no ship maintenance overflow)- bombing damage with torps halved, normal damage with missiles (was the contrary)- AI-AI positive diplomacy problem  corrected- the AI now correctly uses the radius of action  during its decision making- the AI intentionally aggressive fleet positioning during the final war now actually works- a small issue concerning the change in AI defence and ship production when too many MBases on a planet, has been corrected- the Guardian now gets  on impossible Adv.dam.control, hard gets Adv.rep.system, others none (was Adv. dam.control only on hard )- the research BC now get no 90% discount when starting new technology project- Silicoids do not have unusable techs in their tech tree: they now always get the Cloning tech

• flaws (= not exactly bugs, but clearly not intentional issues)- Bulrathis bombing decision when they are orbiting a planet and have transports incoming corrected to reflect their race gropo bonus- Alkaris and Mrrshans bonus for AI-AI combat corrected to reflect their race bonus- early tech decisions corrected to include a fourth decision point for all AI races- all diplomatic temporary modifiers are now really capped at 100 (was 109)

• interface changes- you may 'continue' a game directly by running starmap.exe- the game autosaves every turn in save9.gam (for the purpose of bug reports)- "SPACE bar" = continue, process to the next / works now on many screens- hotkey "A" = accept dispatching of a fleet, transport etc.- side cursor works for a single slider on a screen- rehaul of TECH screen, TAB runs through tech fields, hotkeys, the diodes lit under the tech level show when you reach max research bonus- rehaul of RACES screen, hotkeys, clickable portraits bring REPORT page- REPORT screen shows name of AI leaders, MAP screen shows current year- after running through the Next turn phase + extra messages (shield build, max pop reached...), the game always recenters on your last planet of choice

Ok, so let me quickly discuss my enemies in this game, and then my opening strategy (before seeing the map).



*shadyforce - Willem (Cre/Fin) / Persia
--> Willem is probably the best leader in BtS, and Persia is a great early rush civ (though not as good as Zulu or the not-present Egypt).
*Broker33 - Zara (Cre/Org) / Holy Roman Empire
--> I have fond feeling towards Zara because of the demogame, but Cre/Org isn't the strongest economic paring, though it isn't bad. HRE has great synergy though, and if ancient UUs keep the Imp teams from expanding too much early Broker could be well placed for mid-game expansion.
*regoarrarr + Danski - Hatty (Cre/Spi) / India
--> Hatty is my favorite leader to play, because it requires essentially no micro - every resource can be hooked up and civic swaps are free. India is also very strong, with the best UU overall in the game.
*Krill + memphus - Joao (Exp/Imp) / Inca
-->This is the top expansion tech paring. However against human opponents I think it's better to have stronger cities than more cities if you have weak power. Of course, if the SP crown won't declare on anyone then the Imp teams may be able to out-settle everyone else. On the civ front I don't think quechuas will offer a lot, but the UB provides the Creative trait pretty much for free...as if there wasn't enough early culture in this game
*dsplaisted + Fenton Denton Smith - Suryavarman II (Cre/Exp) / Mali
*Dreylin + kalin - Catherine (Cre/Imp) / Sumeria
-->This is the second best expansion pair...hopefully this team, Krill's, and Imhotep's will all spawn next to one another Sumeria is probably a poor choice, at least for the UU. Without Aggressive Vultures are worse than axemen.
*mostly_harmless + Kodii - Louis (Cre/Ind) / Byzantium
-->The only Industrious civ, which makes the trait much better. Indy's value is inversely correlated to the nunber of Indy civs. Byzantium has the most overpowered unit in the game, so any Guilds-era wars will be tough on M_H and Kodii's enemies.
*Imhotep - Genghis Khan Temujin (Agg/Imp) / Zulu
-->People better be on their guard here. Aggressive Zulu is not to be trifled with. On the other hand, Agg does nothing for the economy, and Imperialistic isn't too great if your neighbors will call you on a paper military.
*sunrise089 - Mansa Musa (Fin/Spi) / Spain
-->Nice pick! ()
*Ruff - Kublai Khan (Agg/Cre) / Rome
-->Aggressive Rome...scary! MP teaches us that there is no real counter to agg Rome, but at least I should have some warning since Praets are a few techs in.
*ZPVCSPLFUIFDPEF - Washington (Chm/Exp) / Carthage
-->This is a big rush combo as well. MP guys know Chm/Exp is the best rushing combo for mounted units. I'm glad ZPV didn't take Egypt or Persia, that's for sure. The big rush defense is horse archers, since Nunidian Cavalry units are only strength 5, so I may want to get HAs sooner rather than later is ZPV is a neighbor and has high power. After the early game Charismatic is a weak trait, and all else being equal my traits should allow me to keep ahead in tech.
________

Now as for my strategy - I only have two ideas at present.

First, I'm praying for a coast, lake, or Oasis tile at the start. You've probably noticed many of the other civs start with Mystacism. But I'm the only civ to have Mystacism and Fishing, plus I'm financial. So I'm 100% guaranteed a religion if I have a 2-commerce tile at my start. I think a religion will be extra valuable in this game, first because of its relative rarity, and second because as a spiritual civ I can leverage religion better.

In fact, my early strategy is to nullify the other teams' selection of Creative leaders by getting a religion and Stonehenge. I plan to start 'Henge right away and research Polytheism and then Organized Religion early, hopefully getting the 25% production bonus to try to keep up with the Industrious civ.

Second, in the late game I want to leverage my Spiritual trait a lot. I plan to switch between Nationhood+slavery+theocracy and Bureaucracy+serfdom+organized religion/pacifism. I think the lack of Spiritual traits will hurt many of the other teams in the late game - nothing makes it easier to adapt to the needs of the moment than does Spiritual.

Hello all and welcome!

In fine RB tradition we're going to play a fun and wacky game. This time it's a Pitboss game with 11 different human-controlled civilizations

Pitboss is a type of Civ IV multiplayer that allows players to connect to a game hosted online at their own pace. Unlike PBEM turns happen simultaneously, so players can take as much or as little time as they would like to play. The game will be played with a turn timer, and we anticipate the entire game will take between 6 months and a year to complete.

Anyways, feel free to discuss the game here without any players looking over your shoulder. Also, anyone interested in some info and stats, keep reading:
______________________________

Our 11 Pitboss Teams:

*shadyforce - Willem (Cre/Fin) / Persia (Immortal, chariot with +50% versus archery units and receives defensive bonuses/Apothecary, gorcer with +2 health/Agriculture+Hunting)
*Broker33 - Zara (Cre/Org) / Holy Roman Empire (Landsknecht, pikeman that has +100% versus melee units/Rathaus, Courthouse with an extra 25% maintenance reduction/Hunting+Mysticism)
*regoarrarr + Danski - Hatty (Cre/Spi) / India (Fast Worker, moves 3 tiles/Mausoleum, +2 happy jail/Mining+Mysticism)
*Krill + memphus - Joao (Exp/Imp) / Inca (Quechua, starts with combat 1 and 100% vs. archery units/Terrace, granary with +2 culture/Agriculture+Mysticism)
*dsplaisted + Fenton Denton Smith - Suryavarman II (Cre/Exp) / Mali (Skirmisher, strength 4 archer/Mint, forge that gives +10% gold/Mining+The Wheel
*Dreylin + kalin - Catherine (Cre/Imp) / Sumeria (Vulture, strength 6 axeman but only 25% bonus versus melee units/Ziggurat, courthouse available at Priesthood and 30 hammers cheaper than normal/Agriculture+The Wheel)
*mostly_harmless + Kodii - Louis (Cre/Ind) / Byzantium (Cataphract, strength 12 knight/Hippodrome, theater that gives +1 happiness from horses and +1 happiness per 5% culture, Mysticism+The Wheel)
*Imhotep - Genghis Khan Temujin (Agg/Imp) / Zulu (Impi, 2-move spear with mobility/Ikhanda, barracks that reduces maintenance/Agriculture+Hunting)
*sunrise089 - Mansa Musa (Fin/Spi) / Spain (Conquistador, cuirassier that receives defensive bonuses/Citadel, castle that gives +2 exp to siege units/Fishing+Mysticism)
*Ruff+TheArchduke - Kublai Khan (Agg/Cre) / Rome (Praetorian, strength 8 swordsman/Forum, market that gives small GPP boost/Fishing+Mining)
*ZPVCSPLFUIFDPEF - Washington (Chm/Exp) / Carthage (Numidian Cavalry, strength 5 horse archer with 50% bonus versus melee units/Cothon, harbor with +1 trade routes/Fishing+Mining)

Some stats for the lurkers:

Overall pick order:

*Willem
*Zara
*India
*Inca
*Suryavarman
*Sumeria
*Louis
*Zulu
*Mansa Musa
*Rome
*Washington/Carthage
*Kublai Khan
*Spain
*Genghis Khan
*Byzantium
*Catherine
*Mali
*Joao
*Hatty
*Holy Roman Empire
*Perisa

Traits:
*Creative - 7
*Expansive - 3
*Imperialistic - 3
*Financial - 2
*Spiritual - 2
*Aggressive - 2
*Organized - 1
*Charismatic - 1
*Industrious - 1
*Philosophical - 0
*Protective - 0

Unique units by era:
*Ancient - 6
*Classical - 2
*Medieval - 2
*Renaissance - 1
*Industrial - 0
*Modern - 0

Unique units by type:
*Melee - 5
*Mounted - 4
*Archery - 1
*Non-combatant - 1

Unique building bonus:
*Economic - 5
*Health/happiness - 3
*Military - 1
*Culture - 1
*Great people - 1

Starting techs:
*Mysticism - 5
*Agriculture - 4
*Mining - 4
*Fishing - 3
*Hunting - 3
*The Wheel - 3

Hello all, and welcome to the bar and grill!

I don't think we'll have many customers sitting down at the bar for a few weeks, but check back here as soon as all of the teams have met in game for some fun chats.

Ok starting my thread. Now to figure out how to post a picture.

Greetings!

This thread is for Fenton Denton Smith and me to record our progress in the first RB Civilization IV pitboss game. If you are playing (on another team) in this game, kindly do not read this thread

Important!

Please make every effort to avoid spoilers. Interaction from non-team-members is welcome and encouraged, but be sure that you do not give away information that Fenton and I shouldn't know. For example, asking us what turn we expect to complete a wonder or settle a city might tip us off that another team is trying to do the same thing.

Also, we have two games going on at once now (the PBEM and the Pitboss). Players from the PBEM game may read this thread, so please avoid posting spoilers about the PBEM game here.

Likewise, I will still be reading the PBEM threads, so don't post any spoilers about this game in those threads.

Finally, if you are not playing in this game, you may want to consider being a backup for one of the teams. This would mean you would not be able to read the spoilers for any of the other teams, and that if the team wasn't able to play the turn (due to vacation or other issues), you might be able to. Fenton and I would be more than happy to have a backup, although it might be more fair to choose a 1-player team to serve as the backup for.

Thanks, and enjoy!
Daniel

OK, here we go!

Spoiler thread for Hatshepsut / India