[PB74 Spoilers] GKC's Wonder Emporium

[Mjmd]

Hows it looking. Thoughts?

[GeneralKilCavalry]

Empire status from a few turns ago. Connecting gems rn, get BW next turn, starting on settler 2 after that. Pretty slow start, probably micro'ed something not all that well.

[GeneralKilCavalry]

Popped writing from a goody hut. plan is to math/aesthetics and grab parthenon/HG, grab some early GPP generation. No one has done oracle yet, which is surprising, but not really, how people are playing lately.

[GeneralKilCavalry]

Doing quite well thanks to quiet isolation. Pottery in 2 turns, gonna pump out a few workers/settlers/axes, and then granaries in cities (pretty late, but whatever). Still trying to decide what wonders I should go for, but I think I will directly plant a city on the island you can see in the image to the southeast, getting stone, and then just pump out a really fast hanging gardens and a moai in an island city that will pump triremes + galleys. The early elephants + math rush make me want to do some warphants, but maybe trying to grab an early HBR and harassing metal is not a bad idea.

Frankly, I'm doing my usual terrible thing of "winging it", didn't even bother with a micro spreadsheet this time, other than some back-of-the-envelope (literally!!) calculations I did at work from memory of the start lol. But the situation looks better than in the past few games, I'm not next to gavagai (this would've been the third time!), so maybe I should sit down and figure out a real game plan...

Maybe there's a point in grabbing metal casting and going for colossus? Maybe a TGL? I think I have to leverage ind/phi ASAP. One obvious thing is building a library... perhaps that even comes before a granary in the capital? It's not like im gonna get more happy any time soon...

Speaking of happy, I'm a big fan of rushing herd rule, I think there's not *that* many calendar resources directly near me to leverage. So maybe try grabbing mono->herd rule? I'm also not sure if oracle is totally ruled out here, idk how late ppl have been building it lately.

So ok, let's break this down into a list of possible tasks/goals:

Build library -- 90 hammers --> do i forgo granary for this, just to run a specialist? I think so... But what do i want with a scientist.
build TGL -- 200, need sailing and masonry
build coloSUS -- need metal casting, forgo my advantage of probably being one of the first to writing, don't like this
build HGarden, go for math, will make my early chops->snowball faster->opens path to warelephants by turn ~75-80...
Horcher rush -- Banal but perhaps nobody expect Nebuchannezar of france to hit you with a horse archer rush turn 80.
Rush for monarchy -- maybe grab religion or oracle in process, high risk/high reward. Leverage into strong expansion, and then do HGR + other stuff.

I really am forgetful of the timing of things at this point, we're playing on monarch, so for me the current state of my progress seems slow, though im far too used to the quick/small settings of ladder.

[GeneralKilCavalry]

As flavor for the thread, and to get myself into the habit of posting again, especially now that I have time after being done with JWST proposals, here's some thematic music for my leader, Nebuchadnezzar




Lyrics, translated from Russian:
Earth is haven for a moment, but life is wonderous nonsense
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar

(refrain)
So eat chalk, drink mercury, burn blood, be quick
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar

City walls are but rubbish below his feet
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar
(refrain) 

The fool's pathetic, the executioner's axe -- absurd
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar 
(refrain)

And run in circles, driven by spurs
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar 
(refrain)

Beat on your chest like a drum, against all odds,
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar 
So eat chalk, drink mercury, burn blood, be quick
Nebu-nebu-nebu-nebu-chadnezzar

[Old Harry]

What did you propose?

[GeneralKilCavalry]

I think I've decided to rush HBR and a neighbor. The land in front of me is jungled/high investment to work. There's a few island cities I can settle, but expansion is the name of the game. And I think w/ 4 cities next turn, 5 soon after, I should have the production needed to quickly rush

[GeneralKilCavalry]

Looks like someone near me has gotten metal casting...

Currently sitting on HBR 1 turn off to not scare neighbors
Plan is as follows:
GSCI in 7, doing masonry for 2 turns, then 5 turns of gold saving. Should be on 5 cities soon, I have settler coming out in 2. Then will start on another to settle the island for stone and get some of that sweet sweet ICTR. Then, plan is to rush construction, get catapults/warphants before T100. Might be overkill, but having a few warphants+cats along with a mostly axe/Horcher army will be enough to take out nearest neighbors. Will probably slot in a hanging gardens for some extra whipping along the way.

[Thoth]

GS is for Academy?  Or Math bulb?

Either way, welliepult rush is always fun! 

[GeneralKilCavalry]

Used the GS on math. I have construction done, but pumping out horchers now to rush metal. He's left cities next to me entirely undefended, and 7 horchers should be enough to make significant gains. I'll probably build a catapult and warphant or two of each as backup, to threaten any sack he has fighting Donovan.

Island city is up and running, next one to be built shortly. Will be on 8 cities. Plan is to then grab Hgardens, get an extra pop everywhere, and start on aesthetics, while building units to crush mig. So double-pronged strategy. Fight all neighbors bc/ they are looking WEAK, and get wonders because they look JUICY. Need to grab IW some time too, I have it half-researched. too much jungle.