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(July 6th, 2019, 23:54)Charriu Wrote: (July 6th, 2019, 12:05)RegentMan Wrote: I was in a Pitboss back in the day (easily over ten years ago) where I was down to my final city (after putting up a much worse defense than I did this game, if you can believe it!) and I basically capitulated to my conqueror, running pacifism and gifting him all my great persons. I had a fun time being the Croatia or Slovakia to World War II Germany. I have no desire to repeat the experience now. Not only can we not negotiate something similar here, it just doesn't sound appealing to play that role again. Plus, I'd only get ten turns or reprieve before the horses would run forward to a copper-less Eggnog Paradise, and the single chariot I could build in the meantime would not aid me very much.
Here at RB we consider gifting units very bad sportsmanship and a break of the rules.
Yeah but he's referring to a different meta, a full diplomacy game. We have had full diplomacy games with unit purchasing in the past. Selling a Great person for gold and whatnot.
“The wind went mute and the trees in the forest stood still. It was time for the last tale.”
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Yeah it was a full blown diplomacy Pitboss back in the day. This was my first time playing in the "diplo screen only" way; it felt odd not sending out a "Greetings strange ruler. I am RegentMan of Regentia!" every time I stumbled upon a new civ this game!
July 15th, 2019, 03:23
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Seven turns have passed, and Eggnog Paradise remains free. I also realized photobucket puts a huge hosting sticker on the screenies- sorry about that! Hopefully ImageShack will be better.
I started turn 85 by sending out a weak strike force to see what it could do. I didn't just want to sit inside and wait for something to happen. There are enough spears in Eggnog Paradise to ward off a counter-attack, so will Donovan sacrifice a mounted unit or two on that stack, or reinforce Turtledove?
He reinforces Turtledove while also moving a chariot onto my road back to my capital. I call off the attack, and use that road to defeat the chariot (undamaged!) and then move safely into Eggnog Paradise. Well, I guess that stack accomplished something? It did make me realize those roads to Turtledove are vital if I'm to ever launch a speedy counterattack. With the river there, I am able to move two tiles either way, so long as those roads exist.
Turn 89 sees one of those roads being pillaged. I have only one axeman left, so I didn't want to get him killed, even if it's a trade- then a stack of axes could take the capital no problem. As it is now, that axe on a hill will make things more complicated. I also finished building walls in Eggnog Paradise, and am trying to salvage some sort of science position by building a library.
Turn 90 brings a ray of hope to Regentia:
Icehazard has declared war on Donovan! Donovan's now fighting on two fronts (well, technically, even if the eastern front isn't much of a battle now). I reckon this means I'll be alive for awhile longer while Donovan has more pressing matters in the west.
More pressing matters, only in the west...
Turn 91 opens with Commodore offering to send Regentia his only copper. I accepted, naturally. I know he's not doing this out of the kindness of his own heart; he'd rather see his northern neighbors waste resources fighting each other while he gets knights or cuirassiers, then march through Regentia, but this gesture gives Regentia a chance to actually strike back. My axe build from before losing my copper is still ready in one turn, funnily enough. I plan on building a third axe after, then, based on the field, make an attempt to retake my native source of copper via Turtledove. Donovan has two mounted units and one axeman in the area, and I think a combination of three spears and three axes could work.
So a big thanks to Commodore for seeing what was going on and sending me the copper.  I actually noticed I was able to trade for it a few turns back, but concluded it would have been silly to ask. I guess it was silly not to ask- the worst thing he could have done would have been to say no. Lesson learned!
July 17th, 2019, 15:43
(This post was last modified: July 17th, 2019, 15:45 by RegentMan.)
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I found out I already had three axes, so I upped my goal to four, then move out. I was one turn away from that, when my copper got cancelled from Commodore. That confused me, as I thought I had 10 turns of guaranteed copper, and Donovan's navy is non-existent to blockade the trade route. Then I looked at the message log:
Commodore isn't waiting until cuirassiers- he's starting the Donovan dogpile! I have to move out with my original goal of three axes and two spears to liberate Turtledove. This leaves one spear and two warriors in Eggnog Paradise. Not ideal if more than one mounted unit charges in a desperate counterattack on my capital, but I have to take this chance now; I would be feeling pretty silly if Commodore beat me to my own city! I know I'm extremely short on workers, so I'll be having to crank some more of those out. Plus crank some more military to continue the liberation... so much to build and only one (hopefully two!) cities to do it with...
July 18th, 2019, 11:16
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Disaster:
.1 health is going to mean the difference between my attempt to make a comeback and defeat. Donovan sent two axes to Eggnog Paradise, and I have... one spear and two warriors. Maybe I'll get lucky with hills and walls helping, but I won't hold my breath. I can likely retake Turtledove next turn (one of my spears is crippled, the other with decent health), but it's not the ideal defensive situation.
July 19th, 2019, 02:11
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Donovan made a move I hadn't expected- he moved his two axes towards Turtledove and withdrawing the .1 chariot to join them. This is a good move for him- my only defense in Turtledove would be two spears, which would not last long against two axes. I had promotions available for both of those spears, and I thought about using them for shock promos and defending Turtledove, but it would be:
2/4 strength; combat I; combat II; shock Spearman
4/4 strength; combat I; shock Spearman
verses the two axes on flat land. I think I would just be throwing those spears away if I went that route, so they turned around and are heading back to Eggnog Paradise.
I'm full researching archery to try and get a few archers in Eggnog Paradise. I don't think Donovan can get a stack of axes together quickly enough to take my capital, while being invaded by two other neighbors, but I won't be surprised if he does. I've already learned I'm out of my element in multi-player Civilization 4. But so long as Regentia has a city to her name, I trudge onward, hopefully to better days.
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I feel with you. Good to see that you are still engaged in the game. It's actually quite interesting to read about those smaller battles. Thanks for reporting.
July 21st, 2019, 01:24
(This post was last modified: July 21st, 2019, 01:25 by RegentMan.)
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Thanks Charriu!
Oh wow that's embarrassing! Nothing of note happened this turn, but I went back and reread the log- Donovan declared on Commodore, and not the other way around! Apparently Donovan saw the copper donation and was having none of that. So he's likely not facing a huge Commodore invasion stack, but making sure his southern border is secure.
Big oof on my part! 
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Long time, no update! Nothing much has happened until the last two turns, plus we had a couple week vacation hiatus, but we're back in full swing now. I've just been researching towards archery while Donovan has been building a stack of axes, and on the very turn I learn archery, he moves!
Five axes and a 3.3 chariot against my three spears and two warriors. I waste a +melee promotion on a spear (I hate using that line on spears), but the situation dictated that, so that's what we go with. I whip an archer, since two turns to build would be two too many! Behind my walls and on a hill, my defenders brace for the final battle.
And Regentia triumphs! I kill three axes and lose my awesome spear (C1, C2, +mounted  ) and a warrior, leaving two injured spears, one warrior, and a new archer. The archer counter-attacks a pair of axes (at .6 and .8) and kills one without taking damage. I give it the hills defense upgrade. I do lose my two workers to that chariot, which was a  move I suppose. But until Donovan builds a few catapults to bombard my walls, Regentia's still in business! But it won't be a pretty business- Donovan can pillage everything and I can't do a thing about it. We'll see what the other wars bring.
August 13th, 2019, 02:07
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Eggnog Paradise has withstood the first attack, and is now working on building some more archers for defense. Judaism spreads into the capital of Regentia, and needing another happy face to work pillaged terrain, I spend the turn in anarchy to convert.
A few turns later, I get an interesting, if not familiar pop-up:
More copper from Commodore! Thanks friend! But I must have missed something, if he's able to gift me the copper through Donovan's lands again. I investigate the message log:
Oh great. I check the log every turn, but I must have been on auto-pilot, or didn't scroll down, but two turns ago, Commodore and Donovan made peace (Donovan also lost a city to Icehazard- on that roaded plains hill in the middle of the screenshot). It's good news because of the now eight turns of guaranteed copper, bad news because that's one less front for Donovan to worry about. But with Icehazard making progress, that should hopefully bode well for Regentia? Right?
Right?
Still on the same turn as the copper gift and city-capture discovery, I make a less pleasant discovery- a stack which will certainly spell Regentia's end. I'm guessing Donovan is willing to sacrifice a city in the east to put an end to Regentia once and for all. I figured his war declaration against Commodore was to cut off my copper supply, rather than an attempt to annex more land, and with peace being signed, he doesn't want me to load up on spears and axes while he slogs with Icehazard. If Donovan regards Regentia as an annoying fly that won't go away, I guess I can take that as a compliment? I painfully whip Eggnog Paradise for a new spear, but I know it's not going to be enough, even with walls on a plains hill. Quantity has a quality all on its own.
This recent turn could prove to be my last:
That stack, plus 1 horse archer and 2 axemen one tile south of my capital, can strike at Donovan's next login. I have exactly 80g, so my lone warrior gets upgraded into a spear (I went too fast and probably should have gone with an axeman to counter Donovan's axemen, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome). That leaves
Archer (CG I)
Archer (Hills Defense I)
Archer (Hills Defense I)
Spearman (C1, +Melee%)
Spearman (C1)
Spearman (C1) - freshly whipped
Spearman (C1) - freshly upgraded
to defend the last bastion of Regentia.
Now we wait.
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