[SPOILERS] - Dubious strategies and poor life choices: pindicator's thread

[varcharmander]

Looks very promising.  

[pindicator]

59

He withdrew.

[VoiceInTheWilderness]

Wow! I don't think you're suddenly in contention, but this is a very welcome change.

[pindicator]

60

My guess is that he must have just not followed up the initial push with any more units. So he's pushing infrastructure now and is afraid about losing his army, so much that he pulled out rather than risk them in a fight.

So with that the city revolted to independent this turn:




All archers in range fired and Wealth of Nations was again restored.

Moving up. If I'm right then he's still not building anything and we're behind now - so we're going to spam units still.




Alhambram still trying to help, I guess?

[varcharmander]

Congrats on the Reconquista.  

[pindicator]

63

I think we've stabilized.




Advancing on those Nubians would be very costly, and since our power totals are even right now it's probably not going to work out in my favor to push.  I admit - I had a tempting thought to push out horsemen right now and try to run them up to the west by Nazca and maybe catch him unawares.  But meh, I didn't.

Instead we're getting a government plaza out quick to get the next Pingala upgrade and getting my culture going.

[pindicator]

The only thing I've lost interest in is your passive aggressive "reminders".  I've written about it plenty in my own thread; you can read it there if you care to after this is over.  I really don't feel the need to get into a spat with you here, which is why I've ignored this thread.

I've not asked for the game to stop, and I'm sorry that it upsets you so much every single time there is a hiccup in the turn order.  If it helps, rest assured I'll never sign up to play with you again.

Sigh.

Yeah, I was suprised when you even signed up.

Oh what a surprise, another sanctimonious response from Archduke that doesn't want to accomplish anything except make him look morally superior.  Who would have seen that coming?  Anyway, I've said my piece and I meant that I don't want to get into a spat with him so I'm going to vent my little retort here and then go on with things.  If he keeps pushing, no guarantees I'll keep my cool.

I have been thinking for about a dozen turns that I really should update this thread, because it has been pretty harrowing.  Somehow I've made a losing game into an entertaining one, and then stabilized, and then almost went and lost again and have somehow stabilized again.  I've gone and cheated you lurkers out of that entertainment.  So with that in mind, I went back through the save files and tried to reconstruct screenshots of just what happened over the last 20 turns.

So next post is going to be a recap, kind of an old 90s TV flashback episode.

[pindicator]

On the Consistently Near Collapse of Pindlandia


t65




We left off with me in a better position.  I had just recaptured Wealth of Nations and was pushing forward to try and grab as much land as I could.  The more territory I can control, the better my position, the easier my defense of Wealth of Nations. I had no illusions about being able to take anything: those skirmishers on defensive terrain were nightmares after all. But I was still going to grab as much land as I could just to make him take the time to push me back. I figured with the rough terrain he would have to show his units and give me time to retreat. Was I wrong there.

I'm trying to get some economic builds going now. Another settler because I'm way behind in city count, and then getting the government plaza down in the capital. Wealth of Nations doesn't even have a district and I have no idea where I'd put one with all the land to the north outside of my control. Now that I'm pushign forward maybe I can get an encampment down to the north?

I was also sending a warrior around to the west choke out by Nazca to try and scout if he had anything coming that way.  Of course I did find a single skirmisher. It looked like he had the same idea. There was a small thought of pushing out horsemen and trying to rush along that side. I should have listened to that small voice, because it turned out to be prophetic.


t70




My problem was that there was no good terrain past Wealth of Nations for me to hold a chokepoint.  The land is just too rugged, and I don't know if Skirmishers get some kind of bonus movement on hills but he was able to move up and kill my warriors without me even spying them.  So I had to retreat back to my territory and try and take up more defensive positions. I did still push up into the desert hills to the far northeast - again, the goal is to make him take time to push me back instead of directly assaulting the city the next time he makes a push.

In the west another skirmisher has appeared. I'm starting my first horseman which will go west and try to even the odds there.

And I found barbarians at the worst time: my warrior is wounded and retreating because there's no way he can take them on, but also because with a second skirmisher in the west it's becoming obvious this is more than just scouting.

I am teching Masonry too. Walls seem like they would be helpful.


It's amazing how fast things went downhill from here.

[pindicator]

Just two turns later....

t72

Surprise!




The skirmishers did a great job of masking the horsemen's approach and I didn't see the horsemen until they were in the yard drinking beer and knocking over lawn furniture.  A second horseman will appear next turn.  I have just finished Masonry and now it's clear I need walls ASAP.  The capital was getting out a builder because I needed to hook up iron, but I swapped it immediately to a horsemen at this point.  Everything is rushing west now to try and save Res Publica, and Wealth of Nations is again going to fall under siege thanks to the southbound second prong of skirmishers.

The settler is done but where can he go with all these units around?  Also I was wrong before:  this is the turn when I realize I need to get my warrior away from the barbs and back home.  Hopelessly redlined and dragging more hostiles back to my homeland with him.

My force out to the desert hills to try and slow him down is doomed but I don't know it yet.  Because Kabul is under Suboptimal's suzerainty they are going to pinch my forces and leave nowhere to escape.


t74




That poor settler.  I'm thinking maybe I can put him on the east coast there south of Conquest of Paradise at this point.


t75




Here I know what I have to do.  If I just sit back he's going to take Res Publica with ease.  If I try to attack him directly his army of skirmishers and horsemen will outmatch my warriors and archers.  But if I can buy time for the walls to finish - if I can catch him inbetween two rabbits - then I have a chance.  And so this turn, after he had separated his forces to try and encircle the city, I moved up in a line and dared him to come at me.  But as soon as he comes forward then I would retreat again and let him go back to the city.  The idea is that he should never be allowed to fix on one target and then hopefully the walls will finish and I'll be able to push him back.

And the warrior that was out by the barbarians died to a skirmisher shot.  So many lost units this game.


t77




Barbarians to the rescue!?!?

This city looks like it should be doomed but it just needs to hang on for 2 more turns!  So I moved everything forward from here.  My horsemen attacked his southern(?) horse, and my warriors all moved up.  Again: if he attacks the army then the city has more time, so I'll take losing a couple units.  And if he attacks the city then I'll get free shots on his army and be able to win.

Also, my settler has moved farther south now, just off screen.  I don't want to show another target for Suboptimal to easily switch to.  


t78




And suboptimal retreats, his horses scattered between my advance and the barbarians.  From here I'm able to kill the skirmisher next to the city between a warrior and an archer attack.  My walls will go up next turn and then I will hold in the south.

But he now pushes again from the north, with horse to follow the skirmishers.  And my units are still out of place.  Perhaps those northern desert units did not die in vain.  Perhaps it was their sacrifice which bought Wealth of Nations the extra time it needed.

And I added my 4th city, Art of War last turn.  Which the barbarians spot right away and is defenseless.

[pindicator]

t79




Res Publica is safe with walls now, and i take pot-shots at suboptimals retreating units. I'm also pushing my warriors south to try and trap and kill his horsemen which retreated that way.

However the north is a different story: he is encircling Wealth of Nations, the city is on half health, and my units are all in the south. I will have more horsemen soon.

A note on tech: after walls I knew that I needed to go straight for crossbows. So I've been beelining that ever since. My economy is awful, so I can't pick anything else up first. This game we're just going to fight for our little corner of the map for as long as we can until someone comes around with better tech and kicks us out.


t80




Wealth of Nations' walls go up just in time. Also I just noticed that suboptimal built walls in Fondant. Why did he waste that production when he could have had another horsemen or sword coming south to kill me?

My builder is going to hook up the iron at the capital, and it was going to chop a tree as well except I forgot the next turn and sent it west instead to hook up the wine.

t82




With walls I'm able to kill the lead horse. His skirmisher cannot retreat and will be killed as well by the horse and walls. He has a battering ram coming but with my units now able to shift back north I should be able to hold here fine.


t84




And here we've stabilized again. Suboptimal is trying to sneak his horse out, and has spotted my new city, but I have two warriors still pursuing; they moved after this screenshot was taken to make it so the horse cannot leave without be getting at least one attack in. I think it will escape, though that is where the barbarians are so it's survivial isn't guaranteed.

He has units on every choke and so now I think my path is to get crossbows, defend all the chokes, and then try to expand more to the east.