[spoilers] Something something horses - Tasunke of the Hippus

[Sciz]

That's totally okay, it's not like I give you any info to work with.

Festivals soon done, which will be nice for the markets I can build.

Followed by exploration for a road network, and after that i'm not so sure yet.

Needed techs ASAP are: Education, Code of Laws for aristocracy, KotE to trade water mana from Selrahc and spring my cities, especially Akhrast Korvalain, Sanitation to get better food after Aristocracy destroys my food output.

After that it's pretty much just up the horseman line, getting some other economy techs when I need them. Sanitation also requires construction and masonry of course.

I will probably mount my first attack with Horse Archers. Since I need these other economy techs first, a horsemen rush will be outdated when I reach HBR. So stirrups instead and horse archers might make for a better attack.

[Ellimist]

That's totally okay, it's not like I give you any info to work with.

I actually get forwarded the save by the tracker. I haven't been looking at it, but I can if you ever need my input on something.

[Sciz]

No that's okay. I mean if you want to you can, but don't feel pressured to

God knows i'm not paying much attention to this game anyways

[Ellimist]

If you aren't spoiled in FFHPBEM-IX, I could use a second opinion.

I'm Charadon of Doviello. I'm not sure what choices would be best as far as tech. I can forward you the save if you're interested.

[Sciz]

i am spoiled actually, sorry

i've never really played with the doviello anyways

[Sciz]

Pushing out a settler for a 4th city, and soon starting a settler for my fifth. Need more workers, also. Connecting the gold and building the Brewing House raised my happy cap with 2, both Starvald Demelain and Kurald Galain have grown to their cap now. I'm researching education now, to get Code of Laws, but I'm thinking that maybe I should switch to KotE first. It's a 10 turn tech, and I get water mana from Selrahc, so I can get a spring adept or two up. That will make Akhrast Korvalain much better with 2x desert incense, 2x oasis, and some desert river tiles. It will also enable me to settle the desert river sites, which would be useless without spring. With spring they are the best city sites I can get now. If I don't get spring soon there aren't really any decent city sites left.

[Sciz]

Bunch of stuff going on now, I might actually do a picture update soon!

So first of all, Selrahc dialed me up and he told me to basically fuck myself. Well not really, but he's making the switch to Hyborem in 5 turns or so, which means that all our deals we've had were a complete sham, including him loaning me water mana, and our gibbon vitalizing deal. Now, I can still manage, but that is a big setback as I was counting on that water mana to spring the river desert to the north for some decent city sites.

He has now made me another deal. He will remove his military from his cities and let me waltz in and take them, if I supply him with manes. I agreed, but since he fucked our deal over in the beginning, let's say that he won't getting as many manes as he might expect. I tried to not mention the amount of manes, and hope that he wouldn't either, but he did, and we finalized a deal of 150 manes. Well, he'll get the 150... At the end of the game, at least. I'm sorry, but if he fucks me over on deals, he can't really expect me to be completely honest and do what he says. I'm still following through on the deal, just not right away.

Ichabod then messaged me, and him and Mardoc are talking about an alliance against Selrahc. I tentatively agreed, but said I couldn't promise anything. I am trying to talk him into a worldwide agreement of not adopting evil religions, getting him as few manes as possible. He'll still get manes from razing cities of course, but that can't be helped. I have AV in the Lanun cities, but I'll produce as few units there as possible and I hope it wont spread to hippus land, though it probably will. Dunno what i'll do when that happens.

I could raze the Lanun cities but that would only make me get gold, and the cities would help me more I think... A lot of sea resources there, pearls, coves, it should be a boost to my economy for sure, as soon as i get markets and later on courthouses there. Coast is only 1/2 instead of 2/3 for the Lanun, and the inland is practically only ice, but I should be okay. Definitely need scorch though, and then mines/lumbermills for production, so i'm trying to setup a trade with Mardoc for sun mana.

[NobleHelium]

How exactly are you supposed to generate these manes for him?

[Sciz]

I'm supposed to create units from the former Lanun AV cities, then let them be killed by a unit he sends over, or just send them to die in wars against other players.

[Ellimist]

Yeah screw that deal. Take whatever you can get(the Lanun cities) and then inquisitor out the veil whenever you can.

Keep your end of that agreement only so far as it benefits you, for instance if you need something from him.
He's setting himself up as a sort of FFH banker. He negotiates with you in bad faith and cheats you, then gives you a large "loan" that he expects you to pay back. Ironically, this actually gives you the power in the relationship.
You know, like in the old joke: If you owe the bank 100,000 dollars, you can't sleep at night for worry. If you owe the bank 10 million dollars, the banker can't sleep at night for worry.

150 is a ridiculous number. He's going to want you to pay up, and you'll have additional leverage because of him breaking the former deals. So you can either (a) not pay, or (b) pay in bits and pieces in exchange for additional stuff.