[spoilers] Commodore: Worse than Toku, it's Giggles of Siam!

[Thoth]

Nice haul on McDs.

I don't think we'll get much more than archer/walls/archer whipped out before the 10t are up (and that means not working the gold). But that's much better than a Zulu cat or 3.

We're not forgetting the other core cities, either. TM will grow two more sizes with gold/colosseum, to work those two blue circles, bearing nice new cottages. VA will net us a little more whippage; might as well play with the overflow unto mammoth trick. Need the worker, too, that riverside in The Slot needs cottaging.

The two uncottaged grass tiles on either side of LSG are a much higher priority than TM's new cotts. LSG can work it's last two cotts while TM takes over two more of the existing cots. VA needs to work it's LSG cottage all of the time post GS. Captial cottage turns are important.

VA also has some very good tiles (river grass, 2 grass hills, 2x scientists) that it can grow into. Better to let the worker complete naturally (it's not like we have HBR yet for overflow shenanigans) and let the city grow a couple of pop points.

Most of our demographics woes go away if we actually work some more tiles.

[Commodore]

Note that while the culture on the center 9 tiles of the gifted city was reset, just like the turn you found a city. (it says 100% even though there is no actual culture on the square.) When the turn rolls, all culture counters start counting again.

Exactly...but thanks to intact cultural buildings and Creative, Western Heights is now producing more culture than the Zulu capital. Now, Long John's is 3rd ring, so the clams and cottage are going to get swamped for two turns, but then we'll be second ring ourselves, which means we'll have those tiles back in shortish order, and the critical 1SE hill is ours from the get-go.

Grow, man, grow!

Good point. We need Caste stat so I can stop myself. I just love hurting those citizens...

[Commodore]

Speaking of happiness, Tranquil Meadow now rocks some curry! I obviously didn't revolt, but I like the religion. Hinduism is Nakor/Jesterfool's religion, and Brick in the distant north is a convert. Better them than Serdoa's shrine income, eh? I am starting to think we'd really rather have our own, though...after HBR, CoL is a consideration too. Although I'm surprised Plako, with his UB, hasn't already landed Confucianism.


Goodness knows we'll need the tech for courthouses. About to settle city #9, which will help unit costs but hurt for city maintenance. I'll feel far, far better about having our own domestic source of gems, and the 2/1/6 mine can be worked basically all the time, which is a plus.


My insatiable hunger for workers seeks slaking on the barbarian crew here, but unfortunately they are very good runners. Still, we've got a flotilla coming to help round them up, as well as reinforcing the Coldspring region. I'll take back the nice CR2 Kalin's Expedition to the Zulu front while the 7th Battalion of axes embarked in the galleys will take on the city.


Bit of a hitch in the pillage-pinata plan. Kushans are unexpectedly badass, I guess I should have expected axes given the dang city of on top of copper. Rather than risk my shock axes on 2:1 odds, I'll send chariots down here a bit later to burn the city and get promos for fun and profit.


That big empty area between Hidden Valley and Western Heights is worrisome, so I went ahead and began work on a settler for Riverside Manor. Worth it; four forests ought to become two ballistae-tottin' mammoths as soon as the city gets planted. The Greatwood will be, alas, utterly wiped out.


Next turn:

[Commodore]

An argument for CoL, counting chickens of victory:

It would be a real coup to snag most of this jungle area before Serdoa manages to (he just lost a city to Lewger, so he might be looking to move south instead). Forbidden Palace would go in Valleyview, most likely; the city has a surprisingly great hammer output.

-Valleyview: Formerly the site of Zaxby's. Mining spot, decent naval shipyard with caste workshops (19hpt at just size 6). Nothing special, but good enough.
-Oakmont: MUST SETTLE. It is critical that we deny Serdoa iron for as long as is practical. Lewwyn is on the warpath in the north, in the east he's got Xenu and Brick to compete with...we're working to remove his southward competition, so we need to block that off.
-Stoney Knob: No reason at all not to capture White Castle, it's culturally unsupported and isolated, and an excellent city location.
-Shady Pines: Just a good solid city to claim grassland, rice, and pigs. Could be moved 1NE if Serdoa wouldn't be threatened by it. This is at the range where I start to worry about logistics tails.
-Sunset Landing: Land-locked to prevent being boated, owns peak for defensive goodies, wrecks Serdoa's dotmap. Again, might not be practical in a timeframe before Maya expands south.

If I can settle all these spots? We're at 18 cities, half of which must build wealth on rotation until courthouses come online. I think this Vision Statement is impractical, risky, and awesome.

[MindyMcCready]

Congrats on Zaxby's and McD. I must say that I was hoping for a 'smashing' success,...I'm not sure that I got it.

[Commodore]

Congrats on Zaxby's and McD. I must say that I was hoping for a 'smashing' success,...I'm not sure that I got it.

Thanks! If you're looking for smashing, patience. We're nearly there...

[flugauto]

Valleyview? Meh. Make it Fluqautos' Landing

[Commodore]

Valleyview? Meh. Make it Fluqautos' Landing

Don't be greedy. Actually, I killed off Fluquato's Battalion first because I realized you still have a company of archers kicking around. They've been on the front lines all game, never seen the elephant but still vital in the wars of tactics and maneuver.

[Commodore]

"Victory is not won in blood-soaked fields, nor over tables in high halls. Victory is won inside the hearts and minds of your foemen, as they quail and begin to believe they are defeated. All else is just the means to this end."
-Kom Ho Dor.

In the spring of 328 BC, Lord Pooter of McDonald's, commanding the great Army of the West, premier fighting force of the Zulu, heard reports of great war machines coming from the northwest. Impi scouts reported a large army encamped among the overgrown ruins of the city of Subway, at the army's heart a run of catapults. One of the great engines was seen to throw a bolder farther than a bowshot's length at one of the few stone piles remaining in the area. The bolder shattered, hurtling shrapnel enough to kill dozens of men, and there were almost a hundred of the machines within the camp.

Although Zulu fleets had largely driven the worst of the Generican raiders from Clam Bay, there was still a fleet in waiting near the ruins of Zaxby's, and Lord Pooter heard rumors and reports of potential pillaging parties from every one of his demesnes. To the astonishment of both his men and the Genericans watching from the Greatwood, Lord Pooter withdrew from the gold mine fortifications, leaving the Zulu miners alone. Within a week advance parties from the Greatwood Army had infiltrated the hills and reported the entire vast army in full retreat.

Lord Pooter's vassals sent word to the capital, where the reigning First Lord, Scoopin, flew forth in a rage with a regiment of his impi and lords of the east and the northeast, although the lords of the northwest were no more. Upon reaching the southernmost hamlet of Clam Bay, he was already encountering advance elements of the Army of the West. When he reached the headquarters of Lord Pooter, however, much worse news was to come.

The lord of McDonald's, fearing the catapults of the Genericans, had already sent envoys to negotiate peace with the leaders of their eastern armies. He spoke at length then with First Lord Scoopin, telling of the impossible raids that the Genericans were prone to, of the difficulty defending his coasts while holding the western hills with his main strength, of the hopelessness of watching the armies of the Genericans grow each year while his own command shrunk from his grandfather's host's size with no new levies from Zaxby's and the north bay to fill the ranks. He spoke of his engineers' plans to replicate the catapults someday, but how it would take decades to bring forth matching numbers. In the end, Lord Pooter convinced his fellow lords that peace was the only way for the Zulu to survive, if only for a time.

But the other lords had the last laugh. They shamed the cowardly Lord Pooter publicly before his people, and in the Treaty of the West they made a centuries-long peace with the Genericans...with the offered tribute of the Demesne of McDonald's and all the remaining people therein. The next few centuries were known as the Long Peace, but by the end of two generations, the newly named Western Heights was full of dark-skinned people who called themselves Generican and took offense at the name "Zulu".

[Thoth]

We'll need Currency and that craphole SW tundra Island city long before CoL.

I'm not sure where your thoughts are techwise. Currency then HBR/Myst/sthing/phood/Monarchy is good if we can do both Currency and HBR in time for our peace treaty to expire.

Otherwise, we may have to bite the bullet and tech to HBR (HAs, Mammoths) first.

Then Curr ect.

Col/and the Big B post Monarchy?