RB PBEM #1 - Mehmed (SPOILERS!)

[Dreylin]

Another quick chat with Ruff about AP goings on:

Ruff.Hi: hey - you there?
do you remember why we built the AP?

me: barely...
hammers
or victory?

Ruff.Hi: I just got an election option ... stop trading with saladin or holy rome

me: hmmmm

Ruff.Hi: I had just traded dye for rice with Saladin so I selected mh as teh bunny
needs 79 votes to pass and I ahve 82!

me: so will it pass?

Ruff.Hi: you ok with that?

me: also cancels OB, right?

Ruff.Hi: not sure - maybe
do you have any trades with mh?

me: no
just OB

Ruff.Hi: you ok with that proposition?
because I could replay the turn before I send it on
either Conf people stop trading with mh or sooooo gets +5 angry in his military city

me: Oh that's too good to pass up.

Ruff.Hi: totally
wonder if mh and sooooo will even be able to talk
maybe the game will put up a 10 turn no talk thing
that would be tooo funny
oh - and Sooooo swapped to Nationalism (24)

me: Hmmm, well that's OK too
Basically, we wait until one of them actually wastes some hammes into Liberalism before we need to finish it off, right?

Ruff.Hi: correct
and I can see exactly how quickly sooooo can finish it
if he is the one that makes the run
I have gunpowder in 4

me: OK

[Cyneheard]

I just WB'd a test, and trading a stolen tech with no brokering on didn't work. I couldn't broker a tech I stole from Asoka (Mysticism) to Bismarck, but I could trade other stuff.

[Dreylin]

t93 - Hokay, what's in store for us this turn ...

Konya finishes Barracks, think I'll slot in a Cat before another building.
Samsun's whipped Library finshes and the queued Spy starts - with 22 overflow & 13 base production, I can get two out over the next two turns.

Hmmm, Bursa is losing tiles to both athlete & mh, that should change once the Heroic Epic starts throwing out culture, now due in 3t. Adjust some Workers in the vicinity (again).

Have a Worker and a Conf Missionary heading to Sarmatian in the East, while Heroic HA is fogbusting down the valley.

And that's about it.

[Dreylin]

Thanks!

Guess we'll both have to be stealing then.

[Jabah]

Since I (and Dreylin) thought there was an option to trade it, maybe you should check if there is something different depending on who really has discovered the tech. Maybe stealing from the original discoverer is not the same as stealing from a 'second' hand. (or more likely it was corrected in the latest patch )

[Dreylin]

t94 -

Spy in Samsun, second Spy.
Granary in Diyarbakir, Forge started.

Steal tech will be much cheaper from Damascus, however in with he time available, I'm going to have to settle for taking the initial tech from Zapotec. The Samsun Spys are going to head there, while the first Spy from Gaziantep will head for Damascus. Foshaug will reach Medina next turn; athlete's largest city.

Dial research back down to 0% - I'm 38beakers or 4t from Machinery, and I don't need it for a couple of turns. The turn that Ruff discovers Gunpowder, I'll dial it back to 100% and overflow into (hopefully) Chemistry.

[Dreylin]

An abreviated convo with Ruff between turns:

Ruff.Hi: gunpowder due at the end of next turn - where are you with tech?
should I roll straight into Eng or should I go somewhere else?

me: Can finish Mach whenever I like
ditto Lib
saving gold

Ruff.Hi: my power is level with sooooo so I am feeling better about that
can divert some cities to expansion again

me: You get Gunpowder at end of next turn

Ruff.Hi: correct

me: which means that I have this turn
next turn

Ruff.Hi: would really like Eng to ease up my unit travel

me: and the turn after to steal Eng
then start on Chemistry

Ruff.Hi: right - forgot we were stealing Eng - I have to wait until T100 to do that

me: Some of my lurkers ran a test:
I can't trade it to you
after it's stolen

Ruff.Hi: and you cannot trade it
right

me: t100 is 8t, right?

Ruff.Hi: does it make sense for us both to steal it (give up about 1000 EPs) or for 1 of us to researsch it?
no - I think we are on T95 or something like that

me: depends on how far we think we can push the timing for Lib

Ruff.Hi: ahh - right

me: That's right, t95
I am planning to kick off my GA once I have G-Powder
&start Chem

Ruff.Hi: do you have a spy in place?

me: Not yet
Will have one availableto steal on t96
but I can wait until t97 to actually do the dead
deed
in a sub-optimal city
with minimal discount

Ruff.Hi: Eng or Guilds will cost 384 EPs each (@40% discount)

me: but would not interfere with timing
that's not too bad tbh
how many do you get for cashing in the spy?
Gspy

Ruff.Hi: you need Eng before starting on Chem

me: yep

Ruff.Hi: 2000EPs

me: OK, that's a nice amount
I'll have 2Spys in Zapotec available to steal on t97

Ruff.Hi: how much stationary discount will you get?

me: I get Gunpowder from you between t96 & t97
so can steal on t97 and start Chem with no lost time

Ruff.Hi: ok - fine
my spy has a 97% chance of success

me: One will have 1t stationary

Ruff.Hi: so, 2 spies should be a certainty

me: other will have none
will be expensive
but worth it, I think
Once I have that & kick off GA

Ruff.Hi: I can tech it in 4 turns at 100%

me: should be able to beat sooooo

Ruff.Hi: but stealing is better if we want Steel from lib

me: can you maintan 100%

Ruff.Hi: no
110 in the bank at -56 per turn

me: overflow from GP?

Ruff.Hi: can keep it up for 2 more turns

me: so GP + 1t

Ruff.Hi: huge - should be able to pick up Drama in 1 turn

me: or reduce Eng to 3t

Ruff.Hi: after Drama I will save gold and see how we stand (park tech on Nationalism)
Eng is 6 turns at break even

me: So if you researched Eng (me supplying gold) you would have it t99

Ruff.Hi: 1 sec

me: I would then have it t100
start Chem
or I(we) steal Eng and I start Chem on t97

Ruff.Hi: it is a 4 turn tech at 100% at the moment - but very close to a 3 turn tech

me: so with overflow would be 3t

Ruff.Hi: you could save gold from 97 to 100
yes - 3t tech
start on 97, finish on 100 with you on 101

me: Let me start turn and see what Chem might be...

Ruff.Hi: ok
I can bring it down to a 3t tech with zero overflow with some city mm
sooooo is still on Nationalism, saving gold at 40g per turn - has 195 in bank

me: I see that sooooo only voted "No", not "DEFIE!"

Ruff.Hi: no way he could stop it
only result is he closed borders with mh
I can tech lib in 5 - got to assume sooooo can do the same
I can tech Chem in 8
I don't think we will be able to liberalism Steel on those numbers

me: Well if they had mutual trade routes, that screws them a bit!
except that no-one is researching Liberalism

Ruff.Hi: most of his trade routes are with me and you
will look at closing borders at T100 and see what that does to him

me: Well they are now, but what about last turn?

Ruff.Hi: gtg

me: Chem claims to be 8t
however will go down with Gunpowder pre-req
& Eng

[Dreylin]

t95 - And the vote comes in; no trading with mh!

University in Istanbul, start Conf Monastery(1t!)
Conf Missionary in Edirne, start University
Market in Ankara, queue Settler(3t) for the Eastern Valley
Samsun finishes second Spy, Catapult
Sarmatian pops borders & restarts Granary

WB nets Crabs at Sarmatian.

Barb Warrior suicided against Archer inter-turn, so he moves back within borders to heal.

New Conf Missionary heads to Gaziantep, while existing closes on Sarmatian.

Foshaug (GSpy) reaches Medina, but has no movement left to Infiltrate.

Whip the Cat in Konya (a coastal tile) to maximise oveflow(29h) into Moai Statues, then realise I don't have Stone hooked up yet. OK, so what can be done about that; 6t to Quarry the Stone, and I have 3 Workers(Tim from Bursa, Brian & Mike from Diyarbakir) who can get there and start next turn, which would allow me to build Research for a turn in Konya (which I learnt from the 'Poly demogame, preserves the overflow into the next build). That dovetails with my other aim - of getting Machinery in 2t to coincide with receiving Gunpowder, stealing Eng, & starting Chem. I need ~16 base beakers to finish it off, but I also want to drop one of Edirne's Scientists to maximise work on the University. With 11b coming from Research at Konya, I can drop one Scientist at Edirne and not have to grasp for others elsewhere. It will delay the development of Diyarbakir by pulling away effort from the Banana plantation, but I think getting Moai online ASAP is a good plan.

I have a look at the EP numbers and it looks like athlete may be able to see my research next turn, so I switch all my EPs from sooooo to ensure the secret remains for another turn ... until I can remove the possibility when cashing in Foshaug.

Here's Edirne's city screen, where I've dropped the second Scientist back onto the Forest to even out the production & maximise the multiplier. I have been running stagnant or starving switching the Forest and the Mine for production. I'll turn the Mine back into a Scientist next turn until Daisy chops the forest, then switch that tile back to the Mine. With the GA acceleration due soon, that should allow the GS to pop & Uni to build before starving down a size. Once the GS is out, I'll also reclaim the cottage currently being worked by Gaziantep to the S.

[Dreylin]

t96 - (with the pitboss fun out of the way, I can finally get back to the PBEM!)

Conf. Monastery in Istanbul; a 1t Cat, I think - should have Gunpowder next turn to start Jannissaries!
Konya's Cat finishes and switches to Research as discussed.
Bursa completes Heroic Epic! resumes stalled Catapult - due in 1t.

Start by remembering to request Gunpowder from Ruff!

Missionary spreads Conf. to Gaziantep, second reaches Sarmatian at end of movement. Worker also finally reaches the Back Country and starts Pasturising Sarmatian's Sheep.

Re-jig Edine's tiles,as Daisy reaches the forest.

Tim, Brian & Mike move to Stone as planned, Quarry will complete next turn.

Twist completes a Farm at Bursa (with forest chop), so Sophie goes to start another.

Quick MM review of cities: Gaziantep whips Forge and Sarmatian adjusts tiles for Granary.

Machinery will complete this turn as planned.


OK, Spy business!

Foshaug infiltrates Medina ... +2000 EPs.

Now, what can we see? We can see that the research visibility does not kick in until next turn, so I'll have another look after I've hit ENTER.

Spy in Zapotec says: 631 EPs to steal Feud or Mach with 78% success rate. Well the first should go down and the second up next turn; plus I have a back-up just arriving.

Since I should see athlete's cities next turn, I offer to trade maps with Ruff so he can also.

and end turn.

OK, looks like it will be next turn before I get all the EP goodies.

[Krill]

New World Map time?