[Spoilers] When Commodore is 64

[Commodore]

FYI, per lurker feedback I'll be swapping your sugar and gems tiles. That change your pick?

Nah, we still good.

[Commodore]

Mardoc posted in my thread, Thoth's, and Yuri's...so starts are being shifted to somewhat normalize to wetbandit's.

I will say, the information given by the evident normalization caused me pause:

If that little is done to make an impact on my start, then capitals must be fairly close (as already expected). So 3h capital tiles are assumed, then. Marble or stone work, but that's a bit sketchy to balance, so assuming all stone, which makes Stonehenge more likely for anyone/everyone. So I briefly reconsidered swapping Celts; duns are dirt cheap and Mysticism start plus nutty hammers plus stone means free culture shot from 'henge is very viable.

In the end, however, I'd rather have the Inca lack of risk, plus Agriculture for the start. If I had Qin, maybe I'd go for the Celts, but it's hard to risk "automatic half-Creative at Pottery" for "possible half-Creative for 54h after going out of my way on Masonry".

[Commodore]

Commodore (wise, wonderful)
as
Charlemange (Protective, Imperialistic)
of
Inca (Agriculture, Mysticism, Terrace, Quecha)
I'll just quote myself on myself from myself's last self-evalution:

Hello everyone, I'm Commodore and this is kind of my shtick; I enjoy playing Civilization 4 with a bunch of other nerds for the entertainment of other nerds. This game has been around for almost a decade, but this weird little minority on the internet didn't like its sequel so here we are. I have a vast number of interests and hobbies currently curtailed by job and kids, so this little chop-of-time amusement is basically tailor made for me. I'm consistently the best bet for silver medalist when I play. Expect more of the same here.
Skill Consistency:
Fear Factor:

That's the player, what about the combo? Well, it's the Burger King again, but this time he's considerably more buff; the addition of cheap granaries is just tremendous. And when those cheap granaries get +1 culture? Yeah, this is a slightly slower Joao of Inca on a brutal map for expansion. Basically, I'm going to be expanding hard but cottages, cottages, and cottages are what I need to turn that growth into. I'm never one to underrate the value of cheap MP, either...quecha are nice 10h happy-campers once Monarchy is in. I'll want Monarchy in pretty early here.
Early Game Power:
Middle Game Power:
Late Game Power:
Combo Power:

House empire will most likely resemble:

[pindicator]

Well, it's the Burger King again, but this time he's considerably more buff

Oh yeah, he missed you too

[Commodore]

Yuri (great, small)
as
Gilgamesh (Protective, Creative)
of
Zulu (Agriculture, Hunting, Ikhanda, Impi)
Yuri is easily the one of the nicest guys on RB, and actually fairly underrated as a player...depending on his focus. If he's keyed-in, paying attention, and working on a single game he can manage some really solid play...unfortunately (glass-house-dwelling stone-chucker warning), he's also prone to spread himself thin on several games. He's split into three already, and anybody watching the Hobbit movies can tell you, that's bad. If he notices incoming pain, he'll give a good fight and go down swinging...but he's bamboozlable.
Skill Consistency:
Fear Factor:
Yuri is driving Giggles of the Zulu, so there's that. Mobility two-movers will be painful to tussle with on this hilly map, but fortunately they gain neither C1 nor cheap ikhanda access. Giggles is a fine leader in RBmod, kind of a poor slightly less rich man's Sury. As sole Creative his border situation will be nice, at least, and Pro got back Drill for a little bit more utility on the gunpowder lines. It's a combo that won't be easy to break early, at least...best to out-expand and hit at era advantage.
Early Game Power:
Middle Game Power:
Late Game Power:
Combo Power:

House empire will most likely resemble:

[GermanJoey]

Well, it's the Burger King again, but this time he's considerably more buff

Oh yeah, he missed you too

Charley, the king of my heart...

[Commodore]

Thoth (bright, beautiful)
as
Alexander (Aggressive, Philosophical)
of
Mongolia (Hunting, Wheel, Ger, Keshiek)
Ah, Thoth, now here is the one I'm most fearful of. He's a tirelessly aggressive player, always planning and pushing. He is a good builder and a fine tactician, easily a player that anyone on this website should treat with caution. His weakness, such as they are, go hand in hand with those strengths; I'm not sure if he's able to sit back, and patience isn't a Thutnossian Virtue. I think most reasonable lurkers are betting on Thoth to win this, frankly.
Skill Consistency:
Fear Factor:
This is kind of a mixed bag of a combo, frankly, but I think I like it the best of the my rivals' selections. For one thing, the only pure economy trait here is the +150% boosted Phi we see in Alex. Thoth knows how to pilot a bulb path, no problemo, and his razor-sharp sims won't have him suffering too far behind on the expansion curve. Agg is just excellent on these settings, saving money, boosting units, popping borders...yeah, I like it. Oh, and he also get's double-speed Gers. Keshieks are another Mobility 2-mover unit, natch, and have the awesome vast lifespan of horse archers. This is a combo that's ready to rumble early and often, but should still keep on the forefront of research as well. Yikes.
Early Game Power:
Middle Game Power:
Late Game Power:
Combo Power:

House empire will most likely resemble:

[Commodore]

Wetbandit (Lord made him all)
as
Genghis Khan (Aggressive, Imperialistic)
of
India (Mysticism, Wheel, Mausoleum, Fast Worker)
Wetbandit is a strong newcomer who should probably be welcomed into the Realms Beyond “Good Enough For Silver” Club for life. As chairman of that lodge, I think I'm qualified to say that. He's sharp, knows how to run an economy, and doesn't miss much at all. He's someone who can definitely win, make no mistake, but I just don't fear him as much as Thoth. Balance of economy, expansion, and aggression from this quarter. One mildly interesting note, Wetbandit won't be much impressed with my combo, as he played (RBmod) Chuck of the Inca against me in our sadly unreported duel...
Skill Consistency:
Fear Factor:
This is a good combo, folks. Rounding out the trifecta of Mobility 2-mover UUs we have here the Fast Worker. Going from 3-move to merely mobility-promoted is a big step back for FWs, make no mistake, but in this hilly land those silly turban guys will still be a huge windfall. The techs are bad, the UB is meh (Always War makes war weariness no big deal), but still this is probably the best civilization available. Daddy Khan is great too, a bit slower on the expansion than me but -25% maintenance makes one hell of a lot of difference for gross sustainability.
Early Game Power:
Middle Game Power:
Late Game Power:
Combo Power:

House empire will most likely resemble:

[Mardoc]

So, do we get to have stories about sticking your arm up a cow's rear for medicinal purposes? And Yorkshire hospitality?

[Commodore]

So, do we get to have stories about sticking your arm up a cow's rear for medicinal purposes? And Yorkshire hospitality?

Nope, alas. My theme will be FAR more obscure, out of print in fact. I dare anyone non-Googpling to catch it.

Herriot books are really really good though.