[SPOILERS] How do you make this thing work: Krill randomly mashes some buttons

[Krill]

After the revelation of the District cost scaling I have a plan. It's not a good one, it has a shitload of moving parts, but it's a plan.

1. First of all, kill Kandy. That gives me the third completed district (and I only have the tech to build 2). Throw straight peace back to Jester, not that this plan needs it.
   
   
2. Research Currency the turn I take Kandy, so I then have 3 completed districts, and 3 unlocked, and lock in a discounted Commercial District at CS between the Campus and the city tile. Go Settler>Watermill>CD at CS.
   
   
3. Do all this before I finish the Watermill to finish Construction, which finishes Games and Recreation AND before culture naturally finish Drama and Poetry so I don't unlock extra districts. So do it in the next 6 turns.
   
   
4. Finish Games and Rec after the CD is placed and start the slow trudge to Fuedalism.
   
   
5. Buy the tile 779 of CS. Harvest the cow at the appropriate time, grow to size 7 to place an Entertainment district at the bought tile and build that. Probably fit in a granary to aid growth.
   
   
6. Tech path already discussed was Currency>Construction>[Sailing at some point]>Apprenticeship. But Apprenticeship needs to be delayed until after the districts are sorted, so perhaps tech should be diverted to Stirrups or Machinery.
   
   
7. Civic path is Games and Rec>Defensive Tactics>Fuedalism with Drama and Poetry finished to enable the swap out of shipbuilding card.
   
   
8. Civic cards will almost certainly contain Conscription, Charismatic Leader and Urban Planning. Beyond that Maritime Industries will be used, but what should I use with that? If I have a build path for both EF and CS sorted, what am I doing with VV? After it finishes the settler end of turn 67, it drops to size 4 and I will not be ready to swap cards just yet, so I will be left with the options to dump excess hammers into another settler and get it to, what, 80/200? Not worth it. Produce a builder without Iikum (and in 2/3 cities that's inefficient). So to me it comes down to building a monument (my culture sucks), granary (VV housing sucks, but two plantations and two pastures gives me the same housing as the granary) or put hammers into the 117 production Campus. I'm certain that I'm going into Iikum when I finish D&P though to prep around Mids. So either going straight into Iikum or running Caravansaries for the gold are the options really, unless I want to running a GP point card and make a play for a GP, a GS or push for another GG to run Jester over later.

I think that the right option is to go with the monument in VV, it'll just finish around the time I would not be constrained by civic options and need to bulldoze through Defensive Tactics. Then produce the builder and prepare for it to complete after Mids falls, but I also need to try and fit in a builder into CS around the CD.

The builder at EF is straightforward: complete builder, start galley. TX: Move to marsh, build galley 16.8/65. TX+1: Harvest marsh, build galley 39.8/65. TX+2: Move to hill forest, Galley 62.8/65. TX+3: Harvest, buy desert tile, place Mids, 123/220. TX+4: Move to second hill forest, build Galley 23/65. TX+5: Wait. Galley 46/65. TX+6: Harvest, change production to Mids, 228/220. I think that I finish the builder eot72, so Mids would be eot78, so I would want to finish D&P eot78 as well.

I can chop the forest at CS T71. The settler is one turn from completion eot69, so on T70 put production into the CD, then finish the settler T71 and the Watermill eot71.

Tech is a fuck up though I need 1 turn for Sailing, 3 turns for Currency, and 6 turns for Construction. I have 7 turns to get 10 turns of tech completed. I have 9 turns until I finish Drama and Poetry, and then I have killing culture.

OK, here's how I handle that. I go Currency>Construction, but I finish Sailing on eoT72, and I burn excess culture in Games and Rec, doesn't matter that I lose the culture, I can't finish D&P so I push that to 1 turn from completion and then swap. I am also going to throw caution to the wind and drop the envoy I generate this turn into Hattusa for an additional 2.1 SPT. I will sign peace after I send the trade route, Suzerain Hattusa and then I think that forces peace between Jester and Hattusa right? I might have to delay the revolt and finishing G&R one turn, but I think I can make it work.

CS completes the CD after the watermill. VV would finish the monument eot73, and should then start a builder and I think the builder and the CD finish around the same time. I think that it makes sense to run straight into Iikum if VV goes for a builder, the other option being 2gpt from caravansaries doesn't appeal.

My head hurts.

[Krill]

Can two swords and an archer do 142 health worth of damage to a strength 23 city? Find out next turn, on City State Traffic Jams.

Also, one tile wide bottlenecks are a bitch. Both archers have promotions, but I'm having to give up on capturing that builder, it gets deleted when I take Kandy, right?

[suboptimal]

Just checking in now...been a busy week despite being off from work.....all of the city-state's units will delete once the city is taken. I also don't know what happens when you take a city with a district that you don't have the tech for - it might be pillaged and unrepairable until you research the appropriate tech.

[Krill]

I've always found that time away from work tends to be busier. And usually more stressful.

If I can take Kandy next turn I will do, but a single turn delay is not a concern. Killing the warrior for culture is also irrelevant for me, but I do value the XP. What I value the most is the science from the city. A cool 4.2 science, plus the amenity bonus, is what I need right now.

I look forward to finding out what happens with the district though. I wonder if pillaged districts even count to the discount formula?

[suboptimal]

Most of my "free time" has gone into a home improvement project in my basement and hasn't been stressful at all....time just flies by when I work on one of those, though (kinda like playing Civ )

If both of the swords are attacking at 41 strength the average expected damage is ~142 just from the swords, so the city should be yours next turn. Kandy will lose one population when you conquer it. The district would factor into the discount calculation as it's a completed district.

[Krill]

Well quick update now, bigger update later. Took Kandy, it's at 4 pop but the builder moved back into the city and it still has two charges left. Perfect for improving the two plantation resources for the two new cities to give extra culture. Currency in 2, D&P in 4 and G&R in 5, so I'm basically stalling on culture now but I think I will just get Construction in time, eot71 now, Sailing eot72 so hopefully all the plans can work out.

[Krill]

Godfucking damnit Jester, you're making it hard to accept peace with you.

Just don't take Hattusa and you can have it, but I need the science. But you've burnt your relationship with Hattusa for some reason, so no we're at odds over that. And I can't suzerrain Hattusa for a few more turns then reoffer peace.

Fuck.

[Krill]

OK, where are we here.

I have a plan to build Mids, and when I do that I will finish D&P, and I have a plan to finish G&R. Right now culture generation is irrelevant, it's all wasted with both eurekas due. They are cute plans and they will help me stay competitive with the other players.

But if I sign peace with Jester, he can refocus on building Mids himself, and he can also take Hattusa. So if I give him peace I give him the ability to fuck with my plans, and I can't do anything to him. So peace is entirely one way here.




Do I need to plan for a prolonged war here? Do I need to plan to pillage the encampment, take Pan Mei and liberate Hattusa? What is the alternative? If I am planning to go back to war with jester, should I wait for him to use his head start on the Medieval GG, and burn out the use of my own GG? Right now I am roughly 5 turns from Construction, 10 from Engineering and 8 from Machinery.

Fuck, If Jester takes Hattusa my tech drops from 21 to 17, and his goes from 11.9 to over 15. Can I tolerate that? Probably not...so I think war will have to continue.

[Krill]

Yang Jun is a trap. Once I get units threw the bottleneck, which I could do this turn, shove a sword onto the iron to trap hints by ZoC and pound at them with horsemen and archers. Just damaging and forcing withdrawal is enough to waste 5 turns, and allows the consolidation of Hattusa. Even with the GG I think I could lose a sword to the two promo archer and a couple of horsemen which are almost certainly there, plus a sword from an upgraded warrior. So I'm not doing that.

I'm going to reposition and use Kandy, renamed Scombridae, as bait. And build a battering ram.

[Krill]

Fuck.

Fuck.

Good job this game is a learning experience.

I just realised my plan for building is stupid. Should gamble on the Mids, to finish D&P, research G&R without the inspiration and ignore the watermill, and chop out of the settler into the CD, so I could ignore construction and get the Entertainment district on the cheap to, then I could also move CS back onto war footing.