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Okay, so I have been rethinking about taking out Geneva right away, maybe it would be better to keep them around until Sullla tries to become Suzerain. I have 5 campuses I want to build, you have 3 or 4 you want to build plus if you switch to Trade Confederation and send your next available trade routes to Geneva, you may be able to get more out of Geneva than Rome. I still need to think about it a little bit but will keep them around for the time being.
Also, did you switch out of Square Rigging last turn? I can send you the boost in about 6 turns, as I will finish it after Cartography. No need for you to finish it unboosted. Same with Reformed Church, I will have it finished in 3 turns. No need to waste research in places you don't need too.
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Okay, if we're keeping it, then the sooner I can get my campuses up and running, the better. I don't need as many as you, but I need enough to be roughly at parity with Singaboy, maybe a little bit ahead since he has boosted eurekas.
I did swap out of square rigging, but not Reformed Church. I only need 1 turn to finish it (after next turn), so you can swap away and we'll get it one turn sooner. Then I'll drop in my culture boosting policies and I can take the lead on that front. Need to look at the tech tree to determine what precisely to push for.
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Turn 122
Just a few interesting movements. Namely, Sullla's navy is milling around the middle sea:
He has a lot of quads, but hasn't started upgrading yet. This is going to be an exciting naval war, I think! Hopefully Archduke can put a dent in the Roman navy, but unfortunately most of Germany's ships are on the wrong side of the straits.
Interestingly, Sullla has a settler on the map, standing on the campus north of Venezia. I wonder where he's going? One of the islands? That'd make sense.
Other than that, nothing interesting really happened with our unit movements. So, let's look at my empire: What can I do to improve, and how do I do that? Here is a very rough micro plan. This is just what i need to do, nothing at all about time frames or when stuff happens. I just want build orders and improvements needed. I can refine this later as time goes on - I've never done an empire-wide improvement project before.
Trafalgar
A decent city. My highest pop, every citizen is working good tiles. I need to lift housing again, but there's no tile I'd like to give up for an aqueduct. Farms? Hm, doesn't seem worthwhile. I do have room for another district. I also have a quest for a Holy Site and for a Great Prophet. I could build those here.
More urgent are two things: A university on the campus for +4 science. Could be chopped using the spare jungle and forest. Also need lots of builders - Trafalgar can crank them out faster than any other city.
Builder charges needed: Ideally 4. 2 lumber mills in the north, 2 forest chops.
Total builders needed: 1
Salamis
Salamis is in great shape, housing wise. It is out of choppable materials, but it could use one more mine. The CH is done, and Markets are expensive. No available districts here yet, no buildings urgent other than a monument. Salamis is a good candidate to become a builder pump.
Total charges needed: 1. Can be shared with Trafalgar's builder.
Total builders needed: 1.
Navarino
The second-largest city in the empire. Needs one mine on the copper, and one on the hill would not go amiss. Then it can send a mine back to Salamis to improve that city. A farm north of the rice makes a triangle and lifts housing. Worth it.
Buildings: It has the basics. Needs to lift housing, so a lighthouse. Nothing to chop, so it has to slowbuild the Commercial Hub.
Build plans: finish the builder, then build the commercial hub, then evaluate. Probably traders.
Builder charges needed: 2.
Total builders needed: 2.
Actium
Slow growing. Would like to harvest the cows to reach size 7 eventually.
Lighthouse is finishing up, then chop the Great Lighthouse. Next step, build another quad, then chop out the Commercial Hub using jungle, build the rest.
At size 7, chop a quad into a campus, then work on campus buildings.
Build queue: Ships and buildings, it looks like. An aqueduct is down but not necessary yet.
Builder charges needed: 4 chops, 3 mines = 7.
Total builders needed: 3. Can share with Navarino's builder.
Leyte
Hampered by terrible production. Mining the hill southwest of the city, has forest, jungle, and stone for chopping. Build quadrireme, chop into campus with stone. Build another quad, chop into campus buildings with forest. Maybe buy the 3rd ring hill nearby and mine it.
Total charges needed: 4.
Total builders needed: 4.
Aboukir
Problem is food and unimproved tiles. Need one high-food tile to sustain population = farm on rice. Chop the marsh for more growth. Mines on hills. Has only 1 jungle for chopping, so after settler = slowbuild commercial hub and campus, then campus buildings. Can chop one quadrireme into half a district, not sure which is more urgent.
Total charges needed: 5
Total builders needed: 5
Jutland
City is growing to size 4 in 4 turns, but is out of housing. Needs a granary and a lighthouse/aqueduct after the harbor. Has a quad ready to chop, but I'm saving that for the city's second builds, to speed that up - take advantage of City Patron Goddess.  I want a campus down by the mountain (not the aqueduct tile), which is jungle, so chop that. Need a mine on the northwest forest after chopping, need 2 more mines on 2 more second ring tiles.
Total charges: 4 (chopping wheat), total builders needed: 6
Savo
City is going to halt the quad at 1 turn, then work on the harbor. Builder will harvest the cattle, stone, forest, and jungle for ship builds, most likely, possibly a monument or granary in there, then mine the hill. City is mostly for shipbuilding. A second builder can build improvements on the stripped-down island.
Total charges needed: 5, for now.
Total builders needed: 7
Syracuse
City will work on the harbor FIRST, then the ship. Makes sense, right?
Builder will pasture horses, harvest cattle & rice, and chop and mine one hill. Chops will go for granary/monument/lighthouse. Second builder will chop and mine rest of island.
Total charges needed: 5, for now.
Total builders needed: 8.
Lepanto
Build harbor first (CPG), then use ship chops for other things. Maximize production, right? I want to chop/mine forest, then chop stone and forest. No sense saving production for later when Ican have it now. Priority is lighthouse for growth, plus ships. Each chop needs to go to ships, I want tons of quads out.
Total charges needed: 4
Total builders: 9
Final goals:
5 campuses total with libraries and universities
5 commercial hubs total, no buildings yet.
Most cities with at least 7 housing.
I need to crank out 9 builders. Trafalgar and Salamis can split most of the work, Navarino joining in when it finishes. Leyte will get one out, as will Trafalgar, so I have 7 more to queue up. There's also a handful already on the map, so I'll adjust. At the end of things, Woden, I'll have 19 trade routes - 13 RNDs in every city except Trafalgar, 5 commercial hubs, and my 1 default. Once the campuses are finished and my science is helping me not get hopelessly left behind, I'll queue up Commercial Hubs in the remaining 7 pop cities where I can.
The whole time, quadririmes are being chopped out of multiple cities. Every forest, jungle, and stone in the empire is being burned up in this endeavor - it basically represents my last gamble to catch up. Once we're in striking distance, and our DoF expires, it'll be time for Woden and I to go all-in in a last-ditch effort to bring down Rome and China. I need a strong navy (being chopped) with money to upgrade (I'm saving as much as I can). I'll have a narrow window of frigates before Sullla hits steel, but even then I think I can swarm and sink his Battleships the way that oledavy took out Woden's Minais Gerais in PBEM4. Main goal will be to take those canal cities with my western navy, while the southern navy transits to the far sea and attempts to raze cities like Pagan and Venezia on the southern coast. I think assembling the frigate strike force is within our capabilities.
Don't worry, Woden, after I get the inspiration for square rigging, I'll be one turn short of frigates. I need quads and maritime industries - I'm only finishing exploration once I'm ready to make the upgrade.
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Nubia-Turn 122
Start this turn in the north...
Barb crossbow is in range of my musket and musket was enough to take him out, which gives...
And an envoy in Valletta for finishing their quest (now at 7 envoys). I go and check Isis to see if my assumption of religion not updating right away...
Good, the city did convert, not that it matters since CMF will finish before I get my 6th city converted. Overall, it was a quiet turn. Here is my core...
Campus completes at Taueret and starts an encampment. I did rearrange the tiles for a more production focus and it drops from 3 turns to 2. I also put a few citizens on library duty in Osiris and Nu-Kandy. They were working unimproved tiles and figured science would be a little better. This brought my science rate to 99  I also switched Isis to a Builder. I don't want the settler there to finish before the one at the former Khmer capital and switching now lets the Builder get out sooner.
Finally, I couldn't send Germany a friendship request, probably because he is the one with the alliance but I was able to send Russia one...
Hopefully he accepts and we all can focus on Rome/China. If not, I may have to start military builds sooner than I like. One concern is that Rome/China will see a new friendship and realize we are going to side with Germany/Russia on the upcoming war but I am hoping it is obscured by the alliance flag, like it is on my screen. That way they won't know we extended the DoF and still think we will help with their plans.
The turn has already made it back to me and I will have the next report up later today.
April 13th, 2018, 11:52
(This post was last modified: April 13th, 2018, 11:54 by Woden.)
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Nubia-Turn 123
Open the save to...
This will help at crab city because it adds +2  to fishing boats. Russia did accept my friendship offer, so peace on that front until T153. This should get us to infantry and the usefulness of Cossacks will be less threatening. They still will be powerful but not if they attack us right when we reach Calvary. In the north...
Not enough to one-shot the spear but takes a good chuck out while barely scratching the musket. Speaking of barbs...
Looks like CMF's trade route raider is going after mine. It doesn't look like you have anything in the area CMF, but if you could do anything about this guy it would be helpful.
Here is my core...
Most cities are on builder duty. Taueret will finish the encampment next and start a builder. Two settlers will found their cities next turn and I will immediately convert the canal city but think CMF will finish Reformed Church on his turn to make it a moot point. Crab city is about 6 turns from founding. The settler does hook up with a sling to offer a little protection but if a barb ship appears, I may lose it. Highly doubtful, as we have been pretty good at keeping the barbs at bay but who knows what is out in the fog.
Here is the southwest...
Builder at the tundra city is 6 turns away but will probably take 7 as the costs will increase as my core produces all of its builders. Settler will take 7. I should have the faith to buy a granary in the tundra city before I ship it over to CMF. I was going to have the build go to the new city spot to start improving it right away but am now thinking it would be better to go to Uppy to chop walls into a builder, followed by settler. I do need Uppy to get production going and start building units to hold off any invasion by Rome or at least make it look like it will be hard to invade. This area will need lots of builder love before it can really become productive.
Back at my core, I look at Horus...
The city was working an unimproved plains hill, so I stuck the citizen into the library to bring my science to 101 . I also wanted to check and see if it was going to grab the grassland hill in the southeast. Looks to like a plains hill instead. I may have to buy the grassland hill to help the city grow. I plan on putting the 20% land purchases card once I am in Theocracy because I have about 4 or 5 tiles I want to buy for chops or farm triangles and will buy this one too.
Over in Germany...
TheArchduke has a massive shipbuilding operation going. Singaboy and Sullla better be careful. In PBEM4, TheArchduke showed he was as good an Admiral as he is a General. With the narrow landmasses over there, I can see the border war there being more about naval power than land power. Good job TheArchduke for picking up on that! It is going to be fun seeing this battle unfold.
Lastly, I want to discuss civics and techs, starting with techs...
We are in an area of the tree where you need everything right now! Industrialization on the top for added production, Ballistics for field guns, and Military Science for Calvary and military academies. I have my GS that will give me 3 boosts but still want to hold off to get a few more in place before using him. I was going to hope for the Siege Tactics boost as I didn't want to build cats or bombards but I have a quest and figured it is better to get the boost and hope for a different one from the GS, as there are plenty that I won't be able to get. After the builders at Isis and Horus are finished, I will have them build cats to be upgraded. Anyways, my tech plans are to run towards Industrialization and hope for the boost when I activate the GS. I will go Square Rigging->Mass Production->Industrialization (1/2 way)->Banking->Metal Casting->Seige Tactics (1/2 way)->Ballistics (1/2 way). I will activate the GS somewhere in there as soon as I get 2 bombards and mine niter. Not sure if I can get any other boosts completed, I will have to double check. I will be happy if I can get at least one of Industrialization or Seige Tactics and will be happy with whatever the others are as they are in the next, more expensive tier of techs and many have boosts that are harder to achieve (shipyards, neighborhoods, etc).
Civic-wise...
The major goal here is The Enlightenment for the science buildings card. I will finish Reformed Church once I get the boost from CMF next turn or I get it myself and the go for Diplomatic Service->Humanism (unboosted)->The Enlightenment. After that, I will go for Nationalism and then beeline Democracy and Globalization. There are a number of dead ends or useless civics near the end that you don't need to research. Globalization is a far ways off and I probably won't see it by the end of the game but just in case, it is nice to beeline for E commerce and the awesome trade routes. I do need to increase my culture soon, hopeful I can get a few theater squares in cities with Jesuit Education. I will also try to get some museums up and some artifacts going to increase culture but that is a ways off and not sure if the coming war will decide the game before I can do that but you do need goals.
Now that there is only 6 people in the game I hope we can get a few multiple turn days on the weekend. Of coarse, now that I mentioned it and looking forwards to it, we will hit a major snag with someone and only get 1 turn this weekend.
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Turn 123
As usual, found the save waiting for me when I got home Friday. I'm pretty sure Sullla has the day off, and Woden can play in the middle of the day, so the game moves quick on the weekends.
The turn opened with a piece of very welcome news:
My economy has been crippled by lack of economic slots, and I can't take the better Merchant Republic because it obviates Maritime Industries and would torch my quadrireme production. I won't take that until I'm ready to upgrade to Frigates, which won't be for another 22 turns or so.
Here's my government:
Should be no surprises. Culture and science techs immediately help me make up a lot of my missing ground - I'm about 10 beakers behind Singaboy now, and culturally I'm behind Russia and Rome (with lots of new cities and monuments coming to help with that). Conscription and Maritime Industries to maintain the economy and shipbuilding, and serfdom is a necessity with no less than 8 builders called for in the next 20 turns or so. Colonization I dropped - it only boosts Aboukir now, not worth it.
The builder improvements start. Leyte and Aboukir get mines. When Leyte finishes its builder, I'll buy the 1/3 hill to the south and chop/mine that, dumping the production into a campus - that's Leyte's next big project (a quad -> campus).
Woden, I do happen to have a caravel nearby:
I upgraded this guy specifically to deal with barbarian caravels on this sea. There's a Great Admiral en route to boost him, too. I should be able to cover your trader - I don't think the barb will have the move to plunder him this turn? Hope not, anyway. Also, check out that beautiful wake. Strategic mode loads and runs a lot faster for me, so I open games in it, but I swap to the normal view for pretty views like this.
Exploring more of Rome/China. A loose builder! He must be headed for that woody peninsula.
Here's my most powerful unit: A caravel fleet backed by a great admiral. Soon, this will be obsolete compared to the frigate fleets and armadas I'll have running around, but for now let's see what it can do:
That.  Gonna smash barb ships until I get some more promotions.
Cornflakes and Japper's continent sucks:
All the fresh water is down here in the tundra! Russia would be happy as a clam, but what can Khmer do with this? Cornflakes had 3 cities and not a lot of great options for more. Maybe that lake near Nan Madol, and then - coast. Nice to see my civ wasn't the only one with fresh water difficulties, a bit discouraging that the other civ to struggle like this was an early exiter. Nothing to do but to soldier on!
The west:
And the east:
Two new cities next turn.
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Nubia-Turn 124
It might be confirmation bias but both Emperor K and Sullla held the save way to long. I need to remember to not state my hopes of multi-turn days on the weekend. I am only wishing for 2 turns a day on the weekends because the next 20 turns are going to be boring AF and I want to get them over as things build. Anyways, open the save to...
Thanks to CMF for finishing it last turn. Doesn't really matter as I convert my 6th city this turn anyways. I swap it in to finish next turn. I get a notification of a pillaged trade route...
Looks like CMF's ship wasn't enough to scare the barb off. That sucks because I need lots of gold soon. I guess I will have to rebuild the trader soon to make up for the gold.
Time to found some new cities. Start of with the canal city...
Named it Bes and placed a Harbor on the inner lake and switch to walls. I want to get out of Limes in as soon as I can chop them to be able to run Feudal Contracts for Crossbows. In the north...
Founded Ptah and started walls. This city will get a campus by the mountains as soon as I can get a builder to harvest the marsh. This should be a fairly good city once it is improved and grows some.
Off the eastern shore...
China is here poking around. I will have to see about getting a few ships here for protection. I would hate to lose my coastal cities to Chinese raiders. Plan is to get a Harbor in Thoth after I harvest its sheep and build a few frigates to protect the eastern seas and the lakes area by Russia but that is a few turns off.
In the west...
I finally renamed the Khmer cities that I am going to keep, the old capital is now Ma'at and the northern city is Hathor. I am going to switch Ma'at off of the settler next turn as I am going to put in Land Surveyors instead of Colonialism for the next 3 turns to buy a few tiles. I have the monument and granary to repair during those turns. That way I can keep the culture card in so I don't fall behind.
I have been keeping an eye on the Great Scientist race to see who will get the next one. I figured at least Germany or Rome would run projects to steal it from the other but...
It looks like they both ran projects that finished last turn for Germany and this turn for Rome, as 2 GS are gone. I am happy that Germany got Darwin instead of Rome, since Rome would get more benefit with the wonder by Japper's capital than Germany will get by his wonder. The next scientist is...
James Young is not the best one because you can't improve oil with out the tech that reveals it. I guess if a district is built on it you get it hooked up. I should get this one as I have a good lead agianst Germany and Rome. I don't think there will be a race for this one.
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For all I know the turn will come in while I type this, so gotta hurry.
That's a bummer about your trader, Woden.  I tried to cover him, but I was one movement short. If I'd moved the Great Admiral down sooner, I could have done it. That sucks. I need to get a unit down to clean out that pirate nest by Tsingy. These Madagascarians have gone too far!
Turn 124
Most of my cities are continuing to build - builders, monuments, lighthouses, what have you, so I didn't take too many pictures.
I continue to use the Victory to monitor Sullla's fleet. THe bonus is that Archduke can see what I can, so I can give him some intel. Every little bit helps, right? Speaking of the Archduke, Woden, I noticed on my turn that all his gold vanished. I assumed he mass-upgraded, which in retrospect was dumb because I can see his units. He must have bought Darwin. That's great news for us, because Darwin would have been worth 2000 beakers at Japper's capital! Yikes. I wasn't even aware of the race - I've been sadly neglectful of checking the great person screen.
In the north, I continue to farm barbs for experience:
Hey, there's another promotion! The fleet now gets an additional +7! This guy's gonna be a monster - but wait until I have Frigate Armadas running around. 
In the south, the battle is more evenly matched, but Sir Francis Drake gives me an edge:
40 damage to him versus 23 to me. Great Admirals rock.
One lone galley continues to explore the south. I have in mind transferring him to Archduke's territory to upgrade, then perhaps swinging by the fjord to promote. That way is shorter than turning around at this point! 
At home, Trafalgar and Navarino finish builders. Trafalgar's goes to chop out a university (unboosted, but there's no way to fit in a boostable policy card), then will head out to improve Aboukir some more. Navarino's goes to drop a farm to make a feudalism triangle and boost Navarino's housing, then will head for Savo to chop/improve there.
We are 2 turns out from a lighthouse at Actium, at which point we will chop out the Great Lighthouse in I THINK one turn. Might take a little more, not sure. Not running the numbers, too much work for too little reward.
Our research rates, now that I've gotten back into sensible policies, aren't terrible. We match Rome/China in combined culture and Russia/Germany in combined science. Our gold lags behind Rome/China but is ahead of Russia/Germany. Ditto military power. Since we're tied for second in every category, but lead in none, I'd say we're in third place for sure, but we're close. Getting my districts online (I've only built like 3 non-RND districts) is a huge priority for me, and will help Woden and I really close the gap.
Okay, so two major lessons learned from this game:
1)Absolutely do not delay expansion, whether it's through settlers or population growth. Districts CONSTANTLY increase in cost, and if you delay putting them down, it only gets worse. I'm paying much more for my districts than Sullla or the Archduke did for theirs. It's a big handicap. So, always be raising your housing cap if you need to, always be pushing settlers, and get those districts out early.
2)The trade economy CAN work, but only as a SUPPLEMENT to a proper district base, not IN PLACE of one. I tried to make it work, and once Natural Philosophy/Rationalism/Meritocracy hit, you just get left in the dust. However, I am getting huge returns on my trade routes. If I had as many districts as, say, Singaboy did, I'd be roaring past him on all fronts, and I daresay I'd be close on Rome and Germany's heels.
So, for future England games, absolutely push trade, but not to the exclusion of expansion. Doesn't work.
And I see Woden is playing now, so another turn report up soon!
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Nubia-Turn 125
Slow turn as I wait for things to finish. I do finish...
And switch governments. Goodbye super-powered walls chops, hello discounted faith purchases. Here is my policy set up...
I keep Limes and Conscription for military cards. I put in Serfdom and Land Surveyors for the 2 economic slots. I removed Colonization until teh next policy swap so that I can keep running Meritocracy. This means I switch off the settler at Ma'at and will repair the monument and granary until I switch back. I also keep Merchant Confederation for the extra gold.
With Land Surveyors in, I purchase a few tiles I need...
I buy the forest tile by Bes, the marsh and forest tiles near Ptah in the north, and buy the grassland hill at Horus. This takes most of my gold but these tiles are needed in the near future for chops or food. I have one more tile to buy when I found crab city (the niter), but now don't know if it will be in time since...
Bastard China is blocking my path. It is going to take 4 turns to found this city but if continues to be in my way, it could take longer. Let's hope he gets out of the way here. I will delay Diplomatic Service 1 turn but not sure about 2, to get the discounted tile. Of coarse, the savings are small anyways but 30 is 30 . I would rather buy it at a discount. Next turn I have a couple of builders coming out and can start improving/chopping.
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Turn 125
Slow for me as well. Didn't take many pictures, not much happening.
The pirate caravel fleets, but using my own galley and caravels I'm able to hunt him down and engage again:
One more turn and this pirate is done. The other caravel promotes, taking the +7 combat strength promotion. I'd like to get one more for +1 movement as well. Scouts find nothing of interest, so here's some overview and economy discussion:
Cities are finally growing again in the west. Actium needs 1 turn on its lighthouse, then I will chop a quad into the Great Lighthouse, then go back steady shipbuilding here. Each finished Quad gets chopped to build something else, too - a Commercial Hub next, then a campus if I ever reach size 7? Not likely.
Jutland is one turn from growing. It's got a quad prebuilt. It will finish the RND naturally, then chop out more necessary buildings into future quads. Lepanto, not pictured, is doing the same - build the RND naturally to take advantage of City Patron, then use my limited chops to build other buildings/districts. I expect to have 12 frigates on this sea by the time the DoF expires.
Leyte is working on a builder, then it will build a quad to chop into a Campus. Growing to size 5 will really speed things up, I'm finally paying attention to production in this city. Now if I'd only done that 50 turns ago...
Syracuse is slow-building the RND, as per standard protocol now, then it will work on a ship. Build time will drop with a population growth. Salamis is kicking out a builder to help out. These new cities need granaries to get to size 5 quick. Syracuse will work on a CH once it hits size 4.
Aboukir is fast blossoming, but food is hard to come by. Settler is due soon, then a district. I only have a jungle chop, but that's as good as a forest when you have Maritime Industries.
The east. University is done soon - goal is to catch Singaboy in science. Kick out a builder next.
Navarino is beautiful. Just needs 11 turns to build the incredibly costly Commercial Hub. Nothing to chop, so no choice. Savo is building a quad, then will finish its RND. Quad can get chopped into something else. Overall, I'm looking at a 10-frigate squadron here in the future.
Singaboy asked for a DoF. I said no. We'll have plenty of time as it is, I think. More time just favors Sullla's ridiculous science rate more.
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