[SPOILERS] Dark Savant leads the noble Inca as half-noble Churchiill

[Dark Savant]

Turn 42 (2320 BC) - Part 2 (C&D)

Our scout presses northeast, and discovers another player's territory!



It's WilliamLP, owner of Stonehenge (definitely) and the Buddhist holy city (probably).  He'd make an easier target than us for Charriu, but for one thing.



They don't actually have contact with each other, as I thought!  Charriu isn't likely to attack someone whose identity he doesn't even know, and with this map's geometry, it's possible they will take quite a while to make contact.

I'd prefer not to declare war against WilliamLP to get my scout through, but I will if I need to.

2000 soldiers appeared this turn.

Charriu is the only player with a score increase this tun: he researched a technology in just 5 turns.  (The math for gaining 2 pop doesn't work out.)  It can't be either of the two cheapest technologies: he must already have Fishing, and it's extremely unlikely he could get Archery (6000 soldiers), since that requires not one but two warriors to get killed.

It could be Mysticism, but why would he need that being Aggressive and with RtR's +1 barracks culture?  Does he want a religion that badly?  He might realize that not a lot of players are going to be interested in religion.  He might also have both Agriculture and Pottery, swapped back and forth, completed in a total of 15 turns.

I'd love to know but I can't work it out.  I'll be able to see a granary mysteriously materializing in his capital (there isn't one now).

WilliamLP edit:wetbandit also gained a pop point, but because of the way the numbers work out I can't tell which city it's in for now.  I'll have to rule out one of the two some time after t43.

[Dark Savant]

Turn 43 (2280 BC) - Part 1

Core overview:

• Pottery discovered.  Fishing is up next.
  
• We plant Casterly Rock on the flood plains at the western river's mouth.  It's in the right direction, but it also conspicuously lacks a gold mine.  Oh well; maybe we'll discover it in the nearby hills someday.    It starts a terrace immediately, and the nearby quechua steps in.
  
• Science to 50% to cover expenses without losing to rounding.
  
• Oldtown swaps to a terrace from the scout.
  
• King's Landing crests the halfway point for a worker, and whips it.
  
• Lommy finishing chopping the forest NE of King's Landing.  King's Landing will now have enough overflow to build a terrace in 1 turn immediately after the worker.
  

[Dark Savant]

FYI: Turn 44 played; not yet able to finish reporting t43 yet, but I've declared war on WilliamLP to try to get my scout through his territory, and he's acknowledged that.  (If he doesn't kill my scout -- he probably does not know we're not immediate neighbors -- it will take a few turns to pick my way through, since I'm going to be careful to either avoid stepping on food tiles to avoid hurting him, or potentially ending turn next to one of his warriors since he has no way of knowing I have no intention of causing him harm.)

[Dark Savant]

Turn 43 (2280 BC) - Part 2 (C&D)

I try to maneuver the scout around WilliamLP's capital to its south.



No luck, his second city with already-expanded-borders prevents me from going that way.

9000 soldiers appeared this turn.

Score tally:

• Us: +6 points for Pottery researched in 7 turns; +3 points for planting city #3 Casterly Rock claiming 8 new land tiles; -4 points for a 1-pop whip in Oldtown.
  
• JR4: +6 points for a technology researched in 7 turns.  This is most likely Hunting (2000 soldiers).
  
• superdeath: +6 points for a technology researched in 4 turns.  That was quick; I think this is Fishing  Also, +4 points for +1 pop in either his first or his second city, but I can't tell which yet (he reached the same city sizes as wetbandit did last turn; I played before wetbandit last turn and after superdeath this turn).
  
• WilliamLP: +6 points for a technology researched in 4 turns.  That was also quick; I'm reading that as Archery (6000 soldiers) in defense of his religion and wonder.
  
• yuris125: +4 points for +1 pop in city #2 (now size 2); -7 points for a 2-pop whip in his capital (now size 2)
  

(have now played t45; catching up on reporting and C&D now while I eat dinner and let WilliamLP take first half)

[Dark Savant]

Turn 44 (2240 BC) - Part 1

Core overview:

• King's Landing finishes worker #4 (Harwin), overflow including last turn's chop goes into a terrace due next turn.
  
• Oldtown 1-pop whips its terrace.  Hot Pie finishes the riverside wheat farm there.
  
• Gendry finishes a chop, which goes into Casterly Rock.  It works a 1f2h plains forest, to complete the terrace in 3 turns.
  
• Science to 100% this turn.  (I adjusted it after this screenshot.)
  
• Harwin and Lommy collectively start building a cottage on the flood plains east of King's Landing, which is going to start to grow quickly soon (though that will be delayed one turn as I catch the terrace overflow in a settler).
  

[Dark Savant]

Turn 44 (2240 BC) - Part 2 (C&D)

I decide the best thing to do to get my scout through WilliamLP is to declare a scouting war against him.  He's a veteran and shouldn't be offended, though I have to be careful not to end turn next to a warrior as he probably does not know we are not immediate neighbors.   I'll also avoid stepping on any tile he's likely to be using; it may take some time to get through even with a scouting war.



The geography turns out to be such that I have to retrace my steps to the north.  Ah well.

Soldier count went down by 1000 (there were 4 whips since my last demographics shot; this includes yuris125's 2-pop whip last turn).

Score tally:

• Us: -4 points for a 1-pop whip (5 pop total).
  
• ipecac: +3 points for +1 pop; +4 points for planting city #3 after I played (6 pop total).  This city and yuris125's city planted next turn claim a total of 15 new land tiles.
  
• JR4: -4 points for a 1-pop whip (5 pop total).
  
• superdeath: -4 points for a 1-pop whip (5 pop total).
  
• WilliamLP: -3 points for a 1-pop whip (4 pop total).
  

It's already impractical to keep track of specifically which cities are which sizes, so I'll stop doing it (it's a lot of work for marginal gain).

No technologies appeared this turn.  Charriu shows no sign of producing a second metal unit as yet.

[Dark Savant]

Turn 45 (2200 BC) - Part 1

Core overview:

• King's Landing completes its terrace; overflow will be caught in a settler before growing on our first axe.
  
• Oldtown also completes its terrace, and resumes the scout, due next turn.
  
• Hot Pie moves to the forest north of Oldtown.
  
• Gendry moves towards Casterly Rock's corn, building 1 turn of a cottage while doing so.
  
• Science set to 50% this turn.
  

[Dark Savant]

Turn 45 (2200 BC) - Part 2 (C&D)

I have our scout retrace its steps so it's safe and ready to skirt around WilliamLP's capital to its north.

I'm now putting EP into WilliamLP instead of Charriu.  And Charriu has also stopped putting EP into me, and hasn't met WilliamLP.  So he really does have an unknown contact after all.  That makes the possibility of 3+ neighbors more likely, though Charriu still may have been first contacted by whomever WilliamLP's other neighbor is.

I'll have our second scout take a look to the east to check for a possible land bridge in addition to city sites.

8000 soldiers appeared this turn.

Score tally:

• Charriu: -4 points for a 1-pop whip in city #2 (now size 1; 5 pop total).
  
• superdeath: +24 points for 16 tiles controlled by the third ring of his capital for 20 turns.  His city planted on t40 also claimed 7 tiles by its Creative expansion this turn.
  
• wetbandit: +6 points for a technology researched in 4 turns.  This is probably Fishing.
  
• WilliamLP: -3 points for a 1-pop whip (3 pop total).
  
• yuris125: +3 points for +1 pop; +4 points for planting city #3 (6 pop total).  This city plus the city ipecac planted last turn claim 15 land tiles total.
  

Charriu has neither planted a third city, nor has he shown any sign of doing a serious axe rush on just two cities.  What is he up to?

In other news, I've already outlived myself in PB38.  

[Dark Savant]

Turn 46 (2160 BC) - Part 1

Core overview:

• King's Landing swaps to an axe (from the 32/100 settler); growth due in 2.
  
• Our first cottage at King's Landing is done; I start on the second.
  
• Oldtown produces a scout; next up is a spear.  I'm going to need a way to distinguish these scouts; I go for Night's Watch rangers.  This one I name Stonesnake.
  
• Hot Pie starts to chop the forest.  This one will go into a worker that Oldtown will swap to once it hits size 3 in 2 turns.
  
• Gendry starts to farm Casterly Rock's corn.  Casterly Rock is due to finish its terrace next turn.
  
• Science is at 100% this turn; Fishing due next turn.
  

I rename the initial scout to Ser Waymar Royce.  (He's also outlived expectations, compared to either the book or the show.  That isn't much of a spoiler; he dies in the prologue.)

[Dark Savant]

Turn 46 (2160 BC) - Part 2 (C&D)

I move the ranger Ser Waymar Royce to get some scouting done with low risk of getting attacked by WilliamLP's warriors.  Wait, he may have a skirmisher by this point, too.



He has a settler in transit; not too bad for someone focused on Stonehenge and early religion.

That capital of his does look like it's on a plains hill.  I was expecting it to be 16E 5N of Charriu's capital, but it's 15E 5N (and WilliamLP planted on t0).

6000 soldiers appeared this turn.

Score tally:

• Us: +4 points for +1 pop in Oldtown (6 pop total).
  
• Charriu: +4 points for +1 pop in city #2 (6 pop total).
  
• ipecac: +6 points for a technology researched in 8 turns.  This is probably whichever of Animal Husbandry or Pottery that he didn't already have (he still lacks Fishing).
  
• wetbandit: +4 points for +1 pop (6 pop total).
  
• yuris125: +3 points for +1 pop (7 pop total).
  

Charriu has higher hammer production than anyone else.  He still doesn't show any more than one metal unit.