[SPOILERS] DaveV and Kandros Fir sing songs about money

[DaveV]

I'm back from vacation, so here's an update for all the stuff I didn't report.



I just finished Animal Husbandry, so I got to see horses at the end of the turn. Their location is perfect, since my settler is on its way to the tile marked "1". I was afraid they'd pop up under my farmed grassland. Copper is on the capital tile, which makes that a 3 hammer tile.

I researched Mining before Exploration, since I don't need the happiness until I settle my second city and the vaults fall to Low. I've been doing very well on GNP as a consequence. See the demos, which are depressed because I forgot to select my next tech, which will be Bronze Working; I don't think I can wait any longer for the ability to clear jungle. I want to grab Festivals for income and GPP, so that's likely to be next after BW.







Here's where my happiness penalty hurts me. My cities will probably always be a bit smaller than the other guys'.



The game just doesn't like to give me money.





The combination of fast workers and mines before roads helps me a lot here.



Because of my gold mine? Maybe I just have more hills.



Here's where Auro makes up for lagging in manufacturing.



His scout was eaten around turn 20.



I'm slightly ahead because of starting with the Religion civic.

[DaveV]

I settled my second city in the planned location:



It came with a free trade route, thanks to rivers and the lake. One warrior is standing on the pigs to prevent jungle growth; the scout will move northeast to the jungle hill to expose some more tiles. In a convenient bit of timing, I finished connecting my second happy resource just in time to offset my now-empty vaults.

The song, from back in the days when MTV actually played music (I suggest fast forwarding to :50, when the music starts; up till then it's just atmosphere or scene setting or something):



I know it's a cover, but it's the version I know and love.

[Zed-F]

How about Pink Floyd? Or Dire Straits

[DaveV]

No spoilers, but there's a very good chance that both those bands are already on the list.

[DaveV]

Barb warriors started appearing the turn after I settled Simply Red, so I'm either behind or tied in expansion with at least two other people. This turn, the first warrior moved inside my borders, and I took the 73% attack:



And won, yay! These first few combats represent a potentially huge swing in the game; barbs are no joke at Immortal difficulty. My warrior ended up with 2.5/3 HP and 5 XP, a very favorable result (Cyneheard's calculator says I had a 4.83% chance of taking 0 damage, and a 10.97% chance of taking exactly one hit). I should have 99% odds on the next guy.

[DaveV]

Not quite 99%, but good enough for another win. My warrior is now at 8 XP, 2.5/3 HP, with no more barbs in view.



I'm starting to fall behind the other guys because of my slow growth. The numbers will get better after I pasture the pigs at Simply Red, but I need some more happiness, which means finishing Bronze Working. I also need Festivals for a better economy, but I think happiness and growth are more important.

[shallow_thought]

Huh. Interesting that happiness is already biting. I'm going to need to look up the numbers on Dwarven Vaults again. Any change in EitB?

[Mardoc]

I tried to look up some other money songs, but I have to conclude that money songs are usually depressing and I don't want to keep googling them. Either there isn't enough money, or the way to get it is to do bad things.

Appropriate to the Khazad, at least!

[DaveV]

Huh. Interesting that happiness is already biting. I'm going to need to look up the numbers on Dwarven Vaults again. Any change in EitB?

In an appalling case of not doing my homework, I discovered that EitB 10 halved these numbers. I had been wondering why the main page display (old numbers) and the actual city happiness (new numbers) didn't always match.

[DaveV]

I tried to look up some other money songs, but I have to conclude that money songs are usually depressing and I don't want to keep googling them.  Either there isn't enough money, or the way to get it is to do bad things.

Appropriate to the Khazad, at least!

And there appears to be an entire genre of "My agent/record company screwed me."