[spoilers] - pindicator is excited for the next Realms Beyond league mechanics

[pindicator]

102 & 103

How many wars will we be in at once?




I would like to have traded for some of those furs, but it seems we dont' have a trade route opened yet. Probably need to open borders with Gavagai first.

And then, I was not finished:




This is just greed. I have a decent target. GeneralKilCavalry is likely my southern neighbor. My window for doing something is probably closing. But dammit, I'm here talking myself into sweeter prizes. Maybe GKC will now think this galley is empty and let me closer to larger targets? Not that I know where they larger targets may lie. (Actually they're probably just to my east, but turning back now would really give up the ruse.)


Also - because I may need to track this stuff later:
AT: no idea on turnsplit, as I killed his work boat at some point and we are nowhere near each other now
Commodore: Play before
GeneralKilCavalry: Play before

Let's add some more to the list, shall we?


But, to show that I can be civilized too:




I'll likely cancel this as soon as I want to start Moai myself. I don't know if the silver will do much for me, maybe a happy population here or there.


Can't get enough of those demos lately:





....I bet OH is saying the same

[pindicator]

104

Well, some things happened this turn.

First off, I did dot map the south finally:




And then I realized that the south is a lot bigger than I realized. And GeneralKilCavalry is definitely my competition for this land.

Which is why GKC really shouldn't have tempted me by putting his galley in the city.




Burning a size 3 city on the wrong side of his empire may not slow him down, but burning a galley to go with it definitely will. So now we're moving north again, and maybe getting to cause some mayhem along the way. But likely being sunk. Either way, we need to try to get this galley back home.

I guess I burnt it fast enough that the score increase didn't show on PBSPY. Which is neat, because Commodore immediately pinged me asking if I saw the fireworks between Elkad Borsche and GKC. Uh, yeah - wow! Big fireworks there. Go those guys

[pindicator]

I wonder if there were any units on that galley...

[Cornflakes]

I wonder if there were any units on that galley...

So no before/after demographics screenshots to compare power change?

[pindicator]

I wonder if there were any units on that galley...

So no before/after demographics screenshots to compare power change?

I have been wonderfully oblivious to common sense today. Saw no reason to change here

[pindicator]

106

Commodore offered peace and I trustingly took him at it




Only to find my work boat trapped. Shit.

But I figured there must be more of a reason for this armistice, and so I discovered Commodore has researched Alphabet and can now give open borders. So I offered that trade with him. And I also noticed we have a trade route and I can ask for his furs, so I offered him Whales for Furs. The capital can cap out at size 11 right now, though I will have to give up the silver soon to start on Moai. I should have a 2nd whales hooked up in 6 turns. So maybe we start Moai sooner and endure a little pain in the short term.




Yikes, GKC. This is just not your game.





A little disappointing to see that Disney extends all the way to the east as here. But this also doubles down on my theory that Mouseferatu has way over-extended to keep me bottled up down south. Nwo the question is one of strategy: is it better to stay friends for him and let him have his spoils which will let me go south? Or is it better to just call him on it and go north through him? I think south, with north when we get to knights.





Two more turns until this guy comes out but now I am considering a golden age and manually teching Theology. I'm concerned that there won't really be a GA unless I start some specialists yesterday, if I use the two I have for a bulb + shrine. And is getting a shrine worth 2 great people at this point? I don't think it is. Rather what would be: free civic swaps into Theology & Hereditary Rule. Or perhaps we really do want to sit on this first golden age a bit and make sure we're running it only when we can get into Vassalage as well. That might be a 3rd GA if I can run it in a city that has good food - like say Nemesis. That place can run 5 specialists at break-even food, that'd only be 20 turns. And now that I know there's no reason for settlers in the north maybe that's the right play. 20 turns sounds about right.





Solved the mystery as to why Hitru and OH have such insane GNP. Look at that start, compare it to mine, and ask yourself if there is a god. Might as well ask on GKC's behalf too.





Latest settler is on the boat and heading west. I want to grab the cow + double clam location here, and then everything else probably goes south. I need to get a chariot on that southern island I've been circling; it looks massive and rich.

[pindicator]

107 & 108

I'm getting too soft in my old age...




Didn't take the city. Scoped a turn down south because I was afraid that this direction was a dead-end and ... well, truth be told is that i was feeling bad about burning another GKC city. Oh but I should have! I should have! See, that's what I mean about getting soft...

But there ended up being a silver lining to it!




So who's the viking now? We essentially held a city hostage and will now come home with 50g in loot - that's more than we would have gotten from razing it, so I'll consider that a win. Not that I planned it like so, but it worked out pretty well in the end.



This turn we had another prophet and Rusten bulbed Philosophy. So that was my sign that it was indeed time to get Theology bulbed and use my other prophet to shrine. We're just going to have to bite the bullet on a later golden age...

Christianity was founded in Beyond, which is a decent city for it. It's not a coastal city, but it also will have good production for getting later gold-producing buildings.




And next I am moving settlers south. I'll have to give a screenshot of the island between GKC and I, but I need to really start spamming settlers here to get it, and hopefully getting a shrine will help me here.

Code of Laws finishes at the end of the turn, thanks to the gold from GKC. Not sure where I'll get the chance to start getting courthouses down, but maybe some city or two is a good candidate. Probably not yet though. Really, I think the best Metal Casting needs to come next. Triremes for defense, forges for production. Or Monarchy: wines. Or Iron Working and Calendar: we're heading south. (Too late for Museum, though...)

[pindicator]

110




We have shrined our religion, and it's a modest start: +4gpt. I spread it to the capital this turn with the free missionary, which may be my missionary pump. I'm not decided on where the monastery goes. I might want 2 since this empire is going to be very large if everything goes to plan.




Perandus founded in the far west. I have another settler out here that is coming out of Ambush, which I'll whip next turn. The tough decision is where to send it: I am really toying with the idea of over-stretching since there is no competition right now, and getting to that southern island and all of its gems.





Down south GKC has blocked me from going east through his empire. Don't blame him, but I was hoping to go through and be on my way. If he declares I'll pillage the sheep; if not I'll load up and go east. If he really wants to be a pain he'll move his trireme onto the same tile my galley is on and make me choose.

But maybe it's better that I don't send my galley north: if I can keep him focused west and south that may be better for me, buy me more time to grab that center island.





Founding Perandus actually made my GPT go up! Good for me since I'm going to be spamming settlers here.





Next 3 settling targets are updated and numbered by signs. I'm going to be more aggressive in pushing south and then backfill later.

[pindicator]

Oh, next tech is not actually going to be Calendar. I'm thinking either Metal Casting for some trireme defense and planting a few workshops, or Iron Working because I'm starting to get towards the jungle, and it would be nice to see where Iron is. Leaning towards MC because everybody else seems to have it already.

[pindicator]

115

Big shot for 1 AD




We're pushing south. I've added 4 new cities in the last handful of turns: 3 on the mainland and this turn my first on the island. (And really not the best spot on the island, but a worker is on the way...) There are two more settlers heading south and I think the idea is still to push south fast: right now I'm aiming for putting on at the wheat/clam spot in the south of the mainland, and the other is going to the Fish/Cow/Gems on the southern island.

I envy Commodore. He'd have some catchy, organic sounding name for each of these little landmasses.

Out in the west I'm considering pushing farther, but the priority has to be south: and there's so much to grab down there. Right now I'm at 18; those two settlers I mentioned make it 20. After that there is still room for another dozen cities at least - if I can grab all this land.

I finish Metal Casting this turn and I'm going to get 1 or 2 triremes out. I think my biggest threat is either from TBW showing in the southeast - he could potentially be competition to the southern island - or if my southern neighbors make it far enough north. Neither AT nor GeneralKilCavalry are on good terms with me, and so I need to be ready for confrontation when they start arriving. GKC is dumping EP into me like mad. With that in mind, I'm considering going for Horseback Riding next. Really, I think Monarchy is the correct choice though: I have those wines to connect.




Next great person is in 20 turns. This is certainly a hole in my strategy: not having an early golden age.