[Cornflakes] 57 Christmas Treats That Will Make You Hungry

[Cornflakes]

And so begins our foray once more into the Realms Beyond ... er, the ancient yet advanced realms ... the rebalanced realms ... in pursuit of glory, fame, and immortality.

I honestly can’t name a most powerful or weakest Civ or trait in this version of RtR. The biggest advantage of RtR that I like though is the whipping change (30 hammers for first pop whipped, and 20 for all subsequent pop). Larger whips become more inefficient. Hammers and hammer-producing improvements become more valuable. Micromanagement to always achieve 2+ pop whips for happiness efficiency is reduced.

CtH has suffered from scope-creep and is not a minimalist mod. It is stuck in limbo, too far from home to be the ultra-light “fix the perma-bans” alternative to RtR, but not far enough to make it a truely better alternative. This obviously is personal preference, and I really really appreciate the vast amount of effort that Charriu has invested in making some truly great features that have been shared with RtR

Looking forward to a mouth-watering game as we explore some favorite Christmas treats, desserts, and snacks. How will we make it to 57? Nominate your favorite for a chance to win a city name!

[Cornflakes]

Reserved

[Cornflakes]

Opponents:

Gavagai - Mao (EXP/PRO) of Persia
Cornflakes - Ragnar (AGG/FIN) of America
Pindicator - Asoka (SPI/ORG) of Azteca
Old Harry - Peter (EXP/PHI) of Ethiopia
The Black Sword - Nebuchadnezzar (PHI/IND) of Babylon

City Names:
- Cashew Bars
- Pinnekjøtt (Tarkeel) ... first Sheep city
- Mincemeat (DaveV)
- Christstollen (Kaiser)
- Dominostein (civac2)
- Lutefisk (Tarkeel) ... fishing village

[Tarkeel]

May I introduce you to the local speciality pinnekjøtt?

I think the two issues that turn me away from RtR in favor of CtH are the camp/pasture switcheroo and the naval changes. It's not that I don't like them, but they are harder to keep track of.

[Cornflakes]

May I introduce you to the local speciality pinnekjøtt?

That looks good As the first nominee, you have guaranteed yourself a city name! Capital name is locked in, but you can have your pick of one of the other starting cities, or defer for a better option later

I think the two issues that turn me away from RtR in favor of CtH are the camp/pasture switcheroo and the naval changes. It's not that I don't like them, but they are harder to keep track of.

The naval changes were experimental, disliked by most of us, and cut from the latest RtR. Naval  promotions, XP, movement, etc. have all been reverted back to match BtS. [EDIT: actually this isn’t entirely true that all naval changes have been reverted. More accurately, the latest complete naval rework has been reverted. There are still a few changes to naval units like caravel and privateer as indicated in the change log. But those changes are part of the general balance goal of the mod, not sweeping mechanics changes]

Camp/pasture swap makes many more civs have more flexibility and options from the start of the game, instead of being locked into researching an expensive tech early. I don’t see much downside other than mildly anti-thematic, and awareness for the change for new RtR players.

[Tarkeel]

I guess I'll re-read the changelog for the latest release. As I said, I like the changes, as pastures are too expensive (research-wise) in base BtS, and something needs to be done with navies, I'm just not sure what. It's just that certain things in this game are hard-wired in my brain and hard to change when picking up the game again, and so far I've been focused on learning the CtH changes.

[Kaiser]

There you go, my favourite treat of Christmas is Christstollen

But it needs to be the right one, with just the right mixture of nuts, marzipan, raisins and a thin layer of powdered sugar on top. I hate it when there are these sugarfruits inside

[DaveV]

Mincemeat pie

[Cornflakes]

There you go, my favourite treat of Christmas is Christstollen

But it needs to be the right one, with just the right mixture of nuts, marzipan, raisins and a thin layer of powdered sugar on top. I hate it when there are these sugarfruits inside

This looks delicious 


Now a quick browse through the civ list at some combos that look interesting/fun (in the same order as the change log):

• America/AGG/something - Swords in general are buffed in RtR. Throw in C1/CR2 or Amphibious for a scary Classical attack. Also formation spears. Minutemen can easily take Woodman 3 for superMedic and pair with GG for ultraMedic. G3 minutemen for 50% withdraw and quick hill attacks. Would need tight micro and economic focus though to keep up.
  
• Arabia/PHI/something - Use the extra priest slots to crank out early academy(ies) and shrine(s) to boost research towards Knights. March is great for keeping up pressure, especially when paired with medic.
  
• Aztec/ORG/something - Early cheap sacrificial alters for extra whipping (quicker recovery from whipping out an army) and ultra-low expenses early. Maybe pair with PRO cheap granaries for a quicker start. Cities can get up and running with a quick granary chop, then whip something that overflows 15 hammers, then 1-pop whip SA, then whip mercilessly.
  
• Babylon/CHM - See my PB49 and PB50 games, this is a power combo. Not sure how Advanced Start affects the power ... probably makes it more powerful since tech is a huge limit for advanced start, and being able to start granaries from T0 sounds very powerful. But I have played Babylon in 2 out of my last 3 games so I will skip.
  
• Byzantium/something - Counterweight Trebuchet is a new toy that hasn't been used since implemented. It sounds powerful. Probably pair with a solid growth+economy leader.
  
• Ethiopia/PHI/something - 15 turns for the first GMerchant, 30 turns for the 2nd (minus any overlap if generating from two cities). A couple early trade missions can keep research humming at 100%. Pair with Stonehenge and roll the dice on the prophet/merchant?? (that sounds dubious). Sentry is a powerful promotion, and getting that free on all eligible units (mounted/naval) is a huge information advantage, especially early when XP is hard to come by.
  
• Khmer/something - Play with the new Baray toy. Pair it with something economic to hit Construction early.
  
• Korea/PHI/something - Beeline Education for the super cheap and more effective University?
  
• Mongolia/something - Early cheap stables give Mongolia a 2nd UU called the Chariot.
  
• Native America/something - I proposed the Tracker UU implementation. Starting techs are great for Advanced Start allowing food to be improved without tech purchases. Extra archer XP could make for some fun G2 opportunities. Maybe pair with something like PRO/CHA for 
  
• Sumeria/ORG/IMP - Expand quickly, then recover with super cheap easy to reach courthouses. Take ORG to keep the Ziggurat cost in line with production capabilities for the ultra-early timeframe.
  
• something/Boudica - The always-tempting-for-me promotion queen. But what to pair her with?
  

The un-mentioned civs are mostly balanced from a power perspective, but didn't sound as interesting to play. I'm leaning towards the new toys in Byzantium or Khmer. Ethiopia sounds like a fun showcase opportunity. Aztec/ORG looks like maybe a hidden gem.

[Cornflakes]

Mincemeat pie

Wait, mincemeat is a dessert? I always heard "meat" and assumed something like shepherds pie, or hamburger pie I've never actually looked it up until your link