Turn 97
Ah FFS. 2K has an updated launcher. Great. Couldn’t stand the old one and now there’s a new one. Worse, this one keeps a window open while the game is running. What a turd pile.
OK...has Woden taken the second DoF offer after seeing the jong fleet being assembled? Yes, yes he has. He has the teal face of “can’t we all just get along for the next 30 turns?”. Good. I can buy a missionary (meh) and I have a trade route available. Drama & Poetry is also complete so I start Divine Right and I’ve got a policy change waiting for me.
First things first, the mainland. Up at OC my choices are a trader, a library or walls. Um, walls please. Next I need to move the fleet out to make room for the next upgrade. The jongs and their units all head for the eastern shores of Starfish Island. Remaining quad and its chariot move into Al’s territory and upgrade. I’ll be able to attack Shikishima the turn after next, so war will be declared on Turn 99. Galley on west shore of Starfish Island heads south. Quads move in. As the western one moves past Desert Isolation I find Homer at sea:
Looks like Russia’s going to find out what’s up on their next turn. He can get far enough to see the front ship in the line if he moves straight NW. Homer’s current position is where the rear ship of the line will be next turn. Eastern quad moves down the coast two tiles, doesn’t see anything and then backs off a tile.
With the combat theater mostly out of the way I adjust my policies. Out goes Professional Army, in goes Limes. Retinues is out, Urban Planning back in. Builder at Skies puts in the first of two pastures. I move a citizen to the jungle and the city’s walls will be done in ten turns. I’ll move the citizen back to the cattle after the second pasture goes down next turn. Every city is building walls except Good Time (has them) and Diamonds (inland but will start them next turn, leaving the horseman at 1 turn to complete). At Proof I move the northern sword to the coffee. I’m going to go into the jungle on the coast next turn and then when I declare war I’ll be in position to move and pillage one horse and be on top of the other one for a pillage the following turn.
Up at Runic the galley moves northeast and finds nothing but ice and a possible shallow passage to the NW extent of our own land mass. Confucius goes ashore and finds nothing of note. Galley leapfrogs a Japanese galley and finds something...interesting:
They started closer to Russia/Australia than we did to Norway/Phoenicia! On the plus side it appears TBS may have put in the cliffs for a reason.
The borders belong to the city of Miln, which appears to be the second city Kaiser founded.
My milpower shot up to 587. If anyone had any questions about how close jongs were that jump answers the question. Kaiser swapped a city over to Archduke. Japan’s only got five cities; Archduke is up to eight.
Roland, I’ve got Stirrups at eureka + 1. I’m going to complete it to give us the option of a future knight upgrade for one or both chariots in the event I need to conduct land operations. Likewise I’m not going to worry about getting Raid put in until I get Monarchy unlocked.
Here’s the plan for Shikishima. On the turn I declare I’ll move jongs to the tile NE of the city and NE of the city’s mountain. From there I should be able to two-shot the city’s defenses (unless walls complete next turn), after which an amphibious unit will take the city. The third jong will move to the spot directly east of the city and take the first shot on the inland city. The sight line to the city is assured to be open since the stone with the Harbors is on flat terrain. I don't know that I'd be able to disembark the land unit at the same time. If not then one of the land-based swords will take the city.
Shikishima has coffee, a completed monument and second ring niter. Do you want this city since you’ve only got one niter resource? It’s got good, workable tiles and there might be a reasonable inland city site on the island to the south (no fresh water on settlervision). I’d give you the city the turn after I take it so that I can get my units out in a direction of my choosing.