[PB76] Strange women lurking in ponds and distributing swords

[Tarkeel]

...is no basis for a system of government! Supreme executive power derives from a mandate of the masses, not some farcical aquatic ceremony.

(Also known as the lurker thread)

[Tarkeel]

Some decisions to mull over for the players here:
How many will settle on the coastal plainshill? Will anyone settle the riverside for maximum bureaucracy capital instead?
When do you build a galley for the island?

[greenline]

Mansa Musa seems like the leader to go with if you get Vikings. The triple promo ships are cute and all, but you still want to get to Astro / Chemistry before the other guy does.

[Miguelito]

Gandhi might be faster to astro/paper/Chemistry though, with 4 or 5 straightforward caste GS. Only issue is he'd need to clear Chemistry before Paper, so frigates before galleons. And he still needs to get beakers somewhere to research guilds-> gunpowder, philosophy optics and CS. ABout I think the Phi bonus still congress it ahead of Fin if the target is frigates, and if those techs turn out to be slower than the GS then there are 2-3 more suboptimal bulbs on the way.

[GT]

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I like to watch those very similar start games especially at the start, as they're much more comparable than heavily different maps..

[Tarkeel]

Very impressive start-scrying by Commodore, but I hope he'll find the map more enjoyable than he thinks.

I hope you are having fun with this map, Tarkeel. The different tech situation and having there be more improvements available for workers at the start of a game should really open up your options and present some unique situations.

The different era start is both a blessing and a curse for the mapmaker really. Yes, not being constrained by the starting techs makes for different choices, but there's also new considerations to make. The biggest issue that I don't really know how the players will approach a later era start either, but it looks like I've succeeded in giving them interesting start areas at the very least.

I've tried to lessen the impact of Vikings by making sure there are blockable tiles, but honestly I'd prefer if they'd ban it. Similarly I think IMP should have been banned, just so that they didn't feel it was a mandatory pick. Will be interesting to see how many picks it, looks like SPI is more heavily favored here.

[GT]

First pick isn't too surprising

[Miguelito]

I've tried to lessen the impact of Vikings by making sure there are blockable tiles, but honestly I'd prefer if they'd  ban it.

Last chance for a ban by mapmaker authority.

[Tarkeel]

I don't like to rule by fiat, but maybe this is the case to do so?

As an aside, I think everyone is selling CRE short here. Yes, you have more ways to get culture going than usual, but there's also more to gain by getting the city producing stuff faster.

[Qgqqqqq]

I don't think IMP should be banned, I do think Vikings should be.