Adventure 1 Ziggy's Report

[Ziggy]

From the diaries of Her Royal Highness Victoria I Queen of the English , Defender of the Hamptons , Empress of Saxony and Apache and Regent of the Indias

Chapter I The Plan
In the darkest ages of prehistory a new tribe forms. Led by a woman known as Elizabeth and armed with the skills of gathering food from the waters and metals from the land the story of these people begins with the founding on the shores of a great sea a permanent camp known as London. Within the first season small boats are put out to gather food and pretty shells, and laborers work tho lay paths towards the areas set out for the growing of crops and the raising of swine. Victoria looked out upon the growing camp from her crude tent and it pleased her. She then called upon her wisest seers and asked them what they forsaw for the English.

The first one told her of a vision he had had, of farmers tilling the land in huge fields of wheat and raising huge pastures of animals and of other English camps spread to the 4 winds farming and mining their own land but still loyal to England. Victoria nodded and said this was a good vision.

The second wise man then told of his vision, a vision of a land far across the great sea. A land filled with strange creatures and plants and even stranger people. Vicroria asked him how it was possible to cross the seas in the small rafts her people used to gather the fish and the seer replied that they must build bigger ones. Victoria nodded again and said this also was a good vision. The English now had a destiny, to seek out, explore and dominate a new world.

Victoria then ordered that warriors be trained and sent out to explore this land, for before the new world can be found the old one must be explored. A small squad of men left that day to the west and soon found a smaller camp. the natives were in awe of the Englishmen and treated them as gods, showering them with precious stones and other gifts.
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With the founding of a new empire it is the duty of every regent to take stock of their situation and develop a plan. We start with the knowledge of fishing and mining, this means we can work the water right away. we also get an extra coin on spots that produce 2 or more, like water, a good combo. Our cities have extra health and we build granaries, harbors and banks faster. We also seem to mysteriously have knowledge of the wheel so early roads are allowed. As a final note we start with a worker as well so he will have something to do right from the start.

London can pump food out for ages, It has pigs and a wheat in range, however , if we work the coast we get 2 food and 3 $ which gives us 12 science, a good start. We start researching on agriculture with the plan to go to animal husbandry to make use of our nearest resources. Our goals are to A) hook up our resources B) get to sailing for a boat and C) build some settlers. Our first project is another warrior for exploration.The worker starts off by hooking up the resources with roads and the warrior starts off by popping the hut for 108 gold.


Chapter II First Contacts

Victoria's warriors wandered the shores of the lake for many days. Eventually they came across another band much like themselves. The 2 bands camped for the evening and shared bread and fish. This new band called themselves 'Spanish' and told stories of their leader Isabella and of their great city Madrid which lay just to the north.That night the leader of the English band had a dream. He dreamed of a strange world but somehow the same as this one. There were English in this world and Spanish as well. Also in the dream world there was a new land and the leader saw the English and Spanish fight long and terrible wars over it. In the end the 2 tribes had to settle for splitting the new land in half. When the leader awoke he knew it was a sign. he knew that mighty Victoria would never settle for half an empire and so he quietly roused his men and snuck out of camp towards the unsuspecting Madrid. The city lay wide open to them when they arrived at dawn. No warriors to defend it or walls to hold them off. With the fore-knowledge of his dream urging him on the leader ordered his men to descend upon the city and raze it to the ground.The fires burned long into the night and the people called 'Spanish' vanished into the ashes of history forever, At least in this world. Even the band of Spanish warriors was never seen again.
The ruins still stand to this day as a testament to Englands might.

Victoria heard of this and smiled, she too had had the dreams. In the camp of London things progressed. Our fishermen explored deeper seas and met up with other fishermen of a tribe called Russia from the other side of the sea. Her farmers tame the pigs and cultivated the wheat.
Her travelling band sends word back of another tribe far to the west called India as well as another smaller one that again showered them with gifts. They also tell of uncountable resources in the lands of the Spanish. They are forced to return home however when it turns out the Indians consort with wild animals. The dawn of Victoria's first millenium of rule has her fishermen experimenting with bigger boats and taming the wild animals known as horses. A splinter group heads off to the north to found a new camp with her blessing with another group packing up to go south into the unknown.
The rumors of a great Indian wise man called The Buddha do not Interest her in the slightest for all is going according to her plans.

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The westward exploring warrior meets Spain in 3960BC just across the lake to the northwest
I can see Madrid's outline and know it can't have expanded yet and her warrior is outside the city.
I move closer and get to the border. Madrid is 2 spaces away. If i was to move next to Madrid, and IF her warrior died attacking me and IF she only has the one, then bye bye Spain. I decide to go for it and in 3900 I inform her that her head would look good on a pole and move into Spain. Madrid is indeed empty! The warrior, for reasons known only to itself, moves instead of attacking me?! In 3880BC my mighty warrior runs into Madrid and auto razes it to the ground. Scratch one AI from the gene pool.

Meanwhile London expands and I touch borders with Russia to the east but across the sea.
Spanish lands are full of resources and after popping another hut for 45g I then meet up with an Indian warrior and his pet panther to the west. My warrior runs away and the panther chases off after the Indian.
We discover agriculture and i connect the wheat and London grows to size 2 in 3520BC
In 3480 we discover Animal Husbandry and go for Sailing. We have horses and wine to the north.
India founds Buddhism this year as well, I never considered an early religion and it looks like it was a good call.
In 3440 a second warrior heads out to the north and we start a settler.
3320 sees the pigs hooked up and Sailing quickly follows in 3200. the worker moves north to hook up the horses.
in 3000 bc the 1st settler finishes and a second one is started. I want one for the north and one for the south which I am just starting to explore.It is at this point I realize all 3 of my early goals are completed.

[Ziggy]

Chapter III Expansion

With the dawning of what became to be known as the age of expansion the tribe of the English did indeed spread to the 4 winds. Bands of pioneers spread out to the north, west and south founding the 4 great pillars to hold up the fledgling English empire, NorthHampton, Southhampton Westhampton and finally New Madrid, founded overlooking the ashes of the Spanish city. With all her cities founded on the coasts of the great ocean Victoria's people were able to farm the oceans and trade with one another. Precious metals were also discovered which her sages put to use designing weapons to protect her people. Furs were also discovered to in the barren south and Southhampton would supply the empire with the fine beaverskin jackets which the guards of the Imperial Palace continue to wear to this day. Deer and sheep were soon added to the diets of the English as well.

In the western part of her emprie another tribe was encountered. They called themselves Germans and their leader Frederick greeted the roving warrior in a spirit of brotherhood, allowing him to rest and recuperate from the encounters with the wild animals of the region. As a token of her appreciation and as a way to get trade flowing in her bugeoning empire Victoria opened her borders to the caravans and ships of all the major tribes of the world, hoping to conceive a great trading empire across the land.

Meanwhile her scribes and Inventors we not idle, new metals were discovered and the knowledge of letters lead to our people being able to pass down their ideas for future scribes to learn from. great centeres of learning were sonn to spring up across the empire along with lighthouses to guide her far flung fishing fleets home at night. the worship of a strange 6 armed goddess also spreads into London from across the sea but Victoria dismisses it as a passing fancy, after all these Russians also tell tales of another God which the rest of them worship.

It is not long before her first larger ship embarks on a mission of exploration from the port of Northhampton. The captain is only at sea a few days when new land is sighted to the north, could this be the fabled 'New World' of which the sacred visions speak? Would he be immortalized in hisotry for all time? Alas no for it was soon apparant the this so called 'new world' was merely a large extension of land jutting off from the rest of the empire. Disgusted the captain orders his ship to the west and into the lands of the Indians and Germans. He travelled for untold years before encountering pack Ice far to the south and with no new land in sight turned back sadly to return to port.

The Empire continued to flourish, Its 5 villages gleaming off the waters of the great lake like jewels in the night sky. Victoria was pleased, but the visions still drove her on.

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Settlers continue to train out of London, founding Northhampton (2960BC) on the northern coast and New Madrid (2480BC) 1 space north of the ruins of Madrid to get it on the coast. In fact every city I ever founded would be on a coast to make use of the extra income I get from water tiles. With my cheap harbors and with lighthouses most of them would do quite well. With the discovery of copper on the western shores of the great inland sea Westhampton was founded there (on the coast) in 2160BC. The southeast was barren as anything but had some good resources, deer, sheep and 2 furs and I put SouthHampton there in 1280BC

It takes me until 2800 to finally meet Germany due to having to heal up from wild animal attacks, He is right to my west across the lake so I now know who I am faced with. Not a Warmonger in sight This suits me fine as I prefer building games. Open Borders are signed with Germany and India in the 1500's and with Russia in 1320, maybe I can be friends with everyone?

In tech news I bounced around the lower ones for a bit, Pottery lead on to Hunting and was followed by Bronze Working. With Iron Working I discovered an Iron mine at London, Then due to my lack of culture (which in hindsight is hilarious) I picked up Writing and Alphabet to get Libraries. In 2160 Russia founds Hinduism and it spreads to London in 1840 for my first religion. we stupidly do not end up swapping to it though until 1160 just to keep London happy. 1680 sees Judaism founded by Russia as well. Masonry follows Alphabet in the hopes I can get the Great Lighthouse and London starts on it in 1240BC. I also picked up Mysticism and Archery from Russia for Animal Husbandry

The first galley leaves Northhampton in 2240BC and starts east hoping to find a shortcut to the new world, It doesnt take him long although he is then bitterly dissappointed when I discover this alleged new world is a large penninsula to the north which I missed the connection to. I end up founding Upper Hampton on there in 275AD. By 950BC he has travelled all the way west around India and Germany and reached the south pole without finding a way across the ocean. Disappointed he starts the long journey back to check west.

By 900BC I am sitting pretty with 5 cities and tech pairity, running 80% science, alot of basic Infrastructure in place and a standing army of 2 axemen (upgraded from my starting 2 warriors) and 3 archers. I'm sure its all i need right? I have never fought anything larger than a wolf after all.

Chapter IV The Age of Enlightenment

The next few millenia go by in relative harmony for the mighty Englishmen. Great structures are built in London including a Great Lighthouse to guide her fishermen home and an Oracle to answer the Great Question of 'Life , The Universe and Everything'. The citizens of North Hampton would spend the next 3 millenia trying to understand the Tao of 42. Other citizens would soon follow the teachings of a wise man called Confucious who was born in the slums of New Madrid, while the citizens of South Hampton nail a man to a tree for the horrible crime of going about saying how good it would be if everyone would go around all day being nice to one another. Realizing their mistake just a little to late they turned this as well into a religion. In West Hampton a man called Muhammed started saying much the same things and this time people listened in time and yet another religion was formed. These soon spread to all the English cities, as well as many of the German and russian ones as well. while People were free to believe in what they liked as far as Victoria was concerned the Tao of 42 was THE WAY and it became law for every city to at least pretend that it accepted this. Other notable structures erected in London in this time include the Great Pyramid and the Spiral Minaret. The Citizens of Westhampton not to be undone build an enormous statue of Victoria on the lakeshore made entirely of bronze. people would flock to their city for millenia to gaze upon her wonder.

Diplomaticly the lesser tribes kept to their places, except for the Indians that is. One day in the early part of the third millenium of her rule, the Russian cheiftan Peter approached Victoria with a small request. Would she close her borders for a while to the traders of India as a favour to him?. Victoria, being in a forgoving mood that day agreed to this minor request. The Indian leader Asoka was so annoyed by this however that he would not speak again to Victoria for nearly 2000 years. This would not be to his gain as he would find out.

Meanwhile, Victoria's wise men continued their studies. They reached what would be known as the Medieval Era in 475BC and by 1000 ad they were building simple machines and experimenting with optic lenses for their boats. By the start of the first millenium AD the first 'modern' caravel was built and set sail from Upper Hampton. Christened the Nina after Victoria's favorite pet goldfish this hardy boat set off into the unknown for a date with destiny.-

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It turns out I don't need any millitary I enter a building phase at this point and pretty much just consolidate my position. I only have the 6 cities, but boy do they grow up nicely. London builds several wonders and we found all of the remaining religions. This leaves India as buddist and peter as Jewish, with germany and me Taoist. I would convert Peter to Jewism many time throughout the game but due to my non-agressive spreading of it he kept switching back. Quite cool to have nearly every city being the founder of its own religion though I also of course got all the shrines...In fact i got so many bloody prophets that i ended up merging them into London. by games end it had 6 great people of various kinds living there. My one mistake diplomaticly wise was saying 'sure' to peter in 875 BC to cancel deals with India. All i had with India was open borders, we weren't even trading any resources yet, but this pissed India off so badly that literally the next time he was willing to speak to me was 1010AD! he ended up missing out on ALOT of trades
This also ended up trapping one of my galleys on the far sw of the map for 2000 years because I couldnt get back through India's borders and I really didn't want to declare war on him.
I did finaly work out that Optics was what i wanted to get boats that moved in oceans (this was in fact my first full game of civ) and built a caravel in 1020 to go check things out.

[Ziggy]

Chapter V A New World

In the year 1180AD the Caravel HMS Nina and her sister ship HMS Pinto (named again after on of Victoria's pets, a horse) sight land to the west of India. This news Is greeted with excitement back in the homelands and the famed explorer Captain James Cook embarks soon after on his ship the Saint Mary. Cities are spotted by the Pinto in the 1200's and the Nina manages to go around this new continent. Intrigued by what might lay beyond the captain continues west..and sights the shore of Russia! This proves what the wise men of England had thought all along. The world was round. The sects who thought that it was a flat projection upon a feild of glass were laughed out of town. in 1380 Captain Cook lands on the new world and Claims its entirety for Mother England. A city is immediately founded on a large Island off the coast and named Cook Island in his honor. Cook and his trusty contingent of macemen and catapults head to the northernmost of the 2 native cities to conduct peacefull trade. the native villagers of Saxon would prove to be unfriendly though and Cook and his troops are forced to 'subdue' them before intergrating them into the Empire. cook and his men then head north to meet the other tribe, stopping along the way to found the village of canal city at a spot that touched both oceans. The Saint Mary and the catapult crew are left to defend the city while Cook and his Infantry scout out the southern half of the continent. As soon as they dissappeared over the hills however the treacherous natives struck. With no warning the stormed in from the northern forests and slaughtered the farmers sowing the first spring crops. In desparation the crews turned the catapults upon them, but the natives proved too much for them and the crewmen died at their machines riddled with arrows. With a bloodcurdling war cry the native archers swarmed into Canal city and burned it to the ground. In all the confusion the crew of the Saint Mary was caught away from their ship and killed and the historic vessel perished with the city.

Cook, along with his men who had recently been issued the new invention of the musket, raced back to the north. Insenced beyond word by this outrage he ordered his men to slaughter the cowardly natives and they were cut down by the new muskets. the feild ran red with the blood and from that day on the musketeers of England were known as the redcoats. The natives would learn to fear them.

The troops resumed their march south and eventually, with help from the newly refurbished frigates Nina and Pinto begins seiging the city of Apache. It doesnt take long until it falls and the last of the Major Native presences in the new world is eliminated. A few uprisings threaten the north but drafted redcoats soon eliminate even this feeble last gasp. the New World belongs to England. All that remained was to unite the rest of the world under her rule. With that in mind she began a great project. An organization dedicated to the harmonious rule of the entire planet. An organization to Unite the Nations under one rule. It would be called the United Nations. This dream was completed in 1842 after a long journey of learning by Victoria's scientists. The people of the world united (with the exception of the Indians) and elected her leader of this organization. Her first order of business was to hold a vote to proclaim her leader of all nations. In 1854 the people of the world went to vote for this historic event. The result would change the world.

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As the story above shows the new world was fairly quick to conquer once I got around to it. I actually only initially landed Cook (an explorer), a catapult and a maceman and between them they took out both cities (while an explorer can't attack if its woodsman II and on forested hills, it defends really good. The only hurdle was canal city. At this point I didnt realize how barbs worked and I figured once i had killed the northern city and explored the north I was safe...er no..add that to the fact that the barbs appeared 1 space away from canal city and it was really doomed. I also learned that a galleon cant defend a city. It was worth a try it had a good defense...oh well i know now...I ended up refounding the city a little later in a slightly different spot. I left the ruins to go with madrids ones (yes Madrid's ruins were still there, I did say they would stand for all time didn't i?)

The old world meanwhile was chugging along nicely, by the time the southern barb city fell in 1670 i was up to steam power and physics, London had the globe theatre and my homelands were pretty much all worked out. Now it was just a question of how to win, I had accomplished the goal, the majority of the new world was mine. At this point I was fairly friendly with Peter and Fred, and Asoka still hated my guts (boy does he hold a grudge or what?). The good thing was both peter and fred hated him too. I could either go to war and win that way or go out building. I figured the UN would be more in keeping with the feel of the game and so I started a beeline for it in 1690 just about the time peter and asoka's first boats started showing up in the new world...they were welcome to what little bit was left lol It took awhile to get there but i got to the required techs eventually grabbing a few more wonders along the way including the eiffel tower and Heroic Epic in New Madrid and the TAj Mahal in London. Westhampton nabbed the Hermatidge as well. And a few more great prople were born...prophets made shrines and the rest joined London. I also founded 2 more towns in new world, deseret in the sw of the north half and petroleum in the northeast to grab Oil. A funny bit was getting my very first marble quarry hooked up...in 1735AD! in 1842 London finally completed the UN and the vote for SG came up...everyone voted for me except India who voted for himself...all was going good...the vote for victory came up in 1854 and I voted for myself, sat back and hit next turn...

[Ziggy]

Chapter VI Victoria Rewards Asoka

Election day, 1956

Victoria's People Vote for her, Victoria is pleased. Asoka's people vote for him, Victoria is understanding. Peter's People vote for Victoria. Victoria is more pleased and starts ordering wallpaper for the new world palace. Fredricks people do not vote for anyone. Victoria looks stunned at the radio upon hearing this news. This can not be right. what does this mean?. Her analysts fall silent. "What does this mean?" she thunders across the palace throne room. One of her brave but foolish analysts answers her timidly. "Your r-r-royal Empress," he stammered "our predictions show that without the votes of the German people or the Indian people, you will lose the election". "WHAT!" Screamed Victoria. "By how many votes will I lose?" she demanded. "Er...one your worshipfullness" the unlucky courtier answered meekly. "ONE VOTE!!" Victoria bellowed with rage at the room. With a backhand blow she swept the head from the astonished courtier and ordered the ambassador for India to be dragged forth. The frightened young Indian was led forth to kneel in front of her. "Tell your master this," Victoria growled at him, "If England can not take the world by peace, We will eliminate those hwo oppose us. Tell him there will be WAR!"

With that pronouncement the english factories started producing weapons of destruction for the first battle with another nation since 3880BC. London Builds a mighty Ironworks to supplement her already enormous production capacity as bombers and tanks start rolling off the lines. Infantry and Machine gunners are trained in droves. Another vote comes and goes and by the end of the century troops start Marching into India. It is a massacre of biblical proportians. Bombers lay waste to the indian countryside as hordes of armor pour over the border. The Indian defenders, some who do not even yet have firearms, are utterly demoralized and city after city falls. Another vote comes and this time England is not competing against India but against Germany. This time peter and India both decide not to vote and still England presses on its attacks until it reaches the last Indian city on the mainland, the Bombers pummel the city walls to dest, the artillary pours shrapnel into the troops lining the walls, infatntry mow down the defenders one by one until only a lone wounded spearman remains. The final English tank, by now a highly trained elite unit, rumbles forward. the spearman braces his spear and points it at the advancing mountain of metal and shuts his eyes....and is flattened into a red smear as the tank runs him over without pause. Not content with this, Victoria orders her troops onto boats and sends them off to the 2 or 3 island strongholds the Indians have remaining, More votes come up and England nearly has enough citizens nopw to elect herself leader. London starts on a project which Victoria's scientists tell her will ensure her dominance over the world, In her rage she agrees to this 'Manhatten Project' and her scientists tell her it will be ready by 1945. by 1943 the last tattered remenants of India are huddled together on a snowy island far to the north. By being out of range of bombers and actually owning rifles they thought themselves safe. Then over the horizon came the fleet. the newly refurbished HMS Pinto and Nina now bristled with guns and glided along the water powered by the forces of the atom. Their guns fired once each, then again, and the cities walls crumbled to the ground. artillery hurled themselves from the following transports, not even pausing to land but attacking directly from the boats. The last man standing waved his longbow in desparation, but the Tank landed earlier rushed right over him into the city and the Indian Blight was wiped from the land for all time.
The next day at the vote, Victoria glared at Peter. "You know what you must to to avoid this fate do you not my dear German?" Peter knew and when the votes were counted Victoria finally riegned supreme in the world. The great Manhatten Project would be abandoned with less than a year before completion and peace would come over the world.

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As you read above, The vote came up 1 vote short when Germany unexplicibly abstained. I still dont know why. We were at friendly and something ridiculous like +13, all I can think of was he was also on good relations with India (you must remember, no war had EVER been fought in this game, except the 1 turn war between Spain and me). Anyways I was Extremely annoyed as you might Imagine, I had wanted a peaceful game but now I knew I would have to go get more votes from somewhere. I could attack Peter, but I liked him. I could attack Germany but we shared a HUGE border to my w, or I could attack India, who snubbed me for 2000 years...tough choice, NOT. The war was ridiculously easy even with it being my first one in my first game ever. India had lost out on a huge amount of trades and though they were 2nd in score. they were last in tech. most of the cities were defended by muskets or the odd rifle while I was attacking with Infantry , bombers and tanks. It took longer to build up my army than it did to wipe him off the continent. then it was just a matter of mopping up his island cities. I did find it quite interesting that the exact turn India died, which was 1 turn to go before Manhatten Project would be built, that Germany finally got off the fence and voted for me (I didn't need the vote either, I would have won by 2 votes without him)

All in all a very fun game, I got to play with modern toys and play a basicly entirely peaceful game. In fact If Pete had just voted for me in the first place the game would have been war free apart from the 'Spanish Incident' ™

Final Stats
Diplomatic Victory in 1944
score 12059 which was good for Charlemagne status

Sorry about no pictures but i played this before i worked out the screenshot function and alt-tabbing KILLS my pc.

[kryszcztov]

Nice write up ! Since the game was so easy, it makes the report reading a bit more interesting, so thanks for that. And... good game, especially the Spanish Incident ™.

[Ziggy]

Thank you much, I do what I can. Glad you enjoyed it

[Kukulcan]

My one mistake diplomaticly wise was saying 'sure' to peter in 875 BC to cancel deals with India. All i had with India was open borders, we weren't even trading any resources yet, but this pissed India off so badly that literally the next time he was willing to speak to me was 1010AD!

Toward the end of my game, I agreed to cancel deals with Asoka when Pete asked. IIRC, it was 20-30 turns before he would talk to me again (of course, he was still "pleased" the whole time, at +10 or something like that)! Earlier in the game, I had done the same to Fred (at Pete's request, of course), and he was mum for about 15 turns!

These Civ IV AI's really know how to sulk!

[Ziggy]

Yeah I think Asoka stayed so pissed because other than the OB we really hadn't traded anything yet, so we had no plusses built up. Once i pissed him off we couldn't trade, I couldn't get missionaries into him due to no OBs and his religion hadnt spread to me. Really there was no way to build up a plus with him now, so he just stayed annoyed with me for ages. His loss as it turned out...lol