Welcome to the term 3 thread for all things sharp and deadly!

CoAF: zyxy
Deputy and Military Intelligence Officer: CivGeneral
Quartermaster-General: ali

Planned absences of the CoAF:
- april 30 (even before the term starts :) )
- may 14 until may 18 - deputy CG will take over
- may 27 until end of term - deputy CG will take over

In this term we face mayor challenges to turn Fanatannia into the culture powerhouse that she wants to be. The military is prepared to make its contribution to any not-so-peaceful expansion policies.

The current policy of this department is in the second post.

The duties of the CoAF as in the constitution (E.1):
Commander of Armed Forces - Micromanages the military operations against foreign countries and unit (excluding worker, settler, and non-military transport) movements. Plans military operations within the boundaries set by the Consul for External Affairs regarding military objectives. Authorizes unit upgrades within the budget limits set by the President.

Job offers are in posts 4 and 5 below. EDIT: filled.

The term 2 thread is here.

Active discussions (concerning the military, not neccessarily started by the CoAF)

CoAF - Operational Planning: France, Spain, Portugal. Anyone else?


Active polls

Disband some obsolete units?


Old discussions

CoAF- operational planning: the Indian and French Wars
CoAF - operational planning: mopping up the Dutch and the Indians
CoAF - operational planning for the Dutch war, phase 2
CoAF - defense policy T2 External Consulate - How to strike Portugal
CoAF - offense policy
CoAF - operational planning Dutch war


Old polls

Should we raze Amsterdam and Arnhem?

Current Policy CoAF

The CoAF is responsible for offensive and defensive military operations, exploration and settler escorts. A Military Intelligence Officer will monitor our fellow nations and assess their strenghts and weaknesses. A Quartermaster-General will keep track of our own forces. Operational Planning will be lead by the CoAF.

The military has no need for regular troops, only veterans or elites. The CoAF does not have the power to retire them in a peaceful way, but will at least block any upgrade attempts.

Offense: setting objectives for offensive operations (if any) is the task of the External Consulate, but I will actively participate in relevant discussions. Operational Plans will be provided in a timely fashion. An Operational Plan consists of an assessment of the forces needed to reach given objectives, a battlemap, and tactical guidelines as neccessary.

At the start of term 3 we will be at the threshold of mobile warfare. Horsemen are too weak to assault fortified defenses, and therefore we will initially still rely on infantry shock troops (swords/MDI). By the time we can train knights, these infantry units should be phased out. Although knights are more expensive to train, they are cheaper to maintain than infantry. With the appearance of gunpowder units and cavalry, MDI's become obsolete.
In this term our military training program will focus exclusively on mounted units.

If extensive offensive operations are needed, I hope to convince the R&T Consul of the merit of researching Military Tradition long before our fellow nations reach Nationalism, and preferably even before gunpowder units become common. Cavalry against spears or even muskets will achieve lightning fast, inexpensive victories. When riflemen arrive on the scene, offensives will slow down to a crawl, and will involve either massive casualties or massive amounts of cannon.

Defense: our nation will be defended at the land borders. Interior cities will not get defenders. If there is a danger of naval invasion, then fast units will be stationed in threatened coastal regions for zone defense. A good road network is essential for effective defense.

I will attempt to persuade the External Consul to adopt a pro-active defense policy, where forces entering or clearly about to enter our lands will be forced to leave, or if that is impossible, DoW-ed and attacked, before they can sneak-attack us. In this case we will maintain an offensive defense at the borders, with a small number of defenders at key positions. Should this policy not be adopted then static defense forces will be necessary, at additional cost.

Settler escorts: are no longer needed by this time. Our settlers should not wander through foreign territory, except when part of a military operation. Barbarians are no longer a threat.

Exploration: our home continent is not entirely known, but will probably be entirely claimed. This makes exploration practically impossible. There may be uninhabited islands accross the ocean, but they will not be relevant to us, at least until the ocean can safely be crossed. Suicide galleys are not needed.

Intelligence Reports

China, 230AD

Power: weak in score, power, and very weak in culture (only ours is weaker). China is currently in Anarchy (was Monarchy), probably going to Republic.
Land: China has 6 cities. Most of its land is under the fog. As far as we can see, Chinese land is mostly flat, but mountainous near the eastern border. There are gems near Canton (we don't have gems yet). China is the closest civ to us after Netherlands and India. The capital Beijing is on our side, is protected by a river on our side, and is size 12 by the last report.
Military: no horses or iron hooked up or to be seen, and no MA military technology. Its military is weak compared to ours. Expected resistance: spears and archers. No reported sights of anything better than that.
Diplomacy: we have an embassy. China is

unknown to Hittites, Maya, Japan.
at peace with India, Spain, Netherlands, Portugal, Fanatannia.
at war with Persia, Byzantium, France (Byzantium and France are allied).
allied with us vs Byzantium.

Trade: China has no ongoing or potential trades. China is up Monotheism, Republic, Monarchy.

Conclusion: China is weak, and can be conquered quickly by a dozen knights with some MDI/pike support - the infantry is mainly needed for Beijing, and for resistance quelling. Such a war would probably take 10 turns after initial positioning, with a two-pronged attack. Add 5-10 turns if we don't have knights. Positioning will take significantly less time if our force consists entirely of knights.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

France, 150AD
with as much information as possible from 230AD as indicated.

Power: (230AD) about equal to us in score (near the top), half as powerful as us, and the strongest nation in culture. France is a Republic.
Land: France has 8 cities. Avignon and Marseilles are in the marshes to our northeast, Tours is near Madrid, Chartres is near Maya; these four cities are isolated from the French core. Most of the core region, with the cities of Paris, Rheims, Orleans is visible, one more core city we cannot see. French core land is flat, Avignon can be reached over flat land from our side, Marseilles is in a swamp. France has no luxuries hooked up, but it has dyes near Avignon and near Chartres. The French core is beyond Spain. The capital Paris is on the far side, and is size 12 by the last report (230AD).
Military: no horses or iron hooked up or to be seen, and no MA technology except Monotheism. Its military is weak compared to ours. Expected resistance: spears and archers. No reported sights of anything better than that.
Diplomacy: we have an embassy. In 230AD, France is

known to all civs (seen in 150AD). Diplomatic status with Persia, Netherlands, India unknown (we lack embassies), but at peace in 150AD.
at peace with Hittites, Portugal, Japan, Byzantium, Spain.
at war with us since 170AD, with China since 210AD, with Maya since 210AD. In all cases France declared and is allied with Byzantium

Trade: France has no ongoing trades. France can potentially trade with Persia, Spain (230AD), and Portugal (230AD). France is up Monotheism, Republic and Monarchy.

Conclusion: culturally strong but militarily weak, France is just too far away for conquest at this stage. However, the two nearest cities (Avignon, Marseilles) are reachable just beyond East India, and should be easy to take, as French reinforcements for these cities will have to move through Spain. French cities that we keep are likely to flip back, so razing seems the better option.
The French city of Chartres is likely to fall to the Maya.
Once France discovers Gunpowder the military picture may change due to their strong defensive Unique Unit, depending on whether they have or can acquire saltpeter. Even then, the French core region is small and their power will be limited.

Job Ad: Military Intelligence Officer/Deputy

This department seeks to hire a Military Intelligence Officer, who will also be the Deputy Commander.

All citizens are encouraged to apply. This is not an empty position and it requires some commitment. Therefore, preference may be given to active citizens and/or those citizens who have shown affinity with military affairs. Being able to open the save in C3C is probably necessary.

The responsibilities of the Military Intelligence Officer will be:

To analyze and monitor the military strengths and weaknesses of our fellow nations. Such assesment is supposed to include any elements that may have an impact on the conduct of war (and in particular not be limited to the rantings of the present Military Advisor who listens to the name F3, and who is hereby fired ;) ). The analysis should be updated regularly.
To actively participate in discussions regarding military affairs.
To take over from the CoAF when he is absent.


Please post your application in this thread or send it by PM. All applications arriving before next Sunday at noon EDT will be considered.

Job Ad: Quartermaster-General

All citizens are invited to apply for the job of Quartermaster-General, who will be responsible for keeping track of our own forces, providing regular updates on force composition, strength, experience level(s) and location.

Previous demogame experience is not needed. This is a good position for new citizens who want to become active to get into the game (but veterans may of course also apply ;) ).

Please post your application in this thread or PM me. All applications arriving before Sunday at noon EDT will be considered.

Commander:

Please could you let me know your preferences for unit builds. Do you wish to continue with sword production or switch to horses?

How many new units to you require for the Dutch war?

Thanks in advance for your consideration in this matter.

Governor,

Thanks for your consideration. Unfortunately I cannot look at the save now, and when I can, I will not have internet access until Sunday. I'll get back to you ASAP.

Also, it is unclear to me when the new term starts exactly (the consitution seems silent on that), so perhaps I am not even in office yet :)

I see that your proposed build queues are heavy on horses, and I agree they are best in the long run. We might need some swords for hitting power short term.

New terms start at the beginning of the month.

-- Ravensfire

Yes, new term starts on 5/1, but where there are no scheduled turn chats remaining in Term 2 you are welcome to start planning and discussions.

Job Ad: Military Intelligence Officer/Deputy

This department seeks to hire a Military Intelligence Officer, who will also be the Deputy Commander.

All citizens are encouraged to apply. This is not an empty position and it requires some commitment. Therefore, preference may be given to active citizens and/or those citizens who have shown affinity with military affairs. Being able to open the save in C3C is probably necessary.

The responsibilities of the Military Intelligence Officer will be:

To analyze and monitor the military strengths and weaknesses of our fellow nations. Such assesment is supposed to include any elements that may have an impact on the conduct of war (and in particular not be limited to the rantings of the present Military Advisor who listens to the name F3, and who is hereby fired ;) ). The analysis should be updated regularly.
To actively participate in discussions regarding military affairs.
To take over from the CoAF when he is absent.


Please post your application in this thread or send it by PM. All applications arriving before next Sunday at noon EDT will be considered.

I wish to apply for this possition. I still wish to have an active role in the government and the Military Affairs office.

@CG: thanks for the application! As said, I will wait until Sunday with hiring.

@all: New! Discussion on offense policy. Please join and have your say.

A-ten-tion!
CC-Dean SaaM reporting for duty. I'm glad to see the militarys geting into our "Culture: Or Else" program.

Look forewards to working with you, soldier.

SaaM

Perhaps the CotAF would consider a short war against India to take the 2 cities on our SW coast? The capital is putting culture pressure on our cities, and they could flip. Karachi could be taken in a peace treaty as it would certainly auto-raze if attacked.

One more point -

Preventing culture flips from killing our units.

I have a great fear of culture flips (especially when our culture is a big fat ZERO (besides the capital) when we're this close to the capital. I have this proposal:

Skye: Move 1 sword 1 tile NE, and the other sword 1 tile W.
Chaos: Move units north or west, including 1 sword over to Skye (in case of a flip).

Utrecht: Move the spear to the NW, and the sword to the west.

That way, we won't lose a lot of units should those cities flip. At the same time, we're blocking the AI from short paths to our cities. The Dutch are just about on the run, so we can afford to do this without many units coming down our throat.

Consul Dean SaaM!

Congrats on your election. Likewise hoping for a term of friendly collaboration! The military is eager to provide the real estate for all those libraries and temples :)

-------------------

CT: CoAF does not declare wars, but I share your fears. I will open a thread on the dutch war in 5 minutes, please join the discussion!

-------------------

EDIT: there's a discussion thread on the dutch war now. All please join in

I wish to apply for the Deputy and military intel officer position and Quartermaster-General positions

To CoAF,

I wish to ask if you could address an issue of jurisdiction of the defence forces in regards to captured labourers I presume from the wars we have been fighting that we have quite a number of POWs, I propose that these POWs be under our jurisdiction to build roads and forts for our purposes rather than hinder doemestic infrastructure progammes by using our own workers, I firmly believe that captured workers be under the defence jursidiction due to the ircumstances of them being under our control.

regards ali

Ali,
You would need to propose a Code of Laws change if you wish to re-allocate slave workers. The CofAF has no jurisdiction in this matter.

I personally think this is a bad idea as eventually 90%+ of our labor force will be slaves.

ali,

Thank you for applying! Only a few more hours before I start hiring....

Concerning the slave workers: I am more than happy to let the Director for Infrastructure handle that. I will put in requests for road construction where necessary. In fact, gonna do that right now ;)

EDIT: crossposted with MOTH. Anyway, what he said.

Hi Commander!

An FYI: HERE (http://forums.civfanatics.com/showpost.php?p=2735719&postcount=19) is the reply to the questions you put to me in the External Consulate's thread.

Thanks!

Bertie

zyxy - Please check your PM box. I have sent a reply to you :).

zyxy - Please check your PM box. I have sent a reply to you :).

I did, and I am happy to announce that CivGeneral is appointed as Deputy Commander/Military Intelligence Officer, and that ali is appointed as Quartermaster-General! To celebrate, ceremonial sword fights will be held this afternoon in Sebadoh, followed by consumption of the local luxuries.

I did, and I am happy to announce that CivGeneral is appointed as Deputy Commander/Military Intelligence Officer.

Quite a fiting title for a member of Section 9. ;)

At the risk of going completely OT: what is section 9?

At the risk of going completely OT: what is section 9?
OT: Its an organisation from Ghost in the Shell.

Commander zyxy

Governor mad-bax has requested some of our forces to be disbanded in cities to aid some builds. As these are units controlled by you, please would you consider whether or not you wish these units to be disbanded and include the approprite authorisation in your instructions.

edit: Please also make it clear whether cities are to be razed or captured.

Thank You,

Furiey

Ms President,

Thanks for the heads-up. It will all be in the instructions.
AFAIK, the units are controlled by me, but I believe their disbanding is not. Anyway, they will be in place and may be disbanded as the governor wishes.
Razing or capturing is currently under discussion in the Dutch War Operational Planning thread.

Ali,
You would need to propose a Code of Laws change if you wish to re-allocate slave workers. The CofAF has no jurisdiction in this matter.

I personally think this is a bad idea as eventually 90%+ of our labor force will be slaves.

Sure thing mate thats why I brought tit to the attention of the Commander so that he may perhaps represent this idea. I had not realised that 90% of the workforce was slaves thought it was a smaller proportion, now knowing this my idea is an unmangerable option.
@commander, thanks for the promotion mate:D

Draft instructions CoAF for TC1 term3, May 4 2005.

EDIT: minor corrections.

[Preamble: I assume the Dutch are gassed and will only throw isolated archers at us. Impossible to say as TC summaries and even one chatlog are misssing. If not, we may have to keep more defenses near Skye.
Razing Arnhem and Amsterdam was approved in this poll. ]

Map:
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/TC0405.jpg

General:

Current war aims: Amsterdam, Arnhem, Eindhoven, Breda, Middelburg. The first two should be razed. The others should be kept.
We have 5 army groups:
1. Main Attack Force (MAF) will follow the route Arnhem -> Amsterdam -> Eindhoven -> Breda, possibly splitting after Amsterdam.
2. Secondary Attack Force (SAF) will quell resistance in Holwerd, defend Utrecht-Holwerd, and attack Middelburg.
3. Core Defense (CD) will defend our core from naval (or other) invasion.
4. North Defense will defend Ela Springs and Skye.
5. Resistance Fighters (RF) will quell resistance in Sebadoh and Utrecht.
Do not station troops in cities with serious flip risk, unless you need to quell resistance or defend against immediate attack. Currently the list of risky flippers is (at least) Utrecht, Skye, Holwerd, Over There, Auchtermuchty, Chaos. Arnhem and Amsterdam also, after we take them.


Now follow detailed troop movements. You may deviate under pressing and/or unforeseen circumstances. Note however that these instructions attempt to achieve speed and balance of forces.


Main Attack Force, start group. Consists of the 5 vet swords and the spear currently in Chaos, the horse in Utrecht, the 3/5 elite sword S of Utrecht, the 2 swords in Skye, the sword north of New London, the spear in Regentham: total 9 swords (3 elite/6 vet), 1 horse, 2 spear.
Heal first, then march to hill SE of Arnhem, and raze Arnhem. Should take 4 turns to heal and march to the hill, attack on the fifth. Step back to heal outside Dutch territory, then march to FP wheat tile NE of Amsterdam.
Main Attack Force, reinforcements. Consists of the 2/5 elite sword S of Utrecht, the elite sword from Regentham, the sword N of Skye, the sword SW2 of New London, one of the swords SE of Black Hole, the spear from Delhi, the 2 cats next to Holwerd: total 2 cats, 5 swords (2 elite, 3 vet), 1 spear.
Heal first, then move to tile SW of Amsterdam. Timing should be such that both groups arrive at the same turn. This means that some of these forces have a few turns to spare; use as you please. Raze Amsterdam.
I estimate it takes about 7 turns after Arnhem to take on Amsterdam.
After that, heal. If number of swords is at least 10, then split in 2 (evenly), march one group on Eindhoven, one on Breda. Otherwise, first Eindhoven, then Breda. Attack Breda from the correct riverside.
Secondary Attack Force. Consists of 1 horse, 4 sword in or next to Holwerd, the spear and sword in Utrecht, the spear from Donsignia: total 1 horse, 5 swords (3 vet/2 elite), 2 spears.
First task is to quel the resistance in Holwerd, kill any Dutch units in this area (use an elite for the visible one; if he stays in range you can also use the cats for 1 turn), and retake Utrecht or Holwerd if they flip.
After Holwerd and Utrecht are pacified and there seem to be no more Dutch troops returning from China, this force is to march to Middelburg. Attack from any hill or mountain you fancy :)
In case of need, Holwerd can now be defended by spears from Utrecht.
Core Defense. Consists of 1 of the vet swords SE of BlackHole, spears from Provolutia and Camelot, reg swords from Bentley and BlackHole, and the horse to be trained in Donsignia: total 3 swords (1 vet/2 reg), 1 horse, 2 spears. Should defend our coastal region as indicated in the map from naval invasion. In particular, shadow Persian galley and take out any landed troops. Move defenders out of Camelot to entice Persians to land, of course with the Core Defense force nearby. Stay on roads. Preferably keep stack together, but split if needed. Watch out with river crossings.
North Defense, consists of spear+sword from Ela Springs and will defend Ela Springs and Skye. I suggest to station them at NE2 of Ela Springs.
Resistance Fighters, will quel resistance in Sebadoh and Utrecht.
Send spear + warrior from Oxford to Sebadoh, and leave reg sword there. After resistance ends, use as you think fit. I advise to move them north to quell resistance in Arnhem and Amsterdam; the sword could help defend in the Utrecht-Holwerd area.
Send spear and warrior from Roosting Tree, spear from Auchtermuchty and spear from BlackHole to Utrecht. After resistance ends, use these units as you please. Advice: let them defend the Utrecht-Holwerd area. Note that 1 spear and 1 warrior should be disbanded in Utrecht as per governor's instructions.
Kamikaze Warrior: send warrior from Donsignia to Skye for disbanding as per governor's instructions.
Use any other forces we may have or get as you please. I would advise to replace the vet sword in the Core Defense by a newly trained horse (from Bentley), and send this sword to one of our fronts.


General tactics (you may know this, I just list it in case): our forces in our lands are to be kept on roads as much as possible. Keep attack forces together in stacks, especially in enemy territory. For leader fishing, elites should get as many easy fights as possible. Use terrain and rivers.

Deputy Commander CivGeneral,

The External Consul has started discussion on who our enemies should be after the Indians. Likely candidates are China, Persia, France, Portugal, Spain. Could you, as head of Military Intelligence, provide an analysis on the military capabilities of these nations?

zyxy

Ill get on it after karate class. Had to make a B-line to the bank afterschool to buy a Rib Guard and Sparing Gloves for their B days.

China
Proximity: Close
Streingth Compared to us: Weak
Threat: Low

Persia
Proximity: Far
Streingth Compared to us: Weak
Threat: Low

France
Proximity: Close
Streingth Compared to us: Weak
Threat: Mild

Portugal
Proximity: Close
Streingth Compared to us: Very Weak
Threat: Low

Spain
Proximity: Close
Streingth Compared to us: Weak
Threat: Mild

CivGeneral,

Thank you for the report! I would like to ask for an elaboration on the threat level, please. I mean, why is it "mild" or "low"? I could think of such factors as land area, proximity, tech and resources (do they have iron? horses?), nasty UU's....

If you are looking for more to do after that, you could continue with the other civs :)

As an example, here is my take on China, our most likely next target after India. This one is quite detailed, and we can probably do with progressively less detail on the other civs as they are further away from us.

China

Power: weak in score, power, and very weak in culture (only ours is significantly weaker).
Land: China has 6 cities. Most of its land is under the fog. As far as we can see, Chinese land is mostly flat, but mountainous near the eastern border. There are gems near Canton (we don't have gems yet). China is the closest civ to us after Netherlands and India. The capital Beijing is on our side, is protected by a river on our side, and is size 10 by the last report.
Military: no horses or iron hooked up or to be seen, and no MA technology. Its military is weak compared to ours. Expected resistance: spears and archers. No reported sights of anything better than that.
Diplomacy: we have an embassy. China is

unknown to Hittites, Maya, Japan.
at peace with India, Spain, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Fanatannia.
at war with Persia, Byzantium (they are allied vs China).
not allied with anyone.

Trade: China has no ongoing trades, but can potentially trade with France.

Conclusion: China is weak, and can probably be conquered by a dozen knights with some MDI/pike support - the infantry is mainly needed for Beijing, and for resistance quelling. Such a war would probably take 10-15 turns after initial positioning, with a two-pronged attack. Add 5-10 turns if we don't have knights. Positioning will take significantly less time if our force consists entirely of knights.

Will you be sending a horse into the fog to explore the Chinese lands before we attack Commander? It's a little risky because of the ongoing war with Persia - but the intelligence might make it worthwhile. :)

nice idea! why not. Chinese might kick it out though. Perhaps an RoP?

Why not. We'll get it for free and can cancel it at any time.

Commander, I support establishing a ROP with China. The only question is when. This is the response I made to your inquiry in the External Consulate thread:

I would be happy to negotiate a ROP with China. Before we do so, I would like to block land access to our continent. This would entail either stationing troops on Gem Mountain; or waiting to make the ROP until after we attack and take the Indian city of Bengal. I assume we would not be able to accomplish either one of these options until the turnchat on Wednesday, 5/11.

Does this timing work for you? Or do you anticipate we will need to negotiate the ROP during this upcoming turnchat?

Draft instructions CoAF for TC2 term3, May 8, 2005, 1800 GMT

[More or less as for the previous TC, except that the Secondary Attack Force for Middelburg will be cancelled for more concentration of forces.]

Map:
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/DG6_AD50_dutchwar2.JPG

Targets: Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Breda, Auchtermuchty, Sebadoh, Middelburg. Raze Amsterdam, keep the others.


Attack on Amsterdam: First priority is to raze Amsterdam. For the attack force, use all available swords, including the one that will be whipped in Mandos, except for the reg sword in Bentley and the damaged one near Strider. Total: 8 vet swords, 6 elite, 3 regular (2 vet+1 elite from Strider, 6 vet+4 elite+1 reg from Mandos area, 1 elite+2 reg from Ela Springs area).
Use two attack points: FP wheat NE of Amsterdam for the east forces, and spices SW of Amsterdam for the west forces. Add at least one vet spear to each attack group. (For the west group you could use the one from Chaos, and move the spear SW2 of Mandos to Chaos; for the east group there is plenty of choice).
Heal first, then march in stacks, the attack points can be reached simultaneously on turn 4 = 130AD (counting the present turn as 0), and we can attack in 150AD. This means that forces should enter Dutch territory in 110AD.
Horses are to be used mainly for skirmishing with Dutch attack forces (I expect only archers). Try to keep them on roads. Expected hot spots for defense are near Breda and Sebadoh. I would keep one in the east (Mandos-Strider area) as well. If we can spare them, please add some horses to the Amsterdam force. Note: governor MB is training several new horses, as indicated.
Use catapults at your discretion. They can be added to the Amsterdam attack, but if the Dutch keep throwing archers at us then it's probably more effective to bombard those.
After razing Amsterdam, attack Eindhoven with at least 5 swords and 1 spear, preferably also a horse (all healed, all vet/elite). Attack Breda with another such group. If we don't have enough forces, do Eindhoven first, and then proceed to Breda. If we have enough forces, attack the cities of Auchtermuchty, Sebadoh, Middelburg at will. Middelburg is on a hill and probably requires 6 swords, the other two can be attacked with 4 swords, or 6 horse (a bit more is always better). In all cases, please add spears if forces will be exposed prior to attack.
Please upgrade the warrior in Provo (60 gold), and use at your discretion. Advice: move him to defend Oxford and BlackHole.
Try to give our regular swords some easy kills for promotions, especially those going to A'dam. E.g. the one that will be whipped in Mandos could take out the encroaching archer on the next turn.
Avoid stationing valuable forces in risky flippers as much as possible. ATM the worst ones are Skye, Mandos, Chaos. Try to keep our forces out of reach of Dutch attackers when possible - that also means keeping them away a bit from Amsterdam, Breda, Sebadoh. We want the Dutch forces to expose themselves, not ours. Obviously this is not possible for the attack stacks, it may be possible for horses and for individual units.


EDIT: for clarification. Added map and additional instructions.

Status report 230AD

Our troops have razed Amsterdam, and taken Eindhoven and Breda. Very soon, they will be ready to liberate Auchtermuchty, Sebadoh and Middelburg. Our losses were minimal. There are some remnants of the once fearsome Dutch army near Strider's Haven.
Indian forces are moving through our land, probably to their Maya front :crazyeye:. Several Indian workers are improving our land.
Two of Theodora's Dromons are spotted near Bentley, with unknown cargo. They have sailed all around the south coast to get there.
France has declared war on us -- and on several other nations. Joan must have one of her fits. Except for one nasty warrior we haven't seen any French, and their lands are far away.


A view of the current situation:
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/DG6_AD0230_troop_locations1.JPG

EDIT: changed pic (forgot one Indian city)

Its about time that we have captured the tratorous cities that fell into the hands of the Dutch. Now we need to reclame the tratorous cities that left us for the Indians.

There are intelligence reports on France and China in the third post in this thread

@Zyxy - If you wish, I can compile the Intelligence report for the rest of the civs. Also, Thank goodness final exams are done with :ack:.

CG: I had the impression you were busy with something :D
It would be nice if you could do some reports. I suggest to start with the nearest civs.

Commander,

I know you'd like to wait to declare war on India until we're ready, which you estimate will be about 5 turns after play commences on Wednesday.

However, I notice that Spain will not charge us any gold for a MA against France if we also enter into a MA with them against India (Spain is at war with India). I'd like to save the gold if I could. However, I'd prefer not to wait too long before we enter into MAs with other nations against France.

What is the earliest time you'd feel comfortable with a declaration of war against India? I guess we could always pay Spain for a French MA, then when we're ready to declare on India, see if they'll pay us for a MA against India.

Hi zyxy,

Thanks for your reply in the External Consulate's thread about my query regarding timing an MA with Spain against India. I've decided there are just too many problems with this idea and not enough benefits, so we won't be doing this.

Thanks!

note of absence

I will be away from May 14 until May 18. CivGeneral will be replacing me in this period. I will post instructions for next Sundays TC (May 15), but CG is empowered to amend them if needed. He will also post instructions for next Wednesdays chat.

CG, thanks for helping out! If you're lucky, you may get to start a new war on wednesday :)

Commander (& Deputy)

You've asked that we negotiate a ROP with China so that a horse can do some exploring. I am willing to do so, but as you know I prefer to wait until we secure Gem Mountain so we can block foreign access to our home continent.

Once we enter into a ROP with China, we can't cancel it (unless, of course, we decide to do a ROP rape; which I will consider if that's part of your tactical plan against China but otherwise would prefer not to do). We'd like to declare war on China after we finish with the Indians and our limited war with the French. We will be finished with the French in 16 turns. Do you still have time to explore before we make war on the Chinese? Or should we forget about the ROP & just go in blind? I guess I'm thinking we may not have time to secure Gem Mountains, do the ROP, and still declare war on China in a timely manner.

Thanks!

Instructions CoAF for Term3 TC4, Saturday May 14

Note: I will be away from May 14 until May 18 inclusive. My deputy may post amendments/additions to these instructions if necessary.

Objectives:

Take all Indian cities (Bangalore, Delhi, Karachi, Kolhapur, Bengal, Jaipur, Hyderabad).
Raze the French cities of Avignon, Marseilles.


Maps:
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/DG6_AD280_CAF_west.JPG
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/DG6_AD280_CAF_east.JPG

Our Indian and French targets are shown in purple squares on the maps. For convenience, I have also highlighted all Indian troops we can see. DP may deviate if they are occupied.

Our army will consist of 4 groups, colorcoded on the maps: Northwest (Red), Southwest (Blue), East (Pink) and North (Dark Blue). Their targets are:

Northwest: Bangalore, after that use to reinforce other groups as needed.
Southwest: 2 roaming archers, Delhi, Karachi
East: Kolhapur, Jaipur, Bengal
North: roaming archer, Hyderabad, Marseilles, Avignon


The External Consul decides when war will be declared on India. My preference is to declare on turn 2 (300AD, current turn is counted as 0), and all the instructions below are drafted based on that. Declaring before turn 2 is risky, if we declare after that then the movement and attack of several army groups needs to be delayed in order not to enter Indian territory before a declaration of war.
I also assume that we will acquire Feudalism, and that ST will be built on turn 0.

In case of emergency or unforeseen circumstances the DP may deviate as necessary for the protection of Fanatannia. All forces should be fully healed in safe locations before attacking cities. All Army Groups should move in stacks when not in our lands. Mixed groups of fast and slow units can use the fast units for scouting (but make sure they all end the turn on the same square).

Detailed movement:

Roaming archers and such: use the sword ENE of Rivendell, 1 horse from Ela, 1 from Roosting Tree and 1 from Sebadoh to take out the three archers. After that, these units can return to their respective Army Groups. Use the horses to persuade the archer S2 of Husborne to step on flatland (in turn 2), by blocking the mountains SE and SSE of Husborne. The horse from Sebadoh can defend BlackHole. Use some idle units to capture the Indian workers (N2 of New London, S of Strider). Move the spear from Provolutia to Sebadoh.
Northwest: assemble NE3 of Bangalore. After declaration of war, move in to attack (5 swords, 1 horse, 2 cat). Preferably attack from the purple spot N of Bangalore. Can attack on turn 4. After taking Bangalore, use forces for resistance quelling, defense, or to reinforce other groups, at DP's discretion.
Southwest: Auchtermuchty group can heal in Auchtermuchty. After healing (on turn 1), swing horses round to Bentley (on turn 2, 3), also move the remaining horse in Roosting Tree on turn 3 at the latest, and attack Delhi on turn 4, starting from inside our own lands (and moving through tile SE of Delhi). Move Bentley sword onto the purple spot E of Delhi on turn 3, then Delhi attack force consists of 1 sword, 5 horse. Use Auchtermuchty sword and spear as you think fit.
After Delhi, move on Karachi. After that, forces are to be used for reinforcement or defense, at your discretion.
East: leave Sebadoh horses (except for the one going to BlackHole) for 1 turn in Sebadoh to quell resistance, then move to Kolhapur. They can reach the tile WNW of Kolhapur on turn 2, and so can the horse from Strider. Move sword SSE of Strider to Kolhapur, covered by Strider spear. The whole group (5 horse, 1 sword) can attack on turn 3. After that, continue to Jaipur and Bengal. Use the spear currently near Bengal as a spotter for Indian troops. Fortified on a mountain, preferably in neutral terrain, he also has a decent chance to defeat 1 or 2 archers.
North: the elite sword ENE of Rivendell will take out the archer as already said. Move the two vet sword into Middelburg for healing. Also move at least 1 spear into Middelburg. Leave the sword SE of Middelburg where it is. The second vet sword should arrive on turn 2. On turn 2, move the elite sword out of Middelburg (it should be healed now). Activate the vet sword, and say upgrade all (shift-U). There should be only 2 (the vets in Middelburg -- this is why you should not move the elite sword into Middelburg!), please upgrade them. Should there be any other swords in cities, please move them out, or if not possible delay the Hyderabad attack by 1 turn. This should also restore their health. On turn 3, all forces should be healed. Move the 2 swords, 2 MDI, 1 horse, and at least 1 spear, to S2 of Hyderabad. You can attack Hyderabad on turn 5. After that, proceed to Marseilles.
Move any other units as you think fit.

It appears that at some point the French have captured the Chinese city of Tsingtao. By examining and comparing the 230 AD turn 8 save to the 380 AD Turn 10 save, I think I know where Tsingtao may be located: I believe it to be several tiles north of Bengal and west of Beijing. In the earlier save the pink French cultural borders around Marseilles extend to the fog while the cultural borders around Beijing extend into the fog. In the 380 save the Marseilles cultural borders extend into the fog and the Beijing borders stop at the fog. Therefore, I guess that Tsingtao must be located somewhere between Beijing & Marseilles.

Capturing Tsingtao from the French isn’t a priority in our French war. However, if it can easily be done it would be useful. IF the military has forces in the area of Bengal that can be spared after the Indian war, it might be a nice gambit to move them north of Bengal towards what I’m guessing is Tsingtao. We’ll eventually want to capture that city, and if we capture it from the French it might increase our leverage in peace negotiations with them.

We may have to cross Chinese borders in order to get to Tsingtao. If we think we’ll be in Chinese territory no more than a turn or two, I suggest crossing through their territory. If the Armed Forces prefer a ROP, I’m open to considering that. We had planned to negotiate one earlier, and I haven’t moved on it because I think it may make our future policy towards China less flexible as I detailed in post 46 above. (BTW, the CoAF hasn’t answered that post inquiring whether we should in fact negotiate this given the way the game has developed.)

At any rate, at the moment the External Consulate isn’t making Tsingtao a formal target; but we’d like the CoAF to think about annexing it if the circumstances are opportune.

(BTW, I'm sure you'll notice this anyway, but BTW, we have military units in Tracheon & No Where that will need to be moved to the front. Just an FYI in case you don’t happen to notice them.)

Consul/Deputy Consul

You may want to consider your future troop requirements to ensure that our Governors are building the type of unit we need so we are not paying unnecessary upkeep costs. I am particulary aware that previously you did not wish to keep all the Spearmen we had and disbanded some to help with builds, but I notice that build queues for Middle Earth now contain Pikemen. Please will you discuss your requirements with the Governors.

Consul/Deputy Consul

You may want to consider your future troop requirements to ensure that our Governors are building the type of unit we need so we are not paying unnecessary upkeep costs. I am particulary aware that previously you did not wish to keep all the Spearmen we had and disbanded some to help with builds, but I notice that build queues for Middle Earth now contain Pikemen. Please will you discuss your requirements with the Governors.
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/random.gif
Sorry, I had to do that ;)

Ill speek to the governor about that about future military defense. Certanly I dont mind having older units in the core cities acting as MPs, but we should have a more modern defenseive units in the outer rim.

Dr Zoidburg!

Commander & Deputy:

First, welcome back, zyxy!

I've started a thread HERE (http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=119215) discussing what our war strategy should be for the next few turnchats, and I'd greatly appreciate your input. Our military has fewer forces than I'd consider ideal, and that might limit what we can realistically achieve in the near-term. At any rate, your opinions are highly valued.

I'm back.

CG, thanks for defending the fort.

Bertie and Furiey, thanks for the heads-up. I'll get to it asap.

Dr Zoidburg!

????

ehm..... he's out at the moment, in the weapons lab probably. Can I take a message?

zyxy, welcome back!

I hope things are to your liking with regards to progress in your absence, you now have some Knights to play with!

You may wish to consider how you want any remaining troops upgraded and if the vote for the Great Leader is for Army, what sort of Army you wish to form, although that is probably not a difficult choice ;)

(the Dr Zoidburg comment was to CG)

Furiey and Bertie: thanks for the welcome back!

It's nice to have some knights! It would be nicer to have some more, we are a bit thin at the front. There is also not much left to upgrade.

Draft instructions for TC 6, Sunday 22 May 12:00 GMT

Preamble:

I don't know the External Consul's plans yet; I'll assume they are to use an RoP with China to take the Chinese cities occupied by France, and hold the front on all other sides. Any offensives vs Spain will need to be delayed a bit until we have some more frontline troops. I prefer to hit France first because they have no iron and consequently should be weak.
We unfortunately don't know the map to our east. This means instructions are necessarily somewhat vague.


Maps:
http://www.civfanatics.net/uploads9/DG6_AD0500_CAFstatus.JPG

Plans:

MGL: If we decide to make an army, use MGL Edward to create an army of three knights. Edward can reach Classicity and form the army on turn 1 (current turn = 0) provided the Dutch archer leaves the road.
Upgrades: please upgrade Steven's Swordsman. Also upgrade the vet sword near Falls Church if you deem it necessary. Please use other elite units for leader fishing, and refrain from upgrading unless you have insufficient targets for them. If you want to upgrade some, please upgrade horses first.
Homeland defense: consists of 3 swords (Tracheon, Falls Church, Auchtermuchty) and 2 knights (Bentley, Sebadoh).
Attack force: consists of 2 cats, 3 swords, 2 MDI, 4 horses, 7 knights, all in the east, as indicated in the map. Please move up some spears/pikes to block Gem Mountain (near Classicity). Use a few troops to pick off intruders. Move the remainder through China and take the former Chinese cities now oppressed by France (Shanghai, Nanking, Tsingtao).
Murcia (Spain) is a secondary target and we'll need some 5 MDI's or equivalent to take it if it is defended by spears (counting on 2 vet spears) and we'll need 7 MDI's if the defense is pikes. I would advise not to attack unless you can spare such amount of troops.
Obsolete units: the army has no need for the ship (Spichester), the 3 warriors (Chaos, Delhi, New London), and for the regular spears in Spichester and Tracheon. They may be disbanded by the governors if they wish to do so. Total savings: 12 gpt.
Tactical suggestions: the horse in Naples can attack the Spanish archer near Blacktopia. The catapults cannot cross the Gem Mountain Area until we build some roads there, but would be useful against French Templar Knights.

Hi Commander,

I replied to the inquiry to made in the External Consulate's thread IN THIS POST (http://forums.civfanatics.com/showpost.php?p=2782317&postcount=33).

New discussion: CoAF - Operational Planning: France, Spain, Portugal. Anyone else?

New poll: Disband some obsolete units?

Hi Commander,

Thanks for asking about possible peace deals to save Shanghai. Discussion already started IN THS THREAD (http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=119467).

Instructions CoAF for TC Wednesday May 25, 12:00 GMT

The DP is allowed to deviate from these instructions if that is necessary for the defense of Fanatannia.


Primary objective is to take and keep Nanking (French).

On the present turn: use the horse from Tsingtao to kill the French archer next to Shanghai. Move the army to Tsingtao to heal. (If you are absolutely certain that the army will not be selected as defender in Shanghai, then you may leave it there. I am not sure if the game always selects the unit showing on top as defender.) Leave the other forces in Shanghai. Move 2 cats, a musket, a horse, a knight and an MDI from Ratopia to the front. (Cats can be used to soften up any crusaders).
Attack and take Nanking at the earliest convenient moment. A fully healed army plus some support (1-2 knights/elite horses) should be enough. Nanking is somewhere east of Shanghai. I suggest to move a spear from Strider to Ratopia, and then a pike fom Ratopia to the Tsingtao-Shanghai-Nanking (TSN) region.
After taking Nanking, we'll fight a holding action there. Move the army towards Murcia if the TSN region seems safe without it. If necessary, move one or two extra knights to TSN and then remove the army.

Secondary objective is to raze Murcia and take and keep Valencia (Spanish). This objective should not be pursued inmediately, we need more troops in the region first. I would also prefer to wait for cavs.

Initially, use the units present in the region to fend off Spanish attackers. Add the two catapults from Ratopia to this force.
Take Murcia when you have sufficient forces available to do so. I estimate a minimum of 7 MDI's/Knights, or 5 cavs (assuming 2 vet pike defenders, all vet attackers, this has more than 95% success probability). I guesstimate the army would be equivalent to about 4 knights, or 2 to 3 cavs.
After that, take Valencia. It's on a hill, so it needs a larger force. With the same assumptions, I estimate we need 9 knights/MDI, or 6 cavs.

Home defense: Kill those would-be marines as soon as they land on our shores. Well, you know the drill by now :).
Upgrades: please upgrade the horse currently in Tsingtao for 120 gold at a convenient moment. Upgrade the other two horses if you think it necessary, otherwise I would prefer to keep them for leader fishing. When we learn cavalry, upgrade all veteran knights to cavalry at the earliest convenient moment. Cost: 30 gold per unit.
Build requests: I'll post them here as both governors seem to be AWOL. Please construct at least 10 new knights (or cavalries) in the next 10 turns, plus replacements for any lost knights in this period. No other unit types are needed.

@zyxy - Have you recived my reply to the PM you sent me?

Absence note

I will be absent from May 27 until June 3 inclusive. CG is empowered to post instructions for the last TC of this term.

----------------------------------------------

@zyxy - Have you recived my reply to the PM you sent me?

Yes, didn't you get the notification?