Nobles' Club XLII: Qin Shi Huang of China

After cleaning up Hatty, I fixed up my eco a bit, then decided to backstab Joao as there weren't as many borders to defend as going to war with Nap. At some point (can't remember when, but before DoW on Joao) Monty peacefully vassalized. During the war with Joao I took most of the cities, monty took a few, and, after dragging nap into the war, he took one as well. Just as I was about to go finish off Joao he capitulated to Nap. Oh well, I built up my army (now with Curs and cannons) and went after Nap. I had two cannons and a cur down south to finish up joao, which was easy. After I took four of Nap's cities, including Paris, he capitulated, and I won the domination victory.





All in all a fun map. I didn't realize until much later that I was supposed to use the narrow mountain passes to my advantage next time i think I probably should be doing prince

As I was warned, Mehmed prevented my settling the narrow pass that blocked him by putting a city roughly 2W of there. Moreover, not terribly long later he took advantage of the gap in my borders between Beijing and the marble city to sneak a settler into the middle of "my" territory. So I went back to 2100 BC, when the first settler came out, and changed plans.

This time around I decided the stone city could wait, so settled marble (to guarantee the oracle), the gap to Mehmed's territory, and then the stone city. I gave up on the Great Wall as a distraction, but got Stonehenge, the Oracle, and the Pyramids as before; I'm a turn from Apostolic Palace (and the boost), 3 from Hanging Gardens and have started the Mausoleum -- much later than I'd planned, having forgotten about it when I tech'd calendar. When I got iron working I built a city 1N of the cows to claim the iron, then later built Chengdu near the gold, in part claim it but also to stop barbarians from showing up over there.

I just barely took the barbarian city north of the elephants in time:

Nappy had 2 more units that died against the barbarian archers in Harrapan, and I used a sword (who won) and lost a drill II cover archer, finally taking the city with another archer, in the process of making sure I got the city before he did. I had several other swords on the way, but thought maybe I shouldn't wait. They're now all piled up in Harrapan, waiting to attack Nappy, who seems the likely first target. Unfortunately my has been at a very low rate, so I only know the relative power of a few opponents, and they're all just around the same power as me.

Nappy killed off Hatty long ago, so there's a bit of room to my NW to plant one more city to block some passes. Is the barely-visible blue location 2S of the northern iron a reasonable spot for a city? It'll have the sugar for food.


Here's the tech situation. Feudalism and HBR aren't monopoly techs anymore, but the AI dislike me enough not to trade.


I've been intercepting Dutch, French, and Ottoman spies, so I need to build some more counterespionage. Several eastern AIs are annoyed with me, so I need to build some defenders to the NE. But in 4 turns when Machinery is finished, I plan to spam Cho-Ko-Nus to join up with my swordsmen (and a couple of spears) and go after Napoleon.

Somehow people are calling me warmonger. I'm not really war is not my strongest game and I am just naturally the most sweetes nicest peaceful type builder any civ could want for a neighbor. And after killing of willie (ok maybe that not TECHNICALLY all that peaceful but HE started it!!) I was all prepared to go for a nice peaceful culture win.

But like I have said before sometimes the AI's WONT let you be peaceful. Sometimes they do heinious unprovoked attacks on you like nappy and this:



So there I am minding my own business quietly and peacefully trying to mak emy empire all pretty when Nappy STEALS MY SHINY!!!!!! . And by one flippin' turn grrr. I think even the most peaceful of pacifist can agree there is only ONE way to repsond to something like this.:



Even tho Nappy is a NOTORIUS unit spammer and warmongering bully the peace loving ppl of the Kaytieland will NOT be intimidated so we gather up what military available (I KNOW TECHNICALLY having a military not all THAT peaceful but uhm... oh yeah theyre for like peacekeeping and helping with floods and earthquakes and forest fires and stuff like that) and then let Nappy know he can NOT get away with wonder snatching.

We first take a closer city of hatties and then absorb Nappy's counterattack but EVENTUALLY:



The shiny is under control of its RIGHTFUL owner and justice is served

At this point Hattie recognizes the righteousness of my cause and breaks free of nappy. And once she does:



She willing to join the side of peacefulness. I check viconditions and:



Looks like Hatties capitulation is enuff to put me over top for dom win so as an act befiting my nonviolent peaceful tendacies:



I show nappy there no hard feelings, end the turn and:



Nonviolence and peace wins!! Yay!!!!

My empire at the end:



My best city:



Given all the hills on this map I didnt even try to put cottages here and just made it a hammer wonder city. It worked out pretty nice and even got to legendary.

Final demos:


Manged to start pulling away by the end too.

All of which added up to:



A pretty spiffy score I think.

And last but not least final props to the 3 leaders of my peacekeeping ambassadors of nonviolence and goodwill:



Larry



Moe

and of course:



Curly

So all in all a fun game and I learned a lil bit more about first strikes and the game mechanics. I knew before how for SOME reason the game LOVES first strikes and will often times pick a unit with LOTS of first strikes as a defender. But it also works other way too. Time and time AGAIN when I would have one of my numchucks attack an enemy stack even one with like say comabt1, formation and a few drills Horsearchers would defend over Ellies even though the ellies had HIGHER odds :/. ONLY reason I can think of is the game valued the HA's fs immunity over the ellies HIGHER over all str. Seems kinda weird ot me I would just want unit with best odds to go everytime but oh wells.

Anyways thanks for the fun everybody and see y'all next time

I popped my GE and bulbed Machinery. Have built a few Cho-Ko-Nus and upgraded a few Archers. I have more Workers now but they have plenty to do.

Economy is a bit wobbly due to my earlier lack of Cottages. I've built a few and also finally managed to hook up a couple resources like the Marble near Shanghai. (Until WvO settled to the south I had to face a steady stream of barbs. Things are finally firming up a bit, my effective tech rate is now up around 70% again. I'm currently 5 turns away from the ToA. Trade routes aren't very important to me at the moment but every bit of commerce helps and if someone beats me to it I can use another infusion of cash.

Diplomacy has been delicate. Napoleon started preparing for war so I did as well. He and I had no state religion although Buddhism and Judaism had both spread to me. I was holding out for Hinduism which is shared by Joao, Monty, and Brennus. However, once Nappy went WHEOOHRN I decided I needed OR to get my Barracks up sooner, and converted to Buddhism. Fortunately, WvO spread Buddhism to France and Napoleon converted. Shortly thereafter, he DoWed Hatty and later asked me to join in. Not wanting to antagonize him, I agreed. (Ran a sitzkrieg for a few turns and then made peace.) Very next turn, he comes back demanding Metal Casting! Again, I caved, but at least now he's pleased which means he won't be attacking me unless bribed. It looks like Joao is my main concern right now but if he stays peaceful I may try to take down Mehmed and gain access to the coast.

Let me know your thoughts.

View attachment Duck Stab Huang AD-0220.CivBeyondSwordSave

Team China stayed with the six cities although as the economy went a tad south Xian had to be assigned to wealth production. Beijing added the Hagia Sophia, the Mausoleum of Maussollos, the Sistine Chapel and Notre Dame for two 15-turn Golden Ages in this era.

The Aztec/Egyptian War was a folly. Montezuma took a barbarian city which was later acquired by the French. The Chinese/Aztec War was hot. It took place on the jungle/hill choke-point 1N of Shanghai. When it ended in 835 Guangzhou had two GMIs and was close to the Heroic Epic. Napoleon declared on China in 595 but bought peace from this fake war in 895. However, he was back in 980 with a very large army of "observation" that the Chinese had to eliminate as Hatshepsut had just become his voluntary vassal - short, bloody, successful.

In 1060 Qin took the war to the Aztec lands after paying a huge fee to Mehmed II for a world map. The northern alliance declared on the Aztecs and the Portugese (the only Hindus) in 1110 just as Brennus became a voluntary vassal of Napoleon. After losing his capital and having a city burned a weakened Montezuma capitulated in 1190.

Next target? Portugal as the army marches home. The tech path is Liberalism for Nationalism.

4000 BC:

Settle in place, warrior off to explore, tech Bronzeworking for chopping/whipping and then worker techs, 2 workers and then chop settlers. Got some hut luck, picked up 2 or 3 extra warriors and mysticism.

925 BC:

5 cities with atleast 5 more planned. Stonehenge in the capital. Religions are coming my way soon no doubt but I'm staying out of that mess for the moment. Plan to build wonders/culture buildings in Nanjing and Shanghai to keep Ottoman/Dutch culture encroachment at bay

1440 AD (Liberalism delayed to pick up rifling free as no NPC was close):



Plan is to kill the hindu bloc. Hatty peacefully vasseled in 1060 AD. Founded Christianity via bulb in 540 AD, started spreading to Mehmed and myself, with Sistine/Sankore being built in 1190 I convert in 1180 to Christianity and revolt Mehmed in to Christianity a few turns later. After Hatty is vassal I try and keep her Christian with bribes so Mehmed doesn't backstab her and me by association.

1460 AD -> finish: War!
No pic, but Napolean makes a bit of a mistake by declaring on Hatty/myself. Postpone plan of Hindu anihilation to teach him some lesson. Mehmed piles on Napolean, he's vassaled by 1585.

Monty was brought in as war enemy, I liberate cities back to France and head to Monty with legions of rifles. Monty vassaled in 1630, Brennus in 1675.

I make a mistake here moving all my troops down to attack the dutch without taking care of Joao >.> I only remember in 1700 when Mehmed DOW's Joao and I pile on, he caps in 1750 after I take 3 cities, return everything I capture except for one Aztec city to learn him good for declaring on me ;<
Troops back down to southern border, declare on dutch in 1800, vassaled in 1806, dreams of domination compel me to keep the cities I cap.

Short break between wars to pick up Artilery and then 100% culture in case I gain domination land while fighting Ottomans. Declare in 1828, take all but one city on mainland and accept capitulation from him and his colony in 1850. Felt bad betraying my religious brother but I console myself knowing full well he'd have no problem stabbing me in the back either ;<







Nice game, but I wasted a lot of time not getting religious bonuses and not fighting multiple fronts for a faster victory even though technologically I was stomping on ants. I also built a lot of pointless buildings I didn't need that could have been more troops to go stomping off around the world and ending the game a few centuries earlier. Got a few things I wanted out of it though, I'm very hesistant to have overlapping cities usually but I had a lot of overlap here and still had some very nice cities. Likewise I HATE mountains and desert but I had to accept them for city spots here. I slacked late game though not converting some improvements and not going for the throat faster.

Another pair of 15-turn Golden Ages helped (Liberalism for Nationalism in 1365). Taking the Hindu and Buddhist shrined cities did count. But this era was dominated by war.

Joao II capitulated in 1300 after losing Lisbon (two GMIs) and two other cities. Willem van Oranje saw the light in 1375 after The Hague and Amsterdam fell. The Aztec capital (Hindu HQ) and Amsterdam (Buddhist HQ) ended-up in frequent revolt because China went a culture-supporting city short in each conquest for fear of a capitulation to Napoleon. Even paranoids have enemies? Doubtful grand tactics.

The Chinese/Dutch War was complicated by an Ottoman invasion (1350) while Mehmed II had a Great Merchant in Chinese lands (go figure). After razing one and taking two cities Mehmed II joined Team China but serious credit must go to Joao II who sent in a respectable field army.

China declared on France (and the Egyptians and Celts) in 1495 - took an Egyptian city and burned one. Napolen instantly arrived with a massive army (fortunately in three corps). The Chinese had two field armies, two garrison forces and arriving reinforcements and just managed to destoy the French force in 1510 with virtually nothing left to spare. Still, game over.

In 1585 Hatshepsut broke free from the French and capitulated to the Chinese and in the same year the Portugese and Aztecs eliminated the Celtic civilization which the AP (Napoleon) had been regrowing at Portugese expense. With five cities taken, two ready to fall and another pair being threaten by the vassals France capitulated.

Napoleon could have had gunpowder for his problem-creating UU well in time for the 1495 War. Instead he researched nationalism and later military tradition. Would this AI tech-path have been seen at Monarch or higher?

1490 AD- A Great Artist appeared and I used him to boost up Nanjing.

1550 AD- Willem declared war! Luckily, he sends just a few clumps of macemen against my Cho-ko-nus.

1605 AD- Taj Mahal built, free Golden Age! The mediator event appears and I make peace with Willem.

1630 AD- Set to 60%, switched to Representation and Mercantilism.

1690 AD- Set cities to produce , set slider to 100%.

My 3 cities:







Civic choices for culture:



Culture map:

Monty and his vassals Brennus and Joao declare war and stick 5 stacks in my territory. Game over.... argh. I was so close to winning. I still can't seem to beat Prince.