ALC Game 20: Vikings/Ragnar

10 exp is always level 4 actually, unless you're charistmatic. you start out level 1. 2 exp = level 2. 5 exp = level 3. 10 exp = level 4 and heroic epic, yay! the number of promotions you have doesn't matter, except that you have to actually promote a unit that has 10 exp to see the words "Level 4" on him in order to qualify for HE. after that, you're good to go. even if he, ummm, gets lost somewhere or something.
 
I agree that you should definitely let the barbarians build some cities if possible, I always conduct these kind of "human experiments" when I'm isolated, then you can kill them for experience and plunder, all in the name of science of course since the gold accelerates your research.
 
Can someone fill me in on why Birka isn't 1E of its current position? Simply to take advantage of the +1 production in the city tile and to gain more land tiles?

do you really mean Birka, the island city? that's a grassland hill 1E, not plains, so it wouldn't give +1 :hammers:. and it would lose the fish, which is the only food source that city has. edit: oh wait, that's 1W. i'm bad with directions. every guild i've ever been in, in any MMO, has had a rule: "Never follow KMad". good advice.

you might mean Uppsala, the one up north? 1E would be a plains hill but then the city wouldn't be coastal, so S picked coast. and that would miss the rice tile. 1SE was discussed too but again wouldn't have coast access.
 
oh! i couldn't figure out how that would gain more land tiles, so it didn't occur to me, sorry. we're planning another city on the mainland over there, between Birka and Jelling, to use that southern fish. that's the one S is talking about juggling the iron tile for. so just trying to avoid overlap with that i think.
 
Round 4: 25 AD to 730 AD (47 turns), Part 1

As I started the round, I decided that I really, really, really liked Validator's Astronomy gambit, so I decided to set out for it. Since I didn't manage to nab the Colossus, there's nothing holding me back, and it would allow me to take full advantage of the Great Lighthouse for a long time. It's the sort of gambit I'd almost never try in an off-line game because keeping track of all the techs that specific GPs will lightbulb depending on which other techs I have is not something I usually track. So, all the better to try it here with expert guidance. :goodjob:

I also really appreciated Scarredroman's heads-up regarding Machinery cutting short my shot at the Swordsman quest. And all the other advice as well, such as pulling my fog-busters back, which I did.

So, first off, I changed my build selection in the capital, as Validator recommended.

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A few turns later, to preserve my chance at winning the Sword quest, I changed research targets when Machinery was one turn from completion. In the meantime I chose to work on a tech that was on Validator's track for early Astronomy:

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I kept track of how many Swords I had and when I had one more to go for the quest that would complete on the next turn, I changed civics to ensure I had all my options open.

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So, a couple of turns after that, I chose the recommended bonus for winning the quest:


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All melee units get Drill I in perpetuity. Not bad. Especially since the UU will get that, on top of their other bonuses.

I had good luck with my great people, earning a Great Scientist pretty quickly thanks to the NE.

ALC20_730AD_05.jpg


Notice the tech he'll lightbulb? That became a minor factor later on--something Validator missed.

Meanwhile, Hereditary Rule was just not working for me. Even though I had some extra units now, Representation's automatic +3 :) for five cities was much easier to manage. The missing research bonus was taking a bit of a toll as well; Bjorgvin was going to finish its library soon and start running specialists as well, so I wanted the beakers back. Furthermore, if the barbs founded a city in the north like I was hoping, I'd need to pull all those Swordsmen out of my cities and chaos would result.

ALC20_730AD_06.jpg


Yes, I am trying to be wary of too many civics changes this game. Fortunately the Viking empire isn't too big at this point so switching back and forth to get the Drill bonus only cost me two turns.

I built no wonders other than the NE this round. Several world wonders were finished in distant lands. The most significant one was built by whoever founded Islam.

ALC20_730AD_07.jpg


You might notice that the slider kept lowering through the round as my cities grew (along with their maintenance costs) and I built all those Swordsmen. As a result, I only founded one more city this round--probably the best one to get at this point as it further exploited the Great Lighthouse.

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Some good news from those periodic ratings messages--winning the sword quest helped my power rating, putting me in a respectable position relative to everyone else:

ALC20_730AD_09.jpg


Once I finished researching Mathematics and Calendar, I switched back to Machinery and then, a few turns later, finished the crucial tech I'd been chasing... the cherished cure to my loneliness:

ALC20_730AD_10.jpg


I had been hoarding some gold for this, and immediately upgraded a couple of Triremes.

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Then I set out to find my neighbours. Who did I meet? Stay tuned!
 
Notice the tech he'll lightbulb? That became a minor factor later on--something Validator missed.

:confused:

While Astronomy is an expensive tech it should be possible to use a GS to bulb about half of it, and possibly even use 2 GSs to bulb it entirely. According to the GS tech list kniteowl posted a couple of pages back the only other tech you would need to get out of the way for the Astronomy bulb would be Alphabet. You would need to avoid Meditation, CS and Theology to block Philosophy and Paper.

I didn't expect you to delay Optics to pursue the quest. Getting Optics directly would have allowed you to meet some neighbors while waiting for the second Great Person in Nidaros. That would have allowed you to trade for Alphabet in time to bulb Astronomy.
 
Round 4: 25 AD to 730 AD (47 turns), Part 2

Before I start talking about the neighbours, as soon as I had Optics I got all excited because I had not one but two Great Scientists sitting in Nidaros, waiting to lightbulb Astronomy for me! Woohoo! Unfortunately the first tech they'd pop was... Alphabet. :(

Jeez, Validator, I could have sworn you told me that I only needed Mathematics and Calendar to lightbulb Astronomy. Turns out those are the prerequisite techs I needed (along with Machinery and Optics), but the BtS Great Scientists have one more tech in the way. So I researched Alphabet next just to get it out of the way so I could get Astronomy.

One Caravel went northwest, the other southeast. The northwest ship was the first to meet somebody, and as it turned out, I met my main competitor in the game first:

ALC20_730AD_12.jpg


And wouldn't you know he had several techs on me. And a religion, of course.

It didn't take long to meet his closest neighbour after that:

ALC20_730AD_13.jpg


Ah, now that was more to my liking. He has several techs on me, I have several on him. With Bizzy, I could talk turkey. Not that I did just yet, I wanted to meet some other civs first, get the diplomatic picture.

A couple of turns later I finished Alphabet and checked what the Great Scientists would lightbulb. Not only was it the desired tech, it only took two of them to hand it to me in its entirety:

ALC20_730AD_15.jpg


Yes, I too love the idea of Galleons full of Berserkers showing up on someone's shores centuries before they're expected, waving their battle axes and shouting menacingly at the terrified citizenry. I'll be spamming boats and Berserkers before long, mark my words.

:viking: Spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, lovely spam...

"SHUT UP! Bloody Vikings!"

I met yet another victim... er, respectable leader... to my southwest:

ALC20_730AD_16.jpg


Meanwhile, I'm afraid all those techs were burning a hole in my pocket. The AI was starting to harass me every turn for tech trades, and after a while, my resistance broke down. I also remembered the recommendation to trade before I'd met everyone to avoid WFYABTA demerits. So that's what I did.

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Bismarck turned out to be a terrific trading partner. He had several desirable techs, but was quite low in score. It was much better to trade techs with him than with board-leading Hannibal. I got Monarchy and some gold from him for Compass shortly after this as well.

Hannibal obviously has a good-sized empire and was therefore good for trading resources, however.

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Normally I don't like trading iron, but I don't have too much else to offer. Signing several Open Borders agreements catapulted my income way back into the black, so it's obviously time to expand again, and the fur city will be a priority in the next round so I have several more resources to trade.

Of course, trading before I've met everyone has consequences. This guy was not to happy with me when I first met him:

ALC20_730AD_19.jpg


He softened up a little a few turns later, so I got OB and dye from him, but no tech trades.

I did remember to load my Scout onto one of the Caravels, and lo and behold, he happened across an unguarded goody hut!

ALC20_730AD_20.jpg


Which popped for... a Warrior. Meh. Oh well, you only get Metal Casting from huts every so often.

After Astronomy, I researched a tech that would allow me to do something military with all those elephants. Especially since I'd obtained Horseback Riding from Bizzy.

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After that, I went off in pursuit of the other recommended isolation techs: Code of Laws and Civil Service. (Berserkers! Woo hoo!)

And, no surprise with early Optics and Trading Post-powered Caravels, I won the circumnavigation race.

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So now in addition to the free Navigation promotion from the TPs, my ships get another movement bonus! Viking ships are gonna rule the waves!

Another day, another ticked off leader...

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And towards the end of the round, Hannibal created a colony.

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Which means there must be one more civ out there unless somebody wiped them out, which I rather doubt (I don't remember seeing a lot of Great General announcements).

And lastly, on the very last turn of the round, I finished researching my next tech, an important one:

ALC20_730AD_25.jpg


So there ends the round. Most of the other civs have been met, borders opened to take full advantage of the Great Lighthouse's extra trade routes, and I managed to both win the Sword quest and complete Validator's early Astronomy gambit.

A State of the World post will follow, wherein I'll posit some options for the next round's strategy.
 

Attachments

:confused:

I didn't expect you to delay Optics to pursue the quest. Getting Optics directly would have allowed you to meet some neighbors while waiting for the second Great Person in Nidaros. That would have allowed you to trade for Alphabet in time to bulb Astronomy.

NOW you tell me. :rolleyes: ;)
 
the number one city in the world has no wonders, and wasn't founded until 525 BC? that's about turn 139 judging from turn numbers and dates in your round 3. basically, 50ish turns before the top 5 cities screenshot was taken, out of a total of 200ish turns :crazyeye:. what the heck is that city up to???

okay now i'll pick my jaw up off the floor and read part 2.
 
The State of the World, 730 AD

First off, as usual in these posts, a look at the map.

My two land masses:

ALC20_730AD_26.jpg


Yeah, those two northern islands turned out to me non-starters, didn't they? The one to the northeast is particularly annoying since there's no way to grab both the crabs and the fish tiles with the same city. I've built a fort on one of the tundra tiles at the choke point, but now I'm wondering if a city on the mainland there rather than on the island (to claim the crabs) would make more sense.

And holy crud, Trv016, you're right, it does resemble the British Isles! (Though I have to say, speaking as both a descendant and as a two-time visitor, that Scotland is far more pleasant than the terrain in its position on this map!) Well, the Vikings did invade the Isles and have had an often-unacknowledged but significant effect on their culture, so perhaps that's appropriate.

A priority in the next round will be more expansion, now that I can afford it again. I'm already building the Settler for fur city in Uppsala. I have a Galleon up near the city site and there's no barb city there, but I don't much care anymore; I want those furs for trading.

I also want to keep an eye open as I expand for any isolated land masses with appealing resources that I can grab centuries before anyone else. In fact, I should probably load one of those Galleons I'm building with a Settler, Worker, and City Garrison Crossbowman, ready to pounce on an attractive location. You know, just like the AI at its most annoying does.

Here's what I know of the other land masses, which ain't much:

ALC20_730AD_27.jpg


But of course I was focused on winning the circumnavigation race. Now that it's complete I'll focus on exploration. I'm building some Galleons, but I think a few more Caravels are in order so I can slip in if anyone cancels their OB on me.

Now for the tale of the tape. Domestic advisor:

ALC20_730AD_28.jpg


Financial advisor, highlighting city maintenance:

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It's not crippling me, but a few courthouses will help. The espionage points will be welcome as well.

Civics:

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I think a change to Caste System is in order. I just went through a slave rebellion in the capital a couple of turns back, and I'm not really whipping anything, so it's time. Should I wait for Civil Service? I think at this point the civics are costing one turn each, so I'm not sure if waiting is really necessary.

Foreign advisor - relations:

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And Glance:

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So far Bizzy is my buddy and Hannibal isn't too far behind. So I could throw in with the Confucian block. Mehmed and Hammurabi aren't too pleased with me, but that could change if I go Muslim. Neither religion is an option yet, however, as you'll see.

Active trade deals:

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Obviously I'll be adjusting these as things go along. But I gotta say that having Astronomy for the trade routes and resource trades was HUGE. A big tip o' the ALC hat to Validator for his advice!

Resources:

ALC20_730AD_34.jpg


Furs would allow me to get more GPT from Bizzy and Mehmed. I really want those furs!

(I'm tempted to say that I really want that beaver, but some of you might misinterpret that. Ahem.)

(And yes, they're beavers, not squirrels! Some people on this board keep calling them squirrels! WTH? Squirrels were never a commodity in the fur trade--it was beaver, gang! They're beavers! Trust me: I'm Canadian. I know my beaver.)

(Okay, I'll stop now.)

Info - civics and trade route income:

ALC20_730AD_35.jpg


I don't usually keep track, but I think 109 commerce from trade routes this early in the game is pretty darned good. I built a few Harbors this round, another thing some of you recommended, even prioritizing them over Granaries, so that helps the trade route income as well. The only way it could be better is if I'd built the Temple of Artemis. Some other time.

Techs:

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The prevalence of Feudalism for Longbowmen will likely impede the mad Galleon/Berserker rush I was envisioning earlier.

Military Advisor:

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Religion advisor:

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Wouldn't you know it, the first religion to spread to me isn't either of the big blocks, but 90-pound-weakling Roosevelt's lonely little faith that will only make me as much of a pariah as he's going to become. No thanks. I think I'll wait for the other two big faiths to spread to me.

Speaking of which, we should talk about religious strategy. I'm assuming that both Confucianism and Islam will spread to me, at which point I'll probably want to choose a side.

Bizzy and Hannibal are already the friendliest leaders. Both have useful techs and resources to trade, and both are, in my experience, largely trustworthy. However, they are also (AFAIK) my closest targets... er, neighbours. (Same diff to a Viking, really.)

Hammurabi and Mehmed don't have too many resources to offer me, though Hammy does have a few choice techs I'd love to get at. They're further away, and therefore possibly more troublesome targets. Both of them, however--Mehmed especially--are slippery, back-stabbing scum.

At least none of them are protective.

Lastly, espionage, which I adjusted as the round ended.

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Courthouses will help with this as well.

So diplomatic decisions will likely be required in the coming round. With Galleons and Berserkers only a few turns away, some hit-and-run raids to hurt and potentially cripple someone would be fun. I also think I need to found the remaining cities on CivSeta's dotmap.

Overall, I feel very good about the game thus far. It's quite a contrast with the Mehmed game, isn't it? Losing that game, I think, was good in the long term. It seemed to inspire several people to develop expertise at isolated starts, and your advice is certainly helping here.
 
Furs would allow me to get more GPT from Bizzy and Mehmed. I really want those furs!

(I'm tempted to say that I really want that beaver, but some of you might misinterpret that. Ahem.)

(And yes, they're beavers, not squirrels! Some people on this board keep calling them squirrels! WTH? Squirrels were never a commodity in the fur trade--it was beaver, gang! They're beavers! Trust me: I'm Canadian. I know my beaver.)

(Okay, I'll stop now.)


Wrong, squirrels (skins) were used as a first currency here in Finland. They were valuable trade items for a long time -- Canada is not the only furry place, you know :).

Astronomy on 7th century AD with Vikings on AP map? :goodjob:
 
I think Rooseveldt might be reasonably close to you. You didn't find him where you explored, as far as I can tell. Also, the other AI don't seem to have relations with him. He's technically behind you, one of the 2 who don't have feudalism, and a religion that's different from the world. So, I'm gonna say he's target #1.
 
Wow, what a great gamble by Validator and you pulled it off. 7th century astronomy is just HOLY....!!!! The boost of trade routes is excellent and the resources you got is grand. This gambit also means that you still have some very good trading material even in the form of optics/astronomy that nobody has yet.

But first let the bloodthirst rule and get those combat 1, drill 1, amphibious Berserkers rolling in your +2 movement ships. Sea superiority anyone? Now if you only had gotten the axemen quest to get cover those berserkers would have been some of the scariest mofo's I would have ever seen.
 
Can't agree more with the American target. He should be easy pickings.

One other things, why does the Military Advisor screen show a skull? Is someone dead already?
 
The State of the World, 730 AD


(And yes, they're beavers, not squirrels! Some people on this board keep calling them squirrels! WTH? Squirrels were never a commodity in the fur trade--it was beaver, gang! They're beavers! Trust me: I'm Canadian. I know my beaver.)

Hi

well they LOOK like squirrels to me hehe so :P besides in this game teeny tiny fishing boats bravely go after giant mutant clams and crabs so why cant squirrels be part of fur trade? :)

Can't agree more with the American target. He should be easy pickings.

One other things, why does the Military Advisor screen show a skull? Is someone dead already?

The skull button keeps track of any barb units on the map your civ can see.

Kaytie
 
Can't agree more with the American target. He should be easy pickings.

One other things, why does the Military Advisor screen show a skull? Is someone dead already?

skull is known barb units iirc.

also, @sis, why oh why do your best potential allies also have to be your closest targets... that makes it so hard to choose who to pick on.
 
AFAIK, you can only get to 10xp max on barbs (to 5xp on animals) which is not enough for HE (lvl 4 unit i believe).

Ragnar's melee units start with combat 1 so 10 xp will give 4 promotions = level 4.

10 exp is always level 4 actually, unless you're charistmatic. you start out level 1. 2 exp = level 2. 5 exp = level 3. 10 exp = level 4 and heroic epic, yay! the number of promotions you have doesn't matter, except that you have to actually promote a unit that has 10 exp to see the words "Level 4" on him in order to qualify for HE. after that, you're good to go. even if he, ummm, gets lost somewhere or something.

Kmad is right, as usual ;) .
And the number of promotions has nothing to do with it.

edit : small nitpicking
You had a GS you could have burnt for a golden age in which you could have gone in and out of HR for free. Would it have been better than bulbing both on astronomy?
I think so. The boost from the golden age would have allowed you to tech a lot faster, making up for the lost bulbing power.
 
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