News: GOTM 33 Pre-Game Discussions

ainwood

ainwood

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GOTM 33: Mongols

[img=right]http://gotm.civfanatics.net/civ4games/images/gotm33civ.jpg[/img]

We kick the difficulty right back to Warlord this month! I know, I know... too easy? Well, just see how quick you can win then! :D

Game Details:

Game settings:
Civilization: Mongols (Leader: Kublai Khan; Traits: Aggressive, Creative)
Rivals: 6 AIs
Difficulty: Warlord
Map: Pangea
Mapsize: Standard
Climate: Temperate
Sea Level: Low
Starting Era: Ancient
Speed: Normal
Options: Aggressive AI, Raging Barbs
Victory Conditions: all enabled

Kublai Khan:
Kublai Khan is aggressive and creative; starting with hunting and the wheel. Creative gives +2 culture per turn per city, plus doulbe production speed of theatres & Colosseums. Aggressive gives a free Combat 1 promotion to Melee & Gunpowder units, as well as double production speed of barracks & drydocks.

Unique unit: Keshik (replaces horsearcher)
Compared to the standard horse archer, the keshik has the same stats (strength = 6, move = 2, cost = 50). The differences are in the details, with the keshik getting a free first-strike, and ignoring movement costs.

Starting screenshot
This is the start of the game (click for a bigger image):


Adventurer Class bonuses:
  1. Worker. You have a worker (sharing a tile with the settler)

Challenger Class Equalisers:
  1. no scout. He's gone.
  2. No techs. They're gone, too.

To Enter the Competition:

This competition will open on 1 August 2008. From that date, you'll be able to get the starting saves here. Use the same URL to submit your completed entry, which you must do by 1 September 2008.

Civ version

Windows: This game MUST be played in Civilization 4 (NOT Warlords or BTS), patched to version 1.74, and with the HOF mod version 1.74.002 installed. You can download the HOF mod here. Players using windows vista are encouraged to read the notes on Vista fixes here

Macintosh: This game MUST be played in Civilization 4 (NOT Warlords), patched to version 1.74, and with the Mac HOF mod version 1.74.002 installed. You can download the HOF mod here.

While playing...

Remember - for your entry to be accepted, it MUST be your first attempt to play this game, and you MUST NOT replay any turns. If you make a mistake while playing, you have to live with it, learn from it, and carry on the game without replaying.

We will open 'spoiler' threads during the month for players to discuss what happens in their games. Do not discuss any details of your game outside those threads. Please use this Saves Available thread for any technical queries, eg. if you have trouble opening the game, NOT for discussions about what happens in your game.
 
Is the starting screenshot available?
Thanks.

Nice to be down to an easy level, however I'm pretty used to Monarch or so. It might be too easy. Different strategies for different levels.
 
May have to try this one just for fun. Not sure I've ever played Warlord difficulty -- after going through the tutorial to get the new game concepts I went right to Noble. But an easier difficulty now and then is nice for newer players and to try out oddball strategies.

Pretty sweet start, as well. Even the raging barbs should not be a big problem early on -- plenty of time to get the economy going and grab more land. I like the plains hill the scout is standing on -- with fresh water from the lake and Warlords difficulty, the flood plains should not be too much of a health burden.
 
If I am not tired when I start the game. Scout will check out SW of settler before deciding where to settle; likely on FPH, Will go the basic Oracle CS sling. Since no one will trade willingly, We will go AH and Mining first. If no horses then BW, Pot, Writing, Myst and on. If horses are around BW will come after Writing.

Goal: Fastest Spaceship via holding nearly 50% of landmass by capture after Currency.
 
Poor AI's, they're gonna get slaughtered by those barbarians! Have you no heart, ainwood? :lol:

I have a vague memory that Raging Barbarians does not behave as normal barbs in the sense that they enter your borders much earlier (not restricted to number of cities founded). Anyone knows the details?
 
Erkon said:
Poor AI's, they're gonna get slaughtered by those barbarians! Have you no heart, ainwood? :lol:

I have a vague memory that Raging Barbarians does not behave as normal barbs in the sense that they enter your borders much earlier (not restricted to number of cities founded). Anyone knows the details?
Click to expand...

Lol, those AIs are going to suffer. This gives me an idea of a little challenge: win by conquest without ever attacking any cities. Are you in, Erkon?
 
Erkon said:
I have a vague memory that Raging Barbarians does not behave as normal barbs in the sense that they enter your borders much earlier (not restricted to number of cities founded). Anyone knows the details?
Click to expand...
Spoiler :
Code: 
[COLOR="Red"]if[/COLOR] (GC.getGameINLINE().isOption([COLOR="Red"]GAMEOPTION_RAGING_BARBARIANS[/COLOR]))
	{
		if (AI_cityAttack(1, 30))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (AI_pillageRange([COLOR="red"]4[/COLOR]))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (AI_cityAttack([COLOR="red"]3[/COLOR], 20))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (area()->getAreaAIType(getTeam()) == AREAAI_OFFENSIVE)
		{
			if (AI_targetCity())
			{
				return;
			}
		}
	}
	[COLOR="Blue"]else if (GC.getGameINLINE().getNumCivCities() > (GC.getGameINLINE().countCivPlayersAlive() * 3))[/COLOR]
	{
		if (AI_cityAttack(1, 25))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (AI_pillageRange([COLOR="Blue"]3[/COLOR]))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (AI_cityAttack([COLOR="blue"]2[/COLOR], 20))
		{
			return;
		}
		if (area()->getAreaAIType(getTeam()) == AREAAI_OFFENSIVE)
		{
			if (AI_targetCity())
			{
				return;
			}
		}

        else if (GC.getGameINLINE().getNumCivCities() > (GC.getGameINLINE().countCivPlayersAlive() * 2))
        {
	        if (AI_pillageRange(2))
		{
		        return;
		}
		if (AI_cityAttack(1, 20))
		{
		        return;
		}
	}
Looks like you're right. No city limitations, raging barbs will move to pillage from 4 moves away and move to attack cities from 3 moves away.
 
Gnejs said:
Lol, those AIs are going to suffer. This gives me an idea of a little challenge: win by conquest without ever attacking any cities. Are you in, Erkon?
Click to expand...

Sure! Contender or Challenger? I wonder which is best: teching to Archery or BW? Archery may lead to more barb archers, but will delay barb axes. Will barb archers be enough to damage the AI?

I have a vague feeling that we may get boxed in by barb cities, which requires extensive fog busting and REX. But REX does not fit well with raging barbs... :hmm:

EDIT: Ooops, Warlord is one step below Noble :blush: Barb warriors showed up 1880 BC in Jungle's testgame, even though there was less than 1.5 cities per civ on average. :confused: At that time I was building my first Keshik... (Archery, AH, Mining, BW, HBR). I think there is room to tech agri=>AH first. I doubt the barb spawning will be high enough to be able to take out all AIs, but that's the challenge, isn't it? :lol:
 
Erkon said:
Sure! Contender or Challenger? I wonder which is best: teching to Archery or BW? Archery may lead to more barb archers, but will delay barb axes. Will barb archers be enough to damage the AI?

I have a vague feeling that we may get boxed in by barb cities, which requires extensive fog busting and REX. But REX does not fit well with raging barbs... :hmm:
Click to expand...

Let's take contender. I plan to go AH-Mining-BW and gift BW to enough AIs to make the barbs spawn axes. Will have to look up klarius' posts from our sgotm to understand the details. Then I will use chariots to deny the AIs their metals and kill any settlers. (Insert evil grin) :)
 
JerichoHill said:
umm

I'd be up for the barbarian challenge, maybe... The gist is, barbs have to take every city, but we cannot attack any AI city units? interesting...
Click to expand...

Right. Pillaging and killing units in the open is ok. Would be fun if you joined in.
 
Finally a level I should be able to gey a victory. :P
 
Gnejs said:
Lol, those AIs are going to suffer. This gives me an idea of a little challenge: win by conquest without ever attacking any cities. Are you in, Erkon?
Click to expand...

This sounds like fun :D Count me in!

We can't let any of the AIs get the great wall, otherwise it's over. Edit: oops, I forgot great wall doesn't exist in vanilla.
 
reuster said:
This sounds like fun :D Count me in! We can't let any of the AIs get the great wall, otherwise it's over.
Click to expand...

There are other things that worries me more than the Great Wall, especially since you can't build them in Vanilla Civ. :mischief:

Just to make this clear: it is not sure that this challenge can be won! Please try a test game or two before you decide :goodjob:
 
Erkon said:
There are other things that worries me more than the Great Wall, especially since you can't build them in Vanilla Civ. :mischief:
Click to expand...

lol, thanks for reminding me :hammer2: It's been awhile since i played vanilla. Is alpahbet still the prereq for tech trades on vanilla? Do we need to beeline it before we can start dumping BW on the AIs?


Erkon said:
Just to make this clear: it is not sure that this challenge can be won! Please try a test game or two before you decide :goodjob:
Click to expand...

I don't care too much if it's winnable, only if it's fun :D
 
reuster said:
... Is alpahbet still the prereq for tech trades on vanilla? Do we need to beeline it before we can start dumping BW on the AIs?
...
Click to expand...

Yes, you need alpha to gift BW to the AI's although in my test games, the AI will get it long before I get alpha (the following tech path seems to fit my plans: agri, AH, mining, BW, archery, HBR, IW).

Regarding capital location:
Settling 1N instead of 1E will cost you the extra hammer from the city tile, but chopping the forest will restore 20 of these hammers, and the 4 hammers from the hill will in the long run be superior, since it's hammers you need. In the short run, the worker will take 15 turns instead of 12, but one of these turns is wasted on moving the settler to the forest, and one more turn is wasted to move the worker to the cow, so the total difference is only one turn.

The top priority is to choke the AIs as quickly as possible. I don't think Chariots will be enough, but they may be enough early on.
 
For the barb challenge, can you capture cities by culture?

I bet it won't work any other way, unless the barbs start razing cities, becuase they'll run out of free-roaming attackers eventually.
 
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