ALC Game #24: Hammurabi/Babylon

[Sisiutil]

All Leaders Challenge Game #24:
Hammurabi/Babylon

Pre-Game Thread

Starting Position (this post, below)
Round 1: 4000 BC to 3100 BC (36 turns)
Round 2: 3100 BC to 2025 BC (43 turns)
Round 3: 2025 BC to 455 BC (64 turns)
Round 4: 455 BC to 320 BC (9 turns)
Round 5: 320 BC to 155 BC (11 turns)
Round 6: 155 BC to 160 AD (21 turns)
Round 7: 160 AD to 460 AD (20 turns)
Round 8: 460 AD to 990 AD (40 turns)
Round 9: 990 AD to 1310 AD (38 turns)
Round 10: 1310 AD to 1706 AD (81 turns)
Round 11: 1706 AD to 1796 AD (45 turns)
Round 12: 1796 AD to 1844 AD (26 turns)
Round 13: 1844 AD to 1876 AD (32 turns)
Post Mortem

The idea of the All Leaders Challenge is that I'm going to play a game with each of the Civ IV leaders. With the help of all the posters who participate, I will attempt to make the most of the leader's unique characteristics: traits, starting techs, unit, and building. Aside from the leader, the other game settings are (mostly) kept constant for the sake of comparison. I will post the saved game files, screenshots, and status reports here as the game progresses. Everyone then has a chance to chime in with their strategy ideas, or voice their frustration (or glee) when I make a mistake.

Everyone is invited to offer opinions and advice, and to make your own attempt at playing the same game. But if you do play a "shadow game", I kindly request that you refrain from posting spoilers--i.e. any facts or even hints about the map, opponents, and so on--before I'm there myself. I'm trying to play the game as authentically as possible.

In this ALC game, I'll be playing as Hammurabi, leader of Babylon. I'm playing the game using the Beyond the Sword expansion pack, its latest patch (3.17), and Solver's unofficial patch as well. The difficulty level is Immortal and the speed is Epic.

Regarding the map, I've decided to take the new Tectonics map type out for a spin. I've watched the Monarchists' Cookbook gang play their latest game (also with Hammurabi) on Tectonics, and Lord Parkin and I are finishing up a team game vs. the AI on that map type. It's a rather different map than what we're used to, with its own sets of challenges--more hills and mountains, for one thing, so it's great for production, but cottages and food become more of a challenge as a result, unless you get lucky with your placement (or force the issue--as another longtime CFC member once said to me, there's no map problem that enough Axemen can't solve).

The details of the map configuration are below.



I chose 60% water rather than the default 70% earthlike; I prefer having a little more land to choose from, especially since, as in the Lincoln game, I added a couple more AI civs. The only option chosen is Choose Religions--just for a little flavour.

A reminder as to Hammurabi's unique characteristics:



So, we start with the ability to lay roads and improve tiles with farms. The UU is an early one, based on Archers. The UB is also relatively early, enabled by the Construction tech.

And here is the starting location:



Yes, already, several hills are visible, as expected on a Tectonics map. Looks like there's a nice-sized lake next to me for the usual fresh water health bonus for the capital; those will yield 3 food/2 commerce with a lighthouse, which is always a nice little bonus from having a lake next to a coastal city. We have a farmable resource in the capital's fat cross--corn--and two seafood resources. Looks like Fishing will be an early tech priority, but thanks to Agriculture, it's not a huge priority.

Looks like desert to the NE. With coast to the SW, I could find it hard to find good sites for additional cities. But we'll wait and see.

Settling in place makes sense to me, as moving would either lose the coastal start and full benefits of the seafood, or sacrifice some land tiles. This looks like a good potential GP farm, especially if there's even more food in the fog, but not so good for cottages, so I may end up moving the capital later on. Then again, I've noticed that the Tectonics map tends to lack the same number of river tiles we see on other map types, so wonderful riverside cottage paradises are much harder to come by.

I suppose the Warrior can go 1E. It doesn't really matter much if I settle in place, does it?

The saved game file is below. If we pretty much agree to settle where I am, then I'll probably play the first round and post it tomorrow. So give some thought to what I should research and build first. Remember, too, that this is Immortal level--the AI already has a big head start on me!

[whakamole]

I don't think you even need to move the warrior to decide to settle in place. Irrigated corn, lake, two seafood... coastal plus freshwater with lots of hills to mine and forests to chop. Looks like a good start!

I'd move warrior SE to see more of what's to the E of your settler. It's possible you can settle on the south side of the lake, leaving the fish resource for another city to the NW.

[NcNikke]

Settle in place. Go Mining - Bronze Working - Fishing. There seems to be a non-forested grassland square 1NW 1W of the Settler. Metal maybe? Oh and I suggest worker first.

PS: Don't move the warrior 1NE

[Lord Parkin]

Not worth moving, IMHO - the place you're in looks great, and you don't want to waste time.

Nice that you chose Tectonics for this game.

[Toedustman]

Nice looking start. Plenty of forests to chop and food. I'd move the warrior 1 SW just for reassurance and settle as is. How soon are you gonna go for bowman? I'm not a Immortal player so I don't know how soon they appear.

[TheMeInTeam]

Settle in place.......this is actually a very solid start, unless the surrounding land screws you since we ARE talking tectonics .

[Whiskey_Lord]

Yowza, I dream of starts like this. Plenty of food and production in the BFC for a very solid city. Settle in place and consider building the Colossus to take serious advantage of Bureaucracy later. Start with building a Worker and go Mining-->Bronze Working-->Fishing.

[NcNikke]

Originally Posted by Whiskey_Lord

Start with building a Worker and go Mining-->Bronze Working-->Fishing.

If Sis says that hes going to follow your strategy I'm seriously gonna get pissed

[oyzar]

Nothing wrong with following it if it is logical.. It is certanly better than teching hunting -> archery and building scout then archers..

[NcNikke]

Originally Posted by oyzar

Nothing wrong with following it if it is logical.. It is certanly better than teching hunting -> archery and building scout then archers..

What I meant was that I get pissed (j/k BTW) if he says that it's whiskey lord's strategy as I posted the exactly same tips (techpath and worker first). Besides I was just joking...

[Whiskey_Lord]

It's an obvious tech path. Not that the Colossus idea isn't obvious anyway. Moai Statues might be good in this capital too.

[patagonia]

I'd seriously consider building the GLH here, given the coastal start and bundles of production (forests and plains hills) on offer.

If you combine it with an early scouting WB to find some AI cities, it's borderline overpowered, but will certainly make REX easier to fund.

[Sisiutil]

No offense to NcNikke, but I like Whiskey_Lord's plan better.

[TheMeInTeam]

Yeah whiskey_lord definitely has the better strategy, given the map situation we're presented with (and usually).

GLH, even though in the immortal U thread people call it overpowered? . No, I definitely agree that you might want it. Not only might you get gobs of commerce from it, but it might give you viable city locations that otherwise wouldn't be.

[rupertmonkey]

I'm gonna recommend building a warrior first. You need to check out the area to the southeast. Definitely settle in place. Move warrior 1E. I love the tectonics maps. They are really peculiar, like our own lovely planet.

[Lord Parkin]

I'd go with a Worker first, since you have Agriculture and The Wheel already. Get some early improvements up and running.

[tycoonist]

worker first and head to bronze working.

[CivCorpse]

Warrior first while teching fishing, then workboat-> worker while teching mining->BW
I would also reccomend popping pottery from a hut.

[r_rolo1]

The water in the east is lake or sea? That can make quite a diference in the tech choice order...... But given that I don't see a river, it should be a lake. That means that you should think on a lighthouse as soon as you can put some mines in the hills.

BTW....

(or force the issue--as another longtime CFC member once said to me, there's no map problem that enough Axemen can't solve).

Like I said a long time ago as well, I don't see how can you solve isolation with a a axe stack

[PaulusIII]

Worker first and head for BW. You want that six-food corn up ASAP.