News: GOTM 56 - Starts July 1

GOTM 56: Professor Beffudlov’s Excellent Adventure

[img=right]http://gotm.civfanatics.net/civ4games/images/gotm56civ.jpg[/img]

Genius is never appreciated in its own time. In the year 2080 AD, Professor Isaac Beffudlov definitively straddled the infamously fine line between genius and insanity. Accused of having a god complex by the press and ridiculed by his scientific peers, Prof. Beffudlov was denied funding and was forced to cut costs and corners in completing Project Chronos . . . but complete it he did. Disgusted at a global society that failed to recognize and pander to his profound brilliance, Prof. Beffudlov resolved to take matters into his own hands.

For a theoretical physicist, Prof. Beffudlov’s plan was surprisingly simple. Having purchased outdated Russian artillery cheaply on the black market, the renegade mastermind intended to travel back in time to the dawn of civilization, pit ballistics and gunpowder against sticks and stones, establish an unchallengeable global empire, and remake all of history in his own image.

Alas, for all his intellect, Prof. Beffudlov failed to input a minor historical variation in the earth’s rotation into his temporal flight plan. Instead of arriving smack in the middle of the Fertile Crescent, Prof. Beffudlov and his artillery found themselves marooned on a small island. Fresh out of reactor-grade plutonium, but now self-appointed leader of a tribe of island natives, Prof. Beffudlov’s aspirations may be forever lost in time, or does the mad scientist’s scheme still have a chance?

Game settings:

Civilization: Russia (Leader: Professor Beffudlov; Traits: Philosophical, Expansive)
Rivals: 6 AIs
Difficulty: Immortal
Map: Fractal
Mapsize: Standard
Climate: Temperate
Sea Level: Medium
Starting Era: Ancient
Speed: Normal
Options: None
Victory Conditions: all enabled

Professor Beffudlov:

Professor Beffudlov is Philosophical and Expansive ; starting with Hunting and Mining. As you are Philosophical, you get +100% Great Person birth rate and you also get double speed of University. Being Expansive you get +3 health per city and you also get double speed of Granary and Harbor.

Your starting units include a Settler, an Artillery and the Great Scientist, Prof. Beffudlov.

Unique unit: Cossack (replaces Cavalry)

The Cossack does not receive defensive bonuses, has a 30% chance to withdraw from combat, has +50% attack versus Cannon and +50% versus mounted units. The Cossack requires Military Tradition, Gunpowder, Horseback Riding and, of course, Horses.

Starting screenshot

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




Adventurer Class bonuses:

Emperor: You play the game at Emperor difficulty, AI will receive Emperor starting units.


Challenger Class Equalisers:

Deity: You play the game at Deity difficulty, AI will receive Deity starting units and you will score as if playing on Immortal.



To Enter the Competition:

This competition will open on 1 July 2010. From that date, you'll be able to get your chosen starting save >>>here<<<.
Submit the save after your victory (or defeat) here, by 1 August 2010.


Software Versions

Windows: This game MUST be played in Civilization 4 (NOT Warlords or BTS), patched to version 1.74, and with the HOF mod version 1.74.004 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 the game outside those threads while it is in progress.

Please write here or send me a Private Message for any technical queries, eg. if you have trouble opening the game. Do NOT post in this thread once you have successfully opened the starting save.

Wow. Very interesting setup. What to do with the early Great Scientist?

This is Vanilla, so Artillery can capture cities. How quickly can we get off our island and start mowing down the other civs?

This looks like a fun variant scenario.

Given that all your research will come from the capital for some time, an immediate academy seems like a strong use for the GS. Moving the capital later seems likely, depending on the available land, but the boost during the first 3000 years or so should be well worth it.

Given the lack of hammers available, mining both hills seems likely to be best. This is going to be a pretty poor capital, unless we happen to have a hidden resource or two. Conquering more land quickly is going to be crucial.

Settle in place. Research fishing then sailing then bronze working. Build warrior, fishing boat, worker, galley, settler. Or something similar. I'd need to test things to determine the best order. But, I'd like to get the artillery and settler to shore quickly after the galley does some scouting. The warrior will act as an MP. The good professor will hunker down in the capital. It will be interesting to find out when he sacrifices himself for the good of his civilization.

Very interesting game. I'll probably take the adventurer save.

Never having had a scientist on turn 1 before, can you make an academy before writing?

Also just where to settle? If you want to max the hammers, the plains is the spot, two mines, waste no forests, and cottage the grass and the spice to start.

But if you think maxing commerce is better, then settle on a hill? One less mine, but an extra flatland to cottage. With an academy that early, that extra commerce may be the way to go (of course, what is the happy cap, will it matter early?).

Also, worker first to chop workboat, or get started on WB as soon as possible (BW first or fishing first)?

We really need a test game for this one!

edit: crosspost with Markus5 ... I think you also need something to be a medic for that art ...

Need to test BW > fishing > sailing ... worker first, prechop forest while researching fishing, chop WB, chop galley ... is settling in place or settling on plains hill better for the speed of this?

Test ...test ...test ...

The desert heat and dehydration have obviously warped Catus Pete's mind ... in a GOOD way!

dV

Someone is bound to lose the artillery at 99%+ odds while fighting archers!

I cannot imagine anything but settling the scientist is a good idea.

Fun setup! That artillery's gonna need drill for sure. Too bad there aren't GG's in vanilla.

Tech-wise, I'm thinking fishing--BW--sailing then seeing what's around us.

Interesting setup!

Fluroscent said:

Someone is bound to lose the artillery at 99%+ odds while fighting archers!

I cannot imagine anything but settling the scientist is a good idea.

Click to expand...

I imagine a more likely risk is having the galley that's carrying the artillery sunk by a barbarian galley...

Agree with settling the scientist. The extra hammer you get from doing that IMO is well worth not having the academy.

How early to use the artillery? Clearly, if going for conquest, as soon as possible. For domination, as soon as possible consistent with not bankrupting yourself. For other victory conditions, I'm not so sure. With a unit that strong, we can probably afford to wait a little while for AIs to develop their cities and still win a war easily. Would waiting before conquering neighbours lead to faster scientific progress? (OTOH if anyone nearby builds the pyramids...)

Intriguing

Yeah, we could wait for some wonders to be built, GL, Mids and then go help ourselves.

I think I might settle on the plains, and settle the scientist.

BW->Fishing->Sailing. The settled GS should allow this
Worker->WB (chop)->Galley (chop)->Settler (chop)->Warrior

CP, I've always known you were a little twisted but this conclusively proves it. I like the idea though. Does that mean I'm twisted too?

If I can get BOTM31 done without major dramas and still have time to get this played in the second half of July I'll do it. Maybe I think the early artillery and scientist just might give me the edge that will stop me from being eaten by the Immortal AI's....

Mad Professor said:

CP, I've always known you were a little twisted but this conclusively proves it. I like the idea though. Does that mean I'm twisted too?
MP, I was thinking of you as I wrote the game up.

If I can get BOTM31 done without major dramas and still have time to get this played in the second half of July I'll do it. Maybe I think the early artillery and scientist just might give me the edge that will stop me from being eaten by the Immortal AI's....

Click to expand...

Hope you get a chance to play it.

Cactus Pete said:

MP, I was thinking of you as I wrote the game up.

Click to expand...

I asked for that...

I'm going to bulb Fishing

Surely you're not going to waste such good barbarian-bait like that?!?!? Think how useful that scientist is going to be for luring any troublesome barbarian warriors to the artillery! The barb warrior can kill the scientist, be feeling all proud of himself, and then your artillery pounces and totally annihilates the warrior. If you waste the scientist bulbing fishing, you'll regret it the moment you need a sacrifice to help entrap of a barb warrior.

^ settlers work well as barbarian lures.

I might RP this one. Hmmmm... what would Professor Beffudlov do?

Clearly he did not travel back in time to wait 5000+ years to build a spaceship.

I doubt he would be too interested in shepherding a handful of cities into cultural utopianism.

Diplomacy... that's a laugh. I doubt he wants to be elected Pope of the World.

That just leaves conquest and domination, both of which ought to be right up his alley. Actually, though, there's no way he could tolerate the thought of anyone, anywhere, not being in his megalomaniacal cult, ergo... conquest.

Now how to go about conquering the world with one brigade of outdated Russian artillery...

Settle Beffudlov, research fishing, build worker... research BW, build work boat... research sailing and then get down to business. The most scientifically efficient thing to do is eliminate the competition before they can become a threat.

JacktheBodiless said:

That just leaves conquest and domination, both of which ought to be right up his alley.

Click to expand...

Cactus Pete would approve.

The most scientifically efficient thing to do is eliminate the competition before they can become a threat.

Click to expand...

My first thought was the danger of other AIs filling the vacuum of eliminated AIs and having to deal with a super big immortal AI. But with fractal world, hopefully other continent will be crowded and we will manage to get a whole continent to ourselves.

What direction to start exploring?

DynamicSpirit said:

Surely you're not going to waste such good barbarian-bait like that?!?!? Think how useful that scientist is going to be for luring any troublesome barbarian warriors to the artillery! The barb warrior can kill the scientist, be feeling all proud of himself, and then your artillery pounces and totally annihilates the warrior. If you waste the scientist bulbing fishing, you'll regret it the moment you need a sacrifice to help entrap of a barb warrior.

Click to expand...

See...this is why I play GOTMs. You can beat the learning experience.

lymond said:

I'm going to bulb Fishing

Click to expand...

Oh, I see what you are planning!

First you will manually research The Wheel, Agriculture, Masonry, and Bronze Working.

Then you'll throw in Iron Working. And Voila! You can Lightbulb Fishing!

Such brilliance is unbecoming of a mad scientist!


Far better would be to manually research The Wheel and Fishing, although perhaps not in that order.

Then you could Lightbulb Sailing for a truly scientific pursuit!

Deckhand said:

manage to get a whole continent to ourselves.

What direction to start exploring?

Click to expand...

The obvious choice is to settle on the Spices. Clearly, once our borders expand, you can then send your Galley NE to the uncontested Gold- and Silver-filled continent.

Or you can wait several hundred years until your borders expand to there and finally allow you to explore to the north east. It's your choice. Don't say that I didn't tell you about the secret Shangra-La!

Dhoomstriker said:

Oh, I see what you are planning!
The obvious choice is to settle on the Spices. Clearly, once our borders expand, you can then send your Galley NE to the uncontested Gold- and Silver-filled continent.

Or you can wait several hundred years until your borders expand to there and finally allow you to explore to the north east. It's your choice. Don't say that I didn't tell you about the secret Shangra-La!

Click to expand...

A comment you can only write without fear of being misunderstood before the game file is released!