TSG41 After Action Report

Hi everyone and welcome to the TSG41 After Action Report thread. In this thread you can post the results of your game. Please state victory date and score (preferably in the post title), as recorded in the Hall of Fame, and the most important: your path to glory!

STOP - Please do not continue reading this thread until you have completed and submitted your game.

Please use the Civ5 game submission page to submit your final, first play through, .Civ5Save file, saved AFTER the victory ceremony if you were not conquered (using the "Lemme play one more turn" feature.).

With our second GOTM game in G&K;
How have the changes affected your strategy and game planning?
How did you use religion or spying to your advantage?

Players are encouraged to provide feedback on the game. Some players like to replay the game, and although we will not record the results from a replay, you can still post your new experiences (please state if the game is a replay).

Would be interested to hear any thoughts on game setup.

Rome too my capital on turn 107. I managed to hold off defeat until 205 when my 2nd city was taken.

Thanks for another wonderful game of getting crushed by one of the top warmongers. The only saving grace is he wasn't right on top of us.

Based on all the current reports of Rome's warmongering in the "In Progress" thread I'm betting the only folks that even manage to win are the same few that always win. Even with following the very detailed write-ups by Ribannah and watching the videos some of the top guys post, I can't even come close to what these guys do.

I'm done with the GoTM.

My 2nd settler was taken and deleted by a Roman Scout, as you can see in this posting in the Game in Progress thread.
I'm pretty sure in Vanilla Scouts never captured civilians. The fact the AI can delete units on the turn he captured them is just icing on the cake.

I played a few turns more, defeated Romes first attack. Then Dido declared on him. Made peace a turn after (she already denounced me before, so she'd turn on me soon too).
Another few turns later a huge army of Legions and Ballistae advanced towards Adrianople. Count me out on this one.

Made it, though I was very close to defeat twice with my capitol having no visible health bar anymore.

Augustus was a real pain.

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-01
Reference number: 26759
Your name: jeremybeier
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1969AD
Turns played: 389
Base score: 777
Final score: 1009
Time played: 3:20:00


Great game though, thanks for this one.

Welcome to CviFanatics and GOTM.

Sticking it out for a win, congrats.

Hello all! first time poster long time forum lurker.

After destroying Carthage and Rome i had a rather peaceful game while everyone on the other continent destroyed each other. I was able to keep a golden age going after from mid game (forgot the turn i started it ) until i completed the Utopia project on turn 322 in large part to Chitzen Itza and the freedom finisher. This game has re sparked my interest in culture games, and i look forward to future games of the month!


Your name: Azrell
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1902AD
Turns played: 322
Base score: 1586
Final score: 2478
Time played: 3:54:00

Azrell said:

Hello all! first time poster long time forum lurker.

Click to expand...

Welcome to CivFanatics and GOTM.

Glad you decided to join us. Congrats on your win.

Underestimated the level and had to replay due to a little dying incident I had on turn 90 Caesar got really lucky taking both my cities with just 10 hit points left on his last legion each time - I could have made it had I realized in time that the cataphracts are replacement for horsemen, not knights.

During my second playthrough I got the same scenario all over again, but this time I had +1 CB and 1 cataphract, which was all I needed to fend off the Roman tw*t. Still, I couldn't get a nice 280ish victory, although I did produce all the important wonders and several not so important ones - the only ones I missed were Alabhama and Chichen Itza. I built 3 cities, each one with at least one world wonder. I didn't take the Romans down, because I had converted them and I was counting on my World Church bonus to give me a massive culture boost, which it didn't. At the end game I was getting just 60 culture from about 30 cities I had converted. That was half of my excessive happines bonus.

I forgot to copy my submission report

Finished Turn 326
Time 3:20:00

My biggest problem was science. I didn't have enough of it. I only settled three cities which would have been fine but they grew veeeeeeeery sloooooooooowly. Im gonna give it a second go and see what I can pull together.

Rome gave me a scare early on but I manage to hold off 4 Legions, 2 Archers and a Warrior with only 2 Archers, a Spearman, a Scout and a Warrior. Once I got Composites it got easier. And once my cities started growing my Culture took off like a rocket. I very rarely had more than 8 turns between policies once I hit my stride... to bad it took so long to hit

Reference number: 26765
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1952AD
Turns played: 372
Base score: 1540
Final score: 2081

So the key to this game was surving Rome's early rush. I got lucky in that regard by having a significant military of my own, so he declared on Dido first, wiping her. I built 6 frigates and 2 privateers and swept the east side of the continent, taking 5 cities and leaving him with 2. They key to that victory was my Dromans upgrading to Frigates Probably shoulda wiped him all the way, but he never declared again.

Because of all the fighting (t100 until t200!), my policy selection got all messed up. I went Rationalism instead of Piety, and maybe I shouldn't have. In any event, I ended up filling out Tradition, Liberty, Patronage, Commerce and Rationalism. I NEVER even got an industrial era policy! I was way ahead in techs, though, and I got all the wonders I wanted except Petra and Stonehenge.

If I would have been smarter I would have beelined for medieval and renaissance earlier so I could have dropped liberty altogether and taken Freedom. I had to pick from it early, so I went ahead and filled it out. Oh well.

Patronage helped me ally ALL the city states. I used to do this in vanilla, but I have never been able to to do it with G&K. It helped that only China and India wanted the CS. I used coups and riggings to keep them in my hands.

India, Spain and France were allies. China, Aztec and Rome were enemies. China went on a late game conquering spree, wiping France and taking all of India's cities. I declared war 3 times. Once around t250 to liberate a cultural CS taken by Aztec. And 2 more times on t371 so I could nuke China and Rome right before Utopia finished. They were ticked.

Fun game!

Lost on the last turn!!! Easily my most disappointing finish ever. Monty finished his last rocket part in his capitol and launched as I finished the Utopia Project.

See below...


I still just can't believe it. I mean, I know I did some things wrong and could have optimized some things to speed it up, but I really thought I had it at the end even still. It's just hearbreaking to lose like that.

Anyway, this is the first completed submission for GOTM. I really thought I'd be top 3 this time, but it apparently wasn't meant to be... Still not bad for trying it as an OCC!

I've got the file if anyone wants me to post.

By the way, Monty was also 4 turns away from a diplo victory too.

Now accepting sympathy...

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-02
Reference number: 26767
Your name: numaru7
Your email: -
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1915AD
Turns played: 335
Base score: 1675
Final score: 2500
Time played: 2:55:00
Submitted save: TSG41_335_Cultwin.Civ5Save
Renamed file: numaru7_C504101.Civ5Save

Well, Rome kept me on the edge of my seat in the beginning. Now that i think about it maybe i shouldn't have build those 2 forward cities, 1 near Rome on the lake and the other east with only 1 spot between 2 mountains to advance. But at least the geography, Dido, and poor roman AI controlling the ballistas helped me in the end. Against a human player i would have been wiped out in 2-3 turns ).

By the end china, myself and rome were the only ones left, with china having ~50k gold and finished 3-4 spaceship parts. At peak cult prod, with golden age i had 1300cult/turn, and i managed to research atomics

Didn't like the map though.

sschmalz said:

Lost on the last turn!!!

Click to expand...

That stinks! Looks like it should have been a tie. Look at it this way, though: you finished the Utopia project faster than me, even though you lost. I guess I am lucky that Monte was not as technologically advanced in my game. That's something, right?

That stinks! Looks like it should have been a tie. Look at it this way, though: you finished the Utopia project faster than me, even though you lost. I guess I am lucky that Monte was not as technologically advanced in my game. That's something, right?

Click to expand...

Thanks man. Yeah, that screenshot is immediately after the "wait just one more turn" loser screen so Monty beat me fair and square.

I thought it was interesting too that my game ended so early. One fella won in 1969, 20 years after my game ended.

Interestingly enough, Wu Zetian started building engine parts in the early 1920s and I paid Monty to go to war with her as he had just completed Manhattan Project. Next thing I know, Monty has pretty much destroyed her and started building parts himself. So I actually stopped Wu Zetian from winning in what probably would have been the 1930s.

I'm not sure why my game was so different, but I thought it interesting that those two were apparently at peace for the better part of the game (until I showed up and enticed Monty to rain nuclear winter on her). They were probably at war with each other in other games where they were probably signing RAs together in mine.

Oh well, it was certainly exciting and I had fun despite the loss.

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-02
Reference number: 26768
Your name: Gamewizard
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1868AD
Turns played: 304
Base score: 1459
Final score: 2431
Time played: 7:26:00
Submitted save: GotM41 - TheodoraT304.Civ5Save
Renamed file: Gamewizard_C504101.Civ5Save

Like everyone else, the biggest challenge came from Rome's early rush, but my 4 or 5 archers held him off easily over by the lake north of the sugar. Carthage built 2 cities north of her capital to create a buffer between my land and Rome's. We teamed up on Rome for nearly the entire game (Carthage backstabbed me with about 3 policies to Utopia), but I never took any of Rome's cities, only choosing to pillage and unit kill.

I went 4 city Tradition, Piety, Freedom, Patronage, Commerce. For my religion I chose Goddess of Festivals, Tithe, World Church, Monasteries, Cathedrals, Messiah. I shouldn't have chosen Messiah and should have went with faster or longer spread. I had planned on spamming Great Prophets for their improvements, but only managed 2 before I could start to buy Great Artists via Freedom. World Church maxed out at +42 culture per turn as I didn't send too many missionaries overseas.

I built every wonder I desired except for Alhambra, which I finished half of before it was built somewhere else. I finished Sydney Opera House to shave 4 turns off the last policy. Policies were coming in at a steady 7-8 turns for the last 2 trees.

I know I could have finished sooner, but overall I am very pleased with my game. Thanks for a good one!

I literally stormed through the game, and it happened so quickly, that I didn't get a chance to post in the Game in Progress thread. Regardless, this was my first GOTM, and it was really challenging. Here are my results:

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-02
Reference number: 26770
Your name: Ozymandias9891
Game status: Conquest Loss
Game date: 1130AD
Turns played: 173
Base score: 187
Final score: 187
Time played: NA
Submitted save: Theodora_0173 AD-1130.Civ5Save
Renamed file: Ozymandias9891_C504101.Civ5Save

(If somebody can please explain to me why my "Time played" isn't showing up, and how I can make it show, for future reference, it would be greatly appreciated.)

After having founded Constantinople on the oasis tile just west of the starting point, I sent my warrior to explore the surrounding region, from west to north to east to south. He found four ancient ruins which gave me (which, at the time, I thought was) an advantage, but not so much. In the meantime, I tried to develop as many techs and buildings as I could that would boost my culture value, all the while not thinking of expansion. The first social policy tree I went for was Tradition, because of the +3 I get for my capital from the onset, and the faster border expansion. I eventually founded Adrianople and Nicaea and got rapid expansion for both of them, as well as quicker temple/shrine construction because I had finished Tradition and went for Piety as my next social policy.

After some verbal jabs between myself, Dido and Augustus Caesar, Caesar defeated the Carthaginians and declared war on me around turn 160. He first captured Nicaea, and after a long struggle, captured Adrianople and Constantinople to finish me off.

Overall, I found this GOTM to be a challenge, compared to the level I'm used to playing. But I did learn a lot about the importance of carefully planning out a strategy, and then working out my plan. There are many things I would have done differently, now that I look at them.

I look forward to playing the next GOTM and trying to improve my skills.

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-03
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1886AD
Turns played: 313
Base score: 839
Final score: 1353
Time played: 3:12:00

Founded two cities. Capital on the spot and 2. city on the desert hill next to river which was pretty perfect Petra location.

Policy wise went first for Liberty to get free settler. After that picked couple from Tradition, Liberty and Piety untill I got to industrial age and was able to pick freedom. After filling Freedom moved to those uncompleted and Patronage.

Beliefs were desert folklore, cathedrals, hermitage +8 culture, pasture +1 culture, strength bonus near city of same religion and one i cant remember. It worked out pretty good. Wonder whether I should have chosen the wine +culture instead of the Hermitage one? With desert folklore faith was piling up rapidly and popped up couple of extra prophets before reaching industrial age.

Tech was extremely slow and was struggling to open up freedom. Had to spend 2-3 policies on unuseful stuff before that. AI seemed to be slow in Wonders. Got everything I wanted and some of them pretty late (GL, SH and Oracle).

I was almost constantly at war with rome but he was unable to do anything. I got Great Wall and was able to defend with 3-4 ranged units and 1-2 melee easily. I was always one era befind him military wise.

Funny thing was that my second city ended up being far better than my capital and I build Utopia there

First time with Theodara, second GotM, second win on emperor out of 4 tries (have been a King-level player before). Had a fun game but made a lot of rookie mistakes.

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-03
Reference number: 26777
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1908AD
Turns played: 328
Base score: 1478
Final score: 2273
Time played: 6:44:00

Set up my capital one tile up to the hill, but didn't realize that I couldn't build Petra anymore after that. Went with tradition first and thought about going with 3-4 cities. I waited quite a while before I established my second town (Adrianople) on turn 66 and got greedy with it and put it right between Rome and Carthage: Even though I had DoF with Dido they both DoWed me pretty soon and since I didn't have enough troops to hold them both off, my second town was lost to Carthage on turn 85. (Then Rome captured it on turn 132.)

Got over it though and established three cities on turns 100-160. I thought I would get a free monument and aqueduct to that 4th city (because of tradition), but since it was actually my fifth one, that didn't of course happen.

Rome had a long war with me, but they sued for peace once I got the upper hand on units (it was cataphracts and catapults against legions and ballistas and I was closing in one of their cities): I took the money at that point. They conquered Carthage except for their capital, which I kept alive forming a barricade between their troops and later even paying for peace between them (it was better for me to keep the Roman forces occupied with Carthage). Had even DoF with Rome at one time, but later they denounced me (the same round the bought peace agreement ended) and soon after that (about 20 turns before I won) I DoWed them and captured Adrianople back on turn 316, which was again something I shouldn't have done because I didn't realize I couldn't puppet my former city.

Had good luck with wonders: I got everything I started to build and got almost all I wanted to get. I really liked the setup of this game and enjoyed playing it.

Game: Civ5 GOTM 41
Date submitted: 2012-08-03
Reference number: 26780
Game status: Culture Victory
Game date: 1904AD
Turns played: 324
Base score: 1090
Final score: 1703
Time played: 3:46:00

My first ever GOTM.

Was a good game. I don't think I've tried to win a cultural victory in Civ5 actually, so this was an interesting attempt, and I learned a couple of things. Did several stupid mistakes of course (Like using a great scientist on a 1 turn tech, when I really wanted Scientific Theory. Ouch!), and don't pay enough attention to min/maxing to do really well. I also signed some random DoF in the end so the whole world besides Spain DoWed me, but then I was just a few turns away from victory, so it didn't matter.

I went with three cities, wanted to have four, but by the time I felt I could settle somewhere near the incense, I kind of felt it was too late because of the war against Rome which was bound to come. I placed my archers around the mountain to the east because I was sure his attack would come there, but he actually went north of the city and approached the city I placed north on the river. He also allied himself with the CS Jakarta, which made me panic a bit, since their combined forces were way more powerful than mine. Very clever if that was intentional.

Unfortunately for Rome, I had enough gold to bribe Jakarta to ally with me instead, and DoW'ed him before he could DoW me, trapping his troops in the middle of Jakarta's troops. Needless to say, Rome didn't stand a chance against us both. After the battle I was in war with Rome for almost the rest of the game, but I never saw any of his troops again. Seems he focused on Dido instead.

I probably teched too slow in the game, since I was almost finished with patronage (Including completed tradition/piety trees) when I could go down the freedom policy tree. Probably should have signed more RAs, but I tried to ally city states instead, and had 14 with me in the end.

Got almost all the wonders I wanted, started with Hanging Gardens because of the lack of food. Completed the Oracle pretty late, and I also got Petra. Missed Chichen Itza though, so I probably had to burn too many great artists to stay in a constant golden age throughout the second half of the game.

Religion: Desert Folklore, Tithe, Monasteries, Religious Arts Cathedrals and Holy Order

Had more than 100 happiness by the end of the game, and my culture was 1000+. Probably should have reached that way earlier to get a better score.

Looking forward to the next GOTM. This was lots of fun.

Welcome to GOTM, for all of you.

Glad you enjoyed the game and congrats on your wins.