I moved my starting settler on the elephants to settle, to get the initial boost of 1 hammer. Settling on the marble, like some of you did might have been even better, but I didnt consider this (my bad). No archery this time, because bronze was in BFC. No luck with huts, only popped second scout, experience, map and about 30 gold. Lost both scouts and a warrior to babs not much later
. My first two blocking cities in 1640 AD:
View attachment 168384
The early and far expansion crippled my research a little, but heaps of cottages along the river brought me up again. Traded Aest around in 775 BC (just doing some turns into Alpha), and right now Im busy building up an army of Axes, to conquer the North (settled by barbs):
View attachment 168385
The north got conquered, but I made a stupid mistake:
View attachment 168386
I only razed and replaced one of the barb cities, the other I kept, only to realize next turn, that the barbs missed the ideal spot (grabbing the stones)
ARGHHH
(again).
The capital built the GL and NE, and right now is busy generating GS. The first I used to bulb Phil, because I was a little short on GS, but the second is scheduled to build the academy. I was first to Phil in 50 BC btw. I also researched drama right after CoL, because Persia was doing some severe culture pressure on my borderland cities. The plan now is to trade Phil + Drama for CivilS with Mansa and then use Phil to do some backfilling (still no Calendar and such). I initially planned to ally myself with Darius, because I will kill him first (and therefore the techtrades wont save him, around 1000 AD is simply to early for an AI to defend against rifles and I would have had a chance to vassalize the other two BEFORE reaching rifles), only to find out that I had to ally myself with Mansa, because the other two idiots had failed to spread their state religion to my capital (and I wanted to run Pacifism right away)
(again)
Got lib around 400 AD, then headed right for Rifling. Hannibal declared on Mansa, but they were both deadlocked in an eventless fight for centuries. Then Darius sided with Mansa, and Mansa managed to take a city from Hannibal shortly after. Hannibal made peace with Mansa, and took one of Darius cities not much later
stupid Darius, should have kept to himself
(again). To prevent my first target from getting vassalized by Hannibal, I bribed Mansa in the war again, finally loosing my techlead on him completely
, and not much later, a general peace treaty was signed.
Mansa built the AP and so I had to spam his religion to all my cities. Next election proved, that Hannibal and I had in fact enough votes for a blocking majority (hehehe)
Overview over our continent at 1000 AD, Mansa is my religious and trading buddy and we are the biggest and strongest factions now (Mansa 13 cities, me 9). Darius (5 cities) and Hannibal (8 cities):
View attachment 168387
My plans for the next turnsets:
1. Eliminate Darius (already done)
2. Take the 4 northern cities from Hannibal (soon to come)
3. Gathering experience for our army while going through 1 and 2, while teching to Steel, then chew a little on Mansa (his research is really massive right now, innitially fuelled from myself
(again))
And the tech situation:
View attachment 168388
Mansa and I are far, far, far away (Mansa mainly because I had to do lots of trades in his favour earlier...). From the other conti I only have met Ceasar (huge 20 city empire but backwards) and Ragnar (looser, but not vassalized so far)