WildPony
Warlord
https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/gotm-177.565328/
Game of the Month 177: April 2016
Civilization: 2 Mongol settlers
Starting tech: Horseback riding, Bronze Working, and Wheel
Difficulty: Deity
Total players: 7
Restarts: off
Barbarians: Raging Hordes (+25)
75x120 game generated map
Special rules:
1. You may not own more than 20 cities at any point in the game. (Once you have 20 cities, you must save before popping a hut. If you get an advanced tribe, you reload till you get a different outcome.)
2. You get to choose the best of 2 outcomes for your first hut. Save before and after you tip the hut. Then choose the best of the 2 saves and move on.
Also: "One tile SW is 2 specials and OK (but not great) for OCC".
Thoughts on forthcoming Game as inspired by the 20 city limit:
1. Planning to space cities more than usual as well as the possible disbanding of one or more early cities later in the game as superior locations avail themselves.
2. With 3 off-path techs towards either Republic or Monarchy, i still favor Republic and will within reason seek this as my initial government unless the path forces me against my will. (Edit: Met the Celts one turn after already choosing to research Writing instead of Ceremonial Burial, but had i met them before choosing Writing, would have traded for Ceremonial and chosen the Monarchy path).
3. With unlimited cities, normally would build Pyramids as my first wonder, but given the city limit will forego this classic and likely build HG as my first wonder.
4. Will likely build more early temples than usual, followed by additional buildings.
5: With 3 off-path techs towards hopefully Republic (or possibly Monarchy if enticed or pressured in that direction) will likely open the first hut since there are two chances at it and then not open further huts until research on the government tech is underway.
4000: 1st Settler steps to 1st hut: Archer or Horse and given the speed advantage, the Horse is chosen. Horse steps West and West to open up the 2 special site as mentioned by @Ali Ardavan.in the game detail thread,, but 2nd special will need to be mined on one of 3 grasslands which at this stage is considered to be cost prohibitive. Hut site is looking like a fairly good candidate to build the capitol next turn. 2nd settler is not seeing an obviously advantageous city site and opts to store a turn of work towards a road, allowing the Horse a chance to open up more of the map. Since the settler is already standing there, roading an immediately usable grass/shield square will provide significant benefit in this situation.
3950: Horse opts to head south then sw and encounters nothing promising. Settler on the hut site @ 49/55 coastal grassland with fish opts to build capitol and the other settler completes the road on the adjacent grass/shield square which provides the city with an extra gold coin per turn. With no plan to open huts until the government tech is underway, city is set to build a warrior first in anticipation of the forthcoming martial law requirement.
3900: > Alphabet. As Horse continues to seek a suitable location for city 02, the remaining none settler steps into capitol and stores a turn of work.
3850: Horse opens up a Wheat which will likely be incorporated one way or another into city 02 and remaining settler steps towards this newly discovered special.
3800: Horse explores further east uncovering nothing promising. Settler with a turn of stored work opts to keep moving, stepping to a grass/shield square towards the wheat.
3750: Horse heads back towards the Wheat to open up more of the area where city 02 is likely to be built. With 02 at this moment looking most likely to be built upon the Wheat itself to immediately capitalize (in despotism) on the extra food it will yield, 2nd road is built on the grass/shield square adjacent the Wheat.
3700: Completion of 1st Warrior. New unit will be able to explore ever so slightly very locally heading west before he will need to return in 5 turns to enforce martial law.
3650: Horse steps twice and opens up additional land surrounding the Wheat which reveals nothing exciting. Warrior steps north only to encounter disappointment. Remaining Settler builds 02 @ 50/60 atop the Wheat and each of the two cities is working a roaded grass/shield.
3500: Alphabet > Code of Laws (1 / 26).
3500 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 1 Horse (none), 1 Warrior. Techs: 4. Income: 4 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 32,000. Treasury: 8.
3400: 2nd Warrior. East exploring horse locates 2nd hut in a forest, the indulgence of which will be delayed.
3300: Completion of 2nd horse which heads west.
3050: East horse reaches Eastern tip.
3000 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 2 Horse (1 of which is none), 2 Warriors. Techs: 4 (and next turn is 5) Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 2 roads. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 61,000. Treasury: 4.
2950: Code of Laws > Writing (0 / 39).
2850: 1st (current) settler. Steps along road and stores a turn of work.
2750: Completion of 3rd road which connects the 2 cities. Discovery of 3rd hut, the opening of which will be postponed.
2700: Without obvious place to head and with 2 horses continuing to explore, settler steps along road and stores a turn of work towards another grass/shield road which will immediately add trade to the size 2 cap.
2650: 2nd (current) settler which steps along road and stores a turn of work.
2600: Completion of 4th road.
2550: 5th road.
2500 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse (1 of which is none), 2 Warriors. Techs: 5. Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 5 roads. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 81,000. Treasury: 4.
2450: 6th road.
2400: 7th road:
2300: 3rd (current) settler. 8th road. North exploring horse discovers the first excellent potential city site which features at least a Whale and a Silk on a coastal grassland.
2200: 9th road.
2150: Writing > Ceremonial Burial. Sadly but not too shockingly Literacy was not offered. But once my units began to move, the great news is that a settler in the West met a Celtic Archer this turn and we were able to trade for Ceremonial. The Celts also have Map Making which i held back on for the time being. Since i was forced to choose Ceremonial and now have it, if am able to choose between Monarchy and Literacy next turn, i will likely choose Monarchy, most especially since i am concerned that i might complete Literacy and then not be offered Republic. On the other hand, and thinking this through more deeply, since i have Map Making as a buffer to trade for, i will choose Literacy afterall if it is offered. 10th road.
2100: > Literacy (2 / 75). Decided upon this tech afterall and Map Making from the Celts will be my backup/buffer in case Republic is not offered next. 11th road.
2000: Built 03, coastal grassland with Fish. In desperate need of Science, choosing Science over shields at this point (for example a fish over a roaded grass/shield).
2000 bc Summary: Despotism, 3 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse, 2 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 6/75.. Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 11 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have Map Making. Land Area: 115,000. Treasury: 4..
For fun, i will rank what i consider to be the standings in 2000 bc for all who provided a summary in this year. (Not a perfect science, but as one aspect early Monarchy is valued heavily. As well, my data is not complete, city locations are not known, etc)..
1 or 2: @Autumn Leaf is off to a significantly stronger start than me and he has the following 2000 bc summary: Monarchy (from a highly impressive 2650 oedo vs my despotism and many centuries away from my government upgrade. 4 cities (vs 3 for me), 10 techs vs my 7, Units: 8 (vs my 6). No contact vs my contact with the Celts.
1 or 2: Jokemaster with 7 cities is looking strong: Cities: 7, Governmt: Despotism, Total advances: 7 (researching CoL). Gold: 19. Foreign relations: Nobody has been met.
3: @grigor with his 2250 Monarchy: 3C, gov: Monarchy.
Units: 1 Settler, 3 warrior, 1 Archer
7 techs, res Curr.
4: with 3 cities, 3 settlers and 7 additional units, Haleewood's:
cities: 3; techs: 7, gov: Despotism, gold: 165;
units: 3 Settlers, 5 Warriors, 1 Archer, 1 Horse.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @Ali Ardavan: Cities: 3; Techs: 7; Government: Despotism
Gold: 72; Units: 2 Settlers (1 None), 1 warriors, 1 horseman. No contact.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @Major Advantage Cities: 3; techs: 6; gold: 49; Gov.: Desp; wonders:
units: 2 settler, 3 warrior, 1 Archer, 1 chariot.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @ Charlie Chuck: 4 cities, 7 techs, researching currency, 2 settlers & 2 warriors
5, 6 , 7 or 8: Me. re-copied here: Despotism, 3 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse, 2 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 6/75.. Income: 6 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 3 Coin. Land improvements: 11 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have Map Making. Land Area: 115,000. Treasury: 4..
With all of the good competition, it will be interesting to see how this shapes up : ).
1950: Built 04: Grassland with Ore, Gem and 4 grass/shield squares. 12th road.
1850: 2nd (current) Settler.
1800: 13th road.
1750: 14th road.
1650: 15th road.
1500: 16th, 17th and 18th roads. 4th Warrior.
1500 bc Summary: Despotism, 4 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 2 Horse, 4 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 71/75.. Income: 9 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 4 Coin. Land improvements: 18 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Map Making. Land Area: 155,000. Treasury: 3..
For fun, i will rank what i consider to be the standings in 1500 bc for all who provided a summary in this year. (Not a perfect science, but as one aspect early Monarchy is valued heavily. As well, my data is not complete, city locations are not known, etc)..
1. @Autumn Leaf : 6 cities, Monarchy (2650), 12 or 13 techs, 15 units, 40 gold.
With the remaining 5 players (including myself) it seems like a fairly close race all nearly tied for 2nd place, but without enough details to gauge this more accurately.
Jokemaster (extrapolated) 8 or 9 cities, 9 techs, 52 gold. Despotism (will have Monarchy in 825).
@grigor : 5C, gov: Monarchy (2250)., Units: 1 Settler, 4 Warriors, 1 archer, 1 chariot
8 Techs, res Wri (in 2 turns).
Haleewood: No 1500 save, but extrapolated between 2000 and 1000 i@ 4 cities. Monarchy next turn (1450). 8 techs, 250 gold, 4 or 5 Settlers.
@Ali Ardavan : no 1500 save, but extrrapolated between 2000 and 1000 @: 5 cities, 7 techs, Monarchy will be in 1250.
No 1500 saves and i didn't attempt to extrapolate: Major Advantage, Charlie Chuck.
Me. re-copied: Despotism, 4 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 2 Horse, 4 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 71/75.. Likely to have Republic in approximately 925, barring picking up tech(s) from huts once research on Republic is underway. Income: 9 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 4 Coin. Land improvements: 18 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Map Making. Land Area: 155,000. Treasury: 3..
1450: Literacy > Republic ( 2 / 90). With Republic now in progress, will resume the opening of (unterrained) huts. 2nd Hut: Supported Horse. 3rd Hut: Tribe for city 05. Horse avoids terrained 4th hut for the moment to prioritize safety and added exploration.
1350: 19th and 20th roads.
1250: Built 06, coastal grassland with Peat.
1200: 3rd (current) Settler. 4th hut (terrained but made safe by city 06): Supported Legion (which will soon be disbanded).
1150: 1st irrigation. Disbanded Legion within city for a Horse which will emerge next turn.
1100: 5th horse. Built 07, coastal grassland with Whale and Silk.
1050: 21st road. 5th Hut: Map Making. Cost of Republic increases by 15 beakers, but given the buffer that was in place (which allowed me to risk opening the hut), we are still able to reach it in the 925 Oedo year. Without a large enough buffer to sustain another off-path tech, will await 925 before opening the next hut. Was going to await Republic and to then trade the Celts for Map Making which they have, but this development was only mildly detrimental. Now with Map Making, an emissary was sent to the Celts, gifted them 2 techs to enthusiastic and was able to trade Maps. Learned that they have at least Masonry. Also, the Celtic map exposes an American City known as Philadelphia on the same continent to their West.
1000: 22nd and 23rd roads. Disbanded a warrior within a city that was costing a shield per turn to support and that won't be needed between now and the forthcoming 925 Republic at which point it definitely won't be needed.
1000 bc Summary: Despotism, 7 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 5 Horse, 3 Warriors. Techs: 9 and Republic is in progress @ 78 / 105.to be completed in 925. Income: 15 Megatons, 10 Beakers, 5 Coin. Land improvements: 23 roads, 1 irrigation. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Masonry which i do not want or need any time soon. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 210,000. Treasury: 9.
All others for comparison, i will not attempt to rank them, but it seems there is a lot of honest competion at this point. Seems nobody including myself has any wonders as yet and speaking for myself i am pretty far from it and have none in progress.
@Autumn Leaf : Monarchy (2650), 8 cities, 310k population, 15 techs, 77 gold. Units: 15. Peace with Celts.
With the remaining players it seems like a fairly close race all nearly tied for 2nd place, but without enough details to gauge this more accurately.
The Jokemaster STATUS AT 975 BC:, Cities: 10 Governmt: Despotism (will have Monarchy in 825), Total advances: 11 (researching Monarchy), Gold: 87 Income/Cost per turn: 4 income, 0 cost. Production: 24MT
Wonders: None. Building Colossus and HG*2. Celts building Colossus., Foreign relations: Peace w/Celts
@grigor : 6C, gov: Monarchy (2250), 2 Settlers, 9 warr, 2 archer, 1 chariot, 1 ellie, 1 dip
11 tech res Lit.
Haleewood: cities: 5; techs: 9, gov: Monarchy, gold: 386; trade routes: 0D0F
units: 6 Settlers, 6 Warriors, 1 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse
wonders: None
@Ali Ardavan : Cities: 6; Techs: 8; Government: Monarchy, Gold: 47; Cost: 0; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: 2 being built, Units: 3 Settlers (1 None), 3 warriors, 2 Chariots, Celt: no embassy; war with me
@Major Advantage : Cities: 4; techs: 8; gold: 81; Gov.: Mon; wonders: -;
units: 4 settler, 4 warrior, 3 Archer, 1 chariot
Charlie Chuck: 7 cities, 1o techs, researching Writing
Govt Monarchy, 6 warriors 1 trireme.
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975: 6th Horse.
950: 24th road.
925: Republic > Currency. L 30 satisfied every size two except one which is remote and which requires an elvis. S 70 to work swiftly towards Trade. Two of three remaining warriors are disbanded within cities. Third one heads to a nearby forest hut before it will be disbanded. A total of 8 huts are visible at this point and it is anticipated that they will all be popped within a few short turns.
900: Built 08, coastal grassland with Spice.
875: 1st Diplomat. 5th Hut: 50 gold.
850: 3rd Settler. 6th Hut: Supported Horse. City becomes unhappy with this new horse as the 2nd unit away and the warrior that opened the hut is disbanded to make it right. 25th and 26th roads.
825: Approached the Celts to explore the techs they have and they offered Pottery. Decided to go for it and it turned out as i had ultimately hoped that they had Currency which i chose. I do not have any remaining techs they need, so i am not able as yet to trade for Pottery. Hoping Trade is offered as my next research project and once completed i will be able to trade the Celts for Pottery. They also have Masonry and no others. Updated maps. Wonder goals: Will be wanting Hanging Gardens soon as my 1st wonder, especially with Pottery available to receive in trade from the Celts once i complete research on Trade and thus will have a tech for them. Then likely Marco's 2nd. 7th Hut: Masonry which i did not want as yet. This is the 2nd hut tech which i could have at some point and in better timing received in trade from the Celts. 8th Hut: None Nomad. (becomes 4th current Settler).
800: > Trade (77 / 200). Sci is expected to remain @ 70 until Trade is completed which will require about 4 or 5 turns. 9th Hut: Monarchy (didn't want this and cost of trade increases 20 beakers). 10th Hut: 50 gold. 11th Hut: Barb horse which my horse was able to eliminate.
775: 12th Hut (on swamp): Barb horse which will likely eliminate my horse. 27th road.
750: 5th Settler. 28th road.
750 bc Summary: Republic, 8 cities. Units: 5 Settlers, 1 Diplomat, 7 Horse. Techs: 13 and Trade is in progress @ 132 / 187 to be completed in 3 turns. Income: 23 (gross) Megatons, 26 Beakers, 1 Coin. Land improvements: 28 roads, 1 irrigation. Huts: 12. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Pottery for which i plan to exchange upon completion of Trade. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 329,000. Treasury: 158..
Other players @ 750: Only Grigor posted a 750 bc save that i was able to notice.
@grigor 's: 9C, gov: Monarchy, Units: 4 settlers, 9 warriors, 2 archers. 1 chariot, 1 elephant, 1 dip
working on 4 vans but none ready yet., 12 techs, res Pottery (almost done).
700: 1st Trireme. 13th hut: None Nomad. 2nd irrigation.
675: Trade > Pottery. Traded the Celts for Pottery which is all they had (and as an added bonus was able to keep Trade out of their hands by offering them Monarchy instead). With all of the currently required urgent techs now in my hands, S > 0, T 70. 4 neighboring cities are designated to be builders of Wonder Caravans. 29th road. Built 09: Grass/river with Pheasant and Silk. Built 10, coastal grass/river.
Likely sequence of first 5 desired Wonders in this 20 city game: 1) Hanging Gardens, 2) Marco's, 3) Possibly Lighthouse, partly dependent upon what is revealed by the Marco's map trades, 4) Mike's, 5) Bach's. Not eager for Pyramids, or Colossus or for other SSC wonders, but might go for an SSC if the door opens nicely since i do not deny that it is useful as a supplement to prolific Super Trade. As to Colossus, would most prefer seeing it built by a nearby foreign off-shore city that demands Hides.
650: 1st Wonder Caravan. Built 11, coastal plain with Whale and Bison. 13th Hut: Tribe for city 12. Not a terrible spot, but it also has zero specials is too far from the capitol what makes it far too corruptable and is far from ideal in other ways, so i will likely build a size 1 Settler to relocate to someplace better.. or at least will plan to disband this city eventually.
575: 14th hut: 50 gold. 3rd irrigation.
550: 2nd and 3rd Wonder Caravans, 2nd Diplomat. 15th Hut: Supported Elephant.
525: 4th Wonder Caravan and the 4 fill 200 shields. 4th irrigation (deforestation of a future city site). Built 13, island grassland with Whale and Fish that demands Hides. 16th Hut: Mathematics.
500: HANGING GARDENS. Have 3 size 3 cities that are ready to celebrate with L 60, but since 2 additional size 2 cities will fill their food stores next turn, will wait one turn then celebrate the 5 cities together. In the meantime, T is 80 and L is 20. 17th Hut: 50 Gold. Built 14, deforested plain with Whale, Pheasant, Banana and a possible 4th special. Approached the Celts to see if they have any tech to trade and was able to receive Mysticism.
500 bc Summary: Wonders: HANGING GARDENS (500) (and will have Marco's in 7 turns which is 325bc). Republic (925), 14 cities. Units: 1 Settler, 1 Trireme, 1 Diplomat, 1 Elephant, 7 Horse. Techs: 17. Income: 39 (gross) Megatons, 47 Coin, 0 Beakers. Land improvements: 29 roads, 4 irrigation. Huts: 17. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and at present have all of their techs. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 456,000. Treasury: 36..
500 bc comparisons with other players in no particular order, Wonders are Bolded, Government is underlined.
@grigor 10C, MPE, gov: Monarchy.
3 Sett, 12 Warr, 2 archer, 1 chariot, 1 elephant, 1 dip, 4 vans.
19 techs, res Phil
@ali Cities: 10; Techs: 13; Government: Monarchy
Gold: 15; Cost: 0; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: Hanging Gardens
Units: 3 Settlers (1 None), 14 warriors, 2 Chariots, 2 Triremes
Goals: Exploration, Expansion (2 more cities planned right now), Marco (4 turns)
Celt: no embassy;
@Autumn Leaf: No 500 bc summary, will await 1ad. Monarchy 2650.
@ the Jokemaster: 475 BC: (Beginning of 82th turn)
Population: 200.000 Cities: 14/20 Government: Monarchy Total advances: 16 (researching Trade… still)
Gold: 77 T3L0S7 Income/Cost per turn: 6 income, 0 cost. Production: 49MT 0 polluted tiles
Wonders: None. Lost Colossus and LH already.
Foreign relations: Peace w/Celts, spotted Germans. Americans killed by Barbs
@ haleewood: cities: 7; techs: 13, gov: Monarchy, gold: 370; trade routes: 0D0F; cost/turn:0
units: 6 Settlers, 11 Warriors, 2 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse, 4 Elephants, 1 Caravan
wonders: None
@Major Advantage: Cities: 6; techs: 13; gold: 171; Gov.: Mon; wonders: -; TR: 0D/0F
units: 7 settler, 6 warrior, 2 Archer, 1 horse, 1 chariot, 1 dip, 1 boat
Goals: Expand, build some wonders
@Charlie Chuck @525 bc. Monarchy. Marco's.
8 cities, 18 techs, research astro
2 settlers, 7 warriors, 1 archer, 2 triremes
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475: L > 60 to stimulate celebrations.
450: Celebrations initiated in 4 of 5 size 3 cities (with a highly corrupted remote size 3 as the sole exception). 1st Wonder Caravan. 18th Hut: Horde of Barbarians.
425: 4 new citizens via celebration growth. L 60 > 70 to maintain the celebration. 2nd and 3rd Wonder Caravans. 41 gold bribe of a barb horse which requires support. 19th Hut: 25 Gold. 20th Hut: Horde of barbarians.
400: Washington builds Pyramids which i was not competing for in this 20 city game. 4 new citizens via celebration growth each reaching size 5. L > 80. 21st Hut: 100 gold.
375: 2 new citizens via celebration growth, each reaching size 6. Initiation as well of 2 new celebrations as food surplus spills them into size 3. 4th Wonder Caravan. Bribe of another barb horse which requires support and which met another barb horse in the black and was able to eliminate it.
350: 3 new citizens via celebration growth. End of current celebrations. L reduced from 80 > 50, T 50. 1st Trade Caravan (Hide). 4 Wonder Caravans fill 200 shields.
325: MARCO'S. 2nd Trade Caravan (Hide). Diplomatic Goals: 1) Get Map Making to whomever needs it and trade for all maps, 2) Receive every tech in trade, 3) Get Republic into all hands.
Initial summation of each civ :
Civ: Techs i don't have/ Tech in progress/ Have Map Making? / Have Republic? / Maps traded? Necessary actions underlined.
Celts: None / Philosophy / Yes / Yes / will seek updated map.
Zulu: Warrior Code / Iron Working / Yes / No / Need.
Germans: None / Construction / Yes / No / Need
Spanish: Iron, Poly, Warrior Code / Alphabet / No / No / Need
America: None, Republic, No / No / Need.
Greeks: Iron Working, Warrior Code / Map Making / No / No/ Need.
Initial attitudes range from Uncooperative to Enthusiastic and will be factored in to which civs are approached first. Plan is set in motion, civs approached in the numbered sequence.
3. Celts: Updated Map.
6: Zulu: Peace, Gifted Republic then about 7 techs before provided opportunity to gift Iron Working (tech in prog), Traded maps.
1. Germans: Peace, Gifted Republic and one other tech.. Traded Maps.
5: Spanish: Traded for Poly, Peace, Gifted Rep and about 4 other techs before gifting Alphabet (tech in progress), Traded Maps.
2. America: Gifted Republic, Peace, traded maps.
4. Greeks: Traded for Iron Working and Warrior Code, Peace, Gifted Rep and another, traded maps.
Summary: Picked up each of the 3 techs i didn't have, gifted every tech in progress where possible along with trading for or gifting Map Making and Republic to all, Traded for every map, peace with all. Now have 20 techs and a beaker cost of 378.
Map Assessment: Celts, Americans and Germans all are on my continent and i will preferentially land trades off shore. Zulu and Spain are moderately distant on separate land masses, but safely reachable without Lighthouse. Greece is quite distant, reachable and adjacent to the Zulu continent. Zulu is a bit more easily reachable than Spain, has decent Hide demanders and overall looks to be the best prospect for establishing shipping lanes and trade routes which given the logistics will take some time. A big part of what needs to be done is getting one or more cities on my Southern border which will be able to build and send triremes South to the Zulu. 2 fairly good prospects before i am set up to trade Southward is demanded Hides to my own island city 13 and also to same land size 6 coastal Cardiff, both of which are much easier to reach quickly until a more lucrative option becomes available.
Desired tech path: Philosophy, Monotheism. One scientist is assigned to choose next research project.
22nd Hut: None Legion.
300: > Astronomy (15 / 378). Philosophy was not offered and the only other choice was Feudalism. 3rd Trade Caravan, 3rd diplomat (which was needed most urgently to bribe a menacing barb horse immediately adjacent to this city). Bribed the horse and it requires support Also this becomes the city's 2nd military unit which means it can't leave, so i chose to disband it inside the city. Spanish Seville on a separate land mass builds Colossus. It demands Hides in 3rd position which means the demand is likely to soon disappear. Greece switches to Lighthouse which is a wonder i would like to have, but which i will sacrifice if necessary for the overall good, prioritizing trade caravans towards Monotheism and Mike's as well as added expansion towards 20 cities. I am especially willing to let Lighthouse go (if necessary) since i am able to reach every off shore civ without it. Also LH may become a desired conquest if i can capture it soon enough to justify the effort before it is cancelled. 30th road. 23rd Hut: Supported Elephant.
Assessment of all new techs in progress (listed to follow by color) so i can gift those which i can. Philosophy, Astronomy, Construction, Construction, Seafaring, Horseback Riding. Of these i have only Horseback and was able to gift it to the Greeks after meeting the prerequisite of first gifting 3 other techs. Updated maps.
275: 2nd Settler. Celts win the race to Philosophy and gain Banking as their bonus tech. Able to trade them for both and updated maps. Beaker cost increases to 640 which is great news for near future trades. 24th Hut: Horde of Barbs. My elephant which released the angry mob is able to escape back into a trireme.
225: 3rd and 4th Settlers, 3rd and 4th Triremes. 2 Hides set sail for nearby size 6 same land Cardiff where they are demanded. American's develop Seafaring. Even though i would like to be able to build Harbors and at some point they will become vitally important, will hold back on trading for this tech as a buffer against getting Navi in a hut (which would cut trade bonuses in half). Also holding back since beaker cost is already at 640 and Seafaring will almost certainly not increase this number significantly. 31st road.
200: 5th Trireme.
175: Greek Pharsalos builds Lighthouse. Would like to seize this at some point, but at this stage it would be far too costly a diversion from much more important priorities.
150: 4th and 5th Trade Caravans, 5th Settler. Greeks develop Astronomy and switch from building Great Library to Copernicus. As anticipated due to their construction of Copernies, the Greeks would not trade Astronomy to me. 32nd road, 5th irrigation.
125: 6th Settler, 4th Diplomat (which was urgently needed to bribe a barb horse which just stepped directly adjacent the city). Bribe of the horse which requires support and which steps into the city and disbands and disbanding of another supported horse within another city. Americans acquire Astronomy from the Greeks and i receive it in trade. As well gifted America their tech in progress (Banking). With this 23rd tech, our beaker cost increases from 640 > 672. Assigned one scientist to hopefully choose Monotheism as next research project. Gifted Zulu their tech in progress (Astronomy) and updated maps. Gifted the Greeks their tech in progress (Writing). Seafaring is still available to me, but i am holding back for now. 6th irrigation. 1st trade of game: Demanded Hide from size 7, 21 base trade city 03 to same land size 6 Cardiff: 152.
100: > Monotheism (170 > 672). 5th (current) Trade Caravan and 7th (current) Settler. Built 15, coastal grassland with Whale. Built 16: South coast grassland with one or two hopeful specials in the water, primarily positioned as a launching point for Trades headed towards the Zulu lands. 2nd trade of game: Demanded Hides from size 8, 26 base trade Capitol to same land size 7 Cardiff: 176. Hereforth additional Hides and other trades are all en route to the Zulu peoples since they are on a separate land mass.
75: 5th Trade Caravan, 6th Settler. Diplomacy: Gifted Zulu their tech in progress (Banking). Each of the other 5 civs are researching something i do not as yet have. 33rd road. Disbanded an island marooned supported horse that was needlessly draining the culture of one shield per turn. Had begun several turns back building 2 courthouses in remote cities, but with a better idea now of how the world looks, have decided to cancel these projects and to build setters instead, with the distinct possibility of eventually disbanding both cities along with a 3rd and 4th. One of the cities was an island domestic Hide demander to which i no longer plan to send Hides since i have since discovered multiple superior foreign alternatives. Another factor in this is that Democracy (and zero corruption) is a fairly long way off and i would prefer to have much more productive and practical cities in the meantime.
50: 6th Trade Caravan, 7th and 8th Settlers, 6th Trireme. Americans develop Navigation which i do not want at this time, but i do want to get Magellan's before anybody else, so i will keep a close eye on the situation. It's also very possible that i will allow Magellan's to be built and then capture it,. especially depending upon the location of the civ building it. 34th and 35th roads.
25: 9th thru 11th Settlers. Spanish develop Construction, traded them for it and updated maps. Then gifted Construction to the Germans who were researching it preceded by about a half dozen other techs before Constr was offered. Finally gifted Construction to the Americans who were researching it, preceded by another tech. Beaker cost increases from 672 > 704.
1ad: No new units. 36th road.
Wild Pony 1 ad Summary: Wonders: HANGING GARDENS (500), MARCO'S (325). Mike's is likely about 10-15 turns away. Republic (925), 16 cities. (but working towards the eventually disbandment of 4 of these). Units: 6 Trade Caravans, 0 Wonder Caravans (and 0 wonders in progress), 11 Settlers, 6 Triremes, 4 Diplomats, 2 Elephants, 5 Horse (have disbanded about 4 others), 1 Legion (none). Buildings: None. Trades landed: 2 (both are foreign but same land). Techs: 24 (plus Seafaring and Navi are available to me once i choose to accept them). Monotheism is in progress @ 346 / 704. Income: 91 (gross) Megatons, 36 Coin, 0 Beakers, Lux 80%. Land improvements: 36 roads, 6 irrigation. Huts: 24, Diplomacy: Marco's, peace with all, have all maps, have every available tech that i want. Land Area: 718,000. Treasury: 7.
1 ad comparisons with other players in no particular order, Wonders are Bolded, Government is underlined and if it's Republic it's also Bolded. As the comparisons will show, this is a highly competitive game at this point.
@grigor 12C, gov: Republic (325 bc), HG, Col, MPE. (and Mike's is very close with 4 of 8 caravans readied). 25 Tech, res Med
2 Settler, 5 Warr, 2 Arch, 2 Legion, 1 Chariot, 2 Ellie,
3 Trireme, 1 Dip, 4 vans
Trade routes: 3D, 0F
@ali Population: 1.0M; Cities: 13; Techs: 25; Government: Republic
Gold: 46; Cost: 6; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: Hanging Gardens, Marco, King Richard
Units: 7 Settlers (1 None), 7 warriors, 2 Legions (1 None), 2 Chariots, 2 Triremes, 1 Diplomat, 1 caravan
Goals: Exploration, Expansion, Michelangelo (41/400), Shakespeare
@ the Jokemaster: Population: 710.000 Cities: 17/20 Government: Monarchy Total advances: 26 (researching Theology)
Gold: 58 T3L0S7 Income/Cost per turn: 15 income, 1 cost. Production: 68MT 0 polluted tiles
Wonders: HG and MPE (2/5) Mikes in 2 turns.
Foreign relations: Peace+maps with everyone. Americans killed by Barbs
Losing Colossus is ARRRGH.. That Philo hut was super lucky in hindsight. Wow.
@Autumn Leaf: 1 AD: Monarchy (2650), 14 cities, 1.2m population, 21 techs, 480 gold. Units: 51, including 8 Settlers, 14 Horsemen, 5 Chariots and 3 Diplomats. 8 Elephants in production. At war with the Celts, who are down to 4 cities (was 3, so Cork is new and weak), Peace with everyone else.
@ haleewood: pop.: 1.07 cities: 11; techs: 22, gov: Monarchy, gold: 385; trade routes: 0D0F; cost/turn:8
units: 5 Settlers, 17 Warriors, 3 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse, 4 Elephants, 2 Trireme, 1 Diplomat, 9 Caravan
wonders: MPE + 6 Food Caravans. At this point 3 of my 9 vans are commodities, the other 6 are Food, 2 of the commodities are on their way to the Spanish, the third is waiting for a trireme. I have lost HG, Colossus and Pyramids. Zulus are building Copes, which I want more than LH, so I will save for that.
@Major Advantage: pop.: 530k; Cities: 9; techs: 22; gold: 61; Gov.: Monarchy; wonders: Col, MPE; TR: 0D/0F
units: 7 settler, 7 warrior, 2 Archer, 1 legion, 1 horse, 1 chariot, 1 dip, 2 boat, 4 van
Goals: Get trade going with Zulus; improve SSC; republic when the time is right
@Charlie Chuck Marco's (775), very close to Copernicus. Monarchy (seems this was reached some time before 2000 bc), 12 cities, 24 techs, researching philo
1 settler, 7 warriors, 1 archer, 2 triremes, 1 caravel, 6 vans
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Good breaking point to post this and will play on and follow up when i get a chance. In case anybody might be wondering, i do realize that this game was from almost 5 years ago : ). In my experience with various GOTM comparison games, this one seems to be the most closely contested at this stage.
Game of the Month 177: April 2016
Civilization: 2 Mongol settlers
Starting tech: Horseback riding, Bronze Working, and Wheel
Difficulty: Deity
Total players: 7
Restarts: off
Barbarians: Raging Hordes (+25)
75x120 game generated map
Special rules:
1. You may not own more than 20 cities at any point in the game. (Once you have 20 cities, you must save before popping a hut. If you get an advanced tribe, you reload till you get a different outcome.)
2. You get to choose the best of 2 outcomes for your first hut. Save before and after you tip the hut. Then choose the best of the 2 saves and move on.
Also: "One tile SW is 2 specials and OK (but not great) for OCC".
Thoughts on forthcoming Game as inspired by the 20 city limit:
1. Planning to space cities more than usual as well as the possible disbanding of one or more early cities later in the game as superior locations avail themselves.
2. With 3 off-path techs towards either Republic or Monarchy, i still favor Republic and will within reason seek this as my initial government unless the path forces me against my will. (Edit: Met the Celts one turn after already choosing to research Writing instead of Ceremonial Burial, but had i met them before choosing Writing, would have traded for Ceremonial and chosen the Monarchy path).
3. With unlimited cities, normally would build Pyramids as my first wonder, but given the city limit will forego this classic and likely build HG as my first wonder.
4. Will likely build more early temples than usual, followed by additional buildings.
5: With 3 off-path techs towards hopefully Republic (or possibly Monarchy if enticed or pressured in that direction) will likely open the first hut since there are two chances at it and then not open further huts until research on the government tech is underway.
4000: 1st Settler steps to 1st hut: Archer or Horse and given the speed advantage, the Horse is chosen. Horse steps West and West to open up the 2 special site as mentioned by @Ali Ardavan.in the game detail thread,, but 2nd special will need to be mined on one of 3 grasslands which at this stage is considered to be cost prohibitive. Hut site is looking like a fairly good candidate to build the capitol next turn. 2nd settler is not seeing an obviously advantageous city site and opts to store a turn of work towards a road, allowing the Horse a chance to open up more of the map. Since the settler is already standing there, roading an immediately usable grass/shield square will provide significant benefit in this situation.
3950: Horse opts to head south then sw and encounters nothing promising. Settler on the hut site @ 49/55 coastal grassland with fish opts to build capitol and the other settler completes the road on the adjacent grass/shield square which provides the city with an extra gold coin per turn. With no plan to open huts until the government tech is underway, city is set to build a warrior first in anticipation of the forthcoming martial law requirement.
3900: > Alphabet. As Horse continues to seek a suitable location for city 02, the remaining none settler steps into capitol and stores a turn of work.
3850: Horse opens up a Wheat which will likely be incorporated one way or another into city 02 and remaining settler steps towards this newly discovered special.
3800: Horse explores further east uncovering nothing promising. Settler with a turn of stored work opts to keep moving, stepping to a grass/shield square towards the wheat.
3750: Horse heads back towards the Wheat to open up more of the area where city 02 is likely to be built. With 02 at this moment looking most likely to be built upon the Wheat itself to immediately capitalize (in despotism) on the extra food it will yield, 2nd road is built on the grass/shield square adjacent the Wheat.
3700: Completion of 1st Warrior. New unit will be able to explore ever so slightly very locally heading west before he will need to return in 5 turns to enforce martial law.
3650: Horse steps twice and opens up additional land surrounding the Wheat which reveals nothing exciting. Warrior steps north only to encounter disappointment. Remaining Settler builds 02 @ 50/60 atop the Wheat and each of the two cities is working a roaded grass/shield.
3500: Alphabet > Code of Laws (1 / 26).
3500 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 1 Horse (none), 1 Warrior. Techs: 4. Income: 4 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 32,000. Treasury: 8.
3400: 2nd Warrior. East exploring horse locates 2nd hut in a forest, the indulgence of which will be delayed.
3300: Completion of 2nd horse which heads west.
3050: East horse reaches Eastern tip.
3000 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 2 Horse (1 of which is none), 2 Warriors. Techs: 4 (and next turn is 5) Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 2 roads. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 61,000. Treasury: 4.
2950: Code of Laws > Writing (0 / 39).
2850: 1st (current) settler. Steps along road and stores a turn of work.
2750: Completion of 3rd road which connects the 2 cities. Discovery of 3rd hut, the opening of which will be postponed.
2700: Without obvious place to head and with 2 horses continuing to explore, settler steps along road and stores a turn of work towards another grass/shield road which will immediately add trade to the size 2 cap.
2650: 2nd (current) settler which steps along road and stores a turn of work.
2600: Completion of 4th road.
2550: 5th road.
2500 bc Summary: Despotism, 2 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse (1 of which is none), 2 Warriors. Techs: 5. Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 5 roads. Diplomacy: No Contact. Land Area: 81,000. Treasury: 4.
2450: 6th road.
2400: 7th road:
2300: 3rd (current) settler. 8th road. North exploring horse discovers the first excellent potential city site which features at least a Whale and a Silk on a coastal grassland.
2200: 9th road.
2150: Writing > Ceremonial Burial. Sadly but not too shockingly Literacy was not offered. But once my units began to move, the great news is that a settler in the West met a Celtic Archer this turn and we were able to trade for Ceremonial. The Celts also have Map Making which i held back on for the time being. Since i was forced to choose Ceremonial and now have it, if am able to choose between Monarchy and Literacy next turn, i will likely choose Monarchy, most especially since i am concerned that i might complete Literacy and then not be offered Republic. On the other hand, and thinking this through more deeply, since i have Map Making as a buffer to trade for, i will choose Literacy afterall if it is offered. 10th road.
2100: > Literacy (2 / 75). Decided upon this tech afterall and Map Making from the Celts will be my backup/buffer in case Republic is not offered next. 11th road.
2000: Built 03, coastal grassland with Fish. In desperate need of Science, choosing Science over shields at this point (for example a fish over a roaded grass/shield).
2000 bc Summary: Despotism, 3 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse, 2 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 6/75.. Income: 6 Megatons, 2 Beakers, 2 Coin. Land improvements: 11 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have Map Making. Land Area: 115,000. Treasury: 4..
For fun, i will rank what i consider to be the standings in 2000 bc for all who provided a summary in this year. (Not a perfect science, but as one aspect early Monarchy is valued heavily. As well, my data is not complete, city locations are not known, etc)..
1 or 2: @Autumn Leaf is off to a significantly stronger start than me and he has the following 2000 bc summary: Monarchy (from a highly impressive 2650 oedo vs my despotism and many centuries away from my government upgrade. 4 cities (vs 3 for me), 10 techs vs my 7, Units: 8 (vs my 6). No contact vs my contact with the Celts.
1 or 2: Jokemaster with 7 cities is looking strong: Cities: 7, Governmt: Despotism, Total advances: 7 (researching CoL). Gold: 19. Foreign relations: Nobody has been met.
3: @grigor with his 2250 Monarchy: 3C, gov: Monarchy.
Units: 1 Settler, 3 warrior, 1 Archer
7 techs, res Curr.
4: with 3 cities, 3 settlers and 7 additional units, Haleewood's:
cities: 3; techs: 7, gov: Despotism, gold: 165;
units: 3 Settlers, 5 Warriors, 1 Archer, 1 Horse.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @Ali Ardavan: Cities: 3; Techs: 7; Government: Despotism
Gold: 72; Units: 2 Settlers (1 None), 1 warriors, 1 horseman. No contact.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @Major Advantage Cities: 3; techs: 6; gold: 49; Gov.: Desp; wonders:
units: 2 settler, 3 warrior, 1 Archer, 1 chariot.
5, 6 , 7 or 8: @ Charlie Chuck: 4 cities, 7 techs, researching currency, 2 settlers & 2 warriors
5, 6 , 7 or 8: Me. re-copied here: Despotism, 3 cities. Units: 2 Settlers, 2 Horse, 2 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 6/75.. Income: 6 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 3 Coin. Land improvements: 11 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have Map Making. Land Area: 115,000. Treasury: 4..
With all of the good competition, it will be interesting to see how this shapes up : ).
1950: Built 04: Grassland with Ore, Gem and 4 grass/shield squares. 12th road.
1850: 2nd (current) Settler.
1800: 13th road.
1750: 14th road.
1650: 15th road.
1500: 16th, 17th and 18th roads. 4th Warrior.
1500 bc Summary: Despotism, 4 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 2 Horse, 4 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 71/75.. Income: 9 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 4 Coin. Land improvements: 18 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Map Making. Land Area: 155,000. Treasury: 3..
For fun, i will rank what i consider to be the standings in 1500 bc for all who provided a summary in this year. (Not a perfect science, but as one aspect early Monarchy is valued heavily. As well, my data is not complete, city locations are not known, etc)..
1. @Autumn Leaf : 6 cities, Monarchy (2650), 12 or 13 techs, 15 units, 40 gold.
With the remaining 5 players (including myself) it seems like a fairly close race all nearly tied for 2nd place, but without enough details to gauge this more accurately.
Jokemaster (extrapolated) 8 or 9 cities, 9 techs, 52 gold. Despotism (will have Monarchy in 825).
@grigor : 5C, gov: Monarchy (2250)., Units: 1 Settler, 4 Warriors, 1 archer, 1 chariot
8 Techs, res Wri (in 2 turns).
Haleewood: No 1500 save, but extrapolated between 2000 and 1000 i@ 4 cities. Monarchy next turn (1450). 8 techs, 250 gold, 4 or 5 Settlers.
@Ali Ardavan : no 1500 save, but extrrapolated between 2000 and 1000 @: 5 cities, 7 techs, Monarchy will be in 1250.
No 1500 saves and i didn't attempt to extrapolate: Major Advantage, Charlie Chuck.
Me. re-copied: Despotism, 4 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 2 Horse, 4 Warriors. Techs: 7 and Lit is in progress @ 71/75.. Likely to have Republic in approximately 925, barring picking up tech(s) from huts once research on Republic is underway. Income: 9 Megatons, 6 Beakers, 4 Coin. Land improvements: 18 roads (0 irrigation). Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Map Making. Land Area: 155,000. Treasury: 3..
1450: Literacy > Republic ( 2 / 90). With Republic now in progress, will resume the opening of (unterrained) huts. 2nd Hut: Supported Horse. 3rd Hut: Tribe for city 05. Horse avoids terrained 4th hut for the moment to prioritize safety and added exploration.
1350: 19th and 20th roads.
1250: Built 06, coastal grassland with Peat.
1200: 3rd (current) Settler. 4th hut (terrained but made safe by city 06): Supported Legion (which will soon be disbanded).
1150: 1st irrigation. Disbanded Legion within city for a Horse which will emerge next turn.
1100: 5th horse. Built 07, coastal grassland with Whale and Silk.
1050: 21st road. 5th Hut: Map Making. Cost of Republic increases by 15 beakers, but given the buffer that was in place (which allowed me to risk opening the hut), we are still able to reach it in the 925 Oedo year. Without a large enough buffer to sustain another off-path tech, will await 925 before opening the next hut. Was going to await Republic and to then trade the Celts for Map Making which they have, but this development was only mildly detrimental. Now with Map Making, an emissary was sent to the Celts, gifted them 2 techs to enthusiastic and was able to trade Maps. Learned that they have at least Masonry. Also, the Celtic map exposes an American City known as Philadelphia on the same continent to their West.
1000: 22nd and 23rd roads. Disbanded a warrior within a city that was costing a shield per turn to support and that won't be needed between now and the forthcoming 925 Republic at which point it definitely won't be needed.
1000 bc Summary: Despotism, 7 cities. Units: 3 Settlers, 5 Horse, 3 Warriors. Techs: 9 and Republic is in progress @ 78 / 105.to be completed in 925. Income: 15 Megatons, 10 Beakers, 5 Coin. Land improvements: 23 roads, 1 irrigation. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Masonry which i do not want or need any time soon. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 210,000. Treasury: 9.
All others for comparison, i will not attempt to rank them, but it seems there is a lot of honest competion at this point. Seems nobody including myself has any wonders as yet and speaking for myself i am pretty far from it and have none in progress.
@Autumn Leaf : Monarchy (2650), 8 cities, 310k population, 15 techs, 77 gold. Units: 15. Peace with Celts.
With the remaining players it seems like a fairly close race all nearly tied for 2nd place, but without enough details to gauge this more accurately.
The Jokemaster STATUS AT 975 BC:, Cities: 10 Governmt: Despotism (will have Monarchy in 825), Total advances: 11 (researching Monarchy), Gold: 87 Income/Cost per turn: 4 income, 0 cost. Production: 24MT
Wonders: None. Building Colossus and HG*2. Celts building Colossus., Foreign relations: Peace w/Celts
@grigor : 6C, gov: Monarchy (2250), 2 Settlers, 9 warr, 2 archer, 1 chariot, 1 ellie, 1 dip
11 tech res Lit.
Haleewood: cities: 5; techs: 9, gov: Monarchy, gold: 386; trade routes: 0D0F
units: 6 Settlers, 6 Warriors, 1 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse
wonders: None
@Ali Ardavan : Cities: 6; Techs: 8; Government: Monarchy, Gold: 47; Cost: 0; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: 2 being built, Units: 3 Settlers (1 None), 3 warriors, 2 Chariots, Celt: no embassy; war with me
@Major Advantage : Cities: 4; techs: 8; gold: 81; Gov.: Mon; wonders: -;
units: 4 settler, 4 warrior, 3 Archer, 1 chariot
Charlie Chuck: 7 cities, 1o techs, researching Writing
Govt Monarchy, 6 warriors 1 trireme.
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975: 6th Horse.
950: 24th road.
925: Republic > Currency. L 30 satisfied every size two except one which is remote and which requires an elvis. S 70 to work swiftly towards Trade. Two of three remaining warriors are disbanded within cities. Third one heads to a nearby forest hut before it will be disbanded. A total of 8 huts are visible at this point and it is anticipated that they will all be popped within a few short turns.
900: Built 08, coastal grassland with Spice.
875: 1st Diplomat. 5th Hut: 50 gold.
850: 3rd Settler. 6th Hut: Supported Horse. City becomes unhappy with this new horse as the 2nd unit away and the warrior that opened the hut is disbanded to make it right. 25th and 26th roads.
825: Approached the Celts to explore the techs they have and they offered Pottery. Decided to go for it and it turned out as i had ultimately hoped that they had Currency which i chose. I do not have any remaining techs they need, so i am not able as yet to trade for Pottery. Hoping Trade is offered as my next research project and once completed i will be able to trade the Celts for Pottery. They also have Masonry and no others. Updated maps. Wonder goals: Will be wanting Hanging Gardens soon as my 1st wonder, especially with Pottery available to receive in trade from the Celts once i complete research on Trade and thus will have a tech for them. Then likely Marco's 2nd. 7th Hut: Masonry which i did not want as yet. This is the 2nd hut tech which i could have at some point and in better timing received in trade from the Celts. 8th Hut: None Nomad. (becomes 4th current Settler).
800: > Trade (77 / 200). Sci is expected to remain @ 70 until Trade is completed which will require about 4 or 5 turns. 9th Hut: Monarchy (didn't want this and cost of trade increases 20 beakers). 10th Hut: 50 gold. 11th Hut: Barb horse which my horse was able to eliminate.
775: 12th Hut (on swamp): Barb horse which will likely eliminate my horse. 27th road.
750: 5th Settler. 28th road.
750 bc Summary: Republic, 8 cities. Units: 5 Settlers, 1 Diplomat, 7 Horse. Techs: 13 and Trade is in progress @ 132 / 187 to be completed in 3 turns. Income: 23 (gross) Megatons, 26 Beakers, 1 Coin. Land improvements: 28 roads, 1 irrigation. Huts: 12. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and they have (at least) Pottery for which i plan to exchange upon completion of Trade. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 329,000. Treasury: 158..
Other players @ 750: Only Grigor posted a 750 bc save that i was able to notice.
@grigor 's: 9C, gov: Monarchy, Units: 4 settlers, 9 warriors, 2 archers. 1 chariot, 1 elephant, 1 dip
working on 4 vans but none ready yet., 12 techs, res Pottery (almost done).
700: 1st Trireme. 13th hut: None Nomad. 2nd irrigation.
675: Trade > Pottery. Traded the Celts for Pottery which is all they had (and as an added bonus was able to keep Trade out of their hands by offering them Monarchy instead). With all of the currently required urgent techs now in my hands, S > 0, T 70. 4 neighboring cities are designated to be builders of Wonder Caravans. 29th road. Built 09: Grass/river with Pheasant and Silk. Built 10, coastal grass/river.
Likely sequence of first 5 desired Wonders in this 20 city game: 1) Hanging Gardens, 2) Marco's, 3) Possibly Lighthouse, partly dependent upon what is revealed by the Marco's map trades, 4) Mike's, 5) Bach's. Not eager for Pyramids, or Colossus or for other SSC wonders, but might go for an SSC if the door opens nicely since i do not deny that it is useful as a supplement to prolific Super Trade. As to Colossus, would most prefer seeing it built by a nearby foreign off-shore city that demands Hides.
650: 1st Wonder Caravan. Built 11, coastal plain with Whale and Bison. 13th Hut: Tribe for city 12. Not a terrible spot, but it also has zero specials is too far from the capitol what makes it far too corruptable and is far from ideal in other ways, so i will likely build a size 1 Settler to relocate to someplace better.. or at least will plan to disband this city eventually.
575: 14th hut: 50 gold. 3rd irrigation.
550: 2nd and 3rd Wonder Caravans, 2nd Diplomat. 15th Hut: Supported Elephant.
525: 4th Wonder Caravan and the 4 fill 200 shields. 4th irrigation (deforestation of a future city site). Built 13, island grassland with Whale and Fish that demands Hides. 16th Hut: Mathematics.
500: HANGING GARDENS. Have 3 size 3 cities that are ready to celebrate with L 60, but since 2 additional size 2 cities will fill their food stores next turn, will wait one turn then celebrate the 5 cities together. In the meantime, T is 80 and L is 20. 17th Hut: 50 Gold. Built 14, deforested plain with Whale, Pheasant, Banana and a possible 4th special. Approached the Celts to see if they have any tech to trade and was able to receive Mysticism.
500 bc Summary: Wonders: HANGING GARDENS (500) (and will have Marco's in 7 turns which is 325bc). Republic (925), 14 cities. Units: 1 Settler, 1 Trireme, 1 Diplomat, 1 Elephant, 7 Horse. Techs: 17. Income: 39 (gross) Megatons, 47 Coin, 0 Beakers. Land improvements: 29 roads, 4 irrigation. Huts: 17. Diplomacy: Have peace with the Celts and at present have all of their techs. Have located the Americans, but have not as yet met them. Land Area: 456,000. Treasury: 36..
500 bc comparisons with other players in no particular order, Wonders are Bolded, Government is underlined.
@grigor 10C, MPE, gov: Monarchy.
3 Sett, 12 Warr, 2 archer, 1 chariot, 1 elephant, 1 dip, 4 vans.
19 techs, res Phil
@ali Cities: 10; Techs: 13; Government: Monarchy
Gold: 15; Cost: 0; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: Hanging Gardens
Units: 3 Settlers (1 None), 14 warriors, 2 Chariots, 2 Triremes
Goals: Exploration, Expansion (2 more cities planned right now), Marco (4 turns)
Celt: no embassy;
@Autumn Leaf: No 500 bc summary, will await 1ad. Monarchy 2650.
@ the Jokemaster: 475 BC: (Beginning of 82th turn)
Population: 200.000 Cities: 14/20 Government: Monarchy Total advances: 16 (researching Trade… still)
Gold: 77 T3L0S7 Income/Cost per turn: 6 income, 0 cost. Production: 49MT 0 polluted tiles
Wonders: None. Lost Colossus and LH already.
Foreign relations: Peace w/Celts, spotted Germans. Americans killed by Barbs
@ haleewood: cities: 7; techs: 13, gov: Monarchy, gold: 370; trade routes: 0D0F; cost/turn:0
units: 6 Settlers, 11 Warriors, 2 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse, 4 Elephants, 1 Caravan
wonders: None
@Major Advantage: Cities: 6; techs: 13; gold: 171; Gov.: Mon; wonders: -; TR: 0D/0F
units: 7 settler, 6 warrior, 2 Archer, 1 horse, 1 chariot, 1 dip, 1 boat
Goals: Expand, build some wonders
@Charlie Chuck @525 bc. Monarchy. Marco's.
8 cities, 18 techs, research astro
2 settlers, 7 warriors, 1 archer, 2 triremes
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475: L > 60 to stimulate celebrations.
450: Celebrations initiated in 4 of 5 size 3 cities (with a highly corrupted remote size 3 as the sole exception). 1st Wonder Caravan. 18th Hut: Horde of Barbarians.
425: 4 new citizens via celebration growth. L 60 > 70 to maintain the celebration. 2nd and 3rd Wonder Caravans. 41 gold bribe of a barb horse which requires support. 19th Hut: 25 Gold. 20th Hut: Horde of barbarians.
400: Washington builds Pyramids which i was not competing for in this 20 city game. 4 new citizens via celebration growth each reaching size 5. L > 80. 21st Hut: 100 gold.
375: 2 new citizens via celebration growth, each reaching size 6. Initiation as well of 2 new celebrations as food surplus spills them into size 3. 4th Wonder Caravan. Bribe of another barb horse which requires support and which met another barb horse in the black and was able to eliminate it.
350: 3 new citizens via celebration growth. End of current celebrations. L reduced from 80 > 50, T 50. 1st Trade Caravan (Hide). 4 Wonder Caravans fill 200 shields.
325: MARCO'S. 2nd Trade Caravan (Hide). Diplomatic Goals: 1) Get Map Making to whomever needs it and trade for all maps, 2) Receive every tech in trade, 3) Get Republic into all hands.
Initial summation of each civ :
Civ: Techs i don't have/ Tech in progress/ Have Map Making? / Have Republic? / Maps traded? Necessary actions underlined.
Celts: None / Philosophy / Yes / Yes / will seek updated map.
Zulu: Warrior Code / Iron Working / Yes / No / Need.
Germans: None / Construction / Yes / No / Need
Spanish: Iron, Poly, Warrior Code / Alphabet / No / No / Need
America: None, Republic, No / No / Need.
Greeks: Iron Working, Warrior Code / Map Making / No / No/ Need.
Initial attitudes range from Uncooperative to Enthusiastic and will be factored in to which civs are approached first. Plan is set in motion, civs approached in the numbered sequence.
3. Celts: Updated Map.
6: Zulu: Peace, Gifted Republic then about 7 techs before provided opportunity to gift Iron Working (tech in prog), Traded maps.
1. Germans: Peace, Gifted Republic and one other tech.. Traded Maps.
5: Spanish: Traded for Poly, Peace, Gifted Rep and about 4 other techs before gifting Alphabet (tech in progress), Traded Maps.
2. America: Gifted Republic, Peace, traded maps.
4. Greeks: Traded for Iron Working and Warrior Code, Peace, Gifted Rep and another, traded maps.
Summary: Picked up each of the 3 techs i didn't have, gifted every tech in progress where possible along with trading for or gifting Map Making and Republic to all, Traded for every map, peace with all. Now have 20 techs and a beaker cost of 378.
Map Assessment: Celts, Americans and Germans all are on my continent and i will preferentially land trades off shore. Zulu and Spain are moderately distant on separate land masses, but safely reachable without Lighthouse. Greece is quite distant, reachable and adjacent to the Zulu continent. Zulu is a bit more easily reachable than Spain, has decent Hide demanders and overall looks to be the best prospect for establishing shipping lanes and trade routes which given the logistics will take some time. A big part of what needs to be done is getting one or more cities on my Southern border which will be able to build and send triremes South to the Zulu. 2 fairly good prospects before i am set up to trade Southward is demanded Hides to my own island city 13 and also to same land size 6 coastal Cardiff, both of which are much easier to reach quickly until a more lucrative option becomes available.
Desired tech path: Philosophy, Monotheism. One scientist is assigned to choose next research project.
22nd Hut: None Legion.
300: > Astronomy (15 / 378). Philosophy was not offered and the only other choice was Feudalism. 3rd Trade Caravan, 3rd diplomat (which was needed most urgently to bribe a menacing barb horse immediately adjacent to this city). Bribed the horse and it requires support Also this becomes the city's 2nd military unit which means it can't leave, so i chose to disband it inside the city. Spanish Seville on a separate land mass builds Colossus. It demands Hides in 3rd position which means the demand is likely to soon disappear. Greece switches to Lighthouse which is a wonder i would like to have, but which i will sacrifice if necessary for the overall good, prioritizing trade caravans towards Monotheism and Mike's as well as added expansion towards 20 cities. I am especially willing to let Lighthouse go (if necessary) since i am able to reach every off shore civ without it. Also LH may become a desired conquest if i can capture it soon enough to justify the effort before it is cancelled. 30th road. 23rd Hut: Supported Elephant.
Assessment of all new techs in progress (listed to follow by color) so i can gift those which i can. Philosophy, Astronomy, Construction, Construction, Seafaring, Horseback Riding. Of these i have only Horseback and was able to gift it to the Greeks after meeting the prerequisite of first gifting 3 other techs. Updated maps.
275: 2nd Settler. Celts win the race to Philosophy and gain Banking as their bonus tech. Able to trade them for both and updated maps. Beaker cost increases to 640 which is great news for near future trades. 24th Hut: Horde of Barbs. My elephant which released the angry mob is able to escape back into a trireme.
225: 3rd and 4th Settlers, 3rd and 4th Triremes. 2 Hides set sail for nearby size 6 same land Cardiff where they are demanded. American's develop Seafaring. Even though i would like to be able to build Harbors and at some point they will become vitally important, will hold back on trading for this tech as a buffer against getting Navi in a hut (which would cut trade bonuses in half). Also holding back since beaker cost is already at 640 and Seafaring will almost certainly not increase this number significantly. 31st road.
200: 5th Trireme.
175: Greek Pharsalos builds Lighthouse. Would like to seize this at some point, but at this stage it would be far too costly a diversion from much more important priorities.
150: 4th and 5th Trade Caravans, 5th Settler. Greeks develop Astronomy and switch from building Great Library to Copernicus. As anticipated due to their construction of Copernies, the Greeks would not trade Astronomy to me. 32nd road, 5th irrigation.
125: 6th Settler, 4th Diplomat (which was urgently needed to bribe a barb horse which just stepped directly adjacent the city). Bribe of the horse which requires support and which steps into the city and disbands and disbanding of another supported horse within another city. Americans acquire Astronomy from the Greeks and i receive it in trade. As well gifted America their tech in progress (Banking). With this 23rd tech, our beaker cost increases from 640 > 672. Assigned one scientist to hopefully choose Monotheism as next research project. Gifted Zulu their tech in progress (Astronomy) and updated maps. Gifted the Greeks their tech in progress (Writing). Seafaring is still available to me, but i am holding back for now. 6th irrigation. 1st trade of game: Demanded Hide from size 7, 21 base trade city 03 to same land size 6 Cardiff: 152.
100: > Monotheism (170 > 672). 5th (current) Trade Caravan and 7th (current) Settler. Built 15, coastal grassland with Whale. Built 16: South coast grassland with one or two hopeful specials in the water, primarily positioned as a launching point for Trades headed towards the Zulu lands. 2nd trade of game: Demanded Hides from size 8, 26 base trade Capitol to same land size 7 Cardiff: 176. Hereforth additional Hides and other trades are all en route to the Zulu peoples since they are on a separate land mass.
75: 5th Trade Caravan, 6th Settler. Diplomacy: Gifted Zulu their tech in progress (Banking). Each of the other 5 civs are researching something i do not as yet have. 33rd road. Disbanded an island marooned supported horse that was needlessly draining the culture of one shield per turn. Had begun several turns back building 2 courthouses in remote cities, but with a better idea now of how the world looks, have decided to cancel these projects and to build setters instead, with the distinct possibility of eventually disbanding both cities along with a 3rd and 4th. One of the cities was an island domestic Hide demander to which i no longer plan to send Hides since i have since discovered multiple superior foreign alternatives. Another factor in this is that Democracy (and zero corruption) is a fairly long way off and i would prefer to have much more productive and practical cities in the meantime.
50: 6th Trade Caravan, 7th and 8th Settlers, 6th Trireme. Americans develop Navigation which i do not want at this time, but i do want to get Magellan's before anybody else, so i will keep a close eye on the situation. It's also very possible that i will allow Magellan's to be built and then capture it,. especially depending upon the location of the civ building it. 34th and 35th roads.
25: 9th thru 11th Settlers. Spanish develop Construction, traded them for it and updated maps. Then gifted Construction to the Germans who were researching it preceded by about a half dozen other techs before Constr was offered. Finally gifted Construction to the Americans who were researching it, preceded by another tech. Beaker cost increases from 672 > 704.
1ad: No new units. 36th road.
Wild Pony 1 ad Summary: Wonders: HANGING GARDENS (500), MARCO'S (325). Mike's is likely about 10-15 turns away. Republic (925), 16 cities. (but working towards the eventually disbandment of 4 of these). Units: 6 Trade Caravans, 0 Wonder Caravans (and 0 wonders in progress), 11 Settlers, 6 Triremes, 4 Diplomats, 2 Elephants, 5 Horse (have disbanded about 4 others), 1 Legion (none). Buildings: None. Trades landed: 2 (both are foreign but same land). Techs: 24 (plus Seafaring and Navi are available to me once i choose to accept them). Monotheism is in progress @ 346 / 704. Income: 91 (gross) Megatons, 36 Coin, 0 Beakers, Lux 80%. Land improvements: 36 roads, 6 irrigation. Huts: 24, Diplomacy: Marco's, peace with all, have all maps, have every available tech that i want. Land Area: 718,000. Treasury: 7.
1 ad comparisons with other players in no particular order, Wonders are Bolded, Government is underlined and if it's Republic it's also Bolded. As the comparisons will show, this is a highly competitive game at this point.
@grigor 12C, gov: Republic (325 bc), HG, Col, MPE. (and Mike's is very close with 4 of 8 caravans readied). 25 Tech, res Med
2 Settler, 5 Warr, 2 Arch, 2 Legion, 1 Chariot, 2 Ellie,
3 Trireme, 1 Dip, 4 vans
Trade routes: 3D, 0F
@ali Population: 1.0M; Cities: 13; Techs: 25; Government: Republic
Gold: 46; Cost: 6; Trade routes: 0D0F;
Wonders: Hanging Gardens, Marco, King Richard
Units: 7 Settlers (1 None), 7 warriors, 2 Legions (1 None), 2 Chariots, 2 Triremes, 1 Diplomat, 1 caravan
Goals: Exploration, Expansion, Michelangelo (41/400), Shakespeare
@ the Jokemaster: Population: 710.000 Cities: 17/20 Government: Monarchy Total advances: 26 (researching Theology)
Gold: 58 T3L0S7 Income/Cost per turn: 15 income, 1 cost. Production: 68MT 0 polluted tiles
Wonders: HG and MPE (2/5) Mikes in 2 turns.
Foreign relations: Peace+maps with everyone. Americans killed by Barbs
Losing Colossus is ARRRGH.. That Philo hut was super lucky in hindsight. Wow.
@Autumn Leaf: 1 AD: Monarchy (2650), 14 cities, 1.2m population, 21 techs, 480 gold. Units: 51, including 8 Settlers, 14 Horsemen, 5 Chariots and 3 Diplomats. 8 Elephants in production. At war with the Celts, who are down to 4 cities (was 3, so Cork is new and weak), Peace with everyone else.
@ haleewood: pop.: 1.07 cities: 11; techs: 22, gov: Monarchy, gold: 385; trade routes: 0D0F; cost/turn:8
units: 5 Settlers, 17 Warriors, 3 Phalanx, 1 Archer, 1 Horse, 4 Elephants, 2 Trireme, 1 Diplomat, 9 Caravan
wonders: MPE + 6 Food Caravans. At this point 3 of my 9 vans are commodities, the other 6 are Food, 2 of the commodities are on their way to the Spanish, the third is waiting for a trireme. I have lost HG, Colossus and Pyramids. Zulus are building Copes, which I want more than LH, so I will save for that.
@Major Advantage: pop.: 530k; Cities: 9; techs: 22; gold: 61; Gov.: Monarchy; wonders: Col, MPE; TR: 0D/0F
units: 7 settler, 7 warrior, 2 Archer, 1 legion, 1 horse, 1 chariot, 1 dip, 2 boat, 4 van
Goals: Get trade going with Zulus; improve SSC; republic when the time is right
@Charlie Chuck Marco's (775), very close to Copernicus. Monarchy (seems this was reached some time before 2000 bc), 12 cities, 24 techs, researching philo
1 settler, 7 warriors, 1 archer, 2 triremes, 1 caravel, 6 vans
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Good breaking point to post this and will play on and follow up when i get a chance. In case anybody might be wondering, i do realize that this game was from almost 5 years ago : ). In my experience with various GOTM comparison games, this one seems to be the most closely contested at this stage.
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