TSG 221 Opening Actions Thread

[vadalaz]

This thread is used to discuss the game's opening decisions and strategies through the first 100 or so turns. Here you can post questions related to the game and share your achievements/anger/frustration/victories while you play.

- What did you think about before starting the game, what was your approach to this game?
- Where did you settle and what did you build first?
- How did the terrain and map settings affect your early decisions?
- What were your initial priorities?
- What tech path did you follow and why?
- What Social Policies did you choose?
- What Wonders did you try to get and did you get them?
- Did you get a religion? What religious beliefs did you pick?

 

[Tiberiu]

Hi, I decided to try out this challange to see how I fare.

these are my answers to the questions above.

Spoiler :

What did you think about before starting the game, what was your approach to this game?

My approach is to go for Great Library, < if not on Prince, when? > and then go for Oracle and maybe get out 1 Scientist quickly. Not many expensive techs will be stolen from the AI so a lot of Science is needed. The Great Library helps with that. (got it on turn 50, did not focus production).

- Where did you settle and what did you build first?

I settled on hill near mountain because I like the option of having an observatory in the capital.

- How did the terrain and map settings affect your early decisions?

If It was Deity I would move on the hill near 3 food tile instead. A good start is more important than the option to have an observatory.

- What were your initial priorities?

Just to build Scouts and explore the map quickly, and to build Great Library. The rest depends on what happens.

- What Social Policies did you choose?

Tradition opener and Liberty Collective rule for the start. I should then probably finish one of the trees, or alternatively go into Patronage for CS Science.

- Did you get a religion? What religious beliefs did you pick?

Tough decision but I didn't want to spend 250 to buy a shrine and get a fast pantheon even if I had 8 free faith. I decided to wait it out until I get a more "free" pantheon/ religion somehow. It happened by a late ruin, my scout finding 30 faith.There are many good pantheons here but I took the one with Science, which gives nothing initially but should be great later. I do not know if the science will be calculated for the Scientist value but I hope and assume that it does, so there is potentially a lot of value in this pantheon for Science, later.

 

[luvencedus]

I've settled settled east to reach gold, cocoa and marble with my capitol.
Found 3 ruins, 2 of them showed some barbarian camp and only one was useful with culture boost.
I focused on having masonry, to gain WW bonus from marble. That helped me with having Pyramids, Great Library, Mausoleum and Oracle by the turn 80.
Went with liberty, by run 100 I had 4 cities - one north to get salt+horses, one east for silver+citrus and one north from Quebec to get copper and Kilimanjaro.
Shaka is very aggressive, have also 4 cities and he is probably planning to attack me.
Victory is very probable, the question is how to optimize the game and get it as fast as possible.

 

[billybgame]

My update from 1 AD....a bit more than 100 turns.

I settled in place. Seemed to be wisest decision.

I managed to get 5 or 6 ruins I guess. Worked out quite well for me. None of the stupid barb camp locations.

Found some good city site locations in our perimeter. Settled 2nd city to N past mountain range on edge of lake. Tons of bonus tiles. Then 3rd city NW of capital, and SW of 2nd city....both of these on mountains. I had found Shaka so close by so knew he would be troublesome. My 4th city went SW of captial and pretty much due S of 3rd city. Another great city site. 4th we went to the coast, N of the city state. So had 5 cities at 1 AD.

Shake had already declared on me with just his archers and spearmen. My cities on hills scared him and he just tried for my capital. He is definitely going to have to go, and that should add 4 or 5 more cities to my science empire. Either way, he is going to have to go.

I did want to put another city SW of capital down towards Polynesia, but they planted a city North of their capital, that, combined with C/S location, will not allow anymore cities there. A lot of wasted tiles

Started with Liberty, and had the Jungle tiles for culture for my religion. Was first to found religion too.

Also found island to W that will allow more city sites. And figure three more sites to E and NE. I can foresee maybe 10-15 cities.

I did manage to get Great Library, but oddly someone else built Pyramids, which I almost always do. I am trying on Petra in northern city with some desert tiles.

 

[raider980]

T105 and things are going well. I had to hamstring the two biggest pains in the neck AI in this game, Shaka and Hiawatha. Had to get Shaka before he started spamming Impi and had to get Hiawatha before he started spamming cities lol. I went with an early attack with archers and stealing a strategy from multiplayer games, chariot archers. I easily took out two Zulu cities including their capital. Then when Hiawatha settled a city near Mt. Kili and another near me and in the spot I was looking at, I knew it was time to go for him also.

• - What did you think about before starting the game, what was your approach to this game?
  • Getting revenge on some AI for the last GotM.
• - Where did you settle and what did you build first?
  • Settled on the hill to the west next to the Cocoa for a 3f first tile. Went Scout, Scout, Monument.
• - How did the terrain and map settings affect your early decisions?
  • Terrain was good and I saw lots of good city locations so went Liberty after opening Tradition.
• - What were your initial priorities?
  • Getting cities in locations to block expansion toward me. And getting a city near Shaka to attack from.
• - What tech path did you follow and why?
  • Went for science path. Didn't go CB like normal because I was using ChArchers for the conquest.
• - What Social Policies did you choose?
  • Opened Tradition, then full Liberty and one in Patronage so far.
• - What Wonders did you try to get and did you get them?
  • Ignored early wonders to focus on expansion. Should have gone for GL because it lasted a lot longer than I would have thought. Got MoH, Pyramids, Oracle so far.
• - Did you get a religion? What religious beliefs did you pick?
  • Got first religion. Pantheon: Stone Circles. Religion: Tithe, Pagodas, Iterant Preachers, Happiness from Gardens becasue most of my cities are on rivers and I will need the happiness for the wide play I am planning.