A new idea I had

[futurehermit]

I started a new game with Ethiopia. I was just messing around since I was frustrated with my poor play tonight.

So I did something kind of crazy.

I was annoyed that I got a coastal start and I decided to move inland.

Ok, that's not too crazy.

But then I didn't find a spot that I liked so I kept going and going until I spotted Saladin on the opposite coast.

I decided I would settle an ok coastal spot just North of him and then build my 2nd city to his W effectivly forcing him to settle to his S...very predictable expansion.

I got a little luck in that iron showed up for my 2nd city spot.

Here is the result:

I tried to circle where my capital originally was and drew an arrow to where I moved it to. The result is a nice-sized early empire nicely bunched together (as opposed to if I had marched across the map to attack him from my original capital position) = low maintenance.

I also have a bunch of land around my original capital that can now be settled peacefully.

With two financial civs on the continent and losing a bunch of early turns, I have naturally fallen a bit behind on techs. But with a couple lightbulbs I will be right in the thick of things. I'm also considering trying to generate a GSPy to steal a few techs to get back to parity.

What do you think?

EDIT: I am considering putting the palace in Saladin's capital to further balance maintenance costs and am currently teching to lit to put the GL in his capital. It is high-food so will be perfect to help me do some lightbulbing to get to astro and lib and tech parity with the two financial civs (hannibal and mayans)

 

[Ozbenno]

The move your settler next to an AI for easy conquest is a much used tactic in HoF games, especially at high (immortal and deity) levels. In BtS though with Aggressive AI turned on, the risk would be that Saladin would do unto you as you just did unto him.

 

[frob2900]

What date did you settle your capital? What was the year you conquered Mecca?

Pretty fun strategy when it works! (I've pulled one or two like that in Warlords, but also a few that fail)

 

[mice]

I guess if you factor in the march that your axes usually need to do, it could be that moving the capital very close could result in more overall hammers arriving at the enemy city than if they were generated earlier but needed to march further.

Second bonus could be that as Creative you might rob a good tile or resource from the other capital or secondary city.

 

[AlessioCerci]

Yeah i tried this once but iron turned up in my original capital spot, so i had to found a 3rd city there so it didnt really do much in the end.

 

[futurehermit]

What date did you settle your capital? What was the year you conquered Mecca?

Pretty fun strategy when it works! (I've pulled one or two like that in Warlords, but also a few that fail)

I can't remember exactly, but the screen is 150BC and Saladin is destroyed (Normal speed). And I attacked him with about a dozen swords. And I sacked Mecca first. So, 4000BC then march to the new spot, then settle, then get a settler out for 2nd city, then connect them, then crank out 12 swords, then attack. 150BC he is gone. Hopefully that gives some sense of the timing.

 

[Innawerkz]

What do you think?

I think you need to practice drawing circles and arrows!

Seriously, I 'accidentally' discovered this as effective in a multi-player game where I was in a heavy floodplain start. I value high-production & plains hill starts over high-food/unhealthy starts in MP. I started moving my Settler towards my warrior and kept moving (maybe 3-4 turns?) and discovered a nice riverside plains hill with a Grassland Cow & GL Elephant.

I settled there, fortified my Warrior and started building a 2nd Warrior. When my borders expanded they revealed that I had settled next to one of my opponents. A worker followed, I started with Agriculture, researched Hunting and AH. Pumped out 6 Warriors quite quickly and mosied on over to claim a 2nd Capital very quickly. His mild counter attack (2 Warriors) died running up the hill to my warrior.

Two Capitals that early in MP = Easy Win. Add that they were incredibly close together and his capital had Bronze (which I pillaged during my invasion). It is not my go-to maneuver, but I remember the gambit when I am stuck in a less than ideal start.