Absolute balance

12 Bar Blues

Chieftain
Joined
Jan 14, 2008
Messages
63
Location
Here, There and Everywhere
I pretty much lost to Xerxes in my last game, so let's try something different.

Random standard map with random barbs, civ and opponents.
All victories open.
Level is monarch. (regent would be better for the concept, but I want more challenge)
The tricky thing is: my workers are going to be automated, the city governor will decide what I build (I can't influence him), the science advisor will decide what I research.

Can the human beat the machine with the same [bad] weapons?
 
In normally play at emperor. And yes, the governor will take care of citizen mood; yet, I still have control of the luxury rate, which should give me an edge.

Having started a game yesterday, but lost it with my game log, I change a little bit the rules:
- I can give different orders to the governor for settlers. If I don't, 2 size cities in the middle of a desert would start building them, and die in the process, which is really stupid...

As I said, I started a game, but lost it, so I can give you a preview of what it looks like:
- Expect a lot of defensive units attacking.
- Expect a very weird road system.
- Expect a VERY fast game. In one hour, maybe less, I was in the ADs. All this micromanagement I don't do fastens the pace.
 
So here is the start:

Start.jpg


I'm Greece, great. The worker moves on the wines, which is an intelligent move (let's hope it's a new trend for automated workers). I build Athens on the spot:

Athens.jpg


Scientific Advisor wants to research Warrior Code, which is a tech I didn't research since my warlord days.

Since I can't be a builder, my goals should be pretty much domination or conquest. The best case scenario would be finishing the game as early as possible, since accepting a space race would be a big gamble.

My expansion strategy will look like CxxxxxC, since I won't be building enough settlers to my liking. After gaining a vast territory, I'll settle the gaps. I will probably build tons of hoplites to give me those 3 defenders per city the AI always keeps, so I will be able to blockade the AI.

I finish my first warrior in 3750 BC and send it exploring. Athens then starts to build a settler, which is finished in 3000. At this point, here my surroundings:

territory.jpg


Decent.

But then, a few turns later, it looks like...

stuck.jpg


Looks like an island start! So I guess I'll settle for the good spots, not for C[lots of x]C; and where the settler is right now will be fine: I'll get the fresh water and sea access. But I see this:

blue.jpg


In vanilla, this means I'll meet (and probably attack) the Babs, most probably. I don't remember if anybody else is dark blue in C3C. Btw, the hut give me a map.

My plan will be to build coastal cities, for gold, but also for them building lots of galleys ASAP, which they do in a pangea map anyways.

SA is quite a funny guy: I forgot to write the years, but after WC, he researched Writing, a useless tech in itself at this point, but which leads to interesting techs (Like MM). So it's fine. But, then, it's The Wheel and Pottery... I avoided Pottery (THE AA tech in regular games, useless in this one) by getting it from the Babs with Cerem. burial. In 1200 BC, I get Masonry and Mysticism for Writing, as I'm 8 turns from Iron.

Gotta say one thing: I hate my island. It's a city placement mess. My good inland spots are on the moutains, and coastal cities overlap a lot.

In 1000 BC, I start researching... MAP MAKING!!! Here's the island right now:

island.jpg


Pharsalos is on a horse ressource.

In 850, Athens starts building the Pyramids. That is very powerful on a huge continent like mine, for sure. It's build by the Iros in 630. Athens switches to the Oracle.

I get MM in 550, and already start building a galley! Great!

Here's the situation in 330, when I found Herakleia and Ephesus, my two last cities on the island. I already have a settler waiting for my galley.

island_end.jpg


The galley is finished in 250. Same for the Oracle, in Berlin. In 170, I found Thessalonica on Babs continent. Forgot to take the screenie, but it's insulting for the Babs. It's on the irrigation just S of Babylon's culture.

My plan is to attack Babylon after getting into monarchy; as I can only win by beating the AI at war, I'll have to make war, right? But for now, I can trade with them; this way I get Math. I meet the Aztecs and trade Philo and gold for Literature.

In 70 BC, Hammurabi threatens me. I refuse, and he declares war. The worst thing I see about that is that I'll get a despotism GA... Which happens in 30 AD.

In 90, Babylon finishes GL. Great, no real need to research, since I'll take it; the funny thing is my cities are building culture or hoplites... Looks like a defensive units blitz...

In 230, Thessalonica starts building an ARCHER after building a settler. Yeah!

In 250, I get Pyrrhus! I rush the Great Lighthouse (being built in Pharsalos) with it (remember, it's vanilla).

In 300, I start FP in Mycenae............ Gotta love the governor...

In 370, with 17 hoplites and 1 archer, I take Babylon. At a costly price. I then make peace:

Peace_babs.jpg


Not seen is two more contacts and world map. Which looks like:

WM1.jpg


Between the turns, I learn a lot of techs and go into anarchy!

Time to go to bed, now.
 
In 370, with 17 hoplites and 1 archer, I take Babylon. At a costly price. I then make peace:

:lol: Nice defensive offense! I guess the AI considers the Hoplite to be a stronger overall unit, so you'll get lots of them. In terms of actual Greek armies hoplite charges aren't too unrealistic, but they sure aren't ideal in Civ.
 
Nice offense. How many hoplites did it take to take Babylon? Good luck with this game, knowing what the ai likes to build, you're gonna need it.
 
Forgot to say it, sorry. To kill 3 spears and 1 bowman, all regulars and fortified in city, which make them strength 3 defenders, it took me all but 3 hoplites, plus the 4 successful units.

I had (16 * 3 hp * 1 strength (reg hoplites)) + (1 * 5 * 1 (elite hoplite)) + (1 * 3 * 2 (reg archer)) = 48 + 5 + 6 = 59 hp*str against 4 * 5 (admitting that they'd become elites) * 3 = 60 hp*str. So it was pretty much 1 vs 1, and I got lucky.
 
Lol, bad luck with your last game. Let's hope this start won't be the kind of experience you have for the rest of the game. Greece huh? I bet Quint will enjoy this one :)
 
Haha, I haven't finished the other one! I'm multi-tasking, I have 3 ongoing games right now, + cegep.

Sorry every body, problems with my browser... I usally write game logs in MSWord, but not this time. Therefore, it broke. I took a few screenies and remember a few things, so...

Here's a map of Babylonian territory pretty much at the beginning, with Rhodes and an attack plan:

Babylonia.jpg


This was the plan, since Babylon is my most interesting target right now to expand. But events changed it. The Aztecs threatened me and declared war, so I tried, without success to land troops in their territory. Here's a map of their southern cities:

S-Aztecs.jpg


Eventually, they allied with Babylon. I stopped caring about the Aztecs. The Babs took Rhodes, but I took Nineveh:

Nineveh.jpg


I also pillaged around Ur, which was my next target. Here's the result:

Babs.jpg


The blue borders show the limits of the territory I saw. Ur will not recover until quite some time, I think...

I eventually made peace, because it was useless right now to fight with hoplites and muskets. Here's the deal:

peace_babs2.jpg


Fine.

Then, I saw I was late in techs. After astronomy, I stopped research and put myself at 0% research. I got banking from the Iros:

banking.jpg


So... That's it.
 
Regular Hoplites, too...forgot the AI doesn't build Barracks often enough. That's just a painful army to have to attack with. At least the AI will lose a lot of units when they try a counteroffensive.

I can already tell it's going to be a slow advance with all these defensive units - the AI really doesn't know when a longbow or five could help a ton.
 
^^
agreed. Without micro-managind everything by himself, it's pretty much impossible for him to win a war, at least atm.
 
I hope to attack with all those stupid 3+ defenders by city the AI keeps. If I can get at least a few artillery units to decrease population, it's playable, especially since the AI is always stupid, whatever level you play. Being intelligent is an edge.

I have a few ways to beat the AI:
- Governement type, and not switching every time possible.
- Attacking in big waves rather one unit at a time.
- My core is much more tile efficient than the AI's (but I'm pretty sure every city will build hospitals anyway...).
- I use the sliders better than they do.
- Since I'll be buying techs in the beginning of Ind. era, I'll have a better research path than them. 2 scientists in Athens (which hasn't any free tiles to work) will get me those useless techs I don't need every 40 turns, while I'll buy the useful ones.
- I listen to much better music than they do.
- If I ever build an army, I won't put a cavalry with 2 marines in it.
 
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