Not as good for 20k as the above.
Blackbetsy HOF Attempts
- Thread starter BlackBetsy
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BlackBetsy
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Settled a 4 river cow start and this is what I saw....holy cow. I'm sure I'll have a "neighbor" on the island.
BlackBetsy
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I was alone on that island, which meant I kept playing. I also had an extremely difficult time finding the other civs...many suicide curraghs failed to connect with other civs. Eventually I found the two tech leaders, the Mongols and the Egyptians.
I had a very productive city build the Great Library by hand, finishing it probably 5-6 turns before the AI got it, having held back Literature until the bitter end.
As is normal for Sid Archipelago, several of the civs are stuck in the ancient age having plowed all of their money into spearmen and swordsmen instead of research. My nearest neighbors are as such. But all I needed was for both the Mongols and Egyptians to hit Invention so I could flip my Archers to Bezerks, and I would be good. But they both hit Education before Invention! So I dusted off the Sir Pleb "gift the Great Library" strategy and gave city 003 to the Zulu. As soon as I saw the Egyptians start Leo's Workshop, I tried to retake 003....tried is the word. I only had 5 catapults and the originally designated 5 archer force wasn't good enough to kill 3 vet Impis. Yikes. I had to send my main archer body down and suffered 5-6 casualties but re took it.
The delay worked to my favor - I sped ahead through Astronomy and Gundpowder through the GL, and then was able to trade Banking for Navigation and the whole world lit up with trade possibilities.
We are now in 500 AD, the Archer army has been converted to Bezerks (at great cost), but we have all the gold in the world and research is now halted everywhere. Now I just need to get a big enough force of Bezerks to take Japanese cities defended by spears and swords. Unfortunately, they have 50+ of these in every city, so I need to have my Republic groan under unit support costs at 80% tax rates to make this happen. But we will have a massive Bezerk force, take the Japanese cities 1 by one, gift to the iron-poor Zulus, and pray for an MGL so that we can win Sid.
I'm going for Domination, so I don't need to conquer everyone. But the Mongols have 31% of the territory and 35% of the population and huge culture, so they are making me nervous on a 100k culture win.
I had a very productive city build the Great Library by hand, finishing it probably 5-6 turns before the AI got it, having held back Literature until the bitter end.
As is normal for Sid Archipelago, several of the civs are stuck in the ancient age having plowed all of their money into spearmen and swordsmen instead of research. My nearest neighbors are as such. But all I needed was for both the Mongols and Egyptians to hit Invention so I could flip my Archers to Bezerks, and I would be good. But they both hit Education before Invention! So I dusted off the Sir Pleb "gift the Great Library" strategy and gave city 003 to the Zulu. As soon as I saw the Egyptians start Leo's Workshop, I tried to retake 003....tried is the word. I only had 5 catapults and the originally designated 5 archer force wasn't good enough to kill 3 vet Impis. Yikes. I had to send my main archer body down and suffered 5-6 casualties but re took it.
The delay worked to my favor - I sped ahead through Astronomy and Gundpowder through the GL, and then was able to trade Banking for Navigation and the whole world lit up with trade possibilities.
We are now in 500 AD, the Archer army has been converted to Bezerks (at great cost), but we have all the gold in the world and research is now halted everywhere. Now I just need to get a big enough force of Bezerks to take Japanese cities defended by spears and swords. Unfortunately, they have 50+ of these in every city, so I need to have my Republic groan under unit support costs at 80% tax rates to make this happen. But we will have a massive Bezerk force, take the Japanese cities 1 by one, gift to the iron-poor Zulus, and pray for an MGL so that we can win Sid.
I'm going for Domination, so I don't need to conquer everyone. But the Mongols have 31% of the territory and 35% of the population and huge culture, so they are making me nervous on a 100k culture win.
BlackBetsy
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Oh! I just investigated the Arabs and they are 100% coastal and only have 6-7 troops per city. This could be very interesting, very quickly.
Edit: I think I am formulating a plan. We are at about 11% of the territory. Mongols @ 31% so I can do this without taking on Khan, but I risk cultural loss if it takes too long. Japan is isolated and 6% of the territory, with 50+ units in each of their cities and would tie down a huge invasion force, the Zulus are 2-3% of the territory and next to the Mongols. I don't think they are going to survive much longer.
So 4 phases to the plans:
Phase 1: Try to wipe out the Arabs in 4-5 turns with Zerk rushes. Will take 45-50 Zerks + 18 Caravels. I've got the Caravels, and I'm probably 10 Zerks short, so I can do this soon. Gift cities to the Zulus, then take them all back in a couple of turns. Arabs are another 8% or so of the land. That gets me up to 19% or so, and I'm #2 on the board and I pick up another lux. But no horses still. Pray for an MGL.
Phase 2: Have the Egyptians go to war with America, pulling troops out of all of the American cities. Zerk rush the Americans who have fewer units in their cities. Gift again to the (near dead) Zulu, war to take it back. I will have to have an MGL by the end of this phase. I hope to get 90% of the American cities, another 8% of the territory, up to 25-27%.
Phase 3: I should have an MGL and horses for Cavalry Armies. If I don't have Armies, then Phase 3 has to be to do island Zerk rushes on the Mongol islands to pick up another 15-20% of the territory and hold and hope for an MGL. I don't love this option, but it should be effective. If I do have Armies, I think I take out the Egyptians by Zerking their islands and "poofing" their army on the mainland. That's probably another 12-15%, getting me up to 42% or so.
Phase 4: Mongol war. Phase 4(a) Zerk all of the island Mongol cities. We should be over 60% by the time I take their all of their islands. Phase 4(b) Land Mongol mainland with Armies and Artillery and raze + replace to get to 66%. Japan survives untouched, and a rump Mongol state survives, and whatever is left of Zululand (already down to just 3 cities) survives.
Edit: I think I am formulating a plan. We are at about 11% of the territory. Mongols @ 31% so I can do this without taking on Khan, but I risk cultural loss if it takes too long. Japan is isolated and 6% of the territory, with 50+ units in each of their cities and would tie down a huge invasion force, the Zulus are 2-3% of the territory and next to the Mongols. I don't think they are going to survive much longer.
So 4 phases to the plans:
Phase 1: Try to wipe out the Arabs in 4-5 turns with Zerk rushes. Will take 45-50 Zerks + 18 Caravels. I've got the Caravels, and I'm probably 10 Zerks short, so I can do this soon. Gift cities to the Zulus, then take them all back in a couple of turns. Arabs are another 8% or so of the land. That gets me up to 19% or so, and I'm #2 on the board and I pick up another lux. But no horses still. Pray for an MGL.
Phase 2: Have the Egyptians go to war with America, pulling troops out of all of the American cities. Zerk rush the Americans who have fewer units in their cities. Gift again to the (near dead) Zulu, war to take it back. I will have to have an MGL by the end of this phase. I hope to get 90% of the American cities, another 8% of the territory, up to 25-27%.
Phase 3: I should have an MGL and horses for Cavalry Armies. If I don't have Armies, then Phase 3 has to be to do island Zerk rushes on the Mongol islands to pick up another 15-20% of the territory and hold and hope for an MGL. I don't love this option, but it should be effective. If I do have Armies, I think I take out the Egyptians by Zerking their islands and "poofing" their army on the mainland. That's probably another 12-15%, getting me up to 42% or so.
Phase 4: Mongol war. Phase 4(a) Zerk all of the island Mongol cities. We should be over 60% by the time I take their all of their islands. Phase 4(b) Land Mongol mainland with Armies and Artillery and raze + replace to get to 66%. Japan survives untouched, and a rump Mongol state survives, and whatever is left of Zululand (already down to just 3 cities) survives.
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BlackBetsy
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I guess my goals are:
Phase 1: Conquer Arab territory by 650 AD (15 turns from now).
Phase 2: Conquer American territory by 900 AD (40 turns).
Phase 3: Conquer Eqyptians by 1150 AD (65 turns).
Phase 4: Reach 66% of territory by 1400 AD (105 turns from now).
That gives me 40 turns of slack before I hit the #1 spot for Large Sid Dom - 1600 AD. I'm fine with any win but it seems possible at this point.
Phase 1: Conquer Arab territory by 650 AD (15 turns from now).
Phase 2: Conquer American territory by 900 AD (40 turns).
Phase 3: Conquer Eqyptians by 1150 AD (65 turns).
Phase 4: Reach 66% of territory by 1400 AD (105 turns from now).
That gives me 40 turns of slack before I hit the #1 spot for Large Sid Dom - 1600 AD. I'm fine with any win but it seems possible at this point.
BlackBetsy
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The Arabs only had a few cities defended lightly. So I had to build up a much bigger force. Nevertheless, things are looking up:
BlackBetsy
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The schedule is absolutely out the window. The Arab cities with 30+ units take ages to fall, we are nearing 1000 AD. We've whittled them down to just 4 cities - Mecca (not sea-based), Baghdad, and 2 others. The second battle of Medina (it must have flipped) was one for the ages - exhausted Berserks with just 2 health were poured into the fight to kill off 1 health Swordsmen to finish the fight. The positive of winning the battle was that I was able to transport the fleet and the injured Berserks back home instantly. The bad news is that the Army and Navy are now mostly 12 turns away from victory by sea.
I did get a second MGL that rushed the Military Academy and now the War Machine will crank up in earnest; it will be false funnels of doom and poofing from here out. Switching to Cavalry for the American invasion (phase 2) while we use the remaining Berserks to finish off the Arabs and take the cities from the Zulu.
I did get a second MGL that rushed the Military Academy and now the War Machine will crank up in earnest; it will be false funnels of doom and poofing from here out. Switching to Cavalry for the American invasion (phase 2) while we use the remaining Berserks to finish off the Arabs and take the cities from the Zulu.
Bartleby
Remembers laughter
If you were to hold the captured city for one turn, would that draw out all the Arabian units? Or do they have horses/ansars?
BlackBetsy
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The Mongols are drawing them out with their Cavalry some times, which is why I brought them into the war. But mostly these towns are full of troops. There are Arab troops everywhere - if I take a city they usually have a ton w/in the one-square radius.
No horses in Arabia, and they hadn't traded for it. I think the latest Mongol landing force will help, and my final shipment of Berserks and Galleons should finish off the remaining coastal cities.
Bartleby
Remembers laughter
I hadn't considered that they might have units outside the cities as well. lol.
BlackBetsy
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Arabia fell, at last, although the Mongols took the last city after I softened it up. Immediately I packed up the troops and headed to America, which had a smaller army and was far behind in tech. America had two island cities, which I wanted to take first with Berserker troops. The first fell quickly against 2 galleon loads of Berserkers, and then was subject to immediate counter attacks from American Cavalry deposited in the inter-turn. Luckily, a 3rd Galleon of fresh troops was able to land and take out the counterattack force. Abe kept dumping his offensive troops into this counterattack to reclaim Cincinnati....which I think took the heat off of my big island invasion force. The second island city fell, but flipped right as the Americans landed a Cavalry force I wouldn't have been able to fight back and I couldn't retake it and donate it with an under-staffed occupation force. Rats. This will be a problem.
The eastern coastal cities of America fell quickly and were donated to the Japanese, given that the Mongols turned the Zulu into nothing more than a memory. America did have Riflemen, so I was chewing up some Berserkers. I landed some armies near a choke point to prevent reinforcement. From that point on, it became a slower grind through American territory, aided by my swelling ranks of Cavalry armies. However, at one point I realized that most of the American army was dead and in one turn I took 4 cities. The same turn, the Japanese brothers - traders of Dyes for a thousand years and whom had not yet learned the secrets of Engineering - declared war on us. This was not planned at all. But since I had an ROP with them to move around America that I had to wait out, it was most welcome. That allowed me to pick up the gifted American cities in just 2 turns.
America is now down to 2 cities. One on the mainland that is about to fall, and the last island city, which I'm hoping I can take with the 3 galleons of troops assigned to it.
The real problem is the Mongols. They are almost 90,000 in culture and increasing fast, and well beyond any other AI - the Egyptians are maybe 1/3 their culture. This is going to be a crisis, as I may have as little as 40 and as many as 80 turns to wipe out their core. So as soon as the American war is over, I need to pack everything up and land near Karakorum and PAC-MAN their core. I don't know if I can slow them down enough to keep them from getting to 130k before someone hits 65k, but I need to be able to slow them down enough that I can get to 66% of the land.
With America, I should be at more than 35% of the land. So we are doing Phase 4 first, which is going to have to be "poofing" with a very big emphasis on protecting the landing force with Armies and generating many more artillery and Cavalry than I have now.
The eastern coastal cities of America fell quickly and were donated to the Japanese, given that the Mongols turned the Zulu into nothing more than a memory. America did have Riflemen, so I was chewing up some Berserkers. I landed some armies near a choke point to prevent reinforcement. From that point on, it became a slower grind through American territory, aided by my swelling ranks of Cavalry armies. However, at one point I realized that most of the American army was dead and in one turn I took 4 cities. The same turn, the Japanese brothers - traders of Dyes for a thousand years and whom had not yet learned the secrets of Engineering - declared war on us. This was not planned at all. But since I had an ROP with them to move around America that I had to wait out, it was most welcome. That allowed me to pick up the gifted American cities in just 2 turns.
America is now down to 2 cities. One on the mainland that is about to fall, and the last island city, which I'm hoping I can take with the 3 galleons of troops assigned to it.
The real problem is the Mongols. They are almost 90,000 in culture and increasing fast, and well beyond any other AI - the Egyptians are maybe 1/3 their culture. This is going to be a crisis, as I may have as little as 40 and as many as 80 turns to wipe out their core. So as soon as the American war is over, I need to pack everything up and land near Karakorum and PAC-MAN their core. I don't know if I can slow them down enough to keep them from getting to 130k before someone hits 65k, but I need to be able to slow them down enough that I can get to 66% of the land.
With America, I should be at more than 35% of the land. So we are doing Phase 4 first, which is going to have to be "poofing" with a very big emphasis on protecting the landing force with Armies and generating many more artillery and Cavalry than I have now.
BlackBetsy
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I think I am more likely to lose than win. If the Mongols were at 60k culture, I'd say I'm gonna win. This is gonna be hard.
Bartleby
Remembers laughter
Good luck!
BlackBetsy
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I just check and at this pace I only have 46 turns before the Mongols hit 130k culture. Yikes.
BlackBetsy
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Update: I am quitting. I lost. The Mongols surprise attacked me in former Arabia. I was going to roll with it and simply take the punches in Arabia and launch an attack on the mainland. But 4 boats with Cavalry Armies sent to start a beachhead were all sunk; the Mongols have a navy that is sinking my galleons. Lost cause. (Sigh) Sid.
I think it would have been very hard to keep the Mongols from 130k anyway. I think I learned a lesson about allowing a Sid AI to get that much territory (they were close to 40%). Arguably, the Mongols should have been target #2....I should have gone after their islands first.
Edit: One further note - After only hitting Writing and Literature first, I hit Steam Power first, and the Electricity and Replaceable Parts the same turn the Mongols declared war. In a 1 in 1,111 chance, I got an SGL on both Electricity and Replaceable Parts. Pretty amusing.
I think it would have been very hard to keep the Mongols from 130k anyway. I think I learned a lesson about allowing a Sid AI to get that much territory (they were close to 40%). Arguably, the Mongols should have been target #2....I should have gone after their islands first.
Edit: One further note - After only hitting Writing and Literature first, I hit Steam Power first, and the Electricity and Replaceable Parts the same turn the Mongols declared war. In a 1 in 1,111 chance, I got an SGL on both Electricity and Replaceable Parts. Pretty amusing.
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Bartleby
Remembers laughter
Good luck for the next one then!
BlackBetsy
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I am re-calibrating a little. I am adding the Chinese, Aztecs, Maya, and Inca so I'll be facing 10 civs. Their "natural" max should be 10% of the map, so hopefully less of a chance of runaway civ. But higher chance I dump games for having a "neighbor" on my continent and having a small continent.
BlackBetsy
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650 AD now on my second attempt. The tech pace is absolutely a crawl. The Japanese, Arabs, Mongols, and Aztecs are still in the Ancient Age. Several others have crawled into the Medieval age, but haven't advanced. Only the Mayans, Zulu, and Americans have been teching at all. The Americans taking the Upper part of the tree, the Zulus and Mayans the lower part, although I am a tech ahead of the Mayans.
Zulus used to have the most land / population, but they declared war on me and although scored some victories, I cleared them out of the islands below my mainland and held on to two cities on an island I share with them. I also cleared the islands of the Chinese, who are also very backward.
I own the Great Library, and only the Americans have Education. At this point, it really is just Astronomy as the only tech I'm interested in so I can upgrade galleys to caravels and get all the money in the world. I have some elites, but only a few elite battles, so no MGL. I think I win this game if I get an MGL - I'll false funnel everyone and beat them all in their homelands.
Minimap:
I'm upper left where the square is, the backwards Japanese are below me in red. The "islands" are just below Japan - I will war with the Americans next to grab their 6 island cities. Mongols are very isolated in the far southwest. Aztecs are almost dead, north of the Mayans. The Incans are a nice buffer against the Zulus, who probably have the second biggest island. I think my island is biggest, and I have a decent second island just to my east.
I expect the Chinese to go to war with the Mayans at some point, making the Mayans threateningly large.
Zulus used to have the most land / population, but they declared war on me and although scored some victories, I cleared them out of the islands below my mainland and held on to two cities on an island I share with them. I also cleared the islands of the Chinese, who are also very backward.
I own the Great Library, and only the Americans have Education. At this point, it really is just Astronomy as the only tech I'm interested in so I can upgrade galleys to caravels and get all the money in the world. I have some elites, but only a few elite battles, so no MGL. I think I win this game if I get an MGL - I'll false funnel everyone and beat them all in their homelands.
Minimap:
I'm upper left where the square is, the backwards Japanese are below me in red. The "islands" are just below Japan - I will war with the Americans next to grab their 6 island cities. Mongols are very isolated in the far southwest. Aztecs are almost dead, north of the Mayans. The Incans are a nice buffer against the Zulus, who probably have the second biggest island. I think my island is biggest, and I have a decent second island just to my east.
I expect the Chinese to go to war with the Mayans at some point, making the Mayans threateningly large.
BlackBetsy
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Update:
BlackBetsy
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Burned my trade reputation for the dumbest reason - 3 gold from China for a peace treaty, and then I re-declared w/in 20 turns when a Chinese island city flipped. Not sure I can do it any more.
Update - maybe I haven't? I am able to trade for up front again. Maybe it was a short term quirk? I'm at 28% of the land in 1150 or so, and I am not too far away from cranking out Cavalry armies to build false funnels. But I still need another 1000 domination tiles.
Update - maybe I haven't? I am able to trade for up front again. Maybe it was a short term quirk? I'm at 28% of the land in 1150 or so, and I am not too far away from cranking out Cavalry armies to build false funnels. But I still need another 1000 domination tiles.
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