BOTM 105 - Alexander - First Spoiler

[DynamicSpirit]

BOTM 105 - First Spoiler to 1 AD

Stop! If you are participating in BOTM 105, then you MUST NOT read this thread unless EITHER

• You have reached at least 1 AD in your game, OR
• You have submitted your entry

Use this thread to tell us what happened in your game, up to 1AD! Is Alexander progressing like his real-life counterpart, conquering all in his way, or are you being peaceful? Have you got any odeons or hit singles yet?

Posting Restrictions

• Please do not disclose ANY events or information gained post 1 AD.
• Please do not reveal your final result if that happened after 1 AD.
• Please do not discuss the location of resources that may not show up before 1 AD. (Iron is OK, coal and oil are not)
  
• Do not post any savegame file from the game. Discussions and screenshots are fine but not actual games

 

[High King J.J.]

Had a bad start. SIP seems to have been a mistake.
Can't really remember what was happening way back at 1AD since it was ages ago. I was peaceful, didn't have anyone in range to attack. Expanded and went almost bancrupt. Built some wonders.
Then the wonderful "protected assets" bug hit and I lost a whole day's worth of turns, some hundreds of years in the 15th century, meaning that the accursed game refuses to load those saves.
So once again I fail to submit anything. Thanks for the game, it was fun while it lasted.

 

[ikotomi]

I was doing pretty well until I accidentally gifted Hatty my best city and couldn't get it back next turn because she whipped an archer. Just ended up quitting in rage because I didn't want to play a 2 city game boxed in by my own trojan cities.

 

[nocho]

So SIPd and pretty soon decided on the GWall with the no-techtrading option and with vast amounts of territory closeby and only 1 AI met who proved far off. Second city went to the NW and built the GLH later. Those are the only 2 wonders I went for, although at 1 AD constructing ToA for failgold and MoM because that's always good to have.

At 1 AD I had similar population stats to BiC with 10 cities and 32 pop, 7 workers. I'm pretty much fully broke though. However, I went the spying route and just started stealing from a Trojan city next door. So far only got me CoL and minor techs, but as Hatty seems to be teching relatively well, I can let her do most work for me. Calendar is also in the bag, currency however isn't. Should be the next big thing.

 

[Xcalibrator]

My game is similar to BIC's and nocho's but, as usual, lesser. 8 cities, 33 pop, GLH and MoM. I settled SE of the pigs. Max 113 bpt, 35 @31% breakeven, 531 in score compared to Hattie's 567 with 7 cities. 16 techs (none stolen) including Math and Calendar but no MC. Yeah, maintenance is a killer on this map--GLH is a lifesaver, and that wee island to the SE is handy for offshore trades.

 

[Pangaea]

Played this game to 1AD today, as I was getting seriously disillusioned by the G-Major 144 game. Think I had 8 cities, not sure about pop, but more than happiness could support in at least half the cities. Like nocho, I decided to go for the GWall route, and tech stealing. Not having to deal with barbs was nice too. I sent out an explore boat early, and eventually found Hatty (for the longest time I thought we were isolated, with a planted scout to confuse us). But annoyingly the barbs settled a city on a hill on the east coast, meaning it blocked off all trade with Hatty, and I even got Sailing pretty early. On that note, I lost the GLH with one stinking turn

Been exploring with the GSpy so far, but am ready to pop him now. Have gifted Hatty a Trojan Horse, so can steal fairly cheaply. Have stolen IW so far, and will grab CoL next I think. Have self-teched Currency, but don't have Calendar yet, nor MC (Hatty Oracled that one, so I can steal it later).

Economy is completely hosed. I limped badly to Currency with building Research almost everywhere, and I'm now building Wealth almost everywhere to make a small 0% profit. Not nice with such lousy trade routes for 4000 years.

No idea what win I'll go for yet, but since I've only met Hatty so far, she's far away, and I want to steal many techs first, I'm not going to kill her off any time soon. Finally have a half-decent stack of Phalanxes that will try to dislodge the TR busting barb city.

As usual the RNG is pumping me like nobody's business. Lost four straight fights when attacking two barb cities, all with winnings odds, from 67% to 86%. Chance for that to happen was 0.5%. Yay!

Was shell-shocked when the spy managed to steal IW with only 85% chance. I must have fainted, because when I came to, it was dark outside, and I had a nasty bump in the head, which hurt like hell.

Edit: Update on the pops and such, since others wrote that.

8 cities, pop 35, 6 workers. Only 99 at 100%, due to no academy and TRs to Hatty busted by the barb city. 1 galley and 12 phalanxes (have lost 4).

 

[Pangaea]

A point that surprised me: I've never played Tectonics before, but in the options it's stated the world wrap is Cylindrical, so I was surprised to see the top of the world. Looked like a Flat map to me, with such a clear cutoff point.

Also: Always amusing to see a train of barbs heading for the AI

 

[ShiVvV]

So, I hit Civ burnout about a year ago and took a long break from Civ (played some Medieval Total War 2). Saw this game at a not-completely-frustrating difficulty level and am giving it a go.

Settled 1N to get the marble, second city Sparta for gems, third city Corinth for double clams.
Capital got Oracle in 1840 BC-->Math (to chop/whip/failgold marble-y stuff, especially the Heroic Epic which I hope to unlock via barbcities captures).
Not sure if choosing to Oracle Math was best but it does also unlock Calender in addition to better chops (a bit strange getting Math before BW !)
Sparta finished TGLighthouse in 1000BC.
The MoM will finish in 4 turns in Argos.

Only 7 cities/25 pop.
100% Science = 103 bkr / -59 gold
0% Science = 15 bkr (from 4 scientist specialists) / +19 gold

Have popped two GProphets with the second one at 33%ish odds (was hoping for GScientist). Since I hated getting the 2nd GProphet so much I managed to further compound my pain by accidentally NOT starting a GAge and instead bulbing...of all things...Meditation a few turns later.

A slew of phalanxes is heading towards barb city of Phrygian in the N'east to block Hatty and unlock HE failgold.

I love me some BC Hit Singles!

And...I completely never even considered TGWall...because...I seem to retain some irremovable noobishness no matter how long I've played Civ .

Overview and military advisor screenshots attached.

 

[kcd_swede]

I passed on the Oracle myself... without trading option, it didn't seem all that advantageous - what with keping the expansion proceding and all. I settle sw on the coast. Sparta in north 2clam-great production. Then 4 cites fanning out (skipping the jungle penninsula) along the south coast and up the east. Blocked off Hatty pretty quick and was able basically to secure the whole landmass west of the snow-divide.

A little wonder crazy with MoM, Parth, Pyramids, Gwall. GLH made rex quite sucessful.

GWall became necessary when barb axes started showing up-too much empty space. Sent all the barbs east, and took an opportunistic city barbs captured from hatty and defended with a lone warior.

Still no plan what to do with the game. Will probably start stealing Hatty's techs soon. I'm #1 in land, production, and gdp, #3 in pop. From what I can tell, probably have a fair tech lead already, so mostly just pick up cheap techs with espionage - backfill all the little techs löike priesthood and whatnot.

A nice uneventful peace game so far. Suits me.

 

[Rusten]

Goal: AP victory (to finally complete this farce of a VC)

Settled 1 north of pig for more river.
10 cities, 51 pop, 8 workers.
174 BPT at 100% slider (-109) // +20 at 100% gold.
1 GS (academy) and 1 prophet (theology)
I, too, took MC from the Oracle (going bottom path to optics for caravels). Also built the Colossus. Currently on compass but using next GP for a golden age with my huge pop for the push towards optics.

I have monarchy, but lack alphabet, currency, CoL. Trying to see if I can manage without them for now. Optics and then a vote is all I need but with more cities in the future the costs are going to be steep.

 

[neilmeister]

AP without Alpha is a tough ask. Gifting techs is one of the easiest ways to get diplo pluses.
But, with a huge pop, you should only need 1 or 2 AI to vote for you.

Good luck!

 

[nocho]

AP without Alpha is a tough ask. Gifting techs is one of the easiest ways to get diplo pluses.

Then again, gifting techs in a no-tech-trading game is kind of complicated anyway.

 

[Deckhand]

Playing my first game since gotm 116, wotm 66, botm 90.

1AD
SIP
5 cities: 7, 6, 6, 6, 3 and will build one this turn
(4 built, 1 captured, another barb city to capture soon)
7 Egyptian cities, Peaceful game
Pyramids in 2 turns in Marble City (was Sparta), but I'm going to whip it this turn.
41 bpt at 20% science and 0 cash

no idea what victory to pursue