Start looks gorgious. Scout moves NW-> NW but reveals no more food so I SIP. Early teching was Agriculture -> mining -> BW to hook up the corn then reveal copper and enable chops/whips.
Here is what my scout reveals... It appears we are islanders... which sucks! No elephant rush as the starting screenie promised! Still, the land looks good. I start marking fogbusting spots.
One turn later, I spot the first barb archer... I had forgotten how they spawn quickly!
I am growing building a pair of warriors for police and fogbusting (together with my scout)
I grow size 4 before starting on the first settler. This is something I am not used to but here AIs aren't fogbusting for us since they are oversea, and we aren't as much pressed for land as we could be.
Once the settler completes, we claim the eastern (unpillageable - if that's a word -) fish. This city will quickly help Athen, can grow floodplain cottages for the capital, and can be connected with only 2 roads.
I whip a worker in Athen and overflow into an axe for barb defense.
A few turn later, we meet the first AI, Bismarck.
Then it's Charlie's wb that says hello. (zealout alert: on)
After a granary and before a library, Sparta does our own exploring workboat. I want those foreign oversea TRs up as soon as possible.
We are working on aesthetics. I thought it would be a good trade bait for alphabet. And the Paya/Zeus statue would be cool for failed god (gold and ivory on our island).
Athen does a second settler that claims wheat, clam, and fish.
The wb is sent to explore the northern island ( a barb city has already spawned there)
I start trading with Charlie to get some diplo going (did the same with Bis)
I was a bit late on Athen library. Still I will hire 2 scientists there after that to grow some GPs. Note how Charlie is already up to 7 cities lol
Our wb scouts luxuries oversea.
Bismarck is going crazy with wonders! I would gladly take Berlin! (After BW, I pondered going Sailing then masonry before pottery/writing to give a shot at the GLH... good thing I stay focused and realist
)
Aesthetic is in 1000 BC... but sadly nobody has alpha
I go sailing (to get oversea), then myst/ meditation at 0% science (I just discover than one needs 2 monuments to build Zeus statue
, med is for the paya/philo bulb) while accumulating enough gold for alpha.
Empire and dotmap (the gold city was tricky, not sure it is the best, but it will be good early on and let room for a whipping center claiming 2 floodplains, clams, and copper):
A turn later, F. Bacon founds an academy in Athen (I plan to leverage failed gold from aesthetics wonders)
Settling Thebes shortly after (Note the axe fogbusting in the east). I also met Mehmet this turn.
He is hindu and has enough on his hands already. (hopefully he is already busy elsewhere, and didn't found us tempting in the interturn)
This turn Bismarck settles our precious luxury island
Worse, Charlie joins the party (well, better him to clear the jungle than us)
). Contender save despite being a bit rusty (back from a long break away from civ... not sure I made the right call 
)
(it sucks to be weak and greedy 
.
