[BTS] BOTM 206 (Vikings) Final spoiler - to "Game Over"

[Pangaea]

Thanks for the excellent writeup. Very hectic, and I'm impressed you managed to win when up against it like that. Could probably quickly have gone otherwise.

Strange about the AIs though (I posted above, possibly xposted). Maybe it ended up with different AIs in the Deity save? Very strange, but it kinda looks that way, as Lagatha definitely was a Vassalage leader in my/the contender save.

Maybe @kcd_swede can shed some light on this.

 

[kcd_swede]

Thanks for the excellent writeup. Very hectic, and I'm impressed you managed to win when up against it like that. Could probably quickly have gone otherwise.

Strange about the AIs though (I posted above, possibly xposted). Maybe it ended up with different AIs in the Deity save? Very strange, but it kinda looks that way, as Lagatha definitely was a Vassalage leader in my/the contender save.

Maybe @kcd_swede can shed some light on this.

The traits are probably set when the worldbuilder map is launched as a game to make the saves you folks play. Since the adventurer, contender, and challenger classes are created seperately from the same worldbuilder save, you could definitely see them be different in the different classes (but should be the same for everyone in the same class). If I had thought about it, I can figure a way to get it the same even in different classes... but I didn't think of it.

 

[Xcalibrator]

I took the Deity save but did not finish--I just don't have the time to complete anything but small maps these days. Despite having warrior garrisons in most cities for much of the game, nobody attacked me. I settled on the PH to the SW, then got Henge (2680 BC), Great Wall 2400, Mids 900. Didn't try for Oracle or the Great LH. When I retired in 1570 I had 25 cities with a 5-city vassal, and was preparing to take another 2 nice barb cities in the New World. 3 AIs had 3 cities each over there. Fun fact I belatedly remembered when first settling the New World: Great Wall only works on the landmass you build it on. I quickly settled 3 cities over there and then a barb sniped one of my workers. "You can't do that, I have the Great Wall!" I shouted. Oops. All 3 cities were threatened, so I liberated them to make a vassal and save them, figuring they'd each get 2 free defenders. Yeah, well, they were only warriors because I didn't have any metals hooked up yet in the new vassal's cities. D'oh. Lost one city, but managed to defend the other two. Anyway, I was not winning when I quit, but with State Property, levees, and nearly Railroad, I was starting to really gain ground techwise. With nearly twice as many cities as any AI, I'm pretty sure I could have won a space race. Thanks for the game, kcd!

 

[Powerfaker]

Well. On Prince level there were some aggressive AI too. But due to a tech gap they were hardly dangerous for me.

Lagatha/Hatsjepsut had a worst enemy relationship with both the Russians and AssurUlven/SittingBull pretty much the entire game. A war with the Russians ended in a draw. Late game she attacked AssurUlven and capped him. She had a massive stack.

I initiated a war myself against Floki/Zara with berserkers and some cats. When longbows started to slow the process I capped him after a conquest of 5 cities, pretty good ones though. By that time I had Astro/Communism, the kick off for rush settling the new world. I needed all my production power to speed that up. My war veterans could now serve as city garrison and chase barbs.

TyrBlix/Augustus attacked and capped CharlesDeux/Brennus. Later the silly man attacked me, cuirs versus infantry. I had Floki as a buffer and could freely clean up stacks which was enough to cap both TyrBlix and CharlesDeux.

During the end game even Echbert/Frederic DoWed me and a few turns later seized the one city I forgot to garrison in the new World for 2-3 turns (pure luck for him of course, no cheating at all). I just let him be till he wants to pay for peace.

My goal this game was going to space (too many Vikings around on this map). I ran a very similar game to the always peace Indian game from Communism onwards. Funny enough I reached it ±10T later this game and pretty much everything else thereafter came ±10T later too, including the final victory. Apparently I haven't learned much the past half year.
Well, I chose to run US this time (no benefit from Rep until end game) to rush buy Granaries and Trade posts, and some factories where needed. After all no Spi trait this time for short slavery dips.


Glad I could finish this game just in time. My submission date says March 1 by the way while I submitted Februayr 28 (early evening CET).