Everyone in the game appeared to be on good terms with each other, so I decided to try for a Cultural victory. Have I mentioned before how much I detest playing a Cultural game? I'm sure I have.
So, by 1675, I turned off my research (after being first to Liberalism) and switched to building (50%) culture. QSH had peace-vassaled to Gilgamesh, who fought a war with Julius. Suleiman joined the alliance. I agreed to join that (without engaging militarily) for the diplomatic bonuses. Julius came sailing up with a frigate, and I had to pay him some gold for peace, saving my fishing boats.
Things went reasonably well, until Ramses started plotting. QSH was his worst enemy, so I hoped I wouldn't be his target. Unfortunately, I was. And more surprisingly, he bribed Suileman to join the war against me.
I saved the game and put it aside for a week, debating whether it was worth my time to continue.
Being in a fatalistic state of mind*, I decided to play it out. Whipping/drafting managed to be enough to hold off Ramses and even to take a city from him that he had captured from barbs, in the far southwest corner of the map. But then Suleiman's army arrived and captured my border city of Knossos. Hopeless, but I played on.
So, Ramses was still unwilling to negotiate, but as he moves a new army forward on the offensive, he calls an AP vote to end the war with him. The vote passes unanimously.
Suleiman still doesn't have Liberalism, and he accepts that for a peace treaty. I rebuild my cities and resume my Cultural strategy. As Gilgamesh/QSH and Suleiman go back to war against Julius, Ramses calls another AP vote to return Knossos to me. The vote passes.
Julius capitulates to Gilgamesh, who then goes to war with Cyrus. Suleiman begins plotting, again, and I convert to his religion to curry favor. I get him up to Pleased, but he attacks me, with a massive army of Cavalry that takes Knossos in the initial rush.
His army pushes on, capturing Athens and one more city, before I give him two more for a peace treaty. (I could have just fought to the death at this point, but if I'm going to play it out, I might as well play to stay alive.)
After that, most of the AI settle into a space race. After Cyrus makes peace, I agree to a defensive pact with him, hoping to stave off another invasion. Gilgamesh and his allies go to war with Suleiman, this time. All of the cities Suleiman captured from me revolt countless times, but none of them return to my control. And then Ramses launches his spaceship, winning a Space victory in July 1993. I had accumulated eight Great Artists by this time, but particularly with Athens gone, they wouldn't have been able to get even one of my cities to Legendary status. An utter, complete, crushing failure. But I played it to the end, so give me my ambulance.
*So why am I feeling fatalistic? Well, on this side of the pond, we're basically preparing to flip a coin in a couple weeks over whether to end
our civilization. But, hey, it was a good run.
