BOTM 289 - Players Choice - Willem, Noble - Starts April 3, 2025

[MarleysGh0st]

BOTM 289: Players Choice - Willem of Netherlands.

The people have spoken, in a voice that was sometimes vague and confusing and likely to cause the League of Women Voters to walk away in despair. But after employing some higher mathematics to tabulate the votes, the results are final. You are Willem of the Netherlands. Now take on this world you have chosen.

Game settings:
Playing as: Willem of Netherlands
Rivals: 6 AIs
Difficulty: Noble
Starting Era: Ancient
Speed: Normal
Options: City culture-flipping after conquest, raging barbarians, aggressive AI, choose religions, no random events
Victory Conditions: All enabled

Map settings:
Map: Big and Small
World Wrap: Cylindrical
Mapsize: Standard
Climate: Temperate
Sea level: Medium
Map latitudes: -90°S to 90°N


Willem is Creative and Financial, and you start with Fishing and Agriculture.

The Creative trait gives +2 culture/city each turn and double production speed of Colosseum, Library and Theatre

The Financial trait gives +1 commerce on any plot that already has at least 2 commerce

Unique unit: East Indiaman (replaces Galleon)
The East Indiaman is like a super-powerful galleon and caravel combined: It has a very high base strength of 6 (only 4 for the galleon), can carry 4 instead of 3 units, and can explore rival's territory - could be useful for sneak attacks!

Unique Building: Dike (replaces Levee)
The dike is very powerful - it gives +1 hammer to all water tiles as well as river tiles. That means it can be built in any coastal city, even if the city doesn't lie on a river.

Starting screenshot

This is the start of the game (click for a bigger image):




Challenger Class Equalizers:
You play at Monarch difficulty. The AI still have the starting units for Noble difficulty.

To Enter the Competition:

This competition will open at 00:01 am on 3 Apr 2025, server local time (UTC-6:00). From that date and time, you'll be able to get your chosen starting save >>>here<<<.

Submit the save after your victory (or defeat) here, by 4 May 2025.

Here is a link to a list of the differences between Vanilla, Warlords and BtS.

Software Versions

Windows: This game MUST be played in Beyond the Sword (NOT Civ4 Vanilla or Warlords), patched to version 3.19, and with the BUFFY mod version 3.19.005 installed. You can download the BUFFY mod here. Players using Windows Vista or Windows 7 are encouraged to read the notes on Vista fixes here.


Macintosh: This game MUST be played in Beyond the Sword (NOT Civ4 Vanilla or Warlords), patched to version 3.19, and with the Mac BUFFY mod version 3.19.003 installed. You can download the Mac BUFFY mod here.

While playing...

Remember - for your entry to be accepted, it MUST be your first attempt to play this game, and you MUST NOT replay any turns. If you make a mistake while playing, you have to live with it, learn from it, and carry on the game without replaying.

We will open 'spoiler' threads during the month for players to discuss what happens in their games. Do not discuss any details of your game outside those threads.

 

[MarleysGh0st]

Well, I didn't quite get this game ready to start today, but there were unexpected issues in the tabulation of the votes. Perhaps this should not have been surprise, since this is an international community and voting traditions differ in different jurisdictions. But, as an example of what I wanted, when I ask you to vote for a candidate, I expected that:

• You vote for a candidate.
• You vote for one candidate
• You vote for one candidate in this election.

Instead, some of you listed multiple candidates that you supported and opposed. Some of you spoke of generalities over a series of many games elections, when only one was currently at issue. And some of you listened to the entire campaign and expressed no preference.

<sigh>

I decided that each of you would get one vote, which would be divided by the number of choices mentioned for each question, either for or against. LowtherCastle actually filled out a proper ballot, with exactly one choice for the player, six for the opponents, and one for the map. His candidates received at least partial support from the other voters, so it may not be a surprise that his ticket emerged victorious. Besides playing Willem, you will be facing Mansa, Darius, Hannibal, Elizabeth, Pacal, and Ragnar as your opponents. Note that I've changed the civilization colors for two of these, to reduce the confusion of looking at a map with two orange and two light blue civilizations.

The Big and Small map also got a fair amount of support. LowtherCastle was the only voter to write in the file fine details, so I went with those:

• Standard mapsize
• Temperate
• Medium sealevel
• Ancient
• Normal speed
• Normal continents
• Tiny islands
• Islands mixed in

As for the miscellaneous votes, there was one for Humbaba, so I did include him (but in a place that makes him more of an easter egg than an early game threat). There was also a vote for an "explorer pony". I'm not sure what that is, but assuming it was support for a fast, low-power bonus unit to be used for scouting, you have it. It looks like a wolf.

BOTM 287 has been over for week, so we're rushing the schedule for this one again. You can discuss it tomorrow and start playing on Thursday, if you're ready for it. And you have until May 4 to submit the game.

May the Forth be with you.

 

[LowtherCastle]

I knew I should have expressed a preference against this particular setting.

Good job either way !

Sorry. I was just trying to add lots of exploration and perhaps complicate early conquest. Could have gone with whatever islands.

 

[MarleysGh0st]

Could have gone with whatever islands.

No, the map looks good, this way! And Willem wants to use his special ships, doesn't he?

 

[LowtherCastle]

Okay, truth be told, I’m embarrassed to admit that I haven’t played any of the Humbaba games. My impression is that he’s some extra powerful barb unit. My question is, in past games did he move or was he immobile?

 

[lymond]

He moves. Actually ruined one of my games. I recall him being a mech infantry or maybe it was a mobile arty.

Okay who voted for raging barbs

 

[MarleysGh0st]

To learn the origin story of Humbaba, I suggest you travel back in time, an incredible 14 years ago, and read the tales of woe in the BOTM 41 First Spoiler.

 

[High King J.J.]

He moved Actually ruined one of my games. I recall him being a mech infantry or maybe it was a mobile arty.

Okay who voted for raging barbs

Come on, Humbaba has always been a mobile artillery. And just as I was typing this a more learned colleague gave us a link to the source. Has it really been 14 years?

 

[LowtherCastle]

To learn the origin story of Humbaba, I suggest you travel back in time, an incredible 14 years ago, and read the tales of woe in the BOTM 41 First Spoiler.

Wow! Ok. Thx for the answers, guys.

 

[LowtherCastle]

Some notes:

1. Our explorer pony/wolf cannot enter our or other culture (duh), cannot enter a resource tile, including unrevealed(!), and cannot enter a goody hut.

2. Raging barbs could pose problems even at Noble. With goody huts, the four AIs without it will probably beeline Hunting, Thus, the barbs will have Htg around T30. Sooner if you tech it first for scouts. Thus…barbs may spawn spears when they start spawning warriors.

3. Remember raging barbs can enter your culture when there are 7*1.5=11 player cities.

 

[Frederiksberg]

Good point regarding the wolf. It's more like a tracker dog then. Sniffing out where the hidden resources are.

That said, SIP looks pretty obvious. Maybe move our doggie to the grass hill first, but doubt that anything he sees can change the settling decision.

 

[Xcalibrator]

1. Our explorer pony/wolf cannot enter our or other culture (duh), cannot enter a resource tile, including unrevealed(!), and cannot enter a goody hut.

Yes, my brilliant scheme has come to fruition, just as I planned! (Actually, my request for an explorer pony may have only been a variation on the meme of "I want .... and a pony", but you can't be sure about that, can you?)

Looking forward to having another game to play!

 

[High King J.J.]

Some of you spoke of generalities over a series of many games elections

You said you were out of ideas. I tried to give some ideas. Obviously not welcome. Like Rocket stealing Anulax batteries from the Sovereign in GotGvol2, my motives were altruistic.

 

[MarleysGh0st]

Actually, my request for an explorer pony may have only been a variation on the meme of "I want .... and a pony", but you can't be sure about that, can you

Well, there are several horse units in the game, but I wasn't feeling that generous!

And I had forgotten about the special rules affecting player-owned wolves, from the last time they appeared in a game. Thanks for reminding everyone about those, LowtherCastle!

 

[MarleysGh0st]

You said you were out of ideas. I tried to give some ideas. Obviously not welcome. Like Rocket stealing Anulax batteries from the Sovereign in GotGvol2, my motives were altruistic.

Your ideas were appreciated, but in this case I didn't have time to put into designing some custom challenge. So my thought was to throw together a bunch of features from the vote (hopefully, in a surprising and entertaining combination) and let the computer do the work of generating a game from that.

Rocket stealing Anulax batteries? Hmmmm, I wonder what a barb city could do with some cruise missiles?

 

[NickTrofimuk]

When i try to download the starting save file it says it is not available. Has anyone else had this issue?

 

[High King J.J.]

When i try to download the starting save file it says it is not available. Has anyone else had this issue?

It does that sometimes. Try again. And again. If you can't get it after a dozen tries then I recommend sending a message to the Mapmaker.

MarleysGh0st​

should know what to do.
I just tried and get the "Not available" about 50% of the time. So it's nothing that we do and it's not even because mapmakers are by default, it's just the way the world works (or doesn't work, about 50% of the time). Note that some mapmakers may not be totally .
I'm joking of course, about them being evil. Or about them not being totally evil. Either one. Good luck downloading.

 

[MarleysGh0st]

Something strange is going on with the server. The staff is aware of the problem but don't have a fix yet.

 

[LowtherCastle]

When i try to download the starting save file it says it is not available. Has anyone else had this issue?

Also check to see if you don’t already have it in your downloads. That has happened to me too. In other words, I got it and still got that message or something.

 

[Mitchum]

I came by here for the first time in a long time. This game looked interesting. I tried to follow the link to the Buffy mod but it didn't work. I'm worried that I'll never get my new PC working again... haha