Cinemod - The Blind leading the Blind

wuhjah · May 27, 2012

That didn't take long, now did it?

It's the next turn and we're getting everything ready. I was just notified that 20th Century and United Artists have declared peace. That's the thing with these idiot AI. They go to war and never take any land. I guess they are a little too evenly matched. The Tristar plan is to take land or die trying. We can also see Columbia has a movie set (brown border can be seen at bottom of screen) near the center, so they are growing. There is no time to waste.
Stay tuned for the invasion.

Spoiler :

There are lots of troops everywhere and my biggest concern is MGM will buy an ally and we don't have the tech or gold to do the same. I hope that doesn't become the case. We used our Ninja on the mountain to dispatch a Santa that was on the outside. An actor was enslaved for the effort. (I think I might need to change enslaved to "hired" in an update.) I had already sent two actors up to start roading our way into MGM territory, but this is a bonus to start in the middle. I pushed our luck a little and attacked the John Kimble with our Ninja. We lost the Ninja but damaged Kimble. I'm going to wait one more turn. If we can eliminate these guards on the choke-point with Ninjas and Quarry bombs, we could build a movie set before declaring war.

Spoiler :

It was a good production turn. We received a Crocodile, a Snowman, a Sopwith Camel and a Quarry Bomb. Soon we will add Knights to the list of characters that require no upkeep costs. Now you see him, now you don't. MGM pulled back one Kimble; I don't know why. With just the one there, I attacked with another Ninja but lost. We will use a Quarry bomb to finish him and occupy that tile. No picture is need as the Quarry Bomb is invisible and doesn't show up. He's gone, though, I assure you.
We occupy the square and war has still not been declared. I really had intended it to go by now, but rushing probably wouldn't help and Sun Tzu probably said something about adjusting your battle plans...
We have a Studio truck already there and it will build a set on the next turn.

Spoiler :

I'm using our Crocodile, which has no nationality to recon the land. We don't want any failed airdrops that come from airdropping into the FOW and landing on sets, enemies or the water or whatever. Naturally, I just cursed us and the Croc did, in fact, land smack onto MGM's Set. One Croc lost. At least we have an idea where things are now for our next one.

Spoiler :

TS Props has been built; now we just have to defend it. Next turn we will pay to rush the SAG and start a gate after that. In the meantime, troops will keep marching their way there. Now we'll move our attention to the right side of our territory...
Paratroopers away. I dropped 20 Brains in and MGM will formally declare next turn, no doubt. We have another 20 ready to go in the next wave. As well, I dropped one in the front and a Coffin was revealed. That means they are ahead in script reading and we can expect some Coffins to be dropped into our territory on a counter-attack. In that case, our next script to read will be Arachnophobia because we need some ground characters that can penetrate the high defense of the Coffins.

Spoiler :

The time has come. If anyone may wonder why I have been so focused on war, it's because I aim to play Conquest or Domination Victory. Space race is only a last resort method to win for me. Warring is not easy as the AI is fairly evenly matched, at least with me. In order to meet the requirements for domination or conquest, I feel one must get an early start.

Spoiler :

wuhjah · May 27, 2012

Whoa, have we got problems. This is gonna be tough. I tried to get a screenshot (but it didn't happen) of a squadron of Japanese Zeroes MGM sent to soften our stacks. Furthermore, they have sent more than 10 Titans Gladius to further whittle down our first wave of troops, not that I didn't expect that. What we see here is MGM has produced their UU, the Daemon Prince, which of course means they will start a Golden Age and increase production but we won't.
As well, anyone who wonders if the AI will airdrop, here you go. The first, of many to come I imagine, Coffin has been unearthed in Tristar territory. Coffins are a real pain because they have a low attack but a reasonably high defense. You can lose a lot characters just trying to get rid of them. If you let them be, then they will pillage your props. It's a lose lose situation all around. This is all not to mention that MGM has Dinosaurs which again means they are way ahead of us in script reading.

Spoiler :

Again, not too sure why I can't catch it in time for a screen-shot, but I'm sending our own squadron of Sopwith Camels to wear down the MGM Set defenders. Until now, we have lost more than 10 Brains and need to be careful. However, I made some mistakes. I tried to attack with some Brains before the Camels and lost the Brains. The Camels did a good job, but I have no Brains to finish the job on this turn. By next turn MGM will reinforce the city, which means more losses for us. I also realized the Quarry Bombs were useless stationed in the movie set as the target set was just out of range. As a result, I've moved the QBombs to the mountain border to be dropped next turn.

Spoiler :

Of course, this was bound to happen. I hope we, too, can pay someone to get involved. I won't be surprised if we can't though, as our gold is not very much and I'm sure we're behind in scripts. If not, the plan is to punish Paramount, given the chance, and make them wish they hadn't joined the cause.

Spoiler :

Some good news, in the meantime, we have finished the Knights of the Round Table small wonder which should give us a few Knights to throw in the mix. Another Coffin has been unearthed in the same location as before. I will take care of that momentarily. Now, my focus is trying to get that foothold in their territory. Once we can hold one movie set, of course, we will be able to re-base characters there directly rather than relying on airdropping Brains over the channel.

Spoiler :

The Quarry Bombs did not let us down and not only softened the defenses in the movie set, but utterly destroyed them. I just marched one Brain in to claim the spoils of actors. Now, the key is to hold it until the resistance ends allowing us to cash-rush a SAG. I will move all our Brains located nearby into the set to defend. Any red-liners laying around will not come in. They will be sacrificed as bait to lead the enemy away and to pillage some roads if the opportunity comes up.
Here is the current cast listing for MGM Set.

Spoiler :

Hello to our new good friend Warner Bros. They agreed to take on Paramount for the low low price of 50 gold, a far cry from the 260 that 20th Century Fox asked for. Done and Done. Let's hope this becomes a fruitful relationship. In the Cinemod, all artillery type units have stealth attack which lets them choose their targets from the enemy stack (Credit CCM.) I've found the character nearest the bottom is usually the weakest of the bunch, though that's not a rule to live by.

Spoiler :

MGM has sent their second (third?) wave of counter-attack. Now it's just a numbers and timing game. Will we be able to hold them off until reinforcements arrive? That I don't even know. We have at least four turns of reading and then any turns of auditioning new characters to wait. MGM is bringing characters with higher attack and defense values than our Brains posses. We'll just have to hold the fort and wait. If I get a chance, though, I will eliminate any by-standing red-liners to not give them another chance...
Because MGM has focused what seems to be the majority of their cast and attention to the back, we have also started moving up the front. I aim to take the next movie set, MGM Special FX, in the next turn or two. By the next turn, the SAG should be complete and we will be able to not only re-base troops there, but hopefully upgrade our Brains to Cthulu. Furthermore, in the same turn the small wonder The Necropolis should be finished (The price is so low that it only needed one turn to be built in our capitol set.) and we can also send some Coffins over to disrupt or pillage as needed.

Spoiler :

Save at 150 AD

MTB4884 · May 28, 2012

Wow, sounds like you have quite a war on your hands! Go Tri-Star!

I like your idea for the next mod update to "hire" actors instead of "enslaving" them. Perhaps you could "sign" them to the capturing studio? Or perhaps "discover" new talent?

Thanks for answering my question about using galleys (or Sea Monsters in the mod) for exploring purposes. I'm used to building at least one or two galleys ASAP in my games to see what's out there.

I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of the story! :goodjob:

wuhjah · May 28, 2012

MTB4884 said:
Perhaps you could "sign" them to the capturing studio?

I like this idea even better.

I hope not to beat a dead horse, but did feel I would be remiss leaving things as I said. What I said is right, but not complete and may lead someone to believe that they must use the Ninja or Assassin unit to uncover the map and meet other Studio Companies.

A Company can build a Talent Scout from the first turn if they so choose.

Spoiler :

I didn't in my game because I already know the map and think Ninjas do a better job.

Thanks for the input and continued interest.

wuhjah · May 28, 2012

And the show must go on...

We took a beating during the IBT, but didn't give up MGM Set. In a moment, we'll look at part of the action. First, The Necropolis is complete and will start "burying" coffins at the rate of one per turn. Coffins have no nationality, so are good for lots of things which we'll soon see.
Having read End of Days, we can now build Cthulhu (error just found in Civo.) which is far far ahead in attack and defense than what we had. Also, some Tutankhamun's Brains will get upgraded. Well, I'll be honest and admit I wasn't thinking too clearly. I had in the back of my mind imagined we'd upgrade some Brains in the MGM Set, but that's not to be. I guess it needs to be connected by road... Anyway, what I thought was interesting was the MGM Daemons all avoided attacking the set and went around and headed for that Brain on the hill. I suppose a resource may be hiding there, or they just like picking on the wounded.
All this means that we need to hang on for one more turn before we can re-base some stronger troops in. For now, I'll try to use the rest of the QBombs and Camels to kill or weaken those standing around. Their bench is pretty thick, though. This is a gamble for sure.

I have taken the Heavy crossbow to attack. Incidentally, it has let us see inside the city and now I know there are only two defenders, giving me motivation to send all we've got. The thing is, the SAG or IAA is supposed to be a barrier to stealth. So, either I've got something wrong in the editor or MGM hasn't yet built an IAA in that movie set. Maybe later we can find out which is the case. As well, we've airlifted about five more Brains into MGM Set. I've moved that Brain that was damaged on the hill to the mountains and added one more on top. I'm hoping those Daemon Princes will chase after and avoid the movie set. I'm not so sure we'd come out of this one if they were to stage a full assault...
Hooray! :banana:

We have taken one more from MGM. It was small and not producing, but it'll be one less Studio truck to send over. As usual, the key is to hold it. I send troops as I can, but many resources have been diverted to the back line invasion. We have started clearing jungle around those sets that are ready to grow larger and because I can only put up with Jungle Rot for so long. (Though, I do prefer jungle to marsh. I hate marsh and you'll find none in the Cinemod.)

Spoiler :

Well, it was a little tense there for a minute, but we made it yet another turn. Just at the beginning of the IBT 20th Century Fox contacted us with this deal. It's a crime that we have to pay, but I did. I did get them down five pieces of gold. Pixar is in our Distribution Channel, and it would be a benefit for trading scripts.
Remember, some scripts cannot be traded between distribution channels, so it's better to know those in your channel than out. We haven't yet contacted the Pixels.
To the front, the Dinosaur from the last series of pics paid with his life trying to come in but our Chariot held him off. A Coffin and Daemons have shown up, one shredding a Brain to pieces. We'll move troops up and deal with them the next turn. Wow, I kind of regret giving Dinosaurs such hefty movement points. They just keep coming from the nearby movie set, MGM Production. The Daemons in the rear seem too concerned with that hill and didn't bother the set. As I've said before, Coffins have a nice defensive value, so we'll put the first (maybe first few) into MGM Set just for their defensive value. We have a few Cthulhu to send in this turn as well. Once we get enough, we can start attacking from that base of operation.

I just saw MGM has Larry Flynt which means they have read The People Vs. Larry Flynt and are light years ahead of us in script reading. I guess it's due to their GA. I have moved up more defenders to MGM Special FX. Here is a view of the current situation in the rear. It appears we have 13 defenders including 3 Cthulhu, 1 Croc, 1 Coffin and the remainder Brains. We'll see if we can go one more turn. The final view from the rear before IBT. MGM defenders on the hill, lots of Dinosaurs. We have one Crocodile up above, which I hope will lure at least one attacker away. Believe it or not, I'm going to throw out another (yep, the second) actor as bait. Again, it's just numbers, since none of the characters at this stage in the game has the blitz ability.
The losing number here is...twenty, right?

Spoiler :

wuhjah · May 28, 2012

Here's the lowdown on the IBT. (First, I got distracted and never did send that actor out as bait, so plus one there.) Miramax, of all people, sent a squadron of Zeros almost finishing our Croc. A Daemon, man are they mean, came and mercilessly took care of what was left of him. United Artists contacted us and traded Anaconda and 30 gold for End of Days. Anaconda lets us build Anaconda characters. These characters have one higher attack and one lower defense than the Cthulhu, but a lot more movement. We'll build a bit of both over the next few turns. Technically, we're still not out of the water with MGM Set. Our Coffin was strong and held off two Dinos before returning to dust itself. I can't praise the Cthulhu the same way. Two of those got beat down pretty badly. On the front line, we lost a Chariot to a Coffin. Still holding on, though. (More Larry Flynts are on the scene. That is not good news. I'll check on Flynt's stats and report about them in a few.) Miramax has sent a Studio truck into the middle. We'll need to make sure he doesn't get too close to where I plan to put the next movie sets. If so, there are Ninjas that can hopefully persuade them otherwise.

Our first Domestic Knight is on the scene; he'll be sent to the front. Looking around, I just realized I had left TS Screenplay producing wealth. That was dumb. I continued to move some troops up to the front line, including to MGM Special FX. There are now seven characters fortified in the movie set and another ten one or two moves away. I added a few more to MGM Set bringing our total to 17 characters not including 3 actors.
We need a few more actors around the territory, so they'll get mixed in to the build orders. I'm not using build queues yet as I would like more control over what is to be built each turn. The scenery isn't much different than the last turn, so we'll just skip any pictures other than taking a look at Larry Flynt.
Whoah, even I'm surprised. Mr. Flynt loves freedom and democracy and has a whopping 10.5.2 rating. That's not to mention he also has ZOC. With those kinds of numbers, our Tutankhamun's Brains don't stand a chance.

Spoiler :

We survived another turn with a few minor things to note. We have finished reading Arachnophobia allowing us to build Yellow Sack Spiders, nasty but effective. For scripts to read, we have a few choices including King Kong, Dogma, Bee Movie, or V for Vendetta. Each would give us something, but I'm going to read Dogma first as it will give us 2.5 things. What does that mean, you ask? Well, we will then build the Vatican Armory which will auto-produce Holy Hand Grenades. Incidentally, MGM just dropped one on us. In addition, Dogma will allow us to build Arch Angels which are awesome and they enslave enemies to make Prophets. The bonus here is Prophets also enslave to make more Prophets. We're gonna convert MGM one character at a time. Our Cthulhu was nearly as equally disappointing as the last turn.
Let's take a look at the middle. You can see some Lions Gate Films (hereafter known as LGF) troops on the move to the west. What you can't see completely, but I saw is Miramax is sending quite a few, who are now hidden in the shadows, also to the west/ south-west. I don't know what they are up to yet. It's also time to build our first movie set in the middle. I plan to build one beside it CxxC also, which would be in front of TS Props.
I sent one Cthulhu and two Brains to attack the Dinos at MGM Set. We killed one, drove one away, and lost one Brain. Still holding 18 in there. Looks like there are 10 or 11 heavy hitters coming up to MGM Special FX. We're gonna need some reinforcements there real soon.

Spoiler :

Save 230 AD

wuhjah · May 29, 2012

Adjusting focus...

The first picture shows MGM Special FX after the IBT. They did a pretty good job hammering our new movie set, killing more than half of our cast we had fortified inside. The plan remains to send half the troops there. Apparently they smelled blood in the water because now it seems most of MGM's characters in the rear gave up and began to run to the front line.
Those Daemon Princes are monsters, truly one of the scariest characters I've seen. More Flynts have shown up and a few more Coffins have been unearthed around MGM Set.
We lost our Ninja that was fortified between Colombia (7o'clock) and 20th Century Fox (8o'clock). There are 15 Miramax characters and a few from WB sitting in the middle. I can't really see where they are going or what they are doing.
All available troops have been moved up. I rushed a marketplace in TS Special FX and a library in MGM Set for around 90 gold or so. I would like more troops being produced of any quality. Good acting, bad acting, I don't care anymore; we just need warm bodies. I'm a little worried about holding MGM Special FX and barely more confident about MGM Set.
Here goes the button...

Spoiler :

Miramax is really on the move. Let's see if we can see anything.
It seems both Miramax and LGF are both still going west. Miramax is also about to build a movie set on the first choke-point of Touchstone's territory, but we can't worry too much about that now... We've got more pressing concerns.
MGM continued to decimate our troops at MGM Special FX. I lost count after 5, 6, 7, 8. The Coffins moved behind, killed a troop, took two actors and then unearthed more on top to defend. In the rear, not one attack on MGM Set.
The Anacondas and Cobras have the ability to be dropped from above but do not have the re-base ability. These'll go over and maybe later on we will slither to the front.
Before the turn I decided to check around for trades. Maybe some of you are saying I don't do that enough. You are probably right. I just get distracted and forget. Anyway, Pixar is broke as a joke. I don't know where they went wrong. New Line Cinemas are at least in this era but a few scripts behind us. Touchstone is one script behind. United Artists are the leaders in our Distribution line. I've just thought to negotiate peace with Paramount. Let me get back to you.
Paramount was willing to give 15 pieces of gold to end this silly war. They are two scripts up and, of course, in no mood to trade.

Spoiler :

I'm sorry to report MGM Special FX has fallen back into the hands of the enemy. Tristar troops fought well taking a few of those hack characters down with them, but in the end there were too many of them and too few of us. As well, another coffin has unearthed in our territory. Worse yet, MGM has now gained confidence and begun to send troops back to MGM set for another counter-offensive.
Well, our Ninja's probably not gonna make it out of this one alive. Rest assured when he does go down, he will go with honor. Moved a few troops around and dropped another Anaconda or two to try and lure those Daemons away from our movie set. (When I drop the Anaconda, I always imagine it's coming from a bag/sack, if you know what I mean.) Hopefully, when I pick up next time, we can turn things around and get a positive surge back against MGM. Perhaps a beeline to get a GA will be in order.

Spoiler :

Save at 290 AD

wuhjah · May 29, 2012

A little action during the IBT. MGM has completely surrounded MGM Set. I can't say what's going to happen there yet. It's not looking too good, though. Miramax has been busy clearing out Soccer Hooligans it appears. They have a substantial army, around 30 characters, littered around the center.
More Coffins have unearthed. Inside, outside, everywhere. That problem's going to get worse before it gets better.
As much as it pains me, we're going to have to go straight to Bandits and get our UU. For me, it's too early for a GA; I would have preferred to have at least one and a half territories under Tristar control before initiating a GA. But, without it, I don't know how to hold back MGM. Those Daemons are just too strong.

We've gone into negative earning, but we'll get Bandits in four turns. I just checked around to make sure we couldn't get it earlier. Two Studios have V for Vendetta; the others are equal to or behind us. As leader, I made an executive decision to throw the Pixels a bone. I gave them Frosty the Snowman as it's a previous era, non-required script. Maybe they'll remember us if they bounce back, maybe that move will come back to haunt us. I like maybes in my game.
We have another Studio truck. The plan earlier was to send it up to the front. But, I can't even guarantee we will hold TS Props, so it will stay back and start basic production. Troops have been moved up, TS Props should be safe for a turn or two. I have two Coffins and a Tut's Brain in MGM territory which hopefully will draw the attention of a few attackers.

Spoiler :

MGM is doing well despite the trouble we've given them. We lost a few characters and a few did us proud during their last stand. As for the Coffins in the center of the map, it looks like UA is going to come down to sort them out. We'll continue on.

Spoiler :

MGM has continued their attack, but lost four Daemons for their effort. It makes Tristars everywhere feel good to see them suffer a bit. During the IBT, I even started considering negotiating for peace, but we'll hold off on that idea a while longer. I didn't start this invasion looking for peace...
We captured one worker back near TS Props. (Nothing really different worth seeing.)

I had planned to give MGM Special FX another work-over as it looked like it just had one defender or two, but MGM fortified it with more characters during the IBT. Flynts and Coffins continue their assault on MGM Set. Their Titans Gladius have been busying themselves destroying all props around it. As well, like a fool, I lost another worker. We killed a few of their characters and re-based a few more in for defense. Next turn we'll have Bandits and I'll note our UU.
I checked with our Character Development Advisor and the report seems fine. We're average compared to MGM. I also checked with our Foreign Markets Advisor and there are just two wars currently, ours and WB is fighting Paramount. Paramount did ask for an alliance during the IBT, but I told them to stick it.

Spoiler :

We lost our only Arch Angel and a Coffin in the fray around MGM Set, but they lost more. We have just finished Bandits and before I discuss Tristar's unique character, we need to decide what to research. Checking with our Scripts Advisor, I see I've possibly made a mistake in the mod, not the game. I'll explain as it comes up. Our choices of scripts include The Pick of Destiny and Jay and Silent Bob strike back. Both of these offer wonders, but are non-choices at the moment. We don't need wonders, we need strong characters and money and scripts. More choices include King Kong and Bee Movie. Both would help us and lead us to the strongest defender of the second era which is Cujo. Furthermore, there are American Psycho, V for Vendetta and Batman. Here is where the problem lies. Batman should give us a second Forbidden City type building but, in fact, we haven't built any Forbidden Movie Sets nor have we had the opportunity. The problem is, apparently, after my last full test game I changed the number of optimal cities to some ridiculously high number to decrease corruption when controlling multiple territories. The upside of all this is our corruption has been low. The downside is any building designed to reduce corruption is useless. I'll think about that as the game progresses.

In the end, I already know that we are going to read American Psycho because I like American Psycho, Patrick Bateman and Christian Bale, and I think maybe we can trade it later. The other Studios already have V for Vendetta so that would be a waste of time now. Getting things like King Kong wouldn't help us enough at this moment. Again, that isn't to say those scripts aren't worth reading. We just need some firepower to get back in this fight.
We've lost four characters (make that five now; I give up this turn) to this crummy Coffin fortified on the mountain, but it's past time to get him out of here. It has already pillaged our road and I've let it linger long enough. Hate to lose those units though. The real bad news is that as soon as we kill him, undoubtedly another will be unearthed.

Spoiler :

No good news to report here. LGF has joined their cause, so we'll also try enlist the help of others. If LGF is serious about attacking, I will probably have to withdraw us from this fight. I don't know what Touchstone is thinking, but they unearthed a Coffin on us.
Here is our Unique Character, the Drunk. (Originally, he was supposed to be from Killing Zoe, a Foreign Distribution script, but my civ bud said he wanted a UU that came about around banking and thus the Drunk showed up in Bandits.) I don't really want to do this now, but as things are looking, I'm not sure there is another way.
Another note, Miramax has another Studio truck in the center of the map.
It may be a huge mistake, but I'm gonna unload Bandits for BEE Movie, V for Vendetta and some gold. We need to get a jump up from where we are. Additionally, I went soliciting help in an alliance against LGF and was laughed at. By everyone. I then traded BEE Movie to Touchstone for Jay and Silent Bob.
Well, I was wrong. I didn't check with everyone as we've found a willing party. However, being as they are already at war with Warner Bros., I'm not so sure how effective they'll be...

Spoiler :

Save 410 AD

wuhjah · May 29, 2012

Looking around before hitting the button I found one thing and wanted to mention another thing I realized earlier. What I realized was that I was making some decisions without considering all the implications. Sorry (to my) team; I regret it considerably. In my haste to cover ground in the script race, and in my accepting V for Vendetta in trade, I obsoleted our Shooting on Location: Hawaii. A shame, but not game ending. We could have hung on to that a bit longer and taken advantage of the clean up crew. Those Camels were great for picking off the wounded as they fled. What this really means to me is that I need to be careful, because if I had lost the Necropolis in such a way, it would be devastating. We cannot accept or research Angels and Demons until left with no other options.
What I saw looking around was...a Black Dragon. (believe it or not, it's actually my first time seeing it in real action, as I had mixed-up the required resources in my test games rendering it unbuildable.) To be more clear, I uncovered it as we just killed the enemy character above it in the stack. It's here though, and I wish we had it rather than the enemy.

Lots to report from the IBT. NLC declared war on UA and this might be when the Cinemod really picks up. We'll see...
MGM is still sending wave after wave to take back MGM Set, but as it stands they are losing more characters than they are killing. Our Arch Angel with faith did slay the Daemon. Unfortunately, no conversions as of yet. However, MGM has done a more than effective job pillaging nearly all the props (roads/improvements) around the set reducing our on-set production capabilities.
LGF has turned their troops toward us. They are mostly SkullChuckers and John Kimbles, so I'm not too worried about them right now. As well, MGM has enlisted the help of the Pixels in their crusade against us. Effin Pixels. I shouldn't have given them that script. Anyway, I'm far from worried as they still haven't produced one visible character.
Oh, and more Coffins have unearthed in and around our territory only making me regret my mistake more... New resources of Apples and Peanut M&M's have shown up on the map. M&M's are a luxury and a prerequisite for some later game characters. Apples will allow us to build an Orchard increasing production.
Lastly, Miramax has moved yet another Studio truck to the clearing. That's not good news.

I sent a Heavy Crossbow to get a sneak-preview and saw that we'll probably need at least ten characters to give a go at MGM Special FX. We couldn't bring him back and he gave his life for the mission. We'll have to give his family a plaque noting his honor in the line of duty...or something like that.
I have unearthed one of our Coffins in LGF territory to spy and cause a little trouble. Two can play at that game.
As well, I have taken care of some routine business. We have pushed the LGF SkullChuckers back sending a few to the boneyard, and we have reinforced the front. We are building the small wonder The Bee Garden in TS Backlot. That should replace our lost SOL: Hawaii. The troops are taking too long to build, at two and three turns minimum each. I fear that at that pace, the best we could ever do is maintain our present situation and not advance. We will be sending the Drunk just as soon as he finishes this last bottle and when the right opportunity presents itself.

Spoiler :

The IBT update:
Someone in the Domestic DC, I don't know who or how, unearthed a Coffin in the MGM Set territory. MGM didn't like that one bit and killed it. You can tell which Distribution Channel a Coffin belongs to by its color, Black or Stone. Miramax, on the other side of MGM, is in the FDC so I don't know who could have done it. Speaking of Coffins, three more showed up in our territory. I'll have to divert some troops to handle them as a trio of Coffins could do untold amounts of pillaging if left alone. NLC lost a Studio truck to UA and UA sent one of their own to the middle. It's gonna start filling up and soon there will be no room left to build...
20th CF is moving over our way, but I don't know why. We'll have to check things out. LGF took a few of ours and brought a Dino to the game. Didn't we pay someone to work on this problem? I also can't remember if we have worked on the Vatican Armory, so that needs to be checked. (I remembered when someone dropped a Holy Hand Grenade on us.) Had a really nice unit combat. The Daemon swooped in for the first strike only to have a Yellow Sack Spider spit its venomous bile into the Daemon's face. That Daemon fell.

During the IBT there was a lot of action everywhere. UA and NLC are doing what they are supposed to. Our Arch Angel has converted a sinner, unfortunately becoming a martyr in the process. More Coffins everywhere. What a pain, right?
20th CF has backed up a little, it seems they're just hunting non-nationality characters. Also, there is a stack of Assassins in the center.

After looking about, I realized we need a Cathedral in a movie set before we can build the Vatican Amory. We'll get to it when we can. UA has one more movie script than us and Paramount has the same as we do. The Foreign DC is no doubt faster than us.

We have a Studio truck, which will be moved up slowly. We certainly have a place for it, but those Coffins are a threat. As well, I would like it out near the front line, but the risk of losing it is still high. Some Drunks have been seen stumbling and staggering their way to the front line to engage LGF. We've cleaned up a few of their characters, but more importantly, those two Coffins near TS Wardrobe are causing trouble. I have unearthed a Coffin in Paramount territory to get the lay of the land. I must admit it was actually a mistake. I had wanted to punish the Pixels, but momentarily forgot who we were at war with. Either way, we'll reap some benefit. Our CDA (Character Development Advisor) has informed us we are still average compared to MGM and "like Rocky" compared to LGF. Some good news there.

Spoiler :

Save 470 AD

wuhjah · May 30, 2012

Places everyone...

During the turn, nothing extraordinary to mention. Attacks on the right, front, and interior, but we held our ground and lost few characters. Again, more Coffins have unearthed inside, near TS Stunts. There is quite a stack of them now. We just finished American Psycho and after connecting salt peter, we should be able to build Patrick Bateman. Now, we will research Harry Potter because 1. We can get another character-producing small wonder and 2. Dumbledore. Paramount made quick work of our Coffin in their territory.

MGM has around 20 characters ready to go and probably more waiting in the wing. That's enough to put us in trouble, so this is going to come down to a few old Brains. What it also means to me is that the front line of MGM is probably not that strongly defended. We'll probe and look, perhaps to again attack both ways while their attention is divided.
A Coffin has been unearthed in Pixar territory. Half of our actors have been fortified until I can think about them better and until the movie sets grow a little. The Studio truck has moved up one movie set closer towards the center. Some might say I have a choice, but I feel I don't have a choice. Without a GA to kick-start our production, I don't think we're gonna pull out of this on top in the long run. With that in mind, we’re ready to send a Drunk to puke on one of LGF's weaker characters. No use in crying now; it's done.

Spoiler :

We held on one more turn, but lost a lot of characters at MGM Set. Worse yet, Touchstone Pictures has joined the alliance against us. Momentarily, we too will go looking to buy more friends. The Bee Garden has been planted and a few turns later we'll have us a Swarm. I'm now going to go back and build a few props as we can. We could use Marketplaces, Royal Academies and a few banks, I think. Our Drunks defended quite well and definitely gave a few enemies the what for.

I don't feel good about it, but I'm going to give UA American Psycho and 150 pieces of gold to declare war on Touchstone. It may be a waste and I'd rather keep that script for us for a while, but we have enough to do with LGF and MGM right now. Pixar is still against us but not a threat at the moment. The Web is becoming entangled, and unfortunately this time we're in the center.

Spoiler :

I'm not happy to report that while we didn't give up MGM Set this turn, it does seem inevitable. We have one Anaconda on the set. Every other character has given its life for our studio. We won't get another chance like that. Many characters can rebase; very few can airdrop. If we are to continue this, it will have to be through the front...
I abandoned MGM Set as I didn't see it staying in our hands. I would rather make them use another Studio truck, which they probably have a few stocked up, than just let them take control. If we can't have it, no one will. Our Frosty the Snowmen, 4, have been upgraded to Patrick Batemen. And, plan B is to shove those chainsaws straight down their throat. If that doesn't work, then maybe then we’ll have to consider negotiating a peace treaty.

Spoiler :

I was eating a few pieces of pizza leftover from dinner, so I don't remember everything that happened during the IBT. (By the way, I realize IBT is probably not a noun to be used this way, but in Hollywood anything can happen.) I can say that not too much went down. Here is a visual display. The Pixels of Pixar got a little help from Pele and they tried to kick in our Coffin. Not today, Buddy. Where are these Coffins coming from? We get one per turn but it seems like they get more... I know that's not true, but, man, they just don't stop.

There was a lot of wandering around by the various studios in the center. A big stack of Crocs has been shuffling back and forth, seemingly going nowhere. Moving our Coffin into a more defensive position revealed the first Gyorg, terror of Sea Monsters everywhere. We will finish Harry Potter on this turn and soon look at what we might read next.

Spoiler :

First, some interesting news. Those three Coffins in our territory (last turn picture) were actually from different studios and began fighting amongst themselves. That'll make it a little easier for us to finish them off. We did eventually lose our Coffin in Pixar territory. Valiantly, it eliminated three Soccer Hooligans before succumbing to the brutal goal kicks of the fourth. UA and NLC continue to waste time playing with each other, trading a troop or two, and making no real progress.

This should be interesting. Here, Touchstone has a Studio truck and is blocked in by Miramax. That may turn into something to look at later. We also have a Studio truck now on the front line. I will determine whether to build a set this turn or continue waiting. MGM has continued battling Coffins as well where the old MGM Set was. Perhaps there is a resource buried there.
We didn't waste too much time. TS Makeup has been built. In this picture you can also see a few Columbian Tomb Swarms. They actually airdropped in the turn before last and stayed up near the border, but during the turn they moved onto our road and I don't like that one bit.
Getting Harry Potter allows us to build Hogwarts which will auto-produce Grawp. Our Heavy Crossbows can be upgraded to Dumbledores. Dumbledore is the only character to have true true original Civ III style artillery and old Dumblydore has quite a range. I'll show it off next turn.
All other artillery use the mechanics from CCM which means having high attack and high bombardment but no bombard range; they are flagged as offensive characters. How the SkullChuckers and Heavy crossbows work is the same way artillery will work later in the game. The 3 dollar question is...does the AI use it? Yes, they will bombard from a distance as a defensive tactic. That is, when you get too close they will attack on their turn. However, I think they mostly get Dumbledores from upgrades and don't build them.

Here are our choices of scripts to read. King Kong would give us another character. Cujo would give us a strong defensive character. Jaws would give us a Great White Shark, which is a non- nationality sea terror. Non-choices include POD, Born on the 4th of July, Angels and Demons, and Batman. Of course, the first two aren't required and I believe the AI has already built the associated Great Wonders. Batman can wait and AAD will obsolete our Necropolis as I've mentioned. I just checked with the others and none has Kong or Cujo, so we'll read these, starting with Cujo and look for a trade.

Spoiler :

Save at 560 AD

wuhjah · May 30, 2012

Some news to report from the IBT. Miramax has built another city in the center. They seem to be getting a bit powerful and soon will become a threat to our plans of domination of all the cinemas in the world. LGF negotiated peace with us which we quickly accepted outright (they didn't have anything anyway.) Paramount joined UA and declared on NLC. MGM, in a fit of madness I suppose, declared war on Miramax, but since we are blocking the choke-point I can't see what their plan is. And lastly, those foolhardy Columbians declared on us. I'm not happy as I just thought we were getting out of a secondary conflict. I hope they plan to bring more than a few Tomb Swarms or else they're just looking for some attention. In typical AI style, they immediately pillaged the road.

Let's start by showing them the power of magic. As you can see, Dumbledore has quite the range in which to cast spells. Avada Kedavra! It seemed as if MX had no defender so I sent the Ninja to give a report (and to take it if it were undefended.) And then I remembered characters without nationality cannot do such a thing. Oh well. Crucio! We have started the Vatican Armory in TS Main Studio and it will be done in a quick two turns. In the pic of TS Make-up, you can just see a small stack of CM Tombswarms. The thing is, I almost didn't see them. Their Studio color camouflages very well with the terrain. But, I did see them and now they will suffer. I spent a few hundred to rush a few half-completed marketplaces. That will be the trend in our GA. Let them build a turn or two and rush with some cash while we have it. I checked around our movie sets and there isn't much to improve (as far as roads, mines, and/or irrigation.) I sent a few to start roading some mountains for later.

Spoiler :

During the turn, Paramount and UA expanded their plan and have now declared on Touchstone Pictures. Columbia declared on 20th CF. We produced yet another Coffin and a Domestic Knight (from the Round Table.) I saw a Columbian Studio truck rolling into the middle, so the first plan of action is to take care of that. Also, we will surely beat back the MGM Flynts who have come to fight at TS Props. Don't they not know we have the power of magic now?

A Croc has taken to sitting on our mountain look-out and I don't like that at all... We'll see if we can persuade him to find a better place to stay, perhaps hell? Our Arch Angels tried to reason with those MGM characters who came a knocking, discussing such things as mercy and forgiveness. When that didn't work, they slew every last one. Unfortunately, there were no conversions. We didn't get to eliminate that CM Studio truck, but I think 20th CF has also taken a personal interest in it. We checked around for trades and all they have is Angels and Demons and Born on the 4th. No thanks. We'll end this turn with a map-center update.

Spoiler :

And it continues...
Miramax has been busy moving around reasonably sized stacks of characters. WB and UA aligned and declared on Touchstone and then WB declared on NLC. MGM with Paramount declared on WB only to have Paramount negotiate peace with WB on the same turn. Touchstone fulfilled their destiny and finally declared on Miramax. It's getting hot and heavy, as it always does... MGM came to us to discuss terms for peace, but dammit, they came with that uppity attitude that I've never had a liking for. They said something like, give us all your money and a hefty sum per turn to boot. Needless to say, this war will go on.
We have finished the Vatican Armory where we can access a crate of Holy Hand Grenades. I know it's a pipe dream, but visions of Pierce and Pierce Mergers and Acquisitions dance in my head. I would love to get into the game of high finance.
Indeed, 20th CF finished off the Columbian Studio truck. I think Columbia will be a bit preoccupied and therefore, we can focus our attention back on MGM. And, for the first time, no new Coffins have unearthed in our territory.

We have recovered our mountain look-out, good news there. Some minor troop movements for us; we will continue to put a Coffin or Croc into MGM territory just to get under their skin.

Spoiler :

Constant fighting on every side of the map. Luckily, we're just spectators in most of it. Miramax continues. NLC took a UA Studio truck and made it to the front gate of UA but were held fast by UA defenders. Columbia decided they wanted a little more action and declared on Paramount Pictures. We finished Hogwarts and will get a few dumb giants (Grawp) for our trouble.

We finished reading Cujo, and in time we will upgrade all our Titans Thunder characters. I decided to skip King Kong and read it next; now, we'll read Jaws and get some naval characters to open the map. We also built TS Actor's Trailer in our territory bringing our sets (in our territory) to 16. I'm sure with tighter spacing, one could fit a few more, but 16 is about right for me. And, a view of the Miramax convoy. Before hitting the turn button, I went back and checked on the upgrades. We can do the whole lot for the low low price of 58 pieces of gold; a sucker for bargains is me. Finally, we sent a few Arch Angels to test the water and see how MGM responds.

Spoiler :

wuhjah · May 30, 2012

Quite a few notes to go over from this turn. Pixar and UA have signed an alliance and declared on Touchstone. Is Pixar even in the picture (business?) I haven't seen even one Pixel Character on the map, except when we had a Coffin doing recon in their territory. The two main wars continued with UA and NLC playing grab-ass and 20th CF and Columbia doing it the way respectable studios should. Columbia suffered heavy casualties and even dared to send some wounded into our territory. We will give them no parole nor quarter.
20th CF took another Columbian truck. Ooh, that must hurt. Our Ninja that had been fortified between Touchstone and Miramax is now under fire. We won't be able to extract him, but he understands that. NLC and MGM aligned to declare on Miramax. MGM is doing a lot of declaring locked behind us... MGM did respond to our troop movement by taking them all, but not before we converted one Prophet. 20th CF finished the Pierce and Pierce M&A and while that doesn't affect us, it can give us an idea that a studio in our line could also be near finishing. We started it and it will take nine turns. We'll see what happens...

On the next turn, it went like this. MGM and UA have now aligned together against Touchstone. These studios just don't give an eff; the will declare on anyone, anytime, for any reason. UA lost UA Special FX and then took it back. NLC also aligned with 20th CF against Columbia. No complaints there, except I don't see NLC doing a whole lot of anything to anyone as long as UA is there. Columbia lost yet another Studio truck. What are they thinking...that Studio trucks grow on trees? Pixar, known only by name, also declared on Miramax. MGM took a Drunk, but otherwise didn't hurt us. We'll start sending more. I have no doubt we'll lose some, but it's the numbers game. And, finally, on the IBT we produced our first HHGrenade.

We didn't do too much. Moved some troops, checked the movie sets, and sent more characters for MGM to square off against. I have been moving the Crocs and Coffins in MGM territory around to give them something to chase. Our Dumbledores spend every turn casting a few spells to keep MGM on their toes. Confringo! As the defenders get hit and rotate, it helps to have an idea about how many they have.

Spoiler :

Most things stayed within the status quo this turn. Everyone continued on their own path. Miramax, airdropped a Tomb Swarm (and Coffins) into MGM territory which is good for us as now MGM cannot send all their troops our way. Miramax has sent a troupe of Dragons to defend the MX Animation Dept., but actually almost lost it. Touchstone sent a team of Anacondas and exacted heavy damages. I'm happy to see Miramax will be slowed down a little. NLC finally built a set in the center, so at least they are maintaining stability. We tidied up the place, moved a few units towards MGM but no big changes. A view of the center.
I plan to save after the next turn, but I wanted to finish Jaws first.

Spoiler :

It was a busy turn in the Cinemod, and a dreadful one, I'm sure, for Miramax. MX lost MX Props to NLC, which at first I didn't think was a huge concern for them. Then Touchstone found the weak side and moved in to take the MX Animation Dept. Ha! Miramax overshot with all those Dragons and should have just left them to defend the movie set. I have no doubt they will take it back, but it always sucks to lose a set. Incidentally, Mx told us to get out as now our airfield has fallen into their expanded border. We'll bring ol' Tut's Brain home and upgrade him.
LGF feels like a-fightin’! LGF aligned with 20th CF and UA against Paramount; nothing like a little three-on-one. LGF also made a deal with Touchstone against Pixar. Finally, in the world of politics, Touchstone and 20th CF agreed to do a double whammy on Columbia. 20th Century Fox has completed the Pirate Map (Great Wonder) which means they are waaay ahead of us. MGM sent a few, lost a few, and sent a few more on which we will vent our aggression. We lost one Drunk (I think.)

I know I said we'd read King Kong, but now I can't resist reading Popeye. Who can't resist him? Ugh ghugh ghugh...
The Pirate map comes from Pirates of the Caribbean and ain't such a bad idea, because sending naval characters, even with their extended movement, around the Cinemod map can sometimes take quite a few turns. We can (and will) make a trade or two. I still don't want A&D until we have no choice. We'll get Batman and some change for Cujo from Paramount. UA gave us 550 more gold for Cujo. While I'd like to trade off some of these resources, we won't take the risk of some rogue agent pillaging the road and thus ending the trade. A few scripts later we'll have Airplane allowing aiports allowing air trade. See how that works?

Checking with the Character Development Advisor, we find out that when compared to MGM we are like "Rocky!" That gets my blood up and we'll keep wearing them down before attempting to take a few sets. We are building the stack of Coffins and Crocs here in MGM territory. Each addition to the dog-pile makes success (for MGM) exponentially more difficult. Coffins fortified on mountains are no joke, especially when one’s enemy is using defenders to attack. And especially when Dumbledore casts spells on them from a distance. Expulso!
We converted one Larry Flynt on the front lines and sent the rest to hell. The Prophet has moved on to the Black Dragon. Finally, I noticed we had a few unhappy members of our staff and turned the luxury slider up one notch.

Spoiler :

Save at 670 AD

wuhjah · May 31, 2012

More than once I have tried to get a screenshot of combat during the IBT, but the combatants can never be seen in the pic; it's like they're invisible. So, no screenshots now of the Cobra vs. Anaconda battle that went down. Also during the turn, the politics continued. These AI should spend more time building and fighting and less time talking. LGF and 20th CF aligned against Touchstone and 20th CF also found a tag-team partner with UA against Touchstone. Likewise, LGF joined NLC in their cause against Pixar. In brighter news, Columbia deigned to give us 50 big ones to call it off. Miramax, the studio to watch, took back MX Animation Dept. from Touchstone, but nearly lost it again. Due to Miramaxs attention being divided, NLC strengthened their hold on MX Props.

Lol at that Drunk. :cheers:

He's so drunk that he dropped a bottle into the sea and it rolled...
A little tidying up in our territory. Not too much to do, but we can watch the action around TS Props. We did lose a few but took a few more. We've been building some props in the sets, but may have to stop for two or three turns to get a little boost in the troop count and maybe tip the balance definitively in our favor.

Spoiler :

The last IBT was rather common, like those preceding it. The skirmishes to watch are between 20th CF and Columbia, Touchstone and Miramax, and NLC against UA. Others are doing little. More declarations and alliances. Warner Bros. joined Paramount against LGF and LGF countered by enlisting 20th CF to help fight the WB. We lost an actor fortified by the MX-Paramount fight, and if we lose the Ninja we will lose visibility. MGM clashed with our characters out in the open but didn't make contact with our set. They earned a leader, but he's out in the open and we will soon strip him of his rank. Reconnaissance photos show that, in fact, Clark Gable has stepped in to raise MGM morale. Anyway, I once read that he had wooden teeth. The way I see it, that alone is enough reason to kill him.

Careless! Twice now, thinking I was casting spells with Dumbledore I have launched a Swarm of Killer Bees. They did enough damage, but using them instead to finish off characters (rather than initial hits) is getting maximum value in my opinion.
Here is a quick view of Jaws before he is released to the sea. We will build a few to explore the map and hopefully build a few more to use as lookouts. Jaws has no nationality though, so that means the AI like to target them with whatever CM (cruise missile) type character they have lying around.
Slowly and methodically our characters have been working in tandem to recover this launchpad. This HHGrenade should be the final push allowing the Coffins and Crocs to move into position. Get out the banner and the aircraft carrier: Mission Accomplished!

Spoiler :

More alliances and declarations, but I elected not to take notes. At the rate these studios have gone to war, I can't believe there's anyone left to declare war on. Touchstone humbled themselves to give us 50 smackers to halt the onslaught (Wait a minute. We never made contact with them, not one time...) and then they proceeded to assassinate our Ninja. LGF thought it would be funny if they used two HHGrenades to sink our Jaws after only one turn at sea... Someday they'll pay for that. 20th CF has started a GA. I didn't see anything, but I heard their UU's distinct sound when running. Finally, through auto-production, we gained a Studio truck (which is headed to the front to wait) and about four other characters.
-no pic

Good dog! Cujo bit two MGM characters and sent them packing. No others even tried.
Wow, the comeback of the game (so far.) Pixar has taken over MX Wardrobe. Looks like things aren't looking so good for Miramax. Can they turn it around?

Let's take a look at our scripts and characters.
We still have King Kong, Angels and Demons, Airplane and those non-required scripts. The non-reqs aren't going to happen this game. I might have liked to have them if we were leading earlier or not knee deep in it right now. We are going to read Airplane as I think that might break MGM (though, I guarantee they will first respond in the same manner.) I'm pretty sure we could get A&D and maybe Kong at the last possible moment in trade. I think we're at least a script or two ahead of some others in our Distribution line.
So, we just finished Popeye and with that can audition, what else but, Popeye. Let's compare him to Patrick Bateman, who we already have and are using effectively. Bateman is better in nearly every aspect than Popeye, so why use Popeye? Because he's fun. Yes, chainsaws are nice, but when is the last time you watched a good ol' fashioned bar room brawl? Two more turns for Pierce and Pierce M&A (Smith's Trading Co.,) will anyone beat us to it?

Spoiler :

save 680 AD

wuhjah · May 31, 2012

It was an eventful IBT. Wow. Pixar is making the journey to bring it to Miramax. You know, I was just updating the story on the website (now, playing and taking notes.) Many turns ago when building the embassy, I thought Miramax was behind, but could come on stronger later. And then they did, but did they come on too strong too fast? What about Pixar hanging back forever and then coming out like this? Wow.
Finally, some peace in the middle east. Paramount and NLC negotiated a peace deal. At the same time NLC lost their Animation Dept. to United Artists. Touchstone and WB also declared peace. LGF is kicking it and took over CM Animation Dept. LGF again destroyed our Jaws right out of the blocks. (What did we learn from that?) MGM also dropped a Holy Hand Grenade on our launchpad, but essentially did nothing. They advanced what looked like two troops to the front and took two of our troops in the fray near MGM Special FX. <insert preferred curse word here 3x> UA just finished Pierce and Pierce while I was moving through the sets. We had one more turn. Just one.

I just had to change production from P&P to an orchard and lost 148 shields. My own fault, I guess. The lemonade is that the orchard will increase shield production in the capitol by 25 percent for as long as we have apples. In the Cinemod, most bonus resources that are requirements for props were turned into strategic resources resulting in resources disappearing from time to time. The resource must be inside the set/city limits.
I love seeing Cujo run. Here are a few Jaws, despite LGF's best efforts... They'll just roam as mentioned earlier. There's no real point to try to send them into the channels to be look-outs. They will just get bombed into chum.

Spoiler :

Now WB is making the trek to bring some pain to Miramax. “Outta the way, Dopey!” 20th CF is running around. A Grawp beat down a Dino and it was great. Then a red-lined Grawp lost to a Foreign Coffin, too funny. By the way, Foreign Coffins are black and have Vuldacon's Mortician fidget and Mortician Victory. The Domestic Channel has Stone Coffins without the Mortician. We lost four characters, all stinkin' Drunks, but MGM suffered heavy damage on each of their attacking characters.

Look at the two Dumbledores just watching and shaking their heads as they watch the Drunk walk.

Spoiler :

Miramax took back MX Props and then quickly negotiated a peace deal with NLC. They seem to be at war with Touchstone. I can't see anything, except Miramax troops running that way. MGM enlisted the help of NLC to declare war against Us! LGF is already into the next era; one can tell by their updated actors. They are still defending CM Animation Dept from Columbia. As far as fighting MGM, they take a few from us, and I have no doubt they use the re-base capability as after casting spells on their cast(bombarding) they come back with new fresh characters, different characters.

Spoiler :

They're back to their old ways. This IBT went something like...
MGM and WB negotiated peace while UA and 20th CF aligned against WB. Paramount Pictures got themselves into three deals. They were with MGM against LFG, with NLC against Touchstone and with NLC against LGF. We lost too many characters this last turn, so we need to make MGM divide their troops. We'll do that by threatening a movie set in the rear.

In the rear of MGM territory, I moved two Coffins to more open locations and started moving a small stack towards MGM Stunts. We have about 11 characters near MGM Special FX. I don't think they have twelve, but they have enough to wear us down and regain their strength since we are in their territory. It's tough going right now. Here is our script situation. We could go for the non-reqs, but we won't. That leaves King Kong or A&D. I checked around with the other studios and most have A&D, but not one seemed to have the Kong. So, we'll read that and look to trade it.

Spoiler :

Typical stuff during the IBT, I'll report a bit of the significant stuff for you.
Touchstone and Miramax agreed to peace which is not exactly good news for us. If Miramax needs somebody to use those characters on, they could start looking at us. WB and NLC declared peace. UA and Touchstone also negotiated a peace deal. 20th CF and UA decided they didn't like NLC and declared. That is good for us as NLC will probably be too busy to ever worry about us. Pixar joined 20th CF in their crusade against Columbia. I believe Pixar, among a host of others, needs to have an eye kept on... Anyone of them could suddenly turn on us and draw us away from our focus on MGM. I'll be honest and admit I made a mistake. I really thought we were getting airports with Airplane. I was wrong; we'll get them next era with Up! That means we will have to wait a while longer before we can trade resources with other Movie Studios (via air.) For us, it was business as usual.

Spoiler :

wuhjah · May 31, 2012

20th Century Fox declared war on both Miramax and us. I hope Miramax can occupy them for a while. MGM broke through our stack and took an actor. It's okay, now we'll fight on our turf for a while.

Yeah Baby! Letz go drop some Bombz. I took the idea from Anthony Boscia's WorldWide to let the planes have multiple moves. That is, you can rebase or recon after a bombing run or just rebase before bombing. (Recon on the first move will use all moves.) We have our line down at the bottom of MGM territory. Hopefully, we'll take that next turn. Last turn I meant to say Popeye is awesome, but I forgot. This turn it was like he had a glass jaw. It's alright; I still really like Popeye with his punchin' and kickin'. I set all of our Dumbledores, some at the rear, middle and front, to auto-spell cast and it's great when they go off...

Spoiler :

UA and NLC are funny. Just like MGM and us, they've been at it this whole time. WB declared on us. The AI looovveeesss those Larry Flynts and Ron Kovics.

Spoiler :

We are going to build some Muromets to complement our small fleet of Airplanes. I made the stupid Killer Bee Swarm mistake again... We just fortified a Studio truck in the capitol and we do have another up near the front line.
Word has just come in that we have taken control of MGM stunts. As a reminder, any time we take a set, especially from the other distribution line, we need to get a SAG in there to receive troops via re-basing. Since it's also our barracks, it's, in my opinion, a must have. And, to be absolutely honest, one must remember that this tactic was initially just to divert their attention. Right now, we definitely don't have enough troops there to hold MGM Stunts if they seriously try to take it back. So now, of course, I will start sending more troops to that launch pad and to MGM Stunts when the SAG is complete. In this picture you can see their Technicolor era actors, and you can see their Cujos surrounding our Coffin.

Spoiler :

Grawp beat up our Brain, so we lost eyes over there. Of course, there's action all around. Much of the same as before, so I won’t go on about it. Here you can see the Great Wonder Art of War for Dummies. All you get from this wonder is a SAG or an IAA, which you should already have...but the AI likes to build it. (Miramax) You're welcome for the road... In this picture you can also see the Cinemod special Camera tower. I know it's a bit cheezy, but I thought why have a radar tower when you can have a camera...
We just got Angels and Demons for Harry Potter from Touchstone. Actually, I don't want to give King Kong away now. Paramount gave us 850 pieces of gold for Potter. Consequently, we're going to trade our way out of this era right alongside UA.

Spoiler :

Trading out caused us to miss the era changing screen, which is a small shame. Lots of peace deals were made. UA embargoed us with 20th CF. Who cares?
We can build both Airplanes and Muromets. They have the same stats IIRC, just different styles/looks to give more choices. The real fact of the matter is that I like them both (as well as the Caproni for Foreign Dist.) so they went in the mod. Dumbledore used the Reducto curse to destroy the IAA, along with the Harbor, gate, etc. He went a little auto-curse crazy. Anyway, there will be no more re-basing for them. MGM will have to walk them up.
We were warned about the Coffins and four weeks later they've come alive to satisfy their hunger for flesh. (Interestingly enough, when I first took the picture, the Zombie was invisible. I moved the Ninja into range and now we can see the Zombie in the picture. Perhaps it’s akin to vampires and mirrors or something.)
If anyone has wondered whether we have even gotten one leader, the answer is no. If anyone has ever wondered why I don't build things like Dragons, it's because we can't, just as the Foreign Distribution Companies cannot build Dumbledore.

And, I'll leave you with one last thing to think about as we save. Here are the scripts for the new era. While you consider what we should research, I just found out that UA is even with us, that is researching the first script in the era and everyone else in our Distribution line is behind. We just sold Airplane to Paramount for 850 pieces of gold, but they still needed Kong and Pirates of the Caribbean to advance.

Spoiler :

save 770 AD

wuhjah · Jun 1, 2012

Quiet on the set...

So, did you decide which script to read? Well, I have some information that may or may not influence that decision. First is, in the Technicolor era, there is a small change. Many "alternate" units now require a resource to be built, we do need to get into the resource trading business. Right off the bat, I can tell you we should have Sticky Icky, LV Purses, Sugar... As well, we want railroads, of course, so that means we must work toward Trainspotting which requires both Up in Smoke and Sucker Punch. The AI always reads Kung Fu Panda first to get the products of nationalism. I think I had planned on Up in Smoke, but believe it or not, writing this I just talked myself into Up. We need airports to get trading... One more note, IIRC Kung Fu Panda and other beginning scripts of this era are all able to be traded between both Distribution channels so we'll have more outlets to look for them. (But, just like in a regular Conquests game, the AI always wants a lot of gold for KFP.)
And now I push the button.

As the turn ended, I wondered why we couldn't build Universities...did I forget to add them to the BIQ? But I had them last game... So, after a quick check of the Civolopedia, I found out we need Davinci Code (a non-required script,) and will try to trade for it when it's available. It doesn't matter too much now, anyway, as we are in Monarchy and can build the Domestic Academy of Arts to increase our script reading. One more script related thought, I really would like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea for the Nautilus.

The only significant thing during the IBT was 20th CF has taken to bombing TS Props and made two runs at us with an Airplane and a Caproni. I just tried to make contact with them and they told us to "Buzz off!" So, likewise, we'll be sending some bombers their way. Buzz off... who do they think they're talking to? Their actions may be related to the fact that they just signed a peace accord with Columbia. Furthermore, we knew the time would come and it did. The critics informed me our Golden Age has ended.

I just tried to make contact with WB and, again, was told to "Buzz off!" To be able to discuss adult matters, we had to build an embassy in Pixar. They aren't looking too good. I then checked to see whether they were actively engaged in a war. It turns out they were already at war with Warner Bros., and have an alliance with 20th CF against WB; so no real help there. Let's see...How about I put you on the list for ass-kickins? UA has 20,000 leagues, but wanted more than 2000 pieces of gold. I don't think so. Perhaps we'll trade some resources for it in a few turns.

Spoiler :

20th CF is still making runs, but not doing any damage. I was going to say that Miramax was doing a good job of handling 20th CF, but CF just enlisted UA's help against Miramax. I don't know how long they can take on everybody at the same time. I did just notice that MX has been expanding. They dropped in MX Dressing room impeding the Pixels' movement. You know, it's nice to watch Patrick Bateman go to work.

Many of the characters are too expensive now that the GA is over (They're taking three turns to build and that's too long right now.) So, we are back to auditioning for the role of the Drunk. We just destroyed CF Animation Dept.'s IAA on the first bombing run. Fantastic. So, maybe someone out there wonders, if your We Love Movies Day celebrations use surface to air rockets, doesn't that create a problem? Here's the thing. In Cinemod, when we celebrate, we CELEBRATE! Considering no one can build SAMs yet, there shouldn't really be any confusion. Later, when one does have SAMs, if you hit a plane, you'll know it...
It was a comedic round of fighting for us. Lol at that Drunk when he wins... And seeing Popeye knock out a guy in a wheelchair makes my day better. Am I the only one who, after having an artillery bombardment fail, superstitiously moves the cross-hairs just slightly to another location on the target thinking this will influence the probability of success? Final shot of the round shows the center is getting packed and the sea in our mini-map is becoming clear from the efforts of our Jaws.

Spoiler :

Not too much during the IBT. Just Paramount talking this nonsense and 20th CF has continued the bombing raids. That much is to be expected and will continue, I suppose, until we take care of it. You can see MGM is building roads as we destroyed them to slow their understudies from coming. In the end, it paid off and we finally took back MGM Special FX. I think we'll be able to hold it and begin to work from both sides (front and rear.) In all this time, not one MGM character has made their way back to try and take back MGM Stunts. We'll continue to build props along with characters and cash rush the props after a few turns of building. We have lots of unhappy folk in our sets, but they'll have to wait a few more turns until we can trade luxuries.

Spoiler :

wuhjah · Jun 1, 2012

So, those dummies LGF wanna have a go? Alright...
Miramax has fought bravely and asked for 5 pieces of gold to exchange territory maps. We agreed. Of all the others, I wouldn't mind having a MPP with Miramax; if they can keep it up, that is. Apparently, 20th CF bombed out our SAG and we just had to rebuild it. Around the map there are small skirmishes as usual.

Spoiler :

During the IBT, the Joker killed two of our characters. LGF has further enlisted help in their quest to destroy us. As well, others have agreed to embargo us reducing our avenues of trade. I saw the first Pos running around; they were characters of 20th CF. 20th CF sent quite a few Airplanes killing citizens and injuring characters... Our people want a Doppler Weather Station small wonder. Believe it or not, I even forgot about this wonder. It will auto-produce Tornadoes or Wind characters.

The DWS will take us three turns and an airport will take two. Looking for trades, I see this. I don't know how they do it... We're going to take this deal from UA and see what else is out there. While looking I made a suggestion to NLC that we end this senseless war and they agreed. So, of the studios we can trade with, half have nothing and I guess we'll go back to Touchstone to see what they'll give for Up. They trade Up in Smoke and 50 pieces of gold for Up, so we're almost on par with everyone again. KFP has allowed us to see coal and Up has allowed us to see rubber. We're trying to hit MGM hard and break their back. We have characters attacking at the front, middle, and rear. Once it happens, they shouldn't be too difficult to finish off...
We just air-dropped a Zombie (still named Coffin) onto their supply of iron. If they don't take care of him in the IBT, goodbye iron. I have been trying to use our elite characters to catch a leader, but nothing yet.

Spoiler :

During the IBT, 20th CF continued to hammer us and destroyed our Pest Control (a prop from Arachnophobia which increased shield production) and our Marketplace. Moreover they arranged to have UA declare on us as well. Pixar traded territory maps with us. NLC and UA are still going at it. Haha. Nothing has changed between them. WB suggested we call a truce and I agreed. MGM did beat our Zombie with a Grawp, but it was almost too close to call. The Zombie lost his head in the end.

It didn't really matter as we just bombed the Grawp and the props. Presto Chango iron gone. You may have already noticed it, but I was waiting to show it off. Here we have a Ghost Ship for transporting lost souls and the HMS Endeavor. Though, truthfully, we don't really need either right now. We also have produced another Studio truck and it will be moved up to the front to wait. Our Popeye cold-cocked a red-lined Cujo and knocked him out with one swing. I love it. We've found a Lara Croft. Soon, she too will die. Not only will Popeye hit a lady, he will kick her in the teeth too. As much as I want to finish taking MGM Production, I have to save as I have a few things to do today. As a final move, I gave Up to Miramax (for free) in hopes they too would build an airport facilitating a luxury trade. So we stop here with a look at the middle map and the back of MGM territory.

Spoiler :

Save at 830 AD

wuhjah · Jun 1, 2012

During the IBT, LGF made a push with their units. We will have to deal with them, along with 20th CF. To make that matter worse LGF just declared peace with Columbia to more focus their effort on us. MGM took around three units on the front line. They will lose more than that in this exchange.

Finally, our first leader. In Cinemod, a leader, aside from rushing a prop, can build a Battle Suit. A Battle Suit can only be worn by one character at a time, but can be worn by two after the Pentagon is built. (Imagine a Chinese dancing Dragon suit where one person is the head/front and the other moves the back of the body.) We treated Lara Croft the same way we would treat any character, mercilessly. All five of her. We just took MGM Pre-Production and stole 801 gold from their coffers. Continuing on our roll, we inflicted some damage on both LGF and 20th CF, destroying one of CF's Capronis. I'm going to make the deal with Miramax, but I don't understand why we don't have any luxuries to trade. I need to check on that.
For now, I can only guess that they have the same resources as us or has already traded for them, because we have a ton of silver and M&M's Peanuts to go around. I was checking around for other trades and also going to those with who we are currently at war. 20th CF would agree to peace for 80 gold and we happily complied. NLC was willing to trade luxuries, but I realized it would be through roads and we can't trust the other studios not to pillage the roads. It'll have to wait until they get an airport.

Spoiler :

A typical IBT. UA and NLC are still going at it. NLC declared peace with two other studios. Paramount was getting bored and declared on WB. Touchstone bombed our Jaws and MGM declared on Touchstone. Do they really think they are still in this game?
We completed the Doppler Weather Station, and soon we'll unleash the weather on LGF who has sent a number of troops our way.

Spoiler :

Get 'em, Cujo! Our loyal but possessed dog tore up a Black Dragon. If you don't play the Cinemod, you should at least download Vuldacon's Drunk. One of the best units ever. Our Drunks are tearing them up and littering the environment with empty bottles. One even puked he was so drunk. During the turn LGF bombed actors stationed on our border with a Caproni. Some peace, Some war. Miramax is helping us by bombing MGM with their Caproni. UA killed our Ninja and took our actor; so that show might be over for awhile.

Impressively, LGF has some territory; not like those up top who fight and cant get anything done. During our turn, we've just been slowly working on both LGF and MGM. Touchstone will give us gems and stone for M&M's Peanut. They have quite a few new scripts. I asked how much and they replied, 3500 each, and that, of course, is not happening. I just noticed that we did have one source of Sticky Icky and that will allow us to build a Grow Room. That will be constructed in TS Production.
Still looking around, I find Pixar is way behind, and yet they keep declaring war on other studios. Looking at our Main Studio, I see two things to note. (You guys probably see a lot more.) One is I need to mine a few of those irrigated tiles. Two, we're at six luxuries already. This becomes the time when there are a few too many luxuries in the Cinemod and you don't really need to worry about the slider anymore. For good or bad, that's the way it is for now. For the record, some of those trades we made were for strategic resources and were actually a bit pointless, except for building relationships. Props that would require those resources would normally require them to be in the movie set city limit.

Spoiler :

MGM is still declaring war on studios, and signed a MPP with Warner Bros, so we are now at war with WB. Lot's of choices to be made about which scripts to read and we'll look at them in a moment. MGM mounted a counter-attack and took a few units, so we'll have to keep wearing them down. We'll get a victory with the Battle Suit which should allow the Heroic Epic. LGF is staging for an invasion and we don't really have enough characters on the front to turn them back. All resources will have to be diverted there temporarily. My hope is if we shock and awe them, then maybe they'll go picking on someone else. That's my hope, anyway.
We took MGM Choreography and 463 gold. :banana:

I included a picture of LGF's build-up, but in fact, this is after we erased their first stacks. I forgot to take a shot beforehand. Up near TS Makeup, in the jungle, we have rubber, which we're connecting now. TS Pre-Production has the highest shield count, 33 per turn, so the Military Academy is starting there. As well, the Heroic Epic will be built in TS Main Studio.
Reading Sucker Punch has allowed us to build this era's strong defender, the Steampunk Commando. We'll upgrade all of our Cujos for the low price of 360 gold.
I'm saving this turn so we can think a little about the choice of which script to read. Our choices are Poison Ivy, which would allow a new resource. Beijing Bicycle giving a new character, the Secret Police and Communism. Gung Ho for factories. Trainspotting for railroads. Or Inspector Gadget, which would allow us to start our spying missions. I'm leaning towards Trainspotting to get the rails and then come around to Gung Ho. On the next start up, I'll look and see what others might have. Finally, looking around I noticed that, unless someone beats us to it like they did with Pierce and Pierce, we'll complete the Pirate Map in TS Casting on the next turn giving our naval characters extended movement.

Spoiler :

Save 870 AD

wuhjah · Jun 2, 2012

Maybe the shock and awe worked, because when I loaded up the save, I first went to look at which script we would be reading and chose Trainspotting. (There was never any doubt, was there?) After that, I went to try and talk to LGF one more time and this time they were receptive to a peace deal. Done. Time to hit the button.

HA! Columbia and Paramount aligned to declare war on us. Who? When's the last time they produced a movie? I haven't seen either of them in forever. This IBT, Miramax alone took about a minute to move all their troops. I wouldn't mind having a MPP with them, but I'm afraid that might cause us to go back to war with LGF or 20th CF and I want to let them fight amongst themselves awhile.
We just finished the Pirate Map increasing our naval character movement by two. The character stats changed quite a bit into the Technicolor era. Po, the first offensive unit of the era, has an attack of 20 and a pitiful defense of five. On another note, I just realized we need to audition some actors to build the rails in a few turns. MGM knew we were thirsty, so they teleported a blueberry Kool-Aid man in. We'll drink him up and send him back empty. That lets us know that they already have factories. Our Doppler Weather Station has chased its first Tornado.

Spoiler :

A nice and slow IBT since we're not really at war with anyone significant other than MGM. They did clean up a few of our red-liners and lost a few in the process. They have a flight of Black Dragons for us to take care of. I suspect in a few turns we will be able to take the next movie set. LGF asked us to embargo Pixar and I agreed to get on their good side. Anyway, Pixar is too far away to be a threat. Apparently, we just missed a good opportunity by following the old "Don't trade scripts with AI on the IBT because they'll just sell your script away." When LGF asked for the embargo, I also lined up a trade for Beijing Bicycle and 650 gold. We would have given Sucker Punch. I decided to wait until our turn to make the trade and it seems they got it elsewhere.

Spoiler :

Slow IBT, just Miramax and 20th CF trading blows. C'mon AI, is that how it's gonna go? Just last turn LGF got us into an embargo deal and now they're gonna embargo us??? MGM changed strategy and decided to send what they had to the rear. Bad move. I do want to complement MGM on building movie sets actually on the water. Sometimes the AI doesn't...

Spoiler :

This turn was much like the last including a little action in the center and MGM sending even more Dragons to the rear. We finished the Great lighthouse which also increases naval characters movement by one, but to be honest, I'm not sure if that is cumulative with the Pirate Map. I guess I’ll have to test it out…
We actually missed two opportunities on that trade earlier with Sucker Punch, I'm just going to go ahead and work this out. Normally, I would prefer we keep Trainspotting for ourselves for a while, but I think they would get it momentarily anyway causing another missed opportunity. It's been good. So far we have gotten Gung Ho and Beijing Bicycle from Touchstone, Poison Ivy and some gold from 20th CF, Inspector Gadget and some gold from LGF all for Trainspotting. Then we came full circle back to Touchstone and gave Poison Ivy and 1200 for Syriana. Seems we're almost caught up.

In terms of script reading, I plan to try to get to Watchmen which has the Great Wonder Dr. Manhattan, which puts an Intrinsic Field Subtractors in every movie set. In the meantime, we'll keep building characters and throw in some factories and banks when we can. It really hadn't been necessary up to this point, but with the extra naval movement, I sent our HMS Endeavor to bombard MGM Backlot. The last thing to note is our actors started building railroads.

Spoiler :

Our people want to build the Intelligence Agency and get a Corporate Sponsorship. MGM hasn’t given up yet and continues to send more and more Black Dragons. It's a wonder where they get them all. On the naval front, something invisible killed one of our Jaws out in the fog. MGM teleported a Kool-Aid Man into our territory. Oh no! Oh Yeah! I forgot to point her out last turn, but our Grow Room has produced the first Hippie. She has the enslave ability and the product of enslavement is a Thai Stick, an immobile herb that can blow your enemy away. Here is one last look at the middle.

Spoiler :

Save at 920 AD

wuhjah · Jun 4, 2012

There was only a small amount of movement in the center during the IBT, Miramax and 20th CF as usual. As well, the usual declarations of peace and war. MGM moved in more Black Dragons, it got me thinking and I'm thinking they must have upgraded to them and not built them all. There are just so many. They took all of our actors we had around MGM Choreography, never a good thing.

Getting that first leader is always most difficult for me, now we have a victorious Bluto Killer spawning a leader for us, and unknowingly getting four actors back. Hooray! However, now I see it is possible we will lose our leader and/or the actors as there aren't enough defenders and the distance to MGM Choreography is too far to move in one turn.
We cleaned up as many as we could. Here is the update before pressing the button. And, finally before pressing the turn button, I just checked with the other studios and they all seem to have read Toy Story and Traitor. Thus, we'll keep on our own script reading line.

Spoiler :

It was slow on the outside, but we do have some news to report. The Joker has killed one of our Ninjas. We have completed our Military Academy. Touchstone seems to be helping us by bombing MGM movie sets. In nautical news, we lost a Jaws when 20th CF found it with their Black Pearl. LGF has set sail with a Ghost Ship in the channel. MGM did their worst, but it wasn't enough. Our Zombie (on a hill) took three Black Dragons before losing his head. Got another Kool-Aid man crashing the party. As things get desperate for MGM, we will see all their auto-produced characters come out of the woodwork.

We've got our first Jian Guei. If you don't know who Jian Guei is, watch Beijing Bicycle. Anyway, he's mean and has some serious movement, especially when you consider we almost have rails set. Our Hippie must be jonesing because we enslaved a Thai stick on our first try. Here, you can see that any enemy character that walks into range will get toasted. We cleaned up more MGM characters and are going to finish the turn. The last pics show what we are working with.

Spoiler :

Funnily enough, MGM declared on LGF during the IBT. We finished reading 28 Days Later and can now build Battlefield Medicine. We'll continue with Frankenstein on our way to Watchmen. We also signed a deal for a Corporate Sponsorship for product placement in our movies. We will get free Deku characters to use as extras... One thing I don't understand is why MGM took these six Dragons and Grawp out of the movie set instead of leaving them to defend... does that mean they have so many still left in the set?

Here is Jian Guei riding like he's in the Tour De France. He has no airlift capability so he has to huff it all the way. I'm trying to upgrade or use a lot of our older stuff. It won't all get used now, but whatever can be used effectively will be. We've been wearing MGM Production (set) down with Killer Bee Swarms and Tornadoes. Every movie set is connected by rail now, so it makes it easy to move those characters up that didn't have the airlift option. I think I forgot to mention, but it's probably worth mentioning. Oil was revealed on the map after we got the script Syriana. You can see it near our TS Wardrobe and TS Makeup. Look how the AI studios try to monopolize the twin sources... They will build a set in the middle to hold both. And, we finally took MGM Production.

Spoiler :

Some peace for the other studios, but looks like more war for us. I realized I had forgotten to start both the Intelligence Agency and Battlefield Medicine. Both will have to wait a few turns. A pretty calm turn. Still picking off MGM characters one by one, moving towards the next set.

Spoiler :

Well, the AI studios must have gotten bored and went back to their old ways. Touchstone signed a MPP with United Artists and proceeded to declare on all the "Big Boys." That, of course, includes us. MGM still has a few characters scrambling around to finish off our red-lined units left in the field. Miramax sent a squadron of between 8-10 planes bombing MGM movie sets.
WB also decided to declare war on Miramax. I guess they need that oil over there.
Disease has struck TS Make up for two turns now. We really can't get there to clear jungle at this time, so they're gonna have to tough it out.

During our turn, I moved some troops around, eliminated some MGM stragglers and began to mine tiles that were previously irrigated in those movie sets that have reached their maximum growth. Here is a picture to update the center. Quite a few LGF troops are making their way out and the ever-present Miramax can be seen. We are making our way slowly into MGM Territory. I admit it's a little too slow, but I guess that's due to my penchant for building props...

Spoiler :

We saw a something to keep an eye on during the IBT. First Columbia came to us requesting a peace treaty and we agreed. No sooner than the ink was dry and LGF again declared on Columbia. This is of interest to us because LGF is already controlling quite a bit of Columbian territory. They are probably our closest competitor for land area at the moment. I'll say now that we may have to think about taking them on when we finish with MGM. Miramax again sent angels from the sky and bombed both MGM movie sets that we are lining up on. Maybe they're paying us back for using our roads earlier.

Balloons, from reading Up, are CM type characters and have an enormous range. (Even as I play with it, Im thinking it may need adjustment to not be cm type.) We had a really good combat with Grawp swingin his club one time on a red-lined Kool-Aid man, who proceed to fall on his butt. MGM has sent a Tomb Swarm at us, really bringing out the dregs now. Double bonus surprise. We took MGM Casting, enslaved a Thai Stick and got Shooting on Location: Rome. SOL: Rome is a Great Wonder that puts a Coliseum in every movie set. Now, I do need to check if this will truly be ours or become obsolete as it comes from the Foreign Distribution Line. Im guessing now it will become obsolete.
And, we'll save here knowing that MGM only has a Hippie character standing between us and MGM Screenplay.

Spoiler :

Save at 980 AD

Cinemod - The Blind leading the Blind

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