COTM88 - First Spoiler

[civ_steve]

COTM 88 First Spoiler - Carthage, the Ancient Age!

Reading Requirements

1. You must be able to research a Middle Age technology.

Posting Restrictions

• Please be discreet about AI locations; however, feel free to discuss contacts and trades.
• No discussions of the middle ages (or later)
• No screenshots of any middle-age (or later) resources.
• Absolutely NO discussion of any other currently active 'X'OTM!

I'm starting these spoilers much later than I had planned, and being a smaller map I suspect many people have probably finished. So only 2 spoilers this month, an Ancient Age one and a final one covering the entire game.

I assume you didn't mind the starting location! Anybody consider a 20K? Anyway, after founding, you do have some neighbors 'sharing' your land mass - were they a problem or did you manage them? How did your initial discovery of the other civs go? So, at the end of the Ancient Age, how are things going and are any AI giving you a race? (Do not give away details regarding AI not on your original landmass.)

 

[Spoonwood]

I was considering a 20k. But, I don't know if I'll finish. Also, I have a feeling that some players didn't spot this (does a fairness issue arise here, since many players wouldn't think to check to see if something strange like this goes on?):

How did that happen Steve? The neighbors didn't pose a problem for me in the ancient age. Contacts didn't prove much of a problem for me.

 

[Megalou]

What, do you mean the bonus shield under the cow? I don't see what's unfair about it. It's plain for all to see, isn't it? And it's not that unusual.

 

[Memento]

I think everyone move the worker first, so all can see the cows and the bonus shield.
btw: i go for 20k too, but i build warrior first for early contact to get CB and temple.

 

[Megalou]

From memory. The goal is conquest for a reason which is elaborated below.

I chose Predator which affected the game a great deal, because it meant that every time someone tried to extort me and I denied them, they declared war. So I did not sign any alliances tied to peace (until later), because I got war happiness through the extortions, pushing luxury tax down to 10%. (0% seemed impossible without the Great Lighthouse and a builder's approach.) A downside to this was that I could not choose at all when to start happiness wars, and I got into an improductive stalemate war against Celts at the end of the AA, unable to capture a single town IIRC and losing some horsemen.

The capital worked as a 4 turner until after the republic sling shot, when settler production was moved to a nearby town. Also, towns reaching their max size (6) built settlers now and then. Compared to other core towns, the capital was too powerful to use as a settler factory and I probably should have chosen another town much sooner. It would be interesting to hear how others reasoned about this.

I built some libraries and then barracks+horsemen. I shared the cows and the wheat so that all towns on the peninsula would reach size 6 faster.

Irritatingly enough, it was Ottomans who built ToA. Their island is so much smaller than ours so capturing ToA will be much less profitable. In my experience, this kind of thing happens all the time - do you, civ_steve, deliberately make sure the best wonders are built in the wrong locations, throwing in an extra cow here and BGs there? (That's a rhetorical question. I hope the answer remains a secret of your trade.) Anyway, that's when I decided to go for conquest rather than domination, minimizing the disadvantage of not having ToA built on MY continent.

I entered MA some time around 1000-800 BC, in a pretty good postion to trade free techs for Republic and Literature.

 

[del62]

I am not quite sure what finish I will go for, not a bad start location except lack of luxuries, I was suprised I pulled of republic slingshot considering the number of tribes who started with alphabet, researched writing, col, philo, currency (republic was free) and part of construction,

For a short while had capital on 3 turn settler duties.

In a bit of a stalemate war with celts though getting knights now, which might give me breakthrough.

 

[civ_steve]

... Also, I have a feeling that some players didn't spot this (does a fairness issue arise here, since many players wouldn't think to check to see if something strange like this goes on?):

How did that happen Steve? ...

I added a cow to a bonus grassland. Everyone who settled in place will have access to the 2 cows in 10 turns. And be on the coast. This could be crucial to a 20K game, being able to build coastal wonders.