D+2: "The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials."

[TimTheEnchanter]

Part I - Barbarians at the Gate

“Master, MASTER! Come quickly!!!”

“One moment, young one. Come see this flower. Have you ever seen something so wondrous? So simple, yet so beautiful”

“But master, a messenger has just returned from our warrior party sent north from Shangahai. It is a disaster!

“A disaster? Have the Sun and Moon fallen from the sky?”

“Of course not, but…”

“Has the mighty sea dried up?

“Well, no..”

“Then what is this disaster of which you speak? Disaster has not befallen this beautiful flower, although it may if you keep thundering around me that way.”

“The warrior party came across a small village in the wilderness north of Shanghai. When they entered the city they were ambushed!!! Five full teams of barbarians – all on horseback. The Warrior Leader sent the messenger to warn Shanghai. Its defenses could not withstand an attack from five horseback teams like that!! The only other help we might have are some horsemen exploring west of Shangai”

“I see. Have our warriors been killed?”

“The messenger was sent before they were attacked, but they do not hold out much hope of survival.”

“I see. Tell me what is happening in Shangahai today”

“Shanghai has recently started work on a new settler team…settlers who would get slaughtered by so many fighters on horseback! Should we have Shanghai quickly equip one of our new Elephant teams? Perhaps they could slow down the barbarians before…”

“You seem have great fear of these barbarians who have yet to do harm to anyone. Have you met them?”

“Of course not, Master”

“Then perhaps we should meet them. Have our horse team head east to greet these new neighbors of ours. And instruct Shanghai to speed its work on those settlers so we can send them North.”

“Meet them? Settlers? To the North??? But Shanghai is threatened from the North!!”

“Shanghai is far less threatened than this delicate flower is threatened by the hot air you blow. Go do as I have instructed.”

“Yes, Master.”

Opening Situation
5 barbarian horses surround Shanghai warrior North of Shanghai
Nearest Barb horse could attack Shanghai as soon as 3 turns.
Shanghai has 2 warriors keeping the peace and is currently building a settler.
Friendly horseman located 5 squares W of shanghai.
Xinjian may also be threatened by those barbs – currently in disorder with production set to temple, no defense – barbs at least 4 turns from there.
Gold at 51…Elephant could be rushed in Shanghai by disbanding settlers if necessary
Researching writing – only a handful of beakers so far.

625bc (Turn 0)
- Tsingtao’s next citizen would be elvis (at least until 2 garrison built), and the last shield is going to waste…move worker to unmined wine for 1 less food, 1 more gold.
- Put Xinjiang and Nanking in disorder to maximize food and get to size 2 sooner
- Looks like we’ll make 3 gold, - only enough to cover costs. 7b including disorder cities.
- Rush 4s to 10 in Shanghai for 8g
- Zulus have apparently already chatted this turn.

* * * * * *
“Wise master, the news from Shanghai grows more dire!”

“And a lovely good evening to you, young one. Have you seen the beautiful sunset over the sea today? The colors are so brilliant, so striking.”

“Sir another messenger has reached Shanghai from the party in the north…”

“So they were not all killed when the first messenger left? That is good news!”

“But sire, the barbarians did attack the warrior party. They were being wiped out! This messenger was able to escape to bring word as the last few fighters stood ground, but those that remained faced certain death.”

“It sounds as if the fight was nearly over. Did this messenger say where the barbarians were going? Were any moving toward Shanghai?”

“Well, no.”

“Then this is good news for Shanghai, not dire. Do you not agree?”

“Well, at least this gives us more time”

“Time for what, young one?

“Time to prepare the Elephants in Shanghai!”

“Elephants? You want me to assemble stinking, hulking beasts in a great city like Shanghai? Such beasts would only detract from the beauty of such a great city, just as your histrionics detract from my enjoyment of this sunset. Now, go tell the people of Shanghai to work even harder on their new setters. We want to send those settlers north.”


600 (Turn 1)
- Barbs kill warrior, shuffle around – mostly heading West or North. Only 2 remain visible.
-Ulundi (Zulu) builds Lighthouse, Russians change to Pyramids, Spanish abandon, Vikings start pyramids- Oracle remains on our list of options.
- Xinjian, Nanking plug away in disorder
- Nearest barb would now need 4 turns to reach Shanghai.
- Move horsey toward Shanghai, just in case
- Zulus give 25g.
- Rush 7 shields for 16g in shanghai – to 20

* * * * * *
“Master, I bring more news from Shanghai. A badly wounded member of the warrior party stumbled into the city last night. He reported that he had barely escaped the attack. As he headed home, he saw the barbarians regrouping and heading toward Shanghai. He also noted that our own horse unit has camped near the lake West of Shanghai.”

“All five barbarian horse teams are headed toward Shanghai?”

“The warrior only spoke of one.”

“And where are the other four?”

“He said he saw one other team up near where the ambush took place. He did not see the others.”

“So, there is a survivor, when the last messenger told us all others faced certain death. There is only one team headed to Shanghai where once there was five. Are you sure they ride horses? Perhaps they ride chickens and wield blades of grass?”

“I am sorry, master”

“Do not be sorry, my young friend - be patient! What can you tell me of places other than Shanghai?”

“The temple has been built in Canton, but the citizens there are still unruly and must be constantly entertained. I instructed the workers to assemble a horse team to quash the rebellion”

“Alas I have much work ahead of me as you apparently do not learn these lessons easily. Perhaps they are unruly because they know you are sending goons on horses to beat them! Send that horse team to explore the land when it is complete.”

575 (Turn 2)
- Barb horses – 1 moves north, other toward Shanghai
- Zulus start Oracle
- Canton Temple, still not happy (2 reds) Needs 2 units, start horse
- Our horse moves over toward Shanghai positioned to attack if barb should come
- Zulus 25g again.

* * * * * *
“Master, may I approach?”

“Come.”

“I bring good news from Shanghai! Our horsemen have defeated the barbarian horse team approaching Shanghai, and all reports indicate that the others have fled into the wilderness! Our ship has sailed across the lake to bring our horsemen home to Shanghai. A grand ceremony is being planned to bestow the status of “Veteran” upon the horse unit…”

“So sad.”

“Sad? Should we not rejoice, for Shanghai has been saved?”

“But at what price? Lives and resources are lost. The lives of those young men can never be replaced. The world is a lesser place today. There must be a better way. If only we could have met with these horsemen, perhaps we could have swayed them to join us!”

“I see”

“What of the horse unit in Canton? Are they ready to explore yet?”

“No, master, the workers have just begun to equip them.”

“Speed them on their way. Pay the workers extra! Perhaps if we meet more peoples and understand the mysteries of the wilderness, we will not be forced to lose so many lives in the future.”

550 (Turn 3)
- Only one barb still in view – moves towards Shanghai, ending his turn...right next to our horsey
- Horsey kills barb horse. Vet status.
- 16g toward Horse in Canton – to 10s
- Zulus 25g
- Shanghai ship moves to inland lake to pick up vet Horse next turn


To be continued...

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

Part II – The Rise of a New Leader

* * * * * *
“Master, are you all right? Have you fallen?

“I’m quite fine.”

“Then why do you lay in the dirt?”

“Come here young one, and look at these ants! Each little creature carries such a heavy load. See how hard they work?”

“Yes, master. I see the ants…. Now that the Shanghai situation has been settled, our nation has returned to normal production. Before long, we will have much needed settlers prepared in Beijing, and Shanghai, and the horse team will be ready in Canton. Based on what I have learned from you, I will exercise patience while they are completed.”

“Finish them all immediately.”

“What did you say, Master?”

“Do I not speak clearly? I said finish those projects immediately.”

“But master, what of patience? That is what you have taught me for so long.”

“Look at these ants again. They are not patient.”

“But surely we are not ants! We have developed our wisdom beyond that of such primitive creatures. You always have taught me patience”

“I taught you patience because you wanted to act impulsively in the face of danger!. What makes you so sure we have more wisdom than the ants? They work hard in the summer, for they know the winter will come again. Hard work will do them no good when the land is cold and barren. Winter is when they must show patience. When surrounded by such abundance, they must act quickly to take advantage of the situation.”

“I still have much to learn.”

“We all have much to learn, my young friend.”

525 (Turn 4)
- Zulus develop bronze working, Abandon Oracle
- Zulus acquire warrior code as well – did they perhaps meet someone new…?
- Who cares about a few more turns of research…we need a source of cash in order to grow, so we talk to Zulus. Offer to exchange techs: Code of Laws for Bronze Working. No other option was available to give them, so CofL was our only tech that they did not have. Maybe with Code, they’ll research Monarchy for us now.
- Rush settler in Shanghai
- Rush Canton horse
- Rush settlers in Beijing
- Nanking about to grow – hire Elvis

* * * * * *
“Master, I have prepared a plan for our new settlers!”

“A plan, you say? I would like to hear this plan.”

“Beijing and Shanghai have just completed their settler teams. Our scouts have already identified two locations for those settlers to found cities. One is not a great site, but it is important because we can build a canal there, allowing our ships to pass from the great sea to the wild oceans beyond. The other city will be on the North shores of the Sea. There is another, smaller sea just north of there with abundant whales. This city would be near enough to harvest those whales.”

“That is not a plan. That is a land survey! Will these settlers work any land before forming their new cities? How will you get the settlers to these sites? You know we have but one ship capable of carrying such a heavy load.”

“The ship is in Shanghai. I was going to have the ship take the Shanghai settlers to build the canal immediately. In the mean-time, the Beijing settler would add a road near Beijing while it waited for the ship to come take it to the place with the whales.”

“Have I taught you nothing, young one? You want the canal built quickly, so that our ship may sail the ocean, is that correct?”

“Yes master. You told me you want to meet and learn from other peoples in faraway places.”

“So when our ship goes through this new canal, how shall our other settler reach the north shores of the sea?”

“Um….”

”The main value of that canal city will be the canal itself, correct? Are their many useful resources around the city?”

“There are very few resources.”

“Remember, young one – show patience in adversity, act quickly in abundance. Instruct the Shanghai settler to build a road at the new site first, so that the city will have more resources. Meanwhile send the ship back to pick up the Beijing settler to quickly take advantage of the abundance of whales at the other location. Perhaps by the time that task is done, our canal will be ready for the ship to pass through.”


500 (Turn 5)
- Order restored in Nanking. 1g, 1b, 1s, no food surplus.
- Shanghai builds settlers, stays size 2, start horse to guard new city.
- Beijing settlers – head NE
- Settler moved by ship up isthmus onto grassland shield to build road
- Tsingtao mine complete
- Zulus – gift warrior code, as expected

475 (Turn 6)
- Elvis hired in Xinjian
- Start roading Wine mine for additional trade
- Zulus 50g
- Zulu horseman SE of Canton

* * * * * *
“Master, the road near our canal city is almost complete, and our settlers are about to reach the place with the whales.”

“This is good news. What shall we do next, my friend?”

“The canal city is near where the barbarians were last seen. I am taking advantage of the generous gifts from our Zulu friends to quickly prepare a horse team in Shanghai that can help protect the new city.”

“Why do you equip a new team of horses? Do we not have experienced, veteran horsemen stationed in Shanghai?”

“Yes Master, we do. Or more specifically, we did. I have already given them orders to head to the canal city location as well.”

“Two horse units to defend the city? Is that not wasteful? You are not still afraid of those Barbarians in the North woods, are you?”

“Master, I did not say they were going to defend the city. Surely you did not expect me to send a ship into the ocean without a fast moving, mobile team to explore the new lands, did you?”

“Very good! You are learning, my friend. There is hope for you yet.”

450 (Turn 7)
- Spanish start Oracle
- Xinjian order restored 1g, 1b, 2s, 0f
- Beijing settler lands N of Shanghai
- Zulus 50g
- Rush shields on Shanghai horse
- Hut spotted south of Canton.
- Horsemen ride north from Shanghai towards settler

425 (Turn 8)
- Tsingtao builds warrior and adds 2nd citizen at the same time, staying content. Work mine and buffalo giving 4s, but no food surplus.
- Beijing settler founds Chengdu near whale
- Hut gives Elephant – supported from Canton
- Zulus can’t help us.

* * * * * *
“You’ve been very quiet lately, my Master.”

“I have not heard much from you either, my friend. We have received many generous gifts from our Zulu friends. Have you been taking advantage of this abundance.”

“Yes I have, Master”

“What have you done with it?”

“Nothing, Master.”

“You call this acting quickly?”

“I quickly decided that it should wait until we found the place where it could do the most good. Now that Chengdu has been founded and has its mighty whaling grounds, I intend to quickly build a temple there to keep those workers happy. That is where it seemed to do the most good.”

“What else has been happening that might interest me?”

“The Canton horsemen heard rumor of a small village south of their city, so they went there. The local villagers were so impressed that gave us an entire team of elephants.
Our settlers have nearly completed our canal city, so our horsemen are preparing to sail into the Great Ocean soon.”

“You have learned well, my friend. Perhaps my job teaching you is finally complete.”

“Oh no, Master. There is so much more I need to learn!”

“Ahh! Now that you realize that, I know my job is done.”

400 (Turn 9)
- Disorder in Chengdu, 2 shields into the box.
- Hangchow (canal) founded
- Horse boards ship and sails into the ocean!
- Rush horse in Shanghai
- Rush temple in Chengdu
- Road finished on Tsingtao mine


* * * * * *
“Master, where have you been? I’ve not been able to find you around here for some time”

“Please stop calling me ‘Master.’ I told you last time we met that my work teaching you was complete. Now that I am not spending my days and nights watching you, I took advantage of my extra time to explore the world while I still a little energy in my old body. I went to Canton then headed south to join our exploring units. It was quite an experience! What have you been doing while I was away?”

“The Temple in Chengdu is complete. Some of our best whalers are moving there. It should be quite a nice little city!”

“It sounds like a wonderful place. It is too bad I will never see it.”

“What do you mean? I could take you there. We’ll leave tomorrow!”

“No, my friend. I will not be going. My adventure in the south has drained me. I am too weak and tired to travel.”

“Well, just rest up and we will go another day!”

“No, friend, by the time my energy is restored, it will be you who will not be able to go there.”

“Nonsense! I was just there last month.”

“But that was last month. Soon things will be different.”

“How could things be so different?”

“In my explorations in the south, we came across a tiny village along the coast. These people were amazing. Their city was orderly. Their workers were productive. They wasted little and corruption was under control because the people admired and yet feared their leader so much they dared not cross him...because they believed he was hand chosen by the gods. The leadership is passed from father to son by what they call ‘divine birthright’ They call this leader their King. I have been working with some of our wise men and they have been starting to spread this idea to our own people. We want our own people to believe they have a leader with a direct connection to their gods! But such a divine leader could not go out and mingle amongst the common folk.”

“But you have never been to Chengdu. You’ve spent almost your entire life meditating in this Garden. We will hide you identity and no one would even know it was you!”

“Ha-ha-ha! My gracious friend…do you not see: I am their leader by the old way: I have no special connection to the gods. To our people, I am just a bully who has ruled by the sword. No, my friend. Just like the others, I will now call you my Master and my King.”

375 (10) – Russians nearly complete Pyramids
- disorder as expected in Hangchow
- Chengdu Temple (order restored) 2f, 1g, 1b, 2s
- Zulus no gifts.
- Hut –scroll - MONARCHY!!!!! Woo-Hoo!!!!!


Notes
That last hut turned a decent round into a really nice one! I think the next oedo year is 325bc, so revolt in 350 (next turn) – although you might want to double-check that.

- We didn’t get any gifts from the Zulus the last couple turns. Usually, these things turn around after a few turns. As long as we’re pathetic, just keep begging and they should be ok. They may be out of gold, or sometimes they just stop giving for a while and save up so they can give bigger gifts later. I did notice that they have only one spear, so if we get above pathetic, it will probably be them that we would pass. Just our luck that the one civ we find is the most backward of all the AIs!

- Shanghai horse is heading to Hangchow to protect the city…just in case those barbs are still wandering around in wilderness to the north. I was planning to rehome the horse when it gets there.

- A temple plus 2 units makes a city content at size 2. Once a temple is done, get two units in a city and it can get both workers productive. Chengdu could get there around the time it hits size 2. Beijing needs one more unit. Canton could be there but its units are exploring, so it’s building a settler which will put it back to size 1 soon anyway.

- Tsingtao is stable size 2. It is currently building a horse to explore west. The city is working the wine and buffalo, but now has no food surplus. Monarchy should improve output. I thought about switching to a wonder, but didn’t for a couple reasons: (1) I wanted a unit to explore to the west. (2) If we push too far, we should be able to rely on the “So-and-so is about to complete the Oracle” message, and could switch immediately if that came up. (3) That city can complete the Oracle in 74 turns – probably much sooner with monarchy. I am honestly not sure we can get Monothesim by that time given our current rate of research. We need Literacy, Philosophy and Mono and it’s still 20 turns a tech. These are also not things you typically see the Zulus research, so we’re probably on our own unless the ship can find some new friends for us. To make things worse, if my calculations are correct we won’t be offered Literacy next time unless we get yet another tech from somewhere else.

We could slow production in Tsingtao by working the river. That would give us a food surplus and take a bit longer before we complete the wonder. I don’t know if anyone was building it before I started, but I think the only ones working on it from my turns are the Spanish and they didn’t start until 450. What happens if you complete production of a wonder that is already built? Do we lose the shields or does production just get stuck there until we switch to something else? If the shields are lost, it’s probably not worth the risk of losing them yet.

- Nanking has been working the fish, since working a shield just gives us waste, thus I haven’t pushed the city along. With Monarchy, we might get enough productivity out of the city to get it going. It would be nice to get a boat headed out in the other direction in case we don’t find anyone to the West.

- Because of the extra techs we picked up, we’re still less than half way to learning Writing. Even with our new cities, it’s probably more than 10 turns away. We really need to get out and find somebody new and do some trading and begging.

- I noticed that monarchy is white, so nobody else has it yet. Something to keep in mind if we meet anyone else.

 

[Duke of Marlbrough]

Sorry, I'll have to defer my turn for now. I wouldn't be able to play for a couple days.

 

[Kev]

A great set of turns with excellent writing!

Good thing those barbs didn't get involved too much with us. I only hope that they're not wandering about wrecking other huts. Just hope we don't have a 99-barb uprising anytime soon!

Monarchy could be a boon all the way around. Chances are, we'll have to give it up to the Zulus (maybe in a trade), but that could be OK since they may switch and be able to eventually produce more (and thereby give us more in a perfect world).

If the Zulus may have met someone (very possible with the two techs - but it may also have been from popping a hut), the next person may wish to trade maps with them again.

The canal city will be nice for western exploration. Someone soon may wish to build a ship in Nanking to explore east as well. I have a feeling it may be a long trip around the continent that we're on right now. I also have a feeling that there are some civs out there more advanced than the Zulus (if not just about all), and meeting and greeting will be key.

It may behoove us to irrigate around Tsingtao a bit. Will help out when Monarchy hits and get the city producing!

That's it for my $0.02.

 

[Old n Slow]

(0) b375 8 cities; 11 techs 1Sett (None) (1) Sett/ 5(1) Warr/3(2) Horse/1 Ele/1(1) boat; 24g

Moscow buids the Pyramids; Vikes switch to GW

(1) b350 disorder in Hangchow (move) Revolt

(2) b325 disorder in Hangchow (which continues for a considerable amount of time...) Monarchy -- we settle on a 70%/30% distribution of trade gains for 14 beakers & 7 coins per collection period.

(3) b300 We talk to the Zulus -- exch knowledge? (nope)
[Mongols start Oracle; Zulus acquire Masonry]

(4) b275 Our northern boat/horse expedition discovers a hut -- no wait it is truely a villiage -- Tientsen! We talk to the Zulus again who do want to exch tech -- Masonry for Monarchy (but of course!) they worship us...but not enough to provide any gifts.

(5) b250 Our Population = 200K. Beijing builds a Horse (which we leave there as a second militia unit).

(6) b225 We choose to spend coin to spedd the Warrior in Chengdu to active service
[Spanish switch to Hanging Gardens]
(7) b200 Our northern forces visit a hut & gain 50 coins
[Trondheim builds GW; Madrid builds HG; Shanghai goes to size 3 & disorder; Hangchow is still in disorder] Tsingtao builds an Ele & bears the burden of an extra shield for support (we decide to move a citizen over for a little more food for a cushion). The Ele moves north. the settler has finished irrigating a river for Tsing -- now moves for more roadwork.

(8) b175 (move)
[Vikes start the GL]

(9) b150 Canton builds a settler, who moves east & starts a road. We talk to the Zulus and offer them a gift of science which they do not want (or maybe they already have it all?)

(10) b125 We talk to the Zulus again who do offer us a gift of 25 coins; our lucky northern horse visits another hut & gains another 50 coins. Hmmm the ele from Tsing arrives in Hang & wait -- the folks might be willing to work a bit & build a temple faster...

Notes -- we have some cash -- didn't know whether to rush temples to get more cities on line or units for the same purpose, so the money is still there for the next player. We've slipped in Lit from #3 to #4; Land Area has exploded from #7 to #2; pop has remained constant from #7 to #7. But most importantly, we now know why 1 in every 4 or 5 people in the world today is chinese....because in a picture of the demographics, 1 in 5 looks like he's been partying as an Elvis impersonator (lol).

 

[Jayne]

I didn't get much action the first round I played - not that I'm complaining!! But I'm glad DoM missed his turn this time because otherwise I would have to deal with the aftermath of this go!!! All wil be revealed..........

125bc(1) - Move southern ellie a few squares and press enter.

100bc(2) - Ordered finally restored in Hangchow. Ellie spots a hut.
Contact with the Zulus earns us €25. Invest most of this in rushing Nanking temple.

75bc(3) - Temple of Nanking built, the workers start to band together an army of warriors. Elvis is still in the building.
Ellie pops hut - Pottery!
Chat to Zulus - they don't want to exchange techs.

50bc(4) - Xinjian builds temple and starts warriors. Disorder in Beijing. The ever-popular Elvis is invited to perform.
Another €25 from the Zulus.

Press enter...............

'Travellers report a major barbarian uprising near Canton!'

I lost count of how many.

Zulus start Oracle.

25bc(5) - Chinese discover writing. Choose Lit over Curr, Feud and Maths as it leads to Mono.
Order restored in Beijing.
Tsingtoa build ellie which is immediately dispatched towards Canton.
Zulus still not interested in tech exchange.


Being to scared to press enter, I decided to bail! I wasn't sure if we should spend some of our €186 on rushing temples and units so that if we are given to chance to pay off the barbs we don't lose out too much.

Good Luck!

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

Ouch!!

Question: When you agree to pay off the barbs, does the whole infestation of them go away, or only those within a certain radius of the city?

If the whole mess of them will go away, it's probably worth it to spend the treasury down below 100g, then pay the 50g ransom to save the city. On the other hand, I'd hate to spend half our money to reduce the treasury, pay them off to save the city, only to have another 50 of them 2 squares away ready to take it. Can someone run a barbarian wrath test or otherwise speak from experience on this?

If they take the city it looks like it will be razed, so we won't even have the opportunity to get a bunch of None's that way.

OK Andu...let's see you work some magic!

 

[TheViking]

So D+2 with barbarian wrath is no picnic after all.

If we can get rid of the entire barbarian army by paying we should definitely do so. In that case we can also 'save' the settler by founding a city where it stands, provided it has not moved. The location isn't exactly ideal but better than losing the settler.

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

Interesting idea, but that's a pretty dreadful location for a city. I'd almost rather move the settler back one square to the other plains and take a chance on them going for the city before the settler.

 

[Kev]

EGADS!!! Well, Jayne, welcome to the fun! Sorry you only played 5 turns - perhaps you can tack on some extra turns later to make up.

Is there a minimum amount of cash we need to have on hand to have the barbs allow us to pay our way out of this? That would be the very best way to deal with this threat. With (likely) 99 2-move barbs flooding the landscape we could be in a large amount of poop before all is said and done. I've always thought it would remove the barbs entirely, but I think I'm remembering ship-bourne barbs in this way.

I agree with Viking that we could put a city right where the settler is now, though if it's a matter of hitting return it is very likely that the settler just finished the road where it is now and the barbs will hit it just as soon as the button is pressed. If we ARE able to make a city there, we could always disband it for a settler and continue. Would it be possible to have the settler move to Canton and join that city?

Keep this in mind: when we had some late-game barb wrath in the last game, they seemed to be cropping up from the same area every time. It was if it was a designated area for barbs and they were set off once a city was close enough or something. If/when we eradicate this situation, we should settle in that area pretty soon.

*Kev hangs up a sign that reads "NO MOLES NEEDED"*

 

[Jayne]

I don't mind only playing 5 turns, I'm just glad the barbs didn't turn up sooner!!

As for paying off barbs, I'm pretty sure they ask for half you treasury or €50 - whichever is greater. So as soon as we drop below that we are doomed.

In my limited experience, once paid the babrs go away - but it's an interesting point that it may only include units close by. If they don't all vanish - we would only be able to bribe them twice before not having enough money left.

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

I looked and unfortunately that settler has used it's movement this turn.

I just did a bit of testing, and it seems clear that paying the ransom to the barbs will eliminate barb units if and only if they are within the city radius. That means most of the barbs will still be waiting there for us just outside the radius. How many we actually get depends on which ones move first and in what direction. If, after the first ransom there are some outside the city radius that have enough movement to reach the city, they may actually ask for ransom a second time in one turn.

In order to meet two ransom offers in 1 turn , we would need to keep at least 100g, so that when they take half the first time, we still have at least 50 to pay the 2nd ransom.

Anyway, just thought I'd post what I found out. It will be interesting to see what Andu comes up with.

 

[Duke of Marlbrough]

With Barbarians boiling out of the ground I don’t see any way we can save Canton. It will be a hard loss, but even if we do pay the bribe to save the city the first coupe times, the rest of the Barbarians will swarm the city. They have no regard for the bounty their cohorts may have been able to force from our hands.

25 BC - The decision is made to consolidate our position. Canton will be gone, so the Temple is sold. We will see if they are willing to leave Nanking alone. To give it fighting chance, it switches to an Elephant, which is IPRB. Production of cities are modified a bit to build some defensive units to try and hold off the Horde that will be coming at us. I plan to try and hold at Beijing behind City Walls, at the mountain SE of Tsingtao and at Xinjian with City Walls. Hopefully we’ll get some cash from somewhere to help this happen.

Barbarians Raze Canton. 6 gold plundered. The Settler, Horseman and Elephant that it supported disappear.


1 AD –(1) Troops move towards the Barbarian wave that is approaching. 50 gold received as a gift from the Zulus. Most of the Barbarians are just milling around or heading in a southerly direction.


20 AD –(2) City Walls rushed in Beijing. 50 more gold received from our gracious Allies. Northern Horseman finds a hut, we’ll see what it holds next turn.


40 AD –(3) Troops are in position as best can be for the Barbarians around Beijing. Troops are still on the way for Xinjian. Hut yields 50 gold, while the Zulus grant us 100 gold. City Walls rushed in Xinjian.

We are 3rd on the most advanced listing. Mogols have nearly completed the Oracle.


60 AD –(4) Tsingtao switched to the Oracle so it can continue a wonder. Hope is we can use it to get Mikes. Nanking Elephant crushes two Barbs and becomes Vet. A loaded Russian Trireme spotted just North of the Zulu city of Bapedi. No gifts available from the Zulus. They have provided nicely for us. Allowing us to rush buy our very needed City Walls.

Barbarian Horseman throws himself against the Archer behind our new City Walls in Beijing.


80 AD –(5) Unfortunately, more of the Barbarians are heading North where we are trying to protect a large area with far too little forces. Another Hut found. Nomads emerge from it ready to help us develop our nation.

The Greeks have started Copernicus’ Observatory.
The Zulus report they are at war with the Russians.

There is a Barb Leader in the middle of that huge pile. All of the other Barbs have moved so there is only 1 per square, so the only stack of Barbs has the leader.


100 AD –(6) A couple more defensively aggressive attacks by our Elephants in the field and we are somewhat holding our own for now. All the Elephants in the field are now Vets.


120 AD –(7) Wandering trireme with its Horseman finds a couple smaller islands on its way to a larger continent. A hut provides a NONE Legion. Too bad it’s too far away and on the wrong continent to help against the Barbs.


140 AD –(8) More zone coverage to protect our cities. The two Elephants protecting Nanking are slowly getting weaker. Beijing has defeated all who have approached. Tsingtao has only 2 horsemen near it now.

A Zulu horseman helps around Tsingtao and kills a Barb Horseman.


160 AD –(9) A fairly quite turn for a change. One of the Elephants near Nanking is allowed a brief rest.

Zulus are now at war with the Spanish.


180 AD –(10) A couple more Barbs killed. I think they are under control for now. From what I have seen the last few turns, it looks like we have them down to 19 units or so.

Here’s the current Barb Situation:

The Red Lines are the Kill zones I set up. Since we are dealing with two movers, they will usually come off of the rough terrain and move two squares out. That’s where we have attacking units waiting for them. The blue squares are the normal areas that the Barbs have been killed at. The red oval is a Barb unit that moved off our visible map last turn (I believe it was a Chariot), so be aware of him. The yellow line shows the Barb leader that is stacked with a Horseman. Ideally, we want to let the horseman kill himself attacking our city and then take out the leader.


Other Notes:

The NONE legion was being brought back to the Barb area in case it is needed. The Horseman from the boat was dropped on a new continent to explore. I had also planned to grab the NONE settler we recently got and send him around to where the Barbs popped up. IIRC, as long as there is improved land in the area, land Barbs will not appear. So, building some spaced out sections of road in the frontier should help reduce any new Barbs from appearing.

We have a trireme at Hangchow that can do something and a diplomat that should be done soon at Shanghai. Hopefully I didn’t screw up leaving Tsingtao as a Wonder. I kinda lost track where we were on techs and trying to get a Wonder done. I haven’t talked to the Zulus since they gave us no help for a couple turns straight.

Well, I think the Barbs are under control. If anyone had any thoughts on how we could have saved Canton, I’d like to hear them. Bribing the Barbs wouldn’t have done much for the city except save it for maybe one turn. If we had a defending unit in the city I would have rushed City Walls and tried to hold it, but with only one turn and no units around, I didn’t see a way. I almost gave up on Nanking as well until I figured two Elephants could probably get there in time to try and protect it. Nanking was building towards an Elephant in plans to assist the other two, but it doesn’t seem necessary now, so I changed it to an Archer. Maybe a Settler would be best?

 

[Kev]

Good save Duke. I tried a few things from Jayne's save after reading your account and only played a few turns (I didn't explore with any units or anything). The one thing I tried (which worked somewhat) was appeasing the barbs (got rid of a few) until canton reached size 2. Then I allowed the barbs to take the city, which therefore became a barb city. I didn't go through the process that you did (again, didn't want to explore and the money you had from the hut was helpful), but I figure I could have come back to that city later on and bribed it (if that's allowed) or taken it. If we allow ourselves to bribe barbs, then the city could have given us several units along with it. Still, I don't know if I could have run the same zone defense that you did (without the money I had to give to bribes). Nicely done.

In Nanking, why not build a trireme? I would think that exploring east will help us to find others. We'll have a few units already nearby that we can put on the ship.

Wow, quite the challenge!

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

I'm pretty sure we agreed we could bribe units, but not cities.

 

[Duke of Marlbrough]

Also, as you may have noticed, I had our settlers building roads between our cities. The defense would have been a bit easier if our units could have moved around faster.

I couldn't see spending that much money just to have it where we could eventually try and take the city back. Losing the city in the first place seemed the worst blow to me since all the supported units would be lost. I barely had enough money as it was to rush a couple key defenders.

I figured we could probably start pushing back against the last few Barbs and try to settle the area before they try and come back.

Does anyone know if the barbs get an additional attack bonus at this level? With the little bit of testing I did it sure looked like they did, that's why I focused on the City Walls, it didn't seem like a Phlanax on a Hill could survive an attack by a Horseman let alone a Chariot, let alone multiple attacks.

It was also a shame we didn't have the tech for fortress'. I probably could have gotten a couple built in spots that could have saved the City Walls from being necessary.

 

[Old n Slow]

Ah well -- what could have been…

Nice work Duke -- it looks like the southern front is stable.

Iirc, land barbs show up no closer than a few spaces away from civilization (sea barbs no restriction (? -- I’ve seen them appear in the smallest lakes “within city limits”) -- looks like our new visitors appeared about 4 spaces from Canton? Is this closer than known llimits?

 

[TimTheEnchanter]

I know barbs can come from huts in any square that is a "distance" of 4 or more from the city square (counting corner-to-corner connections as a distance of 1.5 ). I don't know if the same rules apply to land barbs or not, but it seems reasonable that they might.

It looks like the epicenter was the 2nd horse from the right in Jayne's screenshot. That square is a "distance" of 5 from the city center so it is clearly outside where the hut limit would be.

 

[TheViking]

Nice work Duke. Despite this, for a change, it seems this game is not going to be easy to win. This huge barbarian army has delayed our progress by several centuries.

It might be useful to build barracks in Beijing so our attacking units can quickly recover.

Having construction to build a fortress or two in the hills S of Beijing would have been nice - I'd love to have a fortified, veteran phalanx in a fortress in the hills.

 

[Duke of Marlbrough]

Originally posted by TheViking
Having construction to build a fortress or two in the hills S of Beijing would have been nice - I'd love to have a fortified, veteran phalanx in a fortress in the hills.

Yes, I think this should be added to the list of priority techs. Otherwise, it will be very expensive to keep buying city walls where ever the Barbs happen to pop up.

BTW, anyone seen Andu lately? I took the turns because I was available to play them and he hadn't responded. Is he busy for an extended period?