Death on Deity?

[ndthsmdy]

According to Sirian, the only victories on Deity so far have been on small or duel maps in which the human has attacked early.

I tried a Deity with a similar strategy: Mongols, Small Map (4 Civs, 2 Custom Continents) and hung on for a while. The outcome wasn't really in doubt once I got to Medieval, but they didn't put me away until early Industrial.

So let's try again, shall we

**

Difficulty: DEITY
Map: Pangaea
Size: Duel
Climate: Temperate
Sealevel: Medium
Speed: Quick
Options: No Barbs
Victories: Time, Conquest

Civ: Mongols, Genghis Khan (Aggressive, Expansive)
Opponent: Egyptians, Hatsheput (Spiritual, Creative)

**

As you can see, I am totally coddling myself. The No Barbs was a debate, since getting upgrades could be really helpful, but in the end I decided against it. And I picked my opponent and victory conditions to maximize my chances (go ahead and out-culture/religion me, you ugly cat-worshipper ). I picked Pangaea because I want to know where Hatsheput is as soon as possible (hopefully far away) and so I don't have to worry about building a navy to get to her. Oh, I almost forgot--as there is *still* no way I will win this game, my goal is pretty much just to be as respectable as possible and give everybody a taste of competing at this level.

I should also mention that I am one of the unlucky ones with an ATI 7500 (i.e., the one that was supposed to work, but doesn't), so I am only playing because of Sovz's temp fix, which has the unpleasant side effect of revealing the whole map off the bat. I plan on making my decisions as if I didn't know anything about the map (although, I will, so if you have a problem with this, wait until I actually somehow beat the level , then we'll talk).

Start:

WOW

Check out the FIVE resources I'm going to have--three of which I'll actually get to use before Calendar. It could be six if I were willing to move east to grab the cows (cut off on the right side), but I'm not going to settle on a dye, nor am I going to waste a turn when I will need all the time I can get.

It's a sign. I'm so...going to not die until the ADs

**

Early strategies:

1) FIND HATSHEPUT. With that Scout, and that coast to the NW, I'll be blazing a trail SE.

2) Fishing + Animal Husbandry + Agriculture + The Wheel = Using my resources = GOOD. Early tech priorities.

3) Barracks bonus + Granary Bonus = Pottery as another early tech priority = good. Early building priorities.

4) The Mining>Bronze Working>Iron Working track is the biggest priority of all. I've GOT to get some copper or iron so I can build some good units (which will not be obsolete until Medieval!). This by itself may well dictate how early I put out my first Settler and Worker.

5) Screw the rest of the techs. I've got more important things to worry about.

I totally welcome any advice/observations anyone has, as I still feel this level is way over my head. It may be a day or so before I play the first few turns (you know, RL and stuff), but when I do I'll try to post a save file for anyone who wants to give this tailor-made Deity start a shot.

 

[sickre]

Wow - does that work on multiplayer too?

 

[ndthsmdy]

Wow - does that work on multiplayer too?

No. When I multiplayer I always go for culture. Seems to work well

**

(1) 4000 BC:
Scout off and running SE
Found Karakorum on spot
Mining in 5, Warrior in 10
Switching from Corn's 3F to Dye's 2F & 2G (NB: City Gov's "Emphasize Commerce" did not cooperate) reduces Mining from 5 to 4

(2) 3950 BC:

WTH?!?!?!?!?

Well, uh, looks like I found Hatsheput. She's like five freakin' tiles away! Yeah, let's make peace. We're going to be sooo peaceful as long as possible. So much for an ideal Deity start...

(3) 3900 BC:

Move my Scout up to Egypt's border. She has 2 workers, and 2 archers--and that's just on her western border. Yeesh. Turn north.

(4) 3850 BC:

Karakorum expands. Hut popped during expansion yields 35 gold.

(5) 3800 BC:

Discover Mining. Archery in 4 (would have gone straight for BW, except for the Hatsheput-being-able-to-walk-right-in-right-now thing).

(6) 3750 BC:

Looks like Hatsheput's got a new city--right to the SE of Karakorum

My Scout, going around Egypt to the north, ends up one tile away from a hut. Surprise--Hatsheput's two archers are also one tile away.

(7) 3700 BC:

Egypt's archers take the hut.

(8) 3650 BC:

Egypt's second city grows culturally already . Karakorum, however, grows to size two, and I switch the second citizen from the corn to the horses to finish the Warrior (whooo! defense!) in 1. By the way, Hatsheput is already outscoring me 496-256.

(9) 3600 BC:

Warrior built. Archery comes in--next up: Bronze Working. Second citizen from horse --> hill means barracks in 5. I want archers with city garrison promotions...

(10) 3550 BC:

Scout pops a hut...oh, OH! What's that??? Bronze Working?!? My Scout popped Bronze Working?!?

Iron Working in 13. Could have gone Animal Husbandry in 7, but I wouldn't have a Worker to hook up the horses, nor do I particularly want Chariots (though I do want the Keshik that will come after I get Horseback Riding...). I'll roll the dice with IW.

Oh--and I found copper! Oh wait, it's nowhere near me. In fact, it's right on H's eastern border...

(To be continued...)

 

[ndthsmdy]

(11) 3500 BC: ...
(12) 3450 BC: ...
(13) 3400 BC: ...
(14) 3350 BC: ...

(15) 3300 BC:

Barracks completed. Archer in 4. By the way, the score right now is Hatty 705, Me 269.

(16) 3250 BC: ...

(17) 3200 BC:

Hatty's founded a third city...

(18) 3150 BC: ...

(19) 3100 BC:

Archer completed. Give it City Garrison promotion. New Archer in 4.

(20) 3050 BC:

Score update: 1,007-269.

(21) 3000 BC:

Hatty founds Buddhism (Yeah, go ahead and spread it to me--I'll worship whatever god you want...)

(22) 2950 BC: ...

(23) 2900 BC:

Second Archer in Karakorum (also with City Garrison). Start another.

(24) 2850 BC:

Iron Working! Start Fishing, to get to Pottery.

And I found iron! Oh wait--once again, it's not near me, and it'll be Hatty's the next time she expands.

Switch Archer in Karakorum to Worker. I need to get the Horses online now. Maximizing food and production slows tech rate, but reduces Worker from 10 to 8 turns.

Also switch tech from Fishing to Animal Husbandry, which will be due in 6. Horseback Riding (and UU) would be 21 (!) additional turns away at this point.

(25) 2800 BC:

Score update: 1,168-262.

(26) 2750 BC:

Hatty founds Hinduism, and founds her fourth city due south of Karakorum

(27) 2700 BC:

Karakorum expands. Um, good?

(28) 2650 BC:

Hatty builds Stonehenge. Score now at 1,374-331.

(29) 2600 BC: ...

(30) 2550 BC:

Hatty founds Judaism, completing "the Hydra."

Discover Animal Husbandry. I can either go for Horseback Riding in 19, or Agriculture (to get the corn) in 5, or back to Fishing>Pottery. Pick Agriculture. Once this Worker gets out, I desperately need growth (Karakorum still at size 2).

(31) 2500 BC:

Hatty adopts organized religion.
Scout returns home after having circumnavigated the continent. Fortunately, we have Hatty sealed off from a medium-sized peninsula at the NW end; unfortunately, it is resource poor/redundant and pretty crappy terrain, and Hatty will easily get the rest of the continent.
Score update: 1,450-338.
Worker in 1, Agriculture in 4...

 

[Sybot]

4 cities in just 26 turns! Looks like Deity in Civ 4 is going to take a while for anybody to crack!

 

[ndthsmdy]

4 cities in just 26 turns! Looks like Deity in Civ 4 is going to take a while for anybody to crack!

Keep in mind that this is a quick game, so it might not be as rapid on normal or epic. Still, it looks like a Deity AI gets to start in Ancient with something similar to the 3 Settlers, 3 Military, and 2 Workers that everybody starts with in a Modern game.

I'm interested to see how long it takes a Deity AI to blow a lumbering neighbor out of the water. Will Hatty (Hassy?) Molassy wait until she's done expanding if I kiss her sweet, sweet behind? Or will something kick in at some point and she'll take me out anyway? This will be good to know.

Strategy reassessment:
1) Techs: Agriculture>Pottery>Fishing>HB?
2) Karakorum builds: Worker>Archer>Granary>more Archers with a Fishing Boat thrown in until I get to Keshiks
3) Haven't had the use for the whip in my earlier games, maybe now's a good time to give it a whirl
4) Once I get my Worker out, and especially once the Granary is up, I am going into growth mode and will not build another Settler or Worker until Karakorum can't grow further. I need more people and more MONEY

(32) 2450 BC:

Worker>Archer. Worker flocks to horses to build pasture.

(33) 2400 BC:

Hatty converts to Judaism.

As my Scout discovered last turn, Hatty is in good enough shape that she can spare an Archer to shadow her Worker.

Also note the minimap: is that a fifth city off to the NE? I think it is

(34) 2350 BC: ...

(35) 2300 BC:

Agriculture>Pottery (in 6)
Archer>Archer
Switch from Corn to Dye to bring the discrepency in Pottery and Archer closer (5/4).
I really wish I could disband my Scout for the extra hammers. How come they cut this out of Civ 4? I could totally use it...

(36) 2250 BC:

Worker goes Pasture>Road

(37) 2200 BC:

I'm now losing money after that last Archer.

I'll let it run for now, but this is going to become a big problem...

(38) 2150 BC:

Hatty builds the Pyramids.

Worker Road>Farm on Corn

(39) 2100 BC:

Archer>Archer (just a placeholder, till Pottery comes in next turn).

The new Archer takes me down to -2 income, so I disband the Scout. Wish I could have gotten some frickin' shields out of it

Can I build a cottage on a dye? We're going to find out once I'm done with this Farm...

(40) 2050 BC:

Pottery in. Horseback Riding is *still* 16 turns away. Opt instead for Fishing in 3.

Granary due in only 5. Thank you very much Expansive...

Hatty's culture expands (again), swiping 2 tiles from Karakorum. Score is now 1,822-322 (yes, I have actually lost 16 points in 9 turns, thanks to Hatty's expansion. She has gained 372 in that time)

(41) 2000 BC: ... (had a city screen shot to show here, but I guess I lost it)

(42) 1950 BC: My goodness Hatty!

Oh yeah--she also adopted Hereditary Rule this turn

Worker Farm>Road

(43) 1900 BC:

Discover Fishing. Horseback Riding still in 14 . I'll take Writing in 6 (Open Borders = her spreading Judaism = diplomacy points. Although now she'll get to walk through to get to that little peninsula I'll never get to settle anyway...).

Granary in 2 at Karakorum, but this says it all:

 

[ndthsmdy]

Onward to 1000 BC:

(44) 1850 BC:

Start that cottage on Dyes. This will be very helpful (helpful = "prolonging my inevitable demise")

(45) 1800 BC:

Granary>Work Boat. With the City Gov not cooperating, I once again MM to end up with growth in 2, Boat in 3, Writing still in 5.

(46) 1750 BC:

Hatty switches back to Buddhism. Make up your mind before you send out your missionaries, eh?

(47) 1700 BC:

Moses born to Hatty. (GP points? Oh yeah...I remember when I used to get those...)

(48) 1650 BC:

Work Boat>Chariot
Worker finishes Cottage on Dye>Grassland forest (I want the chop!)
Boat grabs the clams, must once again MM to compensate for City Gov not doing it the way I want.

(49) 1600 BC:

Writing>Sailing in 5 (Lighthouse will be big growth boost, plus Horseback is still 11 away...)

Another round of MMing: growth in 2, Chariot in 3, forest chop in 4, Sailing in 5 (after growth, will adjust again so that Sailing comes in before chop--would rather have those hammers going toward a Lighthouse than a Chariot).

(50) 1550 BC: ...

(51) 1500 BC:

Karakorum grows...ohhh...we're unhappy. Should've thought ahead about that.

You know, I heard such good things about the increased intelligence of the City Gov...but even when I click on Avoid Growth and Emphasize Commerce he doesn't knock Sailing down a turn, when it can easily be done:

Someone's going to have to explain the new City Gov to me.

(52) 1450 BC:

Heh, check this out:

That's right--I'm "great" for coming in a distant second. I feel so much more confident.

The chop comes through??? Did I add wrong? I thought it was going to come in next turn with Sailing...oh well, at least it'll carry over in this game

(53) 1400 BC:

Sailing>Masonry in 3 (Walls will be necessary, and HB is still too long for my taste). Chariot>Lighthouse in 5 (I'd make another military unit, but I can't really afford it). Somehow in the last few turns I went from -1 to 0 income, so I delete my non-promoted warrior to stay even. Once again: I totally have to MM to get the balance I want.

And hey--that Cottage on the Dyes just turned into a Hamlet. I've never been so excited about the addition of 1 gold

(54) 1350 BC:

A new grassland chop and cottage in 5 (I'll expect it a turn early this time).

Score update: 2,405-421.

(55) 1300 BC:

Hatty does not come to me...so I dial her up and suggest Open Borders. She agrees, Genghis is happy. The diplomacy points outweigh the danger that she will settle my craptastic secret peninsula before I do.

I decide I will send my new Chariot on a tour of a Deity AI's territory, circa 1200 BC.

(56) 1250 BC:

Masonry>Horseback Riding (finally, a length I can live with--due in 8).

On cue, a Buddhist missionary appears in my territory...

Thanks, babe. Appreciate it!

My Chariot tour rides up to Memphis, Hatty's second earliest city. Is it attackable with my piecemeal army? I would say not...

Check out all the promotions they have too--she must have built a Barracks super early, or else this is a Deity AI cheat-type thing.

(Chariot tour continued in next post...)

 

[Snoopy]

hilarious..

 

[ndthsmdy]

(The depressing tour continues...)

(57) 1200 BC:

Hatty brings Buddhism to Karakorum. Why yes, we'll take the turn of Anarchy, thank you for asking. I look forward to the +2 bonus I have coming to me...

Chariot tour's next stop is Heliopolis, a newer city to the east. "Only" has 3 spears and 3 archers.

(58) 1150 BC:

The Chariot tour stops at Thebes. I would say the capital's in pretty good hands at the moment.

The tour also makes it to Alexandria, which appears to be the most recent city. One Axeman, one Spear, three Archers.

Come on, Hatty--you've got to protect your people!

Check out the minimap though. It looks like she's already burned up most/all of her living space, which doesn't bode well for me...

On the other hand, my turn of Anarchy ends and Genghis now bows before the Buddha. Scrolling over Hatty's name was never so sweet:

(Still cautious? Just you wait, honey bun.)

(59) 1100 BC:

Lighthouse>Library (I can get it in 4 and keep HB at 7 if I max production).

I spy a Jewish missionary apparently heading past Karakorum to the NW peninsula. Uh, if you're looking for Mongol cities up there, let me save you the effort...

(60) 1050 BC:

The Jewish missionary must have turned into Karakorum anyway, because I now have Judaism there.

(61) 1000 BC:

Hatty builds the Great Lighthouse.

Time for a sit rep:

5 to HB
2 to Library

Once I get Library and Walls in Karakorum, it may be time to think about a Settler. As long as I'm going to have to wait a while to get some happy improvements (note to self: Priesthood), I might as well spend that excess food expanding. Here is the near end of that secret peninsula.

I must have missed the Ivory before, but yeah, Ivory--that means Elephants and Catapults in one fell swoop when I get Construction. Elephants and Keshiks are going to be as good as it gets for a while. If I settle on that grassland SW of the mountain range, I'll have to figure out how to get some culture to expand (Obelisk?), but that'll grab another source of Horses as well as the precious Ivory.

By the way, that Cottage on the Dye by Karakorum is now a Hamlet, and only has 5 to get to Village. Anybody doubt the extreme coolness of the Cottage build now?

I'm surprised I feel so comfortable with my situation. Hatty hasn't even begun to be aggressive with me--not that it will matter in this particular game, but if I'd had copper or iron, and she'd been farther away, and I could've actually cared about expansion and/or culture, this could be a much closer game. Barring a sudden change in religion, I'm now on her good side:

Yes, the word of the day is "Pleased." I plan to ride it until the unlikely event that I find an opening.

 

[Sybot]

Keep in mind that this is a quick game, so it might not be as rapid on normal or epic. Still, it looks like a Deity AI gets to start in Ancient with something similar to the 3 Settlers, 3 Military, and 2 Workers that everybody starts with in a Modern game.

I see, it makes more sense now, but the Deity AI is still looking to be stupidly strong. I'm getting Civ 4 today and I know what difficulty I'm NOT starting on...

This is interesting because its almost like you're playing a OCC at the moment, and you probably will be forever if Hatty manages to enclose you. Good Luck!

 

[yendorII]

Where did you go? This one looked good hope you plan on continuing this.

 

[ndthsmdy]

Where did you go? This one looked good hope you plan on continuing this.

Never fear. Just had a few RL things this weekend that were more important than getting smacked around by Hatty.

This is interesting because its almost like you're playing a OCC at the moment, and you probably will be forever if Hatty manages to enclose you.

Not if I have anything to say about it

Thoughts:

1) I definitely needs me another city. Perhaps more, if I can pull it off. Karakorum is at its happiness limit and more military will just push me into the red anyway, so I don't think I have much to lose by backing on continued good relations with Hatty and focusing on grabbing that remaining land up there.

2) I'd like to get to Alphabet soon, just to see how horribly behind I am in techs. And who knows, maybe if I play my cards right I can keep her happy and find a way to get to nukes before her

3) Cottages in Karakorum. And then more. Finances are going to be a struggle given the size military I'll need to keep.

Hope to post later tonight...

 

[ndthsmdy]

(62) 960 BC:

Hatty expands, swipes another tile from Karakorum. I know she's close, but she's still taking away my second-tier tiles with her fourth (!) tier expansion.

(63) 920 BC:

Karakorum Library>SETTLER (6). Got to get something else out there.

(64) 880 BC: ...

(65) 840 BC:

Merit Ptah born in Thebes...

Two Axemen approach my border. Eek.

(66) 800 BC:

Egyptian Axemen run away like the cowardly chicken they are.

Horseback Riding>Mathematics (Has anybody else noticed how key a Classical tech Math is? Leads to Calendar (luxuries), Construction (Catapults), AND Code of Laws (Confucianism/Courthouses)? This is going to be essential well over 50% of the time).

(67) 760 BC: ...

(68) 720 BC:

Settler>Walls in 3 (not much else to work with here, given precarious financial situation and how city improvements don't cost anything anymore). Settler leaves with an Archer (Worker has been busy building road to intended site for past few turns).

(69) 680 BC: ...

(70) 640 BC: ...

(71) 600 BC:

Hatty founds Confucianism and builds Oracle. Confucianism?? As in, the Confucianism that comes with CoL?? She must not be THAT far ahead of me (of course, the Oracle and free tech contained therein doesn't help...).

(72) 560 BC:

Math>Alphabet (9)
Karakorum Walls>Keshik (3)
Hatty adopts Vassalage and Serfdom. Well, if Feudalism was her Oracle tech, guess she's made her way to Medieval...

(73) 520 BC:

OCC no more! Found Beshbalik on my hidden peninsula (btw, I was stupid to suggest that I should found on that Grassland tile. Founding to the Plains one tile SW gets the same benefits as well as a Corn).

I'm getting in trouble financially and (by extension) technologically though. I'm at -3 per turn (with only 12 gold total). MM Karakorum for commerce (despite the fact that it is already unhappy and will now grow to size 6 in 1).

(74) 480 BC:

Hatty snags Christianity.

On the other hand, the religious Diplo bonus has grown from +2 to +3, which puts me now at a +4 total (I guess I know how to please my woman ).

On the other other hand, the latest score update is 3,400-565 (guess who's winning?)

(75) 440 BC:

Worker starts building a camp on the Ivory by Beshbalik, having connected Karakorum and B by road. Reluctantly lower science rate to 90% (which takes my income from -4 to even).

(76) 400 BC: ...

(77) 360 BC:

Another GP for Hatty...

Here's my new city. Note the Egyptian missionary ready to spread the word of Buddha to it. I know it's just fattening Hatty's coffers, but I'll still be happy when the time comes to build a temple there.

(78) 320 BC:

Buddhism in Beshbalik.

Karakorum Keshik>Aqueduct (just a placeholder, till Alphabet comes in next turn).

The Ivory is now hooked up to both Karakorum and Beshbalik, giving K a much needed happy face.

(79) 280 BC:

Alphabet>Currency in 10 (markets...MARKETS!)
Beshbalik Granary>Library (culture AND science. Why science, you ask...)
Forced once again to knock down the science rate. Now at 80%, running a +1 income.
BUT the best development is how Alphabet allows me to turn Karakorum's build orders into research. Knocks 2 turns off Currency by itself (sssssweet...)

(80) 240 BC:

Another GP for Hatty (3 in this turnlog so far).

I check out the diplo situation now that I have Alphabet (although I somehow lost a few of the later screenshots...use your imagination):

Holy pleasedness, Batman!

The resource situation shows that she has Iron over me, and I have Corn, Clams, Horses, and Ivory over her. Interesting.

Here's what the tech situation says:

Seeing as we already know that she's into Feudalism (known not just by the Vassalage and Serfdom but also by the Longbowmen she's been regularly parading by my borders...), I'm clearly not getting to see the whole picture here. But why don't I see all the Classical techs she has over me (I have so few of them I find it hard to believe she only has 1 over me)? And for the love of god, she doesn't have POTTERY yet??? The cottage-crazy AI doesn't have Pottery by 240 BC??? This blew my mind. I would've thought the AI would have exploded your computer if it didn't have 500 cottages by now. That's really amazing.

I dial her up, just to check her out more closely. It turns out she has two sources of Iron...but she wants all four of my previously mentioned resources for it. Sorry, babe. Maybe once we get to Medieval. Calendar and Mysticism are both off limits to me (her reason for not trading Mysticism: "We're not comfortable trading that tech just yet." Yes. Those Ancient techs when you're in Medieval are so valuable).

(81) 200 BC:

Oh geez.

(82) 160 BC: ...

(83) 120 BC:

Hatty snags Islam and Chichen Itza.

On the plus side though, Beshbalik's borders expand. We are now one contiguous nation.

(84) 80 BC:

Hatty gets the Great Library, and a Jewish missionary is about to enter Beshbalik.

(85) 40 BC:

Judaism in Beshbalik.

GP #4 for Hatty since 1000 BC...

(86) 1 AD:

I also lost these screenshots (don't know what my/my comp's problem is tonight), but...

Hatty dials me up--she wants to give me 70 gold for Pottery!!! That's a slight bargain, but I'll give it to her, because I need the gold and because this will lead to more diplomatic bonuses. I'm shocked I still have something to offer her this late in the game.

I get Currency in 2, but I'm still losing badly:

Here are my two cities as they stand:

I wish I wish I had gotten this start as Victoria (Exp/Fin). Expansive is still a good thing, since my small number of cities will require them to be as big as possible, but commerce is my big problem right now. The longer I kiss Hatty's butt and improve our diplomatic relationship, the more military doesn't seem to matter--whereas commerce is my biggest problem right now, because I can't keep up in techs as is. The biggest factor here: Hatty's been out of living space for 1,000 years now, and still hasn't come after me.

It's still clear that I'm going to lose this game, but if I were Victoria and had started in as advantageous a place (resources as well as blocking Hatty off from the peninsula), targeting nukes might actually be viable. I might try it anyway if it becomes even more clear that I can continue to live this way indefinitely, but it would be far more accessible if I were Financial.

More to come...

 

[Eastian]

Awesome story! Need more of this!

 

[Dauntless]

Your definately doing better than I would be! Keep it up!

 

[ndthsmdy]

The fearsome Mongol train keeps a' truckin...

(86) 1 AD:

For fun, I check the Tech Advisor and see how far away it is to Rocketry ( = ICBMs). Answer: 28 techs (and Rocketry would take 116 turns at my current state). Seeing as I don't have much hope that my tech pace will be that much improved later in the game, and how this is a Quick game, I pretty much give up right then. Nevertheless, I might as well start knocking down some of those 28 techs, especially since some of them (Mysticism, etc.) are just 1-3 turns right now.

(87) 40 AD:

Hatty adds Taoism and Church of the Nativity. Light turn, I guess..

(88) 80 AD:

Currency>Mysticism (in 1).

Ooh, +7 in diplo now:

(89) 120 AD:

Mysticism>Polytheism (also in 1)

(90) 160 AD:

Polytheism>Priesthood (also in 1)

(91) 200 AD:

Priesthood>Monotheism (whoa...2 whole turns this time)
Karakorum from Research>Market in 12

(92) 240 AD:

That Cottage I built way back when on those Spices...is now a Town. This alone allows me to bump my Science rate back up to 90%

(93) 280 AD:

Monotheism>Monarchy in 4 (why Monarchy, you ask? Just you wait...)

(94) 320 AD: ...

(95) 360 AD:

Just when I was thinking how Hatty hasn't scored any Wonders or GP lately...

(96) 400 AD:

...and then she snags a GP on this turn.

Beshbalik is now unhappy at size 6

(97) 440 AD:

Monarchy>Calendar in 5
Why Monarchy, you asked way back when? Well...start revolution to switch to Hereditary Rule.
Hatty gets Versailles
BTW, Hatty saw fit to found a city (Giza) pretty much due east of Karakorum several turns ago, which has already grown to size 8 (bigger than any of my 2 cities). Lots of workers on my border, eh?

(98) 480 AD:

Enter Hereditary Rule in Mongolia.
I truly had no goal in mind when I switched, except for this:

As long as I keep HR, I convince that poor Egyptian sucker that I've wisely chosen my civics. I was more pleasantly surprised that the religion bonus had appreciated yet again, and had now pushed me up to +9 (!).

I'll say this now: provided my diplo bonus does not drop somehow, this game is f***ed up if she attacks me with a +9 or higher diplo rating.

(99) 520 AD:

I think I'm beginning to have readily apparent culture problems here...

That's the first first-tier tile Hatty's swiped from me. I'm assuming it's from Memphis (the old city, now with pop 14) rather than Giza (the new one with pop 8). Good thing my score couldn't get any lower...

(100) 560 AD:

Hatty builds Sistine Chapel, and scores another GP.

On the other hand, I've once again made it 100 turns into a Deity game...although given their predictability if you make your #1 priority kissing their butt, I'm not sure that's such an achievement.

(101) 600 AD:

Library in Beshbalik finally finishes>Market.
Karakorum's Market is due in 2. It will also grow in 3 to size 8, and it will be a happy growth (not sure how, haven't been paying much attention).
Calendar in 1.

Check things out to see where I stand. Score: 5,106-917 (not surprising). Diplo bonus: still +9. I check out the tech situation in the Foreign Advisor screen and get a much more complete picture of where I stand:

For those who have not memorized the thumbnails as I have, that would be Meditation, Literature, CoL, Drama, Feudalism, Theology, Calendar, Metal Casting, Compass, and Construction that Hatty has over me. Well...hey, that's only 10 techs, which I guess is okay, right?

I'm kind of torn about this game. On one hand, it's starting to get a bit boring to play, seeing as I have such a small civ and can only do so much at any given time. On the other hand, if this is a complete tech picture (not sure that it is), then Hatty's really not that far ahead of me, although I can expect as time goes on that she will get exponentially farther ahead. In the end, it looks like I have 2 choices: 1) don't care about losing, and just keep scouting how the Deity AI evolves over time, or 2) come up with an overly ambitious strategy to try to win this in the eleventh hour, which involves nuking a Deity AI who I will have been suckering a positive relationship with all game long and who will in all likelihood totally annihilate me once I go nuclear. And that's if I actually make it to Rocketry with my anemic civ. I don't know. We'll see what I think once I come back to this in the next day or two.

 

[craney]

dude your crazy. i luv civ... but i have this problem of sucking at it. i cant believe u lasted so long... u have to keep playing or if youre bored... just atack for the sake of attacking and tell everyone how long u could attack for... u cant end a story on "i got bored".

 

[Azash]

What he said.

 

[nevs69]

Hope you come back to playing it... very entertaining read!

 

[Kal'thzar]

I also tried a couple of dieties (not that i play at that level, play Nobel usually)

I havn't actually been killed off, but this has been due to a combination of making map starts in my favour i.e. With allies in one, Still bottom. (i think my ally started with 3 settlers, 3 archers, 3 Workers, and a few other thing? scout?). Started on tiny islands, no small islands. In that one i survived until Isabell invaded me with marines, i had pikemen, longbowmen. Ouch. That time she razed a city, so i bought her off with a city, hoping the culture would swamp it. It was in the process of being swamped when Isabell won with a space victory. Intrestingly i developed NO religion, and didn't get any until Cyrus turned up. But that spread to one city. so I decided, lets not make people annoyed with me, and stayed with NO religion. *sigh*

Oh and Cyrus still took pity on me and gave me two techs through out the game. First time it ever happened to me.