Deity Challenge - Pangea

[Flo7]

Quite some time without a new deity game... so here is mine and after playing some turns I think it deserves the name "challenge"
After playing a lot with selected leaders, preferably philo, spiritual, creative and to a lesser extend financial this game is with a random leader. Only condition he/she must not have one of the mentioned traits...

Settings are
Standard map size
Normal speed
Random leader: it is Charles
Pangea with natural shores (imo the toughest map type but natural shores makes it a bit easier...)

The starting position:

Charles is not too bad here. Imperalistic is a very strong trait if there is high competition for land. And on deity pangea that is mostly the case

Small request:
Please post a save and a short summary of what you did and why after the first 40 turns (in a spoiler tag). 2nd and 3rd summary after 30 more turns each. After the first 100 games we can think about how to continue. This way everbody can follow your decisions and learn the most out of other games...

I am really curious to see how you guys are playing this start

Good luck, it wont be easy

 

[Flo7]

ups, somehow that thread ended up in the strategy articles section and not in strategy & tips. Is there a way to move it there ?

EDIT: thanks Dave

 

[DaveMcW]

Click the Report Post button and ask a mod to move it.

 

[DMOC]

It looks like no one wants to play.



That start looks HARD...

 

[Dirk1302]

I'll give it a try when i have some time and have played the latest immortal student. I'm not too hopeful though here, looks tricky.

 

[oyzar]

The start looks quite hard but i'll give it a try... Quite a challenge indeed.

 

[harusame]

hard start, no river, no corn/wheat/rice/seafood
IMP/PRO starts with hunting/mysticism......

 

[oyzar]

Spoiler :

quite hard start... Popped some gold and masonery from huts but what i really needed was ah/mining/bw... As it was my worker idled alot(teched ah-> mining -> bw, build worker first, although i should prolly have built a warrior first or something), Building another worker before i prepeare to block hanibal(no food in that direction though) and then backsettle for enough cities to last me through the middle ages(up til col) when i can expand after getting up my UB...

 

[DMOC]

Spoiler :

Settled in place. Research went AH - Archery (for defense) then Mining - BW. Will definitely need to settle towards Hannibal if I am to succeed in this game. Capital build was warrior - worker

 

[harusame]

uh this game is really hard
i started very slow early game, no money to tech, yet i needed to expand fast to west to block Hannibal

i went immediately for gold and copper
but we have so few food resource in this


i played till 150 AD, only with 4 cities, quite sad
my tech slider is finally at 70-80%, 30-40% slider was really depressing at the beginning

now i will expand to east, build 2 more cities and grab the rice+clam and iron+fish

Spoiler :

lets see if i can pull off a cultural....
no pyramid, no wonder at all

diplomacy

Spoiler :

not a big problem here
at least Han and monty share religion with me, and i give anything they want

trade

Spoiler :

soon after trading calendar, i will get spices and sugar of my own

more likely this will end up losing, because it will probably will take to 1900 AD to accumulate 50k culture
considering i only have buddhism, well maybe i got lucky and AI spread more religions

 

[Rusten]

Up to 1 AD

Spoiler :

Playing an imperialistic civ with an all-forest start on deity Pangea pretty much means to REX your brains out--and that I did, I had to switch off my brain for a little while in order to bear the maintenance costs.

worker -> warrior -> warrior -> worker (size 3)
AH -> mining -> BW
Didn't pop any techs from the huts--only gold and a scout.

Started chopping settlers on size 3. First one went 1N of the horse and the second 1N of the gold. While they're lacking food they helped out big time for the coming settling. I stopped growing them at size 2 and set them to work horses+gold (made work boats and axes) and copper+gold (made settlers and axes)--they helped pay the bills temporarily.

Got an axeman while growing to size 4 after the 2 settlers and then went on to chop 2 more.
- 925 BC Bismarck requests that I revolt to Buddhism--I chicken out and accept. I didn't have to as SB declared on him a little later (850 BC) but I couldn't know that.
- Montezuma declares on SB 825 BC.
There were some more wars to come as well (Hannibal on SB and Louis on Montezuma), but I didn't participate in any--I declined all requests.

I had been able to scout a lot to the NW without barb interference so I noticed a really good city spot with a lot of food and gold. I managed to get there first in 1040 BC. I also managed to settle a city in the jungle for the dye and spice (you can see it in the bottom right of the sceen below).

Augsburg cost something like 9.5 gold in maintenance upon settling, but it will pay off eventually. It's going to be able to work both the gold and 2 scientists once it's matured. Speaking of the gold--I went for culture buildings before the granary there in order to beat Mesa Verde to 100 culture (and control the gold tile).
- Get my 1st GS 425 BC. As my science slider is ridiculously low due to the aggressive settling I settle the GS instead of making an academy.
- Started on the GL 275 BC and chopped it with marble (finished 100 BC).
I'm currently at 1AD and Augsburg just popped its border for the gold. It was very close, SB still had control over the tile (50% vs 49%) when I had 92 culture in Augsburg, but fortunately I got there first. My economy has finally stabilized and I'll pop it up another notch once CS is in and when I pop my 2nd GS (academy+bureaucracy). Getting the UB up should help a lot as well, especially in Augsburg.

I'll let someone else count the tile distance between Aachen and Augsburg.

The NE is up in 2-3 turns and I'm going to have 8 decent cities for a renaissance war. Things are going pretty well (at least compared to my expectations--this map is pretty evil).

P.S. Sorry for playing beyond the 40 turns, but I forgot about the request and got carried away--the map was so interesting.

 

[Flo7]

Until 2320 turn 42

Spoiler :

Tough opening. Many barbs, little food and the Danger of being boxed in by Hani.

Settled first city.

Important location. Not only strategic resources such as marble and horses, but this city will grant my access to the better land in the north. In addition it has gold, funding further expansion.

The copper/gold spot in between is an abvious city location, but it will have to wait since I try to expand first.

Research: AH > Archery > Mining > BW (1 turn from finishing)
Researched archery first since I do not want to take any risk. Not having bronze near will be killing my expansion... and there are many barbs out there

Build order: worker > warrior > archer > settler > worker (currently built)

 

[Flo7]

P.S. Sorry for playing beyond the 40 turns, but I forgot about the request and got carried away--the map was so interesting.

That is a pity. Will have to wait a while until I can look at your spoiler

 

[Quechua]

Spoiler :

Played to turn 48. Went AH-Archery-Mining-BW-Wheel. Worker first, improved cows and sat idle until BW. Cranked out several archers, lost 2. Settler went for horse canal location south of sugar.

Oh I almost forgot, I got a little lucky and got an extra commerce event for the oasis

 

[Quechua]

Second turnset, up to turn 70

Spoiler :

After wheel at end of last set, I go fishing-pottery intending to go sailing for trade and for possible new cities to my rear. Hindu spreads to Prague - I convert as Han and Ham both run it. Hooked up copper as soon as the border pops in capital.

I decide to put off sailing and make a detour to agriculture. I'm not growing back from the whip fast enough and I want to chop a grassland farm with my 3rd worker soon. Prague can be connected quickly enough by road, and the Hindu club doesn't have writing yet. The tech path feels a little sloppy to me, but fishing first got me granaries a little quicker, and I didn't need a farm while my workers were tied up at Prague.

My archer scouts find a barb city sprouted in my backyard, 1 tile from where I wanted it. I wonder if iron there?

I also find a very tasty city to my northwest. I decide to hold off on settlers momentarily (maybe one more for fish river to my SE) and grab barb land before the AI does.

Completing agriculture I run out of gold from the huts. I build treasury but set to sailing. On the final turn I meet Bismarck who's buddhist and already has alphabet. I also see a spoiler in the game log of an event between Bismarck and Sitting Bull (bug?).

 

[mystyfly]

I'll definitely have a go, when I find a calm moment on the w/e.

 

[Quechua]

3rd set up to turn 100, 375BC. I'm going to stop playing now and I'm curious to see how others play to this point.

Spoiler :

I decide to choose iron working as my next tech. I want to be able to clear jungle as soon as I capture the barb city Sarmatian. I also want to clear jungle from the sugar as it is my only surplus tile until CS in Prague. I feel a little silly for building a granary right away there, I choose to stagnate at size 2 for much of the turnset working horse and gold.

I realize now I prioritized fishing and sailing because my first archers died early and I didn't scout NW of Prague as early as I would have (Prague itself was delayed by at least 4 turns). I was concerned with improving my nearby coastal city sites and bringing up tech at the time I reached a decision point, but I later decided to delay this. I don't think this indecisiveness hurt me much though. I do send a settler SE to found Vienna which will be cottaged. I get lucky and there's iron there too.

A party of 4 axes and a chariot captures Sarmatian with no losses, with a little help from a lone Babylonian axe.

My archer-scout spies an opportunity in the nearby jungle barb city which had only 1 good archer and another archer that was critically wounded from a Babylonian axe. I send an army of 4 axes there, but in the 3 turns it takes to move, another archer is built and Ham allows the original archers to heal. I decide to pass up this city as it will have Babylonian culture trouble. I will try to found a city north of Sarmatian grabbing the pigs.

Finally I have an army of 4 axes, 1 chariot, and reinforcing axe 3 turns away ready to raze the resourceless barb city to my south. The pillage money should get me writing. Vienna should soon blossom dragging my economy out of the mud.

I am thinking cultural with Aachen using the marble, and Sarmatian and Vienna going pure commerce. Rice-seafood to my east could help to generate some artists. But I need to deal with Hannibal somehow, I don't trust him even at pleased.

 

[mystyfly]

Until turn 120, 125AD

Spoiler :

Start by settling in place, get 37g from the hut.

Techpath was AH > Mining > BW > Agri > > Archery > Wheel > Pottery > Writing (500BC) > aest (150BC) > poly > lit > CoL

3800BC pop masonry

2440BC Prague founded

2080BC Vienna founded (1N of the spot marked in the pic above)

1960BC Monty DOWs Louis

1200BC Capture Yue-Chi (barb)

1120BC raze Libyan (barb)

1040BC Found Nuremberg, near the pigs on the northern coast. I have 5 cities @ 1000BC.

850BC Raze Teoihuacan (barb) down south in the tundra

775BC Hannibal has been in WHEOOH for a while. He finally DOWs... SB. I'm very relieved.

550BC Pop silver near Prague (note I just chopped two forests. These + 2 pop (whipped) gave me ~220g (without stone!). Gotta love Protective

525BC Hinduism finally spreads to one of my cities. I instantly convert.

Louis and Monty sign peace after a RE.

375BC Get 112g from partbuilding the mids.

350BC I'm the 4th largest civ! Goal accomplished, I'd say

275BC AP gets built, by Louis and is thus hindu.

150BC Aestetics in. Now the trading starts. Only hamm has it already.

125BC aest to hannibal for 105g + IW, to SB for math + 25g. The other trades I forgot. I gifted it to monty to get him up to cautious. I think I sold it to bismarck and louis.

1AD AP vote comes up. I vote "yes", to help the underdog who will be my friend and cut the heathen SB.

25AD Hann and SB sign peace

50AD I switched the SoZ in Pragues queue until literature was researched. I now get 44g for it.
Taoism FIDL.

125AD Chopped GLib, due in 1. I stop here.

---

Some thoughts:
- I think I got a nice chuck of land I guess. IMP helped me get those cities, PRO clearly helped with the overflow to gold trick. Only thing I don't like here is that Nuremberg should be 1S. It even lost its pigs to Hamm. Will get it back eventually after its borders pop.

- RE civics: I'll wait until my first GS appears who will bulb philo for me and I get CS. I'll then switch to HR + Buero + Pac.

- Techplan from now on: CoL > backfilling (fishing, sailing, meditation, ABC) > bulbing (philo) > CS > ... > Liberalism

- I started very weakly researchwise. I researched pottery before writing which I usually don't as I try to get libraries up asap. Now I had to wait for writing until the gold mines finally were up and running. This delayed GS-generation and research. I think without the GL it would be game over. I plan on bulbing edu and probabely lib. WFYABTA will be an issue very soon as I did lots of trading, including accidentally trading for mono and priest .

- There is a gap techwise but I should be able to deal with it.

- Diplomatically I'm fine. Multiple wars and religions should keep me safe. I just need to get some AIs to friendly for techtrading. Thinking of Biz + louis. Han will be taken out most likely with rifles.

Overview:

Capital:

Relations:

Domestic:

Tech:

View attachment Flo VII. AD-0125.CivBeyondSwordSave

 

[Dirk1302]

40 turns till 2400 BC

Spoiler :

Problem with this start is you want to pasture the cow but that'll leave your worker with nothing todo for many a turn after. Alternative is growing the city to say 4 than build the worker.In both cases you'll research AH, MI and BW. I did some rough calculations what the situation is in both cases, going AH first and immediately building the worker provides some more hammers in the end compared to growing to 4. (Actually i tried 2 times).

I tried to do without archery as that would leave us with an idle worker for even longer. I thought i was totally boxed in by Han at turn 30 and needed to rush him. That's why i build the second city on a non ideal spot. I know now that there's probably some extra room to expand but without archery i still need the city as close to the copper as it is. Anyway here are my first 40 turns.

 

[mystyfly]

@Dirk

Spoiler :

I was thinking hard about what to research first and what to build first. I then went to warrior production until I grew to size 3 while teching AH > mining > BW. This made my worker idle for 3-4 turns thought I didn't make calculations. I just listened to my gut feeling oO