To be honest I can’t remember my exact logic for settling. I remember putting in quite a lot of thought but looking at your capital compared to mine I think I got it wrong! Moved the scout onto the floodplains and was tempted by those sweet, sweet cottage sites but I saw lots of green tiles under all of that forest, loads of hammers in forest, and given I could only see one food resource to the east I worried I might be abandoning something good going west.
As I recall (and I’m ready to be corrected) capital locations always have four resources if SIP. That bare PH is really suspicious for a hidden resource, I think floodplains counts for half a resource. With hindsight, the only tile to the west that could have had the fourth resource was a plains tile so probably nothing good (marble as it turns out.)
One thing I liked about the location I did choose (and your location) is that with expansive trait. 1 hammer from farmed wheat, 1 hammer from city centre and 2 hammers from PH = 4 x 1.5 = 6 plus 3 food from farm makes 9 production a turn into settler or 11 with a mine on the PH.
A mistake I’ve made in the past is finding an all floodplains capital and thinking it’ll be the best bureaucracy capital ever only to find out it takes forever to produce workers/settlers/buildings leading to an awful start! I even had one attempt recently where I was only able to contribute 1 food to my initial worker due to the unhealthiness from the floodplains…
Both capital sites have rivers which is great.
I’ve learned to value forests more highly than I did at one point and my capital has tons of these in theory making for great production early.
In summary, your capital site traded 2 brown tiles (albeit one with an unknown resource on) for 2 floodplains and one of your green tiles gained a resource (silk.) Opportunity cost of one turn moving onto the forest so settle T2. You lost 5 forests = 100 production (pre-mathematics.)
In retrospect, I think yours is the better settling location.
Worker first. Tech order Ag, mining, BW. I’m fairly happy this was right. Improve food first then get in position to chop. Could be an argument for pottery given good natural production and floodplains for cottages but as would need the wheel first, too many idle worker turns and it’s always good to know if we have copper.
T33. Here is the world as we know it at the point of deciding where to settle second city. You’ll note that my scouting has not quite got as far north west as you did which will mean I later miss your rather excellent city up there. Prague founded T36 between the pigs, copper and marble – at this point I thought this might make a good HE city but for now it can produce workers and an axe pronto before barbs come at me – have some fogbusting warriors out but won’t help me against archers.
Capital grows and builds a warrior and then another settler at size 4 whilst worker improves copper in Prague.
Thought I’d grab the floodplains before Joao nabs them all. Did think about settling on the desert hill but will lose the oasis and other floodplains to Joao and cause border tensions. My different settling decision with the capital makes a difference in these subsequent city locations. Obviously Vienna doesn’t have any food but I think at this point claiming that land was worth it.
Tech order continued, TW, pottery, writing.
Foundation of Nuremburg. Work some floodplains. Share wheat. Good place for first GS I think. At this point, happiness is becoming a problem, impacting on my ability to grow or whip. My plan is to tech aesthetics and trade for monarchy. Unfortunately, the AI was really, really slow at getting to monarchy. Border pop would also get ivory soon. Without stone The Pyramids didn’t seem good but given they are still not built at T135, maybe I should have gone for them with all that forest. Gold and fur would obviously help but maybe I got too greedy wanting to share the fish.
I think my Nuremburg would have been better off where your Vienna is. Obviously my Vienna isn’t an optimal site to go for when I did but given my capital has less control of all those floodplains than yours did I think (in my circumstances) I was right not to run the risk of Joao taking them which would have been a complete disaster.
I was 3 turns behind you in getting to 4 cities. I do have two axes at that point giving me security from barbs. I can’t quite see in your screenshots what your military looks like.
Foundation of Augsburg. Looking back, I think I’ve got it really wrong up to this point. You had your fifth city 20 turns before me and I only have 3 workers for 5 cities at this point.
Found my final city of Mainz. Pretty poor city but grabs a few more forests and can help with cottages in the capital. Still only had 3 workers at this point.
Joao makes a demand. My plan at this point was elepults but given I’m bordered by Joao and Mehmed who are both in Islam, I don’t want to take the diplomatic hit of a DOW. I therefore decide to refuse Joao’s demand in the hope that he plots on me. He immediately starts plotting!
My next concern is preventing him bribing in a war ally. I convert to Islam with a plan to get Mehmed and Saladin to pleased (can’t plot at pleased therefore cannot get bribed against me.) At the same time I start to give Victoria old techs and I think my marble too. Wang Kon is a pariah and I make sure not to trade open borders or resources with him to avoid upsetting everyone else.
I really wanted to get to construction before Joao attacked me as without elepults I won’t be able to do anything useful offensively but here he comes. 9 turns after I invited him to DOW me I think it was a poor gamble to think I could have construction and horseback riding in. Instead of building research for these I should have got out some axes and spears which I now have to whip in a hurry. This whipping then becomes even more of an error when I realise on T102 that I can beg archery for 10 turns of peace and his units turn away from my borders…
Music great artist should start a golden age nearly always, not bulb.
