^
Short-term thinking
OK ... I tend to agree with pigswill that short-term objectives and long-term objectives are going to mess us up a bit.
For instance, we're next to Saladin. He's Hindu. Our city of New York is also Hindu, although 80% of our cities are Confucian; our founded religion.
Three players are up to bat ...
Player One: Convert to Hinduism ... start a campaign of building Hindu Missionaries out of New York to convert our own cities, while also building Confucian Missionaries to try to sway Saladin to Confucianism. In the meantime, trade technologies with Saladin with the view to a bee-line to Education so we can build Universities and start piecing together a tech' lead. We will deal with Saladin when we have Cav's.
Player Two: Envisage a war with Saladin by working towards Engineering and picking up Pikemen to counter his Camel Archers. In the meantime, stick with Confucianism and ramp up cities with Forges, Aqueducts, shoot for The Colossus, and when hitting Construction start pumping out Catapults.
Player Three: Load up our remaining Axes and Swords, and rush at a few of Saladin's border cities with the hope that in ten turns we'll take at least two cities and we can sue for peace. One Arabian city is on the fringe of an Ivory resource, and that would be great to grab before the Camel Archers arrive.
No strategy's bad ... but
Player Three would probably get the points.
As such, 10 turn rounds is just miles too few and does not allow the player to execute for themselves any longer term strategy. We need at least 40 turns per round.
Victory
I also said it before, that the victory objective must be defined. I would push for; no Cultural, no Spaceship, no Diplomatic with a reliance of votes from other tribes. Most 'newbies' I suspect are either (a.) too passive, or (b.) too 'gung-ho' with poorly co-ordinated attacks. To dominate the world I think would be the best approach.
The *Up to Prince level players* play all
I'm taken by Welnic's suggestion that *Monarch+ level players* only step in each alternate round, while the *Prince- level players* involve themselves in every round. If a *Prince- level player* pulls off a Phoenix 'rise from the ashes'-like act - that would be brilliant!
Real life
I think that we need a group of say six people, and if four are on deck at any one time, then so be it. I don't think that the world will collapse if a few of us can't play for a week. I think that with a larger number of turns per round, there will be more to digest and work on.
Start that Succession Game!
Paul666 and cabert ... please do what you have to do once you two are satisfied with the arrangements.
As before, my preference would be for a tribe without a dominant or early UU, such as India, Germany, America, France, or Spain - but so long as it's not Rome - I'll be happy. I've slipped France in, as I'm still unconvinced about the 'Musketeer rush'.
Dave McW ... are you there? Are you 'in'?
) :
win because it's far too easy to get to eight to twelve cities, hit Chemistry, and just turtle up for the rest of the game. It won't teach the *Up to Prince level players* how to be 'the' superpower.
powerhouse.
)
, usually not slavery! State property is sometimes run, but free markets keeps everyone happy. Thankfully the religion stays set at paganism. That is way more that you wanted to know!
I always wondered what love and marriage were about, but now I see: Marriage is the unchangable variation of the fenomenon called 'love'. 'love', It appears, can be partly defined as Forced Labor. It seems Vassalage, State Property, and Pacifism have something to do with it too... 
