Germany Deity Humiliation Game Thread

[Cokolwiek]

PRELUDE
So on the night before Blackpink's comeback day and only few days after Operation Barbarossa operation anniversary I felt like I wanted to role play some serious warrior nation. Of course, nothing screams seriousness and militarism as much as the sound of thousands of boots of German soldiers occupying the whole continent. I have selected many AIs to be Germany historical rivals or allies. With Landsknechts and Tercios and Spain, France, Austria it will be Habsburg struggle all over again. Should Charles V abdicate once again, overcame by his enemies? Later I'm counting on imperial wars with Russia and the United States. Watch some of this historical footage or any documentary on the wars in Europe in last few centuries to feel the mood.
It started nicely, but it is getting worse any minute.

THE GAME
In this thread you can watch me humiliate myself and being outplayed by artificial intelligence.
I have a save game if anyone is interested.
This is April version, Deity, Pangea, Epic.
Screenshots are more bland, grayish, and of lower quality than the real game.
This is test photojournal, let me know screenshots of what you would like to see.

Spoiler :

I didn't get best first ruins but I got like four of them. Gold, twenty culture, one citizen, upgrade for a scout. I went monument into a shrine, into a settler. I then bought this archer and went barb hunting.
Hunting into pottery into sailing of course.
I got extremely early quest for camps, around turn thirty. And I lost my upgraded scout. I miscalculated. It did hurt. AF to be honest. But I got rid of the camp, and befriended the first city-state for a three science. It was around turn forty. It was an accident, normally I wouldn't trade that.

Spoiler :

This was so nice. Napoleon invested so much in that thing, he was building it for around twenty turns and gained nothing. Nicht. Null. Kein a thing. And I gained a lot more time and space to settle. I would cry if I were him.

Spoiler :

I will strive to not be the one to destroy this alliance and peace on our continent. The fact that I went authority does not mean I don't possess an understanding of the horrors of war and bitterness of rivalry.

Spoiler :

Gold was spent on the shrine and boats obviously.

Spoiler :

Now this. Again, it pained AF. It was two turns on the tech and I wasted this first plus three science by it. But my units needed to be elsewhere to secure another quest from a militaristic city-state that resulted in plus seven science per turn in total.

Spoiler :

Was it worth? I think yes. Happiness, science and I got an archer and a warrior out of it. SOmetimes it is acceptable to leave the capital undefended.

Spoiler :

All AIs were extremely slow in the beginning, I was just selling them crabs and when I had three or four cities, most of them was sitting on two or one like Napoleon. Also, Spain must have been crippled by something. Captured settler? Frankfurt doesn't have much food and hence much future, but this location is just sweet enough. I waited five turns to settle it though to get the policy bonus. With god of the sea it feels strange to not to forward settle Napoleon in the suburbs of Paris and mountains to left him with room for only two cities but tranquilly settle near my capital. But the yields. Thick.

Spoiler :

Like I said. Suspiciously high.

Spoiler :

This is why authority is so much better than progress, even if you do not war early. I settled this city with a free settler, got science and culture for it, because of culture city had already claimed horses, because of the tile claimed and great flat production bonus the invested shrine will be finished in five turns total. And in the next turn fishing boat kicks in. In the meantime I got quest to build one granary for sixty influence. That's two maritime friends and one solid militaristic alliance. And two food from the pantheon in coastal cities and crab monopoly bonus, and all those fish. My cities are well fed and productive, after shrines and monuments I was building councils. I also got an early golden age because of quest reward.

Spoiler :

AIs awoken themselves. I rushed masonry to get the Terracotta Army. I worked on it only for two or three turns. It was thirteen turns away. Great Library, or mathematics wonders are still for taking. Not sure about the Great Lighthouse. But anyway it was strange.
Now most of the AIs matched me with six cities.
I'm one more turn from founding, on the last few turns before my religion four were founded. I decided this one turn from the prophet is a great moment to stop for now. I will cry tears of Wehrmacht if I won't succeed at it.
What are your suggestions? I don't think I played this game optimally by any means, I decided against another coastal city on two occasions, maybe burying my chances for religion. I know the apostolic tradition is already taken, haven't checked the rest. If council of elders will be taken, what are your propositions for a strong religion? I feel the gap of four techs by now, I consider scholarship the best option, but maybe after a building.
Also I decided to relegate the duty of settler production for Frankfurt and Essen. In total I saved my capital from producing four settlers. Berlin have mediocre potential but needs to grow anyway. All my coastal cities have great food so I don't fear that. And Frankfurt is excellent at it, it is strong right now, but its potential is limited, so there are no developmental cost of those settlers. In fact they help to keep happiness in check.
I know for sure I will aim for Angkor Wat and forward settle Washington with Lake Victoria for eight cities in total and one settler in reserve.
Germany is counting on me. I will make it a superpower. Victorious and glorious, or beaten and forlorn, but I will. Ich schwöre.

 

[CrazyG]

How's your culture and science compared to the AI? I know authority can feel really good at the moment with a free settler and suck, but you aren't you going to reach a point where it gives a lot less culture than progress would in these situations? Is the strategy to have Germany's bonuses compensate for that?

 

[DeAnno]

I used to swear by Scholasticism or Dilligence (probs not Dilligence for Authority though) or more situationally Creativity/Asceticism as first belief, but over time I am getting sold on taking Orders.

1) The AI likes Orders, if you don't take it in the first round it'll be gone after.
2) Unlike many religious buildings you can get a huge benefit from the first Order if you decide to the training in that city. Even if you spread out training more you can do it with a couple Orders and still spread reasonably. You could even slam down an Order in a city being attacked like a wall.
3) The benefit of Orders later when you're wide is kind of a lot of Faith. Like the Faith version of Terracotta really.
Edit 4) If you're getting hosed by some other Religion the buildings you built already don't turn off, your yield beliefs do.

As for Founders I find that harder to say, I mostly aim for Apolistic and will generally take Council as second place as you were thinking. Hero Worship is supposedly really good but you have to commit to offensive war very early on for it to work, with Authority that is less of an issue though. I find many of the other Founders to have tempting lategame potential but be extremely painfully slow in practice, compared to the fast three.

Maybe Burial could be good if you think the AI is good enough to actually kill some of your units these days? With Authority you could throw a lot of units at the problem, enough that maybe they're allowed to die. It has some lategame potential if you take Glory of God with it, the AIs don't usually reform with that one so it'll probably be open when you struggle your way to Reformation.

I find the timing of Transcendence really annoying, and Divine Inheritance probably isn't suited for Authority with a mediocre capital. WLTKD one might work, but it feels kind of underwhelming to me for the work you have to put into it at times. People talk about Holy Law being good too, though it feels kind of slow to me.