Following my short spoiler, basically until contact with Cyrus.
Considering the level and the way i feel in this days, i decided to go warmogering, but not at the expenses of well developed cities.
With a continents map and normal speed, the need of astronomy and the fast obsolescence of units, added to the time to bring them at the front, asked for a good economy to sustain the research.
Cities Founded:
2nd SE of marble, to grab horses and fish (if founded in plains W of river it would be a powerhouse, but why not 2 good cities instead of a very good one?)
Oracle built there, and the
Confu shrine too (i bit late, i forgot to build a LH to free a priest).
3rd was E of fish, to grab corn (and copper as i discovered later), to be a GP farm,
GLibrary planned and built there in 75 BC.
4th on the coast, to grab cows and wheat
5th on coast, to grab banana and 2nd corn.
6th to fill the land between 2nd and 5th cities
7th in the island to grab iron
8th in the southern island for wine
9th in the island NW of the capital, to avoid unwanted neighbours
10th (and last) after the conquest of France, to fill the land between Paris and my core, grabbing 3rd corn (and oil, as i discovered very later).
All has good production, and a decent amount of gold.
Having all coastal cities but 1 (some more after wars), GLH was a big help, then built in Timbuktu in 450BC, followed by the Colossus in 75AD.
After AH and Archery I decided for a tech path straight to CoL (breaking with Masonry), for a (successful, of course)
CS slingshot.
Then Fishing and Alpha, trading for Agri, pottery, sailing, BW and Math.
I completed Oracle in 800BC, when I was researching Monotheism, then i've wait to revolt in the same turn to slavery, OR and Bureau.
Converted to Confu in 550BCm when my religion was spreaded in all my cities.
Louis converted too, then he was pleased, but he built Pyramids, Parthenon and after beat me for 3 turns to Tao, he popped a GE and built Angkor Wat, all in Paris.
This recalls in my mind WotM2, but Paris was close to my core, now.
To make my plans clear, he DoW on Wash in 720AD, the same year my caravels circumnavigated.
In
940 AD my
not impressive stack of maces and cats, with a HA and a spear following was ready to invade France, and took Paris first, against archers and some HA.
I made peace in 1210, left Louis with a single city in a island between former France and China.
I couldn't afford a war against Wash, who built SC in New York: he has stacks of longbows, WE and knights.
Then i used liberalism for Rifling, to upgrade my CR2 maces and manually researched MT, building in the meantime some knight to upgrade.
When i has some cavalry (production helped by a Taj Mahal-triggered GA) i was ready to finish Louis, razing a barb city he conquered (or revolted?) and keeping the island city (1500-1525).
In the meantime i built the Fp in Atlanta, which revolted to France before my french war.
I was ready for
Wash too, then i
DoW in 1530, to finish him in 1610, facing american cavalries in the last fights.
In 1610 i conquered DC with an impressive stack of cavalries, rifles and cannons, when i noticed the chinese city was 1 move far to my stack (not all units used).
Then i DoW on Mao, left his city in the main continent with a cat defending, then conquered next turn, when i also destroyed all the stacks he sent and garrisoned the choke point.
I needed units in my south, 'cause Mao founded 2 igloo-cities there, plus an interesting one near crabs.
Anyway in
1680 China was no more, and Mali owned all the main continent? no, Cyrus managed to found 2 more igloo-cities more or less where the chinese was.
My army was impressive, but it needed to be transported (or moved), and for considerable distances.
Cyrus was not exactly close in tech, but he has RP and nationalism (in other words, he was able, or soon being able to produce the same units i has), plus a big nation to conquer.
Moreover, my land added to Persia doesn't arrives to the dom limit.
Then the plan was: Toku first, then Hatty (on the path to Persia) when i been able to build tanks, marines, GS and bombers i was ready to DoW on Cyrus.
Then i built my fleet of galleons, to save time upgrading to transports, triggered a GA with a GP and a GA, and with troops in place,
DoW on Toku (useless for himself and the world)
in 1775.
Despite this he DoW on Hatty the same turn, to be wiped off in 1810.
Time to move troops (around Persia, too) and ready to
DoW on Hatty in 1820, wiped in 1836, after a fight with an egyptian cavalry.
One of my destroyers saw a persian galleon trying to land a settler where i razed an egyptian city, i
DoW Cyrus in 1826, destroyed the filled galleon, and waiting for the onslaught (former chinese city in his continent) ... that never comes.
He has lots of cavalry and rifles, and i wasn't able to bring my troops enough fast at the front (some never saw a battle).
Anyway, with stacks of gunships, helped by bombers, marines and tanks, Persia fell in 1852 (the last unit was eliminated in 1850, but by a GS, my tank was 1 move too far).
Conclusion: Conquest in 1854, close to domination, with only 2 former Persian cities out of revolt ... 57K.
Probably i'll never be a top player, i'm too much a builder, i don't like to whip (except a theatre or a LH in a new-conquered city), and i love too much modern warfare ... OTOH i got a lot of fun, and this
is a game.
@ DynamicSpirit
in my game Walata (1SE from yours) was a powerhouse, with HE i pumped out 2 tanks every 5 turns
... with all my pleasantness, your posts are always interesting or funny.
edit:
i was forgetting it: astronomy from a Goody hut in the iron island in 960AD ... damn, i got the colossus ... why not another tech? anyway i enjoyed it for 900 years. Note that i alredy has a city in there, but waited for an explorer arriving in 4 or 5 turns
... this makes this the 3rd game where i got Astro from a GH eheheh ... i guess because i has colossus? for sure in this one and in GotM11, must verify the other ...
Thanks to the staff for another good game, just ... let us know the results.