I am very impressed! Your score is quite good!
I guess the Anglo-Saxons must have built up very heavily in Wessex -But I did put a few Royal Guards in there to make sure Wessex wouldn't fall right away. -I think the level of difficulty is alright for the Danes, don't you think?
-I played a game with the Anglo-Saxons recently, also in Prince level, and I only managed to throw out the Danes after 1177, in the years 1200+ or so. -and still it was a decisive defeat, according to the victory conditions. I lost just sooooo many troops in that fight. If you can achieve at least a marginal defeat with the Anglo-Saxons, I bow in respect.
It could've been done earlier, because the english have access to good defensive units, and can lay a siege quite effectively. -And just one bribed warship might make the difference. I found that an effective strategy for the english is to go for marketplaces and manors (to boost watch tower and military production), and -give a bunch of christian techs to the vikings- to pacify them a little. But I must've given them too many techs, as suddenly they had the same defences as myself.
-I also took Danelagen back, which gave my economy a well-deserved boost (with the wonder there). Switching to tribal kingdom, and producing some viking hirdmen also helped with the siege strategy. -I think the anglo-saxons -or anyone else- should receive a great amount of money if conquering Danelagen (event). Also, without worry you can increase the amounts of money gained for conquering some of the other great cities, -mainly for the europeans. The Danes for one thing have good money for a long while, as long as they keep Danelagen. But Dorestad should pay off quite good (500-1000 gold? -is that too much?) -and Hamburg, Aachen and Worms, maybe?
I'll get back to you soon with the events. I just need to get some thinking done, about how the game should be balanced with these in mind. Also, since the game runs with objective victory, no new wonders can be built. I need to rethink the wonders a little bit, and I might assign some of those wonders to the minor powers, to make them a little stronger. I think the veteran crusaders is a very good idea, as they might give the europeans a final chance to get something done. Maybe they should also get some free siege equipment earlier on, to simulate reinforcements, mobilizing for war etc. (btw, the catapult is too weak in my opinion) -And a money boost if they can take vital cities. -Hedeby, Jelling and Kaupang should pay off good if they fall to the europeans.
See ya around,
Morten
