Figured I should probably update my Dodekanese game. Stopped playing it around the time of my lung operation before Christmas, haven't had a chance to immerse myself in it since...
397 BC: Lydia and Ionia agree to declare a military alliance not on Phrygia (whom I was aware Lydia were at war with), but Bithynia! Interesting, though perhaps I cannot use this one to my favour...
Corcyrai build the Corcyrian Navy. Meanwhile, I do believe my Toxotes outside of Ithake are laying bored...
395 BC: The Dodekanese, outraged that their position of naval dominance is called into question by the Corcyrian navy, declares war.
Though there were some casualties, eventually the Fates yet again decided in Dodekanesia's favour, as they righteously should!
390 BC: Chalkidike and Thrake sign a peace treaty. Which is unfortunate but not a major setback!
389 BC: Aetolia demands tin. I refuse. They were bluffing.
387 BC: Athens declare war on Korynth and Thebes
385 BC: Thevai and Makedon sign a military alliance against Thrake.
383 BC: Thessaly just traded their world map, 23 talents and 19 talents per turn for my world map
380 BC: Athens declare war on Makedonia
379 BC: Our righteous city of Samos has been building a Temple to Zeus for some time now, but so have the Aoilian city of Smyrna and the Makedonian city of Aegis. The latter was not a threat, but Smyrna was to the point that I had an invasion fleet ready and waiting to deploy once it grew a size, which it did this year. Fortunetely, it builds the temple in 7 turns; Samos in 6. Thus I do not feel they are a threat to my prestige with the Gods.
378 BC: Instead, our forces wage war on the oppressive naval Tyrranos which is Euboea (and yes, they are indeed still under a Tryannical form of government).
I conquer Chios in in the first year of assault, losing only one Toxotis.
(Chios = important island, no? Why has it no islanders?)
Thebes and Athens sign a peace treaty
Euboea coerces Aiolia to sign a trade embargo against me. This Aioles are going to get what's coming to them, sooner or later...
Lydia conquers the last Bithynian city - the Asian Thrakians are no more!
377 BC: The strategically important city of Dystos falls to me!
375 BC: Porthmos falls.
In between the turns - Euboea begs for peace. I agree - on condition that they give me the city of Aidepsos, which would have been my last target for conquest.
Lydia signs an alliance with Makedonia against Thrake
Phokis and Makedonia sign an alliance against Athinai
374 BC: Many civs declare war on Korynthos
I complete the Statue of Zeus! Free twechs: Education and Historia.
357 BC: I declare war on Makedonia, who look to be building Heredotus' Historia before me. A huge gamble, no doubt.
I drag in Chalkidike, Lydia, Thevai and Thessalia on my side.
351 BC: The evil Makedonai conspire with the tretcherous Chersonesioi to declare war on us! Fortunately, this will work out in my favour as the Fates should well be aware...
349 BC: My Toxotis' and new Mikotos Toxotis' made short work of the defenses of New Ainos, which had been the cause of a scar within our territory borders for some time now!
347 BC: Chersonesos are destroyed by Lydia.
347 BC: We build Heredotus' Histories!
342 BC: We accept Thessaly's offer of a trade embargo against the embittered Korynthos, who themselves have an embargo against us.
End of 338 BC: Heredotus Histories' grants us Mechanisms from the Lydioi and Aetolioi. We enter the final era...
335 BC: Ionia invite me to join in their crusade against Lokris. I decline, though such a war could be beneficial to me:
Lokris have been reduced to one city, an impenetrable island with no countryside around it. Such a war is kinda my forte. It is also close to my Ionian island groups and could stage the home of latter conquests...
332 BC: After having stayed out of mainland Greek politics for so long (minor the pillaging raid of Makedonia of course), we decide it should be a good time to acquire some mainland real estate.
After some arguous weighing up the pro's and con's, we have chosen that Messenia need feel our wrath, for the following reasons:
*Resources: They control vital Grapes (which we have just decided to end our dependence on Krete for) and Spartiates (no-one holds more than one of them)
*Technological backwardsness makes them easy pickings
*Terrain advantage (to us) - low-lying terrain, no idols, no forts
*Wouldn't mind that Helot Uprising, neither...
The city of Messenia was taken by our triumphant Toxotis with no fatalities!
Andania falls with one casualty on our side.
Kyrapissiai withstands year one of our siege, killing 2 of my Miktos Toxotis, though I kill one Ionian Hoplite.
332 BC interturn: Sparte joins in Lydia's crusade against Lokris. Notable because up until now, I have not seen Sparte engage in any of the now many wars...
331 BC: Kyrapissiai falls
330 BC: In a surprise twist, Sparte declairs war on Lydia
329 BC: Karia declares war on Lydia. This creates an urgent situation for me - Karia controls several key locations which I wouldn't want to fall to Lydia...
-Espionage shows: Halikanassos has 5 spearmen and an archer, Kalynda has 4 skirmishers, Myndas has 2 skirmishers
328 BC: I witness an archer from Lokris undertaking an amphibious assault onto a single-tile Spartan city. There's hope for them yet!
327 BC: An Ionian hoplite defending the city of Andania against the Messenian insurgency which still exists in the countryside gains the highest honor of all and becomes an officer.
326 BC: We began our assault on the Messenian city of Stemykluros, their capital and also home of the spartaites resource we crave. After heavy casualties we capture it, and with it a large reserve force of workers (12 in fact), who shall toil to make the Messenian defensive barrier once conditions are ripe.
Following the success of our Messenian operations, we declare war on Karia.
Halikarnassos' 6 units falls on the first assault, with minimal casualties. We capture the Mausoleum and 3 slaves.
Mindas measily 2 skirmishers also fell without much of a fight.
Then came the siege of Kalynda. 4 Anatolian Skirmishers. 5 of my Miktos Toxotes. I sustained one casualty and several injuries but took the city.
325 BC: Thrake demands Islanders. We give in - for now.
324 BC: I besiege and conquer Mylassa. Its pitiful defenses left no casualties on my side (indeed, I had hoped I'd be in for at least *some* fight).
I want to use it to grant myself an adequate defensive barrier (shown in red), although cultural borders may prohibit this. That said, we have drafted up proposals, should we manage to take Tralles (in blue), or Tralles and Harpasa (green extension).
323 BC: An Ionian Hoplite doing counter-insurgency operations in Messenia grants us our second leader.
OOC: Sometimes I see the AI take a city, and then that turn its culture expands to ~ the level it was before it was captured. Not with the sacrificing civs like Illyria and Thrake, but with Aetolia when they took the Makedonian city of Vergina, and most recently Lydia when they took the Karieis city of Tralles. How are they doing this? I've looked in the editor, and they don't have access to any unit which enslaves enemies either. Furthermore, when I looked in Tralles, all it had was an Agora...
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Currently, my plans are a little boxed in. Messenia still has two cities, one inaccessible to amphibious invasion, and the other which I wouldn't really want at this stage of the game. Either way, I'm holding out until I can take the first.
Karia is practically defeated now, so I will have to work on fortifying defensive boundaries against Lydian aggression.
A rematch with Euboea is looking like the next position for assault - if I can control the Euboeans resource, I can potentially stop any other civ from claiming a hegemonic victory. I used to have the monopoly on islander resources until Lydia connected their own to their capital.
Some things to note in general:
Chalkidike has really become a major player. Perhaps helped by the neutering of Makedon earlier in the game by my raiding tactics (though I'd argue Chalkidike had already gained the upper hand by then). They've spread along the northern Aegean islands and quite frankly I'm a little fearful for when the time comes to try and dislodge them! Aetolia and Epirus are also two of the top-tier surprises of my game. Meanwhile, Korynthos is barely clinging on, Sparte hasn't expanded much and Athens got nipped in the bud quite early and has since been content with being a middling power.
Eventually, I want to invade Troy for its wonder, and also the city of Byzantium, though Thrace are another of the top-tier AI.