1.950: Look around. We're at 0% lux, which is good, but our bigger cities could use a cheap cathedral or two. It wouldn't hurt our culture, either. Do a little bit of MM and switch some unit production to muskets, since I noticed we could use some defense. Sell Gunpowder to the Babs for 41G. Might help them survive.
2.960: Entremont cathedral->settler (it's at max pop). Iron to England for 17GPT. They don't trust us enough to throw in 1G, but at least they're buying. Renew Sumerian Wine for Silk, Fur. Start upgrading some knights and all our trebuchets.
IT: Everyone starts Shakespeare's. Greece, Sumeria battle in the jungle. Scores of knighs fertilize te ground which will, one day be ours
3.970: Land on German saltpeter. I feel pretty good about the size of the force.
IT: We lose 1 pike, 1 knight to kill 4 attacking mdi's, 2 archers, and 1 longbow. Not bad, but those were just the troops camped out at the foot of the hill, and the Germans are coming on strong. We get a palace expasion.
4.980: Sell Silk to Arabia for 7GPT. Reinforce salt hill with cavs, muskets, pikes, and more knights. Elite knights are getting shipped over without upgrading, hoping for a leader.
IT: Germans mount a ferocious assault. Every one of our troops participates in the defense as they get worn down, one by one. The final toll: 2 cavs, 1 knight for 3 mdi's, 1 knight, 1 archer. Several German knights are retreated.
5.990: Reinfoce salt hill with more troops, especially pikes and muskets that I've been pulling off of MP duty. We have a lot of good troops on R&R. As improvements are built, the best troops head to the front. Newly upgraded cannon are added to the mix.
IT: German SOD's turn around and run! Some go back to England where they apparently have an ROP, some go back to Hamburg. Don't know what the deal is they don't seem to be at war with anyone but us. Could be war-weariness? Lezoux getting pounded by American frigates. The lone defender is permanently at 1HP, but there are no troops landing. The President must be afraid to commit ground forces without the people' consent
6.1000: Bombard and kill spear, 2 pikes, archer from retreating German stacks.
IT: Germany lands 3 knights near Gergovia. 3 American frigates and 1 galleon anchor off of German salt hill. What are they doing here?
7.1010: Sesn's Slayers kill 2 knights, vet knight finishes off the 3rd. Bombard American frigates with all our cannon, which happen to be right there on the hill. Our dinky navy doesn't feel like engaging.
IT: Germany turns around to attack again, losing 3 mdi's and 1 longbow, redlining som of our troops bu causing no deaths. They also start coming from English territory again.
8.1020: Our SOD really goes at the Germans. Bombard and kill 2 mdi's, 5 pikemen. Conobellus of Z's Knights is recognized as a Great Leader!
IT: Germans lose 2 mdi's and 1 archer in a futile assault, but also land a knight and a pike in our territory again. That caravel of theirs has to go. American ships, including at least 2 galleons, approach from the West.
9.1030: Finish Physics, start ToG. Palace expands. The ships that we bombarded in the East are still on their way South as well, so it looks like they are planning to land troops with 3+ transports on both sides of our continent? At the same time? What is this, a secret patch I don't know about? Decide it's not the time to find out, and sign a peace treaty, paying with our WM, an ROP, and 18G. Settle German Salts and immediately rush Military Academy, mostly for the culture. There will be more leaders. We have loads of cavs and knights on German soil, not to mention the elite muskets and pikes they keep attacking. Attack Hamburg on the same turn, using all our fast movers in the assault. We lose 1 cav and a gealic swordsman, watch several cavs and knights retreat, killing 6 pikes and 2 mdi's. Hamburg falls, and with it the cultural pressure on German Salts. It's raised to the ground, netting us 5 slaves. The last attacker, Z's Knight, camps out in the rubble, unable to run back to safety.
IT: Z's Knight is killed by a ticked-off German archer, but no other casualties are sustained as counterattacking German troops all end their turns in jungles and rubble. Renew Arabian deal for Incense, except this time it' going to cost us Salteter + 2GPT + 7G.
10.1040: Bombard and kill German archer, pike. Others are wounded but are not worth risking our troops for. German Salts will hold. As soon as Germany is gassed (they are still able to send an SOD with 5 pikes and 5 archers on the offensive, so they are not gassed yet) we should mow them down. The only problem is we are behind in tech. We could trade some mandatory techs to the Greeks for some optional MA techs, but al the wonders have been built or will be soon, so there is no point. We have a very nice prebuild that we can use on something in the next age. Cash flow is positive with ToG in 8. We have trades and ROP's wit everyone but the Germans.