Immortal Authority Austria Photojournal (of an amateur)

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 10: A Slight Breather

Spoiler I. A Waste of Time :

At this point, Siam is just becoming more of an annoyance than anything. His attacks are practically nonexistent since his units are too afraid to even approach my border. The biggest annoyance is his lone Composite Bowman that attacks me from a distance when I'm too lazy to deal with it. At least, I won't have to bother with anymore of his annoyance until our peace treaty is over.

Spoiler II. More Marriages :

I'm certainly taking full advantage of the gold I'm getting. A lot of it is actually coming from my trades with Carthage. Given that many AIs on my continent don't like Carthage and vice versa, the fact that I'm fighting them means I'm good friends with Carthage. The cities Carthage have means her GPT is ridiculous and I'm just trading away my Iron and Horses to get large sums of gold to develop my cities and get these marriages. I might as well take advantage of Carthage while I still can.

Spoiler III. Bound to Happen :

When I said Lampang is hard to defend, I wasn't joking. The fact that it never built a wall was a huge factor for my loss. At this point, I was willing to withdraw my troops and setup a new defensive line. I think I will raze Lampang next time I take it because Siam is going to attack me in the foreseeable future. For the time being, I'll strengthen my defenses and consider getting a citadel.

Spoiler IV. Iroquois Must Go Down! :

I guess the blessing is that Carthage didn't get it because who knows how much faster she'll snowball with it. For now, I need to deal with the Iroquois before he becomes a major threat because I can't afford to get bogged down by him in our wars. As shown in the screenshot, I got a citadel southeast of Lampang to help me fend off any Iroquois attacks. Ironically, Hiawatha made his life harder by liberating that city since the current situation is more defensible for me.

Spoiler V. Glad This is Over :

India was a problem not due to his military but due to the fact that he's attacking a less fortified position of mine. I'm glad that's over because I really need to focus on the Iroquois. I'm in the process of building up my navy or infrastructure like Harbor that will help me later. I do believe that a naval assault on the Iroquois is the way to go and, once I get my openings, I can attack from both land and sea to decisively crush Hiawatha.

Spoiler VI. New Policy :

Getting more spies is actually quite important. I need to defend my capital from enemy spies while I also need to steal some techs. I'm beelining for some techs so it's certainly nice to get some cheap techs for free in the meantime to not fall behind. The extra bit of culture and science will be nice too but I won't be seeing the benefits of extra science just yet. I just hope the leading civ isn't going to snowball too quickly.

Spoiler VII. Interesting Peace Deal :

I didn't expect to get any warscore against Hiawatha but I apparently got a fair bit. Getting gold in the process is certainly nice as I have plenty of buildings to invest in and more marriages to secure. Overall, I need to have a strong military if I want to get a momentum going and conquer rest of this continent. I only just realized at this point that Spain is actually leading in policies. I don't know what she did but it's ridiculous how she took a lead when she was only behind me an era before.

Spoiler VIII. Need more Great People :

I helped myself to the leaning Tower of Pisa because it just works so well with my UA. I don't know if the percentage makes a big difference once I get a lot of marriages but every little bit helps for sure. The free Great Person is always great and at least my other cities are also getting a boost for their Great People that will only get better once I get Coffee Houses everywhere.

Spoiler IX. Foolish Siam :

I guess it's a good thing Siam AI is being dumb and attacks me again. I'll be using this opportunity to to raze this city, get a little gold and prepare to settle my new city. I normally don't settle a city this late but desperate times call for desperate measures. This will increase my tech and policy costs but, if this enables me to win wars more decisively, it will be a well worth investment. After all, I do benefit from war until WW really kicks in.

Spoiler X. Birth of Bregenz :

I settled Bregenz one tile east of where Lampang is. For the AI melee units to hit it, they have to cross the river and very rarely do I ever see AI melee units take Amphibious as a promotion. This will keep my city safe from those pesky melee units. I'm also prioritizing Walls and Castle to ensure the best defenses for the city. At this point, I'm trying to get Navigation because I need Frigates and Corvettes to dominate the seas against the Iroquois.

Well, that's it for our update! When will we launch our counterattack?

 

[YukiN]

I believe you can raze a city even after annexing, so you can always change your mind if you find holding on to it untenable. Spain is probably authority, so those wars are feeding her culture. Maybe look at her religion as well.

Razing a city is also a nice way of getting a lot of warscore without doing much. I sometimes use that to end a war quickly and use the peace settlement gold on the city I found on the same spot. This is better as Progress than Authority.

 

[amateurgamer88]

I believe you can raze a city even after annexing, so you can always change your mind if you find holding on to it untenable. Spain is probably authority, so those wars are feeding her culture. Maybe look at her religion as well.

Razing a city is also a nice way of getting a lot of warscore without doing much. I sometimes use that to end a war quickly and use the peace settlement gold on the city I found on the same spot. This is better as Progress than Authority.

Lampang was being a huge problem and I'd rather settle a new city. I can't afford to keep hoping that the puppet builds walls because I can't afford for a city falling and my defensive line collapsing due to that. As for Siam, there isn't much I can get from him so warscore isn't very useful.

As for Spain, I guess India does a better job feeding her culture than my enemies. It really sucks because catching up to her without war is going to be more difficult as time goes since Spain went for Faith of the Masses. There's only one solution to this Spain problem then.

 

[YukiN]

Lampang was being a huge problem and I'd rather settle a new city. I can't afford to keep hoping that the puppet builds walls because I can't afford for a city falling and my defensive line collapsing due to that. As for Siam, there isn't much I can get from him so warscore isn't very useful.

As for Spain, I guess India does a better job feeding her culture than my enemies. It really sucks because catching up to her without war is going to be more difficult as time goes since Spain went for Faith of the Masses. There's only one solution to this Spain problem then.

I meant that you could have razed Lampang once the AI declared war on you simultaneously even though you already annexed it.

There is also usually more than one solution, because the last solution is always nukes.

 

[amateurgamer88]

There is also usually more than one solution, because the last solution is always nukes.

Haha, you talk as if I'll let Spain survive long enough to nuke her.

 

[YukiN]

Haha, you talk as if I'll let Spain survive long enough to nuke her.

Should have left a city. Sometimes it's about sending a message.

 

[chicorbeef]

Maybe you should have waited till Pioneers to settle that city, if Pioneer cities come with Walls. I assume you could have captured any fresh settled Iroquois cities there if he settled in the meantime.

You captured the Celtic holy city but you need to annex that city to build the Religious Wonder. Religion is a pretty huge source of delegates, between the delegates from the wonder and World Religion. What is the Celtic Religion, btw? I'm sorry if I missed it.

 

[amateurgamer88]

Maybe you should have waited till Pioneers to settle that city, if Pioneer cities come with Walls.

You captured the Celtic holy city but you need to annex that city to build the Religious Wonder. Religion is a pretty huge source of delegates, between the delegates from the wonder and World Religion. What is the Celtic Religion, btw? I

I wanted to wait for a Pioneer but I didn't have the tech at the time and I don't think the Iroquois are giving me much time to do otherwise.

As for holy city, I got into a situation where I have two holy cities and my faith keeps resetting since my official religion keeps changing back and forth to my annoyance. I've given up on religion at this point until I figure out how it works. It's a steady learning process overall.

 

[YukiN]

Maybe you should have waited till Pioneers to settle that city, if Pioneer cities come with Walls.

You captured the Celtic holy city but you need to annex that city to build the Religious Wonder. Religion is a pretty huge source of delegates, between the delegates from the wonder and World Religion. What is the Celtic Religion, btw? I

The fact that a celtic religion has no pantheon is really painful though. I would just look for another religion to conquer, which seems to be what eventually happens with Spain if the above death threats to Isabella's empire are any indication.

 

[YukiN]

I wanted to wait for a Pioneer but I didn't have the tech at the time and I don't think the Iroquois are giving me much time to do otherwise.

As for holy city, I got into a situation where I have two holy cities and my faith keeps resetting since my official religion keeps changing back and forth to my annoyance. I've given up on religion at this point until I figure out how it works. It's a steady learning process overall.

I think your official religion changes based on your adoption rate in that case, and it sounds like the two religions are quite evenly matched. Send out inquisitors from the religion you like more and quash the other religion. Just getting one out can be enough to start snowballing one religion over the other or at least stabilise your state religion to the one you prefer. If you can't even save enough faith for those, then you might want to start dismantling temples in the cities with the religion you want to remove and building temples in the cities with the one you like more.

 

[amateurgamer88]

The fact that a celtic religion has no pantheon is really painful though. I would just look for another religion to conquer, which seems to be what eventually happens with Spain if the above death threats to Isabella's empire are any indication.

At this point, it's probably easier to grab India's religion. His already spread to the Iroquois and me so I won't even need much faith for converting.

 

[YukiN]

At this point, it's probably easier to grab India's religion. His already spread to the Iroquois and me so I won't even need much faith for converting.

Makes sense. I had quite forgotten he exists given that he would probably be irrelevant soon.

 

[amateurgamer88]

Makes sense. I had quite forgotten he exists given that he would probably be irrelevant soon.

India is one of those most forgettable AIs in the game. They are either irrelevant or wiped out completely. I haven't had a game where AI India is the biggest threat.

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 11: Carthage the End Boss

Spoiler I. Start of Naval Domination :

As I said, I'm starting to work on my navy which is still quite pitiful. I have three Caravels and 1 Galleass which isn't close to being even considered a navy. I am waiting for Navigation though since upgrading ships isn't cheap and I need gold for other things. At least I rid Siam of his only coastal city so he doesn't have any dreams of annoying me on the seas. Now that I have a solid control over this area, I can safely build up my navy without any worries.

Spoiler II. Extra Defenses is Nice! :

My units are going to be stronger with the Himeji Castle built. I only just realized at this point that the Iroquois has a defensive bonuses when fighting in friendly territory. Apparently, India picked that as his Reformation and the Iroquois is benefiting from it. This will make fighting against Hiawatha a pain. Oh well, we can't expect to roll over every enemy we fight, right?

Spoiler III. Another Marriage :

The costs for these marriages are definitely racking up and, if it weren't for my solid economy, I might find myself struggle to pay for them. Statecraft is definitley great in this aspect since it helps your income by a fair bit. I actually wonder if Statecraft is a must for Tradition civs since you are always short on gold and being ahead doesn't help if you can't get the advanced units to defend yourself. Back to what matters, I'm starting to get marriages with CS that aren't bordering me so my influence is expanding steadily.

Spoiler IV. New Policy :

Speaking of Statecraft, I got myself another policy. At this point, I'm behind both Spain and Carthage. Don't ask me how Carthage is also behind Spain because I'm very confused at this point. Luckily, I'm a couple turns behind Carthage so that's not a big deal. This time, I don't think I need the extra delegates just yet so I'll go for more TR. I also don't think tourism will play a huge role as CV seems too messy and Carthage isn't going to fall that easily with her large empire.

Spoiler V. Decent Peace Deal :

This time, Siam actually had a good peace deal for me. 26 GPT is very nice as it will allow me to get even further ahead of him. Despite once leading in many areas, Siam is now a shadow of its former self and has two cities left. Surprisingly, he hasn't been wiped out as the other AIs seem to have lost interest in wiping Siam out. I know that, if I was in his position, the AIs wouldn't even hesitate.

Spoiler VI. Meeting Poland :

Poland is in the game and he isn't doing well. 5 cities isn't very good at this point as he clearly lost a number of them. I actually don't know if Tradition is a good choice for him when there's quite a bit of territory to expand to. I am currently exploring the other continent and am in the process of revealing more. I will likely need my Explorer if I want to explore rest of it for a possible landlocked AI but, given Carthaginian expansions, I highly doubt that civ survived.

Spoiler VII. Spain Making Progress :

Spain is slowly and steadily winning the war against India. I don't like this one bit but it's not like I have much of a choice. I also realized that Spain can potentially wipe out a religion outright through war. Any city she captures, including the Holy City, is converted to her religion instantly and her cities suffers no pressure. I start to wonder if her UA is a bit too powerful at the moment.

Spoiler VIII. Another Broken Record :

Well, we all know that my wars with Iroquois won't end until he's eliminated. If he believes he can eliminate me, then he can certainly try. However, I'm not a pushover like Siam and my cities are better defended now. Even Douglas is getting a lot of support from my lone Galleass so you can imagine the AI won't be doing too well against me. I just need to launch my counterattack so I can teach Hiawatha the price of attacking the mighty Austrian Empire.

Spoiler IX. Found Mayans :

Four cities aren't going to do the Mayans any good and the fact that he went Authority is interesting. It didn't help him there but it's still an interesting choice. Both Maya and Poland aren't faring too well with their wars but it's no surprise given that Carthage has over 30 cities now and almost leads in both tech and policies. I lead in tech for the time being and Spain leads in policies.

Spoiler X. Completing Statecraft :

Now, it's nice to finish this tree to get a bit more gold along with the benefits that happens during each WC session. I think it's a no brainer what I'll be going next because Industrial Age is usually the time I go crazy with war. I find that, while early wars are possible, logistics often poses a problem. Field Guns with Indirect Fire alone changes the nature of warfare and, usually by this time, you see noticeable tech gaps. The Iroquois is more or less keep up with me in tech but I doubt he can upgrade his units that quickly.

Well, that's it for our update! Will this war against the Iroquois also end with a white peace?

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 12: Making Slow Progress

Spoiler I. Establishing a Beachhead :

The Iroquois has been a nightmare to fight against since the previous front has been too small and mowing through the Iroquois units is such a grindfest. Luckily, I got enough ships to take two coastal Iroquois cities and now I secured a beachhead. I waited until Hiawatha was willing to talk peace before I went and take these two cities. I know it's a bit cheesy but how does anyone expect me to have the units to kill all these units on rough terrains and a Natural Wonder nearby (where the knight north of Grand River is on) where Iroquois units have a huge edge.

Spoiler II. Peace for Now? :

That's quite a nice peace deal for me since I have much work to do. Once my WW goes down, I can produce units again to start defending my two newly captured cities. Despite capturing those two cities, I'm still up against a large Iroquois military and will have to play cautiously. There isn't a lot of units I can station around the two cities so it's going to be a challenge in itself. In addition, I don't know why the Iroquois units seem to ignore Great Wall to a certain degree if they move into a forest tile in my territory as they can attack right after.

Spoiler III. Can't Say No to That :

I just love it when you have CS giving you quests for cities you have access to. Sometimes, they give you a quest for a city very far in the back and it takes awhile to take. Here, I'm going to enjoy all that juicy experience because I will need it. Why? Well, I'm sure you noticed something along my border in the screenshot that seems way too obvious regarding what's happening. Someone isn't great at being sneaky.

Spoiler IV. Called Her Out for It :

I already know she has no good intentions so I might as well initiate the war. This lets me get a few shots in with my ranged units but, overall, I will have an uphill battle to fight. Let's just say that my puppet cities don't emphasize defensive buildings much and I need them very much. At least, all former Siamese cities except for the Siamese capital that is actually decently defensive for the time being.

Spoiler V. Preparing for Next War :

I'm not confident about the next war since there's a pretty narrow strip of land I have to work with. I don't even have many Great Generals but I feel like this will be a worthwhile investment. I have to place this here and rotate a melee unit if I have to in order to let the Iroquois units throw themselves against the Great Citadel. This is probably the fastest way to bleed Hiawatha dry as I need to make a counterattack and make further progress or I'd have to keep defending in these less optimal situations.

Spoiler VI. Got Another Wonder :

I got myself the Sistine Chapel and it should help me catch up in policies or, at the very least, help me keep up easier. The wars help me with culture but I do notice that, as time passes, the benefits from killing units become less impactful. Only city capture seems to yield quite a bit of culture that can shave off a few turns for the next policy. For the time being, I will do what I can to grab any Wonders that I feel will be helpful. I'm also content that I'm denying any AIs from this Wonder like Carthage.

Spoiler VII. Poland's End is Near :

Well, Carthage was going to do this eventually because no one would in their right minds bet Poland with a few cities to deal with Carthage that has over thirty cities. Of course, I should emphasize that Poland also fought the Mayans so it's not like these two civs on the continent are working together against the real threat. At this point, Carthage is going to snowball quite a bit once she gets control of her entire continent.

Spoiler VIII. Imperialism Certainly the Choice :

I have wars and plenty of them. First, I need to deal with the Iroquois. If India is around, I don't mind getting his capital so I can have a proper religion under my control, though I don't get the Religious Authority as it's already reformed. Next, we will teach Spain the price of making me an enemy. Unlike the Iroquois and India, I have a feeling that our wars with Spain will be swift since we probably will hit Modern Era then and she better be afraid when I have Artillery to deal with her.

Spoiler IX. Major Inconvenience :

Okay, Spain taking my allied CS is certainly exceptionally annoying. I will need to deal with her in due time but, for the time being, I will let her survive longer than she deserves. My forces are mostly gathered along the fronts I share with the Iroquois but I do leave a fairly strong force to defend my cities against Spain. I don't like taking unnecessary changes in this regard and I will eventually need to station more units to push into Spanish territory.

Spoiler X. Blessing or Curse? :

Normally, I'd be happy to see another AI helping me against my enemy. India is certainly not what I had in mind the cavalry, not that I need any cavalry. I just that Gandhi can hold his own because the last thing I need is him losing more cities to Spain and make her even stronger. I have my hands full so I can't afford to have another snowballing civ to deal with while Carthage is just cleaning up her borders on her continent so it will be one unified color on the minimap.

Well, that's it for our update! Who will get stronger faster, me or Spain?

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 13: Stupid India and Spain (for Different Reasons)

Spoiler I. More Gold Overall :

Summer Palace is such a nice Wonder to have when you are playing the diplomatic game. Since I want to have Chanceries in all of my cities, this actually means you get positive gold since the maintenance is 2 gold. The Nobility promotion is a nice added bonus since it does add up with what you get from Statecraft policies. I think I might be too greedy with Wonders so far but I'm not getting punished.

Spoiler II. Dealing with Spain :

First, I don't like the fact that Carthage and not Austria is the host. Where's the justice in this world? I'm also a little surprised to see India with all his votes. I didn't expect him to have such an impact on WC. I still have much work to do and, once we get to Modern Era, I'd get more delegates from CS alliances. From what I've seen so far, Carthage would rather puppet those CS instead of allying them.

Spoiler III. Not Good :

Well, I hate Scholars in Residence when I'm leading in tech. It's not much of a lead but it's still something. I guess that, with Carthage soon snowballing, I might actually need this to catch up. I'll be beelining some military techs so I can use this by researching the cheaper techs to catch up in numbers. I also dislike that the Mayans, despite being practically irrelevant, decides to put this inconvenience into the game.

Spoiler IV. Time for Bigger Military :

I'm very happy that this passed as I need the gold. The AI, at least on this difficulty, rarely struggle with gold unless it's early game or they are losing a big war. Foe, more gold means more marriages, building investments, Wonder investments and upgrades. With Rifling completing in the foreseeable future (27 turns is still a long time), I will need a good GPT to promote a lot of units. Meanwhile, Spain isn't doing too well with her navy. They can't defeat my Musketman and Caravel duet in Si Satchanalai.

Spoiler V. Stupid India :

What's the worst thing to happen with India declaring war? How about losing cities in the process and making Spain stronger? I don't need another stronger civ on my continent to cause more issues. After all, Carthage isn't going to wait until I control my entire continent until she attacks me. If anything, I expect her to show hostilities soon unless we happen to take the same Ideology. Then, I might have time to prepare for our inevitable war.

Spoiler VI. Stupid Spain :

Spain is certainly keeping up in tech and she still leads with policies, 1 at this point but that's enormous since she'll get her Ideology sooner. Meanwhile, she's also threatening Kyzyl who has done nothing wrong other than allying with the stronger power on this continent. I have some liberating to do once I deal with the Iroquois and India. This continent isn't big enough for two big empires.

Spoiler VII. Alright, Let's End This for Good (I mean it!!!) :

The Iroquois declares war and I get to find out how my defenses fair against him. The fact that I have a narrow territory to work with is quite difficult but my Citadel is going to do work. Early on, I did lose a Musketman because one of Hiawatha's Knights was able to move onto a Forest tile and attack the city that doesn't have enough CS as it's been taking damage. That Musketman will be missed but that was also Hiawatha's only chance at retaking the city.

Spoiler VIII. Can't Do Prolonged War....Yet :

Spain is lucky I'm investing so much resources against the Iroquois. She is going to have a field day against Gandhi who's basically just feeding her more culture, science and land. I'll have to do something about this because I can't afford Spain taking Delhi and converting it over to Catholicism. I need that Holy City for myself and then it will be Spanish cities that will be next.

Spoiler IX. Foolish India :

India is very funny here since he believes that we are friends. I just need a proper border with him and then I'll happily provide his cities protection from the Spanish who have no respect for other religions. For the time being, it's certainly a big grind to weaken the Iroquois military. I'm also starting to push inland while my navy is attacking from another corner of the Iroquois Empire. There's a limit to how many cities Hiawatha can defend at once.

Spoiler X. A Wider Front :

I will need a wider front against Spain eventually but now is not the ideal time. After all, it's not like I can take advantage of this chaos and strike Spain down rapidly. I also have a lot of upgrades to do because I need Fusiliers and Field Guns to strengthen my offensive. Against the Iroquois, I did prioritize upgrading the Tercio on that Citadel so he's really hard to eliminate. At this point, I'm going quite aggressive and Iroquois just can't keep up.

Well, that's it for our update! What will be the fate of the Iroquois?

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 14: Conquering Spree

Spoiler I. She's so Nice! :

Who knew being Carthage's friend can be so beneficial. After all, my income is solid but this will inject so much gold into my empire and I intend to get the most out of it. Those diplomatic marriages are going to be easier now that I'm making about 400 GPT and I can just invest in lots of buildings throughout my empire to ensure that, once my war with the Iroquois is over and my WW is zero, I'd be building lots of buildings very quickly.

Spoiler II. More Yields Please! :

It's certainly nice to get more gold, science and culture from my puppets as I have quite a few of them. I have six core cities which doesn't seem enough at times when it comes to producing military units. I think I will need to eventually annex a few of my puppets to have more cities for military production. We all know I'll need it for the war against Carthage as she's not slowing down her conquests either.

Spoiler III. A Breakthrough :

In past wars, the attacks on land would be unthinkable given how many Iroquois units are everywhere. With the help of my Hussars and relatively aggressive push by my standards, I'm able to take Buffalo Creek. I use my Lancers to threaten the Iroquois Cannons while my other units go in and rotate out if their health is too low. My Musketmen are certainly doing their part as well since they help speed up the fall of the city. I only have one Cannon and it had to be withdrawn due to being focused by the city.

Spoiler IV. Naval Dominance :

Controlling the seas is so important since that allows my Frigates to wreck havoc on those cities. There are some cannons in the region but their effectiveness is quite limited since I have enough movements, thanks to Imperialism, for my Frigates to take a shot and without out of range. I do have to worry about the Caravels since they can damage my Frigates a lot. Therefore, I have to put my Corvettes in harm's way to create ZoC and make it harder for Iroquois Caravel reaching my Frigates.

Spoiler V. A Very Valuable Asset? :

I was initially quite surprised to see extra movements on my ships but then I remembered that Hiawatha built the Great Lighthouse. I check my newest conquest, Akwesasme, and I wasn't disappointed. The extra movement can be massive later in the game when naval battles against Carthage will no doubt be very heated. She will have lots of ships and maneuverability can helps my ships fight what can be otherwise a messy situation.

Spoiler VI. No Pausing on the Wonders :

If I can get Greedy, then I should keep it up. My war with the Iroquois is finally going in my way and the only thing slowing my conquest down is my happiness which doesn't do too well when I grab these big Iroquois cities. My WW has maxed out so production in all of my cities are pathetic. Luckily, I have everything I need to deal with Hiawatha. I guess I just need to figure out when I'll end the war with the Iroquois.

Spoiler VII. Someone Wants a Beating :

India couldn't be doing something more stupid than attack Spain. I guess that, even if he doesn't initiate, the Spanish AI is going to take the fight because she knows that victory is within her grasp. India can only resist so much before his defenses crumble. I'm paying more attention on this war because I hope Delhi doesn't fall. I have lots of work to do as Spain can still be a problem.

Spoiler VIII. Another Coastal City Falls :

I can certainly take coastal Iroquois cities much easily than his landlocked ones. My navy is quite formidable now with all those upgrades and he couldn't even do much. The funny thing is I have a lone Lancer that I sent to this area to pillage tiles and TR so I'm getting quite a bit of yields that way. In the meantime, the Iroquois can't do much because his main forces have been crushed and whatever he had left is too busy fending off my land army that's slowly encircling his capital.

Spoiler IX. Keeping the Momentum Going :

The Iroquois isn't going to fare too well with all these cities lost. At this point, I have considered ending the war and finish him in the next war. However, I don't want him to be a problem when I need more units to deal with Spain. After some thought, I decided that I will be need to eliminate the Iroquois much like what I did with Sweden in my Portugal photojournal. I just need to wait for my happiness to catch up and I'll just systematically eliminate Hiawatha. At this point, I don't think warmongering penalties are going to matter.

Spoiler X. Carthage Controls Her Entire Continent :

Carthage has eliminated the Mayans to my dismay and that means that she will be in a good position to attack a civ on my continent. I hope she will remain friends with me and attack Spain but I also don't want her to get a foothold on my continent. At this point, I really needed to explore more because I know too little of the map. I have a feeling there are more continents, though smaller than the main ones, that might be settled.

Well, that's it for our update! Who will we attack after the Iroquois?

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 15: Ridding a Former Rival

Spoiler I. Onondaga Falls :

The Iroquois has put up quite a fight early on but he just lacked the funds to upgrade his units despite more or less keeping up in tech with me. I played a bit more aggressive and utilized both my army and navy to hit the Iroquois hard on all fronts. At this point, I do intend of conquering all of his cities to wipe him all out. No vassalage forces me to play that way but at least I rid a problem and get to move onto Spain soon.

Spoiler II. Spain Destroying India :

Spain is making steady progress against India and it's becoming obvious that I have to attack India soon. Delhi is the main prize but I certainly wouldn't mind grabbing a few more of his cities, at least the ones that will help me prepare my future war against Spain. Do note that, in the screenshot, that Siam has Vientane still. That's his last city and let's just say that Siam won't be around very soon.

Spoiler III. New Policy :

I always find it tough to decide what I want from Imperialism. If I go down the left side, I'll eventually get large sums of gold from capturing cities and those help with a lot of things, especially when I completed Authority. The right side helps more with actual combat and those extra bonuses from Monopoly can get you decent yields, particularly the percentage ones. The extra range for GG aura and more combat bonus is always very nice as well.

Spoiler IV. Slowing Spain Down :

Slowing Spain down is certainly a good idea as I will be preparing to war against her. She has bullied India long enough and has taken enough cities as it is. I do think that I should take Indian cities under my protection as Gandhi certainly couldn't keep a hostile foe at bay. For now, I just need to conclude my war with Hiawatha and then let my WW come down. It's quite high and will take awhile to get back down.

Spoiler V. Goodbye Hiawatha! :

If Hiawatha wasn't as powerful as he was, I'd probably focus on Spain more. I'm glad I decided to invest in a navy as it's certainly paying off. I will need it eventually and, at this point, I feel like it's still not good enough. I have to build another navy to fight in the north of my continent since Spain has plenty of ships as well. There will be a lot of naval battles in this game for sure once Spain is defeated.

Spoiler VI. Bad Timing... :

I'm still recovering from my WW so this isn't exactly the best time to fight Spain. I'm not afraid of her or anything but I want my WW to drop back down so I can get more units up. I'm still not quite ready to fight her yet because I'm waiting for a few key techs. I don't doubt I can hold her back without any problems but, for whatever reason, my WW from fighting the Iroquois did take a long time before it started coming down. Guess extending my war to eliminate the Iroquois does that to you.

Spoiler VII. This can be a Problem :

I don't mind Carthage fighting Spain if it weren't for the fact that Carthage is already in a dominant position overall. If she starts taking Spanish cities, then I know I'm going to be in a lot of trouble. For the time being, I guess this will speed up Spain's willingness to talk peace with me. I need to get my army bolstered if I want to really hit Spain hard. I also want to have Foreign Legions to assist as they will be quite terrifying for Spain to deal with.

Spoiler VIII. Capital Just Business as Usual :

With my WW taking forever to recover, my capital has limited options as what it can build. Units are out of the question since I have negative supply cap. Buildings take too long and they don't have as good of a benefit overall. I'm still building Wonders and that's what I'm getting. I might have to shift to ship production once I'm done because I need a bigger navy as soon as possible.

Spoiler IX. New Policy :

Seeing how I'm not going on the offensive against Spain just yet and our war has ended by now, I decided to get more yields overall. I need to get my cities improved as much as they can be and shift into military production. I need plenty of everything with the emphasis being Field Guns as I only had one in the war against Hiawatha. This just shows you how powerful Logistics Hussars are because they carried the day with their pretty strong attacks.

Spoiler X. End of Siam :

Siam is also eliminated and I was hesitant to attack him because I felt bad. However, he has a defensive pact with India while India also has a defensive pact with Carthage. This was the only way to draw India in without being at war with Carthage. Siam is eliminated and my forces consisting of my powerful Hussars are closing in on Delhi. I hope to get the Indian capital and begin preparations for war against Spain very soon.

Well, that's it for our update! How many Indian cities will we take?

 

[amateurgamer88]

Chapter 16: Spain is Next

Spoiler I. Spain Closing in on Delhi :

In this instance, I'm very glad that I didn't hesitate to attack India indirectly because Spain is making quick progress against India. Mumbai basically gives Spain access to Delhi but, at this point, I have blockaded Delhi so she won't be getting it. However, Spain is in the process of taking almost all the other Indian cities so that can be a problem for sure. I will see if I can take more than just Delhi as a prize in this war.

Spoiler II. My New Monopoly...and Delhi :

I took down Delhi with little problems since most of Indian units have been crushed by Spain and the few remaining survivors are in full retreat. The new monopoly is pretty nice as I need more culture to keep up in policies, though it does appear as though I'm just trying my best to not fall behind too much. I have the intention of taking Bangalore too since defending Delhi by itself is going to be very tricky unless I use Citadels. It's here where I missed Portugal's UA.

Spoiler III. Spain Gets Ideology :

While I can officially have a religion that's already spread throughout my empire with the capture of Delhi, Spain has gotten her ideology by quite a margin ahead of me. Surprisingly, she took Freedom which isn't going to help her one bit except for the tenet that lets her purchase units with full experience. With the way the trend is going, I suspect that Carthage will get her ideology before me and, regardless what she takes, I'm going for Autocracy to complete my conquest build.

Spoiler IV. RIP India :

While India did backstab me (not officially at least), I feel bad about this. However, Spain took his other cities and Bangalore was his last city when I took it. At this point, my continent only has two major powers vying for control and we are pretty close in everything. Spain has one extra policy while I have one extra tech. The situation will get quite messy very soon since we had wars in the past. Now, we have a larger front so I'm curious how that will play out.

Spoiler V. Demographics :

The fact that I'm not second rank in a lot of these makes me sad. I know Carthage has a pretty big lead so catching up to her will be difficult. However, Spain having more hammers, food and land is something I will change. I'm reseraching Replaceable Parts right now so I'm in the process of preparing for our war. Spain is going to feel the full might of the Austrian Empire. I just need more GPT for those Foreign Legions...

Spoiler VI. Capital Still Doing Capital Stuff :

My capital is still working on Wonder production and it's doing quite well. I think I will shift Vienna to ship building very soon because those ships will get nice promotions once they are completed and, while Spain is the immediate problem, I do need a navy to fight Carthage and, at the very least, defend my allied CS. Carthage has been systematically eating up all the CS on her continent.

Spoiler VII. SOI Every CS! :

Okay, I can SOI only one CS at a time but I'm specifically targeting those Spain is allied to. I will only get stronger diplomatically and I'm perfectly fine with that. Now, I will need to use the most powerful diplomatic tool in the game, war, to deal with Spain directly. I'm surprised Carthage didn't snowball as quickly as I thought but I didn't want to push my luck. I better invade Spain with haste if I can and go from there.

Spoiler VIII. 6th Diplomatic Marriage? :

At this point, I've stopped keep track of how many marriages I have. However, I am solidifying my control of the CS around me. Samarkand is a bit odd in that this CS is on an island between me and Carthage. I will certainly need a navy to defend it from any hostile invasions. For now, I'm happy to just raise my influence and get the votes I can get from the CS. I wonder if I'll have enough votes to win Diplomatic Victory.

Spoiler IX. Need More Cities :

Have a handful of cities that I can produce what I want really limit what I can do in preparation for war. I decided to first annex Onondaga for its relatively high production compared to my other puppet. For those wondering, Edinburgh isn't spectacular in production so I'm hesitant to annex it despite having it under my control for awhile. If anything, I need high production coastal cities. My capital can produce ships quickly but I need quantity if I want to deal with the Carthaginian navy.

Spoiler X. A Wonder not in Capital :

Since Vienna isn't by a river, I can't built this Wonder in my capital. Oddly enough, I didn't think I'd get it in one of my secondary cities but that's exactly what happened. Graz is the lucky city to get this Wonder and that's making it quite strong in production overall. Luckily, Graz is also coastal so it can contribute to my navy construction. At this moment, I am working on a navy to defend my puppeted Siamese cities because they are quite vulnerable to naval attacks with their low CS.

Well, that's it for our update! Will Spain attack us next update?

 

[YukiN]

You can always open up the world congress page to check the sources of your votes. That will tell you how many marriages you have.