@Moxxa, yep, if you say, are secluded on an island by yourslef with the great library and don't make contact with any other civs until they are in the IA and the first two civs that you encounter are both up to say Rep Parts, you'll get every tech they both have, although then obviously it expires. This is how the Great Library Capture Slingshot works. For a full example you can see either Tupac05, or Tupac02, or Sid Vicious and the Magnificent 7+1 (my favourite game to read).
I think goign for the GLB will have the best return, armies aren't so hot in Vanilla, although still useful. And whats all this you're talking about capturing the Great Lighthouse???
Have you seen the save? babylon is a monster, if we go to war anytime soon we'll be lucky to SURVIVE!
Anyway on with the turnset...
Turn 5 (650 BC) continued - Send the GL toward Susa, which I set to wealth for a turn (Leader won't get there till next turn). Switch Pasargadae over to a regular Library at cost of 5 shields.
IT - we lose the redlined, Darius-producing Immortal to a Zulu sword. (8-1)
Turn 6 (630BC) - pasgadae finishes its Lib and (now at size 7) can do 10spt a turn without corruption, if we get that mountain mined it can do 3-turn Immortals for us. I'll make that a priority.
Suddenly it occurs to me... WTH am I doing? We are moving toward Zimbabwae with just 8 immortals... lets see... deity... Capital... Wonder... there'll be around 10 Impi's probably, as well as the swords they'll be producing. They're no doubt still in a GA at the moment so are probably building a sword-a-turn in Zimbabwae...
Getting the pyramids may take a little longer than expected. I decide to make a tactical withdrawal to wait for more immortals. If we wait another 5 turns or so we can have almost 20 immortals for the attack, while the number of defenders is unlikely to increase (they'll most likely keep building swords).
Have to shuffle around the MP's to prevent riots in the interturn. Bapedi still hasn't had any resitors quelled so I take our 2 immortals out and abandon the city.
IT - babs and Aztecs make peace.
Turn 7 - (610 BC) Go to trade Lit to Babs (before we rush the GLB) and... oh. 1 Contact is only 'doubtful'... looks like that may make our contact decision easier. Secluded we stay.
Rush the GLB in Susa. Babs are up Construction and Monarchy. Trade lit to Babs for 25gp and a World map, that way we know where to run suicide galleys if we want to make contacts. Plus given that a contact is 'doubtful' for it I suspect either the babs are nearly finished researching it themselves or one or more of their contacts have it already.
Both contacts are to our south, seperate island. Both are clearly still in AA (based on their city appearance), Iro have all the gems, Eng have all the spices. We can probably send suicide galley's to make contact if we wish. Leave that for after Zulu war I'd suggest though.
kill 2 aztec swords (10-1) and...
woot!!!!
This lad will go and stay in Persopolis (too far away to form an army that could be useful in time, no wonders, no obvious FP site. We can discuss a FP site).
IT - Babs re-declare on the Aztecs... wow... cheap...
see a Zulu impi-settler trio (2 impis) head toward where Ulundi used to be... hmmm... that means 2 less defenders (potentially) in Zimbab...
Turn 8 (590 BC) - Great Lib completes and we resume Immortal production in Susa. Get almost 10 immortals in attack range of Zimbab for next turn with another 8 due the following 2 turns.
IT - the Zulu beg for peace... haha I think not! Lose an immortal flawlessly to a sword (arg!) (10-2) foolishly the Zulu send another impi-settler pair out. Kudos Shaka... Kudos...
Turn 9 (570 BC)- Pasgadae gets culture expansion which gives us more tile options, we can get over 10spt and continute growing now.
Nineveh (next to Pasgadae...) completes the Hanging Gardens. I see flips-a-poppin coming to town...
Babs have more than double our score, about 10 times our culture and are going to have nothing to do once they kill the Aztecs... things could get ugly...
The First Siege of Zimbabwae begins!
Immortals (4 attack) v impi's (2 defence + 25% (fortified) + 50% (city) + 10% (wheat) (total of 3.7 defence)
4/4 immortal kills 4/4 Impi (1/4)
4/4 immortal loses to 4/4 impi (3/4)
4/4 immortal loses to 4/4 impi (1/4)
4/4 immortal kills 4/4 impi (4/4)
4/4 immortal kills 4/4 impi (2/4) revealing an unfortified 4/4 sword
3/4 immortal kills 4/4 sword (1/4) revealing another
4/5 immortal kills 4/4 sword (4/5) revealing a fortified unhurt 3/3 impi
And thats all our attacks this turn. More next turn. (15-4)
IT - The babs destroy the Aztecs... wonder what their next move will be...
The Zulu found a new Ulundi 3 tiles from Zimbabwae.
Turn 10 - Hlobane riots...
The siege of Zimbabwae continues... with a misclick... accidently have a 1/4 immortal start off poceedings
luckily he wins unscathed and I look awesome
1/4 immortal kills 4/4 impi (1/4)
4/4 immortal loses to 4/4 impi (4/5)
4/5 Cyrus kills 4/5 impi (2/5)
4/4 immortal kills 4/4 impi (1/4)
Every1 else is too injured to continue fighting. Move the remaining 6 (unhurt immortals) into attack range for next turn. Looks like someone else will get the glory blow at Zimbabwae.
(18-5)
Zimbab SHOULD fall next turn as long as there isn't some god-awful RNG luck.
All builds are vetoable, I don't think there's too much to say. Get Zimbabwae, make peace for as many cities as possible (they will found a new city in the IT) especially the size 1-no culture cities so we don't have to worry about flips. Alternatively we continue on to Bapedi to secure our own source of dyes.
Find an FP site, the leader awaits it.
Going for the GLB proved correct I believe, although the fact we couldn't buy contacts is a bummer (I reloaded later to see what they would have cots... Lit + 370gp (of oour 401gp at the time and doing deficit research) for the cheapest.) I still believe we can make contact with suicide galleys if we wish.
Good luck!
Just kidding.
