Marsden's HoF Attempts

[Marsden]

For this one I switched to PTW. That threw me as the corruption and some other things are different. I took Ottomans against 15 opponents on random. My neighboors were Carthage, Celts, Aztecs, and England. I expanded well despite encroachment of some neighboors. I took and arid pangea, but forgot I wasn't agricultural, or that agricultural doesn't exist in PTW, but it still worked out for me because the whole northern third of my territory was desert, but the AI avoided the area. I didn't care if the towns got bigger than 2 or 3, just so I could build another library, temple, university, coluseum and cathedral. I didn't get any wonders. I don't know where I went wrong but I missed them all. I couldn't seem to bother to build any because my best production centers build settlers. No one was close to me as I won as soon as I hit 100k. The Mongols attacked twice, but they were in the far north and had to march through 3 other kingdoms to reach me. I did lose one town to them but it came back to me. And sometime around the late middle early industrial I really fell behind in techs. Most of the AI were in the Modern and I was still researching Corporation.


I have to say, this is one, if not the one, of my games I was most happy with. I beat my goal of 1750, which I though would have been good. I don't think it would hold up against some players in the HoF, but I think its pretty good for me.

 

[Marsden]

I took a pagea 60% water normal climate with Russia, hoping to try DaveMcW's techniques for free techs with all scientific opponents, athough I accidentally let the Hittites in. Mistakes: 1. getting philosophy from a hut which finished the last 8 turns of Map making, 2. Not getting into republic right away, 3. Everytime on the age change I couldn't get the first techs from the AI through the big picture. The change from Industrial to Modern I did use the big picture, but almost everyone got ecology except one, Babs got computers, and they would not give me a trade for any price, so I stole it from them. Last I didn't get any SGLs until nuclear power then, get this, I also got one for Laser, Satellites and Superconductor I hardly ever get more than one, but 4 in a row? and I had prebuilds for the Internet and UN, I just rushed some parts for the ship. Seemed a wasted of a leader, although it must have saved some turns, too little too late.

 

[Marsden]

After reading zerkzees thread on Byzantines on an Arch. map it sounded like such a novel concept I applied it to this level to get a feel for it. It work better than I thought, although I did manage to win this level once before, but this time I was far away the strongest power. I picked 100k because of the table only had one entry, thus asuring me of a 2 spot. Also, I like the culture aspect. My favorite quote was from the two AIs I crushed, "I though cultural assimilation was supposed to be painless." Yeah, right! Not when I'm in charge, nothing is painless. I picked 80% water, cold, arid, 3 billion. I was hoping for a nasty world, and I got it. Most of my home island was tundra, but I wasn't interested in a large population. Got lucky and had Iron and Ivory and a small lake by my capital. Built Statue of Zeus, started on my nearest opponent India as soon as my island was stuffed. Harbors gave my towns enough food, and I built plenty of Fire breathing Dragon boats(FBDB). Every city was coastal except two, the Indian capital and Russian capital, but both had lakes that were seperated from ocean by one tile which I settled and did the "canal" trick to fire bomb them with FBDBs. I contacted everyone way before they met, India never did meet anyone, but death. I kept up with important techs. After India, I attacked Russia, but after destroying most of their cities and depriving them of iron, I gave up and went full on after the Mongols. I by-passed the main island to destroy all of their outpost cities, destroying their only source of iron and (I thought) horses. They only had spearmen when I sailed by but the creep mass upgraded to muskets just before I hit. It was a slower go, but just delayed the inevitable. I was mad when they got the crusaders and the keshiks but my ACs and MIs crushed them. I then revisited Russia, who I allowed to keep a small city on an island. By this time they were admires of my culture so I kept the last few of their cities. I had all luxuries, gave up research after Astronomy. I got my golden age early on in the India war, I didn't know the FBDBs had leathal sea bombard. I set about 20 of my FBDBs to auto bombard the last Russian city down to size one, and was willing to leave them that way, but my fuedal system, (you know the one that whips serfs to death and starves the ones that survive? yeah that one), was offended, my citizens will tolerate poor treatment but no war. So my fleet went home, and rotted in harbor until the end of time. All done, victory in 1934. Disappointed about the date, I conquered by 1400, but I win is a win, and considering my skill level I think this was as good as I could expect.

 

[Marsden]

Refer to previous post for settings, but I took on Babylon, China, and America. Actually did better on this level, the FBDBs ruled the day, but I didn't have Zeus on my side. Finished in 1902, little better.
Both times I missed the Great Lighthouse, I think I should make that more of a priority.

Oh and this is the first time I beat Deity.

 

[killercane]

Congrats on beating deity

 

[superslug]

Oh and this is the first time I beat Deity.

Nicely done! It was the HOF that helped me cross the Deity barrier as well.

 

[Marsden]

Thanks! I wish I could give it a go without the Byzantines and archapeligo, but I was still happy to accomplish it. I'm going to try doing it again, but launch the spaceship.

 

[Karl_t_great]

Both times I missed the Great Lighthouse, I think I should make that more of a priority.

Try 50 turn writing + 100 % philosophy, buy Pottery , take mapM as freebie, join some workers to build GL, works sometimes even on Sid.
Meanwhile build currach to explore, but do not make contact before ready to trade for pottery (otherwise AI will tail Your tech path towards writing...).
On my luckier games I have been able to get both GL and GLIB whitout SGL.

 

[Marsden]

Testing posting pictures in post. These are battle plans for Experiment 626's non HoF training game. After he completes this we will try to get him submitted to the HoF.

Battle plans for Korea.

Battle plans for Maya

 

[archphoenix]

this is the first time I beat Deity.

congratulations!!!
that is a great milestone on long civ-III journey.


and,
the Marsden civ has enter a GoldenAge!

 

[Marsden]

Thanks everyone, I'm happy to have beaten deity but I have been unable to duplicate it. I guess once is better than never.

 

[AutomatedTeller]

hey - I played a bunch of games to beat deity, and I got lots of help from everyone else here!

Deity is *tough* - that extra settler really gives you problems.

Congrats! a little late, I know...

 

[Marsden]

a little late, I know...

Not too late, I appreciate it!

And thanks archphoenix, I don't think its really a golden age, more like Bronze.

 

[Marsden]

Hi everybody! I haven't given up on the HoF. I just feel like I've hit the ceiling of my ability. I'm very happy to be in the top 10 of the Quartermasters' chart. I'm still surprised I made it that far, but I know it's almost completely because of empty tables that I ever had anything rank.

I sent in a bunch of tiny games update before last. I was a cool for me to see my name as the most active player, too bad I barely submitted anything since then. See you later.

 

[AutomatedTeller]

oh - play the current gauntlet, Marsden.

A) it's fun, and 20K games are often pretty fast, since you don't have to worry about that much combat.
B) playing these have really helped me get better, cause there are good strategy tips traded around.

I dunno that anyone is gonna beat 1470, though. With SoZ, perhaps.

 

[Tone]

I agree. I like the gauntlets for the sharing of ideas as well as a clear focus on a specific VC from turn 1.

Last sentence was proved wrong less than an hour later though, AT! 1425

 

[Marsden]

I haven't tried the gauntlet this time because 20k is my worst VC. Even on the easy levels I miss a lot of the wonders. I just don't get how to get such production and research before the AI. And time has been pressing lately. And I would like to finish my little mess I started in the Story Forum

 

[AutomatedTeller]

well, I've found that the most important things for a good 20K win date are:

river.
food bonus (at least one cow or wheat, more if possible)
4 hills.
coast
no more than 4 coast/sea squares
an early SGL for pyramids.

beyond that, it's pretty much luck. I've been trying to catch the best scores (1265, on warlord, that moonsinger had) - it's very difficult, since she caught 7 SGL's!! but she didn't have a great start - 1 cow, couple of hills, a mountain.

best strategy seems to be to pop out a settler reasonably early... having a bunch of forests to chop to speed settler/temple seems to help, and then having your 2nd city feed workers as you work the forests maximizes both growth and shields.

And then you gotta go to war as early as you can get elites and not die. Heroic epic, along with SoZ, are the *best* wonders to build - and if you can rush heroic epic... well, that's even better.

 

[Marsden]

Speaking of messes in the Stories and Tales forum, I've got this thing in progress. http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=182607

Actually, I'm enjoying it quite a bit so far, and look forward to continuing it until the end, which, if I have the nerve, will be a demigod histographic. I don't think I could handle a higher level, but my main goal is only 25,000 which I see good players do as low as monarch, so I should be able to do so.

Thought I'd tie these two threads together just on the off chance someone was wondering what I'm up to lately. Hail to the HoF!

 

[Experiment 626]

Originally posted by Marsden:

These are battle plans for Experiment 626's non HoF training game. After he completes this we will try to get him submitted to the HoF.

WOW! Those are some old pictures. (I don't remember drawing those particular lines on the pics though. ) Both Korea and Maya still alive? That takes me back! For those of you who are curious about my 'non-HoF' training game, check out my sig for the results of the game!

As for me submitting to the HoF, well, we'll see! After you finish your '31 civs in a single thread' goal, there probably won't be any spaces available for me on the HoF scoreboard.

And congrats on beating Deity!