irishlamma
Chieftain
awesome, I love these threads.
kick some zulu ass
kick some zulu ass
My First Diety Game
- Thread starter BasketCase
- Start date
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Before I continue, some interesting things about the way this game is going:
I've done a few things many players agree you're not supposed to do in a deity game: building temples, max research (instead of setting your commerce to max GPT and buying your technologies), building Wonders (I'm still planning to use my latest leader to rush the Sistine Chapel as soon as Theology research is done). In this case, my reasoning is that the Sistine Chapel will allow my cities to grow larger, which means troops are built faster. I say bend the rules around to suit the situation. Or, maybe I haven't played enough deity games to get the lesson hammered into my skull yet.
Getting leaders is not something you can rely on for a gameplan; most of the time you have to assume you won't get them, but in my opinion you should be ready to take maximum advantage when you do get one. Granted I could use my second leader to build an army.....
Anyway, back to the action.
Things have quieted down a lot in the northwest. A couple of times Zulu MI's have attacked the forts, and one time one of them actually succeeded--but was badly wounded when he gained control of the fort. The Zulus didn't move in any other troops to back up their gain, and I regained control of the fort next turn. A fort can be your salvation, or it can give the enemy a safe route into your empire....
In 260 AD, the Zulus use a CATAPULT (wow, AI using artillery!) to try and pillage my incense tile just west of Flipopolis. The catapult shot fails. I retaliate by killing the catapult's escort and capturing it. It happens to be next to Ulundi; I put two spearmen in the square to guard the catapult and threaten the city. I use the Zulus' own catapult to bomb Ulundi. The shot fails. A little later, a Zulu Knight will show up in the area. Ack.
The Persians lost Sardis to the Zulus again, and also lost Gordium. The Persians are now down three cities in their war with the Zulus. Babylon has recently declared war on the Zulus. Have fun, Shaka--it's EVERYBODY against YOU!
Now for the main event: the Battle of Ngome!
(Note that we just rolled the clock back about 15 turns)
Note the fortified Ottoman pike at the very top left of the picture; aside from the far east road, that spot is the only other fast route of approach the Zulus have, and they constantly send troops either around it or to attack it. The pikeman there ends up dying and getting replaced twice. Zulu settlers make repeated attempts to grab the open ground where the ruins of Hlobane are. Medieval infantries at that location frequently end up having to switch places with fresh troops from Junkograd (which is barely visible in the bottom left corner of the picture; the barracks there is exactly 3 squares away).
Right after my initial force sacked Hlobane, they headed southeast. A few additional units from my core cities were able to meet up with them on the way over, and my force had two pikes, seven swordsmen, and four MI's when it reached the gates of Ngome.
And then things just went CRAZY.
To reiterate, Ngome is size 8 (granting a defense bonus), on a hill, and with pikemen defending it. Plus an easy route for reinforcements. In order to even try to conquer the city, I need to pillage the land around it to starve it down to size 6, while slogging through piles of Zulu units that often kill my units before they can pillage. I also need to block off the reinforcement route. I'm able to kill all Zulu units that try to reach the city, but I never do manage to get a solid blockade in place; it dies before it can get dug in. I have a steady stream of MI's and pikes coming from Basketgrad and Point Gratha (my two biggest production cities), and they die just about as fast as I can build them.
At the same time, occasional Zulu units sneak through the middle, between Ngome and the ruins of Hlobane, and try to attack my core. This is the reason I built those roads through the desert along my border with the Zulus: so that I can counterattack into a tile with a road on it when killing these intruders. Killing a unit on open ground means your winning unit loses a whole turn getting back onto the road, and that was time I didn't want to lose.
The Zulu Impi proves thoroughly infuriating. While I'm trying to improve my roads further, Impis make six-tile moves to try and grab the workers. Whenever one of my MI's gets redlined, it seems clouds of Impis come along to attack it and try and finish it off. And, of course, every now and then one of my MI's gets
'ed
by a pansy-ass Impi.
This fight wasn't short, it wasn't easy. It wasn't a retreat-and-try-again kind of deal. It was a brutal war of attrition.
Shaka sued for peace twice during the ruckus; I told him to quit being a sissy and FIGHT. Oh, and he wasn't willing to cough up any technology for peace, either.
230 AD: Ngome falls!!!![[party]](/images/smilies/partytime.gif "Party [party]")
A settler is sent right over to claim the liberated wines. I note that the AI founded Ngome right on top of one of the wine tiles. Here's the territory:
Where would you have put a new city? I considered placing it one tile southwest of Ngome's ruins, so that it could use both the wine tiles (these tiles are 2 food, 2 shields and 2 commerce once roaded and mined). But this spot is crowded in close to my other cities and won't have as many workable tiles. Or, I could plant my new city right where Ngome was, which means giving up some production by placing the city right on top of the wine (cities tend to screw up luxuries and bonus grassland this way). It also means I have to clear out another Zulu city to actually have more workable tiles.
I decided to set up shop on the ruins. What would you have done?
A couple turns after this is when the fun with the catapult happens near Flipopolis.
270 AD: A Zulu galley drops off an archer and an MI way down south near the old Arab capital of Mecca. These two Zulu troopers are right next to TWO completely undefended cities--and out of range of the garrison I had down there!
OOPS
Newbie move again. Gee, maybe peace isn't such a bad thing after all. Before I sue for peace, I look around for any last bits of deviltry I can do. An elite MI atacks Intombe and kills an Impi, but the city has at least one more defender, and my other MI at that spot is too badly wounded. He tries anyway, and, well, guess what, Arlington just got another resident. Bummer.
Near the ruins of Hlobane, the Zulus have a settler that's in position to build a new city the minute I make peace--and I don't have enough troops around to form a blockade. I do have one MI stacked with my pikeman, so I kill the Impi escorting the settler and add two more slaves to my work force. I should be able to blockade the border next turn. I move the rest of my troops out of Zulu territory. Okay, off to the negotiating table.
Shaka gives me Chivalry and 3 GPT in exchange for peace. I've still got one MI near Intombe that I can't evacuate from Zulu territory this turn--Shaka's gonna be mad about that. Can't be helped. I send a galley to get that guy outta there ASAP. Here's hoping Shaka doesn't go right back to war next turn, with two loose units in my territory.
My core cities switch to building aqueducts and cathedrals. A few turns ago, my leader raised the Sistine Chapel in Spamopolis. I began the game with furs, added incense shortly after game start. I just added wines, and will be adding silks as soon as the city of Point Blanke (to the west across a short stretch of sea) finishes a harbor:
I'd originally planned to take Intombe and continue the road northeast to Flipopolis to make the connection, but I can't do that right now. Maybe 20 turns from now.....
I make a surprise visit to Ngome and deliver a hearty congratulations to the troops for a hard-fought victory. They've even got wine right there on the site to celebrate with! Phew. Nite everyone, I need some rest after this session.
I've done a few things many players agree you're not supposed to do in a deity game: building temples, max research (instead of setting your commerce to max GPT and buying your technologies), building Wonders (I'm still planning to use my latest leader to rush the Sistine Chapel as soon as Theology research is done). In this case, my reasoning is that the Sistine Chapel will allow my cities to grow larger, which means troops are built faster. I say bend the rules around to suit the situation. Or, maybe I haven't played enough deity games to get the lesson hammered into my skull yet.
Getting leaders is not something you can rely on for a gameplan; most of the time you have to assume you won't get them, but in my opinion you should be ready to take maximum advantage when you do get one. Granted I could use my second leader to build an army.....
Anyway, back to the action.
Things have quieted down a lot in the northwest. A couple of times Zulu MI's have attacked the forts, and one time one of them actually succeeded--but was badly wounded when he gained control of the fort. The Zulus didn't move in any other troops to back up their gain, and I regained control of the fort next turn. A fort can be your salvation, or it can give the enemy a safe route into your empire....
In 260 AD, the Zulus use a CATAPULT (wow, AI using artillery!) to try and pillage my incense tile just west of Flipopolis. The catapult shot fails. I retaliate by killing the catapult's escort and capturing it. It happens to be next to Ulundi; I put two spearmen in the square to guard the catapult and threaten the city. I use the Zulus' own catapult to bomb Ulundi. The shot fails. A little later, a Zulu Knight will show up in the area. Ack.
The Persians lost Sardis to the Zulus again, and also lost Gordium. The Persians are now down three cities in their war with the Zulus. Babylon has recently declared war on the Zulus. Have fun, Shaka--it's EVERYBODY against YOU!
Now for the main event: the Battle of Ngome!
(Note that we just rolled the clock back about 15 turns)
Note the fortified Ottoman pike at the very top left of the picture; aside from the far east road, that spot is the only other fast route of approach the Zulus have, and they constantly send troops either around it or to attack it. The pikeman there ends up dying and getting replaced twice. Zulu settlers make repeated attempts to grab the open ground where the ruins of Hlobane are. Medieval infantries at that location frequently end up having to switch places with fresh troops from Junkograd (which is barely visible in the bottom left corner of the picture; the barracks there is exactly 3 squares away).
Right after my initial force sacked Hlobane, they headed southeast. A few additional units from my core cities were able to meet up with them on the way over, and my force had two pikes, seven swordsmen, and four MI's when it reached the gates of Ngome.
And then things just went CRAZY.
To reiterate, Ngome is size 8 (granting a defense bonus), on a hill, and with pikemen defending it. Plus an easy route for reinforcements. In order to even try to conquer the city, I need to pillage the land around it to starve it down to size 6, while slogging through piles of Zulu units that often kill my units before they can pillage. I also need to block off the reinforcement route. I'm able to kill all Zulu units that try to reach the city, but I never do manage to get a solid blockade in place; it dies before it can get dug in. I have a steady stream of MI's and pikes coming from Basketgrad and Point Gratha (my two biggest production cities), and they die just about as fast as I can build them.
At the same time, occasional Zulu units sneak through the middle, between Ngome and the ruins of Hlobane, and try to attack my core. This is the reason I built those roads through the desert along my border with the Zulus: so that I can counterattack into a tile with a road on it when killing these intruders. Killing a unit on open ground means your winning unit loses a whole turn getting back onto the road, and that was time I didn't want to lose.
The Zulu Impi proves thoroughly infuriating. While I'm trying to improve my roads further, Impis make six-tile moves to try and grab the workers. Whenever one of my MI's gets redlined, it seems clouds of Impis come along to attack it and try and finish it off. And, of course, every now and then one of my MI's gets
'edby a pansy-ass Impi.
This fight wasn't short, it wasn't easy. It wasn't a retreat-and-try-again kind of deal. It was a brutal war of attrition.
Shaka sued for peace twice during the ruckus; I told him to quit being a sissy and FIGHT. Oh, and he wasn't willing to cough up any technology for peace, either.
230 AD: Ngome falls!!!
A settler is sent right over to claim the liberated wines. I note that the AI founded Ngome right on top of one of the wine tiles. Here's the territory:
Where would you have put a new city? I considered placing it one tile southwest of Ngome's ruins, so that it could use both the wine tiles (these tiles are 2 food, 2 shields and 2 commerce once roaded and mined). But this spot is crowded in close to my other cities and won't have as many workable tiles. Or, I could plant my new city right where Ngome was, which means giving up some production by placing the city right on top of the wine (cities tend to screw up luxuries and bonus grassland this way). It also means I have to clear out another Zulu city to actually have more workable tiles.
I decided to set up shop on the ruins. What would you have done?
A couple turns after this is when the fun with the catapult happens near Flipopolis.
270 AD: A Zulu galley drops off an archer and an MI way down south near the old Arab capital of Mecca. These two Zulu troopers are right next to TWO completely undefended cities--and out of range of the garrison I had down there!
OOPS
Newbie move again. Gee, maybe peace isn't such a bad thing after all. Before I sue for peace, I look around for any last bits of deviltry I can do. An elite MI atacks Intombe and kills an Impi, but the city has at least one more defender, and my other MI at that spot is too badly wounded. He tries anyway, and, well, guess what, Arlington just got another resident. Bummer.
Near the ruins of Hlobane, the Zulus have a settler that's in position to build a new city the minute I make peace--and I don't have enough troops around to form a blockade. I do have one MI stacked with my pikeman, so I kill the Impi escorting the settler and add two more slaves to my work force. I should be able to blockade the border next turn. I move the rest of my troops out of Zulu territory. Okay, off to the negotiating table.
Shaka gives me Chivalry and 3 GPT in exchange for peace. I've still got one MI near Intombe that I can't evacuate from Zulu territory this turn--Shaka's gonna be mad about that. Can't be helped. I send a galley to get that guy outta there ASAP. Here's hoping Shaka doesn't go right back to war next turn, with two loose units in my territory.
My core cities switch to building aqueducts and cathedrals. A few turns ago, my leader raised the Sistine Chapel in Spamopolis. I began the game with furs, added incense shortly after game start. I just added wines, and will be adding silks as soon as the city of Point Blanke (to the west across a short stretch of sea) finishes a harbor:
I'd originally planned to take Intombe and continue the road northeast to Flipopolis to make the connection, but I can't do that right now. Maybe 20 turns from now.....
I make a surprise visit to Ngome and deliver a hearty congratulations to the troops for a hard-fought victory. They've even got wine right there on the site to celebrate with! Phew. Nite everyone, I need some rest after this session.
BasketCase
Username sez it all
The latest score/power/culture graphs:
One other noteworthy item: Gordion, a northern Persian city captured by the Zulus recently, is now under Babylonian control. The people of Gordion have got to be all cross-eyed with confusion right now; in the last century they've had their leaders speaking three different languages!
One other noteworthy item: Gordion, a northern Persian city captured by the Zulus recently, is now under Babylonian control. The people of Gordion have got to be all cross-eyed with confusion right now; in the last century they've had their leaders speaking three different languages!
tR1cKy
taking over the world
Wow! Great! What's a game log without some humour and jokes?!? 
But you seem to reload turns a little bit too much...
But you seem to reload turns a little bit too much...
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Yeah yeah, Hammurabi, gimme a minute to get started tonight.
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Now that you mention it....
BasketCase
Username sez it all
My military advisor says I'm average compared to Persia and Babylon, and strong compared to the Zulus. Well, hey, going to war against everybody else on the map is gonna do that to ya, Shaka. Nice going.
I send a galley to start exploring the eastern half of the map. I can research Education in 27 turns if I turn science up to 70%. I'll be losing 2 gpt at that setting, but I've got 140 in my coffers. I do some micromanaging. Flipopolis runs with a 1-food shortage in order to get its courthouse done faster, and some other micro produces a little more commerce--cutting my deficit spending rate to 1gpt, and reducing my research time to 26 turns. I upgrade a few spearmen to pikemen. Basketgrad grows to size 7 and will have its cathedral done in 10 turns.
A stack of 8 slaves is sent to Korbelgrad to build forts in those two hill tiles east of the city.
The Zulus demonstrate their persistence in obtaining land at any cost--blocked at the border by my troops, a settler builds a new city (ironically named Ngome) just inside Zulu territory, near where Hlobane used to be:
As you can see, this caused the border to shift as three tiles changed hands--one of those being that favorite hill I was using to block Zulu troops trying to find a way into my empire. My units are forced to back up a square. Next time war breaks out (and it will the minute I get Sipahis!), Ngome #2 is gonna get toasted. Again.
I sit back and ponder the strategic situation. The fairly unsettled territory in the east is fully roaded up, allowing me to defend pretty much that whole area from one location. A stack of MI's planted smack in the middle of that area (with pikeman cover, of course) could guard an area basically 7 tiles wide. However, I'm a little short of pikes in this area. The fortress line near Flipopolis held nicely during the last war, so I see no need to change that. Another couple of pikemen there would be nice. Some spare workers begin irrigating the desert land near Bakkaville; once Railroads are discovered, that land will become productive. Granted I'm planning WAY in advance.
I'm catching up to the mighty Zulus on the score and power histographs. Culture is a little laggy. Guess the Ottomans need to go to school more instead of swinging their swords and beating the crap out of people. Too bad the ROTC won't be invented for another 1900 years or so.....
Point Blanke grows to size 2, and I'm no longer draining my budget. Wahoo.
Those two sneak-raiding units way down south are still running around loose near Mecca. I bring up the negotiating window with Shaka, and I'm half a breath away from clicking on "Remove your forces from my territory or declare WAR!"--and then I think twice, and decide to move my out-of-position garrison within striking range of those two units before making the demand.
What are you all willing to bet on the outcome? Will Shaka allow those two units to be auto-booted, or will he declare....?
I send a galley to start exploring the eastern half of the map. I can research Education in 27 turns if I turn science up to 70%. I'll be losing 2 gpt at that setting, but I've got 140 in my coffers. I do some micromanaging. Flipopolis runs with a 1-food shortage in order to get its courthouse done faster, and some other micro produces a little more commerce--cutting my deficit spending rate to 1gpt, and reducing my research time to 26 turns. I upgrade a few spearmen to pikemen. Basketgrad grows to size 7 and will have its cathedral done in 10 turns.
A stack of 8 slaves is sent to Korbelgrad to build forts in those two hill tiles east of the city.
The Zulus demonstrate their persistence in obtaining land at any cost--blocked at the border by my troops, a settler builds a new city (ironically named Ngome) just inside Zulu territory, near where Hlobane used to be:
As you can see, this caused the border to shift as three tiles changed hands--one of those being that favorite hill I was using to block Zulu troops trying to find a way into my empire. My units are forced to back up a square. Next time war breaks out (and it will the minute I get Sipahis!), Ngome #2 is gonna get toasted. Again.
I sit back and ponder the strategic situation. The fairly unsettled territory in the east is fully roaded up, allowing me to defend pretty much that whole area from one location. A stack of MI's planted smack in the middle of that area (with pikeman cover, of course) could guard an area basically 7 tiles wide. However, I'm a little short of pikes in this area. The fortress line near Flipopolis held nicely during the last war, so I see no need to change that. Another couple of pikemen there would be nice. Some spare workers begin irrigating the desert land near Bakkaville; once Railroads are discovered, that land will become productive. Granted I'm planning WAY in advance.
I'm catching up to the mighty Zulus on the score and power histographs. Culture is a little laggy. Guess the Ottomans need to go to school more instead of swinging their swords and beating the crap out of people. Too bad the ROTC won't be invented for another 1900 years or so.....
Point Blanke grows to size 2, and I'm no longer draining my budget. Wahoo.
Those two sneak-raiding units way down south are still running around loose near Mecca. I bring up the negotiating window with Shaka, and I'm half a breath away from clicking on "Remove your forces from my territory or declare WAR!"--and then I think twice, and decide to move my out-of-position garrison within striking range of those two units before making the demand.
What are you all willing to bet on the outcome? Will Shaka allow those two units to be auto-booted, or will he declare....?
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Sorry for the delay--what follows happened last Monday, but real-world shenanigans prevented me from getting my update posted. 
When last we left, the Zulus had a couple of intruders in my territory that needed to be removed. After a few turns of tolerating them, I've managed to get a couple of MI's within striking range to deal with them if Shaka refuses to remove them.....
RRRRRRRGH. Why am I not surprised.....
So, in 290 AD, I and the Zulus are goin' at it again. You know, Aldous Huxley once wrote: "you rule with the brains and the buttocks, never with the fists". Shaka is definitely short on brains here--makes you wonder how he's compensating. I mean, he gives up Chivalry in order to get peace, and then he goes right back to war again. Geezus, how did this guy ever get to be a ruler???
My military advisor says I'm strong relative to the Zulus, and average relative to Babylon and Persia. An improvment over last time. This next war should be a cake walk. I concentrate on the east front, moving two stacks of troops towards Ngome and Tugela.
Both attacks are in ideal striking positions: attacking from a hill one turn after the war starts:
Tugela gets hit by four MI's covered by a pikeman.....
.....and is obliterated the first turn of the war. I only have two MI's attacking Ngome, so Ngome survives for a few more turns. Random Ottoman and Zulu units slug it out in the area for several turns, with Zulu knights appearing in increasing numbers, and with losses about equal to both sides. During which:
Wahoo! 3rd leader!
Peace is re-declared in 350 AD, this time with no stray units intruding on either side. Shaka gives up Monarchy and 3 GPT for peace. The Zulus don't have any other techs ahead of me--they appear to be falling into the hopelessly-behind-on-tech death spiral.
While this war was very short and one-sided, there was one significant problem: my core cities were on civilian development instead of cranking out military units. So, while my losses this war were no greater than the last one, my military strength just took a big dip. Total unit count is down by something like a dozen, and the military advisor says I'm once again "weak" compared to the Zulus. Too many more victories like this one, and I'm gonna conquer myself to death.
Up in the northwest, Gordium and Sardis (originally Persian and then Zulu cities) are now in Babylonian hands:
In 370 AD, the Zulus lose Intombe to the Persians. Up north, Zunguin and Tarsus are taken by Babylon. Shaka is getting smacked from all sides.
I have 11 turns to go on Education; Persia and Babylon already have it, and are also up by Invention. My core cities have finally gotten above size 6; I need to get out of Despotism and find a way to get ahead in the tech race again. Hopefully without going to war against anyone except the Zulus. One of my galleys spots a bare hint of a dark brown border way to the east--and then sinks before it can find out who's over there. Oh well, they're called "suicide galleys" for a reason.....
And that should bring everything up to date. Further posts later tonight. Peacetime development for the near future, so don't expect any more violence for a little while.
When last we left, the Zulus had a couple of intruders in my territory that needed to be removed. After a few turns of tolerating them, I've managed to get a couple of MI's within striking range to deal with them if Shaka refuses to remove them.....
RRRRRRRGH. Why am I not surprised.....
So, in 290 AD, I and the Zulus are goin' at it again. You know, Aldous Huxley once wrote: "you rule with the brains and the buttocks, never with the fists". Shaka is definitely short on brains here--makes you wonder how he's compensating. I mean, he gives up Chivalry in order to get peace, and then he goes right back to war again. Geezus, how did this guy ever get to be a ruler???
My military advisor says I'm strong relative to the Zulus, and average relative to Babylon and Persia. An improvment over last time. This next war should be a cake walk. I concentrate on the east front, moving two stacks of troops towards Ngome and Tugela.
Both attacks are in ideal striking positions: attacking from a hill one turn after the war starts:
Tugela gets hit by four MI's covered by a pikeman.....
.....and is obliterated the first turn of the war. I only have two MI's attacking Ngome, so Ngome survives for a few more turns. Random Ottoman and Zulu units slug it out in the area for several turns, with Zulu knights appearing in increasing numbers, and with losses about equal to both sides. During which:
Wahoo! 3rd leader!
Peace is re-declared in 350 AD, this time with no stray units intruding on either side. Shaka gives up Monarchy and 3 GPT for peace. The Zulus don't have any other techs ahead of me--they appear to be falling into the hopelessly-behind-on-tech death spiral.
While this war was very short and one-sided, there was one significant problem: my core cities were on civilian development instead of cranking out military units. So, while my losses this war were no greater than the last one, my military strength just took a big dip. Total unit count is down by something like a dozen, and the military advisor says I'm once again "weak" compared to the Zulus. Too many more victories like this one, and I'm gonna conquer myself to death.
Up in the northwest, Gordium and Sardis (originally Persian and then Zulu cities) are now in Babylonian hands:
In 370 AD, the Zulus lose Intombe to the Persians. Up north, Zunguin and Tarsus are taken by Babylon. Shaka is getting smacked from all sides.
I have 11 turns to go on Education; Persia and Babylon already have it, and are also up by Invention. My core cities have finally gotten above size 6; I need to get out of Despotism and find a way to get ahead in the tech race again. Hopefully without going to war against anyone except the Zulus. One of my galleys spots a bare hint of a dark brown border way to the east--and then sinks before it can find out who's over there. Oh well, they're called "suicide galleys" for a reason.....
And that should bring everything up to date. Further posts later tonight. Peacetime development for the near future, so don't expect any more violence for a little while.
BasketCase
Username sez it all
I decide to take the plunge and get out of Despotism. I draw 6 turns of anarchy, and instead of a despot, I'm a monarch. 
I have only four native Ottoman workers; I put them back into my capital city of Basketgrad (with its Cathedral), kicking it straight to size 12 and turning it into a 21-shield powerhouse.
500 AD: My second suicide galley makes it across the eastern sea--and discovers the Carthaginians! A trading chain reaction ensues. I trade Chivalry to Carthage in exchange for Invention, contact with Egypt, and 8 GPT. Egypt, in turn, gives me Gunpowder, contact with Rome, and 19 GPT in exchange for Chivalry and contact with everybody on my home continent. Rome gives me Republic, World Map, and 5 GPT in exchange for Theology and Chivalry. I hesitate before giving two techs away for that, then I decide that Rome will probably use it to beat up Egypt.
Then the newly-revealed world map shows that Rome would have to beat up Carthage to even get to Egypt. Oh well, giving the Romans knights so they can beat up Carthage is just as good, seeing as how Carthage is Number One in power at the moment.
I check with all civs on the diplomacy screen for any final trades I can make. Contact with various civs is shopped around some, but no other technology is to be had for now. The various GPT deals allow me to crank research up to 100% and still run a budget surplus. Saltpeter is present just northeast of Junkograd--two tiles away from where Hlobane used to be. I'm now glad I took that city down.
I kick myself for having a revolution to Monarchy right before getting my hands on Republic.
The Persians and Egyptians are still ahead by Astronomy and Chemistry. I'm finally back up to par in the tech race again--but the fact that I was behind by Invention, Gunpowder, Education, Astronomy and Chemistry shows how far behind you can get without knowing it.
So, the inhabited world is fully mapped, all eight civs have been located, and those who didn't cut the mustard have been dealt with:
The latest score / power / culture graphs:
Ottomans in orange; Arabs in pink; Babylon in blue; Persia in green; Zulus in black; Egypt in yellow; Rome in red, and Carthage in yucky brown.
Things are going to be interesting for a long time to come. All seven (surviving) nations are solidly established, and it's anybody's game right now. I'm a contender on the score and power graphs (and nobody cares about culture in diety games.... ). I now have the capacity to get all my productive cities to size 12 without using the sliders. While Persia appears to be behind on the graphs, they paradoxically share the tech lead with Egypt, and have a competent military as well.
Future considerations: I'm still pondering whether to switch to Republic. While I know how to fight wars as a Republic or Democracy, this is Diety level, and switching could turn out to be a problem. I'm only a few more techs away from Sipahis, and I have all the resources I need to build them (horses will be connected as soon as I finish the Baghdad harbor and finish Astronomy). Attacking the Persians in order to perform pointy-stick research is now on my mind. If and when I go to war against Shaka again, my primary targets will be Ulundi (to better protect my access to incense), and their capital city simply for the sake of bragging rights. Further territorial gain is likely to yield little more than a bunch of one-shield cities and a few more points on the scorecard for territory and population.
I have only four native Ottoman workers; I put them back into my capital city of Basketgrad (with its Cathedral), kicking it straight to size 12 and turning it into a 21-shield powerhouse.
500 AD: My second suicide galley makes it across the eastern sea--and discovers the Carthaginians! A trading chain reaction ensues. I trade Chivalry to Carthage in exchange for Invention, contact with Egypt, and 8 GPT. Egypt, in turn, gives me Gunpowder, contact with Rome, and 19 GPT in exchange for Chivalry and contact with everybody on my home continent. Rome gives me Republic, World Map, and 5 GPT in exchange for Theology and Chivalry. I hesitate before giving two techs away for that, then I decide that Rome will probably use it to beat up Egypt.
Then the newly-revealed world map shows that Rome would have to beat up Carthage to even get to Egypt. Oh well, giving the Romans knights so they can beat up Carthage is just as good, seeing as how Carthage is Number One in power at the moment.
I check with all civs on the diplomacy screen for any final trades I can make. Contact with various civs is shopped around some, but no other technology is to be had for now. The various GPT deals allow me to crank research up to 100% and still run a budget surplus. Saltpeter is present just northeast of Junkograd--two tiles away from where Hlobane used to be. I'm now glad I took that city down.
I kick myself for having a revolution to Monarchy right before getting my hands on Republic.
The Persians and Egyptians are still ahead by Astronomy and Chemistry. I'm finally back up to par in the tech race again--but the fact that I was behind by Invention, Gunpowder, Education, Astronomy and Chemistry shows how far behind you can get without knowing it.
So, the inhabited world is fully mapped, all eight civs have been located, and those who didn't cut the mustard have been dealt with:
The latest score / power / culture graphs:
Ottomans in orange; Arabs in pink; Babylon in blue; Persia in green; Zulus in black; Egypt in yellow; Rome in red, and Carthage in yucky brown.
Things are going to be interesting for a long time to come. All seven (surviving) nations are solidly established, and it's anybody's game right now. I'm a contender on the score and power graphs (and nobody cares about culture in diety games....
). I now have the capacity to get all my productive cities to size 12 without using the sliders. While Persia appears to be behind on the graphs, they paradoxically share the tech lead with Egypt, and have a competent military as well.Future considerations: I'm still pondering whether to switch to Republic. While I know how to fight wars as a Republic or Democracy, this is Diety level, and switching could turn out to be a problem. I'm only a few more techs away from Sipahis, and I have all the resources I need to build them (horses will be connected as soon as I finish the Baghdad harbor and finish Astronomy). Attacking the Persians in order to perform pointy-stick research is now on my mind. If and when I go to war against Shaka again, my primary targets will be Ulundi (to better protect my access to incense), and their capital city simply for the sake of bragging rights. Further territorial gain is likely to yield little more than a bunch of one-shield cities and a few more points on the scorecard for territory and population.
BasketCase
Username sez it all
I decide to take the plunge again--this time I only draw 4 turns of anarchy.
540 AD: The Ottoman Republic is born! As a despotism, I was able to churn out 158 science with the slider at 100%. Now, after turning the slider down to actually pay my troops, I'm still at 209. I can now research the currently available technologies in 8 to 11 turns. I love being a Republic.
I establish embassies with Egypt, Carthage, and Rome to fill out the foreign relations web in the diplomacy screen. Some of my cities that can grow (without going into disorder) have workers joined to them--Arabic workers only. Adding Zulu workers to cities would cause additional unrest every time I went to war against Shaka. The Zulus are nowhere near Gunpowder right now. The military advisor is asked to draw up a plan to launch a sneak attack on one or two Zulu border cities. I could reach Ulundi or Zimbabwe in one turn.....
540 AD: The Ottoman Republic is born! As a despotism, I was able to churn out 158 science with the slider at 100%. Now, after turning the slider down to actually pay my troops, I'm still at 209. I can now research the currently available technologies in 8 to 11 turns. I love being a Republic.
I establish embassies with Egypt, Carthage, and Rome to fill out the foreign relations web in the diplomacy screen. Some of my cities that can grow (without going into disorder) have workers joined to them--Arabic workers only. Adding Zulu workers to cities would cause additional unrest every time I went to war against Shaka. The Zulus are nowhere near Gunpowder right now. The military advisor is asked to draw up a plan to launch a sneak attack on one or two Zulu border cities. I could reach Ulundi or Zimbabwe in one turn.....
CoolioVonHoolio
Quit WoW, back to Civ.
It'll be alot easier in republic, good story basketcase!
ComradeDavo
Formerly God
Great thread BasketCase, intresting and entertaining! 
Kick that Zulu ass!
Kick that Zulu ass!
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Geez, I already did twice! My foot hurts!! How many more ass kickings do you want???
Time for the latest news from Ottomania.
550 AD: Looking over the tech screen, deciding what to research next. Some of the other civs are up Astronomy and Chemistry, so I decide to go for Banking. I start upgrading my pikemen. I reluctantly disband my three swordsmen who promoted leaders and now have those special names. In most of my games I keep them around, but this is Diety, and I can't afford to waste the 3 GPT to keep them.
Egypt and Rome are at war. Gee, and I think I traded Chivalry to both sides....
Point Gratha finishes its Cathedral, and Arabic workers pump it up to size 12. A 15-shield producer.
Salonika (built where Hlobane was) ends up having to pillage the irrigation off two of its flood plains tiles; it's the only way to prevent the city from either starving or growing to size 7 and going into disorder.
Babylon finally is willing to trade Astronomy to me for Banking and 155 gold. Other civs are unwilling to accept either GPT or luxuries from me in technology trades; they "would never accept such a deal" if any GPT or luxuries are on my side of the bargaining table at all. Guess I must have hosed my rep somewhere. Meanwhile, my foreign advisor is saying civs all over the map have betrayed each other.
The AIs have lately been researching in unexpected directions and constantly beating me in whatever research branch I go for, thereby depriving me of tech trades. I'm falling behind again, and I'm getting really steamed. Just to be a punk, I trade Banking to the Romans for Music Theory and use my leader to rush J.S. Bach's Cathedral. Six other civs were attempting to build it at the time--
J.S. Bach allows me to cut my luxury slider to zero, adding 24 GPT to my budget, and will also help with war weariness later.
Completion of Printing Press breaks the research curse; everybody wants to buy this one! Egypt gives me Chemistry and 4 GPT for it. Nobody else is willing to trade techs to me for Printing Press--but several civs are willing to trade GPT for it.
A newly-built caravel is loaded up with three musketeers (no, really! no joke), and sends them to Baghdad. A big problem in many of my previous games (and once in THIS game) was not covering my bases. Well, this time I'm gonna cover my source of horses against sneak attacks!
I finish Democracy. Curiously, a couple other civs seem to have it also, but haven't shopped it around. Oh well--I do. In exchange for Democracy, Egypt gives me Metallurgy and 18 GPT. Then, in exchange for Democracy, Rome gives me......MILITARY TRADITION.
Yo, folks, do you know what time it is? Check your watch....that's right, it's
Sipahi Time!!!
Time for the latest news from Ottomania.
550 AD: Looking over the tech screen, deciding what to research next. Some of the other civs are up Astronomy and Chemistry, so I decide to go for Banking. I start upgrading my pikemen. I reluctantly disband my three swordsmen who promoted leaders and now have those special names. In most of my games I keep them around, but this is Diety, and I can't afford to waste the 3 GPT to keep them.
Egypt and Rome are at war. Gee, and I think I traded Chivalry to both sides....
Point Gratha finishes its Cathedral, and Arabic workers pump it up to size 12. A 15-shield producer.
Salonika (built where Hlobane was) ends up having to pillage the irrigation off two of its flood plains tiles; it's the only way to prevent the city from either starving or growing to size 7 and going into disorder.
Babylon finally is willing to trade Astronomy to me for Banking and 155 gold. Other civs are unwilling to accept either GPT or luxuries from me in technology trades; they "would never accept such a deal" if any GPT or luxuries are on my side of the bargaining table at all. Guess I must have hosed my rep somewhere. Meanwhile, my foreign advisor is saying civs all over the map have betrayed each other.
The AIs have lately been researching in unexpected directions and constantly beating me in whatever research branch I go for, thereby depriving me of tech trades. I'm falling behind again, and I'm getting really steamed. Just to be a punk, I trade Banking to the Romans for Music Theory and use my leader to rush J.S. Bach's Cathedral. Six other civs were attempting to build it at the time--
J.S. Bach allows me to cut my luxury slider to zero, adding 24 GPT to my budget, and will also help with war weariness later.
Completion of Printing Press breaks the research curse; everybody wants to buy this one! Egypt gives me Chemistry and 4 GPT for it. Nobody else is willing to trade techs to me for Printing Press--but several civs are willing to trade GPT for it.
A newly-built caravel is loaded up with three musketeers (no, really! no joke), and sends them to Baghdad. A big problem in many of my previous games (and once in THIS game) was not covering my bases. Well, this time I'm gonna cover my source of horses against sneak attacks!
I finish Democracy. Curiously, a couple other civs seem to have it also, but haven't shopped it around. Oh well--I do. In exchange for Democracy, Egypt gives me Metallurgy and 18 GPT. Then, in exchange for Democracy, Rome gives me......MILITARY TRADITION.
Yo, folks, do you know what time it is? Check your watch....that's right, it's
Sipahi Time!!!
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Every city I have that produces 10 or more shields per turn sets to work building Sipahis. All these cities have a barracks at this point.
With just 1 more shield per turn, Point Gratha could produce a Sipahi in 6 turns instead of 7. So I send my Zulu slaves to switch two of the city's grass tiles from mining to irrigation, providing 2 surplus food so that a citizen can switch from a water tile to the nearby mountain. Irrigation subtracts 2 shields, the mountain+mine tile adds 3.
Zulu troops move around near the border--including an ARCHER and an IMPI. Shaka--get with the program. Almost the entire Middle Ages, the Zulu negotiating screen has shown an empty bank account and no technology of interest. In most of the Civ3 games I played, when an AI civ starts to do that, it's a sure sign of impending doom. Babylon is showing the same symptoms. Persia is also, but has somehow managed to stay right at the front of the tech race and keep a competent military together, staying in the game despite having lost several cities and being behind on the graphs. The Persians are proving to be very tough customers this game.
I sign a Right of Passage agreement with Babylon so my ship can safely get its cargo of troops to Baghdad without sinking. Meanwhile, Baghdad builds walls to further fortify my source of horses.
780 AD: Basketgrad builds the Ottoman Empire's first Sipahi.
Next newbie mistake: Way down near Mecca, I spot a single grass tile on the coast that DOESN'T HAVE A MINE ON IT. I realize it's been that way the whole game. OOPS. (due to the angle of the coast, the problem was hard to see)
810 AD: Persia and Carthage move into the Industrial Age.
I need Magnetism and Theory of Gravity to get out of the Middle Ages. Egypt has ToG, but not Magnetism--yet. I go full bore research on Magnetism in the hope of beating Cleopatra to it so I can get ToG from her.
Carthage threatens war unless I give him my territory map and 24 gold. Turns out he was just bluffing. Then he declares war on Egypt. Guess he was just itching to beat somebody up.
I NO LONGER HAVE THE LOWEST SCORE!!! I'm now second-last, ahead of Persia. (Technically, the Arabs are in last place, but they're dead--they don't count)
Persia signs an MA with Carthage--and declares war on Egypt. Then Rome signs an MA with Persia--and goes to war against Egypt. The chain-reaction-war phase seems to have started.
I finish researching Magnetism fast enough; Egypt trades me Theory of Gravity for Magnetism and 180 gold, and I'm in the Industrial Age. As a Scientific civ, I get a free tech--Nationalism. Nuts. I was hoping for Steam. Nonetheless, I set my research path to go STRAIGHT for Replaceable Parts. Steam Power and Replaceable Parts are always the first two techs I go for in the Industrial Age, and the fact that the one leads to the other simply provides more incentive.
My pikemen-upgraded-to-musketmen are already obsolete. Time to start re-upgrading them to Riflemen.
Persia parks a fairly hefty stack just across the border west of Flipopolis: an army of three Immortals, covered by three Musketmen. I garrison extra musketmen in the forts opposite them. My ship returns from Baghdad, and starts ferrying workers from Point Blanke (the territory there is fully built-out) back to the mainland; in 9 turns I'll have completed Steam Power, and the minute I do, I'm going to have a LOT of railroads to build. Here's hoping I have coal on my land somewhere!
I log off and sleep.
The next night: I'm half-asleep tonight, and spend about an hour just staring at the map with my brain stuck in neutral. Finally I snap out of my haze, take a long pull of Cherry Coke to wake my ass up, and trade Nationalism to Carthage for Free Artistry and 22 GPT. Then I turn around and sell Free Artistry to Persia for 34 GPT.
I switch Junkograd from building Sipahis to building Riflemen. Carthage, Rome and Persia are still at war against Egypt.
The three Zulu cities on my northern border, Ulundi, Zimbabwe, and Mpondo are my primary targets at the moment. The Persian border is pushing hard on my territory in the west, so Intombe is also being considered. Taking Bactra, further to the west, would relieve the cultural pressure on Point Blanke--that city on the west edge of my mainland empire, and also my source of silk.
With just 1 more shield per turn, Point Gratha could produce a Sipahi in 6 turns instead of 7. So I send my Zulu slaves to switch two of the city's grass tiles from mining to irrigation, providing 2 surplus food so that a citizen can switch from a water tile to the nearby mountain. Irrigation subtracts 2 shields, the mountain+mine tile adds 3.
Zulu troops move around near the border--including an ARCHER and an IMPI. Shaka--get with the program. Almost the entire Middle Ages, the Zulu negotiating screen has shown an empty bank account and no technology of interest. In most of the Civ3 games I played, when an AI civ starts to do that, it's a sure sign of impending doom. Babylon is showing the same symptoms. Persia is also, but has somehow managed to stay right at the front of the tech race and keep a competent military together, staying in the game despite having lost several cities and being behind on the graphs. The Persians are proving to be very tough customers this game.
I sign a Right of Passage agreement with Babylon so my ship can safely get its cargo of troops to Baghdad without sinking. Meanwhile, Baghdad builds walls to further fortify my source of horses.
780 AD: Basketgrad builds the Ottoman Empire's first Sipahi.
Next newbie mistake: Way down near Mecca, I spot a single grass tile on the coast that DOESN'T HAVE A MINE ON IT. I realize it's been that way the whole game. OOPS. (due to the angle of the coast, the problem was hard to see)
810 AD: Persia and Carthage move into the Industrial Age.
I need Magnetism and Theory of Gravity to get out of the Middle Ages. Egypt has ToG, but not Magnetism--yet. I go full bore research on Magnetism in the hope of beating Cleopatra to it so I can get ToG from her.
Carthage threatens war unless I give him my territory map and 24 gold. Turns out he was just bluffing. Then he declares war on Egypt. Guess he was just itching to beat somebody up.
I NO LONGER HAVE THE LOWEST SCORE!!! I'm now second-last, ahead of Persia.
(Technically, the Arabs are in last place, but they're dead--they don't count)Persia signs an MA with Carthage--and declares war on Egypt. Then Rome signs an MA with Persia--and goes to war against Egypt. The chain-reaction-war phase seems to have started.
I finish researching Magnetism fast enough; Egypt trades me Theory of Gravity for Magnetism and 180 gold, and I'm in the Industrial Age. As a Scientific civ, I get a free tech--Nationalism. Nuts. I was hoping for Steam. Nonetheless, I set my research path to go STRAIGHT for Replaceable Parts. Steam Power and Replaceable Parts are always the first two techs I go for in the Industrial Age, and the fact that the one leads to the other simply provides more incentive.
My pikemen-upgraded-to-musketmen are already obsolete. Time to start re-upgrading them to Riflemen.
Persia parks a fairly hefty stack just across the border west of Flipopolis: an army of three Immortals, covered by three Musketmen. I garrison extra musketmen in the forts opposite them. My ship returns from Baghdad, and starts ferrying workers from Point Blanke (the territory there is fully built-out) back to the mainland; in 9 turns I'll have completed Steam Power, and the minute I do, I'm going to have a LOT of railroads to build. Here's hoping I have coal on my land somewhere!
I log off and sleep.
The next night: I'm half-asleep tonight, and spend about an hour just staring at the map with my brain stuck in neutral. Finally I snap out of my haze, take a long pull of Cherry Coke to wake my ass up, and trade Nationalism to Carthage for Free Artistry and 22 GPT. Then I turn around and sell Free Artistry to Persia for 34 GPT.
I switch Junkograd from building Sipahis to building Riflemen. Carthage, Rome and Persia are still at war against Egypt.
The three Zulu cities on my northern border, Ulundi, Zimbabwe, and Mpondo are my primary targets at the moment. The Persian border is pushing hard on my territory in the west, so Intombe is also being considered. Taking Bactra, further to the west, would relieve the cultural pressure on Point Blanke--that city on the west edge of my mainland empire, and also my source of silk.
BasketCase
Username sez it all
930 AD: Zulus declare war on the Persians.
The same year, I finish Steam Power--and I have two sources of coal! WOOT!! Both sources are deep inside my territory, and therefore completely safe--one next to Spamopolis, the other under Goobergrad.
I have 22 slave laborers on hand; I split them into stacks of six, each of which can railroad a Plains tile in one turn or a hill in two turns. First I railroad the tiles around Basketgrad until its up to 25 shields per turn, so it can build a Sipahi in four turns; then I build a rail line north and east to hook up my key defensive points to the rail network:
Now four or five Sipahis stationed on the rails can defend against an incursion anywhere along the border.
Next newbie mistake: Korbelgrad grows too big and goes into civil disorder. DOH! I turn a citizen into an entertainer.
Carthage and Egypt make peace. World map shows Egypt has lost a couple of cities to the Romans. Egypt used to be the Man--errr, I mean, Woman--but not any more. Their slice of the score and power graphs is no longer what it was.
1030 AD: With 22 Sipahis at the ready, a good railway net in place to move them around, and the Zulus already under pressure from Persia--it's time to administer a smackdown that will make the last two look like Blackjack games. I gather my entire force of MI's (units that are almost obsolete and upgrade into trash--might as well use them), twelve of them, and position them opposite Ulundi.
The declaration of war is made, and immediately the Ottoman Empire's elite forces head straight for the Zulu capital. The first attack has predictable results:
One after another, Ottoman forces hammer Zimbabwe. Several are injured, but only one dies--and Shaka's capital city is sacked the first turn of the war.
...
Before declaring war, I extended the east end of my rail line right to the point on the border that was closest to Mpondo. This allows the Ottoman Medieval Panzers to also hit Mpondo on the opening bell, with the same result. Mpondo is conquered and torched. I have eleven more Sipahis that haven't moved yet; a couple of them make hit-and-run attacks on stray Zulu units and workers, and the rest, having nothing else to do, are sent to attack Ulundi even though my medieval infantries can attack the city next turn.
Ya gotta love those 8 attack points and those 3 moves per turn. If you're not a Zulu, anyway.....
The same year, I finish Steam Power--and I have two sources of coal! WOOT!! Both sources are deep inside my territory, and therefore completely safe--one next to Spamopolis, the other under Goobergrad.
I have 22 slave laborers on hand; I split them into stacks of six, each of which can railroad a Plains tile in one turn or a hill in two turns. First I railroad the tiles around Basketgrad until its up to 25 shields per turn, so it can build a Sipahi in four turns; then I build a rail line north and east to hook up my key defensive points to the rail network:
Now four or five Sipahis stationed on the rails can defend against an incursion anywhere along the border.
Next newbie mistake: Korbelgrad grows too big and goes into civil disorder. DOH! I turn a citizen into an entertainer.
Carthage and Egypt make peace. World map shows Egypt has lost a couple of cities to the Romans. Egypt used to be the Man--errr, I mean, Woman--but not any more. Their slice of the score and power graphs is no longer what it was.
1030 AD: With 22 Sipahis at the ready, a good railway net in place to move them around, and the Zulus already under pressure from Persia--it's time to administer a smackdown that will make the last two look like Blackjack games. I gather my entire force of MI's (units that are almost obsolete and upgrade into trash--might as well use them), twelve of them, and position them opposite Ulundi.
The declaration of war is made, and immediately the Ottoman Empire's elite forces head straight for the Zulu capital. The first attack has predictable results:
One after another, Ottoman forces hammer Zimbabwe. Several are injured, but only one dies--and Shaka's capital city is sacked the first turn of the war.
Before declaring war, I extended the east end of my rail line right to the point on the border that was closest to Mpondo. This allows the Ottoman Medieval Panzers to also hit Mpondo on the opening bell, with the same result. Mpondo is conquered and torched. I have eleven more Sipahis that haven't moved yet; a couple of them make hit-and-run attacks on stray Zulu units and workers, and the rest, having nothing else to do, are sent to attack Ulundi even though my medieval infantries can attack the city next turn.
Ya gotta love those 8 attack points and those 3 moves per turn. If you're not a Zulu, anyway.....
BasketCase
Username sez it all
Wounded Sipahis return to the barracks at Flipopolis for medical attention. Captured catapults are moved to the southern end of the empire and disbanded in order to help speed up production down there.
In-between-turns action results in a couple of Sipahis, deep in Zulu territory, getting killed by archers and knights.
My turn again. The above Zulu units that killed a couple of my Sipahis are exterminated. Eight other full-health Sipahis move into the tile; they will hit Bapedi next turn. My pile of medieval infantries moves into position just east of Amatikulu. In between turns, a pile of Persian units moves into position to strike the city from the west. Suffice it to say that Amatikulu is TOAST.
Next turn.
My MI's attack Amatikulu. Casualties are very heavy; it's MI's against fortified musketmen in a size 12 city. Eight MI's are killed before the city falls. Four MI's are left; not enough to really make a dent in anything else I'm likely to face. These last four MI's are sent down south to be sacked for speeding up production. Hell of a way to get retired from military service....
Further troop movements: Bapedi is hit by that stack of nine deep-operative Sipahis. The city drops like a brick.
At this point, the Zulus are out of the game--the best-producing core around where the capital was has been obliterated. No mercy for the pansy-assed: three Ottoman units move through the ruins of Mpondo, into the peninsula in the northeast corner of the continent, pillage the roads, and cut the crumbling Zulu empire in two:
Phew! Lotta action tonight. Time to hit the showers. Once again, real world will probably prevent me from getting back to the game until Friday. I take comfort in the fact that the other civs on the map are FREAKED right now....
In-between-turns action results in a couple of Sipahis, deep in Zulu territory, getting killed by archers and knights.
My turn again. The above Zulu units that killed a couple of my Sipahis are exterminated. Eight other full-health Sipahis move into the tile; they will hit Bapedi next turn. My pile of medieval infantries moves into position just east of Amatikulu. In between turns, a pile of Persian units moves into position to strike the city from the west. Suffice it to say that Amatikulu is TOAST.
Next turn.
My MI's attack Amatikulu. Casualties are very heavy; it's MI's against fortified musketmen in a size 12 city. Eight MI's are killed before the city falls. Four MI's are left; not enough to really make a dent in anything else I'm likely to face. These last four MI's are sent down south to be sacked for speeding up production. Hell of a way to get retired from military service....
Further troop movements: Bapedi is hit by that stack of nine deep-operative Sipahis. The city drops like a brick.
At this point, the Zulus are out of the game--the best-producing core around where the capital was has been obliterated. No mercy for the pansy-assed: three Ottoman units move through the ruins of Mpondo, into the peninsula in the northeast corner of the continent, pillage the roads, and cut the crumbling Zulu empire in two:
Phew! Lotta action tonight. Time to hit the showers. Once again, real world will probably prevent me from getting back to the game until Friday. I take comfort in the fact that the other civs on the map are FREAKED right now....
T-Money
Conquestador
Holy hell.....can anyone say "ownage?"
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