[BTS] News: BOTM 283: Scrooge, Noble - Starts December 15, 2024

[kcd_swede]

BOTM 283: Ebenezer Scrooge of England.

[img=right]https://gotm.civfanatics.net/civ4games/images/botm283civ.jpg[/img]

You will play as Ebenezer Scrooge at Noble difficulty level on a mystery map. Your start units are on a galley (Merry Christmas! you get a free Galley!). There are three directions to choose from. You may follow the Ghost of Christmas Past and meet some friendly (+1 diplo) players from your past. Or you can follow the Ghost of Christmas Present and meet some cautious (-1 diplo) players from the now. Or you can follow the Ghost of Christmas Future to the antagonistic greeting of Minor Civs (always at war with). And in the giving spirit of Christmas, I have given away Stonehenge, Colossus, Pyramids, Oracle, Chichen Itza, Hanging Gardens, and Great Lighthouse to the various AI players.

Merry Christmas, Scrooge!

Game settings:
Playing as: Ebenezer Scrooge of England
Rivals: 7 AIs
Difficulty: Noble
Starting Era: Ancient
Speed: Normal
Options: No barbarians
Victory Conditions: All enabled

Map settings:
Map: ***TODO: FILL THIS IN***
World Wrap: Cylindrical
Mapsize: Standard
Climate: Temperate
Sea level: Medium
Map latitudes: -90°S to 90°N


Ebenezer Scrooge is Charismatic and Protective, and you start with Fishing and Mining.

The Charismatic trait gives +1 happiness/city, and -25% experience required for unit promotions

The Protective trait gives free City Garrison I and Drill I promotion for archery and gunpowder units and double production speed of Castle and Walls

Unique unit: Redcoat (replaces Rifleman)
Where the rifleman has +25% strength against mounted units, the redcoat has +25% against both mounted and gunpowder units.

Unique Building: Stock Exchange (replaces Bank)
The stock exchange gives an amazing +65% gold in the city it's built in, as opposed to +50% for the bank.

Starting screenshot

This is the start of the game (click for a bigger image):





To Enter the Competition:

This competition will open at 00:01 am on 15 Dec 2024, server local time (UTC-6:00). From that date and time, you'll be able to get your chosen starting save >>>here<<<.

Submit the save after your victory (or defeat) here, by 15 Jan 2025.

Here is a link to a list of the differences between Vanilla, Warlords and BtS.

Software Versions

Windows: This game MUST be played in Beyond the Sword (NOT Civ4 Vanilla or Warlords), patched to version 3.19, and with the BUFFY mod version 3.19.005 installed. You can download the BUFFY mod here. Players using Windows Vista or Windows 7 are encouraged to read the notes on Vista fixes here.


Macintosh: This game MUST be played in Beyond the Sword (NOT Civ4 Vanilla or Warlords), patched to version 3.19, and with the Mac BUFFY mod version 3.19.003 installed. You can download the Mac BUFFY mod here.

While playing...

Remember - for your entry to be accepted, it MUST be your first attempt to play this game, and you MUST NOT replay any turns. If you make a mistake while playing, you have to live with it, learn from it, and carry on the game without replaying.

We will open 'spoiler' threads during the month for players to discuss what happens in their games. Do not discuss any details of your game outside those threads.

 

[MarleysGh0st]

How nice to be able to visit with my old business partner, again! And what an interesting and unique situation for starting the game!

It would be nice if we could scout out our options before we decide where to settle. Since we appear to be starting on an ocean square, the fate we choose may be non-refundable and non-returnable, unless there's an alternate route for our galley to cross.

 

[Jimmy Thunder]

Another crazy Christmas game, sounds fun! I wonder which way to go?

 

[LowtherCastle]

Helluva concept! Kind of a tear your hair out concept actually. Somebody’s gonna go the right direction…

 

[Jimmy Thunder]

Could we persuade the mapmaker to give out 3 gold medals for this game, or at least 3 Christmas puddings?

 

[Conquistador 63]

I suspect there is a kind of risk/reward relationship involved, otherwise it wouldn’t make sense to go towards the hostile environment. Better lands and WW for the taking?

 

[LowtherCastle]

Well, past, present, and future could align to the dates of the wonders, perhaps.

Judging from this, Sid took some liberties with the timeline.

Another question is, where will the third civilization be?

 

[High King J.J.]

Well, past, present, and future could align to the dates of the wonders, perhaps.

Another question is, where will the third civilization be?

Third? I think the 7 AI civs include the 3 minor ones and two normals on both other choises.

 

[LowtherCastle]

By the way, Ebenezer says, “Bah humbug!” to the mapmaker for not giving him all the wonders.

 

[LowtherCastle]

To me the first T0 question is, how many land tiles? Crowded map?

 

[Jimmy Thunder]

Also, what's a minor civ? Should that be obvious to me?

 

[LowtherCastle]

I don’t know any technical details on minor civs but as I understand it they function like an AI that is always at war with everybody and cannot win the game. So if you go into the future in this map, you will be playing always war with two or perhaps three minor civilizations.

Since this map has no barbarians as a setting, you wouldn’t have to worry about barbarian invasions.Tthe minor civilizations will have to build any units in their city or cities before they can attack you with them. Unless they attack you with their starting units, of course.

Regular barbarians don’t really research technology the way we do it. They get one or more beakers put into technologies that other players already have. Minor civilizations by contrast, I assume, actually research technology the same way we do.

The other main difference between a minor civilization and a barbarian is that barbarian cities don’t have a palace. Somehow that messes them up with astronomical maintenance cost or whatever.

 

[High King J.J.]

cannot win the game

I didn't know that. So if a minor civ has 90% of the land and population it doesn't win by domination? If it kills everyone else I'd say that counts for a conquest victory. If it builds a space ship and it reaches the destination? What if it builds the UN? I guess it can't get votes from anyone else if it's at war with every other voter.
By the way it seems possible to bribe other non-minor civs to make peace with a minor civ. That way a minor civ could get friends and probably trade techs. If the player civ were vassaled to an AI civ who then made peace with a minor civ because the player civ suggested and bribed it, the minor civ would be at peace with the player civ, at least as long as player civ remained a vassal of the non-minor civ that made peace. Would diplomacy be possible with a minor civ in that case?

 

[LowtherCastle]

No clue…

 

[Xcalibrator]

Charismatic also features -25% XP needed for unit promotions, and +1Happy from Monument and Broadcast Tower.