Preturn: I don't get why we abandoned Khurisan. That was our gem city & why you got riots.
A lot of MM opportunities.
One trick for you SAAM, in a city like Smyrna that is starving, try moving the citizens into coastal squares. The additional commerce can balance your happiness, so you don't lose a pop point. Similarly, I can allow Sardica to grow by doing the same thing.
Fire a whole bunch of entertainers that are not needed. Raise science to 70%.
We aren't building settlers to claim the lands. We need those gems back. Switch Septum and disband a Sword to get it in 1 turn. I also switch Varna to a granary as it builds in 1. It looks good for settler production. We are on a race for the gems and other land. It looks like every civ is sending over boats with settlers.
Switch some towns to factories.
IBT: Boats seem to be heading to the gems. No landings so we should win. I am protecting some of the settling spots to be sure though.
Caesarea: Cav->Rifle
Varna: Granary->Settler
Trebizond: Ironworks->Factory
Septum:Settler->Cannon
Nicomedia: Courthouse->Factory
860 AD: Arabian offense heals. Gem settler goes cross the ocean. Russia beats us to electricity.
IBT: Ansar warrior attacks and kills a cav.
Smyrna: Market->Courthouse
870 AD: Start attack on Fustat.
IBT: Renegotiate Lux deal with spain. Trade dyes + 5 gpt for silks and incense. MDI kills our conscript rifle on the hill.
880 AD: Build Brusa by the gems. Disband an arabic worker and then hurry a harbor.
Aargh! Two cav can't kill a regular single pike on flat. One dies the other retreats.
Dyrrachium is really having unhappiness problems (no river to give bonus gold I guess). Decide it wants a cathedral.
IBT: Boats are heading away now. I am thinking there is probably not a resource in the current free lands.
Nicea: Rifle->Market
Fustat riots due to supressed rebellers.
Brusa: Harbor->Barracks
890 AD: Attack on Anjar leaves 1 injured Pike. Lose 1 Cav.
IBT: Arabia shows up with 2 Ansar warriors. Kill one Cav, lose to another
Caesarea: Rifle->factory
Fustat flips taking a Rifle with it.
Sardica: Cav->Cav
Trebizond: Factory->Coal Plant
900 AD:
Kill several units in Anjar leaving one injured Pike. Lose a Cav on attack. Take Fustat back. Unfortunately, the army is really injured doing so and so I decide to leave it empty and retreat the army back again (I was hoping the army would guard it but it lost 10 or so hp to the pike

)
IBT: Arabia does have a spare Ansar and takes Fustat again (ok, ok, I should have razed it...)
910 AD:
Take Anjar. It is size 1 so I keep for now (to hold back Arabic influence and because it has a barracks.
IBT: Russia and Arabia embargo us.
Varna: Settler->Settler
Septum: Cannon->Cannon
Nicea riots.
920 AD: I now have a new settler on the far island. Healing turn.
IBT: We get electricity. Start scientific method. Arabia lands 2 units on our homeland.
Ancyra: Settler->Settler
930 AD: Realize that Naissus is building a Cav with no barracks - switch to Barracks.
On homeland: Sword vs Sword loses, Sword vs Sword wins. Sword vs Archer wins
Take Fustat again. It is now hopefully small enough that it won't flip again (or maybe I am just too stubborn for my own good)
Attack Basra and YES! a great leader! Capture city. Leader becomes an army.
IBT: Ansar attacks Cav in Busra but loses.
We get Universal Sufferage[\b]
Adrianople: US->Factory
Trebizond: Coal Plant->Heroic Epic and is hit by pollution in honor of our new coal plant.
940 AD:
Attack Kufah and Damascus with our armies.
On the Diplomatic front, Rep Parts and Corporation is already known by the AI.
I trade Industrialization to Spain for Sanitation, 13 gpt, and change.
Raise lux to 30% WW has definitely gone up a notch. Go thru towns to prevent massive riots next turn.
IBT: Xerxes wants gems. Don't want a war at the moment so I cave.
Russia lands a settler next to our settler.
950 AD:
Build a new city Iconium
Attack and Capture Kufah
Attack Damascus. The first attack causes the army to lose too many hp so I stop. Move second army onto the first.
I trade Electricity for Corporation with Spain (they nicely followed a different route than us giving us good trades).
A rifle notices that Russia has another settler on the way through to FOW. It will build that town next turn.
We just got the Furs (Kufah) which greatly helps the WW problem. Nicaea is still starving though, so I switch to a settler. It needs a Market.
Notes:
I didn't play the war well. The attacks on Anjar had no tolerance for below average RNG and so it took longer than it should and left Cavalry exposed. Fustat flipping didn't help matters.
I also have not been building military. This leaves us very short on units (I also absorbed several for the new army) on the Arabic front. On the other hand, the two armies can probably take the rest of the cities.
When Trebizond finishes the Heroic Epic it should be ready to start the TOE prebuild. It would have finished the palace before we got Sci Meth so I slipped the Heroic Epic in.
Arabia now cannot get to us as we have captured the choke point.
Here is a Picture - the red X is where I saw a Russian settler:
The Save