Pre-turn discussion

[donsig]

I've been kicking around the idea of a thread where screenshots of our current position can be posted in hopes if getting some input from team members about how to move. Feel free to discuss strategy to your heart's content! Let's make the capital of the World!

 

[donsig]

We've got 22 hours to play our turn.

The Greeks have made an offer (see Greek communicaitn thread):



The north:



The south:



F11 screen - note the size 6 Iroqi city.



Notes: The Iroqi did not attack us last turn. These screen shots are from the current save. I opened it but made no moves. We have 22 hours or so to play. Please advise on the following (and anything else you see fit):

1) Take the Greek deal?
2) Attck the barb camp with the chariot or use an imoortal?
3) Continue to withdraw Cyrus and Cambyses?
4) Continue to regroup our immortals at the end of the military road?
5) Change any city production or tile usage?
6) Move our settler spearman pair one tile SW to found Provobomb in turn 74?
7) Turn off research again till we close the Greek deal?
8) Offer math to the Galls again?
9) What to do with new chariot in Fort Incendiary? (TMP duty, send it south along Military Road, get it to a barracks to upgrade next turn, ect.)

 

[Provolution]

1) Take the Greek deal?

Yes do so, but ask for some gold to compensate if we already researched some of a tech, or to ask for a favorable deal later.

2) Attck the barb camp with the chariot or use an imoortal?

Use Chariot

3) Continue to withdraw Cyrus and Cambyses?

Let them stay in the mountains in order to lure out the Mounted Warriors and hold them in the region.

4) Continue to regroup our immortals at the end of the military road?

Yes, do so, and attack in massed formation this time, and wait for the horsemen to arrive from the Greek deal to follow up retreating and wounded Mounted Warriors.

5) Change any city production or tile usage?

Maximize shields in the south and food in the north, and make north the source of settlers and workers.

6) Move our settler spearman pair one tile SW to found Provobomb in turn 74?

Sure thing.

7) Turn off research again till we close the Greek deal?

Yes, do so. turn it down till we get the techs, also we need the gold for chariot upgrades.

8) Offer math to the Galls again?

Make sure the Greeks keep both math and currency to themselves, and make the other continent more balanced out. This is the only way the Scientific Alliance will win over the Agro one.

9) What to do with new chariot in Fort Incendiary? (TMP duty, send it south along Military Road, get it to a barracks to upgrade next turn, ect.)

Prepare it for imminent barracks upgrade based on Greek deal

10. My own point

Never disperse the immortals as you did in the failed first campaign, in retrospect I should have given some counsel there. In order to advance with an Immortal stack, you need a massed Stack of Doom,with cavalry flankers (horsemen) to take care of straggling and retreating enemy units as well as scouting. Also throw in a couple of catapults and some cheap spears to take some pressure.

 

[donsig]

8) Offer math to the Galls again?

Make sure the Greeks keep both math and currency to themselves, and make the other continent more balanced out. This is the only way the Scientific Alliance will win over the Agro one.

All of your advice seems sound, though I'm wary of attacking the barbs with the chariot after losing Pharnakes to the Libyans! I only quote this portion to remind everyone that the Iroqi already have math. I'm surprised they haven't cut a deal with the Galls to sell it. The Galls have not been willing to offer much for math anyway and what they did offer us we will get from the Greeks.

I'll play the save tonight (my time) in about nine hours. So there is plenty of time for others to give more input. If there is active participation in this thread I will make it a standard procedure. This will slow the game as we'll take the whole 24 hours to play our turn but this will be much more fun if the rest of the team is helping to decide things.

 

[donsig]

Ok, here are some screenies from turn 74. These are pre-turn screenshots - we have about 21 hours to play our turn.

Here's the north:



The south - note there are now three squads of Iroqi mounted warriors visible in the same tile. No other Iroqi units in sight.



The big news is the Greeks tech deal went through, but we are still a backward people! So what do we research next? Here's the science advisor screen with research set at maximum (90% - still need luxuries at 10%). Our deficit at this level is 3gpt. That a deficit but we can affort it for awhile and still upgrade three chariots. We can set research at 50% and still get philosophy in four turns with a 17 gpt surplus. We can also get literature relatively quickly which give us access to cheaper libraries and some culture. Either of these gives us an out for Semtex in case we get beat to the Statue and Pyramids. Philosophy gives us the Mausoleum at only 200 shields. Would help us with unhappiness and would be done in eight turns allowing Semtex to switch to war production. The Great Library would take much longer but would remedy our backwardness and deprive the agricultural teams a science boost. So what should we research next?

 

[TimBentley]

Construction is known by no other civs; philosophy is known by all other civs; code of laws is known by all other civs; literature is known by 2 other civs; map making is known by 1 other civ; polytheism is known by 0 other civs. Can we guess who knows what?

It's also interesting that the Galls don't know horseback riding.

 

[Provolution]

The Galls do not need horsebackriding, their UU is a swordsman with 2 moves per turn. I would wager to go with Construction, and gamble for a Great Leader, and have some to trade with.

 

[greekguy]

We should research Construction. It is an expensive tech and it could be a valuable bargaining chip. We can also offer it as the first part of the tech. exchange program with MIA when they get back to us with a reply for our last message.

 

[donsig]

We have a new immortal in Suggested names? There are also two Libyans on a mountain in the west:



The Iroqi have disappeared from the area around Lokkout Mountain - but there are four squads of mounted warriors near the barb camp in the jungle on the east coast:



I'll be playing the turn in about 12 hours.

 

[TimBentley]

I think that mountaintop immo and the 3 horses and 1 immo coming would stop any MW problems, but you could borrow an immo from the waiting invasion force. Probably they'll go into the barb camp.

 

[donsig]

Here's the north:



Here's the 'south':



The Iroqi luck continues as Cyrus and Cambyses both fall on a mountain - and the attacking Iroqi units each lose only one hit point.

The four mounted warriors in the jungle sacked the Sarbadar village as expected. It will be difficult to trap the Iroqi. Once they move their first unit next to our horsemen they will not move the rest in. I fear all we can do is halt their advance. Unfortunately that will pin our horsemen down. Any ideas?

 

[greekguy]

We should move the horseman by the MW stack South 1. This will probably entice the enemy to attack and they will most likely win. However, we should also move the immortal near on the mountain by the MW stack North 1. This will prevent the Iroqi from seeing him, but he would be able to attack next turn. It is a perfect trap.

btw, i have an idea for unit names. maybe we could name all our new (and currently unnamed units) after members of the team. it would be cool to see if 'greekguy' can kick Iroqi *** or get killed. (he will probably kick *** )

 

[RegentMan]

lurker's comment: That be kind of awkward seeing you post here after you died in battle. Didn't Shahanshah Provolution perish awhile ago? Look what happened to Provolution's posting pattern...

 

[Provolution]

Haven't you heard of Jesus, and coming back from the dead to bring the end of days ?

 

[donsig]

We have philosophy, a new warrior in Unabomb and a new horseman in Horsebomb. There are Hurrian barbarians bear Horsebomb and Faris (vet horseman) was killed in the continuing battle of Banana Plains. Did a little micromanaging.

General questions:
G1) Construction seems to be the tech most team members think we should research. Should we set research at 90% and incur a 3 gpt deficit (total cost 36 gold) to get construction in 12 turns or should we set it to 80% for a 4 gpt surplus (gaining 56 gold) for construction in 14 turns?

G2) Should we shift any troops to the west?

The East:
E1) Should the new warrior in Unabomb stay put as an MP? Unabomb's production would be 4 spt instead of 3 spt.

E2) Should the new horseman in Horsebomb attack the Hurrian barbarian now or next turn?

Here's the picture:



The West:

W1) One more check on our wonder: Mausoleum in 3 turns: Oracle or Statue in 13; or Pyramids or Great Library in 23? (Of course we'd have to acquire literacy to build the Great Library.)

W2) Dynopolis needs another MP. Without it we cannot complete the horseman next turn without starving the city.

W3) Where should Shahram move?

Here's the picture:



The South:

S1) Improve tiles near Fort Incendiary or send workers up to Dynopolis?

S2) The Iroqi GS squad 4 is still at large in the eastern jungle. It is now a 2/5 elite unit. We have five different units that can attack: Kaven (4/4 vet horse), Hooman (2/3 reg horse), Kia (4/4 vet immortal), Artaxerxes (3/3 reg immortal or Babak (4/4 vet immortal). Which unit shall have to honor of destroying the first elite Iroqi unit? How should the remaining units, including Ardeshir (4/4 vet immortal who is due east of Mount Carbonperoxides) be moved?

Here's the picture:

 

[Provolution]

use the veteran horse, to assure no one escapes, and to get a potential elite promotion.

Improve the less corrupt and more productive Dynopolis tiles.

 

[Theoden]

E2) Should the new horseman in Horsebomb attack the Hurrian barbarian now or next turn?

W2) Dynopolis needs another MP. Without it we cannot complete the horseman next turn without starving the city.

I think the horseman in horsebomb should move to Dynopolis temporarily to let it complete it's horseman. If the barbarian moves towards horsebomb it will still be able to get back in time and defend.

W1) One more check on our wonder: Mausoleum in 3 turns: Oracle or Statue in 13; or Pyramids or Great Library in 23? (Of course we'd have to acquire literacy to build the Great Library.)

We shouldn't even consider Oracle. I don't think the great library will benefit us that much now that we are about to make a tech research program with the greeks. The others are all good choices IMHO.

 

[TimBentley]

G1) Construction seems to be the tech most team members think we should research. Should we set research at 90% and incur a 3 gpt deficit (total cost 36 gold) to get construction in 12 turns or should we set it to 80% for a 4 gpt surplus (gaining 56 gold) for construction in 14 turns?

We don't really have any other upcoming expenses, do we? (if they come up, we can quickly lower research for a turn) I'd go for 90%.

E2) Should the new horseman in Horsebomb attack the Hurrian barbarian now or next turn?

I'm pretty sure the barb would move to that forest to his west, so attack it now or do what Theoden said.

 

[donsig]

use the veteran horse, to assure no one escapes, and to get a potential elite promotion.

Wouldn't attacking with the vet immortal do the same thing? If the mounted warrior retreated it would end up next to another unit and we could finish it off. We'd still get a chance at promotion and wouldn't an elite immortal be better than an elite horseman?

We don't really have any other upcoming expenses, do we? (if they come up, we can quickly lower research for a turn) I'd go for 90%.

The only possible expense I can think of would be upgrading warriors to immortals in case of an emergency (like a mini-stack of mounted warriors showing up unexpectedly in the west). At 80% we'd have enough to upgrade two warriors - but only after quite a few turns have elasped. We currently have enough to upgrade one warrior but after a few turns of the deficit we'd be under 60 gold. Your point about lowering research if we need some fast cash is a good one. I'm comfortable with 90% unless someone else has other objections.

 

[greekguy]

G1: 90% seems to be the best course of action

G2: i don't think we need to move any troops west

E1: yes, it is better to have the shield production increased, than have another warrior up and about

E2: yes, we should kill him, and we could then find where his village is

W1: go with the MoM

W2: not really a question...

W3: heal him this turn, and then use him to kill that Iroqi warrior a few turns down the road

S1: send the workers to Dynopolis

S2: use a vet horseman to kill the MW