Quest of Conquest

[dominatr]

I shall begin by saying i am playing my mod, Dominatr's Civ3 Optimized with a Huge map, 70% continents, everything at medium, barbarians at none.

I will be playing on Regent as Sumeria, with Conquest as the only victory condition.

Load the game up and:

4000BC- Not that bad, i can do fine with this. Gotta find some cows or wheat pretty fast though if i want a big empire. I go for pottery as my first tech to get the scouts rolling out so i can start the trade fest, (seriously when one person gets map making i end up with every civ's gold by the end of the turn)

3800BC- BAM! Theres the cows already. When that settler is done I'll have those cows.

3500BC- Sumer is built one tile above the cows.

3450BC- I get Pottery, then i head for Ceremonial burial so i can start building temples.

Now the reason i want temples early is because i want to have a lot of culture. In my mod, i moved propaganda to diplomat so it can be performed as early as writing. With a lowered price and higher success rate for "in awe of" culture, it can be used to help shorten some wars before they begin and get me access to key resources. Also, if i don't work on my culture, the AI may be able to take my cities via propaganda so culture comes into play now, whether or not you want a cultural victory.

Scouts are being produced in both cities.

3300BC- A bit north up the coast, i meet China. They give me 100 gold for Pottery. It is important to build up gold since these propaganda missions may cost a bit less, but they still aren't going to be useful unless i can accumulate a lot of gold. I will do this through map trading a bit further on.

3150BC- I meet India to my East. For Pottery, they give me Bronze Working and 20 gold.

3050BC- I build Lagash to the east of Sumer, next to a small lake and some more cows.

The Sumerian Empire as it stands:

3000BC- India settles Madras on a river near me, by some wheat i was hoping to settle. If their culture is small by the time i get writing, that is going to be my first target for propaganda.

I meet Babylon and they give me Warrior Code and 30 gold for Pottery. It appears they are north of India a bit.

I learn Ceremonial Burial, then i go for Alphabet to start working towards Map Making. Several things i want to do in the next few techs:

Alphabet- Good trading prop to the AI since they don't usually go for it until a bit later. Cost is pretty good too.

Writing- Propaganda begins here, trading contacts helps me get geared up for Map Making.

Philosophy- Kills two birds with one stone. So it lets me get the next tech:

Map Making- Trade Maps, get rich.

Literature- Tack on a lib to every city and my culture goes up a lot so i can cap cities easier with propaganda.

So, there's my plan for the future at least for now.

2950BC- Kish is built west of Madras.

2850BC- I give Ceremonial Burial to India for 80 gold, and to Babylon for 70 gold.

2800BC- Umma is built up the coast, a bit south of Shanghai.

2670BC- I get Masonry from India for 250 gold. Then i give masonry to Babylon for The Wheel.

2630BC- I meet Inca to the northwest of China in a desert. I give them Ceremonial Burial for 100 gold.

2950BC- I meet Carthage and Iroquois and make the following trades:
Masonry to Iroquois for 100 gold and Pottery to Carthage for 100 gold.

Bad-Tibira is built in the Forest to the northeast by some furs.

My Empire now:

2550BC- I give Masonry and The Wheel to China for iron Working. Then i give Iron Working to Babylon for 260 gold and Alphabet (I Was one turn away from it!)

2470BC- I build Erech in the Plains near China. Isin is build south of Kish in some tundra-surrounded hills, capturing an Iron source that will be of much use later on.

2390BC- I meet the Mongols, who i give Alphabet to for 62 gold.

Ashkak is build northeast of Bad-Tibira, near Babylonian borders.

2350BC- I give Iron Working to the Mongols for 120 gold. I meet Spain, who i give Alphabet to for 100 gold. I give Alphabet to Iroquois for Mysticism and 4 gold.

2310BC- I give Iron Working to Spain for Horseback Riding and 24 gold. Zabalam is built north of Bad-Tibira.

My Empire, with all of the new settlements, is getting pretty large:

2270BC- I give Iron Working to Inca for 90 gold. I meet Scandinavia.

2230BC- Kisurra is built further up in the plains by some wheat.

2190BC- I learn writing and go for Map Making.
I give Scandinavia contacts with 3 tribes in exchange for contact with Russia and Arabs.
I give Spain 6 contacts for Mathematics, Contact with the Greeks and Dutch and 19 gold.
I give Arabia Alphabet and Iron Working for Contact with the Romans.
I give Rome Alphabet for 199 gold.
I give Netherlands 3 contacts for contacts with the Byzantines and English.
I give Byzantines Writing and a contact for 224 gold.
I give Greece Writing and 3 contacts for 234 gold.

Lot of trading going on, and it isnt even near over. Just wait until Map Making.

2150BC- Der is founded north of Zabalam.

2110BC- Kua is built north of Kisurra and Marad is built south of Isin on the coast by some horses.

2070BC- Kuara is built North of Der.

1990BC- Kutha and Nagsu are built up in the Plains.

I get Philosophy and my free tech is Map Making. I go for Literature next. With my great success, i earn a SGL:

1950BC- Now the Map Trading fest begins. I start off with 1981 gold.

I end up with maps from all of my Contacts, 2206 gold, and Polytheism. It seems my Pangaea (Map generator did a -ass job) is actually not a Pangaea at all!

I will have to sit still until someone finds more contacts.

Since i now have polytheism and a SGL, i decide to build rush TOA. IT would be super useful for gaining quick culture, and get me a Golden Age.

I rush TOA in Ur and i will have it next turn!

Before i end this update, will post a current world map:

Red- Rome
Cream- Arabs
Light Purple- Scandinavia
Brown- Russia
Ugly Yellow- Mongols
Black- Zulu
Light Gray- Inca
Purple- Iroquois
Light Blue- China
Awesome Blue- Sumeria
Gray- India
Dark Blue- Babylon
Dark Green- Carthage
Baby Blue- Spain
Green- Greece
Red-Orange- Byzantines
Orange- England
Lime-Netherlands

So there is my first post, please comment your opinions i will post another soon!

 

[Sparthage]

lurker's comment: Subscribing as usual.

 

[King of Anshan]

Why did you rush the Temple of Artemis? Why not something better like the Pyramids orso?

 

[Haig]

What's up with the graphics in the first two pics? Have you zoomed the map somehow? I just feel my own game has inferior graphics? Just got the game by the way so maybe there's something I don't know..

 

[vmxa]

Kibitzer:

Haig that looks like Snoopy's graphic package. It is a mod that can be found in the Creation Forum.

 

[clearmurky]

Subscribed.

 

[dominatr]

King of Anshan- Free temple in each city, with all of the cities i have, my culture will be getting up there fast. I can use the time not spent on temples to spend building libraries.

1950BC- The Temple of Artemis is built!

I enter a golden age.

Already, 9 out of 17 of the civs I've met are admirers of my culture. That is a decent chance of successful flip, but in awe of is much more definite.

1870BC- Babylon has a city, Eridu, dangerously close to one of my cities. I build an embassy and try to convert the city into a part of my empire:

I can already tell, this is going to be a lot of fun.

Susa is built up in the plains. The plains are beginning to dwindle, and i am approaching the desert area. Tutub is settled on the southernmost tip of land south of Ur.

1830BC- The Carthaginian town of Sabratha succumbs to my empire's growing power:

I learn Literature, and the next mission is to obtain Currency to get some marketplaces going to generate some money for espionage missions.

1790BC- My propaganda fails in Akkad, but is able to sway the people of Ashur to break off from Babylon.

My culture expands viciously after the Temple of Artemis was built, so now i control the most land in the world. Now three civilizations are in awe of my culture.

1750BC- Kutallu and Anshan are founded up in the north by Carthage's small empire.

1725BC- I give Carthage Literature for Code of Laws and 30 gold. Spain asks me to pay a terribly high price for construction but i take it. I end up giving literature, code of laws, and 580 gold up. Now after two turns I'll have currency and be the first into the middle ages.

Babil is built.

Next, i am greatly impressed by what my culture is achieving:

Nanking is insisting on secession from China and i accept it. What is ironic is i have tried to flip it twice with propaganda and then it goes and coughs itself up on me a few turns later.

1700BC- Apisala is built. Spain seems to be attempting to capture the empty land which i want, so it looks like i need to hurry up.

I learn currency, launching me into the Middle Ages. Knowing that the AI will be after Monarchy before any MA techs, i decide to hit up Monotheism, for the cathedrals.

1625BC- Dabrum is founded. Eshnunna is built in the last space to the south of me.

1575BC-I get this message:

I think this may be from flipping their cities. They shouldn't really be a threat since they have just 5 cities compared to my 30.

I learn Monotheism and head for Feudalism.

1500BC- I set the science slider to 0 so i can pick up some quick gold since i am nearly as broke as the AIs.

1475BC- Tell Halaf is built in the Jungle. There is an expanse of jungle to the west of Tell Halaf and i have many settlers racing over there to build cities.

I manage to get citizens in Rusicade to revolt from Carthage and join my empire.

Babylon is attempting to capture Ashur back but aren't really a threat at all. They send two swordsmen and i pick off a settler spearman package heading for the jungle.

1450BC- In order to continue my expansion, i had to capture Kahnawake. Since they are so isolated from the rest of the Iroquois empire, they reluctantly joined.

So, with my efforts in expansion i managed to have the largest empire in the world. My culture exploded and i look forward to conquer more empires little by little.

 

[clearmurky]

Updated World Map?

 

[dominatr]

1475BC- I flip the Zulu cities of Umfolozi and Tugela freshly built in the jungle. Then i flip Iroquois town of Caughnawaga.

Recent flips:

1400BC- I close in on Akkad with my swordsmen. I look to cap it, make peace with Babylon and snag a city or two in the deal, then use propaganda to take a few more.

They give me an offer a bit early and i manage to snag Ellipi from them.

1375BC- Babylonian cities won't flip so:

I flip Leptis Magna instead. Borsippa is founded.

I decide to take a city from the Iroquois as well:

The Iroquois build Oka on a spot in the jungle which i wished to have. I send propaganda over to Oka and it seems that is has worked. I also flip Tonawanda into my empire. I flip the Zulu settlement of Ibabanago and i begin to see that the space in the jungle is dwindling.

1350BC- Though i am out of war with Babylon, i am not done yet. I have several swordsmen which are laying around and i will strike shortly at Akkad.

1325BC- I have too many settlers and i have a sneaky-ass plan to solve it:

I have to flip two zulu cities which look promising in growth, Then i bring the settlers over, pop them in there, and i can make workers, improve the area quickly and eventually crank out workers to do a mass-clearing of the expanse of jungle.

So, putting the plan into motion, i cap Mpondo. Intombe resists my grip, but it is cut off from the Zulu empire.

I am struggling with gold right now, though i am getting 300+ gpt, each espionage mission is around 100g. I am even thinking about ramping up the cost before the update of the mod on its thread (in my sig check it out if you wish). Just to make it a bit more challenging and to make it more rare to cap a city from propaganda.

The Iroquois beat me to the Great Library. I don't have any wonders left, so that's a pretty good clue i should move my slider back soon.

1300BC- Calah is built. Only one space left for settling out in the jungle. I flip Ulundi, but Intombe stays rooted in Zulu rule. Guess war will solve this later on when i'm done the cathedrals all around my empire.

I begin to move swordsmen back to Akkad for an ambush:

1275BC- I get quite a joke out of this one:

All i do is march ONE horseman in, kill a spearman and its mine. After repeated propaganda attempts, a failed capture in the first war, then i just march one damn horsie in there and its mine? I ought to punish Babylon by finishing them off!

But, that will have to wait until the next update.

For now, i leave you with a map:

 

[clearmurky]

Thats a lot of cultural flips.

 

[dominatr]

Thats a lot of cultural flips.

yeah i'm raising the cost in the next update of the mod, but as for this story, flips from propaganda are a bit too common.

 

[King of Anshan]

i just don't like the free temples because they dissappaer all too soon with education. centainly on a pangaea map. It seems to me the pyramids or so would have been much better to rush.

 

[dominatr]

I was thinking a bit short term there.

the temples in every city would be huge culture, plus since they are free means no shields spent building them, so i could get libs and marketplaces in them .

For a bit, i stalled at Feudalism, both to generate some gold and to keep TOA in function.

Either wonder would have been huge, i just chose TOA to fulfill my needs to get the propaganda flips going.

 

[Yoda Power]

Kibitzer:

Haig that looks like Snoopy's graphic package. It is a mod that can be found in the Creation Forum.

It's not Snoopys, but Warpstorms watercolour terrain.