Random-01: The Wheels Come Off

[azaris]

It's been how long since a SG has started in this place? Time to start another one to alleviate the boredom, methinks.

Version: Beyond the Sword 3.02
Mods: NO
Leader: Justinian (Byzantine)
Difficulty: Monarch
Map: Wheel
Size: Standard
Era: Ancient
Speed: Epic
World wrap: Cylindrical
Opposition: 6 random AIs

Special rules:

• Must win by conquest victory (all victories enabled)

Variant rules:

• Cannot build chariot, catapult, trebuchet, cannon, artillery, mobile artillery, tank, mechanized infantry, modern armor, fighter, jet fighter, bomber, stealth bomber, or mobile SAM.

I blatantly stole this idea from someone else (sorry). Time to put cataphracts and spies to good use. Looking for 4-6 players, standard 24/48 rules apply. Difficulty level is open to discussion depending on the level of interested players. I reserve the right to cancel this game if there is no interest or if someone starts a game with a better idea I can join.

Roster:

azaris
njorls
tycoonist
NoChildren
stuge

 

[stuge]

Ok, this is it, this is the last straw. This stupid forum is forcing me to finally buy BtS. Reserve a spot for me, going to buy the game on Saturday.

 

[pigswill]

No wheel means no pottery means no MC means no machinery means no engineering or optics or printing press. Sounds very challenging! (not a sign-up).

 

[njorls]

I think you can tech The Wheel, just can't build chariots and other stuff that have wheels on them.

I'll sign up, been looking for a warlike SG and this one looks interesting. Some nonstandard warmaking sounds fun.

 

[Conroe]

No wheel means no pottery means no MC means no machinery means no engineering or optics or printing press.

And IIRC Guilds is on the Machinery line. Thus the Cataphract UU will also be unavailable.

It looks like your best units, unless you have ivory, will be Swordsmen and Horse Archers. At least until Gunpowder, when you can start training muskets. It will certainly be a tough fight without any seige weapons.

 

[njorls]

Justinian starts with The Wheel, so we will indeed never tech it

 

[azaris]

And njorls gets the cigar. Playing without The Wheel would indeed be "challenging", not least due to a complete lack of roads and inability to connect any resources outside riverside or coastal cities. I think doing conquest without siege will be enough of a challenge for now.

 

[Orion071]

And njorls gets the cigar. Playing without The Wheel would indeed be "challenging", not least due to a complete lack of roads and inability to connect any resources outside riverside or coastal cities. I think doing conquest without siege will be enough of a challenge for now.

Conquest without siege can be done with spies inciting revolts in the cities to remove the cultural defense. You don't get the collateral damage, but it's not that hard if you have better units.

 

[tycoonist]

azaris, you know I'm always up for craziness! count me in!

 

[azaris]

If you haven't played a Wheel map before, take a look at a few starts in WorldBuilder to see what they look like. We are using 1 lot/player with natural shapes and the rest defaults.

Our starting position:

Our settings:

Still accepting signups. Will play tomorrow.

 

[njorls]

I looked at some Wheel maps. Everyone gets their own spoke, with a hub center that's free for all, and rather cold and bleak at all the maps I looked at.

So we have time to settle our land. I'm thinking a religion in the capital would be nice, we could work a floodplain and then the dye when borders expand. Otherwise, hunting and AH if we decide to skip a religion.

 

[stuge]

Move the warrior 1NE and see what's up there. I'd like to settle 1N anyway. Desert hills are rather meh in my book.

I'll think about our tech order tomorrow when I can play the game, but in any case, we'll be going hard for guilds. Detours should be just for espionage buildings.

Empires on this map tend to be rather linear, so a catapracht conquest is a possibility. Also, we might want to give thought to rushing with swords, if an opportunity presents itself.

 

[azaris]

Since we're going for conquest I gave early religions a skip.

Constantinople founded 1N. Start with Agriculture for faster growth. Judaism FIADL in 3725 BC. After Agriculture start Hunting to improve that ivory.

Alex's scout is prowling around. Not the ideal target for an axeman rush. Oh well. After Hunting start Mining. Christianity FIADL in 3275 BC.

The warrior got attacked by a panther so has spent a long time healing.

Roster

azaris (just played)
njorls (up for 25)
tycoonist (on deck)
stuge

 

[njorls]

Got it. Haven't checked the save.

If mining is due in 1 turn I'll do BW next, then AH for the pigs and to reveal horses.

Not sure where 2nd city should go. Will do more exploring around the capital and see if that reveals anything better than what's already been found.

 

[njorls]

Start: (Turn 30 3225 BC) Press Enter

Turn 1: Mining -> Bronze Working, fully healed warrior moves 1 square next to lion

Turn 2: Warrior wins, gets Woodsman I but has to heal again

Turn 4: Camp started on Ivory

Turn 7: Warrior finished, start another, warrior sent to explore south

Turn 10: Darius met by wandering warrior, worker finishes camp and farms dye

Turn 11: Warrior finished, sent to explore south. Another warrior started.

Turn 15: Warrior near Darius pops hut for 42 gold

Not sure the turn #: BW finished, switch to slavery, research AH. Worker finishes farm and sent to chop grassland hill.

Turn 21: Someone's actually less cultured than us

Near as I can figure, they must have forgotten to build a palace

Turn 22: The number 1 threat to our nation spotted to the south

Turn 25: If you move the South warrior to the south he'll probably end up a bear snack
Settler started and forest chop finished but you can change this if you want
Constantinople size 4 and needs a garrison, there's a warrior 1 SW of it

Not sure where to put the next city, no copper found
Exploring's been slow, maybe I should have built scouts instead of warriors? My scouts always get eaten by barbs though. And the bear slowed the south warrior up. I've looked at Wheel maps on world builder but never played one before.

Land to our south:

Land to our west:

 

[NoChildren]

I'm in this could definitely be a hard one..

 

[stuge]

IIRC, Tycoonist is up. Maybe he should play until AH is in and then give us a screenshot to dotmap?

 

[azaris]

What rubbish terrain!

We can put a whipping city on the spot with bananafishpigsclams, but then what? Let's hope that iron and horses are at least in the vicinity. More scouts are definitely needed, send them in all directions as there are few dead-ends in a Wheel map. We have to find better city sites.

 

[tycoonist]

IIRC, Tycoonist is up. Maybe he should play until AH is in and then give us a screenshot to dotmap?

sounds good. i will play five and then post

 

[tycoonist]

okay, i played to AH, and the good news is that there are horses. i lost a warrior to a bear (not the one outlined in previous turnset). screenies:

north:

south: