Notenoughtrebs
Chieftain
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2010
- Messages
- 45
I have been working on the transition for several weeks. First I tried two games with Rome but they didn't go so well. I just can't get the praets to work for me, maybe because they force you into war when...perhaps you don't really want a war.
So I went back to Monarch and worked on my game with a different civ. I wanted a powerful one with traits that suited me, so I chose the Dutch. Financial is always powerful and creative has always worked for me. Suits my strategy, which is to REX and grab as much land as possible early on. So after I won two games in a row on Monarch I went back to Emperor.
I chose Marathon Fractal. Fractal always throws up funky maps.
So I start on a large island within galley range of another island with Cyrus. He is my only neighbour for early game.
Well I do my thing and settle the island. I found my second city near stone and whip/chop the pyramids and go to Representation. Crucial I think. So far so good. When the time comes to go for Cyrus somewhat to my surprise he only has archers against my swords so it goes well. Indeed his last city goes down to my macemen.
I work for Optics and build the Forbidden city in Cyrus's old capital. My victorious war has given me confidence, maybe I can do this.
With optics beelined a couple of caravels around the world give me the movement bonus. There are two large continents, one dominated by the Greeks the other by the Zulus. The Zulus are the closest and I know they will give me trouble.
I beeline Astronomy but it takes me 45turns to get there! But when I do I enjoy a trade monopoly and economic boost through all the resources I can trade. At this stage I am 2nd or 3rd. I time my first golden age well.
After that things start hotting up. Shaka invades me just when I got curassiers. I am forced to use up my two stored GPs to start an early age so I can change to slavery and whip up some troops. That was inconvenient as I was saving them, but as it is I not only fight off Shaka but also reserach economics just in time so I can change to free market on my last turn of Golden Age. Good job. I find myself at the top of the points chart and I even win the Liberalism race!
I then take stock and decide not to go for domination victory. Overseas invasions are just too difficult, and I decide to go for spacerace.
It's tricky. Shaka is in constant danger of taking over his continent. I don't want this to happen. He has already wiped out the Koreans and is at war with the French. I am forced to fight several wars to defend the French against him. Eventually the Greeks attack him (they had also had a go at me) and I land and sack his capital. He is never the same after that, well gentled down he is.
Well I get the give food to your neighbour event and get a plus 3 diplomacy modifier with the French and next turn they offer to be my vassal! Sweet.
After that it is just a matter of maintaining my spot at the top. I use my 3rd golden age to whip univesities and dikes. Dykes are brutally powerful. They come late but not too late. I build a powerful navy. The rest of the game consists of protecting Shaka from the Greeks while I build my spaceship! He has vassalized his continent and I know that after the Zulus I am next. So every time he DOWsagainsts Shaka I have to bribe him with a tech to get him to stop. As long as I have techs to give him I am okay. This happens 4 or 5 times. I win a Space Victory in 1943.
All in all a very satisfactory game. The Dutch rock. The East Indiaman is not game changing but useful enough as it gives you sea dominance in galleon age. It won me a couple of battles. The Dykes, on the other hand, are just brutal. When almost all of your cities are on the sea...turning otherwise unproductive cities into powerhouses (providing you can whip your dyke)...I cannot praise them enough.
So I went back to Monarch and worked on my game with a different civ. I wanted a powerful one with traits that suited me, so I chose the Dutch. Financial is always powerful and creative has always worked for me. Suits my strategy, which is to REX and grab as much land as possible early on. So after I won two games in a row on Monarch I went back to Emperor.
I chose Marathon Fractal. Fractal always throws up funky maps.
So I start on a large island within galley range of another island with Cyrus. He is my only neighbour for early game.
Well I do my thing and settle the island. I found my second city near stone and whip/chop the pyramids and go to Representation. Crucial I think. So far so good. When the time comes to go for Cyrus somewhat to my surprise he only has archers against my swords so it goes well. Indeed his last city goes down to my macemen.
I work for Optics and build the Forbidden city in Cyrus's old capital. My victorious war has given me confidence, maybe I can do this.
With optics beelined a couple of caravels around the world give me the movement bonus. There are two large continents, one dominated by the Greeks the other by the Zulus. The Zulus are the closest and I know they will give me trouble.
I beeline Astronomy but it takes me 45turns to get there! But when I do I enjoy a trade monopoly and economic boost through all the resources I can trade. At this stage I am 2nd or 3rd. I time my first golden age well.
After that things start hotting up. Shaka invades me just when I got curassiers. I am forced to use up my two stored GPs to start an early age so I can change to slavery and whip up some troops. That was inconvenient as I was saving them, but as it is I not only fight off Shaka but also reserach economics just in time so I can change to free market on my last turn of Golden Age. Good job. I find myself at the top of the points chart and I even win the Liberalism race!
I then take stock and decide not to go for domination victory. Overseas invasions are just too difficult, and I decide to go for spacerace.
It's tricky. Shaka is in constant danger of taking over his continent. I don't want this to happen. He has already wiped out the Koreans and is at war with the French. I am forced to fight several wars to defend the French against him. Eventually the Greeks attack him (they had also had a go at me) and I land and sack his capital. He is never the same after that, well gentled down he is.
Well I get the give food to your neighbour event and get a plus 3 diplomacy modifier with the French and next turn they offer to be my vassal! Sweet.
After that it is just a matter of maintaining my spot at the top. I use my 3rd golden age to whip univesities and dikes. Dykes are brutally powerful. They come late but not too late. I build a powerful navy. The rest of the game consists of protecting Shaka from the Greeks while I build my spaceship! He has vassalized his continent and I know that after the Zulus I am next. So every time he DOWsagainsts Shaka I have to bribe him with a tech to get him to stop. As long as I have techs to give him I am okay. This happens 4 or 5 times. I win a Space Victory in 1943.
All in all a very satisfactory game. The Dutch rock. The East Indiaman is not game changing but useful enough as it gives you sea dominance in galleon age. It won me a couple of battles. The Dykes, on the other hand, are just brutal. When almost all of your cities are on the sea...turning otherwise unproductive cities into powerhouses (providing you can whip your dyke)...I cannot praise them enough.
