Im hardly testing the guide!
Of course, for testing I mean that a medium player not expert with this strategy, like me, is attempting to pursuit the early rush simply strictly follow the rules it includes.
First screenplay:
I choose a leader that helps for the rush: SHAKA (AGG/exp) Impi - Ikhanda
I played: Monarch/Pangea standard map/Normal speed
I kept a start with a coastal city, 2 gold mine, mais and claim, a lot of forests.
The idea was to exploit the gold to includes in the tech path pottery (for cheap granaries) and fishing (for the claim) and mais is soon improvable (start with agriculture).
Besides, combo with the UB (that, as you know, is a little courthouse), it may helps with mantenaince of the cities that Ill captures.
Soon I was surround by 4 neighbours: Alexander on the west, Joao south-west, Isabel south-east and Fredrick on the east (I had sea on north).
I was lucky to discovered the copper near a third gold mine (good!)
After the initial tech-package required (mining/BW/wheel) I was able to research pottery/fishing without wasting no much time and then I went for writing for open borders with them.
Meanwhile, Ive stolen a worker to Joao and escorted him in my borders. That was very useful (i build only one worker and no others) but Joao didnt want to open borders after this (Ill return to this point later).
After writing, I got AH and then I wonder a while if I had to go for IW so to eventually include Swordsmen in the stack, but I decided that Ill use only Impi to exploit the mobility promotion and to move faster to the enemys cities. So I went for math to improve chopping.
Of course, I was constantly monitorizing the enemies lands, choosing who to attack (this was the hardest choice) in the meantime that the army was ready. Fredrick was a bit more far, and his cities didnt like me so much, so I reject him.
The same I did with Joao (studying his territory from otuside of the borders didnt give me enough information).
So I had to decide between Alex or Isabel.
Either had two archers in the capital, one in the second city and one going around.
For Alex I thought it will be fine to destroy a very potential dangerous neighbour and Athens was a good placed city, but, downside, he had one archer with city garrison in the capital and Athens had a river on the side where Id to arrive (I have to spent two additional turns to go over and attack the city).
On the other side, Madrid was a very nice coastal city with gems and, of course, it was the buddist holy city, but I didnt like at all Barcelonas placement.
So I decided to attack Isabel, keeping Madrid and razing Barcelona, and to build a settler to place a fourth city 1 NE from it.
While I was completing the stack, I decided to look a little forward and research Myst/Meditation/Priesthood to have the possibility to build the oracle at the end of the war.
I used 12 impi and the rush was completly successful. I also gained 3 workers (one was a settler).
But, more important, at the end of the war, my economy still remain good.
I build the Oracle and used it for metal casting, while I was able to go directly for code of laws and I was the first, so Ive got two holy cities
At around zero year, Im not back in tech at all, Im always first or second in terms of score, Im first in population and pecentage of territory.
Now Ive stopped to play this game but it is seems very look promising!
So, the guide works wonderfully!!!
Just an observation:
Maybe it could be mentioned that when you steal a worker you lose the possibility of open borders and then to scout the territory of a potential target.
I dont know if, in this cases, it could be better to not escort the worker back (if there is the possibility) and go scouting with the unit as much as possible untill itll killed, or, at a certain point, go for alphabet and build a spy.
There is, of course, still the possibility of a blind war against this enemy only basing on the information that it can be have looking from outside of the borders, but I think thats a hard choice to do if you have others naked neighbours.....
Now I want to test the guide with a leader that doesnt help with the rush, PETER (except for the fact that starts with mining), on Monarch/Earth standard map/Normal speed
... stay tuned
