The Immortal Challenge Lineup - Game #12 - Aztecs

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The Immortal Challenge Lineup - Game #12

Welcome to the Immortal difficulty version of the biweekly The Deity Challenge Lineup-event.

ICL Game #12
You - Aztec
Total Civilizations - 8
Total City States -16
Map – Pangea
Settings – Quick quick combat(turn it back on if you would like). Raging barbarians is turned OFF. Everything else is set to default.
Game Version -
Downloadable Content – G&K, BNW, Conquest of the New World Deluxe, Genghis Khan's Mongolia, Harold Bluetooth's Denmark, Isabella’s Sapin and Pachacuti's Incan Empire, Kamehameha's Polynesian Empire, Nebruchadnezzar's Babylon, Sejong The Great's Korea, Wonders of the Ancient World. The map pack are intentionally excluded.

Starting location:
Spoiler :


Schedule:

Game #1 - July 23th as Japan
Game #2 - August 6th as Poland
Game #3 - August 20th as Ottomans
Game #4 - September 3th as Arabia
Game #5 - September 17th as Brazil
Game #6 - October 1th as Denmark
Game #7 October 15th as Songhai
Game #8 October 29th as Sweden
Game #9 November 13th as India
Game #10 November 26th as Russia
Game #11 December 10th as Germany
Game #12 December 24th as Aztecs

Information & rules cut, pasted and slightly changed from The Deity Challenge Lineup:
Spoiler :
All games in this series will be set to IMMORTAL difficulty. User civilizations, maps, and opponents will change each game, but the pace will always be set at standard and the starting era will always be ancient. We will try for a variety of starts, and not just having a crazy warmonger as your next door neighbor (although there will be that too). This isn't a competition so there will be no predefined victory conditions. New challenges in the series will be posted every other Wednesday.

Who can play?
Anybody can play. The more the merrier. Even if you normally don't play immortal games you are still welcome to try. The games can become great learning resources for the player trying to improve. Even if you don't finish the game, we are still interested to hear about your experience.

Do's and Don'ts
We are going to be using the honor system. Feel free to restart, reload, play the same game multiple times, but don't use the science overflow exploit. Also please don't edit the game in IGE. If you do chose to cheat, please don't share your results in the comments. Also, please use the spoiler tag if you post a picture, comment about neighboring civs, close by wonders, or locations of ancient ruins.

Also, please tell us about your Build Order, Social Policies, Tech Order, and what type of wonders you went after. I know a lot of this stuff seems pretty mundane to the experienced player, but the details are incredibly useful to people trying to learn.

Future Games in the Series
I want users to submit saves from turn 0. Preferably the person submitting the game has played enough turns to know the map is either difficult, fun, or unique in some enjoyable way. Write a short description as to why it is special and email the save to immortalchallengelineup@gmail.com

Important
If you submit a game for the challenge, you must have the DLC map packs disabled. Not everybody has them and they are honestly kind of useless. Having them disabled will allow more participants.



Please use the spoiler tag if you post a picture, make a comment about which civs are in the game, or about wonders, or locations of ancient ruins, etc.
 

Attachments

  • ICL Aztec.Civ5Save
    893.6 KB · Views: 272
Just like Casamir's nose, the opponents in this match are hand picked. However, I did not scout the map. I have no idea where they spawned. Good luck!
 
AI opponents
Spoiler :
Zulu, Poland, Huns, Morocco, Celts, Maya, England


I chose these opponents because
Spoiler :
This is the exact same mix I drew in another Aztec game. On the right side of the map, Shaka killed Morocco while Attila took out Poland. Then Shaka backstabbed Attila and killed him. This left him with the entire right side of the map to himself. So I started very carefully fighting Shaka trying not to lose any units. I ended up dropping the game when I finally lost a unit.

But this map, wont play out like that one did.
 
Spoiler :
So I'm 57 turns in, this map is cramped as heck, and I have 3 douchebags coveting my land, LOL. I think I'll skip this one. AI caps 10, 11, 13, and 16 tiles from mine.

I have only killed 2 barbs, there is almost no frontier to get culture for kills early game. I did expo the hill SW of LV, 1st time I've ever had it, and it does provide a decent chokepoint against Shaka. But I already know I will get double or triple DOW'd and I have nothing to bribe with. Plus few of the battles will take place in rough terrain. Aren't I supposed to be fierce? ;)
 
Spoiler :
Nigel, you're commonly a Deity player and this is Immortal. You are clearly better and more experience in warlike situations than I. I hope you decide to continue.
As for me, I am OK in this game, but may have to reload and just build units and go after Shaka after setting my expo on that hill by LV. I just can't see living thru 4 city Tradition here.
 
Spoiler :
Nigel Milquetoast ;) - This is Montezuma we are talking about. I'm still fighting on turn 290 but will likely lose to a run away Polish Cultural Victory unless I can start slowing him down.

I'm waiting for Bi-Planes to come on-line since Poland has air power and I don't. I wiped out Shaka, Boudicca and took Marrakech so I am universally hated and in permanent war with England. I'm not sure how many turns I have left before he wins. I had to watch as he laid down a path of 4 citadels all the way to my cap. I even lost my Academy tile. :(
 
@Nige

Spoiler :
I quit for similar reasons. I went full Honor and farmed XP from Boudicca while paying Shaka to join me (read: stand and watch while secretly coveting my lands 5x more than he ever did hers) but she wasn't making any units (not sure WHAT her hammers were going towards?) yet her city was healing too quickly for my units to actually take it, and she hadn't built any wonders to justify taking it into my empire anyway. Shaka meanwhile had an army literally 10x the size, there were no barbs or CS near me, and Casimir had ended up with a score more than everyone else put together. Not fun. I could win, but it would be an unenjoyable slog.
 
Well, I was starting to think my maps were too easy. This one is harder. I'm not going to win, one of the AI has 42 votes and I don't think I can do anything about it...
 
Well, I was starting to think my maps were too easy. This one is harder. I'm not going to win, one of the AI has 42 votes and I don't think I can do anything about it...

Wow! It sounds like I have misery ahead of me. As usual the problem is Shaka. Not only does he build a great army he makes many cities if he can. Once he gets Impis with Ikanda upgrades it is hard to survive unless you are levels of techs ahead.

The other problem at Immortal or worse yet, Deity is that if you do survive the endless wars, your tech and development is behind and you sometimes can't win before other AI's can.
 
Agreed.
Spoiler :
Shaka
needs to be taken out before
Spoiler :
Civil Service
or at the other end of the world and
Spoiler :
made to be your paid attack dog
, or
Spoiler :
dog piled by 3 civs at once
, or he will
Spoiler :
kill you
.
 
Please be careful about spoiling too much. Its only been 1 day.

Spoiler :
I killed Shaka after I bee-lined Great Wall/X-Bow. But perhaps played a little bit in haste. I really ignored the guy down south. I should have taken him on when Shaka died instead of killing Morocco & The Celts.
 
Agreed. Shaka needs to be taken out or before Civil Service or the other end of the world and your paid attack dog, or dog piled by 3 civs at once, or he will kill you.

Spoiler :
One problem in my game is that Shaka is the one making early trade routes with me. I don't want to lose that early money or science. At some point I will have to jump all over him, unless others dog pile him.
 
Turn 115

Spoiler :
Started this with no plan and played fast, too fast... Decided to kill Shaka on sight. Took down his city at lake victoria and continued towards his capital were my comp bows met an evil impi. I got scared, made peace and killed my deer friend Boudicca instead. Then I settled some two more cities and met the fury of the world...

Started liberty but moved to honor. Right side both...

4 self made cities, 2 puppets. 12 unhappiness and att war with 2 AI with a vengeful evil Shaka spamming impis up north is a little to much up-hill... I'm torn if I should try to fix this cluster fruit or start over because I love this map. Yea... I think I start over!


Edit:

Spoiler :
Man oh man, this is a tough one. On my second attemt I got double dowed at turn 22 (!!) I can't recall that I have been dowed that early on immortal before... Both Shaka and Boudica actually showed up with soldiers and managed to steal my settler - rage quit!

Third attemt Shaka managed to weasel out settlers past my jaguars and spam 4 cities before turn 50 and spammed units as crazy as well. There was just no way to kill him before impis showed up - rage quit...

I swear, the game "knows" when you reroll and makes it harder for each time! #&€(/#€(#/€

Ok... just one more try!
 
So, I've played this one, gave it a few restarts, mostly for fun since
Spoiler :
Lake Victoria is super close.


And...I really don't like it. You're surround on all sides by very difficult AIs to deal with and everything I do seems to penalize my relations with them.
Spoiler :
Basically, it always devolves in Shaka, Boudicca and/or Casmir hating me right away.


One time I was declared war on on turn 38. One time two different AIs declared war on me for expanding to much when I had 3 cities and made no promises not to expand. It just...doesn't seem like there's a winning more here.
 
I'm going to give this one more try tomorrow. I think my strategy will work if I am just more careful.

So far the score is

Map 30: Players 0
 
CV on T357. Basic details in the first spoiler, more tomorrow as I need sleep!

Spoiler :
This was difficult as I was at war quite often, mostly with Zulu although Uncle Cas backstabbed me once. England was doing very well and I had to fend off her tourism and overcome over 70,000 culture. She had 3 space ship parts built as well. Tradition (I planned 4 city but had to wait for the 4th til I found GBR. No Honor, No Patronage. Just, Trad, Aesthetics, Rati, Freedom.


I had hoped to win with Aztecs as they are one of my best civs and my best style is CV on Immortal. A difficult map, but nice to get loads of culture from loads of kills.

EDIT: I will attach the save just as I am about to win so others can see what I did.
Spoiler :
I didn't not kill Boudica who was limited to just an OCC for some reason, Shaka killed her and also Morocco. Edinburg was too good a city and too useful to hook up railroads etc so I didn't liberate her. I took Nobamba and was given Umgungundlovu in a peace treaty. After peace one is typically friendly for a couple turns before the denouncement. We traded embassies and OB so I could citadel bomb and take both manufactories from Ulundi enhanced by Freedom policies and soon one from the WC. Anyhow Shaka was rendered almost harnless by now.


OK here's the save just as I am about to win. My enormous cpt is from winning the WF which went very late. IG went early and I didn't have enough production to beat Liz. At that time, she had mega tourism, but it wasn't adequate to win for her.

This pales in comparison to those who won dom T155 as I was just happy to be alive and sound on T155!

View attachment Montezuma_0356 AD-1936.Civ5Save



.. neilkaz ..

Anyhow make that Map 30 Players 1.

Someone again please teach me how to post screen shots. Windows 7 here.
 
T155 Domination

Full write-up to follow...I played so intensely I've aggravated tendons in my arm from holding it in the same position.
 
I've played this one and got a T155 Domination with a classic 4 city Liberty CB/XB.
Spoiler :

It's a perfect map for people to practice it since most capitals are easy to shoot. If you take too much time to attack Shaka you'll be in too much trouble so it's a perfect map for practicing a CB rush too.
Many turns lost to a very annoying Attila being hidden in his peninsula with great wall and me not playing that part well.
There's room for a T130 victory in my opinion with more optimal play (I get really annoyed near the end with worker management and moving the army).


I've recorded without commentaries, if interested I'll upload it, it's around 3hours total.

Spoiler :
 
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