The Rising Sun - Japanese Power Play

The Rising Sun - Japanese Power Play

Vanilla 1.29f, GotM mod, mediterranean resources.
Japan, deity level.
Standard map, overcrowded (11 civs), continents, bigger landmass.
The climate is wet and warm.
Barbs are restless, goody huts provide workers instead of settlers.

This is nothing more than GotM 43, played in the Open Class, that i failed to finish because of the lack of time (for those interested, i submitted a retired game in 30BC). Once again, this GotM has proven to be a fantastic challenge, not only for the difficulty level. The Japanese traits (Religious and Militaristic) suggest a totally war-oriented game, and so it was. Then, the number of competing civs results in an ultra-fast tech race, in which the AS are always at the lead and the human player lags behind, continuously struggling to remain on par (or at least not too far behind).

Those who followed "GotM 41 Reloaded" should not fear: i've not abandoned that game. The 2nd part (Space Race) will be played and logged as scheduled. However, this game is simply too good to be abandoned due to the lack of time, and so i'm finishing it here.

This log won't be too detailed. I won't report everything: just how it progresses, the strategic decisions with the reasons motivating them, and a few key facts. At the moment i'm writing this, i've played till 170AD, so it will be useless to give suggestions at least in the first posts, since the game has already been played so far.

A few stats: the domination limit is 1747 tiles. The landmass is bigger than normal, more tailored for 11 civs instead of 8. This should ensure at least a decent space for the initial expansion. The opponents, as seen in the space race screen, are: Mongols, Persia, China, Korea, Vikings, England, Russia, neoCarthage, Germany and Ottomans. The maps contains the mediterranean resources: goats, lambs, olives, wool (an extra luxury!) and some more that i don't remember now. In general, more money, more shields, and more happiness. Expecially for the computer players

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The Dawn

Here's the start point:





I send the worker on the goat mountain, to have a look on the terrain around. I see immediately a coast to the west, then decide to settle in place. Wines are hooked immediately and so Kyoto can grow safely to size 3 with no mp and no luxury spending.

With initial knowledge of Ceremonial Burial and the Wheel, research is set to Mysticism at minimum, although i didn't expect to finish it first (and so it was).

The worker starts irrigating the floodplain, then moves NE to mine the bonus grassland. Meanwhile, 2 warriors are produced, one going south and the other north. After Kyoto reaching rank 2, more land is visible and a coast is spotted east. So the 2nd warrior is sent N instead of E.

The 1st warrior discovers immediately an helluva good land south. Two wheat floodplains, a desert goat and a mountain with gold! The 2nd city will have to hook up at least the FP and the goat and it will be a perfect worker/money factory, while the capital will focus to produce units and settlers. Later, it moves to a barb hut on a nearby and finds it deserted. Then it moves south further.

The southern warrior meets the Mongols in 3000BC. At the same time, the northern warrior spots the border of Persia, but they're apparently oversea and too distant for meeting. Alas, Mongolia already knows Ceremonial Burial. We trade immediately: Warrior Code for the Wheel + 60 quids. They would have probably researched it anyway (or popped from a hut).

Meanwhile, Kyoto has built barracks, then trained another warrior, then is about to pop out the 1st settler. A new city is about to be founded, 3 tiles SW of Kyoto. The worker has roaded the bonus grassland and built a road for the 2nd city.

Here's a shot of the discovered land in 3000BC:



And here's a closeup of the starting area. Some mediterranean resources are visible. The desert goat gives 2/2/1 when roaded, so no further working is necessary. Same for the mountain goat, but mining would raise the shield production to 3. The lamb tile will be a perfect 2/2/2 tile once roaded and mined. Lambs provide a +2 food bonus. Goats give +2 food and +1 shields. It's easy to see that the starting position is quite good. But this isn't necessary a good thing.



As usual, comments are always welcome. Spam is

 

I like these reloaded Gotms. In my Japan game, I only expanded to 4 more cities and got very far behind in tech, then gave up. Hopefully you'll do better. Good luck!

 

what are goats? and i always look forward to your stories
i havent played this gotm so this will be new to me. good luck tricky

 

Hi fellow supporters!

Own: Uh, i'm sorry for your loss - this game wasn't exactly an easy one... keeping up with the tech race has been (and will be) quite a challenge... btw, i've played till 170AD (well inside Middle Ages!) and i'm doing well for now. Uh, i hope not to do too well, or i'll bang my head on the wall for the result that i could have achieved.

Coolio: A goat (in italian: capra) is a mountain beast, now domesticated. It's a small-size rhuminant, half the size of a sheep and usually with horns. Goats provide milk and wool (and meat, of course).

Now let's go with chapter 2:

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Second city, second contact

In 2900BC, Osaka is founded. The worker irrigates the 1st wheat FP, then roads it. The city is from the start a 6-turn worker factory, with a net small increase in population, and so it is set to produce workers from the very start. During the game, almost all the workers will be trained in Osaka.



Kyoto trains another warrior, then is set to build a temple, as a prebuild for a granary when i obtain Pottery (Mongolia already knows this tech). The exploration continues. A barb village to the north seriously threatens the exploring warrior, that survives 1 fight, get promoted veteran, then conveniently avoids the village to further explore north.

In 2710BC, the northern warrior spots two Korean units. Contact is established. Korea lacks Ceremonial Burial and owns Bronze Working, but an even deal is out of question. So i buy Pottery from Mongolia for a lump sum and some gpt, then i buy Bronze Working from Korea for Pottery and Ceremonial Burial. At the same time, the warrior moves into a hut and a worker is popped! A lucky strike indeed.

More of the Persian border has been discovered, but a contact is still impossible.



Meanwhile, my southern explorer (warrior!) has crossed the mongolian border headed south. Since only 1 tile was to be crossed, it was ok. Mongolia isn't a "solid" nation yet, big chunks of land lay unclaimed between the cities, and so crossing is possible without angering the mongols too much. I'm trying to figure out the Mongolian territory and find, if possible, further contacts.



Back to the north. The extra workers try to move south to reach the core, but a barb galley shows up next turn, and another one joins the 1st the turn after. If those galleys pop horsemen, my worker and my warrior could be toast, so i delay the worker trip and the exploration for a few turns, waiting to see what happens. I don't see horsemen, but the Korean team moves to the village and destroys it, so i can re-explore again.

Osaka produces 3 workers, then starts a settler. Meanwhile Kyoto switches to granary. This move will slow the expansion in the short term, but i should be repaid with interests later. In the following turns, the northern warriors explore north, but still no sign of the Korean borders. The warrior south angers the mongols a little bit, but manages to work its way east. After the granary, Kyoto trains 1 more warrior and then a settler. Two more cities are about to be founded.

 

Handicap run

In 2150BC, research on Mysticism is completed. Needless to say that everyone (i'm aware of) already know this tech. Research is set to Polytheism at minimum.

In 2110BC, the Korean borders are finally spotted. There's a big chunk of land between our two empires. The expansion room for Japan is bigger than expected.



In 2030BC, Osaka completes a settler and is producing workers again. Next turn, the city of Tokyo is founded 2 tiles S of Osaka. I'm expanding south at the moment because of the aggressive posture of the Mongols: they seem willing to expand north, so it's better to claim a few more territory while it's still possible. In this shot, two mongol units, a settler and a scout, are visible. Peons are working hard to improve the core tiles, and so Kyoto and Osaka are already well connected and productive.



In the very same turn, the southern explorer has reached the borders of China and contact has been established. Alas, no trade is possible: the Chinese already know all the Japanese technologies, plus some more. Keeping up in the tech race will be hard. All the 3 civs i'm aware of already know Alphabet, Iron Working, Masonry and Horseback Riding. Korea and Mongolia know Writing too, since they're able to sell contacts with Persia and the Ottomans (that i obviously don't buy: it's certain that they have already traded each other all the possible techs).



On the expansion issue, i'm way smaller than my future opponents. I own 3 cities. Mongolia has 6 cities, while Korea and China have 8 of them both. And my military is quite smaller than any of them, thanks also to the initial troop bonus they are given. Only 6 warriors, 4 guarding the core and 2 exploring.

In a few words, i'm way outnumbered, quite out-REXed and hopelessly backwards. The perfect ingredients for an interesting game

 

Cool. I like to start reading and post in these things early. I just finished "Now THIS is a bad start" and saw that you had started a new thread. I'm looking forward for more.

 

Hi Lord Iggy, thanx for the appreciation and welcome around!

You'll see more of this story. Actually, expect quite fast updates at the beginning. I've already played part of it, and what i'm doing now is to briefly resume the detailed log i kept (in hope of submitting it) and take a few significant screenshot. Obviously, when i reach the turn i've played so far, the updates will be slower.

Next update coming in a few minutes. Stay tuned folks!

 

A bold plan succeeds

In 1990BC, Tokyo, the 3rd city, has been founded in ICS with Osaka. In this case strategy is what matters. Coming from Osaka, the city is just after a river. Placing it 1 tile further away would have prevented reinforcement to reach the city in 1 turn. And, placed there, Tokyo can work as an effective link for another city placed further toward Mongol territory.

After founding it, Kyoto is 3 turns away from completing a settler. A bold plan comes into my mind: the Mongols seems ignoring that source of horses near their border, at least for now. An audience with Temujin reveals that, at the moment, Mongolia doesn't have an horse tile connected, and without horses, Mongolia is a wimp. It should be possible to negate that source of horses by founding the 4th city just after the southern river and the 5th 1 tile away from those horses. Such a move would hamper my growth, but if it's successful Mongolia would be quite easier to overcome:



Obviously, this plan could be borked next turn if that damned settler decides to build a city somewhere around. But it's worth a try. In the following turns the settler from Kyoto moves to site 4 and manages to found a city exactly in the planned spot, while the worker team conveniently roads the goat mountain and the river plain with lambs.

The 4th city, Edo, is founded in 1790BC and set to build a temple (a great move, as it will be seen later, but let's not anticipate things). In the following turn, the northern explorer, after having angered a little the Koreans with some reckless walks in their territory, spots some brown borders. At the same time, a Persian city reaches rank 2 and the borders expand oversea. There's exactly 1 tile in which contact could be made and i send a warrior to do the job.

In 1725BC, both the Ottomans and the Persians are met. As the Chinese, they already know all my techs, plus some more. Six civs on the main continent, and probably they're all, since no one has other contacts to send. The other 5 should be all oversea then.



I buy Iron Working from the Ottomans for all my treasure and 2gpt. Iron is visible, right next to the city of Edo, in a tile disputed with the Mongols: they have just built a city right outside my core area, in a position far away from their core. That city will bork my plan for the construction of a perfect ring, but it will be easily capturable later, and the temple already under construction in Edo should ensure cultural supremacy over it.



Thanks to the granary, Kyoto quickly grows up in population and in a few turns a settler is ready to hook up the horse tile near the mongolian border. In 1550BC, the city of Satsuma is built and the horse tile is claimed. How can the mongols be so dumb? Wait, it's an AS... ah, it's ok then

Since Satsuma is exposed to cultural pressure, a few troops are garrisoned there and the city is set to build a temple immediately. Once size 2 will be reached, and 10 shield will be produced, the temple will be poprushed.

A success has been achieved, but the situation isn't exactly good. Persia and Korea know Map Making, since they're able to sell maps. I still have to master Alphabet... anyway, i have some quids in my coffer and my world map still to sell. Better do it now then. A trade round is called. I buy from Korea Alphabet and their territory map for my world map + 80 quids. Then i but the Persian territory map for my world map + 10 quids. A large chunk of my home continent is now known, and an important tech has been learned.

 

A disaster is avoided


In 1525BC, a pop-up alerts me that Russia has built the Great Lighthouse. With differential movement of boats, an early contact with other civs is quite probable. This could turn into a bless for me or into a curse. It depends who's the first to meet the newcomers... hope to be lucky!

After settling the southern part, it's time to build a city ring around the capital. Another settler is produced in Kyoto. In 1475BC, the city of Kagoshima is founded, north of the capital. The tiles are very productive: river, bonus grassland, a cattle tile and a golden mountain. The city cannot send reinforcements to Kyoto (due to a river), but it's possible to set up a bidirectional supply line once another city is founded (site 7) and a few tiles are roaded. The shot shows everything. The two "R" mark the tiles that need to be roaded.



In the same turn, i buy Masonry from China for 90 quids. With a net income of 20 gpt, it's way cheaper to buy a backward tech rather than researching it!

The 7th city, Nara, is founded on the planned spot in 1375BC. A 2nd source of horses is secured, and a few bonus grasslands can be claimed. The city starts building barracks (projecting to spew out a few units), but it will be soon engaged in building a temple. Those bonus grasslands are simply too good to be lost, not counting that Persia could send a boat on my mainland and disembark a settler before i have a chance to secure those tiles.



Meanwhile, peons continue to road and improve tiles. New workers are constantly built, and a few warriors are trained, mainly with the purpose of acting as MP and to be upgraded to swordsmen later. Then, in 1350BC, bad news come. China has made contact with all the 5 civs oversea! Korea and Persia know all of them too, while the Ottomans, and the Mongolia know only 3 of them. Moreover, China and Persia have mastered Polytheism. It happened exactly what i was hoping to avoid. How to recover now?

I could buy Polytheism from China, despite being 14 turns to complete it myself. The tech is expensive, and with a little haggling i obtain the price of 93 quids (all my treasure) + 11 gpt. I decide to buy the tech, and research is set to Monarchy at minimum. Then, it's time for a delicate trade round with everyone.

Let's start with Korea. They have contact with everyone, but lack Polytheism. I sell them Polytheism for: contact with the Vikings + territory map + 26 quids.

Vikings: I sell Polytheism + world map for: territory map + Writing + contact with the Germans.

Germany: Polytheism, contact w. Mongols and Ottomans, world map and 20 quids for: Map Making + contact with Russia

Ottomans: Map Making, Polytheism, contact w. Vikings and world map for: Code of Laws, Horseback Riding, contact with Carthage and territory map.

Mongolia: Map Making and world map for: contact with England, Philosophy and world map.

Ottomans again: traded world maps at even.

Germany again: i sell world map for territory map + 26 quids.

Vikings again: i sell contact with Mongolia + world map for their world map.

At the end, i've spend 300 quids for: Polytheism, Map Making, Code of Laws, Horseback Riding, Philosophy, contact with everyone and a nearly complete world map. My income is still 8 gpt. I'm technologically on par with everyone except for 3 civs that own Literature, something i don't really need. It could have been a disaster for me, but it turned out to be a very productive trade round.

Only a downside: upgrading the warriors will be problematic. It will be necessary to train some more archers and a few spears then.

Here's a shot of the world map i own now, along with the details of my military.



Needless to say, i'm dead last in almost all the demographic stats and my army is weak compared to everyone else Situation normal then: i'm still alive.

 

lol i know what a goat IS but ive never seen it in the game... is it like the same as a cow?
keep expanding north you have room for 5 citys up there if you squeez em in!
you can win this tr1cky.

 

I think his game is far ahead of his story right now, so tips won't do much good.

Following the story.

 

Coolio: uh, ok. Well, lots of people here are foreigners (me included!) and so they cannot know every english word... i thought that you didn't know what a goat is. The 1st time i saw the word, i had to go to dictionary.com to figure out what they are exactly! Anyway, a goat provide a +2 food and +1 production bonus.

TheBB: you're right. I've played the game well into Middle Ages. So, if someone comes up with a plan better than mine, it's too late to follow it

Thanx for following the story guys - next update is coming now!

 

The expansion is hampered

In 1275BC, a temple is poprushed in Satsuma. With Karakorum (the mongol capital) reaching rank 3, there are 5 tiles under foreign control. It's not that problem, since the troops i'm amassing there will be used for the upcoming invasion of Mongolia, but i don't want to be caught pants down with a flip once i move the troops into enemy territory.

Productive cities are building archers and spearmen now. There is already a sheer number of warriors, and i don't have enough money to upgrade all of them into swordsmen, so lesser units need to be employed. The iron tile is connected: it's pointless to build more warriors only to have them sit idle, unable to upgrade for lack of money. Another trade round is made, and i end up having a near-complete map of the world, with almost no final spending.

With Korea slowly expanding southward, and Persia already out of space in its mainland, it's time to claim the northern territory before something else does. In 1150BC, the city of Nagoya is founded, north of Nara, on coast and in a useful position for the reinforcement line.

Meanwhile, warriors start to be (slowly) upgraded, and troops are amassing for the upcoming fight. A team of 4 archers, 1 spear and 1 swordsman is parked in Kyoto, ready to capture Darhan. More units are gathering in Satsuma: they will capture the city of Kazan and possibly the mongol capital, Karakorum. Workers are sent south to road the necessary tiles: i don't want my captured cities to be unconnected to my core, or resistance will be much harder to quell.

Things seem to go bright... but they are not. First, a few civilizations are already in the Middle Ages! And then, Korea and Persia have done exactly what i was fearing: they built 1 city each in what was my next expansion space.

That crappy, useless Korean settlement prevents me to build a city on the coastal jungle and force some of my troops to stay garrisoned in Kagoshima. After the spearman is trained, the city is set to build a temple: i don't want to worsen the problem!



But the worst part is surely here. I didn't expect to settle the desert goat, but i was hoping to place 2 cities (or even one) north and west of Nara. Well, it's impossible. Persia has built a city on the iron hill, in a position that seems chosen exactly to hamper my expansion. Not only i can't build a city around the northwest coast, but my plan to found a coastal city on the small forest is also to be discarded, since cultural pressure from Persia would force me to keep some 10 units garrisoned in the city:



In total, 3 possible cities won't be founded Plans to build settlers are scrapped, and the cities that were building them switch to military production. There's still a city that i can found, 3 tiles SW of Kagoshima, but the territory is already secured by the cultural expansion of Kyoto, so there's no need to hurry: it's better to launch an offensive on Mongolia as quickly as possible. They're already in the Middle Ages and could master Feudalism, with the risk of facing in battle mongolian pukemen and MDI, instead of swords and spears.

And so, i hit 1000BC with a QSC far from being exceptional: only 8 cities built, where someone was able to found 15 of them, 32 pop units and a Firaxis score of 312 points. But my territory is well-improved, all the cities are connected in a reinforcement line and my economy is good. Once dispatched Darhan, i could build 3 more cities around there.

Here's a shot of my territory in 1000BC. From the minimap, it can be seen where the contact between the 2 landmasses has taken place: the southern ocean between China and Russia / Germany is exposed, and probably a Russian galley (they own the Lighthouse!) dared to cross the sea and reach the shorelines of China. Well, i could do nothing to avoid it, and i have to be glad for having turned a possible contact disaster into a very advantageous trade round.

 

And another tale unfolds - glad you're still at it. I enjoy the GOTM's, but don't post because it takes me so damn long to finish one and frankly, some of my games just suck (I am a emperor level player).

Enjoying the game - keep on posting.

V

 

Hi V! It's an honour to have here such a great storyteller! I've just seen you updated again - gonna read it after this post.

I'm taking the occasion to clear things about the 2 logs. Now i'm gonna post here until i reach the present turn (170AD). Then, this log will sleep a few and i'll be busy with GotM 41 Reloaded and with the GotM 44. Once finished GotM 44 (supposing i have time!) i'll go on with this story again.

And, V, game 44 is Babylon on Warlord level. Emperor is not that bad, if you're used to that difficulty level you should have no problem in completing game 44 in relatively few time, why don't you give it a try?

Now, on with the last "Pax Romana" chapter, then another update will follow. Seeya dudez!

 

First Mongol War

In 975BC, a settler is produced in Kyoto. It will found a city 3 tiles SW of Kagoshima, and that will be the last event of the initial expansion phase. All the following expansion will be enacted by military means, with the founding of a few cities in some intermediate, strategic positions.

In 950BC, Osaka finishes a worker. There are currently 12 of them, one at start, one popped from a hut and 10 trained in Osaka. The city starts a temple. Some basic culture is needed to lessen the flip risk. Mongolia is about the same culture as mine and if i manage to gain a tiny edge it would be of much help.

In 925BC, a sufficient number of warriors have been trained into swordsmen. The offensive begins. The Mongols are driven furious, then war is declared. A stack of 3 workers and some brutes move to the floodplain tile SE of Darhan.



In 900BC, the 3 worker road the FP in order to connect the city of Darhan with our territory. Then Darhan is taken over. One archer is lost and 2 are redlined. A mongol slave has been captured. The remaining warrior fortified on mountain isn't a threat. At the same time, troops from Satsuma cross the border south and move 1 tile east of Kazan.

In the interturn, the mongol skirmish is quite weak: only 1 regular swordsman attacks: an archer weakens it at 2/3 then a veteran spearman defends successfully (although redlined), and get promoted elite.

In 875BC, Kazan is owned, but casualties are heavy and my attack is almost repealed. Four spearmen, 1 swordsman, 1 archer and 1 warrior were defending the city, and i was wondering where all those defender came from, since a pre-war investigation showed light defenses. The answer comes clear after i capture the city: 1 worker and 4 settlers were inside, for a grand total of 9 mongolian slaves captured!



In 850BC, the 9th japanese city, Izumo, is founded as planned. The city is set to build a temple: with cultural expansion i could hook up 2 very productive whale tiles. In the same turn, another map trade round is called, in which i get more of the world discovered and i also achieve a net gain of more than 80 quids! Meanwhile, more warriors are been upgraded, and a few swordsmen have been trained from scratch in Kyoto.



In the following turns, i gather my forces outside Kazan for the next strike at Karakorum, the mongol capital. Some pesters show up, and by killing one of them i generate Tojo, the 1st leader of the game!



It came exactly when it was more needed. An army is of little help now, but rushing the Forbidden Palace in 1 turn would be a great speedup in the game. Where to build the FP? I have already the answer: Karakorum. Not the best choice now, but its advantage will be clear later. Once assimilated Mongolia, it will be my perfect 2nd core for the attack on China, while the 1st core (Kyoto) will grant quick reinforcements to the Korean front.

 

the FIRST mongol war? does that mean there will be a second one? dont make peace kill them!

 

Peacemaking is good, he can get all their techs then finish them off, unless he's looking towards diplo.

 

tricky looking towards diplomacy? ive never heard such a thing!

 

Hi dudez! Uh, taking over all Mongolia in a shot is a bad idea. First, i haven't the necessary troops. Then, i need to run after the AS in techs. By signing peace i can strike a very advantageous deal, as we are going to see now.

And no, i'm not going for diplomatic victory. We the Japanese won't beg or bribe for what is rightfully ours. We'll come and conquer all of the known world

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War ends, Middle Ages begin

A mongol without a horse is nothing. At least it's true in this game. Without their dreaded mounted units, the mongols are little more than whimps. Their skirmish is weak and fails to do some substantial damage to my troops. In 730AD, a stack of japanese forces is outside Karakorum. In the very same turn, an important trade deal is signed with the Ottomans: Currency and dyes for wines, horses and 9 gpt. With an income of 35 gpt, i can afford the price.

In 710BC, Karakorum falls. Mongolia is on its knees and must swallow an hard peace deal. They shell out the city of Erdenet, the knowledge of Republic, a world map and 20 quids. The leader in Kazan moves to Karakorum and rushes the Forbidden Palace. Karakorum will be very productive from the start. A settler is already on the way to fill the gap and build a city in the spot.



Republic is quite valuable for the AS, and so i can buy my way into Middle Ages and obtain Monarchy as well. First, i sell Republic to the Germans for Monarchy and a world map. Then a visit on Carthage: Republic for Construction, Literature, a world map and 40 quids. Research is set to Engineering at minimum (10.0.0) with a specialist. The income is 34 gpt.

Before ending the turn, i hold a revolution. This time there's no need to worry about a bad roll, thanks to the religious trait. And so i spend my 1st turn in the Middle Ages under a powerful Anarchy.

Obviously, troubles are only at the beginning. Lots of people already know Feudalism. With the Knowledge of Monotheism, Persia is the tech leader of the world. With a tech pace this fast, it won't be long before i have to face enemy muskets. The bright side it's that i'm no more dead last in the demographic screen. I'm 6th in population and 10th in land area. My army is strong compaired with Mongolia and Russia, and average against all the other civs.