TSG67
Initial thoughts:
It's a mystery map so we need to explore to work out what sort of map we're playing on.
On the other hand we know there are no ruins (!) so scouts are less important (normally I'd build a couple and maybe more depending on the map/size).
We are Morocco so:
- focus on techs for additional trade routes.
- ideally hang around desert for the Kasbah and the combat bonus for Berber Cavs if/when we get them.
- consider Petra since i) we will probably go for that desert and ii) we want more trade routes!
The start looks really ugly: no food bonuses, little production, and we are not in the desert (although it's close to the south) but in fact almost in the tundra (so we're probably at the top of the map).
However there is a river and 4 calendar-based luxuries - moving the warrior to hill on the coast will reveal whether there's anything in the sea or to the north.
Otherwise settling in place looks best even though we might struggle for early food and production (don't want to gamble on exploring to get a better location).
So the plan is:
- settle-in-place unless coast looks good.
- start with a Monument for culture (rarely do this in BNW) as not sure whether we'll be going Tradition or Liberty until we've looked round a bit.
- research Pottery which moves us towards Calendar and means we have the option of Shrine or Granary.
- see whether there are any nearby CS or other civs so we can steal a worker (building one in this location is going to very slow, and don't want to have to depend Liberty tree for free one).
Initial capital build order:
- Monument
- Scout
- Shrine
- Granary
- Archer
- Archer
- Settler
- Caravan
Tech order:
- Pottery
- Animal Husbandry
- Archery
- Calendar
- Wheel
- Mathematics
- Currency
- Sailing
- Trapping
- Writing
- Masonry
- Philosophy
- to Civil Service
- to Education / Chivalry
- to Printing Press
- to Flight
- to Telecommunications
SP:
- Liberty
- Republic
- Collective Rule
- Citizenship
- Representation
- Meritocracy
- Patronage
- Consulates
- Philanthropy
- Piety
- Mandate of Heaven
- Scholastic-ism
- all Rationalism
- Freedom
Wonders:
- Petra
- Oracle
- National College
- National Epic
- Grand Mosque of Djenne
- Hagia Sofia
- East India Company
- Oxford
- Leaning Tower
- Porcelain Tower
- Eiffel Tower
5/3800BC
Moved warrior to the coastal hill but nothing there so settled-in-place and started building the Monument.
Warrior moves down the coast, the plan is to do a circuit around the desert area (looks fairly flat) to see where the Scout should aim for.
We meet Brazil almost immediately - they must be very close, not good as we want that desert!
There is a decent city spot to the south-east with Wheat, Ivory, Deer and more Incense.
Find Cape Town to the east.
Build a Scout to explore further south and east.
18/3280
Find Riga to the south, but we are first to meet them, how come Brazil missed them?
Warrior completes ring around our start and finds Lake Victoria up in the tundra, there are Furs up there and some Deer, and some barbs!
Decide to build a Shrine after a Scout (might as get a pantheon as we don't have much else going for us!) and then Granary to improve the poor food situation.
Rio is to the south and little east on the other side of the desert - going to be a race to settle in the good-ish spots down there?
Debate Tradition vs Liberty, most BNW games I have gone Tradition unless it's obviously going to be a wide game.
But decide Liberty here as I think we are going to need the free worker and settler since our production is so poor.
22/3120
Next SP: debate whether to get free worker or not, choose Republic to improve production and get free settler next, we will steal a worker from CT.
Wouldn't normally steal one but this is a GOTM and I'm sure most other players will

Barbs are starting to show up, warrior is heading home for defence and worker-stealing.
34/2640
Right on cue a worker appears in Cape Town just as our warrior wanders past and we declare and nick it.
Building an archer for barb defence.
Thinking that if we can get a city in one of the half-decent desert spots we can have a shot at Petra
On King this should be a doddle but our start was so poor, there are a lot of barbs, and Brazil are very close, so it might be touch-and-go.
Research Wheel next on bee-line to Currency.
Pantheon: choose God of Festivals as we have 3 incense at the capital and more in the desert, means we can continue to get faith/culture without having to construct specific buildings for now.
Desert Folklore another option but still worried that Brazil will nick the desert spots which would mean it's useless, plus we get the bonuses now rather than later.
Next SP in 2 turns: Collective Rule for free settler.
Realise we now have a worker but need Calendar, whoops! Switch research.
Later meet Persia, from the east?
41/2360
Found Rabat on the desert/river/hill, Wheat, Ivory, more Incense, Deer and later on 2 x Stone.
Warrior escorted our stolen worker to the capital and then linked up with the settler.
Walked straight into a barb with another in a camp right next to the spot we were aiming for, had to insta-heal the warrior after it was attacked to protect the settler, very lucky!
There are a LOT of barbs around! Build another archer.
Start Monument in Rabat.
Later meet Assyria, from the south-east maybe?
50/2000
Meet the Mayans to the east of Brazil, they are the first civ that's had any cash so we can flog them Embassies!
Buy a second worker to start improving tiles at Rabat, will get a third with the next SP in a few turns.
Build Granary in Rabat for extra food and bonuses for the wheat and deer.
60/1600
Complete Mathematics to enter the Classical era, Currency next.
Capital is building our first caravan which will go to Riga for a quest.
Workers are improving the Incense at the capital so we can sell for GPT, or we would but the stupid AI are all negative cash grrr!
A barb camp appears near Cape Town but they never ask us to kill it - this last for the next 1000 years!
Build another archer and then a settler for our third city.
Later Brazil gets Great Library, Maya build Stonehenge.
70/1200
Clear a camp right next to Brazil to ally Brussels and Riga - lazy Brazil!
SP: Representation mainly for cheaper SPs (GA is a bit of a waste at this point sadly).
Actually got too many workers now so one is fog-busting our trade-route to Riga!
Other two are pre-building a road between our 2 cities, i.e. building 1/2 turns of road so we don't spend road maintenance until we need to.
Later found Fes in a pretty ropey spot up in the tundra, on the coast for the furs and some deer, would have liked to get Lake Victoria but wouldn't be on the coast, and we want sea trade-routes!
78/925
Building markets in first 2 cities.
Plan is to complete Liberty and use the GE for Petra at Rabat, we could start it now but better to wait for GE rather than hard-building and getting beaten to it, at least we could use the GE for something else.
Research Sailing for the extra route, Trapping for Ivory/Deer, then Writing to get science going.
Assyria declares on the Maya - cool.
85/800
Big couple of turns for Morocco:
We found Confucianism:
- founder: Papal Primacy, we want lots of nice CS allies.
- follower: Monasteries, we have lots of incense.
Two turns later we complete Liberty with Meritocracy which helps our happiness and gold.
Choose a free GE who heads to Rabat on our nice new road, also get friendly with Cape Town for GE quest.
GE builds Petra a couple of turns later - sweet.
94/525
Research Masonry for the Stone and then Philosophy for NC.
Building libraries in first 2 cities, will buy in Fes.
Debating a fourth city on the west coast for more sea trade-routes since struggling to reach other civs with our caravans.
Ally Cape Town by continually farming barbs from that camp which is still there and they STILL haven't asked us to remove it.
Eventually get bored and take the camp.
Sell incense for very generous terms, AI still have little or no cash.
Building water mills.
Stats: +27BPT +36GPT +20CPT +6FPT
101/350
Start Oracle in Rabat while we wait for libraries to be completed.
Building third caravan, would really like sea routes but can't yet.
Become friends with Brazil.
Research Bronze Working and discover we have 8 iron at Fes - not so crappy spot after all.
Open Patronage.
Buy a Monastery with faith in the capital, will save now for enhanced religion.
111(Nelson)/100BC
Buy library in Fes. Rabat is much better for NC so wait until we complete Oracle in 6 turns.
115/1AD
Find India, exchange embassies, they are way to the south-east.
Bee-lining Civil Service for food bonuses, then Education and Chivalry.
Complete the Oracle in Rabat and choose Consulates.
Start NC, will be completed in 12 turns.
Buy a trireme in Fes to start exploring the west coast.
Sell a few horses and iron for extra GPT.
Brazil comes a-begging for 198G, OK just this once (seems if you give in once you get relationship bonus, but after that you can tell them to shove it).
Start Colosseum in the capital, then will start guilds.
127
Complete NC and start Caravansary in Rabat as we now have 4 land routes from there, have to send 2 to Brazil which is a shame given our UA.
SP: Philanthropy.
Researching Guilds.
Found Casablanca on the west coast: 2 more incence, stone, 2 fishes. Buy a Granary straight away.
137/540AD
Enhance religion:
- 2nd follower: Pagodas, mainly to deny to other civs.
- Enhancer: Itinerant Preachers, we are dominant religion in our area so might as well capitalise.
Discover we are ice-locked on the west coast, bah!
Irritating barb horseman pillages our only furs up in the tundra, now -4 happiness, and we were almost at GA, bah!
Persia helpfully empties a barb camp which our scout walks into to re-ally Brussels.
145/700AD
Start Theology to improve religion, then Education.
Get first GA.
Building National Epic in Rabat.
Building temples.
Buy missionary to convert our cities.
154/880AD
Generate our first great writer, no slots yet so write treatise for cheaper SP.
Choose Mandate of Heaven for cheaper missionaries, monasteries and pagodas - we are now officially a full-on religious civ.
Start Grand Mosque of Djenne in capital.
War-monger Assyria now DoWs India.
Start Hagia Sofia in Rabat as we don't have much else to build and don't really need more military at the moment, Brazil is a nice buffer from the other civs.
186/1080AD
Generate our first great work.
Buy pagoda in Rabat.
Starting universities once completed wonders.
Persia tries it on with OUR CS allies, bribe them back.
The Mayans get mashed by Assyria.
Buying missionaries to convert Brazil who don't have a religion.
Later get our first RA with Brazil.
177/1170AD
4/5 trade routes but waiting to see is we can get a sea trade-route, there are still 2 unknown civs to meet.
SP: decide Scholastic-ism for extra science. Debate Commerce but decide its crap.
Have to give some G to Persia to get RA with them.
Building East India Company in our trade-hub Rabat.
Meet Austrian scout, they are further to the east past India.
Assyria first into Renaissance, send spy to their capital but 45T to steal so try next largest city, that's almost as bad so later send to a CS.
Realise should be bee-lining to Printing Press.
+101B +51G +66C +33F
186/1260AD
Realise Colossus has still not been built, completely forgot about it as we were land-locked for so long, Persia constructs it anyway next turn he he.
Start Oxford in Rabat, will use free tech for PP.
197/1370AD
Build caravel in Fes and buy another later to find last 2 civs - we want to be WC host!
Pagodas all round, prioritise Monasteries where we have incense.
Converted Brazil and all nearby CS, our religion has more than twice the next largest.
Open Rationalism, aiming to complete this tree.
Building workshops and amphitheatres.
+143B +55G +85C +43F
203/1430AD
India builds Hanging Gardens, forgot about that one too! Really should have tried for that given our food situation.
Caravel meets Poland who straddles the edge of the map, looks like we are actually on the same continent but scout not reached there yet.
We host the WC, propose World Fair as that seems safest.
212/1510AD
Upgrading our units (half a dozen CB, couple of swords, couple of pikes).
Building Leaning Tower in Rabat.
Rabat should be our capital - is it possible to move it?
Spamming missionaries.
222/1560AD
Finish LT and choose a Great Musician for multiple CS quests, wouldn't normally choose that GP!
Generate a GE and use it for Porcelain Tower in Rabat.
233/1615AD
Building cultural buildings.
Use 2 great artists for extended GA.
Persia buys 2 of our allies before the vote next turn, sneaky, bribe one back.
World Fair passes.
Propose Standing Army Tax to annoy Assyria.
257/1735
Almost forgot about the World Fair that we proposed, switch production in capital and Rabat, get bronze and silver for free SP and +500 to next GA.
Basically a next-turn game now, generating GPs and missionaries, could go on the offensive but can't be bothered to be honest, certain we will win this one even if its not too quick.
Have 6 CS allies, combination of SPs means we not really having to try to retain them now.
Assyria takes India's capital.
+297B +115G +144C +55F
263/1765AD
Finish Rationalism so can now buy GS with faith.
More upgrades as we have more G than we can use.
Research Radio, we are first into the Modern era.
Later choose Freedom ideology:
- Avant Garde, extra GS.
- Covert Action, we have 3 spies rigging elections.
Find an empty barb camp near Fes! Where'd they go?
~270/~1800AD
Army Tax passes, but so does Arts Funding, bah! Should have split our votes to prevent that.
Propose World Games. Perhaps should have forced through ones for science rather than worrying about annoying the other civs.
Choose Universal Suffrage to extend GA that just started.
Research Flight, realise we are 3 techs from oil he he.
Bribe Persia with a bit of G, 10GPT and a few iron & horses to DoW Assyria.
Assyria asks for DoF next turn ha ha.
280/1820
Finally get some modern strategic resources from one of our TEN CS allies.
Next turn get Iron from Kyzyl - Iron!
Later discover we have 7 oil in the desert near 4th city.
Automated scout clears a barb camp!
Two of our friends come begging for 750G - er F.O.
+402B +131G +177C +65F
296/1852AD
Build Eiffel Tower mainly to deny to Brazil who is obviously going cultural, and we have two other towers, should have gone CNN or whatever it's called.
Building factories now CS give us coal and then air force in case Brazil or Assyria get fruity.
Coastal cities build a couple of frigates to protect sea trade routes to Austria and Poland.
Buy Research Labs in main science cities.
Brazil adopts Freedom, nice.
Should have switched cities to research focus to speed up remaining techs.
Basically spamming GS to get to Information era.
At some point we forced through World Religion which passed, never managed that before.
344/1924AD
Search Telecommunications to enter Information era.
We have 32 delegates for UN vote.
Everyone starts fighting after choosing ideologies, except us.
Propose World Order to annoy everyone else, Austria in revolution, others are in civil resistance, he he.
Brazil gets first influential civ a couple of turns later.
357/1937AD
Spend all remaining cash to ensure our CS allies stay allied and bribe a few more to make sure.
Win UN vote by a country mile.
Score: 1179 (1660).
Rank: Marcus Aurelius.
Conclusions:
Not a bad time & score (having seen results from other players) on first BNW GOTM so I'm fairly happy with that.
As it was this was a relatively relaxing game as I've been playing on Immortal+ since buying BNW, which is generally a little more intense!
Almost certainly could have done a lot better if I'd gone on the offensive or really pushed science generation.
Odd that went Liberty but only founded 4 cities! However I think that was right approach given the rotten start.
By about 2000BC Rabat was already a much more powerful city than the capital and turned into a powerhouse later in the game - pity you can't move your capital (?)
Lessons Learnt:
- Only signed 3 RAs I think because by that point we were first in tech and other civs wanted crazy deals to sign them which I declined, but in retrospect that was dumb.
- Also didn't switch GP and city focus from production/culture/food to science early enough, should have had a load of GS ready to bulb through to information era but has to slog it slowly with just a couple.
- No point having Flight if you ain't got any oil.
- When you successfully propose World Fair it's probably a good idea to then contribute to it.
- Should have been more aggressive when choosing proposals rather than pandering to other (and weaker) civs.
- Don't forget about available wonders!
- Don't rely on CS giving you strategic resources if the rest of the world is behind you in tech.