WOTM 36 Final Spoiler

[neilmeister]

Spaceship loss 1805.

This was really tough!

I killed Monty very early, but had difficulties with Nappy & Shaka. I spent a large part of the game at war with at least 1 of them. Once I got to Cavalry, Shaka was dead. I left Napoleon as he had a huge number of troops, and we were by then best buds (religion & civics). I decided to aim for Diplo - big mistake - I could have won domination somewhere around the 1600-1700 mark, as all it took was completely killing off Monty Shaka & Nappy, and grabbing just a few tiles from the other island.

MM and his block proceeded to win the UN secretary general, and vote me out of all of my civics.

Anyway, MM built the spaceship while I was trying to stop him. I took his cap, but that doesn't seem to matter in Warlords.

I enjoyed the game, but I think it was just too hard.

While the greats might have enjoyed the challenge more, I think this game might have turned a few more people off Warlords forever.

 

[kcd_swede]

Spaceship loss 1805.


I enjoyed the game, but I think it was just too hard.

While the greats might have enjoyed the challenge more, I think this game might have turned a few more people off Warlords forever.

It might, but I would guess that more folks lose interest in a game they never lose, than lose interest in a game that they lose but think they could have won. But not everyone thinks the way I do (thank goodness ). I'm thinking this could have been one of those games I really get proud of for having eeked out a win against tough odds. Instead, its one of those games that make me proud of the times I do manage to win -- its a real accomplishment, sometimes.

BTW, I agree, it was too hard.

 

[neilmeister]

Yeah, I agree. I would have felt pretty good winning this one.

IMO, the problem was the 'advertised' difficulty. This game was Emperor, but it was harder than some of the Deity games I have played (not all, but some).

In my experience, Emperor is usually the highest difficulty you can win without being a focussed player. Not that I think I am really good just yet, but Emperor is usually a walk in the park, where I can usually win anyway I like. Also, I am reasonably experienced at Quick, so this offered no real surprises.

I do think that we should have high level games that are hard to win. I somehow eeked out a win in the last Warlords Deity game (WOTM 32) and that made me feel great, but that was Deity, not Emperor.

 

[cas]

This played like an immortal game, I think...not deity.

And the best way to play the map was clearly dom once you saw the size of the initial continent and the 3 neighbors. Take over the starting continent from the 3 psychos and a few tiles off the other continent was hard, but not deity hard.

Other VC were harder, but there was an obvious way to win.

cas

 

[Conquistador 63]

HELP!

I see there are only 8 submissions for this WOTM so far. If participation remains so low, I doubt the staff will see much use to continue the WOTM series.

That's an odd place to advertise this help request... But luckily I was able to finish my game and submit it (just) in time. So please keep the WOTMs coming!

From what I had read in the 1st spoiler thread, at first I thought the lack of aggressiveness in my early game (no BC wars) would have cost me. But fortunately that was not the case. My goal was a fast spaceship, as usual.

After some REXing, I declared on Nappy in 500AD. Took all but a crappy city, extorting some techs for peace before 900AD. I went for Shaka next and eliminated him in the 1200's. Nappy was gone somewhere in between.

After that I considered going for Monty but I thought it could be too costly at that point. We were best buddhies (also had bribed him onto Shaka just for mutual military struggle), so I made him a favor - bribed him with Astro to go to war against Mansa. No progresses for them, thanks to AI incompetence in overseas wars, but at least they were busy for most of the game.

On the tech front, some key marks:
- Optics 440AD (overseas contacts late 600'sAD)
- Lib -> Astro 1000AD
- OxU 1175AD
- Assembly Line 1345AD
- Communism 1385AD - those 2 key to workshop economy
- SoL 1375AD
- 3GD 1555AD
- Computers 1575AD

At this point I noticed 2 AI had rocketry before me, I learned Fiber Optics and built Internet to get Rocketry for free That and Fascism were the only 2 techs I got from it

Anyways, launched in 1710AD. From someone who has never been able to win a single Deity XOTM (well except for that fake Deity BOTM28), I beg to disagree that this one was as difficult as Deity and even as Immortal. Or maybe I just got lucky by not getting DOW'ed early?

 

[Deckhand]

Speed affects difficulty level differently by type of victory. Faster makes domination & conquest harder because units become obsolete sooner; and slower makes them easier. I've read that culture is easier at quick speed (so that's what I went for). Spaceship might be easier because it is a tech race.

I noticed several submissions today. Many of us play the games at either the beginning or the end of the period.

 

[Deckhand]

as my 18 month old granddaughter says, I did it!

I showed that the right way to treat those bad boys was with smiles and sweetness. Don't let them drag you down to their level of brutality.

Almost the entire game was completely peaceful. Nappy cancels our defensive pact and declares on Gandhi in 1665. He asks me to join him in 1670.

Spoiler :

and I agonize on this decision that makes NO DIFFERENCE to the game. This is an example of how I play so slowly.

Culture victory in 1675. Stats say I played 7:37, but sure feels longer.

Mansa got Liberalism in 1025. I learned it in 1345.
Met Mansa in 1085 and almost circumnavigated via map trading. Nappy did it in 1205. I didn't build a single ship.

My biggest regret was that France put a city by my copper. The buddhist Stupa and Confucian Academy both use copper to speed production. I put cities near the French cities and lots of cultural pressure. They finally revolt (for first time) in 1630 and I finally have copper. :yawn:

After reading the first spoiler, I wondered if I should have been more warlike. Now I'm very glad that our hood ended up in a single shared religion. I expected to happily switch between them on demand as Cuteness is Spiritual. I did give in to a few demands but in general the boys treated me well.

 

[psparky]

as my 18 month old granddaughter says, I did it!

Now I'm very glad that our hood ended up in a single shared religion.

I can almost hear her saying it, no doubt accompanied by a big grin

I think the shared religion was important. Sadly none of the early religions were founded in my hood, and although we all ended in conf, it was too late to save me.

Nice game, to pacify all those bad boys.