sticks and BRicks will break their bones! {spoilers}

[thestick]

Since you haven't seen me use the word 'we' in the last 500 years, the name of the leader was changed back to 'thestick.' 'Zululand' is now the 'Skeletal Empire.' The password is 'inthemud', in yet another 'stick' pun.

Kjn suicided four Catapults into my stack, but apparently he couldn't get good enough odds, because his forces are nowhere to be found. Building a road first meant that two more Workers could move onto the tile, so it was chopped and roaded on the same turn. Next turn I'll retreat my stack.

A Monastary was whipped in Tibia, so that Missionaries can be built there. An Ikhanda was whipped in Ulna. 70% reduction in maintenance means that the most expensive city in my empire is... Sternum, at 3 GPT.

Ceiliazul kicked off a Golden Age a few turns back, swapping into Judaism. New Scapula managed to steal some 4th ring Cows to the south, and a new filler city in the desert to claim Gold and Incense is being considered.

Because of AT and Kjn's skirmishes, my army is now the second largest in the world.

[thestick]

Things are rather boring in the empire, which is good news. Kjn did not attack my weakened stack, so I pulled it back for healing. Afterwards, I'll plant a new city south of New Scapula to claim Gold and Incense.

The main news of the turn was that Education came in EOT. Oxford requires four universities on this map, which is tricky since I only have six cities. The cities will have to be Sternum, New Scapula, Tibia, and Ulna, simply because they have enough population to whip away. Yes, I know whipping my Heroic Epic and Great Person farm isn't quite the best idea. I'll hit Gunpowder before Liberalism, since they actually beat Crossbows.

AT is researching Music. Judging from the banter thread, Kjn's city didn't fall.

[thestick]

Wow, these are expensive.

I have research visibility on AT, and I have no clue what's going on. It looks like he keeps swapping his techs, last turn it was Music with 2 turns, now it's Philosophy with 3 turns.

[thestick]

I threw my empire under the whip, whipping away 13 pop and will whip another 5 pop away next turn. Education isn't cheap, you know! Next turn I'll whip Ulna and half-starve it down to get a Great Person, meaning I can build Oxford with the Golden Age bonus. Sternum will probably steal some of Tibia's hammer tiles to do so.

Kjn sniped my Worker with a Guerilla 2 Crossbow. I hit it and withdrew with a Flanking 2 Horse Archer, then the second Horse Archer I suicided against it actually won

In foreign news, AT built the Hanging Gardens, shooting his score and Crop Yield up.

In other news, I realized I didn't have the cash for Gunpowder, so I saved it up this turn. I disbanded 3 more Axemen, since my army is costing more than my cities and I'm definitely not upgrading the Axes.

[thestick]

I whipped a University in Ulna, dropping my score down to last. I then did this:



My Great Scientist was born EOT. Also, as a nice surprise, I stole AT's Marble!




I wasn't aiming for that - Ulna hasn't even built a Theater yet! With +11 culture per turn base and maybe a couple of Artists, I hope to keep that Marble for the Taj.

In foreign news, Ceiliazul resettled his city:


He also picked up Mercantilism and with it Guilds. I need some Pikes in Os Coxae, stat.

I noticed something odd on the tech screen:



Kjn has Education He can research Liberalism. The race is on! ...and he STILL doesn't have Civil Service or Calendar Words can not express my bafflement here.

Plan: Polish off Gunpowder (Muskets!) and Alphabet (knock off tech bulb list), then bulb Liberalism into Nationalism into the Taj. The Taj will probably be built in New Scapula; Tibia will be too busy building Muskets. Besides, Sternum stealing the Ivory and Mine means New Scapula will make more hammers than Tibia. Of course if I don't get the Taj then I'm still out of a Golden Age... I wonder if I should just polish off Alphabet first and leave myself at risk for a couple of turns?

Finally, my cities and demos:

[Bigger]

why not abort gunpowder, start on alpha bet and then do the bulb? that 1 turn might end up meaning the difference, no reason you cant finish gunpowder the turn after you get nationalism

[thestick]

Wait, Alphabet and Machinery means that Printing Press will be bulbed, not Liberalism. Golden Age or Academy? Probably Golden Age, I need that swap into Taoism/Organized Religion/Heredity Rule. Plus more hammers for the Taj won't hurt.

[thestick]

I just had another idea. See the spot marked 'C' here that I forgot to remove a while ago?



Since I culturally own the Marble tile and AT hasn't roaded the hill tiles to the west of it, the city can't be one-turned by one-movers, and Pikes will take care of Horse Archers. The city itself will help ensure that the Marble doesn't flip back to AT. And I have two Workers to road the tile and the Settler in New Scapula so that it can be settled without warning next turn. And my army's positioned so it can move into the new city next turn.

Now I just need to decide whether this is a good idea or a horribly bad one.

EDIT: Nah, Golden Age isn't worth tying up and potentially losing half of my army. Besides, being Creative should mean I can keep that tile from AT.

[Bigger]

well the fact that you just whipped away half your population is a better reason not to run a golden age

kjn clearly sacrificed everything to grab liberalism. I think you should put off everything you can to grab it now (i.e. gunpowder).

im sure your tech rate is much better than his, but no reason to risk it.

[thestick]

I followed Bigger's advice and am researching Liberalism. I should barely have enough cash to cover it. It comes in in 3 turns. I built an Academy in Sternum with the Great Scientist. I then reconfigured Sternum for hammers:



No, I'm not quite sure whether it would be better to delay Oxford for a better shot at Liberalism, nor whether earlier Oxford is worth not working these Towns. Or whether I should let Oxford slow-complete, letting Sternum work Towns, or start whipping units into Oxford.

Like I said earlier, -70% maintenance is doing wonders for my economy:


I'll probably disband the last of my Axes soon.

In other news, I sent three Workers to chop a forested hill near Ulna so AT can't get cover on it. I slipped to third in Power. Ceiliazul's power's been increasing; I think he's planning on a Knight rush. Never mind that all of his opponents have Engineering...