[Spoiler] RB Pitboss #2 - Shaka of Rome

[Whosit]

Imperial Center: Trooper SP-001 reporting for duty!
Carida: Trooper SP-002 reporting for duty!

I decided to resolve the issue of coming up with scores of creative, unique names for all my units by giving them faceless numbers! Though I think that is rather appropriate for the Empire.

I'm a bit bummed that I've dropped to nearly last in score, though score isn't everything. I am doing alright in the Demographics, though I'm not leading in what are probably the most important areas (GNP, Food). My Production lead will probably end soon, though I might get it back when Carida grows and I get some more towns down. We'll see.

Anyway, my scouting may come to an early end. Greedo is in trouble:



I gave him Woodsman I, and with the forested hill, he's effectively 1.95. So he's got a bit less than 50% odds to win. Maybe 45%? So there's a slim chance that he'll win, but he's probably toast.

Bib Fortuna is in tough straights, as well:



Now, that doesn't look too bad, but if the Bear goes straight north, Bib will have to retreat Southeast to get away. Not the direction I want to go in. The rough terrain to the west prevents Bib from using his higher movement speed to any advantage.

The good news is that Thannos has managed to avoid anything terribly dangerous, and will probably make contact with the Inca soon.

Just 5 more turns until Iron Working is completed. I could have probably gotten 2 techs in the time it took to research this. I'll have spent 14 turns total on it. I hope that it's worth it. Turns aren't going quite as rapidly as I would like, but I should have this done by Wednesday at the latest.

[Whosit]

Oh, here's something interesting I just saw:

Hello Whosit of the Romans,

As you may have seen in game we have declared war on Byzantium. The reason for this is that they settled their second city in a place where we planned to settle our second city. It is so close to our capital that our 3rd ring borders their 2nd ring.

We did have peaceful intentions going into this game. We feel however that we were cornered by a strong team and a civilization with one of the best unique units which left us with practically no choice.

We would do our best to keep you updated. If you have questions please let us know.

Best,
Kalin for Team A/K of the Ottomans

I knew that close proximity would lead to sparks, but this is a surprise. I might be better served by war with Korea now, but the NAP is still in effect. That they seem to be gearing their cities for production, I imagine that they will be producing many units in the near future. I will know next turn if Seoul is producing a Settler or Worker. If a Settler, I may take the Denial spot (Kuat) just to . . . deny them easy access to the Copper. But I will think very carefully on that.

My reply to the Rebel Alliance/Ottomans

Greetings Athlete and Kalin of the Ottomans,

I did not receive the notice of war in-game, most likely because I have not yet met the Byzantines. I appreciate the notification. I am still a fair distance from Byzantium, but I may cancel our Open Borders agreement before I approach them simply for diplomatic purposes. Once I make it through their territory, I would hope to reestablish Open Borders with you. However, it will surely be some time before that becomes an issue.

I am sure that you realize that the Empire cannot render any assistance at this time, though we hope for your swift victory. We will notify you if and when our scout, Thannos, reaches Byzantium. Hopefully the war will be over by then, but if not, perhaps we will be able to aid you in some way. I do have one question of pure curiosity, though I understand if you do not wish to answer. Did you declare war now because of necessity, or because you are in a strong enough position to succeed? I hope that it is the latter.

In any case, do keep me informed. And may the Force be with you.

Best regards,

Whosit, Galactic Emperor

I do mean it sincerely when I say that I hope they win. It would be such a waste if the Rebel Alliance were defeated before either of us really gets established. Though I am beginning to see that the destruction of the Zulu may have been a blessing for me. True, I lost a potential ally, but there's no guarantee that we wouldn't have come to blows later. There will still be plenty of room to expand if my war with Korea goes south and I have to call a truce.

[Whosit]

Well, Athlete had told me to keep an eye on Civstats, and it looks like their raid was successful. I'm going to guess that they attacked with Chariots, but since I don't know precisely which turn the war started, I can't be sure.

Now I see in the technical issues thread why the turn hasn't turned over. I recall in the Pitboss 1 game that regoarrarr (or "keet" for some reason I will never understand) has been accused of manipulating the game clock. Since his team is the only one to have not ended turn, I'm guessing that they are waiting for the clock to run down so that they can move again immediately.

I know that when I go to war, I'll want to set up a clock split with my enemies, though I'd also have to include a provision in case they cannot take their turn at that time. Hmmm.

I'd probably go something like this: Attacker gets 1st half of clock (to the advantage of the attacker, yes, but by declaring they deserve initiative), defender gets 2nd half of the clock. Each player should end their turn once all moves have been made. The practice of holding units in reserve should be discouraged, I think, since Civ IV is a turn-based game.

If one side is unable to play during their half, they must reasonably allow the other team to move first. Preferably, there would be communication regarding this. For example, if the attacker fails to move in the first 12 hours, he or she must do their best to reasonably allow the defender to move first, as the second half had been allotted to them. However, the defender should not delay their moves until the very end in order to prevent the attack from moving. The attacker would be allowed to take their move if the clock is running out and the defender still hasn't ended their turn.

It's a different issue if the defender doesn't move on their turn, in no small part because they would have lost the whole turn. I suppose if the defender thinks that they won't be able to take their half on a certain turn, they should try to make arrangements with the attacker. Otherwise, they should wait as long as possible before moving.

So, something like that. I kinda hate that this is all on the honor system. I don't think anyone on this forum would explicitly cheat, but I can't think of anyone who looks forward to losing, so I'm sure there are many who'll use every loophole they can to take an advantage.

Anyway, obviously nothing to update you guys on with my own game, since the turn hasn't ended. It should flip in . . . shit, I don't know. Does time get added to the timer every time someone logs in?! I think I'll add that in the tech page.

[Jabah]

When you wrote you want to settle the original site, you mean the site you taged on the map or the REAL original site (1S).
I guess it is the former, since otherwise pasturising the horse will not happen until late

[Whosit]

When you wrote you want to settle the original site, you mean the site you taged on the map or the REAL original site (1S).
I guess it is the former, since otherwise pasturising the horse will not happen until late

The tagged site. I guess it's a bit confusing, though I've been writing "Original" rather than Original in the hopes that would clarify things, but I guess it just made sense to me.

I wonder if anyone out there had moved 1 away from their starting point to end up getting Horses in their BFC. Guess I'll know someday.

[Whosit]

For double posty goodness, I just noticed that Korea lost 6 points. Either they double whipped something, or whipped at both their cities. I don't feel like logging in now just to see, so I'll see next turn. Nothing I could do now, anyway.

I should really remember to revolt to Slavery once IW is in.

... Oh, I suppose I should log on to see. I'll edit this post after I check it out.

Edit: OK, the whipped a Settler out of Seoul. Their northern Warrior has or will soon notice the copper deposits. At least, he's surely seen the one to the northeast. But the way he's going, he'll see the other soon.

And simmed my current plan vs. switching to Slavery now. Both get the Settler out on T63, but switching to Slaver delays IW by a turn. So I'll continue as-is. The good news is that if plako settles on or near the Copper, I should probably be able to ambush the city in short-order if I play my cards right. Things are gonna get interesting.

[Whosit]

As I feared, Greedo is a goner. At least Civ IV has taste:



Yes. Han Shot First.

I guess the silver lining is that I'm now paying one less in unit upkeep. I'll burn through my cash a little less quickly, at any rate.

However, in better news, the Bear was not interested in Bib, so the Scout escapes:



And he meets an envoy of Greece!



I quickly sent them a letter. I think this is actually the first time I initiated contact with another civ. I tried to keep in character, relatively.

From the Supreme Galactic Empire to Jowy and Yazilliclick of the Mighty Greeks,

Well met, fellow travelers. Bib Fortuna has discovered your Scout, Cover and Duck, and I wish to extend the hand of peace to you both. I take it that you come from the west. I hope to discover more in that direction; perhaps you could suggest the safest route? As for Cover and Duck, I would advise you to act cautiously if you head east because Bib has narrowly avoided a Bear. I would head south for a few leagues before turning east if I were you.

Will you accept the friendship of the Empire?

Best regards,

Whosit, Galactic Emperor

And Thannos spies the edge of Incan territory:



Though I will head N, then NE because I'd like to stay in defensive terrain as much as possible, even if it delays contact by a turn or two. Better safe than sorry.

Other bit of news is that Rumia, I think, is going to go spy on Korea's horses to see if they are being connected. Definitely something I want to keep my eye on.

The war between the Rebel Alliance and the Byzantines will probably slow the turns quite a bit, so I might not get to Iron Working for literally four days. *sigh* Though after my two Settlers are out, Carida is going on full-time military duty. Imperial Center, as I mentioned, will spit out at least 1 more Worker, then do troops as well. If P'yongyang finishes something next turn, it was probably an Archer. If we have an equal number of cities, I suppose I'll be at a disadvantage in a fight. I'll have 4 soonish. It'll hurt my income, but hopefully I can turn it into a slight production advantage.

(And because I am a nerd):

Dear Athlete (and Kalin),

It is with deep regret that I inform you that my Scout, Greedo, has been slain. He was done in by some thug who goes by the name of "Han Solo," and I understand that it was this outlaw who struck the first blow. If you should find him, I trust that he will be dealt with appropriately.

Best regards,

Whosit, Galactic Emperor

[Whosit]

Just some silliness:

Dear Whosit,

Now this comes as quite a shock! We had no idea Han Solo was around otherwise we most certainly would have tried to recruit him! No offence and may Greedo rest in dirt...ummm...cough...peace .

I would have to assume this was a barb warrior and not another civ right? I'd be quite distraught if there was a 3rd civ who decided to take on a star wars theme! It's a shame Greedo didn't live to come by the Cantina sometime though!

Until later,

Athlete for A/K
Ottomans

Dear Athlete,

Thank you for your . . . kind . . . remarks.

Yes, it was a Barbarian Warrior who did in Greedo. I thought I'd make a joke out of it and passed it on to you because it seemed like the right thing to do.

I will keep the Cantina invite in mind, however. Perhaps I will someday use the services of the likes of Bossk, or perhaps even Boba Fett. The future is still uncertain.


Best regards,

Whosit, Galactic Emperor

And now for something quite off-topic:

Lurkers: Do any of you know of any bug with the Great Lighthouse? I was playing another game (archipelago), built the Great Lighthouse, and did not get extra trade routes. I already had a second city on another island (both it and the capital are coastal) and they were already getting one trade route. Just curious, since I haven't found any answers elsewhere yet.

On a more serious matter: I take Korea's silence to be their answer to my last message. I don't think they're terribly happy about my cancellation.

[Cyneheard]

Lurkers: Do any of you know of any bug with the Great Lighthouse? I was playing another game (archipelago), built the Great Lighthouse, and did not get extra trade routes. I already had a second city on another island (both it and the capital are coastal) and they were already getting one trade route. Just curious, since I haven't found any answers elsewhere yet.

I haven't heard of anything. Also, do you have 3 possible trade routes for each of your cities? It sounds like currently you only have 2 cities, so they can only trade with each other until you get OBs with someone else (and they might have to have Sailing, as well). And foreign cities can only be used once civ-wide. You have sailing since you have the GLH, so they should all be connected, and you don't have Corporation through some weird variant, so if that doesn't cover it, I have no idea.

Did you post on CFC? They tend to respond quickly, and in great numbers (not riding single file on banthas).

[Whosit]

Did you post on CFC? They tend to respond quickly, and in great numbers (not riding single file on banthas).

Ha ha, yeah, actually, the game is on CFC. I just thought that it was worth a shot posting here, too. Also, you get a prize for the Star Wars reference. Anyway, got a similar response there, so I guess I freaked out about nothing.

In actual game news: Plako whipped again, probably in P'yong. I'm going to confirm that, but hopefully I can figure out what he did by next turn's overflow. Or, rather, the turn after that.

I think I'm starting to see a pattern of him whipping things a turn or two before completion for max overflow. I'm not a whipping expert, so I'm not sure if this is simply a good short-term strategy, or if he'll end up with more units over the long run. What I do figure, though, is that the more he whips, the stronger my cities are likely to be in the long run, although I will need to be able to raise my happy cap before I can really take advantage of that.

If I get the furs hooked up, I think that I'll plant a cottage near Carida. A happy cap of 6 isn't quite enough to seriously increase the hammer output, but I can run a 2-food plot, so I might as well get some coin out of the deal. That's a ways down the road, as I still need to build a couple more mines, and I should seriously consider farming the Rice just to increase the growth rate a bit. The sooner I'm working all 4 mines (and the cow), the sooner I can get 3-turn Praetorians.