[SPOILERS]Specialist of Everything: JC of the Zulu

[Gawdzak]

T76

Judaism is founded. I thought about trying to found the religion myself a few turns ago, but didn't think it's worth it. Looks like I would've been beaten to it anyways.

Anyway, here's an overview of the empire:




I'm a bit happiness starved at the moment. All of my older cities are at the happiness cap. I'm going to settle for the Whales as my city to help with the situation.

I have a scouting work boat out west to hopefully find someone.

You may have noticed that I have saved up quite a bit of gold. I'm waiting for a couple of my libraries to finish and to meet someone for known tech bonuses before I start to tech again.

Good play? Maybe.

Greedy? Absolutely.

The demos:




I've emphasized heavily on production, because I believe that's the best way to play in the RtR mod instead of whipping.

Many of you guys probably know this already but here's a little math.

Working a grass hill mine costs 1 food (2 food to feed the citizen and the tile yields 1 food), and gives 3 hammers. A food to hammer conversion ratio of 1:3, or 3 hammers per food.

Working a plain hill mine cost 2 food, and gives 4 hammers. A food to hammer conversion ratio of 1:2, or 2 hammers per food.

A 4 pop->2 pop whip costs 25 food with a granary, and gives 50 hammers. A food to hammer conversion ratio of 1:2, or 2 hammers per food.

A 6 pop->3 pop whip costs 42 food with a granary, and gives 70 hammers. Which ends to 1.67 hammers per food.

There's always the factor of happiness and the front loaded hammers of the whip to consider but seems to me that unless one is whipping at low pop or whipping for 1 pop, the whip is inferior to mines especially to the grass hill mines.

[Krill]

There's also the value of worker turns into mines instead of other such tile improvements.

[Gawdzak]

There's also the value of worker turns into mines instead of other such tile improvements.

Very true, something else I didn't take into account.

I just found Gavagai's borders and Mackoti builds the Pyramids.

When's the next game starting?

[Gawdzak]

I got a map trade with Gavagai, and I'm pretty disappointed at what I saw. Basically everybody had a better capital with more and (often) better resources. Mackoti had wet rice/ wet wheat and GOLD at his capital. Gavagai had a banana plant and 3 food resources. HAK had triple food and plains hill plant. GermanJojo's capital had 4 (!) food resources. I, on the other hand, got a grass pig (very good food) and a plains cow (not a food).

Excuse the rant, but I wished I had something positive to say about the map...

REM and Adrien's position is even worse than mine. They got next to no land and a lot of what they got is useless tundra.

Anyways about the game:

Gavagai is the one that founded Judaism. Good move since he teched the religious route anyway for the Oracle. I wonder what he grabbed with the Oracle. Probably Metal Casting for the Colossus, or Monarchy for Hereditary Rule.

HAK built the Great Wall. Not a good move, with 150 hammers he can get out 5 war chariots and that should deal with any barb problems.

In addition, HAK's closest neighbour is Mackoti. Frankly, I can't see HAK living long after 1AD.

[Gawdzak]

Turn 82

I'm interacting with another civ!




Alphabet is in and I offered Gavagai open borders, hopefully he accepts. OB will be worth 12 commerce per turn for both of us. My exploring work boat is heading south to meet Joey, hopefully he will accept open borders as well. I had two choices after meeting Gavagai, to go north or to go south. Mackoti is at the north so I headed south instead.




Currency next, got enough gold to get it in seven turns. Maybe with OB and a little research builds I will be able to get it in 6. Thought about getting Math next to try for the Hanging Gardens, but not yet.

Settled a new city this turn, claiming whales. The question is to improve the whales first or the clams first. I could use the happiness in 4 of my cities, but the clams is better for long term growth. Hard to call which is better.

I started running two scientists. Great Scientist ETA turn 97.




Demos:




I have the highest GNP and production but barely above average in food, which is quite worrisome.

[Boldly Going Nowhere]

Where does IW figure into your tech path? Do all of your happy capped cities have a nearly full food box like UO? I'd look at the whales vs. clams decision in terms of how much food (etc) is immediately available to work in all cities. Generally, for me, if you have other good tiles to start working in established cities then I would go with the luxury. How many tiles will this open for you? It seems that, at least at UO, you do have some tiles to work right away, and you can share with the capital so that is two cities immediately. For me, that would swing in favor of the whales. You won't have a granary in the new city immediately anyway, so the extra food is less good than it will be in that city later. This may not be the "right" answer but is how I would probably analyze the situation. Hooray unsolicited lurker opinion! Not sure if it was an actual question because it was a questioning statement phrased as a declarative.

What did you end up doing?

[Gawdzak]

Where does IW figure into your tech path? Do all of your happy capped cities have a nearly full food box like UO? I'd look at the whales vs. clams decision in terms of how much food (etc) is immediately available to work in all cities. Generally, for me, if you have other good tiles to start working in established cities then I would go with the luxury. How many tiles will this open for you? It seems that, at least at UO, you do have some tiles to work right away, and you can share with the capital so that is two cities immediately. For me, that would swing in favor of the whales. You won't have a granary in the new city immediately anyway, so the extra food is less good than it will be in that city later. This may not be the "right" answer but is how I would probably analyze the situation. Hooray unsolicited lurker opinion! Not sure if it was an actual question because it was a questioning statement phrased as a declarative.

What did you end up doing?

Both UO and the capital have a near full box of food and can instantly grow, unfortunately UO does run into health problems because of all the jungle and the lack of health resources. The capital should be fine since it's on fresh water.

I haven't decide which is better so let's do a little math now.

Let's say the city was settled on T0 (actual T82) I have 2 chops (non-Math chops) come in next turn (T1) and work boat completes T2.

Clams first

T2- 4 food in box, 12 hammer into second work boat. Makes 4 food per turn and 1 hammer per turn.
T7- Grow to size 2, whip second work boat.
T8- Improve whale. 18 hammers (?) overflow. City at size 1.

Whale first

T2- 4 food in box, 12 hammer into second work boat. Makes 2 food per turn and 2 hammers per turn.
T11- Grow to size 2, 2nd workboat complete, improve clams. No overflow hammer and city at size 2.

I definitely like whale first better, the happiness will help and the micro for the city is by no means unacceptable.

As for IW, I will assess the need for that after Currency. Might go Math first if I want to try for the Hanging Garden, or Monarchy if I need the happiness. I always like to delay IW for as long as possible because it's too expensive for very little economic benefit. Besides, I don't have that many spare worker turns right now to chop the jungle.

Unsolicited lurker opinion is always welcomed in this thread.

[wetbandit]

More unsolicited comments: It doesn't seem that an above-average CY should be worrisome if you are intentionally working low food tiles to avoid growth beyond your happy cap. You're doing that in UO obviously to generate a GS, not sure if you are doing that elsewhere. It would seem that a part of your MFG or GNP in your demos could easily become food.

[Gawdzak]

More unsolicited comments: It doesn't seem that an above-average CY should be worrisome if you are intentionally working low food tiles to avoid growth beyond your happy cap. You're doing that in UO obviously to generate a GS, not sure if you are doing that elsewhere. It would seem that a part of your MFG or GNP in your demos could easily become food.

Definitely true, I'm feeling behind because I'm almost 30 food down despite having a powerful early game trait. Even if I work more food neutral/positive tiles it doesn't quite make up the gap.

Anyways next time I login I will take some SS of my cities for whoever's interested.

[Gawdzak]

Turn 83

Gavagai accepted OB, great! Also, finally some good luck:




Popped gems at ON. I already have gems but I now have something to trade to other players, and the commerce bonus is certainly welcomed.

Someone builds the Colossus and it's not Gavagai the Oracle builder. So someone tech Metal Casting built a forge and built the wonder. The Colossus is a great wonder on this map, but definitely required real sacrifices to get.

Cities:




The capital, working the riverside cottages. Growing with the whale hooked up.




UO, growing into unhealthiness but I should have another health resource hooked up shortly. Running 2 scientists, here. I don't like running scientists at the capital because I like the citizens at the capital working cottages.




BS, working coasts for now. I'm debating whether to cottage this city or to workshop this city later, stealing the plains cow from the capital and sharing its sheep at the moment.




ON, working hammer tiles to build the settler.




CW, will 2 pop whip the library next turn to get the border pop to unlock a few more riverside grasslands to cottage. Will be a decent commerce city in the future.




EO, stealing the sheep to grow. The border pops next turn, I've got a workboat ready to hook up the clams.




Boring.




LD, hooking up the whales like mentioned above.