[SPOILERS] Rusten enters uncharted waters

[Rusten]

I didn't report much on the Borsche war, but he had a few more knights than I expected (~15). However, he ran most of them into one of my stacks this last turn so it should be easy from here on out -- no longer need to tread as carefully. Not much he can do without siege, knights don't defend that well by themselves.




I mopped up the remaining knights. The Urukku pikes have been very useful as stack protectors, I love having them around.

I was last to play so I got to confirm that I completed UoS end of turn before logging out. Religious trifecta confirmed.
OH has finished nationalism. If he's the one who got a GE a few turns back I will be very sad.

Empire is getting too big for screenshots. Help!

[Raskolnikov]

I don't know what you've been up to, but your head looks like shit bro
(subscribed)

[Rusten]

^This PB has aged me 10 years already.

[Rusten]

OH has finished nationalism. If he's the one who got a GE a few turns back I will be very sad.

I kinda had a feeling when I saw a GE being born in a faraway land and OH immediately switching to nationalism. Good for him, that's an incredibly important GP roll.

[darrelljs]

.

Darrell

[Rusten]

Taken the land lead with Persian cities yet to come out of revolt. Quickly evening out the crop difference and only behind on hammers due to OH golden age. Things are looking good still.




After 2-turning RP I'll probably stockpile some gold for 2-3 turns. Reason being that I want to quickly tech rifling if I need it for my next war. I'm hoping that I already have enough units for a decisive victory, but quickly drafting 30 rifles would be the knockout punch. Don't want to commit beakers to it immediately as I prefer astronomy, education and the like first for some infrastructure. RP is good anyway for the hammer bonus to windmills and mines. Besides, drafting rifles costs 2 pop in this mod so I'm not in a rush to enable them. 1-pop musketeers or simply staying in emancipation works for now.

Is ~25 muskets, ~10 Urukku pikes and a handful of trebs and knights enough to DoW on Dark Savant? I'm not entirely sure, but I hope so. The 30ish knights currently in Persia can reinforce later.

This is all that remains of Persia, unless he has some island cities I don't know about.

[Rusten]

I can disembark 15 units units 1S of Abidjan next turn if I want to (probably will). That's all my current galley count can do but I have a hard time seeing him being able to punish such a stack immediately. Can also unload 2 knights 1NE of the city. That's with an old galley that doesn't have the movement promotion so I had to separate it from the main stack.




Based on power rating and what I can see of DS' territory I should be good to go. He's got a fair bit up north and I'm happy to see that he's started to build knights which get destroyed by my UU.
Another piece of good news is having a higher GNP than GA-boosted OH even after he turned his research back on. Even without the Taj I consider this game mine to lose. I've got the biggest empire and I have the 3 religious wonders and spiritual to go with it. Lots of things can go wrong, and this war is one of them, but I think it's safe to say I have the upper hand.

[CFCJesterFool]

What is your max bpt?

[Rusten]

Just short of 2000. I currently have more gold modifiers than science modifiers as I get a production bonus towards both markets and grocers. They've also been very useful as newly captured cities bring maintenance and forces a lower science slider. But that will change once I have astronomy and education. Sustainable bpt is ~1300.

Crop yield is 900 now compared to the 800 only two turns ago, and it will continue to climb drastically.

I decided to postponed declaring on DS for a turn, I'll get into the reasons why and what's going on there next turn.

[Raskolnikov]

^^ Very nice. I haven't catch up yet (I am still in the first pages - loved your early reads about the other players and their pick, very instructive) but you seem in a great position.