[SPOILER] PB37 Dark Savant tries not to be a blatant MP n00b

[Dark Savant]

t166:

The world is still at peace.  dtay completed the Taj Mahal and made a lot of civic adjustments, so he's up Civil Service and Nationalism on us.  I've seen exactly zero muskets from him, so maybe he did that at the expense of Gunpowder.

Gavagai did have a window to hit me but it's not clear it's even still open -- that depends on how much janissary force he can bring to bear, and he did lose a good deal of it taking cities from dtay.  If I shifted all my knights and catapults south like I had been planning, Gavagai could inflict some potentially fatal damage, but I think I can cover any incursion except at the island city between us.  He also has to know I'm still watching what he's doing.  Also, he'd lose some pretty serious trade income if he attacked me.

Astronomy is in; galleon and observatory bulids have started.  I've made it alive to the Renaissance Era!   I feel I absolutely have to research Gunpowder next; it's due in 4, barely.

We have a Heroic Epic in Harmondale now.  It's currently "slowbuilding" 10 XP knights at around 80 hammers/turn.

I now have Open Borders with GermanJoey, if nothing else to discourage attack (I got his updated map in the deal -- I realize now I should have asked for his spare sugar in the bargain ), since we've been at peace for long enough that the peace bonus is sizeable again.  I imagine the other players aren't fans of this move, and it certainly is not a good move if I wanted to win the game, but I'm trying to achieve the more modest goal of survival and maybe even relevance!

[Dark Savant]

t167:

Gunpowder is due in 3 -- too bad I can't prebuild Oromos.

Gavagai isn't whipping much -- I don't think he's actually going to attack, but I move to cover against it anyway.

Sorpigal, at size 25, just built a theater so it can run even more non-merchant specialists.

Our exports/imports is close to neutral -- okay, so those deals I have aren't actually bad.

[Dark Savant]

t168:

I can see something like 12 galleons of Gavagai's.  That's a lot, isn't it?  Except we're still at peace, with 2 turns to Gunpowder.

I also learned that the +25% culture from the Stele expires at Astronomy.  I was hoping that would stay around, since the base culture does, but nope!  I could actually use that in a border conflict with GermanJoey -- I'm barely staying ahead of him as things stand.

The world remains at peace.

[Dark Savant]

t169:

Well, Gavagai did declare war on me.

And he attacked with more force than I thought was possible -- he has something like 10 knights and 18 janissaries right next to Castleview.  That's just out of range of my catapult stack.  That must be from a fort he constructed next to that tile, which I didn't consider.  I throw away a couple knights trying to flank catapults before giving that up and just holing up in the city.

Gunpowder is due next turn, but I won't get those in time to stop a collapse, I think.

[Dark Savant]

t170:

Did you know I forgot to promote my knights last turn?  Well, I did!

Man, I'm screwing up badly just with promotions. 

Gunpowder is in, I halt research just to stop the bleeding as much as I can.  More whipping ensues.  The advance attacking stack consists of knights.  I might be able to slow those down, at least.

[Dark Savant]

Also, I don't think I should have tried to reinforce Castleview with everything I had -- I should have tried to counterattack afterwards.

[Dark Savant]

t171:

Gavagai attacked Garrote Gorge with ~20 knights (yeah more than I thought he had, I should have paid more attention, not that it really matters that much now) and captured it, so he has both my Great Wonders now.

I can clean up the current enemy forces past Castleview -- if they aren't reinforced, if no one else attacks me, and if I don't screw up again.

I'm rating all that as "doubtful". 

I have some more knights now, and my first Oromo Warriors on the scene, which will at least, uh, slow down the collapse.  I would have been far better off researching Gunpowder first and not Astronomy, no? 

I'm also running full cash to upgrade as many units as I can (spears to pikes, archers to longbows).

[Dark Savant]

t172:

No cities lost this turn, and no one new declared war against me, but the Great Merchant I had moving to chumchu's capital for some upgrade cash passed by a stack he's massing.

I'm wondering at what point I should abandon the still-decent defense I have on the southern border and move it towards Gavagai so he doesn't gain too much from this war (the idea is to collapse without giving too much to any one player), but it isn't now -- and that's assuming that isn't frowned upon, anyway.

[Mardoc]

and that's assuming that isn't frowned upon, anyway.

Generally accepted. Whichever opponent you focus on will likely be miffed, but any neutral third party would support you.

The only way this really gets criticized is if you take it to an extreme. If you get to a point where you are conquering Gavagai and not even putting up a token defense while being conquered in turn from the south, then people would likely object. But if you're just choosing which side collapses faster, that's actually pretty standard play.

[Dark Savant]

and that's assuming that isn't frowned upon, anyway.

Generally accepted.  Whichever opponent you focus on will likely be miffed, but any neutral third party would support you.  

The only way this really gets criticized is if you take it to an extreme.  If you get to a point where you are conquering Gavagai and not even putting up a token defense while being conquered in turn from the south, then people would likely object.  But if you're just choosing which side collapses faster, that's actually pretty standard play.

Okay, that's good to know; thank you!

t173:

I may be able to retake Garrote Gorge next turn, depending on whether Gavagai can reinforce using the nearby random galleons he has (they'd have to be loaded with knights for that).  That may not be the best idea, because he also has about 18 janissaries advancing on my capital, but they'll take enough time to get here that I may be able to scramble enough defense in time.

The defenses of Vertigo on the northern coast held this turn, but they might not last another interturn and I have no other defense in range.  (Gavagai ran out of land units there, but he can always attack amphibiously with units I can't see.)

No one else declared war on me, at least.  I've upgraded enough units that I'm also resuming research, at least to Civil Service so that I can then upgrade defenders to maces.