[SPOILER] PB37: Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the most aggressive of them all?

[Krill]

Back to the game:

dtay is stacking up to hit Carthage, I've seen the cannons and other stuff. I've also got vision on his border city. It's toast the moment that dtay invades.

The question is how fast he annihilates Carthage IMO. dtay is not staging to hit the eastern coastal cities via boats (I know because I have that entire border in my territory), but he might be staging to take the west coast cities first, because that is an area where Joey may be able to snipe cities away.

What I've since realized is that Joey is not in as strong a position as he would perhaps like to admit, and he may have difficulty intervening with that conflict, and instead be forced into a race to capture more land that he probably can't win.

Joey needs to defend his China holdings from me. He doesn't need an awful lot to do so, but they are still resources that he can't dedicate to territorial expansion. I'm third in score, and although my power is quite low, I'm no in position to start cranking out units again (I've built castles now, got to Chemistry, spreading Toaism for the extra GPT) and I should make 1000bpt at max slider in a few turns (little bit of growth, libraries down and extra trade routes), but paying 400gpt in costs. I think I actually have a tech lead on Joey (which he is about to equalize using his third GA). I can trigger my second GA from next turn, and will generate the three great people I need for the third GA during that with Pacifism.

I am one tech away from cannons, and one tech away from Police State (Mil Science). I need MS for Commandos, and I already have one commando factory set up and 10 units with enough XP to take Commando once I land MS. Right now, I provide real pressure to Joey, that dtay doesn't experience from JR4. tl;dr, I'm not an easy target. And Joeys other target is JR4, which places Joey in the awkward position.

Joey can invade me, JR4, help Carthage or try a naval invasion of DS and contest Gav for the land. If he hits me, then he is behind in tech to Steel, and he will need Steel or some other tech to break through my capital now (I have a stack in it, plus the stack that took Mandrake is on boats and able to get straight into AF on the second turn of the war), so he'll be behind. If he hits JR4, then it opens up the attack from dtay to crash through from the north. If he tries to help Carthage, then the best he can do is to delay or stop the conquest, but he is falling behind in tech outside of the golden ages.

So what does he do? I don't know what he'll choose to do, but on closer inspection I think he doesn't have that many good choices remaining now.

[Krill]

I lied, my costs are only 330gpt.

[Krill]

Change of plan. Mil Sci>Nationalism, GA T184, Pacifism and three great people. And revolt into Police State/Nationhood/Slavery/Merc/Theo at the end of the GA.

[Krill]

Tldr Gav is not a counterbalance to an invasion anymore. With luck Joey will jump on the Carthaginian island cities and give me 10 turns of build up but im not liking his power curve.

[Krill]

Another tldr: GA requires I revolt into Pacifism on T0 of the GA, and then pop out the 800 point mixed GP from AF, a pure 900 point GS from Nightshade and be as close as possible to the 1000 point GP in Room 101. Due to this, I can't actually build 8XP units during hte GA. I can queue up as many units as possible and then finish 8XP siege and maces after the GA...but actually that's not that important because if I revolt into Nationhood I can't get any 8XP units out whatsoever.

In reality none of this actually matter because I can't beat anyone apart from Gav in a straight fight, and even that fight requires me to have Grens and Cannon, and I will not attack Gav, so this is mostly academic with a bit of popcorn thrown in.

Because I revolt on T184, I can't finish MS in time. I need to revolt on T184 because the later I revolt the more I leave myself open to attack from Joey (and that is not academic), and I need to eat the entire food box in Nightshade to get the 900 point GS out in time. Extra turns don't help me there. But I can revolt into Nationhood and PS at the end of the GA, and sit on the three great people in PS/Nationhood/Slavery/Merc/Theo and finish up Steel (in the GA, I should get Steel over half way done by the time it finishes).

so MS>Nationalism>Steel>MT, ignore Rep because it's not important when I'm more concerned about hammers than beakers, and then go straight to Rifling and Steam Power before heading back for Constitution, Education, Economics and Corp. I figure the game ends in about 30 turns, Joey has to make a move and if he goes for the "safe" option of Carthage's islands...well it won't be enough...although Joey might not realize that and not concede...? Fuck I hope not.

[Krill]

Some pictures for you to look at.

   

GP 8 plus one turn commando units that I will never get to use due to the map,


   

GP 10 plus double shrine, this city has 8 priest slots so caste is irrelevant for this GP. Underrated benefit of shrines, those slots.


   

Sistine because I'm bored.


   

Obligatory Moai shot.


   

GP 9 with micro to get as much gp now in case I have to revolt out of pacifism (in reality I don't think anyone attacks me, and as I would need to revolt out of CoL, I'm more likely to starve one pop to get the GP out eot190).

[Krill]

So, uh, Gav invaded Joey.

Also I miscalculated in the above pictures (but my original plan was actually better) I finish the GS from Nightshade eot190, and then revolt out of Pacifism on T191. I got a GM from AF, so I can pop the third GA T193. I'm also having second thoughts about Nationhood and htinking that given the game is basically over to just try to get demographics up to second place.

[Krill]

Declared on Chumchu to take Chehalis and his last eastern island. Frigates will have the city down to 12% culture next turn and there are only 3 units in both cities so they will call early, if costing a few units.

From my point of view this game is between Joey and dtay, I don't want to help or hinder either of them, but I have had business with Carthage and I'm taking both those damned cities, even if Chehalis is a mainland city albeit the other side of anyone tile isthmus.

[Krill]

OK, so here we go.

The remainder of the frigates and two cats bombed down Chehalis to 0%. Promoted one mace to CR3/C2, and it gets 60% odds on the top CG2 Lb.

Up at Hamnbuse, the CR3/C2 mace gets 94% against the G1 Xbow in the city. That's what happens when you settle on flatland.

   


Order of battle: Chehalis first

CR3 Catapult 5 v 10.5 G2 Lbow, 2.3%, Loss@61hp, Xbow 5.5 strength.
C4 Knight 14 v 9.28 G1 Xbow, 94.1%, Win!@100hp.
CR2/C2/Amphib Mace 9.6 v 6.28, 61hp Lbow, 92.7% Win!@43hp.
W3/C1 Mace 8.8 v 5.62, 90hp axe, 98%, Win!@84hp. Chehalis captured with 164 gold, kept.

   


Onto Hamnbuse

CR3/C2 Sword 7.2 v 4 G2 Xbow, 96%, Win!@85hp.
CR3/C2 Sword 7.2 v 3.87 CG1 Lbow, 98.2%, Win!@86hp.
CR3/C1 Sword 6.6 v 3.33 Axeman, 99.1%, Win!@86hp, capture Hamnbuse and 48 gold, kept.

   


Oh look more XP.

C2 Frigate 8.8 v 4.4 F2 Galleon, 99.4%, Win!@74hp
C2 Frigate 8.8 v 4.4 F2 Galleon, 99.4%, Win!@100hp


   

Boudicca is viable. Joey got to this point because no one challenged him, and bother neighbours settled away from him. 150 turns of peace, neighbour luck is real. If he wins this game I'd have to seriously ask: what did he actually do?

[Krill]

I need a sub. Literally all you will need to do is log in, see if I've been invaded, and end turn. No worker or city micro and I will set up the build queues to last the next 10 turns.

Of course if someone invades, ask for a pause.

Password is REPAIR is anyone up for this? I will be unavailable from about 1000 Friday until early afternoon Monday GMT.