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

[Dark Savant]

t203:

I let GermanJoey play this turn first, just in case he had settlers en route.  He didn't move in settlers this turn, so I planted two cities, both on sites where c/C had cities razed.  Those were both cities I was aiming to raze myself a long time ago. 

My territory is now large enough that I can't cover it with 1-mover units playing zone defense.  Also, that means the theater I was building in what I thought was a closely contested cultural border with dtay is going to be pretty much useless.  I suppose those are nice problems to have. 

GermanJoey seems to have captured (not razed) a city near dtay's core.  Wait, what?

Not much action on the front with JR4, except I'm moving Ships of the Line around to potentially break a siege.

Nationalism is due next turn.

[Dark Savant]

If I get much more territory out of the clear blue sky (the next city of dtay's in ex-c/C land I can see is garrisoned by a solitary rifle), I may actually ask JR4 for a straight-up peace treaty.  I, uh, wasn't expecting to get free territory like this.  

Also, I can research Constitution before the GA ends.  I'm sorely tempted to research it and revolt to Representation, even though it will delay drafting rifles.  I doubt it's actually worth it, but I'll take a look next turn.

[Dark Savant]

t204:

Nationalism is in.  I don't swap right away since I'm not going to start drafting just yet.  Gavagai joined the "draft 4 rifles every turn" cool kids group this turn.  Yeah, I can't afford to research Constitution, I'm doing the obvious thing and going for Replaceable Parts (which Krill somehow doesn't have yet -- what is he doing?)

I'm somehow not dead last in land.  I have another settler in production just in case I get more free land (I'm the first to play this turn).  I still expect to get attacked before I can actually make anything out of this land, but hey.

[Dark Savant]

t205:

I have a worker poke around on the border with dtay -- he now has an actual reasonable garrison in Cowish Rhapsody (c/C's former capital).  Nothing near the border fell so there's nothing for my newly produced settler to rush to, though there's always one final empty spot in the dotmap it can plant on.  GermanJoey played before I did, and moved what he had in the area towards one of my border cities -- I'm not sure what for.  He's probably noticed I don't currently have a canal in the area; I'm slowly building one on the border there.

I do want to swap to Police State before the GA ends, so I'll actually need more happy.  I'll ask GermanJoey first.  I really have no idea how much random extra luxuries are worth in MP, but I just asked for 10gpt for +3 happy worth of luxuries -- which I realize is pocket change, but it's not like he's doing anything else with them.  I don't think he'd be upset with me claiming territory he liberated, since I expect he primarily doesn't want dtay to have it.

Gavagai drafted 4 more rifles.  I wonder if I can reach Rifling before I get attacked in force ...

[Dark Savant]

t206:

GermanJoey accepted my request for spices and gold on the cheap -- that will help me put up some sort of resistance against a serious invasion by a neighbor.

No action in the GermanJoey-dtay war, partly because I played two turns in a row relative to GJ.  Sort of; he played a partial turn before me.

I considered asking Gavagai for silks for a lot more gpt (protection money, as it were), but I don't need it for a few more turns at least and even then it's for only one city, so I'll hold that off.  Gavagai is definitely planning to make a move on someone, since he rolled the turn but didn't play this turn.  If that's me ... well, I hope to get Rifling in time.

I accidentally moved a frigate to a place where JR4 can kill it easily.  Oops.  No real action there.  Another frigate moves around Gavagai's territory -- boy, he has cities with light garrisons but massive stacks of ships nearby on his border with JR4.  

Replaceable Parts due in 2, before the end of the Golden Age, so I'll be able to start Rifling before it ends.  Yeah, my research rate is not great even with a Golden Age and even at fully deflated prices, as you might expect.

[Dark Savant]

t207:

Global warming hits a tile near Sorpigal.  Isn't it a little early for that? 

I revolt to Police State and Nationalism, as I should have done a few turns ago.  A couple cities are at the edge of unhappiness now but I can deal with it.  I'm also in MAXIMUM FASCISM mode now, as I also have Slavery, Mercantilism, and Theocracy evil laugh.

GermanJoey retreats his units that were on my border with dtay.  dtay still doesn't seem to have a heavy military presence in the area, though he does have like half a dozen cannons.  He also has an airship. 

Gavagai continues drafting 4 units per turn.  I'm actually going to build an explorer next turn  as it's a cheap way to get a unit to look around his territory (actual spies are a little slow).

Replaceable Parts is due next turn.   Krill and JR4 both do not have Rifling yet, so I'll then save up cash until I can finish Rifling at 100% science.

[Dark Savant]

t208:

My explorer   goes to check out what Gavagai is up to.



27 grenadiers is a lot of grenadiers.     And that stack doesn't even include anywhere near all the rifles he's drafted.  I'm sure Gavagai knows I can see this fairly readily, and must be thinking something along the lines of "well, what are you going to do about it?"

Well, that stack is still far enough away that he can't actually stop me from getting Rifling, if it weren't for the small details that rifles aren't actually all that much better against grenadiers than Oromo Warriors, and that Rifling makes Chichen Itza obsolete, which matters since Gavagai doesn't actually seem to have much siege in his attack stack.

The plan if I get attacked in force by either dtay or Gavagai is to move everything but a token garrison to attack whomever invades first, which still should be enough to put up something resembling real resistance on that front, and effectively invite an attack from the other.  JR4 probably isn't going to do anything other but garrison a ton of units along our border -- he just showed up with Steam Engine -- until I get attacked in force by either neighbor.

Replaceable Parts just came in.  I'm parking research at 0% this turn; the Golden Age is about to end and I don't have enough gold to reach another military tech at 100% science.  It's probably still better to get Rifling since Gavagai will have quite a few rifles himself, but I'm seriously considering chasing Steel:

1. With that many grenadiers, rifles won't make as much of a difference as I thought.
   
2. It won't render Chichen Itza obsolete.  Good thing we're working with Civ 4, not Civ 1/2, wonder obsolescence rules.
   
3. Steel is now as cheap as it ever will get.  JR4 and Krill both still lack Rifling (and JR4 can't get it for another 4 turns at least).
   
4. I'll get to say that I survived until the Industrial era -- Rifling is a Renaissance technology.    I'm guessing "Steel" really means "Bessemer process", because "introduction of the blast furnace to Europe", "invention of the blast furnace", and "invention of steel itself" are increasingly well before the actual Industrial era.
   

Man, I should have built that explorer earlier.  

[Dark Savant]

t209:

I offer a peace treaty to JR4, since as long as GermanJoey and dtay are at war, and the other couple reasons I had for remaining at war are no longer valid, there's not much point in staying at war with him.  He very well might not accept, which is fine because I expect to start dying before 10 turns are up.

Gavagai just had cannons show up, which weakens the case for Steel.  I'm going to run cash for 1 more turn while I decide what to research next -- I can get that next tech in time to matter, but anything beyond may not ever happen if this attack is starting in a few turns.

The Golden Age is over -- it's time to start whipping.

[Dark Savant]

t210:

JR4 doesn't accept a straight-up peace treaty, as expected.  No military action this turn, but Gavagai looks to have things in place to kick things off in a turn or two if he wants to.

I order up Rifling at 100%, due in 5 turns -- Gavagai now has enough rifles and cannons now to make a run to Steel in 6 turns dubious.  I'm not sure I'll get any tech past that; the plan is to run 100% cash to upgrade troops thereafter.  So I won't make it to Industrial after all; oh well.

dtay is moving troops away from our border; he's having a lot of trouble with GermanJoey (whose power rating is now far higher than anyone else's).  I'd actually probably attack dtay if I weren't about to be invaded on the other side.  I start moving much of the garrison on that side towards Gavagai/JR4.  I'm not sure how much all these crossbows that were on happiness duty before are going to help, but hey. 

[ipecac]

I'm not sure how much all these crossbows that were on happiness duty before are going to help, but hey. 

Cannon fodder. They'll soak up collateral damage.