Trainee captain yuris125 on the nautical skills test

[yuris125]

Like any student before an important test, I'm nervous. Hope I don't fall overboard

[plako]

Here is your start. Minor modifications possible, but nothing that would have seriously affect to your leader or nation choice will be changed. Have fun.

[SevenSpirits]

Checking in.

Plako is seriously a bastard. Wow.

[yuris125]

Yeah, definitely wow

No seafood? How can you find a starting location on a tiny islands map without seafood??

Looking at this start, I'm starting to suspect we won't want Fishing as a starting tech

Anyway, assuming Pindicator picks Sury, I'd would consider going with Cathy. Tiny islands usually have plenty of seafood and rely on whipping for production, so a trait which boosts production looks good to me

We have 4th pick of civ, so it will depend on what other pick. I think just going through starting techs and picking the best ones will be the best course of actions. I would love to get China actually, Agri and Mining look like a perfect fit for this start

As for settling, I don't see any reasonable way to avoid wasting a flood plain, so I would tentatively suggest 1SE

[yuris125]

On the second thought, maybe sipping and moving the capital when we find a better spot would be better

[yuris125]

Had a chat with Seven, and we agreed that Creative won't be as strong as usual on this map. Culture wars are unlikely on tiny islands, and there are other ways to pop borders. Cheap libraries are good, but not a deciding factor

So we want an Exp leader. However, for the 2nd trait there are several viable options: Cre and Imp are preferred traits, but Spi, Ind and Org are also possible. Thus, we decided to pick a civ first, and go with Inca. We think it's the best available civ option, which we definitely wouldn't get as the 5th pick

When the leader pick comes to us, Sury will definitely be taken, and we won't need to worry about Cre in any case. Joao is our first choice, then Isabella. If they're both taken, we will be choosing between Bismark and Mehmed

[SevenSpirits]

Now that you write it out, it sounds kind of funny, doesn't it?

"We thought creative wasn't so good, so we first-picked Inca." But it does make sense - EXP is basically mandatory when you have to build granaries without production or forests, and Inca's just great. So why pick Sury when you can guarantee getting him plus another trait (minus the cheap libraries)? The drawback of missing out on India/Carthage/whatever doesn't seem as significant.

[yuris125]

Hmm, that's one strange draft! I'll be surprised of Rego doesn't take Sury of India as the 5th pick

EDIT

I will take Isabella of Ottomans

Lol. So I was completely off
Well, at least it's unpredictable

[yuris125]

So we're Joao of Inca. Which is pretty much the dream scenario

Sury was still available when the pick came to us, and that is bizarre. But combining Cre with Inca looked a waste of the 2nd trait, so I picked Joao

[yuris125]

Traditional thoughts about opponent picks

First, I'm really surprised that Sury and India weren't picked at all. Maybe they're not as strong as usual in this setup, but they still are very good picks

We already posted the thoughts about our pick. Inca was the best available civ, better than India in this setup, and worth sacrificing an early leader pick. With limited production and expected high reliance on Slavery, Joao is at least as good as Sury, and taking a Cre leader with Inca is a waste. I'm very happy about our choice. Of course, there was a risk Joao wasn't going to be available as the 9th pick, but losing Imp wasn't going to hurt too much

Sian: Zara Yaqob (Cre/Org) of the Aztecs (Hunting, Mysticism, Jaguar, Sacrificial Altar)

Aztecs are a very strange pick, especially as the 3rd pick. Worst possible starting techs, useless UU, and UB which reduces whip anger, but comes into play when importance of whipping is decreasing. Zara is a good choice, Org won't decrease maintenance too much, because it's Prince level. But it has cheap Lighthouses, one of the key building on this map, and has synergy with Courthouse replacement UB. Cre, while less important the usual on a water-heavy map, is still a top-tier trait, and with Mehmed taken, Zara was the best Org leader to choose

Gaspar/Commodore: Mehmed (Exp/Org) of Carthage (Fishing, Mining, Numidian Cavalry, Cothon)

A solid pick. I don't think Mehmed is better than Sury and Joao, but as I said, Org is going to be good on this map, and Exp is the key trait. Carthage was a civ we discussed before realising that Inca wasn't banned. Starting techs are decent, as is UU; UB is awesome for this map. I like this pick

Regorrarr: Isabella (Exp/Spi) of the Ottomans (Agriculture, Wheel, Janissary, Hammam)

Another solid pick. Good leader and good civ, no synergy between them, but Ottomans don't have too much synergy with any leader. I'm still not sure why not Sury of India, but I think it's a good pick

Pindicator: Roosevelt (Ind/Org) of the Vikings (Fishing, Hunting, Berserker, Trading Post)

I understand this pick, but I think it's questionable. Vikings are good on water maps, but not good enough to be first pick. Hunting is useless as a starting tech; Berserker's free amphibious promo isn't going to play a huge part, because war in the Macemen/Berserkers era can rarely be successful. Especially a naval war, it's difficult to bring a substantial force to a fight on Galleys. I would play this by drafting an army of Berserkers, and upgrading them to Rifles; Amphibious Rifles and Galleons can be much more dangerous. But it's tricky to play; I wouldn't take them as the first pick, that's for sure. Roosevelt is obviously picked for his Org trait, for synergy with Trading Posts. With Mehmed and Zara taken, there were no top-tier Org leaders available, and being the only Ind leader is usually good. However, in this game, where both key wonders are banned, Ind is significantly weaker than usual. Personally, if I was dead set on Org, I would have either taken Asoka or even Hammurabi. But actually, when all good Org leaders were taken, I would've just taken Sury. Yes, no synergy, but Sury's traits are so much stronger

I would rate the picks like this

1. Joao of Inca
2. Mehmed of Carthage
3. Isabella of Ottomans
4. Roosevelt of Vikings
5. Zara of Aztecs (sorry, but the civ pick is just too weak)