No Tech-Trading Challenge

[Aqualung71]

My position at 470BC:

Though wanting to start trimming the Mongols and Vikings I was frustrated by their slow development pace - meaning, they didn't build any Temples and seemed to keep rushing units every time their nearby towns got to pop 2. I wanted to capture their towns instead of razing to reduce the number of settlers I needed to build, but it wasn't to be. After delaying the attack on the Mongols for some time I eventually gave up and started razing towns.

I had met all civs except Aztecs by this time, and was between 1-3 techs behind all civs, though I still had Philosophy and Literature over most of them.

[Aqualung71]

Not sure why, but I didn't do another save until 1150AD - probably a marathon playing session.

I had followed the upper tech tree branch, beelining for Education. By this time I had mostly cleared the continent of the Mongols and Vikings, largely with my Ancient Cavalry from SoZ, the only wonder I scored. I was also hoping to get Copernicus, but it was gone before I even got to Astronomy. I then continued to PP and Democracy, switched governments again (from Monarchy) and stayed there for the rest of the game.

I had dropped a couple of places on the histograph and was now behind Byzantines, England and Aztecs....the rest were basket cases by then. Military was relatively weak as I had concentrated on building Universities and Banks.

[Catt]

I played Dominae’s NTTC quickly over the weekend (a bit on Friday); the following is the best chronology I have from a few sparse notes, several screenshots, and several reloads of various saved games to grab other screenies and refresh my memory as to timing / circumstances. All dates are approximate. Further thoughts / learnings in a later separate post.

Part 1 of 8

4000 BC: With coast in sight, move scout to hill; settler to N; worker roads (instead of moving, I decided to road first and then move to better tiles). One tile from coast stunts growth (no harbor), limits commerce (not as many water tiles and no option for commercial docks), and limits all naval options (no curraghs, no coastal wonders, no naval forces whatsoever). Alphabet was to be the first research option, but at minimum – with no rivers and slow growth (one food bonus + plains without freshwater close) I didn’t think I could appreciably shorten the research time and wanted to horde gold for future deficit spending / upgrades. Plan was for two scouts and a granary.

3900 BC: Popped hut yields new town of St. Petersburg to the SW! Not an ideal location, but I’ll take it. Starts producing warriors for MP duty and defense (barracks too expensive, and I wasn’t sure about any early warfare yet and therefore the need for upgrade material).

3550 BC: Popped hut yields Ceremonial Burial.

3400 BC: Contact with Vikings shows that they have Alphabet and Warrior Code, while I have Bronze Working and Pottery. Since we both have CB, I assumed a Viking unit must have popped it from a hut as well.

3100 BC: Popped hut yields warrior.

2750 BC: Popped hut yields maps of SW peninsula.

2710 BC: First barbarian sighted at location of first (hand-built) city on coastal neck S of Moscow.

2470 BC: Meet Temujin. The Mongols have all of our techs (BW and Pottery) plus Warrior Code. All of the S is explored. Alphabet in 19 turns.

2430 BC: Temujin wants to sell WC for 128 gold. Sorry, I’m going to keep my own scientists busy and keep our research to ourselves during my reign.

2310 BC: The Vikings have lead of Alphabet, The Wheel, and Warrior Code. The Mongols have Iron Working and Warrior Code.

2150 BC: Empire of 3 cities. The coastal city of Novgorod started immediately on founding on the Colossus. I don’t often build the Colossus these days, but I figured the extra commerce and the wonder trait (expansionist) would be helpful, plus I figured the relatively large REXing room and the free hut city justified the investment (despite the poor local terrain).

[Catt]

Part 2 of 8

2150 BC – 1500 BC: Moscow has built several workers and continues to do so (after a granary and a settler) to quickly improve the area surrounding Novgorod and then to join the city to speed the construction of the Colossus.

1400 BC: The Colossus will be completed the next turn. However, the artificial growth (through immigration) of Novgorod has required massive entertainment spending by Catherine, and we’re still 18 turns from Writing (only our second tech). Another Russian city founded in the hills marking passage through the northern mountain range – through this city Catherine intends to bring fresh water to the empire.

1200 BC: Philosophy in 9 turns at 100% research. Novgorod has returned several workers to the field after the construction of the Colossus, allowing a lowered entertainment budget.

1000 BC: Philosophy in 1 turn. Contact with both the Byzantines and the Spanish show that we might well be the first civilization to discover Philosophy.

[Catt]

Part 3 of 8

875 BC / 850 BC: Code of Laws was discovered simultaneously with Philosophy some years ago. The fledgling Russian empire researches Literature as its next tech. Compared to the Spanish, Catherine’s people know Writing, Philosophy, and Code of Laws; but the Spanish understand Masonry, The Wheel, Warrior Code, Iron Working, and Mysticism. The Vikings and the Mongols have gone to war.

710 BC: The Russians have joined in a military alliance with the Vikings against the Mongols. Catherine expects no real action and continues to focus on expansion. A distant civilization is constructing the Temple of Artemis, indicating that Polytheism has been researched.

470 BC: Contact with the English shows that they have learned at least Warrior Code, Iron Working, and Mysticism but lack knowledge of Writing, Philosophy, Code of Laws, and Literature.

450 BC: Contact with the Aztecs shows that they have learned Warrior Code, Iron Working, Mysticism, Mathematics, and Map Making, but lack Code of Laws and Literature.

330 BC: The Russian / Viking alliance has been extended at least once (with little if any action by Catherine). Distant civilizations are constructing the Hanging Gardens and the Mausoleum of Mausollos. The Carthaginians have completed the Great Wall. Catherine could easily have completed the Mausoleum in Novgorod (assisting the city in growing large contentedly and building future science wonders to benefit from the Colossus’ effects), but Catherine did not want a despotic golden age and instead produced curraghs for scouting, settlers for expansion, and city improvements to assist in growth. The Russians have researched Map Making and Iron Working, and started on Republic at greatest speed, but have still not yet researched some early and widely-known technologies (WC, Mysticism, Polytheism, HBR, Construction, and Currency). Map Making would assist in settling the great SW peninsula.

210 BC: The war with the Mongols continues. Russian spears protect Viking incense so as to preserve import opportunities.

10 AD: The Russian empire is in a state of anarchy as the Russian Republic looms on the horizon. The SW peninsula is being settled to secure furs, iron, and horses. All the world’s civilizations are known to Catherine and the Russian Republic is severely undereducated.

[Catt]

Part 4 of 8

10 AD – 260 AD: The Russians are at war with the Mongols, the Carthaginians, the Aztecs, and the Byzantines. War happiness fuels the empire’s growth. With the discovery of Mathematics, Novgorod began the construction of the Statue of Zeus to stand beside the Colossus. The Vikings have their hands full with the Mongols and have not yet begun construction of the wonder. Though behind in the technology race, the Russians are able to research widely-known and less challenging technologies in 4 turns apiece and race through Warrior Code, Horseback Riding, and Mysticism. Construction would come next to allow the construction of aqueducts.

290 AD: With Mongol forces now regularly appearing near Russian borders, Catherine and Temujin make peace. England has declared war on Russia. Still short Construction, Currency, and Polytheism, the Russians are sad to note that the Byzantines, the Mongols, and the Carthaginians have entered the Middle Ages.

350 AD: Cities controlling furs and iron have been settled on the SW peninsula. Currency is under research, ; leaving Polytheism and Monarchy as the sole remaining ancient age technologies. Catherine has no desire to be a queen ad will skip Monarchy.

470 AD: Russian scientists discover Feudalism in a burst of learning as the empire enters the Middle Ages. Research on Monotheism (towards Education) commences at a lethargic pace of 15+ turns. All other civilizations have entered the middle ages; the English have founded a Feudal empire. The Russians remain at war with England, the Aztecs, and Carthage. The war consists of the occasional destruction of foreign landing parties. Ancient Cavalry from the newly completed Statue of Zeus will assist in the defense of the homeland.

600 AD: Monotheism to be discovered in one turn. Many civilizations are building the Great Library, and the Byzantines have begun construction of the Knights Templar. War continues with Russia’s three implacable foes.

700 AD: Theology in 2 turns. The Great Library not yet built but construction is underway by all. The Byzantines have begun the Sistine Chapel; both the Aztecs and Mongols have also started the Knights Templar. Throughout these past centuries Catherine devoted the maximum amount possible to science research, generally spending 10% of income on entertainment, and either 40% or 50% on science with the remainder going to maintaining the city structures and army of the Russian empire.

800 AD: The Russian expansion is complete. Sadly, the Russians couldn’t settle the far SE artic before the Byzantines. Although Russian settlers settled near a pack of wild horses on the SW peninsula, they were unable to settle the additional fur colonies in the lush lands north of the horses, losing out to the Mongols. Desert on the small SE peninsula remains unsettled by Catherine’s decree. The discovery of Education in two turns. Catherine makes peace with England.

880 AD: Russian scientists will “invent” Invention in 5 turns. The Byzantines have already discovered Invention as well as Astronomy. Indeed, five civilizations are constructing the same workshop, the plans for which had been shopped around by a man called Leonardo.

1000 AD: The Russians are the first to discover Gunpowder! This is confirmed by the appearance of a scientific great leader. Unfortunately all great wonders have been built by others. Catherine directs research towards Economics and Navigation. With universities built in numerous cities, entertaining structures are undertaken in order to permit continued growth in Russia. Horribly expensive cathedrals and even coliseums are started. Banking will be discovered in approximately 5 turns. The technology leader, Theodora, has learned Banking and Astronomy. Catherine has made peace with all but Carthage – Hannibal controls no more than a rump state of 3 or 4 cities and the bloodlust and happiness the war inspires in the Russian citizenry is more valuable than a peace treaty.

[Catt]

Part 5 of 8

1100 AD: Banking complete and the discovery of Astronomy in 1 turn. A pre-build for Magellan’s is underway in Novgorod. Catherine intends to use her SGL for Smith’s but begins considering JS Bach’s as an alternative. The Russians now import wines from the Aztecs and incense from the Mongols.

1200 AD: Novgorod will complete Magellan’s in 11 turns. Catherine researched Music Theory in 4 turns and used the SGL to rush JS Bach’s Cathedral – the happiness constraints were too great for the Russians in the long term, as Catherine demanded very large population cities and indeed had planned for several as her empire unfolded. Catherine believed that building Smith’s by hand was likely still possible, but would be willing to forgo Smith’s in order to secure Newton’s University – she hoped that if she couldn’t build Smith’s she would at least be able to convert her build to Newton’s and launch a Russian golden age during the sprint towards Theory of Evolution. The Russians also began importing gems from Spain. The technology leaders possessed at least Chemistry among mandatory technologies, and several had discovered Printing Press, Democracy, and Free Artistry as evidenced by the simultaneous construction attempts on Shakespeare’s Theater.

1295 AD: Physics in 4 turns. The Byzantines have already discovered Physics, Metallurgy, and Free Artistry. The Russian income is devoted 60% to science, 40% to the treasury.

1300 AD +/-: Catherine establishes an embassy with England and learns that London is approximately 5 turns ahead of Rostov in the race for Smith’s Trading House. Catherine must race to Theory of Gravity in order to secure Newton’s instead of a very expensive bank.

1320 AD: Theory of Gravity in 3 turns at a massive deficit. The Byzantines and the Aztecs have entered the Industrial Age. The Russians still lack ToG, Metallurgy, and Magnetism.

1340 AD: Newton’s University is completed on the same turn that the Russians finally understand the Theory of Gravity. A Russian golden age begins. The English build Smith’s next turn. Magnetism and Metallurgy each take 4 turns with a healthy surplus to replenish Russian coffers drained by the race to ToG.

1400 AD: After receiving Nationalism upon entry into the Industrial Age, Russian scientists pressed on with Steam Power, now only 1 turn away. Catherine prayed for local coal deposits – the lack of ready iron, horses, and saltpeter had been problematic for some time. Dyes were imported from England.

[Catt]

Part 6 of 8

1445 AD: With many Russian cities building wealth, Medicine would be discovered in 8 turns (the Russians had just completed Electricity. A railway network was established – Catherine was blessed with a source of coal already on the trade network, and two additional sources to be hooked up later; the excess coal would be a powerful bargaining chip, but Catherine didn’t want to connect it before trading opportunities presented themselves an risk having bigger nations attempt to extort her supplies. All but Carthage have now entered the Industrial Age. The world has gone to war against the arrogant Byzantines and Theodora has formed a Monarchy. Although the Russians weren’t the first to discover Steam Power, they were the first to discover Electricity. Although Catherine skipped Military Tradition (no saltpeter), she now controlled a slim technology lead.

1520 AD: Russian scientists would discover Scientific Method in two turns. Both the Mongols and England had already discovered Industrialization, Military Tradition, Communism, and Fascism, no one else had yet discovered Medicine or Electricity.

1540 AD: With the Theory of Evolution due in 10 turns, the Russians researched Sanitation in 6 turns then built their treasury. A pre-build for Hoover’s Dam was underway despite the absence of any factories.

1600 AD: Military Tradition was researched in 4 turns instead of coasting to the ToE. Atomic Theory and Electronics were simultaneously discovered; the dozen or so Russian knights finally became proud Cossacks. The Mongols discovered Ironclads; the Russian scientists were 9 turns from Replaceable Parts.

1650 AD: No rubber. A sole source was controlled by the Byzantines in the far SE. Catherine traded furs and ivory to the English for rubber and dyes. The treasury was emptied to outfit infantry and artillery – Catherine was finally beginning to believe that Russia could adequately protect herself. Industrialization was 2 turns away.

1700 AD: After Industrialization, with the appearance of several mutual protection pacts throughout the world, Catherine slapped herself and researched Communism. Yes, the police stations would help with corruption, but it suddenly dawned on Catherine that her people knew nothing but Republic and would not have a wartime government option should the Mongols get greedy. The Mongols are the tech leader / closest challenger with at least Corporation and Espionage (and probably more) while the Russians enjoyed the Atomic Theory / Electronics gift of ToE.

1745 AD: Refining in 4 turns. The Mongols, English, and Aztecs have all already discovered both Refining and Steel; the Russians still possess sole knowledge of At / Electronics. Catherine exports coal and 3 luxuries (and a bit of gold) for 4 imported luxuries, rubber, and saltpeter – the excess coal has proven to be very valuable. The once proud Byzantines have fallen back due to a prolonged stay in Monarchy, followed by the reemergence of a Republic.

1774 AD: The Mongols remain a democracy despite sporadic warfare. England and the Aztecs have fallen for the seduction of Fascism. Combustion is due in 4 turns. The Mongols demanded Atomic Theory and, after long thought, Catherine capitulated. She still possessed sole ownership of Electronics and no one yet knew Combustion. Five foreign luxuries were imported in exchange for 2 local coals and 2 local luxuries. I reloaded to see if I had made the right choice with Temujin, and sure enough he would have declared war had I rebuffed him – I might have held with few losses, but I would have had a huge stack to whittle down.

1792 AD: England demands Electronics and declares war when rebuffed. Catherine didn’t greatly fear an intercontinental invasion. With England controlling the two former Byzantines cities in the far SE, Catherine resolved to take both cities, relieving a substantial defensive burden to the south and also securing a local supply of both rubber and oil (the one real instance of foreign conquest by the Russians).

[Catt]

Part 7 of 8

1800 AD: The two southern cities are no Russian. Mongolia is still a democracy. The Russian tech lead is only Mass Production over both the Mongols and the Aztecs. Motorized Transportation due in 3 turns with the sliders at 1.9.0 and a deficit of 86 gpt. Carthage was destroyed by someone, depriving Russia of some war happiness.

1814 AD: The Mongols have finally entered anarchy, sure to become a fascist state. Our lead remains with Mass Production and now Motorized Transportation. Flight in 2 or 3 turns. Catherine exports 2 coals and 2 luxuries for 5 luxuries.

1818 AD: The discovery of Flight did two things for Russia: it launched her into the Modern Age and also gave her a second SGL. Catherine hoped to build Seti in Novgorod, a 20 pop city with substantial coastal tiles, but had hedged on setting up a proper pre-build. The cost of a Russian palace was quite small, and Catherine feared that a prebuild in Novgorod could waste a large number of shields. She elected instead to build Battlefield Medicine in Moscow thinking that, if Ecology or Rocketry were discovered, she’d be happy with BM built; if Fission were discovered, she’d convert BM to the UN, and if Computers was discovered, she’d check how long a Seti build might take in Novgorod and be happy with BM in Moscow – if Seti was to take too long, she’d “suffer” with Seti in Moscow and preserve BM as a pre-build. Computers was discovered, and the only alternative was to suck it up and convert BM to Seti (still with nine turns to go). A pre-build was started for the UN; the SGL would be saved for the Internet. Temujin extorted Mass Production (I wished I hadn’t double-checked my decision several turns back – I probably would still have given in to Temujin, but I think his prior willingness to declare could have corrupted my thought process this time).

1858 AD: The UN was completed in Novgorod but we declined a vote – probably would have lost given that Temujin was at war with a civilization that was also at war with many others and only Russia and Mongols would stand for election according to the VSS. Catherine had decided that with the tight tech race all through the Industrial Age she wanted to pursue a spaceship victory. The Internet was rushed after Miniaturization was researched.

1884 AD: The Aztecs demand Fission and declare war when rebuffed. In explicably, they also declare war on the Mongols on the very next turn while Catherine was deliberating an alliance with Temujin in order to keep him on the right side during the war.

1896 AD: The Russian tech lead consists of Computers, Fission, Ecology and Miniaturization (all have discovered Rocketry). Synthetic Fibers in 10 turns. What do opposing civilizations do when no one is taking all of their excess gold from them in tech trades? Espionage. Russian plans were stolen once, Catherine caught two spies infiltrating Moscow, and a somewhat distant city had its production of a commercial dock sabotaged.

1920 AD: The Aztecs have not even succeeded at making a landing on Russian lands. Numerous landing parties have been pounded by artillery and bombers and sent to the bottom of the sea before reaching shore. Nonetheless, England and Spain decide to enter the fray and/or are bribed into it by the Aztecs. Russia is at war with the Aztecs, the English, and the Spanish, and is only able to import one luxury (plus two local luxuries); despite this, the war happiness is astounding – Novgorod, a city of 20 with all contentedness improvements and enjoying the effects of Bach’s has a population of 11 happy, 1 content, and 8 unhappy people – all without any entertainment spending. In order to induce peace from the Aztecs, a small strike force is sent to SW Byzantium where the Aztecs have taken two isolated cities – one controls aluminum – so much the better for Russia. Unfortunately, the aluminum city is razed automatically and the second Aztec city is razed by the Mongols.

1940 AD: Satellites in 2 turns. Temujin now faces a world war, with all but Russia opposing him. Catherine finally feels totally secure in Russia’s borders – mechanized infantry ring the border inside barricades – allowing her to disband numerous military units that remained poised for a Mongol invasion. Army support costs remain high, however. Russia has made peace with all her enemies, and with peace for Russia, luxury imports quickly reach 4 (together with 2 locals). Novgorod’s citizenry is 10 / 1 / 9 – less happy during peace with three extra luxuries (8 happy faces) than it was at war. The Russian tech lead consists of Spaceflight, Ecology, Synthetic Fibers, and Miniaturization. Catherine, of course has been trying to decide what to do about her lack of aluminum and uranium – both vital resources for the launch to Alpha Centauri. A source of aluminum is available from the Aztecs; a source of uranium is available from the Mongols. Fighting rages on Byzantium, and Catherine decides to send a transport with a settler, two workers, and three mechanized infantry to sit just off the coast. A Russian city could be founded there, and only one border expansion later the Russians should control a source of aluminum.

[Catt]

Part 8 of 8

1960 AD: When a southern Byzantine city is taken and the immense cultural borders fall back, Russian units disembark and settle right next to an aluminum deposit. A second settler force is sent east to await the fall of another city that might make available a source of uranium. Nuclear Power is due in 6 turns. Catherine imports 5 luxuries and exports 2 coal and 3 luxuries. The Russian technology lead is 3.5 techs on England, and 5 techs on the Mongols and the Aztecs.

1973 AD: Volcano is active near Rostov! It hasn’t erupted since the BC years but now threatens the Russian border guard. Units pull back from the immediate area. Only approximately 10 turns remain before the discovery of Robotics (the Laser has a few turns to go).

1978 AD: England declares war when denied Nuclear Power. Again the sinking of English naval forces commences.

1979 AD: With 5 turns on Robotics, the precise amount of time needed for an adequate prebuild Catherine elects to acquire uranium on the open market honorably. She could easily use modern armor to take a supply from the rifleman-defended Byzantines (all but resource-less, though almost to the modern age), but elects to offer up her treasury in trade. Temujin agrees to supply uranium for 199 gpt – Fuel Cells, requiring uranium, are quickly added to the Russian spaceship and only the final piece of the puzzle is missing, due with the discovery of Robotics. Russian research had proceeded in the Modern Age as Computers (free), Fission, Miniaturization, Rocketry, Ecology, Synthetic Fibers, Space Flight, Satellites, Superconductor, Nuclear Power, the Laser, and Robotics. The tech lead included Synthetic Fibers, Superconductor, Satellites, and the Laser.

1981 AD: Volcano explodes! Polluting only the volcano itself and one grassland tile that had already been polluted two turns prior by the nearby city Rostov. The lava is quickly cleaned up and the Russian border guard resumes its post.

1983 AD: England (I believe) launches a propaganda campaign against Novgorod – the most populous Russian city and the most cultured city in the entire world – it sits just several tiles from the Russian capital of Moscow. Although the notification indicates that citizens have been made unhappy by the propaganda, their spirits seem fine to Catherine.

1984 AD: The Russian spaceship launches on its journey.

Game thoughts later.

Catt

[Aqualung71]

Great effort with such a self-imposed small-sized empire Catt. You city spacing seems quite wide too - why so?

[Catt]

Originally posted by Aqualung71
Great effort with such a self-imposed small-sized empire Catt. You city spacing seems quite wide too - why so?

Thanks. I decided fairly early on to play under the self-imposed restraint of not conquering my neighbors (after scouting and getting a sense of the REXing room). Doing so imposes a few restrictions on one's economy: (1) need to maintain a larger military force; and (2) limited ability to enjoy all the advantages of many more cities. When playing a largely peaceful game it's often more efficient (and certainly faster!) to play with wide spacing to minimize city improvement upkeep costs and to have a sufficient number of very high production cities to play for multiple wonders / SS parts. I envisioned my Novgorod (with room for 20 working tiles) as containing the Colossus and the science wonders, making a real "super science city" even though science wonders don't stack -- didn't work out as planned, but worked well enough.

My military upkeep was high for most of the game -- I had a huge contiguous border with the Mongols and allowed them to grow strong -- I kept a lot of defenders (including offensive forces and bombard) for most of the game. Conquering early would have allowed for a much safer empire at the same time as I enjoyed a much larger empire.

I left a large buffer between Moscow and its first ring of cities -- this was largely due to the founding of St. Petersburg via hut-popping, the selection of the site for Novgorod, and the need to have a city in the hills to the north to act as a fresh water transit point. The wide spacing meant I wasted a bonus tile and several hills -- the ivory and hills to the east of my Moscow was unworked by citizens.

As with a past AU game (a huge map game as the French) I wish I hadn't settled on the "no offense" semi-restriction early -- in my game in any event, the Vikings would have been relatively easy pickings and the Mongols could have been contained to the far north until the decision was made to remove them. I think this start, though a bit ugly to look at early, offered up an excellent opportunity to set up a four-turn tech pace pretty early with an FP close to home and a palace relocation north (though I remember Aeson posting that he intended to relocate north and never had an MGL to do so -- I also never had an MGL, but would have counted on one, perhaps foolishly, in conquering north).

How is your research pace with the continent all but yours?

Catt

[Aqualung71]

I'm glad you asked - not as good as I had hoped. In fact, this seems to be my enduring civ "achilles heel" - not being able to research fast enough. I'm spacing my cities closer and growing them to size 12 as soon as possible, building Libraries and Universities and trying to maximise coastal spaces, but never seem to get to that magical 4 turn pace that so many other players report. I'm almost there by the end of the middle ages, then the industrial age hits and I'm back to 7-9 turn pace because of the higher research costs.

In this game, by 1150AD I was pulling 161 beakers per turn at breakeven, which was 50% science (though still in Monarchy, FP not yet finished and a bunch of former Mongolian cities with no courthouses). By 1310AD when I had changed to Democracy (but still no FP), my beakers at breakeven of 60% science were running at 369. By 1450, beakers at breakeven (60% science) were 495, but since I was in the Industrial age my research pace was still at around 7 turns.

Admittedly I still had a few gaps in my land that should have been cities - I fixed that a little later.

Do you have any feel for how these numbers stack up against what you would consider an acceptable beaker count with a decent chunk of land?

[Aqualung71]

By 1450AD I was researching Electricity, still 2 techs behind England and the Aztecs (not counting the 12 or so optional techs that I didn't bother with), but with the ToE and Hoover looming that wouldn't last long. I had caught up with the Byzantines on research and was only a few turns away from taking the histograph lead.

Still no GA yet - I hadn't managed to build the required wonders and then decided to delay it until the Modern Age, since I didn't want to slow the pace by diverting to MT for the time being.

[Aqualung71]

1730AD: Russia was leaving the rest of the world behind now in research, being 2 techs ahead of both England and the Aztecs. This was after diverting briefly to research MT and Sanitation at 4 turn pace while gathering cash. The former so Catherine could build her single Cossack unit. The latter to get a few mega-cities going for the Modern Age research wonders and SS parts.

From this point on we would become embroiled in minor skirmishes with overseas neighbours who couldn't accept that their demands for techs weren't being met - though these never amounted to much and only bothered us to the extent that we had to keep our Cossack out of the way.

Our military was small, which didn't help with the war declarations I guess. And our navy was non-existent - consisting of a single ancient Curragh. This would later be upgraded to a Transport to ferry a few Cossacks to the Mongol's sole remaining city conveniently located just off our western coast, in order to trigger our GA.