Thermopylae at A9

[Velociryx]

Yes to the WC question, would be my vote. And by the way NYE, do I have your permission to make an off-hand comment re: catapults & Pike at Ashari waiting? (in the trash talk thread, I mean)

-=Vel=-

[nbarclay]

Originally posted by notyoueither
Of course, what hasn't been calculated is the factor that they get to judge results before deciding to continue or stop. That makes the chances of them decisively defeating us higher relative to the reverse being the case for either Arashi 9 or Arashi, because the chance of them stopping after the 4th or 5th or 6th Immortal proving mortal is very high.

True. But if we can cripple them enough that we can defend Arashi and Tempest both against what they have left, we've won.

[Randolph]

Originally posted by notyoueither
That is the currently favoured thinking. We have 5 Pikes instead of 3. Fortified on hill behind walls vs not fortified on mountain. They do not know how much is there before they begin. They commit as much as they want to the meat grinder and hopefully only uncover Vet Pikes.

yes, certainly a showdown at Arashi in two turns is better than at Arashi 9 in one.

Of course, what hasn't been calculated is the factor that they get to judge results before deciding to continue or stop. That makes the chances of them decisively defeating us higher relative to the reverse being the case for either Arashi 9 or Arashi, because the chance of them stopping after the 4th or 5th or 6th Immortal proving mortal is very high.

Well if they're going to play that way they can do it at any time.

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by nbarclay
True. But if we can cripple them enough that we can defend Arashi and Tempest both against what they have left, we've won.

My hope exactly. they see the 4th or 5th Pike with their 7th or 8th Immortal and say forget it.

Originally posted by Randolph
Well if they're going to play that way they can do it at any time.

That is the advantage of the attacker. You can judge results and stop if they are going against you. You loose whatever you are prepared to, but quit before it is a catastrophe.

[Theseus]

Godd*mnit, I love havin' Vel around!

Guys, I've struggled with the same communication problem since I first started posting here (and trying to emulate Vel). Given time, I can develop a thesis and supporting logical argument... but I also have a computer in the back of my head that tells me *more*... "intuitive logic" for anyone that knows the Dorsai.

Here's what my "intuitive logic" tells me:

1) This is just about all Vox has got. There may be another stack of 3-4 Immortals somewhere, probably on the east coast... the big questions are a) does Vox have two east coast Galleys and b) are the possible Immortals in place to be loaded and delivered in such a way as to effectively / efficiently threaten our iron.

2) Vox may have a fair number of remaining Warriors to be upgraded... whoever their shadow supporters are, after the intial cash inducement, what follows? Clearly, Vox can't generate the gold necessary for the next 5-10 Warrior upgrades.

[Intuitive logic chain continues]

3) Whatever they have planned for the east coast, we can handle it.

So, if the above is the case, our moment of truth is now, with the two threatening stacks.

Does everyone understand that the entire map radius of EoTS must assumed to be known? And that Vox getting to Arashi 3 shows Tempest, and thus shows the equivalent of a chess knight trap?!

READ THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH AGAIN.

Sorry if I'm coming off strident (shades of Togas' issues... note to self: re-visit), but I don;t get what you guys don;t get.

Allowing Vox onto A9 is friggin' criminal.

Sorry if I'm STILL not communicating well enough.

One more thing: Aeson, the way you reported on the A9 defense test was a little bit unclear... do we generally preserve our offensive forces?

[nbarclay]

Okay, I've finished playing the turn other than maybe a final checkover.

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by Velociryx
And by the way NYE, do I have your permission to make an off-hand comment re: catapults & Pike at Ashari waiting? (in the trash talk thread, I mean)

-=Vel=-

My permission not required, but do you really think that would encourage them to attack? What if they turtle?

[Velociryx]

If they turtle, that buys us time, and makes ANY gains by their side even less likely than they are now. Either way, we win....

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

But....I still didn't wanna make a comment in public without your blessing, since it does give them some information (which they will, granted, not know the truth of either way). Still, it'll plant the seed....

-=Vel=-

[notyoueither]

Not if they win, Theseus, and the chances of them loosing badly are very low, because they can call it off anytime they want.

They attack and loose 3 Immortals in short order? They stop, because they know exactly what we have. They lack that knowledge at Arashi and could maybe be drawn into a larger sacrifice, while we enjoy better odds that they cannot decisively defeat us.

[Velociryx]

'k....and precisely why I wanted to ask before posting any sort of comment. I shall refrain.

-=Vel=-

[nbarclay]

Our upgrade brought us up to average relative to RP, but we're still weak relative to Vox. We have four pikes and a medieval infantry scheduled for completion next turn.

[Velociryx]

Ahhh, but to clarify, here's what I meant:

If I make the comment re: catapults, upon looking at the map, they'll realize that if we DO really have them in the city, we'll get three shots if they try and go around.

Three possible responses to this are:
1) They attack Ashari in force, which is what we want.

2) They leave the mountains for the flatlands (I don't think they're dumb enough to do this)

or

3) They pull back and wait for more reinforcements/more donations from their allies, giving us more time to build our army.

True, if they attack, they can call it off at any time, I'm talking about shaping their behavior more to our benefit.

-=Vel=-

[notyoueither]

I didn't realise that I was posting a reason to stay mum. Heh. two birds with one stone.

However, Vel. My permission is not required for anything around here. We are a team. A community of peers. Yes, we shoot ourselves in the foot from time to time, but that is the weakness we bear for the strength that we enjoy by our open, consensus based organisation.

[Velociryx]

Fair enough then....nonetheless, if the consensus is against making a comment, I certainly shall not. What say you?

-=Vel=-