2-a-day Thread II

[alexman]

Two settlers, actually...

[Conqueror]

Well, i'll sit tight at Arbela and wait if you have the guts to attack there next turn

[jshelr]

No shame for the ironless Persians. The sad-sack Mongols failed to keep any heat on the western front, allowing the full weight of the Celts to come to bear on the civ without a 3 defense.

Alexman, well done, in any case. Would you care to replay and give us some more screen shots about how you used the fast movers together with the setters to outflank a massed defense? This bit of artistry deserves some space, IMO.

[Conqueror]

Originally posted by jshelr
ironless Persians.

The Gallic Sword is propably Best AA unit, if you have iron.Immortals would still not match it even if i've had the Iron. Alex just draw too good start and civ in this game for us to have any chanse without some surprising archer rush.

[alexman]

You guys played it very well to attack me when you did. My starting location combined with my civ were just silly. Even so, if I had not been preparing for my own attack, I would have been defeated immediately. You caught me by surprise and if I had delayed one more turn to hook up my iron I would have lost.

I'll post some screenshots later.

[jshelr]

Originally posted by alexman
You guys played it very well to attack me when you did.

I don't buy that, thanks very much all the same. Your game had to be exceptional to overcome the gang up. The complete focus on units, stopping all research after monarchy, allowed you to surprise us with the extraordinary number of GS you could produce so early.

So, we were too aggressive on the attack and got butchered, never to recover. We should have concentrated on one objective -- opening a coastal shipping lane to Persia.

Even without that, three civs could always have shipped iron to persia for upgrades before the war, declared war, and then gone into a defensive shell, forcing you to attack or wait for our research lead to widen. (That is both boring and not very sporting. We thought we could easily trim you down to managable size and lengthen the game. No deal.)

Anyway

[alexman]

Here we go...

800 BC: We take advantage of the previous attack on Arbela to fake another one.

Hopefully, our earlier comment about using the road to retreat will justify the presence of those three workers in the eyes of Persia.

Our 2 Settlers are in the fog of war for Persia. Hopefully the threat of an attack on Arbela will not allow them to spare a unit to scout, which would have to remain on the mountain/desert instead of defending.

[alexman]

775 BC: The three workers immediately road the tile, which allows the first settler to move and build a temporary city in the same turn.

[alexman]

All the units (except for the three workers) then move along the river, spending 1/3 MP. After everyone's through, we abandon Burdigala.

[alexman]

Finally, the second settler builds Cataractonium, which brings the two main Persian cities just in range of our fast-movers. Fortunately, Persepolis was not heavily defended.

[Rommel2D]

I don't get it- after abandoning Burdigala, shouldn't the tile where Cataractonium was founded have reverted to Persian territory?

[Conqueror]

Originally posted by alexman
Our 2 Settlers are in the fog of war for Persia. Hopefully the threat of an attack on Arbela will not allow them to spare a unit to scout, which would have to remain on the mountain/desert instead of defending.

I was thinking about sending a horse on the mountain before massing all the spears to Arbela, but as you had Elite units too, i didnt want to leave any unit on the open for you to generate MGL's. I must still have been half asleep not thinking about the settler strike. I have used that myself so many times ! Gongrats alex.

I don't get it- after abandoning Burdigala, shouldn't the tile where Cataractonium was founded have reverted to Persian territory?

Yes, but he moved units first, before abandoning. And then built the 2nd city, after abandoning the first one. You can build cities to others territory, just if not at war, it will cause one.

[Conqueror]

had i scouted, it would have been easy to prevent the 'settler strike' by pillaging my own road E of the mountain damn, i was too afraid of alex getting the MGL

[Krill]

alex, I want to say that I have never seen anyone improvise like that in my entire (albeit (so far) brief) life.

I sent the save to Conqueror to let him survey the damage...


Alex, what is your IQ? 200 or something?

[Conqueror]

I'm not dead yet ! Altho very close

Battle report
----------------
1. Vet Horse vs Reg GS @ Pasagrade -> wins, 1 hp left, 7 gold captured.
2. Conscript ! warrior vs Elite (wounded, 2 HP) Horse - wins, promotes, 3 hp left
3. Vet Horse vs Vet Spear (Archer freeshot misses), wins, 2 hp left
4. Vet Horse vs Elite GS (wounded, 3 HP), wins, full hp
5. Vet Horse vs Vet Spear (Archer freeshot misses), wins, promotes, 4 hp
6. Vet Horse vs Vet Spear, wins, full hp
7. Vet Archer vs Vet GS, GS retreats, Archer has 3 hp left
8. Vet Spear vs Reg GS (wounded, 1 hp), wins, 3 hp left
9. Vet Spear vs Vet GS (wounded, 1 hp), wins, 3 hp left
10. Reg Horse vs Reg Archer, retreats, (archer down to 2 HP)
11. Vet Spear vs Reg Archer (wounded, 2 HP), wins, full hp, 3 workers captured
12. catapult bombards Vet Spear - hits, spear down to 3 HP
13. catapult bombards Vet Spear - hits, spear down to 3 HP
14. Vet Archer vs Vet Spear (wounded, 3 HP) attack over the river - dies, alex archer promotes to elite with 2 hp left.
----------------

Now alex should not reach any city. Not if GS dont ignore the river movement cost
Very entertaining & educational playing against alexman. Last time i had this much fun & challenge was when defending myself against Sir Ralph in GS PBEM

775 BC to jshelr.