Ultimate Power

[Sean]

Yes, it is one of the faults of Civ 111, it is geared towards a warmongering stlye. Of course it is important to have a military, but its taken to far in Civ 111. You should be able to have significant more success as a builder.

[Arrian]

For a while now, I have been seeking what I've termed the "Game of Ultimate Power." I have been seeking it on Monarch level (and will continue to seek it elsewhere), Standard Maps, Continents, 8 civs. I began this thread to discuss the game which I decided finally fit my definition of "Ultimate Power."

First, allow me to explain what I mean by UP:

- A large, productive empire
- Huge leads in tech, money, military force
- Just about all the Wonders of the World, with the ones I deem "key" built or rushed myself (not captured)
- The capability to do whatever I wish wherever I wish

I wish to have these things achieved by the end of the middle ages.

Why do I seek this? It's a throwback to CivII, where I could pretty much do this 9 times out of 10 on Diety. CivIII, however, proved much more difficult. I was always a "builder" type of player who rarely fought until late in the game in CivII. When I did fight, most of my conquests were actually acquisitions (spies).

I discovered that CivIII, once you get up to Monarch, does not really allow one to dominate the game via "builder" methods. If you try, you will most likely get beaten to various wonders or get attacked because your military is neglected. After some frustration caused by trying to play the game as if it was CivII, I gave in to the Dark Side. I went warmonger, playing many games as Japan, and now several as China (sparked by Vel's Industrious thread and the general Industrious vs. Religious debate). I still prefer Religious, but it just so happens that the Game of Ultimate Power was Chinese.

Oh, what a difference. I cannot overstate the awesome power of early war - in particular, early war that generates Great Leaders. This is required for Ultimate Power above Regent level (probably above warlord, for that matter).

I decided to post about this particular game in this particular forum (strategy as opposed to stories or general) because I want to discuss the way this game unfolded from a strategic standpoint, and the regulars here can be counted on to do that.

I freely admit that my search for UP involved many searches for lovely starting spots, as I had no expectation of UP without one.

Without further ado, the starting spot: