What can I possibly think about this game, before opening it? No clues, special rules, whatsoever. I can only say I'm looking forward to the report day!
Are you kidding me? What can I possibly think about this game, before opening it? No clues, special rules, whatsoever. I can only say I'm looking forward to the report day!
So, we get the lovely Elizabeth of England to play. She's one of my favourites leaders, both traits are very powerful, and tech-wise it's one of the best combinations available. I get two warriors to start - a warning to be careful, or a suggestion to go with a Worker First? I'll have the latter, thanks 
. Research to agriculture, so the rice gets improved ASAP. Gems and some nice hills are sweet for wonders, I could try the pyramids this time.
Turn two, I find stone! Ok, the first goal of the game is set. Turn three, I pop a hut in the north and get Agriculture for free! Bronze Working now 
. The bad news is that we're on the edge of the pangaea, but surrounded by civs.
Saladin's mainland found, it's very close. He's the first victim of the game... Maybe I'm being a bit over-confident here? As Iron Working comes in, I start the Wheel. Fail to change London's production when it gets the chop, so it goes on barracks instead of a worker. Now I'm planning to found a second city by the stone+iron, and then chop an army to conquer a couple nations. Saladin could wait, as he's got iron too.
Around 2000 BC, only Tokugawa and Mao still haven't appeared yet. This is good! The most aggressive AIs away from me! After the Wheel comes Pottery, and a settler follows the second worker. The two slaves are chopping around to speed up the building. I want to pop the second city as soon as possible, and I'm pretty sure I'll get it the way I want, since it's been quite my only first goal. Right.
What?
I hate Mansa Musa! 
Couldn't he find a worse spot for his second city? This prevents me from picking that city spot I had chosen as my second location, makes me lose the stone and probably the Pyramids, settling somewhere else in my dotmap will lose me the Iron, and all I can see is useless jungle. Now I understand why there was the rule of peace until 1000 BC! I can't declare on Mansa anyway, however, as I've got no metal and he has Skirmishers. Argh! Lost the city by ONE turn (my settler is already in place)!!! York is founded two tiles south, by that time Saladin has founded right next to me too! Why are they pushing so far away from their capital? Do they know about the variant rule???
Masonry comes in, going for hunting-archery. The Pyramids look good at the moment, but York will have all the expansion weight for some time. I have to build a third city, but where? The map is already quite filled here! I manage to find a decent spot to plop Nottingham:
Notice that the pyramids are almost finished. After that, there will be some intense warring. I need some vital space!
