As always, I research Computers first - but it'll take 5 turns! :( At 100% science, I'm getting 2300 beakers per turn, but it'd take about 2420 per turn to get Computers in 4. I merge a few workers into cities and rush a couple outlying universities that never got built, but I can't pull it in four. Oh well. Everything else would come in four, after the Research Labs were built.
Ecology came as the free tech. Good, as long as it's one of the ones that go towards Modern Armor, and now we can build the Mass Transits that we need rather badly.
Wait, did he say Modern Armor? Yup. There's still points on the table for eliminating AIs and controlling landmasses, and I plan to get some of those while not delaying space. Why didn't I do it with tanks? I vowed back in Epic 9 that I'd never again go on global conquest with tanks and artillery instead of waiting for Modern Armors. I don't care if my opponents lack even musketmen. :)
So I have the cities build lots of tanks to upgrade, and upgrade them when Synthetic Fibers finishes in 1465 AD. I had some transports at the ready, and loaded up and sent out the armors, generally one transport holding armors to take two or three cities.
This is China in 1495 AD.
This is China in 1495 AD.
That's how you eliminate a civ while suffering zero war weariness in Republic.
Doing that also resulted in contacting France, and you can see by her opening line that this is our first contact, in 1495 AD while I'm researching Satellites.
France will have to go, of course. I trade her my territory map for her world map and 68 gold, and declare war.
Once again, I'm all alone... you can see here Alexander in the modern age with no contacts!
I got no Great Leaders against China, but did get two against France. The first one formed an army (I'd never done that), and the second one rushed the Heroic Epic right there in Paris. I needed the city to expand its borders, so why not?
I blast through the last few techs. I'm surprised when the UN comes up as a build option; I thought it would be disabled. Well, I build it anyway. To see what in the world would happen, I held a vote (just for fun; I'd reload the save after.)
Guess an AI that hasn't met you won't vote for you. :) But it IS possible to win a diplomatic victory in Always War. If enough civs happened to move units up to make contact on the same turn you build the UN, you could do it.
And look at all the goods I've got and nobody to trade with!
I considered conquering Egypt and occupying their lands, but decided not to bother. By now, I would've had to delay the space win by a little bit to finish that job, so I just went ahead with space and never even contacted Egypt. I had one last decision - whether to backtrack all the way to Navigation for Magellan's Voyage and another 3 points, but decided not to bother.
Space Race Win in 1590 AD, with contact with NO other civs at the time!
Some shots from the replay:
The advisor showed me with 64,538 national culture; I would not have had all that long left before triggering a cultural victory. Anyone who expanded at the same rate I did, but stayed in Monarchy, just might've gotten cultural victory before managing to launch!
