posted 12-20-07 11:49 AM EDT (US)
After playing several games with Portugal, and getting bored with a turtle-type game style, I decided to try a more aggressive style of play. I've tried this strategy only a handful of times, so it is a bit crude and un-perfected, and bears a great resemblance to the Portuguese Musketeer Rush written by hellblazer970, but with some differences (mind you, I had no clue of his strategy until after I searched for strategies similar to mine).
Now, the neat part about this strategy is that it does not necessarily have to be used as the format for a rush. It is basically just a short two age build order with a few cards. It is easily malleable to fit any particular game style or opponent, and can be successfully done at a very low Home City Level.
Also - I have made this description as simple as I can - I know that not all of you need it so basic, but I feel that there are a lot of players out there who like/need it this way.
Cards Needed:
300 Wood
600 Wood
8 Crossbowmen
6 Musketeers
As you begin, place two of your villagers on the food crates, and your other five villagers on local hunts. After your food crates have been gathered, place one of the villagers onto hunts with the rest, cue up as many villagers as you can, and place the Town Center gather point on the animals that you are hunting. Place your other crate villager on the wood crate(s). As soon as he is finished gathering all those, make him build as many houses as your current wood stockpile allows. You will need them. As soon as he is finished doing that, place him on the food as well. Keep creating villagers and putting them on food until you have a total of 12.
While you are doing all that, you will need to have your explorer, well, exploring. For the first minute of game play, have him move in complete circles around your town, getting all the smaller treasures that you can - but don't get him killed! Around the 1:30 mark, start moving him towards your opponent. Don't walk strait through his town center, but do circles around his town as well, finding where his huntables are, where the big clumps of wood are, and where the mines are. Choose either the left side or the right side of his town, and focus more on that one than the other - as you need to find a good place for a barracks.
When your first shipment becomes available, choose the three hundred wood. Once it arrives, don't get it just yet.
Sometime around 2:30 to 3:15, or even earlier, you should get your 800 food for aging up. Choose the 500 food age-up. Immediately after you start the age-up process, take one villager, and send him to the side of the map near your opponent that your explorer is scouting. Take two other villagers, and task them with gathering your wood crates that you had sent. Once they are done, task them on gathering wood.
You should have, at this moment:
9 Villagers on food
2 Villagers on wood
1 Villager walking
When the age-up occurs:
1. Have your "walking" villager start building a barracks as close to your opponent as you can.
2. You should have a second shipment available - send the 8 Crossbows.
3. Take one of your hunting villagers and make a house, then place him on the 500 food that arrived with age-up. After he is done there, place him on wood.
4. You have a town center wagon. Place it next to your existing Town Center, but not too close. Task both TC's on making villagers, with both gather points on wood.
After your barracks is created, start making crossbows. You will probably be able to make 2, might be able to squeeze out three, possibly four, and if you are really lucky, five. It all depends on if you were able to gather extra treasure, and how well you managed your villagers earlier.
Now, it's up to you. You will probably have 10 to 11 crossbows available for attack at the 5:00 to 5:30 mark. If your initial attacks are successful, you will probably be able to send two more shipments rather quickly: first the 6 musketeers, and secondly, the 600 wood, which will help a lot with the crossbow production.
Other things to consider:
Your opponent will probably rush. If you find out from scouting that he has already placed a forward barracks, your best bet is instead of placing your barracks near his town, place it in yours, so as to better defend against the probable onslaught.
If you are lucky to find that he is not rushing, be careful where you place your barracks. Placing it near a source of food, coin, or even a trading post is great for defense purposes, but will be much easier to find naturally by your opponent with his villagers. If you know that he knows you're there, place the barracks near the resources. But, if he doesn't know you are there, place it somewhere where there is nothing of significance.
Good Luck.
(If you find an error in my writing, grammatical or game-wise, please tell me. Thanks!)
Foy
"Gerald began--but was interrupted by a piercing whistle which cost him ten percent of his hearing permanently, as it did everyone else in a ten-mile radius of the eruption, not that it mattered much because for them "permanently" meant the next ten minutes or so until buried by searing lava or suffocated by choking ash--to pee." ---- Jim Gleeson, Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest Grand Prize Winner of 2007
Now, the neat part about this strategy is that it does not necessarily have to be used as the format for a rush. It is basically just a short two age build order with a few cards. It is easily malleable to fit any particular game style or opponent, and can be successfully done at a very low Home City Level.
Also - I have made this description as simple as I can - I know that not all of you need it so basic, but I feel that there are a lot of players out there who like/need it this way.
300 Wood
600 Wood
8 Crossbowmen
6 Musketeers
As you begin, place two of your villagers on the food crates, and your other five villagers on local hunts. After your food crates have been gathered, place one of the villagers onto hunts with the rest, cue up as many villagers as you can, and place the Town Center gather point on the animals that you are hunting. Place your other crate villager on the wood crate(s). As soon as he is finished gathering all those, make him build as many houses as your current wood stockpile allows. You will need them. As soon as he is finished doing that, place him on the food as well. Keep creating villagers and putting them on food until you have a total of 12.
While you are doing all that, you will need to have your explorer, well, exploring. For the first minute of game play, have him move in complete circles around your town, getting all the smaller treasures that you can - but don't get him killed! Around the 1:30 mark, start moving him towards your opponent. Don't walk strait through his town center, but do circles around his town as well, finding where his huntables are, where the big clumps of wood are, and where the mines are. Choose either the left side or the right side of his town, and focus more on that one than the other - as you need to find a good place for a barracks.
When your first shipment becomes available, choose the three hundred wood. Once it arrives, don't get it just yet.
Sometime around 2:30 to 3:15, or even earlier, you should get your 800 food for aging up. Choose the 500 food age-up. Immediately after you start the age-up process, take one villager, and send him to the side of the map near your opponent that your explorer is scouting. Take two other villagers, and task them with gathering your wood crates that you had sent. Once they are done, task them on gathering wood.
You should have, at this moment:
When the age-up occurs:
After your barracks is created, start making crossbows. You will probably be able to make 2, might be able to squeeze out three, possibly four, and if you are really lucky, five. It all depends on if you were able to gather extra treasure, and how well you managed your villagers earlier.
Now, it's up to you. You will probably have 10 to 11 crossbows available for attack at the 5:00 to 5:30 mark. If your initial attacks are successful, you will probably be able to send two more shipments rather quickly: first the 6 musketeers, and secondly, the 600 wood, which will help a lot with the crossbow production.
Other things to consider:
Your opponent will probably rush. If you find out from scouting that he has already placed a forward barracks, your best bet is instead of placing your barracks near his town, place it in yours, so as to better defend against the probable onslaught.
If you are lucky to find that he is not rushing, be careful where you place your barracks. Placing it near a source of food, coin, or even a trading post is great for defense purposes, but will be much easier to find naturally by your opponent with his villagers. If you know that he knows you're there, place the barracks near the resources. But, if he doesn't know you are there, place it somewhere where there is nothing of significance.
Good Luck.
(If you find an error in my writing, grammatical or game-wise, please tell me. Thanks!)
Foy
"Gerald began--but was interrupted by a piercing whistle which cost him ten percent of his hearing permanently, as it did everyone else in a ten-mile radius of the eruption, not that it mattered much because for them "permanently" meant the next ten minutes or so until buried by searing lava or suffocated by choking ash--to pee." ---- Jim Gleeson, Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest Grand Prize Winner of 2007
[This message has been edited by Foy Lyndstrom (edited 12-20-2007 @ 02:20 PM).]
