So I'm going to finish things off. I'll be using PTW to do so, as it's what I'm now used to. This is just me playing, but I'm going to continue the SG-style format anyway.

Have a look around. I thought my last game had a lot of cav. Whoa. We have somewhere over 20 parked on the doorstep to Babylon itself, as well as a whole bunch more in production. We're mobilized, and running maxsci on Electricity. Man, I'm SO not used to that at Emperor.

Let's get this party started.

1605 AD (1) - King Marius VI comes wandering back to the army. "King! You're alive!" cries everyone. "We thought you were dead!" No, they're assured. Just a minor flesh wound. Anybody wondering why it took the king all this time to get back to camp is keeping things to themselves for the moment.

IBT from 1600 to 1605, Toku comes wanting peace. I shrug and accept. We'll deal with him eventually, but not yet. Also IBT, India signs up with Babylon to fight us. They have chosen...unwisely. This breaks our silks deal, though. They also declare on the Aztecs for some reason.

All our cities revolt. There's nothing I can do about this, because somebody turned off the civil disorders popup. Ack. Well, we fix that one ASAP.

After some beyond brutal cav attacks on Babylon, we raze the city. Marius the Butcher's butcher bill is getting a tad lengthy. Too bad Babylon had Smith's - we could've used it.

Many of our ass border towns stop producing cav, and start producing settlers to claim the border regions.

1610 AD (2) - Much movement of troops, but not much else.

Well, sort of.

1615 AD (3) - IBT, a bunch of Bab cav come swarming out of nowhere after the Aztec city what got founded in the desert. Why the desert? Who knows. Must be oil there. In any case, I'm mopping that up, when out pops...

Woohoo! He gets sent to Toulouse and rushes Universal Suffrage right away.

Also, Border Fort founded where Ashur used to be, and a rax rushed ASAP to heal the Ever Victorious Army.

1620 AD (4) - The Babs still have a fair number of cav, and they're annoying, killing off some of the Border Fort defenders. Assorted Bab cav are mopped up, and we get healed for the push on Kish and Nineveh.

1625 AD (5) - Resting and healing.

1630 AD (6) - Electricity comes in, and we start on Replaceable Parts. 13 turns, maxsci. Yeowch.

Marseilles is refounded on the former site, erasing the pain of it's razing two hundred years previous.

We move into position for our renewed push on Babylon.

1635 AD (7) - Beth comes to us IBT looking for peace. I accept. Down to just us, Babylon, and India. Babylon for some reason isn't making peace for anything.

For some reason we didn't have an embassy with either Japan or England. Beth drops one on us, we drop one on Japan.

Strasbourg founded up near the ruins of somebody's city or another.

Kish dies, and we hear the laments of its people as they are dragged off in chains to work our mines and road crews. Too, we raze Nineveh and Magellan's Voyage. It was a close thing - our last cav went to 2 hp to take out a redlined Bab cav, but it dies, and the people go to our slave markets.

We French are brutal to our enemies.

1640 AD (8) - The Babylonian response is pathetic. 3 or 4 cav come dribbling out, only to be cut down. They're gassed. We're not, but it would be nice to end the war and take 20 turns of rebuilding.

We also give Monty 31 gpt and saltpeter for Medicine. Things you never knew about the Aztecs - no iron! No saltpeter! We're made once we get around to beating them down.

1645 AD (9) - Brest is founded on the site of Kish. The quite adorable single cannon we seem to have picked up from Nineveh is disbanded and a rax rushed. Assorted troops are moved up into position. We have an enormous army now - almost 50 cavs!

India will take peace, so we take it.

1650 AD (10) - I had been wondering how to deal with doing infrastructure while fighting the war because we were in mobilization. Peace cancels it. Woohoo! Troop builds across the empire are turned into infrastructure builds. King Marius VI dies of shock upon walking into a newly-finished temple.

A large fight erupts in front of Border Fort as Babylon moves up a whole bunch of cavalry, but they are all eventually destroyed with nary a loss on the French side.

1660 AD (2) - The very Hammer of God rides down upon Nippur and Ur, Marius at their head, and levels the both of them. Combat settlers are sent into place to settle the ruins.

And this is what it all looks like:

Babylon's ready to talk peace, but I'm not, just yet.

1665 AD (3) - The Hammer of God falls upon Uruk and levels it. Bordeaux and Rennes are founded in the newly razed gains.

1670 AD (4) - Consolidation and building. Our railroading is really flying on the backs of all these Babylonian slaves.

1675 AD (5) - We move into position on our next conquests.

1680 AD (6) - IBT, some Bab cav come out of nowhere and raze Bordeaux. Only a heroic rifleman stops us from razing Lagash in revenge (sucker had 1 hp, and killed 3 cav! 3!).

1685 AD (7) - We attack Lagash some more, and the elite Uberrifle kills our cav army! They must pay! Or...not. Everybody at Lagash totally ate their Wheaties - our entire attacking army is destroyed!

We dial up Hammurabbi, and peace is signed. We get a huge discount on Sanitation as part of the deal.

1690 AD (8) - Replaceable Parts comes in, and we start on Scientific Method. With Sanitation ours, we're light years ahead of the AI, who's reduced to following us up the tree. With Rep Parts and all those slaves, our infrastructure improvements are FLYING. Our rail net should be complete by the end of the next set of turns.

1695 AD (9) - MMOW.

1700 AD (10) - MMOW. After fifty years of rule, Marius VII dies in his sleep and is succeeded by his distant cousin, Thag, who reigns as Thagus I.

1710 AD (2) - All sorts of factories start completing. Pretty soon our core will have infrastructure again, and we'll go back on the warpath. Border Fort 2 is settled on the former Bordeaux site.

1715 AD (3) - Bayonne founded on the site of the Aztec ruin in the desert.

1720 AD (4) - We all love moving workers, right?

1725 AD (5) - Gandhi comes demanding Dyes. I shrug and give in. We'll deal with him soon enough. Bordeaux founded where Nippur used to be.

1730 AD (6) - MMOW.

1735 AD (7) - It becomes apparent that England has beat us to SciMeth. Unfortunately for her, we have heavy industry, and Beth doesn't. Too, we have an extensive rail net that's getting better by the day.

1740 AD (8) - SciMeth comes in, and we start on the Corporation, hopefully getting it in before ToE completes.

1745 AD (9) - Start ToE in Orleans, due in 14. Over 75% of our rail net is now complete.

1750 AD (10) - It turns out that Grand River, clear over in Iroquois land, can build the Iron Works. Well, ok. We'll get right on that. Decent spot, too - near our FP, and with enough hills to make it worthwhile.

1752 AD (11) - Among other things, our peace with Babylon runs out in 6 turns. In preparation for that, I begin swapping our cities off infrastructure back to cav. One way or another, I intend for this to be the last war.

1754 AD (12) - Much movement of workers. We swap a bunch of cities with complete or mostly complete infrastructure builds to cav.

1756 AD (13) - I accidentally forget about the Russians for a few turns, just in time to realize that England and India have completed their war with them in a rather decisive fashion:

1758 AD (14) - MMOW. Pretty soon. Pretty soon.

1760 AD (15) - The Heroic Epic completes in Tours.

1762 AD (16) - Our last turn of peace, one way or the other. The cav begin moving up into position. The plan? Declare, swap to wartime mobilization, and steamroll. We have multiple cities capable of producing a cav per turn now - shouldn't be a problem.

1764 AD (17) - The Corporation comes in, and we stop research entirely but set it to Atomic Theory for ToE.

And one way or another, this will be the last time we deal with Babylon:

Our first action is pretty tame - running over an outlying Babylonian colony. The plan? Let their cav come to us for destruction. The AI should be more than willing to oblige. First, though, we set our economy to wartime. Time to end it.

1766 AD (18) - IBT, Babylon takes back their colonies, but their masses of cavalry are exposed and ready for the killing, which we do.

1768 AD (19) - IBT, Babylon shows up with infantry. Oh hell. This will suck. Having no desire to take cav against vet infantry in huge cities, I instead switch any and all cav production to artillery. This is going to be a much, much slower war than I had anticipated.

1770 AD (20) - Grand River completes the Iron Works. Amongst other things, this means it can build anything available to it in exactly a turn, with the sole exception of Battlefield Medicine, which will take it 5. Aeeyah. Shocked by this development, Thagus I drops over very very dead.

In other news...

We pull the Atomic Theory->Electronics move, then decide on Refining as our next tech. Research is put back to full bore.

Just for kicks, our fledgling arty stack levels a Babylonian colony.

1774 AD (2) - Sometime during the leveling...

What I'd really like to do with him is rush Hoover's somewhere. That isn't happening because my bit of wisdom with the mobilization, so I rush Battlefield Medicine somewhere instead.

1776 AD (3) - In other news, we destroy some Bab infantry, and level another town with arty.

1778 AD (4) - Moving into position for some serious hurtage with our SOD: 20 cav, 24 arty for fire support, and 3 infantry for protection.

1780 AD (5) - Still moving into position.

1782 AD (6) - Our SOD moves to within spitting distance of Lagash. Marechal Charlemagne appears to direct our defense at Border Fort, before being reassigned to an army of infantry protecting our forming second SOD.

1784 AD (7) - Our SOD moves into position on Lagash AND Akkad.

1786 AD (8) - We build, uh, a lot of cav. And we beat on Lagash. A lot. It still doesn't fall, but it's hurting a lot.

1788 AD (9) - Among other things, we build a lot of cavalry. Too, we blow the hell out of Lagash some more. Arty's inaccuracy annoys me.

1790 AD (10) - IBT, our ironclad built to deal with the annoying Babylonian shore bombardment accomplishes its purpose by killing a Bab ironclad. We bomb Lagash ineffectively for a while. Of note, we're now over our 190 unit support limit.

1792 AD (11) - Our blowing up of Lagash finally works, and we rampage into the city, razing it.

1794 AD (12) - Among other things, we level Ellipi with our second SOD. Our first SOD makes a good try at Akkad, but doesn't quite make it. We also found Lagash over the ruins, and would take stabs at a couple other sites if we had the settlers - we don't. Fortunately, Tours and the three floodplain wheat are to the rescue.

1796 AD (13) - Refining comes in, and we start in on Steel. After fierce fighting, we finally take and raze Akkad, led by the great Napoleon, who goes back to Paris to sit things out for a while until we can rush Hoover's somewhere.

Of note, Babylon is down to what I believe are solely Persian cities.

1798 AD (14) - We start moving into position on the first Persian cities. We play around with Napoleon's bodyguard some:

1800 AD (15) - To celebrate the new French century, we level Sidon and take Dariush Kabir after fierce fighting - even 1 hp infantry can be harsh.

Babylon at this point has all but collapsed - each city individually is hard to take, but that's it - they have absolutely no production beyond the huge cities I've been razing. Too, combat settlers are settling the holes almost as fast as they can be razed at this point. Only one problem - wartime mobilization.

1802 AD (16) - We move into position to continue the slaughter, and found more filler cities.

Thus Babylon in 1802.

As to the rest of the AIs, they've been left behind clear back at Atomic Theory.

1804 AD (17) - We flat out take Samaria, which is filled with Persians most happy to be out from under the Babylonian yoke - no resisters!

1806 AD (18) - We move into position. On Bactra and Hamadan.

1808 AD (19) - Workers expand the palace in celebration of our captures of Hamadan and Bactra. Once again, the oppressed Persians welcome their French liberators.

1810 AD (20) - Steel comes in, and we start Combustion. Exhausted by the war with Babylon, a junta of generals takes control, appointing Napoleon as their head. Peace is made, granting France the two cities of Ergili and Gordium, the next in the path of the French juggernaught.

We also trade Gandhi ivory and dyes in exchange for Espionage, just because we can.

1814 AD (2) - Much movement of workers. Our people are so happy in this age that they spontaneously finish off the palace.

1816 AD (3) - 1828 (9) - More movement of workers than you've ever seen.

1830 AD (10) - All sorts of fun stuff happens this turn. First, Paris completes the Intelligence Agency. Second, Grand River is VERY impressive:

Third, Babylon sneak attacked India, and GOT AWAY WITH IT.

Nevermind the location. The success is amazing.

1832 AD (11) - Combustion comes in, and we start on Mass Production. For the record, the AIs are still back trying to figure out Atomic Theory.

1834 AD (12) - MMOW.

1836 AD (13) - I wonder. Hammurabbi's got his worker one turn from the edge of my borders. If I tell him to leave, will he declare? Apparently not. Oh well.

1838 AD (14) - 1846 AD (18) - Workers getting fewer... almost there...

1848 AD (19) - Mass Production -> Motorized Transportation.

1850 AD (20) - Well, here we are. Peace with Babylon is up. It's time. The generals grow bloody-minded, and one of them demands an audience with a terrified Hammurabbi to declare war. This is going to end now.

I even managed to screw up our rep doing it, too. Moved too quickly. But that's ok.

We move on Antioch, and almost totally level Pasargade, but take neither.

1852 AD (21) - Pasargadae and Antioch both fall. And, ooo... this should be interesting. England declared war on the Indians?

1854 AD (22) - We move in on Persepolis and Tarsus.

1856 AD (23) - Fierce fighting before Persepolis and Tarsus. Tarsus falls, but Persepolis has a lot of vet infantry in it.

1858 AD (24) - Continue to bomb Persepolis. There are a LOT of guys in there for whatever reason. The other army moves on Arbela.

1860 AD (25) - The Year of the Tank. Motorized Transportation comes in, and we start on Flight. As we continue to bombard Persepolis and take Arbela, we begin switching multitudes of cities over to tank production.

1862 AD (26) - Continued bombardment on Persepolis (best defender after 40 arty hits is still a 3 spot!) while moving up on Susa. One way or another, it won't be long now - I have tanks, and Babylon hasn't got any cities left.

And just to show me who's boss, IBT some Bab infantry disconnect my (4th) Oil.

1864 AD (27) - After intense bombardment, and even fiercer street fighting inside the rubble of the ancient Persian and now Babylonian capitol, we prevail.

You can see, too, that we won at Susa as well, almost rediculously easily, in fact. The end is in sight.

1866 AD (28) - We move into position on the last two Babylonian cities, Sardis and Tyre. Only a matter of time, now. A short time.

1868 AD (29) - The last unit in Babylonian Sardis, a regular longbow, dies, and we march into both Sardis and Tyre.

After the long generations of warfare, this message is one of the sweetest I have ever seen in a game of Civ:

1870 AD (30) - At the victory celebrations, all of the generals are quietly slipped something a bit...stronger with their wines. A distant heir of the Marian kings proclaims himself Marius VIII and assumes the throne.