Test-Chile
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Strategy Report: Test-Chile (Game in Progress)
Final Standings
The game is in progress. Based on the final score snapshot at turn 150, the standings are:
| Rank | Civilization | Score (T150) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vietnam | 1,413 |
| 2 | Chile | 1,408 |
| 3 | Iroquois | 1,286 |
| 4 | Bolivia | 1,220 |
No winner has been declared. The outcome field identifies Vietnam as the inferred leader.
Per-Player Strategic Verdict
Vietnam (Score: 1,413 — 1st)
Vietnam entered the game running a tall-to-moderate Liberty build, founding three cities quickly and establishing the first religion (Protestantism, turn 64) with a strong faith-and-culture-oriented belief set. Its Tam Giaiào ability — rewarding Food, Production, and Faith from Jungle and Marsh tiles, plus combat bonuses in those terrain types — suited a map with its stated Jungle and Wetlands bias, and the early Temple of Artemis (turn 37) provided additional momentum. Vietnam kept a relatively low city count through the mid-game (three cities at turn 75, with a tech cost multiplier of only 1.10), allowing it to convert substantial science into technologies efficiently. By turn 75 Vietnam had 19 techs against a 1.10 multiplier, and by turn 150 had 38 techs against a 1.40 multiplier — the highest raw tech count in the game at that checkpoint. Its military might surged dramatically late, reaching 2,567 at turn 150, second only to Bolivia but with far better tech support. The score leadership change from Chile to Vietnam occurred at turn 136, and Vietnam has held it since. The ongoing unhappiness from turn 143 to 150 (−6 at the last snapshot) is a real drag — it stalls population growth and applies a combat penalty — but Vietnam's tech lead and military buildup position it as the game's front-runner heading into the late Modern/Atomic era.
Chile (Score: 1,408 — 2nd, Human Player)
Chile played a masterful tall, wonder-focused Tradition game and dominated every era benchmark on the technology leaderboard (first to the Renaissance at turn 94, first to the Industrial at turn 126, first to the Modern at turn 140). With only three cities the entire game, its tech cost multiplier never exceeded 1.10 and its policy cost multiplier never exceeded 1.20 — far lower than any rival — making every unit of science and culture dramatically more efficient. The wonder haul is staggering: Stonehenge, Great Lighthouse, Great Library, Mosque of Djenne, Parthenon, Hagia Sophia, Hanging Gardens, Chichen Itza, Alhambra, Angkor Wat, Machu Picchu, Oracle, Terracotta Army, Globe Theatre, Leaning Tower, Sistine Chapel, Taj Mahal, Eiffel Tower, Tower of Belem, and more — many of which carry significant yields under LEKMOD rules. The Exploration policy branch (adopted turn 111) fed a gold engine that reached 211 gold per turn by turn 150, with 886 gold in reserve — the strongest economy in the game by a wide margin. Happiness was an extraordinary 54 at turn 150, the highest of any civilization. The civilization's By Reason or By Force ability gave it a free Great Admiral at Compass (received turn 149) and coastal tile-claiming bonuses consistent with its early Sailing and Great Lighthouse rush. Chile founded its religion very late (turn 149), which is a notable weakness — the Reformation belief (Apostolic Palace: +5 Food, Production, Science, Gold, Culture, and Faith from the Grand Temple) and enhancement beliefs were all added at turns 149–150, meaning their compound yields have had almost no time to accumulate. The brief wars against Vietnam produced no territorial gains and cost Chile units it could ill afford militarily. At turn 150, Chile has 42 techs — more than any other civilization — and 254 science against only a 1.10 multiplier, suggesting it can continue converting science into techs at maximum efficiency. Its military might of 2,853 is respectable but was built very late (a surge from 1,173 to 2,533 occurred between turns 143–144). The score gap to Vietnam is only 5 points, but Chile's tech lead, economic lead, and happiness advantage make it a genuine contender for any victory type requiring sustained output.
Iroquois (Score: 1,286 — 3rd)
Iroquois opened with the earliest era advance (Classical at turn 28), leveraged Liberty into a wide expansion to five cities by turn 75, and was the first to found a great city network. The Longhouse (replacing the Workshop) provided meaningful early production in forest-heavy terrain, consistent with the civ's forest bias and Great Warpath ability. However, the Iroquois suffered from repeated unhappiness periods — most damagingly a 13-turn stretch from turns 120–133, precisely when Bolivia was attacking — and fought two costly losing wars against Bolivia (losing 1 and 4 units respectively across the two conflicts while Bolivia lost 6 and 10, though the Iroquois was the defender and repelled both). By turn 150 Iroquois had 36 techs against a 1.45 tech cost multiplier, a respectable output but behind both Vietnam (38 techs, 1.40×) and Chile (42 techs, 1.10×). The religion founded at turn 111 (Buddhism, with God-King, Liturgical Drama, and Zakat) arrived late and provides palace-based and culture/gold yields from amphitheaters that benefit a wide empire. Iroquois trails in science output (181.95 at turn 150 against a 1.45 multiplier) and has not adopted an ideology, leaving it behind in late-game infrastructure relative to Chile. The 10-city empire has real population (68) and military might (1,736), but the long unhappiness windows and failure to capture any cities in its wars have held back its trajectory.
Bolivia (Score: 1,220 — 4th)
Bolivia's trajectory reveals a civilization that chose military spending over technological development. Its Honor adoption (turn 54) and Warrior Code policy provided gold-on-kill rewards, but Bolivia's two wars against the Iroquois — while it lost 7 and 10 units combined across both conflicts (the Iroquois lost fewer total) — yielded no cities. By turn 150 Bolivia had only 29 techs against a 1.40 multiplier, the lowest tech efficiency in the game; it entered the Renaissance era at turn 101 and the Industrial at turn 138, trailing all rivals in era advancement. The tech path was strikingly uneven: Bolivia researched Steel at turn 89 and Gunpowder at turn 101 but only picked up Writing at turn 139 and Philosophy at turn 144, suggesting a deliberate pivot toward military units at the expense of the culture and infrastructure tree. By contrast, its military might of 4,415 at turn 150 is the highest in the game by a very large margin — nearly double Vietnam's 2,567 and 55% more than Chile's 2,853. The Colorado unit (replacing Anti-Tank Rifle, with +2 Strength per 5 points of excess happiness) is not yet available (it requires Dynamite, which is not in the tech list), but Bolivia's happiness is negative (−1) at turn 150, meaning the Colorado's happiness bonus would not apply even if available. The Revolución Nacional ability (expending Great Artists improves Mine yields with +1 Production, Great Writers with +1 Food) has generated only three great people total (two Engineers and one Prophet), suggesting this ability was not a meaningful factor. Bolivia is in a strong military position but a weak technological and cultural one, making a domination victory its only plausible path — and that path requires converting military power into captured cities before Chile or Vietnam close out via science or culture.
Key Moments
Score Leadership Change (Turn 136): Vietnam overtook Chile as the score leader at turn 136, after Chile had led for most of the mid-game. This coincided with Vietnam's late-game expansion (two new cities at turns 120–121, two more at turns 140 and 144) raising its total population and score. The shift was narrow — only 5 points separated the two at turn 150 — indicating the race remains genuinely contested.
Chile's War Against Vietnam (Turn 57–64): Chile, as the attacker, killed one Vietnamese unit and lost none, but captured no cities. The war was brief and inconclusive. More damaging for Chile was the simultaneous multi-front exposure: Harappa and Baku both declared war on Chile in the same window (turns 62–64), and Chile attacked Bolivia and Iroquois simultaneously. A unit-loss spike of 3 Chilean units is recorded at turn 63, likely from this pile-on. No territorial gains resulted from any of these conflicts.
Vietnam's Long War Against Harappa (Turns 106–131): Vietnam spent 25 turns at war with city-state Harappa, losing 7 units while killing only 3 — a net loss. The unit-loss spikes at turns 116, 120, 121, 123, and 128 show sustained attrition. Critically, this war coincided with Vietnam's unhappiness period from turns 121–128, compounding the strategic cost: unhappiness suppresses population growth and applies a combat penalty. No cities were captured. This was Vietnam's most costly military engagement in raw unit terms.
Vietnam's Second War Against Chile (Turns 140–146): Vietnam, as the attacker, lost 2 units while killing 3, but the broader turn 140 context shows Vietnam simultaneously at war with Chile, Harappa (as defender), Wittenberg, Port-au-Prince, and Baku. The unit-loss spikes at turns 140 (7 lost), 141 (4 lost), 142 (3 lost), and 144 (8 lost) are largely attributable to this multi-front engagement. No cities were captured on either side. Vietnam's military might dropped relative to its late peak but recovered sufficiently to reach 2,567 by turn 150. Chile's military collapsed briefly (turn 142–143: from 1,435 to 1,173) before surging dramatically (to 2,533 by turn 144), suggesting a rapid production response.
Chile's Wonder Engine (Turns 39–150): Chile's continuous wonder construction — from Stonehenge at turn 39 through the Eiffel Tower and Tower of Belem at turn 147 — provided compounding yields that sustained its score, happiness, and culture output throughout the game. The Aristocracy policy (+15% Production towards Wonders) adopted at turn 57 amplified this further. The combination of a tall three-city empire with a 1.10–1.20 multiplier cap, Tradition finisher benefits, and the Angkor Wat free University (turn 92) accelerated the science output that made the National College (turn 100) and subsequent tech snowballs possible.
Bolivia's Military Surge (Turns 117–150): Bolivia's military might rose from 1,481 at turn 117 to 4,415 at turn 150 — a near-tripling in 33 turns — while its tech count only moved from 20 to 29. This reflects investment in military units at the expense of infrastructure, consistent with the Honor tree. However, neither Bolivia–Iroquois war (turns 71–77 and 120–130) produced captured cities despite Bolivia initiating both, and Bolivia's ongoing gold deficit (−29.57 GPT at turn 150) with 91 gold in reserve suggests its military is unsustainable at current scale.
Vietnam's Military Surge (Turn 150): Vietnam's military might of 2,567 at turn 150 represents a dramatic late-game buildup, supported by its Vo Khi (Armory replacement, available at Metal Casting rather than Steel) enabling earlier military infrastructure. The Viet Cong unit (replacing Infantry, available at Electronics) is likely entering or approaching production given Vietnam's tech path — it had Industrialization by turn 141 and Chemistry by turn 150.
Decisive Decisions
Chile: Adopting Tradition at Turn 11 — Choosing Tradition over Liberty set Chile's entire strategic direction: a tall, wonder-focused, culture-efficient empire. With the tech and policy multipliers permanently capped at 1.10 and 1.20 respectively (three cities), every science and culture investment went further than for any rival. Legalism immediately provided free culture buildings in the first four cities, and Landed Elite (+2 Food, +15% growth in the capital) accelerated Santiago de Chile's population. This single early decision enabled the wonder snowball that followed.
Chile: Building Stonehenge at Turn 39 — Stonehenge's LEKMOD effect (+6 Faith, +1 Culture, +1 Great Engineer Point, 20% reduction in tile culture/gold acquisition costs across all cities) provided the faith generation that eventually built toward Chile's religion, and the tile acquisition discount compounded across all three cities over more than 100 turns. It also signaled Chile's early production efficiency despite a small empire.
Vietnam: Founding Religion First at Turn 64 — Vietnam was the first civilization to found a religion, securing the strongest belief selection window. The Devout Performers belief (+1 Culture from Colosseums, +1 from Circuses, +5 Local Happiness and +4 Culture from Circus Maximus) and Dawah (+3 Culture and +4 Faith from the Palace) provided immediate cultural and faith yields. Being first also foreclosed options for rivals — Iroquois waited until turn 111 and Bolivia until turn 125, severely limiting their belief selection.
Chile: Not Founding a Religion Until Turn 149 — This is the most consequential negative decision in Chile's game. Despite founding a pantheon (God of the Sea: +1 Faith and Culture from sea resources) at turn 40 and generating Great Prophets as early as turn 63, Chile did not found its religion until turn 149 — the last religion in the game. The Apostolic Palace reformation belief, Religious Community, Unity of the Prophets, Salat, and Synagogues (effect unknown — absent from the lekmod.beliefs reference) have had at most one or two turns to generate yields. A religion founded 80+ turns earlier would have compounded enormously.
Bolivia: Adopting Honor at Turn 54 — Bolivia's pivot to Honor (with Warrior Code providing gold-on-kill and free unit maintenance) oriented it toward a military path that produced the game's largest army but the fewest techs. Combined with the Discipline policy (adopted turn 88: +50% XP for all non-air units, and a powerful Heroic Epic bonus), Bolivia built combat-capable forces — but never converted military power into territorial conquest. Every war ended in a peace deal with no cities changing hands.
Vietnam: Expanding Rapidly in the Late Game (Turns 120–144) — Vietnam founded four cities in the span of turns 120–144, growing from 5 to 9 cities. While this raised both the tech and policy cost multipliers (from 1.20/1.40 to 1.40/1.80), it also directly grew Vietnam's population, score, and production base. The trade-off appears worth it given Vietnam's score leadership — but the resulting unhappiness periods (turns 121–128 and 143–150, with −6 happiness at the last snapshot) represent a real ongoing cost.
Chile: Adopting Exploration at Turn 111 — The Exploration branch, culminating in Maritime Infrastructure (+2 production in every city, +50% toward harbor-related buildings), Colonialism (free workers and population in newly settled cities — though Chile had already settled all its cities), Naval Tradition (+1 happiness and culture from maritime buildings), and Economic Union (all cities gain +5% gold per city-state trade route, +2 trade routes), built the gold engine reaching 211 GPT by turn 150. At turn 150 Chile had alliances with Wittenberg, Cahokia, Harappa, Baku, Port-au-Prince, and Maseru — city-state relationships that directly fed the Economic Union gold multiplier. This economic infrastructure is likely Chile's path to funding a late-game production or diplomatic surge.
Counterfactuals
Chile founding its religion earlier: If Chile had used one of its three Great Prophets (the first appeared at turn 63) to found a religion then, rather than waiting until turn 149, the beliefs selected — God of the Sea, Salat, and potentially the same enhancement and reformation beliefs — would have compounded for over 80 turns. Salat alone (+4 Production from the Palace) is a constant yield; over 85 turns it represents 340 cumulative production. Religious Community (+1% production per follower, up to +10%) spreading through Chile's dense, high-population cities could have meaningfully accelerated wonder construction or unit production throughout the mid-game.
Bolivia capturing even one city from the Iroquois: Bolivia attacked Iroquois twice (turns 71–77 and 120–130) with the largest military in the game. In both wars it lost more units than it gained (6 lost vs. 1 killed in the first; 10 lost vs. 4 killed in the second) and captured nothing. A successful city capture would have triggered the LEKMOD Spoils of War rule — gaining a free technology already researched by the defender — and given Bolivia territorial gains that its wide empire needed to sustain relevance. More importantly, cities provide production and science bases; Bolivia's tech deficit (29 techs at turn 150) is a structural weakness that a captured city with Iroquois infrastructure could have partially addressed.
Vietnam consolidating rather than multi-front warring (Turn 140): Vietnam simultaneously attacked Chile, Wittenberg, Harappa (as defender), Port-au-Prince (as defender), and Baku (as defender) beginning around turn 140. The resulting unit losses (7 at turn 140, 4 at turn 141, 3 at turn 142, 8 at turn 144) were severe, and the unhappiness period from turn 143 to 150 suggests the war strained its empire. If Vietnam had focused military pressure on a single city-state or on Bolivia's underdeveloped cities — which had no walls and a tech-lagging garrison — it might have captured territory without the same attrition cost.
Iroquois adopting a more focused tech path: Iroquois reached a wide 10-city empire but its tech path shows significant gaps — Sailing was not researched until turn 119, Printing Press not until turn 128, and it never entered the Modern era by turn 150. A more deliberate prioritization of Science infrastructure (Universities, National College) earlier in the mid-game, rather than the broad military buildup, could have put Iroquois in contention with Vietnam and Chile technologically. Instead, its 36 techs at a 1.45 multiplier places it clearly behind both.
Conclusion
This game is defined by the tension between Chile's unmatched technological and economic efficiency — built on a three-city Tradition foundation with the game's lowest multipliers and an extraordinary wonder collection — and Vietnam's superior population, later tech count, and late-game military buildup that has narrowly pushed it into the score lead as of turn 150. Chile leads in techs (42 to Vietnam's 38), gold output (211 GPT to Vietnam's 11), happiness (54 to Vietnam's −6), and research efficiency given its low multipliers, while Vietnam leads in score (by 5 points), population (72 to Chile's 57), and military might (2,567 to Chile's 2,853 — the two are closely matched). Bolivia possesses the game's largest army by a wide margin (4,415 military might) but is dangerously far behind technologically and economically, making a domination victory difficult to execute before its opponents' tech advantage translates into more powerful units. Iroquois is structurally out of the race unless Bolivia is eliminated and Iroquois can absorb its territory. Looking forward, Chile is best positioned for a science or cultural victory given its tech lead, economic reserves, and the now-active production bonuses from its finally-founded religion; Vietnam is best positioned to leverage its population and military for continued score leadership or a domination push — but its ongoing unhappiness at −6 is a meaningful constraint that must be resolved before that path becomes efficient.