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So, I've been coming to the realization that the real key to this game is to be aggressive. Not aggressive like back with C3C, where: once you are aggressive enough at the start, everything else just comes to you via tedious paint-spill simulator mode. Not THAT aggressive. But truly strategically aggressive. Once you've hurt someone, you gotta be able to deal with the aftermath in Civ4, which is a lot more like real life. I gotta hand it to the designers on this point: the game is pretty good for balancing out the costs and benefits of aggressive empire building.

The first thing I did was get bronze working. Cost me a ton of start points, but anyway . . . that revealed bronze down on the far se corner of the area. I therefore put a city down there, and got wheel Tech. Then I built about 4 axemen in my second city, and two workers. Might have also given some pop points or something, cannot recall. Then I fanned out my axmen and pretty quicikly found Aztec scout (which I killed) then found France (which I conquered). No losses to me: dead civ to France. Then I steamrollered the Aztecs. That took a bit longer, but not too bad. I only kept the capital cities Paris, and Teotihuacan (which BTW was the Buddhist Holy City! ). Then I started picking on the Greeks. Unfortunately by the time I was roaming around their territory with my two and three City Raider promoted Axemen, they had archers. I pillaged, I looted, I rampaged, I burnt and destroyed . . . I explored . . . I got a Cease Fire. Next I picked on the Portugese. Snuffed them out pretty easy, and took Lisboa. That might be my one major mistake at this point, but not so much because of maintenance costs as because of how far away it is.

In the mean time I've built a couple wonders, The Oracle, Stonehenge, and have cities arrayed in such a way that a HUGE chunk of the continent is going to be wedged in between my expanding cultural influence. I'm at risk certainly of overexpansion, so I'm really trying to pace my city building at this point, but I'd say I'm off to just about as good a start as I could possibly hope for!

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Just recently discovered musketmen, and am now racing to found Islam, then Education and liberalism. I built Uni Sankore, Sistine, Parthenon, Statue Zeus, Great Library and a few others. I've had half-dozen wars with neighbors. All of these turned out in my favor, although at least half of them were surprise wars in which I fought from a strictly defensive stance. I've taken away about half dozen cities or so. Moved the capital to be more central long ago, which really did help with maintenance. I have stayed on top of the score graph pretty much continuously, and generally top on most of the others, including power.

My only problem is, being so big I've been constantly right on the edge of having my economy and science bogged down. I'm consistently about 3+ techs behind the leader, and one or 2 behind others . . . although I'm noticing they are racing ahead at the expense of certain side-path Techs.

Still haven't built a single ship! Unfortunately some of my rivals have already circumnativated the globe . . .

Having consolidated most of the land in the 'center' of that starting continent, and having repulsed aggression from most of my rivalrous neighbors I am hoping to settle in to a period of economic buildup and maybe through that and espionage catch up on Techs. Must resist the temptation to use my knights and muskets to take cities from anyone . . .

I probably need to found a few more cities too, but must be careful not to overburden my economy. If I can get this empire well-tuned, then I should be able to win.

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Holy cow! (little India pun there) I have been at war almost the entire game by year 1210. I have had 7 Great Generals. I didn't start any of those wars. I have never had a city with 7 Generals in it until this game.

I have slowly done well in my battles and have probably about 20 cities. Zara Yakob (spelling?) is a beast though and has 3 vassals already and is huge and far more advanced. Luckily for me, he is fighting other people. I am currently fighting on 3 fronts and my advance has all but stopped. The Portuguese recently declared war on me and attacked me with about 30 units. I had superior units, but against those numbers, I lost a city so far.

I was trying to retake it before bed, but thats what I told myself a while ago, so I think I'd better go to bed. This game has been quite a challenge for me and pretty darn fun.

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I really thought this game speed would get boring for me but it actually allows you some time to think.  I spent the pregame money on Meditation so I could monopolize the two early religions which has worked out well so far.  I'm not to the AD's yet and was getting complacent.  I plopped a city next to one of France's cities and they almost immediately declared war on me.  They levelled the city and sent loads of Swords into my territory.  Luckilly I had built up enough axes to keep them off.  They stuck to the forests but I laid a trap by setting a huge stack of axes on plains.  They attacked and lost every single unit.  I then sent my healthy ones and took that frenchy city of theirs I origionally plopped next to.  I checked and I have not been expanding fast enough so I'm sending settlers in some of the remaining "empty" areas.  My cities are pretty darn impressive though.  After my last war I've gone into war mode so we'll see where that takes me.  Gonna need to take that French Iron city though. 

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I now have an 8th Great General in Delhi and am 1/2 way to a 9th. With barracks, stable, & the 2 civics that added unit-experience (the names escape me at the moment), my capital was cranking out some VERY nicely experienced units. I wonder if I will be at war for the rest of this game. Funny that INDIA of all civs, is the one where I have 8 Great Generals. Maybe I can found Fascism and get a 9th or 10th that way.

Justinian was a stubborn dude and would not capitulate. I was really experiencing war weariness badly (16 frowny faces in my capital from war weariness alone). I dropped him down to 3 cities before he capitulated. (He started it! NA NA~) I left Brennus alone for centuries and once in a while he would throw several units away on my 2 neighboring cities which were very stoutly defended. Otherwise, I ignored him. After Justinian capitulated, I have moved some forces to him, but not very many. I hope to drop him a city or 2 and have him capitulate as he was Justinian's vassal just a century ago. Soon.

Joao threw a LOT of units at me and it was costly for me. He actually had me a little scared for a while. I cranked out a lot of units and have taken 3 cities of his and have him reeling as I am steadily advancing on other cities. He is in trouble now...

Zara Yakob is still huge and far more advanced than anyone. He is scarily advanced for the year. I will have my work cut out with him and his 3 vassals (not at war now, though). Surprisingly, I think I'm in 2nd in techs, though several behind him.

On top of having 8 Great Generals so far, I have also had about a dozen units of 50+ experience. I don't think I've had but maybe 1 that experienced in the past, let alone so many in 1 game. I lost a couple of War Elephants taking a city that had over 60 XP. OUCH! That was like 2 stain glassed windows destroyed. I cried. Well, okay, no.