To work out some final kinks (and to whet your appetite), a group of us is playing a VASSAL pbem of Through the Ages. The effort that Dave (Neumannium) has put into the module is incredible, as I am sure that Scott and Ray will confirm. Hopefully we'll have the module available for all to use very shortly. We want to showcase it to the designer and/or distributor to get the final seal of approval. Enough of the background, though. Follow below the story of our civilizations Through the Ages.

VASSAL Through the Ages (v1.32)
Player Order (determined randomly): Scott (qzhdad), Ray (valkray), Dave (Neumannium), Dale (Dmart)

Turn 1
* Aristotle, Moses, Ideal Building Site, Rich Land, Hanging Gardens
** Hammurabi, Revolutionary Idea, Frugality, Homer
*** Pyramids, Engineering Genius, Library of Alexandria, Frugality
Scott takes Aristotle (1).
Ray takes Ideal Building Site (1) and Rich Land (1).
Dave takes Hanging Gardens (1) and Homer (2).
Dale takes Moses (1) and Engineering Genius (3).

Turn 2 (Scott)
* Hammurabi, Revolutionary Idea, Frugality, Pyramids, Library of Alexandria
** Frugality, Patriotism, Work of Art, Alexander the Great
*** Ideal Building Site, Julius Caesar, Colossus, Rich Land
Political Action: None available.
Other Actions: Take Pyramids (1), build Mine- Bronze (1), increase population (1), take Frugality (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments:

Turn 2 (Ray)
* Revolutionary Idea, Library of Alexandria, Frugality, Patriotism, Work of Art
** Alexander the Great, Ideal Building Site, Julius Caesar, Colossus
*** Rich Land, Patriotism, Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade
Political Action: None available.
Other Actions: Take Library of Alexandria (1), play Rich Land (build Mine- Bronze; 1), increase population (1), construct stage of Library of Alexandria (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments:

Turn 2 (Dave)
* Frugality, Patriotism, Work of Art, Alexander the Great, Ideal Building Site
** Julius Caesar, Colossus, Rich Land, Patriotism
*** Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade, Christopher Columbus, Alchemy
Political Action: None available.
Other Actions: Play Homer (1), take Work of Art (1), build Mine- Bronze (1), increase population (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments:

Turn 2 (Dale)
* Patriotism, Alexander the Great, Ideal Building Site, Julius Caesar, Colossus
** Rich Land, Patriotism, Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade
*** Christopher Columbus, Alchemy, Masonry, Taj Mahal
Political Action: None available.
Other Actions: Play Moses (1), build Mine- Bronze (1), increase population (1), take Ideal Building Site (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments:


Turn 3 (Scott)
* Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Colossus, Rich Land, Patriotism
** Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade, Christopher Columbus, Alchemy
*** Masonry, Taj Mahal, Printing Press, Breakthrough
Political Action: Reveal Development of Agriculture.
Other Actions: Increase population (1), play Frugality (1), build Mine- Bronze (1), take Rich Land (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: No need to play Aristotle yet. Needed to keep corruption down, so I increased population twice. Hopefully, I can use the Ideal Building Site to increase infrastructure and still work on Pyramid.

Turn 3 (Ray)
* Julius Caesar, Colossus, Patriotism, Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade
** Christopher Columbus, Alchemy, Masonry, Taj Mahal
*** Printing Press, Breakthrough, Drama, Theology
Political Action: None.
Other Actions: Build Mine- Bronze (1), take Alchemy (2), increase population (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: Needed to increase population to avoid revolt. Where is that free population event? Sigh.

Turn 3 (Dave)
* Colossus, Patriotism, Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade, Christopher Columbus
** Masonry, Taj Mahal, Printing Press, Breakthrough
*** Drama, Theology, Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa
Political Action: Reveal Development of Settlement (Dave, Dale, Scott, Ray)
Other Actions: Play Work of Art (1), take Christopher Columbus (1), complete stage of Hanging Gardens (1), increase population (1), conscript Infantry- Warrior (M).
Comments:

Turn 3 (Dale)
* Patriotism, Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade, Masonry, Taj Mahal
** Printing Press, Breakthrough, Drama, Theology
*** Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy, Alchemy
Political Action: Reveal Development of Markets.
Other Actions: Play Ideal Building Site (build temple- Religion; 1), build Lab- Philosophy (1), increase population (1), take Masonry; draw two Military cards.
Comments: Trying to take advantage of Moses’ benefits for as long as possible.


Turn 4 (Scott)
* Joan of Arc, Efficient Upgrade, Taj Mahal, Printing Press, Breakthrough
** Drama, Theology, Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa
*** Monarchy, Alchemy, Irrigation, St. Peter’s Basilica
Political Action: Reveal Development of Crafts.
Other Actions: Construct stage of Pyramids (1), construct stage of Pyramids (1), complete Pyramids (1), play Rich Land (build Farm- Agriculture; 1), build Mine- Bronze (1).
Comments: Still holding Aristotle because I’ve not seen a Tech that I “needed” for the price. He may never hit the table.

Turn 4 (Ray)
* Efficient Upgrade, Taj Mahal, Printing Press, Breakthrough, Drama
** Theology, Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy
*** Alchemy, Irrigation, St. Peter’s Basilica, Work of Art
Political Action: Reveal Development of Religion (Ray, Dave, Dale, Scott)
Other Actions: Construct stage of Library of Alexandria (1), construct stage of Library of Alexandria (1), complete Library of Alexandria (1), play Ideal Building Site (build lab- Philosophy; 1), conscript Infantry- Warrior (M); draw one Military card.
Comments: Resource heaven! Create a Warrior to expend some resources. Hope the extra card capacity will give a little flexibility.

Turn 4 (Dave)
* Taj Mahal, Printing Press, Breakthrough, Drama, Theology
** Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy, Alchemy
*** Irrigation, St. Peter’s Basilica, Work of Art, Mineral Deposits
Political Action: None.
Other Actions: Construct stage of Hanging Gardens (1), complete Hanging Gardens (1), take Printing Press (1), build lab- Philosophy (1), play Fighting Band (M); draw one Military card.
Comments: I need to build a farm!

Turn 4 (Dale)
* Breakthrough, Drama, Theology, Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa
** Monarchy, Alchemy, Irrigation, St. Peter’s Basilica
*** Work of Art, Mineral Deposits, Printing Press, Warfare
Political Action: Reveal No Event.
Other Actions: Increase population (1), conscript an Infantry- Warrior (M), take Theology (1), take Alchemy (2); draw one Military card.
Comments: Difficult decision between Monarchy and Alchemy, but I think the additional science will be more beneficial at this point.


Turn 5 (Scott)
* Drama, Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy, Irrigation
** St. Peter’s Basilica, Work of Art, Mineral Deposits, Printing Press
*** Warfare, Alchemy, Irrigation, Monarchy
Political Action: Reveal Immigration (Dave benefits).
Other Actions: Play Aristotle (1), take Irrigation (1), increase population (1), play Irrigation (1), build lab- Philosophy (1); take two Military cards.
Comments: Aristotle made the board finally. I can’t believe that the first tech that I picked up didn’t happen until the fifth turn. I wouldn’t have predicted Irrigation to be the first one either. I’ll keep pumping out the pop to see how that works and Irrigation will help with that.

Turn 5 (Ray)
* Bountiful Harvest, Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy, St. Peter’s Basilica, Work of Art
** Mineral Deposits, Printing Press, Warfare, Alchemy
*** Irrigation, Monarchy, Theocracy, Code of Laws
Political Action: Reveal Barbarians (no effect)
Other Actions: Increase population (1), take St. Peter’s Basilica (2), construct a stage of St. Peter’s Basilica (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: No secondary production yet. Cycling blue tokens. Trying a second Wonder, not something I’ve done in the past.

Turn 5 (Dave)
* Frederick Barbarossa, Monarchy, Work of Art, Mineral Deposits, Printing Press
** Warfare, Alchemy, Irrigation, Monarchy
*** Theocracy, Code of Laws, Rich Land, Universitas Carolina
Political Action: None
Other Actions: Take Work of Art (1), take Monarchy (1), build Farm- Agriculture (1), increase population (1), conscript Infantry- Warrior (M); draw one Military card.
Comments: Not sure about my play this turn, but trying to capitalize and build my current Strength and Culture lead.

Turn 5 (Dale)
* Mineral Deposits, Printing Press, Warfare, Alchemy, Irrigation
** Monarchy, Theocracy, Code of Laws, Rich Land
*** Universitas Carolina, Genghis Khan, Code of Laws, Bread and Circuses
Political Action: Reveal Rebellion (no effect).
Other Actions: Play Alchemy (1), increase population (1), upgrade Lab- Philosophy to Alchemy (1), build Farm- Agriculture (1); draw two Military cards
Comments: My supply of resources forced me to build to avoid corruption, which precluded my ability to draw any cards from the Card Row (I also had to play a card to drop below the maximum hand limit).


Turn 6 (Scott)
* Printing Press, Warfare, Alchemy, Irrigation, Monarchy,
** Theocracy, Code of Laws, Rich Land, Universitas Carolina
*** Genghis Khan, Code of Laws, Bread and Circuses, Efficient Upgrade
Political Action: Reveal Wealthy Territory (Scott: 1; Ray, 2; Dave, 3; Dale, pass)
Other Actions: Take Warfare (1), take Alchemy (1), play Alchemy (1), upgrade Lab- Philosophy to Alchemy (1), upgrade lab- Philosophy to Alchemy (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: I should have upgraded a farm, probably, but opted for two upgraded labs instead. Still had two corruption.

Turn 6 (Ray)
* Irrigation, Monarchy, Theocracy, Code of Laws, Rich Land
** Universitas Carolina, Genghis Khan, Code of Laws, Bread and Circuses
*** Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall, Knights, Cartography
Political Action: Reveal Scientific Breakthrough.
Other Actions: Take Code of Laws (1), play Code of Laws (1), take Irrigation (1), play Irrigation (1), complete St. Peter’s Basilica (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: Will wait on a government change, opting for Code instead for the moment. Seems Iron was waiting in the wings forever, but finally makes an appearance.

Turn 6 (Dave)
* Monarchy, Theocracy, Rich Land, Universitas Carolina, Genghis Khan
** Code of Laws, Bread and Circuses, Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall
*** Knights, Cartography, Frugality, Iron
Political Action: None
Other Actions: Declare peaceful revolution to Monarchy (1), take Universitas Carolina (1), complete stage of Universitas Carolina (1), destroy Temple- Religion (1), conscript Infantry- Warrior (M); draw one Military card.
Comments: Need a science bonus, so I grabbed Universitas. Running into corruption issues, however, due to lack of unused workers. Need to do something about my farms!

Turn 6 (Dale)
* Theocracy, Rich Land, Genghis Khan, Code of Laws, Bread and Circuses
** Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall, Knights, Cartography
*** Frugality, Iron, Swordsmen, Michelangelo
Political Action: Propose Trade Routes Agreement with Dave (A: Dale; B: Dave; accepted)
Other Actions: Take Code of Laws (1), play Code of Laws (1), increase population (1), upgrade lab- Philosophy to Alchemy (1), take Rich Land (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: I was hoping to snag Universitas, but Dave got it: looks like I won’t have any Wonders going into Age II.


Turn 7 (Scott)
* Genghis Khan, Bread and Circuses, Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall, Knights
** Cartography, Frugality, Iron, Swordsmen
*** Michelangelo, Swordsmen, Knights, Revolutionary Idea
Political Action: Cultural Influence (not as much fun as Scientific Breakthough)
Other Actions: Increase population (1), upgrade Farm- Agriculture to Irrigation (1), take Iron (2), play Warfare (1); draw two Military cards.
Comments: Due to corruption last time, I couldn’t afford a temple, so had to make a discontent worker. Fortunately, that event is gone already. Since I couldn’t upgrade a mine, I decided to play Warfare instead of Iron to grab an extra military card and use the military as some defense. I really would have liked to take Cartography, but decided the extra military card was worth passing on it. Maybe I can get Navigation instead.

Turn 7 (Ray)
* Bread and Circuses, Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall, Knights, Cartography
** Frugality, Swordsmen, Michelangelo, Swordsmen,
*** Knights, Revolutionary Idea, Mineral Deposits, Warfare
Political Action: None.
Other Actions: Take Cartography (1), take Cavalry- Knights (1), play Cavalry- Knights (1), conscript Cavalry- Knights (M), play Phalanx (M), take Infantry- Swordsmen (1).
Comments: Almost entirely a Military build-up turn. Gruelling to see Scott’s one card draw being Iron…

Turn 7 (Dave)
* Efficient Upgrade, Great Wall, Frugality, Michelangelo, Swordsmen
** Knights, Revolutionary Idea, Mineral Deposits, Warfare
*** Drama, Theology, Knights, Bread and Circuses
Political Action: Reveal Uncertain Borders: Scott loses a yellow token; Ray gains one.
Other Actions: Complete stage of Universitas Carolina (1), increase population (1), take Efficient Upgrade (1), take Infantry- Swordsmen (1), played Work of Art (1); draw three Military cards.
Comments: Gah….really need to grab some upgrades to buildings…particularly Alchemy, Iron, or Irrigation, but my luck on getting these while affordable hasn’t been good so far. Need to finish Wonder next turn so I can focus on getting my science up.

Turn 7 (Dale)
* Great Wall, Frugality, Michelangelo, Knights, Revolutionary Idea
** Mineral Deposits, Warfare, Drama, Theology
*** Knights, Bread and Circuses, Iron, Ideal Building Site
Political Action: Reveal Good Harvest.
Other Actions: Take Cavalry- Knights (1), play Cavalry- Knights (1), conscript a Cavalry- Knights (M), play Phalanx (M), take Great Wall (1), complete stage of Great Wall (1), increase population (1).
Comments: Moses will be gone by my next turn: I think he served me well. Had to get the military respectable.


Turn 8 (Scott)
* Frugality, Michelangelo, Revolutionary Idea, Mineral Deposits, Warfare
** Drama, Theology, Knights, Bread and Circuses
*** Iron, Ideal Building Site, Irrigation, Leonardo da Vinci
Political Action: Reveal Reign of Terror (Scott loses one population).
Other Actions: Play Mine- Iron (1), build Temple- Religion (1), upgrade Mine- Bronze to Iron (1), take Michelangelo (1), play Fighting Band (M); draw two Military cards.
Comments: BGG is really high on Michelangelo, but I took him because I had an action left. I am really not appreciating the extra action from the Pyramids like I usually do. It seems like I have often not had a burning need for that extra action. I had to build the temple to keep the happiness up, but I’d rather have had a soldier. Unfortunately, the two events that cost me pop and a token made both impractical.

Turn 8 (Ray)
* Revolutionary Idea, Mineral Deposits, Warfare, Drama, Theology
** Knights, Bread and Circuses, Iron, Ideal Building Site
*** Irrigation, Leonardo da Vinci, Iron, Swordsmen
Age I ends.
Political Actions: None.
Other Actions: Take Iron (2), take Leonardo daVinci (3)
Comments: Opted to grab Iron and Leonardo. Expensive in actions with no resources used. Resources low, but ok due to no consumption/corruption from Good Harvest

Turn 8 (Dave)
* Mineral Deposits, Warfare, Drama, Theology, Knights
** Bread and Circuses, Ideal Building Site, Irrigation, Iron
*** Swordsmen, Engineering Genius, Organized Religion, Navigation
Political Actions: Reveal Developed Territory (Dave, pass; Dale, 2; Scott, pass; Ray, pass)
Other Actions: Homer lost due to end of Age I; complete Universitas Carolinas (1), increase population (1), take Irrigation (2), play Infantry- Swordsmen (1), upgrade Infantry- Warrior to Swordsmen (M), upgrade Infantry- Warrior to Swordsmen (M); draw one Military card.
Comments: Do I take Iron or Irrigation??? Well, I’m thinking that if I get Irrigation and can just get enough food going, I can consistently increase my population. I should be able to pick up Coal soon now that Age II is here…of course, if I don’t get Coal, I may be screwed.

Turn 8 (Dale)
* Warfare, Drama, Theology, Knights, Bread and Circuses
** Ideal Building Site, Iron, Swordsmen, Engineering Genius
*** Organized Religion, Navigation, Cavalrymen, Napoleon Bonaparte
Political Action: None.
Other Actions: Moses lost due to end of Age I; conscript Cavalry- Knight (M), take Warfare (1), play Warfare (1), construct stage of Great Wall (1), take Iron (2); draw two Military cards.
Comments: Winning the colony with only a bid of two surprised me. I still need to upgrade my farms and mines, though. I also need to get some more Culture produced.


So ends a full round of turns and the end of Age I. What will Age II bring? Stay tuned for the next chapter...