Playthrough - Manchukuo

Brazil's inactive now, so if Argentina had done this a week later things could have turned out very differently.

'Copium'? I don't do these strange drugs. By 'differently' I could mean either 'victory' or 'equally laughable defeat, but in a different way', and from the start I've known the latter was more likely.

DAY FORTY-FOUR

Let's see, I have... zero cities and zero land units (even my convoy got shot down). I'm not going to last past tomorrow, unless Germany is nice and gives me a city (I doubt it, because they've just gone inactive and would have to come out of retirement, assuming they were inclined to help me at all) or Argentina fails to root out all the islands I still own (which I also doubt, but that's more likely). On the plus side, I still have a few subs to annoy Argentina with, and my spy network managed to do this.


Fig. 149 The Qing spy network on its last legs

Well, almost. At this point I really may as well sell off all my resources to fund more, as I have no cities to build units in and no units to capture more cities, so I'm not trying to fund anything else.

The game also put this up:


Fig. 150 This is the first game I've been in where it even got to this point.

That vote is from me; it's in my interests to end the game while I'm still alive and technically in second place. I highly doubt the other two will vote, though, because they're in a coalition that can win in a walk from now on and they'd be daft not to take that opportunity, especially now Germany is an AI.

I'm still kicking myself for not taking a proper screenshot of the Qing empire at its height and it recently occurred to me to just go back through the newspaper for its map. It's not as good, but one gets the general idea.


Fig. 151 Not bloody bad if I do say so myself.

I'm angry that I've been reduced from that glorious empire to this pitiful state.

DAY FORY-FIVE

Australia has finally been hit by the Great Inactivity Epidemic. That leaves us with two active players, one of whom is unlikely to agree to quit anytime soon.

A few provinces revolted back to me, but no cities. I'm not prepared to spend gold on decreasing morale in one of my core cities specifically to get one back, but I almost wish I were.


DAY FORTY-SIX

Australia's back; the rest are not. The APTO coalition has been dissolved.

My spy network had the desired effect but it's stopped feeling funny or clever; to be honest I'm kind of over this game. Struggling in the face of adversity was fun while I was still able to do something about it, but the fun's worn off the one thing I'm still in a position to do.


Fig. 152 This is starting to feel like hollow revenge.

If the game keeps dragging itself interminably on like this, I shall skip to the end.

Not in any meaningful way. I'd still technically be in second place, and I'd get the corresponding gold payout.

DAY FORTY-SEVEN


Fig. 153 Well, I can't honestly say I wasn't expecting it.

In fact I wasn't destroyed; I had a few provinces and, somehow, two infantry units. I don't know how I acquired those what with not having any cities.


Fig. 154 Unnoble, 1/10

It's around now that I'd ideally be making some heartfelt, pithy statements about everything I learned playing a tiny nation, building it up to a vast empire, and having it deflate in days. In fact I had this great big speech all ready prepared, but you know what? I forgot every damn thing I intended to say and anyway, I'm far from sure my playing will be any better next time around.



Thanks for joining me on this playthrough; I hope you were entertained as I was. Thank you also to everyone who gave me advice. I'll be seeing you all, I understand, in the HWW. I may or may not tidy up my personal playthrough of that and post it here, depending on how much interest people show in seeing a retold game they were actually part of.
The Qing will return again one day, when I feel like I am a more competent player.

Barely counts as a second place. An intelligent Germany player would have kicked me out of the coalition by Day Three of the Manchu-Argentinian War.

I took the gold. That was all I cared about at that stage. And Germany got none, which satisfies me in an odd way.