Congrats to Guderian the lizard with the victory well deserved!
Thanks to everyone for an interesting game! Especially thanks to those who remained in game even if they had little left to fight with. There is a big difference fighting a player and the spacelord.
I decided to fight this game allone with no allies. I changed my mind anout turn 20 when i found out lizard had 15-20 rushes. Since i was positioned in a corner and had engaged my 2 nearest neighbours the Collonials and Borg i had to look for an ally elsewhere.
In the end it ended up with an alliance with Casebold the Priv. not a race who can contribute much to the bird, but they can keep the rushes away and with Gorbies, SSD´s and rushes to be stolen we might match lizard. Also there was no way of winning the game if i allowed the lizard to overrun the privater. Casebolt and I agreed to join in a fight against lizard with rst exchange, fighting everyone else alone.
I engaged immediate at turn 25 to keep lizard occupied. Casebolt who had nothing to fight lizard with at the time was to attack lizard from behind with full force with stolen rushes, Gorbies and SSD´s when he got them.
To keep a long storry short, at turn 60 when casebolt had 5 rushed, 2 Gorbies and 4 SSD, a total of 81 capital ships and 117 planets he had still not crossed the lizard border, and was not looking like one who had any intension of attacking at all, only keeping a few ships in the area. Even worse he opened up two new wars against Crystal and Facist. There is only one thing to say TREASON!
Even if it was obvious that priv. had betrayed our alliance we both had an interest in keeping it look like we had it working, to keep the lizard away at that time.
About turn 75 where priv got 149 planets, lizard 125 and I 104. Priv. looking like he could take another 50 planet I let the priv. know that with the level of cooperation he was providing then there was no reason for keeping our rst exchange. Suggesting him to keep quiet about our break, so that lizard would not attack him.
I must admit i was really surprised when i less than 24 hour later got a message from the lizard´s asking me if it was true that priv. and i was cooperating no longer. I can only imagine Casebolt believing that it would end the military stalemate between the birds and lizard who had been there for 50 turns if lizard was told he would not risk being robbed. Completely forgetting that he was simultanious letting the lizard know, that the bird was no longer protecting his border towards the lizard and his lokis.
Lizard did try to breake the stalement up north, true, but only to find that the Bird fought him evenly point for point. In the end the crystal showed up, and lizard was about to break for good, but then the game reached turn 100.
Even if i was still fighting the lizard i got the score setled with the priv. as I in the last 25 turns took about 25-30 planets from the priv. in a blitch, dropping him from 186 planets to the 141 he ended out with.
Sadly i was right in my prediction i made when i allied the priv. that no bird or priv. player can kill a lizard with 15-20 rushes alone or end above them in score due to the superior lizard economy, but i tried really hard. Ending with 177 planets, lizard 161 and priv 141.