Part of the campaign:

Welcome back to what might very well be the last round of GHD Mk. 10! As the score stands now, Switzerland leads with 2 points. Albania has 1.5, while Vanuatu, the CAE, Sonora, Maurya, and Vietnam all have one. This means that with a tie Albania could force tiebreakers, or with a victory here could win the mark outright. Any of those other civs could force tiebreakers by winning this round. However, any other result will result in Switzerland winning. With that in mind, let's get started!

Second cities roll out! Nothing super unusual here, although that might be a new one from Switzerland.

It takes forty turns for a war to start, but as a bonus we get two on the same turn! Uzbekistan attacks Ukraine and the Central African Empire declares war on Ezo.

Maurya declares war on the Geats, determined to ensure that Beowulf finishes last in more than half of the rounds. At least the Geats have three cities this time.

The Aleuts join Uzbekistan (and apparently the Numidians) in attacking Ukraine. Tymoshenko is probably completely fucked.

Maurya takes Hrefnesholt while for some reason ignoring Lödöse.

Albania moves to absorb the CAE. I thinkI'm using the correct terminology here.

The Aleuts manage to grab Kyiv and then promptly make peace with Ukraine. Anyone else besides Albania will have a hard time getting to Kharkiv.

Battle breaks out in the freezing tundra as Qin attacks Ezo, moving to cut off the isolated city of Asahikawa from reinforcements.

Sonora joins the war against the Geats and is poised to capture Lödöse. I did say beforehand on the Discord server that Beowulf doesn't finish last this round, so I'll leave you to figure out how.

That same turn, Bokassa handed over Mbaiki to Skanderbeg, who razes the city.

As expected, Sonora captures Lödöse, becoming the first civ to reach four cities. Albania doesn't count because one of them is currently burning.

Not long afterward, Qin ties that up by capturing Asahikawa and then negotiating control over Sapporo in the peace treaty (however, Sapporo is razed).

The Aleuts reignite their war against Ukraine, probably spelling doom for poor Yulya Tymoshenko.

Meanwhile, Sonora might have overextended, because they're now facing declarations of war from Vietnam and Thayae Khittaya!

Out of nowhere, Albania snipes Kharkiv, eliminating Tymoshenko of Ukraine in 21st place. Beowulf now has permission to die.

Anyway, it's time for the turn 100 stats. Qin, Vanuatu, and Uzbekistan are all in the 90,000 club in military manpower.

Vietnam is producing the most food, which unsurprising given that their starting area typically produces the largest cities in this mark.

Production is extremely close, however, with Albania, the Aleut, Navarre, Uzbekistan, Qin, and Switzerland all within 5 hammers of each other.

More wars soon erupt near Ukraine's battered corpse as Albania and the Aleuts team up against Navarre.

Thayae Khittaya manages to break through Sonora's heroic defense (which occurred offscreen) and takes Cabo San Lucas.

Albania builds the great wall. Sure seems like Skanderbeg is taking seriously his position as the only civ that can overtake Switzerland this round.

Cabo San Lucas has flipped back to Sonora, but now Maurya and Newfoundland have declared war as well. William Walker is in big trouble.

Thayae Khittaya takes advantage of the situation to capture Ensenada.

Albania captures San Sebastian from Navarre. Let the flipping begin.

However, before they can flip it back, Uzbekistan and the Incas declare war on Albania!

Maurya makes its contribution to the war in Sonora, capturing Lödöse.

And Newfoundland captures La Paz, eliminating William Walker of Sonora in 20th place. This is the first civ that could have forced a tiebreaker to go out. If all of the civs that could overtake or tie Switzerland are eliminated, the round will end then and there without a conclusion.

Despite losing almost their entire attacking force, the Aleuts manage to capture Navarre's island city of Vitoria.

Thayae Khittaya decides to continue its rapid expansion, declaring war on Newfoundland. Edward Morris is already engaged in a bloody conflict with Vietnam, so this might push him over the edge.

Duttabaung easily takes La Paz, which hadn't built any defensive fortifications yet.

A background war suddenly jumps to my attention as the Numidians flip Adamagan. Not a good look for the Aleuts.

After many turns of grinding warfare, Uzbekistan finally makes headway against Albania, capturing Krujë.

Thayae Khittaya captures Mount Pearl. India appears to have joined the war against Newfoundland.

Despite the Numidians apparently winning the war, Massinissa gives up Auzia to the Aleuts in a peace treaty.

Thayae Khittaya takes Corner Brook as three armies close in on St. john's.

And India takes the capital! This unexpected snipe eliminates Edward Morris of Newfoundland in 19th place.

Skanderbeg makes peace with Uzbekistan by giving away Kharkiv.

Pissed off that Indira Gandhi took the Newfie capital, the Trung Sisters declare war on India!

Uzbekistan moves on to a new target: the CAE. Bokassa has a single massively fortified city—but will it be enough?

Vietnam quickly takes St. John's, driving India away from their opportunistic conquests.

Thayae Khittaya decides that it's high time to finish off the Geats, who have somehow been allowed to sneak past 20th place for once.

Duttabaung easily captures Skara, eliminating Beowulf of the geats in 18th place.

Duttabung then turns his wrath against Maurya, a move which looks like a case of biting off more than one can chew. Ashoka's army is definitely not to be messed with.

Navarre declares war on an embattled Albania, although it's not clear how Sancho thinks he'll get his forces through to take any cities.

Instead, Skanderbeg punches back, taking San Sebastian again.

The war against Maurya is going poorly for Thayae Khittaya, as Ashoka seizes Skara.

India agrees to peace with Vietnam, giving away Bombay in the process.

Uzbekistan captures Bangui, eliminating Jean-Bedel Bokassa of the CAE in 17th place and kicking out another civ that could potentially have contested Switzerland for the win.

San Sebastian is now back in Basque hands and Uzbekistan has declared war on Albania again.

Switzerland was apparently at war with Ezo, because Henri Dufour has captured Hakodate. Enomoto Takeyaki of Ezo is eliminated in 16th place.

Uzbekistan captures Tirana, acquiring the Great Wall! Islam Karimov is doing a great job of creating a powerful and dangerous empire—but if he goes all the way through with it, he'll be handing the overall victory to Switzerland.

Time for the turn 200 stats! Vietnam leads in military manpower, followed closely by Thayae Khittaya. Are the Trung Sisters building up for a run against Switzerland's lead?

Vietnam also leads in technologies with 26 techs, with five more civs tied at 25.

Uzbekistan has the most production by a decent margin. Vietnam is second, also with a large margin over the next civ below.

Jumping back to the game, Pachacuti has captured Durres, eliminating Skanderbeg of Albania in 15th place.

A war I wasn't paying attention to suddenly comes to a decisive end as India captures Cirta, eliminating Massinissa of the Numidians in 14th place.

Vietnam and Switzerland then team up against India. The Trung Sisters are once again on the offensive, trying to claw their war up toward that second victory point that could send the game into overtime.

The Aleuts soon join in as well!

Duttabaung decides to try his luck against Ashoka a second time. Thayae Khittaya definitely has a larger army now than it did before.

Uzbekistan awakens again to take down its next target: Switzerland! Eliminating the current mark leader will be a nice ego boost if nothing else.

The Aleuts take Cirta, which they had been trying to capture for ages before India took it.

Thayae Khittaya retakes Skara and captures Lödöse, then the two sides make peace. That couldn't have gone much better for Duttabaung!

India makes peace with the Aleuts and gives away Bangalore. Their capital is vulnerable to attack by Vietnam, though, so this might have doomed Indira to an early elimination. In the background, Qin declares war on Switzerland.

The war between Qin and Switzerland soon ends after Ying Zheng captures Hakodate. Henri Dufour gives away Zurich in the peace treaty.

Despite still being at war with Switzerland, Uzbekistan opens a new front against the Aleuts with Qin along for moral support.

Indira Gandhi's last gasps are pretty dramatic, as she manages to capture St. John's again.

The Trung Sisters then capture both Delhi and St. John's on the same turn, eliminating Indira Gandhi of India in 13th place.

The Aleuts take advantage of Uzbekistan's distraction and overextension, taking Kharkiv with a naval attack.

Islam Karimov finally cleans up his eastern front by capturing Bern, eliminating Henri Dufour of Switzerland in 12th place.

Vietnam now joins the war against the Aleuts, assisting Uzbekistan in driving them back.

Islam Karimov takes Cirta as Vietnam sets its sights on Auzia.

Meanwhile, Thayae Khittaya attempts to attack Maurya a third time.

A couple turns ago, Uzbekistan made peace with the Aleuts, receiving Kyiv in the treaty.

Vietnam keeps going, however, taking Auzia.

Uzbekistan then attacks Qin! Islam Karimov does not rest!

Zurich, isolated from the rest of the Qin empire, quickly falls to Uzbekistan.

Thayae Khittaya takes Hrefnesholt. Looks like this isn't the first time it's flipped either.

Turn 300 arrives bearing stats! Uzbekistan is now leading in military manpower, with Vietnam still holding second against a stronk Thayae Khittaya.

The Aleuts somehow lead in technologies, with Uzbekistan and Vietnam tied for second.

Uzbekistan's production lead is only getting larger, now with about 70% more hammers than anyone else. Thayae Khittaya has also overtaken Vietnam.

Vietnam does pick up another city as Agugux hands over Bangalore in a peace treaty.

Papua attacks Maurya from the south as Thayae Khittaya eats through the north, ensuring that Ashoka's days are numbered.

Thayae Khittaya takes Pataliputra as Papuan units surround Mathura.

Uzbekistan finally bludgeons its way through the Qin defenses and takes Hakodate.

Taxila falls to Thayae Khittaya. Somehow Papua sitll hasn't put a scratch on Mathura.

Vanuatu declares war on Papua, which will probably be a bloody stalemate.

And Papua finally captures Mathura, eliminating Ashoka of Maurya in 11th place.

Thayae Khittaya and Uzbekistan suddenly team up against Vietnam! This could be it—if Vietnam and Vanuatu both collapse, then there will be no one left to contest Switzerland's lead, and the round will end.

Uzbekistan draws the first blood, taking Auzia.

Meanwhile, Vanuatu has thoroughly crippled itself by giving away Mangaas in the peace treaty with Papua. Papua also captured Falesa with its navy while I wasn't paying attention.

Uzbekistan is still at war with Qin and is pushing on this front as well, taking Jiangzhou.

Thayae Khittaya lands a major blow against Vietnam by taking St. John's.

Vietnam loses control of another capital when Uzbekistan rolls into Delhi.

Qin makes peace with Uzbekistan, giving away everything except its capital.

Suddenly, Papua declares war on Thayae Khittaya and captures Taxila on the very first turn of the war!

A little while later, Papua has taken Hrefenesholt as well. Both cities are flipping freuently.

Vietnam has now had a few turns to recover and built up a new, advanced army with which it attacks Thayae Khittaya. Could the Trung Sisters actually come back from this?

Vietnam starts off by taking Corner Brook, which will surely flip.

Uzbekistan wins the world's fair contest with more than twice as many hammers as everyone else.

Thayae Khittaya makes peace with Vietnam after recapturing Corner Brook. The Trung Sisters' attempt at a comeback has failed.

Instead, they turn against a much easier target: the Blackfoot.

Káínaa falls as Siksikáwa drops to red.

But first, the turn 400 stats. Uzbekistan still leads in military manpower, and Thayae Khittaya has surpassed Vietnam.

Uzbekistan has surged into the lead in technologies, with Vietnam just one tech behind. No one else is particularly close.

Uzbekistan's production lead has ballooned to the point that it now has nearly three times as many hammers as #2 Thayae Khittaya.

Anyway, back to the game, where Vietnam has just captured Siksikáwa. One Blackfoot island city remains.

That city doesn't last long, however, and with its capture, Crowfoot of the Blackfoot is eliminated in 10th place.

Papua moves to finish off Vanuatu.

And Teouma quickly falls, eliminating Roymata of Vanuatu in 9th place. Everything now rests on the Trung Sisters: when they die, the round ends, and with it the entire mark. They are now the only ones who can prevent Switzerland from walking away with the title.

I missed the notification, but Uzbekistan has declared war on the Inca!

Durres falls fast, but Karimov will need to bring some more units in to get any farther.

Surprised I even noticed this—Papua has captured the random Basque city of Getxo.

Navarre declares war on the Inca, as if Pachacuti didn't already have enough to worry about!

The Basque navy quickly sweeps down and takes Machu.

Surprisingly, Uzbekistan makes peace with the Incas after capturing Tiwanaku. Cusco was about to fall too.

Karimov then turns his wrath against the Aleuts again. He really has a bad habit of not finishing things that he started.

Adamagan, which had citadels almost all the way around it, falls very quickly.

Anangula swiftly follows, leaving only the Aleut island cities.

Agugux gives away Ounalashka to Vietnam.

And Uzbekistan takes Chaluka, leaving the Aleuts with a single snow island city.

Suddenly, the east erupts into war once again as Vietnam and Papua team up against Thayae Khittaya! However, The Trung Sisters have made the make of attacking while they have their unique Viet Cong infantry, which can't capture cities. To make matters worse, the AI doesn't actually understand that, and as a result the Trung Sisters have only two land units capable of taking cities.

They use one of them to take La Paz, at least for now.

It's not all bad news for Thayae Khittaya: Duttabaung has managed to retake Hrefnesholt from Papua.

Duttabaung also recaptures La Paz while Vietnam keeps trying to throw Viet Cong at enemy cities and wondering why nothing happens.

However, they eventually start producing Marines, which can take cities, and the Trungs quickly knock down St. John's and Corner Brook.

A brief intermission for the turn 500 stats. Uzbekistan's military lead endures, while Vietnam has moved back into second.

Vietnam has taken the lead in technologies again, slightly outpacing Uzbekistan.

However, Uzbekistan still has roughly three times as much production as anyone else.

Thayae Khittaya continues to beat back Papua, retaking Taxila.

The peace treaty is a compromise: Papua keeps Taxila, while Thayae Khittaya keeps Hrefnesholt.

Uzbekistan commits to tying up another loose end and declares war on Qin.

17 turns after the last shot of this front, Thayae Khittaya has retaken Corner Brook, but otherwise nothing has changed.

And Uzbekistan takes Xianyang, eliminating Ying Zheng of Qin in 8th place.

Karimov dominates another international project.

Uzbekistan attacks another nearby rump state, moving to finish off the Inca.

But first, the Trung Sisters have negotiated peace with the Thayae Khittaya, receiving La Paz in the peace treaty and keeping Corner Brook as well. Big victory for Vietnam here, but it could have been bigger if their UU wasn't shit.

And then Uzbekistan captures Cusco, eliminating Pachacuti of the Inca in 7th place.

Navarre decides it's time to finish off the Aleuts, who I'm sure you forgot were still alive.

And Chaluka falls, eliminating Agugux of the Aleuts in 6th place.

Thayae Khittaya now attacks Papua in an attempt to regain even more lost land!

Taxila falls, but will Duttabaung's more advanced forces allow him to push farther?

The answer? Probably not, because Vietnam just declared war on Thayae Khittaya again, now with a much larger and even more advanced force than before.

Mount Pearl falls!

Lödöse is captured!

Papua seizes the opportunity and retakes Taxila.

Cabo San Lucas falls...

Pataliputra is captured...

Thayae Khittaya loses its capital!

Ensenada and Hrefnesholt fall..

And with the capture of Hanlin and Skara, Duttabaung of Thayae Khittaya is eliminated in 5th place. Absolutely incredible—the Trung Sisters really are trying to force this into overtime, and there's now a real chance that it might work!

38 turns later, we have the turn 600 stats. Uzbekistan leads in military manpower, but Vietnam's forces are almost as numerous.

Uzbekistan has finished the tech tree; Vietnam has six techs to go.

And Uzbekistan has about 50% more production than Vietnam. Credit where credit's due: the gap was waaay bigger than that only 100 turns ago.

Islam Karimov wins his third straight international project.

On turn 650, with both large civs at the end of the tech tree and my patience at an end, I declare world war!

It takes a few turns for anyone to capture a city. The first to fall is Machu, which Navarre has lost to Uzbekistan.

Vietnam takes Taxila from Papua.

Uzbekistan captures Bombay, but there's a capital loss in the background...

Yep, Uzbekistan has captured Pamplona.

Bilbao soon follows as well.

Vietnam strikes back against Uzbekistan, taking Bombay and Zurich.

Uzbekistan retakes Zurich then tries to make peace. I can't allow this, so I force war again.

Karimov captures Tudela and Barakaldo, leaving Navarre stuck in the same city where they eliminated the Aleuts.

And that city falls too, eliminating Sancho III of Navarre in 4th place.

With all of his forces now able to concentrate on one front, Karimov makes major gains, retaking Bombay and capturing Saigon.

Káínaa and Bangalore are captured soon afterward.

Corner Brook and Siksikáwa fall! bar a miracle, Uzbekistan will win this, and the overall victory will go to Switzerland.

St. John's is captured...

Vietnam does make gains against Papua though, capturing Elevala and Hanuabada.

But then the Uzbek storm rolls straight into Hanoi! What a devastating blow!

Papua retakes Hanuabada and Elevala but loses Mathura and Boera.

Vietnam recovers Hanoi but loses Corner Brook and Aapátohsipikáni. Mount Pearl has flipped, and several cities have been nuked.

Vietnam dismembers Papua, taking Hanuabada, Elevala, and Teouma.

Uzbekistan captures Hanoi and Hai Phong.

Vietnam takes Falesa and Uzbekistan appears to have taken Getxo. Papua is eliminated in third place.

As turn 700 rolls by, Uzbekistan keeps pushing, taking Can Tho, La Paz, and Mount Pearl.

Cabo San Lucas and Thayae Khittaya are captured...

Lödöse falls...

Pataliputra and Mathura are captured...

...Along with Teouma, Mangaas, Mathura, Taxila, and Ensenada...

And then with the fall of Hanuabada and Skara, Uzbekistan takes the round! That puts Uzbekistan at 1.5 points—enough to tie for second place, but not enough to overtake Switzerland.

So then, it's official: LastSword's Switzerland under Henri Dufour, a civilization designed to be passive and declare few wars, has somehow won Groundhog Day Mk. 10. Can't say anyone would have seen that coming.



As usual, I will immediately start laying the groundwork for Mk. 11. The suggestion thread will be a lottery like last time, where you have all day to submit civs and then I randomly choose 20 of them (I fill the 21st slot). I will post the thread at 8 p.m. Monday UTC (noon US west coast, 3 p.m. US east coast, 7 a.m. Australia eastern) and will leave it up for exactly 12 hours. All submissions must be in by 8 a.m. UTC Tuesday or they will not be counted. When the thread closes, I'll be on the Discord server doing the drawing live.



Thanks for reading, and here's to the next one. Cheers!