Noon of Time

Because Montezuma requested a "donation" from me in quite a rude fashion, I'm building up my army. I also had the Pyramids in construction in Karakorum, they were completed on turn 122. I then establish Ning-hsia to what might be called the south-western part of my continent, next to a nice river, and Old Sarai (I'm confused: how can it be "Old" when it has just been founded?) next to a source of iron in the middle of the triangle formed by Karakorum, Turfao and Ning-hsia.

Very soon after acquiring the source of iron my civilization enters the Medieval Era and I also complete my first National Wonder, the Moai Statues. This concept of National Wonders is new to the Civilization IV, too -- I hadn't even realized the concept's existence before I got the message informing me about it. Nice.

A while later I establish New Sarai (d'oh) to the southern coast of my continent. I also adopt the serfdom and vassalage civics that allow workers to build improvements faster and new units to receive some experience points, respectively. I also establish Samarqand to the west, south from Turfao.

I have now pretty much filled my continent with cities. I think any new cities would start to overlap with the old ones' areas or just have too many tundra or such tiles that it wouldn't be worth it. I'm also almost ready to attack the Aztecs to make some room for myself. I have been stacking units to Beshbalik, close to the Aztec city of Teotihuacan...