The League (my Empire) surrenders to Joachim after 48 turns and the arrival of two enemy fleets in my systems. He has more ships, more planets, more resources (even if I may have better ships, but they won't turn the tables on their own), and I cannot hope to get back to the offensive.
My main mistake was to delay mines for too long, allowing him to strike at random in my Empire, and these mines would have allowed me to take perhaps an additional system here or even two. In a galaxy with less than twenty systems, quite a few non-colonizable, it would have been welcomed. Since then I was fighting to catch up, but I was too far behind to really stand much of a chance as highlighted by the current battle results.
So Joachim will have to challenge the King. May Lady Luck shine on Joachim, for he will need it.
[ December 18, 2003, 14:42: Message edited by: Alneyan ]