[The Panther]

True, you did offer a NaP. Of course, you would have cancelled it and attacked me after you eliminated Ulm, for I was the next logical nation for you to attack. Though you might have killed Machaka first before attacking me.

Perhaps I could have built up a bit more and attacked you later. But I thought my single best chance was to hit you while you were weak from attacking Pasha. Plus, Pasha and I already had a previous treaty when you attacked him.

I also made a peace treaty with both TC and Arco for the sole purpose of eliminating the nasty AE Ermor before you destroyed too many provinces. Pretty much everybody has a basic goal of undead containment in any game where AE Ermor exists.

Little did I know that you lost very little taking out Pasha...

Still, I will never again play a game with an Ermor death theme, for it simply takes all the fun out of the game to start next to it. In 4 of my last 5 games, I started adjacent to AE or SG Ermor. In one of those, the Ermor nation quit and went AI so I am doing very well. In the other 3, I am nearly dead due to the starting proximity to Ermor.

And for the fifth of those last 5 game? I was Ermor (default) and took a joint victory in that one. It was surprising just how much fun the Broken Empire theme was while playing in that game!

Finally, I am still a bit mad at myself for allying with an AE Ermor adjacent nation and allowing him to win in a game (I was Mictlan) about a year ago. I spent basically the whole of that game sacrificing endless slaves to try to keep a bit of my own dominion alive in the face of 20+ Ermor level 10 temples. My pop was dying far too fast from the Ermor dominion spread and all the blood hunting I was doing. I even had all 6 IDs and 2 of the ADs in that game (that was before the life drain nerf), but they were useless against a swarming, lifeless Ermor which is why I never did cancel my peace treaty with him. After that game, I vowed never to make that mistake again.

Like I said - BAH HUMBUG!