Fascinating game all around. Too bad it ended just as it was getting really interesting for me
I spent most of the mid game nervous. My water empire was a long skinny snake that bordered everyone. With no ability to negotiate alliances and no mobility, any one of the land nations could have easily invaded. It would have taken me 5 to 10 turns just to
get there to respond.
I decided to keep the bulk of my force near Ermor, as he would have the easiest time launching an invasion. In fact, he did, but he never brought enough at one time to overcome 20 Atlantian PD + a couple of priests.
As for why I attacked Ermor at Arco - it was a combination of all the above factors plus a couple more.
I had to get an above-water base.
My main force was there, and it would have taken a long time to go elsewhere.
Ermor had previously attacked me and, if I moved my force somewhere else he would be the most likely to take advantage of that vacuum.
I had seen battles at Arco. Emor's force was middling large but not overly powerful, so I figured Marignon was going to take Arco if I did not.
Going off to fight someone like C'Tis would have just been another pointless war between 2 also-rans.
Marignon was eating Ermor, and the VPs he had taken from Ermor were at Marignon's periphery and lightly defended. I figured I could grab back two or three of those VPs and try to hold them against Marignon's overwhelming mobility advantage.