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[dgr11897]

I would like to point out that with one more orchelium, everything becomes cheap. Our siege weapons, our bows, our ships, our high guard armor, almost everything. So it might be worth it to do a project on improved orchelium extraction, both for this and for the fact that it will make future orchelium based designs cheaper.

[dgr11897]

Orchelium mines v2
There is a wide range of things we can improve to squeeze another unit of orchelium out of the mines, with new techniques, Removal of inefficiencies and usage of birds for labor being the main improvements.
It says we can do so, so let's.

[andrea]

You will need more details on how you are expanding the mines. Orichalcum has been the most prized and sought metal in Atlantis for a fairly long time, "just do better" has mostly been done already and it surely won't double production.

[dgr11897]

I know someone else is doing a write up, that was kind of the early version.

[NUKE9.13]

So, I could've sworn Andrea said no resource designs. But the OP says they're allowed, so...

Vidanerouen Screw: There's a problem with mines, and that problem is water. Since water is pretty common, it's a big problem. If you strike an aquifer, your mine is more or less done for.
But imagine if that was not the case. Imagine if there was an easy, efficient way of removing water from a mine as fast as it flows into it.
Introducing the Vidanerouen Screw. A deceptively simple piece of machinery, it consists of a metal tube with a screw inside, which can be rotated. This causes water to be drawn from the bottom of the tube to the top, and it doesn't even have to be made of Orichalcum, which is godsdamned witchcraft. We'd much rather just use alchemy to make Orichalcum absorb water or something, but we cannot deny that the screw works, and is a lot simpler and cheaper.
Anyway. By installing these screws in our mines, and having either slaves or animals turn them, we can 'pump' water from the depths, allowing us to dig deeper and more greedily for Orichalcum- that being our goal, though using such pumps in other mines is not impossible.

Alt:

Achnizo's Compound Aeolipile: There's a problem with mines, and that problem is water. Since water is pretty common, it's a big problem. If you strike an aquifer, your mine is more or less done for.
But imagine if that was not the case. Imagine if there was an easy, efficient way of removing water from a mine as fast as it flows into it.
Introducing Achnizo's Compound Aeolipile. Remember the steam wheel toy? You know, heat the water, wheel spins, children love it, not really that useful? Achnizo remembered. Achnizo saw potential in that toy that we daren't dream of. He has tinkered with it for years, and now has come to us for funding to build a working prototype of his invention.
How is Achnizo's Compound Aeolipile better than the original steam wheel? Numerous ways.
For one, using Orichalcum to make the 'boiler' allows for far higher pressure to be maintained without the whole thing exploding. Using superheated Orichalcum in a wiggly pattern that maximises surface area allows such pressures to be reached.
For another, Achnizo realised that the steam exiting the steam wheel still had a lot of 'potential'. Rather than letting it vent off into the atmosphere, the steam exiting the first wheel is captured and fed into a second wheel, which in turn feeds a third wheel, and so on. Each wheel is connected to a central shaft, meaning their outputs are combined.
Achnizo has also optimised the shape of the machine, tweaking every pipe and nozzle to maximise efficiency.
The result is a remarkably powerful device. We foresee many potential applications for such power, but for now, we have applied it to our mines, by having the shaft (through a series of gears and pulleys) turn a water screw, that can 'pump' water from the depths of a mine to the surface. The power of the Aeolipile is far greater than that of any man or beast, making the formerly daunting task of moving so much water a walk in the park.
This, in turn, allows us to dig deeper and more greedily for Orichalcum- the projected cost of the system makes using it for lesser metals not worth it.

[Urist Mc Dwarf]

Screw(1): Urist
Aeolipile:
Aegies:
Koneio(1): NUKE

Let's target the temple.

[NUKE9.13]

You missed a few votes there.

Aegis of Zeus: (1) Happerry
Koneio Armour: (1) Madman
Vidanerouen Screw: (1) Urist Mc Dwarf

I've unvoted, because I don't know what the right option is anymore.

[Detoxicated]

Aegis of Zeus: (1) Happerry
Koneio Armour: (1) Madman
Vidanerouen Screw: (1) Urist Mc Dwarf
Aeolipile: (1) detoxicated

[dgr11897]

I vote for the Screw, i don't know how to use the vote box so could someone else put my vote in?

[Detoxicated]

just quote the votebox and add your name to the thing you support and change the number accordingly

[dgr11897]

Aegis of Zeus: (1) Happerry
Koneio Armour: (1) Madman
Vidanerouen Screw: (3) Urist Mc Dwarf dgr Birdbrider
Aeolipile: (1) detoxicated

[dgr11897]

Did we ever decide if we are going to take out the temple or attack the enemy?

[NUKE9.13]

Did we ever decide if we are going to take out the temple or attack the enemy?

Gonna wait and see the results of our design & revision first, innit.

[andrea]

Vidanerouen Screw: There's a problem with mines, and that problem is water. Since water is pretty common, it's a big problem. If you strike an aquifer, your mine is more or less done for.
But imagine if that was not the case. Imagine if there was an easy, efficient way of removing water from a mine as fast as it flows into it.
Introducing the Vidanerouen Screw. A deceptively simple piece of machinery, it consists of a metal tube with a screw inside, which can be rotated. This causes water to be drawn from the bottom of the tube to the top, and it doesn't even have to be made of Orichalcum, which is godsdamned witchcraft. We'd much rather just use alchemy to make Orichalcum absorb water or something, but we cannot deny that the screw works, and is a lot simpler and cheaper.
Anyway. By installing these screws in our mines, and having either slaves or animals turn them, we can 'pump' water from the depths, allowing us to dig deeper and more greedily for Orichalcum- that being our goal, though using such pumps in other mines is not impossible.

(Very Hard)(4,1)-2=3 Buggy mess
Orichalcum is the life blood of war, the crucial component that makes the army and navy go round. It is, most likely, the most valuable thing in the world. Therefore, it makes sense to mine more of it.

You start a mine improvement project based on the newly designed Vidanerouen Screw. It is a screw in a water tight tube that when set in motion pulls water from the depths of the mine and brings it to the surface (be it in one or multiple steps). Draining mines is indeed a great help, but implementation is tricky. The screws require large amounts of mechanical power, diverting animals and men from actual mining work. Current shafts need to be expanded, which blocks extraction in some shafts. And in general, it is an huge project which causes disruptions.

It is not entirely without success and there has been a slight increase of production. While not nearly enough to increase our standing army, it may be possible over time to accumulate a stockpile large enough to perhaps send some extra units on the front. Not yet however. 

Spoiler:  Atlanteans equipment (click to show/hide)

Oricalchum tipped spear – A pole of hardwood with a strong orichalcum tip , this weapon shines in formation fights and keeps enemies at a distance. It can pierce most things rather easily, and the tip is barbed to produce more grievous wounds. [1 wood, 1 ore, 1 Orichalcum] [Cheap]

Bone composite bow – Made of bone and wood, it can propel arrows at fairly large distance and have good piercing capabilities. However, it takes a long time to manufacture, due to the need to join together layers of different materials [complex][2 wood, 1 ore] [Expensive]

Aesystrofi’s bow – An orichalcum bow, it is slimmer and lighter than the composite bow while being easier to manufacture, but it requires fancier materials. It is longer ranged than its mundane counterpart [1 wood, 2 ore, 2 orichalcum][Expensive]

Polianthion – A weapon capable of propelling a large bolt against enemies at range, using springs of orichalcum and a system of winches  to load, store and release the energy. It can shoot powerfully at similar ranges to the Egyptian cannon, or even farther at the cost of accuracy [2 wood, 2 ore, 2 orichalcum][Expensive]

High guard armour – A full set of armour and shield made entirely of orichalcum. It makes the user impervious to most common weapons. It is light and durable, thanks to the extraordinary properties of orichalcum, and it is treated to glow brightly with Atlantean glory. [2 ore 2 Orichalcum] [Expensive]

Protection of the bigger fish a fairly well crafted set of scale armour, it covers torso, legs and arms. While somewhat inferior to high guard armour, it still offers good protection against both slashing and piercing, especially from the front, which uses orichalcum scales. It comes with a wooden shield with a metal rim. [2 Wood 2 Ore 1 Orichalcum] [Cheap]

Penteconter – a slim ship made of thick wood, with an orichalcum plated ram in the front. It can house several warriors on the deck, while below deck the crew mans the oars, allowing short term burst of speed. Main propulsion system is a large square sail. Provides 1 TC [2 wood, 2 ore, 2 Orichalcum][Expensive]
-Polianthion Penteconter – a version of the base ship equipped with a pair of deck mounted polianthion, it can engage at range [2 wood, 3 ore, 3 orichalcum][Very Expensive]

Aetokos - A very large flightless bird, it is the mount of choice of your army. Very fast, if a bit coward and not particularly robust, it allows your soldiers to move on the battlefield at great speeds and perform great charges. It can be deadly in a fight, when it decides to fight. Thanks to good saddles, your soldiers are comfortable while riding and perform better. [4 wood] [Expensive]

Mule caravan – many mules, in a line, delivering good carried in their saddle bags. The mule is perfectly adapted to uneven terrain that would make carts less easy to use. And you don’t have to embark a cart on ships. Provides 1 TC [1 wood] [Cheap]

To be clear: the screw itself was achieved and not that difficult. However, increasing your infrastructure is  a very hard thing to do, and you had no previous technology that could help and wasn't already present at game start. That said, you made some real progress in that direction, you have screws in case you need them, and there may be benefits down the road.

It is now Revision phase

[NUKE9.13]

Achnizo's Lab: There is an eccentric philosopher who has been in the news recently. Notably, he gets insulted when people call him a philosopher. "But you're building some sort of insane contraption", they say. "That's not fucking philosophy", he replies, "It's engineering". We've tried telling him you can't just make up words, but to no avail.
Anyway, this philosopher has some interesting ideas about steam. Remember the steam wheel? Heat water, wheel spins, children love it, not really useful? Achnizo has been tinkering with them for a while now, and has presented some intriguing results. It's all theoretical so far, but if what he's saying is true, the humble steam wheel has incredible potential. So we're taking a shot in the dark, and giving Achnizo the funding he requires to expand his operation and experiment more, in anticipation of making something actually useful next year. We expect him to provide an analysis of the feasibility of his designs as well, so we don't end up trying to build something impossible/useless.
((Build theoretical steam experience, and get some answers as to how useful a compound aeolipile would be))

We ain't making progress this turn no matter what we do, so we might as well lay the groundwork for next turn.

Achnizo's Lab: (1) NUKE9.13