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[BNW] Religion: How to Found and Enhance a Religion (BNW)

Browd

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If (1) I do not found myself, and (2) I capture a Holy City that has not been enhanced, and I then (3) capture a 4-use-left Great Prophet -- should I be able to enhance in that city? [Probably (1) is not a factor.]

This sequence of events recently happened for me, and I could not figure it out. I ended up just planting the GPr, which is probably stronger play in any case. Thanks @Browd for this fine series of guides!
 
Hi, nice resource! I have a few comments.

1. I think that it would be good to mention the fact that Liberty finisher requires that you have a pantheon in order to be able to select a Great Prophet. Otherwise, somebody could skip founding pantheon in order to found a religion by Liberty only to find that Great Prophet isn't in the list. The resource states that you can found a religion <in the same way>, but it's not the same way, if you need something extra. Piety free Great Prophet and Hagia Sophia for example don't have this requirement.
2. Liberty finisher is more often used to found a religion, not to enhance it, contrary to what the resource says. This is because to found a religion is a race, and to enhance, isn't (not to the same extent, anyway). You will pretty much always be better off choosing engineer or scientist if you already have a religion and enhance normally. Other than engineer or scientist even other options are better than prophet, admiral for example on continental maps, or great general in a heavy war focused strat.
3. Choosing great prophet from liberty finisher also increases cost for engineers, scientists, and merchants, and for this reason, if you can rush build Hagia Sophia with an engineer in order to found a religion, that is a good idea, because the cost of engineers and scientists will increase regardless of whether you pick Great Prophet or Great Engineer from liberty finisher. With the mention that Hagia Sophia can, in theory, still be lost even if an engineer uses his ability, if somebody else did that exact maneouvre one turn earlier or simply researched Theology faster and has good production and built it the normal way. (the risk exists despite the fact that it is minimal vs AI. in multiplayer it should be higher, for example)
4. I kind of disagree with what the suggestion in the resource that says about reallocating citizens after you reach the milestone required for a Great Prophet. The resource says at the same time 2 contradicting things, that your chance increases with more faith but that it isn't meaningful if you keep increasing above the threshold. If the increase in chance exists and it's not zero, then it <is> meaningful, given the importance of founding a religion if you invested resources into it. 1 turn can make the difference between having a religion or not. 1 turn can also mean that you get to choose inferior beliefs. Correct me if I am wrong but my assumption is that if you have 250 faith the chance should be much higher than if you have 201. So getting there would still be a priority, somebody producing 15 faith from tiles shouldn't reallocate citizens just because he got to 201. (again, I don't know the exact math but the resource also states that the chance increases)



Other than that, nice work, cheers!
 
I think that it would be good to mention the fact that Liberty finisher requires that you have a pantheon in order to be able to select a Great Prophet. Otherwise, somebody could skip founding pantheon in order to found a religion by Liberty only to find that Great Prophet isn't in the list.
I have been caught by this more than once. It really is terrible, and not at all well documented.

Edit to mention another founding ploy that worked for me recently. This scenario is for when an AI enhances early, before you get a pantheon (despite the early Shrine). I used my third Social Policy pick to open Piety (then started building Shrines in expos), and my forth for Organize Religion. That was enough FPT to catch the last religion. :c5faith:
 
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