Does the Terracotta Army Wonder Cost Gold?

[Jellosity]

Does this wonder cost gold as maintenance for the units it copies? I'm currently playing a domination match as the Aztecs and wanted to know this information because i'm currently struggling with gold but it will hopefully get better as I build caravans. I have a lot of units and the gold cost of doubling them will certainly put me in the red.

 

[GoStu]

Yes, the additional units cost maintenance. It's a really sketch wonder because it's so hard to take advantage of: it'll only provide you one copy of everything you already have, so often that'll be a Scout, Archer, and Jaguar for the Aztecs.

 

[Jellosity]

I have 2 swordsmen, a composite bowmen, a jaguar, and that's about it. But thanks, whats the point of the wonder if all it would be doing me is putting me in the red.

 

[reddishrecue]

You can use terracota army to give you a quick boost up of military if you want to make a DoW or protect your cities. Another thing that could cost with terracotta army is the lack of resource penalty, where you end up with 2 more swordsmen by building terracotta army while you only have 2 iron and not enough iron for 4 swordsmen.

 

[Petiscator]

Also, Terracota Army is especially good for Germany. With Furor Teutonicus, it is possible to get extra copies of Brutes and Hand-Axes too. You can get some Horsemen and Swordsmen that do not require resources from the barbs too, so you will have to build way less units. Their -25% unit maintenance would also help the player's gold budget after building that wonder.

 

[GhostSalsa]

Also, Terracota Army is especially good for Germany.

Possibly. But it still... costs hammers. Germany already has to sink hammers into one or two extra early warriors to start the barb farm rolling, putting them behind on granary/settlers etc. But yes I suppose it could be enough to push you into a good conquest force. It's easier to just be the Huns and do it all with 5 cheap units.

Terracotta is a shame because there's so many unexplored ways to strengthen warmongering - like improve rewards for infrastructure science and culture - and all we get instead is a risky gamble on saving 40 hammers, or statue of Zeus which is less of a bonus than just building more units outright.

 

[bbbt]

I have 2 swordsmen, a composite bowmen, a jaguar, and that's about it. But thanks, whats the point of the wonder if all it would be doing me is putting me in the red.

The wonder is in general pretty useless. As an example, if you built it, you would get one swordmen, one composite bowman, and one jaguar near your capital.

Cost of building the terracota army: 250 hammers. Cost of building those 3 units yourself: 190 hammers

Now, if you set to work building other units (crossbow, horsman) in your other cities before it finished, maybe it would be worth it, but as it is, it's not a very useful wonder.

 

[GoStu]

I have 2 swordsmen, a composite bowmen, a jaguar, and that's about it. But thanks, whats the point of the wonder if all it would be doing me is putting me in the red.

Yeah, I never even bother trying for it. If you build it too early, it was just wasted hammers. Build it too late, and some AI will rush it out (and get nothing for it). There's hypothetically some sweet spot in there where it gives you more military units than it cost in terms of production, but it comes at a risk and the question of if you even want that many units at once.

I mean, there's some very minor side perks too like the Culture gain, World Congress resolutions, Aesthetics bonus.... but those are all crap compared to the risks.

 

[reddishrecue]

Terracotta army doesn't cost gold but only the extra units provided will cost gold in addition to the other unit costs. All terracotta army does is double your land units.

 

[Louis XXIV]

If those free units didn't cost support (or better yet, the wonder naturally gives you a cushion where you don't have to pay for every unit), it would make it far more viable.

As it stands now, it's not very good.

 

[mclericp]

1. Make it culture + 5 instead of +1
or
2. Copies of military free of upkeep and resources

 

[Sagax]

I managed to get it once, and that was indeed the Golden Time for Terracotta Army: Prince, Russia with 3 cities and some horses/iron tiles, 70% forests and 30% tundra, 1 spearman (upgraded from runes), 2 CBs and 1 Catapult. Went for it as soon as my neighbor Oda became hostile. This was the only time I was lucky to snatch the TA from AI, in other games there is always someone building it while I focus on more important buldings/wonders.

 

[Jaybe]

You could also build the wonder to PROCURE gold. DELETE the units within your borders you don't want (25% of unit hammer costs returned as gold). I've never built it either, but just realized this.

Of course, as with any wonder, if another civ beats you to it you recoup 100% of invested hammers as gold. Occasionally I'll intentionally cease production of a wonder just short of completion for this purpose. Better than the 25% return on hammers for producing gold income, though you have to wait for someone else to complete the wonder.

 

[Infantry#14]

Terracotta Army should give culture and tourism bonus like the Petra after archaeology.

 

[darkpigraph]

I had a memorable game in which TA gave me copies of a CS gifted cataphract and an early conquistador popped from an offshore ruin. but more often than not its quite a selfefeating wonder.

 

[Louis XXIV]

Terracotta Army should give culture and tourism bonus like the Petra after archaeology.

Any wonder arguably could. Petra is probably an Indiana Jones reference.

 

[Jellosity]

Well friggin china got the wonder 1 turn before I did D:

 

[budweiser]

It was most useful in this instance.

 

[sendos]

Free maintenance from the duplicated units is the best suggested buff for this wonder in my opinion. Other suggestions could involve:

- free barracks in all cities or first 4 cities.
- Free great general along with those units. Great generals are maintenance free.

-

 

[Cedbird]

Good points but I like the Wonder think it is really cool.If you don 't want it don 't go for it.But if you do then you have a use for it.But one thing not mentioned you can gift the units to CS if nothing else.In my present game playing the Shoshone I was going to just sit back and build Wonders and go for Cultural and kick butt on science.Well I got TA and said heyyyy Queen Elizabeth I don 't like your attitude.Yes i got bogged down and did not get a city from her ha ha but hey I had the option.