I was aware of the location of the wonders before I started (this is a saved map I got somewhere which I rerolled with Spain)
Early Game
- Immediately head Settler down to LV, while having warrior go north east to the sacred Mt. Kailash and then sweep west towards the fabled King Solomon's Mines
- Turn ~6 have settled Madrid in the most mountainous region of the world. Two new colonies are purchased to immediately seek out the glorious +12 mines and 16+ mountain.
- Turn 15 declare war on the treacherous Sidonese to steal their women and bring them back to do the washing (and farming, and mining, and trading, and roading)
- Begin building Great Library in Barcelona, the stolen women rush over to help chop chop (I forgot that was one of their tasks as well). Great Library is built by turn 32 and is used to secure Madrid's Holy Journey towards securing the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and Petra.
- Two more cities are founded to help spread my Pagodas and Mosques throughout the empire. A happy, cultured and faithful empire is required to dominate social policies and growth.
- War is declared on the Song-hai and the Netherlands to ensure my successful completion of HG and Petra. The Sidonese continue to have their women stolen.
- Two more colonies are settled and a scout with upgraded sight discovered an unworkable Krakatoa! Libraries are bought and the National College is rushed by turn ~80 (Spain > America in educating those younglings)
Additional wonders secured include:
ToA, Parthenon, The Oracle
Middle Game
- Empire is flourishing and is full of Sidonese women. However we are also into men and thus 5 catapults and a faithful swordsmen sweep down to secure Sidon. They happily join the empire in exchange for Pagodas and Mosques.
- Population is flourishing in some cities and stagnating in others. At this point it is decided that a Space Victory is not likely and that the Sidonese are much better partners for a Cultural Victory. Thus the Zulu Nation is paid throughout the entire game to war with every civ who exceeds my cultural expectations. (I paid him 10G a turn which really hurt the bank throughout the game)
- Education is reached by approximately turn 95. Universities are bought in the capital and Barcelona, which continue to secure key wonders including Bobobodur (cbf spelling). Hagia Sofia, that big Green thing on a mountain (I haven't slept in a while) and Notre Dame.
- Tourism is approximately 8 per turn with themeing bonuses in the Great Library
The Renaissance of wonders. Turns 100 - 145
- Literally all I do is tech for wonders and build them. My satelite cities build mundane things like workshops and my Natural Wonder cities build LToP, the Hermitage, the Uffizi, The Globe Theatre, PT, the Sistine Chapel etc.
- It is really just a wonder ORGY, nothing else going on, besides cultural specialists popping like Floridian cherries.
Industrial Era (Lats for a maximum of 11 turns)
- I realise that an Autocratic Futuristic Cultural approach is needed. Thus two Great Scientists, Aristotle and Plato are sacrificed on the altar of Madrid. This allows me to immediately get Scientific Theory by turn 145 and then spend 10 turns on electricity, while queuing Oxford.
THE MODERN AGE (e.g the end of times)
- Autocracy is adopted circa ~154. An engineer is immediately used to complete the Eiffel Tower.
- At this point I have generated: 3 writers, 2 artists, and 1 musician.
- I make the critical decision to ignore all scientific buildings (besides buying Public Schools in Madrid and Barcelona). Thus I bulb my way to Archaeologists and produce them in every single city (bar the two wonder whorers).
- A fleet of approximately 8 archaeologists goes out. I use all of my remaining cash to buy museums and hotels in my weak production cities (circa turns 160 - 180). I trade almost all of my luxuries away and all of my GPT to Rome for that lump sum of cash to do this.
- Approximately turn 175 the Zulus declare war on me (also I forgot the Song-Hai have been sending horses to my cities to help feed my people, but I'll let them write it down as a 'glorious war' in their history books.)
- Turn 180ish, I managed to get near 90 tourism per turn and have 5k faith saved up. I buy 3 great musicians and a fourth is naturally produced at the same time (had to time that one).
- END OF TIMES. I sell off my cities and pop those musicians one after another to have the world wearing my sexy blue jeans.
I can't think of much else. Basically was a normal game, with typical wonder whoring by me. Made sure to produce probably 8-12 cultural great people between turns 150 - 185. Natural tourism throughout the game did the rest.
Any other questions I shall answer, except about the Sidonese (I think they've had enough)