Can someone explain the Rationalism finisher?

[dthompson32]

I just lost a science victory that I should have been able to win. One of the reasons I lost was when I got the Rationalism free technologies, I had already completed the Hubble Telescope. It forced me to take Stealth and one other "top of the tech tree" selection, and wouldn't let me select lower techs that I actually needed to head up the top half of the tree for the missing piece of the space ship.

I lost the game needing one last tech for one last piece.

So how does this finisher work? You can only take techs that are more expensive than your highest current tech? Is this how it works for Great Library and Oxford too, and I never noticed?

 

[Kouvb593kdnuewnd]

It looks to me that you lacked some prerequest for that tech you needed. You could screenshot the tech tree that you hade before finish rationalism so we can se if thats the chase

 

[dthompson32]

No screen shot, but here is the situation. I had pushed up the tree to Satellites to build the Hubble and get the two great scientists. Then I used the scientists to get Nanotechnology to be able to build that piece. However, I still didn't have Refrigeration, so wasn't very far up the tree toward Particle Physics.

Right after this I finished Rationalism, and needed to take Refrigeration and Penicillin. However, the game would ONLY allow me to select Lasers, Nuclear Fusion, or Stealth, none of which I needed for the space ship.

If I could do it again, I would have used the GSs for Refrigeration and Penicillin.

But mostly trying to understand the rules for the free techs. It appears you can only take technologies that are equal to or above your current level?

I'm going to have to see if the Great Library lets you choose Archery or not.

 

[Khadroth]

That makes no sense D, because you're required to have lasers to unlock stealth, so something doesn't add up.

It's possible you completed refridgeration the same turn and simply lacked plastics (though I don't know why you'd skip it with its research labs) which prevented you from selecting penicillin. It's also possible that you're getting radio and lasers confused, as it too would prevent you from fulfilling the prereqs for penicillin.

 

[Kouvb593kdnuewnd]

It may be a rule that rationalism free techs can only be in that era you are in if you do have techs in that era that you do not know. If the libary works the same you should be able to pick archery if you do not enter classical era but if you enter that era and can pick a tech from that era you can't pick archery. I will test this.

 

[dthompson32]

It might make no sense, but that is exactly how it worked out. I opened the tech tree to look at it, and the only techs that were gold were the three in the lower right corner, Lasers, Stealth, and Nuclear Fusion.

Plastics were long done because I had been saving Great Scientists all game to use after I had built Research Labs, then popped them all to push up to the Hubble.

Refrigeration and Penicillin were not researched, and I was not given an option to take them.

I ended up shrugging and taking Lasers and Stealth, not that they could help me in this game since my space competitor was on the other side of the world and I had no ships.

 

[dthompson32]

That would make sense, since Refrigeration was in the previous era.

Probably a rare condition for this to happen, but something I'd like to understand for future reference.

 

[Kouvb593kdnuewnd]

I tested the liberay and I could pick ancient techs even if I were in classical era. But refigeration is 2 eras away if im correct?

 

[Khadroth]

I tested the liberay and I could pick ancient techs even if I were in classical era. But refigeration is 2 eras away if im correct?

I've never known of any such restriction, and almost always get rationalism finished around this time too. Generally I've left the bottom of the tree (the military techs) unfinished though. Which means after stopping at railroad, I can go back (and have done so before) and bulb combined arms/computers/etc to get me to the space factory.

Again, I hate to say it but the OP either experienced a bug or is getting things confused. There's simply no way he could have both lasers and stealth available to unlock at the same time. One after another? Sure, same time? Nope.

 

[dthompson32]

Yes, Refrigeration is 2 ages back. It is in the Modern era, while I was in the Information era.

I can believe a bug, but I'm not confused. I didn't say I could take Stealth without first taking Lasers, just that the tech tree was showing them both as gold. It was possible to get there with my two selections. I would have to take Lasers first. I didn't notice, but I bet there was a little "1" next to Stealth.

What was definitely NOT lit in gold was Refrigeration or anything that needed it as a prerequisite.

 

[Khadroth]

Yes, Refrigeration is 2 ages back. It is in the Modern era, while I was in the Information era.

I can believe a bug, but I'm not confused. I didn't say I could take Stealth without first taking Lasers, just that the tech tree was showing them both as gold. It was possible to get there with my two selections. I would have to take Lasers first. I didn't notice, but I bet there was a little "1" next to Stealth.

What was definitely NOT lit in gold was Refrigeration or anything that needed it as a prerequisite.

Showing them both as gold would mean that both could be chosen at the same time, which is impossible. As you make one selection, others that are subsequently unlocked will only then show up gold. I'm not trying to be rude, just showing you that something here is clearly wrong. I'd suggest reloading a prior save to confirm.

 

[Kouvb593kdnuewnd]

I tested great libary in middle ages and I could still pick ancient techs even if I had classical tech avalibel.

I tested rationalism and could pick tech from all era, from ancient to renisance.

 

[dthompson32]

Then I'll put it down to a bug, until I can confirm it. I don't have a save file that far back, so it would take hours to recreate it.

I'm going to play this game again, so I will save a file prior to the GS rush and recreate the situation.

It's going to annoy me to no end that I lost this game to a bug

 

[BobDole]

If you want people to know what the hell is going on/believe you didn't just screw something up, yeah...you might want a game save. I personally have had zero issues with the finisher, and haven't heard of anyone else having any.

 

[dthompson32]

If you want people to know what the hell is going on/believe you didn't just screw something up, yeah...you might want a game save. I personally have had zero issues with the finisher, and haven't heard of anyone else having any.

Heh, I'm not taking offense at it. If I was on the other side I would be skeptical too. It's actually comforting that there isn't some restriction that I didn't understand.

Besides, this game I am using is very entertaining. I expect to keep the map, and probably share it, because it is so *different* in a lot of ways. I'm going to play it through several times, so running through from a last save file to recreate the problem won't be hard. It's just a matter of getting the play time to get back to that point.