I just noticed I posted the wrong screenshot for Athens last post. This has been updated.
Some thoughts on the SE vs. the CE:
First, I should point out that there are many forms of SE. In the end, one should run the form of economy that benefits each city and the empire as a whole. Most economies are some kind of hybrid between SE and CE. If we define a pure CE or SE as one that uses only cottages, or uses only specialists, then a pure SE can be ok, but a pure CE is definitely subpar. This is because to truly shine, a CE needs one or more academies, and you will have a hard time getting an academy without specialists (unless the only wonder you build is the Great Library).
The kind of SE I am running is characterized by a high production capital to take advantage of Bureaucracy, and by settled Great Scientists in another high food city that will get an academy and Oxford. This is a flexible and robust economy that I highly recommend for Monarch level and below. It can also work for the right kind of start at Emperor, and as I have said before, I don't know about Immortal and Deity because I haven't played much at those levels.
One of the benefits of running a SE like this is that you get long term stable beaker output regardless of your slider settings. With the settled Great Scientists, you can even go full out military production later in the game, firing all specialists for production, and running a low science slider, and still have a respectable (if not great) teching rate.
One other benefit of this kind of SE is that you can delay developing your economy for a short while. You can instead use your capital for production to fuel either REX (in this game), or an early war, and still quickly catch up in tech. Especially with a philisophical leader, just 1 early city with a library and 2 specialists lays the ground work for a strong delayed economy by producing a couple of early Great Scientists. A science specialist at turn 100 gives the same base beakers as a science specialist at turn 50 (ignoring Representation). If working a cottage is delayed by 50 turns, it is the same as losing 50 turns of working a town, which is 250 base beakers lost for a riverside tile, 300 if financial, plus 50 more for printing press, and 50% for Bureaucracy in the capital or 100 more for free speech. For a financial leader, assuming printing press and Bureaucracy, delaying working a cottage for 50 turns is a loss of 525 base beakers. For a philisophical leader, 1 less scientist for 50 turns is a loss of 150 beakers and 300 GPP. And a scientist generally takes 2 citizens to produce, so early game should be compared to 2 worked cottages. The delayed scientist vs. 2 delayed cottages is a comparison between 150 beakers/300 GPP vs. 1050 beakers. If we are going to settle the Great Scientists we produce, 300 GPP = 2 great scientists for 6 beakers/turn times 50 turns. That's 600 beakers lost delaying the scientist. So delaying a scientist 50 turns vs. delaying 2 cottages worked is 750 beakers vs. 1050 beakers. It costs 300 beakers less to delay economy in this case for the SE vs. the CE.
Some thoughts on the SE vs. the CE:
First, I should point out that there are many forms of SE. In the end, one should run the form of economy that benefits each city and the empire as a whole. Most economies are some kind of hybrid between SE and CE. If we define a pure CE or SE as one that uses only cottages, or uses only specialists, then a pure SE can be ok, but a pure CE is definitely subpar. This is because to truly shine, a CE needs one or more academies, and you will have a hard time getting an academy without specialists (unless the only wonder you build is the Great Library).
The kind of SE I am running is characterized by a high production capital to take advantage of Bureaucracy, and by settled Great Scientists in another high food city that will get an academy and Oxford. This is a flexible and robust economy that I highly recommend for Monarch level and below. It can also work for the right kind of start at Emperor, and as I have said before, I don't know about Immortal and Deity because I haven't played much at those levels.
One of the benefits of running a SE like this is that you get long term stable beaker output regardless of your slider settings. With the settled Great Scientists, you can even go full out military production later in the game, firing all specialists for production, and running a low science slider, and still have a respectable (if not great) teching rate.
One other benefit of this kind of SE is that you can delay developing your economy for a short while. You can instead use your capital for production to fuel either REX (in this game), or an early war, and still quickly catch up in tech. Especially with a philisophical leader, just 1 early city with a library and 2 specialists lays the ground work for a strong delayed economy by producing a couple of early Great Scientists. A science specialist at turn 100 gives the same base beakers as a science specialist at turn 50 (ignoring Representation). If working a cottage is delayed by 50 turns, it is the same as losing 50 turns of working a town, which is 250 base beakers lost for a riverside tile, 300 if financial, plus 50 more for printing press, and 50% for Bureaucracy in the capital or 100 more for free speech. For a financial leader, assuming printing press and Bureaucracy, delaying working a cottage for 50 turns is a loss of 525 base beakers. For a philisophical leader, 1 less scientist for 50 turns is a loss of 150 beakers and 300 GPP. And a scientist generally takes 2 citizens to produce, so early game should be compared to 2 worked cottages. The delayed scientist vs. 2 delayed cottages is a comparison between 150 beakers/300 GPP vs. 1050 beakers. If we are going to settle the Great Scientists we produce, 300 GPP = 2 great scientists for 6 beakers/turn times 50 turns. That's 600 beakers lost delaying the scientist. So delaying a scientist 50 turns vs. delaying 2 cottages worked is 750 beakers vs. 1050 beakers. It costs 300 beakers less to delay economy in this case for the SE vs. the CE.
is why the market at mycenae? at size 3 it doesn't need the +1 happiness, and at 3 base hammers it's not getting any benefit from OR. i'd have put a temple or monastery there first, to get base hammers to 4+ and for culture to help grab the full BFC from pesky Novgorod.
). i didn't even think about it much til i looked at the glance screen in the save, so i figured a little detail might help. too many people don't wait for the whole picture when there are unknown civs out there!
