early engineer... what to do?

[Ray Patterson]

Playing Ramesses on Monarch, sweet food&hills rich spot, I built GW and Pyramids, so now around 300 BC a great engineer popped up of course. I'm sure many people have been in a similar situation. What oh what should that engineer do?

I haven't got alphabet yet, neither does anyone I've met. But I'm sure they're ahead of me, my SE is hardly running yet. So, what to do with the engineer? The only wonders currently available are temple of artemis and the parthenon. Not really worth it I think. Settling him is a daring move, but probably too slow for monarch. I'm thinking of lightbulbing metal casting and researching alphabet, to trade metal casting for perhaps two of IW, horseback riding, mathematics.

Would such a trade be likely? If not, should I keep him to build the Great Library? Or should I trade metal casting away multiple times for much cheaper techs? Because it's nice to lightbulb an expensive tech, but does its cost really pay off in trading possibilities?

 

[yena]

I'm keeping the GE for the GL in similar situations, especially if I try to run a SE.

 

[svv]

No lightbulbing! Saving him for the GL is a good choice, especially if you don't have marble and/or are not industrious. Second choice might be to save him for hanging gardens. Keep the GE production going!

 

[nullspace]

The Parthenon works well with SE, especially when your leader is not philosophical. OTOH, settling or the GL works well with representation. But Ramses is industrious, so building the GL shouldn't be a problem. I think the Parthenon is too expensive to build, but it's nice to get for "free".

 

[Ray Patterson]

Saving him for the GL is a good choice, especially if you don't have marble and/or are not industrious.

see here's the thing, I'm industrious AND have marble (didn't tell you that yet). Parthenon, well, not too hot about that. I'm thinking now of keeping it at least until I have alphabet, but if people don't have metal casting yet I'm really tempted to lightbulb it. Because frankly I think with industrious and marble I don't need the GE to get the GL...

 

[VoiceOfUnreason]

Playing Ramesses on Monarch, sweet food&hills rich spot, I built GW and Pyramids, so now around 300 BC a great engineer popped up of course. I'm sure many people have been in a similar situation. What oh what should that engineer do?

I haven't got alphabet yet, neither does anyone I've met. But I'm sure they're ahead of me, my SE is hardly running yet. So, what to do with the engineer?

Not intending to be snarky, but it seems to me that you are asking the wrong question at the wrong time.

The fact that the Pyramids was going to spit out an Engineer for you should not be a surprise. You should even be able to work out when that Engineer is going to appear, and decide in advance what position you want to be in when he shows up.

 

[Ray Patterson]

The fact that the Pyramids was going to spit out an Engineer for you should not be a surprise.

I know. My great people skills are lacking. Still, it's a little too late for should-have's, isn't it?

 

[aelf]

Parthenon is a good deal for an SE. Just take it. It's usually questionable because of its cost and its Great Artist GPP. In this case, you don't need to worry about the cost.

 

[fed1943]

If you think can get the GL, without help and risk, Parthenon.

Even if you could do without risk, you do it earlier.

Best regards,

 

[Defiant47]

Not intending to be snarky, but it seems to me that you are asking the wrong question at the wrong time.

The fact that the Pyramids was going to spit out an Engineer for you should not be a surprise. You should even be able to work out when that Engineer is going to appear, and decide in advance what position you want to be in when he shows up.

What's the point of the game? Ask yourself that.

For me, it's fun. I know that a lot of people on this board advise you to decide from the start which type of victory you're going for, and that the beginning turns are rather decisive. For me, I just go at it blindly and try to do what's most fun for me (which is to have as many cities... I especially like colonizing very small islands; I'm also in love with religion). I generally try to maintain a balance of strategy and fun, so that I don't go all-out stupid decisions, and I don't go all-out strategy and microthink everything.

With the OP, he's probably playing it just for fun as I am, and when the engineer came and he still hasn't decided what to do with him, he wants to know what other people would do.

To the OP: Definitely support the Hanging Gardens advice... wait until that and use him for that in the same city, especially since you have marble (HG needs stone). It seems to me that you're in a good situation.

 

[Preston85]

Save the GE for GL and try to build the Parthenon.

It should take as long to build Parthenon as to get Lit I guess, so its no loss if you don't get the Parthenon (you get some gold), and it guarantees you building the GL (and quickly).

 

[Norton II]

Hanging Gardens would be nice, but it's a little ways off. I'd say go for the Parthenon, but not in the same city as the Pyramids and GW. That'll get you your next GE faster, and you can use him on whatever you think best (possibly the Hanging Gardens for even more GEs).

 

[dutchfire]

Research metal casting and use him for the colossus?

 

[pigswill]

You won't get full value from GE lightbulbing MC; better to save it for lightbulbing machinery (having said that I don't actually know tech preferences for GE coz I never have enough to find out).

It also depends on whether you expect to be popping more GEs. If so then using it for a classical wonder may be worth doing. Colossus can certainly help. There is also an argument for using it forGlib. You may be able to build it anyway but you'll save quite a bit of time which means you'll get your first GS earlier. Even parthenon has its merits if you build it in a seperate city, it would speed up your next GE ready to burn on eg Great Library.

 

[slowcar]

GL is cheap, especially with marble AND industrious. trading via metal casting is a good idea if you have enough trading partners, best if you have alphabet monopol.

 

[Yeekim]

Being Industrious, I'd certainly lightbulb metal casting and get my cheap forges out ASAP. I am actually wondering no one has advised that yet with a notice to that synergy.

Settling him pays back oh-so-slowly and wonder-rushing... well, you can build them at half price anyway, right?

 

[jerVL/kg]

How long will it take you to research Metal Casting? It's better to wait until you have MC so you can lightbulb Machinery instead (or Engineering, once you have Construction & Mach.) While having MC is nice, it's kinda useless for trading purposes if you don't have Alphabet yet.

It sounds like you've got a good GE farm already up and running, so I would use him to rush The Parthenon, preferably in a low-production border town that needs the culture boost. That way you'll get your second GE lickety-split. Don't worry about GL, you're Industrious + Marble so that will be a quick build, and the Hanging Gardens is cheap, too.

Settling him in your future Ironworks city is an option, but not one I would choose -- of course, if you're really forward-thinking, you can save him to help build the Space Elevator.

 

[Defiant47]

GL is cheap, especially with marble AND industrious. trading via metal casting is a good idea if you have enough trading partners, best if you have alphabet monopol.

GL doesn't need marble. GL doesn't have any special resources as far as I know, though I'd probably have to look it up.

 

[Galileo44]

GL in this case is Great Library not Great Lighthouse. The Lighthouse has no resource multiplier but the Library is doubled by marble.

 

[Dirk1302]

Definitely save him for Great library even more because you've Pyramids. Make sure you get Alfa and Lit soon.