Golden Age: is it worth it?

[Publius Turr]

So far in my games - only up to Prince level at this point - I've been less than impressed with the impact of triggering a Golden Age. I always seem to have a better use for two Great People in any case. Like to know how others view Golden Ages in terms of their own strategies?

 

[Sahkuhnder]

I usually only do one golden age near the end of the game.

At that point using the GPs as specialists is less useful and the golden age can really provide a big boost due to the large size of your late game empire.

 

[jerVL/kg]

Well, it's worth building the Taj Mahal just for the golden age.

I rarely trigger a GA with specialists unless I need to build LOTS of stuff really quick.

 

[Roland Johansen]

It really depends on the size of your empire. I was playing a game at a huge map and had a decent size empire in the late Renaissance period (just invented riflemen). The golden age given by 2 relatively useless GP at that time (a Great Prophet without a shrine to construct and a Great Artist without a useful culture bomb to use) gave me 210 production and 332 gold+science per turn for 10 turns (epic speed). That's 2100 production and 3320 gold + science. Not bad for 2 Great Persons that I couldn't use very well at that moment. The production was pumped into a further development of my empire (banks, universities and other commercial buildings) which I hadn't been able to build because of a war. My empire was much stronger economically after the golden age.

And the bonus in production and science becomes only greater later in the game as your empire grows in size and development.

 

[lutzj]

i agree if you use a golden age while you have a ton of cities, then the bonus will be awarded to all those cities, allowing you to get an edge on world wonders, train a big army AND make gold

 

[MyOtherName]

In GOTM3, I triggered a golden age with a large empire. I got roughly 700 extra beakers per turn and 120 gold per turn, in addition to the production... for ten turns!

 

[Helmling]

I'd never use an engineer or a scientist...and I've had exactly one merchant this whole time...but when I've got prophets and artists sitting around without much to do, then I might.

What I wonder is, would anyone ever use 3 or more GP's?

 

[atreas]

What I wonder is, would anyone ever use 3 or more GP's?

3 GPs is usually a waste - but there is an obvious case where you can use them with profit. It's the case you go for space race and you have no need for academies, techs, etc, but just for more hammers.

 

[smurfish]

i normally use GAs as tech catchups in Monarch and above after war campaigns.. sometimes in Prince, I'll need one too if I got dragged into early wars that hurts my beaker rate and infrastructure.

 

[JavalTigar]

I find, like Roland, after the first expansion war is the best time to trigger a golden age. In my last game, after taking germanys 7 cities, cleaning up the riots and organizing my infastructure. My prophet / merchant GA was just what the doctor ordered. Charged ahead and never looked back.

 

[jerVL/kg]

3 GPs is usually a waste - but there is an obvious case where you can use them with profit. It's the case you go for space race and you have no need for academies, techs, etc, but just for more hammers.

Prophet + Merchant + Engineer makes a good 3GP GA combo, as by late game all of them are completely useless. Artists are good to hold in reserve for culture-bombing (but if you're not warmongering/expanding, they're expendable too) and Scientists of course are always valuable.

I wonder how many peeople have done a 4GP GA or even a 5GP GA???

 

[kamigawan]

I always do at least one golden age right at the beginning of renaissance era. I find I often start to lag around this time because the beaker cost of techs spikes and I like to get universities up in 6 cities to start working on oxford. So i usually pop the artist i get from Music, and one other. This really gets the ball rolling on techs like education, printing press, liberalism, nationalism, etc. which have nearly double the cost of most medieval era tech. At the same time, use the increased production to get a big head start on universities. Usually I get liberalism around this time, which can fit nicely with nationalism -> taj mahal for a second golden age.

Late in the game the only GPs I use are engineers and artists. No more shrines to build, extra academies don't make much difference (usually less than 1% of the total tech cost) and the beaker bonus for direct discovery is relatively negligible (usually less than 25% of the tech). If I have a prophet, merchant and scientist available (e.g. from physics, economics, + extra prophet), I'll do a late-game GA, usually during a space-race push, culture-push or military buildup.

 

[vapa]

GA is usefull when you have ,I never trigers it until I have more than 6 cities...
Also I use onlz great prophets for GA,other GP are too valuable....

 

[katank]

There's no way you can use only prophets for a GA. You need 2 of differing types.

GAs are great if you are big. 15-20 cities min. I like to trigger once right after I get access to something like universities, labs, factories, etc. Having them go up fast all across the empire helps amplify the lead from the GA. It also helps me sprint ahead to a new tech that may be important.

GAs and chopping forests (if you have any left) are the only ways to speed ship parts production in a space race.

 

[mucco]

I never spend great persons in GAs before the modern era, since they can always do something better up to industrial age. Even joining them can be more profitable. But in the modern era I often trigger at least one GA, because of the tech-and-production challenge of the spaceship. Most of the time I spend five GP for two golden ages in the modern era, but I also did 3 in a row. 24 turns of GA (normal speed) during the SS race is a killer, worth spending 9 great persons. With philosophical trait it's quite easy to get them.

 

[Jas]

Doesn't the manual say you get 20 turns length for the golden age?

 

[Aldor]

In my marathon games, I try to build Taj Mahal (usually works, Nationhood doesn't seem to be too high on the AI's research priorities). Gives 16 turns of double production, which is very valuable at this game speed

 

[katank]

The manual is very wrong then.

Golden ages last 8 turns on normal speed and 16 turns on marathon. It's either 10 or 12 on epic.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Use golden ages as a final resort to build that Spaceship.

 

[pholkhero]

10 on epic, but should be longer IMO...12 seems good