Great People - how do you used them?

[Xellos-_^]

I tend used the prophets, merchants, artist and scientist as soon as i get them. However i tend to save the engineer for later use. Either founding a corp or building stragetic wonders like the pentagon or three gorge dam.

how does anyone else used them?

 

[Ramesses]

Well, if I haven't already founded a religion, I save Great Prophets until I can use them to research a religious tech first. Otherwise, I build a holy shrine. If the shrine is built, I settle him in a city.

With Great Artists, I almost always settle in my third largest cultural city. If one of my cities is in immediate danger of flipping to a different culture, I make a great work there. If I somehow manage to get a Great Artist and can lightbulb Music first, I choose that instead.

Great Scientists, I build an Academy in the city with the highest science output that does not have an Academy yet, unless that city has a low science output. Then I just lightbulb instead.

I don't get many Great Merchants, but usually I just send them on a trade mission worth 3900 gold (the highest you can get on Marathon, I believe).

 

[PaulisKhan]

Great People - how do you used them?

I tend used the prophets, merchants, artist and scientist as soon as i get them. However i tend to save the engineer for later use. Either founding a corp or building stragetic wonders like the pentagon or three gorge dam.

how does anyone else used them?

Well, my wife tends to use me for menial household chores but sometimes she'll just put me to sleep somewhere and forget about me.

I tell her she needs to optimise her play better but what man really can get his wife to listen.

 

[BarrageQueen]

Well. I used to go for instant gratification with my GP: bulbing, caravaning, etc. Now I mostly settle them in my cities, particularly early game. If it's not a cultural war, then use the GA for a GA.

 

[mica8911]

I always use the golden age unless I need them for whatever reason or if I can't start a golden age because I have two merchants or any other.

 

[Ramesses]

I always use the golden age unless I need them for whatever reason or if I can't start a golden age because I have two merchants or any other.

Golden Ages are seriously overrated. I don't know why anybody would find a really temporary small boost in and to be worth even one great person (let alone two or three). It's the option that you take when you don't know what else to do with it. It's better to just save them until you know what you want to do with it than blow it on a measly Golden Age.

If it added as well, it might be worth it.

 

[GravityWave]

Golden Ages are seriously overrated. I don't know why anybody would find a really temporary small boost in and to be worth even one great person (let alone two or three). It's the option that you take when you don't know what else to do with it. It's better to just save them until you know what you want to do with it than blow it on a measly Golden Age.

If it added as well, it might be worth it.

I agree - the only reason to sacrifice a GP for a Golden Age is if you really need to switch civics and can't afford the anarchy - the free one with the Taj is generally the only one I have during the game.

Adding extra would only really allow you to create extra specialists temporarily imho, which although a plus I'd probably end up getting annoyed at having to go in and select which specialists only to have to remember to unselect them when the Golden Age ended.

Personally I'd like something simple, from the player end any rate, like a reduction in inflation or maintenance (x number of cities get We love the x days for example).

 

[christian_a]

In my early Civ IV days - before I really realized the scope of CEand SE - I most often used Prohpets for Shrines, and the rest for Golden Ages, until it became too expensive. Often an Engineer would be used to rush an important Wonder. And sometimes use them to bulb techs. In the late game, most options were already used up, so I'd just settle them for little effect (my opinion at the time). This was at the lower difficulties.

These days, it mostly depends on whether I play CE or SE.

For CE I use Prophets for Shrines still, I like founding religions, and if I can get away with an early one I do it. Otherwise getting one from CoL is also a priority. Scientists I use for Academies, sometimes just bilbing or settling. Spys for Scotland Yard, because I like espionage. Most other I save for Corps, and/or keep an Engineer at hand for rushing a Wonder. Or an Artist for culturally boosting an important border city - my own or recently conquered.

For SE it's different. An early religion is something I'd like, but rarely get. But since CoL is important to me, I might get one there, and then build Shrine. In this play style, I tend to cultive GP more structured, so I have a say in which types I get. Scientists first build Academy in super science city, and afterwards settle. Spies also Scotland yard, since my Espionage game is much more used here. The rest the same, bulbing if strategically right at the time, else save for Corps. Save an Engineer for an important Wonder (Great Library for instance). I rarely ever bulb a Prophet for a religion. I don't start many golden ages, perhaps one, max 2, especially if I can't afford the anarchy for vital civics change.

 

[JujuLautre]

Golden Ages are seriously overrated. I don't know why anybody would find a really temporary small boost in and to be worth even one great person (let alone two or three). It's the option that you take when you don't know what else to do with it. It's better to just save them until you know what you want to do with it than blow it on a measly Golden Age.

Golden age? Small boost? Are you kidding ?

Let's take a nice middle-late game empire. 15 cities of average size 15. Under a golden age, let's say that each city will produce on average 10 more commerce and 5 more hammers, with modifiers of 50% on average for commerce and 25% for production. That makes 15*10*1,5*8 = 1800 commerce (beakers and gold) and 15*5*1,25*8 = 750 production. I'm not even talking about civic switch possibilities and boost to GPP.

With the same setting, a great scientist would produce 2275 beakers for bulbing, and, let's say, 150*6*3 = 2700 beakers over the course of the game if settled (assuming 150 turns with academy, library, university and oxford).

At this point, we already have comparable outputs. Output which will go much bigger for the GA as the game goes on that they will for bulbing.

NOt to say that you should burn GP on golden ages all the time, but they should not be underestimated either. The value of a golden age increases with your empire size, which is usually the same as time. On the other hand, the value of bulbing and equivalent (great engineers rushing ability), as well as the value of settling and equivalent(academy...), diminishes over time. If you have good sized empires, at some point, settling becomes useless, and then GA simply blow up bulbing.

 

[mujambee]

I usually save one Great Merchant for Sid's Sushi; and if a Great Engineer comes right in time, also save it for Creative Constructions.

Those corps are great helpers when trying to develop a newly "aquired" city.

 

[Yngvi]

great scientist: bulbing; maybe academy with right city
great merchant: trade mission
great engineer: wonder if at all possible
great prophet: shrine if possible, or join city
great spy: usually join city, maybe spy mission if I really want a tech
great general: sometimes join city and sometimes promote unit
great artist: make great artwork sometimes in a cultural city or often in a border city with a really annoying culture neighbor like Pericles nearby
Depending on need/opportunity: corporation
Almost never: start a golden age; whatever the stats, the golden age just does not last long enough; there is nearly always something I think is better.

 

[Joshua368]

Yeah, I think the people who almost never use golden ages are missing out big time. Now of course I'm not advocating using every great person for them, that's just a bad idea, but using them strategically at key points in the game can let their "short" bonus domino into large returns. I'll usually have 2-3 golden ages throughout the game, excluding the Taj. And of course the Mausoleum isn't a bad wonder either.

The idea with the golden age is not to just use it when you pop a great person who don't particularly need. Store the guys and plan when you need to use them. And yes, the individual powers of great people are strong, and usually I won't use one on a golden age until after using one. But do I really need a second shrine for that small religion I've barely spread? Do I really need a second acadamy? I'm not in a culture battle, do I need this artist?

Golden ages give a large boost to your entire empire, I don't see why anyone would consider them insignifigant. Your research is pushed about a notch or two higher, and your cities are signifigantly more productive. Good points I've found for golden ages are in the early renaissance when I'm putting up universities and planning to begin my first cannon-based war, or once I get Assembly Line and need to get factories and coal plants up everywhere as soon as possible. And of course any time in the late game when civics need to be switched... very handy.

Plus with the exception of founding corporations their specific effects get signifigantly weaker as the game goes on, making the golden age (which only gets stronger) more inticing. Rush the Statue of Liberty? It only shaves off half the time. Trade mission? Turn off research for three or four turns instead. Not worthless by any means... but weaker than they were at the beginning.

 

[Ramesses]

And of course any time in the late game when civics need to be switched... very handy.

Well I always play as a Spiritual leader, so the "No Anarchy" thing means nothing to me.

But you do make plenty of good points otherwise.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

Great Artist - 1st one for golden age, subsequent get settled in a border dispute city or gold city

Great Prophet - 1st to build shrine in my most spread religion. 2nd and subsequent get settled in my Great Prophet/priest city (if SE) or my Wall Street city (if CE)

Great Merchant - Settled in my Wall Street City unless my economy is severely crippled, then I'll send him on a mission for big one time gold

Great Engineer - Use for a wonder

Great Scientist - 1st one bulb Philosophy (if I'm not guaranteed to get it), 2nd creates Academy in my science (Oxford) city, 3rd and beyond are settled in Oxford city.

Great General - 1st gets settled (if too long before Theocracy), 2nd one gets attached to a unit to be a medic for level 5 HE requirement (unless I'm going to war a lot and will naturally earn a Level 5/6 unit), 3rd makes military academy in my unit production city, 4th and beyond get settled in the unit production city.

 

[Joshua368]

Well I always play as a Spiritual leader, so the "No Anarchy" thing means nothing to me.

But you do make plenty of good points otherwise.

People who play the same leader or trait every game make me die a little inside. Go and try something else for a change dangit.

I have played 34 different leaders and counting.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

People who play the same leader or trait every game make me die a little inside. Go and try something else for a change dangit.

TOTALLY agree. It's difficult, but once you do it, you have more fun.

I've been getting wins all over my chosen difficulty (Noble) with everyone from Rameses II to DeGaul, William van Oranje to Franklin Roosevelt.

 

[Chiyochan]

I almost never lightbulb because I bee line pyramids for rep, then rake in all the settled +3 beakers

 

[mica8911]

TOTALLY agree. It's difficult, but once you do it, you have more fun.

I've been getting wins all over my chosen difficulty (Noble) with everyone from Rameses II to DeGaul, William van Oranje to Franklin Roosevelt.

I like to use the different leaders too just to see things at a different angle. I also like using the different civs just to hear the different languages.

 

[blitzkrieg1980]

I almost never lightbulb because I bee line pyramids for rep, then rake in all the settled +3 beakers

Sometimes, on higher levels, sacrificing the first +3 Great Scientist is worth it to rush Philosophy (founding Taoism and opening up Angkor Wat and your first step to Liberalism)

 

[michmbk]

A golden age late in the game can be huge. I typically don't use one for a golden age until at least teching nationalism, but using a GP there or later for a golden age can be huge - the tech and production bonus for those 10 turns (on epic) is incredible, and civic switches are huge too.