Hammers, hammers, hammers...

[gaiko]

The cavalry part is obsolete but the rest of the strat is better now with BTS.
State property gives +10% production. With Apostolic and state religion you get 2 hammers for each state religion building (that's 6 hammers) Levees, earlier workshop hammer bonus... The prod giant concept is stronger in BTS.

Except that Apostolic (and now Hagia) require Theology, and that splits Obsolete's beeline to Philo, which now also requires traversing Aesthetics (which gives only the S. Paya for GPP, the other two are "art poison", but you'll want to build the Parth in the sister city).

Perhaps just one teensy GPP lightbulb to Theology?, Still have to tech up the "junky" tree branch at Mono.

I don't know how one can do both otherwise, and the AI does prioritize Apostolic. Plus you also have to avoid founding 2 religions at Philo and Theo.

Hagia+Apostolic+SPaya are also 3 _additional_ Wonders you must try to build before Anger What (before you could put off Hagia to getting Engineering after Philo).

And I didn't even mention the Maoi Statues Do you really want to delay a very early hammer boost in a seaside sister city?

 

[Roxlimn]

I don't think that the strategy relies on denying other civs Wonders, though I sure that's part of it. Having more wonders to snag only makes it more tenable, IMO.

 

[The Bowman]

Anger What

The best name I've heard for that wonder yet. We really ought to make a good wonder list for all of these