How do i get big without getting my Science destroyed? (Aka HELP, FRANCE UHV IS MAKING ME INSANE)

[rmontaruli]

There is another thread related to France and its UHV.
Conquering of Europe could be achieved vassalizing England and Spain in the first turns. And getting all european byz cities after their collapse.
North America require 1 city from aztecs, New Oreleans, Montreal, Detroit, and a couple of well spaced cities in the Great Plains, and let their cultural border expand to second ring.

 

[troubleshooting]

So I finally cracked legendary culture by 1700! Turns out if you build Del Fiore & Sistine chapel in Paris, you only need two cathedrals bc Del Fiore will sharply increase how often you get great artists in Paris. I didn’t even need to touch the culture slider! Fun quirk from this playthrough: the natives completely overran the Aztecs, so there was nothing to trigger my conquerors. North America was positively swarming with dog soldiers, jaguars, & a few Mohawks, so that any colony I settled would be overran within four turns until I finally opened worldbuilder. Ended up well short of 40% but succeeded with the wonders and now I’m having a blast riding out the game hoping Bismarck doesn’t turn his nuclear bombers on me.